,transcriber's ,note3 ,inconsistent hyphenation and spelling in the original document have been preserved4 ,obvious typographical errors have been corrected4 ,italic text is denoted by underscores4 ,the bracketed footnotes are as in the original4 ,inconsistent or incorrect accents and spelling in passages in ,french1 ,latin and ,italian have been left unchanged4 7final form sigma7 in the middle of a word has been normalized to 4 ,greek diacritics were normalized to be all present or all missing1 according to their preponderance in the quotation4 ,the paragraph starting ,page #b1 column #b has an unmatched quote4 ,the following possible inconsistencies_/printer errors_/archaic spellings_/different names for different entities were identified but left as printed3 ,vanderkemp and ,vander ,kemp ,potomac and ,patomac ,postlethwayte and ,postlethwaite ,mecklenburg and ,mecklenberg ascendancy and ascendency4 ,on page #cc1 ,molliores ,spsyke should possibly be ,molire's ,psych4 ,on page #eb1 multnomat should possibly be ,multnomat4 ,on page #aha1 ,universary should possibly be ,university4 ,on page #aib1 sculk should possibly be skulk4 ,on page #ecg1 the price of the ,algerine captives is stated as #cd1gi1bbh11 which is probably a printer's error4 ,on page #edf1 termometer should possibly be thermometer4 ,,the ,,writings ,,of ,,thomas ,,jefferson3 ,,being ,,his ,,autobiography1 ,,correspondence1 ,,reports1 ,,messages1 ,,addresses1 ,,and ,,other ,,writings1 ,,official ,,and ,,private4 ,,published ,,by ,,the ,,order ,,of ,,the ,,joint ,,committee ,,of ,,congress ,,on ,,the ,,library1 ,,from ,,the ,,original ,,manuscripts1 ,,deposited ,,in ,,the ,,department ,,of ,,state4 ,,with ,,explanatory ,,notes1 ,,tables ,,of ,,contents1 ,,and ,a ,,copious ,,index ,,to ,,each ,,volume1 ,,as ,,well ,,as ,a ,,general ,,index ,,to ,,the ,,whole1 ,,by ,,the ,,editor ,h4 ,a4 ,,washington4 ,,vol4 ,,vii4 ,,new ,,york3 ,h4 ,w4 ,,derby1 #fbe ,,broadway4 #ahfa4 ,entered1 according to ,act of ,congress1 in the year #ahec1 by ,,taylor ,,maury1 ,in the ,clerk's ,office of the ,district ,court for the ,district of ,columbia4 ,,contents ,,to ,,vol4 ,,vii4 ,,book ,,ii4 ,,part ,,iii4--,,continued4--,,letters ,,written ,,after ,,his ,,return ,,to ,,the ,,united ,,states ,,down ,,to ,,the ,,time ,,of ,,his ,,death4--7#agij-ahbf17--c4 ,adams1 ,john1 letters written to1 #be1 #cg1 #dc1 #ed1 #fa1 #ha1 #aii1 #bag1 #bdc1 #bed1 #bfd1 #bgd1 #bhj1 #cjg1 #cac1 #ccg1 #dce4 ,adams1 ,mrs4 ,a41 letter written to1 #eb4 ,adams1 ,j4 ,q41 letter written to1 #dcf4 ,barry1 ,wm4 ,t41 letter written to1 #bee4 ,blatchly1 ,c4 ,c41 letter written to1 #bfc4 ,breckenridge1 ,general1 letters written to1 #bjd1 #bcg4 ,cabell1 ,joseph ,c41 letters written to1 #bja1 #cbi1 #cej1 #cib4 ,campbell1 ,john1 letter written to1 #bfh4 ,cartwright1 ,major ,john1 letter written to1 #cee4 ,cooper1 ,dr41 letter written to1 #bff4 ,corey1 ,m41 letter written to1 #cah4 ,crawford1 ,wm4 ,h41 letter written to1 #e4 ,dearborne1 ,general1 letter written to1 #bad4 ,delaplaine1 ,mr41 letter written to1 #bj4 ,denison1 ,hon4 ,j4 ,evelyn1 letter written to1 #dae4 ,earle1 ,thomas1 letter written to1 #caj4 ,emmet1 ,dr41 letters written to1 #dch1 #dda4 ,engelbrecht1 ,isaac1 letter written to1 #ccg4 ,eppes1 ,francis1 letter written to1 #aig4 ,everett1 ,edward1 letters written to1 #bcb1 #bgj1 #cdj1 #chj1 #dcg4 ,flower1 ,george1 letter written to1 #hc4 ,gallatin1 ,albert1 letter written to1 #gg4 ,garnett1 ,robert ,j41 letter written to1 #ccf4 ,giles1 ,wm4 ,b41 letters written to1 #dbd1 #dbf4 ,gilmer1 ,francis ,w41 letter written to1 #c4 ,gooch1 ,claiborne ,w41 letter written to1 #dcj4 ,hammond1 ,mr4 ,c41 letter written to1 #bae4 ,harding1 ,david ,h41 letter written to1 #cdf4 ,hopkins1 ,george ,f41 letter written to1 #bei4 ,humboldt1 ,baron1 letter written to1 #gd4 ,humphreys1 ,dr4 ,thomas1 letter written to1 #eg4 ,johnson1 ,judge1 letters written to1 #bgf1 #bij4 ,kerchival1 ,samuel1 letters written to1 #i1 #ce4 ,la ,fayette1 ,marquis de1 letters written to1 #fe1 #cbd1 #cgh4 ,lee1 ,h41 letters written to1 #cgf1 #djg4 ,lee1 ,wm41 letter written to1 #ef4 ,livingston1 ,edward1 letters written to1 #cdb1 #djb4 ,logan1 ,dr41 letter written to1 #ai4 ,ludlow1 ,wm41 letter written to1 #cgg4 ,macon1 ,nathaniel1 letter written to1 #bbb4 ,madison1 ,james1 letters written to1 #cjd1 #cgc1 #dbb1 #dcb4 ,manners1 ,dr4 ,john1 letter written to1 #gb4 ,mansfield1 ,jared1 letter written to1 #bjc4 ,marbois1 ,m4 de1 letter written to1 #gf4 ,mease1 ,dr4 ,james1 letter written to1 #daj4 ,megan1 ,mr41 letter written to1 #bhf4 ,mellish1 ,mr41 letter written to1 #ea4 ,morse1 ,jedediah1 letter written to1 #bcc4 ,nicholas1 ,mr41 letter written to1 #bbi4 ,pickering1 ,timothy1 letter written to1 #baj4 ,pleasants1 ,john ,hampden1 letter written to1 #cdd4 ,plumer1 ,governor1 letter written to1 #ah4 ,president1 ,the1 letters written to1 #bhg1 #bii1 #cae4 ,ritchie ,gooch1 letters written to1 #bci1 #bdf4 ,roane1 ,judge1 letters written to1 #baa1 #bab4 ,rodgers1 ,patrick ,k41 letter written to1 #cbg4 ,roscoe1 ,mr41 letter written to1 #aie4 ,rush ,richard1 letters written to1 #cdg1 #cgi4 ,secretary of ,state1 letter written to1 #da4 ,short1 ,wm41 letters written to1 #cji1 #chi4 ,sinclair1 ,st4 ,john1 letter written to1 #bb4 ,skidman1 ,thomas1 letter written to1 #beh4 ,smith1 ,mr4 ,m4 ,harrison1 letter written to1 #bg4 ,smith1 ,james1 letter written to1 #bfi4 ,smith1 ,general ,samuel1 letters written to1 #bhd4 ,smith1 ,t4 ,j41 letter written to1 #dja4 ,smyth1 ,general ,alexander1 letter written to1 #cid4 ,sparks1 ,jared1 letter written to1 #ccb4 ,stuart1 ,josephus ,b41 letter written to1 #fd4 ,summers1 ,george ,w41 c41 letter written to1 #bcj4 ,taylor1 ,john1 letter written to1 #ag4 ,taylor1 ,hugh ,p41 letter written to1 #b4 ,terrel1 ,dabney1 letter written to1 #bjf4 ,terril1 ,chiles1 letter written to1 #bfj4 ,thweat1 ,archibald1 letters written to1 #aih4 ,tiffany1 ,isaac ,h41 letter written to1 #ca4 ,ticknor1 ,george1 letter written to1 #cjj4 ,van ,buren1 ,martin1 letter written to1 #cfb4 ,vaughan1 ,john1 letter written to1 #dji4 ,waterhouse1 ,dr4 ,benjamin1 letters written to1 #beb1 #beg4 ,weightman1 ,mr41 letter written to1 #dej4 ,whittemore1 ,mr4 ,robert1 letter written to1 #bde4 ,wiss1 ,lewis ,m41 letter written to1 #dai4 ,woodward1 ,mr41 letter written to1 #cch4 ,woodward1 ,judge ,augustus ,b41 letter written to1 #dje4 ,wright1 ,miss1 letter written to1 #djh4 ,address lost1 letters written to1 #bbj1 #bbc1 #chc1 #cig1 #daa1 #dbe1 #dca1 #ddd4 ,letters to ,thomas ,jefferson from ,john ,adams1 #bi1 #ch1 #dg1 #eh1 #fh1 #gj1 #he1 #bai1 #bfa1 #bgi1 #cjb1 #cif4 ,,book ,,iii4--,,part ,i4 ,,reports ,,and ,,opinions ,,while ,,secretary ,,of ,,state4 #a4 ,report on the method of obtaining fresh water from salt1 #dee4 #b4 ,opinion on the proposition for establishing a woollen manufactory in ,virginia1 #dfj4 #c4 ,report on copper coinage1 #dfb4 #d4 ,opinion on the question whether the ,senate has the right to negative the grade of persons appointed by the ,executive to fill foreign missions1 #dfe4 #e4 ,opinion on the validity of a grant made by the ,state of ,georgia to certain companies of individuals1 of a tract of country1 whereof the ,indian right had never been extinguished1 with power to such individuals to extinguish the ,indian right1 #dfg4 #f4 ,opinion in favor of the ,resolution of ,may #ba1 #agij1 directing that1 in all cases where payment had not been already made1 the debts due to the soldiers of ,virginia and ,north ,carolina1 should be paid to the original claimants1 and not to their assignees1 #dfi4 #g4 ,report on plan for establishing uniformity in the coins1 weights and measures1 of the ,united ,states1 #dgb4 #h4 ,opinion on the question whether the ,president should veto the bill1 declaring that the seat of government shall be transferred to the ,potomac in the year #agij1 #dih4 #i4 ,opinion respecting expenses and salaries of foreign ministers1 #eja4 #aj4 ,opinion in regard to the continuances of the monopoly of the commerce of the ,creek nation enjoyed by ,colonel ,mc,gillivray1 #ejd4 #aa4 ,opinion respecting our foreign debt1 #ejf4 #ab4 ,opinion on the question whether ,lord ,dorchester should be permitted to march troops through the territories of ,united ,states from ,detroit to the ,mississippi1 #ejh4 #ac4 ,opinion on the question whether the real object of the expedition of ,governor ,st4 ,clair1 should be notified to ,lord ,dorchester1 #eaj4 #ad4 ,opinion on the proceedings to be had under the ,residence ,act1 #eaa4 #ae4 ,report of the ,secretary of ,state to the ,president of the ,united ,states on the ,report of the ,secretary of the ,government of the ,north-,west of the ,ohio1 #eac4 #af4 ,opinion on certain proceedings of the ,executive in the ,north-,western ,territory1 #eae4 #ag4 ,report on certain letters between the ,president and ,governeur ,morris1 relative to our difficulties with ,england1 #eag4 #ah4 ,report on the ,mediterranean trade1 #eai4 #ai4 ,report on the ,algerine prisoners1 #ecb4 #bj4 ,report on the cod and whale fisheries1 #ech4 #ba4 ,opinion against the constitutionality of a ,national ,bank1 #eee4 #bb4 ,opinion relative to the ten mile square for the federal government1 #efa4 #bc4 ,report on the policy of securing peculiar marks to manufacturers by law1 #efc4 #bd4 ,opinion relative to the demolition of ,mr4 ,carroll's house by ,major ,l',enfant1 in laying out the ,federal ,city #efd4 #be4 ,opinion relative to certain lands on ,lake ,erie1 sold by the ,u4 ,states to ,pennsylvania1 #efg4 #bf4 ,report on the negotiations with ,spain to secure the navigation of the ,mississippi1 and a port on the same1 #efh4 #bg4 ,report on the case of ,charles ,russell and others1 claiming certain lands1 #eib4 #bh4 ,report relative to negotiations at ,madrid1 #eic4 #bi4 ,opinion on bill apportioning representation1 #eid4 #cj4 ,opinion relative to the re-capture of slaves1 escaped to ,florida1 #fja4 #ca4 ,report on the assays at the mint1 #fjd4 #cb4 ,report on the petition of ,john ,rodgers relative to certain lands on the north-east side of the ,tennessee1 #fje4 #cc4 ,report relative to the boundaries of the lands between the ,ohio and the lakes acquired by treaties from the ,indians1 #fjh4 #cd4 ,report on proceedings of ,secretary of ,state to transfer to ,europe the annual fund of #dj1jjj1 appropriated to that department1 #faj4 #ce4 ,opinion on the question whether the ,united ,states have the right to renounce their treaties with ,france1 or hold them suspended1 until the government of that country shall become established1 #faa4 #cf4 ,opinion relative to granting passports to ,american vessels1 #fbd4 #cg4 ,opinion relative to the case of a ,british vessel captured by a ,french vessel1 purchased by ,french citizens1 and fitted out as a privateer in one of our ports1 #fbf4 #ch4 ,opinion on the proposition of the ,secretary of the ,treasury to open a new loan1 #fbi4 #ci4 ,opinion relative to the policy of a new loan1 #fcc4 #dj4 ,report on the restrictions and privileges of the commerce of the ,united states in foreign countries1 #fcf4 #da4 ,report on the mint1 #fea4 ,,part ,,iii4--,,continued4 ,,letters ,,written ,,after ,,his ,,return ,,to ,,the ,u4 ,s4 ,,down ,,to ,,the ,,time ,,of ,,his ,,death4 #agij-ahbf4 ,,to ,,francis ,w4 ,,gilmer4 ,,monticello1 ,june #g1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i received a few days ago from ,mr4 ,dupont the enclosed manuscript1 with permission to read it1 and a request1 when read1 to forward it to you1 in expectation that you would translate it4 ,it is well worthy of publication for the instruction of our citizens1 being profound1 sound1 and short4 ,our legislators are not sufficiently apprized of the rightful limits of their power2 that their true office is to declare and enforce only our natural rights and duties1 and to take none of them from us4 ,no man has a natural right to commit aggression on the equal rights of another2 and this is all from which the laws ought to restrain him2 every man is under the natural duty of contributing to the necessities of the society2 and this is all the laws should enforce on him2 and1 no man having a natural right to be the judge between himself and another1 it is his natural duty to submit to the umpirage of an impartial third4 ,when the laws have declared and enforced all this1 they have fulfilled their functions1 and the idea is quite unfounded1 that on entering into society we give up any natural right4 ,the trial of every law by one of these texts1 would lessen much the labors of our legislators1 and lighten equally our municipal codes4 ,there is a work of the first order of merit now in the press at ,washington1 by ,destutt ,tracy1 on the subject of political economy1 which he brings into the compass of three hundred pages1 octavo4 ,in a preliminary discourse on the origin of the right of property1 he coincides much with the principles of the present manuscript2 but is more developed1 more demonstrative4 ,he promises a future work on morals1 in which ,i lament to see that he will adopt the principles of ,hobbes1 or humiliation to human nature2 that the sense of justice and injustice is not derived from our natural organization1 but founded on convention only4 ,i lament this the more1 as he is unquestionably the ablest writer living1 on abstract subjects4 ,assuming the fact1 that the earth has been created in time1 and consequently the dogma of final causes1 we yield1 of course1 to this short syllogism4 ,man was created for social intercourse2 but social intercourse cannot be maintained without a sense of justice2 then man must have been created with a sense of justice4 ,there is an error into which most of the speculators on government have fallen1 and which the well-known state of society of our ,indians ought1 before now1 to have corrected4 ,in their hypothesis of the origin of government1 they suppose it to have commenced in the patriarchal or monarchical form4 ,our ,indians are evidently in that state of nature which has passed the association of a single family2 and not yet submitted to the authority of positive laws1 or of any acknowledged magistrate4 ,every man1 with them1 is perfectly free to follow his own inclinations4 ,but if1 in doing this1 he violates the rights of another1 if the case be slight1 he is punished by the disesteem of his society1 or1 as we say1 by public opinion2 if serious1 he is tomahawked as a dangerous enemy4 ,their leaders conduct them by the influence of their character only2 and they follow1 or not1 as they please1 him of whose character for wisdom or war they have the highest opinion4 ,hence the origin of the parties among them adhering to different leaders1 and governed by their advice1 not by their command4 ,the ,cherokees1 the only tribe ,i know to be contemplating the establishment of regular laws1 magistrates1 and government1 propose a government of representatives1 elected from every town4 ,but of all things1 they least think of subjecting themselves to the will of one man4 ,this1 the only instance of actual fact within our knowledge1 will be then a beginning by republican1 and not by patriarchal or monarchical government1 as speculative writers have generally conjectured4 ,we have to join in mutual congratulations on the appointment of our friend ,correa1 to be minister or envoy of ,portugal1 here4 ,this1 ,i hope1 will give him to us for life4 ,nor will it at all interfere with his botanical rambles or journeys4 ,the government of ,portugal is so peaceable and inoffensive1 that it has never any altercations with its friends4 ,if their minister abroad writes them once a quarter that all is well1 they desire no more4 ,i learn1 7though not from ,correa himself17 that he thinks of paying us a visit as soon as he is through his course of lectures4 ,not to lose this happiness again by my absence1 ,i have informed him ,i shall set out for ,poplar ,forest the #bjth instant1 and be back the first week of ,july4 ,i wish you and he could concert your movements so us to meet here1 and that you would make this your head quarters4 ,it is a good central point from which to visit your connections2 and you know our practice of placing our guests at their ease1 by showing them we are so ourselves and that we follow our necessary vocations1 instead of fatiguing them by hanging unremittingly on their shoulders4 ,i salute you with affectionate esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,william ,h4 ,,crawford4 ,,monticello1 ,june #bj1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i am about to sin against all discretion1 and knowingly1 by adding to the drudgery of your letter-reading1 this acknowledgment of the receipt of your favor of ,may the #cast1 with the papers it covered4 ,i cannot1 however1 deny myself the gratification of expressing the satisfaction ,i have received1 not only from the general statement of affairs at ,paris1 in yours of ,december the #abth1 #ahad4 7as a matter of history which ,i had not before received47 but most especially and superlatively1 from the perusal of your letter of the #hth of the same month to ,mr4 ,fisk1 on the subject of draw-backs4 ,this most heterogeneous principle was transplanted into ours from the ,british system1 by a man whose mind was really powerful1 but chained by native partialities to everything ,english2 who had formed exaggerated ideas of the superior perfection of the ,english constitution1 the superior wisdom of their government1 and sincerely believed it for the good of this country to make them their model in everything2 without considering that what might be wise and good for a nation essentially commercial1 and entangled in complicated intercourse with numerous and powerful neighbors1 might not be so for one essentially agricultural1 and insulated by nature from the abusive governments of the old world4 ,the exercise1 by our own citizens1 of so much commerce as may suffice to exchange our superfluities for our wants1 may be advantageous for the whole4 ,but it does not follow1 that with a territory so boundless1 it is the interest of the whole to become a mere city of ,london1 to carry on the business of one half the world at the expense of eternal war with the other half4 ,the agricultural capacities of our country constitute its distinguishing feature2 and the adapting our policy and pursuits to that1 is more likely to make us a numerous and happy people1 than the mimicry of an ,amsterdam1 a ,hamburgh1 or a city of ,london4 ,every society has a right to fix the fundamental principles of its association1 and to say to all individuals1 that1 if they contemplate pursuits beyond the limits of these principles1 and involving dangers which the society chooses to avoid1 they must go somewhere else for their exercise2 that we want no citizens1 and still less ephemeral and pseudo-citizens1 on such terms4 ,we may exclude them from our territory1 as we do persons infected with disease4 ,such is the situation of our country4 ,we have most abundant resources of happiness within ourselves1 which we may enjoy in peace and safety1 without permitting a few citizens1 infected with the mania of rambling and gambling1 to bring danger on the great mass engaged in innocent and safe pursuits at home4 ,in your letter to ,fisk1 you have fairly stated the alternatives between which we are to choose3 #a1 licentious commerce and gambling speculations for a few1 with eternal war for the many2 or1 #b1 restricted commerce1 peace1 and steady occupations for all4 ,if any ,state in the ,union will declare that it prefers separation with the first alternative1 to a continuance in union without it1 ,i have no hesitation in saying1 let us separate4 ,i would rather the ,states should withdraw1 which are for unlimited commerce and war1 and confederate with those alone which are for peace and agriculture4 ,i know that every nation in ,europe would join in sincere amity with the latter1 and hold the former at arm's length1 by jealousies1 prohibitions1 restrictions1 vexations and war4 ,no earthly consideration could induce my consent to contract such a debt as ,england has by her wars for commerce1 to reduce our citizens by taxes to such wretchedness1 as that laboring sixteen of the twenty-four hours1 they are still unable to afford themselves bread1 or barely to earn as much oatmeal or potatoes as will keep soul and body together4 ,and all this to feed the avidity of a few millionary merchants1 and to keep up one thousand ships of war for the protection of their commercial speculations4 ,i returned from ,europe after our government had got under way1 and had adopted from the ,british code the law of draw-backs4 ,i early saw its effects in the jealousies and vexations of ,britain2 and that1 retaining it1 we must become like her an essentially warring nation1 and meet1 in the end1 the catastrophe impending over her4 ,no one can doubt that this alone produced the orders of council1 the depredations which preceded1 and the war which followed them4 ,had we carried but our own produce1 and brought back but our own wants1 no nation would have troubled us4 ,our commercial dashers1 then1 have already cost us so many thousand lives1 so many millions of dollars1 more than their persons and all their commerce were worth4 ,when war was declared1 and especially after ,massachusetts1 who had produced it1 took side with the enemy waging it1 ,i pressed on some confidential friends in ,congress to avail us of the happy opportunity of repealing the draw-back2 and ,i do rejoice to find that you are in that sentiment4 ,you are young1 and may be in the way of bringing it into effect4 ,perhaps time1 even yet1 and change of tone1 7for there are symptoms of that in ,massachusetts17 may not have obliterated altogether the sense of our late feelings and sufferings2 may not have induced oblivion of the friends we have lost1 the depredations and conflagrations we have suffered1 and the debts we have incurred1 and have to labor for through the lives of the present generation4 ,the earlier the repeal is proposed1 the more it will be befriended by all these recollections and considerations4 ,this is one of three great measures necessary to insure us permanent prosperity4 ,this preserves our peace4 ,a second should enable us to meet any war1 by adopting the report of the war department1 for placing the force of the nation at effectual command2 and a third should insure resources of money by the suppression of all paper circulation during peace1 and licensing that of the nation alone during war4 ,the metallic medium of which we should be possessed at the commencement of a war1 would be a sufficient fund for all the loans we should need through its continuance2 and if the national bills issued1 be bottomed 7as is indispensable7 on pledges of specific taxes for their redemption within certain and moderate epochs1 and be of proper denominations for circulation1 no interest on them would be necessary or just1 because they would answer to every one the purposes of the metallic money withdrawn and replaced by them4 ,but possibly these may be the dreams of an old man1 or that the occasions of realizing them may have passed away without return4 ,a government regulating itself by what is wise and just for the many1 uninfluenced by the local and selfish views of the few who direct their affairs1 has not been seen perhaps1 on earth4 ,or if it existed1 for a moment1 at the birth of ours1 it would not be easy to fix the term of its continuance4 ,still1 ,i believe it does exist here in a greater degree than anywhere else2 and for its growth and continuance1 as well as for your personal health and happiness1 ,i offer sincere prayers1 with the homage of my respect and esteem4 ,,to ,,samuel ,,kerchival4 ,,monticello1 ,july #ab1 #ahaf4 ,,sir1--,i duly received your favor of ,june the #acth1 with the copy of the letters on the calling a convention1 on which you are pleased to ask my opinion4 ,i have not been in the habit of mysterious reserve on any subject1 nor of buttoning up my opinions within my own doublet4 ,on the contrary1 while in public service especially1 ,i thought the public entitled to frankness1 and intimately to know whom they employed4 ,but ,i am now retired3 ,i resign myself1 as a passenger1 with confidence to those at present at the helm1 and ask but for rest1 peace and good will4 ,the question you propose1 on equal representation1 has become a party one1 in which ,i wish to take no public share4 ,yet1 if it be asked for your own satisfaction only1 and not to be quoted before the public1 ,i have no motive to withhold it1 and the less from you1 as it coincides with your own4 ,at the birth of our republic1 ,i committed that opinion to the world1 in the draught of a constitution annexed to the ,notes on ,virginia1 in which a provision was inserted for a representation permanently equal4 ,the infancy of the subject at that moment1 and our inexperience of self-government1 occasioned gross departures in that draught from genuine republican canons4 ,in truth1 the abuses of monarchy had so much filled all the space of political contemplation1 that we imagined everything republican which was not monarchy4 ,we had not yet penetrated to the mother principle1 that governments are republican only in proportion as they embody the will of their people1 and execute it4 ,hence1 our first constitutions had really no leading principles in them4 ,but experience and reflection have but more and more confirmed me in the particular importance of the equal representation then proposed4 ,on that point1 then1 ,i am entirely in sentiment with your letters2 and only lament that a copy-right of your pamphlet prevents their appearance in the newspapers1 where alone they would be generally read1 and produce general effect4 ,the present vacancy too1 of other matter1 would give them place in every paper1 and bring the question home to every man's conscience4 ,but inequality of representation in both ,houses of our legislature1 is not the only republican heresy in this first essay of our revolutionary patriots at forming a constitution4 ,for let it be agreed that a government is republican in proportion as every member composing it has his equal voice in the direction of its concerns1 7not indeed in person1 which would be impracticable beyond the limits of a city1 or small township1 but7 by representatives chosen by himself1 and responsible to him at short periods1 and let us bring to the test of this canon every branch of our constitution4 ,in the legislature1 the ,house of ,representatives is chosen by less than half the people1 and not at all in proportion to those who do choose4 ,the ,senate are still more disproportionate1 and for long terms of irresponsibility4 ,in the ,executive1 the ,governor is entirely independent of the choice of the people1 and of their control2 his ,council equally so1 and at best but a fifth wheel to a wagon4 ,in the ,judiciary1 the judges of the highest courts are dependent on none but themselves4 ,in ,england1 where judges were named and removable at the will of an hereditary executive1 from which branch most misrule was feared1 and has flowed1 it was a great point gained1 by fixing them for life1 to make them independent of that executive4 ,but in a government founded on the public will1 this principle operates in an opposite direction1 and against that will4 ,there1 too1 they were still removable on a concurrence of the executive and legislative branches4 ,but we have made them independent of the nation itself4 ,they are irremovable1 but by their own body1 for any depravities of conduct1 and even by their own body for the imbecilities of dotage4 ,the justices of the inferior courts are self-chosen1 are for life1 and perpetuate their own body in succession forever1 so that a faction once possessing themselves of the bench of a county1 can never be broken up1 but hold their county in chains1 forever indissoluble4 ,yet these justices are the real executive as well as judiciary1 in all our minor and most ordinary concerns4 ,they tax us at will2 fill the office of sheriff1 the most important of all the executive officers of the county2 name nearly all our military leaders1 which leaders1 once named1 are removable but by themselves4 ,the juries1 our judges of all fact1 and of law when they choose it1 are not selected by the people1 nor amenable to them4 ,they are chosen by an officer named by the court and executive4 ,chosen1 did ,i say8 ,picked up by the sheriff from the loungings of the court yard1 after everything respectable has retired from it4 ,where then is our republicanism to be found8 ,not in our constitution certainly1 but merely in the spirit of our people4 ,that would oblige even a despot to govern us republicanly4 ,owing to this spirit1 and to nothing in the form of our constitution1 all things have gone well4 ,but this fact1 so triumphantly misquoted by the enemies of reformation1 is not the fruit of our constitution1 but has prevailed in spite of it4 ,our functionaries have done well1 because generally honest men4 ,if any were not so1 they feared to show it4 ,but it will be said1 it is easier to find faults than to amend them4 ,i do not think their amendment so difficult as is pretended4 ,only lay down true principles1 and adhere to them inflexibly4 ,do not be frightened into their surrender by the alarms of the timid1 or the croakings of wealth against the ascendency of the people4 ,if experience be called for1 appeal to that of our fifteen or twenty governments for forty years1 and show me where the people have done half the mischief in these forty years1 that a single despot would have done in a single year2 or show half the riots and rebellions1 the crimes and the punishments1 which have taken place in any single nation1 under kingly government1 during the same period4 ,the true foundation of republican government is the equal right of every citizen1 in his person and property1 and in their management4 ,try by this1 as a tally1 every provision of our constitution1 and see if it hangs directly on the will of the people4 ,reduce your legislature to a convenient number for full1 but orderly discussion4 ,let every man who fights or pays1 exercise his just and equal right in their election4 ,submit them to approbation or rejection at short intervals4 ,let the executive be chosen in the same way1 and for the same term1 by those whose agent he is to be2 and leave no screen of a council behind which to skulk from responsibility4 ,it has been thought that the people are not competent electors of judges learned in the law4 ,but ,i do not know that this is true1 and1 if doubtful1 we should follow principle4 ,in this1 as in many other elections1 they would be guided by reputation1 which would not err oftener1 perhaps1 than the present mode of appointment4 ,in one ,state of the ,union1 at least1 it has long been tried1 and with the most satisfactory success4 ,the judges of ,connecticut have been chosen by the people every six months1 for nearly two centuries1 and ,i believe there has hardly ever been an instance of change2 so powerful is the curb of incessant responsibility4 ,if prejudice1 however1 derived from a monarchical institution1 is still to prevail against the vital elective principle of our own1 and if the existing example among ourselves of periodical election of judges by the people be still mistrusted1 let us at least not adopt the evil1 and reject the good1 of the ,english precedent2 let us retain amovability on the concurrence of the executive and legislative branches1 and nomination by the executive alone4 ,nomination to office is an executive function4 ,to give it to the legislature1 as we do1 is a violation of the principle of the separation of powers4 ,it swerves the members from correctness1 by temptations to intrigue for office themselves1 and to a corrupt barter of votes2 and destroys responsibility by dividing it among a multitude4 ,by leaving nomination in its proper place1 among executive functions1 the principle of the distribution of power is preserved1 and responsibility weighs with its heaviest force on a single head4 ,the organization of our county administrations may be thought more difficult4 ,but follow principle1 and the knot unties itself4 ,divide the counties into wards of such size as that every citizen can attend1 when called on1 and act in person4 ,ascribe to them the government of their wards in all things relating to themselves exclusively4 ,a justice1 chosen by themselves1 in each1 a constable1 a military company1 a patrol1 a school1 the care of their own poor1 their own portion of the public roads1 the choice of one or more jurors to serve in some court1 and the delivery1 within their own wards1 of their own votes for all elective officers of higher sphere1 will relieve the county administration of nearly all its business1 will have it better done1 and by making every citizen an acting member of the government1 and in the offices nearest and most interesting to him1 will attach him by his strongest feelings to the independence of his country1 and its republican constitution4 ,the justices thus chosen by every ward1 would constitute the county court1 would do its judiciary business1 direct roads and bridges1 levy county and poor rates1 and administer all the matters of common interest to the whole country4 ,these wards1 called townships in ,new ,england1 are the vital principle of their governments1 and have proved themselves the wisest invention ever devised by the wit of man for the perfect exercise of self-government1 and for its preservation4 ,we should thus marshal our government into1 #a1 the general federal republic1 for all concerns foreign and federal2 #b1 that of the ,state1 for what relates to our own citizens exclusively2 #c1 the county republics1 for the duties and concerns of the county2 and #d1 the ward republics1 for the small1 and yet numerous and interesting concerns of the neighborhood2 and in government1 as well as in every other business of life1 it is by division and subdivision of duties alone1 that all matters1 great and small1 can be managed to perfection4 ,and the whole is cemented by giving to every citizen1 personally1 a part in the administration of the public affairs4 ,the sum of these amendments is1 #a4 ,general suffrage4 #b4 ,equal representation in the legislature4 #c4 ,an executive chosen by the people4 #d4 ,judges elective or amovable4 #e4 ,justices1 jurors1 and sheriffs elective4 #f4 ,ward divisions4 ,and #g4 ,periodical amendments of the constitution4 ,i have thrown out these as loose heads of amendment1 for consideration and correction2 and their object is to secure self-government by the republicanism of our constitution1 as well as by the spirit of the people2 and to nourish and perpetuate that spirit4 ,i am not among those who fear the people4 ,they1 and not the rich1 are our dependence for continued freedom4 ,and to preserve their independence1 we must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt4 ,we must make our election between economy and liberty1 or profusion and servitude4 ,if we run into such debts1 as that we must be taxed in our meat and in our drink1 in our necessaries and our comforts1 in our labors and our amusements1 for our callings and our creeds1 as the people of ,england are1 our people1 like them1 must come to labor sixteen hours in the twenty-four1 give the earnings of fifteen of these to the government for their debts and daily expenses3 and the sixteenth being insufficient to afford us bread1 we must live1 as they now do1 on oatmeal and potatoes2 have no time to think1 no means of calling the mismanagers to account2 but be glad to obtain subsistence by hiring ourselves to rivet their chains on the necks of our fellow-sufferers4 ,our land-holders1 too1 like theirs1 retaining indeed the title and stewardship of estates called theirs1 but held really in trust for the treasury1 must wander1 like theirs1 in foreign countries1 and be contented with penury1 obscurity1 exile1 and the glory of the nation4 ,this example reads to us the salutary lesson1 that private fortunes are destroyed by public as well as by private extravagance4 ,and this is the tendency of all human governments4 ,a departure from principle in one instance becomes a precedent for a second2 that second for a third2 and so on1 till the bulk of the society is reduced to be mere automatons of misery1 to have no sensibilities left but for sinning and suffering4 ,then begins1 indeed1 the bellum omnium in omnia1 which some philosophers observing to be so general in this world1 have mistaken it for the natural1 instead of the abusive state of man4 ,and the fore horse of this frightful team is public debt4 ,taxation follows that1 and in its train wretchedness and oppression4 ,some men look at constitutions with sanctimonious reverence1 and deem them like the ark of the covenant1 too sacred to be touched4 ,they ascribe to the men of the preceding age a wisdom more than human1 and suppose what they did to be beyond amendment4 ,i knew that age well2 ,i belonged to it1 and labored with it4 ,it deserved well of its country4 ,it was very like the present1 but without the experience of the present2 and forty years of experience in government is worth a century of book-reading2 and this they would say themselves1 were they to rise from the dead4 ,i am certainly not an advocate for frequent and untried changes in laws and constitutions4 ,i think moderate imperfections had better be borne with2 because1 when once known1 we accommodate ourselves to them1 and find practical means of correcting their ill effects4 ,but ,i know also1 that laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind4 ,as that becomes more developed1 more enlightened1 as new discoveries are made1 new truths disclosed1 and manners and opinions change with the change of circumstances1 institutions must advance also1 and keep pace with the times4 ,we might as well require a man to wear still the coat which fitted him when a boy1 as civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors4 ,it is this preposterous idea which has lately deluged ,europe in blood4 ,their monarchs1 instead of wisely yielding to the gradual change of circumstances1 of favoring progressive accommodation to progressive improvement1 have clung to old abuses1 entrenched themselves behind steady habits1 and obliged their subjects to seek through blood and violence rash and ruinous innovations1 which1 had they been referred to the peaceful deliberations and collected wisdom of the nation1 would have been put into acceptable and salutary forms4 ,let us follow no such examples1 nor weakly believe that one generation is not as capable as another of taking care of itself1 and of ordering its own affairs4 ,let us1 as our sister ,states have done1 avail ourselves of our reason and experience1 to correct the crude essays of our first and unexperienced1 although wise1 virtuous1 and well-meaning councils4 ,and lastly1 let us provide in our constitution for its revision at stated periods4 ,what these periods should be1 nature herself indicates4 ,by the ,european tables of mortality1 of the adults living at any one moment of time1 a majority will be dead in about nineteen years4 ,at the end of that period then1 a new majority is come into place2 or1 in other words1 a new generation4 ,each generation is as independent of the one preceding1 as that was of all which had gone before4 ,it has then1 like them1 a right to choose for itself the form of government it believes most promotive of its own happiness2 consequently1 to accommodate to the circumstances in which it finds itself1 that received from its predecessors2 and it is for the peace and good of mankind1 that a solemn opportunity of doing this every nineteen or twenty years1 should be provided by the constitution2 so that it may be handed on1 with periodical repairs1 from generation to generation1 to the end of time1 if anything human can so long endure4 ,it is now forty years since the constitution of ,virginia was formed4 ,the same tables inform us1 that1 within that period1 two-thirds of the adults then living are now dead4 ,have then the remaining third1 even if they had the wish1 the right to hold in obedience to their will1 and to laws heretofore made by them1 the other two-thirds1 who1 with themselves1 compose the present mass of adults8 ,if they have not1 who has8 ,the dead8 ,but the dead have no rights4 ,they are nothing2 and nothing cannot own something4 ,where there is no substance1 there can be no accident4 ,this corporeal globe1 and everything upon it1 belong to its present corporeal inhabitants1 during their generation4 ,they alone have a right to direct what is the concern of themselves alone1 and to declare the law of that direction2 and this declaration can only be made by their majority4 ,that majority1 then1 has a right to depute representatives to a convention1 and to make the constitution what they think will be the best for themselves4 ,but how collect their voice8 ,this is the real difficulty4 ,if invited by private authority1 or county or district meetings1 these divisions are so large that few will attend2 and their voice will be imperfectly1 or falsely pronounced4 ,here1 then1 would be one of the advantages of the ward divisions ,i have proposed4 ,the mayor of every ward1 on a question like the present1 would call his ward together1 take the simple yea or nay of its members1 convey these to the county court1 who would hand on those of all its wards to the proper general authority2 and the voice of the whole people would be thus fairly1 fully1 and peaceably expressed1 discussed1 and decided by the common reason of the society4 ,if this avenue be shut to the call of sufferance1 it will make itself heard through that of force1 and we shall go on1 as other nations are doing1 in the endless circle of oppression1 rebellion1 reformation2 and oppression1 rebellion1 reformation1 again2 and so on forever4 ,these1 ,sir1 are my opinions of the governments we see among men1 and of the principles by which alone we may prevent our own from falling into the same dreadful track4 ,i have given them at greater length than your letter called for4 ,but ,i cannot say things by halves2 and ,i confide them to your honor1 so to use them as to preserve me from the gridiron of the public papers4 ,if you shall approve and enforce them1 as you have done that of equal representation1 they may do some good4 ,if not1 keep them to yourself as the effusions of withered age and useless time4 ,i shall1 with not the less truth1 assure you of my great respect and consideration4 ,,to ,,john ,,taylor4 ,,monticello1 ,july #af1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,yours of the #ajth is received1 and ,i have to acknowledge a copious supply of the turnip seed requested4 ,besides taking care myself1 ,i shall endeavor again to commit it to the depository of the neighborhood1 generally found to be the best precaution against losing a good thing4 ,i will add a word on the political part of our letters4 ,i believe we do not differ on either of the points you suppose4 ,on education certainly not2 of which the proofs are my bill for the diffusion of knowledge1 proposed near forty years ago1 and my uniform endeavors1 to this day1 to get our counties divided into wards1 one of the principal objects of which is1 the establishment of a primary school in each4 ,but education not being a branch of municipal government1 but1 like the other arts and sciences1 an accident only1 ,i did not place it1 with election1 as a fundamental member in the structure of government4 ,nor1 ,i believe1 do we differ as to the county courts4 ,i acknowledge the value of this institution2 that it is in truth our principal executive and judiciary1 and that it does much for little pecuniary reward4 ,it is their self-appointment ,i wish to correct2 to find some means of breaking up a cabal1 when such a one gets possession of the bench4 ,when this takes place1 it becomes the most afflicting of tyrannies1 because its powers are so various1 and exercised on everything most immediately around us4 ,and how many instances have you and ,i known of these monopolies of county administration8 ,i knew a county in which a particular family 7a numerous one7 got possession of the bench1 and for a whole generation never admitted a man on it who was not of its clan or connexion4 ,i know a county now of one thousand and five hundred militia1 of which sixty are federalists4 ,its court is of thirty members1 of whom twenty are federalists1 7every third man of the sect47 ,there are large and populous districts in it without a justice1 because without a federalist for appointment2 the militia are as disproportionably under federal officers4 ,and there is no authority on earth which can break up this junto1 short of a general convention4 ,the remaining one thousand four hundred and forty1 free1 fighting1 and paying citizens1 are governed by men neither of their choice or confidence1 and without a hope of relief4 ,they are certainly excluded from the blessings of a free government for life1 and indefinitely1 for aught the constitution has provided4 ,this solecism may be called anything but republican1 and ought undoubtedly to be corrected4 ,i salute you with constant friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,his ,,excellency ,,governor ,,plumer4 ,,monticello1 ,july #ba1 #ahaf4 ,i thank you1 ,sir1 for the copy you have been so good as to send me1 of your late speech to the ,legislature of your ,state1 which ,i have read a second time with great pleasure1 as ,i had before done in the public papers4 ,it is replete with sound principles1 and truly republican4 ,some articles1 too1 are worthy of peculiar notice4 ,the idea that institutions established for the use of the nation cannot be touched nor modified1 even to make them answer their end1 because of rights gratuitously supposed in those employed to manage them in trust for the public1 may perhaps be a salutary provision against the abuses of a monarch1 but is most absurd against the nation itself4 ,yet our lawyers and priests generally inculcate this doctrine1 and suppose that preceding generations held the earth more freely than we do2 had a right to impose laws on us1 unalterable by ourselves1 and that we1 in like manner1 can make laws and impose burthens on future generations1 which they will have no right to alter2 in fine1 that the earth belongs to the dead and not the living4 ,i remark also the phenomenon of a chief magistrate recommending the reduction of his own compensation4 ,this is a solecism of which the wisdom of our late ,congress cannot be accused4 ,i1 however1 place economy among the first and most important of republican virtues1 and public debt as the greatest of the dangers to be feared4 ,we see in ,england the consequences of the want of it1 their laborers reduced to live on a penny in the shilling of their earnings1 to give up bread1 and resort to oatmeal and potatoes for food2 and their landholders exiling themselves to live in penury and obscurity abroad1 because at home the government must have all the clear profits of their land4 ,in fact1 they see the fee simple of the island transferred to the public creditors1 all its profits going to them for the interest of their debts4 ,our laborers and landholders must come to this also1 unless they severely adhere to the economy you recommend4 ,i salute you with entire esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,doctor ,,logan4 ,,monticello1 ,july #bc1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have received and read with great pleasure the account you have been so kind as to send me of the interview between the ,emperor ,alexander and ,mr4 ,clarkson1 which ,i now return1 as it is in manuscript4 ,it shows great condescension of character on the part of the ,emperor1 and power of mind also1 to be able to abdicate the artificial distance between himself and other good1 able men1 and to converse as on equal ground4 ,this conversation too1 taken with his late ,christian league1 seems to bespeak in him something like a sectarian piety2 his character is undoubtedly good1 and the world1 ,i think1 may expect good effects from it4 ,i have no doubt that his firmness in favor of ,france1 after the deposition of ,bonaparte1 has saved that country from evils still more severe than she is suffering1 and perhaps even from partition4 ,i sincerely wish that the history of the secret proceedings at ,vienna may become known1 and may reconcile to our good opinion of him his participation in the demolition of ancient and independent ,states1 transferring them and their inhabitants as farms and stocks of cattle at a market to other owners1 and even taking a part of the spoil to himself4 ,it is possible to suppose a case excusing this1 and my partiality for his character encourages me to expect it1 and to impute to others1 known to have no moral scruples1 the crimes of that conclave1 who1 under pretence of punishing the atrocities of ,bonaparte1 reached them themselves1 and proved that with equal power they were equally flagitious4 ,but let us turn with abhorrence from these sceptered ,scelerats1 and disregarding our own petty differences of opinion about men and measures1 let us cling in mass to our country and to one another1 and bid defiance1 as we can if united1 to the plundering combinations of the old world4 ,present me affectionately and respectfully to ,mrs4 ,logan1 and accept the assurance of my friendship and best wishes4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,delaplaine4 ,,monticello1 ,july #bf1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,in compliance with the request of your letter of the #fth inst41 with respect to ,peyton ,randolph1 ,i have to observe that the difference of age between him and myself admitted my knowing little of his early life1 except what ,i accidentally caught from occasional conversations4 ,i was a student at college when he was already ,attorney ,general at the bar1 and a man of established years2 and ,i had no intimacy with him until ,i went to the bar myself1 when1 ,i suppose1 he must have been upwards of forty2 from that time1 and especially after ,i became a member of the legislature1 until his death1 our intimacy was cordial1 and ,i was with him when he died4 ,under these circumstances1 ,i have committed to writing as many incidents of his life as memory enabled me to do1 and to give faith to the many and excellent qualities he possessed1 ,i have mentioned those minor ones which he did not possess2 considering true history1 in which all will be believed1 as preferable to unqualified panegyric1 in which nothing is believed4 ,i avoided1 too1 the mention of trivial incidents1 which1 by not distinguishing1 disparage a character2 but ,i have not been able to state early dates4 ,before forwarding this paper to you1 ,i received a letter from ,peyton ,randolph1 his great nephew1 repeating the request you had made4 ,i therefore put the paper under a blank cover1 addressed to you1 unsealed1 and sent it to ,peyton ,randolph1 that he might see what dates as well as what incidents might be collected1 supplementary to mine1 and correct any which ,i had inexactly stated2 circumstances may have been misremembered1 but nothing1 ,i think1 of substance4 ,this account of ,peyton ,randolph1 therefore1 you may expect to be forwarded by his nephew4 ,you requested me when here1 to communicate to you the particulars of two transactions in which ,i was myself an agent1 to wit3 the coup de main of ,arnold on ,richmond1 and ,tarleton's on ,charlottesville4 ,i now enclose them1 detailed with an exactness on which you may rely with an entire confidence4 ,but1 having an insuperable aversion to be drawn into controversy in the public papers1 ,i must request not to be quoted either as to these or the account of ,peyton ,randolph4 ,accept the assurances of my esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,sir ,,john ,,sinclair4 ,,monticello1 ,july #ca1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,november #ast came but lately to my hand4 ,it covered a prospectus of your code of health and longevity1 a great and useful work1 which ,i shall be happy to see brought to a conclusion4 ,like our good old ,franklin1 your labors and science go all to the utilities of human life4 ,i reciprocate congratulations with you sincerely on the restoration of peace between our two nations4 ,and why should there have been war8 for the party to which the blame is to be imputed1 we appeal to the ,exposition of the causes and character of the war1 a pamphlet which1 we are told1 has gone through some editions with you4 ,if that does not justify us1 then the blame is ours4 ,but let all this be forgotten2 and let both parties now count soberly the value of mutual friendship4 ,i am satisfied both will find that no advantage either can derive from any act of injustice whatever1 will be of equal value with those flowing from friendly intercourse4 ,both ought to wish for peace and cordial friendship2 we1 because you can do us more harm than any other nation2 and you1 because we can do you more good than any other4 ,our growth is now so well established by regular enumerations through a course of forty years1 and the same grounds of continuance so likely to endure for a much longer period1 that1 speaking in round numbers1 we may safely call ourselves twenty millions in twenty years1 and forty millions in forty years4 ,many of the statesmen now living saw the commencement of the first term1 and many now living will see the end of the second4 ,it is not then a mere concern of posterity2 a third of those now in life will see that day4 ,of what importance then to you must such a nation be1 whether as friends or foes4 ,but is their friendship1 dear ,sir1 to be obtained by the irritating policy of fomenting among us party discord1 and a teasing opposition2 by bribing traitors1 whose sale of themselves proves they would sell their purchasers also1 if their treacheries were worth a price8 ,how much cheaper would it be1 how much easier1 more honorable1 more magnanimous and secure1 to gain the government itself1 by a moral1 a friendly1 and respectful course of conduct1 which is all they would ask for a cordial and faithful return4 ,i know the difficulties arising from the irritation1 the exasperation produced on both sides by the late war4 ,it is great with you1 as ,i judge from your newspapers2 and greater with us1 as ,i see myself4 ,the reason lies in the different degrees in which the war has acted on us4 ,to your people it has been a matter of distant history only1 a mere war in the carnatic2 with us it has reached the bosom of every man1 woman and child4 ,the maritime parts have felt it in the conflagration of their houses1 and towns1 and desolation of their farms2 the borderers in the massacres and scalpings of their husbands1 wives and children2 and the middle parts in their personal labors and losses in defence of both frontiers1 and the revolting scenes they have there witnessed4 ,it is not wonderful then1 if their irritations are extreme4 ,yet time and prudence on the part of the two governments may get over these4 ,manifestations of cordiality between them1 friendly and kind offices made visible to the people on both sides1 will mollify their feelings1 and second the wishes of their functionaries to cultivate peace1 and promote mutual interest4 ,that these dispositions have been strong on our part1 in every administration from the first to the present one1 that we would at any time have gone our full half-way to meet them1 if a single step in advance had been taken by the other party1 ,i can affirm of my own intimate knowledge of the fact4 ,during the first year of my own administration1 ,i thought ,i discovered in the conduct of ,mr4 ,addington some marks of comity towards us1 and a willingness to extend to us the decencies and duties observed towards other nations4 ,my desire to catch at this1 and to improve it for the benefit of my own country1 induced me1 in addition to the official declarations from the ,secretary of ,state1 to write with my own hand to ,mr4 ,king1 then our ,minister ,plenipotentiary at ,london1 in the following words3 ,i avail myself of this occasion to assure you of my perfect satisfaction with the manner in which you have conducted the several matters committed to you by us2 and to express my hope that through your agency1 we may be able to remove everything inauspicious to a cordial friendship between this country1 and the one in which you are stationed2 a friendship dictated by too many considerations not to be felt by the wise and the dispassionate of both nations4 ,it is1 therefore1 with the sincerest pleasure ,i have observed on the part of the ,british government various manifestations of a just and friendly disposition towards us2 we wish to cultivate peace and friendship with all nations1 believing that course most conducive to the welfare of our own2 it is natural that these friendships should bear some proportion to the common interests of the parties4 ,the interesting relations between ,great ,britain and the ,united ,states are certainly of the first order1 and as such are estimated1 and will be faithfully cultivated by us4 ,these sentiments have been communicated to you from time to time1 in the official correspondence of the ,secretary of ,state2 but ,i have thought it might not be unacceptable to be assured that they perfectly concur with my own personal convictions1 both in relation to yourself1 and the country in which you are4 ,my expectation was that ,mr4 ,king would show this letter to ,mr4 ,addington1 and that it would be received by him as an overture towards a cordial understanding between the two countries4 ,he left the ministry1 however1 and ,i never heard more of it1 and certainly never perceived any good effect from it4 ,i know that in the present temper1 the boastful1 the insolent1 and the mendacious newspapers on both sides1 will present serious impediments4 ,ours will be insulting your public authorities1 and boasting of victories2 and yours will not be sparing of provocations and abuses of us4 ,but if those at our helms could not place themselves above these pitiful notices1 and throwing aside all personal feelings1 look only to the interests of their nations1 they would be unequal to the trusts confided to them4 ,i am equally confident1 on our part1 in the administration now in place1 as in that which will succeed it2 and that if friendship is not hereafter sincerely cultivated1 it will not be their fault4 ,i will not1 however1 disguise that the settlement of the practice of impressing our citizens is a sine qu non1 a preliminary1 without which treaties of peace are but truces4 ,but it is impossible that reasonable dispositions on both parts should not remove this stumbling block1 which unremoved1 will be an eternal obstacle to peace1 and lead finally to the deletion of the one or the other nation4 ,the regulations necessary to keep your own seamen to yourselves are those which our interests would lead us to adopt1 and that interest would be a guarantee of their observance2 and the transfer of these questions from the cognizance of their naval commanders to the governments themselves1 would be but an act of mutual as well as of self-respect4 ,i did not mean1 when ,i began my letter1 to have indulged my pen so far on subjects with which ,i have long ceased to have connection2 but it may do good1 and ,i will let it go1 for although what ,i write is from no personal privity with the views or wishes of our government1 yet believing them to be what they ought to be1 and confident in their wisdom and integrity1 ,i am sure ,i hazard no deception in what ,i have said of them1 and ,i shall be happy indeed if some good shall result to both our countries1 from this renewal of our correspondence and ancient friendship4 ,i recall with great pleasure the days of our former intercourse1 personal and epistolary1 and can assure you with truth that in no instant of time has there been any abatement of my great esteem and respect for you4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,august #a1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your two philosophical letters of ,may #dth and #fth have been too long in my carton of letters to be answered4 ,to the question1 indeed1 on the utility of grief1 no answer remains to be given4 ,you have exhausted the subject4 ,i see that1 with the other evils of life1 it is destined to temper the cup we are to drink4 ,two urns by ,jove's high throne have ever stood1 ,the source of evil one1 and one of good2 ,from thence the cup of mortal man he fills1 ,blessings to these1 to those distributes ills2 ,to most he mingles both4 ,putting to myself your question1 would ,i agree to live my seventy-three years over again forever8 ,i hesitate to say4 ,with ,chew's limitations from twenty-five to sixty1 ,i would say yes2 and ,i might go further back1 but not come lower down4 ,for1 at the latter period1 with most of us1 the powers of life are sensibly on the wane1 sight becomes dim1 hearing dull1 memory constantly enlarging its frightful blank and parting with all we have ever seen or known1 spirits evaporate1 bodily debility creeps on palsying every limb1 and so faculty after faculty quits us1 and where then is life8 ,if1 in its full rigor1 of good as well as evil1 your friend ,vassall could doubt its value1 it must be purely a negative quantity when its evils alone remain4 ,yet ,i do not go into his opinion entirely4 ,i do not agree that an age of pleasure is no compensation for a moment of pain4 ,i think1 with you1 that life is a fair matter of account1 and the balance often1 nay generally1 in its favor4 ,it is not indeed easy1 by calculation of intensity and time1 to apply a common measure1 or to fix the par between pleasure and pain2 yet it exists1 and is measurable4 ,on the question1 for example1 whether to be cut for the stone8 ,the young1 with a longer prospect of years1 think these overbalance the pain of the operation4 ,dr4 ,franklin1 at the age of eighty1 thought his residuum of life not worth that price4 ,i should have thought with him1 even taking the stone out of the scale4 ,there is a ripeness of time for death1 regarding others as well as ourselves1 when it is reasonable we should drop off1 and make room for another growth4 ,when we have lived our generation out1 we should not wish to encroach on another4 ,i enjoy good health2 ,i am happy in what is around me1 yet ,i assure you ,i am ripe for leaving all1 this year1 this day1 this hour4 ,if it could be doubted whether we would go back to twenty-five1 how can it be whether we would go forward from seventy-three8 ,bodily decay is gloomy in prospect1 but of all human contemplations the most abhorrent is body without mind4 ,perhaps1 however1 ,i might accept of time to read ,grimm before ,i go4 ,fifteen volumes of anecdotes and incidents1 within the compass of my own time and cognizance1 written by a man of genius1 of taste1 of point1 an acquaintance1 the measure and traverses of whose mind ,i know1 could not fail to turn the scale in favor of life during their perusal4 ,i must write to ,ticknor to add it to my catalogue1 and hold on till it comes4 ,there is a ,mr4 ,vanderkemp of ,new ,york1 a correspondent1 ,i believe1 of yours1 with whom ,i have exchanged some letters without knowing who he is4 ,will you tell me8 ,i know nothing of the history of the ,jesuits you mention in four volumes4 ,is it a good one8 ,i dislike1 with you1 their restoration1 because it marks a retrograde step from light towards darkness4 ,we shall have our follies without doubt4 ,some one or more of them will always be afloat4 ,but ours will be the follies of enthusiasm1 not of bigotry1 not of ,jesuitism4 ,bigotry is the disease of ignorance1 of morbid minds2 enthusiasm of the free and buoyant4 ,education and free discussion are the antidotes of both4 ,we are destined to be a barrier against the returns of ignorance and barbarism4 ,old ,europe will have to lean on our shoulders1 and to hobble along by our side1 under the monkish trammels of priests and kings1 as she can4 ,what a colossus shall we be when the southern continent comes up to our mark6 ,what a stand will it secure as a ralliance for the reason and freedom of the globe6 ,i like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past1--so good night6 ,i will dream on1 always fancying that ,mrs4 ,adams and yourself are by my side marking the progress and the obliquities of ages and countries4 ,,to ,,mrs4 ,m4 ,,harrison ,,smith4 ,,monticello1 ,august #f1 #ahaf4 ,i have received1 dear ,madam1 your very friendly letter of ,july #bast1 and assure you that ,i feel with deep sensibility its kind expressions towards myself1 and the more as from a person than whom no others could be more in sympathy with my own affections4 ,i often call to mind the occasions of knowing your worth1 which the societies of ,washington furnished2 and none more than those derived from your much valued visit to ,monticello4 ,i recognize the same motives of goodness in the solicitude you express on the rumor supposed to proceed from a letter of mine to ,charles ,thomson1 on the subject of the ,christian religion4 ,it is true that1 in writing to the translator of the ,bible and ,testament1 that subject was mentioned2 but equally so that no adherence to any particular mode of ,christianity was there expressed1 nor any change of opinions suggested4 ,a change from what8 the priests indeed have heretofore thought proper to ascribe to me religious1 or rather anti-religious sentiments1 of their own fabric1 but such as soothed their resentments against the act of ,virginia for establishing religious freedom4 ,they wished him to be thought atheist1 deist1 or devil1 who could advocate freedom from their religious dictations4 ,but ,i have ever thought religion a concern purely between our ,god and our consciences1 for which we were accountable to him1 and not to the priests4 ,i never told my own religion1 nor scrutinized that of another4 ,i never attempted to make a convert1 nor wished to change another's creed4 ,i have ever judged of the religion of others by their lives1 and by this test1 my dear ,madam1 ,i have been satisfied yours must be an excellent one1 to have produced a life of such exemplary virtue and correctness4 ,for it is in our lives1 and not from our words1 that our religion must be read4 ,by the same test the world must judge me4 ,but this does not satisfy the priesthood4 ,they must have a positive1 a declared assent to all their interested absurdities4 ,my opinion is that there would never have been an infidel1 if there had never been a priest4 ,the artificial structures they have built on the purest of all moral systems1 for the purpose of deriving from it pence and power1 revolts those who think for themselves1 and who read in that system only what is really there4 ,these1 therefore1 they brand with such nick-names as their enmity choses gratuitously to impute4 ,i have left the world1 in silence1 to judge of causes from their effects2 and ,i am consoled in this course1 my dear friend1 when ,i perceive the candor with which ,i am judged by your justice and discernment2 and that1 notwithstanding the slanders of the saints1 my fellow citizens have thought me worthy of trusts4 ,the imputations of irreligion having spent their force2 they think an imputation of change might now be turned to account as a bolster for their duperies4 ,i shall leave them1 as heretofore1 to grope on in the dark4 ,our family at ,monticello is all in good health2 ,ellen speaking of you with affection1 and ,mrs4 ,randolph always regretting the accident which so far deprived her of the happiness of your former visit4 ,she still cherishes the hope of some future renewal of that kindness2 in which we all join her1 as in the assurances of affectionate attachment and respect4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,august #i1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the biography of ,mr4 ,vander ,kemp would require a volume which ,i could not write if a million were offered me as a reward for the work4 ,after a learned and scientific education he entered the army in ,holland1 and served as captain1 with reputation2 but loving books more than arms he resigned his commission and became a preacher4 ,my acquaintance with him commenced at ,leyden in #agij4 ,he was then minister of the ,menonist congregation1 the richest in ,europe2 in that city1 where he was celebrated as the most elegant writer in the ,dutch language1 he was the intimate friend of ,luzac and ,de ,gysecaar4 ,in #aghh1 when the ,king of ,prussia threatened ,holland with invasion1 his party insisted on his taking a command in the army of defence1 and he was appointed to the command of the most exposed and most important post in the seven provinces4 ,he was soon surrounded by the ,prussian forces2 but he defended his fortress with a prudence1 fortitude1 patience1 and perseverance1 which were admired by all ,europe2 till1 abandoned by his nation1 destitute of provisions and ammunition1 still refusing to surrender1 he was offered the most honorable capitulation4 ,he accepted it2 was offered very advantageous proposals2 but despairing of the liberties of his country1 he retired to ,antwerp1 determined to emigrate to ,new ,york2 wrote to me in ,london1 requesting letters of introduction4 ,i sent him letters to ,governor ,clinton1 and several others of our little great men4 ,his history in this country is equally curious and affecting4 ,he left property in ,holland1 which the revolutions there have annihilated2 and ,i fear is now pinched with poverty4 ,his head is deeply learned and his heart is pure4 ,i scarcely know a more amiable character4 99 99 99 99 99 ,he has written to me occasionally1 and ,i have answered his letters in great haste4 ,you may well suppose that such a man has not always been able to understand our ,american politics4 ,nor have ,i4 ,had he been as great a master of our language as he was of his own1 he would have been at this day one of the most conspicuous characters in the ,united ,states4 ,so much for ,vander ,kemp2 now for your letter of ,august #ast4 ,your poet1 the ,ionian ,i suppose1 ought to have told us whether ,jove1 in the distribution of good and evil from his two urns1 observes any rule of equity or not2 whether he thunders out flames of eternal fire on the many1 and power1 and glory1 and felicity on the few1 without any consideration of justice8 ,let us state a few questions sub ros4 #a4 ,would you accept a life1 if offered you1 of equal pleasure and pain8 ,for example4 ,one million of moments of pleasure1 and one million of moments of pain6 7#a1jjj1jjj moments of pleasure #a1jjj1jjj moments of pain47 ,suppose the pleasure as exquisite as any in life1 and the pain as exquisite as any2 for example1 stone-gravel1 gout1 headache1 earache1 toothache1 cholic1 c4 ,i would not4 ,i would rather be blotted out4 #b4 ,would you accept a life of one year of incessant gout1 headache1 c41 for seventy-two years of such life as you have enjoyed8 ,i would not4 7,one year of cholic seventy-two of ,boule de ,savon2 pretty1 but unsubstantial47 ,i had rather be extinguished4 ,you may vary these ,algebraical equations at pleasure and without end4 ,all this ratiocination1 calculation1 call it what you will1 is founded on the supposition of no future state4 ,promise me eternal life free from pain1 although in all other respects no better than our present terrestrial existence1 ,i know not how many thousand years of ,smithfield fevers ,i would not endure to obtain it4 ,in fine1 without the supposition of a future state1 mankind and this globe appear to me the most sublime and beautiful bubble1 and bauble1 that imagination can conceive4 ,let us then wish for immortality at all hazards1 and trust the ,ruler with his skies4 ,i do2 and earnestly wish for his commands1 which to the utmost of my power shall be implicitly and piously obeyed4 ,it is worth while to live to read ,grimm1 whom ,i have read2 and ,la ,harpe and ,mademoiselle ,d',espinasse the fair friend of ,d',alembert1 both of whom ,grimm characterizes very distinguished1 and are1 ,i am told1 in print4 ,i have not seen them1 but hope soon to have them4 ,my history of the ,jesuits is not elegantly written1 but is supported by unquestionable authorities1 is very particular and very horrible4 ,their restoration is indeed a step towards darkness1 cruelty1 perfidy1 despotism1 death and ----6 ,i wish we were out of danger of bigotry and ,jesuitism6 ,may we be a barrier against the returns of ignorance and barbarism6 ,what a colossus shall we be6 ,but will it not be of brass1 iron and clay8 ,your taste is judicious in liking better the dreams of the future1 than the history of the past4 ,upon this principle ,i prophecy that you and ,i shall soon meet1 and be better friends than ever4 ,so wishes1 ,j4 ,a4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,isaac ,h4 ,,tiffany4 ,,monticello1 ,august #bf1 #ahaf4 ,,sir1--,in answer to your inquiry as to the merits of ,gillies' translation of the ,politics of ,aristotle1 ,i can only say that it has the reputation of being preferable to ,ellis'1 the only rival translation into ,english4 ,i have never seen it myself1 and therefore do not speak of it from my own knowledge4 ,but so different was the style of society then1 and with those people1 from what it is now and with us1 that ,i think little edification can be obtained from their writings on the subject of government4 ,they had just ideas of the value of personal liberty1 but none at all of the structure of government best calculated to preserve it4 ,they knew no medium between a democracy 7the only pure republic1 but impracticable beyond the limits of a town7 and an abandonment of themselves to an aristocracy1 or a tyranny independent of the people4 ,it seems not to have occurred that where the citizens cannot meet to transact their business in person1 they alone have the right to choose the agents who shall transact it2 and that in this way a republican1 or popular government1 of the second grade of purity1 may be exercised over any extent of country4 ,the full experiment of a government democratical1 but representative1 was and is still reserved for us4 ,the idea 7taken1 indeed1 from the little specimen formerly existing in the ,english constitution1 but now lost7 has been carried by us1 more or less1 into all our legislative and executive departments2 but it has not yet1 by any of us1 been pushed into all the ramifications of the system1 so far as to leave no authority existing not responsible to the people2 whose rights1 however1 to the exercise and fruits of their own industry1 can never be protected against the selfishness of rulers not subject to their control at short periods4 ,the introduction of this new principle of representative democracy has rendered useless almost everything written before on the structure of government2 and1 in a great measure1 relieves our regret1 if the political writings of ,aristotle1 or of any other ancient1 have been lost1 or are unfaithfully rendered or explained to us4 ,my most earnest wish is to see the republican element of popular control pushed to the maximum of its practicable exercise4 ,i shall then believe that our government may be pure and perpetual4 ,accept my respectful salutations4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,september #c1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,dr4 ,james ,freeman is a learned1 ingenious1 honest and benevolent man1 who wishes to see ,president ,jefferson1 and requests me to introduce him4 ,if you would introduce some of your friends to me1 ,i could1 with more confidence1 introduce mine to you4 ,he is a ,christian1 but not a ,pythagorian1 a ,platonic1 or a ,philonic ,christian4 ,you will ken him1 and he will ken you2 but you may depend he will never betray1 deceive1 or injure you4 ,without hinting to him anything which had passed between you and me1 ,i asked him your question1 ,what are the uses of grief8 ,he stared1 and said ,the question was new to him4 ,all he could say at present was1 that he had known1 in his own parish1 more than one instance of ladies who had been thoughtless1 modish1 extravagant in a high degree1 who1 upon the death of a child1 had become thoughtful1 modest1 humble2 as prudent1 amiable women as any he had known4 ,upon this ,i read to him your letters and mine upon this subject of grief1 with which he seemed to be pleased4 ,you see ,i was not afraid to trust him1 and you need not be4 ,since ,i am1 accidentally1 invited to write to you1 ,i may add a few words upon pleasures and pains of life4 ,vassall thought1 an hundred years1 nay1 an eternity of pleasure1 was no compensation for one hour of bilious cholic4 ,read again ,molliores ,spsyke1 act #b;d1 scene #ast1 on the subject of grief4 ,and read in another place1 on est pay de mille maux1 par un heureux moment4 ,thus differently do men speak of pleasures and pains4 ,now1 ,sir1 ,i will tease you with another question4 ,what have been the abuses of grief8 ,in answer to this question1 ,i doubt not you might write an hundred volumes4 ,a few hints may convince you that the subject is ample4 #ast4 ,the death of ,socrates excited a general sensibility of grief at ,athens1 in ,attica1 and in all ,greece4 ,plato and ,xenophon1 two of his disciples1 took advantage of that sentiment1 by employing their enchanting style to represent their master to be greater and better than he probably was2 and what have been the effects of ,socratic1 ,platonic1 which were ,pythagorian1 which was ,indian philosophy1 in the world8 #b;d4 ,the death of ,csar1 tyrant as he was1 spread a general compassion1 which always includes grief1 among the ,romans4 ,the scoundrel ,mark ,antony availed himself of this momentary grief to destroy the republic1 to establish the empire1 and to proscribe ,cicero4 #c;d4 ,but to skip over all ages and nations for the present1 and descend to our own times4 ,the death of ,washington diffused a general grief4 ,the old tories1 the hyperfederalists1 the speculators1 set up a general howl4 ,orations1 prayers1 sermons1 mock funerals1 were all employed1 not that they loved ,washington1 but to keep in countenance the funding and banking system2 and to cast into the background and the shade1 all others who had been concerned in the service of their country in the ,revolution4 #dth4 ,the death of ,hamilton1 under all its circumstances1 produced a general grief4 ,his most determined enemies did not like to get rid of him in that way4 ,they pitied1 too1 his widow and children4 ,his party seized the moment of public feeling to come forward with funeral orations1 and printed panegyrics1 reinforced with mock funerals and solemn grimaces1 and all this by people who have buried ,otis1 ,sam ,adams1 ,hancock1 and ,gerry1 in comparative obscurity4 ,and why8 ,merely to disgrace the old ,whigs1 and keep the funds and banks in countenance4 #eth4 ,the death of ,mr4 ,ames excited a general regret4 ,his long consumption1 his amiable character1 and reputable talents1 had attracted a general interest1 and his death a general mourning4 ,his party made the most of it1 by processions1 orations1 and a mock funeral4 ,and why8 ,to glorify the ,tories1 to abash the ,whigs1 and maintain the reputation of funds1 banks1 and speculation4 ,and all this was done in honor of that insignificant boy1 by people who have let a ,dance1 a ,gerry1 and a ,dexter1 go to their graves without notice4 #fth4 ,i almost shudder at the thought of alluding to the most fatal example of the abuses of grief which the history of mankind has preserved--,the ,cross4 ,consider what calamities that engine of grief has produced6 ,with the rational respect which is due to it1 knavish priests have added prostitutions of it1 that fill1 or might fill1 the blackest and bloodiest pages of human history4 ,i am with ancient friendly sentiments1 ,,to ,,samuel ,,kerchival4 ,,monticello1 ,september #e1 #ahaf4 ,,sir1--,your letter of ,august the #afth is just received4 ,that which ,i wrote to you under the address of ,h4 ,tompkinson1 was intended for the author of the pamphlet you were so kind as to send me1 and therefore1 in your hands1 found its true destination4 ,but ,i must beseech you1 ,sir1 not to admit a possibility of its being published4 ,many good people will revolt from its doctrines1 and my wish is to offend nobody2 to leave to those who are to live under it1 the settlement of their own constitution1 and to pass in peace the remainder of my time4 ,if those opinions are sound1 they will occur to others1 and will prevail by their own weight1 without the aid of names1 ,i am glad to see that the ,staunton meeting has rejected the idea of a limited convention4 ,the article1 however1 nearest my heart1 is the division of counties into wards4 ,these will be pure and elementary republics1 the sum of all which1 taken together1 composes the ,state1 and will make of the whole a true democracy as to the business of the wards1 which is that of nearest and daily concern4 ,the affairs of the larger sections1 of counties1 of ,states1 and of the ,union1 not admitting personal transaction by the people1 will be delegated to agents elected by themselves2 and representation will thus be substituted1 where personal action becomes impracticable4 ,yet1 even over these representative organs1 should they become corrupt and perverted1 the division into wards constituting the people1 in their wards1 a regularly organized power1 enables them by that organization to crush1 regularly and peaceably1 the usurpations of their unfaithful agents1 and rescues them from the dreadful necessity of doing it insurrectionally4 ,in this way we shall be as republican as a large society can be2 and secure the continuance of purity in our government1 by the salutary1 peaceable1 and regular control of the people4 ,no other depositories of power have ever yet been found1 which did not end in converting to their own profit the earnings of those committed to their charge4 ,george the ,,iii4 in execution of the trust confided to him1 has1 within his own day1 loaded the inhabitants of ,great ,britain with debts equal to the whole fee-simple value of their island1 and under pretext of governing it1 has alienated its whole soil to creditors who could lend money to be lavished on priests1 pensions1 plunder and perpetual war4 ,this would not have been so1 had the people retained organized means of acting on their agents4 ,in this example then1 let us read a lesson for ourselves1 and not go and do likewise4 ,since writing my letter of ,july the #abth1 ,i have been told1 that on the question of equal representation1 our fellow citizens in some sections of the ,state claim peremptorily a right of representation for their slaves4 ,principle will1 in this1 as in most other cases1 open the way for us to correct conclusion4 ,were our ,state a pure democracy1 in which all its inhabitants should meet together to transact all their business1 there would yet be excluded from their deliberations1 #a1 infants1 until arrived at years of discretion4 #b4 ,women1 who1 to prevent depravation of morals and ambiguity of issue1 could not mix promiscuously in the public meetings of men4 #c4 ,slaves1 from whom the unfortunate state of things with us takes away the rights of will and of property4 ,those then who have no will could be permitted to exercise none in the popular assembly2 and of course1 could delegate none to an agent in a representative assembly4 ,the business1 in the first case1 would be done by qualified citizens only4 ,it is true1 that in the general constitution1 our ,state is allowed a larger representation on account of its slaves4 ,but every one knows1 that that constitution was a matter of compromise2 a capitulation between conflicting interests and opinions4 ,in truth1 the condition of different descriptions of inhabitants in any country is a matter of municipal arrangement1 of which no foreign country has a right to take notice4 ,all its inhabitants are men as to them4 ,thus1 in the ,new ,england ,states1 none have the powers of citizens but those whom they call freemen2 and none are freemen until admitted by a vote of the freemen of the town4 ,yet1 in the ,general ,government1 these non-freemen are counted in their quantum of representation and of taxation4 ,so1 slaves with us have no powers as citizens2 yet1 in representation in the ,general ,government1 they count in the proportion of three to five2 and so also in taxation4 ,whether this is equal1 is not here the question4 ,it is a capitulation of discordant sentiments and circumstances1 and is obligatory on that ground4 ,but this view shows there is no inconsistency in claiming representation for them for the other ,states1 and refusing it within our own4 ,accept the renewal of assurances of my respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,october #ad1 #ahaf4 ,your letter1 dear ,sir1 of ,may the #fth1 had already well explained the uses of grief4 ,that of ,september the #c;d1 with equal truth1 adduces instances of its abuse2 and when we put into the same scale these abuses1 with the afflictions of soul which even the uses of grief cost us1 we may consider its value in the economy of the human being1 as equivocal at least4 ,those afflictions cloud too great a portion of life to find a counterpoise in any benefits derived from its uses4 ,for setting aside its paroxysms on the occasions of special bereavements1 all the latter years of aged men are overshadowed with its gloom4 ,whither1 for instance1 can you and ,i look without seeing the graves of those we have known8 ,and whom can we call up1 of our early companions1 who has not left us to regret his loss8 ,this1 indeed1 may be one of the salutary effects of grief2 inasmuch as it prepares us to loose ourselves also without repugnance4 ,doctor ,freeman's instances of female levity cured by grief1 are certainly to the point1 and constitute an item of credit in the account we examine4 ,i was much mortified by the loss of the ,doctor's visit1 by my absence from home4 ,to have shown how much ,i feel indebted to you for making good people known to me1 would have been one pleasure2 and to have enjoyed that of his conversation1 and the benefits of his information1 so favorably reported by my family1 would have been another4 ,i returned home on the third day after his departure4 ,the loss of such visits is among the sacrifices which my divided residence costs me4 ,your undertaking the twelve volumes of ,dupuis1 is a degree of heroism to which ,i could not have aspired even in my younger days4 ,i have been contented with the humble achievement of reading the analysis of his work by ,destutt ,tracy1 in two hundred pages octavo4 ,i believe ,i should have ventured on his own abridgment of the work1 in one octavo volume1 had it ever come to my hands2 but the marrow of it in ,tracy has satisfied my appetite2 and even in that1 the preliminary discourse of the analyzer himself1 and his conclusion1 are worth more in my eye than the body of the work4 ,for the object of that seems to be to smother all history under the mantle of allegory4 ,if histories so unlike as those of ,hercules and ,jesus1 can1 by a fertile imagination and allegorical interpretations1 be brought to the same tally1 no line of distinction remains between fact and fancy4 ,as this pithy morsel will not overburthen the mail in passing and repassing between ,quincy and ,monticello1 ,i send it for your perusal4 ,perhaps it will satisfy you1 as it has me2 and may save you the labor of reading twenty-four times its volume4 ,i have said to you that it was written by ,tracy2 and ,i had so entered it on the title page1 as ,i usually do on anonymous works whose authors are known to me4 ,but ,tracy requested me not to betray his anonyme1 for reasons which may not yet1 perhaps1 have ceased to weigh4 ,i am bound1 then1 to make the same reserve with you4 ,destutt ,tracy is1 in my judgment1 the ablest writer living on intellectual subjects1 or the operations of the understanding4 ,his three octavo volumes on ,ideology1 which constitute the foundation of what he has since written1 ,i have not entirely read2 because ,i am not fond of reading what is merely abstract1 and unapplied immediately to some useful science4 ,bonaparte1 with his repeated derisions of ,ideologists 7squinting at this author71 has by this time felt that true wisdom does not lie in mere practice without principle4 ,the next work ,tracy wrote was the ,commentary on ,montesquieu1 never published in the original1 because not safe2 but translated and published in ,philadelphia1 yet without the author's name4 ,he has since permitted his name to be mentioned4 ,although called a ,commentary1 it is1 in truth1 an elementary work on the principles of government1 comprised in about three hundred pages octavo4 ,he has lately published a third work1 on ,political ,economy1 comprising the whole subject within about the same compass2 in which all its principles are demonstrated with the severity of ,euclid1 and1 like him1 without ever using a superfluous word4 ,i have procured this to be translated1 and have been four years endeavoring to get it printed2 but as yet1 without success4 ,in the meantime1 the author has published the original in ,france1 which he thought unsafe while ,bonaparte was in power4 ,no printed copy1 ,i believe1 has yet reached this country4 ,he has his fourth and last work now in the press at ,paris1 closing1 as he conceives1 the circle of metaphysical sciences4 ,this work1 which is on ,ethics1 ,i have not seen1 but suspect ,i shall differ from it in its foundation1 although not in its deductions4 ,i gather from his other works that he adopts the principle of ,hobbes1 that justice is founded in contract solely1 and does not result from the construction of man4 ,i believe1 on the contrary1 that it is instinct and innate1 that the moral sense is as much a part of our constitution as that of feeling1 seeing1 or hearing2 as a wise creator must have seen to be necessary in an animal destined to live in society2 that every human mind feels pleasure in doing good to another2 that the non-existence of justice is not to be inferred from the fact that the same act is deemed virtuous and right in one society which is held vicious and wrong in another2 because1 as the circumstances and opinions of different societies vary1 so the acts which may do them right or wrong must vary also2 for virtue does not consist in the act we do1 but in the end it is to effect4 ,if it is to effect the happiness of him to whom it is directed1 it is virtuous1 while in a society under different circumstances and opinions1 the same act might produce pain1 and would be vicious4 ,the essence of virtue is in doing good to others1 while what is good may be one thing in one society1 and its contrary in another4 ,yet1 however we may differ as to the foundation of morals1 7and as many foundations have been assumed as there are writers on the subject nearly17 so correct a thinker as ,tracy will give us a sound system of morals4 ,and1 indeed1 it is remarkable1 that so many writers1 setting out from so many different premises1 yet meet all in the same conclusions4 ,this looks as if they were guided1 unconsciously1 by the unerring hand of instinct4 ,your history of the ,jesuits1 by what name of the author or other description is it to be inquired for8 ,what do you think of the present situation of ,england8 ,is not this the great and fatal crush of their funding system1 which1 like death1 has been foreseen by all1 but its hour1 like that of death1 hidden from mortal prescience8 ,it appears to me that all the circumstances now exist which render recovery desperate4 ,the interest of the national debt is now equal to such a portion of the profits of all the land and the labor of the island1 as not to leave enough for the subsistence of those who labor4 ,hence the owners of the land abandon it and retire to other countries1 and the laborer has not enough of his earnings left to him to cover his back and to fill his belly4 ,the local insurrections1 now almost general1 are of the hungry and the naked1 who cannot be quieted but by food and raiment4 ,but where are the means of feeding and clothing them8 ,the landholder has nothing of his own to give2 he is but the fiduciary of those who have lent him money2 the lender is so taxed in his meat1 drink and clothing1 that he has but a bare subsistence left4 ,the landholder1 then1 must give up his land1 or the lender his debt1 or they must compromise by giving up each one-half4 ,but will either consent1 peaceably1 to such an abandonment of property8 ,or must it not be settled by civil conflict8 ,if peaceably compromised1 will they agree to risk another ruin under the same government unreformed8 ,i think not2 but ,i would rather know what you think2 because you have lived with ,john ,bull1 and know better than ,i do the character of his herd4 ,i salute ,mrs4 ,adams and yourself with every sentiment of affectionate cordiality and respect4 ,,to ,,the ,,secretary ,,of ,,state4 ,,monticello1 ,october #af1 #ahaf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,if it be proposed to place an inscription on the capitol1 the lapidary style requires that essential facts only should be stated1 and these with a brevity admitting no superfluous word4 ,the essential facts in the two inscriptions proposed are these3 ,,founded #agia4--;,,burnt ,,by ,a ,,british ,,army #ahad4--,,restored ,,by ,,congress #ahag4 ,the reasons for this brevity are that the letters must be of extraordinary magnitude to be read from below2 that little space is allowed them1 being usually put into a pediment or in a frieze1 or on a small tablet on the wall2 and in our case1 a third reason may be added1 that no passion can be imputed to this inscription1 every word being justifiable from the most classical examples4 ,but a question of more importance is whether there should be one at all8 ,the barbarism of the conflagration will immortalize that of the nation4 ,it will place them forever in degraded comparison with the execrated ,bonaparte1 who1 in possession of almost every capitol in ,europe1 injured no one4 ,of this1 history will take care1 which all will read1 while our inscription will be seen by few4 ,great ,britain1 in her pride and ascendency1 has certainly hated and despised us beyond every earthly object4 ,her hatred may remain1 but the hour of her contempt is passed and is succeeded by dread2 not a present1 but a distant and deep one4 ,it is the greater as she feels herself plunged into an abyss of ruin from which no human means point out an issue4 ,we also have more reason to hate her than any nation on earth4 ,but she is not now an object for hatred4 ,she is falling from her transcendent sphere1 which all men ought to have wished1 but not that she should lose all place among nations4 ,it is for the interest of all that she should be maintained1 nearly on a par with other members of the republic of nations4 ,her power1 absorbed into that of any other1 would be an object of dread to all1 and to us more than all1 because we are accessible to her alone and through her alone4 ,the armies of ,bonaparte with the fleets of ,britain1 would change the aspect of our destinies4 ,under these prospects should we perpetuate hatred against her8 ,should we not1 on the contrary1 begin to open ourselves to other and more rational dispositions8 ,it is not improbable that the circumstances of the war and her own circumstances may have brought her wise men to begin to view us with other and even with kindred eyes4 ,should not our wise men1 then1 lifted above the passions of the ordinary citizen1 begin to contemplate what will be the interests of our country on so important a change among the elements which influence it8 ,i think it would be better to give her time to show her present temper1 and to prepare the minds of our citizens for a corresponding change of disposition1 by acts of comity towards ,england rather than by commemoration of hatred4 ,these views might be greatly extended4 ,perhaps1 however1 they are premature1 and that ,i may see the ruin of ,england nearer than it really is4 ,this will be matter of consideration with those to whose councils we have committed ourselves1 and whose wisdom1 ,i am sure1 will conclude on what is best4 ,perhaps they may let it go off on the single and short consideration that the thing can do no good1 and may do harm4 ,ever and affectionately yours4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,poplar ,,forest1 ,november #be1 #ahaf4 ,i receive here1 dear ,sir1 your favor of the #dth1 just as ,i am preparing my return to ,monticello for winter quarters1 and ,i hasten to answer to some of your inquiries4 ,the ,tracy ,i mentioned to you is the one connected by marriage with ,lafayette's family4 ,the mail which brought your letter1 brought one also from him4 ,he writes me that he is become blind1 and so infirm that he is no longer able to compose anything4 ,so that we are to consider his works as now closed4 ,they are three volumes of ,ideology1 one on ,political ,economy1 one on ,ethics1 and one containing his ,commentary on ,montesquieu1 and a little tract on ,education4 ,although his commentary explains his principles of government1 he had intended to have substituted for it an elementary and regular treatise on the subject1 but he is prevented by his infirmities4 ,his ,analyse de ,dupuys he does not avow4 ,my books are all arrived1 some at ,new ,york1 some at ,boston1 and ,i am glad to hear that those for ,harvard are safe also1 and the ,uranologia you mention without telling me what it is4 ,it is something good1 ,i am sure1 from the name connected with it2 and if you would add to it your fable of the bees1 we should receive valuable instruction as to the ,uranologia both of the father and son1 more valuable than the ,chinese will from our bible societies4 ,these incendiaries1 finding that the days of fire and fagot are over in the ,atlantic hemisphere1 are now preparing to put the torch to the ,asiatic regions4 ,what would they say were the ,pope to send annually to this country1 colonies of ,jesuit priests with cargoes of their missal and translations of their ,vulgate1 to be put gratis into the hands of every one who would accept them8 and to act thus nationally on us as a nation8 ,i proceed to the letter you were so good as to enclose me4 ,it is an able letter1 speaks volumes in few words1 presents a profound view of awful truths1 and lets us see truths more awful1 which are still to follow4 ,george the ,third then1 and his minister ,pitt1 and successors1 have spent the fee simple of the kingdom1 under pretence of governing it2 their sinecures1 salaries1 pensions1 priests1 prelates1 princes and eternal wars1 have mortgaged to its full value the last foot of their soil4 ,they are reduced to the dilemma of a bankrupt spendthrift1 who1 having run through his whole fortune1 now asks himself what he is to do8 ,it is in vain he dismisses his coaches and horses1 his grooms1 liveries1 cooks and butlers4 ,this done1 he still finds he has nothing to eat4 ,what was his property is now that of his creditors2 if still in his hands1 it is only as their trustee4 ,to them it belongs1 and to them every farthing of its profits must go4 ,the reformation of extravagances comes too late4 ,all is gone4 ,nothing left for retrenchment or frugality to go on4 ,the debts of ,england1 however1 being due from the whole nation to one half of it1 being as much the debt of the creditor as debtor1 if it could be referred to a court of equity1 principles might be devised to adjust it peaceably4 ,dismiss their parasites1 ship off their paupers to this country1 let the landholders give half their lands to the money lenders1 and these last relinquish one half of their debts4 ,they would still have a fertile island1 a sound and effective population to labor it1 and would hold that station among political powers1 to which their natural resources and faculties entitle them4 ,they would no longer1 indeed1 be the lords of the ocean and paymasters of all the princes of the earth4 ,they would no longer enjoy the luxuries of pirating and plundering everything by sea1 and of bribing and corrupting everything by land2 but they might enjoy the more safe and lasting luxury of living on terms of equality1 justice and good neighborhood with all nations4 ,as it is1 their first efforts will probably be to quiet things awhile by the palliatives of reformation2 to nibble a little at pensions and sinecures1 to bite off a bit here1 and a bite there to amuse the people2 and to keep the government a going by encroachments on the interest of the public debt1 one per cent4 of which1 for instance1 withheld1 gives them a spare revenue of ten millions for present subsistence1 and spunges1 in fact1 two hundred millions of the debt4 ,this remedy they may endeavor to administer in broken doses of a small pill at a time4 ,the first may not occasion more than a strong nausea in the money lenders2 but the second will probably produce a revulsion of the stomach1 borborisms1 and spasmodic calls for fair settlement and compromise4 ,but it is not in the character of man to come to any peaceable compromise of such a state of things4 ,the princes and priests will hold to the flesh-pots1 the empty bellies will seize on them1 and these being the multitude1 the issue is obvious1 civil war1 massacre1 exile as in ,france1 until the stage is cleaned of everything but the multitude1 and the lands get into their hands by such processes as the revolution will engender4 ,they will then want peace and a government1 and what will it be8 certainly not a renewal of that which has already ruined them4 ,their habits of law and order1 their ideas almost innate of the vital elements of free government1 of trial by jury1 habeas corpus1 freedom of the press1 freedom of opinion1 and representative government1 make them1 ,i think1 capable of bearing a considerable portion of liberty4 ,they will probably turn their eyes to us1 and be disposed to tread in our footsteps1 seeing how safely these have led us into port4 ,there is no part of our model to which they seem unequal1 unless perhaps the elective presidency2 and even that might possibly be rescued from the tumult of elections1 by subdividing the electoral assemblages into very small parts1 such as of wards or townships1 and making them simultaneous4 ,but you know them so much better than ,i do1 that it is presumption to offer my conjectures to you4 ,while it is much our interest to see this power reduced from its towering and borrowed height1 to within the limits of its natural resources1 it is by no means our interest that she should be brought below that1 or lose her competent place among the nations of ,europe4 ,the present exhausted state of the continent will1 ,i hope1 permit them to go through their struggle without foreign interference1 and to settle their new government according to their own will4 ,i think it will be friendly to us1 as the nation itself would be were it not artfully wrought up by the hatred their government bears us4 ,and were they once under a government which should treat us with justice and equity ,i should myself feel with great strength the ties which bind us together1 of origin1 language1 laws and manners2 and ,i am persuaded the two people would become in future1 as it was with the ancient ,greeks1 among whom it was reproachful for ,greek to be found fighting against ,greek in a foreign army4 ,the individuals of the nation ,i have ever honored and esteemed1 the basis of their character being essentially worthy2 but ,i consider their government as the most flagitious which has existed since the days of ,philip of ,macedon1 whom they make their model4 ,it is not only founded in corruption itself1 but insinuates the same poison into the bowels of every other1 corrupts its councils1 nourishes factions1 stirs up revolutions1 and places its own happiness in fomenting commotions and civil wars among others1 thus rendering itself truly the hostis humani generis4 ,the effect is now coming home to itself4 ,its first operation will fall on the individuals who have been the chief instruments in its corruptions1 and will eradicate the families which have from generation to generation been fattening on the blood of their brethren2 and this scoria once thrown off1 ,i am in hopes a purer nation will result1 and a purer government be instituted1 one which1 instead of endeavoring to make us their natural enemies1 will see in us1 what we really are1 their natural friends and brethren1 and more interested in a fraternal connection with them than with any other nation on earth4 ,i look1 therefore1 to their revolution with great interest4 ,i wish it to be as moderate and bloodless as will effect the desired object of an honest government1 one which will permit the world to live in peace1 and under the bonds of friendship and good neighborhood4 ,in this tremendous tempest1 the distinctions of whig and tory will disappear like chaff on a troubled ocean4 ,indeed1 they have been disappearing from the day ,hume first began to publish his history4 ,this single book has done more to sap the free principles of the ,english constitution than the largest standing army of which their patriots have been so jealous4 ,it is like the portraits of our countryman ,wright1 whose eye was so unhappy as to seize all the ugly features of his subject1 and to present them faithfully1 while it was entirely insensible to every lineament of beauty4 ,so ,hume has concentrated1 in his fascinating style1 all the arbitrary proceedings of the ,english kings1 as true evidences of the constitution1 and glided over its whig principles as the unfounded pretensions of factious demagogues4 ,he even boasts1 in his life written by himself1 that of the numerous alterations suggested by the readers of his work1 he had never adopted one proposed by a whig4 ,but what1 in this same tempest1 will become of their colonies and their fleets8 ,will the former assume independence1 and the latter resort to piracy for subsistence1 taking possession of some island as a point d'appui8 ,a pursuit of these would add too much to the speculations on the situation and prospects of ,england1 into which ,i have been led by the pithy text of the letter you so kindly sent me1 and which ,i now return4 ,it is worthy the pen of ,tacitus4 ,i add1 therefore1 only my affectionate and respectful souvenirs to ,mrs4 ,adams and yourself4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,december #af1 #ahaf4 ,your letter1 dear ,sir1 of ,november #beth1 from ,poplar ,forest1 was sent to me from the post-office the next day after ,i had sent ,the ,analysis1 with my thanks to you4 ,three vols4 of ,idiology6 ,pray explain to me this ,neological title6 ,what does it mean8 ,when ,bonaparte used it1 ,i was delighted with it1 upon the common principle of delight in everything we cannot understand4 ,does it mean ,idiotism8 ,the science of non compos mentuism8 ,the science of ,lunacy8 ,the theory of delirium8 or does it mean the science of self-love8 ,of amour propre8 or the elements of vanity8 ,were ,i in ,france at this time1 ,i could profess blindness and infirmity1 and prove it too4 ,i suppose he does not avow the analysis1 as ,hume did not avow his essay on human nature4 ,that analysis1 however1 does not show a man of excessive mediocrity4 ,had ,i known any of these things two years ago1 ,i would have written him a letter4 ,of all things1 ,i wish to see his ,idiology upon ,montesquieu4 ,if you1 with all your influence1 have not been able to get your own translation of it1 with your own notes upon it1 published in four years1 where and what is the freedom of the ,american press8 ,mr4 ,taylor of ,hazelwood1 ,port ,royal1 can have his voluminous and luminous works published with ease and despatch4 ,the ,uranologia1 as ,i am told1 is a collection of plates1 stamps1 charts of the ,heavens upon a large scale1 representing all the constellations4 ,the work of some ,professor in ,sweden4 ,it is said to be the most perfect that ever has appeared4 ,i have not seen it4 ,why should ,i ride fifteen miles to see it1 when ,i can see the original every clear evening2 and especially as ,dupuis has almost made me afraid to inquire after anything more of it than ,i can see with my naked eye in a star-light night8 ,that the ,pope will send ,jesuits to this country1 ,i doubt not2 and the church of ,england1 missionaries too4 ,and the ,methodists1 and the ,quakers1 and the ,moravians1 and the ,swedenburgers1 and the ,menonists1 and the ,scottish ,kirkers1 and the ,jacobites1 and the ,jacobins1 and the ,democrats1 and the ,aristocrats1 and the ,monarchists1 and the ,despotists of all denominations3 and every emissary of every one of these sects will find a party here already formed1 to give him a cordial reception4 ,no power or intelligence less than ,raphael's moderator1 can reduce this chaos to order4 ,i am charmed with the fluency and rapidity of your reasoning on the state of ,great ,britain4 ,i can deny none of your premises2 but ,i doubt your conclusion4 ,after all the convulsions that you foresee1 they will return to that constitution which you say has ruined them1 and ,i say has been the source of all their power and importance4 ,they have1 as you say1 too much sense and knowledge of liberty1 ever to submit to simple monarchy1 or absolute despotism1 on the one hand2 and too much of the devil in them ever to be governed by popular elections of ,presidents1 ,senators1 and ,representatives in ,congress4 ,instead of turning their eyes to us1 their innate feelings will turn them from us4 ,they have been taught from their cradles to despise1 scorn1 insult1 and abuse us4 ,they hate us more vigorously than they do the ,french4 ,they would sooner adopt the simple monarchy of ,france1 than our republican institutions4 ,you compliment me with more knowledge of them than ,i can assume or pretend4 ,if ,i should write you a volume of observations ,i made in ,england1 you would pronounce it a satire4 ,suppose the ,refrain1 as the ,french call it1 or the ,burthen of the ,song1 as the ,english express it1 should be1 the ,religion1 the ,government1 the ,commerce1 the ,manufactures1 the ,army and ,navy of ,great ,britain1 are all reduced to the science of pounds1 shillings and pence4 ,elections appeared to me a mere commercial traffic2 mere bargain and sale4 ,i have been told by sober1 steady freeholders1 that they never had been1 and never would go to the poll1 without being paid for their time1 travel and expenses4 ,now1 suppose an election for a ,president of the ,british empire4 ,there must be a nomination of candidates by a national convention1 ,congress1 or caucus--in which would be two parties--,whigs and ,tories4 ,of course two candidates at least would be nominated4 ,the empire is instantly divided into two parties at least4 ,every man must be paid for his vote by the candidate of his party4 ,the only question would be1 which party has the deepest purse4 ,the same reasoning will apply to elections of ,senators and ,representatives too4 ,a revolution might destroy the ,burroughs and the ,inequalities of representation1 and might produce more toleration2 and these acquisitions might be worth all they would cost2 but ,i dread the experiment4 ,britain will never be our friend till we are her master4 ,this will happen in less time than you and ,i have been struggling with her power2 provided we remain united4 ,aye6 there's the rub6 ,i fear there will be greater difficulties to preserve our ,union1 than you and ,i1 our fathers1 brothers1 friends1 disciples and sons have had1 to form it4 ,towards ,great ,britain1 ,i would adopt their own maxim4 ,an ,english jockey says1 ,if ,i have a wild horse to break1 ,i begin by convincing him ,i am his master2 and then ,i will convince him that ,i am his friend4 ,i am well assured that nothing will restrain ,great ,britain from injuring us1 but fear4 ,you think that in a revolution the distinction of ,whig and ,tory would disappear4 ,i cannot believe this4 ,that distinction arises from nature and society2 is now1 and ever will be1 time without end1 among ,negroes1 ,indians1 and ,tartars1 as well as federalists and republicans4 ,instead of disappearing since ,hume published his history1 that history has only increased the ,tories and diminished the ,whigs4 ,that history has been the bane of ,great ,britain4 ,it has destroyed many of the best effects of the revolution of #afhh4 ,style has governed the empire4 ,swift1 ,pope and ,hume1 have disgraced all the honest historians4 ,rapin and ,burnet1 ,oldmixen and ,coke1 contain more honest truth than ,hume and ,clarendon1 and all their disciples and imitators4 ,but who reads any of them at this day8 ,every one of the fine arts from the earliest times has been enlisted in the service of superstition and despotism4 ,the whole world at this day gazes with astonishment at the grossest fictions1 because they have been immortalized by the most exquisite artists--,homer and ,milton1 ,phideas and ,raphael4 ,the rabble of the classic skies1 and the hosts of ,roman ,catholic saints and angels1 are still adored in paint1 and marble1 and verse4 ,raphael has sketched the actors and scenes in all ,apuleus's ,amours of ,psyche and ,cupid4 ,nothing is too offensive to morals1 delicacy1 or decency1 for this painter4 ,raphael has painted in one of the most ostentatious churches in ,italy--the ,creation--and with what genius8 ,god ,almighty is represented as leaping into chaos1 and boxing it about with his fists1 and kicking it about with his feet1 till he tumbles it into order6 ,nothing is too impious or profane for this great master1 who has painted so many inimitable virgins and children4 ,to help me on in my career of improvement1 ,i have now read four volumes of ,la ,harpe's correspondence with ,paul and a ,russian minister4 ,philosophers6 ,never again think of annulling superstition per ,saltum4 ,testine cente4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,mellish4 ,,monticello1 ,december #ca1 #ahaf4 ,,sir1--,your favor of ,november #bc;d1 after a very long passage1 is received1 and with it the map which you have been so kind as to send me1 for which ,i return you many thanks4 ,it is handsomely executed1 and on a well-chosen scale2 giving a luminous view of the comparative possessions of different powers in our ,america4 ,it is on account of the value ,i set on it1 that ,i will make some suggestions4 ,by the charter of ,louis ,,xiv4 all the country comprehending the waters which flow into the ,mississippi1 was made a part of ,louisiana4 ,consequently its northern boundary was the summit of the highlands in which its northern waters rise4 ,but by the ,xth ,art4 of the ,treaty of ,utrecht1 ,france and ,england agreed to appoint commissioners to settle the boundary between their possessions in that quarter1 and those commissioners settled it at the #dith degree of latitude4 ,see ,hutchinson's ,topographical ,description of ,louisiana1 p4 #g4 ,this it was which induced the ,british ,commissioners1 in settling the boundary with us1 to follow the northern water line to the ,lake of the ,woods1 at the latitude of #di1 and then go off on that parallel4 ,this1 then1 is the true northern boundary of ,louisiana4 ,the western boundary of ,louisiana is1 rightfully1 the ,rio ,bravo1 7its main stream17 from its mouth to its source1 and thence along the highlands and mountains dividing the waters of the ,mississippi from those of the ,pacific4 ,the usurpations of ,spain on the east side of that river1 have induced geographers to suppose the ,puerco or ,salado to be the boundary4 ,the line along the highlands stands on the charter of ,louis ,,xiv4 that of the ,rio ,bravo1 on the circumstance that1 when ,la ,salle took possession of the ,bay of ,st4 ,bernard1 ,panuco was the nearest possession of ,spain1 and the ,rio ,bravo the natural half-way boundary between them4 ,on the waters of the ,pacific1 we can found no claim in right of ,louisiana4 ,if we claim that country at all1 it must be on ,astor's settlement near the mouth of the ,columbia1 and the principle of the jus gentium of ,america1 that when a civilized nation takes possession of the mouth of a river in a new country1 that possession is considered as including all its waters4 ,the line of latitude of the southern source of the multnomat might be claimed as appurtenant to ,astoria4 ,for its northern boundary1 ,i believe an understanding has been come to between our government and ,russia1 which might be known from some of its members4 ,i do not know it4 ,although the irksomeness of writing1 which you may perceive from the present letter1 and its labor1 oblige me now to withdraw from letter writing1 yet the wish that your map should set to rights the ideas of our own countrymen1 as well as foreign nations1 as to our correct boundaries1 has induced me to make these suggestions1 that you may bestow on them whatever inquiry they may merit4 ,i salute you with esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,mrs4 ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,january #aa1 #ahag4 ,i owe you1 dear ,madam1 a thousand thanks for the letters communicated in your favor of ,december #aeth1 and now returned4 ,they give me more information than ,i possessed before1 of the family of ,mr4 ,tracy4 ,but what is infinitely interesting1 is the scene of the exchange of ,louis ,,xviii4 for ,bonaparte4 ,what lessons of wisdom ,mr4 ,adams must have read in that short space of time6 ,more than fall to the lot of others in the course of a long life4 ,man1 and the man of ,paris1 under those circumstances1 must have been a subject of profound speculation6 ,it would be a singular addition to that spectacle1 to see the same beast in the cage of ,st4 ,helena1 like a lion in the tower4 ,that is probably the closing verse of the chapter of his crimes4 ,but not so with ,louis4 ,he has other vicissitudes to go through4 ,i communicated the letters1 according to your permission1 to my grand-daughter1 ,ellen ,randolph1 who read them with pleasure and edification4 ,she is justly sensible of1 and flattered by your kind notice of her2 and additionally so1 by the favorable recollections of our northern visiting friends4 ,if ,monticello has anything which has merited their remembrance1 it gives it a value the more in our estimation2 and could ,i1 in the spirit of your wish1 count backwards a score of years1 it would not be long before ,ellen and myself would pay our homage personally to ,quincy4 ,but those twenty years6 ,alas6 where are they8 ,with those beyond the flood4 ,our next meeting must then be in the country to which they have flown1--a country for us not now very distant4 ,for this journey we shall need neither gold nor silver in our purse1 nor scrip1 nor coats1 nor staves4 ,nor is the provision for it more easy than the preparation has been kind4 ,nothing proves more than this1 that the ,being who presides over the world is essentially benevolent4 ,stealing from us1 one by one1 the faculties of enjoyment1 searing our sensibilities1 leading us1 like the horse in his mill1 round and round the same beaten circle1 ----,to see what we have seen1 ,to taste the tasted1 and at each return ,less tasteful2 o'er our palates to decant ,another vintage-- ,until satiated and fatigued with this leaden iteration1 we ask our own cong4 ,i heard once a very old friend1 who had troubled himself with neither poets nor philosophers1 say the same thing in plain prose1 that he was tired of pulling off his shoes and stockings at night1 and putting them on again in the morning4 ,the wish to stay here is thus gradually extinguished2 but not so easily that of returning once1 in awhile1 to see how things have gone on4 ,perhaps1 however1 one of the elements of future felicity is to be a constant and unimpassioned view of what is passing here4 ,if so1 this may well supply the wish of occasional visits4 ,mercier has given us a vision of the year #bddj2 but prophecy is one thing1 and history another4 ,on the whole1 however1 perhaps it is wise and well to be contented with the good things which the master of the feast places before us1 and to be thankful for what we have1 rather than thoughtful about what we have not4 ,you and ,i1 dear ,madam1 have already had more than an ordinary portion of life1 and more1 too1 of health than the general measure4 ,on this score ,i owe boundless thankfulness4 ,your health was1 some time ago1 not so good as it has been2 and ,i perceive in the letters communicated1 some complaints still4 ,i hope it is restored2 and that life and health may be continued to you as many years as yourself shall wish1 is the sincere prayer of your affectionate and respectful friend4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,january #aa1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,forty-three volumes read in one year1 and twelve of them quarto6 ,dear ,sir1 how ,i envy you6 ,half a dozen octavos in that space of time1 are as much as ,i am allowed4 ,i can read by candlelight only1 and stealing long hours from my rest2 nor would that time be indulged to me1 could ,i by that light see to write4 ,from sunrise to one or two o'clock1 and often from dinner to dark1 ,i am drudging at the writing table4 ,and all this to answer letters into which neither interest nor inclination on my part enters2 and often from persons whose names ,i have never before heard4 ,yet1 writing civilly1 it is hard to refuse them civil answers4 ,this is the burthen of my life1 a very grievous one indeed1 and one which ,i must get rid of4 ,delaplaine lately requested me to give him a line on the subject of his book2 meaning1 as ,i well knew1 to publish it4 ,this ,i constantly refuse2 but in this instance yielded1 that in saying a word for him1 ,i might say two for myself4 ,i expressed in it freely my sufferings from this source2 hoping it would have the effect of an indirect appeal to the discretion of those1 strangers and others1 who1 in the most friendly dispositions1 oppress me with their concerns1 their pursuits1 their projects1 inventions and speculations1 political1 moral1 religious1 mechanical1 mathematical1 historical1 c41 c41 c4 ,i hope the appeal will bring me relief1 and that ,i shall be left to exercise and enjoy correspondence with the friends ,i love1 and on subjects which they1 or my own inclinations present4 ,in that case1 your letters shall not be so long on my files unanswered1 as sometimes they have been1 to my great mortification4 ,to advert now to the subjects of those of ,december the #abth and #afth4 ,tracy's ,commentaries on ,montesquieu have never been published in the original4 ,duane printed a translation from the original manuscript a few years ago4 ,it sold1 ,i believe1 readily1 and whether a copy can now be had1 ,i doubt4 ,if it can1 you will receive it from my bookseller in ,philadelphia1 to whom ,i now write for that purpose4 ,tracy comprehends1 under the word ,ideology1 all the subjects which the ,french term ,morale1 as the correlative to ,physique4 ,his works on ,logic1 ,government1 ,political ,economy and ,morality1 he considers as making up the circle of ideological subjects1 or of those which are within the scope of the understanding1 and not of the senses4 ,his ,logic occupies exactly the ground of ,locke's work on the ,understanding4 ,the translation of that on ,political ,economy is now printing2 but it is no translation of mine4 ,i have only had the correction of it1 which was1 indeed1 very laborious4 ,le premier jet having been by some one who understood neither ,french or ,english1 it was impossible to make it more than faithful4 ,but it is a valuable work4 ,the result of your fifty or sixty years of religious reading1 in the four words1 ,be just and good1 is that in which all our inquiries must end2 as the riddles of all the priesthoods end in four more1 ubi panis1 ibi deus4 ,what all agree in1 is probably right4 ,what no two agree in1 most probably wrong4 ,one of our fan-coloring biographers1 who paints small men as very great1 inquired of me lately1 with real affection too1 whether he might consider as authentic1 the change in my religion much spoken of in some circles4 ,now this supposed that they knew what had been my religion before1 taking for it the word of their priests1 whom ,i certainly never made the confidants of my creed4 ,my answer was1 say nothing of my religion4 ,it is known to my ,god and myself alone4 ,its evidence before the world is to be sought in my life2 if that has been honest and dutiful to society1 the religion which has regulated it cannot be a bad one4 ,affectionately adieu4 ,,to ,,william ,,lee1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,january #af1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i received1 three days ago1 a letter from ,m4 ,martin1 #b;d ,vice ,president1 and ,m4 ,parmantier1 ,secretary of the ,french ,agricultural and ,manufacturing ,society1 dated at ,philadelphia the #eth instant4 ,it covered resolutions proposing to apply to ,congress for a grant of two hundred and fifty thousand acres of land on the ,tombigbee1 and stating some of the general principles on which the society was to be founded2 and their letter requested me to trace for them the basis of a social pact for the local regulations of their society1 and to address the answer to yourself1 their #ast ,vice ,president at ,washington4 ,no one can be more sensible than ,i am of the honor of their confidence in me1 so flatteringly manifested in this resolution2 and certainly no one can feel stronger dispositions than myself to be useful to them1 as well in return for this great mark of their respect1 as from feelings for the situation of strangers1 forced by the misfortunes of their native country to seek another by adoption1 so distant and so different from that in all its circumstances4 ,i commiserate the hardships they have to encounter1 and equally applaud the resolution with which they meet them1 as well as the principles proposed for their government4 ,that their emigration may be for the happiness of their descendants1 ,i can believe2 but from the knowledge ,i have of the country they have left1 and its state of social intercourse and comfort1 their own personal happiness will undergo severe trial here4 ,the laws1 however1 which must effect this must flow from their own habits1 their own feelings1 and the resources of their own minds4 ,no stranger to these could possibly propose regulations adapted to them4 ,every people have their own particular habits1 ways of thinking1 manners1 c41 which have grown up with them from their infancy are become a part of their nature1 and to which the regulations which are to make them happy must be accommodated4 ,no member of a foreign country can have a sufficient sympathy with these4 ,the institutions of ,lycurgus1 for example1 would not have suited ,athens1 nor those of ,solon1 ,lacedmon4 ,the organizations of ,locke were impracticable for ,carolina1 and those of ,rousseau and ,mably for ,poland4 ,turning inwardly on myself from these eminent illustrations of the truth of my observation1 ,i feel all the presumption it would manifest1 should ,i undertake to do what this respectable society is alone qualified to do suitably for itself4 ,there are some preliminary questions1 too1 which are particularly for their own consideration4 ,is it proposed that this shall be a separate ,state8 or a county of a ,state8 or a mere voluntary association1 as those of the ,quakers1 ,dunkars1 ,menonists8 ,a separate ,state it cannot be1 because from the tract it asks it would not be more than twenty miles square2 and in establishing new ,states1 regard is had to a certain degree of equality in size4 ,if it is to be a county of a ,state1 it cannot be governed by its own laws1 but must be subject to those of the ,state of which it is a part4 ,if merely a voluntary association1 the submission of its members will be merely voluntary also2 as no act of coercion would be permitted by the general law4 ,these considerations must control the society1 and themselves alone can modify their own intentions and wishes to them4 ,with this apology for declining a task to which ,i am so unequal1 ,i pray them to be assured of my sincere wishes for their success and happiness1 and yourself particularly of my high consideration and esteem4 ,,to ,,doctor ,,thomas ,,humphreys4 ,,monticello1 ,february #h1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,january #b;d did not come to my hands until the #eth instant4 ,i concur entirely in your leading principles of gradual emancipation1 of establishment on the coast of ,africa1 and the patronage of our nation until the emigrants shall be able to protect themselves4 ,the subordinate details might be easily arranged4 ,but the bare proposition of purchase by the ,united ,states generally1 would excite infinite indignation in all the ,states north of ,maryland4 ,the sacrifice must fall on the ,states alone which hold them2 and the difficult question will be how to lessen this so as to reconcile our fellow citizens to it4 ,personally ,i am ready and desirous to make any sacrifice which shall ensure their gradual but complete retirement from the ,state1 and effectually1 at the same time1 establish them elsewhere in freedom and safety4 ,but ,i have not perceived the growth of this disposition in the rising generation1 of which ,i once had sanguine hopes4 ,no symptoms inform me that it will take place in my day4 ,i leave it1 therefore1 to time1 and not at all without hope that the day will come1 equally desirable and welcome to us as to them4 ,perhaps the proposition now on the carpet at ,washington to provide an establishment on the coast of ,africa for voluntary emigrations of people of color1 may be the corner stone of this future edifice4 ,praying for its completion as early as may most promote the good of all1 ,i salute you with great esteem and respect4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,april #ai1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,my loving and beloved friend ,pickering1 has been pleased to inform the world that ,i have few friends4 ,i wanted to whip the rogue1 and ,i had it in my power1 if it had been in my will to do it1 till the blood came4 ,but all my real friends1 as ,i thought then1 with ,dexter and ,gray at their head1 insisted that ,i should not say a word2 that nothing that such a person could write would do me the least injury2 that it would betray the constitution and the government1 if a ,president1 out or in1 should enter into a newspaper controversy with one of his ministers1 whom he had removed from his office1 in justification of himself for that removal1 or anything else2 and they talked a great deal about the ,,dignity of the office of ,president1 which ,i do not find that any other person1 public or private regards very much4 ,nevertheless1 ,i fear that ,mr4 ,pickering's information is too true4 ,it is impossible that any man should run such a gauntlet as ,i have been driven through1 and have many friends at last4 ,this all who know me know1 though ,i cannot say2 who love me1 tell4 ,i have1 however1 either friends who wish to amuse and solace my old age1 or enemies who mean to heap coals of fire on my head1 and kill me with kindness2 for they overwhelm me with books from all quarters1 enough to obfuscate all eyes1 and smother and stifle all human understanding4 ,chateaubriand1 ,grimm1 ,tucker1 ,dupuis1 ,la ,harpe1 ,sismondi1 ,eustace1 a new translation of ,herodotus1 by ,bedloe1 with more notes than text4 ,what should ,i do with all this lumber8 ,i make my woman-kind1 as the antiquary expresses it1 read to me all the ,english1 but as they will not read the ,french1 ,i am obliged to excruciate my eyes to read it myself2 and all to what purpose8 ,i verily believe ,i was as wise and good1 seventy years ago1 as ,i am now4 ,at that period ,lemuel ,bryant was my parish priest1 and ,joseph ,cleverly my ,latin schoolmaster4 ,lemuel was a jolly1 jocular1 and liberal scholar and divine4 ,joseph a scholar and a gentleman2 but a bigoted ,episcopalian1 of the school of ,bishop ,saunders1 and ,dr4 ,hicks1--a downright conscientious1 passive obedience man1 in ,church and ,state4 ,the parson and the pedagogue lived much together1 but were eternally disputing about government and religion4 ,one day1 when the schoolmaster had been more than commonly fanatical1 and declared if he were a monarch1 he would have but one religion in his dominions2 the parson coolly replied1 ,cleverly6 you would be the best man in the world if you had no religion4 ,twenty times in the course of my late reading have ,i been on the point of breaking out1 ,this would be the best of all possible worlds1 if there were no religion in it666 ,but in this exclamation ,i should have been as fanatical as ,bryant or ,cleverly4 ,without religion this world would be something not fit to be mentioned in polite society1 ,i mean hell4 ,so far from believing in the total and universal depravity of human nature1 ,i believe there is no individual totally depraved4 ,the most abandoned scoundrel that ever existed1 never yet wholly extinguished his conscience1 and while conscience remains there is some religion4 ,popes1 ,jesuits1 and ,sorbonists1 and ,inquisitors1 have some conscience and some religion4 ,so had ,marius and ,sylla1 ,csar1 ,catiline and ,antony2 and ,augustus had not much more1 let ,virgil and ,horace say what they will4 ,what shall we think of ,virgil and ,horace1 ,sallust1 ,quintilian1 ,pliny1 and even ,tacitus8 and even ,cicero1 ,brutus and ,seneca8 ,pompey ,i leave out of the question1 as a mere politician and soldier4 ,every one of the great creatures has left indelible marks of conscience1 and consequently of religion1 though every one of them has left abundant proofs of profligate violations of their consciences by their little and great passions and paltry interests4 ,the vast prospect of mankind1 which these books have passed in review before me1 from the most ancient records1 histories1 traditions and fables1 that remain to us to the present day1 has sickened my very soul1 and almost reconciled me to ,swift's travels among the ,yahoos2 yet ,i never can be a misanthrope--,homo sum4 ,i must hate myself before ,i can hate my fellow men2 and that ,i cannot1 and will not do4 ,no6 ,i will not hate any of them1 base1 brutal1 and devilish as some of them have been to me4 ,from the bottom of my soul1 ,i pity my fellow men4 ,fears and terrors appear to have produced an universal credulity4 ,fears of calamities in life1 and punishments after death1 seem to have possessed the souls of all men4 ,but fear of pain and death1 here1 do not seem to have been so unconquerable1 as fear of what is to come hereafter4 ,priests1 ,hierophants1 ,popes1 ,despots1 ,emperors1 ,kings1 ,princes1 ,nobles1 have been as credulous as shoe-blacks1 boots and kitchen scullions4 ,the former seem to have believed in their divine rights as sincerely as the latter4 ,auto de fes1 in ,spain and ,portugal1 have been celebrated with as good faith as excommunications have been practised in ,connecticut1 or as baptisms have been refused in ,philadelphia4 ,how is it possible that mankind should submit to be governed1 as they have been1 is to me an inscrutable mystery4 ,how they could bear to be taxed to build the temple of ,diana at ,ephesus1 the pyramids of ,egypt1 ,saint ,peter's at ,rome1 ,notre ,dame at ,paris1 ,st4 ,paul's in ,london1 with a million et ceteras1 when my navy yards and my quasi army made such a popular clamor1 ,i know not4 ,yet all my peccadillos never excited such a rage as the late compensation law6 ,i congratulate you on the late election in ,connecticut4 ,it is a kind of epocha4 ,several causes have conspired4 ,one which you would not suspect4 ,some one1 no doubt instigated by the devil1 has taken it into his head to print a new edition of the ,independent ,whig1 even in ,connecticut1 and has scattered the volumes through the ,state4 ,these volumes1 it is said1 have produced a burst of indignation against priestcraft1 bigotry and intolerance1 and in conjunction with other causes1 have produced the late election4 ,when writing to you ,i never know when to subscribe1 ,j4 ,a4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,may #e1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,absences and avocations had prevented my acknowledging your favor of ,february the #b;d1 when that of ,april the #aith arrived4 ,i had not the pleasure of receiving the former by the hands of ,mr4 ,lyman4 ,his business probably carried him in another direction2 for ,i am far inland1 and distant from the great line of communication between the trading cities4 ,your recommendations are always welcome1 for indeed1 the subjects of them always merit that welcome1 and some of them in an extraordinary degree4 ,they make us acquainted with what there is excellent in our ancient sister ,state of ,massachusetts1 once venerated and beloved1 and still hanging on our hopes1 for what need we despair of after the resurrection of ,connecticut to light and liberality4 ,i had believed that the last retreat of monkish darkness1 bigotry1 and abhorrence of those advances of the mind which had carried the other ,states a century ahead of them4 ,they seemed still to be exactly where their forefathers were when they schismatized from the covenant of works1 and to consider as dangerous heresies all innovations good or bad4 ,i join you1 therefore1 in sincere congratulations that this den of the priesthood is at length broken up1 and that a ,protestant ,popedom is no longer to disgrace the ,american history and character4 ,if by religion we are to understand sectarian dogmas1 in which no two of them agree1 then your exclamation on that hypothesis is just1 that this would be the best of all possible worlds1 if there were no religion in it4 ,but if the moral precepts1 innate in man1 and made a part of his physical constitution1 as necessary for a social being1 if the sublime doctrines of philanthropism and deism taught us by ,jesus of ,nazareth1 in which all agree1 constitute true religion1 then1 without it1 this would be1 as you again say1 something not fit to be named1 even indeed1 a hell4 ,you certainly acted wisely in taking no notice of what the malice of ,pickering could say of you4 ,were such things to be answered1 our lives would be wasted in the filth of fendings and provings1 instead of being employed in promoting the happiness and prosperity of our fellow citizens4 ,the tenor of your life is the proper and sufficient answer4 ,it is fortunate for those in public trust1 that posterity will judge them by their works1 and not by the malignant vituperations and invectives of the ,pickerings and ,gardiners of their age4 ,after all1 men of energy of character must have enemies2 because there are two sides to every question1 and taking one with decision1 and acting on it with effect1 those who take the other will of course be hostile in proportion as they feel that effect4 ,thus1 in the revolution1 ,hancock and the ,adamses were the raw-head and bloody bones of tories and traitors who yet knew nothing of you personally but what was good4 ,i do not entertain your apprehensions for the happiness of our brother ,madison in a state of retirement4 ,such a mind as his1 fraught with information and with matter for reflection1 can never know ennui4 ,besides1 there will always be work enough cut out for him to continue his active usefulness to his country4 ,for example1 he and ,monroe 7the ,president7 are now here on the work of a collegiate institution to be established in our neighborhood1 of which they and myself are three of six visitors4 ,this1 if it succeeds1 will raise up children for ,mr4 ,madison to employ his attention through life4 ,i say if it succeeds2 for we have two very essential wants in our way1 first1 means to compass our views2 and1 second1 men qualified to fulfil them4 ,and these1 you will agree1 are essential wants indeed4 ,i am glad to find you have a copy of ,sismondi1 because his is a field familiar to you1 and on which you can judge him4 ,his work is highly praised1 but ,i have not yet read it4 ,i have been occupied and delighted with reading another work1 the title of which did not promise much useful information or amusement1 l',italia avanti il dominio dei ,romani dal ,micali4 ,it has often1 you know1 been a subject of regret1 that ,carthage had no writer to give her side of her own history1 while her wealth1 power and splendor1 prove she must have had a very distinguished policy and government4 ,micali has given the counterpart of the ,roman history1 for the nations over which they extended their dominion4 ,for this he has gleaned up matter from every quarter1 and furnished materials for reflection and digestion to those who1 thinking as they read1 have perceived that there was a great deal of matter behind the curtain1 could that be fully withdrawn4 ,he certainly gives new views of a nation whose splendor has masked and palliated their barbarous ambition4 ,i am now reading ,botta's history of our own ,revolution4 ,bating the ancient practice which he has adopted1 of putting speeches into mouths which never made them1 and fancying motives of action which we never felt1 he has given that history with more detail1 precision and candor1 than any writer ,i have yet met with4 ,it is1 to be sure1 compiled from those writers2 but it is a good secretion of their matter1 the pure from the impure1 and presented in a just sense of right1 in opposition to usurpation4 ,accept assurances for ,mrs4 ,adams and yourself of my affectionate esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,dr4 ,,josephus ,b4 ,,stuart4 ,,monticello1 ,may #aj1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,april #b;d is duly received4 ,i am very sensible of the partiality with which you are so good as to review the course ,i have held in public life1 and ,i have also to be thankful to my fellow-citizens for a like indulgence generally shown to my endeavors to be useful to them4 ,they give quite as much credit as is merited to the difficulties supposed to attend the public administration4 ,there are no mysteries in it4 ,difficulties indeed sometimes arise2 but common sense and honest intentions will generally steer through them1 and1 where they cannot be surmounted1 ,i have ever seen the well-intentioned part of our fellow citizens sufficiently disposed not to look for impossibilities4 ,we all know that a farm1 however large1 is not more difficult to direct than a garden1 and does not call for more attention or skill4 ,i hope with you that the policy of our country will settle down with as much navigation and commerce only as our own exchanges will require1 and that the disadvantage will be seen of our undertaking to carry on that of other nations4 ,this1 indeed1 may bring gain to a few individuals1 and enable them to call off from our farms more laborers to be converted into lackeys and grooms for them1 but it will bring nothing to our country but wars1 debt1 and dilapidation4 ,this has been the course of ,england1 and her examples have fearful influence on us4 ,in copying her we do not seem to consider that like premises induce like consequences4 ,the bank mania is one of the most threatening of these imitations4 ,it is raising up a monied aristocracy in our country which has already set the government at defiance1 and although forced at length to yield a little on this first essay of their strength1 their principles are unyielded and unyielding4 ,these have taken deep root in the hearts of that class from which our legislators are drawn1 and the sop to ,cerberus from fable has become history4 ,their principles lay hold of the good1 their pelf of the bad1 and thus those whom the constitution had placed as guards to its portals1 are sophisticated or suborned from their duties4 ,that paper money has some advantages1 is admitted4 ,but that its abuses also are inevitable1 and1 by breaking up the measure of value1 makes a lottery of all private property1 cannot be denied4 ,shall we ever be able to put a constitutional veto on it8 ,you say ,i must go to writing history4 ,while in public life ,i had not time1 and now that ,i am retired1 ,i am past the time4 ,to write history requires a whole life of observation1 of inquiry1 of labor and correction4 ,its materials are not to be found among the ruins of a decayed memory4 ,at this day ,i should begin where ,i ought to have left off4 ,the solve senes centem equum1 is a precept we learn in youth but for the practice of age2 and were ,i to disregard it1 it would be but a proof the more of its soundness4 ,if anything has ever merited to me the respect of my fellow citizens1 themselves1 ,i hope1 would wish me not to lose it by exposing the decay of faculties of which it was the reward4 ,i must then1 dear ,sir1 leave to yourself and your brethren of the rising generation1 to arraign at your tribunal the actions of your predecessors1 and to pronounce the sentence they may have merited or incurred4 ,if the sacrifices of that age have resulted in the good of this1 then all is well1 and we shall be rewarded by their approbation1 and shall be authorized to say1 go ye and do likewise4 ,to yourself ,i tender personally the assurance of my great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,marquis ,,de ,,la ,,fayette4 ,,monticello1 ,may #ad1 #ahag4 ,although1 dear ,sir1 much retired from the world1 and meddling little in its concerns1 yet ,i think it almost a religious duty to salute at times my old friends1 were it only to say and to know that all's well4 ,our hobby has been politics2 but all here is so quiet1 and with you so desperate1 that little matter is furnished us for active attention4 ,with you too1 it has long been forbidden ground1 and therefore imprudent for a foreign friend to tread1 in writing to you4 ,but although our speculations might be intrusive1 our prayers cannot but be acceptable1 and mine are sincerely offered for the well-being of ,france4 ,what government she can bear1 depends not on the state of science1 however exalted1 in a select band of enlightened men1 but on the condition of the general mind4 ,that1 ,i am sure1 is advanced and will advance2 and the last change of government was fortunate1 inasmuch as the new will be less obstructive to the effects of that advancement4 ,for ,i consider your foreign military oppressions as an ephemeral obstacle only4 ,here all is quiet4 ,the ,british war has left us in debt2 but that is a cheap price for the good it has done us4 ,the establishment of the necessary manufactures among ourselves1 the proof that our government is solid1 can stand the shock of war1 and is superior even to civil schism1 are precious facts for us2 and of these the strongest proofs were furnished1 when1 with four eastern ,states tied to us1 as dead to living bodies1 all doubt was removed as to the achievements of the war1 had it continued4 ,but its best effect has been the complete suppression of party4 ,the federalists who were truly ,american1 and their great mass was so1 have separated from their brethren who were mere ,anglomen1 and are received with cordiality into the republican ranks4 ,even ,connecticut1 as a ,state1 and the last one expected to yield its steady habits 7which were essentially bigoted in politics as well as religion71 has chosen a republican governor1 and republican legislature4 ,massachusetts indeed still lags2 because most deeply involved in the parricide crimes and treasons of the war4 ,but her gangrene is contracting1 the sound flesh advancing on it1 and all there will be well4 ,i mentioned ,connecticut as the most hopeless of our ,states4 ,little ,delaware had escaped my attention4 ,that is essentially a ,quaker ,state1 the fragment of a religious sect which1 there1 in the other ,states1 in ,england1 are a homogeneous mass1 acting with one mind1 and that directed by the mother society in ,england4 ,dispersed1 as the ,jews1 they still form1 as those do1 one nation1 foreign to the land they live in4 ,they are ,protestant ,jesuits1 implicitly devoted to the will of their superior1 and forgetting all duties to their country in the execution of the policy of their order4 ,when war is proposed with ,england1 they have religious scruples2 but when with ,france1 these are laid by1 and they become clamorous for it4 ,they are1 however1 silent1 passive1 and give no other trouble than of whipping them along4 ,nor is the election of ,monroe an inefficient circumstance in our felicities4 ,four and twenty years1 which he will accomplish1 of administration in republican forms and principles1 will so consecrate them in the eyes of the people as to secure them against the danger of change4 ,the evanition of party dissensions has harmonized intercourse1 and sweetened society beyond imagination4 ,the war then has done us all this good1 and the further one of assuring the world1 that although attached to peace from a sense of its blessings1 we will meet war when it is made necessary4 ,i wish ,i could give better hopes of our southern brethren4 ,the achievement of their independence of ,spain is no longer a question4 ,but it is a very serious one1 what will then become of them8 ,ignorance and bigotry1 like other insanities1 are incapable of self-government4 ,they will fall under military despotism1 and become the murderous tools of the ambition of their respective ,bonapartes2 and whether this will be for their greater happiness1 the rule of one only has taught you to judge4 ,no one1 ,i hope1 can doubt my wish to see them and all mankind exercising self-government1 and capable of exercising it4 ,but the question is not what we wish1 but what is practicable8 ,as their sincere friend and brother then1 ,i do believe the best thing for them1 would be for themselves to come to an accord with ,spain1 under the guarantee of ,france1 ,russia1 ,holland1 and the ,united ,states1 allowing to ,spain a nominal supremacy1 with authority only to keep the peace among them1 leaving them otherwise all the powers of self-government1 until their experience in them1 their emancipation from their priests1 and advancement in information1 shall prepare them for complete independence4 ,i exclude ,england from this confederacy1 because her selfish principles render her incapable of honorable patronage or disinterested co-operation2 unless1 indeed1 what seems now probable1 a revolution should restore to her an honest government1 one which will permit the world to live in peace4 ,portugal grasping at an extension of her dominion in the south1 has lost her great northern province of ,pernambuco1 and ,i shall not wonder if ,brazil should revolt in mass1 and send their royal family back to ,portugal4 ,brazil is more populous1 more wealthy1 more energetic1 and as wise as ,portugal4 ,i have been insensibly led1 my dear friend1 while writing to you1 to indulge in that line of sentiment in which we have been always associated1 forgetting that these are matters not belonging to my time4 ,not so with you1 who have still many years to be a spectator of these events4 ,that these years may indeed be many and happy1 is the sincere prayer of your affectionate friend4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,may #ah1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,lyman was mortified that he could not visit ,monticello4 ,he is gone to ,europe a second time4 ,i regret that he did not see you1 he would have executed any commission for you in the literary line1 at any pain or any expense4 ,i have many apprehensions for his health1 which is very delicate and precarious1 but he is seized with the mania of all our young clerical spirits for foreign travel2 ,i fear they will lose more than they acquire1 they will lose that unadulterated enthusiasm for their native country1 which has produced the greatest characters among us4 ,oh6 ,lord6 ,do you think that ,protestant ,popedom is annihilated in ,america8 ,do you recollect1 or have you ever attended to the ecclesiastical strifes in ,maryland1 ,pennsylvania1 ,new ,york1 and every part of ,new ,england8 ,what a mercy it is that these people cannot whip1 and crop1 and pillory1 and roast1 as yet in the ,united ,states6 ,if they could1 they would4 ,do you know the ,general of the ,jesuits1 and consequently all his host1 have their eyes on this country8 ,do you know that the ,church of ,england is employing more means and more art1 to propagate their demi-popery among us1 than ever8 ,quakers1 ,anabaptists1 ,moravians1 ,swedenborgians1 ,methodists1 ,unitarians1 ,nothingarians in all ,europe are employing underhand means to propagate their sectarian system in these ,states4 ,the multitude and diversity of them1 you will say1 is our security against them all4 ,god grant it4 ,but if we consider that the ,presbyterians and ,methodists are far the most numerous and the most likely to unite1 let a ,george ,whitefield arise1 with a military cast1 like ,mahomet or ,loyola1 and what will become of all the other sects who can never unite8 ,my friends or enemies continue to overwhelm me with books4 ,whatever may be their intention1 charitable or otherwise1 they certainly contribute to continue me to vegetate1 much as ,i have done for the sixteen years last past4 ,sir ,john ,malcolm's history of ,persia1 and ,sir ,william ,jones' works1 are now poured out upon me1 and a little cargo is coming from ,europe4 ,what can ,i do with all this learned lumber8 ,is it necessary to salvation to investigate all these ,cosmogonies and ,mythologies8 ,are ,bryant1 ,gebelin1 ,dupuis1 or ,sir ,william ,jones1 right8 ,what a frown upon mankind was the premature death of ,sir ,william ,jones6 ,why could not ,jones and ,dupuis have conversed or corresponded with each other8 ,had ,jones read ,dupuis1 or ,dupuis ,jones1 the works of both would be immensely improved1 though each would probably have adhered to his system4 ,i should admire to see a counsel composed of ,gebelin1 ,bryant1 ,jones and ,dupuis4 ,let them live together and compare notes4 ,the human race ought to contribute to furnish them with all the books in the ,universe1 and the means of subsistence4 ,i am not expert enough in ,italian to read ,botta1 and ,i know not that he has been translated4 ,indeed1 ,i have been so little satisfied with histories of the ,american revolution1 that ,i have long since ceased to read them4 ,the truth is lost1 in adulatory panegyrics1 and in vituperary insolence4 ,i wish you1 ,mr4 ,madison1 and ,mr4 ,monroe1 success in your collegiate institution4 ,and ,i wish that superstition in religion1 exciting superstition in politics1 and both united in directing military force1 alias glory1 may never blow up all your benevolent and philanthropic lucubrations4 ,but the history of all ages is against you4 ,it is said that no effort in favor of virtue is ever lost4 ,i doubt whether it was ever true2 whether it is now true2 but hope it will be true4 ,in the moral government of the world1 no doubt it was1 is1 and ever will be true2 but it has not yet appeared to be true on this earth4 ,i am1 ,sir1 sincerely your friend4 ,p4 ,s4 ,have you seen the ,philosophy of ,human ,nature1 and the ,history of the ,war in the western ,states1 from ,kentucky8 ,how vigorously science and literature spring up1 as well as patriotism and heroism1 in transalleganian regions8 ,have you seen ,wilkinson's history8 c41 c4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,may #bf1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,mr4 ,leslie ,combes of ,kentucky has sent me a history of the late war1 in the western country1 by ,mr4 ,robert ,b4 ,m',siffee1 and the ,philosophy of ,human ,nature1 by ,joseph ,buchanan4 ,the history ,i am glad to see1 because it will preserve facts to the honor and immortal glory of the western people4 ,indeed1 ,i am not sorry that the ,philosophy has been published1 because it has been a maxim with me for sixty years at least1 never to be afraid of a book4 ,nevertheless1 ,i cannot foresee much utility in reviewing1 in this country1 the controversy between the ,spiritualists and the ,materialists4 ,why should time be wasted in disputing about two substances1 when both parties agree that neither knows anything about either4 ,if spirit is an abstraction1 a conjecture1 a chimera2 matter is an abstraction1 a conjecture1 a chimera2 for we know as much1 or rather as little1 about one as the other4 ,we may read ,cudworth1 ,le ,clerc1 ,leibnitz1 ,berkley1 ,hume1 ,bolingbroke and ,priestley1 and a million other volumes in all ages1 and be obliged at last to confess that we have learned nothing4 ,spirit and matter still remain riddles4 ,define the terms1 however1 and the controversy is soon settled4 ,if spirit is an active something1 and matter an inactive something1 it is certain that one is not the other4 ,we can no more conceive that extension1 or solidity1 can think1 or feel1 or see1 or hear1 or taste1 or smell2 than we can conceive that perception1 memory1 imagination1 or reason1 can remove a mountain1 or blow a rock4 ,this enigma has puzzled mankind from the beginning1 and probably will to the end4 ,economy of time requires that we should waste no more in so idle an amusement4 ,in the eleventh discourse of ,sir ,william ,jones1 before the ,asiatic ,society1 vol4 iii41 page #bbi1 of his works1 we find that ,materialists and ,immaterialists existed in ,india1 and that they accused each other of atheism1 before ,berkley1 or ,priestley1 or ,dupuis1 or ,plato1 or ,pythagoras1 were born4 ,indeed1 ,newton himself appears to have discovered nothing that was not known to the ancient ,indians4 ,he has only furnished more complete demonstrations of the doctrines they taught4 ,sir ,john ,malcolm agrees with ,jones and ,dupuis1 in the ,astrological origin of heathen mythologies4 ,vain man6 mind your own business6 ,do no wrong2--do all the good you can6 ,eat your canvas-back ducks6 ,drink your ,burgundy6 ,sleep your siesta when necessary1 and ,,trust ,,in ,,god6 ,what a mighty bubble1 what a tremendous waterspout1 has ,napoleon been1 according to his life1 written by himself6 ,he says he was the creature of the principles and manners of the age2 by which1 no doubt1 he means the age of ,reason2 the progress of ,manilius' ,ratio1 of ,plato's ,logos1 c4 ,i believe him4 ,a whirlwind raised him1 and a whirlwind blowed him away to ,st4 ,helena4 ,he is very confident that the age of ,reason is not past1 and so am ,i2 but ,i hope that ,reason will never again rashly and hastily create such creatures as him4 ,liberty1 equality1 fraternity1 and humanity1 will never again1 ,i hope1 blindly surrender themselves to an unbounded ambition for national conquests1 nor implicitly commit themselves to the custody and guardianship of arms and heroes4 ,if they do1 they will again end in ,st4 ,helena1 ,inquisitions1 ,jesuits1 and sacre liques4 ,poor ,laureate ,southey is writhing in torments under the laugh of the three kingdoms1 all ,europe1 and ,america1 upon the publication of his ,wat ,tyler4 ,i wonder whether he or ,bonaparte suffers most4 ,i congratulate you1 and ,madison1 and ,monroe1 on your noble employment in founding a university4 ,from such a noble ,triumvirate1 the world will expect something very great and very new2 but if it contains anything quite original1 and very excellent1 ,i fear the prejudices are too deeply rooted to suffer it to last long1 though it may be accepted at first4 ,it will not always have three such colossal reputations to support it4 ,the ,pernambuco ,ambassador1 his ,secretary of legation1 and private ,secretary1 respectable people1 have made me a visit4 ,having been some year or two in a similar situation1 ,i could not but sympathize with him4 ,as ,bonaparte says1 the age of ,reason is not ended4 ,nothing can totally extinguish1 or eclipse the light which has been shed abroad by the press4 ,i am1 ,sir1 with hearty wishes for your health and happiness1 your friend and humble servant4 ,,to ,,doctor ,,john ,,manners4 ,,monticello1 ,june #ab1 #ahag4 ,,sir1--,your favor of ,may #bjth has been received some time since1 but the increasing inertness of age renders me slow in obeying the calls of the writing-table1 and less equal than ,i have been to its labors4 ,my opinion on the right of ,expatriation has been1 so long ago as the year #aggf1 consigned to record in the act of the ,virginia code1 drawn by myself1 recognizing the right expressly1 and prescribing the mode of exercising it4 ,the evidence of this natural right1 like that of our right to life1 liberty1 the use of our faculties1 the pursuit of happiness1 is not left to the feeble and sophistical investigations of reason1 but is impressed on the sense of every man4 ,we do not claim these under the charters of kings or legislators1 but under the ,king of kings4 ,if he has made it a law in the nature of man to pursue his own happiness1 he has left him free in the choice of place as well as mode2 and we may safely call on the whole body of ,english jurists to produce the map on which ,nature has traced1 for each individual1 the geographical line which she forbids him to cross in pursuit of happiness4 ,it certainly does not exist in his mind4 ,where1 then1 is it8 ,i believe1 too1 ,i might safely affirm1 that there is not another nation1 civilized or savage1 which has ever denied this natural right4 ,i doubt if there is another which refuses its exercise4 ,i know it is allowed in some of the most respectable countries of continental ,europe1 nor have ,i ever heard of one in which it was not4 ,how it is among our savage neighbors1 who have no law but that of ,nature1 we all know4 ,though long estranged from legal reading and reasoning1 and little familiar with the decisions of particular judges1 ,i have considered that respecting the obligation of the common law in this country as a very plain one1 and merely a question of document4 ,if we are under that law1 the document which made us so can surely be produced2 and as far as this can be produced1 so far we are subject to it1 and farther we are not4 ,most of the ,states did1 ,i believe1 at an early period of their legislation1 adopt the ,english law1 common and statute1 more or less in a body1 as far as localities admitted of their application4 ,in these ,states1 then1 the common law1 so far as adopted1 is the lex-loci4 ,then comes the law of ,congress1 declaring that what is law in any ,state1 shall be the rule of decision in their courts1 as to matters arising within that ,state1 except when controlled by their own statutes4 ,but this law of ,congress has been considered as extending to civil cases only2 and that no such provision has been made for criminal ones4 ,a similar provision1 then1 for criminal offences1 would1 in like manner1 be an adoption of more or less of the common law1 as part of the lex-loci1 where the offence is committed2 and would cover the whole field of legislation for the general government4 ,i have turned to the passage you refer to in ,judge ,cooper's ,justinian1 and should suppose the general expressions there used would admit of modifications conformable to this doctrine4 ,it would alarm me indeed1 in any case1 to find myself entertaining an opinion different from that of a judgment so accurately organized as his4 ,but ,i am quite persuaded that1 whenever ,judge ,cooper shall be led to consider that question simply and nakedly1 it is so much within his course of thinking1 as liberal as logical1 that1 rejecting all blind and undefined obligation1 he will hold to the positive and explicit precepts of the law alone4 ,accept these hasty sentiments on the subjects you propose1 as hazarded in proof of my great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,baron ,,humboldt4 ,,monticello1 ,june #ac1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the receipt of your ,distributio ,geographica ,plantarum1 with the duty of thanking you for a work which sheds so much new and valuable light on botanical science1 excites the desire1 also1 of presenting myself to your recollection1 and of expressing to you those sentiments of high admiration and esteem1 which1 although long silent1 have never slept4 ,the physical information you have given us of a country hitherto so shamefully unknown1 has come exactly in time to guide our understandings in the great political revolution now bringing it into prominence on the stage of the world4 ,the issue of its struggles1 as they respect ,spain1 is no longer matter of doubt4 ,as it respects their own liberty1 peace and happiness1 we cannot be quite so certain4 ,whether the blinds of bigotry1 the shackles of the priesthood1 and the fascinating glare of rank and wealth1 give fair play to the common sense of the mass of their people1 so far as to qualify them for self-government1 is what we do not know4 ,perhaps our wishes may be stronger than our hopes4 ,the first principle of republicanism is1 that the lex-majoris partis is the fundamental law of every society of individuals of equal rights2 to consider the will of the society enounced by the majority of a single vote1 as sacred as if unanimous1 is the first of all lessons in importance1 yet the last which is thoroughly learnt4 ,this law once disregarded1 no other remains but that of force1 which ends necessarily in military despotism4 ,this has been the history of the ,french revolution1 and ,i wish the understanding of our ,southern brethren may be sufficiently enlarged and firm to see that their fate depends on its sacred observance4 ,in our ,america we are turning to public improvements4 ,schools1 roads1 and canals1 are everywhere either in operation or contemplation4 ,the most gigantic undertaking yet proposed1 is that of ,new ,york1 for drawing the waters of ,lake ,erie into the ,hudson4 ,the distance is #cec miles1 and the height to be surmounted #ffa feet4 ,the expense will be great1 but its effect incalculably powerful in favor of the ,atlantic ,states4 ,internal navigation by steamboats is rapidly spreading through all our ,states1 and that by sails and oars will ere long be looked back to as among the curiosities of antiquity4 ,we count much1 too1 on its efficacy for harbor defence2 and it will soon be tried for navigation by sea4 ,we consider the employment of the contributions which our citizens can spare1 after feeding1 and clothing1 and lodging themselves comfortably1 as more useful1 more moral1 and even more splendid1 than that preferred by ,europe1 of destroying human life1 labor and happiness4 ,i write this letter without knowing where it will find you4 ,but wherever that may be1 ,i am sure it will find you engaged in something instructive for man4 ,if at ,paris1 you are of course in habits of society with ,mr4 ,gallatin1 our worthy1 our able1 and excellent minister1 who will give you1 from time to time1 the details of the progress of a country in whose prosperity you are so good as to feel an interest1 and in which your name is revered among those of the great worthies of the world4 ,god bless you1 and preserve you long to enjoy the gratitude of your fellow men1 and to be blessed with honors1 health and happiness4 ,,to ,m4 ,,de ,,marbois4 ,,monticello1 ,june #ad1 #ahag4 ,i thank you1 dear ,sir1 for the copy of the interesting narrative of the ,complet d',arnold1 which you have been so kind as to send me4 ,it throws light on that incident of history which we did not possess before4 ,an incident which merits to be known1 as a lesson to mankind1 in all its details4 ,this mark of your attention recalls to my mind the earlier period of life at which ,i had the pleasure of your personal acquaintance1 and renews the sentiments of high respect and esteem with which that acquaintance inspired me4 ,i had not failed to accompany your personal sufferings during the civil convulsions of your country1 and had sincerely sympathized with them4 ,an awful period1 indeed1 has passed in ,europe since our first acquaintance4 ,when ,i left ,france at the close of '#hi1 your revolution was1 as ,i thought1 under the direction of able and honest men4 ,but the madness of some of their successors1 the vices of others1 the malicious intrigues of an envious and corrupting neighbor1 the tracasserie of the ,directory1 the usurpations1 the havoc1 and devastations of your ,attila1 and the equal usurpations1 depredations and oppressions of your hypocritical deliverers1 will form a mournful period in the history of man1 a period of which the last chapter will not be seen in your day or mine1 and one which ,i still fear is to be written in characters of blood4 ,had ,bonaparte reflected that such is the moral construction of the world1 that no national crime passes unpunished in the long run1 he would not now be in the cage of ,st4 ,helena2 and were your present oppressors to reflect on the same truth1 they would spare to their own countries the penalties on their present wrongs which will be inflicted on them on future times4 ,the seeds of hatred and revenge which they are now sowing with a large hand1 will not fail to produce their fruits in time4 ,like their brother robbers on the highway1 they suppose the escape of the moment a final escape1 and deem infamy and future risk countervailed by present gain4 ,our lot has been happier4 ,when you witnessed our first struggles in the war of independence1 you little calculated1 more than we did1 on the rapid growth and prosperity of this country2 on the practical demonstration it was about to exhibit1 of the happy truth that man is capable of self-government1 and only rendered otherwise by the moral degradation designedly superinduced on him by the wicked acts of his tyrants4 ,i have much confidence that we shall proceed successfully for ages to come1 and that1 contrary to the principle of ,montesquieu1 it will be seen that the larger the extent of country1 the more firm its republican structure1 if founded1 not on conquest1 but in principles of compact and equality4 ,my hope of its duration is built much on the enlargement of the resources of life going hand in hand with the enlargement of territory1 and the belief that men are disposed to live honestly1 if the means of doing so are open to them4 ,with the consolation of this belief in the future result of our labors1 ,i have that of other prophets who foretell distant events1 that ,i shall not live to see it falsified4 ,my theory has always been1 that if we are to dream1 the flatteries of hope are as cheap1 and pleasanter than the gloom of despair4 ,i wish to yourself a long life of honors1 health and happiness4 ,,to ,,albert ,,gallatin4 ,,monticello1 ,june #af1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the importance that the enclosed letters should safely reach their destination1 impels me to avail myself of the protection of your cover4 ,this is an inconvenience to which your situation exposes you1 while it adds to the opportunities of exercising yourself in works of charity4 ,according to the opinion ,i hazarded to you a little before your departure1 we have had almost an entire change in the body of ,congress4 ,the unpopularity of the compensation law was completed1 by the manner of repealing it as to all the world except themselves4 ,in some ,states1 it is said1 every member is changed2 in all1 many4 ,what opposition there was to the original law1 was chiefly from southern members4 ,yet many of those have been left out1 because they received the advanced wages4 ,i have never known so unanimous a sentiment of disapprobation2 and what is remarkable is1 that it was spontaneous4 ,the newspapers were almost entirely silent1 and the people not only unled by their leaders1 but in opposition to them4 ,i confess ,i was highly pleased with this proof of the innate good sense1 the vigilance1 and the determination of the people to act for themselves4 ,among the laws of the late ,congress1 some were of note2 a navigation act1 particularly1 applicable to those nations only who have navigation acts2 pinching one of them especially1 not only in the general way1 but in the intercourse with her foreign possessions4 ,this part may re-act on us1 and it remains for trial which may bear longest4 ,a law respecting our conduct as a neutral between ,spain and her contending colonies1 was passed by a majority of one only1 ,i believe1 and against the very general sentiment of our country4 ,it is thought to strain our complaisance to ,spain beyond her right or merit1 and almost against the right of the other party1 and certainly against the claims they have to our good wishes and neighborly relations4 ,that we should wish to see the people of other countries free1 is as natural1 and at least as justifiable1 as that one ,king should wish to see the ,kings of other countries maintained in their despotism4 ,right to both parties1 innocent favor to the juster cause1 is our proper sentiment4 ,you will have learned that an act for internal improvement1 after passing both ,houses1 was negatived by the ,president4 ,the act was founded1 avowedly1 on the principle that the phrase in the constitution which authorizes ,congress to lay taxes1 to pay the debts and provide for the general welfare1 was an extension of the powers specifically enumerated to whatever would promote the general welfare2 and this1 you know1 was the federal doctrine4 ,whereas1 our tenet ever was1 and1 indeed1 it is almost the only landmark which now divides the federalists from the republicans1 that ,congress had not unlimited powers to provide for the general welfare1 but were restrained to those specifically enumerated2 and that1 as it was never meant they should provide for that welfare but by the exercise of the enumerated powers1 so it could not have been meant they should raise money for purposes which the enumeration did not place under their action2 consequently1 that the specification of powers is a limitation of the purposes for which they may raise money4 ,i think the passage and rejection of this bill a fortunate incident4 ,every ,state will certainly concede the power2 and this will be a national confirmation of the grounds of appeal to them1 and will settle forever the meaning of this phrase1 which1 by a mere grammatical quibble1 has countenanced the ,general ,government in a claim of universal power4 ,for in the phrase1 to lay taxes1 to pay the debts and provide for the general welfare1 it is a mere question of syntax1 whether the two last infinitives are governed by the first or are distinct and co-ordinate powers2 a question unequivocally decided by the exact definition of powers immediately following4 ,it is fortunate for another reason1 as the ,states1 in conceding the power1 will modify it1 either by requiring the federal ratio of expense in each ,state1 or otherwise1 so as to secure us against its partial exercise4 ,without this caution1 intrigue1 negotiation1 and the barter of votes might become as habitual in ,congress1 as they are in those legislatures which have the appointment of officers1 and which1 with us1 is called logging1 the term of the farmers for their exchanges of aid in rolling together the logs of their newly-cleared grounds4 ,three of our papers have presented us the copy of an act of the legislature of ,new ,york1 which1 if it has really passed1 will carry us back to the times of the darkest bigotry and barbarism1 to find a parallel4 ,its purport is1 that all those who shall hereafter join in communion with the religious sect of ,shaking ,quakers1 shall be deemed civilly dead1 their marriages dissolved1 and all their children and property taken out of their hands4 ,this act being published nakedly in the papers1 without the usual signatures1 or any history of the circumstances of its passage1 ,i am not without a hope it may have been a mere abortive attempt4 ,it contrasts singularly with a cotemporary vote of the ,pennsylvania legislature1 who1 on a proposition to make the belief in ,god a necessary qualification for office1 rejected it by a great majority1 although assuredly there was not a single atheist in their body4 ,and you remember to have heard1 that when the act for religious freedom was before the ,virginia ,assembly1 a motion to insert the name of ,jesus ,christ before the phrase1 the author of our holy religion1 which stood in the bill1 was rejected1 although that was the creed of a great majority of them4 ,i have been charmed to see that a ,presidential election now produces scarcely any agitation4 ,on ,mr4 ,madison's election there was little1 on ,monroe's all but none4 ,in ,mr4 ,adams' time and mine1 parties were so nearly balanced as to make the struggle fearful for our peace4 ,but since the decided ascendency of the republican body1 federalism has looked on with silent but unresisting anguish4 ,in the middle1 southern and western ,states1 it is as low as it ever can be2 for nature has made some men monarchists and tories by their constitution1 and some1 of course1 there always will be4 99 99 99 99 99 ,we have had a remarkably cold winter4 ,at ,hallowell1 in ,maine1 the mercury was at thirty-four degrees below zero1 of ,fahrenheit1 which is sixteen degrees lower than it was in ,paris in #aghh-i4 ,here it was at six degrees above zero1 which is our greatest degree of cold4 ,present me respectfully to ,mrs4 ,gallatin1 and be assured of my constant and affectionate friendship4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,adams4 ,,poplar ,,forest1 ,september #h1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,a month's absence from ,monticello has added to the delay of acknowledging your last letters1 and indeed for a month before ,i left it1 our projected college gave me constant employment2 for1 being the only visitor in its immediate neighborhood1 all its administrative business falls on me1 and that1 where building is going on1 is not a little4 ,in yours of ,july #aeth1 you express a wish to see our plan1 but the present visitors have sanctioned no plan as yet4 ,our predecessors1 the first trustees1 had desired me to propose one to them1 and it was on that occasion ,i asked and received the benefit of your ideas on the subject4 ,digesting these with such other schemes as ,i had been able to collect1 ,i made out a prospectus1 the looser and less satisfactory from the uncertain amount of the funds to which it was to be adapted4 ,this ,i addressed1 in the form of a letter1 to their ,president1 ,peter ,carr1 which1 going before the legislature when a change in the constitution of the college was asked1 got into the public papers1 and1 among others1 ,i think you will find it in ,niles' ,register1 in the early part of #ahae4 ,this1 however1 is to be considered but as a premiere ebauche1 for the consideration and amendment of the present visitors1 and to be accommodated to one of two conditions of things4 ,if the institution is to depend on private donations alone1 we shall be forced to accumulate on the shoulders of four professors a mass of sciences which1 if the legislature adopts it1 should be distributed among ten4 ,we shall be ready for a professor of languages in ,april next1 for two others the following year1 and a fourth a year after4 ,how happy should we be if we could have a ,ticknor for our first4 ,a critical classic is scarcely to be found in the ,united ,states4 ,to this professor1 a fixed salary of five hundred dollars1 with liberal tuition fees from the pupils1 will probably give two thousand dollars a year4 ,we are now on the look-out for a professor1 meaning to accept of none but of the very first order4 ,you ask if ,i have seen ,buchanan's1 ,mc,afee's1 or ,wilkinson's books8 ,i have seen none of them1 but have lately read1 with great pleasure1 ,reid ,eaton's life of ,jackson1 if life may be called what is merely a history of his campaign of #ahad4 ,reid's part is well written4 ,eaton's continuation is better for its matter than style4 ,the whole1 however1 is valuable4 ,i have lately received a pamphlet of extreme interest from ,france4 ,it is ,de ,pradt's ,historical ,recital of the first return of ,louis ,,xviii4 to ,paris4 ,it is precious for the minuti of the proceedings which it details1 and for their authenticity1 as from an eye-witness4 ,being but a pamphlet ,i enclose it for your perusal1 assured1 if you have not seen it1 that it will give you pleasure4 ,i will ask its return1 because ,i value it as a morsel of genuine history1 a thing so rare as to be always valuable4 ,i have received some information from an eye-witness also of what passed on the occasion of the second return of ,louis ,,xviii4 ,the ,emperor ,alexander1 it seems1 was solidly opposed to this4 ,in the consultation of the allied sovereigns and their representatives with the executive council at ,paris1 he insisted that the ,bourbons were too incapable and unworthy of being placed at the head of the nation2 declared he would support any other choice they should freely make1 and continued to urge most strenuously that some other choice should be made4 ,the debates ran high and warm1 and broke off after midnight1 every one retaining his own opinion4 ,he lodged1 as you know1 at ,talleyrand's4 ,when they returned into council the next day1 his host had overcome his firmness4 ,louis ,,xviii4 was accepted1 and through the management of ,talleyrand1 accepted without any capitulation1 although the sovereigns would have consented that he should be first required to subscribe and swear to the constitution prepared1 before permission to enter the kingdom4 ,it would seem as if ,talleyrand had been afraid to admit the smallest interval of time1 lest a change of mind would bring back ,bonaparte on them4 ,but ,i observe that the friends of a limited monarchy there consider the popular representation as much improved by the late alteration1 and confident it will in the end produce a fixed government in which an elective body1 fairly representative of the people1 will be an efficient element4 ,i congratulate ,mrs4 ,adams and yourself on the return of your excellent and distinguished son1 and our country still more on such a minister of their foreign affairs2 and ,i renew to both the assurance of my high and friendly respect and esteem4 ,,to ,,george ,,flower4 ,,poplar ,,forest1 ,september #ab1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,august #abth was yesterday received at this place1 and ,i learn from it with pleasure that you have found a tract of country which will suit you for settlement4 ,to us your first purchase would have been more gratifying1 by adding yourself and your friends to our society2 but the overruling consideration1 with us as with you1 is your own advantage1 and as it would doubtless be a great comfort to you to have your ancient neighbors and friends settled around you4 ,i sincerely wish that your proposition to purchase a tract of land in the ,illinois on favorable terms1 for introducing a colony of ,english farmers1 may encounter no difficulties from the established rules of our land department4 ,the general law prescribes an open sale1 where all citizens may compete on an equal footing for any lot of land which attracts their choice4 ,to dispense with this in any particular case1 requires a special law of ,congress1 and to special legislation we are generally averse1 lest a principle of favoritism should creep in and pervert that of equal rights4 ,it has1 however1 been done on some occasions where a special national advantage has been expected to overweigh that of adherence to the general rule4 ,the promised introduction of the culture of the vine procured a special law in favor of the ,swiss settlement on the ,ohio4 ,that of the culture of oil1 wine and other southern productions1 did the same lately for the ,french settlement on the ,tombigbee4 ,it remains to be tried whether that of an improved system of farming1 interesting to so great a proportion of our citizens1 may not also be thought worth a dispensation with the general rule4 ,this ,i suppose is the principal ground on which your proposition will be questioned4 ,for although as to other foreigners it is thought better to discourage their settling together in large masses1 wherein1 as in our ,german settlements1 they preserve for a long time their own languages1 habits1 and principles of government1 and that they should distribute themselves sparsely among the natives for quicker amalgamation4 ,yet ,english emigrants are without this inconvenience4 ,they differ from us little but in their principles of government1 and most of those 7merchants excepted7 who come here1 are sufficiently disposed to adopt ours4 ,what the issue1 however1 of your proposition may probably be1 ,i am less able to advise you than many others2 for during the last eight or ten years ,i have no knowledge of the administration of the land office or the principles of its government4 ,even the persons on whom it will depend are all changed within that interval1 so as to leave me small means of being useful to you4 ,whatever they may be1 however1 they shall be freely exercised for your advantage1 and that1 not on the selfish principle of increasing our own population at the expense of other nations1 for the additions to that from emigration are but as a drop in a bucket to those by natural procreation1 but to consecrate a sanctuary for those whom the misrule of ,europe may compel to seek happiness in other climes4 ,this refuge once known will produce reaction on the happiness even of those who remain there1 by warning their task-masters that when the evils of ,egyptian oppression become heavier than those of the abandonment of country1 another ,canaan is open where their subjects will be received as brothers1 and secured against like oppressions by a participation in the right of self-government4 ,if additional motives could be wanting with us to the maintenance of this right1 they would be found in the animating consideration that a single good government becomes thus a blessing to the whole earth1 its welcome to the oppressed restraining within certain limits the measure of their oppressions4 ,but should even this be counteracted by violence on the right of expatriation1 the other branch of our example then presents itself for imitation1 to rise on their rulers and do as we have done4 ,you have set to your own country a good example1 by showing them a peaceable mode of reducing their rulers to the necessity of becoming more wise1 more moderate1 and more honest1 and ,i sincerely pray that the example may work for the benefit of those who cannot follow it1 as it will for your own4 ,with ,mr4 ,burckbeck1 the associate of your late explanatory journeying1 ,i have not the happiness of personal acquaintance2 but ,i know him through his narrative of your journeyings together through ,france4 ,the impressions received from that1 give me confidence that a participation with yourself in assurances of the esteem and respect of a stranger will not be unacceptable to him1 and the less when given through you and associated with those to yourself4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,october #aj1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i thank you for your kind congratulations on the return of my little family from ,europe4 ,to receive them all in fine health and good spirits1 after so long an absence1 was a greater blessing than at my time of life when they went away1 ,i had any right to hope1 or reason to expect4 ,if the ,secretary of ,state can give satisfaction to his fellow-citizens in his new office1 it will be a source of consolation to me while ,i live2 although it is not probable that ,i shall long be a witness of his good success1 or ill success4 ,i shall soon be obliged to say to him1 and to you1 and to your country and mine1 ,god bless you all6 ,fare-thee-well6 ,indeed1 ,i need not wait a moment4 ,i can say all that now1 with as good a will1 and as clear a conscience1 as at any time past1 or future4 ,i thank you1 also1 for the loan of ,de ,pradt's narration of the intrigues1 at the second restoration of the ,bourbons4 ,in this1 as in many other instances1 is seen the influence of a single subtle mind1 and a trifling accident1 in deciding the fate of mankind for ages4 ,de ,pradt and ,talleyrand were well associated4 ,i have ventured to send the pamphlet to ,washington with a charge to return it to you4 ,the ,french have a ,king1 a chamber of ,peers1 and a chamber of ,deputies4 ,voila6 les ossimens of a constitution of a limited monarchy2 and of a good one1 provided the bones are united by good joints1 and knitted together by strong tendons4 ,but where does the sovereignty reside8 ,are the three branches sufficiently defined8 ,a fair representation of the body of the people by elections1 sufficiently frequent1 is essential to a free government2 but if the ,commons cannot make themselves respected by the ,peers1 and the ,king1 they can do no good1 nor prevent any evil4 ,can any organization of government secure public and private liberty without a general or universal freedom1 without license1 or licentiousness of thinking1 speaking1 and writing4 ,have the ,french such freedom8 ,will their religion1 or policy1 allow it8 ,when ,i think of liberty1 and a free government1 in an ancient1 opulent1 populous1 and commercial empire1 ,i fear ,i shall always recollect a fable of ,plato4 ,love is a son of the god of riches1 and the goddess of poverty4 ,he inherits from his father the intrepidity of his courage1 the enthusiasm of his thoughts1 his generosity1 his prodigality1 his confidence in himself1 the opinion of his own merit1 the impatience to have always the preference2 but he derives from his mother that indigence which makes him always a beggar2 that importunity with which he demands everything2 that timidity which sometimes hinders him from daring to ask anything2 that disposition which he has to servitude1 and that dread of being despised1 which he can never overcome4 ,such is ,love according to ,plato4 ,who calls him a demon8 ,and such is liberty in ,france1 and ,england1 and all other great1 rich1 old1 corrupted commercial nations4 ,the opposite qualities of the father and mother are perpetually tearing to pieces himself and his friends as well as his enemies4 ,mr4 ,monroe has got the universal character among all our common people of ,a very smart man4 ,and verily ,i am of the same mind4 ,i know not another who could have executed so great a plan so cleverly4 ,i wish him the same happy success through his whole administration4 ,i am1 ,sir1 with respect and friendship1 yours1 ,j4 ,a4 ,,to ,,the ,,honorable ,,john ,q4 ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,november #a1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,yours of the #dth of ,october was not received here until the #bjth1 having been sixteen days on its passage2 since which unavoidable avocations have made this the first moment it has been in my power to acknowledge its receipt4 ,of the character of ,m4 de ,pradt his political writings furnish a tolerable estimate1 but not so full as you have favored me with4 ,he is eloquent1 and his pamphlet on colonies shows him ingenious4 ,i was gratified by his ,recit ,historique1 because1 pretending1 as all men do1 to some character1 and he to one of some distinction1 ,i supposed he would not place before the world facts of glaring falsehood1 on which so many living and distinguished witnesses could convict him4 ,we1 too1 who are retired from the business of the world1 are glad to catch a glimpse of truth1 here and there as we can1 to guide our path through the boundless field of fable in which we are bewildered by public prints1 and even by those calling themselves histories4 ,a word of truth to us is like the drop of water supplicated from the tip of ,lazarus' finger4 ,it is as an observation of latitude and longitude to the mariner long enveloped in clouds1 for correcting the ship's way4 ,on the subject of weights and measures1 you will have1 at its threshold1 to encounter the question on which ,solon and ,lycurgus acted differently4 ,shall we mould our citizens to the law1 or the law to our citizens8 ,and in solving this question their peculiar character is an element not to be neglected4 ,of the two only things in nature which can furnish an invariable standard1 to wit1 the dimensions of the globe itself1 and the time of its diurnal revolution on its axis1 it is not perhaps of much importance which we adopt4 ,that of the dimensions of the globe1 preferred ultimately by the ,french1 after first adopting the other1 has been objected to from the difficulty1 not to say impracticability1 of the verification of their admeasurement by other nations4 ,except the portion of a meridian which they adopted for their operation1 there is not another on the globe which fulfils the requisite conditions1 to wit1 of so considerable length1 that length too divided1 not very unequally1 by the #deth degree of latitude1 and terminating at each end in the ocean4 ,now1 this singular line lies wholly in ,france and ,spain4 ,besides the immensity of expense and time which a verification would always require1 it cannot be undertaken by any nation without the joint consent of these two powers4 ,france having once performed the work1 and refusing1 as she may1 to let any other nation re-examine it1 she makes herself the sole depository of the original standard for all nations2 and all must send to her to obtain1 and from time to time to prove their standards4 ,to this1 indeed1 it may be answered1 that there can be no reason to doubt that the mensuration has been as accurately performed as the intervention of numerous waters1 and of high ridges of craggy mountains1 would admit2 that all the calculations have been free of error1 their coincidences faithfully reported1 and that1 whether in peace or war1 to foes as well as friends1 free access to the original will at all times be admitted4 ,in favor of the standard to be taken from the time employed in a revolution of the earth on its axis1 it may be urged that this revolution is a matter of fact present to all the world1 that its division into seconds of time is known and received by all the world1 that the length of a pendulum vibrating seconds in the different circles of latitude is already known to all1 and can at any time and in any place be ascertained by any nation or individual1 and inferred by known laws from their own to the medium latitude of #de1 whenever any doubt may make this desirable2 and that this is the particular standard which has at different times been contemplated and desired#a by the philosophers of every nation1 and even by those of ,france1 except at the particular moment when this change was suddenly proposed and adopted1 and under circumstances peculiar to the history of the moment4 ,but the cogent reason which will decide the fate of whatever you report is1 that ,england has lately adopted the reference of its measures to the pendulum4 ,it is the mercantile part of our community which will have most to do in this innovation2 it is that which having command of all the presses can make the loudest outcry1 and you know their identification with ,english regulations1 practices1 and prejudices4 ,it is from this identification alone you can hope to be permitted to adopt even the ,english reference to a pendulum4 ,but the ,english proposition goes only to say what proportion their measures bear to the second pendulum of their own latitude1 and not at all to change their unit1 or to reduce into any simple order the chaos of their weights and measures4 ,that would be innovation1 and innovation there is heresy and treason4 ,whether the ,senate meant more than this ,i do not know2 and much doubt if more can be effected4 ,however1 in endeavors to improve our situation1 we should never despair2 and ,i sincerely wish you may be able to rally us to either standard1 and to give us an unit1 the aliquot part of something invariable which may be applied simply and conveniently to our measures1 weights1 and coins1 and most especially that the decimal divisions may pervade the whole4 ,the convenience of this in our monied system has been approved by all1 and ,france has followed the example4 ,the volume of tracts which you have noted in the library of ,congress1 contains everything which ,i had then been able to collect on this subject4 ,you will find some details which may be of use in two thin #dto vols41 ,nos4 #cii1 #djj1 of chapter xxiv42 the latter being a collection of sheets selected from the ,encyclopedie ,methodique1 on the weights1 measures and coins of all nations1 bound up together and alone2 and the former a supplement by ,beyerl4 ,cooper's ,emporium too1 for ,may #ahab1 and ,august #ahac1 may offer something4 ,the reports of the ,committees of ,parliament of #ageh-i1 ,i think you will find in ,postlethwaite's ,dictionary1 which is also in the library1 chapter #bj1 ,no4 #aj4 ,that of ,mechain and ,delambre ,i have not1 nor do ,i know who has it4 ,i have lately seen a book which your office ought to possess1 if it has it not already1 entitled ,memoire sur la ,louisiane1 par ,m4 le ,comte de ,vergennes1 #hvo1 ,paris1 chez ,lepetit1 ,jeune1 #ahjb4 ,it contains more in detail the proofs of the extent of ,louisiana as far as the ,rio ,grande than ,i have ever before seen1 and its author gives it authenticity4 ,it has been executed with great industry and research into the ,french records4 ,this reminds me of a ,,ms4 which ,governor ,claiborne found in a private family in ,louisiana1 being a journal kept 7,i forget by whom1 but7 by a confidential officer of the government1 proving exactly by what connivance between the agents of the compagnie d'occident and the ,spaniards these last smuggled settlements into ,louisiana as far as ,assinais1 ,adais1 c41 for the purpose of covering the contraband trade of the company4 ,claiborne being afraid to trust the original by mail without keeping a copy1 sent it on4 ,it arrived safe1 and was deposited in the office of ,state4 ,he then sent me the copy on the destruction of the office at ,washington by the ,british1 apprehending the original might be involved in that destruction4 ,i sent the copy to ,colonel ,monroe1 then ,secretary of ,state1 with a request to return it if the original was safe1 and to keep it if not4 ,i have heard no more of it2 but will now request of you to have search made for the original1 and if safe1 to return me the copy4 ,i propose to deposit it with the historical committee of the ,philosophical ,society at ,philadelphia1 for safe keeping4 ,i have no use nor wish for such a thing myself1 but think it will be safer in two deposits than one4 ,my recommendation to ,colonel ,monroe1 was to have it printed4 ,i have barely left myself room to express my satisfaction at your call to the important office you hold1 and to tender you the assurance of my great esteem and respect4 ,,footnote3 #a ,if conforming to this desire of other nations1 we adopt the second pendulum1 #c_/aj of that for our foot will be the same as or1 #b_/aj of the second rod1 because that rod is to the pendulum as #c to #b4 ,this would make our foot inch less than the present one4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,duponceau4 ,,monticello1 ,november #g1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,a part of the information of which the expedition of ,lewis and ,clarke was the object1 has been communicated to the world by the publication of their journal2 but much and valuable matter yet remains uncommunicated4 ,the correction of the longitudes of their map is essential to its value2 to which purpose their observations of the lunar distances are to be calculated and applied4 ,the new subjects they discovered in the vegetable1 animal1 and mineral departments1 are to be digested and made known4 ,the numerous vocabularies they obtained of the ,indian languages are to be collated and published4 ,although the whole expense of the expedition was furnished by the public1 and the information to be derived from it was theirs also1 yet on the return of ,messrs4 ,lewis and ,clarke1 the government thought it just to leave to them any pecuniary benefit which might result from a publication of the papers1 and supposed1 indeed1 that this would secure the best form of publication4 ,but the property in these papers still remained in the government for the benefit of their constituents4 ,with the measures taken by ,governor ,lewis for their publication1 ,i was never acquainted4 ,after his death1 ,governor ,clarke put them1 in the first instance1 into the hands of the late ,doctor ,barton1 from whom some of them passed to ,mr4 ,biddle1 and some again1 ,i believe1 from him to ,mr4 ,allen4 ,while the ,,ms4 books of journals were in the hands of ,dr4 ,barton1 ,i wrote to him1 on behalf of ,governor ,lewis' family1 requesting earnestly1 that1 as soon as these should be published1 the originals might be returned1 as the family wished to have them preserved4 ,he promised in his answer that it should be faithfully done4 ,after his death1 ,i obtained1 through the kind agency of ,mr4 ,correa1 from ,mrs4 ,barton1 three of these books1 of which ,i knew there had been ten or twelve1 having myself read them4 ,these were all she could find4 ,the rest1 therefore1 ,i presume1 are in the hands of the other gentlemen4 ,after the agency ,i had had in effecting this expedition1 ,i thought myself authorized1 and1 indeed1 that it would be expected of me1 that ,i should follow up the subject1 and endeavor to obtain its fruits for the public4 ,i wrote to ,general ,clarke1 therefore1 for authority to receive the original papers4 ,he gave it in the letters to ,mr4 ,biddle and to myself1 which ,i now enclose4 ,as the custody of these papers belonged properly to the ,war-,office1 and that was vacant at the time1 ,i have waited several months for its being filled4 ,but the office still remaining vacant1 and my distance rendering any effectual measures1 by myself1 impracticable1 ,i ask the agency of your committee1 within whose province ,i propose to place the matter1 by making it the depository of the papers generally4 ,i therefore now forward the three volumes of ,,ms4 journals in my possession1 and authorize them1 under ,general ,clarke's letters1 to inquire for and to receive the rest4 ,so also the astronomical and geographical papers1 those relating to zoological1 botanical1 and mineral subjects1 with the ,indian vocabularies1 and statistical tables relative to the ,indians4 ,of the astronomical and geographical papers1 if the committee will be so good as to give me a statement1 ,i will1 as soon as a ,secretary at ,war is appointed1 propose to him to have made1 at the public expense1 the requisite calculations1 to have the map corrected in its longitudes and latitudes1 engraved and published on a proper scale2 and ,i will ask from ,general ,clarke the one he offers1 with his corrections4 ,with respect to the zoological and mineralogical papers and subjects1 it would perhaps be agreeable to the ,philosophical ,society1 to have a digest of them made1 and published in their transactions or otherwise4 ,and if it should be within the views of the historical committee to have the ,indian vocabularies digested and published1 ,i would add to them the remains of my collection4 ,i had through the course of my life availed myself of every opportunity of procuring vocabularies of the languages of every tribe which either myself or my friends could have access to4 ,they amounted to about forty1 more or less perfect4 ,but in their passage from ,washington to this place1 the trunk in which they were was stolen and plundered1 and some fragments only of the vocabularies were recovered4 ,still1 however1 they were such as would be worth incorporation with a larger work1 and shall be at the service of the historical committee1 if they can make any use of them4 ,permit me to request the return of ,general ,clarke's letter1 and to add assurances of my respect and esteem4 ,p4 ,s4 ,with the volumes of ,,ms4 journal1 ,mrs4 ,barton delivered one by mistake ,i suppose1 which seems to have been the journal of some botanist4 ,i presume it was the property of ,dr4 ,barton1 and therefore forward it to you to be returned to ,mrs4 ,barton4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,correa4 ,,poplar ,,forest1 ,november #be1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i am highly gratified by the interest you take in our ,central ,college1 and the more so as it may possibly become an inducement to pass more of your time with us4 ,it is even said you had thought of engaging a house in its neighborhood4 ,but why another house8 ,is not one enough8 and especially one whose inhabitants are made so happy by your becoming their inmate8 ,when you shall have a wife and family wishing to be to themselves1 then the question of another house may be taken ad referendum4 ,i wish ,dr4 ,cooper could have the same partialities4 ,he seems to have misunderstood my last letter2 in the former ,i had spoken of opening our ,physical ,school in the spring of '#ai1 but learning that that delay might render his engagement uncertain1 the visitors determined to force their preparations so as to receive him by midsummer next1 and so my letter stated4 ,in one ,i now write1 ,i recall his attention to that circumstance4 ,but his decision will no doubt be governed by the result of the proposition1 to permit the medical students of ,philadelphia to attend him4 ,i can never regret any circumstance which may add to his well-being1 for ,i most sincerely wish him well4 ,that himself and ,mrs4 ,cooper will be happier in the society of ,philadelphia1 cannot be doubted4 ,it would be flattering enough to us to be his second choice4 ,i find from his information that we are not to expect to obtain in this country either a classical or mathematical professor of the first order3 and as our institution cannot be raised above the common herd of academies1 colleges1 c41 already scattered over our country1 but by super-eminent professors1 we have determined to accept of no mediocrity1 and to seek in ,europe for what is eminent4 ,we shall go to ,edinburgh in preference1 because of the advantage to students of receiving communications in their native tongue1 and because peculiar and personal circumstances will enable us to interest ,dugald ,stewart and ,professor ,leslie1 of that ,college1 in procuring us subjects of real worth and eminence4 ,i put off writing to them for a classical and mathematical professor only until ,i see what our legislature1 which meets on ,monday next1 is disposed to do1 either on the question singly of adopting our college for their university1 or on that of entering at once on a general system of instruction1 for which they have1 for some time been preparing4 ,for this last purpose ,i have sketched1 and put into the hands of a member a bill1 delineating a practicable plan1 entirely within the means they already have on hand1 destined to this object4 ,my bill proposes1 #a4 ,elementary schools in every county1 which shall place every householder within three miles of a school4 #b4 ,district colleges1 which shall place every father within a day's ride of a college where he may dispose of his son4 #c4 ,an university in a healthy and central situation1 with the offer of the lands1 buildings1 and funds of the ,central ,college1 if they will accept that place for their establishment4 ,in the #ast will be taught reading1 writing1 common arithmetic1 and general notions of geography4 ,in the #b;d1 ancient and modern languages1 geography fully1 a higher degree of numerical arithmetic1 mensuration1 and the elementary principles of navigation4 ,in the #c;d1 all the useful sciences in their highest degree4 ,to all of which is added a selection from the elementary schools of subjects of the most promising genius1 whose parents are too poor to give them further education1 to be carried at the public expense through the colleges and university4 ,the object is to bring into action that mass of talents which lies buried in poverty in every country1 for want of the means of development1 and thus give activity to a mass of mind1 which1 in proportion to our population1 shall be the double or treble of what it is in most countries4 ,the expense of the elementary schools for every county1 is proposed to be levied on the wealth of the county1 and all children rich and poor to be educated at these three years gratis4 ,the expense of the colleges and university1 admitting two professors to each of the former1 and ten to the latter1 can be completely and permanently established with a sum of five hundred thousand dollars1 in addition to the present funds of our ,central ,college4 ,our literary fund has already on hand1 and appropriated to these purposes1 a sum of seven hundred thousand dollars1 and that increasing yearly4 ,this is in fact and substance the plan ,i proposed in a bill forty years ago1 but accommodated to the circumstances of this1 instead of that day4 ,i derive my present hopes that it may now be adopted1 from the fact that the ,house of ,representatives1 at their last session1 passed a bill1 less practicable and boundlessly expensive1 and therefore alone rejected by the ,senate1 and printed for public consideration and amendment4 ,mine1 after all1 may be an ,utopian dream1 but being innocent1 ,i have thought ,i might indulge in it till ,i go to the land of dreams1 and sleep there with the dreamers of all past and future times4 ,i have taken measures to obtain the crested turkey1 and will endeavor to perpetuate that beautiful and singular characteristic1 and shall be not less earnest in endeavors to raise the ,moronnier4 ,god bless you1 and preserve you long in life and health1 until wearied with delighting your kindred spirits here1 you may wish to encounter the great problem1 untried by the living1 unreported by the dead4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,duponceau4 ,,monticello1 ,december #cj1 #ahag4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,an absence of six weeks has occasioned your letters of the #eth and #aath inst41 to lie thus long unacknowledged4 ,after ,i had sent off the two other ,westover ,,mss4 ,i received a third of the same journal4 ,on perusing it ,i am not sensible by memory1 of anything not contained in the former1 except eight pages of a preliminary account of the abridgment of our limits by successive charters to other colonies4 ,i suppose this to be a copy of the largest of the other two1 entered fair in a folio volume1 with other documents relating to the government of ,virginia4 ,it is bound in vellum1 and1 by the arms pasted in it1 seems to have been intended for the shelves of the author's library4 ,as this journal is complete it might enable us to supply the hiatuses of the other copies4 ,i now send you the remains of my ,indian vocabularies1 some of which are perfect4 ,i send with them the fragments of my digest of them1 which were gathered up on the banks of the river where they had been strewed by the plunderers of the trunk in which they were4 ,those will merely show the arrangement ,i had given the vocabularies1 according to their affinities and degrees of resemblance or dissimilitude4 ,if you can recover ,capt4 ,lewis' collection1 they will make an important addition1 for there was no part of his instructions which he executed more fully or carefully1 never meeting with a single ,indian of a new tribe1 without making his vocabulary the first object4 ,what ,professor ,adelung mentions of the ,empress ,catharine's having procured many vocabularies of our ,indians1 is correct4 ,she applied to ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 who1 through the aid of ,general ,washington1 obtained several2 but ,i never learnt of what particular tribes4 ,the great works of ,pallas being rare1 ,i will mention that there are two editions of it1 the one in two volumes1 the other in four volumes #dto1 in the library ,i ceded to ,congress1 which maybe consulted4 ,but the ,professor's account of the supposed ,mexican ,,ms4 is quite erroneous1 nor can ,i conceive through whom he can have received his information4 ,it has probably been founded on an imperfect knowledge of the following fact3 ,soon after the acquisition of ,louisiana1 ,governor ,claiborne found1 in a private family there1 a ,,ms4 journal kept1 7,i forget by whom17 but by a confidential officer of the ,french government1 proving exactly by what connivance between the agents of the compagnie d'occident1 and the ,spaniards1 these last smuggled settlements into ,louisiana1 as far as ,assinais1 ,adais1 c41 for the purpose of covering the contraband trade of the company4 ,claiborne1 being afraid to trust the original by mail1 without keeping a copy1 sent it on after being copied4 ,it arrived safe1 and was deposited by me in the office of ,state4 ,he then sent me the copy1 on the destruction of the office at ,washington by the ,british2 apprehending the original might be involved in that destruction1 ,i sent the copy to ,colonel ,monroe1 then ,secretary of ,state1 with a request to return it1 if the original was safe1 and to keep it1 if not4 ,i have heard no more of it4 ,my intention was1 and is1 if it is returned to me1 to deposit it with your committee for safe keeping or publication4 ,while on the subject of ,louisiana1 ,i have thought ,i had better commit to you also an historical memoir of my own respecting the important question of its limits4 ,when we first made the purchase we knew little of its extent1 having never before been interested to inquire into it4 ,possessing1 then1 in my library1 everything respecting ,america which ,i had been able to collect by unremitting researches1 during my residence in ,europe1 particularly and generally through my life1 ,i availed myself of the leisure of my succeeding autumnal recess from ,washington1 to bring together everything which my collection furnished on the subject of its boundary4 ,the result was the memoir ,i now send you1 copies of which were furnished to our ministers at ,paris and ,madrid1 for their information as to the extent of territory claimed under our purchase4 ,the ,new ,orleans ,,ms4 afterwards discovered1 furnished some valuable supplementary proofs of title4 ,i defer writing to the ,secretary at ,war respecting the observations of longitude and latitude by ,capt4 ,lewis1 until ,i learn from you whether they are recovered1 and whether they are so complete as to be susceptible of satisfactory calculation4 ,i salute you with great respect and esteem4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,wirt4 ,,monticello1 ,january #e1 #ahah4 ,i have first to thank you1 dear ,sir1 for the copy of your late work which you have been so kind as to send me1 and then to render you double congratulations1 first1 on the general applause it has so justly received1 and next on the public testimony of esteem for its author1 manifested by your late call to the executive councils of the nation4 ,all this ,i do heartily1 and then proceed to a case of business on which you will have to advise the government on the threshold of your office4 ,you have seen the death of ,general ,kosciusko announced in the papers in such a way as not to be doubted4 ,he had in the funds of the ,united ,states a very considerable sum of money1 on the interest of which he depended for subsistence4 ,on his leaving the ,united ,states1 in #agih1 he placed it under my direction by a power of attorney1 which ,i executed entirely through ,mr4 ,barnes1 who regularly remitted his interest4 ,but he left also in my hands an autograph will1 disposing of his funds in a particular course of charity1 and making me his executor4 ,the question the government will ask of you1 and which ,i therefore ask1 is in what court must this will be proved1 and my qualification as executor be received1 to justify the ,united ,states in placing these funds under the trust8 ,this is to be executed wholly in this ,state1 and will occupy so long a course of time beyond what ,i can expect to live1 that ,i think to propose to place it under the ,court of ,chancery4 ,the place of probate generally follows the residence of the testator4 ,that was in a foreign country in the present case4 ,sometimes the bona notabilia4 ,the evidences or representations of these 7the certificates7 are in my hands4 ,the things represented 7the money7 in those of the ,united ,states4 ,but where are the ,united ,states8 ,everywhere1 ,i suppose1 where they have government or property liable to the demand on payment4 ,that is to say1 in every ,state of the ,union1 in this1 for example1 as well as any other1 strengthened by the circumstances of the deposit of the will1 the residence of the executor1 and the place where the trust is to be executed4 ,in no instance1 ,i believe1 does the mere habitation of the debtor draw to it the place of probate1 and if it did1 the ,united ,states are omnipresent by their functionaries1 as well as property in every ,state of the ,union4 ,i am led by these considerations to suppose our district or general court competent to the object2 but you know best1 and by your advice1 sanctioned by the ,secretary of the ,treasury1 ,i shall act4 ,i write to the ,secretary on this subject4 ,if our district court will do1 ,i can attend it personally2 if the general court only be competent1 ,i am in hopes it will find means of dispensing with my personal attendance4 ,i salute you with affectionate esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,dr4 ,,benjamin ,,waterhouse4 ,,monticello1 ,march #c1 #ahah4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have just received your favor of ,february #bjth1 in which you observe that ,mr4 ,wirt1 on page #dg of his ,life of ,patrick ,henry1 quotes me as saying that ,mr4 ,henry certainly gave the first impulse to the ball of revolution4 ,i well recollect to have used some such expression in a letter to him1 and am tolerably certain that our own ,state being the subject under contemplation1 ,i must have used it with respect to that only4 ,whether he has given it a more general aspect ,i cannot say1 as the passage is not in the page you quote1 nor1 after thumbing over much of the book1 have ,i been able to find it4#b ,in page #dag there is something like it1 but not the exact expression1 and even there it may be doubted whether ,mr4 ,wirt had his eye on ,virginia alone1 or on all the colonies4 ,but the question1 who commenced the revolution8 is as difficult as that of the first inventors of a thousand good things4 ,for example1 who first discovered the principle of gravity8 ,not ,newton2 for ,galileo1 who died the year that ,newton was born1 had measured its force in the descent of gravid bodies4 ,who invented the ,lavoiserian chemistry8 ,the ,english say ,dr4 ,black1 by the preparatory discovery of latent heat4 ,who invented the steamboat8 ,was it ,gerbert1 the ,marquis of ,worcester1 ,newcomen1 ,savary1 ,papin1 ,fitch1 ,fulton8 ,the fact is1 that one new idea leads to another1 that to a third1 and so on through a course of time until some one1 with whom no one of these ideas was original1 combines all together1 and produces what is justly called a new invention4 ,i suppose it would be as difficult to trace our revolution to its first embryo4 ,we do not know how long it was hatching in the ,british cabinet before they ventured to make the first of the experiments which were to develop it in the end and to produce complete parliamentary supremacy4 ,those you mention in ,massachusetts as preceding the stamp act1 might be the first visible symptoms of that design4 ,the proposition of that act in #agfd1 was the first here4 ,your opposition1 therefore1 preceded ours1 as occasion was sooner given there than here1 and the truth1 ,i suppose1 is1 that the opposition in every colony began whenever the encroachment was presented to it4 ,this question of priority is as the inquiry would be who first1 of the three hundred ,spartans1 offered his name to ,leonidas8 ,i shall be happy to see justice done to the merits of all1 by the unexceptionable umpirage of date and facts1 and especially from the pen which is proposed to be employed in it4 ,i rejoice1 indeed1 to learn from you that ,mr4 ,adams retains the strength of his memory1 his faculties1 his cheerfulness1 and even his epistolary industry4 ,this last is gone from me4 ,the aversion has been growing on me for a considerable time1 and now1 near the close of seventy-five1 is become almost insuperable4 ,i am much debilitated in body1 and my memory sensibly on the wane4 ,still1 however1 ,i enjoy good health and spirits1 and am as industrious a reader as when a student at college4 ,not of newspapers4 ,these ,i have discarded4 ,i relinquish1 as ,i ought to do1 all intermeddling with public affairs1 committing myself cheerfully to the watch and care of those for whom1 in my turn1 ,i have watched and cared4 ,when ,i contemplate the immense advances in science and discoveries in the arts which have been made within the period of my life1 ,i look forward with confidence to equal advances by the present generation1 and have no doubt they will consequently be as much wiser than we have been as we than our fathers were1 and they than the burners of witches4 ,even the metaphysical contest1 which you so pleasantly described to me in a former letter1 will probably end in improvement1 by clearing the mind of ,platonic mysticism and unintelligible jargon4 ,although age is taking from me the power of communicating by letter with my friends as industriously as heretofore1 ,i shall still claim with them the same place they will ever hold in my affections1 and on this ground ,i1 with sincerity and pleasure1 assure you of my great esteem and respect4 ,,footnote3 #b ,it was found page #da4 ,,to ,n4 ,,burwell1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,march #ad1 #ahah4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your letter of ,february #agth found me suffering under an attack of rheumatism1 which has but now left me at sufficient ease to attend to the letters ,i have received4 ,a plan of female education has never been a subject of systematic contemplation with me4 ,it has occupied my attention so far only as the education of my own daughters occasionally required4 ,considering that they would be placed in a country situation1 where little aid could be obtained from abroad1 ,i thought it essential to give them a solid education1 which might enable them1 when become mothers1 to educate their own daughters1 and even to direct the course for sons1 should their fathers be lost1 or incapable1 or inattentive4 ,my surviving daughter accordingly1 the mother of many daughters as well as sons1 has made their education the object of her life1 and being a better judge of the practical part than myself1 it is with her aid and that of one of her elevs1 that ,i shall subjoin a catalogue of the books for such a course of reading as we have practiced4 ,a great obstacle to good education is the inordinate passion prevalent for novels1 and the time lost in that reading which should be instructively employed4 ,when this poison infects the mind1 it destroys its tone and revolts it against wholesome reading4 ,reason and fact1 plain and unadorned1 are rejected4 ,nothing can engage attention unless dressed in all the figments of fancy1 and nothing so bedecked comes amiss4 ,the result is a bloated imagination1 sickly judgment1 and disgust towards all the real businesses of life4 ,this mass of trash1 however1 is not without some distinction2 some few modelling their narratives1 although fictitious1 on the incidents of real life1 have been able to make them interesting and useful vehicles of a sound morality4 ,such1 ,i think1 are ,marmontel's new moral tales1 but not his old ones1 which are really immoral4 ,such are the writings of ,miss ,edgeworth1 and some of those of ,madame ,genlis4 ,for a like reason1 too1 much poetry should not be indulged4 ,some is useful for forming style and taste4 ,pope1 ,dryden1 ,thompson1 ,shakspeare1 and of the ,french1 ,molire1 ,racine1 the ,corneilles1 may be read with pleasure and improvement4 ,the ,french language1 become that of the general intercourse of nations1 and from their extraordinary advances1 now the depository of all science1 is an indispensable part of education for both sexes4 ,in the subjoined catalogue1 therefore1 ,i have placed the books of both languages indifferently1 according as the one or the other offers what is best4 ,the ornaments too1 and the amusements of life1 are entitled to their portion of attention4 ,these1 for a female1 are dancing1 drawing1 and music4 ,the first is a healthy exercise1 elegant and very attractive for young people4 ,every affectionate parent would be pleased to see his daughter qualified to participate with her companions1 and without awkwardness at least1 in the circles of festivity1 of which she occasionally becomes a part4 ,it is a necessary accomplishment1 therefore1 although of short use2 for the ,french rule is wise1 that no lady dances after marriage4 ,this is founded in solid physical reasons1 gestation and nursing leaving little time to a married lady when this exercise can be either safe or innocent4 ,drawing is thought less of in this country than in ,europe4 ,it is an innocent and engaging amusement1 often useful1 and a qualification not to be neglected in one who is to become a mother and an instructor4 ,music is invaluable where a person has an ear4 ,where they have not1 it should not be attempted4 ,it furnishes a delightful recreation for the hours of respite from the cares of the day1 and lasts us through life4 ,the taste of this country1 too1 calls for this accomplishment more strongly than for either of the others4 ,i need say nothing of household economy1 in which the mothers of our country are generally skilled1 and generally careful to instruct their daughters4 ,we all know its value1 and that diligence and dexterity in all its processes are inestimable treasures4 ,the order and economy of a house are as honorable to the mistress as those of the farm to the master1 and if either be neglected1 ruin follows1 and children destitute of the means of living4 ,this1 ,sir1 is offered as a summary sketch on a subject on which ,i have not thought much4 ,it probably contains nothing but what has already occurred to yourself1 and claims your acceptance on no other ground than as a testimony of my respect for your wishes1 and of my great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,may #ag1 #ahah4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i was so unfortunate as not to receive from ,mr4 ,holly's own hand your favor of ,january the #bhth1 being then at my other home4 ,he dined only with my family1 and left them with an impression which has filled me with regret that ,i did not partake of the pleasure his visit gave them4 ,i am glad he is gone to ,kentucky4 ,rational ,christianity will thrive more rapidly there than here4 ,they are freer from prejudices than we are1 and bolder in grasping at truth4 ,the time is not distant1 though neither you nor ,i shall see it1 when we shall be but a secondary people to them4 ,our greediness for wealth1 and fantastical expense1 have degraded1 and will degrade1 the minds of our maritime citizens4 ,these are the peculiar vices of commerce4 ,i had been long without hearing from you1 but ,i had heard of you through a letter from ,doctor ,waterhouse4 ,he wrote to reclaim against an expression of ,mr4 ,wirt's1 as to the commencement of motion in the revolutionary ball4 ,the lawyers say that words are always to be expounded secundum subjectam materiem1 which1 in ,mr4 ,wirt's case1 was ,virginia4 ,it would1 moreover1 be as difficult to say at what moment the ,revolution began1 and what incident set it in motion1 as to fix the moment that the embryo becomes an animal1 or the act which gives him a beginning4 ,but the most agreeable part of his letter was that which informed me of your health1 your activity1 and strength of memory2 and the most wonderful1 that which assured me that you retained your industry and promptness in epistolary correspondence4 ,here you have entire advantage over me4 ,my repugnance to the writing table becomes daily and hourly more deadly and insurmountable4 ,in place of this has come on a canine appetite for reading4 ,and ,i indulge it1 because ,i see in it a relief against the tdium senectutis2 a lamp to lighten my path through the dreary wilderness of time before me1 whose bourne ,i see not4 ,losing daily all interest in the things around us1 something else is necessary to fill the void4 ,with me it is reading1 which occupies the mind without the labor of producing ideas from my own stock4 ,i enter into all your doubts as to the event of the revolution of ,south ,america4 ,they will succeed against ,spain4 ,but the dangerous enemy is within their own breasts4 ,ignorance and superstition will chain their minds and bodies under religious and military despotism4 ,i do believe it would be better for them to obtain freedom by degrees only2 because that would by degrees bring on light and information1 and qualify them to take charge of themselves understandingly2 with more certainty1 if in the meantime1 under so much control as may keep them at peace with one another4 ,surely1 it is our duty to wish them independence and self-government1 because they wish it themselves1 and they have the right1 and we none1 to choose for themselves2 and ,i wish1 moreover1 that our ideas may be erroneous1 and theirs prove well founded4 ,but these are speculations1 my friend1 which we may as well deliver over to those who are to see their development4 ,we shall only be lookers on1 from the clouds above1 as now we look down on the labors1 the hurry and bustle of the ants and bees4 ,perhaps in that super-mundane region1 we may be amused with seeing the fallacy of our own guesses1 and even the nothingness of those labors which have filled and agitated our own time here4 ,en attendant1 with sincere affections to ,mrs4 ,adams and yourself1 ,i salute you both cordially4 ,,to ,m4 ,,jullien4 ,,monticello1 ,july #bc1 #ahah4 ,,sir1--,your favor of ,march #cjth1 #ahag1 came to my hands on the #ast of ,march1 #ahah4 ,while the statement it contained of the many instances of your attention in sending to me your different writings was truly flattering1 it was equally mortifying to perceive that two only of the eight it enumerates1 had ever come to my hands2 and that both of my acknowledgments of these had miscarried also4 ,your first favor of ,november #eth1 #ahji1 was received by me on the #fth of ,may1 #ahaj1 and was answered on the #aeth of ,july of the same year1 with an acknowledgment of the receipt of your ,essai general d'education physique morale1 et intellectuelle1 and of the high sense ,i entertained of its utility4 ,i do not recollect through what channel ,i sent this answer1 but have little doubt that it was through the office of our ,secretary of ,state1 and our minister then at the court of ,france4 ,in a letter from ,mr4 ,e4 ,i4 ,dupont of ,august #aa1 #ahag1 ,i received the favor of your ,esquisse d'un ouvrage sur l'education compare1 which he said had been received by his father a few days before his death2 and on the #ith of ,september1 #ahag1 ,i answered his letter1 in which was the following paragraph3 ,i duly received the pamphlet of ,m4 ,jullien on ,education1 to whom ,i had been indebted some years before for a valuable work on the same subject4 ,of this ,i expressed to him my high estimation in a letter of thanks1 which ,i trust he received4 ,the present pamphlet is an additional proof of his useful assiduities on this interesting subject1 which1 if the condition of man is to be progressively ameliorated1 as we fondly hope and believe1 is to be the chief instrument in effecting it4 ,i hoped that ,mr4 ,e4 ,i4 ,dupont1 in acknowledging to you the receipt of your letter to his father1 would be the channel of conveying to you my thanks1 as he was to me of the work for which they were rendered4 ,be assured1 ,sir1 that not another scrip1 either written or printed1 ever came to me from you2 and that ,i was incapable of omitting the acknowledgments they called for1 and of the neglect which you have had so much reason to impute to me4 ,i know well the uncertainty of transmissions across the ,atlantic1 but never before experienced such a train of them as has taken place in your favors and my acknowledgments of them4 ,you will perceive that the letter ,i am now answering was eleven months on its passage to me4 ,the distance between the scenes of action of ,general ,kosciusko and myself1 during our revolutionary war1--his in the military1 mine in the civil department1--was such1 that ,i could give no particulars of the part he acted in that war4 ,but immediately on the receipt of your letter1 ,i wrote to ,general ,armstrong1 who had been his companion in arms1 and an aid to ,general ,gates1 with whom ,general ,kosciusko mostly served1 and requested him to give me all the details within his knowledge2 informing him for whom1 and for what purpose they were asked4 ,i received1 two days ago only1 the paper of which the enclosed is a copy1 and copied by myself1 because the original is in such a handwriting as ,i am confident no foreigner could ever decypher4 ,however heavily pressed by the hand of age1 and unequal to the duties of punctual correspondence1 of which my friends generally would have a right to complain1 if the cause depended on myself1 ,i am happy to find that in that with yourself there has been no ground of reproach4 ,least of all things could ,i have omitted any researches within my power which might do justice to the memory of ,general ,kosciusko1 the brave auxiliary of my country in its struggle for liberty1 and1 from the year #agig1 when our particular acquaintance began1 my most intimate and much beloved friend4 ,on his last departure from the ,united ,states in #agih1 he left in my hands an instrument appropriating after his death all the property he had in our public funds1 the price of his military services here1 to the education and emancipation of as many of the children of bondage in this country as it should be adequate to4 ,i am now too old to undertake a business de si longue haleine2 but ,i am taking measures to place it in such hands as will ensure a faithful discharge of the philanthropic intentions of the donor4 ,i learn with pleasure your continued efforts for the instruction of the future generations of men1 and1 believing it the only means of effectuating their rights1 ,i wish them all possible success1 and to yourself the eternal gratitude of those who will feel their benefits1 and beg leave to add the assurance of my high esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,november #ac1 #ahah4 ,the public papers1 my dear friend1 announce the fatal event of which your letter of ,october the #bjth had given me ominous foreboding4 ,tried myself in the school of affliction1 by the loss of every form of connection which can rive the human heart1 ,i know well1 and feel what you have lost1 what you have suffered1 are suffering1 and have yet to endure4 ,the same trials have taught me that for ills so immeasurable1 time and silence are the only medicine4 ,i will not1 therefore1 by useless condolences1 open afresh the sluices of your grief1 nor1 although mingling sincerely my tears with yours1 will ,i say a word more where words are vain1 but that it is of some comfort to us both1 that the term is not very distant1 at which we are to deposit in the same cerement1 our sorrows and suffering bodies1 and to ascend in essence to an ecstatic meeting with the friends we have loved and lost1 and whom we shall still love and never lose again4 ,god bless you and support you under your heavy affliction4 ,,to ,,robert ,,walsh4 ,,monticello1 ,december #d1 #ahah4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,yours of ,november the #hth has been some time received2 but it is in my power to give little satisfaction as to its inquiries4 ,dr4 ,franklin had many political enemies1 as every character must1 which1 with decision enough to have opinions1 has energy and talent to give them effect on the feelings of the adversary opinion4 ,these enmities were chiefly in ,pennsylvania and ,massachusetts4 ,in the former1 they were merely of the proprietary party4 ,in the latter1 they did not commence till the ,revolution1 and then sprung chiefly from personal animosities1 which spreading by little and little1 became at length of some extent4 ,dr4 ,lee was his principal calumniator1 a man of much malignity1 who1 besides enlisting his whole family in the same hostility1 was enabled1 as the agent of ,massachusetts with the ,british government1 to infuse it into that ,state with considerable effect4 ,mr4 ,izard1 the ,doctor's enemy also1 but from a pecuniary transaction1 never countenanced these charges against him4 ,mr4 ,jay1 ,silas ,deane1 ,mr4 ,laurens1 his colleagues also1 ever maintained towards him unlimited confidence and respect4 ,that he would have waived the formal recognition of our independence1 ,i never heard on any authority worthy notice4 ,as to the fisheries1 ,england was urgent to retain them exclusively1 ,france neutral1 and ,i believe1 that had they been ultimately made a sine qu non1 our commissioners 7,mr4 ,adams excepted7 would have relinquished them1 rather than have broken off the treaty4 ,to ,mr4 ,adams' perseverance alone1 on that point1 ,i have always understood we were indebted for their reservation4 ,as to the charge of subservience to ,france1 besides the evidence of his friendly colleagues before named1 two years of my own service with him at ,paris1 daily visits1 and the most friendly and confidential conversation1 convince me it had not a shadow of foundation4 ,he possessed the confidence of that government in the highest degree1 insomuch1 that it may truly be said1 that they were more under his influence1 than he under theirs4 ,the fact is1 that his temper was so amiable and conciliatory1 his conduct so rational1 never urging impossibilities1 or even things unreasonably inconvenient to them1 in short1 so moderate and attentive to their difficulties1 as well as our own1 that what his enemies called subserviency1 ,i saw was only that reasonable disposition1 which1 sensible that advantages are not all to be on one side1 yielding what is just and liberal1 is the more certain of obtaining liberality and justice4 ,mutual confidence produces1 of course1 mutual influence1 and this was all which subsisted between ,dr4 ,franklin and the government of ,france4 ,i state a few anecdotes of ,dr4 ,franklin1 within my own knowledge1 too much in detail for the scale of ,delaplaine's work1 but which may find a cadre in some of the more particular views you contemplate4 ,my health is in a great measure restored1 and our family join with me in affectionate recollections and assurances of respect4 ,,to ,m4 ,,de ,,neuville4 ,,monticello1 ,december #ac1 #ahah4 ,i thank your ,excellency for the notice with which your letters favor me1 of the liberation of ,france from the occupation of the allied powers4 ,to no one1 not a native1 will it give more pleasure4 ,in the desolation of ,europe1 to gratify the atrocious caprices of ,bonaparte1 ,france sinned much2 but she has suffered more than retaliation4 ,once relieved from the incubus of her late oppression1 she will rise like a giant from her slumbers4 ,her soil and climate1 her arts and eminent sciences1 her central position and free constitution1 will soon make her greater than she ever was4 ,and ,i am a false prophet1 if she does not at some future day1 remind of her sufferings those who have inflicted them the most eagerly4 ,i hope1 however1 she will be quiet for the present1 and risk no new troubles4 ,her constitution1 as now amended1 gives as much of self-government as perhaps she can yet bear1 and will give more1 when the habits of order shall have prepared her to receive more4 ,besides the gratitude which every ,american owes her1 as our sole ally during the war of independence1 ,i am additionally affectioned by the friendships ,i contracted there1 by the good dispositions ,i witnessed1 and by the courtesies ,i received4 ,i rejoice1 as a moralist1 at the prospect of a reduction of the duties on wine1 by our national legislature4 ,it is an error to view a tax on that liquor as merely a tax on the rich4 ,it is a prohibition of its use to the middling class of our citizens1 and a condemnation of them to the poison of whiskey1 which is desolating their houses4 ,no nation is drunken where wine is cheap2 and none sober1 where the dearness of wine substitutes ardent spirits as the common beverage4 ,it is1 in truth1 the only antidote to the bane of whiskey4 ,fix but the duty at the rate of other merchandise1 and we can drink wine here as cheap as we do grog2 and who will not prefer it8 ,its extended use will carry health and comfort to a much enlarged circle4 ,every one in easy circumstances 7as the bulk of our citizens are7 will prefer it to the poison to which they are now driven by their government4 ,and the treasury itself will find that a penny a piece from a dozen1 is more than a groat from a single one4 ,this reformation1 however1 will require time4 ,our merchants know nothing of the infinite variety of cheap and good wines to be had in ,europe2 and particularly in ,france1 in ,italy1 and the ,grcian islands2 as they know little also1 of the variety of excellent manufactures and comforts to be had anywhere out of ,england4 ,nor will these things be known1 nor of course called for here1 until the native merchants of those countries1 to whom they are known1 shall bring them forward1 exhibit and vend them at the moderate profits they can afford4 ,this alone will procure them familiarity with us1 and the preference they merit in competition with corresponding articles now in use4 ,our family renew with pleasure their recollections of your kind visit to ,monticello1 and join me in tendering sincere assurances of the gratification it afforded us1 and of our great esteem and respectful consideration4 ,,to ,,nathaniel ,,macon1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,january #ab1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the problem you had wished to propose to me was one which ,i could not have solved2 for ,i knew nothing of the facts4 ,i read no newspaper now but ,ritchie's1 and in that chiefly the advertisements1 for they contain the only truths to be relied on in a newspaper4 ,i feel a much greater interest in knowing what has passed two or three thousand years ago1 than in what is now passing4 ,i read nothing1 therefore1 but of the heroes of ,troy1 of the wars of ,lacedmon and ,athens1 of ,pompey and ,csar1 and of ,augustus too1 the ,bonaparte and parricide scoundrel of that day4 ,i have had1 and still have1 such entire confidence in the late and present ,presidents1 that ,i willingly put both soul and body into their pockets4 ,while such men as yourself and your worthy colleagues of the legislature1 and such characters as compose the executive administration1 are watching for us all1 ,i slumber without fear1 and review in my dreams the visions of antiquity4 ,there is1 indeed1 one evil which awakens me at times1 because it jostles me at every turn4 ,it is that we have now no measure of value4 ,i am asked eighteen dollars for a yard of broadcloth1 which1 when we had dollars1 ,i used to get for eighteen shillings2 from this ,i can only understand that a dollar is now worth but two inches of broadcloth1 but broadcloth is no standard of measure or value4 ,i do not know1 therefore1 whereabouts ,i stand in the scale of property1 nor what to ask1 or what to give for it4 ,i saw1 indeed1 the like machinery in action in the years '#hj and '#ha1 and without dissatisfaction2 because in wearing out1 it was working out our salvation4 ,but ,i see nothing in this renewal of the game of ,robin's alive but a general demoralization of the nation1 a filching from industry its honest earnings1 wherewith to build up palaces1 and raise gambling stock for swindlers and shavers1 who are too close to their career of piracies by fraudulent bankruptcies4 ,my dependence for a remedy1 however1 is with the wisdom which grows with time and suffering4 ,whether the succeeding generation is to be more virtuous than their predecessors1 ,i cannot say2 but ,i am sure they will have more worldly wisdom1 and enough1 ,i hope1 to know that honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom4 ,i have made a great exertion to write you thus much2 my antipathy to taking up a pen being so intense that ,i have never given you a stronger proof1 than in the effort of writing a letter1 how much ,i value you1 and of the superlative respect and friendship with which ,i salute you4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,march #ba1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i am indebted to you for ,mr4 ,bowditch's very learned mathematical papers1 the calculations of which are not for every reader1 although their results are readily enough understood4 ,one of these impairs the confidence ,i had reposed in ,la ,place's demonstration1 that the eccentricities of the planets of our system could oscillate only within narrow limits1 and therefore could authorize no inference that the system must1 by its own laws1 come one day to an end4 ,this would have left the question one of infinitude1 at both ends of the line of time1 clear of physical authority4 ,mr4 ,pickering's pamphlet on the pronunciation of the ,greek1 for which ,i am indebted to you also1 ,i have read with great pleasure4 ,early in life1 the idea occurred to me that the people now inhabiting the ancient seats of the ,greeks and ,romans1 although their languages in the intermediate ages had suffered great changes1 and especially in the declension of their nouns1 and in the terminations of their words generally1 yet having preserved the body of the word radically the same1 so they would preserve more of its pronunciation4 ,that at least it was probable that a pronunciation1 handed down by tradition1 would retain1 as the words themselves do1 more of the original than that of any other people whose language has no affinity to that original4 ,for this reason ,i learnt1 and have used the ,italian pronunciation of the ,latin4 ,but that of the modern ,greeks ,i had no opportunity of learning until ,i went to ,paris4 ,there ,i became acquainted with two learned ,greeks1 ,count ,carberri and ,mr4 ,paradise1 and with a lady1 a native ,greek1 the daughter of ,baron de ,tott1 who did not understand the ancient language4 ,carberri and ,paradise spoke it4 ,from these instructors ,i learnt the modern pronunciation1 and in general trusted to its orthodoxy4 ,i say1 in general1 because sound being more fugitive than the written letter1 we must1 after such a lapse of time1 presume in it some degeneracies1 as we see there are in the written words4 ,we may not1 indeed1 be able to put our finger on them confidently1 yet neither are they entirely beyond the reach of all indication4 ,for example1 in a language so remarkable for the euphony of its sounds1 if that euphony is preserved in particular combinations of its letters1 by an adherence to the powers ordinarily ascribed to them1 and is destroyed by a change of these powers1 and the sound of the word thereby rendered harsh1 inharmonious1 and inidiomatical1 here we may presume some degeneracy has taken place4 ,while1 therefore1 ,i gave in to the modern pronunciation generally1 ,i have presumed1 as an instance of degeneracy1 their ascribing the same sound to the six letters1 or combinations of letters1 1 1 1 1 1 1 to all of which they give the sound of our double e in the word meet4 ,this useless equivalence of three vowels and three diphthongs1 did not probably exist among the ancient ,greeks2 and the less probably as1 while this single sound1 ee1 is overcharged by so many different representative characters1 the sounds we usually give to these characters and combinations would be left without any representative signs4 ,this would imply either that they had not these sounds in their language1 or no signs for their expression4 ,probability appears to me1 therefore1 against the practice of the modern ,greeks of giving the same sound to all these different representatives1 and to be in favor of that of foreign nations1 who1 adopting the ,roman characters1 have assimilated to them1 in a considerable degree1 the powers of the corresponding ,greek letters4 ,i have1 accordingly1 excepted this in my adoption of the modern pronunciation4 ,i have been more doubtful in the use of the 1 1 1 1 sounding the 1 upsilon1 as our f or v1 because ,i find traces of that power of 1 or of v1 in some modern languages4 ,to go no further than our own1 we have it in laugh1 cough1 trough1 enough4 ,the county of ,louisa1 adjacent to that in which ,i live1 was1 when ,i was a boy1 universally pronounced ,lovisa4 ,that it is not the gh which gives the sound of f or v1 in these words1 is proved by the orthography of plough1 trough1 thought1 fraught1 caught4 ,the modern ,greeks themselves1 too1 giving up 1 upsilon1 in ordinary1 the sound of our ee1 strengthens the presumption that its anomalous sound of f or v1 is a corruption4 ,the same may be inferred from the cacophony of 7elavne7 for 1 7elawne17 7,achillefs7 for 1 7,achilleise17 7eves7 for 1 7eeuse17 7ovk7 for ouk1 7ouk17 7ovetos7 for 1 7o-u-tos17 7zevs7 for 7zese17 of which all nations have made their ,jupiter2 and the uselessness of the in which would otherwise have been spelt 4 ,i therefore except this also from what ,i consider as approvable pronunciation4 ,against reading ,greek by accent1 instead of quantity1 as ,mr4 ,ciceitira proposes1 ,i raise both my hands4 ,what becomes of the sublime measure of ,homer1 the full sounding rhythm of ,demosthenes1 if1 abandoning quantity1 you chop it up by accent8 ,what ear can hesitate in its choice between the two following rhythms8 ,t1 ' 1 and1 1 ' 1 the latter noted according to prosody1 the former by accent1 and dislocating our teeth in its utterance2 every syllable of it1 except the first and last1 being pronounced against quantity4 ,and what becomes of the art of prosody8 ,is that perfect coincidence of its rules with the structure of their verse1 merely accidental8 or was it of design1 and yet for no use4 ,on the whole1 ,i rejoice that this subject is taken up among us1 and that it is in so able hands as those of ,mr4 ,pickering4 ,should he ultimately establish the modern pronunciation of the letters without any exception1 ,i shall think it a great step gained1 and giving up my exceptions1 shall willingly rally to him2 and as he has promised us another paper on the question whether we shall read by quantity or by accent1 ,i can confidently trust it to the correctness of his learning and judgment4 ,of the origin of accentuation1 ,i have never seen satisfactory proofs4 ,but ,i have generally supposed the accents were intended to direct the inflections and modulations of the voice2 but not to affect the quantity of the syllables4 ,you did not expect1 ,i am sure1 to draw on yourself so long a disquisition on letters and sounds1 nor did ,i intend it1 but the subject run before me1 and yet ,i have dropped much of it by the way4 ,i am delighted with your high approbation of ,mr4 ,tracy's book4 ,the evils of this deluge of paper money are not to be removed1 until our citizens are generally and radically instructed in their cause and consequences1 and silence by their authority the interested clamors and sophistry of speculating1 shaving1 and banking institutions4 ,till then we must be content to return1 quod hoc1 to the savage state1 to recur to barter in the exchange of our property1 for want of a stable1 common measure of value1 that now in use being less fixed than the beads and wampum of the ,indian1 and to deliver up our citizens1 their property and their labor1 passive victims to the swindling tricks of bankers and mountebankers4 ,if ,i had your permission to put your letter into the hands of the editor1 7,milligan17 with or without any verbal alterations you might choose1 it would ensure the general circulation1 which my prospectus and prefatory letter will less effectually recommend4 ,there is nothing in the book of mine but these two articles1 and the note on taxation in page #bjb4 ,i never knew who the translator was2 but ,i thought him some one who understood neither ,french nor ,english2 and probably a ,caledonian1 from the number of ,scotticisms ,i found in his ,,ms4 ,the innumerable corrections in that1 cost me more labor than would have done a translation of the whole de novo2 and made at last but an inelegant although faithful version of the sense of the author4 ,dios guarde ,v4 ,s4 muchos aos4 ,,to ,,doctor ,,vine ,,utley4 ,,monticello1 ,march #ba1 #ahai4 ,,sir1--,your letter of ,february the #ahth came to hand on the #ast instant2 and the request of the history of my physical habits would have puzzled me not a little1 had it not been for the model with which you accompanied it1 of ,doctor ,rush's answer to a similar inquiry4 ,i live so much like other people1 that ,i might refer to ordinary life as the history of my own4 ,like my friend the ,doctor1 ,i have lived temperately1 eating little animal food1 and that not as an aliment1 so much as a condiment for the vegetables1 which constitute my principal diet4 ,i double1 however1 the ,doctor's glass and a half of wine1 and even treble it with a friend2 but halve its effects by drinking the weak wines only4 ,the ardent wines ,i cannot drink1 nor do ,i use ardent spirits in any form4 ,malt liquors and cider are my table drinks1 and my breakfast1 like that also of my friend1 is of tea and coffee4 ,i have been blest with organs of digestion which accept and concoct1 without ever murmuring1 whatever the palate chooses to consign to them1 and ,i have not yet lost a tooth by age4 ,i was a hard student until ,i entered on the business of life1 the duties of which leave no idle time to those disposed to fulfil them2 and now1 retired1 and at the age of seventy-six1 ,i am again a hard student4 ,indeed1 my fondness for reading and study revolts me from the drudgery of letter writing4 ,and a stiff wrist1 the consequence of an early dislocation1 makes writing both slow and painful4 ,i am not so regular in my sleep as the ,doctor says he was1 devoting to it from five to eight hours1 according as my company or the book ,i am reading interests me2 and ,i never go to bed without an hour1 or half hour's previous reading of something moral1 whereon to ruminate in the intervals of sleep4 ,but whether ,i retire to bed early or late1 ,i rise with the sun4 ,i use spectacles at night1 but not necessarily in the day1 unless in reading small print4 ,my hearing is distinct in particular conversation1 but confused when several voices cross each other1 which unfits me for the society of the table4 ,i have been more fortunate than my friend in the article of health4 ,so free from catarrhs that ,i have not had one1 7in the breast1 ,i mean7 on an average of eight or ten years through life4 ,i ascribe this exemption partly to the habit of bathing my feet in cold water every morning1 for sixty years past4 ,a fever of more than twenty-four hours ,i have not had above two or three times in my life4 ,a periodical headache has afflicted me occasionally1 once1 perhaps1 in six or eight years1 for two or three weeks at a time1 which seems now to have left me2 and except on a late occasion of indisposition1 ,i enjoy good health2 too feeble1 indeed1 to walk much1 but riding without fatigue six or eight miles a day1 and sometimes thirty or forty4 ,i may end these egotisms1 therefore1 as ,i began1 by saying that my life has been so much like that of other people1 that ,i might say with ,horace1 to every one nomine mutato1 narratur fabula de te4 ,i must not end1 however1 without due thanks for the kind sentiments of regard you are so good as to express towards myself2 and with my acknowledgments for these1 be pleased to accept the assurances of my respect and esteem4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,spafford4 ,,monticello1 ,may #aa1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the interest on the late derangement of my health which was so kindly expressed by many1 could not but be gratifying to me1 as much as it manifested a sentiment that ,i had not been merely an useless cypher of society4 ,yet a decline of health at the age of #gf1 was naturally to be expected1 and is a warning of an event which cannot be distant1 and whose approach ,i contemplate with little concern2 for indeed1 in no circumstance has nature been kinder to us1 than in the soft gradations by which she prepares us to part willingly with what we are not destined always to retain4 ,first one faculty is withdrawn and then another1 sight1 hearing1 memory1 affections1 and friends1 filched one by one1 till we are left among strangers1 the mere monuments of times1 facts1 and specimens of antiquity for the observation of the curious4 ,to your request of materials for writing my life1 ,i know not what to say1 although ,i have been obliged to say something to several preceding applications of the same kind4 ,one answer indeed is obvious1 that ,i am by decay of memory1 aversion to labor1 and cares more suited to my situation1 unequal to such a task4 ,of the public transactions in which ,i have borne a part1 ,i have kept no narrative with a view of history4 ,a life of constant action leaves no time for recording4 ,always thinking of what is next to be done1 what has been done is dismissed1 and soon obliterated from the memory4 ,i cannot be insensible to the partiality which has induced several persons to think my life worthy of remembrance4 ,and towards none more than yourself1 who give me so much credit more than ,i am entitled to1 as to what has been effected for the safeguard of our republican constitution4 ,numerous and able coadjutors have participated in these efforts1 and merit equal notice4 ,my life1 in fact1 has been so much like that of others1 that their history is my history1 with a mere difference of feature4 ,the only valuable materials for history which ,i possessed1 were the pamphlets of the day1 carefully collected and preserved2 but these past on to ,congress with my library1 and are to be found in their depository4 ,except the ,notes on ,virginia1 ,i never wrote anything but acts of office1 of which ,i rarely kept a copy4 ,these will all be found in the journals and gazettes of the times4 ,there was a book published in ,england about #ahja1 or soon after1 entitled ,public ,characters1 in which was given a sketch of my history to that period4 ,i never knew1 nor could conjecture by whom this was written2 but certainly by some one pretty intimately acquainted with myself and my connections4 ,there were a few inconsiderable errors in it1 but in general it was correct4 ,delaplaine1 in his ,repository1 has also given some outlines on the same subject2 he sets out indeed with an error as to the county of my birth4 ,chesterfield1 which he states as such1 was the residence of my grandfather and remoter ancestors1 but ,albemarle was that of my father1 and of my own birth and residence4 ,excepting this error1 ,i remark no other but in his ascriptions of more merit than ,i have deserved4 ,girardin's ,history of ,virginia1 too1 gives many particulars on the same subject1 which are correct4 ,these publications furnish all the details of facts and dates which can interest anybody1 and more than ,i could now furnish myself from a decayed memory1 or any notes ,i retain4 ,while1 therefore1 ,i feel just acknowledgments for the partial selection of a subject for your employment1 ,i am persuaded you will perceive there is too little new and worthy of public notice to devote to it a time which may be so much more usefully employed2 and with a due sense of the partiality of your friendship1 ,i salute you with assurances of the greatest esteem and respect4 ,,to ,s4 ,a4 ,,wells1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,may #ab1 #ahai4 ,,sir1--,an absence of some time at an occasional and distant residence must apologize for the delay in acknowledging the receipt of your favor of ,april #abth4 ,and candor obliges me to add that it has been somewhat extended by an aversion to writing1 as well as to calls on my memory for facts so much obliterated from it by time as to lessen my confidence in the traces which seem to remain4 ,one of the inquiries in your letter1 however1 may be answered without an appeal to the memory4 ,it is that respecting the question whether committees of correspondence originated in ,virginia or ,massachusetts8 ,on which you suppose me to have claimed it for ,virginia4 ,but certainly ,i have never made such a claim4 ,the idea1 ,i suppose1 has been taken up from what is said in ,wirt's history of ,mr4 ,henry1 p4 #hg1 and from an inexact attention to its precise terms4 ,it is there said this house of burgesses of ,virginia had the merit of originating that powerful engine of resistance1 corresponding committees between the legislatures of the different colonies4 ,that the fact as here expressed is true1 your letter bears witness when it says that the resolutions of ,virginia for this purpose were transmitted to the speakers of the different ,assemblies1 and by that of ,massachusetts was laid at the next session before that body1 who appointed a committee for the specified object3 adding1 thus in ,massachusetts there were two committees of correspondence1 one chosen by the people1 the other appointed by the ,house of ,assembly2 in the former1 ,massachusetts preceded ,virginia2 in the latter1 ,virginia preceded ,massachusetts4 ,to the origination of committees for the interior correspondence between the counties and towns of a ,state1 ,i know of no claim on the part of ,virginia2 but certainly none was ever made by myself4 ,i perceive1 however1 one error into which memory had led me4 ,our committee for national correspondence was appointed in ,march1 '#gc1 and ,i well remember that going to ,williamsburg in the month of ,june following1 ,peyton ,randolph1 our chairman1 told me that messengers1 bearing despatches between the two ,states1 had crossed each other by the way2 that of ,virginia carrying our propositions for a committee of national correspondence1 and that of ,massachusetts bringing1 as my memory suggested1 a similar proposition4 ,but here ,i must have misremembered2 and the resolutions brought us from ,massachusetts were probably those you mention of the town meeting of ,boston1 on the motion of ,mr4 ,samuel ,adams1 appointing a committee to state the rights of the colonists1 and of that province in particular1 and the infringements of them1 to communicate them to the several towns1 as the sense of the town of ,boston1 and to request of each town a free communication of its sentiments on this subject8 ,i suppose1 therefore1 that these resolutions were not received1 as you think1 while the ,house of ,burgesses was in session in ,march1 #aggc2 but a few days after we rose1 and were probably what was sent by the messenger who crossed ours by the way4 ,they may1 however1 have been still different4 ,i must therefore have been mistaken in supposing and stating to ,mr4 ,wirt1 that the proposition of a committee for national correspondence was nearly simultaneous in ,virginia and ,massachusetts4 ,a similar misapprehension of another passage in ,mr4 ,wirt's book1 for which ,i am also quoted1 has produced a similar reclamation of the part of ,massachusetts by some of her most distinguished and estimable citizens4 ,i had been applied to by ,mr4 ,wirt for such facts respecting ,mr4 ,henry1 as my intimacy with him1 and participation in the transactions of the day1 might have placed within my knowledge4 ,i accordingly committed them to paper1 and ,virginia being the theatre of his action1 was the only subject within my contemplation1 while speaking of him4 ,of the resolutions and measures here1 in which he had the acknowledged lead1 ,i used the expression that ,mr4 ,henry certainly gave the first impulse to the ball of revolution4 ,wirt1 p4 #da4 ,the expression is indeed general1 and in all its extension would comprehend all the sister ,states4 ,but indulgent construction would restrain it1 as was really meant1 to the subject matter under contemplation1 which was ,virginia alone2 according to the rule of the lawyers1 and a fair canon of general criticism1 that every expression should be construed secundum subjectam materiem4 ,where the first attack was made1 there must have been of course1 the first act of resistance1 and that was of ,massachusetts4 ,our first overt act of war was ,mr4 ,henry's embodying a force of militia from several counties1 regularly armed and organized1 marching them in military array1 and making reprisal on the ,king's treasury at the seat of government for the public powder taken away by his ,governor4 ,this was on the last days of ,april1 #agge4 ,your formal battle of ,lexington was ten or twelve days before that1 which greatly overshadowed in importance1 as it preceded in time our little affray1 which merely amounted to a levying of arms against the ,king1 and very possibly you had had military affrays before the regular battle of ,lexington4 ,these explanations will1 ,i hope1 assure you1 ,sir1 that so far as either facts or opinions have been truly quoted from me1 they have never been meant to intercept the just fame of ,massachusetts1 for the promptitude and perseverance of her early resistance4 ,we willingly cede to her the laud of having been 7although not exclusively7 the cradle of sound principles1 and if some of us believe she has deflected from them in her course1 we retain full confidence in her ultimate return to them4 ,i will now proceed to your quotation from ,mr4 ,galloway's statements of what passed in ,congress on their declaration of independence1 in which statement there is not one word of truth1 and where1 bearing some resemblance to truth1 it is an entire perversion of it4 ,i do not charge this on ,mr4 ,galloway himself2 his desertion having taken place long before these measures1 he doubtless received his information from some of the loyal friends whom he left behind him4 ,but as yourself1 as well as others1 appear embarrassed by inconsistent accounts of the proceedings on that memorable occasion1 and as those who have endeavored to restore the truth have themselves committed some errors1 ,i will give you some extracts from a written document on that subject1 for the truth of which ,i pledge myself to heaven and earth2 having1 while the question of independence was under consideration before ,congress1 taken written notes1 in my seat1 of what was passing1 and reduced them to form on the final conclusion4 ,i have now before me that paper1 from which the following are extracts3 ,on ,friday the #gth of ,june1 #aggf1 the delegates from ,virginia moved1 in obedience to instructions from their constituents1 that the ,congress should declare that these united colonies are1 and of right ought to be1 free and independent ,states2 that they are absolved from all allegiance to the ,british crown1 and that all political connection between them and the ,state of ,great ,britain is1 and ought to be totally dissolved2 that measures should be immediately taken for procuring the assistance of foreign powers1 and a confederation be formed to bind the colonies more closely together4 ,the house being obliged to attend at that time to some other business1 the proposition was referred to the next day1 when the members were ordered to attend punctually at ten o'clock4 ,saturday1 ,june #hth1 they proceeded to take it into consideration1 and referred it to a committee of the whole1 into which they immediately resolved themselves1 and passed that day and ,monday the #ajth in debating on the subject4 ,it appearing in the course of these debates1 that the colonies of ,new ,york1 ,new ,jersey1 ,pennsylvania1 ,delaware1 ,maryland1 and ,south ,carolina were not yet matured for falling from the parent stem1 but that they were fast advancing to that state1 it was thought most prudent to wait awhile for them1 and to postpone the final decision to ,july #ast4 ,but that this might occasion as little delay as possible1 a committee was appointed to prepare a ,declaration of ,independence4 ,the committee were ,j4 ,adams1 ,dr4 ,franklin1 ,roger ,sherman1 ,robert ,r4 ,livingston and myself4 ,this was reported to the ,house on ,friday the #bhth of ,june1 when it was read and ordered to lie on the table4 ,on ,monday the #ast of ,july the ,house resolved itself into a committee of the whole1 and resumed the consideration of the original motion made by the delegates of ,virginia1 which being again debated through the day1 was carried in the affirmative by the votes of ,new ,hampshire1 ,connecticut1 ,massachusetts1 ,rhode ,island1 ,new ,jersey1 ,maryland1 ,virginia1 ,north ,carolina and ,georgia4 ,south ,carolina and ,pennsylvania voted against it4 ,delaware having but two members present1 they were divided4 ,the delegates for ,new ,york declared they were for it themselves1 and were assured their constituents were for it2 but that their instructions having been drawn near a twelvemonth before1 when reconciliation was still the general object1 they were enjoined by them to do nothing which should impede that object4 ,they therefore thought themselves not justifiable in voting on either side1 and asked leave to withdraw from the question1 which was given them4 ,the ,committee rose and reported their resolution to the ,house4 ,mr4 ,rutledge of ,south ,carolina1 then requested the determination might be put off to the next day1 as he believed his colleagues1 though they disapproved of the resolution1 would then join in it for the sake of unanimity4 ,the ultimate question whether the ,house would agree to the resolution of the committee was accordingly postponed to the next day1 when it was again moved1 and ,south ,carolina concurred in voting for it2 in the meantime a third member had come post from the ,delaware counties1 and turned the vote of that colony in favor of the resolution4 ,members of a different sentiment attending that morning from ,pennsylvania also1 their vote was changed2 so that the whole twelve colonies1 who were authorized to vote at all1 gave their votes for it2 and within a few days1 ,july #ith1 the convention of ,new ,york approved of it1 and thus supplied the void occasioned by the withdrawing of their delegates from the vote4 ,be careful to observe that this vacillation and vote was on the original motion of the #gth of ,june by the ,virginia delegates1 that ,congress should declare the colonies independent4 ,congress proceeded the same day to consider the ,declaration of ,independence1 which has been reported and laid on the table the ,friday preceding1 and on ,monday referred to a committee of the whole4 ,the pusillanimous idea that we had friends in ,england worth keeping terms with1 still haunted the minds of many4 ,for this reason those passages which conveyed censures on the people of ,england were struck out1 lest they give them offence4 ,the debates having taken up the greater parts of the #b;d1 #c;d and #dth days of ,july1 were1 in the evening of the last1 closed4 ,the declaration was reported by the committee1 agreed to by the ,house1 and signed by every member present except ,mr4 ,dickinson4 ,so far my notes4 ,governor ,mc,kean1 in his letter to ,mc,corkle of ,july #afth1 #ahag1 has thrown some lights on the transactions of that day1 but trusting to his memory chiefly at an age when our memories are not to be trusted1 he has confounded two questions1 and ascribed proceedings to one which belonged to the other4 ,these two questions were1 #a4 ,the ,virginia motion of ,june #gth to declare independence1 and #b4 ,the actual declaration1 its matter and form4 ,thus he states the question on the declaration itself as decided on the #ast of ,july4 ,but it was the ,virginia motion which was voted on that day in committee of the whole2 ,south ,carolina1 as well as ,pennsylvania1 then voting against it4 ,but the ultimate decision in the ,house on the report of the committee being by request postponed to the next morning1 all the ,states voted for it1 except ,new ,york1 whose vote was delayed for the reason before stated4 ,it was not till the #b;d of ,july that the declaration itself was taken up1 nor till the #dth that it was decided2 and it was signed by every member present1 except ,mr4 ,dickinson4 ,the subsequent signatures of members who were not then present1 and some of them not yet in office1 is easily explained1 if we observe who they were2 to wit1 that they were of ,new ,york and ,pennsylvania4 ,new ,york did not sign till the #aeth1 because it was not till the #ith1 7five days after the general signature17 that their convention authorized them to do so4 ,the convention of ,pennsylvania1 learning that it had been signed by a minority only of their delegates1 named a new delegation on the #bjth1 leaving out ,mr4 ,dickinson1 who had refused to sign4 ,willing and ,humphreys who had withdrawn1 reappointing the three members who had signed1 ,morris who had not been present1 and five new ones1 to wit1 ,rush1 ,clymer1 ,smith1 ,taylor and ,ross2 and ,morris and the five new members were permitted to sign1 because it manifested the assent of their full delegation1 and the express will of their convention1 which might have been doubted on the former signature of a minority only4 ,why the signature of ,thornton of ,new ,hampshire was permitted so late as the #dth of ,november1 ,i cannot now say2 but undoubtedly for some particular reason which we should find to have been good1 had it been expressed4 ,these were the only post-signers1 and you see1 ,sir1 that there were solid reasons for receiving those of ,new ,york and ,pennsylvania1 and that this circumstance in no wise affects the faith of this declaratory charter of our rights1 and of the rights of man4 ,with a view to correct errors of fact before they become inveterate by repetition1 ,i have stated what ,i find essentially material in my papers2 but with that brevity which the labor of writing constrains me to use4 ,on the fourth particular articles of inquiry in your letter1 respecting your grandfather1 the venerable ,samuel ,adams1 neither memory nor memorandums enable me to give any information4 ,i can say that he was truly a great man1 wise in council1 fertile in resources1 immovable in his purposes1 and had1 ,i think1 a greater share than any other member1 in advising and directing our measures1 in the northern war especially4 ,as a speaker he could not be compared with his living colleague and namesake1 whose deep conceptions1 nervous style1 and undaunted firmness1 made him truly our bulwark in debate4 ,but ,mr4 ,samuel ,adams1 although not of fluent elocution1 was so rigorously logical1 so clear in his views1 abundant in good sense1 and master always of his subject1 that he commanded the most profound attention whenever he rose in an assembly by which the froth of declamation was heard with the most sovereign contempt4 ,i sincerely rejoice that the record of his worth is to be undertaken by one so much disposed as you will be to hand him down fairly to that posterity for whose liberty and happiness he was so zealous a laborer4 ,with sentiments of sincere veneration for his memory1 accept yourself this tribute to it with the assurances of my great respect4 ,p4 ,s4 ,august #fth1 #ahbb1 since the date of this letter1 to wit1 this day1 ,august #fth1 '#bb1 ,i received the new publication of the secret ,journals of ,congress1 wherein is stated a resolution1 ,july #aith1 #aggf1 that the declaration passed on the #dth be fairly engrossed on parchment1 and when engrossed1 be signed by every member2 and another of ,august #b;d1 that being engrossed and compared at the table1 was signed by the members4 ,that is to say the copy engrossed on parchment 7for durability7 was signed by the members after being compared at the table with the original one1 signed on paper as before stated4 ,i add this ,p4 ,s4 to the copy of my letter to ,mr4 ,wells1 to prevent confounding the signature of the original with that of the copy engrossed on parchment4 ,,to ,,ezra ,,styles1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,june #be1 #ahai4 ,your favor1 ,sir1 of the #adth1 has been duly received1 and with it the book you were so kind as to forward to me4 ,for this mark of attention1 be pleased to accept my thanks4 ,the science of the human mind is curious1 but is one on which ,i have not indulged myself in much speculation4 ,the times in which ,i have lived1 and the scenes in which ,i have been engaged1 have required me to keep the mind too much in action to have leisure to study minutely its laws of action4 ,i am therefore little qualified to give an opinion on the comparative worth of books on that subject1 and little disposed to do it on any book4 ,yours has brought the science within a small compass1 and that is the merit of the first order2 and especially with one to whom the drudgery of letter writing often denies the leisure of reading a single page in a week4 ,on looking over the summary of the contents of your book1 it does not seem likely to bring into collision any of those sectarian differences which you suppose may exist between us4 ,in that branch of religion which regards the moralities of life1 and the duties of a social being1 which teaches us to love our neighbors as ourselves1 and to do good to all men1 ,i am sure that you and ,i do not differ4 ,we probably differ in the dogmas of theology1 the foundation of all sectarianism1 and on which no two sects dream alike2 for if they did they would then be of the same4 ,you say you are a ,calvinist4 ,i am not4 ,i am of a sect by myself1 as far as ,i know4 ,i am not a ,jew1 and therefore do not adopt their theology1 which supposes the ,god of infinite justice to punish the sins of the fathers upon their children1 unto the third and fourth generation2 and the benevolent and sublime reformer of that religion has told us only that ,god is good and perfect1 but has not defined him4 ,i am1 therefore1 of his theology1 believing that we have neither words nor ideas adequate to that definition4 ,and if we could all1 after this example1 leave the subject as undefinable1 we should all be of one sect1 doers of good1 and eschewers of evil4 ,no doctrines of his lead to schism4 ,it is the speculations of crazy theologists which have made a ,babel of a religion the most moral and sublime ever preached to man1 and calculated to heal1 and not to create differences4 ,these religious animosities ,i impute to those who call themselves his ministers1 and who engraft their casuistries on the stock of his simple precepts4 ,i am sometimes more angry with them than is authorized by the blessed charities which he preaches4 ,to yourself ,i pray the acceptance of my great respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,july #i1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i am in debt to you for your letters of ,may the #bast1 #bgth1 and ,june the #bb;d4 ,the first1 delivered me by ,mr4 ,greenwood1 gave me the gratification of his acquaintance2 and a gratification it always is1 to be made acquainted with gentlemen of candor1 worth1 and information1 as ,i found ,mr4 ,greenwood to be4 ,that1 on the subject of ,mr4 ,samuel ,adams ,wells1 shall not be forgotten in time and place1 when it can be used to his advantage4 ,but what has attracted my peculiar notice1 is the paper from ,mecklenburg county1 of ,north ,carolina1 published in the ,essex ,register1 which you were so kind as to enclose in your last1 of ,june the #bb;d4 ,and you seem to think it genuine4 ,i believe it spurious4 ,i deem it to be a very unjustifiable quiz1 like that of the volcano1 so minutely related to us as having broken out in ,north ,carolina1 some half a dozen years ago1 in that part of the country1 and perhaps in that very county of ,mecklenburg1 for ,i do not remember its precise locality4 ,if this paper be really taken from the ,raleigh ,register1 as quoted1 ,i wonder it should have escaped ,ritchie1 who culls what is good from every paper1 as the bee from every flower2 and the ,national ,intelligencer1 too1 which is edited by a ,north ,carolinian2 and that the fire should blaze out all at once in ,essex1 one thousand miles from where the spark is said to have fallen4 ,but if really taken from the ,raleigh ,register1 who is the narrator1 and is the name subscribed real1 or is it as fictitious as the paper itself8 ,it appeals1 too1 to an original book1 which is burnt1 to ,mr4 ,alexander1 who is dead1 to a joint letter from ,caswell1 ,hughes1 and ,hooper1 all dead1 to a copy sent to the dead ,caswell1 and another sent to ,doctor ,williamson1 now probably dead1 whose memory did not recollect1 in the history he has written of ,north ,carolina1 this gigantic step of its county of ,mecklenberg4 ,horry1 too1 is silent in his history of ,marion1 whose scene of action was the country bordering on ,mecklenburg4 ,ramsay1 ,marshall1 ,jones1 ,girardin1 ,wirt1 historians of the adjacent ,states1 all silent4 ,when ,mr4 ,henry's resolutions1 far short of independence1 flew like lightning through every paper1 and kindled both sides of the ,atlantic1 this flaming declaration of the same date1 of the independence of ,mecklenburg county1 of ,north ,carolina1 absolving it from the ,british allegiance1 and abjuring all political connection with that nation1 although sent to ,congress too1 is never heard of4 ,it is not known even a twelvemonth after1 when a similar proposition is first made in that body4 ,armed with this bold example1 would not you have addressed our timid brethren in peals of thunder on their tardy fears8 ,would not every advocate of independence have rung the glories of ,mecklenberg county in ,north ,carolina1 in the ears of the doubting ,dickinson and others1 who hung so heavily on us8 ,yet the example of independent ,mecklenberg county1 in ,north ,carolina1 was never once quoted4 ,the paper speaks1 too1 of the continued exertions of their delegation 7,caswell1 ,hooper1 ,hughes7 in the cause of liberty and independence4 ,now you remember as well as ,i do1 that we had not a greater tory in ,congress than ,hooper2 that ,hughes was very wavering1 sometimes firm1 sometimes feeble1 according as the day was clear or cloudy2 that ,caswell1 indeed1 was a good whig1 and kept these gentlemen to the notch1 while he was present2 but that he left us soon1 and their line of conduct became then uncertain until ,penn came1 who fixed ,hughes and the vote of the ,state4 ,i must not be understood as suggesting any doubtfulness in the ,state of ,north ,carolina4 ,no ,state was more fixed or forward4 ,nor do ,i affirm1 positively1 that this paper is a fabrication2 because the proof of a negative can only be presumptive4 ,but ,i shall believe it such until positive and solemn proof of its authenticity be produced4 ,and if the name of ,mc,knitt be real1 and not a part of the fabrication1 it needs a vindication by the production of such proof4 ,for the present1 ,i must be an unbeliever in the apocryphal gospel4 ,i am glad to learn that ,mr4 ,ticknor has safely returned to his friends2 but should have been much more pleased had he accepted the ,professorship in our ,university1 which we should have offered him in form4 ,mr4 ,bowditch1 too1 refuses us2 so fascinating is the vinculum of the dulce natale solum4 ,our wish is to procure natives1 where they can be found1 like these gentlemen1 of the first order of requirement in their respective lines2 but preferring foreigners of the first order to natives of the second1 we shall certainly have to go for several of our ,professors1 to countries more advanced in science than we are4 ,i set out within three or four days for my other home1 the distance of which1 and its cross mails1 are great impediments to epistolary communications4 ,i shall remain there about two months2 and there1 here1 and everywhere1 ,i am and shall always be1 affectionately and respectfully yours4 ,,to ,,john ,,brazier1 ,,the ,,author ,,of ,,the ,,review ,,of ,,pickering ,,on ,,greek ,,pronunciation4 ,,poplar ,,forest1 ,august #bd1 #ahai4 ,,sir1--,the acknowledgment of your favor of ,july #aeth1 and thanks for the ,review which it covered of ,mr4 ,pickering's ,memoir on the ,modern ,greek1 have been delayed by a visit to an occasional but distant residence from ,monticello1 and to an attack here of rheumatism which is just now moderating4 ,i had been much pleased with the memoir1 and was much also with your review of it4 ,i have little hope indeed of the recovery of the ancient pronunciation of that finest of human languages1 but still ,i rejoice at the attention the subject seems to excite with you1 because it is an evidence that our country begins to have a taste for something more than merely as much ,greek as will pass a candidate for clerical ordination4 ,you ask my opinion on the extent to which classical learning should be carried in our country4 ,a sickly condition permits me to think1 and a rheumatic hand to write too briefly on this litigated question4 ,the utilities we derive from the remains of the ,greek and ,latin languages are1 first1 as models of pure taste in writing4 ,to these we are certainly indebted for the national and chaste style of modern composition which so much distinguishes the nations to whom these languages are familiar4 ,without these models we should probably have continued the inflated style of our northern ancestors1 or the hyperbolical and vague one of the east4 ,second4 ,among the values of classical learning1 ,i estimate the luxury of reading the ,greek and ,roman authors in all the beauties of their originals4 ,and why should not this innocent and elegant luxury take its preminent stand ahead of all those addressed merely to the senses8 ,i think myself more indebted to my father for this than for all the other luxuries his cares and affections have placed within my reach2 and more now than when younger1 and more susceptible of delights from other sources4 ,when the decays of age have enfeebled the useful energies of the mind1 the classic pages fill up the vacuum of ennui1 and become sweet composers to that rest of the grave into which we are all sooner or later to descend4 ,third4 ,a third value is in the stores of real science deposited and transmitted us in these languages1 to-wit3 in history1 ethics1 arithmetic1 geometry1 astronomy1 natural history1 c4 ,but to whom are these things useful8 ,certainly not to all men4 ,there are conditions of life to which they must be forever estranged1 and there are epochs of life too1 after which the endeavor to attain them would be a great misemployment of time4 ,their acquisition should be the occupation of our early years only1 when the memory is susceptible of deep and lasting impressions1 and reason and judgment not yet strong enough for abstract speculations4 ,to the moralist they are valuable1 because they furnish ethical writings highly and justly esteemed3 although in my own opinion1 the moderns are far advanced beyond them in this line of science1 the divine finds in the ,greek language a translation of his primary code1 of more importance to him than the original because better understood2 and1 in the same language1 the newer code1 with the doctrines of the earliest fathers1 who lived and wrote before the simple precepts of the founder of this most benign and pure of all systems of morality became frittered into subtleties and mysteries1 and hidden under jargons incomprehensible to the human mind4 ,to these original sources he must now1 therefore1 return1 to recover the virgin purity of his religion4 ,the lawyer finds in the ,latin language the system of civil law most conformable with the principles of justice of any which has ever yet been established among men1 and from which much has been incorporated into our own4 ,the physician as good a code of his art as has been given us to this day4 ,theories and systems of medicine1 indeed1 have been in perpetual change from the days of the good ,hippocrates to the days of the good ,rush1 but which of them is the true one8 the present1 to be sure1 as long as it is the present1 but to yield its place in turn to the next novelty1 which is then to become the true system1 and is to mark the vast advance of medicine since the days of ,hippocrates4 ,our situation is certainly benefited by the discovery of some new and very valuable medicines2 and substituting those for some of his with the treasure of facts1 and of sound observations recorded by him 7mixed to be sure with anilities of his day7 and we shall have nearly the present sum of the healing art4 ,the statesman will find in these languages history1 politics1 mathematics1 ethics1 eloquence1 love of country1 to which he must add the sciences of his own day1 for which of them should be unknown to him8 ,and all the sciences must recur to the classical languages for the etymon1 and sound understanding of their fundamental terms4 ,for the merchant ,i should not say that the languages are a necessary4 ,ethics1 mathematics1 geography1 political economy1 history1 seem to constitute the immediate foundations of his calling4 ,the agriculturist needs ethics1 mathematics1 chemistry and natural philosophy4 ,the mechanic the same4 ,to them the languages are but ornament and comfort4 ,i know it is often said there have been shining examples of men of great abilities in all the businesses of life1 without any other science than what they had gathered from conversations and intercourse with the world4 ,but who can say what these men would not have been had they started in the science on the shoulders of a ,demosthenes or ,cicero1 of a ,locke or ,bacon1 or a ,newton8 ,to sum the whole1 therefore1 it may truly be said that the classical languages are a solid basis for most1 and an ornament to all the sciences4 ,i am warned by my aching fingers to close this hasty sketch1 and to place here my last and fondest wishes for the advancement of our country in the useful sciences and arts1 and my assurances of respect and esteem for the ,reviewer of the ,memoir on modern ,greek4 ,,to ,,judge ,,roane4 ,,poplar ,,forest1 ,september #f1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i had read in the ,enquirer1 and with great approbation1 the pieces signed ,hampden1 and have read them again with redoubled approbation1 in the copies you have been so kind as to send me4 ,i subscribe to every title of them4 ,they contain the true principles of the revolution of #ahjj1 for that was as real a revolution in the principles of our government as that of #aggf was in its form2 not effected indeed by the sword1 as that1 but by the rational and peaceable instrument of reform1 the suffrage of the people4 ,the nation declared its will by dismissing functionaries of one principle1 and electing those of another1 in the two branches1 executive and legislative1 submitted to their election4 ,over the judiciary department1 the constitution had deprived them of their control4 ,that1 therefore1 has continued the reprobated system1 and although new matter has been occasionally incorporated into the old1 yet the leaven of the old mass seems to assimilate to itself the new1 and after twenty years' confirmation of the federated system by the voice of the nation1 declared through the medium of elections1 we find the judiciary on every occasion1 still driving us into consolidation4 ,in denying the right they usurp of exclusively explaining the constitution1 ,i go further than you do1 if ,i understand rightly your quotation from the ,federalist1 of an opinion that the judiciary is the last resort in relation to the other departments of the government1 but not in relation to the rights of the parties to the compact under which the judiciary is derived4 ,if this opinion be sound1 then indeed is our constitution a complete felo de se4 ,for intending to establish three departments1 co-ordinate and independent1 that they might check and balance one another1 it has given1 according to this opinion1 to one of them alone1 the right to prescribe rules for the government of the others1 and to that one too1 which is unelected by1 and independent of the nation4 ,for experience has already shown that the impeachment it has provided is not even a scare-crow2 that such opinions as the one you combat1 sent cautiously out1 as you observe also1 by detachment1 not belonging to the case often1 but sought for out of it1 as if to rally the public opinion beforehand to their views1 and to indicate the line they are to walk in1 have been so quietly passed over as never to have excited animadversion1 even in a speech of any one of the body entrusted with impeachment4 ,the constitution1 on this hypothesis1 is a mere thing of wax in the hands of the judiciary1 which they may twist and shape into any form they please4 ,it should be remembered1 as an axiom of eternal truth in politics1 that whatever power in any government is independent1 is absolute also2 in theory only1 at first1 while the spirit of the people is up1 but in practice1 as fast as that relaxes4 ,independence can be trusted nowhere but with the people in mass4 ,they are inherently independent of all but moral law4 ,my construction of the constitution is very different from that you quote4 ,it is that each department is truly independent of the others1 and has an equal right to decide for itself what is the meaning of the constitution in the cases submitted to its action2 and especially1 where it is to act ultimately and without appeal4 ,i will explain myself by examples1 which1 having occurred while ,i was in office1 are better known to me1 and the principles which governed them4 ,a legislature had passed the sedition law4 ,the federal courts had subjected certain individuals to its penalties of fine and imprisonment4 ,on coming into office1 ,i released these individuals by the power of pardon committed to executive discretion1 which could never be more properly exercised than where citizens were suffering without the authority of law1 or1 which was equivalent1 under a law unauthorized by the constitution1 and therefore null4 ,in the case of ,marbury and ,madison1 the federal judges declared that commissions1 signed and sealed by the ,president1 were valid1 although not delivered4 ,i deemed delivery essential to complete a deed1 which1 as long as it remains in the hands of the party1 is as yet no need1 it is in posse only1 but not in esse1 and ,i withheld delivery of the commissions4 ,they cannot issue a mandamus to the ,president or legislature1 or to any of their officers4#c ,when the ,british treaty of ---- arrived1 without any provision against the impressment of our seamen1 ,i determined not to ratify it4 ,the ,senate thought ,i should ask their advice4 ,i thought that would be a mockery of them1 when ,i was predetermined against following it1 should they advise its ratification4 ,the constitution had made their advice necessary to confirm a treaty1 but not to reject it4 ,this has been blamed by some2 but ,i have never doubted its soundness4 ,in the cases of two persons1 antenati1 under exactly similar circumstances1 the federal court had determined that one of them 7,duane7 was not a citizen2 the ,house of ,representatives nevertheless determined that the other 7,smith1 of ,south ,carolina7 was a citizen1 and admitted him to his seat in their body4 ,duane was a republican1 and ,smith a federalist1 and these decisions were made during the federal ascendancy4 ,these are examples of my position1 that each of the three departments has equally the right to decide for itself what is its duty under the constitution1 without any regard to what the others may have decided for themselves under a similar question4 ,but you intimate a wish that my opinion should be known on this subject4 ,no1 dear ,sir1 ,i withdraw from all contests of opinion1 and resign everything cheerfully to the generation now in place4 ,they are wiser than we were1 and their successors will be wiser than they1 from the progressive advance of science4 ,tranquillity is the summum bonum of age4 ,i wish1 therefore1 to offend no man's opinion1 nor to draw disquieting animadversions on my own4 ,while duty required it1 ,i met opposition with a firm and fearless step4 ,but loving mankind in my individual relations with them1 ,i pray to be permitted to depart in their peace2 and like the superannuated soldier1 quadragenis stipendiis emeritis1 to hang my arms on the post4 ,i have unwisely1 ,i fear1 embarked in an enterprise of great public concern1 but not to be accomplished within my term1 without their liberal and prompt support4 ,a severe illness the last year1 and another from which ,i am just emerged1 admonish me that repetitions may be expected1 against which a declining frame cannot long bear up4 ,i am anxious1 therefore1 to get our ,university so far advanced as may encourage the public to persevere to its final accomplishment4 ,that secured1 ,i shall sing my nunc demittas4 ,i hope your labors will be long continued in the spirit in which they have always been exercised1 in maintenance of those principles on which ,i verily believe the future happiness of our country essentially depends4 ,i salute you with affectionate and great respect4 ,,footnote3 #c ,the constitution controlling the common law in this particular4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,moore4 ,,monticello1 ,september #bb1 #ahai4 ,i thank you1 ,sir1 for the remarks on the pronunciation of the ,greek language which you have been so kind as to send me4 ,i have read them with pleasure1 as ,i had the pamphlet of ,mr4 ,pickering on the same subject4 ,this question has occupied long and learned inquiry1 and cannot1 as ,i apprehend1 be ever positively decided4 ,very early in my classical days1 ,i took up the idea that the ancient ,greek language having been changed by degrees into the modern1 and the present race of that people having received it by tradition1 they had of course better pretensions to the ancient pronunciation also1 than any foreign nation could have4 ,when at ,paris1 ,i became acquainted with some learned ,greeks1 from whom ,i took pains to learn the modern pronunciation4 ,but ,i could not receive it as genuine in toto4 ,i could not believe that the ancient ,greeks had provided six different notations for the simple sound of 1 iota1 and left the five other sounds which we give to 1 1 1 1 1 without any characters of notation at all4 ,i could not acknowledge the 1 upsillon1 as an equivalent to our v1 as in 1 which they pronounce ,achillevs1 nor the gamma1 to our y1 as in '1 which they pronounce alye4 ,i concluded1 therefore1 that as experience proves to us that the pronunciation of all languages changes1 in their descent through time1 that of the ,greek must have done so also in some degree2 and the more probably1 as the body of the words themselves had substantially changed1 and ,i presumed that the instances above mentioned might be classed with the degeneracies of time2 a presumption strengthened by their remarkable cacophony4 ,as to all the other letters1 ,i have supposed we might yield to their traditionary claim of a more orthodox pronunciation4 ,indeed1 they sound most of them as we do1 and1 where they differ1 as in the 1 1 1 their sounds do not revolt us1 nor impair the beauty of the language4 ,if we adhere to the ,erasmian pronunciation1 we must go to ,italy for it1 as we must do for the most probably correct pronunciation of the language of the ,romans1 because rejecting the modern1 we must argue that the ancient pronunciation was probably brought from ,greece1 with the language itself2 and1 as ,italy was the country to which it was brought1 and from which it emanated to other nations1 we must presume it better preserved there than with the nations copying from them1 who would be apt to affect its pronunciation with some of their own national peculiarities4 ,and in fact1 we find that no two nations pronounce it alike1 although all pretend to the ,erasmian pronunciation4 ,but the whole subject is conjectural1 and allows therefore full and lawful scope to the vagaries of the human mind4 ,i am glad1 however1 to see the question stirred here2 because it may excite among our young countrymen a spirit of inquiry and criticism1 and lead them to more attention to this most beautiful of all languages4 ,and wishing that the salutary example you have set may have this good effect1 ,i salute you with great respect and consideration4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,short4 ,,monticello1 ,october #ca1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of the #bast is received4 ,my late illness1 in which you are so kind as to feel an interest1 was produced by a spasmodic stricture of the ilium1 which came upon me on the #gth inst4 ,the crisis was short1 passed over favorably on the fourth day1 and ,i should soon have been well but that a dose of calomel and jalap1 in which were only eight or nine grains of the former1 brought on a salivation4 ,of this1 however1 nothing now remains but a little soreness of the mouth4 ,i have been able to get on horseback for three or four days past4 ,as you say of yourself1 ,i too am an ,epicurian4 ,i consider the genuine 7not the imputed7 doctrines of ,epicurus as containing everything rational in moral philosophy which ,greece and ,rome have left us4 ,epictetus indeed1 has given us what was good of the stoics2 all beyond1 of their dogmas1 being hypocrisy and grimace4 ,their great crime was in their calumnies of ,epicurus and misrepresentations of his doctrines2 in which we lament to see the candid character of ,cicero engaging as an accomplice4 ,diffuse1 vapid1 rhetorical1 but enchanting4 ,his prototype ,plato1 eloquent as himself1 dealing out mysticisms incomprehensible to the human mind1 has been deified by certain sects usurping the name of ,christians2 because1 in his foggy conceptions1 they found a basis of impenetrable darkness whereon to rear fabrications as delirious1 of their own invention4 ,these they fathered blasphemously on him whom they claimed as their founder1 but who would disclaim them with the indignation which their caricatures of his religion so justly excite4 ,of ,socrates we have nothing genuine but in the ,memorabilia of ,xenophon2 for ,plato makes him one of his ,collocutors merely to cover his own whimsies under the mantle of his name2 a liberty of which we are told ,socrates himself complained4 ,seneca is indeed a fine moralist1 disfiguring his work at times with some ,stoicisms1 and affecting too much of antithesis and point1 yet giving us on the whole a great deal of sound and practical morality4 ,but the greatest of all the reformers of the depraved religion of his own country1 was ,jesus of ,nazareth4 ,abstracting what is really his from the rubbish in which it is buried1 easily distinguished by its lustre from the dross of his biographers1 and as separable from that as the diamond from the dunghill1 we have the outlines of a system of the most sublime morality which has ever fallen from the lips of man2 outlines which it is lamentable he did not live to fill up4 ,epictetus and ,epicurus give laws for governing ourselves1 ,jesus a supplement of the duties and charities we owe to others4 ,the establishment of the innocent and genuine character of this benevolent moralist1 and the rescuing it from the imputation of imposture1 which has resulted from artificial systems1#d invented by ultra-,christian sects1 unauthorized by a single word ever uttered by him1 is a most desirable object1 and one to which ,priestley has successfully devoted his labors and learning4 ,it would in time1 it is to be hoped1 effect a quiet euthanasia of the heresies of bigotry and fanaticism which have so long triumphed over human reason1 and so generally and deeply afflicted mankind2 but this work is to be begun by winnowing the grain from the chaff of the historians of his life4 ,i have sometimes thought of translating ,epictetus 7for he has never been tolerably translated into ,english7 by adding the genuine doctrines of ,epicurus from the ,syntagma of ,gassendi1 and an abstract from the ,evangelists of whatever has the stamp of the eloquence and fine imagination of ,jesus4 ,the last ,i attempted too hastily some twelve or fifteen years ago4 ,it was the work of two or three nights only1 at ,washington1 after getting through the evening task of reading the letters and papers of the day4 ,but with one foot in the grave1 these are now idle projects for me4 ,my business is to beguile the wearisomeness of declining life1 as ,i endeavor to do1 by the delights of classical reading and of mathematical truths1 and by the consolations of a sound philosophy1 equally indifferent to hope and fear4 ,i take the liberty of observing that you are not a true disciple of our master ,epicurus1 in indulging the indolence to which you say you are yielding4 ,one of his canons1 you know1 was that that indulgence which presents a greater pleasure1 or produces a greater pain1 is to be avoided4 ,your love of repose will lead1 in its progress1 to a suspension of healthy exercise1 a relaxation of mind1 an indifference to everything around you1 and finally to a debility of body1 and hebetude of mind1 the farthest of all things from the happiness which the well-regulated indulgences of ,epicurus ensure2 fortitude1 you know1 is one of his four cardinal virtues4 ,that teaches us to meet and surmount difficulties2 not to fly from them1 like cowards2 and to fly1 too1 in vain1 for they will meet and arrest us at every turn of our road4 ,weigh this matter well2 brace yourself up2 take a seat with ,correa1 and come and see the finest portion of your country1 which1 if you have not forgotten1 you still do not know1 because it is no longer the same as when you knew it4 ,it will add much to the happiness of my recovery to be able to receive ,correa and yourself1 and prove the estimation in which ,i hold you both4 ,come1 too1 and see our incipient ,university1 which has advanced with great activity this year4 ,by the end of the next1 we shall have elegant accommodations for seven professors1 and the year following the professors themselves4 ,no secondary character will be received among them4 ,either the ablest which ,america or ,europe can furnish1 or none at all4 ,they will give us the selected society of a great city separated from the dissipations and levities of its ephemeral insects4 ,i am glad the bust of ,condorcet has been saved and so well placed4 ,his genius should be before us2 while the lamentable1 but singular act of ingratitude which tarnished his latter days1 may be thrown behind us4 ,i will place under this a syllabus of the doctrines of ,epicurus1 somewhat in the lapidary style1 which ,i wrote some twenty years ago1 a like one of the philosophy of ,jesus1 of nearly the same age1 is too long to be copied4 ,vale1 et tibi persuade carissimum te esse mihi4 ,syllabus of the doctrines of ,epicurus4 ,physical4--,the ,universe eternal4 ,its parts1 great and small1 interchangeable4 ,matter and ,void alone4 ,motion inherent in matter which is weighty and declining4 ,eternal circulation of the elements of bodies4 ,gods1 an order of beings next superior to man1 enjoying in their sphere1 their own felicities2 but not meddling with the concerns of the scale of beings below them4 ,moral4--,happiness the aim of life4 ,virtue the foundation of happiness4 ,utility the test of virtue4 ,pleasure active and ,in-do-lent4 ,in-do-lence is the absence of pain1 the true felicity4 ,active1 consists in agreeable motion2 it is not happiness1 but the means to produce it4 ,thus the absence of hunger is an article of felicity2 eating the means to obtain it4 ,the summum bonum is to be not pained in body1 nor troubled in mind4 i4 e4 ,in-do-lence of body1 tranquillity of mind4 ,to procure tranquillity of mind we must avoid desire and fear1 the two principal diseases of the mind4 ,man is a free agent4 ,virtue consists in #a4 ,prudence4 #b4 ,temperance4 #c4 ,fortitude4 #d4 ,justice4 ,to which are opposed1 #a4 ,folly4 #b4 ,desire4 #c4 ,fear4 #d4 ,deceit4 ,,footnote3 #d e4 g4 ,the immaculate conception of ,jesus1 his deification1 the creation of the world by him1 his miraculous powers1 his resurrection and visible ascension1 his corporeal presence in the ,eucharist1 the ,trinity1 original sin1 atonement1 regeneration1 election1 orders of ,hierarchy1 c4 ,,to ,j4 ,,adams1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,november #g1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,three long and dangerous illnesses within the last twelve months1 must apologize for my long silence towards you4 ,the paper bubble is then burst4 ,this is what you and ,i1 and every reasoning man1 seduced by no obliquity of mind or interest1 have long foreseen2 yet its disastrous effects are not the less for having been foreseen4 ,we were laboring under a dropsical fulness of circulating medium4 ,nearly all of it is now called in by the banks1 who have the regulation of the safety-valves of our fortunes1 and who condense and explode them at their will4 ,lands in this ,state cannot now be sold for a year's rent2 and unless our ,legislature have wisdom enough to effect a remedy by a gradual diminution only of the medium1 there will be a general revolution of property in this ,state4 ,over our own paper and that of other ,states coming among us1 they have competent powers2 over that of the bank of the ,united ,states there is doubt1 not here1 but elsewhere4 ,that bank will probably conform voluntarily to such regulations as the ,legislature may prescribe for the others4 ,if they do not1 we must shut their doors1 and join the other ,states which deny the right of ,congress to establish banks1 and solicit them to agree to some mode of settling this constitutional question4 ,they have themselves twice decided against their right1 and twice for it4 ,many of the ,states have been uniform in denying it1 and between such parties the ,constitution has provided no umpire4 ,i do not know particularly the extent of this distress in the other ,states2 but southwardly and westwardly ,i believe all are involved in it4 ,god bless you1 and preserve you many years4 ,,to ,,colonel ,,john ,,nicholas4 ,,monticello1 ,november #aj1 #ahai4 ,,sir1--,your letter1 and the draught of a memorial proposed to be presented to the ,legislature1 are duly received4 ,with respect to impressions from any differences of political opinion1 whether major or minor1 alluded to in your letter1 ,i have none4 ,i left them all behind me on quitting ,washington1 where alone the state of things had1 till then1 required some attention to them4 ,nor was that the lightest part of the load ,i was there disburthened of2 and could ,i permit myself to believe that with the change of circumstances a corresponding change had taken place in the minds of those who differed from me1 and that ,i now stand in the peace and good will of my fellow-citizens generally1 it would indeed be a sweetening ingredient in the last dregs of my life4 ,it is not then from that source that my testimony may be scanty1 but from a decaying memory1 illy retaining things of recent transaction1 and scarcely with any distinctness those of forty years back1 the period to which your memorial refers3 general impressions of them remain1 but details are mostly obliterated4 ,of the transfer of your corps from the general to the ,state line1 and the other facts in the memorial preceding my entrance on the administration of the ,state government1 ,june #b1 #aggi1 ,i1 of course1 have no knowledge2 but public documents1 as well as living witnesses1 will probably supply this4 ,in #aghj1 ,i remember your appointment to a command in the militia sent under ,general ,stevens to the aid of the ,carolinas1 of which fact the commission signed by myself is sufficient proof4 ,but ,i have no particular recollections which respect yourself personally in that service4 ,of what took place during ,arnold's invasion in the subsequent winter ,i have more knowledge1 because so much passed under my own eye1 and ,i have the benefit of some notes to aid my memory4 ,in the short interval of fifty-seven hours between our knowing they had entered ,james river and their actual debarkation at ,westover1 we could get together but a small body of militia1 7my notes say of three hundred men only17 chiefly from the city and its immediate vicinities4 ,you were placed in the command of these1 and ordered to proceed to the neighborhood of the enemy1 not with any view to face them directly with so small a force1 but to hang on their skirts1 and to check their march as much as could be done1 to give time for the more distant militia to assemble4 ,the enemy were not to be delayed1 however1 and were in ,richmond in twenty-four hours from their being formed on shore at ,westover4 ,the day before their arrival at ,richmond1 ,i had sent my family to ,tuckahoe1 as the memorial states1 at which place ,i joined them about #a o'clock of that night1 having attended late at ,westham1 to have the public stores and papers thrown across the river4 ,you came up to us at ,tuckahoe the next morning1 and accompanied me1 ,i think1 to ,britton's opposite ,westham1 to see about the further safety of the arms and other property4 ,whether you stayed there to look after them1 or went with me to the heights of ,manchester1 and returned thence to ,britton's1 ,i do not recollect4 ,the enemy evacuated ,richmond at noon of the #eth of ,january1 having remained there but twenty-three hours4 ,i returned to it in the morning of the #hth1 they being still encamped at ,westover and ,berkley1 and yourself and corps at the ,forest4 ,they re-embarked at #a o'clock of the #ajth4 ,the particulars of your movements down the river1 to oppose their re-landing at different points1 ,i do not specifically recollect1 but1 as stated in the memorial1 they are so much in agreement with my general impressions1 that ,i have no doubt of their correctness1 and know that your conduct from the first advance of the enemy to his departure1 was approved by myself and by others generally4 ,the rendezvous of the militia at the ,tuckahoe bridge1 and your having the command of them1 ,i think ,i also remember1 but nothing of their subsequent movements4 ,the legislature had adjourned to meet at ,charlottesville1 where1 at the expiration of my second year1 ,i declined a re-election in the belief that a military man would be more likely to render services adequate to the exigencies of the times4 ,of the subsequent facts1 therefore1 stated in the memorial1 ,i have no knowledge4 ,this1 ,sir1 is the sum of the information ,i am able to give on the subjects of your memorial1 and if it may contribute to the purposes of justice in your case1 ,i shall be happy that in bearing testimony to the truth1 ,i shall have rendered you a just service4 ,i return the memorial and commission1 as requested1 and pray you to accept my respectful salutations4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,rives4 ,,monticello1 ,november #bh1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the distresses of our country1 produced first by the flood1 then by the ebb of bank paper1 are such as cannot fail to engage the interposition of the legislature4 ,many propositions will1 of course1 be offered1 from all of which something may probably be culled to make a good whole4 ,i explained to you my project1 when ,i had the pleasure of possessing you here2 and ,i now send its outline in writing1 as ,i believe ,i promised you4 ,although preferable things will ,i hope be offered1 yet some twig of this may perhaps be thought worthy of being engrafted on a better stock4 ,but ,i send it with no particular object or request1 but to use it as you please4 ,suppress it1 suggest it1 sound opinions1 or anything else1 at will1 only keeping my name unmentioned1 for which purpose it is copied in another hand1 being ever solicitous to avoid all offence which is heavily felt1 when retired from the bustle and contentions of the world4 ,if we suffer the moral of the present lesson to pass away without improvement by the eternal suppression of bank paper1 then indeed is the condition of our country desperate1 until the slow advance of public instruction shall give to our functionaries the wisdom of their station4 ,vale1 et tibi persuade carissimum te mihi esse4 ,plan for reducing the circulating medium4 ,the plethory of circulating medium which raised the prices of everything to several times their ordinary and standard value1 in which state of things many and heavy debts were contracted2 and the sudden withdrawing too great a proportion of that medium1 and reduction of prices far below that standard1 constitute the disease under which we are now laboring1 and which must end in a general revolution of property1 if some remedy is not applied4 ,that remedy is clearly a gradual reduction of the medium to its standard level1 that is to say1 to the level which a metallic medium will always find for itself1 so as to be in equilibrio with that of the nations with which we have commerce4 ,to effect this1 ,let the whole of the present paper medium be suspended in its circulation after a certain and not distant day4 ,ascertain by proper inquiry the greatest sum of it which has at any one time been in actual circulation4 ,take a certain term of years for its gradual reduction1 suppose it to be five years2 then let the solvent banks issue of that amount in new notes1 to be attested by a public officer1 as a security that neither more or less is issued1 and to be given out in exchange for the suspended notes1 and the surplus in discount4 ,let th of these notes bear on their face that the bank will discharge them with specie at the end of one year2 another #eth at the end of two years2 a third #eth at the end of three years2 and so of the #dth and #eth4 ,they will be sure to be brought in at their respective periods of redemption4 ,make it a high offence to receive or pass within this ,state a note of any other4 ,there is little doubt that our banks will agree readily to this operation2 if they refuse1 declare their charters forfeited by their former irregularities1 and give summary process against them for the suspended notes4 ,the ,bank of the ,united ,states will probably concur also2 if not1 shut their doors and join the other ,states in respectful1 but firm applications to ,congress1 to concur in constituting a tribunal 7a special convention1 e4 g47 for settling amicably the question of their right to institute a bank1 and that also of the ,states to do the same4 ,a stay-law for the suspension of executions1 and their discharge at five annual instalments1 should be accommodated to these measures4 ,interdict forever1 to both the ,state and national governments1 the power of establishing any paper bank2 for without this interdiction1 we shall have the same ebbs and flows of medium1 and the same revolutions of property to go through every twenty or thirty years4 ,in this way the value of property1 keeping pace nearly with the sum of circulating medium1 will descend gradually to its proper level1 at the rate of about every year1 the sacrifices of what shall be sold for payment of the first instalments of debts will be moderate1 and time will be given for economy and industry to come in aid of those subsequent4 ,certainly no nation ever before abandoned to the avarice and jugglings of private individuals to regulate1 according to their own interests1 the quantum of circulating medium for the nation1 to inflate1 by deluges of paper1 the nominal prices of property1 and then to buy up that property at #as4 in the pound1 having first withdrawn the floating medium which might endanger a competition in purchase4 ,yet this is what has been done1 and will be done1 unless stayed by the protecting hand of the legislature4 ,the evil has been produced by the error of their sanction of this ruinous machinery of banks2 and justice1 wisdom1 duty1 all require that they should interpose and arrest it before the schemes of plunder and spoliation desolate the country4 ,it is believed that ,harpies are already hoarding their money to commence these scenes on the separation of the legislature2 and we know that lands have been already sold under the hammer for less than a year's rent4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,december #aj1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have to acknowledge the receipt of your favor of ,november the #bc;d4 ,the banks1 bankrupt law1 manufactures1 ,spanish treaty1 are nothing4 ,these are occurrences which1 like waves in a storm1 will pass under the ship4 ,but the ,missouri question is a breaker on which we lose the ,missouri country by revolt1 and what more1 ,god only knows4 ,from the battle of ,bunker's ,hill to the treaty of ,paris1 we never had so ominous a question4 ,it even damps the joy with which ,i hear of your high health1 and welcomes to me the consequences of my want of it4 ,i thank ,god that ,i shall not live to witness its issue4 ,sed hc hactenus4 ,i have been amusing myself latterly with reading the voluminous letters of ,cicero4 ,they certainly breathe the purest effusions of an exalted patriot1 while the parricide ,csar is lost in odious contrast4 ,when the enthusiasm1 however1 kindled by ,cicero's pen and principles1 subsides into cool reflection1 ,i ask myself1 what was that government which the virtues of ,cicero were so zealous to restore1 and the ambition of ,csar to subvert8 ,and if ,csar had been as virtuous as he was daring and sagacious1 what could he1 even in the plenitude of his usurped power1 have done to lead his fellow citizens into good government8 ,i do not say to restore it1 because they never had it1 from the rape of the ,sabines to the ravages of the ,csars4 ,if their people indeed had been1 like ourselves1 enlightened1 peaceable1 and really free1 the answer would be obvious4 ,restore independence to all your foreign conquests1 relieve ,italy from the government of the rabble of ,rome1 consult it as a nation entitled to self-government1 and do its will4 ,but steeped in corruption1 vice and venality1 as the whole nation was1 7and nobody had done more than ,csar to corrupt it17 what could even ,cicero1 ,cato1 ,brutus have done1 had it been referred to them to establish a good government for their country8 ,they had no ideas of government themselves1 but of their degenerate ,senate1 nor the people of liberty1 but of the factious opposition of their ,tribunes4 ,they had afterwards their ,tituses1 their ,trajans and ,antoninuses1 who had the will to make them happy1 and the power to mould their government into a good and permanent form4 ,but it would seem as if they could not see their way clearly to do it4 ,no government can continue good1 but under the control of the people2 and their people were so demoralized and depraved1 as to be incapable of exercising a wholesome control4 ,their reformation then was to be taken up ab incunabulis4 ,their minds were to be informed by education what is right and what wrong2 to be encouraged in habits of virtue1 and deterred from those of vice by the dread of punishments1 proportioned indeed1 but irremissible2 in all cases1 to follow truth as the only safe guide1 and to eschew error1 which bewilders us in one false consequence after another1 in endless succession4 ,these are the inculcations necessary to render the people a sure basis for the structure of order and good government4 ,but this would have been an operation of a generation or two1 at least1 within which period would have succeeded many ,neros and ,commoduses1 who would have quashed the whole process4 ,i confess then1 ,i can neither see what ,cicero1 ,cato1 and ,brutus1 united and uncontrolled1 could have devised to lead their people into good government1 nor how this enigma can be solved1 nor how further shown why it has been the fate of that delightful country never to have known1 to this day1 and through a course of five and twenty hundred years1 the history of which we possess1 one single day of free and rational government4 ,your intimacy with their history1 ancient1 middle and modern1 your familiarity with the improvements in the science of government at this time1 will enable you1 if any body1 to go back with our principles and opinions to the times of ,cicero1 ,cato and ,brutus1 and tell us by what process these great and virtuous men could have led so unenlightened and vitiated a people into freedom and good government1 et eris mihi magnus ,apollo4 ,cura ut valeas1 et tibi persuadeas carissimum te mihi esse4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,montezillo1 ,december #ba1 #ahai4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i must answer your great question of the #ajth in the words of ,dalembert to his correspondent1 who asked him what is matter--,je vous avoue je ne sais rien4 ,in some part of my life ,i record a great work of a ,scotchman on the court of ,augustus1 in which1 with much learning1 hard study1 and fatiguing labor1 he undertook to prove that had ,brutus and ,cassius been conqueror1 they would have restored virtue and liberty to ,rome4 ,mais je n'en crois rien4 ,have you ever found in history one single example of a nation1 thoroughly corrupted1 that was afterwards restored to virtue1 and without virtue there can be no political liberty4 ,if ,i were a ,calvinist1 ,i might pray that ,god by a miracle of divine grace would instantaneously convert a whole contaminated nation from turpitude to purity2 but even in this ,i should be inconsistent1 for the fatalism of ,mahometanism1 ,materialists1 ,atheists1 ,pantheists1 and ,calvinists1 and church of ,england articles1 appear to me to render all prayer futile and absurd4 ,the ,french and the ,dutch1 in our day1 have attempted reforms and revolutions4 ,we know the results1 and ,i fear the ,english reformers will have no better success4 ,will you tell me how to prevent riches from becoming the effects of temperance and industry4 ,will you tell me how to prevent riches from producing luxury4 ,will you tell me how to prevent luxury from producing effeminacy1 intoxication1 extravagance1 vice and folly8 ,when you will answer me these questions1 ,i hope ,i may venture to answer yours2 yet all these ought not to discourage us from exertion1 for with my friend ,jeb1 ,i believe no effort in favor of virtue is lost1 and all good men ought to struggle both by their council and example4 ,the ,missouri question1 ,i hope1 will follow the other waves under the ship1 and do no harm4 ,i know it is high treason to express a doubt of the perpetual duration of our vast ,american empire1 and our free institution2 and ,i say as devoutly as father ,paul1 estor perpetua1 but ,i am sometimes ,cassandra enough to dream that another ,hamilton1 and another ,burr1 might rend this mighty fabric in twain1 or perhaps into a leash2 and a few more choice spirits of the same stamp1 might produce as many nations in ,north ,america as there are in ,europe4 ,to return to the ,romans4 ,i never could discover that they possessed much virtue1 or real liberty4 ,their ,patricians were in general griping usurers1 and tyrannical creditors in all ages4 ,pride1 strength1 and courage1 were all the virtues that composed their national characters2 a few of their nobles effecting simplicity1 frugality1 and piety1 perhaps really possessing them1 acquired popularity amongst the plebeians1 and extended the power and dominions of the republic1 and advanced in glory till riches and luxury come in1 sat like an incubus on the ,republic1 victam que ulcissitur orbem4 ,our winter sets in a fortnight earlier than usual1 and is pretty severe4 ,i hope you have fairer skies1 and milder air4 ,wishing your health may last as long as your life1 and your life as long as you desire it1 ,i am1 dear ,sir1 respectfully and affectionately1 ,,to ,h4 ,,nelson1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,march #ab1 #ahbj4 ,i thank you1 dear ,sir1 for the information in your favor of the #dth instant1 of the settlement1 for the present1 of the ,missouri question4 ,i am so completely withdrawn from all attention to public matters1 that nothing less could arouse me than the definition of a geographical line1 which on an abstract principle is to become the line of separation of these ,states1 and to render desperate the hope that man can ever enjoy the two blessings of peace and self-government4 ,the question sleeps for the present1 but is not dead4 ,this ,state is in a condition of unparalleled distress4 ,the sudden reduction of the circulating medium from a plethory to all but annihilation is producing an entire revolution of fortune4 ,in other places ,i have known lands sold by the sheriff for one year's rent2 beyond the mountain we hear of good slaves selling for one hundred dollars1 good horses for five dollars1 and the sheriffs generally the purchasers4 ,our produce is now selling at market for one-third of its price1 before this commercial catastrophe1 say flour at three and a quarter and three and a half dollars the barrel4 ,we should have less right to expect relief from our legislators if they had been the establishers of the unwise system of banks4 ,a remedy to a certain degree was practicable1 that of reducing the quantum of circulation gradually to a level with that of the countries with which we have commerce1 and an eternal abjuration of paper4 ,but they have adjourned without doing anything4 ,i fear local insurrections against these horrible sacrifices of property4 ,in every condition of trouble or tranquillity be assured of my constant esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,march #ad1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,a continuation of poor health makes me an irregular correspondent4 ,i am1 therefore1 your debtor for the two letters of ,january #bjth and ,february #bast4 ,it was after you left ,europe that ,dugald ,stuart1 concerning whom you inquire1 and ,lord ,dare1 second son of the ,marquis of ,lansdown1 came to ,paris4 ,they brought me a letter from ,lord ,wycombe1 whom you knew4 ,i became immediately intimate with ,stuart1 calling mutually on each other and almost daily1 during their stay at ,paris1 which was of some months4 ,lord ,dare was a young man of imagination1 with occasional flashes indicating deep penetration1 but of much caprice1 and little judgment4 ,he has been long dead1 and the family title is now1 ,i believe1 in the third son1 who has shown in ,parliament talents of a superior order4 ,stuart is a great man1 and among the most honest living4 ,i have heard nothing of his dying at top1 as you suppose4 ,mr4 ,tickner1 however1 can give you the best information on that subject1 as he must have heard particularly of him when in ,edinburgh1 although ,i believe he did not see him4 ,i have understood he was then in ,london superintending the publication of a new work4 ,i consider him and ,tracy as the ablest metaphysicians living2 by which ,i mean investigators of the thinking faculty of man4 ,stuart seems to have given its natural history from facts and observations2 ,tracy its modes of action and deduction1 which he calls ,logic1 and ,ideology2 and ,cabanis1 in his ,physique et ,morale de l',homme1 has investigated anatomically1 and most ingeniously1 the particular organs in the human structure which may most probably exercise that faculty4 ,and they ask why may not the mode of action called thought1 have been given to a material organ of peculiar structure1 as that of magnetism is to the needle1 or of elasticity to the spring by a particular manipulation of the steel4 ,they observe that on ignition of the needle or spring1 their magnetism and elasticity cease4 ,so on dissolution of the material organ by death1 its action of thought may cease also1 and that nobody supposes that the magnetism or elasticity retire to hold a substantive and distinct existence4 ,these were qualities only of particular conformations of matter2 change the conformation1 and its qualities change also4 ,mr4 ,locke1 you know1 and other materialists1 have charged with blasphemy the spiritualists who have denied the ,creator the power of endowing certain forms of matter with the faculty of thought4 ,these1 however1 are speculations and subtleties in which1 for my own part1 ,i have little indulged myself4 ,when ,i meet with a proposition beyond finite comprehension1 ,i abandon it as ,i do a weight which human strength cannot lift1 and ,i think ignorance1 in these cases1 is truly the softest pillow on which ,i can lay my head4 ,were it necessary1 however1 to form an opinion1 ,i confess ,i should1 with ,mr4 ,locke1 prefer swallowing one incomprehensibility rather than two4 ,it requires one effort only to admit the single incomprehensibility of matter endowed with thought1 and two to believe1 first that of an existence called spirit1 of which we have neither evidence nor idea1 and then secondly how that spirit1 which has neither extension nor solidity1 can put material organs into motion4 ,those are things which you and ,i may perhaps know ere long4 ,we have so lived as to fear neither horn of the dilemma4 ,we have1 willingly1 done injury to no man2 and have done for our country the good which has fallen in our way1 so far as commensurate with the faculties given us4 ,that we have not done more than we could1 cannot be imputed to us as a crime before any tribunal4 ,i look1 therefore1 to the crisis1 as ,i am sure you also do1 as one qui summum nec metuit diem nec optat4 ,in the meantime be our last as cordial as were our first affections4 ,,to ,,the ,,honorable ,,mark ,,langdon ,,hill4 ,,monticello1 ,april #e1 #ahbj4 ,,sir1--,a near relation of my late friend ,governor ,langdon1 needs no apology for addressing a letter to me1 that relationship giving sufficient title to all my respect4 ,we were fellow laborers from the beginning of the first to the accomplishment of the second revolution in our government1 of the same zeal and the same sentiments1 and ,i shall honor his memory while memory remains to me4 ,the letter you mention is proof of my friendship and unreserved confidence in him2 it was written in warm times1 and is therefore too warmly expressed for the more reconciled temper of the present day4 ,i must pray you1 therefore1 not to let it get before the public1 lest it rekindle a flame which burnt too long and too fiercely against me4 ,it was my lot to be placed at the head of the column which made the first breach in the ramparts of federalism1 and to be charged1 on that event1 with the duty of changing the course of the government from what we deemed a monarchical1 to its republican tack4 ,this made me the mark for every shaft which calumny and falsehood could point against me4 ,i bore them with resignation1 as one of the duties imposed on me by my post4 ,but ,i assure you it was among the most painful duties from which ,i hoped to find relief in retirement4 ,tranquillity is the summum bonum of old age and ill health1 and nothing could so much disturb this with me as to awaken angry feelings from the slumber in which ,i wish them ever to remain4 ,i beseech you then1 good ,sir1 in the name of my departed friend1 not to bring on me a contention which neither duty nor public good require me to encounter4 ,i regret the circumstances which have deprived us of the pleasure of your visit1 but console myself with the ,french proverb that all is not lost which is deferred1 and the hope that more favorable circumstances will some day give us that gratification4 ,i congratulate you on the sleep of the ,missouri question4 ,i wish ,i could say on its death1 but of this ,i despair4 ,the idea of a geographical line once suggested will brood in the minds of all those who prefer the gratification of their ungovernable passions to the peace and union of their country4 ,if ,i do not contemplate this subject with pleasure1 ,i do sincerely that of the independence of ,maine1 and the wise choice they have made of ,general ,king in the agency of their affairs1 and ,i tender to yourself the assurance of my esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,william ,,short4 ,,monticello1 ,april #ac1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,march the #bgth is received1 and as you request1 a copy of the syllabus is now enclosed4 ,it was originally written to ,dr4 ,rush4 ,on his death1 fearing that the inquisition of the public might get hold of it1 ,i asked the return of it from the family1 which they kindly complied with4 ,at the request of another friend1 ,i had given him a copy4 ,he lent it to his friend to read1 who copied it1 and in a few months it appeared in the ,theological ,magazine of ,london4 ,happily that repository is scarcely known in this country1 and the syllabus1 therefore1 is still a secret1 and in your hands ,i am sure it will continue so4 ,but while this syllabus is meant to place the character of ,jesus in its true and high light1 as no impostor himself1 but a great reformer of the ,hebrew code of religion1 it is not to be understood that ,i am with him in all his doctrines4 ,i am a ,materialist2 he takes the side of ,spiritualism2 he preaches the efficacy of repentance towards forgiveness of sin2 ,i require a counterpoise of good works to redeem it1 c41 c4 ,it is the innocence of his character1 the purity and sublimity of his moral precepts1 the eloquence of his inculcations1 the beauty of the apologues in which he conveys them1 that ,i so much admire2 sometimes1 indeed1 needing indulgence to eastern hyperbolism4 ,my eulogies1 too1 may be founded on a postulate which all may not be ready to grant4 ,among the sayings and discourses imputed to him by his biographers1 ,i find many passages of fine imagination1 correct morality1 and of the most lovely benevolence2 and others1 again1 of so much ignorance1 so much absurdity1 so much untruth1 charlatanism and imposture1 as to pronounce it impossible that such contradictions should have proceeded from the same being4 ,i separate1 therefore1 the gold from the dross2 restore to him the former1 and leave the latter to the stupidity of some1 and roguery of others of his disciples4 ,of this band of dupes and impostors1 ,paul was the great ,coryphus1 and first corruptor of the doctrines of ,jesus4 ,these palpable interpolations and falsifications of his doctrines1 led me to try to sift them apart4 ,i found the work obvious and easy1 and that his part composed the most beautiful morsel of morality which has been given to us by man4 ,the syllabus is therefore of his doctrines1 not all of mine4 ,i read them as ,i do those of other ancient and modern moralists1 with a mixture of approbation and dissent4 ,i rejoice1 with you1 to see an encouraging spirit of internal improvement prevailing in the ,states4 ,the opinion ,i have ever expressed of the advantages of a western communication through the ,james river1 ,i still entertain2 and that the ,cayuga is the most promising of the links of communication4 ,the history of our ,university you know so far4 ,seven of the ten pavilions destined for the professors1 and about thirty dormitories1 will be completed this year1 and three other1 with six hotels for boarding1 and seventy other dormitories1 will be completed the next year1 and the whole be in readiness then to receive those who are to occupy them4 ,but means to bring these into place1 and to set the machine into motion1 must come from the legislature4 ,an opposition1 in the meantime1 has been got up4 ,that of our alma mater1 ,william and ,mary1 is not of much weight4 ,she must descend into the secondary rank of academies of preparation for the ,university4 ,the serious enemies are the priests of the different religious sects1 to whose spells on the human mind its improvement is ominous4 ,their pulpits are now resounding with denunciations against the appointment of ,doctor ,cooper1 whom they charge as a monotheist in opposition to their tritheism4 ,hostile as these sects are1 in every other point1 to one another1 they unite in maintaining their mystical theogony against those who believe there is one ,god only4 ,the ,presbyterian clergy are loudest2 the most intolerant of all sects1 the most tyrannical and ambitious2 ready at the word of the lawgiver1 if such a word could be now obtained1 to put the torch to the pile1 and to rekindle in this virgin hemisphere1 the flames in which their oracle ,calvin consumed the poor ,servetus1 because he could not find in his ,euclid the proposition which has demonstrated that three are one and one is three1 nor subscribe to that of ,calvin1 that magistrates have a right to exterminate all heretics to ,calvinistic ,creed4 ,they pant to re-establish1 by law1 that holy inquisition1 which they can now only infuse into public opinion4 ,we have most unwisely committed to the hierophants of our particular superstition1 the direction of public opinion1 that lord of the universe4 ,we have given them stated and privileged days to collect and catechise us1 opportunities of delivering their oracles to the people in mass1 and of moulding their minds as wax in the hollow of their hands4 ,but in despite of their fulminations against endeavors to enlighten the general mind1 to improve the reason of the people1 and encourage them in the use of it1 the liberality of this ,state will support this institution1 and give fair play to the cultivation of reason4 ,can you ever find a more eligible occasion of visiting once more your native country1 than that of accompanying ,mr4 ,correa1 and of seeing with him this beautiful and hopeful institution in ovo8 ,although ,i had laid down as a law to myself1 never to write talk1 or even think of politics1 to know nothing of public affairs1 and therefore had ceased to read newspapers1 yet the ,missouri question aroused and filled me with alarm4 ,the old schism of federal and republican threatened nothing1 because it existed in every ,state1 and united them together by the fraternism of party4 ,but the coincidence of a marked principle1 moral and political1 with a geographical line1 once conceived1 ,i feared would never more be obliterated from the mind2 that it would be recurring on every occasion and renewing irritations1 until it would kindle such mutual and mortal hatred1 as to render separation preferable to eternal discord4 ,i have been among the most sanguine in believing that our ,union would be of long duration4 ,i now doubt it much1 and see the event at no great distance1 and the direct consequence of this question2 not by the line which has been so confidently counted on2 the laws of nature control this2 but by the ,potomac1 ,ohio and ,missouri1 or more probably1 the ,mississippi upwards to our northern boundary4 ,my only comfort and confidence is1 that ,i shall not live to see this2 and ,i envy not the present generation the glory of throwing away the fruits of their fathers' sacrifices of life and fortune1 and of rendering desperate the experiment which was to decide ultimately whether man is capable of self-government8 ,this treason against human hope1 will signalize their epoch in future history1 as the counterpart of the medal of their predecessors4 ,you kindly inquire after my health4 ,there is nothing in it immediately threatening1 but swelled legs1 which are kept down mechanically1 by bandages from the toe to the knee4 ,these ,i have worn for six months4 ,but the tendency to turgidity may proceed from debility alone4 ,i can walk the round of my garden2 not more4 ,but ,i ride six or eight miles a day without fatigue4 ,i shall set out for ,poplar ,forest within three or four days2 a journey from which my physician augurs much good4 ,i salute you with constant and affectionate friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,holmes4 ,,monticello1 ,april #bb1 #ahbj4 ,i thank you1 dear ,sir1 for the copy you have been so kind as to send me of the letter to your constituents on the ,missouri question4 ,it is a perfect justification to them4 ,i had for a long time ceased to read newspapers1 or pay any attention to public affairs1 confident they were in good hands1 and content to be a passenger in our bark to the shore from which ,i am not distant4 ,but this momentous question1 like a fire bell in the night1 awakened and filled me with terror4 ,i considered it at once as the knell of the ,union4 ,it is hushed1 indeed1 for the moment4 ,but this is a reprieve only1 not a final sentence4 ,a geographical line1 coinciding with a marked principle1 moral and political1 once conceived and held up to the angry passions of men1 will never be obliterated2 and every new irritation will mark it deeper and deeper4 ,i can say1 with conscious truth1 that there is not a man on earth who would sacrifice more than ,i would to relieve us from this heavy reproach1 in any practicable way4 ,the cession of that kind of property1 for so it is misnamed1 is a bagatelle which would not cost me a second thought1 if1 in that way1 a general emancipation and expatriation could be effected2 and gradually1 and with due sacrifices1 ,i think it might be4 ,but as it is1 we have the wolf by the ears1 and we can neither hold him1 nor safely let him go4 ,justice is in one scale1 and self-preservation in the other4 ,of one thing ,i am certain1 that as the passage of slaves from one ,state to another1 would not make a slave of a single human being who would not be so without it1 so their diffusion over a greater surface would make them individually happier1 and proportionally facilitate the accomplishment of their emancipation1 by dividing the burthen on a greater number of coadjutors4 ,an abstinence too1 from this act of power1 would remove the jealousy excited by the undertaking of ,congress to regulate the condition of the different descriptions of men composing a ,state4 ,this certainly is the exclusive right of every ,state1 which nothing in the constitution has taken from them and given to the ,general ,government4 ,could ,congress1 for example1 say1 that the non-freemen of ,connecticut shall be freemen1 or that they shall not emigrate into any other ,state8 ,i regret that ,i am now to die in the belief1 that the useless sacrifice of themselves by the generation of #aggf1 to acquire self-government and happiness to their country1 is to be thrown away by the unwise and unworthy passions of their sons1 and that my only consolation is to be1 that ,i live not to weep over it4 ,if they would but dispassionately weigh the blessings they will throw away1 against an abstract principle more likely to be effected by union than by scission1 they would pause before they would perpetrate this act of suicide on themselves1 and of treason against the hopes of the world4 ,to yourself1 as the faithful advocate of the ,union1 ,i tender the offering of my high esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,the ,,president ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states4 ,,monticello1 ,may #ad1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of the #c;d is received1 and always with welcome4 ,these texts of truth relieve me from the floating falsehoods of the public papers4 ,i confess to you ,i am not sorry for the non-ratification of the ,spanish treaty4 ,our assent to it has proved our desire to be on friendly terms with ,spain2 their dissent1 the imbecility and malignity of their government towards us1 have placed them in the wrong in the eyes of the world1 and that is well2 but to us the province of ,techas will be the richest ,state of our ,union1 without any exception4 ,its southern part will make more sugar than we can consume1 and the ,red river1 on its north1 is the most luxuriant country on earth4 ,florida1 moreover1 is ours4 ,every nation in ,europe considers it such a right4 ,we need not care for its occupation in time of peace1 and1 in war1 the first cannon makes it ours without offence to anybody4 ,the friendly advisements1 too1 of ,russia and ,france1 as well as the change of government in ,spain1 now ensured1 require a further and respectful forbearance4 ,while their request will rebut the plea of proscriptive possession1 it will give us a right to their approbation when taken in the maturity of circumstances4 ,i really think1 too1 that neither the state of our finances1 the condition of our country1 nor the public opinion1 urges us to precipitation into war4 ,the treaty has had the valuable effect of strengthening our title to the ,techas1 because the cession of the ,floridas in exchange for ,techas imports an acknowledgment of our right to it4 ,this province moreover1 the ,floridas and possibly ,cuba1 will join us on the acknowledgment of their independence1 a measure to which their new government will probably accede voluntarily4 ,but why should ,i be saying all this to you1 whose mind all the circumstances of this affair have had possession for years8 ,i shall rejoice to see you here2 and were ,i to live to see you here finally1 it would be a day of jubilee4 ,but our days are all numbered1 and mine are not many4 ,god bless you and preserve you muchos aos ,,to ,,general ,,taylor4 ,,monticello1 ,may #af1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,we regretted much your absence at the late meeting of the ,board of ,visitors1 but did not doubt it was occasioned by uncontrollable circumstances4 ,as the matters which came before us were of great importance to the institution1 ,i think it a duty to inform you of them4 ,you know the sanction of the legislature to our borrowing #fj1jjj on the pledge of our annuity of #ae1jjj4 ,the ,literary ,board offered us #dj1jjj on that pledge1 to be repaid at five instalments1 commencing at the end of the third year from the date of the loan1 and interest to be regularly paid in the meantime4 ,we endeavored to obtain permission to draw for only #ae1jjj at first1 and for #b1jjj monthly afterwards1 to avoid the payment of dead interest4 ,this they declined1 as bound themselves to keep the whole of their capital always in a course of fructification4 ,we then requested a postponement of the instalments to the fourth instead of the third year1 with an additional loan of the further sum of #bj1jjj1 authorized by the law4 ,to the postponement they acceded1 and we are assured they will to the further loan4 ,to explain to them the urgency of this additional year's postponement1 a paper was laid before them of which ,i enclose you a copy1 and on which you are now acting4 ,should the legislature not help us to the #ic1fjj there noted1 the result will be that at the end of the next year all the buildings will be completed1 7the library excepted17 and will then remain unoccupied five years longer1 until our funds shall be free for the engagements of professors4 ,should they1 on the other hand1 give this aid1 our funds will be free1 at the beginning of the next year1 and will enable us to take measures for procuring professors in the course of that summer1 and to open the ,university4 ,we were all of opinion that we ought to complete the buildings for the ten professors contemplated1 as well as accommodations for the students1 before opening the institution2 for were we to stop at any point short of the full establishment1 and open partially1 as our funds would thenceforward be absorbed by the professors' salaries1 we should never be able to advance a step further1 nor to cover the whole field of science contemplated by the law1 and made the object of our care and duty4 ,we thought it better1 therefore1 to risk a delay of eight years for a perfect establishment1 than to begin earlier and go on forever with a defective one2 and we suppose it impossible that either the legislature1 or their constituents1 should not consider an immediate commencement as worth the sum necessary to procure it4 ,you will observe that in the estimate enclosed1 no account is taken of our subscription monies4 ,they are1 in fact1 too uncertain in their collection to found any necessary contracts2 and we thought it better therefore to reserve them as a contingent fund1 and a resource to cover miscalculations and accidents4 ,another subject on this1 as on former occasions1 gave us embarrassment4 ,you may have heard of the hue and cry raised from the different pulpits on our appointment of ,dr4 ,cooper1 whom they charge with ,unitarianism as boldly as if they knew the fact1 and as presumptuously as if it were a crime1 and one for which1 like ,servetus1 he should be burned2 and perhaps you may have seen the particular attack made on him in the ,evangelical magazine4 ,for myself ,i was not disposed to regard the denunciations of these satellites of religious inquisition2 but our colleagues1 better judges of popular feeling1 thought that they were not to be altogether neglected2 and that it might be better to relieve ,dr4 ,cooper1 ourselves and the institution from this crusade4 ,i had received a letter from him expressing his uneasiness1 not only for himself1 but lest this persecution should become embarrassing to the visitors1 and injurious to the institution2 with an offer to resign1 if we had the same apprehensions4 ,the ,visitors1 therefore1 desired the committee of ,superintendence to place him at freedom on this subject1 and to arrange with him a suitable indemnification4 ,i wrote accordingly in answer to his1 and a meeting of trustees of the college at ,columbia happening to take place soon after his receipt of my letter1 they resolved unanimously that it should be proposed to1 and urged on their legislature1 to establish a professorship of ,geology and ,mineralogy1 or a professorship of law1 with a salary of #a1jjj a year to be given him1 in addition to that of chemistry1 which is #b1jjj a year1 and to purchase his collection of minerals2 and they have no doubt of the legislature's compliance4 ,on the subject of indemnification1 he is contented with the balance of the #a1ejj we had before agreed to give him1 and which he says will not more than cover his actual losses of time and expense2 he adds1 it is right ,i should acknowledge the liberality of your board with thanks4 ,i regret the storm that has been raised on my account2 for it has separated me from many fond hopes and wishes4 ,whatever my religious creed may be1 and perhaps ,i do not exactly know it myself1 it is pleasure to reflect that my conduct has not brought1 and is not likely to bring1 discredit to my friends4 ,wherever ,i have been1 it has been my good fortune to meet with1 or to make ardent and affectionate friends4 ,i feel persuaded ,i should have met with the same lot in ,virginia had it been my chance to have settled there1 as ,i had hoped and expected1 for ,i think my course of conduct is sufficiently habitual to count on its effects4 ,i do sincerely lament that untoward circumstances have brought on us the irreparable loss of this professor1 whom ,i have looked to as the corner-stone of our edifice4 ,i know no one who could have aided us so much in forming the future regulations for our infant institution2 and although we may perhaps obtain from ,europe equivalents in science1 they can never replace the advantages of his experience1 his knowledge of the character1 habits and manners of our country1 his identification with its sentiments and principles1 and high reputation he has obtained in it generally4 ,in the hope of meeting you at our fall visitation1 and that you will do me the favor of making this your head quarters1 and of coming the day before1 at least1 that we may prepare our business at ease1 ,i tender you the assurance of my great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,william ,,short4 ,,monticello1 ,august #d1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i owe you a letter for your favor of ,june the #bith1 which was received in due time2 and there being no subject of the day1 of particular interest1 ,i will make this a supplement to mine of ,april the #acth4 ,my aim in that was1 to justify the character of ,jesus against the fictions of his pseudo-followers1 which have exposed him to the inference of being an impostor4 ,for if we could believe that he really countenanced the follies1 the falsehoods1 and the charlatanisms which his biographers father on him1 and admit the misconstructions1 interpolations1 and theorizations of the fathers of the early1 and fanatics of the latter ages1 the conclusion would be irresistible by every sound mind1 that he was an impostor4 ,i give no credit to their falsifications of his actions and doctrines1 and to rescue his character1 the postulate in my letter asked only what is granted in reading every other historian4 ,when ,livy and ,siculus1 for example1 tell us things which coincide with our experience of the order of nature1 we credit them on their word1 and place their narrations among the records of credible history4 ,but when they tell us of calves speaking1 of statues sweating blood1 and other things against the course of nature1 we reject these as fables not belonging to history4 ,in like manner1 when an historian1 speaking of a character well known and established on satisfactory testimony1 imputes to it things incompatible with that character1 we reject them without hesitation1 and assent to that only of which we have better evidence4 ,had ,plutarch informed us that ,csar and ,cicero passed their whole lives in religious exercises1 and abstinence from the affairs of the world1 we should reject what was so inconsistent with their established characters1 still crediting what he relates in conformity with our ideas of them4 ,so again1 the superlative wisdom of ,socrates is testified by all antiquity1 and placed on ground not to be questioned4 ,when1 therefore1 ,plato puts into his mouth such paralogisms1 such quibbles on words1 and sophisms as a school boy would be ashamed of1 we conclude they were the whimsies of ,plato's own foggy brain1 and acquit ,socrates of puerilities so unlike his character4 7,speaking of ,plato1 ,i will add1 that no writer1 ancient or modern1 has bewildered the world with more ignus fatui1 than this renowned philosopher1 in ,ethics1 in ,politics1 and ,physics4 ,in the latter1 to specify a single example1 compare his views of the animal economy1 in his ,timus1 with those of ,mrs4 ,bryan in her ,conversations on ,chemistry1 and weigh the science of the canonized philosopher against the good sense of the unassuming lady4 ,but ,plato's visions have furnished a basis for endless systems of mystical theology1 and he is therefore all but adopted as a ,christian saint4 ,it is surely time for men to think for themselves1 and to throw off the authority of names so artificially magnified4 ,but to return from this parenthesis47 ,i say1 that this free exercise of reason is all ,i ask for the vindication of the character of ,jesus4 ,we find in the writings of his biographers matter of two distinct descriptions4 ,first1 a groundwork of vulgar ignorance1 of things impossible1 of superstitions1 fanaticisms1 and fabrications4 ,intermixed with these1 again1 are sublime ideas of the ,supreme ,being1 aphorisms1 and precepts of the purest morality and benevolence1 sanctioned by a life of humility1 innocence and simplicity of manners1 neglect of riches1 absence of worldly ambition and honors1 with an eloquence and persuasiveness which have not been surpassed4 ,these could not be inventions of the grovelling authors who relate them4 ,they are far beyond the powers of their feeble minds4 ,they show that there was a character1 the subject of their history1 whose splendid conceptions were above all suspicion of being interpolations from their hands4 ,can we be at a loss in separating such materials1 and ascribing each to its genuine author8 ,the difference is obvious to the eye and to the understanding1 and we may read as we run to each his part2 and ,i will venture to affirm1 that he who1 as ,i have done1 will undertake to winnow this grain from the chaff1 will find it not to require a moment's consideration4 ,the parts fall asunder of themselves1 as would those of an image of metal and clay4 ,there are1 ,i acknowledge1 passages not free from objection1 which we may1 with probability1 ascribe to ,jesus himself2 but claiming indulgence from the circumstances under which he acted4 ,his object was the reformation of some articles in the religion of the ,jews1 as taught by ,moses4 ,that sect had presented for the object of their worship1 a being of terrific character1 cruel1 vindictive1 capricious1 and unjust4 ,jesus1 taking for his type the best qualities of the human head and heart1 wisdom1 justice1 goodness1 and adding to them power1 ascribed all of these1 but in infinite perfection1 to the ,supreme ,being1 and formed him really worthy of their adoration4 ,moses had either not believed in a future state of existence1 or had not thought it essential to be explicitly taught to his people4 ,jesus inculcated that doctrine with emphasis and precision4 ,moses had bound the ,jews to many idle ceremonies1 mummeries1 and observances1 of no effect towards producing the social utilities which constitute the essence of virtue2 ,jesus exposed their futility and insignificance4 ,the one instilled into his people the most anti-social spirit toward other nations2 the other preached philanthropy and universal charity and benevolence4 ,the office of reformer of the superstitions of a nation1 is ever dangerous4 ,jesus had to walk on the perilous confines of reason and religion2 and a step to right or left might place him within the grasp of the priests of the superstition1 a blood-thirsty race1 as cruel and remorseless as the being whom they represented as the family ,god of ,abraham1 of ,isaac and of ,jacob1 and the local ,god of ,israel4 ,they were constantly laying snares1 too1 to entangle him in the web of the law4 ,he was justifiable1 therefore1 in avoiding these by evasions1 by sophisms1 by misconstructions and misapplications of scraps of the prophets1 and in defending himself with these their own weapons1 as sufficient1 ad homines1 at least4 ,that ,jesus did not mean to impose himself on mankind as the son of ,god1 physically speaking1 ,i have been convinced by the writings of men more learned than myself in that lore4 ,but that he might conscientiously believe himself inspired from above1 is very possible4 ,the whole religion of the ,jew1 inculcated on him from his infancy1 was founded in the belief of divine inspiration4 ,the fumes of the most disordered imaginations were recorded in their religious code1 as special communications of the ,deity2 and as it could not but happen that1 in the course of ages1 events would now and then turn up to which some of these vague rhapsodies might be accommodated by the aid of allegories1 figures1 types1 and other tricks upon words1 they have not only preserved their credit with the ,jews of all subsequent times1 but are the foundation of much of the religions of those who have schismatised from them4 ,elevated by the enthusiasm of a warm and pure heart1 conscious of the high strains of an eloquence which had not been taught him1 he might readily mistake the coruscations of his own fine genius for inspirations of an higher order4 ,this belief carried1 therefore1 no more personal imputation1 than the belief of ,socrates1 that himself was under the care and admonitions of a guardian ,dmon4 ,and how many of our wisest men still believe in the reality of these inspirations1 while perfectly sane on all other subjects4 ,excusing1 therefore1 on these considerations1 those passages in the gospels which seem to bear marks of weakness in ,jesus1 ascribing to him what alone is consistent with the great and pure character of which the same writings furnish proofs1 and to their proper authors their own trivialities and imbecilities4 ,i think myself authorized to conclude the purity and distinction of his character1 in opposition to the impostures which those authors would fix upon him2 and that the postulate of my former letter is no more than is granted in all other historical works4 ,mr4 ,correa is here1 on his farewell visit to us4 ,he has been much pleased with the plan and progress of our ,university1 and has given some valuable hints to its botanical branch4 ,he goes to do1 ,i hope1 much good in his new country2 the public instruction there1 as ,i understand1 being within the department destined for him4 ,he is not without dissatisfaction1 and reasonable dissatisfaction too1 with the piracies of ,baltimore2 but his justice and friendly dispositions will1 ,i am sure1 distinguish between the iniquities of a few plunderers1 and the sound principles of our country at large1 and of our government especially4 ,from many conversations with him1 ,i hope he sees1 and will promote in his new situation1 the advantages of a cordial fraternization among all the ,american nations1 and the importance of their coalescing in an ,american system of policy1 totally independent of and unconnected with that of ,europe4 ,the day is not distant1 when we may formally require a meridian of partition through the ocean which separates the two hemispheres1 on the hither side of which no ,european gun shall ever be heard1 nor an ,american on the other2 and when1 during the rage of the eternal wars of ,europe1 the lion and the lamb1 within our regions1 shall lie down together in peace4 ,the excess of population in ,europe1 and want of room1 render war1 in their opinion1 necessary to keep down that excess of numbers4 ,here1 room is abundant1 population scanty1 and peace the necessary means for producing men1 to whom the redundant soil is offering the means of life and happiness4 ,the principles of society there and here1 then1 are radically different1 and ,i hope no ,american patriot will ever lose sight of the essential policy of interdicting in the seas and territories of both ,americas1 the ferocious and sanguinary contests of ,europe4 ,i wish to see this coalition begun4 ,i am earnest for an agreement with the maritime powers of ,europe1 assigning them the task of keeping down the piracies of their seas and the cannibalisms of the ,african coasts1 and to us1 the suppression of the same enormities within our seas2 and for this purpose1 ,i should rejoice to see the fleets of ,brazil and the ,united ,states riding together as brethren of the same family1 and pursuing the same object4 ,and indeed it would be of happy augury to begin at once this concert of action here1 on the invitation of either to the other government1 while the way might be preparing for withdrawing our cruisers from ,europe1 and preventing naval collisions there which daily endanger our peace4 99 99 99 99 99 ,accept assurances of the sincerity of my friendship and respect for you4 ,,to ,,doctor ,,cooper4 ,,monticello1 ,august #ad1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,yours of the #bdth ult4 was received in due time1 and ,i shall rejoice indeed if ,mr4 ,elliot and ,mr4 ,nulty are joined to you in the institution at ,columbia1 which now becomes of immediate interest to me4 ,mr4 ,stack has given notice to his first class that he shall dismiss them on the #ajth of the next month1 and his mathematical assistant also at the same time1 being determined to take only small boys in future4 ,my grandson1 ,eppes1 is of the first class2 and ,i have proposed to his father to send him to ,columbia1 rather than anywhere northwardly4 ,i am obliged1 therefore1 to ask of you by what day he ought to be there1 so as to be at the commencement of what they call a session1 and to be so good as to do this by the first mail1 as ,i shall set out to ,bedford within about a fortnight4 ,he is so far advanced in ,greek and ,latin that he will be able to pursue them by himself hereafter2 and being between eighteen and nineteen years of age he has no time to lose4 ,i propose that he shall commence immediately with the mathematics and natural philosophy1 to be followed by astronomy1 chemistry1 mineralogy1 botany1 natural history4 ,it would be time lost for him to attend professors of ethics1 metaphysics1 logic1 c4 ,the first of these may be as well acquired in the closet as from living lectures2 and supposing the two last to mean the science of mind1 the simple reading of ,locke1 ,tracy1 and ,stewart1 will give him as much in that branch as is real science4 ,a relation of his 7,mr4 ,baker7 and classmate will go with him4 ,i hope and believe you are mistaken in supposing the reign of fanaticism to be on the advance4 ,i think it certainly declining4 ,it was first excited artificially by the sovereigns of ,europe as an engine of opposition to ,bonaparte and to ,france4 ,it rose to a great height there1 and became indeed a powerful engine of loyalism1 and of support to their governments4 ,but that loyalism is giving way to very different dispositions1 and its prompter fanaticism1 is vanishing with it4 ,in the meantime it had been wafted across the ,atlantic1 and chiefly from ,england1 with their other fashions1 but it is here also on the wane4 ,the ambitious sect of ,presbyterians indeed1 the ,loyalists of our country1 spare no pains to keep it up4 ,but their views of ascendency over all other sects in the ,united ,states seem to excite alarm in all1 and to unite them as against a common and threatening enemy4 ,and although the ,unitarianism they impute to you is heterodoxy with all of them1 ,i suspect the other sects will admit it to their alliance in order to strengthen the phalanx of opposition against the enterprises of their more aspiring antagonists4 ,although spiritualism is most prevalent with all these sects1 yet with none of them1 ,i presume1 is materialism declared heretical4 ,mr4 ,locke1 on whose authority they often plume themselves1 openly maintained the materialism of the soul2 and charged with blasphemy those who denied that it was in the power of an ,almighty ,creator to endow with the faculty of thought any composition of matter he might think fit4 ,the fathers of the church of the three first centuries generally1 if not universally1 were materialists1 extending it even to the ,creator himself2 nor indeed do ,i know exactly#e in what age of the christian church the heresy of spiritualism was introduced4 ,huet1 in his commentaries on ,origen1#f says1 ,deus igitur1 cui anima similis est1 juxta ,origenem1 reapse corporalis est1 sed graviorum tantum ratione corporum incorporeus4#g ,st4 ,macari1#h as speaking of angels says1 quam vis enim subtilia sint1 tamen in substantia1 forma1 et figura1 secundum tenuitatem natur eorum corpora sunt tenuia1 quemadmodum et hoc corpus in substantia sua crassum et solidum est4#i ,st4 ,justin martyr says expressly 1 4 ,tertullian's words are1 quid enim ,deus nisi corpus8 and again1 quis autem negabit ,deum esse corpus8 et si deus spiritus1 spiritus etiam corpus est sui generis1 in su effigie1 and that the soul is matter he adduces the following tangible proof3 in ipso ultimo voluptatis aestu1 quo genitale virus expellitur1 nonne aliquid de anim sentimus exire8#aj ,the holy father thus asserting1 and1 as it would seem1 from his own feelings1 that the sperm infused into the female matrix deposits there the matter and germ of both soul and body1 conjunctim1 of the new ftus4 ,although ,i do not pretend to be familiar with these fathers1 and give the preceding quotations at second hand1 yet ,i learn from authors whom ,i respect1 that not only those ,i have named1 but ,st4 ,augustin1#aa ,st4 ,basil1 ,lactantius1 ,tatian1 ,athenagoras1 and others1 concurred in the materiality of the soul4 ,our modern doctors would hardly venture or wish to condemn their fathers as heretics1 the main pillars of their fabric resting on their shoulders4 ,in the consultations of the visitors of the university on the subject of releasing you from your engagement with us1 although one or two members seemed alarmed at this cry of fire from the ,presbyterian pulpits1 yet the real ground of our decision was that our funds were in fact hypotheticated for five or six years to redeem the loan we had reluctantly made2 and although we hoped and trusted that the ensuing legislature would remit the debt and liberate our funds1 yet it was not just1 on this possibility1 to stand in the way of your looking out for a more certain provision4 ,the completing all our buildings for professors and students by the autumn of the ensuing year1 is now secured by sufficient contracts1 and our confidence is most strong that neither the ,state nor their legislature will bear to see those buildings shut up for five or six years1 when they have the money in hand1 and actually appropriated to the object of education1 which would open their doors at once for the reception of their sons1 now waiting and calling aloud for that institution4 ,the legislature meets on the #ast ,monday of ,december1 and before ,christmas we shall know what are their intentions4 ,if such as we expect1 we shall then immediately take measures to engage our professors and bring them into place the ensuing autumn or early winter4 ,my hope is that you will be able and willing to keep yourself uncommitted1 to take your place among them about that time2 and ,i can assure you there is not a voice among us which will not be cordially given for it4 ,i think1 too1 ,i may add1 that if the ,presbyterian opposition should not die by that time1 it will be directed at once against the whole institution1 and not amuse itself with nibbling at a single object4 ,it did that only because there was no other1 and they might think it politic to mask their designs on the body of the fortress1 under the ---- of a battery against a single bastion4 ,i will not despair then of the avail of your services in an establishment which ,i contemplate as the future bulwark of the human mind in this hemisphere4 ,god bless you and preserve you multos annos4 ,,footnotes3 #e ,i believe by ,athenasius and the council of ,nicea4 #f ,ocellus de d',argens1 p4 #ig4 #g ,enfield1 vi4 #c4 #h ,ib4 #aje4 #i ,timus1 #ag4 ,enfield1 vi4 #c4 #aj ,hist4 des ,saints1 #b c4 #d p4 #bab1 #bae4 #aa ,ocellus1 #ij4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,august #ae1 #ahbj4 ,i am a great defaulter1 my dear ,sir1 in our correspondence1 but prostrate health rarely permits me to write2 and when it does1 matters of business imperiously press their claims4 ,i am getting better however1 slowly1 swelled legs being now the only serious symptom1 and these1 ,i believe1 proceed from extreme debility4 ,i can walk but little2 but ,i ride six or eight miles a day without fatigue2 and within a few days1 ,i shall endeavor to visit my other home1 after a twelvemonth's absence from it4 ,our ,university1 four miles distant1 gives me frequent exercise1 and the oftener1 as ,i direct its architecture4 ,its plan is unique1 and it is becoming an object of curiosity for the traveller4 ,i have lately had an opportunity of reading a critique on this institution in your ,north ,american ,review of ,january last1 having been not without anxiety to see what that able work would say of us2 and ,i was relieved on finding in it much coincidence of opinion1 and even where criticisms were indulged1 ,i found they would have been obviated had the developments of our plan been fuller4 ,but these were restrained by the character of the paper reviewed1 being merely a report of outlines1 not a detailed treatise1 and addressed to a legislative body1 not to a learned academy4 ,for example1 as an inducement to introduce the ,anglo-,saxon into our plan1 it was said that it would reward amply the few weeks of attention which alone would be requisite for its attainment2 leaving both term and degree under an indefinite expression1 because ,i know that not much time is necessary to attain it to an useful degree1 sufficient to give such instruction in the etymologies of our language as may satisfy ordinary students1 while more time would be requisite for those who should propose to attain a critical knowledge of it4 ,in a letter which ,i had occasion to write to ,mr4 ,crofts1 who sent you1 ,i believe1 as well as myself1 a copy of his treatise on the ,english and ,german languages1 as preliminary to an etymological dictionary he meditated1 ,i went into explanations with him of an easy process for simplifying the study of the ,anglo-,saxon1 and lessening the terrors and difficulties presented by its rude alphabet1 and unformed orthography4 ,but this is a subject beyond the bounds of a letter1 as it was beyond the bounds of a report to the legislature4 ,mr4 ,crofts died1 ,i believe1 before any progress was made in the work he had projected4 ,the reviewer expresses doubt1 rather than decision1 on our placing military and naval architecture in the department of pure mathematics4 ,military architecture embraces fortification and fieldworks1 which1 with their bastions1 curtains1 hornworks1 redoubts1 c41 are based on a technical combination of lines and angles4 ,these are adapted to offence and defence1 with and against the effects of bombs1 balls1 escalades1 c4 ,but lines and angles make the sum of elementary geometry1 a branch of pure mathematics2 and the direction of the bombs1 balls1 and other projectiles1 the necessary appendages of military works1 although no part of their architecture1 belong to the conic sections1 a branch of transcendental geometry4 ,diderot and ,d',alembert1 therefore1 in their ,arbor scienti1 have placed military architecture in the department of elementary geometry4 ,naval architecture teaches the best form and construction of vessels2 for which best form it has recourse to the question of the solid of least resistance2 a problem of transcendental geometry4 ,and its appurtenant projectiles belong to the same branch1 as in the preceding case4 ,it is true1 that so far as respects the action of the water on the rudder and oars1 and of the wind on the sails1 it may be placed in the department of mechanics1 as ,diderot and ,d',alembert have done2 but belonging quite as much to geometry1 and allied in its military character to military architecture1 it simplified our plan to place both under the same head4 ,these views are so obvious1 that ,i am sure they would have required but a second thought1 to reconcile the reviewer to their location under the head of pure mathematics4 ,for this word location1 see ,bailey1 ,johnson1 ,sheridan1 ,walker1 c4 ,but if dictionaries are to be the arbiters of language1 in which of them shall we find neologism4 ,no matter4 ,it is a good word1 well sounding1 obvious1 and expresses an idea1 which would otherwise require circumlocution4 ,the reviewer was justifiable1 therefore1 in using it2 although he noted at the same time1 as unauthoritative1 centrality1 grade1 sparse2 all which have been long used in common speech and writing4 ,i am a friend to neology4 ,it is the only way to give to a language copiousness and euphony4 ,without it we should still be held to the vocabulary of ,alfred or of ,ulphilas2 and held to their state of science also3 for ,i am sure they had no words which could have conveyed the ideas of oxygen1 cotyledons1 zoophytes1 magnetism1 electricity1 hyaline1 and thousands of others expressing ideas not then existing1 nor of possible communication in the state of their language4 ,what a language has the ,french become since the date of their revolution1 by the free introduction of new words6 ,the most copious and eloquent in the living world2 and equal to the ,greek1 had not that been regularly modifiable almost ad infinitum4 ,their rule was1 that whenever their language furnished or adopted a root1 all its branches1 in every part of speech1 were legitimated by giving them their appropriate terminations4 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 4 ,and this should be the law of every language4 ,thus1 having adopted the adjective fraternal1 it is a root which should legitimate fraternity1 fraternation1 fraternisation1 fraternism1 to fraternate1 fraternise1 fraternally4 ,and give the word neologism to our language1 as a root1 and it should give us its fellow substantives1 neology1 neologist1 neologisation2 its adjectives1 neologous1 neological1 neologistical2 its verb1 neologise2 and adverb1 neologically4 ,dictionaries are but the depositories of words already legitimated by usage4 ,society is the workshop in which new ones are elaborated4 ,when an individual uses a new word1 if ill formed1 it is rejected in society2 if well formed1 adopted1 and after due time1 laid up in the depository of dictionaries4 ,and if1 in this process of sound neologisation1 our trans-,atlantic brethren shall not choose to accompany us1 we may furnish1 after the ,ionians1 a second example of a colonial dialect improving on its primitive4 ,but enough of criticism3 let me turn to your puzzling letter of ,may the #abth1 on matter1 spirit1 motion1 c4 ,its crowd of scepticisms kept me from sleep4 ,i read it1 and laid it down2 read it1 and laid it down1 again and again2 and to give rest to my mind1 ,i was obliged to recur ultimately to my habitual anodyne1 ,i feel1 therefore ,i exist4 ,i feel bodies which are not myself3 there are other existences then4 ,i call them matter4 ,i feel them changing place4 ,this gives me motion4 ,where there is an absence of matter1 ,i call it void1 or nothing1 or immaterial space4 ,on the basis of sensation1 of matter and motion1 we may erect the fabric of all the certainties we can have or need4 ,i can conceive thought to be an action of a particular organization of matter1 formed for that purpose by its creator1 as well as that attraction is an action of matter1 or magnetism of loadstone4 ,when he who denies to the ,creator the power of endowing matter with the mode of action called thinking1 shall show how he could endow the sun with the mode of action called attraction1 which reins the planets in the track of their orbits1 or how an absence of matter can have a will1 and by that will put matter into motion1 then the ,materialist may be lawfully required to explain the process by which matter exercises the faculty of thinking4 ,when once we quit the basis of sensation1 all is in the wind4 ,to talk of immaterial existences1 is to talk of nothings4 ,to say that the human soul1 angels1 ,god1 are immaterial1 is to say1 they are nothings1 or that there is no ,god1 no angels1 no soul4 ,i cannot reason otherwise3 but ,i believe ,i am supported in my creed of materialism by the ,lockes1 the ,tracys1 and the ,stewarts4 ,at what age#ab of the ,christian church this heresy of immaterialism1 or masked atheism1 crept in1 ,i do not exactly know4 ,but a heresy it certainly is4 ,jesus taught nothing of it4 ,he told us1 indeed1 that ,god is a spirit1 but he has not defined what a spirit is1 nor said that it is not matter4 ,and the ancient fathers generally1 of the three first centuries1 held it to be matter1 light and thin indeed1 an etherial gas2 but still matter4 ,origen says1 ,deus se ipse corporalis est2 sed graviorum tantum corporum ratione1 incorporeus4 ,tertullian1 quid enim deus nisi corpus8 ,and again1 quis negabit deum esse corpus8 ,etsi deus spiritus1 spiritus etiam corpus est1 sui generis in sua effigie4 ,st4 ,justin ,martyr1 ' '-- 4 ,and ,st4 ,macarius1 speaking of angels1 says1 quamvis enim subtilia sint1 tamen in substantia1 forma et figur1 secundum tenuitatem natur eorum1 corpora sunt tenuia4 ,and ,st4 ,austin1 ,st4 ,basil1 ,lactantius1 ,tatian1 ,athenagoras and others1 with whose writings ,i pretend not a familiarity1 are said by those who are better acquainted with them1 to deliver the same doctrine4 7,enfield x4 #c1 #a47 ,turn to your ,ocellus d',argens1 #ig1 #aje1 and to his ,timus #ag1 for these quotations4 ,in ,england1 these ,immaterialists might have been burnt until the #bi ,car4 #b1 when the writ de hretico comburendo was abolished2 and here until the ,revolution1 that statute not having extended to us4 ,all heresies being now done away with us1 these schismatists are merely atheists1 differing from the material atheist only in their belief1 that nothing made something1 and from the material deist1 who believes that matter alone can operate on matter4 ,rejecting all organs of information1 therefore1 but my senses1 ,i rid myself of the pyrrhonisms with which an indulgence in speculations hyperphysical and antiphysical1 so uselessly occupy and disquiet the mind4 ,a single sense may indeed be sometimes deceived1 but rarely2 and never all our senses together1 with their faculty of reasoning4 ,they evidence realities1 and there are enough of these for all the purposes of life1 without plunging into the fathomless abyss of dreams and phantasms4 ,i am satisfied1 and sufficiently occupied with the things which are1 without tormenting or troubling myself about those which may indeed be1 but of which ,i have no evidence4 ,i am sure that ,i really know many1 many things1 and none more surely than that ,i love you with all my heart1 and pray for the continuance of your life until you shall be tired of it yourself4 ,,footnote3 #ab ,that of ,athanasius and the ,council of ,nica1 anno4 #cbd4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,jarvis4 ,,monticello1 ,september #bh1 #ahbj4 ,i thank you1 ,sir1 for the copy of your ,republican which you have been so kind as to send me1 and ,i should have acknowledged it sooner but that ,i am just returned home after a long absence4 ,i have not yet had time to read it seriously1 but in looking over it cursorily ,i see much in it to approve1 and shall be glad if it shall lead our youth to the practice of thinking on such subjects and for themselves4 ,that it will have this tendency may be expected1 and for that reason ,i feel an urgency to note what ,i deem an error in it1 the more requiring notice as your opinion is strengthened by that of many others4 ,you seem1 in pages #hd and #adh1 to consider the judges as the ultimate arbiters of all constitutional questions2 a very dangerous doctrine indeed1 and one which would place us under the despotism of an oligarchy4 ,our judges are as honest as other men1 and not more so4 ,they have1 with others1 the same passions for party1 for power1 and the privilege of their corps4 ,their maxim is boni judicis est ampliare jurisdictionem1 and their power the more dangerous as they are in office for life1 and not responsible1 as the other functionaries are1 to the elective control4 ,the constitution has erected no such single tribunal1 knowing that to whatever hands confided1 with the corruptions of time and party1 its members would become despots4 ,it has more wisely made all the departments co-equal and co-sovereign within themselves4 ,if the legislature fails to pass laws for a census1 for paying the judges and other officers of government1 for establishing a militia1 for naturalization as prescribed by the constitution1 or if they fail to meet in congress1 the judges cannot issue their mandamus to them2 if the ,president fails to supply the place of a judge1 to appoint other civil or military officers1 to issue requisite commissions1 the judges cannot force him4 ,they can issue their mandamus or distringas to no executive or legislative officer to enforce the fulfilment of their official duties1 any more than the president or legislature may issue orders to the judges or their officers4 ,betrayed by ,english example1 and unaware1 as it should seem1 of the control of our constitution in this particular1 they have at times overstepped their limit by undertaking to command executive officers in the discharge of their executive duties2 but the constitution1 in keeping three departments distinct and independent1 restrains the authority of the judges to judiciary organs1 as it does the executive and legislative to executive and legislative organs4 ,the judges certainly have more frequent occasion to act on constitutional questions1 because the laws of meum and tuum and of criminal action1 forming the great mass of the system of law1 constitute their particular department4 ,when the legislative or executive functionaries act unconstitutionally1 they are responsible to the people in their elective capacity4 ,the exemption of the judges from that is quite dangerous enough4 ,i know no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves2 and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion1 the remedy is not to take it from them1 but to inform their discretion by education4 ,this is the true corrective of abuses of constitutional power4 ,pardon me1 ,sir1 for this difference of opinion4 ,my personal interest in such questions is entirely extinct1 but not my wishes for the longest possible continuance of our government on its pure principles2 if the three powers maintain their mutual independence on each other it may last long1 but not so if either can assume the authorities of the other4 ,i ask your candid re-consideration of this subject1 and am sufficiently sure you will form a candid conclusion4 ,accept the assurance of my great respect4 ,,to ,,mr ,,pinckney4 ,,monticello1 ,september #cj1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,an absence of some time from home has occasioned me to be thus late in acknowledging the receipt of your favor of the #fth1 and ,i see in it with pleasure evidences of your continued health and application to business4 ,it is now1 ,i believe1 about twenty years since ,i had the pleasure of seeing you1 and we are apt1 in such cases1 to lose sight of time1 and to conceive that our friends remain stationary at the same point of health and vigor as when we last saw them4 ,so ,i perceive by your letter you think with respect to myself1 but twenty years added to fifty-seven make quite a different man4 ,to threescore and seventeen add two years of prostrate health1 and you have the old1 infirm1 and nerveless body ,i now am1 unable to write but with pain1 and unwilling to think without necessity4 ,in this state ,i leave the world and its affairs to the young and energetic1 and resign myself to their care1 of whom ,i have endeavored to take care when young4 ,i read but one newspaper and that of my own ,state1 and more for its advertisements than its news4 ,i have not read a speech in ,congress for some years4 ,i have heard1 indeed1 of the questions of the tariff and ,missouri1 and formed prim facie opinions on them1 but without investigation4 ,as to the tariff1 ,i should say put down all banks1 admit none but a metallic circulation1 that will take its proper level with the like circulation in other countries1 and then our manufacturers may work in fair competition with those of other countries1 and the import duties which the government may lay for the purposes of revenue will so far place them above equal competition4 ,the ,missouri question is a mere party trick4 ,the leaders of federalism1 defeated in their schemes of obtaining power by rallying partisans to the principle of monarchism1 a principle of personal not of local division1 have changed their tack1 and thrown out another barrel to the whale4 ,they are taking advantage of the virtuous feelings of the people to effect a division of parties by a geographical line2 they expect that this will ensure them1 on local principles1 the majority they could never obtain on principles of federalism2 but they are still putting their shoulder to the wrong wheel2 they are wasting ,jeremiads on the miseries of slavery1 as if we were advocates for it4 ,sincerity in their declamations should direct their efforts to the true point of difficulty1 and unite their counsels with ours in devising some reasonable and practicable plan of getting rid of it4 ,some of these leaders1 if they could attain the power1 their ambition would rather use it to keep the ,union together1 but others have ever had in view its separation4 ,if they push it to that1 they will find the line of separation very different from their #cf of latitude1 and as manufacturing and navigating ,states1 they will have quarrelled with their bread and butter1 and ,i fear not that after a little trial they will think better of it1 and return to the embraces of their natural and best friends4 ,but this scheme of party ,i leave to those who are to live under its consequences4 ,we who have gone before have performed an honest duty1 by putting in the power of our successors a state of happiness which no nation ever before had within their choice4 ,if that choice is to throw it away1 the dead will have neither the power nor the right to control them4 ,i must hope1 nevertheless1 that the mass of our honest and well-meaning brethren of the other ,states1 will discover the use which designing leaders are making of their best feelings1 and will see the precipice to which they are lead1 before they take the fatal leap4 ,god grant it1 and to you health and happiness4 ,,to ,,richard ,,rush1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,october #bj1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,in your favor of ,may #c;d1 which ,i have now to acknowledge1 you so kindly proffered your attentions to any little matters ,i might have on that side of the water1 that ,i take the liberty of availing myself of this proof of your goodness so far as to request you to put the enclosed catalogue in the hands of some honest bookseller of ,london1 who will procure and forward the books to me1 with care and good faith4 ,they should be packed in a cheap trunk1 and not put on ship-board until ,april1 as they would be liable to damage on a winter passage4 ,i ask an honest correspondent in that line1 because1 when we begin to import for the library of our ,universary1 we shall need one worthy of entire confidence4 ,i send this letter open to my correspondent in ,richmond1 ,captain ,bernard ,peyton1 with a request that he will put into it a bill of exchange on ,london of #dj sterling1 which of course1 therefore1 ,i cannot describe to you by naming drawer and drawee4 ,he will also forward1 by other conveyance1 the duplicate and triplicate as usual4 ,this sum would more than cover the cost of the books written for1 according to their prices stated in printed catalogues2 but as books have risen with other things in price1 ,i have enlarged the printed amount by about #ae per cent4 to cover any rise4 ,still1 should it be insufficient1 the bookseller is requested to dock the catalogue to the amount of the remittance4 ,i have no news to give you2 for ,i have none but from the newspapers1 and believing little of that myself1 it would be an unworthy present to my friends4 ,but the important news lies now on your side of the ,atlantic4 ,england1 in throes from a trifle1 as it would seem1 but that trifle the symptom of an irremediable disease proceeding from a long course of exhaustion by efforts and burthens beyond her natural strength2 ,france agonizing between royalists and constitutionalists2 the other ,states of ,europe pressing on to revolution and the rights of man1 and the colossal powers of ,russia and ,austria marshalled against them4 ,these are more than specks of hurricane in the horizon of the world4 ,you1 who are young1 may live to see its issue2 the beginning only is for my time4 ,nor is our side of the water entirely untroubled1 the boisterous sea of liberty is never without a wave4 ,a hideous evil1 the magnitude of which is seen1 and at a distance only1 by the one party1 and more sorely felt and sincerely deplored by the other1 from the difficulty of the cure1 divides us at this moment too angrily4 ,the attempt by one party to prohibit willing ,states from sharing the evil1 is thought by the other to render desperate1 by accumulation1 the hope of its final eradication4 ,if a little time1 however1 is given to both parties to cool1 and to dispel their visionary fears1 they will see that concurring in sentiment as to the evil1 moral and political1 the duty and interest of both is to concur also in divining a practicable process of cure4 ,should time not be given1 and the schism be pushed to separation1 it will be for a short term only2 two or three years trial will bring them back1 like quarrelling lovers to renewed embraces1 and increased affections4 ,the experiment of separation would soon prove to both that they had mutually miscalculated their best interests4 ,and even were the parties in ,congress to secede in a passion1 the soberer people would call a convention and cement again the severance attempted by the insanity of their functionaries4 ,with this consoling view1 my greatest grief would be for the fatal effect of such an event on the hopes and happiness of the world4 ,we exist1 and are quoted1 as standing proofs that a government1 so modelled as to rest continually on the will of the whole society1 is a practicable government4 ,were we to break to pieces1 it would damp the hopes and the efforts of the good1 and give triumph to those of the bad through the whole enslaved world4 ,as members1 therefore1 of the universal society of mankind1 and standing in high and responsible relation with them1 it is our sacred duty to suppress passion among ourselves1 and not to blast the confidence we have inspired of proof that a government of reason is better than one of force4 ,this letter is not of facts but of opinions1 as you will observe2 and although the converse is generally the most acceptable1 ,i do not know that1 in your situation1 the opinions of your countrymen may not be as desirable to be known to you as facts4 ,they constitute1 indeed1 moral facts1 as important as physical ones to the attention of the public functionary4 ,wishing you a long career to the services you may render your country1 and that it may be a career of happiness and prosperity to yourself1 ,i salute you with affectionate attachment and respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,correa4 ,,monticello1 ,october #bd1 #ahbj4 ,your kind letter1 dear ,sir1 of ,october #abth1 was handed to me by ,dr4 ,cooper1 and was the first correction of an erroneous belief that you had long since left our shores4 ,such had been ,colonel ,randolph's opinion1 and his had governed mine4 ,i received your adieu with feelings of sincere regret at the loss we were to sustain1 and particularly of those friendly visits by which you had made me so happy4 ,i shall feel1 too1 the want of your counsel and approbation in what we are doing and have yet to do in our ,university1 the last of my mortal cares1 and the last service ,i can render my country4 ,but turning from myself1 throwing egotism behind me1 and looking to your happiness1 it is a duty and consolation of friendship to consider that that may be promoted by your return to your own country4 ,there ,i hope you will receive the honors and rewards you merit1 and which may make the rest of your life easy and happy2 there too you will render precious services by promoting the science of your country1 and blessing its future generations with the advantages that bestows4 ,nor even there shall we lose all the benefits of your friendship2 for this motive1 as well as the love of your own country1 will be an incitement to promote that intimate harmony between our two nations which is so much the interest of both4 ,nothing is so important as that ,america shall separate herself from the systems of ,europe1 and establish one of her own4 ,our circumstances1 our pursuits1 our interests1 are distinct1 the principles of our policy should be so also4 ,all entanglements with that quarter of the globe should be avoided if we mean that peace and justice shall be the polar stars of the ,american societies4 ,i had written a letter to a friend while you were here1 in a part of which these sentiments were expressed1 and ,i had made an extract from it to put into your hands1 as containing my creed on that subject4 ,you had left us1 however1 in the morning earlier than ,i had been aware2 still ,i enclose it to you1 because it would be a leading principle with me1 had ,i longer to live4 ,during six and thirty years that ,i have been in situations to attend to the conduct and characters of foreign nations1 ,i have found the government of ,portugal the most just1 inoffensive and unambitious of any one with which we had concern1 without a single exception4 ,i am sure that this is the character of ours also4 ,two such nations can never wish to quarrel with each other4 ,subordinate officers may be negligent1 may have their passions and partialities1 and be criminally remiss in preventing the enterprises of the lawless banditti who are to be found in every seaport of every country4 ,the late piratical depredations which your commerce has suffered as well as ours1 and that of other nations1 seem to have been committed by renegado rovers of several nations1 ,french1 ,english1 ,american1 which they as well as we have not been careful enough to suppress4 ,i hope our ,congress now about to meet will strengthen the measures of suppression4 ,of their disposition to do it there can be no doubt2 for all men of moral principle must be shocked at these atrocities4 ,i had repeated conversations on this subject with the ,president while at his seat in this neighborhood4 ,no man can abhor these enormities more deeply4 ,i trust it will not have been in the power of abandoned rovers1 nor yet of negligent functionaries1 to disturb the harmony of two nations so much disposed to mutual friendship1 and interested in it4 ,to this1 my dear friend1 you can be mainly instrumental1 and ,i know your patriotism and philanthropy too well to doubt your best efforts to cement us4 ,in these ,i pray for your success1 and that heaven may long preserve you in health and prosperity to do all the good to mankind to which your enlightened and benevolent mind disposes you4 ,of the continuance of my affectionate friendship1 with that of my life1 and of its fervent wishes for your happiness1 accept my sincere assurance4 ,,to ,,the ,,reverend ,,jared ,,sparks4 ,,monticello1 ,november #d1 #ahbj4 ,,sir1--,your favor of ,september #ahth is just received1 with the book accompanying it4 ,its delay was owing to that of the box of books from ,mr4 ,guegan1 in which it was packed4 ,being just setting out on a journey ,i have time only to look over the summary of contents4 ,in this ,i see nothing in which ,i am likely to differ materially from you4 ,i hold the precepts of ,jesus1 as delivered by himself1 to be the most pure1 benevolent1 and sublime which have ever been preached to man4 ,i adhere to the principles of the first age2 and consider all subsequent innovations as corruptions of his religion1 having no foundation in what came from him4 ,the metaphysical insanities of ,athanasius1 of ,loyola1 and of ,calvin1 are1 to my understanding1 mere relapses into polytheism1 differing from paganism only by being more unintelligible4 ,the religion of ,jesus is founded in the ,unity of ,god1 and this principle chiefly1 gave it triumph over the rabble of heathen gods then acknowledged4 ,thinking men of all nations rallied readily to the doctrine of one only ,god1 and embraced it with the pure morals which ,jesus inculcated4 ,if the freedom of religion1 guaranteed to us by law in theory1 can ever rise in practice under the overbearing inquisition of public opinion1 truth will prevail over fanaticism1 and the genuine doctrines of ,jesus1 so long perverted by his pseudo-priests1 will again be restored to their original purity4 ,this reformation will advance with the other improvements of the human mind1 but too late for me to witness it4 ,accept my thanks for your book1 in which ,i shall read with pleasure your developments of the subject1 and with them the assurance of my high respect4 ,,to ,,joseph ,c4 ,,cabell4 ,,poplar ,,forest1 ,november #bh1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i sent in due time the ,report of the ,visitors to the ,governor1 with a request that he would endeavor to convene the ,literary ,board in time to lay it before the legislature on the second day of their session4 ,it was enclosed in a letter which will explain itself to you4 ,if delivered before the crowd of other business presses on them1 they may act on it immediately1 and before there will have been time for unfriendly combinations and manuvres by the enemies of the institution4 ,i enclose you now a paper presenting some views which may be useful to you in conversations1 to rebut exaggerated estimates of what our institution is to cost1 and reproaches of deceptive estimates4 ,one hundred and sixty-two thousand three hundred and sixty-four dollars will be about the cost of the whole establishment1 when completed4 ,not an office at ,washington has cost less4 ,the single building of the court house of ,henrico has cost nearly that2 and the massive walls of the millions of bricks of ,william and ,mary could not now be built for a less sum4 ,surely ,governor ,clinton's display of the gigantic efforts of ,new ,york towards the education of her citizens1 will stimulate the pride as well as the patriotism of our legislature1 to look to the reputation and safety of their own country1 to rescue it from the degradation of becoming the ,barbary of the ,union1 and of falling into the ranks of our own negroes4 ,to that condition it is fast sinking4 ,we shall be in the hands of the other ,states1 what our indigenous predecessors were when invaded by the science and arts of ,europe4 ,the mass of education in ,virginia1 before the ,revolution1 placed her with the foremost of her sister colonies4 ,what is her education now8 ,where is it8 ,the little we have we import1 like beggars1 from other ,states2 or import their beggars to bestow on us their miserable crumbs4 ,and what is wanting to restore us to our station among our confederates8 ,not more money from the people4 ,enough has been raised by them1 and appropriated to this very object4 ,it is that it should be employed understandingly1 and for their greatest good4 ,that good requires1 that while they are instructed in general1 competently to the common business of life1 others should employ their genius with necessary information to the useful arts1 to inventions for saving labor and increasing our comforts1 to nourishing our health1 to civil government1 military science1 c4 ,would it not have a good effect for the friends of this ,university to take the lead in proposing and effecting a practical scheme of elementary schools8 ,to assume the character of the friends1 rather than the opponents of that object4 ,the present plan has appropriated to the primary schools forty-five thousand dollars for three years1 making one hundred and thirty-five thousand dollars4 ,i should be glad to know if this sum has educated one hundred and thirty-five poor children8 ,i doubt it much4 ,and if it has1 they have cost us one thousand dollars a piece for what might have been done with thirty dollars4 ,supposing the literary revenue to be sixty thousand dollars1 ,i think it demonstrable1 that this sum1 equally divided between the two objects1 would amply suffice for both4 ,one hundred counties1 divided into about twelve wards each1 on an average1 and a school in each ward of perhaps ten children1 would be one thousand and two hundred schools1 distributed proportionably over the surface of the ,state4 ,the inhabitants of each ward1 meeting together 7as when they work on the roads71 building good log houses for their school and teacher1 and contributing for his provisions1 rations of pork1 beef1 and corn1 in the proportion each of his other taxes1 would thus lodge and feed him without feeling it2 and those of them who are able1 paying for the tuition of their own children1 would leave no call on the public fund but for the tuition fee of1 here and there1 an accidental pauper1 who would still be fed and lodged with his parents4 ,suppose this fee ten dollars1 and three hundred dollars apportioned to a county on an average1 7more or less proportioned17 would there be thirty such paupers for every county8 ,i think not4 ,the truth is1 that the want of common education with us is not from our poverty1 but from want of an orderly system4 ,more money is now paid for the education of a part1 than would be paid for that of the whole1 if systematically arranged4 ,six thousand common schools in ,new ,york1 fifty pupils in each1 three hundred thousand in all2 one hundred and sixty thousand dollars annually paid to the masters2 forty established academies1 with two thousand two hundred and eighteen pupils2 and five colleges1 with seven hundred and eighteen students2 to which last classes of institutions seven hundred and twenty thousand dollars have been given2 and the whole appropriations for education estimated at two and a half millions of dollars6 ,what a pigmy to this is ,virginia become1 with a population almost equal to that of ,new ,york6 ,and whence this difference8 ,from the difference their rulers set on the value of knowledge1 and the prosperity it produces4 ,but still1 if a pigmy1 let her do what a pigmy may do4 ,if among fifty children in each of the six thousand schools of ,new ,york1 there are only paupers enough to employ twenty-five dollars of public money to each school1 surely among the ten children of each of our one thousand and two hundred schools1 the same sum of twenty-five dollars to each school will teach its paupers1 7five times as much as to the same number in ,new ,york17 and will amount for the whole to thirty thousand dollars a year1 the one-half only of our literary revenue4 ,do then1 dear ,sir1 think of this1 and engage our friends to take in hand the whole subject4 ,it will reconcile the friends of the elementary schools1 and none are more warmly so than myself1 lighten the difficulties of the ,university1 and promote in every order of men the degree of instruction proportioned to their condition1 and to their views in life4 ,it will combine with the mass of our force1 a wise direction of it1 which will insure to our country its future prosperity and safety4 ,i had formerly thought that visitors of the school might be chosen by the county1 and charged to provide teachers for every ward1 and to superintend them4 ,i now think it would be better for every ward to choose its own resident visitor1 whose business it would be to keep a teacher in the ward1 to superintend the school1 and to call meetings of the ward for all purposes relating to it2 their accounts to be settled1 and wards laid off by the courts4 ,i think ward elections better for many reasons1 one of which is sufficient1 that it will keep elementary education out of the hands of fanaticising preachers1 who1 in county elections1 would be universally chosen1 and the predominant sect of the county would possess itself of all its schools4 ,a wrist stiffened by an ancient accident1 now more so by the effect of age1 renders writing a slow and irksome operation with me4 ,i cannot1 therefore1 present these views1 by separate letters to each of our colleagues in the legislature1 but must pray you to communicate them to ,mr4 ,johnson and ,general ,breckenridge1 and to request them to consider this as equally meant for them4 ,mr4 ,gordon being the local representative of the ,university1 and among its most zealous friends1 would be a more useful second to ,general ,breckenridge in the ,house of ,delegates1 by a free communication of what concerns the ,university1 with which he has had little opportunity of becoming acquainted4 ,so1 also1 would it be to ,mr4 ,rives1 who would be a friendly advocate4 ,accept the assurances of my constant and affectionate esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,madison4 ,,poplar ,,forest1 ,november #bi1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the enclosed letter from our ancient friend ,tenche ,coxe1 came unfortunately to ,monticello after ,i had left it1 and has had a dilatory passage to this place1 where ,i received it yesterday1 and obey its injunction of immediate transmission to you4 ,we should have recognized the style even without a signature1 and although so written as to be much of it indecipherable4 ,this is a sample of the effects we may expect from the late mischievous law vacating every four years nearly all the executive officers of the government4 ,it saps the constitutional and salutary functions of the ,president1 and introduces a principle of intrigue and corruption1 which will soon leaven the mass1 not only of ,senators1 but of citizens4 ,it is more baneful than the attempt which failed in the beginning of the government1 to make all officers irremovable but with the consent of the ,senate4 ,this places1 every four years1 all appointments under their power1 and even obliges them to act on every one nomination4 ,it will keep in constant excitement all the hungry cormorants for office1 render them1 as well as those in place1 sycophants to their ,senators1 engage these in eternal intrigue to turn out one and put in another1 in cabals to swap work2 and make of them what all executive directories become1 mere sinks of corruption and faction4 ,this must have been one of the midnight signatures of the ,president1 when he had not time to consider1 or even to read the law2 and the more fatal as being irrepealable but with the consent of the ,senate1 which will never be obtained4 ,f4 ,gilmer has communicated to me ,mr4 ,correa's letter to him of adieux to his friends here1 among whom he names most affectionately ,mrs4 ,madison and yourself4 ,no foreigner1 ,i believe1 has ever carried with him more friendly regrets4 ,he was to sail the next day 7,november #aj7 in the ,british packet for ,england1 and thence take his passage in ,january for ,brazil4 ,his present views are of course liable to be affected by the events of ,portugal1 and the possible effects of their example on ,brazil4 ,i expect to return to ,monticello about the middle of the ensuing month1 and salute you with constant affection and respect4 ,,to ,,thomas ,,ritchie4 ,,monticello1 ,december #be1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,on my return home after a long absence1 ,i find here your favor of ,november the #bc;d1 with ,colonel ,taylor's ,construction ,construed1 which you have been so kind as to send me1 in the name of the author as well as yourself4 ,permit me1 if you please1 to use the same channel for conveying to him the thanks ,i render you also for this mark of attention4 ,i shall read it1 ,i know1 with edification1 as ,i did his ,inquiry1 to which ,i acknowledge myself indebted for many valuable ideas1 and for the correction of some errors of early opinion1 never seen in a correct light until presented to me in that work4 ,that the present volume is equally orthodox1 ,i know before reading it1 because ,i know that ,colonel ,taylor and myself have rarely1 if ever1 differed in any political principle of importance4 ,every act of his life1 and every word he ever wrote1 satisfies me of this4 ,so1 also1 as to the two ,presidents1 late and now in office1 ,i know them both to be of principles as truly republican as any men living4 ,if there be anything amiss1 therefore1 in the present state of our affairs1 as the formidable deficit lately unfolded to us indicates1 ,i ascribe it to the inattention of ,congress to their duties1 to their unwise dissipation and waste of the public contributions4 ,they seemed1 some little while ago1 to be at a loss for objects whereon to throw away the supposed fathomless funds of the treasury4 ,i had feared the result1 because ,i saw among them some of my old fellow laborers1 of tried and known principles1 yet often in their minorities4 ,i am aware that in one of their most ruinous vagaries1 the people were themselves betrayed into the same phrenzy with their ,representatives4 ,the deficit produced1 and a heavy tax to supply it1 will1 ,i trust1 bring both to their sober senses4 ,but it is not from this branch of government we have most to fear4 ,taxes and short elections will keep them right4 ,the judiciary of the ,united ,states is the subtle corps of sappers and miners constantly working under ground to undermine the foundations of our confederated fabric4 ,they are construing our constitution from a co-ordination of a general and special government to a general and supreme one alone4 ,this will lay all things at their feet1 and they are too well versed in ,english law to forget the maxim1 boni judicis est ampliare jurisdictionem4 ,we shall see if they are bold enough to take the daring stride their five lawyers have lately taken4 ,if they do1 then1 with the editor of our book1 in his address to the public1 ,i will say1 that against this every man should raise his voice1 and more1 should uplift his arm4 ,who wrote this admirable address8 ,sound1 luminous1 strong1 not a word too much1 nor one which can be changed but for the worse4 ,that pen should go on1 lay bare these wounds of our constitution1 expose the decisions seriatim1 and arouse1 as it is able1 the attention of the nation to these bold speculators on its patience4 ,having found1 from experience1 that impeachment is an impracticable thing1 a mere scare-crow1 they consider themselves secure for life2 they sculk from responsibility to public opinion1 the only remaining hold on them1 under a practice first introduced into ,england by ,lord ,mansfield4 ,an opinion is huddled up in conclave1 perhaps by a majority of one1 delivered as if unanimous1 and with the silent acquiescence of lazy or timid associates1 by a crafty chief judge1 who sophisticates the law to his mind1 by the turn of his own reasoning4 ,a judiciary law was once reported by the ,attorney ,general to ,congress1 requiring each judge to deliver his opinion seriatim and openly1 and then to give it in writing to the clerk to be entered in the record4 ,a judiciary independent of a king or executive alone1 is a good thing2 but independence of the will of the nation is a solecism1 at least in a republican government4 ,but to return to your letter2 you ask for my opinion of the work you send me1 and to let it go out to the public4 ,this ,i have ever made a point of declining1 7one or two instances only excepted47 ,complimentary thanks to writers who have sent me their works1 have betrayed me sometimes before the public1 without my consent having been asked4 ,but ,i am far from presuming to direct the reading of my fellow citizens1 who are good enough judges themselves of what is worthy their reading4 ,i am1 also1 too desirous of quiet to place myself in the way of contention4 ,against this ,i am admonished by bodily decay1 which cannot be unaccompanied by corresponding wane of the mind4 ,of this ,i am as yet sensible1 sufficiently to be unwilling to trust myself before the public1 and when ,i cease to be so1 ,i hope that my friends will be too careful of me to draw me forth and present me1 like a ,priam in armor1 as a spectacle for public compassion4 ,i hope our political bark will ride through all its dangers2 but ,i can in future be but an inert passenger4 ,i salute you with sentiments of great friendship and respect4 ,,to ,m4 ,,de ,,la ,,fayette4 ,,monticello1 ,december #bf1 #ahbj4 ,it is long1 indeed1 my very dear friend1 since ,i have been able to address a letter to you4 ,for more than two years my health has been so entirely prostrate1 that ,i have1 of necessity1 intermitted all correspondence4 ,the dislocated wrist1 too1 which perhaps you may recollect1 has now become so stiff from the effects of age1 that writing is become a slow and painful operation1 and scarcely ever undertaken but under the goad of imperious business4 ,in the meantime your country has been going on less well than ,i had hoped4 ,but it will go on4 ,the light which has been shed on the mind of man through the civilized world1 has given it a new direction1 from which no human power can divert it4 ,the sovereigns of ,europe who are wise1 or have wise counsellors1 see this1 and bend to the breeze which blows2 the unwise alone stiffen and meet its inevitable crush4 ,the volcanic rumblings in the bowels of ,europe1 from north to south1 seem to threaten a general explosion1 and the march of armies into ,italy cannot end in a simple march4 ,the disease of liberty is catching2 those armies will take it in the south1 carry it thence to their own country1 spread there the infection of revolution and representative government1 and raise its people from the prone condition of brutes to the erect altitude of man4 ,some fear our envelopment in the wars engendering from the unsettled state of our affairs with ,spain1 and therefore are anxious for a ratification of our treaty with her4 ,i fear no such thing1 and hope that if ratified by ,spain it will be rejected here4 ,we may justly say to ,spain1 when this negotiation commenced1 twenty years ago1 your authority was acknowledged by those you are selling to us4 ,that authority is now renounced1 and their right of self-disposal asserted4 ,in buying them from you1 then1 we buy but a war-title1 a right to subdue them1 which you can neither convey nor we acquire4 ,this is a family quarrel in which we have no right to meddle4 ,settle it between yourselves1 and we will then treat with the party whose right is acknowledged4 ,with whom that will be1 no doubt can be entertained4 ,and why should we revolt them by purchasing them as cattle1 rather than receiving them as fellow-men8 ,spain has held off until she sees they are lost to her1 and now thinks it better to get something than nothing for them4 ,when she shall see ,south ,america equally desperate1 she will be wise to sell that also4 ,with us things are going on well4 ,the boisterous sea of liberty indeed is never without a wave1 and that from ,missouri is now rolling towards us1 but we shall ride over it as we have over all others4 ,it is not a moral question1 but one merely of power4 ,its object is to raise a geographical principle for the choice of a president1 and the noise will be kept up till that is effected4 ,all know that permitting the slaves of the south to spread into the west will not add one being to that unfortunate condition1 that it will increase the happiness of those existing1 and by spreading them over a larger surface1 will dilute the evil everywhere1 and facilitate the means of getting finally rid of it1 an event more anxiously wished by those on whom it presses than by the noisy pretenders to exclusive humanity4 ,in the meantime1 it is a ladder for rivals climbing to power4 ,in a letter to ,mr4 ,porrey1 of ,march #ahth1 #ahai1 ,i informed him of the success of our application to ,congress on his behalf4 ,i enclosed this letter to you1 but hearing nothing from him1 and as you say nothing of it in yours of ,july #bjth1 ,i am not without fear it may have miscarried4 ,in the present ,i enclose for him the ,auditor's certificate1 and the letters of ,general ,washington and myself1 which he had forwarded to me with a request of their return4 ,your kindness in delivering this will render unnecessary another letter from me1 an effort which necessarily obliges me to spare myself4 ,if you shall hear from me more seldom than heretofore1 ascribe it1 my ever dear friend1 to the heavy load of seventy-seven years and to waning health1 but not to weakened affections2 these will continue what they have ever been1 and will ever be sincere and warm to the latest breath of yours devotedly4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,roscoe4 ,,monticello1 ,december #bg1 #ahbj4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your letter received more than a twelvemonth ago1 with the two tracts on penal jurisprudence1 and the literary institution of ,liverpool1 ought long since to have called for the thanks ,i now return1 had it been in my power sooner to have tendered them4 ,but a long continuance of ill health has suspended all power of answering the kind attentions with which ,i have been honored during it2 and it is only now that a state of slow and uncertain convalescence enables me to make acknowledgments which have been so long and painfully delayed4 ,the treatise on penal jurisprudence ,i read with great pleasure4 ,beccaria had demonstrated general principles1 but practical applications were difficult4 ,our ,states are trying them with more or less success2 and the great light you have thrown on the subject will1 ,i am sure1 be useful to our experiment4 ,for the thing1 as yet1 is but in experiment4 ,your ,liverpool institution will also aid us in the organization of our new ,university1 an establishment now in progress in this ,state1 and to which my remaining days and faculties will be devoted4 ,when ready for its ,professors1 we shall apply for them chiefly to your island4 ,were we content to remain stationary in science1 we should take them from among ourselves2 but1 desirous of advancing1 we must seek them in countries already in advance2 and identity of language points to our best resource4 ,to furnish inducements1 we provide for the ,professors separate buildings1 in which themselves and their families may be handsomely and comfortably lodged1 and to liberal salaries will be added lucrative perquisites4 ,this institution will be based on the illimitable freedom of the human mind4 ,for here we are not afraid to follow truth wherever it may lead1 nor to tolerate any error so long as reason is left free to combat it4 ,we are looking with wonder at what is passing among you4 ,it ,resembles ocean into tempest wrought1 ,to waft a feather1 or to drown a fly4 ,there must be something in these agitations more than meets the eye of a distant spectator4 ,your queen must be used in this as a rallying point merely1 around which are gathering the discontents of every quarter and character4 ,if these flowed from theories of government only1 and if merely from the heads of speculative men1 they would admit of parley1 of negotiation1 of management4 ,but ,i fear they are the workings of hungry bellies1 which nothing but food will fill and quiet4 ,i sincerely wish you safely out of them4 ,circumstances have nourished between our kindred countries angry dispositions which both ought long since to have banished from their bosoms4 ,i have ever considered a cordial affection as the first interest of both4 ,no nation on earth can hurt us so much as yours1 none be more useful to you than ours4 ,the obstacle1 we have believed1 was in the obstinate and unforgiving temper of your late king1 and a continuance of his prejudices kept up from habit1 after he was with drawn from power4 ,i hope ,i now see symptoms of sounder views in your government2 in which ,i know it will be cordially met by ours1 as it would have been by every administration which has existed under our present constitution4 ,none desired it more cordially than myself1 whatever different opinions were impressed on your government by a party who wishes to have its weight in their scale as its exclusive friends4 ,my ancient friend and classmate1 ,james ,maury1 informs me by letter that he has sent me a bust which ,i shall receive with great pleasure and thankfulness1 and shall arrange in honorable file with those of some cherished characters4 ,will you permit me to place here my affectionate souvenirs of him1 and accept for yourself the assurance of the highest consideration and esteem4 ,,to ,,francis ,,eppes4 ,,monticello1 ,january #ai1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,francis1--,your letter of the #ast came safely to hand4 ,i am sorry you have lost ,mr4 ,elliot1 however the kindness of ,dr4 ,cooper will be able to keep you in the track of what is worthy of your time4 ,you ask my opinion of ,lord ,bolingbroke and ,thomas ,paine4 ,they were alike in making bitter enemies of the priests and pharisees of their day4 ,both were honest men2 both advocates for human liberty4 ,paine wrote for a country which permitted him to push his reasoning to whatever length it would go4 ,lord ,bolingbroke in one restrained by a constitution1 and by public opinion4 ,he was called indeed a tory2 but his writings prove him a stronger advocate for liberty than any of his countrymen1 the whigs of the present day4 ,irritated by his exile1 he committed one act unworthy of him1 in connecting himself momentarily with a prince rejected by his country4 ,but he redeemed that single act by his establishment of the principles which proved it to be wrong4 ,these two persons differed remarkably in the style of their writing1 each leaving a model of what is most perfect in both extremes of the simple and the sublime4 ,no writer has exceeded ,paine in ease and familiarity of style1 in perspicuity of expression1 happiness of elucidation1 and in simple and unassuming language4 ,in this he may be compared with ,dr4 ,franklin2 and indeed his ,common ,sense was1 for awhile1 believed to have been written by ,dr4 ,franklin1 and published under the borrowed name of ,paine1 who had come over with him from ,england4 ,lord ,bolingbroke's1 on the other hand1 is a style of the highest order4 ,the lofty1 rhythmical1 full-flowing eloquence of ,cicero4 ,periods of just measure1 their members proportioned1 their close full and round4 ,his conceptions1 too1 are bold and strong1 his diction copious1 polished and commanding as his subject4 ,his writings are certainly the finest samples in the ,english language1 of the eloquence proper for the ,senate4 ,his political tracts are safe reading for the most timid religionist1 his philosophical1 for those who are not afraid to trust their reason with discussions of right and wrong4 ,you have asked my opinion of these persons1 and1 to you1 ,i have given it freely4 ,but1 remember1 that ,i am old1 that ,i wish not to make new enemies1 nor to give offence to those who would consider a difference of opinion as sufficient ground for unfriendly dispositions4 ,god bless you1 and make you what ,i wish you to be4 ,,to ,,archibald ,,thweat4 ,,monticello1 ,january #ai1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i duly received your favor of the #aath1 covering ,judge ,roane's letter1 which ,i now return4 ,of the kindness of his sentiments expressed towards myself ,i am highly sensible2 and could ,i believe that my public services had merited the approbation he so indulgently bestows1 the satisfaction ,i should derive from it would be reward enough to his wish that ,i would take a part in the transactions of the present day4 ,i am sensible of my incompetence4 ,for first1 ,i know little about them1 having long withdrawn my attention from public affairs1 and resigned myself with folded arms to the care of those who are to care for us all4 ,and1 next1 the hand of time pressing heavily on me1 in mind as well as body1 leaves to neither sufficient energy to engage in public contentions4 ,i am sensible of the inroads daily making by the federal1 into the jurisdiction of its co-ordinate associates1 the ,state governments4 ,the legislative and executive branches may sometimes err1 but elections and dependence will bring them to rights4 ,the judiciary branch is the instrument which1 working like gravity1 without intermission1 is to press us at last into one consolidated mass4 ,against this ,i know no one who1 equally with ,judge ,roane himself1 possesses the power and the courage to make resistance2 and to him ,i look1 and have long looked1 as our strongest bulwark4 ,if ,congress fails to shield the ,states from dangers so palpable and so imminent1 the ,states must shield themselves1 and meet the invader foot to foot4 ,this is already half done by ,colonel ,taylor's book2 because a conviction that we are right accomplishes half the difficulty of correcting wrong4 ,this book is the most effectual retraction of our government to its original principles which has ever yet been sent by heaven to our aid4 ,every ,state in the ,union should give a copy to every member they elect1 as a standing instruction1 and ours should set the example4 ,accept with ,mrs4 ,thweat the assurance of my affectionate and respectful attachment4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,january #bb1 #ahba4 ,i was quite rejoiced1 dear ,sir1 to see that you had health and spirits enough to take part in the late convention of your ,state1 for revising its constitution1 and to bear your share in its debates and labors4 ,the amendments of which we have as yet heard1 prove the advance of liberalism in the intervening period2 and encourage a hope that the human mind will some day get back to the freedom it enjoyed two thousand years ago4 ,this country1 which has given to the world the example of physical liberty1 owes to it that of moral emancipation also1 for as yet it is but nominal with us4 ,the inquisition of public opinion overwhelms in practice1 the freedom asserted by the laws in theory4 ,our anxieties in this quarter are all concentrated in the question1 what does the ,holy ,alliance in and out of ,congress mean to do with us on the ,missouri question8 ,and this1 by-the-bye1 is but the name of the case1 it is only the ,john ,doe or ,richard ,roe of the ejectment4 ,the real question1 as seen in the ,states afflicted with this unfortunate population1 is1 are our slaves to be presented with freedom and a dagger8 ,for if ,congress has the power to regulate the conditions of the inhabitants of the ,states1 within the ,states1 it will be but another exercise of that power1 to declare that all shall be free4 ,are we then to see again ,athenian and ,lacedemonian confederacies8 ,to wage another ,peloponnesian war to settle the ascendency between them8 ,or is this the tocsin of merely a servile war8 ,that remains to be seen2 but not1 ,i hope1 by you or me4 ,surely1 they will parley awhile1 and give us time to get out of the way4 ,what a ,bedlamite is man8 ,but let us turn from our own uneasiness to the miseries of our southern friends4 ,bolivar and ,morillo1 it seems1 have come to the parley1 with dispositions at length to stop the useless effusion of human blood in that quarter4 ,i feared from the beginning1 that these people were not yet sufficiently enlightened for self-government2 and that after wading through blood and slaughter1 they would end in military tyrannies1 more or less numerous4 ,yet as they wished to try the experiment1 ,i wished them success in it2 they have now tried it1 and will possibly find that their safest road will be an accommodation with the mother country1 which shall hold them together by the single link of the same chief magistrate1 leaving to him power enough to keep them in peace with one another1 and to themselves the essential power of self-government and self-improvement1 until they shall be sufficiently trained by education and habits of freedom1 to walk safely by themselves4 ,representative government1 native functionaries1 a qualified negative on their laws1 with a previous security by compact for freedom of commerce1 freedom of the press1 habeas corpus and trial by jury1 would make a good beginning4 ,this last would be the school in which their people might begin to learn the exercise of civic duties as well as rights4 ,for freedom of religion they are not yet prepared4 ,the scales of bigotry have not sufficiently fallen from their eyes1 to accept it for themselves individually1 much less to trust others with it4 ,but that will come in time1 as well as a general ripeness to break entirely from the parent stem4 ,you see1 my dear ,sir1 how easily we prescribe for others a cure for their difficulties1 while we cannot cure our own4 ,we must leave both1 ,i believe1 to heaven1 and wrap ourselves up in the mantle of resignation1 and of that friendship of which ,i tender to you the most sincere assurances4 ,,to ,,joseph ,c4 ,,cabell4 ,,monticello1 ,january #ca1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favors of the #ahth and #beth came together1 three days ago4 ,they fill me with gloom as to the dispositions of our legislature towards the ,university4 ,i perceive that ,i am not to live to see it opened4 ,as to what had better be done within the limits of their will1 ,i trust with entire confidence to what yourself1 ,gen4 ,breckenridge and ,mr4 ,johnson shall think best4 ,you will see what is practicable1 and give it such shape as you think best4 ,if a loan is to be resorted to1 ,i think sixty thousand dollars will be necessary1 including the library4 ,its instalments cannot begin until those of the former loan are accomplished2 and they should not begin later1 nor be less than thirteen thousand dollars a year4 7,i think it safe to retain two thousand dollars a year for care of the buildings1 improvement of the grounds1 and unavoidable contingencies47 ,to extinguish this second loan1 will require between five and six instalments1 which will carry us to the end of #ahcc1 or thirteen years from this time4 ,my individual opinion is1 that we had better not open the institution until the buildings1 library1 and all1 are finished1 and our funds cleared of incumbrance4 ,those buildings once erected1 will secure the full object infallibly at the end of thirteen years1 and as much earlier as the legislature shall choose4 ,and if we were to begin sooner1 with half funds only1 it would satisfy the common mind1 prevent their aid beyond that point1 and our institution remaining at that forever1 would be no more than the paltry academies we now have4 ,even with the whole funds we shall be reduced to six professors4 ,while ,harvard will still prime it over us with her twenty professors4 ,how many of our youths she now has1 learning the lessons of anti-,missourianism1 ,i know not2 but a gentleman lately from ,princeton1 told me he saw there the list of the students at that place1 and that more than half were ,virginians4 ,these will return home1 no doubt1 deeply impressed with the sacred principles of our ,holy ,alliance of restrictionists4 ,but the gloomiest of all prospects1 is in the desertion of the best friends of the institution1 for desertion ,i must call it4 ,i know not the necessities which may force this on you4 ,general ,cocke1 you say1 will explain them to me2 but ,i cannot conceive them1 nor persuade myself they are uncontrollable4 ,i have ever hoped1 that yourself1 ,gen4 ,breckenridge and ,mr4 ,johnson would stand at your posts in the legislature1 until everything was effected1 and the institution opened4 ,if it is so difficult to get along with all the energy and influence of our present colleagues in the legislature1 how can we expect to proceed at all1 reducing our moving power8 ,i know well your devotion to your country1 and your foresight of the awful scenes coming on her1 sooner or later4 ,with this foresight1 what service can we ever render her equal to this8 ,what object of our lives can we propose so important8 ,what interest of our own which ought not to be postponed to this8 ,health1 time1 labor1 on what in the single life which nature has given us1 can these be better bestowed than on this immortal boon to our country8 ,the exertions and the mortifications are temporary2 the benefit eternal4 ,if any member of our college of visitors could justifiably withdraw from this sacred duty1 it would be myself1 who1 quadragenis stipendiis jamdudum peractis1 have neither vigor of body nor mind left to keep the field2 but ,i will die in the last ditch1 and so ,i hope you will1 my friend1 as well as our firm-breasted brothers and colleagues1 ,mr4 ,johnson and ,gen4 ,breckenridge4 ,nature will not give you a second life wherein to atone for the omissions of this4 ,pray then1 dear and very dear ,sir1 do not think of deserting us1 but view the sacrifices which seem to stand in your way1 as the lesser duties1 and such as ought to be postponed to this1 the greatest of all4 ,continue with us in these holy labors1 until having seen their accomplishment1 we may say with old ,simeon1 nunc dimittas1 ,domine4 ,under all circumstances1 however1 of praise or blame1 ,i shall be affectionately yours4 ,,to ,,jared ,,mansfield1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,february #ac1 #ahba4 ,i am favored1 ,sir1 with your letter of ,january #bfth1 and am duly sensible of the honor proposed of giving to my portrait a place among the benefactors of our nation1 and of the establishment of ,west ,point in particular4 ,i have ever considered that establishment as of major importance to our country1 and in whatever ,i could do for it1 ,i viewed myself as performing a duty only4 ,this is certainly more than requited by the kind sentiments expressed in your letter4 ,the real debt of the institution is to its able and zealous professors4 ,mr4 ,sully1 ,i fear1 however1 will consider the trouble of his journey1 and the employment of his fine pencil1 as illy bestowed on an ottamy of #gh4 ,voltaire1 when requested by a female friend to sit for his bust by the sculptor ,pigalle1 answered1 ,j'ai soixante seize ans2 et ,m4 ,pigalle doit1 dit-on venir modeler mon visage4 ,mais1 ,madame1 il faudrait que j'eusse un visage4 ,on n'en devinerait peine la place mes yeux sont enfonces de trois pouces2 mes joues sont de vieux parchemin mal colls sur des os qui ne tiennent rien4 ,le peu de dents que j'avais est parti4 ,i will conclude1 however1 with him1 that what remains is at your service1 and that of the pencil of ,mr4 ,sully4 ,i shall be at home till the middle of ,april1 when ,i shall go for some time to an occasional and distant residence4 ,within this term ,mr4 ,sully will be pleased to consult his own convenience1 in which the state of the roads will of course have great weight4 ,every day of it will be equal with me4 ,i pray you1 ,sir1 to convey to the brethren of your institution1 and to accept for yourself also1 the assurance of my high consideration and regard4 ,,to ,,general ,,breckenridge4 ,,monticello1 ,february #ae1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i learn1 with deep affliction1 that nothing is likely to be done for our ,university this year4 ,so near as it is to the shore that one shove more would land it there1 ,i had hoped that would be given2 and that we should open with the next year an institution on which the fortunes of our country may depend more than may meet the general eye4 ,the reflections that the boys of this age are to be the men of the next2 that they should be prepared to receive the holy charge which we are cherishing to deliver over to them2 that in establishing an institution of wisdom for them1 we secure it to all our future generations2 that in fulfilling this duty1 we bring home to our own bosoms the sweet consolation of seeing our sons rising under a luminous tuition1 to destinies of high promise2 these are considerations which will occur to all2 but all1 ,i fear1 do not see the speck in our horizon which is to burst on us as a tornado1 sooner or later4 ,the line of division lately marked out between different portions of our confederacy1 is such as will never1 ,i fear1 be obliterated1 and we are now trusting to those who are against us in position and principle1 to fashion to their own form the minds and affections of our youth4 ,if1 as has been estimated1 we send three hundred thousand dollars a year to the northern seminaries1 for the instruction of our own sons1 then we must have there five hundred of our sons1 imbibing opinions and principles in discord with those of their own country4 ,this canker is eating on the vitals of our existence1 and if not arrested at once1 will be beyond remedy4 ,we are now certainly furnishing recruits to their school4 ,if it be asked what are we to do1 or said we cannot give the last lift to the ,university without stopping our primary schools1 and these we think most important2 ,i answer1 ,i know their importance4 ,nobody can doubt my zeal for the general instruction of the people4 ,who first started that idea8 ,i may surely say1 myself4 ,turn to the bill in the revised code1 which ,i drew more than forty years ago1 and before which the idea of a plan for the education of the people1 generally1 had never been suggested in this ,state4 ,there you will see developed the first rudiments of the whole system of general education we are now urging and acting on2 and it is well known to those with whom ,i have acted on this subject1 that ,i never have proposed a sacrifice of the primary to the ultimate grade of instruction4 ,let us keep our eye steadily on the whole system4 ,if we cannot do everything at once1 let us do one at a time4 ,the primary schools need no preliminary expense2 the ultimate grade requires a considerable expenditure in advance4 ,a suspension of proceeding for a year or two on the primary schools1 and an application of the whole income1 during that time1 to the completion of the buildings necessary for the ,university1 would enable us then to start both institutions at the same time4 ,the intermediate branch1 of colleges1 academies and private classical schools1 for the middle grade1 may hereafter receive any necessary aids when the funds shall become competent4 ,in the meantime1 they are going on sufficiently1 as they have ever yet gone on1 at the private expense of those who use them1 and who in numbers and means are competent to their own exigencies4 ,the experience of three years has1 ,i presume1 left no doubt that the present plan of primary schools1 of putting money into the hands of twelve hundred persons acting for nothing1 and under no responsibility1 is entirely inefficient4 ,some other must be thought of2 and during this pause1 if it be only for a year1 the whole revenue of that year1 with that of the last three years which has not been already thrown away1 would place our ,university in readiness to start with a better organization of primary schools1 and both may then go on1 hand in hand1 forever4 ,no diminution of the capital will in this way have been incurred2 a principle which ought to be deemed sacred4 ,a relinquishment of interest on the late loan of sixty thousand dollars1 would so far1 also1 forward the ,university without lessening the capital4 ,but what may be best done ,i leave with entire confidence to yourself and your colleagues in legislation1 who know better than ,i do the conditions of the literary fund and its wisest application2 and ,i shall acquiesce with perfect resignation to their will4 ,i have brooded1 perhaps with fondness1 over this establishment1 as it held up to me the hope of continuing to be useful while ,i continued to live4 ,i had believed that the course and circumstances of my life had placed within my power some services favorable to the outset of the institution4 ,but this may be egotism2 pardonable1 perhaps1 when ,i express a consciousness that my colleagues and successors will do as well1 whatever the legislature shall enable them to do4 ,i have thus1 my dear ,sir1 opened my bosom1 with all its anxieties1 freely to you4 ,i blame nobody for seeing things in a different light4 ,i am sure that all act conscientiously1 and that all will be done honestly and wisely which can be done4 ,i yield the concerns of the world with cheerfulness to those who are appointed in the order of nature to succeed to them2 and for yourself1 for our colleagues1 and for all in charge of our country's future fame and fortune1 ,i offer up sincere prayers4 ,,to ,,dabney ,,terrell1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,february #bf1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,while you were in this neighborhood1 you mentioned to me your intention of studying the law1 and asked my opinion as to the sufficient course of reading4 ,i gave it to you1 ore tenus1 and with so little consideration that ,i do not remember what it was2 but ,i have since recollected that ,i once wrote a letter to ,dr4 ,cooper1#ac on good consideration of the subject4 ,he was then law-lecturer1 ,i believe1 at ,carlisle4 ,my stiffening wrist makes writing now a slow and painful operation1 but my granddaughter ,ellen undertakes to copy the letter1 which ,i shall enclose herein4 ,i notice in that letter four distinct epochs at which the ,english laws have been reviewed1 and their whole body1 as existing at each epoch1 well digested into a code4 ,these digests were by ,bracton1 ,coke1 ,matthew ,bacon and ,blackstone4 ,bracton having written about the commencement of the extant statutes1 may be considered as having given a digest of the laws then in being1 written and unwritten1 and forming1 therefore1 the textual code of what is called the common law1 just at the period too when it begins to be altered by statutes to which we can appeal4 ,but so much of his matter is become obsolete by change of circumstances or altered by statute1 that the student may omit him for the present1 and #ast4 ,begin with #ad;,coke's four ,institutes4 ,these give a complete body of the law as it stood in the reign of the first ,james1 an epoch the more interesting to us1 as we separated at that point from ,english legislation1 and acknowledge no subsequent statutory alterations4 #b4 ,then passing over 7for occasional reading as hereafter proposed7 all the reports and treatises to the time of ,matthew ,bacon1 read his abridgment1 compiled about one hundred years after ,coke's1 in which they are all embodied4 ,this gives numerous applications of the old principles to new cases1 and gives the general state of the ,english law at that period4 ,here1 too1 the student should take up the chancery branch of the law1 by reading the first and second abridgments of the cases in ,equity4 ,the second is by the same ,matthew ,bacon1 the first having been published some time before4 ,the alphabetical order adopted by ,bacon1 is certainly not as satisfactory as the systematic4 ,but the arrangement is under very general and leading heads1 and these1 indeed1 with very little difficulty1 might be systematically instead of alphabetically arranged and read4 #c4 ,passing now in like manner over all intervening reports and tracts1 the student may take up ,blackstone's ,commentaries1 published about twenty-five years later than ,bacon's abridgment1 and giving the substance of these new reports and tracts4 ,this review is not so full as that of ,bacon1 by any means1 but better digested4 ,here1 too1 ,wooddeson should be read as supplementary to ,blackstone1 under heads too shortly treated by him4 ,fonblanque's edition of ,francis' ,maxims of ,equity1 and ,bridgman's digested ,index1 into which the latter cases are incorporated1 are also supplementary in the chancery branch1 in which ,blackstone is very short4 ,this course comprehends about twenty-six #hvo volumes1 and reading four or five hours a day would employ about two years4 ,after these1 the best of the reporters since ,blackstone should be read for the new cases which have occurred since his time4 ,which they are ,i know not1 as all of them are since my time4 ,by way of change and relief for another hour or two in the day1 should be read the law-tracts of merit which are many1 and among them all those of ,baron ,gilbert are of the first order4 ,in these hours1 too1 may be read ,bracton1 7now translated17 and ,justinian's ,institute4 ,the method of these two last works is very much the same1 and their language often quite so4 ,justinian is very illustrative of the doctrines of equity1 and is often appealed to1 and ,cooper's edition is the best on account of the analogies and contrasts he has given of the ,roman and ,english law4 ,after ,bracton1 ,reeves' ,history of the ,english ,law may be read to advantage4 ,during this same hour or two of lighter law reading1 select and leading cases of the reporters may be successively read1 which the several digests will have pointed out and referred to4 99 99 99 99 99 ,i have here sketched the reading in common law and chancery which ,i suppose necessary for a reputable practitioner in those courts4 ,but there are other branches of law in which1 although it is not expected he should be an adept1 yet when it occurs to speak of them1 it should be understandingly to a decent degree4 ,there are the ,admiralty law1 ,ecclesiastical law1 and the ,law of ,nations4 ,i would name as elementary books in these branches1 ,molloy de ,jure ,maritimo4 ,brown's ,compend4 of the ,civil and ,admiralty ,law1 #b vols4 #hvo4 ,the ,jura ,ecclesiastica1 #b vols4 #hvo4 ,and ,les ,institutions du droit de la ,nature et des ,gens de ,reyneval1 #a vol4 #hvo4 ,besides these six hours of law reading1 light and heavy1 and those necessary for the repasts of the day1 for exercise and sleep1 which suppose to be ten or twelve1 there will still be six or eight hours for reading history1 politics1 ethics1 physics1 oratory1 poetry1 criticism1 c41 as necessary as law to form an accomplished lawyer4 ,the letter to ,dr4 ,cooper1 with this as a supplement1 will give you those ideas on a sufficient course of law reading which ,i ought to have done with more consideration at the moment of your first request4 ,accept them now as a testimony of my esteem1 and of sincere wishes for your success2 and the family1 un voce1 desires me to convey theirs with my own affectionate salutations4 ,,footnotes3 #ac ,january #af1 #ahad4 #ad ,since the date of this letter1 a most important and valuable edition has been published of ,coke's ,first ,institute4 ,the editor1 ,thomas1 has analyzed the whole work1 and re-composed its matter in the order of ,blackstone's ,commentaries1 not omitting a sentence of ,lord ,coke's text1 nor inserting one not his4 ,in notes1 under the text1 he has given the modern decisions relating to the same subjects1 rendering it thus as methodical1 lucid1 easy and agreeable to the reader as ,blackstone1 and more precise and profound4 ,it can now be no longer doubted that this is the very best elementary work for a beginner in the study of the law4 ,it is not1 ,i suppose1 to be had in this ,state1 and questionable if in the ,north1 as yet1 and it is dear1 costing in ,england four guineas or nineteen dollars1 to which add the duty here on imported books1 which1 on the three volumes #hvo1 is something more than three dollars1 or one dollar the #hvo volume4 ,this is a tax on learned readers to support printers for the readers of ,the ,delicate ,distress1 and ,the ,wild ,irish ,boy4 ,,to ,,timothy ,,pickering1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,february #bg1 #ahba4 ,i have received1 ,sir1 your favor of the #abth1 and ,i assure you ,i received it with pleasure4 ,it is true1 as you say1 that we have differed in political opinions2 but ,i can say with equal truth1 that ,i never suffered a political to become a personal difference4 ,i have been left on this ground by some friends whom ,i dearly loved1 but ,i was never the first to separate4 ,with some others1 of politics different from mine1 ,i have continued in the warmest friendship to this day1 and to all1 and to yourself particularly1 ,i have ever done moral justice4 ,i thank you for ,mr4 ,channing's discourse1 which you have been so kind as to forward me4 ,it is not yet at hand1 but is doubtless on its way4 ,i had received it through another channel1 and read it with high satisfaction4 ,no one sees with greater pleasure than myself the progress of reason in its advances towards rational ,christianity4 ,when we shall have done away the incomprehensible jargon of the ,trinitarian arithmetic1 that three are one1 and one is three2 when we shall have knocked down the artificial scaffolding1 reared to mask from view the simple structure of ,jesus2 when1 in short1 we shall have unlearned everything which has been taught since his day1 and got back to the pure and simple doctrines he inculcated1 we shall then be truly and worthily his disciples2 and my opinion is that if nothing had ever been added to what flowed purely from his lips1 the whole world would at this day have been ,christian4 ,i know that the case you cite1 of ,dr4 ,drake1 has been a common one4 ,the religion-builders have so distorted and deformed the doctrines of ,jesus1 so muffled them in mysticisms1 fancies and falsehoods1 have caricatured them into forms so monstrous and inconceivable1 as to shock reasonable thinkers1 to revolt them against the whole1 and drive them rashly to pronounce its founder an impostor4 ,had there never been a commentator1 there never would have been an infidel4 ,in the present advance of truth1 which we both approve1 ,i do not know that you and ,i may think alike on all points4 ,as the ,creator has made no two faces alike1 so no two minds1 and probably no two creeds4 ,we well know that among ,unitarians themselves there are strong shades of difference1 as between ,doctors ,price and ,priestley1 for example4 ,so there may be peculiarities in your creed and in mine4 ,they are honestly formed without doubt4 ,i do not wish to trouble the world with mine1 nor to be troubled for them4 ,these accounts are to be settled only with him who made us2 and to him we leave it1 with charity for all others1 of whom1 also1 he is the only rightful and competent judge4 ,i have little doubt that the whole of our country will soon be rallied to the unity of the ,creator1 and1 ,i hope1 to the pure doctrines of ,jesus also4 ,in saying to you so much1 and without reserve1 on a subject on which ,i never permit myself to go before the public1 ,i know that ,i am safe against the infidelities which have so often betrayed my letters to the strictures of those for whom they were not written1 and to whom ,i never meant to commit my peace4 ,to yourself ,i wish every happiness1 and will conclude1 as you have done1 in the same simple style of antiquity1 da operam ut valeas2 hoc mihi gratius facere nihil potes4 ,,to ,,judge ,,roane4 ,,monticello1 ,march #i1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i am indebted for your favor of ,february #beth1 and especially for your friendly indulgence to my excuses for retiring from the polemical world4 ,i should not shrink from the post of duty1 had not the decays of nature withdrawn me from the list of combatants4 ,great decline in the energies of the body import naturally a corresponding wane of the mind1 and a longing after tranquillity as the last and sweetest asylum of age4 ,it is a law of nature that the generations of men should give way1 one to another1 and ,i hope that the one now on the stage will preserve for their sons the political blessings delivered into their hands by their fathers4 ,time indeed changes manners and notions1 and so far we must expect institutions to bend to them4 ,but time produces also corruption of principles1 and against this it is the duty of good citizens to be ever on the watch1 and if the gangrene is to prevail at last1 let the day be kept off as long as possible4 ,we see already germs of this1 as might be expected4 ,but we are not the less bound to press against them4 ,the multiplication of public offices1 increase of expense beyond income1 growth and entailment of a public debt1 are indications soliciting the employment of the pruning-knife2 and ,i doubt not it will be employed2 good principles being as yet prevalent enough for that4 ,the great object of my fear is the federal judiciary4 ,that body1 like gravity1 ever acting1 with noiseless foot1 and unalarming advance1 gaining ground step by step1 and holding what it gains1 is ingulphing insidiously the special governments into the jaws of that which feeds them4 ,the recent recall to first principles1 however1 by ,colonel ,taylor1 by yourself1 and now by ,alexander ,smith1 will1 ,i hope1 be heard and obeyed1 and that a temporary check will be effected4 ,yet be not weary of well doing4 ,let the eye of vigilance never be closed4 ,last and most portentous of all is the ,missouri question4 ,it is smeared over for the present2 but its geographical demarcation is indelible4 ,what it is to become1 ,i see not2 and leave to those who will live to see it4 ,the ,university will give employment to my remaining years1 and quite enough for my senile faculties4 ,it is the last act of usefulness ,i can render1 and could ,i see it open ,i would not ask an hour more of life4 ,to you ,i hope many will still be given2 and1 certain they will all be employed for the good of our beloved country1 ,i salute you with sentiments of especial friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,judge ,,roane4 ,,monticello1 ,june #bg1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have received through the hands of the ,governor1 ,colonel ,taylor's letter to you4 ,it is with extreme reluctance that ,i permit myself to usurp the office of an adviser of the public1 what books they should read1 and what not4 ,i yield1 however1 on this occasion to your wish and that of ,colonel ,taylor1 and do what 7with a single exception only7 ,i never did before1 on the many similar applications made to me4 ,on reviewing my letters to ,colonel ,taylor and to ,mr4 ,thweat1 neither appeared exactly proper4 ,each contained matter which might give offence to the judges1 without adding strength to the opinion4 ,i have1 therefore1 out of the two1 cooked up what may be called an extract of a letter from ,th3 ,j4 to ----2 but without saying it is published with my consent4 ,that would forever deprive me of the ground of declining the office of a ,reviewer of books in future cases4 ,i sincerely wish the attention of the public may be drawn to the doctrines of the book2 and if this self-styled extract may contribute to it1 ,i shall be gratified4 ,i salute you with constant friendship and respect4 ,,extract ,,of ,a ,,letter ,,from ,,th3 ,,jefferson ,,to ----4 ,i have read ,colonel ,taylor's book of ,constructions ,construed1 with great satisfaction1 and1 ,i will say1 with edification2 for ,i acknowledge it corrected some errors of opinion into which ,i had slidden without sufficient examination4 ,it is the most logical retraction of our governments to the original and true principles of the constitution creating them1 which has appeared since the adoption of that instrument4 ,i may not perhaps concur in all its opinions1 great and small2 for no two men ever thought alike on so many points4 ,but on all its important questions1 it contains the true political faith1 to which every catholic republican should steadfastly hold4 ,it should be put into the hands of all our functionaries1 authoritatively1 as a standing instruction1 and true exposition of our ,constitution1 as understood at the time we agreed to it4 ,it is a fatal heresy to suppose that either our ,state governments are superior to the federal1 or the federal to the ,states4 ,the people1 to whom all authority belongs1 have divided the powers of government into two distinct departments1 the leading characters of which are foreign and domestic2 and they have appointed for each a distinct set of functionaries4 ,these they have made co-ordinate1 checking and balancing each other1 like the three cardinal departments in the individual ,states3 each equally supreme as to the powers delegated to itself1 and neither authorized ultimately to decide what belongs to itself1 or to its coparcenor in government4 ,as independent1 in fact1 as different nations1 a spirit of forbearance and compromise1 therefore1 and not of encroachment and usurpation1 is the healing balm of such a constitution2 and each party should prudently shrink from all approach to the line of demarcation1 instead of rashly overleaping it1 or throwing grapples ahead to haul to hereafter4 ,but1 finally1 the peculiar happiness of our blessed system is1 that in differences of opinion between these different sets of servants1 the appeal is to neither1 but to their employers peaceably assembled by their representatives in ,convention4 ,this is more rational than the jus fortioris1 or the cannon's mouth1 the ultima et sola ratio regum4 ,,to ,,general ,,dearborne4 ,,monticello1 ,august #ag1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of the #hth came to hand yesterday evening4 ,i hope you will never suppose your letters to be among those which are troublesome to me4 ,they are always welcome1 and it is among my great comforts to hear from my ancient colleagues1 and to know that they are well4 ,the affectionate recollection of ,mrs4 ,dearborne1 cherished by our family1 will ever render her health and happiness interesting to them4 ,you are so far astern of ,mr4 ,adams and myself1 that you must not yet talk of old age4 ,i am happy to hear of his good health4 ,i think he will outlive us all1 ,i mean the ,declaration-men1 although our senior since the death of ,colonel ,floyd4 ,it is a race in which ,i have no ambition to win4 ,man1 like the fruit he eats1 has his period of ripeness4 ,like that1 too1 if he continues longer hanging to the stem1 it is but an useless and unsightly appendage4 ,i rejoice1 with you that the ,state of ,missouri is at length a member of our ,union4 ,whether the question it excited is dead1 or only sleepeth1 ,i do not know4 ,i see only that it has given resurrection to the ,hartford convention men4 ,they have had the address1 by playing on the honest feelings of our former friends1 to seduce them from their kindred spirits1 and to borrow their weight into the federal scale4 ,desperate of regaining power under political distinctions1 they have adroitly wriggled into its seat under the auspices of morality1 and are again in the ascendency from which their sins had hurled them4 ,it is indeed of little consequence who governs us1 if they sincerely and zealously cherish the principles of union and republicanism4 ,i still believe that the ,western extension of our confederacy will ensure its duration1 by overruling local factions1 which might shake a smaller association4 ,but whatever may be the merit or demerit of that acquisition1 ,i divide it with my colleagues1 to whose councils ,i was indebted for a course of administration which1 notwithstanding this late coalition of clay and brass1 will1 ,i hope1 continue to receive the approbation of our country4 ,the portrait by ,stewart was received in due time and good order1 and claims1 for this difficult acquisition1 the thanks of the family1 who join me in affectionate souvenirs of ,mrs4 ,dearborne and yourself4 ,my particular salutations to both flow1 as ever1 from the heart1 continual and warm4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,c4 ,,hammond4 ,,monticello1 ,august #ah1 #ahba4 ,,sir1--,your favor of the #gth is just now received4 ,the letter to which it refers was written by me with the sole view of recommending to the study of my fellow citizens a book which ,i considered as containing more genuine doctrines on the subject of our government1 and carrying us back more truly to its fundamental principles1 than any one which had been written since the adoption of our constitution4 ,as confined to this object1 ,i thought1 and still think1 its language as plain and intelligible as ,i can make it4 ,but when we see inspired writings made to speak whatever opposite controversialists wish them to say1 we cannot ourselves expect to find language incapable of similar distortion4 ,my expressions were general2 their perversion is in their misapplication to a particular case4 ,to test them truly1 they should turn to the book with whose opinion they profess to coincide4 ,if the book establishes that a ,state has no right to tax the monied property within its limits1 or that it can be called1 as a party1 to the bar of the federal judiciary1 then they may infer that these are my opinions4 ,if no such doctrines are there1 my letter does not authorize their imputation to me4 ,it has long1 however1 been my opinion1 and ,i have never shrunk from its expression1 7although ,i do not choose to put it into a newspaper1 nor1 like a ,priam in armor1 offer myself its champion17 that the germ of dissolution of our federal government is in the constitution of the federal judiciary2 an irresponsible body1 7for impeachment is scarcely a scare-crow17 working like gravity by night and by day1 gaining a little to-day and a little to-morrow1 and advancing its noiseless step like a thief1 over the field of jurisdiction1 until all shall be usurped from the ,states1 and the government of all be consolidated into one4 ,to this ,i am opposed2 because1 when all government1 domestic and foreign1 in little as in great things1 shall be drawn to ,washington as the centre of all power1 it will render powerless the checks provided of one government on another1 and will become as venal and oppressive as the government from which we separated4 ,it will be as in ,europe1 where every man must be either pike or gudgeon1 hammer or anvil4 ,our functionaries and theirs are wares from the same work-shop2 made of the same materials1 and by the same hand4 ,if the ,states look with apathy on this silent descent of their government into the gulf which is to swallow all1 we have only to weep over the human character formed uncontrollable but by a rod of iron1 and the blasphemers of man1 as incapable of self-government1 become his true historians4 ,but let me beseech you1 ,sir1 not to let this letter get into a newspaper4 ,tranquillity1 at my age1 is the supreme good of life4 ,i think it a duty1 and it is my earnest wish1 to take no further part in public affairs2 to leave them to the existing generation to whose turn they have fallen1 and to resign the remains of a decaying body and mind to their protection4 ,the abuse of confidence by publishing my letters has cost me more than all other pains1 and make me afraid to put pen to paper in a letter of sentiment4 ,if ,i have done it frankly in answer to your letter1 it is in full trust that ,i shall not be thrown by you into the arena of a newspaper4 ,i salute you with great respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,september #ab1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i am just returned from my other home1 and shall within a week go back to it for the rest of the autumn4 ,i find here your favor of ,august #bjth1 and was before in arrear for that of ,may #aith4 ,i cannot answer1 but join in1 your question of ,may #aith4 ,are we to surrender the pleasing hopes of seeing improvement in the moral and intellectual condition of man8 ,the events of ,naples and ,piedmont cast a gloomy cloud over that hope1 and ,spain and ,portugal are not beyond jeopardy4 ,and what are we to think of this northern triumvirate1 arming their nations to dictate despotisms to the rest of the world8 ,and the evident connivance of ,england1 as the price of secret stipulations for continental armies1 if her own should take side with her malcontent and pulverized people8 ,and what of the poor ,greeks1 and their small chance of amelioration even if the hypocritical ,autocrat should take them under the iron cover of his ,ukazes4 ,would this be lighter or safer than that of the ,turk8 ,these1 my dear friend1 are speculations for the new generation1 as1 before they will be resolved1 you and ,i must join our deceased brother ,floyd4 ,yet ,i will not believe our labors are lost4 ,i shall not die without a hope that light and liberty are on steady advance4 ,we have seen1 indeed1 once within the records of history1 a complete eclipse of the human mind continuing for centuries4 ,and this1 too1 by swarms of the same northern barbarians1 conquering and taking possession of the countries and governments of the civilized world4 ,should this be again attempted1 should the same northern hordes1 allured again by the corn1 wine1 and oil of the south1 be able again to settle their swarms in the countries of their growth1 the art of printing alone1 and the vast dissemination of books1 will maintain the mind where it is1 and raise the conquering ruffians to the level of the conquered1 instead of degrading these to that of their conquerors4 ,and even should the cloud of barbarism and despotism again obscure the science and liberties of ,europe1 this country remains to preserve and restore light and liberty to them4 ,in short1 the flames kindled on the #dth of ,july1 #aggf1 have spread over too much of the globe to be extinguished by the feeble engines of despotism2 on the contrary1 they will consume these engines and all who work them4 ,i think with you that there should be a school of instruction for our navy as well as artillery2 and ,i do not see why the same establishment might not suffice for both4 ,both require the same basis of general mathematics1 adding projectiles and fortifications for the artillery exclusively1 and astronomy and theory of navigation exclusively for the naval students4 ,berout conducted both schools in ,france1 and has left us the best book extant for their joint and separate instruction4 ,it ought not to require a separate professor4 ,a #dth of ,july oration delivered in the town of ,milford1 in your ,state1 gives to ,samuel ,chase the credit of having first started the cry of independence in the ears of his countrymen4 ,do you remember anything of this8 ,i do not4 ,i have no doubt it was uttered in ,massachusetts even before it was by ,thomas ,paine4 ,but certainly ,i never considered ,samuel ,chase as foremost1 or even forward in that hallowed cry4 ,i know that ,maryland hung heavily on our backs1 and that ,chase1 although first named1 was not most in unison with us of that delegation1 either in politics or morals1 et c'est ainsi que l'on ecrit l'histoire6 ,your doubt of the legitimacy of the word gloriola1 is resolved by ,cicero1 who1 in his letter to ,lucceius expresses a wish ut nos metipsi vivi gloriola nostra perfruamur4 ,affectionately adieu4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,montezillo1 ,september #bd1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i thank you for your favor of the #abth instant4 ,hope springs eternal4 ,eight millions of ,jews hope for a ,messiah more powerful and glorious than ,moses1 ,david1 or ,solomon2 who is to make them as powerful as he pleases4 ,some hundreds of millions of ,musslemen expect another prophet more powerful than ,mahomet1 who is to spread ,islamism over the whole earth4 ,hundreds of millions of ,christians expect and hope for a millennium in which ,jesus is to reign for a thousand years over the whole world before it is burnt up4 ,the ,hindoos expect another and final incarnation of ,vishnu1 who is to do great and wonderful things1 ,i know not what4 ,all these hopes are founded on real or pretended revelation4 ,the modern ,greeks1 too1 it seems1 hope for a deliverer who is to produce them--the ,themistocleses and ,demostheneses--the ,platos and ,aristotles--the ,solons and ,lycurguses4 ,on what prophecies they found their belief1 ,i know not4 ,you and ,i hope for splendid improvements in human society1 and vast amelioration in the condition of mankind4 ,our faith may be supposed by more rational arguments than any of the former1 ,i own that ,i am very sanguine in the belief of them1 as ,i hope and believe you are1 and your reasoning in your letter confirmed me in them4 ,as ,brother ,floyd has gone1 ,i am now the oldest of the little ,congressional group that remain4 ,i may therefore rationally hope to be the first to depart2 and as you are the youngest and most energetic in mind and body1 you may therefore rationally hope to be the last to take your flight1 and to rake up the fire as father ,sherman1 who always staid to the last1 and commonly two days afterwards1 used to say1 that it was his office to sit up and rake the ashes over the coals4 ,and much satisfaction may you have in your office4 ,the cholera morbus has done wonders in ,st4 ,helena and in ,london4 ,we shall soon hear of a negotiation for a second wife4 ,whether in the body1 or out of the body1 ,i shall always be your friend4 ,the anecdote of ,mr4 ,chase1 contained in the oration delivered at ,milford1 must be an idle rumor1 for neither the ,state of ,maryland1 nor of their delegates1 were very early in their conviction of the necessity of independence1 nor very forward in promoting it4 ,the old speaker ,tilghman1 ,johnson1 ,chase1 and ,paca1 were steady in promoting resistance1 but after some of them1 ,maryland sent one1 at least1 of the most turbulent ,tories that ever came to ,congress4 ,,to ----4 ,,monticello1 ,september #bh1 #ahba4 ,,sir1--,the government of the ,united ,states1 at a very early period1 when establishing its tariff on foreign importations1 were very much guided in their selection of objects by a desire to encourage manufactures within ourselves4 ,among other articles then selected were books1 on the importation of which a duty of fifteen per cent1 was imposed1 which1 by ordinary custom house charges1 amount to about eighteen per cent41 and adding the importing booksellers profit on this1 becomes about twenty-seven per cent4 ,this was useful at first1 perhaps1 towards exciting our printers to make a beginning in that business here4 ,but it is found in experience that the home demand is not sufficient to justify the re-printing any but the most popular ,english works1 and cheap editions of a few of the classics for schools4 ,for the editions of value1 enriched by notes1 commentaries1 c41 and for books in foreign living languages1 the demand here is too small and sparse to reimburse the expense of re-printing them4 ,none of these1 therefore1 are printed here1 and the duty on them becomes consequently not a protecting1 but really a prohibitory one4 ,it makes a very serious addition to the price of the book1 and falls chiefly on a description of persons little able to meet it4 ,students who are destined for professional callings1 as most of our scholars are1 are barely able for the most part to meet the expenses of tuition4 ,the addition of eighteen or twenty-seven per cent4 on the books necessary for their instruction1 amounts often to a prohibition as to them4 ,for want of these aids1 which are open to the students of all other nations but our own1 they enter on their course on a very unequal footing with those of the same professions in foreign countries1 and our citizens at large1 too1 who employ them1 do not derive from that employment all the benefit which higher qualifications would give them4 ,it is true that no duty is required on books imported for seminaries of learning1 but these1 locked up in libraries1 can be of no avail to the practical man when he wishes a recurrence to them for the uses of life4 ,of many important books of reference there is not perhaps a single copy in the ,united ,states2 of others but a few1 and these too distant often to be accessible to scholars generally4 ,it is believed1 therefore1 that if the attention of ,congress could be drawn to this article1 they would1 in their wisdom1 see its impolicy4 ,science is more important in a republican than in any other government4 ,and in an infant country like ours1 we must much depend for improvement on the science of other countries1 longer established1 possessing better means1 and more advanced than we are4 ,to prohibit us from the benefit of foreign light1 is to consign us to long darkness4 ,the northern seminaries following with parental solicitude the interests of their elevs in the course for which they have prepared them1 propose to petition ,congress on this subject1 and wish for the coperation of those of the south and west1 and ,i have been requested1 as more convenient in position than they are1 to solicit that coperation4 ,having no personal acquaintance with those who are charged with the direction of the college of ---- ----1 ,i do not know how more effectually to communicate these views to them1 than by availing myself of the knowledge ,i have of your zeal for the happiness and improvement of our country4 ,i take the liberty1 therefore1 of requesting you to place the subject before the proper authorities of that institution1 and if they approve the measure1 to solicit a concurrent proceeding on their part to carry it into effect4 ,besides petitioning ,congress1 ,i would propose that they address in their corporate capacity1 a letter to their delegates and senators in ,congress1 soliciting their best endeavors to obtain the repeal of the duty on imported books4 ,i cannot but suppose that such an application will be respected by them1 and will engage their votes and endeavors to effect an object so reasonable4 ,a conviction that science is important to the preservation of our republican government1 and that it is also essential to its protection against foreign power1 induces me1 on this occasion1 to step beyond the limits of that retirement to which age and inclination equally dispose me1 and ,i am without a doubt that the same considerations will induce you to excuse the trouble ,i propose to you1 and that you will kindly accept the assurance of my high respect and esteem4 ,,to ,,nathaniel ,,macon4 ,,monticello1 ,november #bc1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,absence at an occasional but distant residence1 prevented my receiving your friendly letter of ,october #bjth till three days ago4 ,a line from my good old friends is like balm to my soul4 ,you ask me what you are to do with my letter of ,september #aith8 ,i wrote it1 my dear ,sir1 with no other view than to pour my thoughts into your bosom4 ,i knew they would be safe there1 and ,i believed they would be welcome4 ,but if you think1 as you say1 that good may be done by showing it to a few well-tried friends1 ,i have no objection to that1 but ultimately you cannot do better than to throw it into the fire4 ,my confidence1 as you kindly observed1 has been often abused by the publication of my letters for the purposes of interest or vanity1 and it has been to me the source of much pain to be exhibited before the public in forms not meant for them4 ,i receive letters expressed in the most friendly and even affectionate terms1 sometimes1 perhaps1 asking my opinion on some subject4 ,i cannot refuse to answer such letters1 nor can ,i do it dryly and suspiciously4 ,among a score or two of such correspondents1 one perhaps betrays me4 ,i feel it mortifyingly1 but conclude ,i had better incur one treachery than offend a score or two of good people4 ,i sometimes expressly desire that my letter may not be published2 but this is so like requesting a man not to steal or cheat1 that ,i am ashamed of it after ,i have done it4 ,our government is now taking so steady a course as to show by what road it will pass to destruction1 to-wit3 by consolidation first1 and then corruption1 its necessary consequence4 ,the engine of consolidation will be the federal judiciary2 the two other branches1 the corrupting and corrupted instruments4 ,i fear an explosion in our ,state ,legislature4 ,i wish they may restrain themselves to a strong but temperate protestation4 ,virginia is not at present in favor with her co-,states4 ,an opposition headed by her would determine all the anti-,missouri ,states to take the contrary side4 ,she had better lie by1 therefore1 till the shoe shall pinch an eastern ,state4 ,let the cry be first raised from that quarter1 and we may fall into it with effect4 ,but ,i fear our eastern associates wish for consolidation1 in which they would be joined by the smaller ,states generally4 ,but1 with one foot in the grave1 ,i have no right to meddle with these things4 ,ever and affectionately yours4 ,,to ----4 ,,monticello1 ,november #bi1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,you have often gratified me by your astronomical communications1 and ,i am now about to amuse you with one of mine4 ,but ,i must first explain the circumstances which have drawn me into a speculation so foreign to the path of life which the times in which ,i have lived1 more than my own inclinations have led me to pursue4 ,i had long deemed it incumbent on the authorities of our country1 to have the great western wilderness beyond the ,mississippi1 explored1 to make known its geography1 its natural productions1 its general character and inhabitants4 ,two attempts which ,i had myself made formerly1 before the country was ours1 the one from west to east1 the other from east to west1 had both proved abortive4 ,when called to the administration of the general government1 ,i made this an object of early attention1 and proposed it to ,congress4 ,they voted a sum of five thousand dollars for its execution1 and ,i placed ,captain ,lewis at the head of the enterprise4 ,no man within the range of my acquaintance1 united so many of the qualifications necessary for its successful direction4 ,but he had not received such an astronomical education as might enable him to give us the geography of the country with the precision desired4 ,the ,missouri and ,columbia1 which were to constitute the tract of his journey1 were rivers which varied little in their progressive latitudes1 but changed their longitudes rapidly and at every step4 ,to qualify him for making these observations1 so important to the value of the enterprise1 ,i encouraged him to apply himself to this particular object1 and gave him letters to ,doctor ,patterson and ,mr4 ,ellicott1 requesting them to instruct him in the necessary processes4 ,those for the longitude would of course be founded on the lunar distances4 ,but as these require essentially the aid of a time-keeper1 it occurred to me that during a journey of two1 three1 or four years1 exposed to so many accidents as himself and the instrument would be1 we might expect with certainty that it would become deranged1 and in a desert country where it could not be repaired4 ,i thought it then highly important that some means of observation should be furnished him1 if any could be1 which should be practicable and competent to ascertain his longitudes in that event4 ,the equatorial occurred to myself as the most promising substitute4 ,i observed only that ,ramsden1 in his explanation of its uses1 and particularly that of finding the longitude at land1 still required his observer to have the aid of a time-keeper4 ,but this cannot be necessary1 for the margin of the equatorial circle of this instrument being divided into time by hours1 minutes1 and seconds1 supplies the main functions of the time-keeper1 and for measuring merely the interval of the observations1 is such as not to be neglected4 ,a portable pendulum1 for counting1 by an assistant1 would fully answer that purpose4 ,i suggested my fears to several of our best astronomical friends1 and my wishes that other processes should be furnished him1 if any could be1 which might guard us ultimately from disappointment4 ,several other methods were proposed1 but all requiring the use of a time-keeper4 ,that of the equatorial being recommended by none1 and other duties refusing me time for protracted consultations1 ,i relinquished the idea for that occasion4 ,but1 if a sound one1 it should not be abandoned4 ,those deserts are yet to be explored1 and their geography given to the world and ourselves with a correctness worthy of the science of the age4 ,the acquisition of the country before ,captain ,lewis' departure facilitated our enterprise1 but his time-keeper failed early in his journey4 ,his dependence1 then1 was on the compass and log-line1 with the correction of latitudes only2 and the true longitudes of the different points of the ,missouri1 of the ,stony ,mountains1 the ,columbia and ,pacific1 at its mouth1 remain yet to be obtained by future enterprise4 ,the circumstance which occasions a recurrence of the subject to my mind at this time particularly is this3 our legislature1 some time ago1 came to a determination that an accurate map should be made of our ,state4 ,the late ,john ,wood was employed on it4 ,its first elements are prepared by maps of the several counties4 ,but these have been made by chain and compass only1 which suppose the surface of the earth to be a plane4 ,to fit them together1 they must be accommodated to its real spherical surface2 and this can be done only by observations of latitude and longitude1 taken at different points of the area to which they are to be reduced4 ,it is true that in the lower and more populous parts of the ,state1 the method of lunar distances by the circle or sextant1 and time-keeper1 may be used2 because those parts furnish means of repairing or replacing a deranged time-keeper4 ,but the deserts beyond the ,alleghany are as destitute of resource in that case1 as those of the ,missouri4 ,the question then recurs whether the equatorial1 without the auxiliary of a time-keeper1 is not competent to the ascertainment of longitudes at land1 where a fixed meridian can always be obtained8 and whether indeed it may not everywhere at land1 be a readier and preferable instrument for that purpose8 ,to these questions ,i ask your attentions2 and to show the grounds on which ,i entertain the opinion myself1 ,i will briefly explain the principles of the process1 and the peculiarities of the instrument which give it the competence ,i ascribe to it4 ,and should you concur in the opinion1 ,i will further ask you to notice any particular circumstances claiming attention in the process1 and the corrections which the observations may necessarily require4 ,as to myself1 ,i am an astronomer of theory only1 little versed in practical observations1 and the minute attentions and corrections they require4 ,i proceed now to the explanation4 ,a method of finding the longitude of a place at land1 without a time-keeper4 ,if two persons1 at different points of the same hemisphere1 7as ,greenwich and ,washington1 for example17 observe the same celestial phenomenon1 at the same instant of time1 the difference of the times marked by their respective clocks is the difference of their longitudes1 or the distance between their meridians4 ,to catch with precision the same instant of time for these simultaneous observations1 the moon's motion in her orbit is the best element2 her change of place 7about a half second of space in a second of time7 is rapid enough to be ascertained by a good instrument with sufficient precision for the object4 ,but suppose the observer at ,washington1 or in a desert1 to be without a time-keeper2 the equatorial is the instrument to be used in that case4 ,again1 we have supposed a contemporaneous observer at ,greenwich4 ,but his functions may be supplied by the nautical almanac1 adapted to that place1 and enabling us to calculate for any instant of time the meridian distances there of the heavenly bodies necessary to be observed for this purpose4 ,the observer at ,washington1 choosing the time when their position is suitable1 is to adjust his equatorial to his meridian1 to his latitude1 and to the plane of his horizon2 or if he is in a desert where neither meridian nor latitude is yet ascertained1 the advantages of this noble instrument are1 that it enables him to find both in the course of a few hours4 ,thus prepared1 let him ascertain by observation the right ascension of the moon from that of a known star1 or their horary distance2 and1 at the same instant1 her horary distance from his meridian4 ,her right ascension at the instant thus ascertained1 enter with that of the nautical almanac1 and calculate1 by its tables1 what was her horary distance from the meridian of ,greenwich at the instant she had attained that point of right ascension1 or that horary distance from the same star4 ,the addition of these meridian distances1 if the moon was between the two meridians1 or the subtraction of the lesser from the greater1 if she was on the same side of both1 is the differences of their longitudes4 ,this general theory admits different cases1 of which the observer may avail himself1 according to the particular position of the heavenly bodies at the moment of observation4 ,case #ast4 ,when the moon is on his meridian1 or on that of ,greenwich4 ,second4 ,when the star is on either meridian4 ,third4 ,when the moon and star are on the same side of his meridian4 ,fourth4 ,when they are on different sides4 ,for instantaneousness of observation1 the equatorial has great advantage over the circle or sextant2 for being truly placed in the meridian beforehand1 the telescope may be directed sufficiently in advance of the moon's motion1 for time to note its place on the equatorial circle1 before she attains that point4 ,then observe1 until her limb touches the cross-hairs2 and in that instant direct the telescope to the star2 that completes the observation1 and the place of the star may be read at leisure4 ,the apparatus for correcting the effects of refraction and parallax1 which is fixed on the eye-tube of the telescope1 saves time by rendering the notation of altitudes unnecessary1 and dispenses with the use of either a time-keeper or portable pendulum4 ,i have observed that1 if placed in a desert where neither meridian nor latitude is yet ascertained1 the equatorial enables the observer to find both in a few hours4 ,for the latitude1 adjust by the cross-levels the azimuth plane of the instrument to the horizon of the place4 ,bring down the equatorial plane to an exact parallelism with it1 its pole then becoming vertical4 ,by the nut and pinion commanding it1 and by that of the semi-circle of declination1 direct the telescope to the sun4 ,follow its path with the telescope by the combined use of these two pinions1 and when it has attained its greatest altitude1 calculate the latitude as when taken by a sextant4 ,for finding the meridian1 set the azimuth circle to the horizon1 elevate the equatorial circle to the complement of the latitude1 and fix it by the clamp and tightening screw of the two brass segments of arches below4 ,by the declination semicircle set the telescope to the sun's declination of the moment4 ,turn the instrument towards the meridian by guess1 and by the combined movement of the equatorial and azimuth circles direct the telescope to the sun1 then by the pinion of the equatorial alone1 follow the path of the sun with the telescope4 ,if it swerves from that path1 turn the azimuth circle until it shall follow the sun accurately4 ,a distant stake or tree should mark the meridian1 to guard against its loss by any accidental jostle of the instrument4 ,the #ab o'clock line will then be in the true meridian1 and the axis of the equatorial circle will be parallel with that of the earth4 ,the instrument is then in its true position for the observations of the night4 ,to the competence and the advantages of this method1 ,i will only add that these instruments are high-priced4 ,mine cost thirty-five guineas in ,ramsden's shop1 a little before the ,revolution4 ,i will lengthen my letter1 already too long1 only by assurances of my great esteem and respect4 ,,to ---- ,,nicholas4 ,,monticello1 ,december #aa1 #ahba4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your letter of ,december the #aith places me under a dilemma1 which ,i cannot solve but by an exposition of the naked truth4 ,i would have wished this rather to have remained as hitherto1 without inquiry2 but your inquiries have a right to be answered4 ,i will do it as exactly as the great lapse of time and a waning memory will enable me4 ,i may misremember indifferent circumstances1 but can be right in substance4 ,at the time when the republicans of our country were so much alarmed at the proceedings of the federal ascendency in ,congress1 in the executive and the judiciary departments1 it became a matter of serious consideration how head could be made against their enterprises on the constitution4 ,the leading republicans in ,congress found themselves of no use there1 brow-beaten1 as they were1 by a bold and overwhelming majority4 ,they concluded to retire from that field1 take a stand in the ,state legislatures1 and endeavor there to arrest their progress4 ,the alien and sedition laws furnished the particular occasion4 ,the sympathy between ,virginia and ,kentucky was more cordial1 and more intimately confidential1 than between any other two ,states of republican policy4 ,mr4 ,madison came into the ,virginia legislature4 ,i was then in the ,vice-,presidency1 and could not leave my station4 ,but your father1 ,colonel ,w4 ,c4 ,nicholas1 and myself happening to be together1 the engaging the co-operation of ,kentucky in an energetic protestation against the constitutionality of those laws1 became a subject of consultation4 ,those gentlemen pressed me strongly to sketch resolutions for that purpose1 your father undertaking to introduce them to that legislature1 with a solemn assurance1 which ,i strictly required1 that it should not be known from what quarter they came4 ,i drew and delivered them to him1 and in keeping their origin secret1 he fulfilled his pledge of honor4 ,some years after this1 ,colonel ,nicholas asked me if ,i would have any objection to its being known that ,i had drawn them4 ,i pointedly enjoined that it should not4 ,whether he had unguardedly intimated it before to any one1 ,i know not2 but ,i afterwards observed in the papers repeated imputations of them to me2 on which1 as has been my practice on all occasions of imputation1 ,i have observed entire silence4 ,the question1 indeed1 has never before been put to me1 nor should ,i answer it to any other than yourself2 seeing no good end to be proposed by it1 and the desire of tranquillity inducing with me a wish to be withdrawn from public notice4 ,your father's zeal and talents were too well known1 to derive any additional distinction from the penning these resolutions4 ,that circumstance1 surely1 was of far less merit than the proposing and carrying them through the legislature of his ,state4 ,the only fact in this statement1 on which my memory is not distinct1 is the time and occasion of the consultation with your father and ,colonel ,nicholas4 ,it took place here ,i know2 but whether any other person was present1 or communicated with1 is my doubt4 ,i think ,mr4 ,madison was either with us1 or consulted1 but my memory is uncertain as to minute details4 ,i fear1 dear ,sir1 we are now in such another crisis1 with this difference only1 that the judiciary branch is alone and single handed in the present assaults on the constitution4 ,but its assaults are more sure and deadly1 as from an agent seemingly passive and unassuming4 ,may you and your cotemporaries meet them with the same determination and effect1 as your father and his did the alien and sedition laws1 and preserve inviolate a constitution1 which1 cherished in all its chastity and purity1 will prove in the end a blessing to all the nations of the earth4 ,with these prayers1 accept those for your own happiness and prosperity4 ,,to ,,messrs4 ,,george ,w4 ,,summers ,,and ,,john ,b4 ,,garland4 ,,monticello1 ,february #bg1 #ahbb4 ,,gentlemen1--,i have received your favor of the #ahth1 and am duly sensible of the honor done my name by its association with the institution formed in your college for improvement in the art of speaking4 ,the efforts of the members will1 ,i trust1 give a just reputation to the society and reflect on its name the honor which it cannot derive from it4 ,in a country and government like ours1 eloquence is a powerful instrument1 well worthy of the special pursuit of our youth4 ,models1 indeed1 of chaste and classical oratory are truly too rare with us2 nor do ,i recollect any remarkable in ,england4 ,among the ancients the most perfect specimens are perhaps to be found in ,livy1 ,sallust and ,tacitus4 ,their pith and brevity constitute perfection itself for an audience of sages1 on whom froth and fancy would be lost in air4 ,but in ordinary cases1 and with us particularly1 more development is necessary4 ,for senatorial eloquence1 ,demosthenes is the finest model2 for the bar1 ,cicero4 ,the former had more logic1 the latter more imagination4 ,of the eloquence of the pen we have fine samples in ,english4 ,robertson1 ,sterne1 ,addison1 are of the first merit in the different characters of composition4 ,hume1 in the circumstance of style is equal to any2 but his tory principles spread a cloud over his many and great excellencies4 ,the charms of his style and matter have made tories of all ,england1 and doubtful republicans here4 ,you say that any advice which ,i could give you would be acceptable4 ,but1 for this1 you cannot be in better hands than of the worthy professors of your own college4 ,their counsels would1 ,i am sure1 embrace everything ,i could offer4 ,it will not1 however1 be a work of mere supereorgation if it will gratify you1 and will furnish a stronger proof of my desire to encourage you in your laudable dispositions4 ,some thirty-six or thirty-seven years ago1 ,i had a nephew1 the late ,peter ,carr1 whose education ,i directed1 and had much at heart his future fortunes4 ,residing abroad at the time in public service1 my counsels to him were necessarily communicated by letters4 ,searching among my papers ,i find a letter written to him1 and conveying such advice as ,i thought suitable to the particular period of his age and education4 ,he was then about fifteen1 and had made some progress in classical reading4 ,as your present situation may be somewhat similar1 you may find in that letter some things worth remembering4 ,i enclose you a copy therefore4 ,it was written in haste1 under the pressure of official labors1 and with no view of being ever seen but by himself4 ,it might otherwise have been made more correct in style and matter4 ,but such as it is1 ,i place it at your service1 and pray you to receive it merely as a compliance with your own request1 and as a proof of my good will and of my best wishes for your success in the career of life for which you are so worthily and laudably preparing yourselves4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,edward ,,everett1 ,,of ,,cambridge1 ,,massachusetts4 ,,monticello1 ,march #b1 #ahbb4 ,i am thankful to you1 ,sir1 for the very edifying view of ,europe which you have been so kind as to send me4 ,tossed at random by the newspapers on an ocean of uncertainties and falsehoods1 it is joyful at times to catch the glimmering of a beacon which shows us truly where we are4 ,de ,pradt's ,europe had some effect in this way2 but the less as the author was less known in character4 ,the views presented by your brother unite our confidence with the soundness of his observation and information4 ,i have read the work with great avidity and profit1 and have found my ideas of ,europe in general1 rallied by it to points of good satisfaction4 ,in the single chapter on ,england only1 where his theories are new1 if we cannot suddenly give up all our old notions1 he furnishes us abundant matter for reflection and a revisal of them4 ,i have long considered the present crisis of ,england1 and the origin of the evils which are lowering over her1 as produced by enormous excess of her expenditures beyond her income4 ,to pay even the interest of the debt contracted1 she is obliged to take from the industrious so much of their earnings1 as not to leave enough for their backs and bellies4 ,they are daily1 therefore1 passing over to the pauper-list1 to subsist on the declining means of those still holding up1 and when these also shall be exhausted1 what next8 ,reformation cannot remedy this4 ,it could only prevent its recurrence when once relieved from the debt4 ,to effect that relief ,i see but one possible and just course4 ,considering the funded and real property as equal1 and the debt as much of the one as the other1 for the holder of property to give up one-half to those of the funds1 and the latter to the nation the whole of what it owes them4 ,but this the nature of man forbids us to expect without blows1 and blows will decide it by a promiscuous sacrifice of life and property4 ,the debt thus1 or otherwise1 extinguished1 a real representation introduced into the government of either property or people1 or of both1 renouncing eternal war1 restraining future expenses to future income1 and breaking up forever the consuming circle of extravagance1 debt1 insolvency1 and revolution1 the island would then again be in the degree of force which nature has measured out to it1 of respectable station in the scale of nations1 but not at their head4 ,i sincerely wish she could peaceably get into this state of being1 as the present prospects of southern ,europe seem to need the acquisition of new weights in their balance1 rather than the loss of old ones4 ,i set additional value on this volume1 inasmuch as it has procured me the occasion of expressing to you my high estimation of your character1 the interest with which ,i look to it as an ,american1 and the great esteem and respect with which ,i beg leave to salute you4 ,,to ,,jedediah ,,morse4 ,,monticello1 ,march #f1 #ahbb4 ,,sir1--,i have duly received your letter of ,february the #afth1 and have now to express my sense of the honorable station proposed to my ex-brethren and myself1 in the constitution of the society for the civilization and improvement of the ,indian tribes4 ,the object too expressed1 as that of the association1 is one which ,i have ever had much at heart1 and never omitted an occasion of promoting while ,i have been in situations to do it with effect1 and nothing1 even now1 in the calm of age and retirement1 would excite in me a more lively interest than an approvable plan of raising that respectable and unfortunate people from the state of physical and moral abjection1 to which they have been reduced by circumstances foreign to them4 ,that the plan now proposed is entitled to unmixed approbation1 ,i am not prepared to say1 after mature consideration1 and with all the partialities which its professed object would rightfully claim from me4 ,i shall not undertake to draw the line of demarcation between private associations of laudable views and unimposing numbers1 and those whose magnitude may rivalize and jeopardize the march of regular government4 ,yet such a line does exist4 ,i have seen the days1 they were those which preceded the revolution1 when even this last and perilous engine became necessary2 but they were days which no man would wish to see a second time4 ,that was the case where the regular authorities of the government had combined against the rights of the people1 and no means of correction remained to them but to organize a collateral power1 which1 with their support1 might rescue and secure their violated rights4 ,but such is not the case with our government4 ,we need hazard no collateral power1 which1 by a change of its original views1 and assumption of others we know not how virtuous or how mischievous1 would be ready organized and in force sufficient to shake the established foundations of society1 and endanger its peace and the principles on which it is based4 ,is not the machine now proposed of this gigantic stature8 ,it is to consist of the ex-,presidents of the ,united ,states1 the ,vice ,president1 the ,heads of all the executive departments1 the members of the supreme judiciary1 the ,governors of the several ,states and territories1 all the members of both ,houses of ,congress1 all the general officers of the army1 the commissioners of the navy1 all ,presidents and ,professors of colleges and theological seminaries1 all the clergy of the ,united ,states1 the ,presidents and ,secretaries of all associations having relation to ,indians1 all commanding officers within or near ,indian territories1 all ,indian superintendents and agents2 all these ex officio2 and as many private individuals as will pay a certain price for membership4 ,observe1 too1 that the clergy will constitute#ae nineteen twentieths of this association1 and1 by the law of the majority1 may command the twentieth part1 which1 composed of all the high authorities of the ,united ,states1 civil and military1 may be outvoted and wielded by the nineteen parts with uncontrollable power1 both as to purpose and process4 ,can this formidable array be reviewed without dismay8 ,it will be said1 that in this association will be all the confidential officers of the government2 the choice of the people themselves4 ,no man on earth has more implicit confidence than myself in the integrity and discretion of this chosen band of servants4 ,but is confidence or discretion1 or is strict limit1 the principle of our constitution8 ,it will comprehend1 indeed1 all the functionaries of the government2 but seceded from their constitutional stations as guardians of the nation1 and acting not by the laws of their station1 but by those of a voluntary society1 having no limit to their purposes but the same will which constitutes their existence4 ,it will be the authorities of the people and all influential characters from among them1 arrayed on one side1 and on the other1 the people themselves deserted by their leaders4 ,it is a fearful array4 ,it will be said that these are imaginary fears4 ,i know they are so at present4 ,i know it is as impossible for these agents of our choice and unbounded confidence1 to harbor machinations against the adored principles of our constitution1 as for gravity to change its direction1 and gravid bodies to mount upwards4 ,the fears are indeed imaginary1 but the example is real4 ,under its authority1 as a precedent1 future associations will arise with objects at which we should shudder at this time4 ,the society of ,jacobins1 in another country1 was instituted on principles and views as virtuous as ever kindled the hearts of patriots4 ,it was the pure patriotism of their purposes which extended their association to the limits of the nation1 and rendered their power within it boundless2 and it was this power which degenerated their principles and practices to such enormities as never before could have been imagined4 ,yet these were men1 and we and our descendants will be no more4 ,the present is a case where1 if ever1 we are to guard against ourselves2 not against ourselves as we are1 but as we may be2 for who can now imagine what we may become under circumstances not now imaginable8 ,the object of this institution1 seems to require so hazardous an example as little as any which could be proposed4 ,the government is1 at this time1 going on with the process of civilizing the ,indians1 on a plan probably as promising as any one of us is able to devise1 and with resources more competent than we could expect to command by voluntary taxation4 ,is it that the new characters called into association with those of the government1 are wiser than these8 ,is it that a plan originated by a meeting of private individuals is better than that prepared by the concentrated wisdom of the nation1 of men not self-chosen1 but clothed with the full confidence of the people8 ,is it that there is no danger that a new authority1 marching1 independently1 along side of the government1 in the same line and to the same object1 may not produce collision1 may not thwart and obstruct the operations of the government1 or wrest the object entirely from their hands8 ,might we not as well appoint a committee for each department of the government1 to counsel and direct its head separately1 as volunteer ourselves to counsel and direct the whole1 in mass8 ,and might we not do it as well for their foreign1 their fiscal1 and their military1 as for their ,indian affairs8 ,and how many societies1 auxiliary to the government1 may we expect to see spring up1 in imitation of this1 offering to associate themselves in this and that of its functions8 ,in a word1 why not take the government out of its constitutional hands1 associate them indeed with us1 to preserve a semblance that the acts are theirs1 but insuring them to be our own by allowing them a minor vote only4 ,these considerations have impressed my mind with a force so irresistible1 that 7in duty bound to answer your polite letter1 without which ,i should not have obtruded an opinion7 ,i have not been able to withhold the expression of them4 ,not knowing the individuals who have proposed this plan1 ,i cannot be conceived as entertaining personal disrespect for them4 ,on the contrary1 ,i see in the printed list persons for whom ,i cherish sentiments of sincere friendship1 and others1 for whose opinions and purity of purpose ,i have the highest respect4 ,yet thinking as ,i do1 that this association is unnecessary2 that the government is proceeding to the same object under control of the law2 that they are competent to it in wisdom1 in means1 and inclination2 that this association1 this wheel within a wheel1 is more likely to produce collision than aid2 and that it is1 in its magnitude1 of dangerous example2 ,i am bound to say1 that1 as a dutiful citizen1 ,i cannot in conscience become a member of this society1 possessing as it does my entire confidence in the integrity of its views4 ,i feel with awe the weight of opinion to which ,i may be opposed1 and that1 for myself1 ,i have need to ask the indulgence of a belief that the opinion ,i have given is the best result ,i can deduce from my own reason and experience1 and that it is sincerely conscientious4 ,repeating1 therefore1 my just acknowledgments for the honor proposed to me1 ,i beg leave to add the assurances to the society and yourself of my highest confidence and consideration4 ,,footnote3 #ae ,the clergy of the ,united ,states may probably be estimated at eight thousand4 ,the residue of this society at four hundred2 but if the former number be halved1 the reasoning will be the same4 ,,to ,,general ,,breckenridge4 ,,monticello1 ,april #i1 #ahbb4 ,,dear ,,general1--,your favor of ,march #bhth was received on the #gth instant4 ,we failed in having a quorum on the #ast4 ,mr4 ,johnson and ,general ,taylor were laboring for ,lithgow in ,richmond1 and ,mr4 ,madison was unwell4 ,on the score of business it was immaterial1 as there was not a single measure to be proposed4 ,the loss was of the gratification of meeting in society with those whom we esteem4 ,this is the valuable effect of our semi-annual meetings1 jubilees1 in fact1 for feasting the mind and fostering the best affections of the heart towards those who merit them4 ,the four rows of buildings of accommodation are so nearly completed1 that they are certain of being entirely so in the course of the summer2 and our funds1 as you have seen stated in our last ,report1 are sufficient to meet the expense1 except that the delays in collecting the arrears of subscriptions oblige us to borrow temporarily from this year's annuity1 which1 according to that ,report1 had another destination4 ,these buildings done1 we are to rest on our oars1 and passively await the will of the legislature4 ,our future course is a plain one4 ,we have proceeded from the beginning on the sound determination to finish the buildings before opening the institution2 because1 once opened1 all its funds will be absorbed by professors' salaries1 c41 and nothing remain ever to finish the buildings4 ,and we have thought it better to begin two or three years later1 in the full extent proposed1 than to open1 and go on forever1 with a half-way establishment4 ,of the wisdom of this proceeding1 and of its greater good to the public finally1 ,i cannot a moment doubt4 ,our part then is to pursue with steadiness what is right1 turning neither to right nor left for the intrigues or popular delusions of the day1 assured that the public approbation will in the end be with us4 ,the councils of the legislature1 at their late session1 were poisoned unfortunately by the question of the seat of government1 and the consequent jealousies of our views in erecting the large building still wanting4 ,this lost us some friends who feel a sincere interest in favor of the ,university1 but a stronger one in the question respecting the seat of government4 ,they seem not to have considered that the seat of the government1 and that of the ,university1 are incompatible with one another2 that if the former were to come here1 the latter must be removed4 ,even ,oxford and ,cambridge placed in the middle of ,london1 they would be deserted as seats of learning1 and as proper places for training youth4 ,these groundless jealousies1 it is to be hoped1 will be dissipated by sober reflection1 during the separation of the members2 and they will perceive1 before their next meeting1 that the large building1 without which the institution cannot proceed1 has nothing to do with the question of the seat of government4 ,if1 however1 the ensuing session should still refuse their patronage1 a second or a third will think better1 and result finally in fulfilling the object of our aim1 the securing to our country a full and perpetual institution for all the useful sciences2 one which will restore us to our former station in the confederacy4 ,it may be a year or two later indeed2 but it will replace us in full grade1 and not leave us among the mere subalterns of the league4 ,patience and steady perseverance on our part will secure the blessed end4 ,if we shrink1 it is gone forever4 ,our autumnal meeting will be interesting4 ,the question will be whether we shall relinquish the scale of a real ,university1 the rallying centre of the ,south and the ,west1 or let it sink to that of a common academy4 ,i hope you will be with us1 and give us the benefit of your firm and enlarged views4 ,i am not at all disheartened with what has passed1 nor disposed to give up the ship4 ,we have only to lie still1 to do and say nothing1 and firmly avoid opening4 ,the public opinion is advancing4 ,it is coming to our aid1 and will force the institution on to consummation4 ,the numbers are great1 and many from great distances1 who visit it daily as an object of curiosity4 ,they become strengthened if friends1 converted if enemies1 and all loud and zealous advocates1 and will shortly give full tone to the public voice4 ,our motto should be be not wearied with well-doing4 ,accept the assurance of my affectionate friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,messrs4 ,,ritchie ,,and ,,gooch4 ,,monticello1 ,may #ac1 #ahbb4 ,,messrs4 ,,ritchie ,,and ,,gooch1--,i am thankful to you for the paper you have been so kind as to send me1 containing the arraignment of the ,presidents of the ,united ,states generally1 as peculators or accessories to peculation1 by an informer who masks himself under the signature of a ,native ,virginian4 ,what relates to myself in this paper1 7being his ,no4 ,,vi41 and the only ,no4 ,i have seen7 ,i had before read in the ,federal ,republican of ,baltimore1 of ,august #bhth1 which was sent to me by a friend1 with the real name of the author4 ,it was published there during the ferment of a warmly-contested election4 ,i considered it1 therefore1 as an electioneering manuvre merely1 and did not even think it required the trouble of recollecting1 after a lapse of thirty-three years1 the circumstances of the case in which he charges me with having purloined from the treasury of the ,united ,states the sum of #a1adh4 ,but as he has thought it worth repeating in his ,roll of informations against your ,presidents nominally1 ,i shall give the truths of the case1 which he has omitted1 perhaps because he did not know them1 and ventured too inconsiderately to supply them from his own conjectures4 ,on the return from my mission to ,france1 and joining the government here1 in the spring of #agij1 ,i had a long and heavy account to settle with the ,united ,states1 of the administration of their pecuniary affairs in ,europe1 of which the superintendence had been confided to me while there4 ,i gave in my account early1 but the pressure of other business did not permit the accounting officers to attend to it till ,october #ajth1 #agib1 when we settled1 and a balance of #hhh #fg appearing to be due from me1 7but erroneously as will be shown17 ,i paid the money the same day1 delivered up my vouchers1 and received a certificate of it4 ,but still the articles of my draughts on the bankers could be only provisionally past2 until their accounts also should be received to be confronted with mine4 ,and it was not till the #bdth of ,june1 #ahjd1 that ,i received a letter from ,mr4 ,richard ,harrison the auditor1 informing me that my accounts1 as ,minister to ,france1 had been adjusted and closed1 adding1 the bill drawn and credited by you under date of the #bast of ,october1 #aghi1 for banco florins #b1hjj1 having never yet appeared in any account of the ,dutch bankers1 stand at your debit only as a provisional charge4 ,if it should hereafter turn out1 as ,i incline to think it will1 that this bill has never been negotiated or used by ,mr4 ,grand1 you will have a just claim on the public for its value4 ,this was the first intimation to me that ,i had too hastily charged myself with that draught4 ,i determined1 however1 as ,i had allowed it in my account1 and paid up the balance it had produced against me1 to let it remain awhile1 as there was a possibility that the draught might still be presented by the holder to the bankers2 and so it remained till ,i was near leaving ,washington1 on my final retirement from the administration in #ahji4 ,i then received from the auditor1 ,mr4 ,harrison1 the following note3 ,mr4 ,jefferson1 in his accounts as late ,minister to ,france1 credited among other sums1 a bill drawn by him on the #bast ,october1 #aghi1 to the order of ,grand ,co41 on the bankers of the ,united ,states at ,amsterdam1 f4 ,banco f4 #b1hjj1 equal with agio to current florins #b1hgj1 and which was charged to him provisionally in the official statement made at the ,treasury1 in the month of ,october1 #ahjd4 ,but as this bill has not yet been noticed in any account rendered by the bankers1 the presumption is strong that it was never negotiated or presented for payment1 and ,mr4 ,jefferson1 therefore1 appears justly entitled to receive the value of it1 which1 at forty cents the gilder1 7the rate at which it was estimated in the above-mentioned statement17 amounts to #a1adh4 ,auditor's office1 ,january #bdth1 #ahji4 ,desirous of leaving nothing unsettled behind me1 ,i drew the money from the treasury1 but without any interest1 although ,i had let it lie there twenty years1 and had actually on that error paid #hhh #fg1 an apparent balance against me1 when the true balance was in my favor #bei #cc4 ,the question then is1 how has this happened8 ,i have examined minutely and can state it clearly4 ,turning to my pocket diary ,i find that on the #bast day of ,october1 #aghi1 the date of this bill1 ,i was at ,cowes in ,england1 on my return to the ,united ,states4 ,the entry in my diary is in these words3 #aghi1 ,october #bast4 ,sent to ,grand ,co41 letter of credit on ,willinks1 ,van ,staphorsts and ,hubbard1 for #b1hjj florins ,banco4 ,and ,i immediately credited it in my account with the ,united ,states in the following words3 #aghi1 ,october #ba4 ,by my bill on ,willinks1 ,van ,staphorsts and ,hubbard1 in favor of ,grand ,co41 for #b1hjj florins1 equal to #f1bej livres #ah sous4 ,my account having been kept in livres and sous of ,france1 the auditor settled this sum at the current exchange1 making it #a1adh4 ,this bill1 drawn at ,cowes in ,england1 had to pass through ,london to ,paris by the ,english and ,french mails1 in which passage it was lost1 by some unknown accident1 to which it was the more exposed in the ,french mail1 by the confusion then prevailing2 for it was exactly at the time that martial law was proclaimed at ,paris1 the country all up in arms1 and executions by the mobs were daily perpetrating through town and country4 ,however this may have been1 the bill never got to the hands of ,grand ,co41 was never1 of course1 forwarded by them to the bankers of ,amsterdam1 nor anything more ever heard of it4 ,the auditor's first conjecture then was the true one1 that it never was negotiated1 nor therefore charged to the ,united ,states in any of the bankers' accounts4 ,i have now under my eye a duplicate furnished me by ,grand of his account of that date against the ,united ,states1 and his private account against myself1 and ,i affirm that he has not noticed this bill in either of these accounts1 and the auditor assures us the ,dutch bankers had never charged it4 ,the sum of the whole then is1 that ,i drew a bill on the ,united ,states bankers1 charged myself with it on the presumption it would be paid1 that it never was paid however1 either by the bankers of the ,united ,states1 or anybody else4 ,it was surely just then to return me the money ,i had paid for it4 ,yet the ,native ,virginian thinks that this act of receiving back the money ,i had thus through error overpaid1 was a palpable and manifest art of moral turpitude1 about which no two honest1 impartial men can possibly differ4 ,i ascribe these hard expressions to the ardor of his zeal for the public good1 and as they contain neither argument nor proof1 ,i pass them over without observation4 ,indeed1 ,i have not been in the habit of noticing these morbid ejections of spleen either with or without the names of those venting them4 ,but ,i have thought it a duty on the present occasion to relieve my fellow citizens and my country from the degradation in the eyes of the world to which this informer is endeavoring to reduce it by representing it as governed hitherto by a succession of swindlers and peculators4 ,nor shall ,i notice any further endeavors to prove or to palliate this palpable misinformation4 ,i am too old and inert to undertake minute investigations of intricate transactions of the last century2 and ,i am not afraid to trust to the justice and good sense of my fellow-citizens on future1 as on former attempts to lessen me in their esteem4 ,i ask of you1 gentlemen1 the insertion of this letter in your paper2 and ,i trust that the printers who have hazarded the publication of the libel1 on anonymous authority1 will think that of the answer a moderate retribution of the wrong to which they have been accessory4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,june #a1 #ahbb4 ,it is very long1 my dear ,sir1 since ,i have written to you4 ,my dislocated wrist is now become so stiff that ,i write slow and with pain1 and therefore write as little as ,i can4 ,yet it is due to mutual friendship to ask once in awhile how we do8 ,the papers tell us that ,general ,starke is off at the age of #ic4 ,charles ,thomson still lives at about the same age1 cheerful1 slender as a grasshopper1 and so much without memory that he scarcely recognizes the members of his household4 ,an intimate friend of his called on him not long since2 it was difficult to make him recollect who he was1 and1 sitting one hour1 he told him the same story four times over4 ,is this life8 ,with lab'ring step ,to tread our former footsteps8 pace the round ,eternal8--to beat and beat ,the beaten track8 to see what we have seen1 ,to taste the tasted8 o'er our palates to decant ,another vintage8 ,it is at most but the life of a cabbage2 surely not worth a wish4 ,when all our faculties have left1 or are leaving us1 one by one1 sight1 hearing1 memory1 every avenue of pleasing sensation is closed1 and athumy1 debility and malaise left in their places1 when friends of our youth are all gone1 and a generation is risen around us whom we know not1 is death an evil8 ,when one by one our ties are torn1 ,and friend from friend is snatched forlorn1 ,when man is left alone to mourn1 ,oh6 then how sweet it is to die6 ,when trembling limbs refuse their weight1 ,and films slow gathering dim the sight1 ,when clouds obscure the mental light ',tis nature's kindest boon to die6 ,i really think so4 ,i have ever dreaded a doting old age2 and my health has been generally so good1 and is now so good1 that ,i dread it still4 ,the rapid decline of my strength during the last winter has made me hope sometimes that ,i see land4 ,during summer ,i enjoy its temperature1 but ,i shudder at the approach of winter1 and wish ,i could sleep through it with the ,dormouse1 and only wake with him in spring1 if ever4 ,they say that ,starke could walk about his room4 ,i am told you walk well and firmly4 ,i can only reach my garden1 and that with sensible fatigue4 ,i ride1 however1 daily4 ,but reading is my delight4 ,i should wish never to put pen to paper2 and the more because of the treacherous practice some people have of publishing one's letters without leave4 ,lord ,mansfield declared it a breach of trust1 and punishable at law4 ,i think it should be a penitentiary felony2 yet you will have seen that they have drawn me out into the arena of the newspapers2 although ,i know it is too late for me to buckle on the armor of youth1 yet my indignation would not permit me passively to receive the kick of an ass4 ,to turn to the news of the day1 it seems that the ,cannibals of ,europe are going to eating one another again4 ,a war between ,russia and ,turkey is like the battle of the kite and snake4 ,whichever destroys the other1 leaves a destroyer the less for the world4 ,this pugnacious humor of mankind seems to be the law of his nature1 one of the obstacles to too great multiplication provided in the mechanism of the ,universe4 ,the cocks of the henyard kill one another up4 ,bears1 bulls1 rams1 do the same4 ,and the horse1 in his wild state1 kills all the young males1 until worn down with age and war1 some vigorous youth kills him1 and takes to himself the ,harem of females4 ,i hope we shall prove how much happier for man the ,quaker policy is1 and that the life of the feeder1 is better than that of the fighter2 and it is some consolation that the desolation by these maniacs of one part of the earth is the means of improving it in other parts4 ,let the latter be our office1 and let us milk the cow1 while the ,russian holds her by the horns1 and the ,turk by the tail4 ,god bless you1 and give you health1 strength1 and good spirits1 and as much of life as you think worth having4 ,,to ,,rev4 ,,mr4 ,,whittemore4 ,,monticello1 ,june #e1 #ahbb4 ,i thank you1 ,sir1 for the pamphlets you have been so kind as to send me1 and am happy to learn that the doctrine of ,jesus that there is but one ,god1 is advancing prosperously among our fellow citizens4 ,had his doctrines1 pure as they came from himself1 been never sophisticated for unworthy purposes1 the whole civilized world would at this day have formed but a single sect4 ,you ask my opinion on the items of doctrine in your catechism4 ,i have never permitted myself to meditate a specified creed4 ,these formulas have been the bane and ruin of the ,christian church1 its own fatal invention1 which1 through so many ages1 made of ,christendom a slaughter-house1 and at this day divides it into casts of inextinguishable hatred to one another4 ,witness the present internecine rage of all other sects against the ,unitarian4 ,the religions of antiquity had no particular formulas of creed4 ,those of the modern world none1 except those of the religionists calling themselves ,christians1 and even among these the ,quakers have none4 ,and hence1 alone1 the harmony1 the quiet1 the brotherly affections1 the exemplary and unschismatising society of the ,friends1 and ,i hope the ,unitarians1 will follow their happy example4 ,with these sentiments of the mischiefs of creeds and confessions of faith1 ,i am sure you will excuse my not giving opinions on the items of any particular one2 and that you will accept1 at the same time1 the assurance of the high respect and consideration which ,i bear to its author4 ,,to ,,messrs4 ,,ritchie ,,and ,,gooch4 ,,monticello1 ,june #aj1 #ahbb4 ,,messrs4 ,,ritchie ,,and ,,gooch1--,in my letter to you of ,may #acth1 in answer to a charge by a person signing himself ,a ,native ,virginian1 that on a bill drawn by me for a sum equivalent to #a1adh1 the treasury of the ,united ,states had made double payment1 ,i supposed ,i had done as much as would be required when ,i showed they had only returned to me money which ,i had previously paid into the treasury on the presumption that such a bill had been paid for me1 but that this bill being lost or destroyed on the way1 had never been presented1 consequently never paid by the ,united ,states1 and that the money was therefore returned to me4 ,this being too plain for controversy1 the pseudo ,native of ,virginia1 in his reply1 ,no4 #cb1 in the ,federal ,republican of ,may #bdth1 reduces himself ultimately to the ground of a double receipt of the money by me1 first on sale or negotiation of the bill in ,europe1 and a second time from the treasury4 ,but the bill was never sold or negotiated anywhere4 ,it was not drawn to raise money in the market4 ,i sold it to nobody1 received no money on it1 but enclosed it to ,grand ,co4 for some purpose of account1 for what particular purpose neither my memory1 after a lapse of thirty-three years1 nor my papers enable me to say4 ,had ,i preserved a copy of my letter to ,grand enclosing the bill1 that would doubtless have explained the purpose4 ,but it was drawn on the eve of my embarkation with my family from ,cowes for ,america1 and probably the hurry of preparation for that did not allow me time to take a copy4 ,i presume this because ,i find no such letter among my papers4 ,nor does any subsequent correspondence with ,grand explain it1 because ,i had no private account with him2 my account as minister being kept with the treasury directly1 so that he1 receiving no intimation of this bill1 could never give me notice of its miscarriage4 ,but1 however satisfactory might have been an explanation of the purpose of the bill1 it is unnecessary at least2 the material fact being established that it never got to hand1 nor was ever paid by the ,united ,states4 ,and how does the ,native ,virginian maintain his charge that ,i received the cash when ,i drew the bill8 by unceremoniously inserting into the entry of that article in my account1 words of his own1 making me say in direct terms that ,i did receive the cash for the bill4 ,in my account rendered to the treasury1 it is entered in these words3 #aghi1 ,oct4 #a4 ,by my bill on ,willincks1 ,van ,staphorsts ,hubbard in favor of ,grand ,co4 for #b1hjj florins1 equal to #f1bcj livres #ah sous1 but he quotes it as stated in my account rendered to and settled at the treasury1 and yet remaining1 as it is to be presumed1 among the archives of that department1 ,by cash received of ,grand for bill on ,willincks1 c4 ,now the words cash received of ,grand constitute the very point1 the pivot1 on which the matter turns1 as himself says1 and not finding1 he has furnished them4 ,although the interpolation of them is sufficiently refuted by the fact that ,grand was1 at the time1 in ,france1 and myself in ,england1 yet wishing that conviction of the interpolation should be founded on official document1 ,i wrote to the auditor1 ,mr4 ,harrison1 requesting an official certificate of the very words in which that article stood in my autograph account deposited in the office4 ,i received yesterday his answer of the #c;d1 in which he says1 ,i am unable to furnish the extract you require1 as the original account rendered by you of your pecuniary transactions of a public nature in ,europe1 together with the vouchers and documents connected with it1 were all destroyed in the ,register's office in the memorable conflagration of #ahad4 ,with respect1 therefore1 to the sum of #a1adh in question1 ,i can only say that1 after full and repeated examinations1 ,i considered you as most righteously and justly entitled to receive it4 ,otherwise1 it will1 ,i trust1 be believed that ,i could not have consented to the re-payment4 ,considering the intimacy which the ,native ,virginian shows with the treasury affairs1 we might be justified in suspecting that he knew this fact of the destruction of the original by fire when he ventured to misquote4 ,but certainly we may call on him to say1 and to show1 from what original he copied these words3 cash received from ,grand8 ,i say1 most assuredly1 from none1 for none such ever existed4 ,although the original be lost1 which would have convicted him officially1 it happens that when ,i made from my rough draft a fair copy of my account for the treasury1 ,i took also1 with a copying-machine1 a press-copy of every page1 which ,i kept for my own use4 ,it is known that copies by this well-known machine are taken by impression on damp paper laid on the face of the written page while fresh1 and passed between rollers as copper plates are4 ,they must therefore be true fac similies4 ,this press-copy now lies before me1 has been shown to several persons1 and will be shown to as many as wish or are willing to examine it2 and this article of my account is entered in it in these words3 #aghi1 ,oct4 #a4 ,by my bill on ,willincks1 ,van ,staphorsts ,hubbard for #b1hjj florins1 equal to #f1bcj livres #ah sous4 ,an inspection of the account1 too1 shows that whenever ,i received cash for a bill1 it is uniformly entered by cash received of such an one1 c2 but where a bill was drawn to constitute an item of account only1 the entry is by my bill on1 c4 ,now to these very words cash received of ,grand1 not in my original but interpolated by himself1 he constantly appeals as proofs of an acknowledgment under my own hand that ,i received the cash4 ,in proof of this1 ,i must request patience to read the following quotations from his denunciations as standing in the ,federal ,republican of ,may #bd3 ,page #b1 column #b1 #a4 #dh to #bi from the bottom1 he ,mr4 ,j4 admits in his account rendered in #agij and settled in #agib1 that he had received the 'cash1' placing the word cash between inverted commas to have it marked particularly as a quotation that he had received the 'cash' for the bill in question1 and he does not directly deny it now4 ,will he1 can he1 in the face of his own declaration in writing to the contrary1 publicly say that he did not receive the money for this bill in ,europe8 ,this is the point on which the whole matter rests1 the pivot on which the arguments turn4 ,if he did receive the money in ,europe1 7no matter whether at ,cowes or at ,paris17 he certainly had no right to receive it a second time from the public treasury of the ,united ,states4 ,this is admitted ,i believe on all sides4 ,now1 that he did receive the money in ,europe on this bill1 is proved by the acknowledgment of the receiver himself1 who credits the amount in his account as settled at the treasury thus3 cash received of ,grand for bill on ,willincks1 ,van ,staphorsts1 #b1hgf gilders1 #a1adh dollars4 ,col4 #c1 #a4 #bh to #ba from bottom4 ,there is a plain difference in the phraseology of the account1 from which an extract is given by ,mr4 ,j4 as above1 and that which he rendered to the ,treasury4 ,in the former he gives the credit thus1 ,by my bills on ,willincks1 c4 ,in the latter he states1 ,by cash received of ,grand for bill on ,willincks1 c4 ,there is a difference1 indeed1 as he states it1 but it is made solely by his own interpolation4 ,col4 #c1 #a4 #h1 from bottom4 ,that ,mr4 ,jefferson should1 in the very teeth of the facts of the evidence before us1 and in his own breast1 gravely say that he had paid the money for this bill1 and that therefore it was but just to return him the amount of it1 when he had1 by his own acknowledgment1 sent it to ,grand ,co41 and received the money for it1 is1 ,i confess1 not only matter of utter astonishment but regret4 ,i spare myself the qualifications which these paragraphs may merit1 leaving them to be applied by every reader according to the feelings they may excite in his own breast4 ,he proceeds3 ,and now to place this case beyond the reach of cavil or doubt1 and to show most conclusively that he had negotiated this bill in ,europe1 and received the cash for it there1 and that such was the understanding of the matter at the treasury in #ahji1 when he received the money4 ,these are his own words4 ,col4 #d1 he brings forward the overwhelming fact not hitherto made public but stated from the most creditable and authentic source1 that one of the accounting officers of the treasury suggested in writing the propriety of taking bond and security from ,mr4 ,j41 for indemnification of the ,united ,states against any future claim on this bill4 ,but it seems the bond was not taken1 and the government is now liable in law1 and in good faith for the payment of this bill to the rightful owner4 ,how this suggestion of taking bond at the treasury1 so solemnly paraded1 is more conclusive proof than his own interpolation1 that the cash was received1 ,i am so dull as not to perceive2 but ,i say1 that had the suggestion been made to me1 it would have been instantly complied with4 ,but ,i deny his law4 ,were the bill now to be presented to the treasury1 the answer would and should be the same as a merchant would give3 ,you have held up this bill three and thirty years without notice2 we have settled in the meantime with the drawer1 and have no effects of his left in our hands4 ,apply to him for payment4 ,on his application to me1 ,i should first inquire into the history of the bill2 where it had been lurking for three and thirty years8 how came he by it8 by interception8 by trover8 by assignment from ,grand8 by purchase8 from whom1 when and where8 ,and according to his answers ,i should either institute criminal process against him1 or if he showed that all was fair and honest1 ,i should pay him the money1 and look for reimbursement to the quarter appearing liable4 ,the law deems seven years' absence of a man1 without being heard of1 such presumptive evidence of his death1 as to distribute his estate1 and to allow his wife to marry again4 ,the ,auditor thought that twenty years non-appearance of a bill which had been risked through the post-offices of two nations1 was sufficient presumption of its loss4 ,but this self-styled native of ,virginia thinks that the thirty-three years now elapsed are not sufficient4 ,be it so4 ,if the accounting officers of the treasury have any uneasiness on that subject1 ,i am ready to give a bond of indemnification to the ,united ,states in any sum the officers will name1 and with the security which themselves shall approve4 ,will this satisfy the native ,virginian8 or will he now try to pick some other hole in this transaction1 to shield himself from a candid acknowledgment1 that in making up his case1 he supplied by gratuitous conjectures1 the facts which were not within his knowledge1 and that thus he has sinned against truth in his declarations before the public8 ,be this as it may1 ,i have so much confidence in the discernment and candor of my fellow-citizens1 as to leave to their judgment1 and dismiss from my own notice any future torture of words or circumstances which this writer may devise for their deception4 ,indeed1 could such a denunciation1 and on such proof1 bereave me of that confidence and consolation1 ,i should1 through the remainder of life1 brood over the afflicting belief that ,i had lived and labored in vain4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,goodenow4 ,,monticello1 ,june #ac1 #ahbb4 ,,sir1--,i thank you for the volume of ,american ,jurisprudence1 which you have been so kind as to send me4 ,i am now too old to read books solidly1 unless they promise present amusement or future benefit4 ,to me books of law offer neither4 ,but ,i read your #fth chapter with interest and satisfaction1 on the question whether the common law 7of ,england7 makes a part of the laws of our general government8 ,that it makes more or less a part of the laws of the ,states is1 ,i suppose1 an unquestionable fact4 ,not by birthright1 a conceit as inexplicable as the trinity1 but by adoption4 ,but1 as to the general government1 the ,virginia ,report on the alien and sedition laws1 has so completely pulverized this pretension that nothing new can be said on it4 ,still1 seeing that judges of the ,supreme ,court1 7,i recollect1 for example1 ,elsworth and ,story7 had been found capable of such paralogism1 ,i was glad to see that the ,supreme ,court had given it up4 ,in the case of ,libel in the ,united ,states district ,court of ,connecticut1 the rejection of it was certainly sound2 because no law of the general government had made it an offence4 ,but such a case might1 ,i suppose1 be sustained in the ,state ,courts which have state laws against libels4 ,because as to the portions of power within each ,state assigned to the general government1 the ,president is as much the ,executive of the ,state1 as their particular governor is in relation to ,state powers4 ,these1 however1 are speculations with which ,i no longer trouble myself2 and therefore1 to my thanks1 ,i will only add assurances of my great respect4 ,,to ,,doctor ,,benjamin ,,waterhouse4 ,,monticello1 ,june #bf1 #ahbb4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have received and read with thankfulness and pleasure your denunciation of the abuses of tobacco and wine4 ,yet1 however sound in its principles1 ,i expect it will be but a sermon to the wind4 ,you will find it is as difficult to inculcate these sanative precepts on the sensualities of the present day1 as to convince an ,athanasian that there is but one ,god4 ,i wish success to both attempts1 and am happy to learn from you that the latter1 at least1 is making progress1 and the more rapidly in proportion as our ,platonizing ,christians make more stir and noise about it4 ,the doctrines of ,jesus are simple1 and tend all to the happiness of man4 #a4 ,that there is one only ,god1 and he all perfect4 #b4 ,that there is a future state of rewards and punishments4 #c4 ,that to love ,god with all thy heart and thy neighbor as thyself1 is the sum of religion4 ,these are the great points on which he endeavored to reform the religion of the ,jews4 ,but compare with these the demoralizing dogmas of ,calvin4 #a4 ,that there are three ,gods4 #b4 ,that good works1 or the love of our neighbour1 are nothing4 #c4 ,that faith is every thing1 and the more incomprehensible the proposition1 the more merit in its faith4 #d4 ,that reason in religion is of unlawful use4 #e4 ,that ,god1 from the beginning1 elected certain individuals to be saved1 and certain others to be damned2 and that no crimes of the former can damn them2 no virtues of the latter save4 ,now1 which of these is the true and charitable ,christian8 ,he who believes and acts on the simple doctrines of ,jesus8 ,or the impious dogmatists1 as ,athanasius and ,calvin8 ,verily ,i say these are the false shepherds foretold as to enter not by the door into the sheepfold1 but to climb up some other way4 ,they are mere usurpers of the ,christian name1 teaching a counter-religion made up of the deliria of crazy imaginations1 as foreign from ,christianity as is that of ,mahomet4 ,their blasphemies have driven thinking men into infidelity1 who have too hastily rejected the supposed author himself1 with the horrors so falsely imputed to him4 ,had the doctrines of ,jesus been preached always as pure as they came from his lips1 the whole civilized world would now have been ,christian4 ,i rejoice that in this blessed country of free inquiry and belief1 which has surrendered its creed and conscience to neither ,kings nor priests1 the genuine doctrine of one only ,god is reviving1 and ,i trust that there is not a young man now living in the ,united ,states who will not die an ,unitarian4 ,but much ,i fear1 that when this great truth shall be re-established1 its votaries will fall into the fatal error of fabricating formulas of creed and confessions of faith1 the engines which so soon destroyed the religion of ,jesus1 and made of ,christendom a mere ,aceldama2 that they will give up morals for mysteries1 and ,jesus for ,plato4 ,how much wiser are the ,quakers1 who1 agreeing in the fundamental doctrines of the gospel1 schismatize about no mysteries1 and1 keeping within the pale of common sense1 suffer no speculative differences of opinion1 any more than of feature1 to impair the love of their brethren4 ,be this the wisdom of ,unitarians1 this the holy mantle which shall cover within its charitable circumference all who believe in one ,god1 and who love their neighbor6 ,i conclude my sermon with sincere assurances of my friendly esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,june #bg1 #ahbb4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your kind letter of the #aath has given me great satisfaction4 ,for although ,i could not doubt but that the hand of age was pressing heavily on you1 as on myself1 yet we like to know the particulars and the degree of that pressure4 ,much reflection too1 has been produced by your suggestion of lending my letter of the #ast1 to a printer4 ,i have generally great aversion to the insertion of my letters in the public papers2 because of my passion for quiet retirement1 and never to be exhibited in scenes on the public stage4 ,nor am ,i unmindful of the precept of ,horace1 solvere senescentem1 mature sanus equum1 ne peccet ad extremum ridendus4 ,in the present case1 however1 ,i see a possibility that this might aid in producing the very quiet after which ,i pant4 ,i do not know how far you may suffer1 as ,i do1 under the persecution of letters1 of which every mail brings a fresh load4 ,they are letters of inquiry1 for the most part1 always of good will1 sometimes from friends whom ,i esteem1 but much oftener from persons whose names are unknown to me1 but written kindly and civilly1 and to which1 therefore1 civility requires answers4 ,perhaps1 the better known failure of your hand in its function of writing1 may shield you in greater degree from this distress1 and so far qualify the misfortune of its disability4 ,i happened to turn to my letter-list some time ago1 and a curiosity was excited to count those received in a single year4 ,it was the year before the last4 ,i found the number to be one thousand two hundred and sixty-seven1 many of them requiring answers of elaborate research1 and all to be answered with due attention and consideration4 ,take an average of this number for a week or a day1 and ,i will repeat the question suggested by other considerations in mine of the #ast4 ,is this life8 ,at best it is but the life of a mill-horse1 who sees no end to his circle but in death4 ,to such a life1 that of a cabbage is paradise4 ,it occurs then1 that my condition of existence1 truly stated in that letter1 if better known1 might check the kind indiscretions which are so heavily oppressing the departing hours of life4 ,such a relief would1 to me1 be an ineffable blessing4 ,but yours of the #aath1 equally interesting and affecting1 should accompany that to which it is an answer4 ,the two1 taken together1 would excite a joint interest1 and place before our fellow-citizens the present condition of two ancient servants1 who having faithfully performed their forty or fifty campaigns1 stipendiis omnibus expletis1 have a reasonable claim to repose from all disturbance in the sanctuary of invalids and superannuates4 ,but some device should be thought of for their getting before the public otherwise than by our own publication4 ,your printer1 perhaps1 could frame something plausible4 99 99 99 99 99's name should be left blank1 as his picture1 should it meet his eye1 might give him pain4 ,i consign1 however1 the whole subject to your consideration1 to do in it whatever your own judgment shall approve1 and repeat always1 with truth1 the assurance of my constant and affectionate friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,william ,t4 ,,barry4 ,,monticello1 ,july #b1 #ahbb4 ,,sir1--,your favor of the #aeth of ,june is received1 and ,i am very thankful for the kindness of its expressions respecting myself4 ,but it ascribes to me merits which ,i do not claim4 ,i was only of a band devoted to the cause of independence1 all of whom exerted equally their best endeavors for its success1 and have a common right to the merits of its acquisition4 ,so also is the civil revolution of #ahja4 ,very many and very meritorious were the worthy patriots who assisted in bringing back our government to its republican tack4 ,to preserve it in that1 will require unremitting vigilance4 ,whether the surrender of our opponents1 their reception into our camp1 their assumption of our name1 and apparent accession to our objects1 may strengthen or weaken the genuine principles of republicanism1 may be a good or an evil1 is yet to be seen4 ,i consider the party division of whig and tory the most wholesome which can exist in any government1 and well worthy of being nourished1 to keep out those of a more dangerous character4 ,we already see the power1 installed for life1 responsible to no authority1 7for impeachment is not even a scare-crow17 advancing with a noiseless and steady pace to the great object of consolidation4 ,the foundations are already deeply laid by their decisions1 for the annihilation of constitutional ,state rights1 and the removal of every check1 every counterpoise to the ingulphing power of which themselves are to make a sovereign part4 ,if ever this vast country is brought under a single government1 it will be one of the most extensive corruption1 indifferent and incapable of a wholesome care over so wide a spread of surface4 ,this will not be borne1 and you will have to choose between reformation and revolution4 ,if ,i know the spirit of this country1 the one or the other is inevitable4 ,before the canker is become inveterate1 before its venom has reached so much of the body politic as to get beyond control1 remedy should be applied4 ,let the future appointments of judges be for four or six years1 and renewable by the ,president and ,senate4 ,this will bring their conduct1 at regular periods1 under revision and probation1 and may keep them in equipoise between the general and special governments4 ,we have erred in this point1 by copying ,england1 where certainly it is a good thing to have the judges independent of the ,king4 ,but we have omitted to copy their caution also1 which makes a judge removable on the address of both legislative ,houses4 ,that there should be public functionaries independent of the nation1 whatever may be their demerit1 is a solecism in a republic1 of the first order of absurdity and inconsistency4 ,to the printed inquiries respecting our schools1 it is not in my power to give an answer4 ,age1 debility1 an ancient dislocated1 and now stiffened wrist1 render writing so slow and painful1 that ,i am obliged to decline everything possible requiring writing4 ,an act of our legislature will inform you of our plan of primary schools1 and the annual reports show that it is becoming completely abortive1 and must be abandoned very shortly1 after costing us to this day one hundred and eighty thousand dollars1 and yet to cost us forty-five thousand dollars a year more until it shall be discontinued2 and if a single boy has received the elements of common education1 it must be in some part of the country not known to me4 ,experience has but too fully confirmed the early predictions of its fate4 ,but on this subject ,i must refer you to others more able than ,i am to go into the necessary details2 and ,i conclude with the assurances of my great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,doctor ,,waterhouse4 ,,monticello1 ,july #ai1 #ahbb4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,an anciently dislocated1 and now stiffening wrist1 makes writing an operation so slow and painful to me1 that ,i should not so soon have troubled you with an acknowledgment of your favor of the #hth1 but for the request it contained of my consent to the publication of my letter of ,june the #bfth4 ,no1 my dear ,sir1 not for the world4 ,into what a nest of hornets would it thrust my head6 the genus irritable vatum1 on whom argument is lost1 and reason is1 by themselves1 disclaimed in matters of religion4 ,don ,quixote undertook to redress the bodily wrongs of the world1 but the redressment of mental vagaries would be an enterprise more than ,quixotic4 ,i should as soon undertake to bring the crazy skulls of ,bedlam to sound understanding1 as inculcate reason into that of an ,athanasian4 ,i am old1 and tranquility is now my summum bonum4 ,keep me1 therefore1 from the fire and faggots of ,calvin and his victim ,servetus4 ,happy in the prospect of a restoration of primitive ,christianity1 ,i must leave to younger athletes to encounter and lop off the false branches which have been engrafted into it by the mythologists of the middle and modern ages4 ,i am not aware of the peculiar resistance to ,unitarianism1 which you ascribe to ,pennsylvania4 ,when ,i lived in ,philadelphia1 there was a respectable congregation of that sect1 with a meeting-house and regular service which ,i attended1 and in which ,doctor ,priestley officiated to numerous audiences4 ,baltimore has one or two churches1 and their pastor1 author of an inestimable book on this subject1 was elected chaplain to the late ,congress4 ,that doctrine has not yet been preached to us3 but the breeze begins to be felt which precedes the storm2 and fanaticism is all in a bustle1 shutting its doors and windows to keep it out4 ,but it will come1 and drive before it the foggy mists of ,platonism which have so long obscured our atmosphere4 ,i am in hopes that some of the disciples of your institution will become missionaries to us1 of these doctrines truly evangelical1 and open our eyes to what has been so long hidden from them4 ,a bold and eloquent preacher would be nowhere listened to with more freedom than in this ,state1 nor with more firmness of mind4 ,they might need a preparatory discourse on the text of prove all things1 hold fast that which is good1 in order to unlearn the lesson that reason is an unlawful guide in religion4 ,they might startle on being first awaked from the dreams of the night1 but they would rub their eyes at once1 and look the spectres boldly in the face4 ,the preacher might be excluded by our hierophants from their churches and meeting-houses1 but would be attended in the fields by whole acres of hearers and thinkers4 ,missionaries from ,cambridge would soon be greeted with more welcome1 than from the tritheistical school of ,andover4 ,such are my wishes1 such would be my welcomes1 warm and cordial as the assurances of my esteem and respect for you4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,thomas ,,skidman4 ,,monticello1 ,august #bi1 #ahbb4 ,you must be so good1 ,sir1 as to excuse me from entering into the optical investigation which your letter of the #ahth proposes4 ,the hand of age presses heavily on me4 ,i have long withdrawn my mind from speculations of that kind2 my memory is on the wane4 ,i am averse even to close thinking1 and writing is become slow1 laborious and painful4 ,i will make then but a single suggestion on the subject of your proposition1 to show my respect to your request4 ,to distinct vision it is necessary not only that the visual angle should be sufficient for the powers of the human eye1 but that there should be sufficient light also on the object of observation4 ,in microscopic observations1 the enlargement of the angle of vision may be more indulged1 because auxiliary light may be concentrated on the object by concave mirrors4 ,but in the case of the heavenly bodies1 we can have no such aid4 ,the moon1 for example1 receives from the sun but a fixed quantity of light4 ,in proportion as you magnify her surface1 you spread that fixed quantity over a greater space1 dilute it more1 and render the object more dim4 ,if you increase her magnitude infinitely1 you dim her face infinitely also1 and she becomes invisible4 ,when under total eclipse1 all the direct rays of the sun being intercepted1 she is seen but faintly1 and would not be seen at all but for the refraction of the solar rays in their passage through our atmosphere4 ,in a night of extreme darkness1 a house or a mountain is not seen1 as not having light enough to impress the limited sensibility of our eye4 ,i do suppose in fact that ,herschel has availed himself of the properties of the parabolic mirror to the point beyond which its effect would be countervailed by the diminution of light on the object4 ,i barely suggest this element1 not presented to view in your letter1 as one which must enter into the estimate of the improved telescope you propose4 ,you will receive from the professional mathematicians whom you have consulted1 remarks more elaborate and profound1 and must be so good as to accept mine merely as testimonies of my respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,george ,f4 ,,hopkins4 ,,monticello1 ,september #e1 #ahbb4 ,,sir1--,your letter of ,august --1 was received a few days ago4 ,of all the departments of science no one seems to have been less advanced for the last hundred years than that of meteorology4 ,the new chemistry indeed has given us a new principle of the generation of rain1 by proving water to be a composition of different gases1 and has aided our theory of meteoric lights4 ,electricity stands where ,dr4 ,franklin's early discoveries placed it1 except with its new modification of galvanism4 ,but the phenomena of snow1 hail1 halo1 aurora borealis1 haze1 looming1 c41 are as yet very imperfectly understood4 ,i am myself an empiric in natural philosophy1 suffering my faith to go no further than my facts4 ,i am pleased1 however1 to see the efforts of hypothetical speculation1 because by the collisions of different hypotheses1 truth may be elicited and science advanced in the end4 ,this sceptical disposition does not permit me to say whether your hypothesis for looming and the floating volumes of warm air occasionally perceived1 may or may not be confirmed by future observations4 ,more facts are yet wanting to furnish a solution on which we may rest with confidence4 ,i even doubt as yet whether the looming at sea and at land are governed by the same laws4 ,in this state of uncertainty1 ,i cannot presume either to advise or discourage the publication of your essay4 ,this must depend on circumstances of which you must be abler to judge yourself1 and therefore ,i return the paper as requested1 with assurances of my great respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,chiles ,,terril4 ,,monticello1 ,september #be1 #ahbb4 ,,sir1--,i received on the #bjth1 your letter of the #acth1 on the question what is an east and west line8 which1 you say1 has been a subject of discussion in the newspapers4 ,i presume1 however1 it must have been a mere question of definition1 and that the parties have differed only in applying the same appellation to different things4 ,the one defines an east and west line to be on a great circle of the earth1 passing through the point of departure1 its nadir point1 and the centre of the earth1 its plane rectangular1 to that of the meridian of departure4 ,the other considers an east and west line to be a line on the surface of the earth1 bounding a plane at right-angles with its axis1 or a circle of latitude passing through the point of departure1 or in other words1 a line which1 from the point of departure1 passes every meridian at a right-angle4 ,each party1 therefore1 defining the line he means1 may be permitted to call it an east and west one1 or at least it becomes no longer a mathematical but a philological question of the meaning of the words east and west4 ,the last is what was meant probably by the east and west line in the treaty of ,ghent4 ,the same has been the understanding in running the numerous east and west lines which divide our different ,states4 ,they have been run by observations of latitude at very short intervals1 uniting the points of observation by short direct lines1 and thus constituting in fact part of a polygon of very short sides4 ,but1 ,sir1 ,i do not pretend to be an arbiter of these learned questions2 age has weaned me from such speculations1 and rendered me as incompetent as unwilling to puzzle myself with them4 ,your claim on me as a quondam neighbor has induced me to hazard thus much1 not indeed for the newspapers1 a vehicle to which ,i am never willingly committed1 but to prove my attention to your wishes1 and to convey to you the assurances of my respect4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,montezillo1 ,october #ae1 #ahbb4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have long entertained scruples about writing this letter1 upon a subject of some delicacy4 ,but old age has overcome them at last4 ,you remember the four ships ordered by ,congress to be built1 and the four captains appointed by ,washington1 ,talbot1 and ,truxton1 and ,barry1 c41 to carry an ambassador to ,algiers1 and protect our commerce in the ,mediterranean4 ,i have always imputed this measure to you1 for several reasons4 ,first1 because you frequently proposed it to me while we were at ,paris1 negotiating together for peace with the ,barbary powers4 ,secondly1 because ,i knew that ,washington and ,hamilton were not only indifferent about a navy1 but averse to it4 ,there was no ,secretary of the ,navy2 only four ,heads of department4 ,you were ,secretary of ,state2 ,hamilton1 ,secretary of the ,treasury2 ,knox1 ,secretary of ,war2 and ,i believe ,bradford was ,attorney ,general4 ,i have always suspected that you and ,knox were in favor of a navy4 ,if ,bradford was so1 the majority was clear4 ,but ,washington1 ,i am confident1 was against it in his judgment4 ,but his attachment to ,knox1 and his deference to your opinion1 for ,i know he had a great regard for you1 might induce him to decide in favor of you and ,knox1 even though ,bradford united with ,hamilton in opposition to you4 ,that ,hamilton was averse to the measure1 ,i have personal evidence2 for while it was pending1 he came in a hurry and a fit of impatience1 to make a visit to me4 ,he said he was likely to be called upon for a large sum of money to build ships of war1 to fight the ,algerines1 and he asked my opinion of the measure4 ,i answered him that ,i was clearly in favor of it4 ,for ,i had always been of opinion1 from the commencement of the revolution1 that a navy was the most powerful1 the safest and the cheapest national defence for this country4 ,my advice1 therefore1 was1 that as much of the revenue as could possibly be spared1 should be applied to the building and equipping of ships4 ,the conversation was of some length1 but it was manifest in his looks and in his air1 that he was disgusted at the measure1 as well as at the opinion that ,i had expressed4 ,mrs4 ,knox not long since wrote a letter to ,doctor ,waterhouse1 requesting him to procure a commission for her son1 in the navy2 that navy1 says her ladyship1 of which his father was the parent4 ,for1 says she1 ,i have frequently heard ,general ,washington say to my husband1 the navy was your child4 ,i have always believed it to be ,jefferson's child1 though ,knox may have assisted in ushering it into the world4 ,hamilton's hobby was the army4 ,that ,washington was averse to a navy1 ,i had full proof from his own lips1 in many different conversations1 some of them of length1 in which he always insisted that it was only building and arming ships for the ,english4 ,si quid novisti rectius istis candidus imperti2 si non1 his utere mecum4 ,if ,i am in error in any particular1 pray correct your humble servant4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,cornelius ,,camden ,,blatchly4 ,,monticello1 ,october #ba1 #ahbb4 ,,sir1--,i return thanks for the pamphlet you have been so kind as to send me on the subject of commonwealths4 ,its moral principles merit entire approbation1 its philanthropy especially1 and its views of the equal rights of man4 ,that1 on the principle of a communion of property1 small societies may exist in habits of virtue1 order1 industry1 and peace1 and consequently in a state of as much happiness as heaven has been pleased to deal out to imperfect humanity1 ,i can readily conceive1 and indeed1 have seen its proofs in various small societies which have been constituted on that principle4 ,but ,i do not feel authorized to conclude from these that an extended society1 like that of the ,united ,states1 or of an individual ,state1 could be governed happily on the same principle4 ,i look to the diffusion of light and education as the resource most to be relied on for ameliorating the condition1 promoting the virtue1 and advancing the happiness of man4 ,that every man shall be made virtuous1 by any process whatever1 is1 indeed1 no more to be expected1 than that every tree shall be made to bear fruit1 and every plant nourishment4 ,the brier and bramble can never become the vine and olive2 but their asperities may be softened by culture1 and their properties improved to usefulness in the order and economy of the world4 ,and ,i do hope that1 in the present spirit of extending to the great mass of mankind the blessings of instruction1 ,i see a prospect of great advancement in the happiness of the human race2 and that this may proceed to an indefinite1 although not to an infinite degree4 ,wishing every success to the views of your society which their hopes can promise1 and thanking you most particularly for the kind expressions of your letter towards myself1 ,i salute you with assurances of great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,november #a1 #ahbb4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have racked my memory and ransacked my papers1 to enable myself to answer the inquiries of your favor of ,october the #aeth2 but to little purpose4 ,my papers furnish me nothing1 my memory1 generalities only4 ,i know that while ,i was in ,europe1 and anxious about the fate of our seafaring men1 for some of whom1 then in captivity in ,algiers1 we were treating1 and all were in like danger1 ,i formed1 undoubtingly1 the opinion that our government1 as soon as practicable1 should provide a naval force sufficient to keep the ,barbary ,states in order2 and on this subject we communicated together1 as you observe4 ,when ,i returned to the ,united ,states and took part in the administration under ,general ,washington1 ,i constantly maintained that opinion2 and in ,december1 #agij1 took advantage of a reference to me from the first ,congress which met after ,i was in office1 to report in favor of a force sufficient for the protection of our ,mediterranean commerce2 and ,i laid before them an accurate statement of the whole ,barbary force1 public and private4 ,i think ,general ,washington approved of building vessels of war to that extent4 ,general ,knox1 ,i know1 did4 ,but what was ,colonel ,hamilton's opinion1 ,i do not in the least remember4 ,your recollections on that subject are certainly corroborated by his known anxieties for a close connection with ,great ,britain1 to which he might apprehend danger from collisions between their vessels and ours4 ,randolph was then ,attorney ,general2 but his opinion on the question ,i also entirely forget4 ,some vessels of war were accordingly built and sent into the ,mediterranean4 ,the additions to these in your time1 ,i need not note to you1 who are well known to have ever been an advocate for the wooden walls of ,themistocles4 ,some of those you added1 were sold under an act of ,congress passed while you were in office4 ,i thought1 afterwards1 that the public safety might require some additional vessels of strength1 to be prepared and in readiness for the first moment of a war1 provided they could be preserved against the decay which is unavoidable if kept in the water1 and clear of the expense of officers and men4 ,with this view ,i proposed that they should be built in dry docks1 above the level of the tide waters1 and covered with roofs4 ,i further advised1 that places for these docks should be selected where there was a command of water on a high level1 as that of the ,tyber at ,washington1 by which the vessels might be floated out1 on the principle of a lock4 ,but the majority of the legislature was against any addition to the navy1 and the minority1 although for it in judgment1 voted against it on a principle of opposition4 ,we are now1 ,i understand1 building vessels to remain on the stocks1 under shelter1 until wanted1 when they will be launched and finished4 ,on my plan they could be in service at an hour's notice4 ,on this1 the finishing1 after launching1 will be a work of time4 ,this is all ,i recollect about the origin and progress of our navy4 ,that of the late war1 certainly raised our rank and character among nations4 ,yet a navy is a very expensive engine4 ,it is admitted1 that in ten or twelve years a vessel goes to entire decay2 or1 if kept in repair1 costs as much as would build a new one2 and that a nation who could count on twelve or fifteen years of peace1 would gain by burning its navy and building a new one in time4 ,its extent1 therefore1 must be governed by circumstances4 ,since my proposition for a force adequate to the piracies of the ,mediterranean1 a similar necessity has arisen in our own seas for considerable addition to that force4 ,indeed1 ,i wish we could have a convention with the naval powers of ,europe1 for them to keep down the pirates of the ,mediterranean1 and the slave ships on the coast of ,africa1 and for us to perform the same duties for the society of nations in our seas4 ,in this way1 those collisions would be avoided between the vessels of war of different nations1 which beget wars and constitute the weightiest objection to navies4 ,i salute you with constant affection and respect4 ,,to ,,doctor ,,cooper4 ,,monticello1 ,november #b1 #ahbb4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,october the #ahth came to hand yesterday4 ,the atmosphere of our country is unquestionably charged with a threatening cloud of fanaticism1 lighter in some parts1 denser in others1 but too heavy in all4 ,i had no idea1 however1 that in ,pennsylvania1 the cradle of toleration and freedom of religion1 it could have arisen to the height you describe4 ,this must be owing to the growth of ,presbyterianism4 ,the blasphemy and absurdity of the five points of ,calvin1 and the impossibility of defending them1 render their advocates impatient of reasoning1 irritable1 and prone to denunciation4 ,in ,boston1 however1 and its neighborhood1 ,unitarianism has advanced to so great strength1 as now to humble this haughtiest of all religious sects2 insomuch1 that they condescend to interchange with them and the other sects1 the civilities of preaching freely and frequently in each others' meeting houses4 ,in ,rhode ,island1 on the other hand1 no sectarian preacher will permit an ,unitarian to pollute his desk4 ,in our ,richmond there is much fanaticism1 but chiefly among the women4 ,they have their night meetings and praying parties1 where1 attended by their priests1 and sometimes by a hen-pecked husband1 they pour forth the effusions of their love to ,jesus1 in terms as amatory and carnal1 as their modesty would permit them to use to a mere earthly lover4 ,in our village of ,charlottesville1 there is a good degree of religion1 with a small spice only of fanaticism4 ,we have four sects1 but without either church or meeting-house4 ,the court-house is the common temple1 one ,sunday in the month to each4 ,here1 ,episcopalian and ,presbyterian1 ,methodist and ,baptist1 meet together1 join in hymning their ,maker1 listen with attention and devotion to each others' preachers1 and all mix in society with perfect harmony4 ,it is not so in the districts where ,presbyterianism prevails undividedly4 ,their ambition and tyranny would tolerate no rival if they had power4 ,systematical in grasping at an ascendency over all other sects1 they aim1 like the ,jesuits1 at engrossing the education of the country1 are hostile to every institution which they do not direct1 and jealous at seeing others begin to attend at all to that object4 ,the diffusion of instruction1 to which there is now so growing an attention1 will be the remote remedy to this fever of fanaticism2 while the more proximate one will be the progress of ,unitarianism4 ,that this will1 ere long1 be the religion of the majority from north to south1 ,i have no doubt4 ,in our university you know there is no ,professorship of ,divinity4 ,a handle has been made of this1 to disseminate an idea that this is an institution1 not merely of no religion1 but against all religion4 ,occasion was taken at the last meeting of the ,visitors1 to bring forward an idea that might silence this calumny1 which weighed in the minds of some honest friends to the institution4 ,in our annual report to the legislature1 after stating the constitutional reasons against a public establishment of any religious instruction1 we suggest the expediency of encouraging the different religious sects to establish1 each for itself1 a professorship of their own tenets1 on the confines of the university1 so near as that their students may attend the lectures there1 and have the free use of our library1 and every other accommodation we can give them2 preserving1 however1 their independence of us and of each other4 ,this fills the chasm objected to ours1 as a defect in an institution professing to give instruction in all useful sciences4 ,i think the invitation will be accepted1 by some sects from candid intentions1 and by others from jealousy and rivalship4 ,and by bringing the sects together1 and mixing them with the mass of other students1 we shall soften their asperities1 liberalize and neutralize their prejudices1 and make the general religion a religion of peace1 reason1 and morality4 ,the time of opening our university is still as uncertain as ever4 ,all the pavilions1 boarding houses1 and dormitories are done4 ,nothing is now wanting but the central building for a library and other general purposes4 ,for this we have no funds1 and the last legislature refused all aid4 ,we have better hopes of the next4 ,but all is uncertain4 ,i have heard with regret of disturbances on the part of the students in your seminary4 ,the article of discipline is the most difficult in ,american education4 ,premature ideas of independence1 too little repressed by parents beget a spirit of insubordination1 which is the great obstacle to science with us1 and a principal cause of its decay since the revolution4 ,i look to it with dismay in our institution1 as a breaker ahead1 which ,i am far from being confident we shall be able to weather4 ,the advance of age1 and tardy pace of the public patronage1 may probably spare me the pain of witnessing consequences4 ,i salute you with constant friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,campbell1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,november #aj1 #ahbb4 ,,sir1--,i have to acknowledge your favor of the #dth instant1 which gives me the first information ,i had ever received that the laurels which ,colonel ,campbell so honorably won in the battle of ,king's ,mountain1 had ever been brought into question by any one4 ,to him has been ever ascribed so much of the success of that brilliant action as the valor and conduct of an able commander might justly claim4 ,this lessens nothing the merits of his companions in arms1 officers and soldiers1 who1 all and every one1 acted well their parts in their respective stations4 ,i have no papers on this subject in my possession1 all such received at that day having belonged to the records of the council1 but ,i remember well the deep and grateful impression made on the mind of every one by that memorable victory4 ,it was the joyful annunciation of that turn of the tide of success which terminated the revolutionary war with the seal of our independence4 ,the slighting expression complained of1 as hazarded by the venerable ,shelby1 might seem inexcusable in a younger man1 but he was then old1 and ,i can assure you1 dear ,sir1 from mortifying experience1 that the lapses of memory of an old man are innocent subjects of compassion more than of blame4 ,the descendants of ,colonel ,campbell may rest their heads quietly on the pillow of his renown4 ,history has consecrated1 and will forever preserve it in the faithful annals of a grateful country4 ,with the expressions of the high sense ,i entertain of his character1 accept the assurance to yourself of my great esteem and respect4 ,p4 ,s4 ,i received at the same time with your letter1 one from ,mr4 ,william ,c4 ,preston1 on the same subject4 ,writing is so slow and painful to me1 that ,i must pray you to make for me my acknowledgments to him1 and my request that he will consider this as an answer to his as well as your favor4 ,,to ,,james ,,smith4 ,,monticello1 ,december #h1 #ahbb4 ,,sir1--,i have to thank you for your pamphlets on the subject of ,unitarianism1 and to express my gratification with your efforts for the revival of primitive ,christianity in your quarter4 ,no historical fact is better established1 than that the doctrine of one ,god1 pure and uncompounded1 was that of the early ages of ,christianity2 and was among the efficacious doctrines which gave it triumph over the polytheism of the ancients1 sickened with the absurdities of their own theology4 ,nor was the unity of the ,supreme ,being ousted from the ,christian creed by the force of reason1 but by the sword of civil government1 wielded at the will of the fanatic ,athanasius4 ,the hocus-pocus phantasm of a ,god like another ,cerberus1 with one body and three heads1 had its birth and growth in the blood of thousands and thousands of martyrs4 ,and a strong proof of the solidity of the primitive faith1 is its restoration1 as soon as a nation arises which vindicates to itself the freedom of religious opinion1 and its external divorce from the civil authority4 ,the pure and simple unity of the ,creator of the universe1 is now all but ascendant in the eastern ,states2 it is dawning in the west1 and advancing towards the south2 and ,i confidently expect that the present generation will see ,unitarianism become the general religion of the ,united ,states4 ,the eastern presses are giving us many excellent pieces on the subject1 and ,priestley's learned writings on it are1 or should be1 in every hand4 ,in fact1 the ,athanasian paradox that one is three1 and three but one1 is so incomprehensible to the human mind1 that no candid man can say he has any idea of it1 and how can he believe what presents no idea8 ,he who thinks he does1 only deceives himself4 ,he proves1 also1 that man1 once surrendering his reason1 has no remaining guard against absurdities the most monstrous1 and like a ship without rudder1 is the sport of every wind4 ,with such persons1 gullability1 which they call faith1 takes the helm from the hand of reason1 and the mind becomes a wreck4 ,i write with freedom1 because1 while ,i claim a right to believe in one ,god1 if so my reason tells me1 ,i yield as freely to others that of believing in three4 ,both religions1 ,i find1 make honest men1 and that is the only point society has any right to look to4 ,although this mutual freedom should produce mutual indulgence1 yet ,i wish not to be brought in question before the public on this or any other subject1 and ,i pray you to consider me as writing under that trust4 ,i take no part in controversies1 religious or political4 ,at the age of eighty1 tranquillity is the greatest good of life1 and the strongest of our desires that of dying in the good will of all mankind4 ,and with the assurance of all my good will to ,unitarian and ,trinitarian1 to ,whig and ,tory1 accept for yourself that of my entire respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,edward ,,everett4 ,,monticello1 ,february #bd1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have read with much satisfaction the reply of ,mr4 ,everett1 your brother1 to the criticisms on his work on the state of ,europe1 and concur with him generally in the doctrines of the reply4 ,certainly provisions are not allowed1 by the consent of nations1 to be contraband but where everything is so1 as in the ease of a blockaded town1 with which all intercourse is forbidden4 ,on the question whether the principle of free bottoms making free goods1 and enemy bottoms enemy goods1 is now to be considered as established in the law of nations1 ,i will state to you a fact within my own knowledge1 which may lessen the weight of our authority as having acted in the war of ,france and ,england on the ancient principle that the goods of an enemy in the bottom of a friend are lawful prize2 while those of a friend in an enemy bottom are not so4 ,england became a party in the general war against ,france on the #ast of ,february1 #agic4 ,we took immediately the stand of neutrality4 ,we were aware that our great intercourse with these two maritime nations would subject us to harassment by multiplied questions on the duties of neutrality1 and that an important and early one would be which of the two principles above stated should be the law of action with us8 ,we wished to act on the new one of free bottoms free goods2 and we had established it in our treaties with other nations1 but not with ,england4 ,we determined therefore to avoid1 if possible1 committing ourselves on this question until we could negotiate with ,england her acquiescence in the new principle4 ,although the cases occurring were numerous1 and the ministers1 ,genet and ,hammond1 eagerly on the watch1 we were able to avoid any declaration until the massacre of ,st4 ,domingo4 ,the whites1 on that occasion1 took refuge on board our ships1 then in their harbor1 with all the property they could find room for2 and on their passage to the ,united ,states1 many of them were taken by ,british cruisers1 and their cargoes seized as lawful prize4 ,the inflammable temper of ,genet kindled at once1 and he wrote1 with his usual passion1 a letter reclaiming an observance of the principle of free bottoms free goods1 as if already an acknowledged law of neutrality4 ,i pressed him in conversation not to urge this point2 that although it had been acted on by convention1 by the armed neutrality1 it was not yet become a principle of universal admission2 that we wished indeed to strengthen it by our adoption1 and were negotiating an acquiescence on the part of ,great ,britain3 but if forced to decide prematurely1 we must justify ourselves by a declaration of the ancient principle1 and that no general consent of nations had as yet changed it4 ,he was immoveable1 and on the #beth of ,july wrote a letter1 so insulting1 that nothing but a determined system of justice and moderation would have prevented his being shipped home in the first vessel4 ,i had the day before answered his of the #ith1 in which ,i had been obliged in our own justification1 to declare that the ancient was the established principle1 still existing and authoritative4 ,our denial1 therefore1 of the new principle1 and action on the old one1 were forced upon us by the precipitation and intemperance of ,genet1 against our wishes1 and against our aim2 and our involuntary practice1 therefore1 is of less authority against the new rule4 ,i owe you particular thanks for the copy of your translation of ,buttman's ,greek ,grammar1 which you have been so kind as to send me4 ,a cursory view of it promises me a rich mine of valuable criticism4 ,i observe he goes with the herd of grammarians in denying an ,ablative case to the ,greek language4 ,i cannot concur with him in that1 but think with the ,messrs4 of ,port ,royal who admit an ,ablative4 ,and why exclude it8 ,is it because the ,dative and ,ablative in ,greek are always of the same form8 ,then there is no ,ablative to the ,latin plurals1 because in them as in ,greek1 these cases are always in the same form4 ,the ,greeks recognized the ,ablative under the appellation of the 1 which ,i have met with and noted from some of the scholiasts1 without recollecting where4 ,stephens1 ,scapula1 ,hederic acknowledge it as one of the significations of the word 4 ,that the ,greeks used it cannot be denied4 ,for one of multiplied examples which maybe produced take the following from the ,hippolytus of ,euripides3 1 1 dic quo modo justiti clava percussit eum1 quo modo are ,ablatives1 then why not 8 ,and translating it into ,english1 should we use the #af;,dative or ,ablative preposition8 ,it is not perhaps easy to define very critically what constitutes a case in the declension of nouns4 ,all agree as to the ,nominative that it is simply the name of the thing4 ,if we admit that a distinct case is constituted by any accident or modification which changes the relation which that bears to the actors or action of the sentence1 we must agree to the six cases at least2 because1 for example1 to a thing1 and from a thing are very different accidents to the thing4 ,it may be said that if every distinct accident or change of relation constitutes a different case1 then there are in every language as many cases as there are prepositions2 for this is the peculiar office of the preposition4 ,but because we do not designate by special names all the cases to which a noun is liable1 is that a reason why we should throw away half of those we have1 as is done by those grammarians who reject all cases1 but the ,nominative1 ,genitive1 and ,accusative1 and in a less degree by those also who reject the ,ablative alone8 as pushing the discrimination of all the possible cases to extremities leads us to nothing useful or practicable1 ,i am contented with the old six cases1 familiar to every cultivated language1 ancient and modern1 and well understood by all4 ,i acknowledge myself at the same time not an adept in the metaphysical speculations of ,grammar4 ,by analyzing too minutely we often reduce our subject to atoms1 of which the mind loses its hold4 ,nor am ,i a friend to a scrupulous purism of style4 ,i readily sacrifice the niceties of syntax to euphony and strength4 ,it is by boldly neglecting the rigorisms of grammar1 that ,tacitus has made himself the strongest writer in the world4 ,the ,hyperesitics call him barbarous2 but ,i should be sorry to exchange his barbarisms for their wise-drawn purisms4 ,some of his sentences are as strong as language can make them4 ,had he scrupulously filled up the whole of their syntax1 they would have been merely common4 ,to explain my meaning by an ,english example1 ,i will quote the motto of one1 ,i believe1 of the regicides of ,charles ,i41 ,rebellion to tyrants is obedience to ,god4 ,correct its syntax1 ,rebellion against tyrants is obedience to ,god1 it has lost all the strength and beauty of the antithesis4 ,however1 dear ,sir1 ,i profess again my want of familiarity with these speculations2 ,i hazard them without confidence1 and offer them submissively to your consideration and more practised judgment4 ,although writing1 with both hands crippled1 is slow and painful1 and therefore nearly laid aside from necessity1 ,i have been decoyed by my subjects into a very long letter4 ,what would therefore have been a good excuse for ending with the first page1 cannot be a bad one for concluding in the fourth1 with the assurance of my great esteem and respect4 ,,footnote3 #af ,see ,buttman's ,datives1 p4 #bcj1 every one of which ,i should consider as under the accident or relation called ,ablative1 having no signification of approach according to his definition of the ,dative4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,february #be1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i received1 in due time1 your two favors of ,december the #b;d and ,february the #ajth1 and have to acknowledge for the ladies of my native ,state their obligations to you for the encomiums which you are so kind as to bestow on them4 ,they certainly claim no advantages over those of their sister ,states1 and are sensible of more favorable circumstances existing with many of them1 and happily availed1 which our situation does not offer4 ,but the paper respecting ,monticello1 to which you allude1 was not written by a ,virginian1 but a visitant from another ,state2 and written by memory at least a dozen years after the visit4 ,this has occasioned some lapses of recollection1 and a confusion of some things in the mind of our friend1 and particularly as to the volume of slanders supposed to have been cut out of newspapers and preserved4 ,it would not1 indeed1 have been a single volume1 but an encyclopedia in bulk4 ,but ,i never had such a volume2 indeed1 ,i rarely thought those libels worth reading1 much less preserving and remembering4 ,at the end of every year1 ,i generally sorted all my pamphlets1 and had them bound according to their subjects4 ,one of these volumes consisted of personal altercations between individuals1 and calumnies on each other4 ,this was lettered on the back1 ,personalities1 and is now in the library of ,congress4 ,i was in the habit1 also1 while living apart from my family1 of cutting out of the newspapers such morsels of poetry1 or tales1 as ,i thought would please1 and of sending them to my grandchildren1 who pasted them on leaves of blank paper and formed them into a book4 ,these two volumes have been confounded into one in the recollection of our friend4 ,her poetical imagination1 too1 has heightened the scenes she visited1 as well as the merits of the inhabitants1 to whom her society was a delightful gratification4 ,i have just finished reading ,o',meara's ,bonaparte4 ,it places him in a higher scale of understanding than ,i had allotted him4 ,i had thought him the greatest of all military captains1 but an indifferent statesman1 and misled by unworthy passions4 ,the flashes1 however1 which escaped from him in these conversations with ,o',meara1 prove a mind of great expansion1 although not of distinct development and reasoning4 ,he seizes results with rapidity and penetration1 but never explains logically the process of reasoning by which he arrives at them4 ,this book1 too1 makes us forget his atrocities for a moment1 in commiseration of his sufferings4 ,i will not say that the authorities of the world1 charged with the care of their country and people1 had not a right to confine him for life1 as a lion or tiger1 on the principle of self-preservation4 ,there was no safety to nations while he was permitted to roam at large4 ,but the putting him to death in cold blood1 by lingering tortures of mind1 by vexations1 insults and deprivations1 was a degree of inhumanity to which the poisonings and assassinations of the school of ,borgia and the den of ,marat never attained4 ,the book proves1 also1 that nature had denied him the moral sense1 the first excellence of well-organized man4 ,if he could seriously and repeatedly affirm that he had raised himself to power without ever having committed a crime1 it proves that he wanted totally the sense of right and wrong4 ,if he could consider the millions of human lives which he had destroyed or caused to be destroyed1 the desolations of countries by plunderings1 burnings1 and famine1 the destitutions of lawful rulers of the world without the consent of their constituents1 to place his brothers and sisters on their thrones1 the cutting up of established societies of men and jumbling them discordantly together again at his caprice1 the demolition of the fairest hopes of mankind for the recovery of their rights and amelioration of their condition1 and all the numberless train of his other enormities2 the man1 ,i say1 who could consider all these as no crimes1 must have been a moral monster1 against whom every hand should have been lifted to slay him4 ,you are so kind as to inquire after my health4 ,the bone of my arm is well knitted1 but my hand and fingers are in a discouraging condition1 kept entirely useless by an dematous swelling of slow amendment4 ,god bless you and continue your good health of body and mind4 ,,to ,,judge ,,johnson4 ,,monticello1 ,march #d1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i delayed some time the acknowledgment of your welcome letter of ,december #ajth1 on the common lazy principle of never doing to-day what we can put off to to-morrow1 until it became doubtful whether a letter would find you at ,charleston4 ,learning now that you are at ,washington1 ,i will reply to some particulars which seem to require it4 ,the ,north ,american ,review is a work ,i do not take1 and which is little known in this ,state1 consequently ,i have never seen its observations on your inestimable history1 but a reviewer can never let a work pass uncensured4 ,he must always make himself wiser than his author4 ,he would otherwise think it an abdication of his office of censor4 ,on this occasion1 he seems to have had more sensibility for ,virginia than she has for herself2 for1 on reading the work1 ,i saw nothing to touch our pride or jealousy1 but every expression of respect and good will which truth could justify4 ,the family of enemies1 whose buzz you apprehend1 are now nothing4 ,you may learn this at ,washington2 and their military relation has long ago had the full-voiced condemnation of his own ,state4 ,do not fear1 therefore1 these insects4 ,what you write will be far above their grovelling sphere4 ,let me1 then1 implore you1 dear ,sir1 to finish your history of parties1 leaving the time of publication to the state of things you may deem proper1 but taking especial care that we do not lose it altogether4 ,we have been too careless of our future reputation1 while our tories will omit nothing to place us in the wrong4 ,besides the five-volumed libel which represents us as struggling for office1 and not at all to prevent our government from being administered into a monarchy1 the life of ,hamilton is in the hands of a man who1 to the bitterness of the priest1 adds the rancor of the fiercest federalism4 ,mr4 ,adams' papers1 too1 and his biography1 will descend of course to his son1 whose pen1 you know1 is pointed1 and his prejudices not in our favor4 ,and doubtless other things are in preparation1 unknown to us4 ,on our part we are depending on truth to make itself known1 while history is taking a contrary set which may become too inveterate for correction4 ,mr4 ,madison will probably leave something1 but ,i believe1 only particular passages of our history1 and these chiefly confined to the period between the dissolution of the old and commencement of the new government1 which is peculiarly within his knowledge4 ,after he joined me in the administration1 he had no leisure to write4 ,this1 too1 was my case4 ,but although ,i had not time to prepare anything express1 my letters1 7all preserved7 will furnish the daily occurrences and views from my return from ,europe in #agij1 till ,i retired finally from office4 ,these will command more conviction than anything ,i could have written after my retirement2 no day having ever passed during that period without a letter to somebody1 written too in the moment1 and in the warmth and freshness of fact and feeling1 they will carry internal evidence that what they breathe is genuine4 ,selections from these1 after my death1 may come out successively as the maturity of circumstances may render their appearance seasonable4 ,but multiplied testimony1 multiplied views will be necessary to give solid establishment to truth4 ,much is known to one which is not known to another1 and no one knows everything4 ,it is the sum of individual knowledge which is to make up the whole truth1 and to give its correct current through future time4 ,then do not1 dear ,sir1 withhold your stock of information2 and ,i would moreover recommend that you trust it not to a single copy1 nor to a single depository4 ,leave it not in the power of any one person1 under the distempered view of an unlucky moment1 to deprive us of the weight of your testimony1 and to purchase1 by its destruction1 the favor of any party or person1 as happened with a paper of ,dr4 ,franklin's4 ,i cannot lay down my pen without recurring to one of the subjects of my former letter1 for in truth there is no danger ,i apprehend so much as the consolidation of our government by the noiseless1 and therefore unalarming1 instrumentality of the supreme court4 ,this is the form in which federalism now arrays itself1 and consolidation is the present principle of distinction between republicans and the pseudo-republicans but real federalists4 ,i must comfort myself with the hope that the judges will see the importance and the duty of giving their country the only evidence they can give of fidelity to its constitution and integrity in the administration of its laws2 that is to say1 by every one's giving his opinion seriatim and publicly on the cases he decides4 ,let him prove by his reasoning that he has read the papers1 that he has considered the case1 that in the application of the law to it1 he uses his own judgment independently and unbiased by party views and personal favor or disfavor4 ,throw himself in every case on ,god and his country2 both will excuse him for error and value him for his honesty4 ,the very idea of cooking up opinions in conclave1 begets suspicions that something passes which fears the public ear1 and this1 spreading by degrees1 must produce at some time abridgment of tenure1 facility of removal1 or some other modification which may promise a remedy4 ,for in truth there is at this time more hostility to the federal judiciary1 than to any other organ of the government4 ,i should greatly prefer1 as you do1 four judges to any greater number4 ,great lawyers are not over abundant1 and the multiplication of judges only enable the weak to out-vote the wise1 and three concurrent opinions out of four gives a strong presumption of right4 ,i cannot better prove my entire confidence in your candor1 than by the frankness with which ,i commit myself to you1 and to this ,i add with truth1 assurances of the sincerity of my great esteem and respect4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,march #aj1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the sight of your well known hand writing in your favor of #beth ,february last1 gave me great pleasure1 as it proved your arm to be restored1 and your pen still manageable4 ,may it continue till you shall become as perfect a ,calvinist as ,i am in one particular4 ,poor ,calvin's infirmities1 his rheumatism1 his gouts and sciatics1 made him frequently cry out1 ,mon dieu1 jusqu' quand4 ,lord1 how long6 ,prat1 once chief justice of ,new ,york1 always tormented with infirmities1 dreamt that he was situated on a single rock in the midst of the ,atlantic ,ocean4 ,he heard a voice3 ,why mourns the bard1 ,apollo bids thee rise1 ,renounce the dust1 and claim thy native skies4 ,the ladies' visit to ,monticello has put my readers in requisition to read to me ,simons' travels in ,switzerland4 ,i thought ,i had some knowledge of that country before1 but ,i find ,i had no idea of it4 ,how degenerated are the ,swiss4 ,they might defend their country against ,france1 ,austria1 and ,russia2 neither of whom ought to be suffered to march armies over their mountains4 ,those powers have practiced as much tyranny1 and immorality1 as even the emperor ,napoleon did over them1 or over the royalists of ,germany or ,italy4 ,neither ,france1 ,austria1 or ,spain1 ought to have a foot of land in ,italy4 ,all conquerors are alike4 ,every one of them4 ,jura negat sibi lati1 nihil non arrogat armis4 ,we have nothing but fables concerning ,theseus1 ,bacchus1 and ,hercules1 and even ,sesostris2 but ,i dare say that every one of them was as tyrannical and immoral as ,napoleon4 ,nebuchadnezzar is the first great conqueror of whom we have anything like history1 and he was as great as any of them4 ,alexander and ,csar were more immoral than ,napoleon4 ,zingis ,khan was as great a conqueror as any of them1 and destroyed as many millions of lives1 and thought he had a right to the whole globe1 if he could subdue it4 ,what are we to think of the crusades in which three millions of lives at least were probably sacrificed4 ,and what right had ,st4 ,louis and ,richard ,cur de ,lion to ,palestine and ,syria more than ,alexander to ,india1 or ,napoleon to ,egypt and ,italy8 ,right and justice have hard fare in this world1 but there is a power above who is capable and willing to put all things right in the end2 et pour mettre chacun sa place dans l'universe1 and ,i doubt not he will4 ,mr4 ,english1 a ,bostonian1 has published a volume of his expedition with ,ishmael ,pashaw1 up the river ,nile4 ,he advanced above the third cataract1 and opens a prospect of a resurrection from the dead of those vast and ancient countries of ,abyssinia and ,ethiopia2 a free communication with ,india1 and the river ,niger1 and the city of ,tombuctoo4 ,this1 however1 is conjecture and speculation rather than certainty2 but a free communication by land between ,europe and ,india will ere long be opened4 ,a few ,american steamboats1 and our ,quincy stone-cutters would soon make the ,nile as navigable as our ,hudson1 ,potomac1 or ,mississippi4 ,you see as my reason and intellect fails1 my imagination grows more wild and ungovernable1 but my friendship remains the same4 ,adieu4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,april #aa1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the wishes expressed in your last favor1 that ,i may continue in life and health until ,i become a ,calvinist1 at least in his exclamation of1 ,mon ,dieu6 jusqu' quand6 would make me immortal4 ,i can never join ,calvin in addressing his ,god4 ,he was indeed an atheist1 which ,i can never be2 or rather his religion was dmonism4 ,if ever man worshipped a false ,god1 he did4 ,the being described in his five points1 is not the ,god whom you and ,i acknowledge and adore1 the creator and benevolent governor of the world2 but a dmon of malignant spirit4 ,it would be more pardonable to believe in no ,god at all1 than to blaspheme him by the atrocious attributes of ,calvin4 ,indeed1 ,i think that every ,christian sect gives a great handle to atheism by their general dogma1 that1 without a revelation1 there would not be sufficient proof of the being of a ,god4 ,now one-sixth of mankind only are supposed to be ,christians2 the other five-sixths then1 who do not believe in the ,jewish and ,christian revelation1 are without a knowledge of the existence of a ,god6 ,this gives completely a gain de cause to the disciples of ,ocellus1 ,timus1 ,spinosa1 ,diderot and ,d',holbach4 ,the argument which they rest on as triumphant and unanswerable is1 that in every hypothesis of cosmogony1 you must admit an eternal pre-existence of something2 and according to the rule of sound philosophy1 you are never to employ two principles to solve a difficulty when one will suffice4 ,they say then1 that it is more simple to believe at once in the eternal pre-existence of the world1 as it is now going on1 and may forever go on by the principle of reproduction which we see and witness1 than to believe in the eternal pre-existence of an ulterior cause1 or creator of the world1 a being whom we see not and know not1 of whose form1 substance and mode1 or place of existence1 or of action1 no sense informs us1 no power of the mind enables us to delineate or comprehend4 ,on the contrary1 ,i hold1 7without appeal to revelation7 that when we take a view of the universe1 in its parts1 general or particular1 it is impossible for the human mind not to perceive and feel a conviction of design1 consummate skill1 and indefinite power in every atom of its composition4 ,the movements of the heavenly bodies1 so exactly held in their course by the balance of centrifugal and centripetal forces2 the structure of our earth itself1 with its distribution of lands1 waters and atmosphere2 animal and vegetable bodies1 examined in all their minutest particles2 insects1 mere atoms of life1 yet as perfectly organized as man or mammoth2 the mineral substances1 their generation and uses2 it is impossible1 ,i say1 for the human mind not to believe1 that there is in all this1 design1 cause and effect1 up to an ultimate cause1 a fabricator of all things from matter and motion1 their preserver and regulator while permitted to exist in their present forms1 and their regeneration into new and other forms4 ,we see1 too1 evident proofs of the necessity of a superintending power1 to maintain the universe in its course and order4 ,stars1 well known1 have disappeared1 new ones have come into view2 comets1 in their incalculable courses1 may run foul of suns and planets1 and require renovation under other laws2 certain races of animals are become extinct2 and were there no restoring power1 all existences might extinguish successively1 one by one1 until all should be reduced to a shapeless chaos4 ,so irresistible are these evidences of an intelligent and powerful agent1 that1 of the infinite numbers of men who have existed through all time1 they have believed1 in the proportion of a million at least to unit1 in the hypothesis of an eternal pre-existence of a creator1 rather than in that of a self-existent universe4 ,surely this unanimous sentiment renders this more probable1 than that of the few in the other hypothesis4 ,some early ,christians1 indeed1 have believed in the co-eternal pre-existence of both the creator and the world1 without changing their relation of cause and effect4 ,that this was the opinion of ,st4 ,thomas1 we are informed by ,cardinal ,toleta1 in these words3 ,deus ab terno fuit jam omnipotens1 sicut cum produxit mundum4 ,ab terno potuit producere mundum4 ,si sol ab terno esset1 lumen ab terno esset2 et si pes1 similiter vestigium4 ,at lumen et vestigium effectus sunt efficientis solis et pedis2 potuit ergo cum causa terna effectus co-terna esse4 ,cujus sententia est ,s4 ,thomas theologorum primus4--,cardinal ,toleta4 ,of the nature of this being we know nothing4 ,jesus tells us1 that ,god is a spirit4 #d4 ,john #bd4 ,but without defining what a spirit is3 ,down to the third century1 we know it was still deemed material2 but of a lighter1 subtler matter than our gross bodies4 ,so says ,origen1 ,deus igitur1 cui anima similis est1 juxta originem1 reapte corporalis est2 sed graviorum tantum ratione corporum incorporeus4 ,these are the words of ,huet in his commentary on ,origen4 ,origen himself says1 appellatio apud nostros scriptores est inusitata et incognita4 ,so also ,tertullian2 quis autem negabit deum esse corpus etsi deus spiritus8 ,spiritus etiam corporis sui generis1 in sua effigie4--,tertullian4 ,these two fathers were of the third century4 ,calvin's character of this ,supreme ,being seems chiefly copied from that of the ,jews4 ,but the reformation of these blasphemous attributes1 and substitution of those more worthy1 pure1 and sublime1 seems to have been the chief object of ,jesus in his discourses to the ,jews2 and his doctrine of the cosmogony of the world is very clearly laid down in the three first verses of the first chapter of ,john1 in these words3 1 1 4 4 ' 1 4 ,which truly translated means1 ,in the beginning ,god existed1 and reason or mind was with ,god1 and that mind was ,god4 ,this was in the beginning with ,god4 ,all things were created by it1 and without it was made not one thing which was made4 ,yet this text1 so plainly declaring the doctrine of ,jesus1 that the world was created by the supreme1 intelligent being1 has been perverted by modern ,christians to build up a second person of their tritheism1 by a mistranslation of the word 4 ,one of its legitimate meanings1 indeed1 is a word4 ,but in that sense it makes an unmeaning jargon2 while the other meaning1 reason1 equally legitimate1 explains rationally the eternal pre-existence of ,god1 and his creation of the world4 ,knowing how incomprehensible it was that a word1 the mere action or articulation of the organs of speech could create a world1 they undertook to make of this articulation a second pre-existing being1 and ascribe to him1 and not to ,god1 the creation of the universe4 ,the atheist here plumes himself on the uselessness of such a ,god1 and the simpler hypothesis of a self-existent universe4 ,the truth is1 that the greatest enemies to the doctrines of ,jesus are those1 calling themselves the expositors of them1 who have perverted them for the structure of a system of fancy absolutely incomprehensible1 and without any foundation in his genuine words4 ,and the day will come1 when the mystical generation of ,jesus1 by the ,supreme ,being as his father1 in the womb of a virgin1 will be classed with the fable of the generation of ,minerva in the brain of ,jupiter4 ,but we may hope that the dawn of reason1 and freedom of thought in these ,united ,states1 will do away all this artificial scaffolding1 and restore to us the primitive and genuine doctrines of this the most venerated reformer of human errors4 ,so much for your quotation of ,calvin's mon ,dieu6 jusqu' quand6 in which1 when addressed to the ,god of ,jesus1 and our ,god1 ,i join you cordially1 and await his time and will with more readiness than reluctance4 ,may we meet there again1 in ,congress1 with our ancient colleagues1 and receive with them the seal of approbation1 well done1 good and faithful servants4 ,,to ,,general ,,samuel ,,smith4 ,,monticello1 ,may #c1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,general1--,i duly received your favor of the #bdth ult4 ,but ,i am rendered a slow correspondent by the loss of the use1 totally of the one1 and almost totally of the other wrist1 which renders writing scarcely and painfully practicable4 ,i learn with great satisfaction that wholesome economies have been found1 sufficient to relieve us from the ruinous necessity of adding annually to our debt by new loans4 ,the deviser of so salutary a relief deserves truly well of his country4 ,i shall be glad1 too1 if an additional tax of one-fourth of a dollar a gallon on whiskey shall enable us to meet all our engagements with punctuality4 ,viewing that tax as an article in a system of excise1 ,i was once glad to see it fall with the rest of the system1 which ,i considered as prematurely and unnecessarily introduced4 ,it was evident that our existing taxes were then equal to our existing debts4 ,it was clearly foreseen also that the surplus from excise would only become aliment for useless offices1 and would be swallowed in idleness by those whom it would withdraw from useful industry4 ,considering it only as a fiscal measure1 this was right4 ,but the prostration of body and mind which the cheapness of this liquor is spreading through the mass of our citizens1 now calls the attention of the legislator on a very different principle4 ,one of his important duties is as guardian of those who from causes susceptible of precise definition1 cannot take care of themselves4 ,such are infants1 maniacs1 gamblers1 drunkards4 ,the last1 as much as the maniac1 requires restrictive measures to save him from the fatal infatuation under which he is destroying his health1 his morals1 his family1 and his usefulness to society4 ,one powerful obstacle to his ruinous self-indulgence would be a price beyond his competence4 ,as a sanatory measure1 therefore1 it becomes one of duty in the public guardians4 ,yet ,i do not think it follows necessarily that imported spirits should be subjected to similar enhancement1 until they become as cheap as those made at home4 ,a tax on whiskey is to discourage its consumption2 a tax on foreign spirits encourages whiskey by removing its rival from competition4 ,the price and present duty throw foreign spirits already out of competition with whiskey1 and accordingly they are used but to a salutary extent4 ,you see no persons besotting themselves with imported spirits1 wines1 liquors1 cordials1 c4 ,whiskey claims to itself alone the exclusive office of sot-making4 ,foreign spirits1 wines1 teas1 coffee1 segars1 salt1 are articles of as innocent consumption as broadcloths and silks and ought1 like them1 to pay but the average ad valorem duty of other imported comforts4 ,all of them are ingredients in our happiness1 and the government which steps out of the ranks of the ordinary articles of consumption to select and lay under disproportionate burthens a particular one1 because it is a comfort1 pleasing to the taste1 or necessary to health1 and will therefore be bought1 is1 in that particular1 a tyranny4 ,taxes on consumption like those on capital or income1 to be just1 must be uniform4 ,i do not mean to say that it may not be for the general interest to foster for awhile certain infant manufactures1 until they are strong enough to stand against foreign rivals2 but when evident that they will never be so1 it is against right1 to make the other branches of industry support them4 ,when it was found that ,france could not make sugar under #f h4 a lb41 was it not tyranny to restrain her citizens from importing at #a h48 or would it not have been so to have laid a duty of #e h4 on the imported8 ,the permitting an exchange of industries with other nations is a direct encouragement of your own1 which without that1 would bring you nothing for your comfort1 and would of course cease to be produced4 ,on the question of the next ,presidential election1 ,i am a mere looker on4 ,i never permit myself to express an opinion1 or to feel a wish on the subject4 ,i indulge a single hope only1 that the choice may fall on one who will be a friend of peace1 of economy1 of the republican principles of our constitution1 and of the salutary distribution of powers made by that between the general and the local governments1 to this1 ,i ever add sincere prayers for your happiness and prosperity4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,megear4 ,,monticello1 ,may #bi1 #ahbc4 ,i thank you1 ,sir1 for the copy of the letters of ,paul and ,amicus1 which you have been so kind as to send me1 and shall learn from them with satisfaction the peculiar tenets of the ,friends1 and particularly their opinions on the incomprehensibilities 7otherwise called the mysteries7 of the trinity4 ,i think with them on many points1 and especially on missionary and ,bible societies4 ,while we have so many around us1 within the same social pale1 who need instruction and assistance1 why carry to a distance1 and to strangers what our own neighbors need8 ,it is a duty certainly to give our sparings to those who want2 but to see also that they are faithfully distributed1 and duly apportioned to the respective wants of those receivers4 ,and why give through agents whom we know not1 to persons whom we know not1 and in countries from which we get no account1 when we can do it at short hand1 to objects under our eye1 through agents we know1 and to supply wants we see8 ,i do not know that it is a duty to disturb by missionaries the religion and peace of other countries1 who may think themselves bound to extinguish by fire and fagot the heresies to which we give the name of conversions1 and quote our own example for it4 ,were the ,pope1 or his holy allies1 to send in mission to us some thousands of ,jesuit priests to convert us to their orthodoxy1 ,i suspect that we should deem and treat it as a national aggression on our peace and faith4 ,i salute you in the spirit of peace and good will4 ,,to ,,the ,,president4 ,,monticello1 ,june #aa1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,considering that ,i had not been to ,bedford for a twelvemonth before1 ,i thought myself singularly unfortunate in so timing my journey1 as to have been absent exactly at the moment of your late visit to our neighborhood4 ,the loss1 indeed1 was all my own2 for in these short interviews with you1 ,i generally get my political compass rectified1 learn from you whereabouts we are1 and correct my course again4 ,in exchange for this1 ,i can give you but newspaper ideas1 and little indeed of these1 for ,i read but a single paper1 and that hastily4 ,i find ,horace and ,tacitus so much better writers than the champions of the gazettes1 that ,i lay those down to take up these with great reluctance4 ,and on the question you propose1 whether we can1 in any form1 take a bolder attitude than formerly in favor of liberty1 ,i can give you but commonplace ideas4 ,they will be but the widow's mite1 and offered only because requested4 ,the matter which now embroils ,europe1 the presumption of dictating to an independent nation the form of its government1 is so arrogant1 so atrocious1 that indignation1 as well as moral sentiment1 enlists all our partialities and prayers in favor of one1 and our equal execrations against the other4 ,i do not know1 indeed1 whether all nations do not owe to one another a bold and open declaration of their sympathies with the one party1 and their detestation of the conduct of the other4 ,but farther than this we are not bound to go2 and indeed1 for the sake of the world1 we ought not to increase the jealousies1 or draw on ourselves the power of this formidable confederacy4 ,i have ever deemed it fundamental for the ,united ,states1 never to take active part in the quarrels of ,europe4 ,their political interests are entirely distinct from ours4 ,their mutual jealousies1 their balance of power1 their complicated alliances1 their forms and principles of government1 are all foreign to us4 ,they are nations of eternal war4 ,all their energies are expended in the destruction of the labor1 property and lives of their people4 ,on our part1 never had a people so favorable a chance of trying the opposite system1 of peace and fraternity with mankind1 and the direction of all our means and faculties to the purposes of improvement instead of destruction4 ,with ,europe we have few occasions of collision1 and these1 with a little prudence and forbearance1 may be generally accommodated4 ,of the brethren of our own hemisphere1 none are yet1 or for an age to come will be1 in a shape1 condition1 or disposition to war against us4 ,and the foothold which the nations of ,europe had in either ,america1 is slipping from under them1 so that we shall soon be rid of their neighborhood4 ,cuba alone seems at present to hold up a speck of war to us4 ,its possession by ,great ,britain would indeed be a great calamity to us4 ,could we induce her to join us in guaranteeing its independence against all the world1 except ,spain1 it would be nearly as valuable to us as if it were our own4 ,but should she take it1 ,i would not immediately go to war for it2 because the first war on other accounts will give it to us2 or the island will give itself to us1 when able to do so4 ,while no duty1 therefore1 calls on us to take part in the present war of ,europe1 and a golden harvest offers itself in reward for doing nothing1 peace and neutrality seem to be our duty and interest4 ,we may gratify ourselves1 indeed1 with a neutrality as partial to ,spain as would be justifiable without giving cause of war to her adversary2 we might and ought to avail ourselves of the happy occasion of procuring and cementing a cordial reconciliation with her1 by giving assurance of every friendly office which neutrality admits1 and especially1 against all apprehension of our intermeddling in the quarrel with her colonies4 ,and ,i expect daily and confidently to hear of a spark kindled in ,france1 which will employ her at home1 and relieve ,spain from all further apprehensions of danger4 ,that ,england is playing false with ,spain cannot be doubted4 ,her government is looking one way and rowing another4 ,it is curious to look back a little on past events4 ,during the ascendancy of ,bonaparte1 the word among the herd of kings1 was sauve qui peut4 ,each shifted for himself1 and left his brethren to squander and do the same as they could4 ,after the battle of ,waterloo1 and the military possession of ,france1 they rallied and combined in common cause1 to maintain each other against any similar and future danger4 ,and in this alliance1 ,louis1 now avowedly1 and ,george1 secretly but solidly1 were of the contracting parties2 and there can be no doubt that the allies are bound by treaty to aid ,england with their armies1 should insurrection take place among her people4 ,the coquetry she is now playing off between her people and her allies is perfectly understood by the latter1 and accordingly gives no apprehensions to ,france1 to whom it is all explained4 ,the diplomatic correspondence she is now displaying1 these double papers fabricated merely for exhibition1 in which she makes herself talk of morals and principle1 as if her qualms of conscience would not permit her to go all lengths with her ,holy ,allies1 are all to gull her own people4 ,it is a theatrical farce1 in which the five powers are the actors1 ,england the ,tartuffe1 and her people the dupes4 ,playing thus so dextrously into each others' hands1 and their own persons seeming secured1 they are now looking to their privileged orders4 ,these faithful auxiliaries1 or accomplices1 must be saved4 ,this war is evidently that of the general body of the aristocracy1 in which ,england is also acting her part4 ,save but the ,nobles and there shall be no war1 says she1 masking her measures at the same time under the form of friendship and mediation1 and hypocritically1 while a party1 offering herself as a judge1 to betray those whom she is not permitted openly to oppose4 ,a fraudulent neutrality1 if neutrality at all1 is all ,spain will get from her4 ,and ,spain1 probably1 perceives this1 and willingly winks at it rather than have her weight thrown openly into the other scale4 ,but ,i am going beyond my text1 and sinning against the adage of carrying coals to ,newcastle4 ,in hazarding to you my crude and uninformed notions of things beyond my cognizance1 only be so good as to remember that it is at your request1 and with as little confidence on my part as profit on yours4 ,you will do what is right1 leaving the people of ,europe to act their follies and crimes among themselves1 while we pursue in good faith the paths of peace and prosperity4 ,to your judgment we are willingly resigned1 with sincere assurances of affectionate esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,judge ,,johnson4 ,,monticello1 ,june #ab1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,our correspondence is of that accommodating character1 which admits of suspension at the convenience of either party1 without inconvenience to the other4 ,hence this tardy acknowledgment of your favor of ,april the #aath4 ,i learn from that with great pleasure1 that you have resolved on continuing your history of parties4 ,our opponents are far ahead of us in preparations for placing their cause favorably before posterity4 ,yet ,i hope even from some of them the escape of precious truths1 in angry explosions or effusions of vanity1 which will betray the genuine monarchism of their principles4 ,they do not themselves believe what they endeavor to inculcate1 that we were an opposition party1 not on principle1 but merely seeking for office4 ,the fact is1 that at the formation of our government1 many had formed their political opinions on ,european writings and practices1 believing the experience of old countries1 and especially of ,england1 abusive as it was1 to be a safer guide than mere theory4 ,the doctrines of ,europe were1 that men in numerous associations cannot be restrained within the limits of order and justice1 but by forces physical and moral1 wielded over them by authorities independent of their will4 ,hence their organization of kings1 hereditary nobles1 and priests4 ,still further to constrain the brute force of the people1 they deem it necessary to keep them down by hard labor1 poverty and ignorance1 and to take from them1 as from bees1 so much of their earnings1 as that unremitting labor shall be necessary to obtain a sufficient surplus barely to sustain a scanty and miserable life4 ,and these earnings they apply to maintain their privileged orders in splendor and idleness1 to fascinate the eyes of the people1 and excite in them an humble adoration and submission1 as to an order of superior beings4 ,although few among us had gone all these lengths of opinion1 yet many had advanced1 some more1 some less1 on the way4 ,and in the convention which formed our government1 they endeavored to draw the cords of power as tight as they could obtain them1 to lessen the dependence of the general functionaries on their constituents1 to subject to them those of the ,states1 and to weaken their means of maintaining the steady equilibrium which the majority of the convention had deemed salutary for both branches1 general and local4 ,to recover1 therefore1 in practice the powers which the nation had refused1 and to warp to their own wishes those actually given1 was the steady object of the federal party4 ,ours1 on the contrary1 was to maintain the will of the majority of the convention1 and of the people themselves4 ,we believed1 with them1 that man was a rational animal1 endowed by nature with rights1 and with an innate sense of justice2 and that he could be restrained from wrong and protected in right1 by moderate powers1 confided to persons of his own choice1 and held to their duties by dependence on his own will4 ,we believed that the complicated organization of kings1 nobles1 and priests1 was not the wisest nor best to effect the happiness of associated man2 that wisdom and virtue were not hereditary2 that the trappings of such a machinery1 consumed by their expense1 those earnings of industry1 they were meant to protect1 and1 by the inequalities they produced1 exposed liberty to sufferance4 ,we believed that men1 enjoying in ease and security the full fruits of their own industry1 enlisted by all their interests on the side of law and order1 habituated to think for themselves1 and to follow their reason as their guide1 would be more easily and safely governed1 than with minds nourished in error1 and vitiated and debased1 as in ,europe1 by ignorance1 indigence and oppression4 ,the cherishment of the people then was our principle1 the fear and distrust of them1 that of the other party4 ,composed1 as we were1 of the landed and laboring interests of the country1 we could not be less anxious for a government of law and order than were the inhabitants of the cities1 the strongholds of federalism4 ,and whether our efforts to save the principles and form of our constitution have not been salutary1 let the present republican freedom1 order and prosperity of our country determine4 ,history may distort truth1 and will distort it for a time1 by the superior efforts at justification of those who are conscious of needing it most4 ,nor will the opening scenes of our present government be seen in their true aspect1 until the letters of the day1 now held in private hoards1 shall be broken up and laid open to public view4 ,what a treasure will be found in ,general ,washington's cabinet1 when it shall pass into the hands of as candid a friend to truth as he was himself6 ,when no longer1 like ,csar's notes and memorandums in the hands of ,anthony1 it shall be open to the high priests of federalism only1 and garbled to say so much1 and no more1 as suits their views6 ,with respect to his farewell address1 to the authorship of which1 it seems1 there are conflicting claims1 ,i can state to you some facts4 ,he had determined to decline a re-election at the end of his first term1 and so far determined1 that he had requested ,mr4 ,madison to prepare for him something valedictory1 to be addressed to his constituents on his retirement4 ,this was done1 but he was finally persuaded to acquiesce in a second election1 to which no one more strenuously pressed him than myself1 from a conviction of the importance of strengthening1 by longer habit1 the respect necessary for that office1 which the weight of his character only could effect4 ,when1 at the end of this second term1 his ,valedictory came out1 ,mr4 ,madison recognized in it several passages of his draught1 several others1 we were both satisfied1 were from the pen of ,hamilton1 and others from that of the ,president himself4 ,these he probably put into the hands of ,hamilton to form into a whole1 and hence it may all appear in ,hamilton's hand-writing1 as if it were all of his composition4 ,i have stated above1 that the original objects of the federalists were1 #ast1 to warp our government more to the form and principles of monarchy1 and1 #b;d1 to weaken the barriers of the ,state governments as cordinate powers4 ,in the first they have been so completely foiled by the universal spirit of the nation1 that they have abandoned the enterprise1 shrunk from the odium of their old appellation1 taken to themselves a participation of ours1 and under the pseudo-republican mask1 are now aiming at their second object1 and strengthened by unsuspecting or apostate recruits from our ranks1 are advancing fast towards an ascendancy4 ,i have been blamed for saying1 that a prevalence of the doctrines of consolidation would one day call for reformation or revolution4 ,i answer by asking if a single ,state of the ,union would have agreed to the constitution1 had it given all powers to the ,general ,government8 ,if the whole opposition to it did not proceed from the jealousy and fear of every ,state1 of being subjected to the other ,states in matters merely its own8 ,and if there is any reason to believe the ,states more disposed now than then1 to acquiesce in this general surrender of all their rights and powers to a consolidated government1 one and undivided8 ,you request me confidentially1 to examine the question1 whether the ,supreme ,court has advanced beyond its constitutional limits1 and trespassed on those of the ,state authorities8 ,i do not undertake it1 my dear ,sir1 because ,i am unable4 ,age and the wane of mind consequent on it1 have disqualified me from investigations so severe1 and researches so laborious4 ,and it is the less necessary in this case1 as having been already done by others with a logic and learning to which ,i could add nothing4 ,on the decision of the case of ,cohens vs4 ,the ,state of ,virginia1 in the ,supreme ,court of the ,united ,states1 in ,march1 #ahba1 ,judge ,roane1 under the signature of ,algernon ,sidney1 wrote for the ,enquirer a series of papers on the law of that case4 ,i considered these papers maturely as they came out1 and confess that they appeared to me to pulverize every word which had been delivered by ,judge ,marshall1 of the extra-judicial part of his opinion2 and all was extra-judicial1 except the decision that the act of ,congress had not purported to give to the corporation of ,washington the authority claimed by their lottery law1 of controlling the laws of the ,states within the ,states themselves4 ,but unable to claim that case1 he could not let it go entirely1 but went on gratuitously to prove1 that notwithstanding the eleventh amendment of the constitution1 a ,state could be brought as a defendant1 to the bar of his court2 and again1 that ,congress might authorize a corporation of its territory to exercise legislation within a ,state1 and paramount to the laws of that ,state4 ,i cite the sum and result only of his doctrines1 according to the impression made on my mind at the time1 and still remaining4 ,if not strictly accurate in circumstance1 it is so in substance4 ,this doctrine was so completely refuted by ,roane1 that if he can be answered1 ,i surrender human reason as a vain and useless faculty1 given to bewilder1 and not to guide us4 ,and ,i mention this particular case as one only of several1 because it gave occasion to that thorough examination of the constitutional limits between the ,general and ,state jurisdictions1 which you have asked for4 ,there were two other writers in the same paper1 under the signatures of ,fletcher of ,saltoun1 and ,somers1 who1 in a few essays1 presented some very luminous and striking views of the question4 ,and there was a particular paper which recapitulated all the cases in which it was thought the federal court had usurped on the ,state jurisdictions4 ,these essays will be found in the ,enquirers of #ahba1 from ,may the #ajth to ,july the #acth4 ,it is not in my present power to send them to you1 but if ,ritchie can furnish them1 ,i will procure and forward them4 ,if they had been read in the other ,states1 as they were here1 ,i think they would have left1 there as here1 no dissentients from their doctrine4 ,the subject was taken up by our legislature of #ahba-'bb1 and two draughts of remonstrances were prepared and discussed4 ,as well as ,i remember1 there was no difference of opinion as to the matter of right2 but there was as to the expediency of a remonstrance at that time1 the general mind of the ,states being then under extraordinary excitement by the ,missouri question2 and it was dropped on that consideration4 ,but this case is not dead1 it only sleepeth4 ,the ,indian ,chief said he did not go to war for every petty injury by itself1 but put it into his pouch1 and when that was full1 he then made war4 ,thank ,heaven1 we have provided a more peaceable and rational mode of redress4 ,this practice of ,judge ,marshall1 of travelling out of his case to prescribe what the law would be in a moot case not before the court1 is very irregular and very censurable4 ,i recollect another instance1 and the more particularly1 perhaps1 because it in some measure bore on myself4 ,among the midnight appointments of ,mr4 ,adams1 were commissions to some federal justices of the peace for ,alexandria4 ,these were signed and sealed by him1 but not delivered4 ,i found them on the table of the department of ,state1 on my entrance into office1 and ,i forbade their delivery4 ,marbury1 named in one of them1 applied to the ,supreme ,court for a mandamus to the ,secretary of ,state1 7,mr4 ,madison7 to deliver the commission intended for him4 ,the ,court determined at once1 that being an original process1 they had no cognizance of it2 and therefore the question before them was ended4 ,but the ,chief ,justice went on to lay down what the law would be1 had they jurisdiction of the case1 to-wit3 that they should command the delivery4 ,the object was clearly to instruct any other court having the jurisdiction1 what they should do if ,marbury should apply to them4 ,besides the impropriety of this gratuitous interference1 could anything exceed the perversion of law8 ,for if there is any principle of law never yet contradicted1 it is that delivery is one of the essentials to the validity of a deed4 ,although signed and sealed1 yet as long as it remains in the hands of the party himself1 it is in fieri only1 it is not a deed1 and can be made so only by its delivery4 ,in the hands of a third person it may be made an escrow4 ,but whatever is in the executive offices is certainly deemed to be in the hands of the ,president2 and in this case1 was actually in my hands1 because1 when ,i countermanded them1 there was as yet no ,secretary of ,state4 ,yet this case of ,marbury and ,madison is continually cited by bench and bar1 as if it were settled law1 without any animadversion on its being merely an obiter dissertation of the ,chief ,justice4 ,it may be impracticable to lay down any general formula of words which shall decide at once1 and with precision1 in every case1 this limit of jurisdiction4 ,but there are two canons which will guide us safely in most of the cases4 #ast4 ,the capital and leading object of the constitution was to leave with the ,states all authorities which respected their own citizens only1 and to transfer to the ,united ,states those which respected citizens of foreign or other ,states3 to make us several as to ourselves1 but one as to all others4 ,in the latter case1 then1 constructions should lean to the general jurisdiction1 if the words will bear it2 and in favor of the ,states in the former1 if possible to be so construed4 ,and indeed1 between citizens and citizens of the same ,state1 and under their own laws1 ,i know but a single case in which a jurisdiction is given to the ,general ,government4 ,that is1 where anything but gold or silver is made a lawful tender1 or the obligation of contracts is any otherwise impaired4 ,the separate legislatures had so often abused that power1 that the citizens themselves chose to trust it to the general1 rather than to their own special authorities4 #b;d4 ,on every question of construction1 carry ourselves back to the time when the constitution was adopted1 recollect the spirit manifested in the debates1 and instead of trying what meaning may be squeezed out of the text1 or invented against it1 conform to the probable one in which it was passed4 ,let us try ,cohen's case by these canons only1 referring always1 however1 for full argument1 to the essays before cited4 #a4 ,it was between a citizen and his own ,state1 and under a law of his ,state4 ,it was a domestic case1 therefore1 and not a foreign one4 #b4 ,can it be believed1 that under the jealousies prevailing against the ,general ,government1 at the adoption of the constitution1 the ,states meant to surrender the authority of preserving order1 of enforcing moral duties and restraining vice1 within their own territory8 ,and this is the present case1 that of ,cohen being under the ancient and general law of gaming4 ,can any good be effected by taking from the ,states the moral rule of their citizens1 and subordinating it to the general authority1 or to one of their corporations1 which may justify forcing the meaning of words1 hunting after possible constructions1 and hanging inference on inference1 from heaven to earth1 like ,jacob's ladder8 ,such an intention was impossible1 and such a licentiousness of construction and inference1 if exercised by both governments1 as may be done with equal right1 would equally authorize both to claim all power1 general and particular1 and break up the foundations of the ,union4 ,laws are made for men of ordinary understanding1 and should1 therefore1 be construed by the ordinary rules of common sense4 ,their meaning is not to be sought for in metaphysical subtleties1 which may make anything mean everything or nothing1 at pleasure4 ,it should be left to the sophisms of advocates1 whose trade it is1 to prove that a defendant is a plaintiff1 though dragged into court1 torto collo1 like ,bonaparte's volunteers1 into the field in chains1 or that a power has been given1 because it ought to have been given1 et alia talia4 ,the ,states supposed that by their tenth amendment1 they had secured themselves against constructive powers4 ,they were not lessoned yet by ,cohen's case1 nor aware of the slipperiness of the eels of the law4 ,i ask for no straining of words against the ,general ,government1 nor yet against the ,states4 ,i believe the ,states can best govern our home concerns1 and the ,general ,government our foreign ones4 ,i wish1 therefore1 to see maintained that wholesome distribution of powers established by the constitution for the limitation of both2 and never to see all offices transferred to ,washington1 where1 further withdrawn from the eyes of the people1 they may more secretly he bought and sold as at market4 ,but the ,chief ,justice says1 there must be an ultimate arbiter somewhere4 ,true1 there must2 but does that prove it is either party8 ,the ultimate arbiter is the people of the ,union1 assembled by their deputies in convention1 at the call of ,congress1 or of two-thirds of the ,states4 ,let them decide to which they mean to give an authority claimed by two of their organs4 ,and it has been the peculiar wisdom and felicity of our constitution1 to have provided this peaceable appeal1 where that of other nations is at once to force4 ,i rejoice in the example you set of seriatim opinions4 ,i have heard it often noticed1 and always with high approbation4 ,some of your brethren will be encouraged to follow it occasionally1 and in time1 it may be felt by all as a duty1 and the sound practice of the primitive court be again restored4 ,why should not every judge be asked his opinion1 and give it from the bench1 if only by yea or nay8 ,besides ascertaining the fact of his opinion1 which the public have a right to know1 in order to judge whether it is impeachable or not1 it would show whether the opinions were unanimous or not1 and thus settle more exactly the weight of their authority4 ,the close of my second sheet warns me that it is time now to relieve you from this letter of unmerciful length4 ,indeed1 ,i wonder how ,i have accomplished it1 with two crippled wrists1 the one scarcely able to move my pen1 the other to hold my paper4 ,but ,i am hurried sometimes beyond the sense of pain1 when unbosoming myself to friends who harmonize with me in principle4 ,you and ,i may differ occasionally in details of minor consequence1 as no two minds1 more than two faces1 are the same in every feature4 ,but our general objects are the same1 to preserve the republican form and principles of our constitution and cleave to the salutary distribution of powers which that has established4 ,these are the two sheet anchors of our ,union4 ,if driven from either1 we shall be in danger of foundering4 ,to my prayers for its safety and perpetuity1 ,i add those for the continuation of your health1 happiness1 and usefulness to your country4 ,,to ,,president ,,monroe4 ,,monticello1 ,june #bc1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have been lately visited by a ,mr4 ,miralla1 a native of ,buenos ,ayres1 but resident in ,cuba for the last seven or eight years2 a person of intelligence1 of much information1 and frankly communicative4 ,i believe1 indeed1 he is known to you4 ,i availed myself of the opportunity of learning what was the state of public sentiment in ,cuba as to their future course4 ,he says they would be satisfied to remain as they are2 but all are sensible that that cannot be2 that whenever circumstances shall render a separation from ,spain necessary1 a perfect independence would be their choice1 provided they could see a certainty of protection2 but that1 without that prospect1 they would be divided in opinion between an incorporation with ,mexico1 and with the ,united ,states4--,columbia being too remote for prompt support4 ,the considerations in favor of ,mexico are that the ,havana would be the emporium for all the produce of that immense and wealthy country1 and of course1 the medium of all its commerce2 that having no ports on its eastern coast1 ,cuba would become the dept of its naval stores and strength1 and1 in effect1 would1 in a great measure1 have the sinews of the government in its hands4 ,that in favor of the ,united ,states is the fact that three-fourths of the exportations from ,havana come to the ,united ,states1 that they are a settled government1 the power which can most promptly succor them1 rising to an eminence promising future security2 and of which they would make a member of the sovereignty1 while as to ,england1 they would be only a colony1 subordinated to her interest1 and that there is not a man in the island who would not resist her to the bitterest extremity4 ,of this last sentiment ,i had not the least idea at the date of my late letters to you4 ,i had supposed an ,english interest there quite as strong as that of the ,united ,states1 and therefore1 that1 to avoid war1 and keep the island open to our own commerce1 it would be best to join that power in mutually guaranteeing its independence4 ,but if there is no danger of its falling into the possession of ,england1 ,i must retract an opinion founded on an error of fact4 ,we are surely under no obligation to give her1 gratis1 an interest which she has not2 and the whole inhabitants being averse to her1 and the climate mortal to strangers1 its continued military occupation by her would be impracticable4 ,it is better then to lie still in readiness to receive that interesting incorporation when solicited by herself4 ,for1 certainly1 her addition to our confederacy is exactly what is wanting to round our power as a nation to the point of its utmost interest4 ,i have thought it my duty to acknowledge my error on this occasion1 and to repeat a truth before acknowledged1 that1 retired as ,i am1 ,i know too little of the affairs of the world to form opinions of them worthy of any attention2 and ,i resign myself with reason1 and perfect confidence to the care and guidance of those to whom the helm is committed4 ,with this assurance1 accept that of my constant and affectionate friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,george ,,ticknor4 ,,monticello1 ,july #af1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i received in due time your favor of ,june #afth1 and with it your ,syllabus of lectures on ,spanish literature4 ,i have considered this with great interest and satisfaction1 as it gives me a model of course ,i wish to see pursued in the different branches of instruction in our ,university1 i4 e4 a methodical1 critical1 and profound explanation by way of protection of every science we propose to teach4 ,i am not fully informed of the practices at ,harvard1 but there is one from which we shall certainly vary1 although it has been copied1 ,i believe1 by nearly every college and academy in the ,united ,states4 ,that is1 the holding the students all to one prescribed course of reading1 and disallowing exclusive application to those branches only which are to qualify them for the particular vocations to which they are destined4 ,we shall1 on the contrary1 allow them uncontrolled choice in the lectures they shall choose to attend1 and require elementary qualification only1 and sufficient age4 ,our institution will proceed on the principle of doing all the good it can without consulting its own pride or ambition2 of letting every one come and listen to whatever he thinks may improve the condition of his mind4 ,the rock which ,i most dread is the discipline of the institution1 and it is that on which most of our public schools labor4 ,the insubordination of our youth is now the greatest obstacle to their education4 ,we may lessen the difficulty1 perhaps1 by avoiding too much government1 by requiring no useless observances1 none which shall merely multiply occasions for dissatisfaction1 disobedience and revolt by referring to the more discreet of themselves the minor discipline1 the graver to the civil magistrates1 as in ,edinburg4 ,on this head ,i am anxious for information of the practices of other places1 having myself had little experience of the government of youth4 ,i presume there are printed codes of the rules of ,harvard1 and if so1 you would oblige me by sending me a copy1 and of those of any other academy which you think can furnish anything useful4 ,you flatter me with a visit as soon as you learn that the ,university is fairly opened4 ,a visit from you at any time will be the most welcome possible to all our family1 who remember with peculiar satisfaction the pleasure they received from your former one4 ,but were ,i allowed to name the time1 it should not be deferred beyond the autumn of the ensuing year4 ,our last building1 and that which will be the principal ornament and keystone1 giving unity to the whole1 will then be nearly finished1 and afford you a gratification compensating the trouble of the journey4 ,we shall then1 also1 be engaged in our code of regulations preparatory to our opening1 which may1 perhaps1 take place in the beginning of #ahbe4 ,there is no person from whose information of the ,european institutions1 and especially their discipline1 ,i should expect so much aid in that difficult work4 ,come1 then1 dear ,sir1 at that1 or any earlier epoch1 and give to our institution the benefit of your counsel4 ,i know that you scout1 as ,i do1 the idea of any rivalship4 ,our views are ,catholic for the improvement of our country by science1 and indeed1 it is better even for your own ,university to have its yoke nat at this distance1 rather than to force a nearer one from the increasing necessity for it4 ,and how long before we may expect others in the southern1 western1 and middle regions of this vast country8 ,i send you by mail a print of the ground-plan of our institution2 it may give you some idea of its distribution and conveniences1 but not of its architecture1 which being chastely classical1 constitutes one of its distinguishing characters4 ,i am much indebted for your kind attentions to ,mr4 ,harrison2 he is a youth of promise4 ,i could not deny myself the gratification of communicating to his father the part of your letter respecting him4 ,our family all join me in assurances of our friendly esteem and great respect4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,august #ae1 #ahbc4 ,watchman1 what of the night8 ,is darkness that may be felt1 to prevail over the whole world8 or can you perceive any rays of a returning dawn8 ,is the devil to be the ,lord's anointed over the whole globe8 or do you foresee the fulfilment of the prophecies according to ,dr4 ,priestley's interpretation of them8 ,i know not1 but ,i have in some of my familiar1 and frivolous letters to you1 told the story four times over2 but if ,i have1 ,i never applied it so well as now4 ,not long after the denouement of the tragedy of ,louis ,,xvi1 when ,i was ,vice-,president1 my friend the ,doctor came to breakfast with me alone2 he was very sociable1 very learned and eloquent1 on the subject of the ,french revolution4 ,it was opening a new era in the world1 and presenting a near view of the millennium4 ,i listened2 ,i heard with great attention and perfect sang froid4 ,at last ,i asked the ,doctor4 ,do you really believe the ,french will establish a free democratical government in ,france8 ,he answered3 ,i do firmly believe it4 ,will you give me leave to ask you upon what grounds you entertain this opinion8 ,is it from anything you ever read in history8 ,is there any instance of a ,roman ,catholic monarchy of five and twenty millions at once converted into a free and national people8 ,no4 ,i know of no instance like it4 ,is there anything in your knowledge of human nature1 derived from books1 or experience1 that any nation1 ancient or modern1 consisting of such multitudes of ignorant people1 ever were1 or ever can be converted suddenly into materials capable of conducting a free government1 especially a democratical republic8 ,no--,i know nothing of the kind4 ,well then1 ,sir1 what is the ground of your opinion8 ,the answer was1 my opinion is founded altogether upon revelation1 and the prophecies4 ,i take it that the ten horns of the great beast in revelations1 mean the ten crowned heads of ,europe2 and that the execution of the ,king of ,france1 is the falling off of the first of those horns2 and the nine monarchies of ,europe will fall one after another in the same way4 ,such was the enthusiasm of that great man1 that reasoning machine4 ,after all1 however1 he did recollect himself so far as to say3 ,there is1 however1 a possibility of doubt2 for ,i read yesterday a book put into my hands1 by a gentleman1 a volume of travels written by a ,french gentleman in #afei2 in which he says he had been travelling a whole year in ,england2 into every part of it1 and conversed freely with all ranks of people2 he found the whole nation earnestly engaged in discussing and contriving a form of government for their future regulations2 there was but one point in which they all agreed1 and in that they were unanimous3 that monarchy1 nobility1 and prelacy never would exist in ,england again4 ,the ,doctor paused2 and said3 ,yet1 in the very next year1 the whole nation called in the ,king and run mad with nobility1 monarchy1 and prelacy4 ,i am no ,king killer2 merely because they are ,kings4 ,poor creatures2 they know no better2 they believe sincerely and conscientiously that ,god made them to rule the world4 ,i would not1 therefore1 behead them1 or send them to ,st4 ,helena1 to be treated as ,bonaparte was2 but ,i would shut them up like the man in the iron mask2 feed them well1 give them as much finery as they pleased1 until they could be converted to right reason and common sense4 ,i have nothing to communicate from this part of the country1 except that you must not be surprised if you hear something wonderful in ,boston before long4 ,with my profound respects for your family1 and half a century's affection for yourself1 ,i am your humble servant4 ,,to ,,james ,,madison4 ,,monticello1 ,august #cj1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i received the enclosed letters from the ,president with a request1 that after perusal ,i would forward them to you for perusal by yourself also1 and to be returned then to him4 ,you have doubtless seen ,timothy ,pickerings' fourth of ,july observations on the ,declaration of ,independence4 ,if his principles and prejudices1 personal and political1 gave us no reason to doubt whether he had truly quoted the information he alleges to have received from ,mr4 ,adams1 ,i should then say1 that in some of the particulars1 ,mr4 ,adams' memory has led him into unquestionable error4 ,at the age of eighty-eight1 and forty-seven years after the transactions of ,independence1 this is not wonderful4 ,nor should ,i1 at the age of eighty1 on the small advantage of that difference only1 venture to oppose my memory to his1 were it not supported by written notes1 taken by myself at the moment and on the spot4 ,he says1 the committee of five1 to wit1 ,dr4 ,franklin1 ,sherman1 ,livingston1 and ourselves1 met1 discussed the subject1 and then appointed him and myself to make the draught2 that we1 as a sub-committee1 met1 and after the urgencies of each on the other1 ,i consented to undertake the task2 that the draught being made1 we1 the sub-committee1 met1 and conned the paper over1 and he does not remember that he made or suggested a single alteration4 ,now these details are quite incorrect4 ,the committee of five met2 no such thing as a sub-committee was proposed1 but they unanimously pressed on myself alone to undertake the draught4 ,i consented2 ,i drew it2 but before ,i reported it to the committee1 ,i communicated it separately to ,dr4 ,franklin and ,mr4 ,adams1 requesting their corrections1 because they were the two members of whose judgments and amendments ,i wished most to have the benefit1 before presenting it to the committee2 and you have seen the original paper now in my hands1 with the corrections of ,dr4 ,franklin and ,mr4 ,adams interlined in their own hand writings4 ,their alterations were two or three only1 and merely verbal4 ,i then wrote a fair copy1 reported it to the committee1 and from them1 unaltered1 to ,congress4 ,this personal communication and consultation with ,mr4 ,adams1 he has misremembered into the actings of a sub-committee4 ,pickering's observations1 and ,mr4 ,adams' in addition1 that it contained no new ideas1 that it is a common-place compilation1 its sentiments hackneyed in ,congress for two years before1 and its essence contained in ,otis' pamphlet1 may all be true4 ,of that ,i am not to be the judge4 ,richard ,henry ,lee charged it as copied from ,locke's treatise on government4 ,otis' pamphlet ,i never saw1 and whether ,i had gathered my ideas from reading or reflection ,i do not know4 ,i know only that ,i turned to neither book nor pamphlet while writing it4 ,i did not consider it as any part of my charge to invent new ideas altogether1 and to offer no sentiment which had ever been expressed before4 ,had ,mr4 ,adams been so restrained1 ,congress would have lost the benefit of his bold and impressive advocations of the rights of ,revolution4 ,for no man's confident and fervid addresses1 more than ,mr4 ,adams'1 encouraged and supported us through the difficulties surrounding us1 which1 like the ceaseless action of gravity weighed on us by night and by day4 ,yet1 on the same ground1 we may ask what of these elevated thoughts was new1 or can be affirmed never before to have entered the conceptions of man8 ,whether1 also1 the sentiments of ,independence1 and the reasons for declaring it1 which make so great a portion of the instrument1 had been hackneyed in ,congress for two years before the #dth of ,july1 '#gf1 or this dictum also of ,mr4 ,adams be another slip of memory1 let history say4 ,this1 however1 ,i will say for ,mr4 ,adams1 that he supported the ,declaration with zeal and ability1 fighting fearlessly for every word of it4 ,as to myself1 ,i thought it a duty to be1 on that occasion1 a passive auditor of the opinions of others1 more impartial judges than ,i could be1 of its merits or demerits4 ,during the debate ,i was sitting by ,doctor ,franklin1 and he observed that ,i was writhing a little under the acrimonious criticisms on some of its parts2 and it was on that occasion1 that by way of comfort1 he told me the story of ,john ,thompson1 the hatter1 and his new sign4 ,timothy thinks the instrument the better for having a fourth of it expunged4 ,he would have thought it still better1 had the other three-fourths gone out also1 all but the single sentiment 7the only one he approves71 which recommends friendship to his dear ,england1 whenever she is willing to be at peace with us4 ,his insinuations are1 that although the high tone of the instrument was in unison with the warm feelings of the times1 this sentiment of habitual friendship to ,england should never be forgotten1 and that the duties it enjoins should especially be borne in mind on every celebration of this anniversary4 ,in other words1 that the ,declaration1 as being a libel on the government of ,england1 composed in times of passion1 should now be buried in utter oblivion1 to spare the feelings of our ,english friends and ,angloman fellow-citizens4 ,but it is not to wound them that we wish to keep it in mind2 but to cherish the principles of the instrument in the bosoms of our own citizens3 and it is a heavenly comfort to see that these principles are yet so strongly felt1 as to render a circumstance so trifling as this little lapse of memory of ,mr4 ,adams'1 worthy of being solemnly announced and supported at an anniversary assemblage of the nation on its birthday4 ,in opposition1 however1 to ,mr4 ,pickering1 ,i pray ,god that these principles may be eternal1 and close the prayer with my affectionate wishes for yourself of long life1 health and happiness4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,september #d1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your letter of ,august the #aeth was received in due time1 and with the welcome of everything which comes from you4 ,with its opinions on the difficulties of revolutions from despotism to freedom1 ,i very much concur4 ,the generation which commences a revolution rarely completes it4 ,habituated from their infancy to passive submission of body and mind to their kings and priests1 they are not qualified when called on to think and provide for themselves2 and their inexperience1 their ignorance and bigotry make them instruments often1 in the hands of the ,bonapartes and ,iturbides1 to defeat their own rights and purposes4 ,this is the present situation of ,europe and ,spanish ,america4 ,but it is not desperate4 ,the light which has been shed on mankind by the art of printing1 has eminently changed the condition of the world4 ,as yet1 that light has dawned on the middling classes only of the men in ,europe4 ,the kings and the rabble1 of equal ignorance1 have not yet received its rays2 but it continues to spread1 and while printing is preserved1 it can no more recede than the sun return on his course4 ,a first attempt to recover the right of self-government may fail1 so may a second1 a third1 c4 ,but as a younger and more instructed race comes on1 the sentiment becomes more and more intuitive1 and a fourth1 a fifth1 or some subsequent one of the ever renewed attempts will ultimately succeed4 ,in ,france1 the first effort was defeated by ,robespierre1 the second by ,bonaparte1 the third by ,louis ,,xviii4 and his holy allies3 another is yet to come1 and all ,europe1 ,russia excepted1 has caught the spirit2 and all will attain representative government1 more or less perfect4 ,this is now well understood to be a necessary check on kings1 whom they will probably think it more prudent to chain and tame1 than to exterminate4 ,to attain all this1 however1 rivers of blood must yet flow1 and years of desolation pass over2 yet the object is worth rivers of blood1 and years of desolation4 ,for what inheritance so valuable1 can man leave to his posterity8 ,the spirit of the ,spaniard1 and his deadly and eternal hatred to a ,frenchman1 give me much confidence that he will never submit1 but finally defeat this atrocious violation of the laws of ,god and man1 under which he is suffering2 and the wisdom and firmness of the ,cortes1 afford reasonable hope1 that that nation will settle down in a temperate representative government1 with an executive properly subordinated to that4 ,portugal1 ,italy1 ,prussia1 ,germany1 ,greece1 will follow suit4 ,you and ,i shall look down from another world on these glorious achievements to man1 which will add to the joys even of heaven4 ,i observe your toast of ,mr4 ,jay on the #dth of ,july1 wherein you say that the omission of his signature to the ,declaration of ,independence was by accident4 ,our impressions as to this fact being different1 ,i shall be glad to have mine corrected1 if wrong4 ,jay1 you know1 had been in constant opposition to our laboring majority4 ,our estimate at the time was1 that he1 ,dickinson and ,johnson of ,maryland1 by their ingenuity1 perseverance and partiality to our ,english connection1 had constantly kept us a year behind where we ought to have been in our preparations and proceedings4 ,from about the date of the ,virginia instructions of ,may the #aeth1 #aggf1 to declare ,independence1 ,mr4 ,jay absented himself from ,congress1 and never came there again until ,december1 #aggh4 ,of course1 he had no part in the discussions or decision of that question4 ,the instructions to their ,delegates by the ,convention of ,new ,york1 then sitting1 to sign the ,declaration1 were presented to ,congress on the #aeth of ,july only1 and on that day the journals show the absence of ,mr4 ,jay1 by a letter received from him1 as they had done as early as the #bith of ,may by another letter4 ,and ,i think he had been omitted by the convention on a new election of ,delegates1 when they changed their instructions4 ,of this last fact1 however1 having no evidence but an ancient impression1 ,i shall not affirm it4 ,but whether so or not1 no agency of accident appears in the case4 ,this error of fact1 however1 whether yours or mine1 is of little consequence to the public4 ,but truth being as cheap as error1 it is as well to rectify it for our own satisfaction4 ,i have had a fever of about three weeks1 during the last and preceding month1 from which ,i am entirely recovered except as to strength4 ,,to ,,william ,,short4 ,,monticello1 ,september #h1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,july #bhth1 from ,avon1 came to hand on the #ajth of ,august1 and ,i have delayed answering it on the presumption of your continued absence1 but the approach of the season of frost in that region has probably before this time turned you about to the south4 ,i readily conceive that by the time of your return to ,philadelphia1 you will have had travelling enough for the present1 and therefore acquiesce in your proposition to give us the next season4 ,your own convenience is a sufficient reason1 and an auxiliary one is that we shall then have more for you to see and approve4 ,by that time1 our rotunda1 7the walls of which will be finished this month7 will have received its roof1 and will show itself externally to some advantage4 ,its columns only will be wanting1 as they must await their capitals from ,italy4 ,we have just received from thence1 and are now putting up1 the marble capitals of the buildings we have already erected1 which completes our whole system1 except the rotunda and its adjacent gymnasia4 ,all are now ready to receive their occupants1 and should the legislature1 at their next session1 liberate our funds as is hoped1 we shall ask but one year more to procure our professors1 for most of whom we must go to ,europe4 ,in your substitution of ,monticello instead of your annual visit to ,black ,rock1 ,i will engage you equal health1 and a more genial and pleasant climate2 but instead of the flitting1 flirting1 and gay assemblage of that place1 you must be contented with the plain and sober family and neighborly society1 with the assurance that you shall hear no wrangling about the next president1 although the excitement on that subject will then be at its acme4 ,numerous have been the attempts to entangle me in that imbroglio4 ,but at the age of eighty1 ,i seek quiet and abjure contention4 ,i read but a single newspaper1 ,ritchie's ,enquirer1 the best that is published or ever has been published in ,america4 ,yon should read it also1 to keep yourself au fait of your own ,state1 for we still claim you as belonging to us4 ,a city life offers you indeed more means of dissipating time1 but more frequent1 also1 and more painful objects of vice and wretchedness4 ,new ,york1 for example1 like ,london1 seems to be a ,cloacina of all the depravities of human nature4 ,philadelphia doubtless has its share4 ,here1 on the contrary1 crime is scarcely heard of1 breaches of order rare1 and our societies1 if not refined1 are rational1 moral1 and affectionate at least4 ,our only blot is becoming less offensive by the great improvement in the condition and civilization of that race1 who can now more advantageously compare their situation with that of the laborers of ,europe4 ,still it is a hideous blot1 as well from the heteromorph peculiarities of the race1 as that1 with them1 physical compulsion to action must be substituted for the moral necessity which constrains the free laborers to work equally hard4 ,we feel and deplore it morally and politically1 and we look without entire despair to some redeeming means not yet specifically foreseen4 ,i am happy in believing that the conviction of the necessity of removing this evil gains ground with time4 ,their emigration to the westward lightens the difficulty by dividing it1 and renders it more practicable on the whole4 ,and the neighborhood of a government of their color promises a more accessible asylum than that from whence they came4 ,ever and affectionately yours4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,thomas ,,earle4 ,,monticello1 ,september #bd1 #ahbc4 ,,sir1--,your letter of ,august #bhth1 with the pamphlet accompanying it1 was not received until the #ahth instant4 ,that our ,creator made the earth for the use of the living and not of the dead2 that those who exist not can have no use nor right in it1 no authority or power over it2 that one generation of men cannot foreclose or burthen its use to another1 which comes to it in its own right and by the same divine beneficence2 that a preceding generation cannot bind a succeeding one by its laws or contracts2 these deriving their obligation from the will of the existing majority1 and that majority being removed by death1 another comes in its place with a will equally free to make its own laws and contracts2 these are axioms so self-evident that no explanation can make them plainer2 for he is not to be reasoned with who says that non-existence can control existence1 or that nothing can move something4 ,they are axioms also pregnant with salutary consequences4 ,the laws of civil society indeed for the encouragement of industry1 give the property of the parent to his family on his death1 and in most civilized countries permit him even to give it1 by testament1 to whom he pleases4 ,and it is also found more convenient to suffer the laws of our predecessors to stand on our implied assent1 as if positively re-enacted1 until the existing majority positively repeals them4 ,but this does not lessen the right of that majority to repeal whenever a change of circumstances or of will calls for it4 ,habit alone confounds what is civil practice with natural right4 ,on the merits of the pamphlet ,i say nothing of course2 having found it necessary to decline giving opinions on books even when desired4 ,for the functions of a reviewer1 ,i have neither time1 talent1 nor inclination1 and ,i trust that on reflection your indulgence will not think unreasonable my unwillingness to embark in an office of so little enticement4 ,with my thanks for the pamphlet1 be pleased to accept the assurance of my great respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,hugh ,p4 ,,taylor4 ,,monticello1 ,october #d1 #ahbc4 ,,sir1--,you must1 ,i think1 have somewhat misunderstood what ,i may have said to you as to manuscripts in my possession relating to the antiquities1 and particularly the ,indian antiquities of our country4 ,the only manuscripts ,i now possess are some folio volumes1 two of these are the proceedings of the ,virginia ,company in ,england2 the remaining four are of the ,records of the ,council of ,virginia from #afbb to #agjj4 ,the account of the two first volumes you will see in the preface to ,stith's ,history of ,virginia4 ,they contain the records of the ,virginia company1 copied from the originals1 under the eye1 if ,i recollect rightly1 of the ,earl of ,southampton1 a member of the company1 bought at the sale of his library by ,doctor ,byrd1 of ,westover1 and sold with that library to ,isaac ,zane4 ,these volumes happened at the time of the sale1 to have been borrowed by ,colonel ,r4 ,bland1 whose library ,i bought1 and with this1 they were sent to me4 ,i gave notice of it to ,mr4 ,zane1 but he never reclaimed them4 ,i shall deposit them in the library of the university1 where they will be most likely to be preserved with care4 ,the other four volumes1 ,i am confident1 are the original office records of the council4 ,my conjectures are that when ,sr4 ,john ,randolph was about to begin the ,history of ,virginia which he meant to write1 he borrowed these volumes from the council office1 to collect from them materials for his work4 ,he died before he had made any progress in that work1 and they remained in his library1 probably unobserved1 during the whole life of the late ,peyton ,randolph1 his son2 from his executors ,i purchased his library in a lump1 and these volumes were sent to me as a part of it4 ,i found the leaves so rotten as often to crumble into dust on being handled2 ,i bound them1 therefore1 together1 that they might not be unnecessarily opened1 and have thus preserved them forty-seven years4 ,if my conjectures are right1 they must have been out of the public office about eighty years4 ,i shall deposit them also with the others in the same library of the university1 where they will be safer from injury than in a public office4 ,i have promised1 however1 to trust them to ,mr4 ,hening1 if he will copy and publish them when he shall have finished his collection of the laws4 ,for this he is peculiarly qualified1 as well by his diligence as by his familiarity with our ancient manuscript characters1 a familiarity very necessary for decyphering these volumes4 ,i agree with you that it is the duty of every good citizen to use all the opportunities which occur to him1 for preserving documents relating to the history of our country4 ,that ,i have not been remiss in this while ,i had youth1 health1 and opportunity1 is proved otherwise1 as well as by the materials ,i furnished towards ,mr4 ,hening's invaluable collection of the laws of our country2 but there is a time1 and that time is come with me1 when these duties are no more1 when age and the wane of mind and memory1 and the feebleness of the powers of life pass them over as a legacy to younger hands4 ,i write now slowly1 laboriously1 painfully4 ,i am obliged1 therefore1 to decline all correspondence which some moral duty does not urgently call on me to answer4 ,i always trust that those who write them will read their answer in my age and silence1 and see in these a manifestation that ,i am done with writing letters4 ,i am sorry1 therefore1 that ,i am not able to give any aid to the work you contemplate1 other than my best wishes for its success1 and to these ,i add the assurance of my great respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,october #ab1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i do not write with the ease which your letter of ,september the #ahth supposes4 ,crippled wrists and fingers make writing slow and laborious4 ,but while writing to you1 ,i lose the sense of these things in the recollection of ancient times1 when youth and health made happiness out of everything4 ,i forget for a while the hoary winter of age1 when we can think of nothing but how to keep ourselves warm1 and how to get rid of our heavy hours until the friendly hand of death shall rid us of all at once4 ,against this tedium vit1 however1 ,i am fortunately mounted on a hobby1 which1 indeed1 ,i should have better managed some thirty or forty years ago2 but whose easy amble is still sufficient to give exercise and amusement to an octogenary rider4 ,this is the establishment of a ,university1 on a scale more comprehensive1 and in a country more healthy and central than our old ,william and ,mary1 which these obstacles have long kept in a state of languor and inefficiency4 ,but the tardiness with which such works proceed1 may render it doubtful whether ,i shall live to see it go into action4 ,putting aside these things1 however1 for the present1 ,i write this letter as due to a friendship coeval with our government1 and now attempted to be poisoned1 when too late in life to be replaced by new affections4 ,i had for sometime observed in the public papers1 dark hints and mysterious innuendos of a correspondence of yours with a friend1 to whom you had opened your bosom without reserve1 and which was to be made public by that friend or his representative4 ,and now it is said to be actually published4 ,it has not yet reached us1 but extracts have been given1 and such as seemed most likely to draw a curtain of separation between you and myself4 ,were there no other motive than that of indignation against the author of this outrage on private confidence1 whose shaft seems to have been aimed at yourself more particularly1 this would make it the duty of every honorable mind to disappoint that aim1 by opposing to its impression a seven-fold shield of apathy and insensibility4 ,with me1 however1 no such armor is needed4 ,the circumstances of the times in which we have happened to live1 and the partiality of our friends at a particular period1 placed us in a state of apparent opposition1 which some might suppose to be personal also2 and there might not be wanting those who wished to make it so1 by filling our ears with malignant falsehoods1 by dressing up hideous phantoms of their own creation1 presenting them to you under my name1 to me under yours1 and endeavoring to instil into our minds things concerning each other the most destitute of truth4 ,and if there had been1 at any time1 a moment when we were off our guard1 and in a temper to let the whispers of these people make us forget what we had known of each other for so many years1 and years of so much trial1 yet all men who have attended to the workings of the human mind1 who have seen the false colors under which passion sometimes dresses the actions and motives of others1 have seen also those passions subsiding with time and reflection1 dissipating like mists before the rising sun1 and restoring to us the sight of all things in their true shape and colors4 ,it would be strange indeed1 if1 at our years1 we were to go back an age to hunt up imaginary or forgotten facts1 to disturb the repose of affections so sweetening to the evening of our lives4 ,be assured1 my dear ,sir1 that ,i am incapable of receiving the slightest impression from the effort now made to plant thorns on the pillow of age1 worth and wisdom1 and to sow tares between friends who have been such for near half a century4 ,beseeching you then1 not to suffer your mind to be disquieted by this wicked attempt to poison its peace1 and praying you to throw it by among the things which have never happened1 ,i add sincere assurances of my unabated and constant attachment1 friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,the ,,president4 ,,monticello1 ,october #bd1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the question presented by the letters you have sent me1 is the most momentous which has ever been offered to my contemplation since that of ,independence4 ,that made us a nation1 this sets our compass and points the course which we are to steer through the ocean of time opening on us4 ,and never could we embark on it under circumstances more auspicious4 ,our first and fundamental maxim should be1 never to entangle ourselves in the broils of ,europe4 ,our second1 never to suffer ,europe to intermeddle with ,cis-,atlantic affairs4 ,america1 ,north and ,south1 has a set of interests distinct from those of ,europe1 and peculiarly her own4 ,she should therefore have a system of her own1 separate and apart from that of ,europe4 ,while the last is laboring to become the domicil of despotism1 our endeavor should surely be1 to make our hemisphere that of freedom4 ,one nation1 most of all1 could disturb us in this pursuit2 she now offers to lead1 aid1 and accompany us in it4 ,by acceding to her proposition1 we detach her from the bands1 bring her mighty weight into the scale of free government1 and emancipate a continent at one stroke1 which might otherwise linger long in doubt and difficulty4 ,great ,britain is the nation which can do us the most harm of any one1 or all on earth2 and with her on our side we need not fear the whole world4 ,with her then1 we should most sedulously cherish a cordial friendship2 and nothing would tend more to knit our affections than to be fighting once more1 side by side1 in the same cause4 ,not that ,i would purchase even her amity at the price of taking part in her wars4 ,but the war in which the present proposition might engage us1 should that be its consequence1 is not her war1 but ours4 ,its object is to introduce and establish the ,american system1 of keeping out of our land all foreign powers1 of never permitting those of ,europe to intermeddle with the affairs of our nations4 ,it is to maintain our own principle1 not to depart from it4 ,and if1 to facilitate this1 we can effect a division in the body of the ,european powers1 and draw over to our side its most powerful member1 surely we should do it4 ,but ,i am clearly of ,mr4 ,canning's opinion1 that it will prevent instead of provoking war4 ,with ,great ,britain withdrawn from their scale and shifted into that of our two continents1 all ,europe combined would not undertake such a war4 ,for how would they propose to get at either enemy without superior fleets8 ,nor is the occasion to be slighted which this proposition offers1 of declaring our protest against the atrocious violations of the rights of nations1 by the interference of any one in the internal affairs of another1 so flagitiously begun by ,bonaparte1 and now continued by the equally lawless ,alliance1 calling itself ,holy4 ,but we have first to ask ourselves a question4 ,do we wish to acquire to our own confederacy any one or more of the ,spanish provinces8 ,i candidly confess1 that ,i have ever looked on ,cuba as the most interesting addition which could ever be made to our system of ,states4 ,the control which1 with ,florida ,point1 this island would give us over the ,gulf of ,mexico1 and the countries and isthmus bordering on it1 as well as all those whose waters flow into it1 would fill up the measure of our political well-being4 ,yet1 as ,i am sensible that this can never be obtained1 even with her own consent1 but by war2 and its independence1 which is our second interest1 7and especially its independence of ,england17 can be secured without it1 ,i have no hesitation in abandoning my first wish to future chances1 and accepting its independence1 with peace and the friendship of ,england1 rather than its association1 at the expense of war and her enmity4 ,i could honestly1 therefore1 join in the declaration proposed1 that we aim not at the acquisition of any of those possessions1 that we will not stand in the way of any amicable arrangement between them and the mother country2 but that we will oppose1 with all our means1 the forcible interposition of any other power1 as auxiliary1 stipendiary1 or under any other form or pretext1 and most especially1 their transfer to any power by conquest1 cession1 or acquisition in any other way4 ,i should think it1 therefore1 advisable1 that the ,executive should encourage the ,british government to a continuance in the dispositions expressed in these letters1 by an assurance of his concurrence with them as far as his authority goes2 and that as it may lead to war1 the declaration of which requires an act of ,congress1 the case shall be laid before them for consideration at their first meeting1 and under the reasonable aspect in which it is seen by himself4 ,i have been so long weaned from political subjects1 and have so long ceased to take any interest in them1 that ,i am sensible ,i am not qualified to offer opinions on them worthy of any attention4 ,but the question now proposed involves consequences so lasting1 and effects so decisive of our future destinies1 as to rekindle all the interest ,i have heretofore felt on such occasions1 and to induce me to the hazard of opinions1 which will prove only my wish to contribute still my mite towards anything which may be useful to our country4 ,and praying you to accept it at only what it is worth1 ,i add the assurance of my constant and affectionate friendship and respect4 ,,to ,m4 ,,coray4 ,,monticello1 ,october #ca1 #ahbc4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,july #ajth is lately received4 ,i recollect with pleasure the short opportunity of acquaintance with you afforded me in ,paris1 by the kindness of ,mr4 ,paradise1 and the fine editions of the classical writers of ,greece which have been announced by you from time to time1 have never permitted me to lose the recollection4 ,until those of ,aristotle's ,ethics1 and the ,strategicos of ,onesander1 with which you have now favored me1 and for which ,i pray you to accept my thanks1 ,i had seen only your ,lives of ,plutarch4 ,these ,i had read1 and profited much by your valuable ,scholia1 and the aid of a few words from a modern ,greek dictionary would1 ,i believe1 have enabled me to read your patriotic addresses to your countrymen4 ,you have certainly begun at the right end towards preparing them for the great object they are now contending for1 by improving their minds and qualifying them for self-government4 ,for this they will owe you lasting honors4 ,nothing is more likely to forward this object than a study of the fine models of science left by their ancestors1 to whom we also are all indebted for the lights which originally led ourselves out of ,gothic darkness4 ,no people sympathize more feelingly than ours with the sufferings of your countrymen1 none offer more sincere and ardent prayers to heaven for their success4 ,and nothing indeed but the fundamental principle of our government1 never to entangle us with the broils of ,europe1 could restrain our generous youth from taking some part in this holy cause4 ,possessing ourselves the combined blessing of liberty and order1 we wish the same to other countries1 and to none more than yours1 which1 the first of civilized nations1 presented examples of what man should be4 ,not1 indeed1 that the forms of government adapted to their age and country are practicable or to be imitated in our day1 although prejudices in their favor would be natural enough to your people4 ,the circumstances of the world are too much changed for that4 ,the government of ,athens1 for example1 was that of the people of one city making laws for the whole country subjected to them4 ,that of ,lacedmon was the rule of military monks over the laboring class of the people1 reduced to abject slavery4 ,these are not the doctrines of the present age4 ,the equal rights of man1 and the happiness of every individual1 are now acknowledged to be the only legitimate objects of government4 ,modern times have the signal advantage1 too1 of having discovered the only device by which these rights can be secured1 to-wit3 government by the people1 acting not in person1 but by representatives chosen by themselves1 that is to say1 by every man of ripe years and sane mind1 who either contributes by his purse or person to the support of his country4 ,the small and imperfect mixture of representative government in ,england1 impeded as it is by other branches1 aristocratical and hereditary1 shows yet the power of the representative principle towards improving the condition of man4 ,with us1 all the branches of the government are elective by the people themselves1 except the ,judiciary1 of whose science and qualifications they are not competent judges4 ,yet1 even in that department1 we call in a jury of the people to decide all controverted matters of fact1 because to that investigation they are entirely competent1 leaving thus as little as possible1 merely the law of the case1 to the decision of the judges4 ,and true it is that the people1 especially when moderately instructed1 are the only safe1 because the only honest1 depositories of the public rights1 and should therefore be introduced into the administration of them in every function to which they are sufficient2 they will err sometimes and accidentally1 but never designedly1 and with a systematic and persevering purpose of overthrowing the free principles of the government4 ,hereditary bodies1 on the contrary1 always existing1 always on the watch for their own aggrandizement1 profit of every opportunity of advancing the privileges of their order1 and encroaching on the rights of the people4 ,the public papers tell us that your nation has established a government of some kind without informing us what it is4 ,this is certainly necessary for the direction of the war1 but ,i presume it is intended to be temporary only1 as a permanent constitution must be the work of quiet1 leisure1 much inquiry1 and great deliberation4 ,the extent of our country was so great1 and its former division into distinct ,states so established1 that we thought it better to confederate as to foreign affairs only4 ,every ,state retained its self-government in domestic matters1 as better qualified to direct them to the good and satisfaction of their citizens1 than a general government so distant from its remoter citizens1 and so little familiar with the local peculiarities of the different parts4 ,but ,i presume that the extent of country with you1 which may liberate itself from the ,turks1 is not too large to be associated under a single government1 and that the particular constitutions of our several ,states1 therefore1 and not that of our federal government1 will furnish the basis best adapted to your situation4 ,there are now twenty-four of these distinct ,states1 none smaller perhaps than your ,morea1 several larger than all ,greece4 ,each of these has a constitution framed by itself and for itself1 but militating in nothing with the powers of the general government in its appropriate department of war and foreign affairs4 ,these constitutions being in print and in every hand1 ,i shall only make brief observations on them1 and on those provisions particularly which have not fulfilled expectations1 or which1 being varied in different ,states1 leave a choice to be made of that which is best4 ,you will find much good in all of them1 and no one which would be approved in all its parts4 ,such indeed are the different circumstances1 prejudices1 and habits of different nations1 that the constitution of no one would be reconcilable to any other in every point4 ,a judicious selection of the parts of each suitable to any other1 is all which prudence should attempt2 this will appear from a review of some parts of our constitutions4 ,our executives are elected by the people for terms of one1 two1 three1 or four years1 under the names of governors or presidents1 and are religible a second time1 or after a certain term1 if approved by the people4 ,may your ,ethnarch be elective also8 or does your position among the warring powers of ,europe need an office more permanent1 and a leader more stable8 ,surely you will make him single4 ,for if experience has ever taught a truth1 it is that a plurality in the supreme executive will forever split into discordant factions1 distract the nation1 annihilate its energies1 and force the nation to rally under a single head1 generally an usurper4 ,we have1 ,i think1 fallen on the happiest of all modes of constituting the executive1 that of easing and aiding our ,president1 by permitting him to choose ,secretaries of ,state1 of finance1 of war1 and of the navy1 with whom he may advise1 either separately or all together1 and remedy their divisions by adopting or controlling their opinions at his discretion2 this saves the nation from the evils of a divided will1 and secures to it a steady march in the systematic course which the president may have adopted for that of his administration4 ,our legislatures are composed of two houses1 the senate and representatives1 elected in different modes1 and for different periods1 and in some ,states1 with a qualified veto in the executive chief4 ,but to avoid all temptation to superior pretensions of the one over the other house1 and the possibility of either erecting itself into a privileged order1 might it not be better to choose at the same time and in the same mode1 a body sufficiently numerous to be divided by lot into two separate houses1 acting as independently as the two houses in ,england1 or in our governments1 and to shuffle their names together and re-distribute them by lot1 once a week for a fortnight8 ,this would equally give the benefit of time and separate deliberation1 guard against an absolute passage by acclamation1 derange cabals1 intrigues1 and the count of noses1 disarm the ascendency which a popular demagogue might at anytime obtain over either house1 and render impossible all disputes between the two houses1 which often form such obstacles to business4 ,our different ,states have differently modified their several judiciaries as to the tenure of office4 ,some appoint their judges for a given term of time2 some continue them during good behavior1 and that to be determined on by the concurring vote of two-thirds of each legislative house4 ,in ,england they are removable by a majority only of each house4 ,the last is a practicable remedy2 the second is not4 ,the combination of the friends and associates of the accused1 the action of personal and party passions1 and the sympathies of the human heart1 will forever find means of influencing one-third of either the one or the other house1 will thus secure their impunity1 and establish them in fact for life4 ,the first remedy is the best1 that of appointing for a term of years only1 with a capacity of re-appointment if their conduct has been approved4 ,at the establishment of our constitutions1 the judiciary bodies were supposed to be the most helpless and harmless members of the government4 ,experience1 however1 soon showed in what way they were to become the most dangerous2 that the insufficiency of the means provided for their removal gave them a freehold and irresponsibility in office2 that their decisions1 seeming to concern individual suitors only1 pass silent and unheeded by the public at large2 that these decisions1 nevertheless1 become law by precedent1 sapping1 by little and little1 the foundations of the constitution1 and working its change by construction1 before any one has perceived that that invisible and helpless worm has been busily employed in consuming its substance4 ,in truth1 man is not made to be trusted for life1 if secured against all liability to account4 ,the constitutions of some of our ,states have made it a duty of their government to provide with due care for the public education4 ,this we divide into three grades4 #a4 ,primary schools1 in which are taught reading1 writing1 and common arithmetic1 to every infant of the ,state1 male and female4 #b4 ,intermediate schools1 in which an education is given proper for artificers and the middle vocations of life2 in grammar1 for example1 general history1 logarithms1 arithmetic1 plain trigonometry1 mensuration1 the use of the globes1 navigation1 the mechanical principles1 the elements of natural philosophy1 and1 as a preparation for the ,university1 the ,greek and ,latin languages4 #c4 ,an ,university1 in which these and all other useful sciences shall be taught in their highest degree2 the expenses of these institutions are defrayed partly by the public1 and partly by the individuals profiting of them4 ,but1 whatever be the constitution1 great care must be taken to provide a mode of amendment1 when experience or change of circumstances shall have manifested that any part of it is unadapted to the good of the nation4 ,in some of our ,states it requires a new authority from the whole people1 acting by their representatives1 chosen for this express purpose1 and assembled in convention4 ,this is found too difficult for remedying the imperfections which experience develops from time to time in an organization of the first impression4 ,a greater facility of amendment is certainly requisite to maintain it in a course of action accommodated to the times and changes through which we are ever passing4 ,in ,england the constitution may be altered by a single act of the legislature1 which amounts to the having no constitution at all4 ,in some of our ,states1 an act passed by two different legislatures1 chosen by the people1 at different and successive elections1 is sufficient to make a change in the constitution4 ,as this mode may be rendered more or less easy1 by requiring the approbation of fewer or more successive legislatures1 according to the degree of difficulty thought sufficient1 and yet safe1 it is evidently the best principle which can be adopted for constitutional amendments4 ,i have stated that the constitutions of our several ,states vary more or less in some particulars4 ,but there are certain principles in which all agree1 and which all cherish as vitally essential to the protection of the life1 liberty1 property1 and safety of the citizen4 #a4 ,freedom of religion1 restricted only from acts of trespass on that of others4 #b4 ,freedom of person1 securing every one from imprisonment1 or other bodily restraint1 but by the laws of the land4 ,this is effected by the well-known law of habeas corpus4 #c4 ,trial by jury1 the best of all safe-guards for the person1 the property1 and the fame of every individual4 #d4 ,the exclusive right of legislation and taxation in the representatives of the people4 #e4 ,freedom of the press1 subject only to liability for personal injuries4 ,this formidable censor of the public functionaries1 by arraigning them at the tribunal of public opinion1 produces reform peaceably1 which must otherwise be done by revolution4 ,it is also the best instrument for enlightening the mind of man1 and improving him as a rational1 moral1 and social being4 ,i have thus1 dear ,sir1 according to your request1 given you some thoughts on the subject of national government4 ,they are the result of the observations and reflections of an octogenary1 who has passed fifty years of trial and trouble in the various grades of his country's service4 ,they are yet but outlines which you will better fill up1 and accommodate to the habits and circumstances of your countrymen4 ,should they furnish a single idea which may be useful to them1 ,i shall fancy it a tribute rendered to the manes of your ,homer1 your ,demosthenes1 and the splendid constellation of sages and heroes1 whose blood is still flowing in your veins1 and whose merits are still resting1 as a heavy debt1 on the shoulders of the living1 and the future races of men4 ,while we offer to heaven the warmest supplications for the restoration of your countrymen to the freedom and science of their ancestors1 permit me to assure yourself of the cordial esteem and high respect which ,i bear and cherish towards yourself personally4 ,,to ,,the ,,marquis ,,de ,,la ,,fayette4 ,,monticello1 ,november #d1 #ahbc4 ,,my ,,dear ,,friend1--,two dislocated wrists and crippled fingers have rendered writing so slow and laborious1 as to oblige me to withdraw from nearly all correspondence2 not however1 from yours1 while ,i can make a stroke with a pen4 ,we have gone through too many trying scenes together1 to forget the sympathies and affections they nourished4 ,your trials have indeed been long and severe4 ,when they will end1 is yet unknown1 but where they will end1 cannot be doubted4 ,alliances1 ,holy or ,hellish1 may be formed1 and retard the epoch of deliverance1 may swell the rivers of blood which are yet to flow1 but their own will close the scene1 and leave to mankind the right of self-government4 ,i trust that ,spain will prove1 that a nation cannot be conquered which determines not to be so1 and that her success will be the turning of the tide of liberty1 no more to be arrested by human efforts4 ,whether the state of society in ,europe can bear a republican government1 ,i doubted1 you know1 when with you1 and ,i do now4 ,a hereditary chief1 strictly limited1 the right of war vested in the legislative body1 a rigid economy of the public contributions1 and absolute interdiction of all useless expenses1 will go far towards keeping the government honest and unoppressive4 ,but the only security of all1 is in a free press4 ,the force of public opinion cannot be resisted1 when permitted freely to be expressed4 ,the agitation it produces must be submitted to4 ,it is necessary1 to keep the waters pure4 ,we are all1 for example1 in agitation even in our peaceful country4 ,for in peace as well as in war1 the mind must be kept in motion4 ,who is to be the next ,president1 is the topic here of every conversation4 ,my opinion on that subject is what ,i expressed to you in my last letter4 ,the question will be ultimately reduced to the northernmost and southernmost candidate4 ,the former will get every federal vote in the ,union1 and many republicans2 the latter1 all of those denominated of the old school2 for you are not to believe that these two parties are amalgamated1 that the lion and the lamb are lying down together4 ,the ,hartford ,convention1 the victory of ,orleans1 the peace of ,ghent1 prostrated the name of federalism4 ,its votaries abandoned it through shame and mortification2 and now call themselves republicans4 ,but the name alone is changed1 the principles are the same4 ,for in truth1 the parties of ,whig and ,tory1 are those of nature4 ,they exist in all countries1 whether called by these names1 or by those of ,aristocrats and ,democrats1 ,cot ,droite and ,cot ,gauche1 ,ultras and ,radicals1 ,serviles1 and ,liberals4 ,the sickly1 weakly1 timid man1 fears the people1 and is a tory by nature4 ,the healthy1 strong and bold1 cherishes them1 and is formed a whig by nature4 ,on the eclipse of federalism with us1 although not its extinction1 its leaders got up the ,missouri question1 under the false front of lessening the measure of slavery1 but with the real view of producing a geographical division of parties1 which might insure them the next ,president4 ,the people of the north went blindfold into the snare1 followed their leaders for awhile with a zeal truly moral and laudable1 until they became sensible that they were injuring instead of aiding the real interests of the slaves1 that they had been used merely as tools for electioneering purposes2 and that trick of hypocrisy then fell as quickly as it had been got up4 ,to that is now succeeding a distinction1 which1 like that of republican and federal1 or whig and tory1 being equally intermixed through every ,state1 threatens none of those geographical schisms which go immediately to a separation4 ,the line of division now1 is the preservation of ,state rights as reserved in the constitution1 or by strained constructions of that instrument1 to merge all into a consolidated government4 ,the tories are for strengthening the executive and general ,government2 the whigs cherish the representative branch1 and the rights reserved by the ,states1 as the bulwark against consolidation1 which must immediately generate monarchy4 ,and although this division excites1 as yet1 no warmth1 yet it exists1 is well understood1 and will be a principle of voting at the ensuing election1 with the reflecting men of both parties4 ,i thank you much for the two books you were so kind as to send me by ,mr4 ,gallatin4 ,miss ,wright had before favored me with the first edition of her ,american work2 but her ,few days in ,athens1 was entirely new1 and has been a treat to me of the highest order4 ,the matter and manner of the dialogue is strictly ancient2 and the principles of the sects are beautifully and candidly explained and contrasted2 and the scenery and portraiture of the interlocutors are of higher finish than anything in that line left us by the ancients2 and like ,ossian1 if not ancient1 it is equal to the best morsels of antiquity4 ,i augur1 from this instance1 that ,herculaneum is likely to furnish better specimens of modern than of ancient genius2 and may we not hope more from the same pen8 ,after much sickness1 and the accident of a broken and disabled arm1 ,i am again in tolerable health1 but extremely debilitated1 so as to be scarcely able to walk into my garden4 ,the hebetude of age1 too1 and extinguishment of interest in the things around me1 are weaning me from them1 and dispose me with cheerfulness to resign them to the existing generation1 satisfied that the daily advance of science will enable them to administer the commonwealth with increased wisdom4 ,you have still many valuable years to give to your country1 and with my prayers that they may be years of health and happiness1 and especially that they may see the establishment of the principles of government which you have cherished through life1 accept the assurance of my affectionate and constant friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,patrick ,k4 ,,rodgers4 ,,monticello1 ,january #bi1 #ahbd4 ,,sir1--,i have duly received your favor of the #adth1 with a copy of your mathematical principles of natural philosophy1 which ,i have looked into with all the attention which the rust of age and long continued avocations of a very different character permit me to exercise4 ,i think them entirely worthy of approbation1 both as to matter and method1 and for their brevity as a text book2 and ,i remark particularly the clearness and precision with which the propositions are enounced1 and1 in the demonstrations1 the easy form in which ideas are presented to the mind1 so as to be almost intuitive and self-evident4 ,of ,cavallo's book1 which you say you are enjoined to teach1 ,i have no knowledge1 having never seen it2 but its character is1 ,i think1 that of mere mediocrity2 and1 from my personal acquaintance with the man1 ,i should expect no more4 ,he was heavy1 capable enough of understanding what he read1 and with memory to retain it1 but without the talent of digestion or improvement4 ,but1 indeed1 the ,english generally have been very stationary in latter times1 and the ,french1 on the contrary1 so active and successful1 particularly in preparing elementary books1 in the mathematical and natural sciences1 that those who wish for instruction1 without caring from what nation they get it1 resort universally to the latter language4 ,besides the earlier and invaluable works of ,euler and ,bezont1 we have latterly that of ,lacroix in mathematics1 of ,legendre in geometry1 ,lavoisier in chemistry1 the elementary works of ,hay in physics1 ,biot in experimental physics and physical astronomy1 ,dumeril in natural history1 to say nothing of many detached essays of ,monge and others1 and the transcendent labors of ,laplace1 and ,i am informed1 by a highly instructed person recently from ,cambridge1 that the mathematicians of that institution1 sensible of being in the rear of those of the continent1 and ascribing the cause much to their too long-continued preference of the geometrical over the analytical methods1 which the ,french have so much cultivated and improved1 have now adopted the latter2 and that they have also given up the fluxionary1 for the differential calculus4 ,to confine a school1 therefore1 to the obsolete work of ,cavallo1 is to shut out all advances in the physical sciences which have been so great in latter times4 ,i am glad1 however1 to learn from your work1 and to expect from those it promised in succession1 which will doubtless be of equal grade1 that so good a course of instruction is pursued in ,william and ,mary4 ,it is very long since ,i have had any information of the state of education in that seminary1 to which1 as my alma mater1 my attachment has been ever sincere1 although not exclusive4 ,when that college was located at the middle plantation in #afic1 ,charles city was a frontier county1 and there were no inhabitants above the falls of the rivers1 sixty miles only higher up4 ,it was1 therefore1 a position1 nearly central to the population1 as it then was2 but when the frontier became extended to the ,sandy river1 three hundred miles west of ,williamsburg1 the public convenience called1 first for a removal of the seat of government1 and latterly1 not for a removal of the college1 but1 for the establishment of a new one1 in a more central and healthy situation2 not disturbing the old one in its possessions or functions1 but leaving them unimpaired for the benefit of those to whom it is convenient4 ,and indeed1 ,i do not foresee that the number of its students is likely to be much affected2 because ,i presume that1 at present1 its distance and autumnal climate prevent its receiving many students from above the tide-waters1 and especially from above the mountains4 ,this is1 therefore1 one of the cases where the lawyers say there is damnum absque injuri2 and they instance1 as in point1 the settlement of a new schoolmaster in the neighborhood of an old one4 ,at any rate it is one of those cases wherein the public interest rightfully prevails1 and the justice of which will be yielded to by none1 ,i am sure1 with more dutiful and candid acquiescence than the enlightened friends of our ancient and venerable institution4 ,the only rivalship1 ,i hope1 between the old and the new1 will be in doing the most good possible in their respective sections of country4 ,as the diagrams of your book have not been engraved1 ,i return you the ,,ms4 of them1 which must be of value to yourself4 ,they furnish favorable specimens of the graphical talent of your former pupil4 ,permit me to add1 that ,i shall always be ready and happy to receive with particular welcome the visit of which you flatter me with the hope1 and to avail myself of the occasion of assuring you personally of my great respect and esteem4 ,,to ,,joseph ,c4 ,,cabell4 ,,monticello1 ,february #c1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i am favored with your two letters of ,january the #bfth and #bith1 and ,i am glad that yourself and the friends of the ,university are so well satisfied1 that the provisos amendatory of the ,university ,act are mere nullities4 ,i had not been able to put out of my head the ,algebraical equation1 which was among the first of my college lessons1 that a-a#j4 ,yet ,i cheerfully arrange myself to your opinions4 ,i did not suppose1 nor do ,i now suppose it possible1 that both houses of the legislature should ever consent1 for an additional fifteen thousand dollars of revenue1 to set all the ,professors and students of the ,university adrift2 and if foreigners will have the same confidence which we have in our legislature1 no harm will have been done by the provisos4 ,you recollect that we had agreed that the ,visitors who are of the legislature should fix on a certain day of meeting1 after the rising of the ,assembly1 to put into immediate motion the measures which this act was expected to call for4 ,you will of course remind the ,governor that a re-appointment of ,visitors is to be made on the day following ,sunday1 the #bith of this month2 and as he is to appoint the day of their first meeting1 it would be well to recommend to him that which our brethren there shall fix on4 ,it may be designated by the ,governor as the third1 fourth1 c41 day after the rising of the legislature1 which will give it certainty enough4 ,you ask what sum would be desirable for the purchase of books and apparatus8 ,certainly the largest you can obtain4 ,forty or fifty thousand dollars would enable us to purchase the most essential books of texts and reference for the schools1 and such an apparatus for mathematics1 astronomy and chemistry1 as may enable us to set out with tolerable competence1 if we can1 through the banks and otherwise1 anticipate the whole sum at once4 ,i remark what you say on the subject of committing ourselves to any one for the law appointment4 ,your caution is perfectly just4 ,i hope1 and am certain1 that this will be the standing law of discretion and duty with every member of our board1 in this and all cases4 ,you know we have all1 from the beginning1 considered the high qualifications of our professors1 as the only means by which we could give to our institution splendor and pre-eminence over all its sister seminaries4 ,the only question1 therefore1 we can ever ask ourselves1 as to any candidate1 will be1 is he the most highly qualified8 ,the college of ,philadelphia has lost its character of primacy by indulging motives of favoritism and nepotism1 and by conferring the appointments as if the professorships were entrusted to them as provisions for their friends4 ,and even that of ,edinburgh1 you know1 is also much lowered from the same cause4 ,we are next to observe1 that a man is not qualified for a professor1 knowing nothing but merely his own profession4 ,he should be otherwise well educated as to the sciences generally2 able to converse understandingly with the scientific men with whom he is associated1 and to assist in the councils of the faculty on any subject of science on which they may have occasion to deliberate4 ,without this1 he will incur their contempt1 and bring disreputation on the institution4 ,with respect to the professorship you mention1 ,i scarcely know any of our judges personally2 but ,i will name1 for example1 the late ,judge ,roane1 who1 ,i believe1 was generally admitted to be among the ablest of them4 ,his knowledge was confined to the common law chiefly1 which does not constitute one-half of the qualification of a really learned lawyer1 much less that of a professor of law for an ,university4 ,and as to any other branches of science1 he must have stood mute in the presence of his literary associates1 or of any learned strangers or others visiting the ,university4 ,would this constitute the splendid stand we propose to take8 ,in the course of the trusts ,i have exercised through life with powers of appointment1 ,i can say with truth1 and with unspeakable comfort1 that ,i never did appoint a relation to office1 and that merely because ,i never saw the case in which some one did not offer1 or occur1 better qualified2 and ,i have the most unlimited confidence1 that in the appointment of ,professors to our nursling institution1 every individual of my associates will look with a single eye to the sublimation of its character1 and adopt1 as our sacred motto1 detur digniori4 ,in this way it will honor us1 and bless our country4 ,i perceive that ,i have permitted my reflections to run into generalities beyond the scope of the particular intimation in your letter4 ,i will let them go1 however1 as a general confession of faith1 not belonging merely to the present case4 ,name me affectionately to our brethren with you1 and be assured yourself of my constant friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,jared ,,sparks4 ,,monticello1 ,february #d1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i duly received your favor of the #acth1 and with it1 the last number of the ,north ,american ,review4 ,this has anticipated the one ,i should receive in course1 but have not yet received1 under my subscription to the new series4 ,the article on the ,african colonization of the people of color1 to which you invite my attention1 ,i have read with great consideration4 ,it is1 indeed1 a fine one1 and will do much good4 ,i learn from it more1 too1 than ,i had before known1 of the degree of success and promise of that colony4 ,in the disposition of these unfortunate people1 there are two rational objects to be distinctly kept in view4 ,first4 ,the establishment of a colony on the coast of ,africa1 which may introduce among the aborigines the arts of cultivated life1 and the blessings of civilization and science4 ,by doing this1 we may make to them some retribution for the long course of injuries we have been committing on their population4 ,and considering that these blessings will descend to the nati natorum1 et qui nascentur ab illis1 we shall in the long run have rendered them perhaps more good than evil4 ,to fulfil this object1 the colony of ,sierra ,leone promises well1 and that of ,mesurado adds to our prospect of success4 ,under this view1 the colonization society is to be considered as a missionary society1 having in view1 however1 objects more humane1 more justifiable1 and less aggressive on the peace of other nations1 than the others of that appellation4 ,the second object1 and the most interesting to us1 as coming home to our physical and moral characters1 to our happiness and safety1 is to provide an asylum to which we can1 by degrees1 send the whole of that population from among us1 and establish them under our patronage and protection1 as a separate1 free and independent people1 in some country and climate friendly to human life and happiness4 ,that any place on the coast of ,africa should answer the latter purpose1 ,i have ever deemed entirely impossible4 ,and without repeating the other arguments which have been urged by others1 ,i will appeal to figures only1 which admit no controversy4 ,i shall speak in round numbers1 not absolutely accurate1 yet not so wide from truth as to vary the result materially4 ,there are in the ,united ,states a million and a half of people of color in slavery4 ,to send off the whole of these at once1 nobody conceives to be practicable for us1 or expedient for them4 ,let us take twenty-five years for its accomplishment1 within which time they will be doubled4 ,their estimated value as property1 in the first place1 7for actual property has been lawfully vested in that form1 and who can lawfully take it from the possessors87 at an average of two hundred dollars each1 young and old1 would amount to six hundred millions of dollars1 which must be paid or lost by somebody4 ,to this1 add the cost of their transportation by land and sea to ,mesurado1 a year's provision of food and clothing1 implements of husbandry and of their trades1 which will amount to three hundred millions more1 making thirty-six millions of dollars a year for twenty-five years1 with insurance of peace all that time1 and it is impossible to look at the question a second time4 ,i am aware that at the end of about sixteen years1 a gradual detraction from this sum will commence1 from the gradual diminution of breeders1 and go on during the remaining nine years4 ,calculate this deduction1 and it is still impossible to look at the enterprise a second time4 ,i do not say this to induce an inference that the getting rid of them is forever impossible4 ,for that is neither my opinion nor my hope4 ,but only that it cannot be done in this way4 ,there is1 ,i think1 a way in which it can be done2 that is1 by emancipating the after-born1 leaving them1 on due compensation1 with their mothers1 until their services are worth their maintenance1 and then putting them to industrious occupations1 until a proper age for deportation4 ,this was the result of my reflections on the subject five and forty years ago1 and ,i have never yet been able to conceive any other practicable plan4 ,it was sketched in the ,notes on ,virginia1 under the fourteenth query4 ,the estimated value of the new-born infant is so low1 7say twelve dollars and fifty cents17 that it would probably be yielded by the owner gratis1 and would thus reduce the six hundred millions of dollars1 the first head of expense1 to thirty-seven millions and a half2 leaving only the expenses of nourishment while with the mother1 and of transportation4 ,and from what fund are these expenses to be furnished8 ,why not from that of the lands which have been ceded by the very ,states now needing this relief8 ,and ceded on no consideration1 for the most part1 but that of the general good of the whole4 ,these cessions already constitute one fourth of the ,states of the ,union4 ,it may be said that these lands have been sold2 are now the property of the citizens composing those ,states2 and the money long ago received and expended4 ,but an equivalent of lands in the territories since acquired1 may be appropriated to that object1 or so much1 at least1 as may be sufficient2 and the object1 although more important to the slave ,states1 is highly so to the others also1 if they were serious in their arguments on the ,missouri question4 ,the slave ,states1 too1 if more interested1 would also contribute more by their gratuitous liberation1 thus taking on themselves alone the first and heaviest item of expense4 ,in the plan sketched in the ,notes on ,virginia1 no particular place of asylum was specified2 because it was thought possible1 that in the revolutionary state of ,america1 then commenced1 events might open to us some one within practicable distance4 ,this has now happened4 ,st4 ,domingo has become independent1 and with a population of that color only2 and if the public papers are to be credited1 their ,chief offers to pay their passage1 to receive them as free citizens1 and to provide them employment4 ,this leaves1 then1 for the general confederacy1 no expense but of nurture with the mother a few years1 and would call1 of course1 for a very moderate appropriation of the vacant lands4 ,suppose the whole annual increase to be of sixty thousand effective births1 fifty vessels1 of four hundred tons burthen each1 constantly employed in that short run1 would carry off the increase of every year1 and the old stock would die off in the ordinary course of nature1 lessening from the commencement until its final disappearance4 ,in this way no violation of private right is proposed ,voluntary surrenders would probably come in as fast as the means to be provided for their care would be competent to it4 ,looking at my own ,state only1 and ,i presume not to speak for the others1 ,i verily believe that this surrender of property would not amount to more1 annually1 than half our present direct taxes1 to be continued fully about twenty or twenty-five years1 and then gradually diminishing for as many more until their final extinction2 and even this half tax would not be paid in cash1 but by the delivery of an object which they have never yet known or counted as part of their property2 and those not possessing the object will be called on for nothing4 ,i do not go into all the details of the burthens and benefits of this operation4 ,and who could estimate its blessed effects8 ,i leave this to those who will live to see their accomplishment1 and to enjoy a beatitude forbidden to my age4 ,but ,i leave it with this admonition1 to rise and be doing4 ,a million and a half are within their control2 but six millions1 7which a majority of those now living will see them attain17 and one million of these fighting men1 will say1 we will not go4 ,i am aware that this subject involves some constitutional scruples4 ,but a liberal construction1 justified by the object1 may go far1 and an amendment of the constitution1 the whole length necessary4 ,the separation of infants from their mothers1 too1 would produce some scruples of humanity4 ,but this would be straining at a gnat1 and swallowing a camel4 ,i am much pleased to see that you have taken up the subject of the duty on imported books4 ,i hope a crusade will be kept up against it1 until those in power shall become sensible of this stain on our legislation1 and shall wipe it from their code1 and from the remembrance of man1 if possible4 ,i salute you with assurances of high respect and esteem4 ,,to ,,robert ,j4 ,,garnett4 ,,monticello1 ,february #ad1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have to thank you for the copy of ,colonel ,taylor's ,new ,views of the ,constitution1 and shall read them with the satisfaction and edification which ,i have ever derived from whatever he has written4 ,but ,i fear it is the voice of one crying in the wilderness4 ,those who formerly usurped the name of federalists1 which1 in fact1 they never were1 have now openly abandoned it1 and are as openly marching by the road of construction1 in a direct line to that consolidation which was always their real object4 ,they1 almost to a man1 are in possession of one branch of the government1 and appear to be very strong in yours4 ,the three great questions of amendment now before you1 will give the measure of their strength4 ,i mean1 #ast1 the limitation of the term of the presidential service2 #b;d1 the placing the choice of president effectually in the hands of the people2 #c;d1 the giving to ,congress the power of internal improvement1 on condition that each ,state's federal proportion of the monies so expended1 shall be employed within the ,state4 ,the friends of consolidation would rather take these powers by construction than accept them by direct investiture from the ,states4 ,yet1 as to internal improvement particularly1 there is probably not a ,state in the ,union which would not grant the power on the condition proposed1 or which would grant it without that4 ,the best general key for the solution of questions of power between our governments1 is the fact that every foreign and federal power is given to the federal government1 and to the ,states every power purely domestic4 ,i recollect but one instance of control vested in the federal1 over the ,state authorities in a matter purely domestic1 which is that of metallic tenders4 ,the federal is1 in truth1 our foreign government1 which department alone is taken from the sovereignty of the separate ,states4 ,the real friends of the constitution in its federal form1 if they wish it to be immortal1 should be attentive1 by amendments1 to make it keep pace with the advance of the age in science and experience4 ,instead of this1 the ,european governments have resisted reformation1 until the people1 seeing no other resource1 undertake it themselves by force1 their only weapon1 and work it out through blood1 desolation and long-continued anarchy4 ,here it will be by large fragments breaking off1 and refusing re-union but on condition of amendment1 or perhaps permanently4 ,if ,i can see these three great amendments prevail1 ,i shall consider it as a renewed extension of the term of our lease1 shall live in more confidence1 and die in more hope4 ,and ,i do trust that the republican mass1 which ,colonel ,taylor justly says is the real federal one1 is still strong enough to carry these truly federo-republican amendments4 ,with my prayers for the issue1 accept my friendly and respectful salutations4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,isaac ,,engelbrecht4 ,,monticello1 ,february #be1 #ahbd4 ,,sir1--,the kindness of the motive which led to the request of your letter of the #adth instant1 and which would give some value to an article from me1 renders compliance a duty of gratitude2 knowing nothing more moral1 more sublime1 more worthy of your preservation than ,david's description of the good man1 in his #aeth ,psalm1 ,i will here transcribe it from ,brady ,tate's version3 ,lord1 who's the happy man that may to thy blest courts repair1 ,not stranger-like1 to visit them1 but to inhabit there8 ',tis he whose every thought and deed by rules of virtue moves1 ,whose generous tongue disdains to speak the thing his heart disproves4 ,who never did a slander forge1 his neighbor's fame to wound1 ,nor hearken to a false report by malice whispered round4 ,who1 vice1 in all its pomp and power1 can treat with just neglect2 ,and piety1 though clothed in rags1 religiously respect4 ,who1 to his plighted vows and trust1 has ever firmly stood1 ,and though he promise to his loss he makes his promise good4 ,whose soul in usury disdains his treasure to employ1 ,whom no rewards can ever bribe the guiltless to destroy4 ,the man who by this steady course has happiness ensured1 ,when earth's foundation shakes1 shall stand by providence secured4 ,accept this as a testimony of my respect for your request1 an acknowledgment of a due sense of the favor of your opinion1 and an assurance of my good will and best wishes4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,woodward4 ,,monticello1 ,march #bd1 #ahbd4 ,i have to thank you1 dear ,sir1 for the copy ,i have received of your ,system of ,universal ,science1 for which1 ,i presume1 ,i am indebted to yourself4 ,it will be a monument of the learning of the author and of the analyzing powers of his mind4 ,whether it may be adopted in general use is yet to be seen4 ,these analytical views indeed must always be ramified according to their object4 ,yours is on the great scale of a methodical encyclopedia of all human sciences1 taking for the basis of their distribution1 matter1 mind1 and the union of both4 ,lord ,bacon founded his first great division on the faculties of the mind which have cognizance of these sciences4 ,it does not seem to have been observed by any one that the origination of this division was not with him4 ,it had been proposed by ,charron more than twenty years before1 in his book de la ,sagesse1 ,b4 #a1 c4 #ad1 and an imperfect ascription of the sciences to these respective faculties was there attempted4 ,this excellent moral work was published in #afjj4 ,lord ,bacon is said not to have entered on his great work until his retirement from public office in #afba4 ,where sciences are to be arranged in accommodation to the schools of an university1 they will be grouped to coincide with the kindred qualifications of ,professors in ordinary4 ,for a library1 which was my object1 their divisions and subdivisions will be made such as to throw convenient masses of books under each separate head4 ,thus1 in the library of a physician1 the books of that science1 of which he has many1 will be subdivided under many heads2 and these of law1 of which he has few1 will be placed under a single one4 ,the lawyer1 again1 will distribute his law books under many subdivisions1 his medical under a single one4 ,your idea of making the subject matter of the sciences the basis of their distribution1 is certainly more reasonable than that of the faculties to which they are addressed4 ,the materialists will perhaps criticize a basis1 one-half of which they will say is a non-existence2 adhering to the axiom of ,aristotle1 nihil est in intellectu quod prius non fuerit in sensu1 and affirming that we can have no evidence of any existence which impresses no sense4 ,of this opinion were most of the ancient philosophers1 and several of the early and orthodox fathers of the christian church4 ,indeed1 ,jesus himself1 the founder of our religion1 was unquestionably a materialist as to man4 ,in all his doctrines of the resurrection1 he teaches expressly that the body is to rise in substance4 ,in the ,apostles' ,creed1 we all declare that we believe in the resurrection of the body4 ,jesus said that ,god is spirit without defining it4 ,tertullian supplies the definition1 quis negabit ,deum esse corpus1 etsi ,deus ,spiritus8 spiritus etiam corporis sui generis in su effigie4 ,and ,origen1 accipi1 docet1 pro eo quod non est simile huic nostro crassiori et visibli corpori1 sed quod est naturaliter subtile et velut aura tenue4 ,the modern philosophers mostly consider thought as a function of our material organization2 and ,locke particularly among them1 charges with blasphemy those who deny that ,omnipotence could give the faculty of thinking to certain combinations of matter4 ,were ,i to re-compose my tabular view of the sciences1 ,i should certainly transpose a particular branch4 ,the naturalists1 you know1 distribute the history of nature into three kingdoms or departments3 zoology1 botany1 mineralogy4 ,ideology or mind1 however1 occupies so much space in the field of science1 that we might perhaps erect it into a fourth kingdom or department4 ,but1 inasmuch as it makes a part of the animal construction only1 it would be more proper to subdivide zoology into physical and moral4 ,the latter including ideology1 ethics1 and mental science generally1 in my catalogue1 considering ethics1 as well as religion1 as supplements to law in the government of man1 ,i had placed them in that sequence4 ,but certainly the faculty of thought belongs to animal history1 is an important portion of it and should there find its place4 ,but these are speculations in which ,i do not now permit myself to labor4 ,my mind unwillingly engages in severe investigations4 ,its energies1 indeed1 are no longer equal to them4 ,being to thank you for your hook1 its subject has run away with me into a labyrinth of ideas no longer familiar1 and writing also has become a slow and irksome operation with me4 ,i have been obliged to avail myself of the pen of a granddaughter for this communication4 ,i will here1 therefore1 close my task of thinking1 hers of writing1 and yours of reading1 with assurances of my constant and high respect and esteem4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,edward ,,everett4 ,,monticello1 ,march #bg1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have to thank you for your ,greek reader1 which1 for the use of schools1 is evidently preferable to the ,collectanea ,grca4 ,these have not arranged their selections so well in gradation from the easier to the more difficult styles4 ,on the subject of the ,greek ablative1 ,i dare say that your historical explanation is the true one4 ,in the early stages of languages1 the distinctions of cases may well be supposed so few as to be readily effected by changes of termination4 ,the ,greeks1 in this way1 seem to have formed five1 the ,latins six1 and to have supplied their deficiencies as they occurred in the progress of development1 by prepositive words4 ,in later times1 the ,italians1 ,spaniards1 and ,french1 have depended on prepositions altogether1 without any inflection of the primitive word to denote the change of case4 ,what is singular as to the ,english is1 that in its early form of ,anglo-,saxon1 having distinguished several cases by changes of termination1 at later periods it has dropped these1 retains but that of the genitive1 and supplies all the others by prepositions4 ,these subjects1 with me1 are neither favorites nor familiar2 and your letter has occasioned me to look more into the particular one in question than ,i had ever done before4 ,turning1 for satisfaction1 to the work of ,tracy1 the most profound of our ideological writers1 and to the volume particularly which treats of grammar1 ,i find what ,i suppose to be the correct doctrine of the case4 ,omitting unnecessary words to abridge writing1 ,i copy what he says3 ,il y a des langues qui par certains changemens de desinence1 appells cas1 indiquent quelquesuns des rapports des noms avec d'autres noms2 mais beaucoup de langues n'ont point de cas2 et celles qui en ont1 n'en ont qu'un petit nombre1 tandis que les divers rapports qu'une ide peut avoir avec une autre sont extrmement multiplis3 ainsi1 les cas ne peuvent exprimer qu'en general1 les principaux de ces rapports4 ,aussi dans toutes les langues1 meme dans celles qui out des cas1 on a senti le besoin de mots distincts1 separs des autres1 et expressement destins cet usage2 ils ce qu'on appelle des prepositions4 #b ,tracy ,elemens d',ideologie1 c4 #c1 #e1 p4 #aad1 and he names the ,basque and ,peruvian languages1 whose nouns have such various changes of termination as to express all the relations which other languages express by prepositions1 and therefore having no prepositions4 ,on this ground1 ,i suppose1 then1 we may rest the question of the ,greek ablative4 ,it leaves with me a single difficulty only1 to-wit3 the instances where they have given the ablative signification to the dative termination1 some of which ,i quoted in my former letter to you4 ,i have just received a letter from ,coray1 at ,paris1 of the #bhth ,december1 in which he confirms the late naval success of the ,greeks1 but expresses a melancholy fear for his nation1 qui a montr jusqu' ce moment des prodiges de valeur1 mais qui1 delivre d'un joug de ,cannibass1 ne peut encore posseder ni les leons d'instruction1 ni celles de l'exprience4 ,i confess ,i have the same fears for our ,south ,american brethren2 the qualifications for self-government in society are not innate4 ,they are the result of habit and long training1 and for these they will require time and probably much suffering4 ,i salute you with assurances of great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,edward ,,livingston4 ,,monticello1 ,april #d1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,it was with great pleasure ,i learned that the good people of ,new ,orleans had restored you again to the councils of our country4 ,i did not doubt the aid it would bring to the remains of our old school in ,congress1 in which your early labors had been so useful4 ,you will find1 ,i suppose1 on revisiting our maritime ,states1 the names of things more changed than the things themselves2 that though our old opponents have given up their appellation1 they have not1 in assuming ours1 abandoned their views1 and that they are as strong nearly as they ever were4 ,these cares1 however1 are no longer mine4 ,i resign myself cheerfully to the managers of the ship1 and the more contentedly1 as ,i am near the end of my voyage4 ,i have learned to be less confident in the conclusions of human reason1 and give more credit to the honesty of contrary opinions4 ,the radical idea of the character of the constitution of our government1 which ,i have adopted as a key in cases of doubtful construction1 is1 that the whole field of government is divided into two departments1 domestic and foreign1 7the ,states in their mutual relations being of the latter27 that the former department is reserved exclusively to the respective ,states within their own limits1 and the latter assigned to a separate set of functionaries1 constituting what may be called the foreign branch1 which1 instead of a federal basis1 is established as a distinct government quoad hoc1 acting as the domestic branch does on the citizens directly and coercively2 that these departments have distinct directories1 co-ordinate1 and equally independent and supreme1 each within its own sphere of action4 ,whenever a doubt arises to which of these branches a power belongs1 ,i try it by this test4 ,i recollect no case where a question simply between citizens of the same ,state1 has been transferred to the foreign department1 except that of inhibiting tenders but of metallic money1 and ex post facto legislation4 ,the causes of these singularities are well remembered4 ,i thank you for the copy of your speech on the question of national improvement1 which ,i have read with great pleasure1 and recognize in it those powers of reasoning and persuasion of which ,i had formerly seen from you so many proofs4 ,yet1 in candor1 ,i must say it has not removed1 in my mind1 all the difficulties of the question4 ,and ,i should really be alarmed at a difference of opinion with you1 and suspicious of my own1 were it not that ,i have1 as companions in sentiments1 the ,madisons1 the ,monroes1 the ,randolphs1 the ,macons1 all good men and true1 of primitive principles4 ,in one sentiment of the speech ,i particularly concur4 ,if we have a doubt relative to any power1 we ought not to exercise it4 ,when we consider the extensive and deep-seated opposition to this assumption1 the conviction entertained by so many1 that this deduction of powers by elaborate construction prostrates the rights reserved to the ,states1 the difficulties with which it will rub along in the course of its exercise2 that changes of majorities will be changing the system backwards and forwards1 so that no undertaking under it will be safe2 that there is not a ,state in the ,union which would not give the power willingly1 by way of amendment1 with some little guard1 perhaps1 against abuse2 ,i cannot but think it would be the wisest course to ask an express grant of the power4 ,a government held together by the bands of reason only1 requires much compromise of opinion2 that things even salutary should not be crammed down the throats of dissenting brethren1 especially when they may be put into a form to be willingly swallowed1 and that a great deal of indulgence is necessary to strengthen habits of harmony and fraternity4 ,in such a case1 it seems to me it would be safer and wiser to ask an express grant of the power4 ,this would render its exercise smooth and acceptable to all1 and insure to it all the facilities which the ,states could contribute1 to prevent that kind of abuse which all will fear1 because all know it is so much practised in public bodies1 ,i mean the bartering of votes4 ,it would reconcile every one1 if limited by the proviso1 that the federal proportion of each ,state should be expended within the ,state4 ,with this single security against partiality and corrupt bargaining1 ,i suppose there is not a ,state1 perhaps not a man in the ,union1 who would not consent to add this to the powers of the general government4 ,but age has weaned me from questions of this kind4 ,my delight is now in the passive occupation of reading2 and it is with great reluctance ,i permit my mind ever to encounter subjects of difficult investigation4 ,you have many years yet to come of vigorous activity1 and ,i confidently trust they will be employed in cherishing every measure which may foster our brotherly union1 and perpetuate a constitution of government destined to be the primitive and precious model of what is to change the condition of man over the globe4 ,with this confidence1 equally strong in your powers and purposes1 ,i pray you to accept the assurance of my cordial esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,john ,,hampden ,,pleasants4 ,,monticello1 ,april #ai1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i received in due time your favor of the #abth1 requesting my opinion on the proposition to call a convention for amending the constitution of the ,state4 ,that this should not be perfect cannot be a subject of wonder1 when it is considered that ours was not only the first of the ,american ,states1 but the first nation in the world1 at least within the records of history1 which peaceably by its wise men1 formed on free deliberation1 a constitution of government for itself1 and deposited it in writing1 among their archives1 always ready and open to the appeal of every citizen4 ,the other ,states1 who successively formed constitutions for themselves also1 had the benefit of our outline1 and have made on it1 doubtless1 successive improvements4 ,one in the very outset1 and which has been adopted in every subsequent constitution1 was to lay its foundation in the authority of the nation4 ,to our convention no special authority had been delegated by the people to form a permanent constitution1 over which their successors in legislation should have no powers of alteration4 ,they had been elected for the ordinary purposes of legislation only1 and at a time when the establishment of a new government had not been proposed or contemplated4 ,although1 therefore1 they gave to this act the title of a constitution1 yet it could be no more than an act of legislation subject1 as their other acts were1 to alteration by their successors4 ,it has been said1 indeed1 that the acquiescence of the people supplied the want of original power4 ,but it is a dangerous lesson to say to them whenever your functionaries exercise unlawful authority over you1 if you do not go into actual resistance1 it will be deemed acquiescence and confirmation4 ,how long had we acquiesced under usurpations of the ,british parliament8 ,had that confirmed them in right1 and made our revolution a wrong8 ,besides1 no authority has yet decided whether this resistance must be instantaneous2 when the right to resist ceases1 or whether it has yet ceased8 ,of the twenty-four ,states now organized1 twenty-three have disapproved our doctrine and example1 and have deemed the authority of their people a necessary foundation for a constitution4 ,another defect which has been corrected by most of the ,states is1 that the basis of our constitution is in opposition to the principle of equal political rights1 refusing to all but freeholders any participation in the natural right of self-government4 ,it is believed1 for example1 that a very great majority of the militia1 on whom the burthen of military duty was imposed in the late war1 were men unrepresented in the legislation which imposed this burthen on them4 ,however nature may by mental or physical disqualifications have marked infants and the weaker sex for the protection1 rather than the direction of government1 yet among the men who either pay or fight for their country1 no line of right can be drawn4 ,the exclusion of a majority of our freemen from the right of representation is merely arbitrary1 and an usurpation of the minority over the majority2 for it is believed that the non-freeholders compose the majority of our free and adult male citizens4 ,and even among our citizens who participate in the representative privilege1 the equality of political rights is entirely prostrated by our constitution4 ,upon which principle of right or reason can any one justify the giving to every citizen of ,warwick as much weight in the government as to twenty-two equal citizens in ,loudon1 and similar inequalities among the other counties8 ,if these fundamental principles are of no importance in actual government1 then no principles are important1 and it is as well to rely on the dispositions of an administration2 good or evil1 as on the provisions of a constitution4 ,i shall not enter into the details of smaller defects1 although others there doubtless are1 the reformation of some of which might very much lessen the expenses of government1 improve its organization1 and add to the wisdom and purity of its administration in all its parts2 but these things ,i leave to others1 not permitting myself to take sides in the political questions of the day4 ,i willingly acquiesce in the institutions of my country1 perfect or imperfect2 and think it a duty to leave their modifications to those who are to live under them1 and are to participate of the good or evil they may produce4 ,the present generation has the same right of self-government which the past one has exercised for itself4 ,and those in the full vigor of body and mind are more able to judge for themselves than those who are sinking under the wane of both4 ,if the sense of our citizens on the question of a convention can be fairly and fully taken1 its result will1 ,i am sure1 be wise and salutary2 and far from arrogating the office of advice1 no one will more passively acquiesce in it than myself4 ,retiring1 therefore1 to the tranquillity called for by increasing years and debility1 ,i wish not to be understood as intermeddling in this question2 and to my prayers for the general good1 ,i have only to add assurances to yourself of my great esteem4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,david ,,harding1 ,,president ,,of ,,the ,,jefferson ,,debating ,,society ,,of ,,hingham4 ,,monticello1 ,april #bj1 #ahbd4 ,,sir4--,i have duly received your favor of the #fth instant1 informing me of the institution of a debating society in ,hingham1 composed of adherents to the republican principles of the revolution2 and ,i am justly sensible of the honor done my name by associating it with the title of the society4 ,the object of the society is laudable1 and in a republican nation1 whose citizens are to be led by reason and persuasion1 and not by force1 the art of reasoning becomes of first importance4 ,in this line1 antiquity has left us the finest models for imitation2 and he who studies and imitates them most nearly1 will nearest approach the perfection of the art4 ,among these ,i should consider the speeches of ,livy1 ,sallust1 and ,tacitus1 as pre-eminent specimens of logic1 taste1 and that sententious brevity which1 using not a word to spare1 leaves not a moment for inattention to the hearer4 ,amplification is the vice of modern oratory4 ,it is an insult to an assembly of reasonable men1 disgusting and revolting instead of persuading4 ,speeches measured by the hour1 die with the hour4 ,i will not1 however1 further indulge the disposition of the age to sermonize1 and especially to those surrounded by so much better advice4 ,with my apologies1 therefore1 for hazarding even these observations1 and my prayers for the success of your institution1 be pleased to accept for the society and yourself the assurances of my high consideration4 ,,to ,,richard ,,rush4 ,,monticello1 ,april #bf1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have heretofore informed you that our legislature had undertaken the establishment of an ,university in ,virginia2 that it was placed in my neighborhood1 and under the direction of a board of seven visitors1 of whom ,i am one1 ,mr4 ,madison another1 and others equally worthy of confidence4 ,we have been four or five years engaged in erecting our buildings1 all of which are now ready to receive their tenants1 one excepted1 which the present season will put into a state for use4 ,the last session of our legislature had by new donations liberated the revenue of fifteen ,m4 ,d4 a year1 with which they had before endowed the institution1 and we propose to open it the beginning of the next year4 ,we require the intervening time for seeking out and engaging ,professors4 ,as to these we have determined to receive no one who is not of the first order of science in his line2 and as such in every branch cannot be obtained with us1 we propose to seek some of them at least in the countries ahead of us in science1 and preferably in ,great ,britain1 the land of our own language1 habits and manners4 ,but how to find out those who are of the first grade of science1 of sober correct habits and morals1 harmonizing tempers1 talents for communication1 is the difficulty4 ,our first step is to send a special agent to the ,universities of ,oxford1 ,cambridge and ,edinburgh1 to make the selection for us2 and the person appointed for this office is the gentleman who will hand you this letter1--,mr4 ,francis ,walker ,gilmer1--the best-educated subject we have raised since the revolution1 highly qualified in all the important branches of science1 professing particularly that of the law1 which he has practised some years at our ,supreme ,court with good success and flattering prospects4 ,his morals1 his amiable temper and discretion1 will do justice to any confidence you may be willing to place in him1 for ,i commit him to you as his mentor and guide in the business he goes on4 ,we do not certainly expect to obtain such known characters as were the ,cullens1 the ,robertsons and ,porsons of ,great ,britain1 men of the first eminence established there in reputation and office1 and with emoluments not to be bettered anywhere4 ,but we know that there is another race treading on their heels1 preparing to take their places1 and as well and sometimes better qualified to fill them4 ,these while unsettled1 surrounded by a crowd of competitors1 of equal claims and perhaps superior credit and interest1 may prefer a comfortable certainty here for an uncertain hope there1 and a lingering delay even of that4 ,from this description we expect we may draw professors equal to those of the highest name4 ,the difficulty is to distinguish them2 for we are told that so overcharged are all branches of business in that country1 and such the difficulty of getting the means of living1 that it is deemed allowable in ethics for even the most honorable minds to give highly exaggerated recommendations and certificates to enable a friend or proteg to get into a livelihood2 and that the moment our agent should be known to be on such a mission1 he would be overwhelmed by applications from numerous pretenders1 all of whom1 worthy or unworthy1 would be supported by such recommendations and such names as would confound all discrimination4 ,on this head our trust and hope is in you4 ,your knowledge of the state of things1 your means of finding out a character or two at each place1 truly trustworthy1 and into whose hands you can commit our agent with entire safety1 for information1 caution and co-operation1 induces me to request your patronage and aid in our endeavors to obtain such men1 and such only as will fulfil our views4 ,an unlucky selection in the outset would forever blast our prospects4 ,from our information of the character of the different ,universities1 we expect we should go to ,oxford for our classical professor1 to ,cambridge for those of ,mathematics1 ,natural ,philosophy and ,natural ,history1 and to ,edinburgh for a professor of ,anatomy1 and the elements or outlines only of ,medicine4 ,we have still our eye on ,mr4 ,blaetterman for the professorship of modern languages1 and ,mr4 ,gilmer is instructed to engage him1 if no very material objection to him may have arisen unknown to us4 ,we can place in ,mr4 ,gilmer's hands but a moderate sum at present for merely text books to begin with1 and for indispensable articles of apparatus1 ,mathematical1 ,astronomical1 ,physical1 ,chemical and ,anatomical4 ,we are in the hope of a sum of #ej1jjj1 as soon as we can get a settlement passed through the public offices4 ,my experience in dealing with the bookseller ,lackington1 on your recommendation1 has induced me to recommend him to ,mr4 ,gilmer1 and if we can engage his fidelity1 we may put into his hands the larger supply of books when we are ready to call for it1 and particularly what we shall propose to seek in ,england4 ,although ,i have troubled you with many particulars1 ,i yet leave abundance for verbal explanation with ,mr4 ,gilmer1 who possesses a full knowledge of everything1 and our full confidence in everything4 ,he takes with him plans of our establishment1 which we think it may be encouraging to show to the persons to whom he will make propositions1 as well to let them see the comforts provided for themselves1 as to show by the extensiveness and expense of the scale1 that it is no ephemeral thing to which they are invited4 ,with my earnest solicitations that you will give us all your aid in an undertaking on which we rest the hopes and happiness of our country1 accept the assurances of my sincere friendship1 attachment and respect4 ,,to ,,joseph ,c4 ,,cabell4 ,,monticello1 ,may #af1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of the #eth1 from ,williamsburg1 has been duly received1 and presents to us a case of pregnant character1 admitting important issues1 and requiring serious consideration and conduct2 yet ,i am more inclined to view it with hope than dismay4 ,it involves two questions4 ,first4 ,shall the college of ,william and ,mary be removed8 ,second4 ,to what place8 ,as to the first1 ,i never doubted the lawful authority of the legislature over the college1 as being a public institution and endowed from the public property1 by public agents for that function1 and for public purposes4 ,some have doubted this authority without a relinquishment of what they call a vested right by the body corporate4 ,but as their voluntary relinquishment is a circumstance of the case1 it is relieved from that doubt4 ,i certainly never wished that my venerable alma mater should be disturbed4 ,i considered it as an actual possession of that ancient and earliest settlement of our forefathers1 and was disposed to see it yielded as a courtesy1 rather than taken as a right4 ,they1 however1 are free to renounce a benefit1 and we to receive it4 ,had we dissolved it on the principle of right1 to give a direction to its funds more useful to the public1 the professors1 although their chartered tenure is during pleasure only1 might have reasonably expected a vale of a year or two's salary1 as an intermediate support1 until they could find other employment for their talents4 ,and notwithstanding that their abandonment is voluntary1 this should still be given them4 ,on this first question ,i think we should be absolutely silent and passive1 taking no part in it until the old institution is loosened from its foundation and fairly placed on its wheels4 #b4 ,on the second question1 to what place shall it be moved8 we may take the field boldly4 ,richmond1 it seems1 claims it1 but on what ground of advantage to the public8 ,when the professors1 their charter and funds shall be translated to ,richmond1 will they become more enlightened there than at the old place8 ,will they possess more science8 be more capable of communicating it8 or more competent to raise it from the dead1 in a new sect1 than to keep it alive in the ancient one8 ,or has ,richmond any peculiarities more favorable for the communication of the sciences generally than the place which the legislature has preferred and fixed on for that purpose8 ,this will not be pretended4 ,but it seems they possess advantages for a medical school4 ,let us scan them4 ,anatomy may be as competently taught at the ,university as at ,richmond1 the only subjects of discretion which either place can count on are equally acquirable at both4 ,and as to medicine1 whatever can be learned from lectures or books1 may be taught at the ,university of ,virginia as well as at ,richmond1 or even at ,baltimore1 ,philadelphia1 ,new ,york1 or ,boston1 with the inestimable additional advantage of acquiring1 at the same time1 the kindred sciences by attending the other schools4 ,but ,richmond thinks it can have a hospital which will furnish subjects for the clinical branch of medicine4 ,the classes of people which furnish subjects for the hospitals of ,baltimore1 ,philadelphia1 ,new ,york and ,boston1 do not exist at ,richmond4 ,the shipping constantly present at those places1 furnish many patients4 ,is there a ship at ,richmond8 ,the class of white servants in those cities which is numerous and penniless1 and whose regular resource in sickness is always the hospital1 constitutes the great body of their patients2 this class does not exist at ,richmond4 ,the servants there are slaves1 whose masters are by law obliged to take care of them in sickness as in health1 and who could not be admitted into a hospital4 ,these resources1 then1 being null1 the free inhabitants alone remain for a hospital at ,richmond4 ,and ,i will ask how many families in ,richmond would send their husbands1 wives1 or children to a hospital1 in sickness1 to be attended by nurses hardened by habit against the feelings of pity1 to lie in public rooms harassed by the cries and sufferings of disease under every form1 alarmed by the groans of the dying1 exposed as a corpse to be lectured over by a clinical professor1 to be crowded and handled by his students to hear their case learnedly explained to them1 its threatening symptoms developed1 and its probable termination foreboded8 ,in vindication of ,richmond1 ,i may surely answer that there is not in the place a family so heartless1 as1 relinquishing their own tender cares of a child or parent1 to abandon them in sickness to this last resource of poverty2 for it is poverty alone which peoples hospitals1 and those alone who are on the charities of their parish would go to their hospital4 ,have they paupers enough to fill a hospital8 and sickness enough among these8 ,one reason alleged for the removal of the college to ,richmond is that ,williamsburg is sickly1 is happily little apt for the situation of a hospital4 ,no ,sir2 ,richmond is no place to furnish subjects for clinical lectures4 ,i have always had ,norfolk in view for this purpose4 ,the climate and pontine country around ,norfolk render it truly sickly in itself4 ,it is1 moreover1 the rendezvous not only of the shipping of commerce1 but of the vessels of the public navy4 ,the ,united ,states have there a hospital already established1 and supplied with subjects from these local circumstances4 ,i had thought and have mentioned to yourself and our colleagues1 that when our medical school has got well under way1 we should propose to the federal government the association with that establishment1 and at our own expense1 of the clinical branch of our medical school1 so that our students1 after qualifying themselves with the other branches of the science here1 might complete their course of preparation by attending clinical lectures for six or twelve months at ,norfolk4 ,but ,richmond has another claim1 as being the seat of government4 ,the indisposition of ,richmond towards our ,university has not been unfelt4 ,but would it not be wiser in them to rest satisfied with the government and their local academy8 ,can they afford1 on the question of a change of the seat of government1 by hostilizing the middle counties1 to transfer them from the eastern to the western interest8 ,to make it their interest to withdraw from the former that ground of claim1 if used for adversary purposes8 ,with things as they are1 let both parties remain content and united4 ,if1 then1 ,william and ,mary is to be removed1 and not to ,richmond1 can there be two opinions how its funds are to be directed to the best advantage for the public8 ,when it was found that that seminary was entirely ineffectual towards the object of public education1 and that one on a better plan1 and in a better situation1 must be provided1 what was so obvious as to employ for that purpose the funds of the one abandoned1 with what more would be necessary1 to raise the new establishment8 ,and what so obvious as to do now what might reasonably have been done then1 by consolidating together the institutions and their funds8 ,the plan sanctioned by the legislature required for our ,university ten professors1 but the funds appropriated will maintain but eight1 and some of these are consequently over-burthened with duties2 the hundred thousand dollars of principal which you say still remains to ,william and ,mary1 by its interest of six thousand dollars1 would give us the two deficient professors1 with an annual surplus for the purchase of books2 and certainly the legislature will see no public interest1 after the expense incurred on the new establishment1 in setting up a rival in the city of ,richmond2 they cannot think it better to have two institutions crippling one another1 than one of healthy powers1 competent to that highest grade of instruction which neither1 with a divided support1 could expect to attain4 ,another argument may eventually arise in favor of consolidation4 ,the contingent gift at the late session1 of fifty thousand dollars1 for books and apparatus1 shows a sense in the legislature that those objects are still to be provided4 ,if we fail in obtaining that sum1 they will feel an incumbency to provide it otherwise4 ,what so ready as the derelict capital of ,william and ,mary1 and the large library they uselessly possess8 ,should that college then be removed1 ,i cannot doubt that the legislature1 keeping in view its original object1 will consolidate it with the ,university4 ,but it will not be removed4 ,richmond is doubtless in earnest1 but that the visitors should concur is impossible4 ,the professors are the prime-movers1 and do not mean exactly what they propose4 ,they hold up this raw-head and bloody-bones in terrorem to us1 to force us to receive them into our institution4 ,men who have degraded and foundered the vessel whose helm was entrusted to them1 want now to force their incompetence on us4 ,i know none of them personally1 but judge of them from the fact and the opinion ,i hear from every one acquainted with the case1 that it has been destroyed by their incompetence and mis-management4 ,until the death of ,bishop ,madison1 it kept at its usual stand of about eighty students4 ,it is now dwindled to about twenty1 and the professors acknowledge that on opening our doors1 theirs may be shut4 ,their funds in that case1 would certainly be acceptable and salutary to us4 ,but not with the incubus of their faculty4 ,when they find that their feint gives us no alarm1 they will retract1 will recall their grammar school1 make their college useful as a sectional school of preparation for the ,university1 and teach the languages1 surveying1 navigation1 plane trigonometry1 and such other elements of science as will be useful to many whose views do not call for a university education4 ,i will only add to this long letter an opinion that we had better say as little as we can on this whole subject2 give them no alarm2 let them petition for the removal2 let them get the old structure completely on wheels1 and not till then put in our claim to its reception4 ,i shall communicate your letter1 as you request1 to ,mr4 ,madison1 and with it this answer4 ,why can you not call on us on your way to ,warminster1 and make this a subject of conversation8 ,with my devoted respects to ,mrs4 ,cabell1 assure her that she can be nowhere more cordially received than by the family of ,monticello4 ,and the deviation from your direct road is too small to merit consideration4 ,ever and affectionately your friend and servant4 ,,to ,,major ,,john ,,cartwright4 ,,monticello1 ,june #e1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,and ,,venerable ,,sir1--,i am much indebted for your kind letter of ,february the #bith1 and for your valuable volume on the ,english constitution4 ,i have read this with pleasure and much approbation1 and think it has deduced the constitution of the ,english nation from its rightful root1 the ,anglo-,saxon4 ,it is really wonderful1 that so many able and learned men should have failed in their attempts to define it with correctness4 ,no wonder then1 that ,paine1 who thought more than he read1 should have credited the great authorities who have declared1 that the will of parliament is the constitution of ,england4 ,so ,marbois1 before the ,french revolution1 observed to me1 that the ,almanac ,royal was the constitution of ,france4 ,your derivation of it from the ,anglo-,saxons1 seems to be made on legitimate principles4 ,having driven out the former inhabitants of that part of the island called ,england1 they became aborigines as to you1 and your lineal ancestors4 ,they doubtless had a constitution2 and although they have not left it in a written formula1 to the precise text of which you may always appeal1 yet they have left fragments of their history and laws1 from which it may be inferred with considerable certainty4 ,whatever their history and laws show to have been practised with approbation1 we may presume was permitted by their constitution2 whatever was not so practiced1 was not permitted4 ,and although this constitution was violated and set at naught by ,norman force1 yet force cannot change right4 ,a perpetual claim was kept up by the nation1 by their perpetual demand of a restoration of their ,saxon laws1 which shows they were never relinquished by the will of the nation4 ,in the pullings and haulings for these ancient rights1 between the nation1 and its kings of the races of ,plantagenets1 ,tudors and ,stuarts1 there was sometimes gain1 and sometimes loss1 until the final re-conquest of their rights from the ,stuarts4 ,the destitution and expulsion of this race broke the thread of pretended inheritance1 extinguished all regal usurpations1 and the nation re-entered into all its rights2 and although in their bill of rights they specifically reclaimed some only1 yet the omission of the others was no renunciation of the right to assume their exercise also1 whenever occasion should occur4 ,the new ,king received no rights or powers1 but those expressly granted to him4 ,it has ever appeared to me1 that the difference between the whig and the tory of ,england is1 that the whig deduces his rights from the ,anglo-,saxon source1 and the tory from the ,norman4 ,and ,hume1 the great apostle of toryism1 says1 in so many words1 note ,,aa to chapter #db1 that1 in the reign of the ,stuarts1 it was the people who encroached upon the sovereign1 not the sovereign who attempted1 as is pretended1 to usurp upon the people4 ,this supposes the ,norman usurpations to be rights in his successors4 ,and again1 ,c1 #aei1 the commons established a principle1 which is noble in itself1 and seems specious1 but is belied by all history and experience1 that the people are the origin of all just power4 ,and where else will this degenerate son of science1 this traitor to his fellow men1 find the origin of just powers1 if not in the majority of the society8 ,will it be in the minority8 ,or in an individual of that minority8 ,our ,revolution commenced on more favorable ground4 ,it presented us an album on which we were free to write what we pleased4 ,we had no occasion to search into musty records1 to hunt up royal parchments1 or to investigate the laws and institutions of a semi-barbarous ancestry4 ,we appealed to those of nature1 and found them engraved on our hearts4 ,yet we did not avail ourselves of all the advantages of our position4 ,we had never been permitted to exercise self-government4 ,when forced to assume it1 we were novices in its science4 ,its principles and forms had entered little into our former education4 ,we established however some1 although not all its important principles4 ,the constitutions of most of our ,states assert1 that all power is inherent in the people2 that they may exercise it by themselves1 in all cases to which they think themselves competent1 7as in electing their functionaries executive and legislative1 and deciding by a jury of themselves1 in all judiciary cases in which any fact is involved17 or they may act by representatives1 freely and equally chosen2 that it is their right and duty to be at all times armed2 that they are entitled to freedom of person1 freedom of religion1 freedom of property1 and freedom of the press4 ,in the structure of our legislatures1 we think experience has proved the benefit of subjecting questions to two separate bodies of deliberants2 but in constituting these1 natural right has been mistaken1 some making one of these bodies1 and some both1 the representatives of property instead of persons2 whereas the double deliberation might be as well obtained without any violation of true principle1 either by requiring a greater age in one of the bodies1 or by electing a proper number of representatives of persons1 dividing them by lots into two chambers1 and renewing the division at frequent intervals1 in order to break up all cabals4 ,virginia1 of which ,i am myself a native and resident1 was not only the first of the ,states1 but1 ,i believe ,i may say1 the first of the nations of the earth1 which assembled its wise men peaceably together to form a fundamental constitution1 to commit it to writing1 and place it among their archives1 where every one should be free to appeal to its text4 ,but this act was very imperfect4 ,the other ,states1 as they proceeded successively to the same work1 made successive improvements2 and several of them1 still further corrected by experience1 have1 by conventions1 still further amended their first forms4 ,my own ,state has gone on so far with its premiere ebauche2 but it is now proposing to call a convention for amendment4 ,among other improvements1 ,i hope they will adopt the subdivision of our counties into wards4 ,the former may be estimated at an average of twenty-four miles square2 the latter should be about six miles square each1 and would answer to the hundreds of your ,saxon ,alfred4 ,in each of these might be1 #ast4 ,an elementary school2 #b;d4 ,a company of militia1 with its officers2 #c;d4 ,a justice of the peace and constable2 #dth4 ,each ward should take care of their own poor2 #eth4 ,their own roads2 #fth4 ,their own police2 #gth4 ,elect within themselves one or more jurors to attend the courts of justice2 and #hth4 ,give in at their ,folk-house1 their votes for all functionaries reserved to their election4 ,each ward would thus be a small republic within itself1 and every man in the ,state would thus become an acting member of the common government1 transacting in person a great portion of its rights and duties1 subordinate indeed1 yet important1 and entirely within his competence4 ,the wit of man cannot devise a more solid basis for a free1 durable and well-administered republic4 ,with respect to our ,state and federal governments1 ,i do not think their relations correctly understood by foreigners4 ,they generally suppose the former subordinate to the latter4 ,but this is not the case4 ,they are co-ordinate departments of one simple and integral whole4 ,to the ,state governments are reserved all legislation and administration1 in affairs which concern their own citizens only1 and to the federal government is given whatever concerns foreigners1 or the citizens of other ,states2 these functions alone being made federal4 ,the one is the domestic1 the other the foreign branch of the same government2 neither having control over the other1 but within its own department4 ,there are one or two exceptions only to this partition of power4 ,but1 you may ask1 if the two departments should claim each the same subject of power1 where is the common umpire to decide ultimately between them8 ,in cases of little importance or urgency1 the prudence of both parties will keep them aloof from the questionable ground2 but if it can neither be avoided nor compromised1 a convention of the ,states must be called1 to ascribe the doubtful power to that department which they may think best4 ,you will perceive by these details1 that we have not yet so far perfected our constitutions as to venture to make them unchangeable4 ,but still1 in their present state1 we consider them not otherwise changeable than by the authority of the people1 on a special election of representatives for that purpose expressly3 they are until then the lex legum4 ,but can they be made unchangeable8 ,can one generation bind another1 and all others1 in succession forever8 ,i think not4 ,the ,creator has made the earth for the living1 not the dead4 ,rights and powers can only belong to persons1 not to things1 not to mere matter1 unendowed with will4 ,the dead are not even things4 ,the particles of matter which composed their bodies1 make part now of the bodies of other animals1 vegetables1 or minerals1 of a thousand forms4 ,to what then are attached the rights and powers they held while in the form of men8 ,a generation may bind itself as long as its majority continues in life2 when that has disappeared1 another majority is in place1 holds all the rights and powers their predecessors once held1 and may change their laws and institutions to suit themselves4 ,nothing then is unchangeable but the inherent and unalienable rights of man4 ,i was glad to find in your book a formal contradiction1 at length1 of the judiciary usurpation of legislative powers2 for such the judges have usurped in their repeated decisions1 that ,christianity is a part of the common law4 ,the proof of the contrary1 which you have adduced1 is incontrovertible2 to wit1 that the common law existed while the ,anglo-,saxons were yet ,pagans1 at a time when they had never yet heard the name of ,christ pronounced1 or knew that such a character had ever existed4 ,but it may amuse you1 to show when1 and by what means1 they stole this law in upon us4 ,in a case of quare impedit in the ,year-book #cd1 ,,ii1 #f1 folio #ch1 7anno #adeh17 a question was made1 how far the ecclesiastical law was to be respected in a common law court8 ,and ,prisot1 ,chief ,justice1 gives his opinion in these words3 ,a tiel leis qu'ils de seint eglise ont en ancien scripture1 covient nous donner credence2 car ceo common ley sur quels touts manners leis sont fonds4 ,et auxy1 ,sir1 nous sumus oblgs de conustre lour ley de saint eglise2 et semblablement ils sont obligs de consustre nostre ley4 ,et1 ,sir1 si poit apperer or nous que l'evesque ad fait come un ordinary fera en tiel cas1 adong nous devons cee adjuger bon1 ou auterment nemy1 c4 ,see ,s4 ,c4 ,fitzh4 ,abr4 ,qu4 imp4 #hi1 ,bro4 ,abr4 ,qu4 imp4 #ab4 ,finch in his first book1 c4 #c1 is the first afterwards who quotes this case and mistakes it thus3 ,to such laws of the church as have warrant in holy scripture1 our law giveth credence4 ,and cites ,prisot2 mistranslating ancien scripture1 into holy scripture4 ,whereas ,prisot palpably says1 to such laws as those of holy church have in ancient writing1 it is proper for us to give credence1 to wit1 to their ancient written laws4 ,this was in #afac1 a century and a half after the dictum of ,prisot4 ,wingate1 in #afeh1 erects this false translation into a maxim of the common law1 copying the words of ,finch1 but citing ,prisot1 ,wing4 ,max4 #c4 ,and ,sheppard1 title1 ,religion1 in #afge1 copies the same mistranslation1 quoting the ,y4 ,b4 ,finch and ,wingate4 ,hale expresses it in these words3 ,christianity is parcel of the laws of ,england4 #a ,ventr4 #bic1 #c ,keb4 #fjg4 ,but he quotes no authority4 ,by these echoings and re-echoings from one to another1 it had become so established in #agbh1 that in the case of the ,king vs4 ,woolston1 #b ,stra4 #hcd1 the court would not suffer it to be debated1 whether to write against ,christianity was punishable in the temporal court at common law8 ,wood1 therefore1 #dji1 ventures still to vary the phrase1 and say1 that all blasphemy and profaneness are offences by the common law2 and cites #b ,stra4 ,then ,blackstone1 in #agfc1 ,,iv4 #ei1 repeats the words of ,hale1 that ,christianity is part of the laws of ,england1 citing ,ventris and ,strange4 ,and finally1 ,lord ,mansfield1 with a little qualification1 in ,evans' case1 in #agfg1 says1 that the essential principles of revealed religion are part of the common law4 ,thus ingulphing ,bible1 ,testament and all into the common law1 without citing any authority4 ,and thus we find this chain of authorities hanging link by link1 one upon another1 and all ultimately on one and the same hook1 and that a mistranslation of the words ancien scripture1 used by ,prisot4 ,finch quotes ,prisot2 ,wingate does the same4 ,sheppard quotes ,prisot1 ,finch and ,wingate4 ,hale cites nobody4 ,the court in ,woolston's case1 cites ,hale4 ,wood cites ,woolston's case4 ,blackstone quotes ,woolston's case and ,hale4 ,and ,lord ,mansfield1 like ,hale1 ventures it on his own authority4 ,here ,i might defy the best-read lawyer to produce another scrip of authority for this judiciary forgery2 and ,i might go on further to show1 how some of the ,anglo-,saxon priests interpolated into the text of ,alfred's laws1 the #bjth1 #bast1 #bb;d1 and #bc;d chapters of ,exodus1 and the #aeth of the ,acts of the ,apostles1 from the #bc;d to the #bith verses4 ,but this would lead my pen and your patience too far4 ,what a conspiracy this1 between ,church and ,state6 ,sing ,tantarara1 rogues all1 rogues all1 ,sing ,tantarara1 rogues all6 ,i must still add to this long and rambling letter1 my acknowledgments for your good wishes to the ,university we are now establishing in this ,state4 ,there are some novelties in it4 ,of that of a professorship of the principles of government1 you express your approbation4 ,they will be founded in the rights of man4 ,that of agriculture1 ,i am sure1 you will approve2 and that also of ,anglo-,saxon4 ,as the histories and laws left us in that type and dialect1 must be the text books of the reading of the learners1 they will imbibe with the language their free principles of government4 ,the volumes you have been so kind as to send1 shall be placed in the library of the ,university4 ,having at this time in ,england a person sent for the purpose of selecting some ,professors1 a ,mr4 ,gilmer of my neighborhood1 ,i cannot but recommend him to your patronage1 counsel and guardianship1 against imposition1 misinformation1 and the deceptions of partial and false recommendations1 in the selection of characters4 ,he is a gentleman of great worth and correctness1 my particular friend1 well educated in various branches of science1 and worthy of entire confidence4 ,your age of eighty-four and mine of eighty-one years1 insure us a speedy meeting4 ,we may then commune at leisure1 and more fully1 on the good and evil which1 in the course of our long lives1 we have both witnessed2 and in the meantime1 ,i pray you to accept assurances of my high veneration and esteem for your person and character4 ,,to ,,martin ,,van ,,buren4 ,,monticello1 ,june #bi1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have to thank you for ,mr4 ,pickering's elaborate philippic against ,mr4 ,adams1 ,gerry1 ,smith1 and myself2 and ,i have delayed the acknowledgment until ,i could read it and make some observations on it4 ,i could not have believed1 that for so many years1 and to such a period of advanced age1 he could have nourished passions so vehement and viperous4 ,it appears1 that for thirty-years past1 he has been industriously collecting materials for vituperating the characters he had marked for his hatred2 some of whom1 certainly1 if enmities towards him had ever existed1 had forgotten them all1 or buried them in the grave with themselves4 ,as to myself1 there never had been anything personal between us1 nothing but the general opposition of party sentiment2 and our personal intercourse had been that of urbanity1 as himself says4 ,but it seems he has been all this time brooding over an enmity which ,i had never felt1 and that with respect to myself1 as well as others1 he has been writing far and near1 and in every direction1 to get hold of original letters1 where he could1 copies1 where he could not1 certificates and journals1 catching at every gossiping story he could hear of in any quarter1 supplying by suspicions what he could find nowhere else1 and then arguing on this motley farrago1 as if established on gospel evidence4 ,and while expressing his wonder1 that at the age of eighty-eight1 the strong passions of ,mr4 ,adams should not have cooled2 that on the contrary1 they had acquired the mastery of his soul1 7p4 #ajj27 that where these were enlisted1 no reliance could be placed on his statements1 7p4 #ajd27 the facility and little truth with which he could represent facts and occurrences1 concerning persons who were the objects of his hatred1 7p4 #c27 that he is capable of making the grossest misrepresentations1 and1 from detached facts1 and often from bare suspicions1 of drawing unwarrantable inferences1 if suited to his purpose at the instant1 7p4 #aga27 while making such charges1 ,i say1 on ,mr4 ,adams1 instead of his ecce homo 7p4 #ajj27 how justly might we say to him1 mutato nomine1 de te fabula narratur4 ,for the assiduity and industry he has employed in his benevolent researches after matter of crimination against us1 ,i refer to his pages #ac1 #ad1 #cd1 #cf1 #df1 #ga1 #gi1 #ij1 bis4 #ib1 #ic1 bis4 #aja1 ter4 #ajd1 #aaf1 #aah1 #ada1 #adc1 #adf1 #aej1 #aea1 #aec1 #afh1 #aga1 #agb4 ,that ,mr4 ,adams' strictures on him1 written and printed1 should have excited some notice on his part1 was not perhaps to be wondered at4 ,but the sufficiency of his motive for the large attack on me may be more questionable4 ,he says1 7p4 #d7 of ,mr4 ,jefferson ,i should have said nothing1 but for his letter to ,mr4 ,adams1 of ,october the #abth1 #ahbc4 ,now the object of that letter was to soothe the feelings of a friend1 wounded by a publication which ,i thought an outrage on private confidence4 ,not a word or allusion in it respecting ,mr4 ,pickering1 nor was it suspected that it would draw forth his pen in justification of this infidelity1 which he has1 however1 undertaken in the course of his pamphlet1 but more particularly in its conclusion4 ,he arraigns me on two grounds1 my actions and my motives4 ,the very actions1 however1 which he arraigns1 have been such as the great majority of my fellow citizens have approved4 ,the approbation of ,mr4 ,pickering1 and of those who thought with him1 ,i had no right to expect4 ,my motives he chooses to ascribe to hypocrisy1 to ambition1 and a passion for popularity4 ,of these the world must judge between us4 ,it is no office of his or mine4 ,to that tribunal ,i have ever submitted my actions and motives1 without ransacking the ,union for certificates1 letters1 journals1 and gossiping tales1 to justify myself and weary them4 ,nor shall ,i do this on the present occasion1 but leave still to them these antiquated party diatribes1 now newly revamped and paraded1 as if they had not been already a thousand times repeated1 refuted1 and adjudged against him1 by the nation itself4 ,if no action is to be deemed virtuous for which malice can imagine a sinister motive1 then there never was a virtuous action2 no1 not even in the life of our ,saviour himself4 ,but he has taught us to judge the tree by its fruit1 and to leave motives to him who can alone see into them4 ,but whilst ,i leave to its fate the libel of ,mr4 ,pickering1 with the thousands of others like it1 to which ,i have given no other answer than a steady course of similar action1 there are two facts or fancies of his which ,i must set to rights4 ,the one respects ,mr4 ,adams1 the other myself4 ,he observes that my letter of ,october the #abth1 #ahbc1 acknowledges the receipt of one from ,mr4 ,adams1 of ,september the #ahth1 which1 having been written a few days after ,cunningham's publication1 he says was no doubt written to apologize to me for the pointed reproaches he had uttered against me in his confidential letters to ,cunningham4 ,and thus having no doubt of his conjecture1 he considers it as proven1 goes on to suppose the contents of the letter1 7#ai1 #bb17 makes it place ,mr4 ,adams at my feet suing for pardon1 and continues to rant upon it1 as an undoubted fact4 ,now1 ,i do most solemnly declare1 that so far from being a letter of apology1 as ,mr4 ,pickering so undoubtedly assumes1 there was not a word or allusion in it respecting ,cunningham's publication4 ,the other allegation respecting myself1 is equally false4 ,in page #cd1 he quotes ,doctor ,stuart as having1 twenty years ago1 informed him that ,general ,washington1 when he became a private citizen1 called me to account for expressions in a letter to ,mazzei1 requiring1 in a tone of unusual severity1 an explanation of that letter4 ,he adds of himself1 in what manner the latter humbled himself and appeased the just resentment of ,washington1 will never be made known1 as some time after his death the correspondence was not to be found1 and a diary for an important period of his presidency was also missing4 ,the diary being of transactions during his presidency1 the letter to ,mazzei not known here until some time after he became a private citizen1 and the pretended correspondence of course after that1 ,i know not why this lost diary and supposed correspondence are brought together here1 unless for insinuations worthy of the letter itself4 ,the correspondence could not be found1 indeed1 because it had never existed4 ,i do affirm that there never passed a word1 written or verbal1 directly or indirectly1 between ,general ,washington and myself on the subject of that letter4 ,he would never have degraded himself so far as to take to himself the imputation in that letter on the ,samsons in combat4 ,the whole story is a fabrication1 and ,i defy the framers of it1 and all mankind1 to produce a scrip of a pen between ,general ,washington and myself on the subject1 or any other evidence more worthy of credit than the suspicions1 suppositions and presumptions of the two persons here quoting and quoted for it4 ,with ,doctor ,stuart ,i had not much acquaintance4 ,i supposed him to be an honest man1 knew him to be a very weak one1 and1 like ,mr4 ,pickering1 very prone to antipathies1 boiling with party passions1 and under the dominion of these readily welcoming fancies for facts4 ,but come the story from whomsoever it might1 it is an unqualified falsehood4 ,this letter to ,mazzei has been a precious theme of crimination for federal malice4 ,it was a long letter of business1 in which was inserted a single paragraph only of political information as to the state of our country4 ,in this information there was not one word which would not then have been1 or would not now be approved by every republican in the ,united ,states1 looking back to those times1 as you will see by a faithful copy now enclosed of the whole of what that letter said on the subject of the ,united ,states1 or of its government4 ,this paragraph1 extracted and translated1 got into a ,paris paper at a time when the persons in power there were laboring under very general disfavor and their friends were eager to catch even at straws to buoy them up4 ,to them1 therefore1 ,i have always imputed the interpolation of an entire paragraph additional to mine1 which makes me charge my own country with ingratitude and injustice to ,france4 ,there was not a word in my letter respecting ,france1 or any of the proceedings or relations between this country and that4 ,yet this interpolated paragraph has been the burthen of federal calumny1 has been constantly quoted by them1 made the subject of unceasing and virulent abuse1 and is still quoted1 as you see1 by ,mr4 ,pickering1 page #cc1 as if it were genuine1 and really written by me4 ,and even ,judge ,marshall makes history descend from its dignity1 and the ermine from its sanctity1 to exaggerate1 to record1 and to sanction this forgery4 ,in the very last note of his book1 he says1 a letter from ,mr4 ,jefferson to ,mr4 ,mazzei1 an ,italian1 was published in ,florence1 and re-published in the ,moniteur1 with very severe strictures on the conduct of the ,united ,states4 ,and instead of the letter itself1 he copies what he says are the remarks of the editor1 which are an exaggerated commentary on the fabricated paragraph itself1 and silently leaves to his reader to make the ready inference that these were the sentiments of the letter4 ,proof is the duty of the affirmative side4 ,a negative cannot be positively proved4 ,but1 in defect of impossible proof of what was not in the original letter1 ,i have its press-copy still in my possession4 ,it has been shown to several1 and is open to any one who wishes to see it4 ,i have presumed only1 that the interpolation was done in ,paris4 ,but ,i never saw the letter in either its ,italian or ,french dress1 and it may have been done here1 with the commentary handed down to posterity by the ,judge4 ,the genuine paragraph1 re-translated through ,italian and ,french into ,english1 as it appeared here in a federal paper1 besides the mutilated hue which these translations and re-translations of it produced generally1 gave a mistranslation of a single word1 which entirely perverted its meaning1 and made it a pliant and fertile text of misrepresentation of my political principles4 ,the original1 speaking of an ,anglican1 monarchical and aristocratical party1 which had sprung up since he had left us1 states their object to be to draw over us the substance1 as they had already done the forms of the ,british ,government4 ,now the forms here meant1 were the levees1 birthdays1 the pompous cavalcade to the state house on the meeting of ,congress1 the formal speech from the throne1 the procession of ,congress in a body to re-echo the speech in an answer1 c41 c4 ,but the translator here1 by substituting form in the singular number1 for forms in the plural1 made it mean the frame or organization of our government1 or its form of legislative1 executive and judiciary authorities1 cordinate and independent2 to which form it was to be inferred that ,i was an enemy4 ,in this sense they always quoted it1 and in this sense ,mr4 ,pickering still quotes it1 pages #cd1 #ce1 #ch1 and countenances the inference4 ,now ,general ,washington perfectly understood what ,i meant by these forms1 as they were frequent subjects of conversation between us4 ,when1 on my return from ,europe1 ,i joined the government in ,march1 #agij1 at ,new ,york1 ,i was much astonished1 indeed1 at the mimicry ,i found established of royal forms and ceremonies1 and more alarmed at the unexpected phenomenon1 by the monarchical sentiments ,i heard expressed and openly maintained in every company1 and among others by the high members of the government1 executive and judiciary1 7,general ,washington alone excepted17 and by a great part of the legislature1 save only some members who had been of the old ,congress1 and a very few of recent introduction4 ,i took occasion1 at various times1 of expressing to ,general ,washington my disappointment at these symptoms of a change of principle1 and that ,i thought them encouraged by the forms and ceremonies which ,i found prevailing1 not at all in character with the simplicity of republican government1 and looking as if wishfully to those of ,european courts4 ,his general explanations to me were1 that when he arrived at ,new ,york to enter on the executive administration of the new government1 he observed to those who were to assist him that placed as he was in an office entirely new to him1 unacquainted with the forms and ceremonies of other governments1 still less apprized of those which might be properly established here1 and himself perfectly indifferent to all forms1 he wished them to consider and prescribe what they should be2 and the task was assigned particularly to ,general ,knox1 a man of parade1 and to ,colonel ,humphreys1 who had resided some time at a foreign court4 ,they1 he said1 were the authors of the present regulations1 and that others were proposed so highly strained that he absolutely rejected them4 ,attentive to the difference of opinion prevailing on this subject1 when the term of his second election arrived1 he called the ,heads of departments together1 observed to them the situation in which he had been at the commencement of the government1 the advice he had taken and the course he had observed in compliance with it2 that a proper occasion had now arrived of revising that course1 of correcting it in any particulars not approved in experience2 and he desired us to consult together1 agree on any changes we should think for the better1 and that he should willingly conform to what we should advise4 ,we met at my office4 ,hamilton and myself agreed at once that there was too much ceremony for the character of our government1 and particularly1 that the parade of the installation at ,new ,york ought not to be copied on the present occasion1 that the ,president should desire the ,chief ,justice to attend him at his chambers1 that he should administer the oath of office to him in the presence of the higher officers of the government1 and that the certificate of the fact should be delivered to the ,secretary of ,state to be recorded4 ,randolph and ,knox differed from us1 the latter vehemently2 they thought it not advisable to change any of the established forms1 and we authorized ,randolph to report our opinions to the ,president4 ,as these opinions were divided1 and no positive advice given as to any change1 no change was made4 ,thus the forms which ,i had censured in my letter to ,mazzei were perfectly understood by ,general ,washington1 and were those which he himself but barely tolerated4 ,he had furnished me a proper occasion for proposing their reformation1 and my opinion not prevailing1 he knew ,i could not have meant any part of the censure for him4 ,mr4 ,pickering quotes1 too1 7page #cd7 the expression in the letter1 of the men who were ,samsons in the field1 and ,solomons in the council1 but who had had their heads shorn by the harlot ,england2 or1 as expressed in their re-translation1 the men who were ,solomons in council1 and ,samsons in combat1 but whose hair had been cut off by the whore ,england4 ,now this expression also was perfectly understood by ,general ,washington4 ,he knew that ,i meant it for the ,cincinnati generally1 and that from what had passed between us at the commencement of that institution1 ,i could not mean to include him4 ,when the first meeting was called for its establishment1 ,i was a member of the ,congress then sitting at ,annapolis4 ,general ,washington wrote to me1 asking my opinion on that proposition1 and the course1 if any1 which ,i thought ,congress would observe respecting it4 ,i wrote him frankly my own disapprobation of it2 that ,i found the members of ,congress generally in the same sentiment2 that ,i thought they would take no express notice of it1 but that in all appointments of trust1 honor1 or profit1 they would silently pass by all candidates of that order1 and give an uniform preference to others4 ,on his way to the first meeting in ,philadelphia1 which ,i think was in the spring of #aghd1 he called on me at ,annapolis4 ,it was a little after candle-light1 and he sat with me till after midnight1 conversing1 almost exclusively1 on that subject4 ,while he was feelingly indulgent to the motives which might induce the officers to promote it1 he concurred with me entirely in condemning it2 and when ,i expressed an idea that if the hereditary quality were suppressed1 the institution might perhaps be indulged during the lives of the officers now living1 and who had actually served2 no1 he said1 not a fibre of it ought to be left1 to be an eye-sore to the public1 a ground of dissatisfaction1 and a line of separation between them and their country2 and he left me with a determination to use all his influence for its entire suppression4 ,on his return from the meeting he called on me again1 and related to me the course the thing had taken4 ,he said that from the beginning1 he had used every endeavor to prevail on the officers to renounce the project altogether1 urging the many considerations which would render it odious to their fellow citizens1 and disreputable and injurious to themselves2 that he had at length prevailed on most of the old officers to reject it1 although with great and warm opposition from others1 and especially the younger ones1 among whom he named ,colonel ,w4 ,s4 ,smith as particularly intemperate4 ,but that in this state of things1 when he thought the question safe1 and the meeting drawing to a close1 ,major ,l',enfant arrived from ,france1 with a bundle of eagles1 for which he had been sent there1 with letters from the ,french officers who had served in ,america1 praying for admission into the order1 and a solemn act of their king permitting them to wear its ensign4 ,this1 he said1 changed the face of matters at once1 produced an entire revolution of sentiment1 and turned the torrent so strongly in an opposite direction that it could be no longer withstood2 all he could then obtain was a suppression of the hereditary quality4 ,he added1 that it was the ,french applications1 and respect for the approbation of the king1 which saved the establishment in its modified and temporary form4 ,disapproving thus of the institution as much as ,i did1 and conscious that ,i knew him to do so1 he could never suppose that ,i meant to include him among the ,samsons in the field1 whose object was to draw over us the form1 as they made the letter say1 of the ,british government1 and especially its aristocratic member1 an hereditary house of lords4 ,add to this1 that the letter saying that two out of the three branches of legislature were against us1 was an obvious exception of him2 it being well known that the majorities in the two branches of ,senate and ,representatives1 were the very instruments which carried1 in opposition to the old and real republicans1 the measures which were the subjects of condemnation in this letter4 ,general ,washington then1 understanding perfectly what and whom ,i meant to designate1 in both phrases1 and that they could not have any application or view to himself1 could find in neither any cause of offence to himself2 and therefore neither needed1 nor ever asked any explanation of them from me4 ,had it even been otherwise1 they must know very little of ,general ,washington1 who should believe to be within the laws of his character what ,doctor ,stuart is said to have imputed to him4 ,be this1 however1 as it may1 the story is infamously false in every article of it4 ,my last parting with ,general ,washington was at the inauguration of ,mr4 ,adams1 in ,march1 #agig1 and was warmly affectionate2 and ,i never had any reason to believe any change on his part1 as there certainly was none on mine4 ,but one session of ,congress intervened between that and his death1 the year following1 in my passage to and from which1 as it happened to be not convenient to call on him1 ,i never had another opportunity2 and as to the cessation of correspondence observed during that short interval1 no particular circumstance occurred for epistolary communication1 and both of us were too much oppressed with letter-writing1 to trouble1 either the other1 with a letter about nothing4 ,the truth is1 that the federalists1 pretending to be the exclusive friends of ,general ,washington1 have ever done what they could to sink his character1 by hanging theirs on it1 and by representing as the enemy of republicans him1 who1 of all men1 is best entitled to the appellation of the father of that republic which they were endeavoring to subvert1 and the republicans to maintain4 ,they cannot deny1 because the elections proclaimed the truth1 that the great body of the nation approved the republican measures4 ,general ,washington was himself sincerely a friend to the republican principles of our constitution4 ,his faith1 perhaps1 in its duration1 might not have been as confident as mine2 but he repeatedly declared to me1 that he was determined it should have a fair chance for success1 and that he would lose the last drop of his blood in its support1 against any attempt which might be made to change it from its republican form4 ,he made these declarations the oftener1 because he knew my suspicions that ,hamilton had other views1 and he wished to quiet my jealousies on this subject4 ,for ,hamilton frankly avowed1 that he considered the ,british constitution1 with all the corruptions of its administration1 as the most perfect model of government which had ever been devised by the wit of man2 professing however1 at the same time1 that the spirit of this country was so fundamentally republican1 that it would be visionary to think of introducing monarchy here1 and that1 therefore1 it was the duty of its administrators to conduct it on the principles their constituents had elected4 ,general ,washington1 after the retirement of his first cabinet1 and the composition of his second1 entirely federal1 and at the head of which was ,mr4 ,pickering himself1 had no opportunity of hearing both sides of any question4 ,his measures1 consequently1 took more the hue of the party in whose hands he was4 ,these measures were certainly not approved by the republicans2 yet were they not imputed to him1 but to the counsellors around him2 and his prudence so far restrained their impassioned course and bias1 that no act of strong mark1 during the remainder of his administration1 excited much dissatisfaction4 ,he lived too short a time after1 and too much withdrawn from information1 to correct the views into which he had been deluded2 and the continued assiduities of the party drew him into the vortex of their intemperate career2 separated him still farther from his real friends1 and excited him to actions and expressions of dissatisfaction1 which grieved them1 but could not loosen their affections from him4 ,they would not suffer the temporary aberration to weigh against the immeasurable merits of his life2 and although they tumbled his seducers from their places1 they preserved his memory embalmed in their hearts1 with undiminished love and devotion2 and there it forever will remain embalmed1 in entire oblivion of every temporary thing which might cloud the glories of his splendid life4 ,it is vain1 then1 for ,mr4 ,pickering and his friends to endeavor to falsify his character1 by representing him as an enemy to republicans and republican principles1 and as exclusively the friend of those who were so2 and had he lived longer1 he would have returned to his ancient and unbiased opinions1 would have replaced his confidence in those whom the people approved and supported1 and would have seen that they were only restoring and acting on the principles of his own first administration4 ,i find1 my dear ,sir1 that ,i have written you a very long letter1 or rather a history4 ,the civility of having sent me a copy of ,mr4 ,pickering's diatribe1 would scarcely justify its address to you4 ,i do not publish these things1 because my rule of life has been never to harass the public with fendings and provings of personal slanders2 and least of all would ,i descend into the arena of slander with such a champion as ,mr4 ,pickering4 ,i have ever trusted to the justice and consideration of my fellow citizens1 and have no reason to repent it1 or to change my course4 ,at this time of life too1 tranquillity is the summum bonum4 ,but although ,i decline all newspaper controversy1 yet when falsehoods have been advanced1 within the knowledge of no one so much as myself1 ,i have sometimes deposited a contradiction in the hands of a friend1 which1 if worth preservation1 may1 when ,i am no more1 nor those whom ,i might offend1 throw light on history1 and recall that into the path of truth4 ,and if of no other value1 the present communication may amuse you with anecdotes not known to every one4 ,i had meant to have added some views on the amalgamation of parties1 to which your favor of the #hth has some allusion2 an amalgamation of name1 but not of principle4 ,tories are tories still1 by whatever name they may be called4 ,but my letter is already too unmercifully long1 and ,i close it here with assurances of my great esteem and respectful consideration4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,madison4 ,,monticello1 ,july #ad1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have attentively read your letter to ,mr4 ,wheaton on the question whether1 at the date of the message to ,congress recommending the embargo of #ahjg1 we had knowledge of the order of council of ,november #aath2 and according to your request ,i have resorted to my papers1 as well as my memory1 for the testimony these might afford additional to yours4 ,there is no fact in the course of my life which ,i recollect more strongly1 than that of my being at the date of the message in possession of an ,english newspaper containing a copy of the proclamation4 ,i am almost certain1 too1 that it was under the ordinary authentication of the government2 and between ,november #aath and ,december #agth1 there was time enough 7thirty-five days7 to admit the receipt of such a paper1 which ,i think came to me through a private channel1 probably put on board some vessel about sailing1 the moment it appeared4 ,turning to my papers1 ,i find that ,i had prepared a first draught of a message in which was this paragraph3 ,the ,british regulations had before reduced us to a direct voyage1 to a single port of their enemies1 and it is now believed they will interdict all commerce whatever with them4 ,a proclamation1 too1 of that government of----7not officially indeed communicated to us1 yet so given out to the public as to become a rule of action with them17 seems to have shut the door on all negotiation with us except as to the single aggression on the ,chesapeake4 ,you1 however1 suggested a substitute 7which ,i have now before me1 written with a pencil and7 which1 with some unimportant amendments1 ,i preferred to my own1 and was the one ,i sent to ,congress4 ,it was in these words1 the communications now made1 showing the great and increasing dangers with which seamen1 c41----ports of the ,united ,states4 ,this shows that we communicated to them papers of information on the subject2 and as it was our interest1 and our duty1 to give them the strongest information we possessed to justify our opinion and their action on it1 there can be no doubt we sent them this identical paper4 ,for what stronger could we send them8 ,i am the more strengthened in the belief that we did send it1 from the fact1 which the newspapers of the day will prove1 that in the reprobations of the measure published in them by its enemies1 they indulged themselves in severe criticisms on our having considered a newspaper as a proper document to lay before ,congress1 and a sufficient foundation for so serious a measure2 and considering this as no sufficient information of the fact1 they continued perseveringly to deny that we had knowledge of the order of council when we recommended the embargo2 admitting1 because they could not deny1 the existence of the order1 they insisted only on our supposed ignorance of it as furnishing them a ground of crimination4 ,but ,i had no idea that this gratuitous charge was believed by any one at this day4 ,in addition to our testimony1 ,i am sure ,mr4 ,gallatin1 ,general ,dearborne and ,mr4 ,smith1 will recollect that we possessed the newspaper1 and acted on a view of the proclamation it contained4 ,if you think this statement can add anything in corroboration of yours1 make what use you please of it1 and accept assurances of my constant affection and respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,lewis ,e4 ,,beck1 ,,albany4 ,i thank you1 ,sir1 for your pamphlet on the climate of the west1 and have read it with great satisfaction4 ,although it does not yet establish a satisfactory theory1 it is an additional step towards it4 ,mine was perhaps the first attempt1 not to form a theory1 but to bring together the few facts then known1 and suggest them to public attention4 ,they were written between forty and fifty years ago1 before the close of the revolutionary war1 when the western country was a wilderness1 untrodden but by the foot of the savage or the hunter4 ,it is now flourishing in population and science1 and after a few years more of observation and collection of facts1 they will doubtless furnish a theory of solid foundation4 ,years are requisite for this1 steady attention to the thermometer1 to the plants growing there1 the times of their leafing and flowering1 its animal inhabitants1 beasts1 birds1 reptiles and insects2 its prevalent winds1 quantities of rain and snow1 temperature of fountains1 and other indexes of climate4 ,we want this indeed for all the ,states1 and the work should be repeated once or twice in a century1 to show the effect of clearing and culture towards changes of climate4 ,my ,notes give a very imperfect idea of what our climate was1 half a century ago1 at this place1 which being nearly central to the ,state may be taken for its medium4 ,latterly1 after seven years of close and exact observation1 ,i have prepared an estimate of what it is now1 which may some day be added to the former work2 and ,i hope something like this is doing in the other ,states1 which1 when all shall be brought together1 may produce theories meriting confidence4 ,i trust that yourself will not be inattentive to this service1 and that to that of the present epoch you may be able to add a second at the distance of another half century4 ,with this wish accept the assurance of my respectful consideration4 ,,to ,h4 ,,lee4 ,,monticello1 ,august #aj1 #ahbd4 ,,sir1--,i have duly received your favor of the #adth1 and with it the prospectus of a newspaper which it covered4 ,if the style and spirit of that should be maintained in the paper itself1 it will be truly worthy of the public patronage4 ,as to myself1 it is many years since ,i have ceased to read but a single paper4 ,i am no longer1 therefore1 a general subscriber for any other4 ,yet1 to encourage the hopeful in the outset1 ,i have sometimes subscribed for the first year on condition of being discontinued at the end of it1 without further warning4 ,i do the same now with pleasure for yours2 and unwilling to have outstanding accounts1 which ,i am liable to forget1 ,i now enclose the price of the tri-weekly paper4 ,i am no believer in the amalgamation of parties1 nor do ,i consider it as either desirable or useful for the public2 but only that1 like religious differences1 a difference in politics should never be permitted to enter into social intercourse1 or to disturb its friendships1 its charities1 or justice4 ,in that form1 they are censors of the conduct of each other1 and useful watchmen for the public4 ,men by their constitutions are naturally divided into two parties3 #a4 ,those who fear and distrust the people1 and wish to draw all powers from them into the hands of the higher classes4 #b4 ,those who identify themselves with the people1 have confidence in them1 cherish and consider them as the most honest and safe1 although not the most wise depository of the public interests4 ,in every country these two parties exist1 and in every one where they are free to think1 speak1 and write1 they will declare themselves4 ,call them1 therefore1 liberals and serviles1 ,jacobins and ultras1 whigs and tories1 republicans and federalists1 aristocrats and democrats1 or by whatever name you please1 they are the same parties still1 and pursue the same object4 ,the last appellation of aristocrats and democrats is the true one expressing the essence of all4 ,a paper which shall be governed by the spirit of ,mr4 ,madison's celebrated report1 of which you express in your prospectus so just and high an approbation1 cannot be false to the rights of all classes4 ,the grandfathers of the present generation of your family ,i knew well4 ,they were friends and fellow laborers with me in the same cause and principle4 ,their descendants cannot follow better guides4 ,accept the assurance of my best wishes and respectful consideration4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,wm4 ,,ludlow4 ,,monticello1 ,september #f1 #ahbd4 ,,sir1--,the idea which you present in your letter of ,july #cjth1 of the progress of society from its rudest state to that it has now attained1 seems conformable to what may be probably conjectured4 ,indeed1 we have under our eyes tolerable proofs of it4 ,let a philosophic observer commence a journey from the savages of the ,rocky ,mountains1 eastwardly towards our sea-coast4 ,these he would observe in the earliest stage of association living under no law but that of nature1 subscribing and covering themselves with the flesh and skins of wild beasts4 ,he would next find those on our frontiers in the pastoral state1 raising domestic animals to supply the defects of hunting4 ,then succeed our own semi-barbarous citizens1 the pioneers of the advance of civilization1 and so in his progress he would meet the gradual shades of improving man until he would reach his1 as yet1 most improved state in our seaport towns4 ,this1 in fact1 is equivalent to a survey1 in time1 of the progress of man from the infancy of creation to the present day4 ,i am eighty-one years of age1 born where ,i now live1 in the first range of mountains in the interior of our country4 ,and ,i have observed this march of civilization advancing from the sea coast1 passing over us like a cloud of light1 increasing our knowledge and improving our condition1 insomuch as that we are at this time more advanced in civilization here than the seaports were when ,i was a boy4 ,and where this progress will stop no one can say4 ,barbarism has1 in the meantime1 been receding before the steady step of amelioration2 and will in time1 ,i trust1 disappear from the earth4 ,you seem to think that this advance has brought on too complicated a state of society1 and that we should gain in happiness by treading back our steps a little way4 ,i think1 myself1 that we have more machinery of government than is necessary1 too many parasites living on the labor of the industrious4 ,i believe it might be much simplified to the relief of those who maintain it4 ,your experiment seems to have this in view4 ,a society of seventy families1 the number you name1 may very possibly be governed as a single family1 subsisting on their common industry1 and holding all things in common4 ,some regulators of the family you still must have1 and it remains to be seen at what period of your increasing population your simple regulations will cease to be sufficient to preserve order1 peace1 and justice4 ,the experiment is interesting2 ,i shall not live to see its issue1 but ,i wish it success equal to your hopes1 and to yourself and society prosperity and happiness4 ,,to ,,general ,,la ,,fayette4 ,,monticello1 ,october #i1 #ahbd4 ,i have duly received1 my dear friend and ,general1 your letter of the #ast from ,philadelphia1 giving us the welcome assurance that you will visit the neighborhood which1 during the march of our enemy near it1 was covered by your shield from his robberies and ravages4 ,in passing the line of your former march you will experience pleasing recollections of the good you have done4 ,my neighbors1 too1 of our academical village1 who well remember their obligations to you1 have expressed to you1 in a letter from a committee appointed for that purpose1 their hope that you will accept manifestations of their feelings1 simple indeed1 but as cordial as any you will have received4 ,it will be an additional honor to the ,university of the ,state that you will have been its first guest4 ,gratify them1 then1 by this assurance to their committee1 if it has not been done4 ,but what recollections1 dear friend1 will this call up to you and me6 ,what a history have we to run over from the evening that yourself1 ,mousnier1 ,bernau1 and other patriots settled1 in my house in ,paris1 the outlines of the constitution you wished6 ,and to trace it through all the disastrous chapters of ,robespierre1 ,barras1 ,bonaparte1 and the ,bourbons6 ,these things1 however1 are for our meeting4 ,you mention the return of ,miss ,wright to ,america1 accompanied by her sister2 but do not say what her stay is to be1 nor what her course4 ,should it lead her to a visit of our ,university1 which1 in its architecture only1 is as yet an object1 herself and her companion will nowhere find a welcome more hearty than with ,mrs4 ,randolph1 and all the inhabitants of ,monticello4 ,this ,athenum of our country1 in embryo1 is as yet but promise2 and not in a state to recall the recollections of ,athens4 ,but everything has its beginning1 its growth1 and end2 and who knows with what future delicious morsels of philosophy1 and by what future ,miss ,wright raked from its ruins1 the world may1 some day1 be gratified and instructed8 ,your son ,george we shall be very happy indeed to see1 and to renew in him the recollections of your very dear family2 and the revolutionary merit of ,m4 le ,vasseur has that passport to the esteem of every ,american1 and1 to me1 the additional one of having been your friend and co-operator1 and he will1 ,i hope1 join you in making head-quarters with us at ,monticello4 ,but all these things revoir1 in the meantime we are impatient that your ceremonies at ,york should be over1 and give you to the embraces of friendship4 ,p4 ,s4 ,will you come by ,mr4 ,madison's1 or let him or me know on what day he may meet you here1 and join us in our greetings8 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,rush4 ,,monticello1 ,october #ac1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i must again beg the protection of your cover for a letter to ,mr4 ,gilmer2 although a little doubtful whether he may not have left you4 ,you will have seen by our papers the delirium into which our citizens are thrown by a visit from ,general ,la ,fayette4 ,he is making a triumphant progress through the ,states1 from town to town1 with acclamations of welcome1 such as no crowned head ever received4 ,it will have a good effect in favor of the ,general with the people in ,europe1 but probably a different one with their sovereigns4 ,its effect here1 too1 will be salutary as to ourselves1 by rallying us together and strengthening the habit of considering our country as one and indivisible1 and ,i hope we shall close it with something more solid for him than dinners and balls4 ,the eclat of this visit has almost merged the ,presidential question1 on which nothing scarcely is said in our papers4 ,that question will lie ultimately between ,crawford and ,adams2 but1 at the same time1 the vote of the people will be so distracted by subordinate candidates1 that possibly they may make no election1 and let it go to the ,house of ,representatives4 ,there1 it is thought1 ,crawford's chance is best4 ,we have nothing else interesting before the public4 ,of the two questions of the tariff and public improvements1 the former1 perhaps1 is not yet at rest1 and the latter will excite boisterous discussions4 ,it happens that both these measures fall in with the western interests1 and it is their secession from the agricultural ,states which gives such strength to the manufacturing and consolidating parties1 on these two questions4 ,the latter is the most dreaded1 because thought to amount to a determination in the federal government to assume all powers non-enumerated as well as enumerated in the constitution1 and by giving a loose to construction1 make the text say whatever will relieve them from the bridle of the ,states4 ,these are difficulties for your day2 ,i shall give them the slip4 ,accept the assurance of my friendly attachment and great respect4 ,,to ,,edward ,,everett4 ,,monticello1 ,october #ae1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have yet to thank for your 4 4 4 oration1 delivered in presence of ,general ,la ,fayette4 ,it is all excellent1 much of it sublimely so1 well worthy of its author and his subject1 of whom we may truly say1 as was said of ,germanicus1 fruitur fam sui4 ,your letter of ,september the #ajth gave me the first information that mine to ,major ,cartwright had got into the newspapers2 and the first notice1 indeed1 that he had received it4 ,i was a stranger to his person1 but not to his respectable and patriotic character4 ,i received from him a long and interesting letter1 and answered it with frankness1 going without reserve into several subjects1 to which his letter had led1 but on which ,i did not suppose ,i was writing for the newspapers4 ,the publication of a letter in such a case1 without the consent of the writer1 is not a fair practice4 ,the part which you quote1 may draw on me the host of judges and divines4 ,they may cavil but cannot refute it4 ,those who read ,prisot's opinion with a candid view to understand1 and not to chicane it1 cannot mistake its meaning4 ,the reports in the ,year-books were taken very short4 ,the opinions of the judges were written down sententiously1 as notes or memoranda1 and not with all the development which they probably used in delivering them4 ,prisot's opinion1 to be fully expressed1 should be thus paraphrased3 ,to such laws as those of holy church have recorded1 and preserved in their ancient books and writings1 it is proper for us to give credence2 for so is1 or so says the common law1 or law of the land1 on which all manner of other laws rest for their authority1 or are founded2 that is to say1 the common law1 or the law of the land common to us all1 and established by the authority of us all1 is that from which is derived the authority of all other special and subordinate branches of law1 such as the canon law1 law merchant1 law maritime1 law of ,gavelkind1 ,borough ,english1 corporation laws1 local customs and usages1 to all of which the common law requires its judges to permit authority in the special or local cases belonging to them4 ,the evidence of these laws is preserved in their ancient treatises1 books and writings1 in like manner as our own common law itself is known1 the text of its original enactments having been long lost1 and its substance only preserved in ancient and traditionary writings4 ,and if it appears1 from their ancient books1 writings and records1 that the bishop1 in this case1 according to the rules prescribed by these authorities1 has done what an ordinary would have done in such case1 then we should adjudge it good1 otherwise not4 ,to decide this question1 they would have to turn to the ancient writings and records of the canon law1 in which they would find evidence of the laws of advowsons1 quare impedit1 the duties of bishops and ordinaries1 for which terms ,prisot could never have meant to refer them to the ,old or ,new ,testament1 les saincts scriptures1 where surely they would not be found4 ,a license which should permit ancien scripture to be translated holy scripture1 annihilates at once all the evidence of language4 ,with such a license1 we might reverse the sixth commandment into thou shall not omit murder4 ,it would be the more extraordinary in this case1 where the mistranslation was to effect the adoption of the whole code of the ,jewish and ,christian laws into the text of our statutes1 to convert religious offences into temporal crimes1 to make the breach of every religious precept a subject of indictment1 submit the question of idolatry1 for example1 to the trial of a jury1 and to a court1 its punishment1 to the third and fourth generation of the offender4 ,do we allow to our judges this lumping legislation8 ,the term common law1 although it has more than one meaning1 is perfectly definite1 secundum subjectam materiem4 ,its most probable origin was on the conquest of the ,heptarchy by ,alfred1 and the amalgamation of their several codes of law into one1 which became common to them all4 ,the authentic text of these enactments has not been preserved2 but their substance has been committed to many ancient books and writings1 so faithfully as to have been deemed genuine from generation to generation1 and obeyed as such by all4 ,we have some fragments of them collected by ,lambard1 ,wilkins and others1 but abounding with proofs of their spurious authenticity4 ,magna ,charta is the earliest statute1 the text of which has come down to us in an authentic form1 and thence downward we have them entire4 ,we do not know exactly when the common law and statute law1 the lex scripta et non scripta1 began to be contra-distinguished1 so as to give a second acceptation to the former term2 whether before1 or after ,prisot's day1 at which time we know that nearly two centuries and a half of statutes were in preservation4 ,in later times1 on the introduction of the chancery branch of law1 the term common law began to be used in a third sense1 as the correlative of chancery law4 ,this1 however1 having been long after ,prisot's time1 could not have been the sense in which he used the term4 ,he must have meant the ancient lex non scripta1 because1 had he used it as inclusive of the lex scripta1 he would have put his finger on the statute which had enjoined on the judges a deference to the laws of holy church4 ,but no such statute existing1 he must have referred to the common law in the sense of a lex non scripta4 ,whenever1 then1 the term common law is used in either of these senses1 and it is never employed in any other1 it is readily known in which of them1 by the context and subject matter under consideration2 which1 in the present case1 leave no room for doubt4 ,i do not remember the occasion which led me to take up this subject1 while a practitioner of the law4 ,but ,i know ,i went into it with all the research which a very copious law library enabled me to indulge2 and ,i fear not for the accuracy of any of my quotations4 ,the doctrine might be disproved by many other and different topics of reasoning2 but having satisfied myself of the origin of the forgery1 and found how1 like a rolling snow-ball1 it had gathered volume1 ,i leave its further pursuit to those who need further proof1 and perhaps ,i have already gone further than the feeble doubt you expressed might require4 ,i salute you with great esteem and respect4 ,,to ----4 ,,monticello1 ,december #bb1 #ahbd4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the proposition to remove ,william and ,mary ,college to ,richmond with all its present funds1 and to add to it a musical school1 is nothing more nor less than to remove the ,university also to that place4 ,because1 if both remain1 there will not be students enough to make either worthy the acceptance of men of the first order of science4 ,they must each fall down to the level of our present academies1 under the direction of common teachers1 and our state of education must stand exactly where it now is4 ,few of the ,states have been able to maintain one university1 none two4 ,surely the legislature1 after such an expense incurred for a real university1 and just as it is prepared to go into action under hopeful auspices1 will not consent to destroy it by this side-wind4 ,as to the best course to be taken with ,william and ,mary1 ,i am not so good a judge as our colleagues on the spot4 ,they have under their eyes the workings of the enemies of the ,university1 masked and unmasked1 and the intrigues of ,richmond1 which1 after failing to obtain it in the first instance1 endeavors to steal its location at this late hour4 ,and they can best see what measures are most likely to counteract these insidious designs4 ,on the question of the removal1 ,i think our particular friends had better take no active part1 but vote silently for or against it1 according to their own judgment as to the public utility2 and if they divide on the question1 so much the better perhaps4 ,i am glad the visitors and professors have invoked the interference of the legislature1 because it is an acknowledgment of its authority on behalf of the ,state to superintend and control it1 of which ,i never had a doubt4 ,it is an institution established for the public good1 and not for the personal emolument of the professors1 endowed from the public lands and organized by the executive functionary whose legal office it was4 ,the acquiescence of both corporations under the authority of the legislature1 removes what might otherwise have been a difficulty with some4 ,if the question of removal be decided affirmatively1 the next is1 how shall their funds be disposed of most advantageously for the ,state in general8 ,these are about one hundred thousand dollars too much for a secondary or local institution4 ,the giving a part of them to a school at ,winchester1 and part to ,hampden ,sidney1 is well1 as far as it goes2 but does not go far enough4 ,why should not every part of the ,state participate equally of the benefit of this reversion of right which accrues to the whole equally8 ,this would be no more a violation of law than the giving it to a few4 ,yon know that the ,rockfish report proposed an intermediate grade of schools between the primary and the university4 ,in that report the objects of the middle schools are stated4 ,see page #aj of the copy ,i now enclose you4 ,in these schools should be taught ,latin and ,greek1 to a good degree1 ,french also1 numerical arithmetic1 the elements of geometry1 surveying1 navigation1 geography1 the use of the globes1 the outlines of the solar system1 and elements of natural philosophy4 ,two professors would suffice for these1 to wit3 one for languages1 the other for so much of mathematics and natural philosophy as is here proposed4 ,this degree of education would be adapted to the circumstances of a very great number of our citizens1 who1 being intended for lives of business1 would not aim at an university education4 ,it would give us a body of yeomanry1 too1 of substantial information1 well prepared to become a firm and steady support to the government2 as schools of ancient languages1 too1 they would be preparatories for the ,university4 ,you have now an happy opportunity of carrying this intermediate establishment into execution without laying a cent of tax on the people1 or taking one from the treasury4 ,divide the ,state into college districts of about eighty miles square each4 ,there would be about eight such districts below the ,alleghany1 and two beyond it1 which would be necessarily of larger extent because of the sparseness of their population4 ,the only advance these colleges would call for1 would be for a dwelling house for the teacher1 of about one thousand two hundred dollars cost1 and a boarding house with four or five bed rooms1 and a school room for probably about twenty or thirty boys4 ,the whole should not cost more than five thousand dollars1 but the funds of ,william and ,mary would enable you to give them ten thousand dollars each4 ,the districts might be so laid off that the principal towns and the academies now existing might form convenient sites for their colleges2 as1 for example1 ,williamsburgh1 ,richmond1 ,fredericksburg1 ,hampden ,sidney1 ,lynchburg or ,lexington1 ,staunton1 ,winchester1 c4 ,thus1 of ,william and ,mary1 you will make ten colleges1 each as useful as she over was1 leaving one in ,williamsburg by itself1 placing as good a one within a day's ride of every man in the ,state1 and get our whole scheme of education completely established4 ,i have said that no advance is necessary but for the erection of the buildings for these schools4 ,because the boys sent to them would be exclusively of a class of parents in competent circumstances to pay teachers for the education of their own children4 ,the ten thousand dollars given to each1 would afford a surplus to maintain by its interest one or two persons duly selected for their genius1 from the primary schools1 of those too poor to proceed farther of their own means4 ,you will remember that of the three bills ,i originally gave you1 one was for these district colleges1 and going into the necessary details4 ,will you not have every member in favor of this proposition1 except those who are for gobbling up the whole funds themselves8 ,the present professors might all be employed in the college of ,richmond or ,williamsburg1 or any other they would prefer1 with reasonable salaries in the meantime1 until the system should get under way4 ,this occasion of completing our system of education is a ,god-send which ought not to pass away neglected4 ,many may be startled at the first idea4 ,but reflection on the justice and advantage of the measure will produce converts daily and hourly to it4 ,i certainly would not propose that the ,university should claim a cent of these funds in competition with the district colleges4 ,would it not be better to say nothing about the last donation of fifty thousand dollars1 and endeavor to get the money from ,congress1 and to press for it immediately4 ,i cannot doubt their allowing it1 and it would be much better to get it from them than to revive the displeasure of our own legislature4 ,you are aware that we have yet two professors to appoint1 to wit3 of natural history and moral philosophy1 and that we have no time to lose4 ,i propose that such of our colleagues as are of the legislature1 should name a day of meeting1 convenient to themselves1 and give notice of it by mail to ,mr4 ,madison1 ,general ,cocke1 and myself4 ,but it should not be till the arrival of the three professors expected at ,norfolk4 ,on their arrival only can we publish the day of opening4 ,our ,richmond mail-stage arrives here on ,sunday and departs on ,wednesday1 and arrives again on ,thursday and departs on ,sunday4 ,each affording two spare intervening days1 and requiring from here an absence of six days4 ,mr4 ,long1 professor of ancient languages1 is located in his apartments at the ,university4 ,he drew1 by lot1 pavilion ,no4 #e4 ,he appears to be a most amiable man1 of fine understanding1 well qualified for his department1 and acquiring esteem as fast as he becomes known4 ,indeed1 ,i have great hope that the whole selection will fulfil our wishes4 ,ever and affectionately yours4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,january #h1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,it is long since ,i have written to you4 ,this proceeds from the difficulty of writing with my crippled wrist1 and from an unwillingness to add to your inconveniences of either reading by the eyes1 or writing by the hands of others4 ,the account ,i receive of your physical situation afflicts me sincerely2 but if body or mind was one of them to give way1 it is a great comfort that it is the mind which remains whole1 and that its vigor1 and that of memory continues firm4 ,your hearing1 too1 is good1 as ,i am told4 ,in this you have the advantage of me4 ,the dulness of mine makes me lose much of the conversation of the world1 and much a stranger to what is passing in it4 ,acquiescence is the only pillow1 although not always a soft one4 ,i have had one advantage of you4 ,this ,presidential election has given me few anxieties4 ,with you this must have been impossible1 independently of the question1 whether we are at last to end our days under a civil or a military government4 ,i am comforted and protected from other solicitudes by the cares of our ,university4 ,in some departments of science we believe ,europe to be in advance before us1 and that it would advance ourselves were we to draw from thence instructors in these branches1 and thus to improve our science1 as we have done our manufactures1 by borrowed skill4 ,i have been much squibbed for this1 perhaps by disappointed applicants for professorships1 to which they were deemed incompetent4 ,we wait only the arrival of three of the professors engaged in ,england1 to open our ,university4 ,i have lately been reading the most extraordinary of all books1 and at the same time the most demonstrative by numerous and unequivocal facts4 ,it is ,flourens's experiments on the functions of the nervous system1 in vertebrated animals4 ,he takes out the cerebrum completely1 leaving the cerebellum and other parts of the system uninjured4 ,the animal loses all its senses of hearing1 seeing1 feeling1 smelling1 tasting1 is totally deprived of will1 intelligence1 memory1 perception1 c4 ,yet lives for months in perfect health1 with all its powers of motion1 but without moving but on external excitement1 starving even on a pile of grain1 unless crammed down its throat2 in short1 in a state of the most absolute stupidity4 ,he takes the cerebellum out of others1 leaving the cerebrum untouched4 ,the animal retains all its senses1 faculties1 and understanding1 but loses the power of regulated motion1 and exhibits all the symptoms of drunkenness4 ,while he makes incisions in the cerebrum and cerebellum1 lengthwise and crosswise1 which heal and get well1 a puncture in the medulla elongata is instant death2 and many other most interesting things too long for a letter4 ,cabanis had proved by the anatomical structure of certain portions of the human frame1 that they might be capable of receiving from the hand of the ,creator the faculty of thinking2 ,flourens proves that they have received it2 that the cerebrum is the thinking organ2 and that life and health may continue1 and the animal be entirely without thought1 if deprived of that organ4 ,i wish to see what the spiritualists will say to this4 ,whether in this state the soul remains in the body1 deprived of its essence of thought8 or whether it leaves it1 as in death1 and where it goes8 ,his memoirs and experiments have been reported on with approbation by a committee of the institute1 composed of ,cuvier1 ,bertholet1 ,dumaril1 ,portal and ,pinel4 ,but all this1 you and ,i shall know better when we meet again1 in another place1 and at no distant period4 ,in the meantime1 that the revived powers of your frame1 and the anodyne of philosophy may preserve you from all suffering1 is my sincere and affectionate prayer4 ,,to ,,william ,,short1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,january #h1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i returned the first volume of ,hall by a mail of a week ago1 and by this1 shall return the second4 ,we have kept them long1 but every member of the family wished to read his book1 in which case1 you know1 it had a long gauntlet to run4 ,it is impossible to read thoroughly such writings as those of ,harper and ,otis1 who take a page to say what requires but a sentence1 or rather1 who give you whole pages of what is nothing to the purpose4 ,a cursory race over the ground is as much as they can claim4 ,it is easy for them1 at this day1 to endeavor to whitewash their party1 when the greater part are dead of those who witnessed what passed1 others old and become indifferent to the subject1 and others indisposed to take the trouble of answering them4 ,as to ,otis1 his attempt is to prove that the sun does not shine at mid-day2 that that is not a fact which every one saw4 ,he merits no notice4 ,it is well known that ,harper had little scruple about facts where detection was not obvious4 ,by placing in false lights whatever admits it1 and passing over in silence what does not1 a plausible aspect may be presented of anything4 ,he takes great pains to prove1 for instance1 that ,hamilton was no monarchist1 by exaggerating his own intimacy with him1 and the impossibility1 if he was so1 that he should not1 at some time1 have betrayed it to him4 ,this may pass with uninformed readers1 but not with those who have had it from ,hamilton's own mouth4 ,i am one of those1 and but one of many4 ,at my own table1 in presence of ,mr4 ,adams1 ,knox1 ,randolph1 and myself1 in a dispute between ,mr4 ,adams and himself1 he avowed his preference of monarchy over every other government1 and his opinion that the ,english was the most perfect model of government ever devised by the wit of man1 ,mr4 ,adams agreeing if its corruptions were done away4 ,while ,hamilton insisted that with these corruptions it was perfect1 and without them it would be an impracticable government4 ,can any one read ,mr4 ,adams' defence of the ,american constitutions without seeing that he was a monarchist8 ,and ,j4 ,q4 ,adams1 the son1 was more explicit than the father1 in his answer to ,paine's rights of man4 ,so much for leaders4 ,their followers were divided4 ,some went the same lengths1 others1 and ,i believe the greater part1 only wished a stronger ,executive4 ,when ,i arrived at ,new ,york in #agij1 to take a part in the administration1 being fresh from the ,french revolution1 while in its first and pure stage1 and consequently somewhat whetted up in my own republican principles1 ,i found a state of things1 in the general society of the place1 which ,i could not have supposed possible4 ,being a stranger there1 ,i was feasted from table to table1 at large set dinners1 the parties generally from twenty to thirty4 ,the revolution ,i had left1 and that we had just gone through in the recent change of our own government1 being the common topics of conversation1 ,i was astonished to find the general prevalence of monarchical sentiments1 insomuch that in maintaining those of republicanism1 ,i had always the whole company on my hands1 never scarcely finding among them a single co-advocate in that argument1 unless some old member of ,congress happened to be present4 ,the furthest that any one would go1 in support of the republican features of our new government1 would be to say1 the present constitution is well as a beginning1 and may be allowed a fair trial2 but it is1 in fact1 only a stepping stone to something better4 ,among their writers1 ,denny1 the editor of the ,portfolio1 who was a kind of oracle with them1 and styled the ,addison of ,america1 openly avowed his preference of monarchy over all other forms of government1 prided himself on the avowal1 and maintained it by argument freely and without reserve1 in his publications4 ,i do not1 myself1 know that the ,essex junto of ,boston were monarchists1 but ,i have always heard it so said1 and never doubted4 ,these1 my dear ,sir1 are but detached items from a great mass of proofs then fully before the public4 ,they are unknown to you1 because you were absent in ,europe1 and they are now disavowed by the party4 ,but1 had it not been for the firm and determined stand then made by a counter-party1 no man can say what our government would have been at this day4 ,monarchy1 to be sure1 is now defeated1 and they wish it should be forgotten that it was ever advocated4 ,they see that it is desperate1 and treat its imputation to them as a calumny2 and ,i verily believe that none of them have it now in direct aim4 ,yet the spirit is not done away4 ,the same party takes now what they deem the next best ground1 the consolidation of the government2 the giving to the federal member of the government1 by unlimited constructions of the constitution1 a control over all the functions of the ,states1 and the concentration of all power ultimately at ,washington4 ,the true history of that conflict of parties will never be in possession of the public1 until1 by the death of the actors in it1 the hoards of their letters shall be broken up and given to the world4 ,i should not fear to appeal to those of ,harper himself1 if he has kept copies of them1 for abundant proof that he was himself a monarchist4 ,i shall not live to see these unrevealed proofs1 nor probably you2 for time will be requisite4 ,but time will1 in the end1 produce the truth4 ,and1 after all1 it is but a truth which exists in every country1 where not suppressed by the rod of despotism4 ,men1 according to their constitutions1 and the circumstances in which they are placed1 differ honestly in opinion4 ,some are whigs1 liberals1 democrats1 call them what you please4 ,others are tories1 serviles1 aristocrats1 c4 ,the latter fear the people1 and wish to transfer all power to the higher classes of society2 the former consider the people as the safest depository of power in the last resort2 they cherish them therefore1 and wish to leave in them all the powers to the exercise of which they are competent4 ,this is the division of sentiment now existing in the ,united ,states4 ,it is the common division of whig and tory1 or according to our denominations of republican and federal2 and is the most salutary of all divisions1 and ought1 therefore1 to be fostered1 instead of being amalgamated4 ,for1 take away this1 and some more dangerous principle of division will take its place4 ,but there is really no amalgamation4 ,the parties exist now as heretofore4 ,the one1 indeed1 has thrown off its old name1 and has not yet assumed a new one1 although obviously consolidationists4 ,and among those in the offices of every denomination ,i believe it to be a bare minority4 ,i have gone into these facts to show how one-sided a view of this case ,harper has presented4 ,i do not recall these recollections with pleasure1 but rather wish to forget them1 nor did ,i ever permit them to affect social intercourse4 ,and now1 least of all1 am disposed to do so4 ,peace and good will with all mankind is my sincere wish4 ,i willingly leave to the present generation to conduct their affairs as they please4 ,and in my general affection to the whole human family1 and my particular devotion to my friends1 be assured of the high and special estimation in which yourself is cordially held4 ,,to ,,joseph ,c4 ,,cabell4 ,,monticello1 ,january #aa1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,we are dreadfully nonplussed here by the non-arrival of our three ,professors4 ,we apprehend that the idea of our opening on the #ast of ,february prevails so much abroad1 7although we have always mentioned it doubtfully17 as that the students will assemble on that day without awaiting the further notice which was promised4 ,to send them away will be discouraging1 and to open an ,university without ,mathematics or ,natural ,philosophy would bring on us ridicule and disgrace4 ,we therefore publish an advertisement1 stating that on the arrival of these ,professors1 notice will be given of the day of opening the institution4 ,governor ,barbour writes me hopefully of getting our fifty thousand dollars from ,congress4 ,the proposition has been originated in the ,house of ,representatives1 referred to the committee of claims1 the chairman of which has prepared a very favorable report1 and a bill conformable1 assuming the repayment of all interest which the ,state has actually paid4 ,the legislature will certainly owe to us the recovery of this money2 for had they not given it in some measure the reverenced character of a donation for the promotion of learning1 it would never have been paid4 ,it is to be hoped1 therefore1 that the displeasure incurred by wringing it from them at the last session1 will now give way to a contrary feeling1 and even place us on a ground of some merit4 ,should this sentiment take place1 and the arrival of our ,professors1 and filling our dormitories with students on the #ast of ,february1 encourage them to look more favorably towards us1 perhaps it might dispose them to enlarge somewhat their order on the same fund4 ,you observe the ,proctor has stated in a letter accompanying our ,report1 that it will take about twenty-five thousand dollars more than we have to finish the ,rotunda4 ,besides this1 an ,anatomical theatre 7costing about as much as one of our hotels1 say about five thousand dollars17 is indispensable to the school of ,anatomy4 ,there cannot be a single dissection until a proper theatre is prepared1 giving an advantageous view of the operation to those within1 and effectually excluding observation from without4 ,either the additional sums1 therefore1 of twenty-five thousand and five thousand dollars will be wanting1 or we must be permitted to appropriate a part of the fifty thousand to a theatre1 leaving the ,rotunda unfinished for the present4 ,yet ,i should think neither of these objects an equivalent for renewing the displeasure of the legislature4 ,unless we can carry their hearty patronage with us1 the institution can never flourish4 ,i would not1 therefore1 hint at this additional aid1 unless it were agreeable to our friends generally1 and tolerably sure of being carried without irritation4 ,in your letter of ,december the #cast1 you say my hand-writing and my letters have great effect there1 i4 e4 at ,richmond4 ,i am sensible1 my dear ,sir1 of the kindness with which this encouragement is held up to me4 ,but my views of their effect are very different4 ,when ,i retired from the administration of public affairs1 ,i thought ,i saw some evidence that ,i retired with a good degree of public favor1 and that my conduct in office had been considered1 by the one party at least1 with approbation1 and with acquiescence by the other4 ,but the attempt in which ,i have embarked so earnestly1 to procure an improvement in the moral condition of my native ,state1 although1 perhaps1 in other ,states it may have strengthened good dispositions1 it has assuredly weakened them within our own4 ,the attempt ran foul of so many local interests1 of so many personal views1 and so much ignorance1 and ,i have been considered as so particularly its promoter1 that ,i see evidently a great change of sentiment towards myself4 ,i cannot doubt its having dissatisfied with myself a respectable minority1 if not a majority of the ,house of ,delegates4 ,i feel it deeply1 and very discouragingly4 ,yet ,i shall not give way4 ,i have ever found in my progress through life1 that1 acting for the public1 if we do always what is right1 the approbation denied in the beginning will surely follow us in the end4 ,it is from posterity we are to expect remuneration for the sacrifices we are making for their service1 of time1 quiet and good will4 ,and ,i fear not the appeal4 ,the multitude of fine young men whom we shall redeem from ignorance1 who will feel that they owe to us the elevation of mind1 of character and station they will be able to attain from the result of our efforts1 will insure their remembering us with gratitude4 ,we will not1 then1 be weary in well-doing4 ,usque ad aras amicus tuus4 ,,to ,,general ,,alexander ,,smyth4 ,,monticello1 ,january #ag1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have duly received four proof sheets of your explanation of the ,apocalypse1 with your letters of ,december #bith and ,january #hth2 in the last of which you request that1 so soon as ,i shall be of opinion that the explanation you have given is correct1 ,i would express it in a letter to you4 ,from this you must be so good as to excuse me1 because ,i make it an invariable rule to decline ever giving opinions on new publications in any case whatever4 ,no man on earth has less taste or talent for criticism than myself1 and least and last of all should ,i undertake to criticize works on the ,apocalypse4 ,it is between fifty and sixty years since ,i read it1 and ,i then considered it as merely the ravings of a maniac1 no more worthy nor capable of explanation than the incoherences of our own nightly dreams4 ,i was1 therefore1 well pleased to see1 in your first proof sheet1 that it was said to be not the production of ,st4 ,john1 but of ,cerinthus1 a century after the death of that apostle4 ,yet the change of the author's name does not lessen the extravagances of the composition2 and come they from whomsoever they may1 ,i cannot so far respect them as to consider them as an allegorical narrative of events1 past or subsequent4 ,there is not coherence enough in them to countenance any suite of rational ideas4 ,you will judge1 therefore1 from this how impossible ,i think it that either your explanation1 or that of any man in the heavens above1 or on the earth beneath1 can be a correct one4 ,what has no meaning admits no explanation2 and pardon me if ,i say1 with the candor of friendship1 that ,i think your time too valuable1 and your understanding of too high an order1 to be wasted on these paralogisms4 ,you will perceive1 ,i hope1 also1 that ,i do not consider them as revelations of the ,supreme ,being1 whom ,i would not so far blaspheme as to impute to him a pretension of revelation1 couched at the same time in terms which1 he would know1 were never to be understood by those to whom they were addressed4 ,in the candor of these observations1 ,i hope you will see proofs of the confidence1 esteem and respect which ,i truly entertain for you4 ,,john ,,adams ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,quincy1 ,january #bc1 #ahbe4 ,,my ,,dear ,,sir1--,we think ourselves possessed1 or at least we boast that we are so1 of liberty of conscience on all subjects and of the right of free inquiry and private judgment in all cases1 and yet how far are we from these exalted privileges in fact4 ,there exists1 ,i believe1 throughout the whole ,christian world1 a law which makes it blasphemy to deny1 or to doubt the divine inspiration of all the books of the ,old and ,new ,testaments1 from ,genesis to ,revelations4 ,in most countries of ,europe it is punished by fire at the stake1 or the rack1 or the wheel4 ,in ,england itself1 it is punished by boring through the tongue with a red-hot poker4 ,in ,america it is not much better2 even in our ,massachusetts1 which1 ,i believe1 upon the whole1 is as temperate and moderate in religious zeal as most of the ,states1 a law was made in the latter end of the last century1 repealing the cruel punishments of the former laws1 but substituting fine and imprisonment upon all those blasphemies upon any book of the ,old ,testament or ,new4 ,now1 what free inquiry1 when a writer must surely encounter the risk of fine or imprisonment for adducing any arguments for investigation into the divine authority of those books8 ,who would run the risk of translating ,volney's ,recherches ,nouvelles8 ,who would run the risk of translating ,dapin's8 ,but ,i cannot enlarge upon this subject1 though ,i have it much at heart4 ,i think such laws a great embarrassment1 great obstructions to the improvement of the human mind4 ,books that cannot bear examination1 certainly ought not to be established as divine inspiration by penal laws4 ,it is true1 few persons appear desirous to put such laws in execution1 and it is also true that some few persons are hardy enough to venture to depart from them2 but as long as they continue in force as laws1 the human mind must make an awkward and clumsy progress in its investigations4 ,i wish they were repealed4 ,the substance and essence of ,christianity1 as ,i understand it1 is eternal and unchangeable1 and will bear examination forever2 but it has been mixed with extraneous ingredients1 which1 ,i think1 will not bear examination1 and they ought to be separated4 ,adieu4 ,,to ----4#ag ,,monticello1 ,february #c1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,although our ,professors were1 on the #eth of ,december1 still in an ,english port1 that they were safe raises me from the dead1 for ,i was almost ready to give up the ship4 ,that was eight weeks ago2 they may therefore be daily expected4 ,in most public seminaries text-books are prescribed to each of the several schools1 as the norma docendi in that school2 and this is generally done by authority of the trustees4 ,i should not propose this generally in our ,university1 because ,i believe none of us are so much at the heights of science in the several branches1 as to undertake this1 and therefore that it will be better left to the ,professors until occasion of interference shall be given4 ,but there is one branch in which we are the best judges1 in which heresies may be taught1 of so interesting a character to our own ,state and to the ,united ,states1 as to make it a duty in us to lay down the principles which are to be taught4 ,it is that of government4 ,mr4 ,gilmer being withdrawn1 we know not who his successor may be4 ,he may be a ,richmond lawyer1 or one of that school of quondam federalism1 now consolidation4 ,it is our duty to guard against such principles being disseminated among our youth1 and the diffusion of that poison1 by a previous prescription of the texts to be followed in their discourses4 ,i therefore enclose you a resolution which ,i think of proposing at our next meeting1 strictly confiding it to your own knowledge alone1 and to that of ,mr4 ,loyall1 to whom you may communicate it1 as ,i am sure it will harmonize with his principles4 ,i wish it kept to ourselves1 because ,i have always found that the less such things are spoken of beforehand1 the less obstruction is contrived to be thrown in their way4 ,i have communicated it to ,mr4 ,madison4 ,should the bill for district colleges pass in the end1 our scheme of education will be complete4 ,but the branch of primary schools may need attention1 and should be brought1 like the rest1 to the forum of the legislature4 ,the ,governor1 in his annual message1 gives a favorable account of them in the lump4 ,but this is not sufficient4 ,we should know the operation of the law establishing these schools more in detail4 ,we should know how much money is furnished to each county every year1 and how much education it distributes every year1 and such a statement should be laid before the legislature every year4 ,the sum of education rendered in each county in each year should be estimated by adding together the number of months which each scholar attended1 and stating the sum total of the months which all of them together attended1 e4 g41 in any county one scholar attended two months1 three others four months each1 eight others six months each1 then the sum of these added together will make sixty-two months of schooling afforded in the county that year2 and the number of sixty-two months entered in a table opposite to the name of the county1 gives a satisfactory idea of the sum or quantum of education it rendered in that year4 ,this will enable us to take many interesting and important views of the sufficiency of the plan established1 and of the amendments necessary to produce the greatest effect4 ,i enclose a form of the table which would be required1 in which you will of course be sensible that the numbers entered are at hap-hazard1 and exempli gratia1 as ,i know nothing of the sums furnished or quantum of education rendered in each or any county4 ,i send also the form of such a resolution as should be passed by the one or the other house1 perhaps better in the lower one1 and moved by some member nowise connected with us1 for the less we appear before the house1 the less we shall excite dissatisfaction4 ,i mentioned to you formerly our want of an anatomical hall for dissection4 ,but if we get the fifty thousand dollars from ,congress1 we can charge to that1 as the library fund1 the six thousand dollars of the building fund which we have advanced for it in books and apparatus1 and repaying from the former the six thousand dollars due to the latter1 apply so much of it as is necessary for the anatomical building4 ,no application on the subject need therefore be made to our legislature4 ,but ,i hear nothing of our prospects before ,congress4 ,yours affectionately4 ,resolved1 ,that the ,governor be requested to have prepared and laid before the legislature1 at their next session1 a statement in detail of the sum of education which1 under the law establishing primary schools1 has been rendered in the schools of each county respectively2 that it be stated in a tabular form1 in the first column of which table shall be the names of the counties alphabetically arranged1 and then1 for every year1 two other columns1 in the first of which shall be entered1 opposite to the name of each county1 the sum of money furnished it in that year1 and in the second shall be stated the sum of education rendered in the same county and year2 which sum is to be estimated by adding together the number of months of schooling which the several individuals attending received4 ,and that henceforward a similar statement be prepared and laid before the legislature every year for that year4 ,accomac #djj #baf months schooling4 ,albemarle #ejj #bcd ,amelia #bej #ahc ,amherst #djj #baj ,augusta #hjj #dfa c4 ,,footnote3 #ag ,address lost4 ,,to ----4#ah ,,monticello1 ,february #bj1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i thank you for the copy of your ,cherokee grammar1 which ,i have gone over with attention and satisfaction4 ,we generally learn languages for the benefit of reading the books written in them4 ,but here our reward must be the addition made to the philosophy of language4 ,in this point of view your analysis of the ,cherokee adds valuable matter for reflection1 and strengthens our desire to see more of these languages as scientifically elucidated4 ,their grammatical devices for the modification of their words by a syllable prefixed to1 or inserted in the middle1 or added to its end1 and by other combinations so different from ours1 prove that if man came from one stock1 his languages did not4 ,a late grammarian has said that all words were originally monosyllables4 ,the ,indian languages disprove this4 ,i should conjecture that the ,cherokees1 for example1 have formed their language not by single words1 but by phrases4 ,i have known some children learn to speak1 not by a word at a time1 but by whole phrases4 ,thus the ,cherokee has no name for father in the abstract1 but only as combined with some one of his relations4 ,a complex idea being a fasciculus of simple ideas bundled together1 it is rare that different languages make up their bundles alike1 and hence the difficulty of translating from one language to another4 ,european nations have so long had intercourse with one another1 as to have approximated their complex expressions much towards one another4 ,but ,i believe we shall find it impossible to translate our language into any of the ,indian1 or any of theirs into ours4 ,i hope you will pursue your undertaking1 and that others will follow your example with other of their languages4 ,it will open a wide field for reflection on the grammatical organization of languages1 their structure and character4 ,i am persuaded that among the tribes on our two continents a great number of languages1 radically different1 will be found4 ,it will be curious to consider how so many so radically different will be found4 ,it will be curious to consider how so many so radically different have been preserved by such small tribes in coterminous settlements of moderate extent4 ,i had once collected about thirty vocabularies formed of the same ,english words1 expressive of such simple objects only as must be present and familiar to every one under these circumstances4 ,they wore unfortunately lost4 ,but ,i remember that on a trial to arrange them into families or dialects1 ,i found in one instance that about half a dozen might be so classed1 in another perhaps three or four4 ,bot ,i am sure that a third at least1 if not more1 were perfectly insulation from each other4 ,yet this is the only index by which we can trace their filiation4 ,i had received your observations on the changes proposed in ,harvard ,college1 without knowing from whom they came to me1 and had been so much pleased with them as to have put them by for preservation4 ,these observations1 with the report and documents to which they relate1 are a treasure of information to us2 they give to our infant institution the experience of your ancient and eminent establishment4 ,i hope that we shall be like cordial colleagues in office1 acting in harmony and affection for the same object4 ,our ,european professors1 five in number1 are at length arrived1 and excite strong presumptions that they have been judiciously selected4 ,we have announced our opening on the #gth of the ensuing month of ,march4 ,with sincere wishes for the prosperity of yours1 as well as ours1 ,i pray you to accept assurances of my high esteem and respect4 ,,footnote3 #ah ,address lost4 ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson ,,smith4 ,,monticello1 ,february #ba1 #ahbe4 ,this letter will1 to you1 be as one from the dead4 ,the writer will be in the grave before you can weigh its counsels4 ,your affectionate and excellent father has requested that ,i would address to you something which might possibly have a favorable influence on the course of life you have to run1 and ,i too1 as a namesake1 feel an interest in that course4 ,few words will be necessary1 with good dispositions on your part4 ,adore ,god4 ,reverence and cherish your parents4 ,love your neighbor as yourself1 and your country more than yourself4 ,be just4 ,be true4 ,murmur not at the ways of ,providence4 ,so shall the life into which you have entered1 be the portal to one of eternal and ineffable bliss4 ,and if to the dead it is permitted to care for the things of this world1 every action of your life will be under my regard4 ,farewell4 ,the portrait of a good man by the most sublime of poets1 for your imitation4 ,lord1 who's the happy man that may to thy blest courts repair2 ,not stranger-like to visit them1 but to inhabit there8 ',tis he whose every thought and deed by rules of virtue moves2 ,whose generous tongue disdains to speak the thing his heart disproves4 ,who never did a slander forge1 his neighbor's fame to wound2 ,nor hearken to a false report1 by malice whispered round4 ,who vice in all its pomp and power1 can treat with just neglect2 ,and piety1 though clothed in rage1 religiously respect4 ,who to his plighted vows and trust has ever firmly stood2 ,and though he promise to his loss1 he makes his promise good4 ,whose soul in usury disdains his treasure to employ2 ,whom no rewards can ever bribe the guiltless to destroy4 ,the man1 who1 by this steady course1 has happiness insur'd1 ,when earth's foundations shake1 shall stand1 by ,providence secur'd4 ,a ,decalogue of ,canons for observation in practical life4 #a4 ,never put off till to-morrow what you can do to-day4 #b4 ,never trouble another for what you can do yourself4 #c4 ,never spend your money before you have it4 #d4 ,never buy what you do not want1 because it is cheap2 it will be dear to you4 #e4 ,pride costs us more than hunger1 thirst and cold4 #f4 ,we never repent of having eaten too little4 #g4 ,nothing is troublesome that we do willingly4 #h4 ,how much pain have cost us the evils which have never happened4 #i4 ,take things always by their smooth handle4 #aj4 ,when angry1 count ten1 before you speak2 if very angry1 an hundred4 ,,to ,,edward ,,livingston1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,march #be1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i know how apt we are to consider those whom we knew long ago1 and have not since seen1 to be exactly still what they were when we knew them2 and to have been stationary in body and mind as they have been in our recollections4 ,have you not been under that illusion with respect to myself8 ,when ,i had the pleasure of being a fellow-laborer with you in the public service1 age had ripened1 but not yet impaired whatever of mind ,i had at any time possessed4 ,but five-and-twenty chilling winters have since rolled over my head1 and whitened every hair of it4 ,worn down by time in bodily strength1 unable to walk even into my garden without too much fatigue1 ,i cannot doubt that the mind has also suffered its portion of decay4 ,if reason and experience had not taught me this law of nature1 my own consciousness is a sufficient monitor1 and warns me to keep in mind the golden precept of ,horace1 ,solve senescentem1 matur sanus1 equum1 ne ,peccet ad extremum ridendus4 ,i am not equal1 dear ,sir1 to the task you have proposed to me4 ,to examine a code of laws newly reduced to system and text1 to weigh their bearings on each other in all their parts1 their harmony with reason and nature1 and their adaptation to the habits and sentiments of those for whom they are prepared1 and whom1 in this case1 ,i do not know1 is a task far above what ,i am now1 or perhaps ever was4 ,i have attended to so much of your work as has been heretofore laid before the public1 and have looked1 with some attention also1 into what you have now sent me4 ,it will certainly arrange your name with the sages of antiquity4 ,time and changes in the condition and constitution of society may require occasional and corresponding modifications4 ,one single object1 if your provision attains it1 will entitle you to the endless gratitude of society2 that of restraining judges from usurping legislation4 ,and with no body of men is this restraint more wanting than with the judges of what is commonly called our general government1 but what ,i call our foreign department4 ,they are practising on the constitution by inferences1 analogies1 and sophisms1 as they would on an ordinary law4 ,they do not seem aware that it is not even a constitution1 formed by a single authority1 and subject to a single superintendence and control2 but that it is a compact of many independent powers1 every single one of which claims an equal right to understand it1 and to require its observance4 ,however strong the cord of compact may be1 there is a point of tension at which it will break4 ,a few such doctrinal decisions1 as barefaced as that of the ,cohens1 happening to bear immediately on two or three of the large ,states1 may induce them to join in arresting the march of government1 and in arousing the co-,states to pay some attention to what is passing1 to bring back the compact to its original principles1 or to modify it legitimately by the express consent of the parties themselves1 and not by the usurpation of their created agents4 ,they imagine they can lead us into a consolidate government1 while their road leads directly to its dissolution4 ,this member of the government was at first considered as the most harmless and helpless of all its organs4 ,but it has proved that the power of declaring what the law is1 ad libitum1 by sapping and mining1 slily1 and without alarm1 the foundations of the constitution1 can do what open force would not dare to attempt4 ,i have not observed whether1 in your code1 you have provided against caucussing judicial decisions1 and for requiring judges to give their opinions seriatim1 every man for himself1 with his reasons and authorities at large1 to be entered of record in his own words4 ,a regard for reputation1 and the judgment of the world1 may sometimes be felt where conscience is dormant1 or indolence inexcitable4 ,experience has proved that impeachment in our forms is completely inefficient4 ,i am pleased with the style and diction of your laws4 ,plain and intelligible as the ordinary writings of common sense1 ,i hope it will produce imitation4 ,of all the countries on earth of which ,i have any knowledge1 the style of the ,acts of the ,british parliament is the most barbarous1 uncouth1 and unintelligible4 ,it can be understood by those alone who are in the daily habit of studying such tautologous1 involved and parenthetical jargon4 ,where they found their model1 ,i know not4 ,neither ancient nor modern codes1 nor even their own early statutes1 furnish any such example4 ,and1 like faithful apes1 we copy it faithfully4 ,in declining the undertaking you so flatteringly propose to me1 ,i trust you will see but an approvable caution for the age of four score and two1 to avoid exposing itself before the public4 ,the misfortune of a weakened mind is an insensibility of its weakness4 ,seven years ago1 indeed1 ,i embarked in an enterprise1 the establishment of an ,university1 which placed and keeps me still under the public eye4 ,the call was imperious1 the necessity most urgent1 and the hazard of titubation less1 by those seven years1 than it now is4 ,the institution is at length happily advanced to completion1 and has commenced under auspices as favorable as ,i could expect4 ,i hope it will prove a blessing to my own ,state1 and not unuseful perhaps to some others4 ,at all hazards1 and secured by the aid of my able coadjutors1 ,i shall continue1 while ,i am in being1 to contribute to it whatever my weakened and weakening powers can4 ,but assuredly it is the last object for which ,i shall obtrude myself on the public observation4 ,wishing anxiously that your great work may obtain complete success1 and become an example for the imitation and improvement of other ,states1 ,i pray you to be assured of my unabated friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,judge ,,augustus ,b4 ,,woodward4 ,,monticello1 ,april #c1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,march #beth has been duly received4 ,the fact is unquestionable1 that the ,bill of ,rights1 and the ,constitution of ,virginia1 were drawn originally by ,george ,mason1 one of our really great men1 and of the first order of greatness4 ,the history of the ,preamble to the latter is this3 ,i was then at ,philadelphia with ,congress2 and knowing that the ,convention of ,virginia was engaged in forming a plan of government1 ,i turned my mind to the same subject1 and drew a sketch or outline of a ,constitution1 with a preamble1 which ,i sent to ,mr4 ,pendleton1 president of the convention1 on the mere possibility that it might suggest something worth incorporation into that before the convention4 ,he informed me afterwards by letter1 that he received it on the day on which the ,committee of the ,whole had reported to the ,house the plan they had agreed to2 that that had been so long in hand1 so disputed inch by inch1 and the subject of so much altercation and debate2 that they were worried with the contentions it had produced1 and could not from mere lassitude1 have been induced to open the instrument again2 but that1 being pleased with the ,preamble to mine1 they adopted it in the ,house1 by way of amendment to the ,report of the ,committee2 and thus my ,preamble became tacked to the work of ,george ,mason4 ,the ,constitution1 with the ,preamble1 was passed on the #bith of ,june1 and the ,committee of ,congress had only the day before that reported to that body the draught of the ,declaration of ,independence4 ,the fact is1 that that ,preamble was prior in composition to the ,declaration2 and both having the same object1 of justifying our separation from ,great ,britain1 they used necessarily the same materials of justification1 and hence their similitude4 ,withdrawn by age from all other public services and attentions to public things1 ,i am closing the last scenes of life by fashioning and fostering an establishment for the instruction of those who are to come after us4 ,i hope its influence on their virtue1 freedom1 fame and happiness1 will be salutary and permanent4 ,the form and distributions of its structure are original and unique1 the architecture chaste and classical1 and the whole well worthy of attracting the curiosity of a visit4 ,should it so prove to yourself at any time1 it will be a great gratification to me to see you once more at ,monticello2 and ,i pray you to be assured of my continued and high respect and esteem4 ,,to ,,henry ,,lee1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,may #h1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1-- 99 99 99 99 99 ,that ,george ,mason was author of the bill of rights1 and of the constitution founded on it1 the evidence of the day established fully in my mind4 ,of the paper you mention1 purporting to be instructions to the ,virginia delegation in ,congress1 ,i have no recollection4 ,if it were anything more than a project of some private hand1 that is to say1 had any such instructions been ever given by the convention1 they would appear in the journals1 which we possess entire4 ,but with respect to our rights1 and the acts of the ,british government contravening those rights1 there was but one opinion on this side of the water4 ,all ,american whigs thought alike on these subjects4 ,when forced1 therefore1 to resort to arms for redress1 an appeal to the tribunal of the world was deemed proper for our justification4 ,this was the object of the ,declaration of ,independence4 ,not to find out new principles1 or new arguments1 never before thought of1 not merely to say things which had never been said before3 but to place before mankind the common sense of the subject1 in terms so plain and firm as to command their assent1 and to justify ourselves in the independent stand we are compelled to take4 ,neither aiming at originality of principle or sentiment1 nor yet copied from any particular and previous writing1 it was intended to be an expression of the ,american mind1 and to give to that expression the proper tone and spirit called for by the occasion4 ,all its authority rests then on the harmonizing sentiments of the day1 whether expressed in conversation1 in letters1 printed essays1 or in the elementary books of public right1 as ,aristotle1 ,cicero1 ,locke1 ,sidney1 c4 ,the historical documents which you mention as in your possession1 ought all to be found1 and ,i am persuaded you will find1 to be corroborative of the facts and principles advanced in that ,declaration4 ,be pleased to accept assurances of my great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,miss ,,wright4 ,,monticello1 ,august #g1 #ahbe4 ,i have duly received2 dear ,madam1 your letter of ,july #bfth1 and learn from it with much regret1 that ,miss ,wright1 your sister1 is so much indisposed as to be obliged to visit our medicinal springs4 ,i wish she may be fortunate in finding those which may be adapted to her case4 ,we have taken too little pains to ascertain the properties of our different mineral waters1 the cases in which they are respectively remedial1 the proper process in their use1 and other circumstances necessary to give us their full value4 ,my own health is very low1 not having been able to leave the house for three months1 and suffering much at times4 ,in this state of body and mind1 your letter could not have found a more inefficient counsellor1 one scarcely able to think or to write4 ,at the age of eighty-two1 with one foot in the grave1 and the other uplifted to follow it1 ,i do not permit myself to take part in any new enterprises1 even for bettering the condition of man1 not even in the great one which is the subject of your letter1 and which has been through life that of my greatest anxieties4 ,the march of events has not been such as to render its completion practicable within the limits of time allotted to me2 and ,i leave its accomplishment as the work of another generation4 ,and ,i am cheered when ,i see that on which it is devolved1 taking it up with so much good will1 and such minds engaged in its encouragement4 ,the abolition of the evil is not impossible2 it ought never therefore to be despaired of4 ,every plan should be adopted1 every experiment tried1 which may do something towards the ultimate object4 ,that which you propose is well worthy of trial4 ,it has succeeded with certain portions of our white brethren1 under the care of a ,rapp and an ,owen2 and why may it not succeed with the man of color8 ,an opinion is hazarded by some1 but proved by none1 that moral urgencies are not sufficient to induce him to labor2 that nothing can do this but physical coercion4 ,but this is a problem which the present age alone is prepared to solve by experiment4 ,it would be a solecism to suppose a race of animals created1 without sufficient foresight and energy to preserve their own existence4 ,it is disproved1 too1 by the fact that they exist1 and have existed through all the ages of history4 ,we are not sufficiently acquainted with all the nations of ,africa1 to say that there may not be some in which habits of industry are established1 and the arts practised which are necessary to render life comfortable4 ,the experiment now in progress in ,st4 ,domingo1 those of ,sierra ,leone and ,cape ,mesurado1 are but beginning4 ,your proposition has its aspects of promise also2 and should it not answer fully to calculations in figures1 it may yet1 in its developments1 lead to happy results4 ,these1 however1 ,i must leave to another generation4 ,the enterprise of a different1 but yet important character1 in which ,i have embarked too late in life1 ,i find more than sufficient to occupy the enfeebled energies remaining to me1 and that to divert them to other objects1 would be a desertion of these4 ,you are young1 dear ,madam1 and have powers of mind which may do much in exciting others in this arduous task4 ,i am confident they will be so exerted1 and ,i pray to heaven for their success1 and that you may be rewarded with the blessings which such efforts merit4 ,,to ,,john ,,vaughan1 ,,esq4 ,,monticello1 ,september #af1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i am not able to give you any particular account of the paper handed you by ,mr4 ,lee1 as being either the original or a copy of the ,declaration of ,independence1 sent by myself to his grandfather4 ,the draught1 when completed by myself1 with a few verbal amendments by ,dr4 ,franklin and ,mr4 ,adams1 two members of the committee1 in their own hand-writing1 is now in my own possession1 and a fair copy of this was reported to the committee1 passed by them without amendment1 and then reported to ,congress4 ,this letter should be among the records of the old ,congress2 and whether this or the one from which it was copied and now in my hands1 is to be called the original1 is a question of definition4 ,to that in my hands1 if worth preserving1 my relations with our ,university gives irresistible claims4 ,whenever1 in the course of the composition1 a copy became overcharged1 and difficult to be read with amendments1 ,i copied it fair1 and when that also was crowded with other amendments1 another fair copy was made1 c4 ,these rough draughts ,i sent to distant friends who were anxious to know what was passing4 ,but how many1 and to whom1 ,i do not recollect4 ,one sent to ,mazzei was given by him to the ,countess de ,tessie 7aunt of ,madame de ,lafayette7 as the original1 and is probably now in the hands of her family4 ,whether the paper sent to ,r4 ,h4 ,lee was one of these1 or whether1 after the passage of the instrument1 ,i made a copy for him1 with the amendments of ,congress1 may1 ,i think1 be known from the face of the paper4 ,the documents ,mr4 ,lee has given you must be of great value1 and until all these private hoards are made public1 the real history of the revolution will not be known4 ,,to ,,dr4 ,,james ,,mease4 ,,monticello1 ,september #bf1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,it is not for me to estimate the importance of the circumstances concerning which your letter of the #hth makes inquiry4 ,they prove1 even in their minuteness1 the sacred attachments of our fellow citizens to the event of which the paper of ,july #dth1 #aggf1 was but the declaration1 the genuine effusion of the soul of our country at that time4 ,small things may1 perhaps1 like the relics of saints1 help to nourish our devotion to this holy bond of our ,union1 and keep it longer alive and warm in our affections4 ,this effect may give importance to circumstances1 however small4 ,at the time of writing that instrument1 ,i lodged in the house of a ,mr4 ,graaf1 a new brick house1 three stories high1 of which ,i rented the second floor consisting of a parlor and bed-room1 ready furnished4 ,in that parlor ,i wrote habitually1 and in it wrote this paper1 particularly4 ,so far ,i state from written proofs in my possession4 ,the proprietor1 ,graaf1 was a young man1 son of a ,german1 and then newly married4 ,i think he was a bricklayer1 and that his house was on the south side of ,market street1 probably between ,seventh and ,eighth streets1 and if not the only house on that part of the street1 ,i am sure there were few others near it4 ,i have some idea that it was a corner house1 but no other recollections throwing light on the question1 or worth communication4 ,i am ill1 therefore only add assurance of my great respect and esteem4 ,,to ----4 ,,monticello1 ,october #be1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i know not whether the professors to whom ancient and modern history are assigned in the ,university1 have yet decided on the course of historical reading which they will recommend to their schools4 ,if they have1 ,i wish this letter to be considered as not written1 as their course1 the result of mature consideration1 will be preferable to anything ,i could recommend4 ,under this uncertainty1 and the rather as you are of neither of these schools1 ,i may hazard some general ideas1 to be corrected by what they may recommend hereafter4 ,in all cases ,i prefer original authors to compilers4 ,for a course of ancient history1 therefore1 of ,greece and ,rome especially1 ,i should advise the usual suite of ,herodotus1 ,thucydides1 ,xenophon1 ,diodorus1 ,livy1 ,csar1 ,suetonius1 ,tacitus1 and ,dion1 in their originals if understood1 and in translations if not4 ,for its continuation to the final destruction of the empire we must then be content with ,gibbons1 a compiler1 and with ,segur1 for a judicious recapitulation of the whole4 ,after this general course1 there are a number of particular histories filling up the chasms1 which may be read at leisure in the progress of life4 ,such is ,arrian1 #b ,curtius1 ,polybius1 ,sallust1 ,plutarch1 ,dionysius1 ,halicarnassus1 ,micasi1 c4 ,the ancient universal history should be on our shelves as a book of general reference1 the most learned and most faithful perhaps that ever was written4 ,its style is very plain but perspicuous4 ,in modern history1 there are but two nations with whose course it is interesting to us to be intimately acquainted1 to wit3 ,france and ,england4 ,for the former1 ,millot's ,general ,history of ,france may be sufficient to the period when #a ,davila commences4 ,he should be followed by ,perefixe1 ,sully1 ,voltaire's ,louis ,,xiv4 and ,,xv41 la ,cretelles ,,xviii4me sicle1 ,marmontel's ,regence1 ,foulongion's ,french ,revolution1 and ,madame de ,stael's1 making up by a succession of particular history1 the general one which they want4 ,of ,england there is as yet no general history so faithful as ,rapin's4 ,he maybe followed by ,ludlow1 ,fox1 ,belsham1 ,hume and ,brodie4 ,hume's1 were it faithful1 would be the finest piece of history which has ever been written by man4 ,its unfortunate bias may be partly ascribed to the accident of his having written backwards4 ,his maiden work was the ,history of the ,stuarts4 ,it was a first essay to try his strength before the public4 ,and whether as a ,scotchman he had really a partiality for that family1 or thought that the lower their degradation1 the more fame he should acquire by raising them up to some favor1 the object of his work was an apology for them4 ,he spared nothing1 therefore1 to wash them white1 and to palliate their misgovernment4 ,for this purpose he suppressed truths1 advanced falsehoods1 forged authorities1 and falsified records4 ,all this is proved on him unanswerably by ,brodie4 ,but so bewitching was his style and manner1 that his readers were unwilling to doubt anything1 swallowed everything1 and all ,england became tories by the magic of his art4 ,his pen revolutionized the public sentiment of that country more completely than the standing armies could ever have done1 which were so much dreaded and deprecated by the patriots of that day4 ,having succeeded so eminently in the acquisition of fortune and fame by this work1 he undertook the history of the two preceding dynasties1 the ,plantagenets and ,tudors4 ,it was all-important in this second work1 to maintain the thesis of the first1 that it was the people who encroached on the sovereign1 not the sovereign who usurped on the rights of the people4 ,and1 again1 chapter #ec;d1 the grievances under which the ,english labored to wit3 whipping1 pillorying1 cropping1 imprisoning1 fining1 c41 when considered in themselves1 without regard to the constitution1 scarcely deserve the name1 nor were they either burthensome on the people's properties1 or anywise shocking to the natural humanity of mankind4 ,during the constant wars1 civil and foreign1 which prevailed while these two families occupied the throne1 it was not difficult to find abundant instances of practices the most despotic1 as are wont to occur in times of violence4 ,to make this second epoch support the third1 therefore1 required but a little garbling of authorities4 ,and it then remained1 by a third work1 to make of the whole a complete history of ,england1 on the principles on which he had advocated that of the ,stuarts4 ,this would comprehend the ,saxon and ,norman conquests1 the former exhibiting the genuine form and political principles of the people constituting the nation1 and founded in the rights of man2 the latter built on conquest and physical force1 not at all affecting moral rights1 nor even assented to by the free will of the vanquished4 ,the battle of ,hastings1 indeed1 was lost1 but the natural rights of the nation were not staked on the event of a single battle4 ,their will to recover the ,saxon constitution continued unabated1 and was at the bottom of all the unsuccessful insurrections which succeeded in subsequent times4 ,the victors and vanquished continued in a state of living hostility1 and the nation may still say1 after losing the battle of ,hastings1 ,what though the field is lost8 ,all is not lost2 the unconquerable will ,and study of revenge1 immortal hate ,and courage never to submit or yield4 ,the government of a nation may be usurped by the forcible intrusion of an individual into the throne4 ,but to conquer its will1 so as to rest the right on that1 the only legitimate basis1 requires long acquiescence and cessation of all opposition4 ,the whig historians of ,england1 therefore1 have always gone back to the ,saxon period for the true principles of their constitution1 while the tories and ,hume1 their ,coryphus1 date it from the ,norman conquest1 and hence conclude that the continual claim by the nation of the good old ,saxon laws1 and the struggles to recover them1 were encroachments of the people on the crown1 and not usurpations of the crown on the people4 ,hume1 with ,brodie1 should be the last histories of ,england to be read4 ,if first read1 ,hume makes an ,english tory1 from whence it is an easy step to ,american toryism4 ,but there is a history1 by ,baxter1 in which1 abridging somewhat by leaving out some entire incidents as less interesting now than when ,hume wrote1 he has given the rest in the identical words of ,hume1 except that when he comes to a fact falsified1 he states it truly1 and when to a suppression of truth1 he supplies it1 never otherwise changing a word4 ,it is1 in fact1 an editic expurgation of ,hume4 ,those who shrink from the volume of ,rapin1 may read this first1 and from this lay a first foundation in a basis of truth4 ,for modern continental history1 a very general idea may be first aimed at1 leaving for future and occasional reading the particular histories of such countries as may excite curiosity at the time4 ,this may be obtained from ,mollet's ,northern ,antiquities1 ,vol4 ,esprit et ,murs des ,nations1 ,millot's ,modern ,history1 ,russel's ,modern ,europe1 ,hallam's ,middle ,ages1 and ,robertson's ,charles ,v4 ,you ask what book ,i would recommend to be first read in law4 ,i am very glad to find from a conversation with ,mr4 ,gilmer1 that he considers ,coke ,littleton1 as methodized by ,thomas1 as unquestionably the best elementary work1 and the one which will be the text book of his school4 ,it is now as agreeable reading as ,blackstone1 and much more profound4 ,i pray you to consider this hasty and imperfect sketch as intended merely to prove my wish to be useful to you1 and that with it you will accept the assurance of my esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,the ,,honorable ,j4 ,,evelyn ,,denison1 ,m4 ,p4 ,,monticello1 ,november #i1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,july #cjth was duly received1 and we have now at hand the books you have been so kind as to send to our ,university4 ,they are truly acceptable in themselves1 for we might have been years not knowing of their existence2 but give the greater pleasure as evidence of the interest you have taken in our infant institution4 ,it is going on as successfully as we could have expected2 and ,i have no reason to regret the measure taken of procuring ,professors from abroad where science is so much ahead of us4 ,you witnessed some of the puny squibs of which ,i was the butt on that account4 ,they were probably from disappointed candidates1 whose unworthiness had occasioned their applications to be passed over4 ,the measure has been generally approved in the ,south and ,west2 and by all liberal minds in the ,north4 ,it has been peculiarly fortunate1 too1 that the ,professors brought from abroad were as happy selections as could have been hoped1 as well for their qualifications in science as correctness and amiableness of character4 ,i think the example will be followed1 and that it cannot fail to be one of the efficacious means of promoting that cordial good will1 which it is so much the interest of both nations to cherish4 ,these teachers can never utter an unfriendly sentiment towards their native country2 and those into whom their instructions will be infused1 are not of ordinary significance only3 they are exactly the persons who are to succeed to the government of our country1 and to rule its future enmities1 its friendships and fortunes4 ,as it is our interest to receive instruction through this channel1 so ,i think it is yours to furnish it2 for these two nations holding cordially together1 have nothing to fear from the united world4 ,they will be the models for regenerating the condition of man1 the sources from which representative government is to flow over the whole earth4 ,i learn from you with great pleasure1 that a taste is reviving in ,england for the recovery of the ,anglo-,saxon dialect of our language2 for a mere dialect it is1 as much as those of ,piers ,plowman1 ,gower1 ,douglas1 ,chaucer1 ,spenser1 ,shakspeare1 ,milton1 for even much of ,milton is already antiquated4 ,the ,anglo-,saxon is only the earliest we possess of the many shades of mutation by which the language has tapered down to its modern form4 ,vocabularies we need for each of these stages from ,somner to ,bailey1 but not grammars for each or any of them4 ,the grammar has changed so little1 in the descent from the earliest1 to the present form1 that a little observation suffices to understand its variations4 ,we are greatly indebted to the worthies who have preserved the ,anglo-,saxon form1 from ,doctor ,hickes down to ,mr4 ,bosworth4 ,had they not given to the public what we possess through the press1 that dialect would by this time have been irrecoverably lost4 ,i think it1 however1 a misfortune that they have endeavored to give it too much of a learned form1 to mount it on all the scaffolding of the ,greek and ,latin1 to load it with their genders1 numbers1 cases1 declensions1 conjugations1 c4 ,strip it of these embarrassments1 vest it in the ,roman type which we have adopted instead of our ,english black letter1 reform its uncouth orthography1 and assimilate its pronunciation1 as much as may be1 to the present ,english1 just as we do in reading ,piers ,plowman or ,chaucer1 and with the cotemporary vocabulary for the few lost words1 we understand it as we do them4 ,for example1 the ,anglo-,saxon text of the ,lord's prayer1 as given us #fth ,matthew1 ix41 is spelt and written thus1 in the equivalent ,roman type3 ,faeder ure thee the eart in heafenum1 si thin nama ychalgod4 ,to becume thin rice4 ,gerrurthe thin willa on eartham1 swa swa on heofenum4 ,ume doeghw amli can hlaf syle us to dg4 ,and forgyfus ure gyltas1 swa swa we forgifath urum gyltendum4 ,and ne ge-ldde thu us on costnunge1 ae alys us of yfele4 ,i should spell and pronounce thus3 ,father our1 thou tha art in heavenum1 si thine name y-hallowed4 ,come thin ric-y-wurth thine will on eartham1 so so on heavenum3 ourn daynhamlican loaf sell us to-day1 and forgive us our guilts so so we forgiveth ourum guiltendum4 ,and no y-lead thou us on costnunge1 ac a-lease us of evil4 ,and here it is to be observed by-the-bye1 that there is but the single word temptation in our present version of this prayer that is not ,anglo-,saxon2 for the word trespasses taken from the ,french1 7 in the original7 might as well have been translated by the ,anglo-,saxon guilts4 ,the learned apparatus in which ,dr4 ,hickes and his successors have muffled our ,anglo-,saxon1 is what has frightened us from encountering it4 ,the simplification ,i propose may1 on the contrary1 make it a regular part of our common ,english education4 ,so little reading and writing was there among our ,anglo-,saxon ancestors of that day1 that they had no fixed orthography4 ,to produce a given sound1 every one jumbled the letters together1 according to his unlettered notion of their power1 and all jumbled them differently1 just as would be done at this day1 were a dozen peasants1 who have learnt the alphabet1 but have never read1 desired to write the ,lord's prayer4 ,hence the varied modes of spelling by which the ,anglo-,saxons meant to express the same sound4 ,the word many1 for example1 was spelt in twenty different ways2 yet we cannot suppose they were twenty different words1 or that they had twenty different ways of pronouncing the same word4 ,the ,anglo-,saxon orthography1 then1 is not an exact representation of the sounds meant to be conveyed4 ,we must drop in pronunciation the superfluous consonants1 and give to the remaining letters their present ,english sound2 because1 not knowing the true one1 the present enunciation is as likely to be right as any other1 and indeed more so1 and facilitates the acquisition of the language4 ,it is much to be wished that the publication of the present county dialects of ,england should go on4 ,it will restore to us our language in all its shades of variation4 ,it will incorporate into the present one all the riches of our ancient dialects2 and what a store this will be1 may be seen by running the eye over the county glossaries1 and observing the words we have lost by abandonment and disuse1 which in sound and sense are inferior to nothing we have retained4 ,when these local vocabularies are published and digested together into a single one1 it is probable we shall find that there is not a word in ,shakspeare which is not now in use in some of the counties in ,england1 from whence we may obtain its true sense4 ,and what an exchange will their recovery be for the volumes of idle commentaries and conjectures with which that divine poet has been masked and metamorphosed4 ,we shall find in him new sublimities which we had never tasted before1 and find beauties in our ancient poets which are lost to us now4 ,it is not that ,i am merely an enthusiast for ,palology4 ,i set equal value on the beautiful engraftments we have borrowed from ,greece and ,rome1 and ,i am equally a friend to the encouragement of a judicious neology3 a language cannot be too rich4 ,the more copious1 the more susceptible of embellishment it will become4 ,there are several things wanting to promote this improvement4 ,to reprint the ,saxon books in modern type2 reform their orthography2 publish in the same way the treasures still existing in manuscript4 ,and1 more than all things1 we want1 a dictionary on the plan of ,stephens or ,scapula1 in which the ,saxon root1 placed alphabetically1 shall be followed by all its cognate modifications of nouns1 verbs1 c41 whether ,anglo-,saxon1 or found in the dialects of subsequent ages4 ,we want1 too1 an elaborate history of the ,english language4 ,in time our country may be able to co-operate with you in these labors1 of common advantage1 but as yet it is too much a blank1 calling for other and more pressing attentions4 ,we have too much to do in the improvements of which it is susceptible1 and which are deemed more immediately useful4 ,literature is not yet a distinct profession with us4 ,now and then a strong mind arises1 and at its intervals of leisure from business1 emits a flash of light4 ,but the first object of young societies is bread and covering2 science is but secondary and subsequent4 ,i owe apology for this long letter4 ,it must be found in the circumstance of its subject having made an interesting part in the tenor of your letter1 and in my attachment to it4 ,it is a hobby which too often runs away with me where ,i meant not to give up the rein4 ,our youth seem disposed to mount it with me1 and to begin their course where mine is ending4 ,our family recollects with pleasure the visit with which you favored us2 and join me in assuring you of our friendly and respectful recollections1 and of the gratification it will ever be to us to hear of your health and welfare4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,lewis ,m4 ,,wiss4 ,,monticello1 ,november #bg1 #ahbe4 ,,sir1--,disqualified by age and ill health from undertaking minute investigations1 ,i find it will be easier for me to state to you my proposition of a lock-dock1 for laying up vessels1 high and dry1 than to investigate yours4 ,you will then judge for yourself whether any part of mine has anticipated any part of yours4 ,while ,i was at ,washington1 in the administration of the government1 ,congress was much divided in opinion on the subject of a navy1 a part of them wishing to go extensively into preparation of a fleet1 another part opposed to it1 on the objection that the repairs and preservation of a ship1 even idle in harbor1 in ten or twelve years1 amount to her original cost4 ,it has been estimated in ,england1 that if they could be sure of peace a dozen years it would be cheaper for them to burn their fleet1 and build a new one when wanting1 than to keep the old one in repair during that term4 ,i learnt that1 in ,venice1 there were then ships1 lying on their original stocks1 ready for launching at any moment1 which had been so for eighty years1 and were still in a state of perfect preservation2 and that this was effected by disposing of them in docks pumped dry1 and kept so by constant pumping4 ,it occurred to me that this expense of constant pumping might be saved by combining a lock with the common wet dock1 wherever there was a running stream of water1 the bed of which1 within a reasonable distance1 was of a sufficient height above the high-water level of the harbor4 ,this was the case at the navy-yard1 on the eastern branch at ,washington1 the high-water line of which was seventy-eight feet lower than the ground on which the ,capitol stands1 and to which it was found that the water of the ,tyber creek could be brought for watering the city4 ,my proposition then was as follows3 ,let a b be the high-water level of the harbor1 and the vessel to be laid up draw eighteen feet water4 ,make a chamber ,a twenty feet deep below high water and twenty feet high above it1 as c d e f1 and at the upper end make another chamber1 ,b1 c f ---------------------------------------- ------ 4 g a b 4 ,b 4 444444444444444444444444,a44444444------ -------------------- h i d e ------------------- the bottom of which should be in the high-water level1 and the tops twenty feet above that4 g h is the water of the ,tyber4 ,when the vessel is to be introduced1 open the gate at c b a4 ,the tide water rises in the chamber ,a to the level b i1 and floats the vessel in with it4 ,shut the gate c b d and open that of f i4 ,the water of the ,tyber fills both chambers to the level c f g1 and the vessel floats into the chamber ,b2 then opening both gates c b d and f i1 the water flows out1 and the vessel settles down on the stays previously prepared at the bottom i h to receive her4 ,the gate at g h must of course be closed1 and the water of the feeding stream be diverted elsewhere4 ,the chamber ,b is to have a roof over it of the construction of that over the meal market at ,paris1 except that that is hemispherical1 this semi-cylindrical4 ,for this construction see ,delenne's architecture1 whose invention it was4 ,the diameter of the dome of the meal market is considerably over one hundred feet4 ,it will be seen at once1 that instead of making the chamber ,b of sufficient width and length for a single vessel only1 it may be widened to whatever span the semi-circular framing of the roof can be trusted1 and to whatever length you please1 so as to admit two or more vessels in breadth1 and as many in length as the localities render expedient4 ,i had a model of this lock-dock made and exhibited in the ,president's house1 during the session of ,congress at which it was proposed4 ,but the advocates for a navy did not fancy it1 and those opposed to the building of ships altogether1 were equally indisposed to provide protection for them4 ,ridicule was also resorted to1 the ordinary substitute for reason1 when that fails1 and the proposition was past over4 ,i then thought and still think the measure wise1 to have a proper number of vessels always ready to be launched1 with nothing unfinished about them1 except the planting their masts1 which must of necessity be omitted1 to be brought under a roof4 ,having no view in this proposition but to combine for the public a provision for defence1 with economy in its preservation1 ,i have thought no more of it since4 ,and if any of my ideas anticipated yours1 you are welcome to appropriate them to yourself1 without objection on my part1 and1 with this assurance1 ,i pray you to accept that of my best wishes and respects4 ,to ----4#ai ,,monticello4 ,december #ah1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your letters are always welcome1 the last more than all others1 its subject being one of the dearest to my heart4 ,to my grand-daughter your commendations cannot fail to be an object of high ambition1 as a certain passport to the good opinion of the world4 ,if she does not cultivate them with assiduity and affection1 she will illy fulfil my parting injunctions4 ,i trust she will merit a continuance of your favor1 and find in her new situation the general esteem she so happily possessed in the society she left4 ,you tell me she repeated to you an expression of mine1 that ,i should be willing to go again over the scenes of past life4 ,i should not be unwilling1 without1 however1 wishing it2 and why not8 ,i have enjoyed a greater share of health than falls to the lot of most men2 my spirits have never failed me except under those paroxysms of grief which you1 as well as myself1 have experienced in every form1 and with good health and good spirits1 the pleasures surely outweigh the pains of life4 ,why not1 then1 taste them again1 fat and lean together8 ,were ,i indeed permitted to cut off from the train the last seven years1 the balance would be much in favor of treading the ground over again4 ,being at that period in the neighborhood of our warm springs1 and well in health1 ,i wished to be better1 and tried them4 ,they destroyed1 in a great degree1 my internal organism1 and ,i have never since had a moment of perfect health4 ,i have now been eight months confined almost constantly to the house1 with now and then intervals of a few days on which ,i could get on horseback4 ,i presume you have received a copy of the life of ,richard ,h4 ,lee1 from his grandson of the same name1 author of the work4 ,you and ,i know that he merited much during the revolution4 ,eloquent1 bold1 and ever watchful at his post1 of which his biographer omits no proof4 ,i am not certain whether the friends of ,george ,mason1 of ,patrick ,henry1 yourself1 and even of ,general ,washington1 may not reclaim some feathers of the plumage given him1 noble as was his proper and original coat4 ,but on this subject ,i will anticipate your own judgment4 ,i learn with sincere pleasure that you have experienced lately a great renovation of your health4 ,that it may continue to the ultimate period of your wishes is the sincere prayer of usque ad eras amicissimi tui4 ,,footnote3 #ai ,address lost4 ,,to ,,james ,,madison4 ,,monticello1 ,december #bd1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have for some time considered the question of internal improvement as desperate4 ,the torrent of general opinion sets so strongly in favor of it as to be irresistible4 ,and ,i suppose that even the opposition in ,congress will hereafter be feeble and formal1 unless something can be done which may give a gleam of encouragement to our friends1 or alarm their opponents in their fancied security4 ,i learn from ,richmond that those who think with us there are in a state of perfect dismay1 not knowing what to do or what to propose4 ,mr4 ,gordon1 our representative1 particularly1 has written to me in very desponding terms1 not disposed to yield indeed1 but pressing for opinions and advice on the subject4 ,i have no doubt you are pressed in the same way1 and ,i hope you have devised and recommended something to them4 ,if you have1 stop here and read no more1 but consider all that follows as non-avenue4 ,i shall be better satisfied to adopt implicitly anything which you may have advised1 than anything occurring to myself4 ,for ,i have long ceased to think on subjects of this kind1 and pay little attention to public proceedings4 ,but if you have done nothing in it1 then ,i risk for your consideration what has occurred to me1 and is expressed in the enclosed paper4#bj ,bailey's propositions1 which came to hand since ,i wrote the paper1 and which ,i suppose to have come from the ,president himself1 show a little hesitation in the purposes of his party2 and in that state of mind1 a bolt shot critically may decide the contest by its effect on the less bold4 ,the olive branch held out to them at this moment may be accepted1 and the constitution thus saved at a moderate sacrifice4 ,i say nothing of the paper1 which will explain itself4 ,the following heads of consideration1 or some of them1 may weigh in its favor3 ,it may intimidate the wavering4 ,it may break the western coalition1 by offering the same thing in a different form4 ,it will be viewed with favor in contrast with the ,georgia opposition and fear of strengthening that4 ,it will be an example of a temperate mode of opposition in future and similar cases4 ,it will delay the measure a year at least4 ,it will give us the chance of better times and of intervening accidents2 and in no way place us in a worse than our present situation4 ,i do not dwell on these topics2 your mind will develop them4 ,the first question is1 whether you approve of doing anything of the kind4 ,if not1 send it back to me1 and it shall be suppressed2 for ,i would not hazard so important a measure against your opinion1 nor even without its support4 ,if you think it may be a canvass on which to put something good1 make what alterations you please1 and ,i will forward it to ,gordon1 under the most sacred injunctions that it shall be so used as that not a shadow of suspicion shall fall on you or myself1 that it has come from either of us4 ,but what you do1 do as promptly as your convenience will admit1 lest it should be anticipated by something worse4 ,ever and affectionately yours4 ,,footnote3 #bj ,see under head of ,miscellaneous ,papers1 the paper here alluded to1 entitled1 ,the solemn ,declaration and ,protest of the ,commonwealth of ,virginia on the principles of the ,constitution of the ,united ,states of ,america1 and on the violations of them4 ,,to ,,william ,b4 ,,giles4 ,,monticello1 ,december #be1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of the #aeth was received four days ago4 ,it found me engaged in what ,i could not lay aside till this day4 ,far advanced in my eighty-third year1 worn down with infirmities which have confined me almost entirely to the house for seven or eight months past1 it afflicts me much to receive appeals to my memory for transactions so far back as that which is the subject of your letter4 ,my memory is indeed become almost a blank1 of which no better proof can probably be given you than by my solemn protestation1 that ,i have not the least recollection of your intervention between ,mr4 ,john ,q4 ,adams and myself1 in what passed on the subject of the embargo4 ,not the slightest trace of it remains in my mind4 ,yet ,i have no doubt of the exactitude of the statement in your letter4 ,and the less1 as ,i recollect the interview with ,mr4 ,adams1 to which the previous communications which had passed between him and yourself were probably and naturally the preliminary4 ,that interview ,i remember well2 not indeed in the very words which passed between us1 but in their substance1 which was of a character too awful1 too deeply engraved in my mind1 and influencing too materially the course ,i had to pursue1 ever to be forgotten4 ,mr4 ,adams called on me pending the embargo1 and while endeavors were making to obtain its repeal4 ,he made some apologies for the call1 on the ground of our not being then in the habit of confidential communications1 but that that which he had then to make1 involved too seriously the interest of our country not to overrule all other considerations with him1 and make it his duty to reveal it to myself particularly4 ,i assured him there was no occasion for any apology for his visit2 that1 on the contrary1 his communications would be thankfully received1 and would add a confirmation the more to my entire confidence in the rectitude and patriotism of his conduct and principles4 ,he spoke then of the dissatisfaction of the eastern portion of our confederacy with the restraints of the embargo then existing1 and their restlessness under it4 ,that there was nothing which might not be attempted1 to rid themselves of it4 ,that he had information of the most unquestionable certainty1 that certain citizens of the eastern ,states 7,i think he named ,massachusetts particularly7 were in negotiation with agents of the ,british government1 the object of which was an agreement that the ,new ,england ,states should take no further part in the war then going on2 that1 without formally declaring their separation from the ,union of the ,states1 they should withdraw from all aid and obedience to them2 that their navigation and commerce should be free from restraint and interruption by the ,british2 that they should be considered and treated by them as neutrals1 and as such might conduct themselves towards both parties2 and1 at the close of the war1 be at liberty to rejoin the confederacy4 ,he assured me that there was eminent danger that the convention would take place2 that the temptations were such as might debauch many from their fidelity to the ,union2 and that1 to enable its friends to make head against it1 the repeal of the embargo was absolutely necessary4 ,i expressed a just sense of the merit of this information1 and of the importance of the disclosure to the safety and even the salvation of our country2 and however reluctant ,i was to abandon the measure1 7a measure which persevered in a little longer1 we had subsequent and satisfactory assurance would have effected its object completely17 from that moment1 and influenced by that information1 ,i saw the necessity of abandoning it1 and instead of effecting our purpose by this peaceful weapon1 we must fight it out1 or break the ,union4 ,i then recommended to yield to the necessity of a repeal of the embargo1 and to endeavor to supply its place by the best substitute1 in which they could procure a general concurrence4 ,i cannot too often repeat1 that this statement is not pretended to be in the very words which passed2 that it only gives faithfully the impression remaining on my mind4 ,the very words of a conversation are too transient and fugitive to be so long retained in remembrance4 ,but the substance was too important to be forgotten1 not only from the revolution of measures it obliged me to adopt1 but also from the renewals of it in my memory on the frequent occasions ,i have had of doing justice to ,mr4 ,adams1 by repeating this proof of his fidelity to his country1 and of his superiority over all ordinary considerations when the safety of that was brought into question4 ,with this best exertion of a waning memory which ,i can command1 accept assurances of my constant and affectionate friendship and respect4 ,,to ,,william ,b4 ,,giles4 ,,monticello1 ,december #bf1 #ahbe4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i wrote you a letter yesterday1 of which you will be free to make what use you please4 ,this will contain matters not intended for the public eye4 ,i see1 as you do1 and with the deepest affliction1 the rapid strides with which the federal branch of our government is advancing towards the usurpation of all the rights reserved to the ,states1 and the consolidation in itself of all powers1 foreign and domestic2 and that too1 by constructions which1 if legitimate1 leave no limits to their power4 ,take together the decisions of the federal court1 the doctrines of the ,president1 and the misconstructions of the constitutional compact acted on by the legislature of the federal branch1 and it is but too evident1 that the three ruling branches of that department are in combination to strip their colleagues1 the ,state authorities1 of the powers reserved by them1 and to exercise themselves all functions foreign and domestic4 ,under the power to regulate commerce1 they assume indefinitely that also over agriculture and manufactures1 and call it regulation to take the earnings of one of these branches of industry1 and that too the most depressed1 and put them into the pockets of the other1 the most flourishing of all4 ,under the authority to establish post roads1 they claim that of cutting down mountains for the construction of roads1 of digging canals1 and aided by a little sophistry on the words general welfare1 a right to do1 not only the acts to effect that1 which are specifically enumerated and permitted1 but whatsoever they shall think1 or pretend will be for the general welfare4 ,and what is our resource for the preservation of the constitution8 ,reason and argument8 ,you might as well reason and argue with the marble columns encircling them4 ,the representatives chosen by ourselves8 ,they are joined in the combination1 some from incorrect views of government1 some from corrupt ones1 sufficient voting together to out-number the sound parts2 and with majorities only of one1 two1 or three1 bold enough to go forward in defiance4 ,are we then to stand to our arms1 with the hot-headed ,georgian8 ,no4 ,that must be the last resource1 not to be thought of until much longer and greater sufferings4 ,if every infraction of a compact of so many parties is to be resisted at once1 as a dissolution of it1 none can ever be formed which would last one year4 ,we must have patience and longer endurance then with our brethren while under delusion2 give them time for reflection and experience of consequences2 keep ourselves in a situation to profit by the chapter of accidents2 and separate from our companions only when the sole alternatives left1 are the dissolution of our ,union with them1 or submission to a government without limitation of powers4 ,between these two evils1 when we must make a choice1 there can be no hesitation4 ,but in the meanwhile1 the ,states should be watchful to note every material usurpation on their rights2 to denounce them as they occur in the most peremptory terms2 to protest against them as wrongs to which our present submission shall be considered1 not as acknowledgments or precedents of right1 but as a temporary yielding to the lesser evil1 until their accumulation shall overweigh that of separation4 ,i would go still further1 and give to the federal member1 by a regular amendment of the constitution1 a right to make roads and canals of intercommunication between the ,states1 providing sufficiently against corrupt practices in ,congress1 7log-rolling1 c417 by declaring that the federal proportion of each ,state of the moneys so employed1 shall be in works within the ,state1 or elsewhere with its consent1 and with a due salvo of jurisdiction4 ,this is the course which ,i think safest and best as yet4 ,you ask my opinion of the propriety of giving publicity to what is stated in your letter1 as having passed between ,mr4 ,john ,q4 ,adams and yourself4 ,of this no one can judge but yourself4 ,it is one of those questions which belong to the forum of feeling4 ,this alone can decide on the degree of confidence implied in the disclosure2 whether under no circumstances it was to be communicated to others8 ,it does not seem to be of that character1 or at all to wear that aspect4 ,they are historical facts which belong to the present1 as well as future times4 ,i doubt whether a single fact1 known to the world1 will carry as clear conviction to it1 of the correctness of our knowledge of the treasonable views of the federal party of that day1 as that disclosed by this1 the most nefarious and daring attempt to dissever the ,union1 of which the ,hartford convention was a subsequent chapter2 and both of these having failed1 consolidation becomes the fourth chapter of the next book of their history4 ,but this opens with a vast accession of strength from their younger recruits1 who1 having nothing in them of the feelings or principles of '#gf1 now look to a single and splendid government of an aristocracy1 founded on banking institutions1 and moneyed incorporations under the guise and cloak of their favored branches of manufactures1 commerce and navigation1 riding and ruling over the plundered ploughman and beggared yeomanry4 ,this will be to them a next best blessing to the monarchy of their first aim1 and perhaps the surest stepping-stone to it4 ,i learn with great satisfaction that your school is thriving well1 and that you have at its head a truly classical scholar4 ,he is one of three or four whom ,i can hear of in the ,state4 ,we were obliged the last year to receive shameful ,latinists into the classical school of the ,university1 such as we will certainly refuse as soon as we can get from better schools a sufficiency of those properly instructed to form a class4 ,we must get rid of this ,connecticut ,latin1 of this barbarous confusion of long and short syllables1 which renders doubtful whether we are listening to a reader of ,cherokee1 ,shawnee1 ,iroquois1 or what4 ,our ,university has been most fortunate in the five professors procured from ,england4 ,a finer selection could not have been made4 ,besides their being of a grade of science which has left little superior behind1 the correctness of their moral character1 their accommodating dispositions1 and zeal for the prosperity of the institution1 leave us nothing more to wish4 ,i verily believe that as high a degree of education can now be obtained here1 as in the country they left4 ,and a finer set of youths ,i never saw assembled for instruction4 ,they committed some irregularities at first1 until they learned the lawful length of their tether2 since which it has never been transgressed in the smallest degree4 ,a great proportion of them are severely devoted to study1 and ,i fear not to say that within twelve or fifteen years from this time1 a majority of the rulers of our ,state will have been educated here4 ,they shall carry hence the correct principles of our day1 and you may count assuredly that they will exhibit their country in a degree of sound respectability it has never known1 either in our days1 or those of our forefathers4 ,i cannot live to see it4 ,my joy must only be that of anticipation4 ,but that you may see it in full fruition1 is the probable consequence of the twenty years ,i am ahead of you in time1 and is the sincere prayer of your affectionate and constant friend4 ,,to ,,claiborne ,w4 ,,gooch4 ,,monticello1 ,january #i1 #ahbf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i have duly received your favor of ,december the #cast1 and fear1 with you1 all the evils which the present lowering aspect of our political horizon so ominously portends4 ,that at some future day1 which ,i hoped to be very distant1 the free principles of our government might change with the change of circumstances was to be expected4 ,but ,i certainly did not expect that they would not over-live the generation which established them4 ,and what ,i still less expected was1 that my favorite western country was to be made the instrument of change4 ,i had ever and fondly cherished the interests of that country1 relying on it as a barrier against the degeneracy of public opinion from our original and free principles4 ,but the bait of local interests1 artfully prepared for their palate1 has decoyed them from their kindred attachments1 to alliances alien to them4 ,yet although ,i have little hope that the torrent of consolidation can be withstood1 ,i should not be for giving up the ship without efforts to save her4 ,she lived well through the first squall1 and may weather the present one4 ,but1 dear ,sir1 ,i am not the champion called for by our present dangers4 ,non tali auxilio1 nee defensoribus istis1 tempus eget4 ,a waning body1 a waning mind1 and waning memory1 with habitual ill health1 warn me to withdraw and relinquish the arena to younger and abler athletes4 ,i am sensible myself1 if others are not1 that this is my duty4 ,if my distant friends know it not1 those around me can inform them that they should not1 in friendship1 wish to call me into conflicts1 exposing only the decays which nature has inscribed among her unalterable laws1 and injuring the common cause by a senile and puny defence4 ,i will1 however1 say one word on the subject4 ,the ,south ,carolina resolutions1 ,van ,buren's motion1 and above all ,bayley's propositions1 show that other ,states are coming forward on the subject1 and better for any one to take the lead than ,virginia1 where opposition is considered as common-place1 and a mere matter of form and habit4 ,we shall see what our co-,states propose1 and before the close of the session we may shape our own course more understandingly4 ,accept the assurance of my great esteem and respect4 ,to----4#ba ,,monticello1 ,january #ba1 #ahbf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,your favor of ,january #aeth is received1 and ,i am entirely sensible of the kindness of the motives which suggested the caution it recommended4 ,but ,i believe what ,i have done is the only thing ,i could have done with honor or conscience4 ,mr4 ,giles requested me to state a fact which he knew himself1 and of which he knew me to be possessed4 ,what use he intended to make of it ,i knew not1 nor had ,i a right to inquire1 or to indicate any suspicion that he would make an unfair one4 ,that was his concern1 not mine1 and his character was sufficient to sustain the responsibility for it4 ,i knew1 too1 that if an uncandid use should be made of it1 there would be found those who would so prove it4 ,independent of the terms of intimate friendship in which ,mr4 ,giles and myself have ever lived together1 the world's respect entitled him to the justice of my testimony to any truth he might call for2 and how that testimony should connect me with whatever he may do or write hereafter1 and with his whole career1 as you apprehend1 is not understood by me4 ,with his personal controversies ,i have nothing to do4 ,i never took any part in them1 or in those of any other person4 ,add to this1 that the statement ,i have given him on the subject of ,mr4 ,adams1 is entirely honorable to him in every sentiment and fact it contains4 ,there is not a word in it which ,i would wish to recall4 ,it is one which ,mr4 ,adams himself might willingly quote1 did he need to quote anything4 ,it was simply that during the continuance of the embargo1 ,mr4 ,adams informed me of a combination 7without naming any one concerned in it17 which had for its object a severance of the ,union1 for a time at least4 ,that ,mr4 ,adams and myself not being then in the habit of mutual consultation and confidence1 ,i considered it as the stronger proof of the purity of his patriotism1 which was able to lift him above all party passions when the safety of his country was endangered4 ,nor have ,i kept this honorable fact to myself4 ,during the late canvas1 particularly1 ,i had more than one occasion to quote it to persons who were expressing opinions respecting him1 of which this was a direct corrective4 ,i have never entertained for ,mr4 ,adams any but sentiments of esteem and respect2 and if we have not thought alike on political subjects1 ,i yet never doubted the honesty of his opinions1 of which the letter in question1 if published1 will be an additional proof4 ,still1 ,i recognize your friendship in suggesting a review of it1 and am glad of this1 as of every other occasion of repeating to you the assurance of my constant attachment and respect4 ,,footnote3 #ba ,address lost4 ,,to ,,james ,,madison4 ,,monticello1 ,february #ag1 #ahbf4 ,,dear ,,sir1-- 99 99 99 99 99 ,immediately on seeing the overwhelming vote of the ,house of ,representatives against giving us another dollar1 ,i rode to the ,university and desired ,mr4 ,brockenbrough to engage in nothing new1 to stop everything on hand which could be done without1 and to employ all his force and funds in finishing the circular room for the hooks1 and the anatomical theatre4 ,these cannot be done without3 and for these and all our debts we have funds enough4 ,but ,i think it prudent then to clear the decks thoroughly1 to see how we shall stand1 and what we may accomplish further4 ,in the meantime1 there have arrived for us in different ports of the ,united ,states1 ten boxes of books from ,paris1 seven from ,london1 and from ,germany ,i know not how many2 in all1 perhaps1 about twenty-five boxes4 ,not one of these can be opened until the book-room is completely finished1 and all the shelves ready to receive their charge directly from the boxes as they shall be opened4 ,this cannot be till ,may4 ,i hear nothing definitive of the three thousand dollars duty of which we are asking the remission from ,congress4 ,in the selection of our ,law ,professor1 we must be rigorously attentive to his political principles4 ,you will recollect that before the revolution1 ,coke ,littleton was the universal elementary book of law students1 and a sounder whig never wrote1 nor of profounder learning in the orthodox doctrines of the ,british constitution1 or in what were called ,english liberties4 ,you remember also that our lawyers were then all whigs4 ,but when his black-letter text1 and uncouth but cunning learning got out of fashion1 and the honied ,mansfieldism of ,blackstone became the students' hornbook1 from that moment1 that profession 7the nursery of our ,congress7 began to slide into toryism1 and nearly all the young brood of lawyers now are of that hue4 ,they suppose themselves1 indeed1 to be whigs1 because they no longer know what whigism or republicanism means4 ,it is in our seminary that that vestal flame is to be kept alive2 it is thence it is to spread anew over our own and the sister ,states4 ,if we are true and vigilant in our trust1 within a dozen or twenty years a majority of our own legislature will be from one school1 and many disciples will have carried its doctrines home with them to their several ,states1 and will have leavened thus the whole mass4 ,new ,york has taken strong ground in vindication of the constitution2 ,south ,carolina had already done the same4 ,although ,i was against our leading1 ,i am equally against omitting to follow in the same line1 and backing them firmly2 and ,i hope that yourself or some other will mark out the track to be pursued by us4 ,you will have seen in the newspapers some proceedings in the legislature1 which have cost me much mortification4 ,my own debts had become considerable1 but not beyond the effect of some lopping of property1 which would have been little felt1 when our friend 99 99 99 99 99 gave me the coup de grace4 ,ever since that ,i have been paying twelve hundred dollars a year interest on his debt1 which1 with my own1 was absorbing so much of my annual income1 as that the maintenance of my family was making deep and rapid inroads on my capital1 and had already done it4 ,still1 sales at a fair price would leave me competently provided4 ,had crops and prices for several years been such as to maintain a steady competition of substantial bidders at market1 all would have been safe4 ,but the long succession of years of stunted crops1 of reduced prices1 the general prostration of the farming business1 under levies for the support of manufacturers1 c41 with the calamitous fluctuations of value in our paper medium1 have kept agriculture in a state of abject depression1 which has peopled the western ,states by silently breaking up those on the ,atlantic1 and glutted the land market1 while it drew off its bidders4 ,in such a state of things1 property has lost its character of being a resource for debts4 ,highland in ,bedford1 which1 in the days of our plethory1 sold readily for from fifty to one hundred dollars the acre1 7and such sales were many then17 would not now sell for more than from ten to twenty dollars1 or one-quarter or one-fifth of its former price4 ,reflecting on these things1 the practice occurred to me1 of selling1 on fair valuation1 and by way of lottery1 often resorted to before the ,revolution to effect large sales1 and still in constant usage in every ,state for individual as well as corporation purposes4 ,if it is permitted in my case1 my lands here alone1 with the mills1 c41 will pay every thing1 and leave me ,monticello and a farm free4 ,if refused1 ,i must sell everything here1 perhaps considerably in ,bedford1 move thither with my family1 where ,i have not even a log hut to put my head into1 and whether ground for burial1 will depend on the depredations which1 under the form of sales1 shall have been committed on my property4 ,the question then with me was ultrum horum8 ,but why afflict you with these details8 ,indeed1 ,i cannot tell1 unless pains are lessened by communication with a friend4 ,the friendship which has subsisted between us1 now half a century1 and the harmony of our political principles and pursuits1 have been sources of constant happiness to me through that long period4 ,and if ,i remove beyond the reach of attentions to the ,university1 or beyond the bourne of life itself1 as ,i soon must1 it is a comfort to leave that institution under your care1 and an assurance that it will not be wanting4 ,it has also been a great solace to me1 to believe that you are engaged in vindicating to posterity the course we have pursued for preserving to them1 in all their purity1 the blessings of self-government1 which we had assisted too in acquiring for them4 ,if ever the earth has beheld a system of administration conducted with a single and steadfast eye to the general interest and happiness of those committed to it1 one which1 protected by truth1 can never know reproach1 it is that to which our lives have been devoted4 ,to myself you have been a pillar of support through life4 ,take care of me when dead1 and be assured that ,i shall leave with you my last affections4 ,,to ,,john ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,march #be1 #ahbf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,my grandson1 ,thomas ,j4 ,randolph1 the bearer of this letter1 being on a visit to ,boston1 would think he had seen nothing were he to leave without seeing you4 ,although ,i truly sympathize with you in the trouble these interruptions give1 yet ,i must ask for him permission to pay to you his personal respects4 ,like other young people1 he wishes to be able in the winter nights of old age1 to recount to those around him1 what he has heard and learnt of the heroic age preceding his birth1 and which of the ,argonauts individually he was in time to have seen4 ,it was the lot of our early years to witness nothing but the dull monotony of a colonial subservience2 and of our riper years1 to breast the labors and perils of working out of it4 ,theirs are the ,halcyon calms succeeding the storm which our ,argosy had so stoutly weathered4 ,gratify his ambition then1 by receiving his best bow2 and my solicitude for your health1 by enabling him to bring me a favorable account of it4 ,mine is but indifferent1 but not so my friendship and respect for you4 ,,to ,,john ,,quincy ,,adams4 ,,monticello1 ,march #cj1 #ahbf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i am thankful for the very interesting message and documents of which you have been so kind as to send me a copy1 and will state my recollections as to the particular passage of the message to which you ask my attention4 ,on the conclusion of peace1 ,congress1 sensible of their right to assume independence1 would not condescend to ask its acknowledgment from other nations1 yet were willing1 by some of the ordinary international transactions1 to receive what would imply that acknowledgment4 ,they appointed commissioners1 therefore1 to propose treaties of commerce to the principal nations of ,europe4 ,i was then a member of ,congress1 was of the committee appointed to prepare instructions for the commissioners1 was1 as you suppose1 the draughtsman of those actually agreed to1 and was joined with your father and ,dr4 ,franklin1 to carry them into execution4 ,but the stipulations making part of these instructions1 which respected privateering1 blockades1 contraband1 and freedom of the fisheries1 were not original conceptions of mine4 ,they had before been suggested by ,dr4 ,franklin1 in some of his papers in possession of the public1 and had1 ,i think1 been recommended in some letter of his to ,congress4 ,i happen only to have been the inserter of them in the first public act which gave the formal sanction of a public authority4 ,we accordingly proposed our treaties1 containing these stipulations1 to the principal governments of ,europe4 ,but we were then just emerged from a subordinate condition2 the nations had as yet known nothing of us1 and had not yet reflected on the relations which it might be their interest to establish with us4 ,most of them1 therefore1 listened to our propositions with coyness and reserve2 old ,frederic alone closing with us without hesitation4 ,the negotiator of ,portugal1 indeed1 signed a treaty with us1 which his government did not ratify1 and ,tuscany was near a final agreement4 ,becoming sensible1 however1 ourselves1 that we should do nothing with the greater powers1 we thought it better not to hamper our country with engagements to those of less significance1 and suffered our powers to expire without closing any other negotiations4 ,austria soon after became desirous of a treaty with us1 and her ambassador pressed it often on me2 but our commerce with her being no object1 ,i evaded her repeated invitations4 ,had these governments been then apprized of the station we should so soon occupy among nations1 all1 ,i believe1 would have met us promptly and with frankness4 ,these principles would then have been established with all1 and from being the conventional law with us alone1 would have slid into their engagements with one another1 and become general4 ,these are the facts within my recollection4 ,they have not yet got into written history2 but their adoption by our southern brethren will bring them into observance1 and make them1 what they should be1 a part of the law of the world1 and of the reformation of principles for which they will be indebted to us4 ,i pray you to accept the homage of my friendly and high consideration4 ,,to ,,the ,,honorable ,,edward ,,everett4 ,,monticello1 ,april #h1 #ahbf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,i thank you for the very able and eloquent speech you have been so kind as to send me on the amendment of the constitution1 proposed by ,mr4 ,mc,duffie4 ,i have read it with pleasure and satisfaction1 and concur with much of its contents4 ,on the question of the lawfulness of slavery1 that is of the right of one man to appropriate to himself the faculties of another without his consent1 ,i certainly retain my early opinions4 ,on that1 however1 of third persons to interfere between the parties1 and the effect of conventional modifications of that pretension1 we are probably nearer together4 ,i think with you1 also1 that the constitution of the ,united ,states is a compact of independent nations subject to the rules acknowledged in similar cases1 as well that of amendment provided within itself1 as1 in case of abuse1 the justly dreaded hut unavoidable ultimo ratio gentium4 ,the report on the ,panama question mentioned in your letter has as ,i suppose1 got separated by the way4 ,it will probably come by another mail4 ,in some of the letters you have been kind enough to write me1 ,i have been made to hope the favor of a visit from ,washington4 ,it would be received with sincere welcome1 and unwillingly relinquished if no circumstance should render it inconvenient to yourself4 ,i repeat always with pleasure the assurances of my great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,dr4 ,,emmett1 ,,professor ,,of ,,natural ,,history ,,at ,,the ,,university ,,of ,,virginia4 ,,monticello1 ,april #bg1 #ahbf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,it is time to think of the introduction of the school of ,botany into our institution4 ,not that ,i suppose the lectures can be begun in the present year1 but that we may this year make the preparations necessary for commencing them the next4 ,for that branch1 ,i presume1 can be taught advantageously only during the short season while nature is in general bloom1 say during a certain portion of the months of ,april and ,may1 when1 suspending the other branches of your department1 that of ,botany may claim your exclusive attention4 ,of this1 however1 you are to be the judge1 as well as of what ,i may now propose on the subject of preparation4 ,i will do this in writing1 while sitting at my table1 and at ease1 because ,i can rally there1 for your consideration1 with more composure than in extempore conversation1 my thoughts on what we have to do in the present season4 ,i suppose you were well acquainted1 by character1 if not personally1 with the late ,abb ,correa1 who past some time among us1 first as a distinguished savant of ,europe1 and afterwards as ambassador of ,portugal1 resident with our government4 ,profoundly learned in several other branches of science1 he was so1 above all others1 in that of ,botany2 in which he preferred an amalgamation of the methods of ,linnus and of ,jussieu1 to either of them exclusively4 ,our institution being then on hand1 in which that was of course to be one of the subjects of instruction1 ,i availed myself of his presence and friendship to obtain from him a general idea of the extent of ground we should employ1 and the number and character of the plants we should introduce into it4 ,he accordingly sketched for me a mere outline of the scale he would recommend1 restrained altogether to objects of use1 and indulging not at all in things of mere curiosity1 and especially not yet thinking of a hot-house1 or even of a green-house4 ,i enclose you a copy of his paper1 which was the more satisfactory to me1 as it coincided with the moderate views to which our endowments as yet confine us4 ,i am still the more satisfied1 as it seemed to be confirmed by your own way of thinking1 as ,i understood it in our conversation of the other day4 ,to your judgment altogether his ideas will be submitted1 as well as my own1 now to be suggested as to the operations of the present year1 preparatory to the commencement of the school in the next4 #a4 ,our first operation must be the selection of a piece of ground of proper soil and site1 suppose of about six acres1 as ,m4 ,correa proposes4 ,in choosing this we are to regard the circumstances of soil1 water1 and distance4 ,i have diligently examined all our grounds with this view1 and think that that on the public road1 at the upper corner of our possessions1 where the stream issues from them1 has more of the requisite qualities than any other spot we possess4#bb #agj yards square1 taken at that angle1 would make the six acres we want4 ,but the angle at the road is acute1 and the form of the ground will be trapezoid1 not square4 ,i would take1 therefore1 for its breadth1 all the ground between the road and the dam of the brick ponds1 extending eastwardly up the hill1 as far and as wide as our quantity would require4 ,the bottom ground would suit for the garden plants2 the hill sides for the trees4 #b4 ,operation4 ,enclose the ground with a serpentine brick wall seven feet high4 ,this would take about #hj1jjj bricks1 and cost #hjj1 and it must depend on our finances whether they will afford that immediately1 or allow us1 for awhile1 but enclosure of posts and rails4 #c4 ,operation4 ,form all the hill sides into level terrasses of convenient breadth1 curving with the hill1 and the level ground into beds and alleys4 #d4 ,operation4 ,make out a list of the plants thought necessary and sufficient for botanical purposes1 and of the trees we propose to introduce1 and take measures in time for procuring them4 ,as to the seeds of plants1 much may be obtained from the gardeners of our own country4 ,i have1 moreover1 a special resource4 ,for three-and-twenty years of the last twenty-five1 my good old friend ,thonin1 superintendent of the garden of plants at ,paris1 has regularly sent me a box of seeds1 of such exotics1 as to us1 as would suit our climate1 and containing nothing indigenous to our country4 ,these ,i regularly sent to the public and private gardens of the other ,states1 having as yet no employment for them here4 ,but during the last two years this envoi has been intermitted4 ,i know not why4 ,i will immediately write and request a re-commencement of that kind office1 on the ground that we can now employ them ourselves4 ,they can be here in early spring4 ,the trees ,i should propose would be exotics of distinguished usefulness1 and accommodated to our climate2 such as the ,larch1 ,cedar of ,libanus1 ,cork1 ,oak1 the ,maronnier1 ,mahogany8 the ,catachu or ,indian rubber tree of ,napul1 7#cj7 ,teak tree1 or ,indian oak of ,burman1 7#bc7 the various woods of ,brazil1 c4 ,the seed of the ,larch can be obtained from a tree at ,monticello4 ,cones of the ,cedar of ,libanus are in most of our seed shops1 but may be had fresh from the trees in the ,english gardens4 ,the ,maronnier and ,cork-oak1 ,i can obtain from ,france4 ,there is a ,maronnier at ,mount ,vernon1 but it is a seedling1 and not therefore select4 ,the others maybe got through the means of our ministers and consuls in the countries where they grow1 or from the seed shops of ,england1 where they may very possibly be found4 ,lastly1 a gardener of sufficient skill must be obtained4 ,this1 dear ,sir1 is the sum of what occurs to me at present2 think of it1 and let us at once enter on the operations4 ,accept my friendly and respectful salutations4 ,,footnote3 #bb ,to wit1 #ai1cfj square yards #d acres for the garden of plants4 #i1fhj #b acres for the plants of trees4 ------ #bi1jdj square yards #f acres in the whole4 ,,to ,,doctor ,,john ,p4 ,,emmet4 ,,monticello1 ,may #b1 #ahbf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the difficulties suggested in your favor of the #bhth ult41 are those which must occur at the commencement of every undertaking4 ,a full view of the subject however will1 ,i think1 solve them4 ,in every meditated enterprise1 the means we can employ are to be estimated1 and to these must be proportioned our expectations of effect4 ,if1 for example1 to the cultivation of a given field we can devote but one hundred dollars1 we are not to expect the product which #a1jjj would extract from it4 ,applying this principle to the present subject of education1 from a revenue of #ae1jjj1 and with eight ,professors1 we cannot expect to obtain that grade of instruction to our youth1 which #ae1jjj guineas and thirty or forty instructors would give4 ,reviewing1 then1 the branches of science in which we wish our youth to obtain some instruction1 we must distribute them into so many groups as we can employ ,professors1 and as equally too as practicable4 ,we must take into account also the time which our youths can generally afford to the whole circle of education1 and proportion the extent of instruction in each branch to the quota of that time1 and of the ,professor's attention which may fall to its share4 ,in the smallest of our academies1 two ,professors alone can be afforded1--one of languages1 another of sciences1 or of ,philosophy1 as he is generally styled4 ,the degree of instruction which can be given in each branch1 at these schools1 must be very moderate4 ,yet there are youths whose means can afford no more1 and who nevertheless are glad even of that4 ,the most highly endowed of our ,seminaries has a revenue of perhaps #be1jjj or #cj1jjj4 ,they consequently may subdivide the sciences into twelve or fifteen schools1 and give a proportionably more minute degree of instruction in each4 ,it has enabled them1 for example1 to have five or six ,professors of ,theology4 ,in ,europe1 some of their literary institutions can afford to employ twenty1 thirty1 or forty ,professors4 ,our legislature1 contemplating their means1 took their stand at a revenue of #ae1jjj1 meant for an establishment of ten ,professors1 but equal in fact to eight only4 ,accommodating ourselves1 therefore1 to their views1 we had to distribute into eight groups those sciences in which we wished our youth should receive instruction1 and to content ourselves with the portion which that number could give4 ,on the ,professors it would of course devolve to form their lectures on such a scale of extension only1 as to give to each of the sciences allotted them its due share of their time4 ,but another material question is1 what is the whole term of time which the students can give to the whole course of instruction8 ,i should say that three years should be allowed to general education1 and two1 or rather three1 to the particular profession for which they are destined4 ,we receive our students at the age of sixteen1 expected to be previously so far qualified in the languages1 ancient and modern1 as that one year in our schools shall suffice for their last polish4 ,a student then with us may give his first year here to languages and ,mathematics2 his second to ,mathematics and ,physics2 his third to ,physics and ,chemistry1 with the other objects of that school4 ,i particularize this distribution merely for illustration1 and not as that which either is1 or perhaps ought to be established4 ,this would ascribe one year to ,languages1 two to ,mathematics1 two to ,physics1 and one to ,chemistry and its associates4 ,let us see next how the items of your school may be accommodated to this scale2 but by way of illustration only1 as before4 ,the allotments to your school are ,botany1 ,zoology1 ,mineralogy1 ,chemistry1 ,geology and ,rural ,economy4 ,this last1 however1 need not be considered as a distinct branch1 but as one which may be sufficiently treated by seasonable alliances with the kindred subjects of ,chemistry1 ,botany and ,zoology4 ,suppose then you give twelve dozen lectures a year2 say two dozen to ,botany and ,zoology1 two dozen to ,mineralogy and ,geology1 and eight dozen to ,chemistry4 ,or ,i should think that ,mineralogy1 ,geology and ,chemistry might be advantageously blended in the same course4 ,then your year would be formed into two grand divisions2 one-third to ,botany and ,zoology1 and two-thirds to ,chemistry and its associates1 ,mineralogy and ,geology4 ,to the last1 indeed1 ,i would give the least possible time4 ,to learn1 as far as observation has informed us1 the ordinary arrangement of the different strata of minerals in the earth1 to know from their habitual collocations and proximities1 where we find one mineral1 whether another1 for which we are seeking1 may be expected to be in its neighborhood1 is useful4 ,but the dreams about the modes of creation1 inquiries whether our globe has been formed by the agency of fire or water1 how many millions of years it has cost ,vulcan or ,neptune to produce what the fiat of the ,creator would effect by a single act of will1 is too idle to be worth a single hour of any man's life4 ,you will say that two-thirds of a year1 or any better estimated partition of it1 can give but an inadequate knowledge of the whole science of ,chemistry4 ,but consider that we do not expect our schools to turn out their alumni already enthroned on the pinnacles of their respective sciences2 but only so far advanced in each as to be able to pursue them by themselves1 and to become ,newtons and ,la ,places by energies and perseverances to be continued through life4 ,i have said that our original plan comprehended ten ,professors1 and we hope to be able ere long to supply the other two4 ,one should relieve the ,medical ,professor from ,anatomy and ,surgery1 and a school for the other would be made up of the surcharges of yours1 and that of ,physics4 ,from these views of the subject1 dear ,sir1 your only difficulty appears to be so to proportion the time you can give to the different branches committed to you1 as to bring1 within the compass of a year1 for example1 that degree of instruction in each which the year will afford4 ,this may require some experience1 and continued efforts at condensation4 ,but1 once effected1 it will place your mind at ease1 and give to our country a result proportioned to the means it furnishes1 and which ought to satisfy1 and will satisfy1 all reasonable men4 ,i am certain it will those to whom the charge and direction of this institution have been particularly confided1 and to none assuredly more than to him from whom your doubts have drawn this unauthoritative exposition of the public expectations4 ,and1 with this assurance1 be pleased to accept that of my sincerely friendly esteem and respect4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,after sealing the enclosed letter1 it occurred to me that being on a general subject1 and one equally applicable to the cases of your colleagues1 the other ,professors1 ,i should wish it to be read by them also4 ,it may produce an union of views1 and harmony of action1 which may be useful to the ,institution4 ,yours affectionately4 ,,to ----4 ,,monticello1 ,may #ae1 #ahbf4 ,,dear ,,sir1--,the sentiments of justice which have dictated your letters of the #c;d and #ith inst41 are worthy of all praise1 and merit and meet my thankful acknowledgments4 ,were your father now living and proposing1 as you are1 to publish a second edition of his memoirs1 ,i am satisfied he would give a very different aspect to the pages of that work which respect ,arnold's invasion and surprise of ,richmond1 in the winter of #aghj-ha4 ,he was then1 ,i believe1 in ,south ,carolina1 too distant from the scene of those transactions to relate them on his own knowledge1 or even to sift them from the chaff of the rumors then afloat1 rumors which vanished soon before the real truth1 as vapors before the sun1 obliterated by their notoriety1 from every candid mind1 and by the voice of the many who1 as actors or spectators knew what had truly past4 ,the facts shall speak for themselves4 ,general ,washington had just given notice to all the ,governors on the sea-board1 north and south1 that an embarcation was taking place at ,new ,york1 destined for the southward1 as was given out there2 and on ,sunday the #cast of ,december1 #aghj1 we received information that a fleet had entered our capes4 ,it happened fortunately that our legislature was at that moment in session1 and within two days of their rising1 so that1 during these two days1 we had the benefit of their presence1 and of the counsel and information of the members individually4 ,on ,monday the #ast of ,january1 we were in suspense as to the destination of this fleet1 whether up the bay1 or up our river4 ,on ,tuesday at #aj o'clock1 however1 we received information that they had entered ,james river2 and1 on general advice1 we instantly prepared orders for calling in the militia1 one-half from the nearer counties1 and a fourth from the more remote1 which would constitute a force of between four and five thousand men1 of which orders the members of the legislature1 which adjourned that day1 took charge1 each to his respective county2 and we began the removal of everything from ,richmond4 ,the wind being fair and strong1 the enemy ascended the river as rapidly almost as the expresses could ride1 who were dispatched to us from time to time1 to notify their progress4 ,at #e ,p4 ,m4 on ,thursday1 we learnt that they had then been three hours landed at ,westover4 ,the whole militia of the adjacent counties were now called for1 and to come on individually1 without waiting any regular array4 ,at #a ,p4 ,m4 the next day1 7,friday17 they entered ,richmond1 and on ,saturday1 after twenty-four hours possession1 burning some houses1 destroying property1 c41 they retreated1 encamped that evening ten miles below1 and reached their shipping at ,westover the next day1 7,sunday47 ,by this time had assembled three hundred militia under ,colonel ,nicholas1 six miles above ,westover1 and two hundred under ,general ,nelson1 at ,charles city ,court ,house1 eight miles below4 ,two or three hundred at ,petersburg had put themselves under ,general ,smallwood1 of ,maryland1 accidentally there on his passage through the ,state2 and ,baron ,steuben with eight hundred1 and ,colonel ,gibson with one thousand1 were also on the south side of ,james river1 aiming to reach ,hood's before the enemy should have passed it1 where they hoped they could arrest them4 ,but the wind1 having shifted1 carried them down as prosperously as it had brought them up the river4 ,within the first five days1 therefore1 about twenty-five hundred men had collected at three or four different points1 ready for junction4 ,i was absent myself from ,richmond 7but always within observing distance of the enemy7 three days only1 during which ,i was never off my horse but to take food or rest1 and was everywhere where my presence could be of any service2 and ,i may with confidence challenge any one to put his finger on the point of time when ,i was in a state of remissness from any duty of my station4 ,but ,i was not with the army6 true2 for first1 where was it8 second1 ,i was engaged in the more important function of taking measures to collect an army2 and1 without military education myself1 instead of jeopardizing the public safety by pretending to take its command1 of which ,i knew nothing1 ,i had committed it to persons of the art1 men who knew how to make the best use of it1 to ,steuben for instance1 to ,nelson and others1 possessing that military skill and experience1 of which ,i had none4 ,let our condition1 too1 at that time be duly considered4 ,without arms1 without money of effect1 without a regular soldier in the ,state1 or a regular officer1 except ,steuben1 a militia scattered over the country1 and called at a moment's warning to leave their families and firesides1 in the dead of winter1 to meet an enemy ready marshalled1 and prepared at all points to receive them4 ,yet had time been given them by the hasty retreat of that enemy1 ,i have no doubt but the rush to arms1 and to the protection of their country1 would have been as rapid and universal as in the invasion during our late war1 when1 at the first moment of notice1 our citizens rose in mass1 from every part of the ,state1 and without waiting to be marshalled by their officers1 armed themselves1 and marched off by ones and by twos1 as quickly as they could equip themselves4 ,of the individuals of the same house one would start in the morning1 a second at noon1 a third in the evening1 no one waiting an hour for the company of another4 ,this ,i saw myself on the late occasion1 and should have seen on the former had wind1 and tide1 and a ,howe1 instead of an ,arnold1 slackened their pace ever so little4 ,and is the surprise of an open and unarmed place1 although called a city1 and even a capital1 so unprecedented as to be a matter of indelible reproach8 ,which of our own capitals during the same war1 was not in possession of the same enemy1 not merely by surprise and for a day only1 but permanently8 ,that of ,georgia8 of ,south ,carolina8 ,north ,carolina8 ,pennsylvania8 ,new ,york8 ,connecticut8 ,rhode ,island8 ,massachusetts8 ,and if others were not1 it was because the enemy saw no object in taking possession of them4 ,add to the list in the late war1 ,washington1 the metropolis of the ,union1 covered by a fort1 with troops and a dense population4 ,and what capital on the continent of ,europe1 7,st4 ,petersburg and its regions of ice excepted17 did not ,bonaparte take and hold at his pleasure8 ,is it then just that ,richmond and its authorities alone should be placed under the reproach of history1 because1 in a moment of peculiar denudation of resources1 by the coup de main of an enemy1 led on by the hand of fortune directing the winds and weather to their wishes1 it was surprised and held for twenty-four hours8 ,or strange that that enemy with such advantages1 should be enabled then to get off1 without risking the honors he had achieved by burnings and destructions of property peculiar to his principles of warfare8 ,we1 at least1 may leave these glories to their own trumpet4 ,during this crisis of trial ,i was left alone1 unassisted by the co-operation of a single public functionary4 ,for1 with the legislature1 every member of the council had departed to take care of his own family4 ,unaided even in my bodily labors1 but by my horse1 and he1 exhausted at length by fatigue1 sunk under me in the public road1 where ,i had to leave him1 and with my saddle and bridle on my shoulders1 to walk afoot to the nearest farm1 where ,i borrowed an unbroken colt1 and proceeded to ,manchester1 opposite to ,richmond1 which the enemy had evacuated a few hours before4 ,without further pursuing these minute details1 ,i will here ask the favor of you to turn to ,girardin's ,history of ,virginia1 where such of them as are worthy the notice of history1 are related in that scale of extension which its objects admit4 ,that work was written at ,milton1 within two or three miles of ,monticello2 and at the request of the author1 ,i communicated to him every paper ,i possessed on the subject1 of which he made the use he thought proper for his work4 ,see his pages #dec1 #dfj1 and the appendix xi4-xv4 ,i can assure you of the truth of every fact he has drawn from these papers1 and of the genuineness of such as he has taken the trouble of copying4 ,it happened that during those eight days of incessant labor1 for the benefit of my own memory1 ,i carefully noted every circumstance worth it4 ,these memorandums were often written on horseback1 and on scraps of paper taken out of my pocket at the moment1 fortunately preserved to this day1 and now lying before me4 ,i wish you could see them4 ,but my papers of that period are stitched together in large masses1 and so tattered and tender as not to admit removal further than from their shelves to a reading table4 ,they bear an internal evidence of fidelity which must carry conviction to every one who sees them4 ,we have nothing in our neighborhood which could compensate the trouble of a visit to it1 unless perhaps our ,university1 which ,i believe you have not seen1 and ,i can assure you is worth seeing4 ,should you think so1 ,i would ask as much of your time at ,monticello as would enable you to examine these papers at your ease4 ,many others too are interspersed among them1 which have relation to your object1 many letters from ,generals ,gates1 ,greene1 ,stephens and others engaged in the ,southern war1 and in the ,north also4 ,all should be laid open to you without reserve1 for there is not a truth existing which ,i fear1 or would wish unknown to the whole world4 ,during the invasions of ,arnold1 ,phillips and ,cornwallis1 until my time of office had expired1 ,i made it a point1 once a week1 by letters to the ,president of ,congress1 and to ,general ,washington1 to give them an exact narrative of the transactions of the week4 ,these letters should still be in the office of state in ,washington1 and in the presses at ,mount ,vernon4 ,or1 if the former were destroyed by the conflagrations of the ,british1 the latter are surely safe1 and may be appealed to in corroboration of what ,i have now written4 ,there is another transaction1 very erroneously stated in the same work1 which although not concerning myself1 is within my own knowledge1 and ,i think it a duty to communicate it to you4 ,i am sorry that not being in possession of a copy of the memoirs1 ,i am not able to quote the page1 and still less the facts themselves1 verbatim from the text4 ,but of the substance1 as recollected1 ,i am certain4 ,it is said there that1 about the time of ,tarleton's expedition up the north branch of ,james river to ,charlottesville and ,monticello1 ,simcoe was detached up the southern branch1 and penetrated as far as ,new ,london1 in ,bedford1 where he destroyed a dept of arms1 c41 c4 ,i was with my family1 at the time1 at a possession ,i have within three miles of ,new ,london1 and ,i can assure you of my own knowledge that he did not advance to within fifty miles of ,new ,london4 ,having reached the lower end of ,buckingham1 as ,i have understood1 he heard of a deposit of arms1 and a party of new recruits under ,baron ,steuben1 somewhere in ,prince ,edward2 he left the ,buckingham road immediately1 at or near ,francisco's1 pushed directly south at this new object1 was disappointed1 and returned to and down ,james river to head quarters4 ,i had then returned to ,monticello myself1 and from thence saw the smokes of his conflagration of houses and property on that river1 as they successively arose in the horizon at a distance of twenty-five or thirty miles4 ,i must repeat that his excursion from ,francisco's is not from my own knowledge1 but as ,i have heard it from the inhabitants on the ,buckingham road1 which for many years ,i travelled six or eight times a year4 ,the particulars of that1 therefore1 may need inquiry and correction4 ,these are all the recollections within the scope of your request1 which ,i can state with precision and certainty2 and of these you are free to make what use you think proper in the new edition of your father's work2 and with which ,i pray you to accept the assurances of my great esteem and respect4 ,,to ,,mr4 ,,weightman4 ,,monticello1 ,june #bd1 #ahbf4 ,,respected ,,sir1--,the kind invitation ,i receive from you1 on the part of the citizens of the city of ,washington1 to be present with them at their celebration on the fiftieth anniversary of ,american ,independence1 as one of the surviving signers of an instrument pregnant with our own1 and the fate of the world1 is most flattering to myself1 and heightened by the honorable accompaniment proposed for the comfort of such a journey4 ,it adds sensibly to the sufferings of sickness1 to be deprived by it of a personal participation in the rejoicings of that day4 ,but acquiescence is a duty1 under circumstances not placed among those we are permitted to control4 ,i should1 indeed1 with peculiar delight1 have met and exchanged there congratulations personally with the small band1 the remnant of that host of worthies1 who joined with us on that day1 in the bold and doubtful election we were to make for our country1 between submission or the sword2 and to have enjoyed with them the consolatory fact1 that our fellow citizens1 after half a century of experience and prosperity1 continue to approve the choice we made4 ,may it be to the world1 what ,i believe it will be1 7to some parts sooner1 to others later1 but finally to all17 the signal of arousing men to burst the chains under which monkish ignorance and superstition had persuaded them to bind themselves1 and to assume the blessings and security of self-government4 ,that form which we have substituted1 restores the free right to the unbounded exercise of reason and freedom of opinion4 ,all eyes are opened1 or opening1 to the rights of man4 ,the general spread of the light of science has already laid open to every view the palpable truth1 that the mass of mankind has not been born with saddles on their backs1 nor a favored few booted and spurred1 ready to ride them legitimately1 by the grace of ,god4 ,these are grounds of hope for others4 ,for ourselves1 let the annual return of this day forever refresh our recollections of these rights1 and an undiminished devotion to them4 ,i will ask permission here to express the pleasure with which ,i should have met my ancient neighbors of the city of ,washington and its vicinities1 with whom ,i passed so many years of a pleasing social intercourse2 an intercourse which so much relieved the anxieties of the public cares1 and left impressions so deeply engraved in my affections1 as never to be forgotten4 ,with my regret that ill health forbids me the gratification of an acceptance1 be pleased to receive for yourself1 and those for whom you write1 the assurance of my highest respect and friendly attachments4 ,,book ,,iii4 ,,official ,,papers ,,part ,i4--,,reports ,,and ,,opinions ,,while ,,secretary ,,of ,,state4 ,,ii4--,,inaugural ,,addresses ,,and ,,messages4 ,,iii4--,,replies ,,to ,,public ,,addresses4 ,,iv4--,,indian ,,addresses4 ,,introductory ,,to ,,book ,,iii4 ,this division of the work embraces all the important official papers of ,thomas ,jefferson1 from the time at which he entered upon the duties of the ,secretaryship of ,state to the end of his ,presidential term1 with the exception of his official letters1 a part of which will be found printed in ,book ,,ii41 devoted to his general correspondence1 both official and private4 ,it being the wish of the ,library committee1 under whose supervision this work has been prepared1 that it should be compressed within as few volumes as was consistent with justice to the reputation of the author1 and the great body of ,mr4 ,jefferson's official letters having been already published among the ,american ,state ,papers and ,sparks' ,diplomatic ,correspondence1 the most interesting and valuable only have been selected for re-publication in this work1 as specimens of the author's manner in the preparation of such papers4 ,all omitted here will be found in the publications just referred to4 ,the official papers embraced in this division of the work1 have been classified1 for the purposes of easy reference1 under the following heads3 ,,part ,i4--,reports and ,opinions while ,secretary of ,state4--,under this head are included ,jefferson's ,reports to ,congress1 which have been published before2 also1 his ,reports to the ,president1 and his ,cabinet ,opinions1 both of which were private1 and are now for the first time given to the public4 ,it seems to have been the practice of ,washington1 to take the written opinions of his ,secretaries upon important points arising during his administration1 and the opinions of ,jefferson1 here published1 were given in reply to questions propounded and points submitted to him by the ,president1 in conformity with this practice4 ,they relate to a great variety of matters connected with the early history of our government1 and the principles of interpretation to be applied to the ,federal ,constitution1 and will be found interesting and valuable4 ,,part ,,ii4--,inaugural ,address and ,messages4--,during the administration of ,washington and ,adams1 it was the custom of the ,president1 at the opening of each session of ,congress1 to meet both ,houses in person1 and deliver a written speech1 to which1 in the course of a few days1 each ,house would return an answer through a committee appointed to wait upon him1 he1 at the same time1 returning a brief reply4 ,mr4 ,jefferson1 at the beginning of his ,presidential term1 changed this system4 ,instead of meeting the ,houses of ,congress in person1 and addressing to them a speech1 he sent them a written message1 thus substituting messages for speeches4 ,his reasons for this change were the greater convenience of messages over speeches1 the economy of time1 and the relief of ,congress from the necessity of answering on subjects in regard to which they were often very imperfectly informed4 ,the general opinion of the country at the time seems to have approved the change2 and the mode of communicating with ,congress by messages in preference to speeches1 has been invariably adopted by the ,presidents ever since4 ,this division of the work contains ,jefferson's ,inaugural ,address and regular and special messages4 ,,part ,,iii4--,replies to ,public ,addresses4--,the public addresses received by ,mr4 ,jefferson1 and answered by him1 were very numerous4 ,this was particularly the case at the time of the ,embargo1 the attack on the ,chesapeake1 and the termination of his ,presidential service4 ,the plan of this work does not admit the publication of the whole of these ,addresses and ,replies2 nor1 indeed1 is there any necessity for it4 ,it is only necessary that a few of the ,replies should be published1 as specimens of the rest4 ,this has been done1 selecting such as have the highest claim1 and omitting none which possess any historical value4 ,,part ,,iv4--,indian ,addresses4--,there is a number of these ,addresses4 ,they possess a certain interest as exhibiting the humane policy of our government towards the ,indians1 our efforts to civilize them1 to make them agriculturists1 to keep them at peace with ourselves and with each other1 and the manner in which their lands were acquired from them1 always by purchase1 with their own free consent4 ,some of the most important have1 therefore1 been incorporated in the work4 ,,part ,i4 ,,reports ,,and ,,opinions ,,while ,,secretary ,,of ,,state4 ,i4--,report on the methods for obtaining ,fresh ,water from ,salt4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred by the ,house of ,representatives of the ,united ,states1 the petition of ,jacob ,isaacs of ,newport in ,rhode ,island1 has examined into the truth and importance of the allegations therein set forth1 and makes thereon the following report3 ,the petitioner sets forth1 that by various experiments1 with considerable labor and expense1 he has discovered a method of converting salt-water into fresh1 in the proportion of #h parts out of #aj1 by a process so simple that it may be performed on board of vessels at sea by the common iron caboose1 with small alterations1 by the same fire1 and in the same time1 which is used for cooking the ship's provisions1 and offers to convey to the government of the ,united ,states a faithful account of his art or secret1 to be used by1 or within the ,united ,states1 on their giving to him a reward suitable to the importance of the discovery1 and in the opinion of government1 adequate to his expenses and the time he has devoted to the bringing it into effect4 ,in order to ascertain the merit of the petitioner's discovery1 it becomes necessary to examine the advances already made in the art of converting salt-water into fresh4 ,lord ,bacon1 to whom the world is indebted for the first germs of so many branches of science1 had observed1 that with a heat sufficient for distillation1 salt will not rise in vapor1 and that salt-water distilled is fresh2 and it would seem1 that all mankind might have observed that the earth is supplied with fresh water chiefly by exhalation from the sea1 which is1 in fact1 an insensible distillation effected by the heat of the sun2 yet this1 although the most obvious1 was not the first idea in the essays for converting salt-water into fresh2 filtration was tried in vain1 and congelation could be resorted to only in the coldest regions and seasons4 ,in all the earlier trials by distillation1 some mixture was thought necessary to aid the operation by a partial precipitation of the salt1 and other foreign matters contained in sea-water4 ,of this kind1 were the methods of ,sir ,richard ,hawkins in the sixteenth century1 of ,glauber1 ,hauton1 and ,lister1 in the seventeenth1 and of ,hales1 ,appleby1 ,butler1 ,chapman1 ,hoffman1 and ,dore1 in the eighteenth2 nor was there anything in these methods worthy noting on the present occasion1 except the very simple still contrived extempore by ,captain ,chapman1 and made from such materials as are to be found on board every ship1 great or small2 this was a common pot1 with a wooded lid of the usual form2 in the centre of which a hole was bored to receive perpendicularly1 a short wooden tube made with an inch-and-a-half auger1 which perpendicular tube received at its top1 and at an acute angle1 another tube of wood also1 which descended until it joined a third of pewter made by rolling up a dish and passing it obliquely through a cask of cold water2 with this simple machine he obtained two quarts of fresh water an hour1 and observed that the expense of fuel would be very trifling1 if the still was contrived to stand on the fire along with the ship's boiler4 ,in #agfb1 ,doctor ,lind1 proposing to make experiment of several different mixtures1 first distilled rain-water1 which he supposed would be the purest1 and then sea-water1 without any mixture1 which he expected would be the least pure1 in order to arrange between these two supposed extremes1 the degree of merit of the several ingredients he meant to try2 to his great surprise1 as he confesses1 the sea-water distilled without any mixture1 was as pure as the rain-water2 he pursued the discovery and established the fact1 that a pure and potable fresh water may be obtained from salt-water by simple distillation1 without the aid of any mixture for fining or precipitating its foreign contents4 ,in #agfg1 he proposed an extempore still1 which1 in fact1 was ,chapman's1 only substituting a gun-barrel instead of ,chapman's pewter tube1 and the hand-pump of the ship to be cut in two obliquely and joined again at an acute angle1 instead of ,chapman's wooden tubes bored expressly2 or instead of the wooden lid and upright tube1 he proposed a tea-kettle 7without its lid or handle7 to be turned bottom upwards over the mouth of the pot by way of still-head1 and a wooden tube leading from the spout to a gun-barrel passing through a cask of water1 the whole luted with equal parts of chalk and meal moistened with salt-water4 ,with this apparatus of a pot1 tea-kettle1 and gun-barrel1 the ,dolphin1 a twenty-gun ship1 in her voyage around the world in #agfh1 from #ef gallons of sea-water and with #i lbs4 of wood and #fi lbs4 of pit-coal made #db gallons of good fresh water1 at the rate of #h gallons an hour4 ,the ,dorsetshire1 in her passage from ,gibraltar to ,mahon in #agfi1 made #ai quarts of pure water in four hours with #aj lbs4 of wood1 and the ,slambal in #aggc1 between ,bombay and ,bengal1 with the hand-pump1 gun-barrel1 and a pot of #f gallons of sea-water1 made ten quarts of fresh water in three hours4 ,in #agga1 ,dr4 ,irvin putting together ,lind's idea of distilling without a mixture1 ,chapman's still1 and ,dr4 ,franklin's method of cooling by evaporation1 obtained a premium of five thousand pounds from the ,british parliament4 ,he wet his tube constantly with a mop instead of passing it through a cask of water2 he enlarged its bore also1 in order to give a free passage to the vapor1 and thereby increase its quantity by lessening the resistance or pressure on the evaporating surface4 ,this last improvement was his own2 it doubtless contributed to the success of his process2 and we may suppose the enlargement of the tube to be useful to that point at which the central parts of the vapor passing through it would begin to escape condensation4 ,lord ,mulgrave used his method in his voyage towards the north pole in #aggc1 making from #cd to #dj gallons of fresh water a day1 without any great addition of fuel1 as he says4 ,m4 de ,bougainville1 in his voyage round the world1 used very successfully a still which had been contrived in #agfc by ,poyssonier to guard against the water being thrown over from the boiler into the pipe1 by the agitation of the ship4 ,in this1 one singularity was1 that the furnace or fire-box was in the middle of the boiler1 so that the water surrounded it in contact4 ,this still1 however1 was expensive1 and occupied much room4 ,such was the advances already made in the art of obtaining fresh from salt-water1 when ,mr4 ,isaacs1 the petitioner1 suggested his discovery4 ,as the merit of this could be ascertained by experiment only1 the ,secretary of ,state asked the favor of ,mr4 ,rittenhouse1 ,president of the ,american ,philosophical ,society1 of ,dr4 ,wistar1 professor of chemistry in the college at ,philadelphia1 and ,dr4 ,hutchinson1 professor of chemistry in the ,university of ,pennsylvania1 to be present at the experiments4 ,mr4 ,isaacs fixed the pot1 a small caboose1 with a tin cap and straight tube of tin passing obliquely through a cask of cold water2 he made use of a mixture1 the composition of which he did not explain1 and from #bd pints of sea-water1 taken up about three miles out of the ,capes of ,delaware1 at flood-tide1 he distilled #bb pints of fresh water in four hours with #bj lbs4 of seasoned pine1 which was a little wetted by having lain in the rain4 ,in a second experiment of the #bast of ,march1 performed in a furnace1 and five-gallon still at the college1 from #cb pints of sea-water he drew #ca pints of fresh water in #g hours and #bd minutes1 with #ea lbs4 of hickory1 which had been cut about six months4 ,in order to decide whether ,mr4 ,isaacs' mixture contributed in any and what degree to the success of the operation1 it was thought proper to repeat his experiment under the same circumstances exactly1 except the omission of the mixture4 ,accordingly1 on the next day1 the same quantity of sea-water was put into the same still1 the same furnace was used1 and fuel from the same parcel2 it yielded1 as his had done1 #ca pints fresh water in #aa minutes more of time1 and with #aj lbs4 less of wood4 ,on the #bdth of ,march1 ,mr4 ,isaacs performed a third experiment4 ,for this1 a common iron pot of three and a half gallons was fixed in brick work1 and the fine from the hearth wound once around this pot spirally1 and then passed off up a chimney4 ,the cap was of tin1 and a straight tin tube of about two inches diameter passing obliquely through a barrel of water1 served instead of a worm4 ,from sixteen pints of sea-water he drew off fifteen pints of fresh water1 in two hours fifty-five minutes1 with #c lbs4 of dry hickory and #h lbs4 of seasoned pine4 ,this experiment was also repeated the next day1 with the same apparatus1 and fuel from the same parcel2 but without the mixture1 sixteen pints of sea-water yielded in like manner fifteen pints of fresh in one minute more of time1 and with lb4 less of wood4 ,on the whole1 it was evident that ,mr4 ,isaacs' mixture produced no advantage either in the process or result of the distillation4 ,the distilled water in all these instances1 was found on experiment to be as pure as the best pump water of the city2 its taste1 indeed1 was not as agreeable1 but it was not such as to produce any disgust4 ,in fact1 we drink1 in common life1 in many places1 and under many circumstances1 and almost always at sea1 a worse tasted and probably a less wholesome water4 ,the obtaining fresh from salt-water was for ages considered as an important desideratum for the use of navigators4 ,the process for doing this by simple distillation is so efficacious1 the erecting an extempore still with such utensils as are found on board of every ship1 is so practicable1 as to authorize the assertion that this desideratum is satisfied to a very useful degree4 ,but though this has been done for upwards of thirty years1 though its reality has been established by the actual experience of several vessels which have had recourse to it1 yet neither the fact nor the process is known to the mass of seamen1 to whom it would be the most useful1 and for whom it was principally wanted4 ,the ,secretary of ,state is therefore of opinion that since the subject has now been brought under observation1 it should be made the occasion of disseminating its knowledge generally and effectually among the seafaring citizens of the ,united ,states4 ,the following is one of the many methods which might be proposed for doing this3 ,let the clearance for every vessel sailing from the ports of the ,united ,states be printed on a paper1 in the back whereof shall be a printed account of the essays which have been made for obtaining fresh from salt-water1 mentioning shortly those which have been unsuccessful1 and more fully those which have succeeded1 describing the methods which have been found to answer for constructing extempore stills of such implements as are generally on board of every vessel1 with a recommendation in all cases where they shall have occasion to resort to this expedient for obtaining water1 to publish the result of their trial in some gazette on their return to the ,united ,states1 or to communicate it for publication to the office of the ,secretary of ,state1 in order that others may1 by their success1 be encouraged to make similar trials1 and be benefited by any improvements or new ideas which may occur to them in practice4 ,,ii4 ,opinion on the proposition for establishing a ,woollen ,manufactory in ,virginia4 ,the ,house of ,delegates of ,virginia seemed disposed to adventure #b1ejj for the encouragement of this undertaking1 but the ,senate did not concur4 ,by their returning to the subject1 however1 at a subsequent session1 and wishing more specific propositions1 it is probable they might be induced to concur1 if they saw a certain provision that their money would not be paid for nothing4 ,some unsuccessful experiments heretofore may have suggested this caution4 ,suppose the propositions brought into some such shape as this3 ,the undertaker is to contribute #a1jjj1 the ,state #b1ejj1 viz43 the undertaker having laid out his #a1jjj in the necessary implements to be brought from ,europe1 and these being landed in ,virginia as a security that he will proceed1 let the ,state pay for the first necessary purposes then to occur #a1jjj ,let it pay him a stipend of #ajj a year for the first three years #cjj ,let it give him a bounty 7suppose one-third7 on every yard of woollen cloth equal to good plains1 which he shall weave for five years1 not exceeding #bej a year 7#bj1jjj yards7 the four first years1 and #bjj the fifth #a1bjj ------ #b1ejj ,to every workman whom he shall import1 let them give1 after he shall have worked in the manufactory five years1 warrants for ---- acres of land1 and pay the expenses of survey1 patents1 c4 ,this last article is to meet the proposition of the undertaker4 ,i do not like it1 because it tends to draw off the manufacturer from his trade4 ,i should better like a premium to him on his continuance in it2 as1 for instance1 that he should be free from ,state taxes as long as he should carry on his trade4 ,the ,president's intervention seems necessary till the contracts shall be concluded4 ,it is presumed he would not like to be embarrassed afterwards with the details of superintendence4 ,suppose1 in his answer to the ,governor of ,virginia1 he should say that the undertaker being in ,europe1 more specific propositions cannot be obtained from him in time to be laid before this assembly2 that in order to secure to the ,state the benefits of the establishment1 and yet guard them against an unproductive grant of money1 he thinks some plan like the preceding one might be proposed to the undertaker4 ,that as it is not known whether he would accept it exactly in that form1 it might disappoint the views of the ,state were they to prescribe that or any other form rigorously1 consequently that a discretionary power must be given to a certain extent4 ,that he would willingly coperate with their executive in effecting the contract1 and certainly would not conclude it on any terms worse for the ,state than those before explained1 and that the contracts being once concluded1 his distance and other occupations would oblige him to leave the execution open to the ,executive of the ,state4 ,,iii4 ,the ,report on ,copper ,coinage1 communicated to the ,house of ,representatives1 ,april #aeth1 #agij4 ,april #ad1 #agij4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred1 by the ,house of ,representatives1 the letter of ,john ,h4 ,mitchell1 reciting certain proposals for supplying the ,united ,states with copper coinage1 has had the same under consideration1 according to instructions1 and begs leave to report thereon as follows3 ,the person who wishes to undertake the supply of a copper coinage1 sets forth1 that the superiority of his apparatus and process for coining1 enables him to furnish a coinage better and cheaper than can be done by any country or person whatever2 that his dies are engraved by the first artist in that line in ,europe2 that his apparatus for striking the edge at the same blow with the faces1 is new1 and singularly ingenious2 that he coins by a press on a new principle1 and worked by a fire-engine1 more regularly than can be done by hand2 that he will deliver any quantity of coin1 of any size and device1 of pure1 unalloyed copper1 wrapped in paper and packed in casks1 ready for shipping1 for fourteen pence sterling the pound4 ,the ,secretary of ,state has before been apprized1 from other sources of information1 of the great improvements made by this undertaker1 in sundry arts2 he is acquainted with the artist who invented the method of striking the edge1 and both faces of the coin at one blow2 he has seen his process and coins1 and sent to the former ,congress some specimens of them1 with certain offers from him1 before he entered into the service of the present undertaker1 7which specimens he takes the liberty of now submitting to the inspection of the ,house1 as proofs of the superiority of this method of coinage1 in gold and silver as well as copper47 ,he is1 therefore1 of opinion1 that the undertaker1 aided by that artist1 and by his own excellent machines1 is truly in a condition to furnish coin in a state of higher perfection than has ever yet been issued by any nation2 that perfection in the engraving is among the greatest safeguards against counterfeits1 because engravers of the first class are few1 and elevated by their rank in their art1 far above the base and dangerous business of counterfeiting4 ,that the perfection of coins will indeed disappear1 after they are for some time worn among other pieces1 and especially where the figures are rather faintly relieved1 as on those of this artist2 yet1 their high finishing1 while new1 is not the less a guard against counterfeits1 because these1 if carried to any extent1 may be ushered into circulation new1 also1 and consequently1 may be compared with genuine coins in the same state2 that1 therefore1 whenever the ,united ,states shall be disposed to have a coin of their own1 it will be desirable to aim at this kind of perfection4 ,that this cannot be better effected1 than by availing themselves1 if possible1 of the services of the undertaker1 and of this artist1 whose excellent methods and machines are said to have abridged1 as well as perfected1 the operations of coinage4 ,these operations1 however1 and their expense1 being new1 and unknown here1 he is unable to say whether the price proposed be reasonable or not4 ,he is also uncertain whether1 instead of the larger copper coin1 the ,legislature might not prefer a lighter one of billon1 or mixed metal1 as is practised1 with convenience1 by several other nations--a specimen of which kind of coinage is submitted to their inspection4 ,but the propositions under consideration suppose that the work is to be carried on in a foreign country1 and that the implements are to remain the property of the undertaker2 which conditions1 in his opinion1 render them inadmissible1 for these reasons3 ,coinage is peculiarly an attribute of sovereignty4 ,to transfer its exercise into another country1 is to submit it to another sovereign4 ,its transportation across the ocean1 besides the ordinary dangers of the sea1 would expose it to acts of piracy1 by the crews to whom it would be confided1 as well as by others apprized of its passage4 ,in time of war1 it would offer to the enterprises of an enemy1 what have been emphatically called the sinews of war4 ,if the war were with the nation within whose territory the coinage is1 the first act of war1 or reprisal1 might be to arrest this operation1 with the implements and materials coined and uncoined1 to be used at their discretion4 ,the reputation and principles of the present undertaker are safeguards against the abuses of a coinage1 carried on in a foreign country1 where no checks could be provided by the proper sovereign1 no regulations established1 no police1 no guard exercised2 in short1 none of the numerous cautions hitherto thought essential at every mint2 but in hands less entitled to confidence1 these will become dangers4 ,we may be secured1 indeed1 by proper experiments as to the purity of the coin delivered us according to contract1 but we cannot be secured against that which1 though less pure1 shall be struck in the genuine die1 and protected against the vigilance of ,government1 till it shall have entered into circulation4 ,we lose the opportunity of calling in and re-coining the clipped money in circulation1 or we double our risk by a double transportation4 ,we lose1 in like manner1 the resource of coining up our household plate in the instant of great distress4 ,we lose the means of forming artists to continue the works1 when the common accidents of mortality shall have deprived us of those who began them4 ,in fine1 the carrying on a coinage in a foreign country1 as far as the ,secretary knows1 is without example2 and general example is weighty authority4 ,he is1 therefore1 of opinion1 on the whole1 that a mint1 whenever established1 should be established at home2 that the superiority1 the merit1 and means of the undertaker1 will suggest him as the proper person to be engaged in the establishment and conduct of a mint1 on a scale which1 relinquishing nothing in the perfection of the coin1 shall be duly proportioned to our purposes4 ,and1 in the meanwhile1 he is of opinion the present proposals should be declined4 ,,iv4--,opinion on the question whether the ,senate has the right to negative the grade of persons appointed by the ,executive to fill ,foreign ,missions4 ,,new ,,york1 ,april #bd1 #agij4 ,the constitution having declared that the ,president shall nominate and1 by and with the advice and consent of the ,senate1 shall appoint ambassadors1 other public ministers1 and consuls1 the ,president desired my opinion whether the ,senate has a right to negative the grade he may think it expedient to use in a foreign mission as well as the person to be appointed4 ,i think the ,senate has no right to negative the grade4 ,the constitution has divided the powers of government into three branches1 ,legislative1 ,executive and ,judiciary1 lodging each with a distinct magistracy4 ,the ,legislative it has given completely to the ,senate and ,house of ,representatives4 ,it has declared that the ,executive powers shall be vested in the ,president1 submitting special articles of it to a negative by the ,senate1 and it has vested the ,judiciary power in the courts of justice1 with certain exceptions also in favor of the ,senate4 ,the transaction of business with foreign nations is ,executive altogether4 ,it belongs1 then1 to the head of that department1 except as to such portions of it as are specially submitted to the ,senate4 ,exceptions are to be construed strictly4 ,the constitution itself indeed has taken care to circumscribe this one within very strict limits2 for it gives the nomination of the foreign agents to the ,president1 the appointments to him and the ,senate jointly1 and the commissioning to the ,president4 ,this analysis calls our attention the strict import of each term4 ,to nominate must be to propose4 ,appointment seems that act of the will which constitutes or makes the agent1 and the commission is the public evidence of it4 ,but there are still other acts previous to these not specially enumerated in the constitution1 to wit3 #ast4 ,the destination of a mission to the particular country where the public service calls for it1 and second the character or grade to be employed in it4 ,the natural order of all these is first1 destination2 second1 grade2 third1 nomination2 fourth1 appointment2 fifth1 commission4 ,if appointment does not comprehend the neighboring acts of nomination or commission1 7and the constitution says it shall not1 by giving them exclusively to the ,president17 still less can it pretend to comprehend those previous and more remote1 of destination and grade4 ,the constitution1 analyzing the three last1 shows they do not comprehend the two first4 ,the fourth is the only one it submits to the ,senate1 shaping it into a right to say that ,a or ,b is unfit to be appointed4 ,now1 this cannot comprehend a right to say that ,a or ,b is indeed fit to be appointed1 but the grade fixed on is not the fit one to employ1 or1 our connections with the country of his destination are not such as to call for any mission4 ,the ,senate is not supposed by the constitution to be acquainted with the concerns of the ,executive department4 ,it was not intended that these should be communicated to them1 nor can they therefore be qualified to judge of the necessity which calls for a mission to any particular place1 or of the particular grade1 more or less marked1 which special and secret circumstances may call for4 ,all this is left to the ,president4 ,they are only to see that no unfit person be employed4 ,it may be objected that the ,senate may by continual negatives on the person1 do what amounts to a negative on the grade1 and so1 indirectly1 defeat this right of the ,president4 ,but this would be a breach of trust2 an abuse of power confided to the ,senate1 of which that body cannot be supposed capable4 ,so the ,president has a power to convoke the ,legislature1 and the ,senate might defeat that power by refusing to come4 ,this equally amounts to a negative on the power of convoking4 ,yet nobody will say they possess such a negative1 or would be capable of usurping it by such oblique means4 ,if the constitution had meant to give the ,senate a negative on the grade or destination1 as well as the person1 it would have said so in direct terms1 and not left it to be effected by a sidewind4 ,it could never mean to give them the use of one power through the abuse of another4 ,v4--,opinion upon the validity of a grant made by the ,state of ,georgia to certain companies of individuals1 of a tract of country whereof the ,indian right had never been extinguished1 with power to such individuals to extinguish the ,indian right4 ,may #c;d1 #agij4 ,the ,state of ,georgia1 having granted to certain individuals a tract of country1 within their chartered limits1 whereof the ,indian right has never yet been acquired2 with a proviso in the grants1 which implies that those individuals may take measures for extinguishing the ,indian rights under the authority of that ,government1 it becomes a question how far this grant is good8 ,a society1 taking possession of a vacant country1 and declaring they mean to occupy it1 does thereby appropriate to themselves as prime occupants what was before common4 ,a practice introduced since the discovery of ,america1 authorizes them to go further1 and to fix the limits which they assume to themselves2 and it seems1 for the common good1 to admit this right to a moderate and reasonable extent4 ,if the country1 instead of being altogether vacant1 is thinly occupied by another nation1 the right of the native forms an exception to that of the new comers2 that is to say1 these will only have a right against all other nations except the natives4 ,consequently1 they have the exclusive privilege of acquiring the native right by purchase or other just means4 ,this is called the right of premption1 and is become a principle of the law of nations1 fundamental with respect to ,america4 ,there are but two means of acquiring the native title4 ,first1 war2 for even war may1 sometimes1 give a just title4 ,second1 contracts or treaty4 ,the ,states of ,america before their present union possessed completely1 each within its own limits1 the exclusive right to use these two means of acquiring the native title1 and1 by their act of union1 they have as completely ceded both to the general government4 ,art4 #b;d1 ,section #ast4 ,the ,president shall have power1 by and with the advice of the ,senate1 to make treaties1 provided two thirds of the ,senators present concur4 ,art4 #ast1 ,section #hth1 ,the ,congress shall have power to declare war1 to raise and support armies4 ,section #ajth1 ,no ,state shall enter into any treaty1 alliance or confederation4 ,no ,state shall1 without the consent of ,congress1 keep troops or ships of war in time of peace1 enter into any agreement or compact with another ,state or with a foreign power1 or engage in war1 unless actually invaded or in such imminent danger as will not admit of delay4 ,these paragraphs of the constitution1 declaring that the general government shall have1 and that the particular ones shall not have1 the right of war and treaty1 are so explicit that no commentary can explain them further1 nor can any explain them away4 ,consequently1 ,georgia1 possessing the exclusive right to acquire the native title1 but having relinquished the means of doing it to the general government1 can only have put her grantee into her own condition4 ,she could convey to them the exclusive right to acquire2 but she could not convey what she had not herself1 that is1 the means of acquiring4 ,for these they must come to the general government1 in whose hands they have been wisely deposited for the purposes both of peace and justice4 ,what is to be done8 ,the right of the general government is1 in my opinion1 to be maintained4 ,the case is sound1 and the means of doing it as practicable as can ever occur4 ,but respect and friendship should1 ,i think1 mark the conduct of the general towards the particular government1 and explanations should be asked and time and color given them to tread back their steps before coercion is held up to their view4 ,i am told there is already a strong party in ,georgia opposed to the act of their government4 ,i should think it better then that the first measures1 while firm1 be yet so temperate as to secure their alliance and aid to the general government4 ,might not the eclat of a proclamation revolt their pride and passion1 and throw them hastily into the opposite scale8 ,it will be proper indeed to require from the government of ,georgia1 in the first moment1 that while the general government shall be expecting and considering her explanations1 things shall remain in statu quo1 and not a move be made towards carrying what they have begun into execution4 ,perhaps it might not be superfluous to send some person to the ,indians interested1 to explain to them the views of government and to watch with their aid the territory in question4 ,,vi4--,opinion in favor of the resolutions of ,may #bast1 #agij directing that1 in all cases where payment had not been already made1 the debts due to the soldiers of ,virginia and ,north ,carolina1 should be paid to the original claimants or their attorneys1 and not to their assignees4 ,june #c;d1 #agij4 ,the accounts of the soldiers of ,virginia and ,north ,carolina1 having been examined by the proper officer of government1 the balances due to each individual ascertained1 and a list of these balances made out1 this list became known to certain persons before the soldiers themselves had information of it1 and those persons1 by unfair means1 as is said1 and for very inadequate considerations1 obtained assignments from many of the soldiers of whatever sum should be due to them from the public1 without specifying the amount4 ,the legislature1 to defeat this fraud1 passed resolutions on the #bast of ,may1 #agif1 directing that where payment had not been made to the original claimant in person or his representatives1 it shall be made to him or them personally1 or to their attorney1 producing a power for that purpose1 attested by two justices of the county where he resides1 and specifying the certain sum he is to receive4 ,it has been objected to these resolutions that they annul transfers of property which were good by the laws under which they were made2 that they take from the assignees their lawful property2 are contrary to the principles of the constitution1 which condemn retrospective laws2 and are1 therefore1 not worthy of the ,president's approbation4 ,i agree in an almost unlimited condemnation of retrospective laws4 ,the few instances of wrong which they redress are so overweighed by the insecurity they draw over all property and even over life itself1 and by the atrocious violations of both to which they lead that it is better to live under the evil than the remedy4 ,the only question ,i shall make is1 whether these resolutions annul acts which were valid when they were done8 ,this question respects the laws of ,virginia and ,north ,carolina only4 ,on the latter ,i am not qualified to decide1 and therefore beg leave to confine myself to the former4 ,by the common law of ,england 7adopted in ,virginia7 the conveyance of a right to a debt or other thing whereof the party is not in possession1 is not only void1 but severely punishable under the names of ,maintenance and ,champerty4 ,the ,law-merchants1 however1 which is permitted to have course between merchants1 allows the assignment of a bill of exchange for the convenience of commerce4 ,this1 therefore1 forms one exception to the general rule1 that a mere right or thing in action is not assignable4 ,a second exception has been formed by an ,english statute 7copied into the laws of ,virginia7 permitting promissory notes to be assigned4 ,the laws of ,virginia have gone yet further than the statute1 and have allowed1 as a third exception1 that a bond should be assigned1 which cannot be done even at this day in ,england4 ,so that1 in ,virginia1 when a debt has been settled between the parties and put into the form of a bill of exchange1 promissory note or bond1 the law admits it to be transferred by assignment4 ,in all other cases the assignment of a debt is void4 ,the debts from the ,united ,states to the soldiers of ,virginia1 not having been put into either of these forms1 the assignments of them were void in law4 ,a creditor may give an order on his debtor in favor of another1 but if the debtor does not accept it1 he must be sued in the creditor's name2 which shows that the order does not transfer the property of the debts4 ,the creditor may appoint another to be his attorney to receive and recover his debt1 and he may covenant that when received the attorney may apply it to his own use4 ,but he must sue as attorney to the original proprietor1 and not in his own right4 ,this proves that a power of attorney1 with such a covenant1 does not transfer the property of the debt4 ,a further proof in both cases is1 that the original creditor may at any time before payment or acceptance revoke either his order or his power of attorney4 ,in that event the person in whose favor they were given has recourse to a court of equity4 ,when there1 the judge examines whether he has done equity4 ,if he finds his transaction has been a fair one1 he gives him aid4 ,if he finds it has been otherwise1 not permitting his court to be made a handmaid to fraud1 he leaves him without remedy in equity as he was in law4 ,the assignments in the present case1 therefore1 if unfairly obtained1 as seems to be admitted1 are void in equity as they are in law4 ,and they derive their nullity from the laws under which they were made1 not from the new resolutions of ,congress4 ,these are not retrospective4 ,they only direct their treasurer not to give validity to an assignment which had it not before1 by payments to the assignee until he in whom the legal property still is1 shall order it in such a form as to show he is apprized of the sum he is to part with1 and its readiness to be paid into his or any other hands1 and that he chooses1 notwithstanding1 to acquiesce under the fraud which has been practised on him4 ,in that case he has only to execute before two justices a power of attorney to the same person1 expressing the specific sum of his demand1 and it is to be complied with4 ,actual payment1 in this case1 is an important act4 ,if made to the assignee1 it would put the burthen of proof and process on the original owner4 ,if made to that owner1 it puts it on the assignee1 who must then come forward and show that his transaction has been that of an honest man4 ,government seems to be doing in this what every individual1 ,i think1 would feel himself bound to do in the case of his own debt4 ,for1 being free in the law1 to pay to the one or the other1 he would certainly give the advantage to the party who has suffered wrong rather than to him who has committed it4 ,it is not honorable to take a mere legal advantage1 when it happens to be contrary to justice4 ,but it is honorable to embrace a salutary principle of law when a relinquishment of it is solicited only to support a fraud4 ,i think the resolutions1 therefore1 merit approbation4 ,i have before professed my incompetence to say what are the laws of ,north ,carolina on this subject4 ,they1 like ,virginia1 adopted the ,english laws in the gross4 ,these laws forbid in general the buying and selling of debts1 and their policy in this is so wise that ,i presume they had not changed it till the contrary be shown4 ,,vii4--,plan for establishing uniformity in the ,coinage1 ,weights1 and ,measures of the ,united ,states4 ,communicated to the ,house of ,representatives1 ,july #ac1 #agij4 ,,new ,,york1 ,july #d1 #agij4 ,,sir3--,in obedience to the order of the ,house of ,representatives of ,january #aeth1 ,i have now the honor to enclose you a report on the subject of measures1 weights1 and coins4 ,the length of time which intervened between the date of the order and my arrival in this city1 prevented my receiving it till the #aeth of ,april2 and an illness which followed soon after added1 unavoidably1 some weeks to the delay2 so that it was not till about the #bjth ,may that ,i was able to finish the report4 ,a desire to lessen the number of its imperfections induced me still to withhold it awhile1 till1 on the #aeth of ,june1 came to my hands1 from ,paris1 a printed copy of a proposition made by the ,bishop of ,autun1 to the ,national ,assembly of ,france1 on the subject of weights and measures2 and three days afterwards ,i received1 through the channel of the public papers1 the speech of ,sir ,john ,riggs ,miller1 of ,april #acth1 in the ,british ,house of ,commons1 on the same subject4 ,in the report which ,i had prepared1 and was then about to give in1 ,i had proposed the latitude of #ch1 as that which should fix our standard1 because it was the medium latitude of the ,united ,states2 but the proposition before the ,national ,assembly of ,france1 to take that of #de as being a middle term between the equator and both poles1 and a term which consequently might unite the nations of both hemispheres1 appeared to me so well chosen1 and so just1 that ,i did not hesitate a moment to prefer it to that of #ch4 ,it became necessary1 of course1 to conform all my calculations to that standard--an operation which has been retarded by my other occupations4 ,these circumstances will1 ,i hope1 apologize for the delay which has attended the execution of the order of the ,house2 and1 perhaps1 a disposition on their part to have due regard for the proceedings of other nations1 engaged on the same subject1 may induce them still to defer deciding ultimately on it till their next session4 ,should this be the case1 and should any new matter occur in the meantime1 ,i shall think it my duty to communicate it to the ,house1 as supplemental to the present report4 ,i have the honor to be1 with sentiments of the most profound respect1 ,sir1 your most obedient and most humble servant4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred1 by the ,house of ,representatives1 to prepare and report a proper plan or plans for establishing uniformity in the currency1 weights1 and measures of the ,united ,states1 in obedience thereto1 makes the following report3-- ,to obtain uniformity in measures1 weights1 and coins1 it is necessary to find some measure of invariable length1 with which1 as a standard1 they may be compared4 ,there exists not in nature1 as far as has been hitherto observed1 a single subject or species of subject1 accessible to man1 which presents one constant and uniform dimension4 ,the globe of the earth itself1 indeed1 might be considered as invariable in all its dimensions1 and that its circumference would furnish an invariable measure2 but no one of its circles1 great or small1 is accessible to admeasurement through all its parts1 and the various trials to measure definite portions of them1 have been of such various result as to show there is no dependence on that operation for certainty4 ,matter1 then1 by its mere extension1 furnishing nothing invariable1 its motion is the only remaining resource4 ,the motion of the earth round its axis1 though not absolutely uniform and invariable1 may be considered as such for every human purpose4 ,it is measured obviously1 but unequally1 by the departure of a given meridian from the sun1 and its return to it1 constituting a solar day4 ,throwing together the inequalities of solar days1 a mean interval1 or day1 has been found1 and divided1 by very general consent1 into #hf1djj equal parts4 ,a pendulum1 vibrating freely1 in small and equal arcs1 may be so adjusted in its length1 as1 by its vibrations1 to make this division of the earth's motion into #hf1djj equal parts1 called seconds of mean time4 ,such a pendulum1 then1 becomes itself a measure of determinate length1 to which all others may be referred to as to a standard4 ,but even a pendulum is not without its uncertainties4 #a4 ,the difficulty of ascertaining1 in practice1 its centre of oscillation1 as depending on the form of the bob1 and its distance from the point of suspension2 the effect of the weight of the suspending wire towards displacing the centre of oscillation2 that centre being seated within the body of the bob1 and therefore inaccessible to the measure1 are sources of considerable uncertainty4 #b4 ,both theory and experience prove that1 to preserve its isochronism1 it must be shorter towards the equator1 and longer towards the poles4 #c4 ,the height of the situation above the common level1 as being an increment to the radius of the earth1 diminishes the length of the pendulum4 #d4 ,the pendulum being made of metal1 as is best1 it varies its length with the variations in the temperature of the atmosphere4 #e4 ,to continue small and equal vibrations1 through a sufficient length of time1 and to count these vibrations1 machinery and a power are necessary1 which may exert a small but constant effort to renew the waste of motion2 and the difficulty is so to apply these1 as that they shall neither retard or accelerate the vibrations4 #a4 ,in order to avoid the uncertainties which respect the centre of oscillation1 it has been proposed by ,mr4 ,leslie1 an ingenious artist of ,philadelphia1 to substitute1 for the pendulum1 a uniform cylindrical rod1 without a bob4 ,could the diameter of such a rod be infinitely small1 the centre of oscillation would be exactly at two-thirds of the whole length1 measured from the point of suspension4 ,giving it a diameter which shall render it sufficiently inflexible1 the centre will be displaced1 indeed2 but1 in a second rod not the 7#a7 six hundred thousandth part of its length1 and not the hundredth part as much as in a second pendulum with a spherical bob of proper diameter4 ,this displacement is so infinitely minute1 then1 that we may consider the centre of oscillation1 for all practical purposes1 as residing at two-thirds of the length from the centre of suspension4 ,the distance between these two centres might be easily and accurately ascertained in practice4 ,but the whole rod is better for a standard than any portion of it1 because sensibly defined at both its extremities4 #b4 ,the uncertainty arising from the difference of length requisite for the second pendulum1 or the second rod1 in different latitudes1 may be avoided by fixing on some one latitude1 to which our standard shall refer4 ,that of #ch1 as being the middle latitude of the ,united ,states1 might seem the most convenient1 were we to consider ourselves alone2 but connected with other nations by commerce and science1 it is better to fix on that parallel which bids fairest to be adopted by them also4 ,the #deth1 as being the middle term between the equator and pole1 has been heretofore proposed in ,europe1 and the proposition has been lately renewed there under circumstances which may very possibly give it some effect4 ,this parallel is distinguished with us also as forming our principal northern boundary4 ,let the completion of the #deth degree1 then1 give the standard for our union1 with the hope that it may become a line of union with the rest of the world4 ,the difference between the second rod for #de of latitude1 and that for #ca1 our other extreme1 is to be examined4 ,the second pendulum for #de of latitude1 according to ,sir ,isaac ,newton's computation1 must be of 7#b7 #ci4adiab inches ,english measure2 and a rod1 to vibrate in the same time1 must be of the same length between the centres of suspension and oscillation2 and1 consequently1 its whole length #eh4g 7or1 more exactly1 #eh4gbcfh7 inches4 ,this is longer than the rod which shall vibrate seconds in the #ca of latitude1 by about #a_/fgi part of its whole length2 a difference so minute1 that it might be neglected1 as insensible1 for the common purposes of life1 but1 in cases requiring perfect exactness1 the second rod1 found by trial of its vibrations in any part of the ,united ,states1 may be corrected by computation for the 7#c7 latitude of the place1 and so brought exactly to the standard of #de4 #c4 ,by making the experiment in the level of the ocean1 the difference will be avoided1 which a higher position might occasion4 #d4 ,the expansion and contraction of the rod with the change of temperature1 is the fourth source of uncertainty before mentioned4 ,according to the high authority so often quoted1 an iron rod1 of given length1 may vary1 between summer and winter1 in temperate latitudes1 and in the common exposure of house clocks1 from #a_/agbh to #a_/beib of its whole length1 which1 in a rod of #eh4g inches1 will be from about two to three hundredths of an inch4 ,this may be avoided by adjusting and preserving the standard in a cellar1 or other place1 the temperature of which never varies4 ,iron is named for this purpose1 because the least expansible of the metals4 #e4 ,the practical difficulty resulting from the effect of the machinery and moving power is very inconsiderable in the present state of the arts2 and1 in their progress towards perfection1 will become less and less4 ,to estimate and obviate this1 will be the artist's province4 ,it is as nothing when compared with the sources of inaccuracy hitherto attending measures4 ,before quitting the subject of the inconveniences1 some of which attend the pendulum alone1 others both the pendulum and rod1 it must be added that the rod would have an accidental but very precious advantage over the pendulum in this country1 in the event of our fixing the foot at the nearest aliquot part of either2 for the difference between the common foot1 and those so to be deduced1 would be three times greater in the case of the pendulum than in that of the rod4 ,let the standard of measure1 then1 be a uniform cylindrical rod of iron1 of such length as1 in latitude #de1 in the level of the ocean1 and in a cellar1 or other place1 the temperature of which does not vary through the year1 shall perform its vibrations in small and equal arcs1 in one second of mean time4 ,a standard of invariable length being thus obtained1 we may proceed to identify1 by that1 the measures1 weights and coins of the ,united ,states2 but here a doubt presents itself as to the extent of the reformation meditated by the ,house of ,representatives4 ,the experiment made by ,congress in the year one thousand seven hundred and eighty-six1 by declaring that there should be one money of account and payment through the ,united ,states1 and that its parts and multiples should be in a decimal ratio1#bc has obtained such general approbation1 both at home and abroad1 that nothing seems wanting but the actual coinage1 to banish the discordant pounds1 shillings1 pence1 and farthings of the different ,states1 and to establish in their stead the new denominations4 ,is it in contemplation with the ,house of ,representatives to extend a like improvement to our measures and weights1 and to arrange them also in a decimal ratio8 ,the facility which this would introduce into the vulgar arithmetic would1 unquestionably1 be soon and sensibly felt by the whole mass of the people1 who would thereby be enabled to compute for themselves whatever they should have occasion to buy1 to sell1 or to measure1 which the present complicated and difficult ratios place beyond their computation for the most part4 ,or1 is it the opinion of the ,representatives that the difficulty of changing the established habits of a whole nation opposes an insuperable bar to this improvement8 ,under this uncertainty1 the ,secretary of ,state thinks it his duty to submit alternative plans1 that the ,house may1 at their will1 adopt either the one or the other1 exclusively1 or the one for the present and the other for a future time1 when the public mind may be supposed to have become familiarized to it4 ,i4 ,and first1 on the supposition that the present measures and weights are to be retained but to be rendered uniform and invariable1 by bringing them to the same invariable standard4 ,the first settlers of these ,states1 having come chiefly from ,england1 brought with them the measures and weights of that country4 ,these alone are generally established among us1 either by law or usage2 and these1 therefore1 are alone to be retained and fixed4 ,we must resort to that country for information of what they are1 or ought to be4 ,this rests1 principally1 on the evidence of certain standard measures and weights1 which have been preserved1 of long time1 in different deposits4 ,but differences among these having been known to exist1 the ,house of ,commons1 in the years #ageg and #ageh1 appointed committees to inquire into the original standards of their weights and measures4 ,these committees1 assisted by able mathematicians and artists1 examined and compared with each other the several standard measures and weights1 and made reports on them in the years #ageh and #agei4 ,the circumstances under which these reports were made entitle them to be considered1 as far as they go1 as the best written testimony existing of the standard measures and weights of ,england2 and as such1 they will be relied on in the progress of this report4 ,,measures ,,of ,,length4 ,the measures of length in use among us are3 ,the league of #c miles1 ,the fathom of #b yards1 ,the mile of #h furlongs1 ,the ell of a yard and quarter1 ,the furlong of #dj poles or perches1 ,the yard of #c feet1 ,the foot of #ab inches1 and ,the pole or perch of #e yards1 ,the inch of #aj lines4 ,on this branch of their subject1 the committee of #ageg-ageh1 says that the standard measures of length at the receipt of the exchequer1 are a yard1 supposed to be of the time of ,henry ,,vii41 and a yard and ell supposed to have been made about the year #afja2 that they are brass rods1 very coarsely made1 their divisions not exact1 and the rods bent2 and that in the year #agdb1 some members of the ,royal ,society had been at great pains in taking an exact measure of these standards1 by very curious instruments1 prepared by the ingenious ,mr4 ,graham2 that the ,royal ,society had had a brass rod made pursuant to their experiments1 which was made so accurately1 and by persons so skilful and exact1 that it was thought not easy to obtain a more exact one2 and the committee1 in fact1 found it to agree with the standards at the exchequer1 as near as it was possible4 ,they furnish no means1 to persons at a distance1 of knowing what this standard is4 ,this1 however1 is supplied by the evidence of the second pendulum1 which1 according to the authority before quoted1 is1 at ,london1 #ci4afhb ,english inches1 and1 consequently1 the second rod there is of #eh4gebc of the same inches4 ,when we shall have found1 then1 by actual trial1 the second rod for #de by adding the difference of their computed length1 to wit3 #bhg_/ajjjj of an inch1 or rather #c_/aj of a line 7which in practice will endanger less error than an attempt at so minute a fraction as the ten thousandth parts of an inch7 we shall have the second rod of ,london1 or a true measure of #eh ,english inches4 ,or1 to shorten the operation1 without varying the result1 ,let the standard rod of #de be divided into #ehg equal parts1 and let each of these parts be declared a line4 #aj lines an inch1 #e yards a perch or pole1 #ab inches a foot1 #dj poles or perches a furlong1 #c feet a yard1 #h furlongs a mile1 #c feet #i inches an ell1 #c miles a league4 #f feet a fathom1 ,,superficial ,,measures ,our measures of surface are1 the acre of #d roods and the rood of #dj square poles2 so established by a statute of #cc ,edw4 #a4 ,let them remain the same4 ,,measures ,,of ,,capacity4 ,the measures of capacity in use among us are of the following names and proportions3 ,the gill1 four of which make a pint4 ,two pints make a quart4 ,two quarts a pottle4 ,two pottles a gallon4 ,two gallons a peck1 dry measure4 ,eight gallons make a measure called a firkin1 in liquid substances1 and a bushel1 dry4 ,two firkins1 or bushels1 make a measure called a rundlet or kilderkin1 liquid1 and a strike1 dry4 ,two kilderkins1 or strikes1 make a measure called a barrel1 liquid1 and a coomb1 dry2 this last term being ancient and little used4 ,two barrels1 or coombs1 make a measure called a hogshead1 liquid1 or a quarter1 dry2 each being the quarter of a ton4 ,a hogshead and a third make a tierce1 or third of a ton4 ,two hogsheads make a pipe1 butt1 or puncheon2 and ,two pipes make a ton4 ,but no one of these measures is of a determinate capacity4 ,the report of the committee of #ageg-h1 shows that the gallon is of very various content2 and that being the unit1 all the others must vary with it4 ,the gallon and bushel contain-- #bbd and #agib cubic inches1 according to the standard wine gallon preserved at ,guildhall4 #bca and #ahdh1 according to the statute of #eth of ,anne4 #bfd4h and #baah4d1 according to the ancient ,rumford quart1 of #abbh1 examined by the committee4 #bfe4e and #babd1 according to three standard bushels preserved in the ,exchequer1 to wit3 one of ,henry ,,vii41 without a rim2 one dated #ajia1 supposed for #aeia1 or #afja1 and one dated #afja4 #bff4be and #bacj1 according to the ancient ,rumford gallon of #abbh1 examined by the committee4 #bfh4ge and #baej1 according to the ,winchester bushel1 as declared by statute #ac1 #ad1 ,william ,,iii41 which has been the model for some of the grain ,states4 #bga1 less #b spoonfuls1 and #bafh1 less #af spoonfuls1 according to a standard gallon of ,henry ,,vii41 and another dated #afja1 marked ,e4 ,e41 both in the ,exchequer4 #bga and #bafh1 according to a standard gallon in the ,exchequer1 dated #afja1 marked ,e41 and called the corn gallon4 #bgb and #bagf1 according to the three standard corn gallons last mentioned1 as measured in #afhh1 by an artist for the ,commissioners of the ,excise1 generally used in the seaport towns1 and by mercantile people1 and thence introduced into some of the grain ,states4 #bgg4ah and #bbag4dd1 as established for the measure of coal by the statute #ab ,anne4 #bgh and #bbbd1 according to the standard bushel of ,henry ,,vii41 with a copper rim1 in the ,exchequer4 #bgh4d and #bbbg4b according to two standard pints of #afja and #afjb1 in the ,exchequer4 #bhj and #bbdj1 according to the standard quart of #afja1 in the ,exchequer4 #bhb and #bbef1 according to the standard gallon for beer and ale in the ,treasury4 ,there are1 moreover1 varieties on these varieties1 from the barrel to the ton1 inclusive2 for1 if the barrel be of herrings1 it must contain #bh gallons by the statute #ac ,eliz4 c4 #aa4 ,if of wine1 it must contain #ca gallons by the statute #b ,henry ,,vi4 c4 #aa1 and #a ,rich4 ,,iii4 c4 #ae4 ,if of beer or ale1 it must contain #cd gallons by the statute #a ,william and ,mary1 c4 #bd1 and the higher measures in proportion4 ,in those of the ,united ,states which have not adopted the statutes of ,william and ,mary1 and of ,anne before cited1 nor their substance1 the wine gallon of #bca cubic inches rests on the authority of very long usage1 before the #eth of ,anne1 the origin and foundation of which are unknown2 the bushel is the ,winchester bushel1 by the #aa ,henry ,,vii4 undefined2 and the barrel of ale #cb gallons1 and of beer #cf gallons1 by the statute #bc ,henry ,,viii c4 #d4 ,the ,secretary of ,state is not informed whether there have been any1 and what1 alterations of these measures by the laws of the particular ,states4 ,it is proposed to retain this series of measures1 but to fix the gallon to one determinate capacity1 as the unit of measure1 both wet and dry2 for convenience is in favor of abolishing the distinction between wet and dry measures4 ,the wine gallon1 whether of #bbd or #bca cubic inches1 may be altogether disregarded1 as concerning1 principally1 the mercantile and the wealthy1 the least numerous part of the society1 and the most capable of reducing one measure to another by calculation4 ,this gallon is little used among the mass of farmers1 whose chief habits and interests are in the size of the corn bushel4 ,of the standard measures before stated1 two are principally distinguished in authority and practice4 ,the statute bushel of #baej cubic inches1 which gives a gallon of #bfh4ge cubic inches1 and the standard gallon of #afja1 called the corn gallon of #bga or #bgb cubic inches1 which has introduced the mercantile bushel of #bbgf inches4 ,the former of these is most used in some of the grain ,states1 the latter in others4 ,the middle term of #bgj cubic inches may be taken as a mutual compromise of convenience1 and as offering this general advantage3 that the bushel being of #bafj cubic inches1 is exactly a cubic foot and a quarter1 and so facilitates the conversion of wet and dry measures into solid contents and tonnage1 and simplifies the connection of measures and weights1 as will be shown hereafter4 ,it may be added1 in favor of this1 as a medium measure1 that eight of the standard1 or statute measures before enumerated1 are below this term1 and nine above it4 ,the measures to be made for use1 being four sided1 with rectangular sides and bottom4 ,the pint will be #c inches square1 and #c inches deep2 ,the quart #c inches square1 and #g inches deep2 ,the pottle #c inches square1 and #ae inches deep1 or #d1 #e1 and #f inches2 ,the gallon #f inches square1 and #g inches deep1 or #e1 #f1 and #i inches2 ,the peck #f1 #i1 and #aj inches2 ,the half bushel #ab inches square1 and #g inches deep2 and ,the bushel #ab inches square1 and #ae inches deep1 or #i1 #ae1 and #af inches4 ,cylindrical measures have the advantage of superior strength1 but square ones have the greater advantage of enabling every one who has a rule in his pocket1 to verify their contents by measuring them4 ,moreover1 till the circle can be squared1 the cylinder cannot be cubed1 nor its contents exactly expressed in figures4 ,let the measures of capacity1 then1 for the ,united ,states be-- ,a gallon of #bgj cubic inches2 ,the gallon to contain #b pottles2 ,the pottle #b quarts2 ,the quart #b pints2 ,the pint #d gills2 ,two gallons to make a peck2 ,eight gallons a bushel or firkin2 ,two bushels1 or firkin1 a strike or kilderkin2 ,two strikes1 or kilderkins1 a coomb or barrel2 ,two coombs1 or barrels1 a quarter or hogshead2 ,a hogshead and a third one tierce2 ,two hogsheads a pipe1 butt1 or puncheon2 and ,two pipes a ton4 ,and let all measures of capacity of dry subjects be stricken with a straight strike4 ,,weights4 ,there are two series of weights in use among us2 the one called avoirdupois1 the other troy4 ,in the ,avoirdupois series3 ,the pound is divided into #af ounces2 ,the ounce into #af drachms2 ,the drachm into #d quarters4 ,in the ,troy series3 ,the pound is divided into #ab ounces2 ,the ounce 7according to the subdivision of the apothecaries7 into #h drachms2 ,the drachm into #c scruples2 ,the scruple into #bj grains4 ,according to the subdivision for gold and silver1 the ounce is divided into twenty pennyweights1 and the pennyweight into twenty-four grains4 ,so that the pound troy contains #egfj grains1 of which #gjjj are requisite to make the pound avoirdupois2 of course the weight of the pound troy is to that of the #gjjj1 or as #add to #age4 ,it is remarkable that this is exactly the proportion of the ancient liquid gallon of ,guildhall of #bbd cubic inches1 to the corn gallon of #bgb2 for #bbd are to #bgb as #add to #age4 7#d47 ,it is further remarkable still1 that this is also the exact proportion between the specific weight of any measure of wheat1 and of the same measure of water3 for the statute bushel is of #fd pounds of wheat4 ,now as #add to #age1 so are #fd pounds to #gg4g pounds2 but #gg4g pounds is known to be the weight of 7#e47 #baej4d cubic inches of pure water1 which is exactly the content of the ,winchester bushel1 as declared by the statute #ac1 #ad1 ,will4 #c4 ,that statute determined the bushel to be a cylinder of #ah inches diameter1 and #h inches depth4 ,such a cylinder1 as nearly as it can be cubed1 and expressed in figures1 contains #baej4dbe cubic inches2 a result which reflects authority on the declaration of ,parliament1 and induces a favorable opinion of the care with which they investigated the contents of the ancient bushel1 and also a belief that there might exist evidence of it at that day1 unknown to the committees of #ageh and #agei4 ,we find1 then1 in a continued proportion #fd to #gg4g as #bbd to #bgb1 and as #add to #age1 that is to say1 the specific weight of a measure of wheat1 to that of the same measure of water1 as the cubic contents of the wet gallon1 to those of the dry2 and as the weight of a pound troy to that of a pound avoirdupois4 ,this seems to have been so combined as to render it indifferent whether a thing were dealt out by weight or measure2 for the dry gallon of wheat1 and the liquid one of wine1 were of the same weight2 and the avoirdupois pound of wheat1 and the troy pound of wine1 were of the same measure4 ,water and the vinous liquors1 which enter most into commerce1 are so nearly of a weight1 that the difference1 in moderate quantities1 would be neglected by both buyer and seller2 some of the wines being a little heavier1 and some a little lighter1 than water4 ,another remarkable correspondence is that between weights and measures4 ,for #ajjj ounces avoirdupois of pure water fill a cubic foot1 with mathematical exactness4 ,what circumstances of the times1 or purposes of barter or commerce1 called for this combination of weights and measures1 with the subjects to be exchanged or purchased1 are not now to be ascertained4 ,but a triple set of exact proportionals representing weights1 measures1 and the things to be weighed and measured1 and a relation so integral between weights and solid measures1 must have been the result of design and scientific calculation1 and not a mere coincidence of hazard4 ,it proves that the dry and wet measures1 the heavy and light weights1 must have been original parts of the system they compose--contrary to the opinion of the committee of #ageg1 #ageh1 who thought that the avoirdupois weight was not an ancient weight of the kingdom1 nor ever even a legal weight1 but during a single year of the reign of ,henry ,,viii42 and1 therefore1 concluded1 otherwise than will be here proposed1 to suppress it altogether4 ,their opinion was founded chiefly on the silence of the laws as to this weight4 ,but the harmony here developed in the system of weights and measures1 of which the avoirdupois makes an essential member1 corroborated by a general use1 from very high antiquity1 of that1 or of a nearly similar weight under another 7#f47 name1 seem stronger proofs that this is legal weight1 than the mere silence of the written laws is of the contrary4 ,be this as it may1 it is in such general use with us1 that1 on the principle of popular convenience1 its higher denominations1 at least1 must be preserved4 ,it is by the avoirdupois pound and ounce that our citizens have been used to buy and sell4 ,but the smaller subdivisions of drachms and quarters are not in use with them4 ,on the other hand1 they have been used to weigh their money and medicine with the pennyweights and grains troy weight1 and are not in the habit of using the pounds and ounces of that series4 ,it would be for their convenience1 then1 to suppress the pound and ounce troy1 and the drachm and quarter avoirdupois2 and to form into one series the avoirdupois pound and ounce1 and the troy pennyweight and grain4 ,the avoirdupois ounce contains #ah pennyweights #e grains troy weight4 ,divide it1 then1 into #ah pennyweights1 and the pennyweight1 as heretofore1 into #bd grains1 and the new pennyweight will contain between a third and a quarter of a grain more than the present troy pennyweight2 or1 more accurately1 it will be to that as #hge to #hfd--;a difference not to be noticed1 either in money or medicine1 below the denomination of an ounce4 ,but it will be necessary to refer these weights to a determinate mass of some substance1 the specific gravity of which is invariable4 ,rain water is such a substance1 and may be referred to everywhere1 and through all time4 ,it has been found by accurate experiments that a cubic foot of rain water weighs #ajjj ounces avoirdupois1 standard weights of the exchequer4 ,it is true that among these standard weights the committee report small variations2 but this experiment must decide in favor of those particular weights1 between which1 and an integral mass of water1 so remarkable a coincidence has been found4 ,to render this standard more exact1 the water should be weighed always in the same temperature of air2 as heat1 by increasing its volume1 lessens its specific gravity4 ,the cellar of uniform temperature is best for this also4 ,let it1 then1 be established that an ounce is of the weight of a cube of rain water1 of one-tenth of a foot2 or1 rather1 that it is the thousandth part of the weight of a cubic foot of rain water1 weighed in the standard temperature2 that the series of weights of the ,united ,states shall consist of pounds1 ounces1 pennyweights1 and grains2 whereof #bd grains shall be one pennyweight2 #ah pennyweights one ounce2 #af ounces one pound4 ,,coins4 ,congress1 in #aghf1 established the money unit at #cge4fd troy grains of pure silver4 ,it is proposed to enlarge this by about the third of a grain in weight1 or a mill in value2 that is to say1 to establish it at #cgf 7or1 more exactly1 #cge4ihicdc7 instead of #cge4fd grains2 because it will be shown that this1 as the unit of coin1 will link in system with the units of length1 surface1 capacity1 and weight1 whenever it shall be thought proper to extend the decimal ratio through all these branches4 ,it is to preserve the possibility of doing this1 that this very minute alteration is proposed4 ,we have this proportion1 then1 #hge to #hfd1 as #cge4ihicdc grains troy to #cga4bfbfbgg2 the expression of the unit in the new grains4 ,let it be declared1 therefore1 that the money unit1 or dollar of the ,united ,states1 shall contain #cga4bfb ,american grains of pure silver4 ,if nothing more1 then1 is proposed1 than to render uniform and stable the system we already possess1 this may be effected on the plan herein detailed2 the sum of which is3 #ast4 ,that the present measures of length be retained1 and fixed by an invariable standard4 #b;d4 ,that the measures of surface remain as they are1 and be invariable also as the measures of length to which they are to refer4 #c;d4 ,that the unit of capacity1 now so equivocal1 be settled at a medium and convenient term1 and defined by the same invariable measures of length4 #dth4 ,that the more known terms in the two kinds of weights be retained1 and reduced to one series1 and that they be referred to a definite mass of some substance1 the specific gravity of which never changes4 ,and #eth4 ,that the quantity of pure silver in the money unit be expressed in parts of the weights so defined4 ,in the whole of this no change is proposed1 except an insensible one in the troy grain and pennyweight1 and the very minute one in the money unit4 ,,ii4 ,but if it be thought that1 either now1 or at any future time1 the citizens of the ,united ,states may be induced to undertake a thorough reformation of their whole system of measures1 weights and coins1 reducing every branch to the same decimal ratio already established in their coins1 and thus bringing the calculation of the principal affairs of life within the arithmetic of every man who can multiply and divide plain numbers1 greater changes will be necessary4 ,the unit of measure is still that which must give law through the whole system2 and from whatever unit we set out1 the coincidences between the old and new ratios will be rare4 ,all that can be done1 will be to choose such a unit as will produce the most of these4 ,in this respect the second rod has been found1 on trial1 to be far preferable to the second pendulum4 ,,measures ,,of ,,length4 ,let the second rod1 then1 as before described1 be the standard of measure2 and let it be divided into five equal parts1 each of which shall be called a foot2 for1 perhaps1 it may be better generally to retain the name of the nearest present measure1 where there is one tolerably near4 ,it will be about one quarter of an inch shorter than the present foot4 ,let the foot be divided into #aj inches2 ,the inch into #aj lines2 ,the line into #aj points2 ,let #aj feet make a decad2 #aj decads one rood2 #aj roods a furlong2 #aj furlongs a mile4 ,,superficial ,,measures4 ,superficial measures have been estimated1 and so may continue to be1 in squares of the measures of length1 except in the case of lands1 which have been estimated by squares1 called roods and acres4 ,let the rood be equal to a square1 every side of which is #ajj feet4 ,this will be #f4dhc ,english feet less than the ,english 7#g47 rood every way1 and #acaa square feet less in its whole contents2 that is to say1 about one-eighth2 in which proportion1 also1 #d roods will be less than the present acre4 ,,measures ,,of ,,capacity4 ,let the unit of capacity be the cubic foot1 to be called a bushel4 ,it will contain #afbj4jeejfhfb cubic inches1 ,english2 be about one-fourth less than that before proposed to be adopted as a medium2 one-tenth less than the bushel made from #h of the ,guildhall gallons2 and one-fourteenth less than the bushel made from #h ,irish gallons of #bag4f cubic inches4 ,let the bushel be divided into #aj pottles2 ,each pottle into #aj demi-pints2 ,each demi-pint into #aj metres1 which will be of a cubic inch each4 ,let #aj bushels be a quarter1 and #aj quarters a last1 or double ton4 ,the measures for use being four-sided1 and the sides and bottoms rectangular1 the bushel will be a foot cube4 ,the pottle #e inches square and four inches deep2 ,the demi-pint #b inches square1 and #b inches deep2 ,the metre1 an inch cube4 ,,weights4 ,let the weight of a cubic inch of rain water1 or the thousandth part of a cubic foot1 be called an ounce2 and let the ounce be divided into #aj double scruples3 ,the double scruple into #aj carats2 ,the carat into #aj minims or demi-grains2 ,the minim into #aj mites4 ,let #aj ounces make a pound2 #aj pounds a stone2 #af stones a kental2 #aj kentals a hogshead4 ,,coins4 ,let the money unit1 or dollar1 contain eleventh-twelfths of an ounce of pure silver4 ,this will be #cgf troy grains1 7or more exactly1 #cge4ieicdc troy grains17 which will be about a third of a grain1 7or more exactly1 4#cdicdc of a grain17 more than the present unit4 ,this1 with the twelfth of alloy already established1 will make the dollar or unit1 of the weight of an ounce1 or of a cubic inch of rain water1 exactly4 ,the series of mills1 cents1 dimes1 dollars1 and eagles1 to remain as already established 7#h47 ,the second rod1 or the second pendulum1 expressed in the measures of other countries1 will give the proportion between their measures and those of the ,united ,states4 ,measures1 weights and coins1 thus referred to standards unchangeable in their nature1 7as is the length of a rod vibrating seconds1 and the weight of a definite mass of rain water17 will themselves be unchangeable4 ,these standards1 too1 are such as to be accessible to all persons1 in all times and places4 ,the measures and weights derived from them fall in so nearly with some of those now in use1 as to facilitate their introduction2 and being arranged in decimal ratio1 they are within the calculation of every one who possesses the first elements of arithmetic1 and of easy comparison1 both for foreigners and citizens1 with the measures1 weights1 and coins of other countries4 ,a gradual introduction would lessen the inconveniences which might attend too sudden a substitution1 even of an easier for a more difficult system4 ,after a given term1 for instance1 it might begin in the custom-houses1 where the merchants would become familiarized to it4 ,after a further term1 it might be introduced into all legal proceedings1 and merchants and traders in foreign commodities might be required to use it in their dealings with one another4 ,after a still further term1 all other descriptions of people might receive it into common use4 ,too long a postponement1 on the other hand1 would increase the difficulties of its reception with the increase of our population4 ,appendix1 containing illustrations and developments of some passages of the preceding report4 7#a47 ,in the second pendulum with a spherical bob1 call the distance between the centres of suspension and of the bob1 #bx#ai4ege1 or #b;d1 and the radius of the bob r2 then #b;d3r33r3 rr_/#b;d and of this last proportional expresses the displacement of the centre of oscillation1 to wit3 #brr_/#ex#b;drr_/#e;d4 ,two inches have been proposed as a proper diameter for such a bob4 ,in that case r will be #a4 inch1 and rr_/#e;d #a_/ighg inches4 ,in the cylindrical second rod1 call the length of the rod1 #c x #ai4ege4 or #c;d1 and its radius r and rr_/#bx#c;drr_/#f;d will express the displacement of the centre of oscillation4 ,it is thought the rod will be sufficiently inflexible if it be of an inch in diameter4 ,then r will be 4#a inch1 and rr_/#f;d #a_/aagde inches1 which is but the #abjth part of the displacement in the case of the pendulum with a spherical bob1 and but the #fhi1gajth part of the whole length of the rod4 ,if the rod be even of half an inch diameter1 the displacement will be but #a_/ahgi of an inch1 or #a_/aajcef of the length of the rod4 7#b47 ,sir ,isaac ,newton computes the pendulum for #de to be #cf pouces #h4dbh lignes4 ,picard made the ,english foot #aa pouces #b4f lignes1 and ,dr4 ,maskelyne #aa pouces #c4aa lignes4 ,d',alembert states it at #aa pouces #c lignes1 which has been used in these calculations as a middle term1 and gives us #cf pouces #h4dbh lignes #ci4adia inches4 ,this length for the pendulum of #de had been adopted in this report before the ,bishop of ,autun's proposition was known here4 ,he relies on ,mairan's ratio for the length of the pendulum in the latitude of ,paris1 to wit3 #ejd3beg33gb pouces to a #dth proportional1 which will be #cf4gadbh pouces#ci4afai inches1 the length of the pendulum for latitude #dh #ej'4 ,the difference between this and the pendulum for #de is 4#jaac of an inch2 so that the pendulum for #de would be estimated1 according to ,mairan1 at #ci4afai--4jaac #ci4aejf inches1 almost precisely the same with ,newton's computation herein adopted4 7#c47 ,sir ,isaac ,newton's computations for the different degrees of latitude1 from #cj to #de1 are as follows3 ,pieds4 ,lignes4 #cj #c #g4idh #ce #c #h4jii #dj #c #h4bfa #da #c #h4bid #db #c #h4cbg #dc #c #h4cfa #dd #c #h4cid #de #c #h4dbh 7#d47 ,or1 more exactly1 #add3age33bbd3bgb4b4 7#e47 ,or1 more exactly1 #fb4e3agbh33gg4g3baej4ci4 7#f47 ,the merchant's weight4 7#g47 ,the ,eng4 rood contains #aj1hij sq4 feet #ajd4cee feet sq4 7#h47 ,the ,measures1 ,weights1 and ,coins of the ,decimal ,system1 estimated in those of ,england1 now used in the ,united ,states4 #a4 ,,measures ,,of ,,length4 ,feet4 ,equivalent in ,english measure4 ,the point1 4#jja 4#jaa inch4 ,the line1 4#ja 4#aag ,the inch1 4#a #a4agd1 about #a_/g more than the ,eng4 inch4 ,the foot1 #a4 #aa4gddgcf about #a_/dh less than the 4#ighgbh feet1 ,english foot4 ,the decad1 #aj4 #i4ghg1 about #a_/dh less than the #aj feet rod of the carpenters4 ,the rood1 #ajj4 #ig4hgb1 about #a_/af less than the side of an ,english square rood4 ,the furlong1 #ajjj4 #igh4gbh1 about more than the ,eng4 fur4 ,the mile1 #ajjjj4 #ighg4bh1 about #a-f_/g ,english mile1 nearly the ,scotch and ,irish mile1 and the ,german mile4 #b4 ,,superficial ,,measure4 ,roods4 ,the hundredth1 4#ja #ie4fi square feet ,english4 ,the tenth1 4#a #ieg4i ,the rood1 #a4 #iegi4jhe ,the double acre1 #aj4 #b4aii1 or say #b4b acres ,english4 ,the square furlong1 #ajj4 #bb4 #c4 ,,measure ,,of ,,capacity4 ,bushels4 ,cub4 ,inches ,the metre1 4#jja #a4fb ,the demi-pint1 4#ja #af4b1 about #a_/bd less than the ,english half-pint4 ,the pottle1 4#a #afb4jje1 about more than the ,english pottle4 ,the bushel1 #a4 #afbj4jeejfhfb 4#icgecahfhdadhhdceb cub feet4 about less than the middle sized ,english bushel4 ,the quarter1 #aj4 #i4cge1 about less than the ,eng4 qr4 ,the last1 #ajj4 #ic4gec1 about #a_/g more than the ,eng4 last4 #d4 ,,weights4 ,pounds4 ,avoirdupois4 ,troy4 ,mite1 4#jjjja 4#jda grains1 about less than the ,english mite4 ,minim1 or 4#jjja 4#daja1 about less demi-grain1 than half-grain troy4 ,carat1 4#jja 4#daja1 about #a_/dj more than the carat troy4 ,double 4#ja #da4jag1 about #a_/dj scruple1 more than #b scruples troy4 ,ounce1 4#a #icgecahfhdadh #daj4agjaibdca #hdceb oz4 4#hedeb oz4 about #a_/af less than the ounce avoirdupois4 ,pound1 #a4 #i4cge 4#gabaja lb41 about 4#eheiegdaggei lb4 less than the pound troy4 ,stone1 #aj4 #ic4gec oz4 #g4aba about less #e4heie lb4 than the ,english stone of #h lbs4 avoirdupois4 ,kental1 #ajj4 #icg4eca oz4 #ga4ba about #d_/aj less #eh4eieg lb4 than the ,english kental of #ajj lbs4 avoirdupois4 ,hogshead1 #ajjj4 #icge4cah oz4 #gab4aja #ehe4iegd lb4 #e4 ,,coins4 ,dollars4 ,the mill1 4#jja ,the cent1 4#ja ,the dime1 4#a ,troy grains4 ,dollar1 #a4 #cge4ihicdcjf pure silver4 #cd4ahjhdicg alloy4 ------------ ,eagle1 #aj4 #daj4agjaibdc ,postscript4 ,january #aj1 #agia4 ,it is scarcely necessary to observe that the measures1 weights1 and coins1 proposed in the preceding report1 will be derived altogether from mechanical operations1 viz43 ,a rod1 vibrating seconds1 divided into five equal parts1 one of these subdivided1 and multiplied decimally1 for every measure of length1 surface1 and capacity1 and these last filled with water1 to determine the weights and coins4 ,the arithmetical estimates in the report were intended only to give an idea of what the new measures1 weights1 and coins1 would be nearly1 when compared with the old4 ,the length of the standard or second rod1 therefore1 was assumed from that of the pendulum2 and as there has been small differences in the estimates of the pendulum by different persons1 that of ,sir ,isaac ,newton was taken1 the highest authority the world has yet known4 ,but1 if even he has erred1 the measures1 weights1 and coins proposed1 will not be an atom the more or less4 ,in cubing the new foot1 which was estimated at 4#ighgbh of an ,english foot1 or #aa4gddgcf ,english inches1 an arithmetical error of an unit happened in the fourth column of decimals1 and was repeated in another line in the sixth column1 so as to make the result one ten thousandth and one millionth of a foot too much4 ,the thousandth part of this error 7about one ten millionth of a foot7 consequently fell on the metre of measure1 the ounce weight1 and the unit of money4 ,in the last it made a difference of about the twenty-fifth part of a grain ,troy1 in weight1 or the ninety-third of a cent in value4 ,as it happened1 this error was on the favorable side1 so that the detection of it approximates our estimate of the new unit exactly that much nearer to the old1 and reduces the difference between them to #cd1 instead of #ch hundredths of a grain ,troy2 that is to say1 the money unit instead of #cge4fd ,troy grains of pure silver1 as established heretofore1 will now be #cge4ihicdcjf grains1 as far as our knowledge of the length of the second pendulum enables us to judge2 and the current of authorities since ,sir ,isaac ,newton's time1 gives reason to believe that his estimate is more probably above than below the truth1 consequently future corrections of it will bring the estimate of the new unit still nearer to the old4 ,the numbers in which the arithmetical error before mentioned showed itself in the table1 at the end of the report1 have been rectified1 and the table re-printed4 ,the head of superficial measures in the last part of the report1 is thought to be not sufficiently developed4 ,it is proposed that the rood of land1 being #ajj feet square1 7and nearly a quarter of the present acre17 shall be the unit of land measure4 ,this will naturally be divided into tenths and hundredths1 the latter of which will be a square decad4 ,its multiples will also1 of course1 be tens1 which may be called double acres1 and hundreds1 which will be equal to a square furlong each4 ,the surveyor's chain should be composed of #ajj links of one foot each4 ,,footnote3 #bc ,see ,vol4 ,i4 p4 #afb4 ,,viii4--,opinion upon the question whether the ,president should veto the ,bill1 declaring that the seat of government shall be transferred to the ,potomac1 in the year #agij4 ,july #ae1 #agij4 ,a bill having passed both houses of ,congress1 and being now before the ,president1 declaring that the seat of the federal government shall be transferred to the ,potomac in the year #agij1 that the session of ,congress next ensuing the present shall be held in ,philadelphia1 to which place the offices shall be transferred before the #ast of ,december next1 a writer in a public paper of ,july #ac1 has urged on the consideration of the ,president1 that the constitution has given to the two houses of ,congress the exclusive right to adjourn themselves2 that the will of the ,president mixed with theirs in a decision of this kind1 would be an inoperative ingredient1 repugnant to the constitution1 and that he ought not to permit them to part1 in a single instance1 with their constitutional rights2 consequently1 that he ought to negative the bill4 ,that is now to be considered4 ,every man1 and every body of men on earth1 possesses the right of self-government4 ,they receive it with their being from the hand of nature4 ,individuals exercise it by their single will2 collections of men by that of their majority2 for the law of the majority is the natural law of every society of men4 ,when a certain description of men are to transact together a particular business1 the times and places of their meeting and separating1 depend on their own will2 they make a part of the natural right of self-government4 ,this1 like all other natural rights1 may be abridged or modified in its exercise by their own consent1 or by the law of those who depute them1 if they meet in the right of others2 but as far as it is not abridged or modified1 they retain it as a natural right1 and may exercise them in what form they please1 either exclusively by themselves1 or in association with others1 or by others altogether1 as they shall agree4 ,each house of ,congress possesses this natural right of governing itself1 and1 consequently1 of fixing its own times and places of meeting1 so far as it has not been abridged by the law of those who employ them1 that is to say1 by the ,constitution4 ,this act manifestly considers them as possessing this right of course1 and therefore has nowhere given it to them4 ,in the several different passages where it touches this right1 it treats it as an existing thing1 not as one called into existence by them4 ,to evince this1 every passage of the constitution shall be quoted1 where the right of adjournment is touched2 and it will be seen that no one of them pretends to give that right2 that1 on the contrary1 every one is evidently introduced either to enlarge the right where it would be too narrow1 to restrain it where1 in its natural and full exercise1 it might be too large1 and lead to inconvenience1 to defend it from the latitude of its own phrases1 where these were not meant to comprehend it1 or to provide for its exercise by others1 when they cannot exercise it themselves4 ,a majority of each house shall constitute a quorum to do business2 but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day1 and may be authorized to compel the attendance of absent members4 ,art4 #a4 ,sec4 #e4 ,a majority of every collection of men being naturally necessary to constitute its will1 and it being frequently to happen that a majority is not assembled1 it was necessary to enlarge the natural right by giving to a smaller number than a majority a right to compel the attendance of the absent members1 and1 in the meantime1 to adjourn from day to day4 ,this clause1 then1 does not pretend to give to a majority a right which it knew that majority would have of themselves1 but to a number less than a majority1 a right to which it knew that lesser number could not have of themselves4 ,neither house1 during the session of ,congress1 shall1 without the consent of the other1 adjourn for more than three days1 nor to any other place than that in which the two houses shall be sitting4 ,ibid4 ,each house exercising separately its natural right to meet when and where it should think best1 it might happen that the two houses would separate either in time or place1 which would be inconvenient4 ,it was necessary1 therefore1 to keep them together by restraining their natural right of deciding on separate times and places1 and by requiring a concurrence of will4 ,but1 as it might happen that obstinacy1 or a difference of object1 might prevent this concurrence1 it goes on to take from them1 in that instance1 the right of adjournment altogether1 and to transfer it to another1 by declaring1 ,art4 #b1 ,sec4 #c1 that in case of disagreement between the two houses1 with respect to the time of adjournment1 the ,president may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper4 ,these clauses1 then1 do not import a gift1 to the two houses1 of a general right of adjournment1 which it was known they would have without that gift1 but to restrain or abrogate the right it was known they would have1 in an instance where1 exercised in its full extent1 it might lead to inconvenience1 and to give that right to another who would not naturally have had it4 ,it also gives to the ,president a right1 which he otherwise would not have had1 to convene both houses1 or either of them1 on extraordinary occasions4 ,thus substituting the will of another1 where they are not in a situation to exercise their own4 ,every order1 resolution1 or vote1 to which the concurrence of the ,senate and ,house of ,representatives may be necessary 7except on a question of adjournment71 shall be presented to the ,president for his approbation1 c4 ,art4 #a1 ,sec4 #g4 ,the latitude of the general words here used would have subjected the natural right of adjournment of the two houses to the will of the ,president1 which was not intended4 ,they therefore expressly except questions of adjournment out of their operation4 ,they do not here give a right of adjournment1 which it was known would exist without their gift1 but they defend the existing right against the latitude of their own phrases1 in a case where there was no good reason to abridge it4 ,the exception admits they will have the right of adjournment1 without pointing out the source from which they will derive it4 ,these are all the passages of the constitution 7one only excepted1 which shall be presently cited7 where the right of adjournment is touched2 and it is evident that none of these are introduced to give that right2 but every one supposes it to be existing1 and provides some specific modification for cases where either a defeat in the natural right1 or a too full use of it1 would occasion inconvenience4 ,the right of adjournment1 then1 is not given by the constitution1 and consequently it may be modified by law without interfering with that instrument4 ,it is a natural right1 and1 like all other natural rights1 may be abridged or regulated in its exercise by law2 and the concurrence of the third branch in any law regulating its exercise is so efficient an ingredient in that law1 that the right cannot be otherwise exercised but after a repeal by a new law4 ,the express terms of the constitution itself show that this right may be modified by law1 when1 in ,art4 #a1 ,sec4 #d4 7the only remaining passage on the subject not yet quoted7 it says1 ,the ,congress shall assemble at least once in every year1 and such meeting shall be the first ,monday in ,december1 unless they shall1 by law1 appoint a different day4 ,then another day may be appointed by law2 and the ,president's assent is an efficient ingredient in that law4 ,nay further1 they cannot adjourn over the first ,monday of ,december but by a law4 ,this is another constitutional abridgment of their natural right of adjournment2 and completing our review of all the clauses in the constitution which touch that right1 authorizes us to say no part of that instrument gives it2 and that the houses hold it1 not from the constitution1 but from nature4 ,a consequence of this is1 that the houses may1 by a joint resolution1 remove themselves from place to place1 because it is a part of their right of self-government2 but that as the right of self-government does not comprehend the government of others1 the two houses cannot1 by a joint resolution of their majorities only1 remove the executive and judiciary from place to place4 ,these branches possessing also the rights of self-government from nature1 cannot be controlled in the exercise of them but by a law1 passed in the forms of the constitution4 ,the clause of the bill in question1 therefore1 was necessary to be put into the form of a law1 and to be submitted to the ,president1 so far as it proposes to effect the removal of the ,executive and ,judiciary to ,philadelphia4 ,so far as respects the removal of the present houses of legislation thither1 it was not necessary to be submitted to the ,president2 but such a submission is not repugnant to the constitution4 ,on the contrary1 if he concurs1 it will so far fix the next session of ,congress at ,philadelphia that it cannot be changed but by a regular law4 ,the sense of ,congress itself is always respectable authority4 ,it has been given very remarkably on the present subject4 ,the address to the ,president in the paper of the #acth is a complete digest of all the arguments urged on the floor of the ,representatives against the constitutionality of the bill now before the ,president2 and they were overruled by a majority of that house1 comprehending the delegation of all the ,states south of the ,hudson1 except ,south ,carolina4 ,at the last session of ,congress1 when the bill for remaining a certain term at ,new ,york1 and then removing to ,susquehanna or ,germantown was objected to on the same ground1 the objection was overruled by a majority comprehending the delegations of the northern half of the union with that of ,south ,carolina4 ,so that the sense of every ,state in the union has been expressed1 by its delegation1 against this objection ,south ,carolina excepted1 and excepting also ,rhode ,island1 which has never yet had a delegation in place to vote on the question4 ,in both these instances1 the ,senate concurred with the majority of the ,representatives4 ,the sense of the two houses is stronger authority in this case1 as it is given against their own supposed privilege4 ,it would be as tedious1 as it is unnecessary1 to take up and discuss one by one1 the objections proposed in the paper of ,july #ac4 ,every one of them is founded on the supposition that the two houses hold their right of adjournment from the constitution4 ,this error being corrected1 the objections founded on it fall of themselves4 ,it would also be work of mere supererogation to show that1 granting what this writer takes for granted 7that the ,president's assent would be an inoperative ingredient1 because excluded by the constitution1 as he says71 yet the particular views of the writer would be frustrated1 for on every hypothesis of what the ,president may do1 ,congress must go to ,philadelphia4 #a4 ,if he assents to the bill1 that assent makes good law of the part relative to the ,patomac2 and the part for holding the next session at ,philadelphia is good1 either as an ordinance1 or a vote of the two houses1 containing a complete declaration of their will in a case where it is competent to the object2 so that they must go to ,philadelphia in that case4 #b4 ,if he dissents from the bill it annuls the part relative to the ,patomac2 but as to the clause for adjourning to ,philadelphia1 his dissent being as inefficient as his assent1 it remains a good ordinance or vote1 of the two houses for going thither1 and consequently they must go in this case also4 #c4 ,if the ,president withholds his will out of the bill altogether1 by a ten days' silence1 then the part relative to the ,potomac becomes a good law without his will1 and that relative to ,philadelphia is good also1 either as a law1 or an ordinance1 or a vote of the two houses2 and consequently in this case also they go to ,philadelphia4 ,,ix4--,opinion respecting the expenses and salaries of foreign ,ministers4 ,july #ag1 #agij4 ,the bill on the intercourse with foreign nations restrains the ,president from allowing to ,ministers ,plenipotentiary1 or to ,congress1 more than #i1jjj1 and #d1ejj for their personal services1 and other expenses4 ,this definition of the objects for which the allowance is provided appearing vague1 the ,secretary of ,state thought it his duty to confer with the gentlemen heretofore employed as ministers in ,europe1 to obtain from them1 in aid of his own information1 an enumeration of the expenses incident to these offices1 and their opinion which of them would be included within the fixed salary1 and which would be entitled to be charged separately4 ,he1 therefore1 asked a conference with the ,vice-,president1 who was acquainted with the residences of ,london and the ,hague1 and the ,chief ,justice1 who was acquainted with that of ,madrid1 which took place yesterday4 ,the ,vice-,president1 ,chief ,justice1 and ,secretary of ,state1 concurred in the opinion that the salaries named by the act are much below those of the same grade at the courts of ,europe1 and less than the public good requires they should be4 ,consequently1 that the expenses not included within the definition of the law1 should be allowed as an additional charge4 #a4 ,couriers1 ,gazettes1 ,translating necessary papers1 ,printing necessary papers1 ,aids to poor ,americans4--,all three agreed that these ought to be allowed as additional charges1 not included within the meaning of the phrase1 his personal services1 and other expenses4 #b4 ,postage1 ,stationary1 ,court-fees4--,one of the gentlemen being of opinion that the phrase personal services1 and other expenses1 was meant to comprehend all the ordinary expenses of the office1 considered this second class of expenses as ordinary1 and therefore included in the fixed salary4 ,the first class before mentioned1 he had viewed as extraordinary4 ,the other two gentlemen were of opinion this second class was also out of the definition1 and might be allowed in addition to the salary4 ,one of them1 particularly1 considered the phrase as meaning personal services and personal expenses1 that is1 expenses for his personal accommodation1 comforts1 and maintenance4 ,this second class of expenses is not within that description4 #c4 ,ceremonies2 such as diplomatic and public dinners1 galas1 and illuminations4 ,one gentleman only was of opinion these might be allowed4 ,the expenses of the first class may probably amount to about fifty dollars a year4 ,those of the second1 to about four or five hundred dollars4 ,those of the third are so different at different courts1 and so indefinite in all of them1 that no general estimate can be proposed4 ,the ,secretary of ,state thought it his duty to lay this information before the ,president1 supposing it might be satisfactory to himself1 as well as to the diplomatic gentlemen1 to leave nothing uncertain as to their allowances2 and because1 too1 a previous determination is in some degree necessary to the forming an estimate which may not exceed the whole sum appropriated4 ,the ,secretary of ,state has also consulted on the subject of the ,morocco consulship1 with ,mr4 ,barclay1 who furnished him with the note1 of which a copy accompanies this4 ,considering all circumstances1 ,mr4 ,barclay is of opinion1 we had better have only a consul there1 and that he should be the one now residing at ,morocco1 because1 as secretary to the ,emperor1 he sees him every day1 and possesses his ear4 ,he is of opinion six hundred dollars a year might suffice for him1 and that it should be proposed to him not as a salary1 but as a sum in gross intended to cover his expenses1 and to save the trouble of keeping accounts4 ,that this consul should be authorized to appoint agents in the seaports1 who would be sufficiently paid by the consignments of vessels4 ,he thinks the consul at ,morocco would most conveniently receive his allowance through the channel of our ,charg at ,madrid1 on whom1 also1 this consulate had better be made dependent for instructions1 information1 and correspondence1 because of the daily intercourse between ,morocco and ,cadiz4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 on a view of ,mr4 ,barclay's note1 very much doubts the sufficiency of the sum of six hundred dollars2 he supposes a little money there may save a great deal2 but he is unable to propose any specific augmentation till a view of the whole diplomatic establishments and its expenses1 may furnish better grounds for it4 ,appended to this note1 were the following estimate of the expenses of foreign ministers1 and of the probable calls on our foreign fund1 from ,july #a1 #agij1 to ,july #a1 #agia4--;,,ed4 ,estimate of the ,expenses of a ,minister ,plenipotentiary4 ,july #ai1 #agij4 ,minister ,plenipotentiary1 his salary #i1jjj ,his outfit1 suppose it to happen once in seven years1 will average #a1bhe ,his return at a quarter's salary will average #cba ,extras1 viz43 ,gazettes1 ,translating1 ,printing1 ,aids to poor ,american sailors1 ,couriers1 and ,postage1 about #cej ,his ,secretary #a1cej ------- #ab1cif ,estimate for a ,charg des ,affaires4 ,charg des ,affaires1 his salary #d1ejj ,his outfit1 once in seven years1 equal to an annual sum of #fdc ,his return at a quarter's salary1 do #afa ,extras1 as above #cej ------ #e1fed ,the ,agent at the ,hague1 his salary #a1cjj ,extras #ajj ----- #a1djj ,estimate of the ,annual ,expenses of the ,establishment proposed4 ,france1 a ,minister ,plenipotentiary #ab1cjf ,london1 do4 do4 #ab1cjf ,madrid1 a ,charg des ,affaires #e1fed ,lisbon1 do4 do4 do4 #e1fed ,hague1 an agent #a1djj ,morocco1 a consul #a1hjj ,presents to foreign ministers on taking leave1 at #a1jjj each1 more or less1 according to their favor and time4 ,there will be five of them4 ,if exchanged once in seven years1 it will be annually #gae ----- #ci1hce ,estimate of the probable calls on our foreign fund from ,july #a1 #agij1 when the act for foreign intercourse passed1 to ,july #a1 #agia4 ,france1 a ,minister ,plenipotentiary1 his outfit #i1jjj ,his salary1 suppose it to commence ,august #ast #h1bej ,extras #cbj ,secretary #a1bcg4e - #ah1hjg4e ,charg1 suppose him to remain till ,november #ast4 ,salary #a1ejj ,extras #aag ,his return1 a quarter's salary #a1abe - #b1gdb ,madrid1 a ,charg1 his salary #d1ejj ,extras #cej - #d1hej ,lisbon1 a ,charg1 7or ,resident17 his outfit #d1ejj ,his salary1 suppose it to commence ,january #a1 #agia #b1bej ,extras #age - #f1ibe ,london1 an ,agent1 suppose to commence ,october #ast1 at #a1cej salary #a1jab4e ,extras1 7at #ajj a year7 #ge - #a1jhg4e ,hague1 an ,agent #a1djj ,morocco1 ,consul #a1hjj - #c1bjj ,presents to foreign ,ministers4 ,the dye about #ejj ,two medals and chains #b1jjj - #b1ejj --------- #dj1aab ,x4--,opinion in regard to the continuance of the monopoly of the commerce of the ,creek nation1 enjoyed by ,col4 ,mc,gillivray3 ,july #bith1 #agij4 ,colonel ,mc,gillivray1 with a company of ,british merchants1 having hitherto enjoyed a monopoly of the commerce of the ,creek nation1 with a right of importing their goods duty free1 and considering these privileges as the principal sources of his power over that nation1 is unwilling to enter into treaty with us1 unless they can be continued to him4 ,and the question is how this may be done consistently with our laws1 and so as to avoid just complaints from those of our citizens who would wish to participate of the trade8 ,our citizens1 at this time1 are not permitted to trade in that nation4 ,the nation has a right to give us their peace1 and to withhold their commerce1 to place it under whatever monopolies or regulations they please4 ,if they insist that only ,colonel ,mc,gillivray and his company shall be permitted to trade among them1 we have no right to say the contrary4 ,we shall even gain some advantage in substituting citizens of the ,united ,states instead of ,british subjects1 as associates of ,colonel ,mc,gillivray1 and excluding both ,british and ,spaniards from the country4 ,suppose1 then1 it be expressly stipulated by treaty1 that no person be permitted to trade in the ,creek country1 without a license from the ,president1 that but a fixed number shall be permitted to trade there at all1 and that the goods imported for and sent to the ,creek nation1 shall be duty free4 ,it may further be either expressed that the person licensed shall be approved by the leader or leaders of the nation1 or without this1 it may be understood between the ,president and ,mc,gillivray that the stipulated number of licenses shall be sent to him blank1 to fill up4 ,a treaty made by the ,president1 with the concurrence of two-thirds of the ,senate1 is a law of the land1 and a law of superior order1 because it not only repeals past laws1 but cannot itself be repealed by future ones4#bd ,the treaty1 then1 will legally control the duty acts1 and the acts for licensing traders1 in this particular instance4 ,when a citizen applies for a license1 who is not of ,mc,gillivray's partnership1 he will be told that but a given number could be licensed by the treaty1 and that the number is full4 ,it seems that in this way no law will be violated1 and no just cause of complaint will be given2 on the contrary1 the treaty will have bettered our situation1 though not in the full degree which might have been wished4 ,,footnote3 #bd ,at a later period1 upon reviewing this opinion1 the following note was appended by ,mr4 ,jefferson4--,ed4--viz4 ,unless with the consent or default of the other contracting party4 ,it may well be doubted1 too1 and perhaps denied1 that the treaty power can control a law4 ,the question here proposed was then of the first impression4 ,subsequent investigations have proved that the contrary position is the more general truth4 ,,xi4--,opinion respecting our foreign debt4 ,august #bf1 #agij4 ,on consideration of the letter of our banker1 of ,january #beth1 #agij1 the ,secretary of the ,treasury's answer to it1 and the draught of powers and instructions to him1 ,i am of opinion1 as ,i always have been1 that the purchase of our debt to ,france by private speculators1 would have been an operation extremely injurious to our credit2 and that the consequence foreseen by our banker1 that the purchasers would have been obliged1 in order to make good their payments1 to deluge the markets of ,amsterdam with ,american paper of all sorts1 and to sell it at any price1 was a probable one4 ,and the more so1 as we know that the particular individuals who were engaged in that speculation1 possess no means of their own adequate to the payments they would have had to make4 ,while we must not doubt that these motives1 together with a proper regard for the credit of the ,united ,states1 had real and full weight with our bankers1 towards inducing them to counterwork these private speculations2 yet1 to ascribe their industry in this business wholly to these motives1 might lead to a too great and dangerous confidence in them4 ,it was obviously their interest to defeat all such speculations1 because they tended to take out of their hands1 or at least to divide with them1 the profits of the great operation of transferring the ,french debt to ,amsterdam1 an object of first rate magnitude to them1 and on the undivided enjoyments of which they might count1 if private speculators could be baffled4 ,it has been a contest of dexterity and cunning1 in which our champions have obtained the victory4 ,the manuvre of opening a loan of three millions of florins1 has1 on the whole1 been useful to the ,united ,states1 and though unauthorized1 ,i think should be confirmed4 ,the measure proposed by the ,secretary of the ,treasury1 of sending a superintendent of their future operations1 will effectually prevent their doing the like again1 and the funding laws leave no danger that such an expedient might at any future time be useful to us4 ,the report of the ,secretary of the ,treasury1 and the draught of instructions1 present this plan to view3 ,first1 to borrow on the best terms we can1 not exceeding those limited by the law1 such a sum as may answer all demands of principal or interest of the foreign debts1 due1 or to become due before the end of #agia4 ,this ,i think he supposes will be about three and a half millions of dollars4 ,second1 to consider two of the three millions of florins already borrowed by our bankers as1 so far1 an execution of this operation2 consequently1 that there will remain but about two and a half millions of dollars to be borrowed on the old terms4 ,third1 to borrow no more as yet1 towards completing the transfer of the ,french debt to ,amsterdam1 unless we can do it on more advantageous terms4 ,fourth1 to consider the third millions of florins already borrowed by our bankers1 as1 so far1 an execution of the powers given the ,president to borrow two millions of dollars1 by the act of the #abth of ,august4 ,the whole of this appears to me to be wise4 ,if the third million be employed in buying up our foreign paper1 on the exchange of ,amsterdam1 by creating a demand for that species of paper1 it will excite a cupidity in the monied men to obtain more of it by new loans1 and consequently enable us to borrow more and on lower terms4 ,the saving of interest1 too1 on the sum so to be bought1 may be applied in buying up more principal1 and thereby keep this salutary operation going4 ,i would only take the liberty of suggesting the insertion of some such clause as the following1 into the instructions3 ,the agents to be employed shall never open a loan for more than one million of dollars at a time1 nor open a new loan till the preceding one has been filled1 and expressly approved by the ,president of the ,united ,states4 ,a new man1 alighting on the exchange of ,amsterdam1 with powers to borrow twelve millions of dollars1 will be immediately beset with bankers and brokers1 who will pour into his ear1 from the most unsuspected quarters1 such informations and suspicions as may lead him exactly into their snares4 ,so wonderfully dexterous are they in wrapping up and complicating their propositions1 they will make it evident1 even to a clear-headed man1 7not in the habit of this business17 that two and two make five4 ,the agent1 therefore1 should be guarded1 even against himself1 by putting it out of his power to extend the effect of any erroneous calculation beyond one million of dollars4 ,were he able1 under a delusive calculation1 to commit such a sum as twelve millions of dollars1 what would be said of the government8 ,our bankers told me themselves that they would not choose1 in the conduct of this great loan1 to open for more than two or three millions of florins at a time1 and certainly never for more than five4 ,by contracting for only one million of dollars at a time1 the agent will have frequent occasions of trying to better the terms4 ,i dare say that this caution1 though not expressed in the instructions1 is intended by the ,secretary of the ,treasury to be carried into their execution4 ,but1 perhaps1 it will be desirable for the ,president1 that his sense of it also should be expressed in writing4 ,,xii4--,opinion upon the question what the answer of the ,president should be in case ,lord ,dorchester should apply for permission to march troops through the territory of the ,united ,states1 from ,detroit to the ,mississippi4 ,,george ,,washington ,,to ,,thomas ,,jefferson4 ,,united ,,states1 ,august #bg1 #agij4 ,provided the dispute between ,great ,britain and ,spain should come to the decision of arms1 from a variety of circumstances 7individually unimportant and inconclusive1 but very much the reverse when compared and combined17 there is no doubt in my mind1 that ,new ,orleans1 and the ,spanish posts above it on the ,mississippi1 will be among the first attempts of the former2 and that the reduction of them will be undertaken by a combined operation from ,detroit4 ,the consequences of having so formidable and enterprizing a people as the ,british on both our flanks and rear1 with their navy in front1 as they respect our western settlements which may be seduced thereby1 as they regard the security of the ,union and its commerce with the ,west ,indies1 are too obvious to need enumeration4 ,what then should be the answer of the ,executive of the ,united ,states to ,lord ,dorchester1 in case he should apply for permission to march troops through the territory of the said ,states from ,detroit to the ,mississippi8 ,what notice ought be taken of the measure1 if it should be undertaken without leave1 which is the most probable proceeding of the two8 ,the opinion of the ,secretary of ,state is requested in writing upon the above statements4 ,opinion on the questions stated in the ,president's note of ,august #bgth1 #agij4 ,august #bh1 #agij4 ,i am so deeply impressed with the magnitude of the dangers which will attend our government1 if ,louisiana and the ,floridas be added to the ,british empire1 that1 in my opinion1 we ought to make ourselves parties in the general war expected to take place1 should this be the only means of preventing the calamity4 ,but ,i think we should defer this step as long as possible2 because war is full of chances1 which may relieve us from the necessity of interfering2 and if necessary1 still the later we interfere1 the better we shall be prepared4 ,it is often indeed more easy to prevent the capture of a place1 than to retake it4 ,should it be so in the case in question1 the difference between the two operations of preventing and retaking1 will not be so costly as two1 three1 or four years more of war4 ,so that ,i am for preserving neutrality as long1 and entering into the war as late1 as possible4 ,if this be the best course1 it decides1 in a good degree1 what should be our conduct1 if the ,british ask leave to march troops through our territory1 or march them without leave4 ,it is well enough agreed1 in the laws of nations1 that for a neutral power to give or refuse permission to the troops of either belligerent party to pass through their territory1 is no breach of neutrality1 provided the same refusal or permission be extended to the other party4 ,if we give leave of passage then to the ,british troops1 ,spain will have no just cause of complaint against us1 provided we extend the same leave to her when demanded4 ,if we refuse1 7as indeed we have a right to do17 and the troops should pass notwithstanding1 of which there can be little doubt1 we shall stand committed4 ,for either we must enter immediately into the war1 or pocket an acknowledged insult in the face of the world2 and one insult pocketed soon produces another4 ,there is indeed a middle course1 which ,i should be inclined to prefer2 that is1 to avoid giving any answer4 ,they will proceed notwithstanding1 but to do this under our silence1 will admit of palliation1 and produce apologies1 from military necessity2 and will leave us free to pass it over without dishonor1 or to make it a handle of quarrel hereafter1 if we should have use for it as such4 ,but1 if we are obliged to give an answer1 ,i think the occasion not such as should induce us to hazard that answer which might commit us to the war at so early a stage of it2 and therefore that the passage should be permitted4 ,if they should pass without having asked leave1 ,i should be for expressing our dissatisfaction to the ,british court1 and keeping alive an altercation on the subject1 till events should decide whether it is most expedient to accept their apologies1 or profit of the aggression as a cause of war4 ,,xiii4--,opinion on the question whether it will be expedient to notify to ,lord ,dorchester the real object of the expedition preparing by ,governor ,st4 ,clair4 ,august #bi1 #agij4 ,on considering more fully the question whether it will be expedient to notify to ,lord ,dorchester the real object of the expedition preparing by ,governor ,st4 ,clair1 ,i still think it will not be expedient4 ,for1 if the notification be early1 he will get the ,indians out of the way1 and defeat our object4 ,if it be so late as not to leave him time to withdraw them before our stroke be struck1 it will then be so late also as not to leave him time to withdraw any secret aids he may have sent them4 ,and the notification will betray to him that he may go on without fear in his expedition against the ,spaniards1 and for which he may yet have sufficient time after our expedition is over4 ,on the other hand1 if he should suspect our preparations are to prevent his passing our territory1 these suspicions may induce him to decline his expedition1 as1 even should he think he could either force or steal a passage1 he would not divide his troops1 leaving 7as he would suppose7 an enemy between them able to take those he should leave1 and cut off the return of those he should carry4 ,these suspicions1 too1 would mislead both him and the ,indians1 and so enable us to take the latter more completely by surprise1 and prevent him from sending secret aid to those whom he would not suppose the objects of the enterprise2 thus effecting a double purpose of preventing his enterprise1 and securing our own4 ,might it not even be expedient1 with a view to deter his enterprise1 to instruct ,governor ,st4 ,clair either to continue his pursuit of the ,indians till the season be too far advanced for ,lord ,dorchester to move2 or1 on disbanding his militia1 to give them general orders 7which might reach the ears of ,lord ,dorchester7 to be ready to assemble at a moment's warning1 though no such assembly be really intended8 ,always taking care neither to say nor do1 against their passage1 what might directly commit either our peace or honor4 ,,xiv4--,opinion on proceedings to be had under the ,residence act4 ,november #bi1 #agij4 ,a territory not exceeding ten miles square 7or1 ,i presume1 one hundred square miles in any form7 to be located by metes and bounds4 ,three commissioners to be appointed4 ,i suppose them not entitled to any salary4 ,if they live near the place they may1 in some instances1 be influenced by self interest1 and partialities2 but they will push the work with zeal4 ,if they are from a distance1 and northwardly1 they will be more impartial1 but may affect delays4 ,the commissioners to purchase or accept such quantity of land on the east side of the river as the ,president shall deem proper for the ,united ,states1 viz41 for the federal ,capitol1 the offices1 the ,president's house and gardens1 the town house1 market house1 public walks and hospital4 ,for the ,president's house1 offices and gardens1 ,i should think two squares should be consolidated4 ,for the ,capitol and offices1 one square4 ,for the market1 one square4 ,for the public walks1 nine squares consolidated4 ,the expression such quantity of land as the ,president shall deem proper for the ,united ,states1 is vague4 ,it may therefore be extended to the acceptance or purchase of land enough for the town2 and ,i have no doubt it is the wish1 and perhaps expectation4 ,in that case1 it will be to be laid out in lots and streets4 ,i should propose these to be at right angles1 as in ,philadelphia1 and that no street be narrower than one hundred feet1 with foot ways of fifteen feet4 ,where a street is long and level1 it might be one hundred and twenty feet wide4 ,i should prefer squares of at least two hundred yards every way1 which will be about eight acres each4 ,the commissioners should have some taste in architecture1 because they may have to decide between different plans4 ,they will1 however1 be subject to the ,president's direction in every point4 ,when the ,president shall have made up his mind as to the spot for the town1 would there be any impropriety in his saying to the neighboring land holders1 ,i will fix the town here if you will join and purchase and give the lands4 ,they may well afford it by the increase of value it will give to their own circumjacent lands4 ,the lots to be sold out in breadths of fifty feet2 their depths to extend to the diagonal of the square4 ,i doubt much whether the obligation to build the houses at a given distance from the street1 contributes to its beauty4 ,it produces a disgusting monotony2 all persons make this complaint against ,philadelphia4 ,the contrary practice varies the appearance1 and is much more convenient to the inhabitants4 ,in ,paris it is forbidden to build a house beyond a given height2 and it is admitted to be a good restriction4 ,it keeps down the price of ground1 keeps the houses low and convenient1 and the streets light and airy4 ,fires are much more manageable where houses are low4 ,,xv4--,report by the ,secretary of ,state to the ,president of the ,united ,states on the ,report of the ,secretary of the ,government north-west of the ,ohio4 ,december #ad1 #agij4 ,the ,secretary of ,state having had under his consideration the report made by the ,secretary of the ,government north-west of the ,ohio1 of his proceedings for carrying into effect the resolution of ,congress of ,august #bith1 #aghh1 respecting the lands of the inhabitants of ,port ,vincennes1 makes the following report thereon to the ,president of the ,united ,states3 ,the resolution of ,congress of ,august #bith1 #aghh1 had confirmed in their possessions and titles the ,french and ,canadian inhabitants and other settlers at that post1 who1 in or before the year #aghc1 had settled there1 and had professed themselves citizens of the ,united ,states or any of them1 and had made a donation to every head of a family1 of the same description of four hundred acres of land1 part of a square to be laid off adjoining the improvements at the post4 ,the ,secretary of the north-western government1 in the absence of the ,governor1 has carried this resolution into effect1 as to all the claims to which he thought it could be clearly applied3 there remain1 however1 the following description of cases1 on which he asks further instructions3 #a4 ,certain cases within the letter of the resolution1 but rendered doubtful by the condition annexed1 to the grants of lands in the ,illinois country4 ,the cases of these claimants1 fifteen in number1 are specially stated in the papers hereto annexed1 number #b1 and the lands are laid off for them but remain ungranted till further orders4 #b4 ,certain persons who1 by removals from one part of the territory to another1 are not of the letter of the resolutions1 but within its equity1 as they conceive4 #c4 ,certain heads of families1 who became such soon after the year #aghc1 who petition for a participation of the donation1 and urge extraordinary militia service to which they are exposed4 #d4 ,one hundred and fifty acres of land within the village granted under the former government of that country1 to the ,piankeshaw ,indians1 and on their removal sold by them in parcels to individual inhabitants1 who in some instances have highly improved them both before and since the year #aghc4 #e4 ,lands granted both before and after #aghc1 by authority from the commandant of the post1 who1 according to the usage under the ,french and ,british governments1 thinking himself authorized to grant lands1 delegated that authority to a court of civil and criminal jurisdiction1 whose grants before #aghc1 amount to twenty-six thousand acres1 and between that and #aghg1 7when the practice was stopped17 to twenty-two thousand acres4 ,they are generally in parcels from four hundred acres down to the size of house lots2 and some of them under considerable improvement4 ,some of the tenants urge that they were induced by the court itself to come and settle these lands under assurance of their authority to grant them1 and that a loss of the lands and improvements will involve them in ruin4 ,besides these small grants1 there are some much larger1 sometimes of many leagues square1 which a sense of their impropriety has prevented the grantees from bringing forward4 ,many pretended grants1 too1 of this class are believed to be forgeries1 and are1 therefore1 to be guarded against4 #f4 ,two thousand four hundred acres of good land1 and three thousand acres of sunken land1 held under the ,french1 ,british1 and ,american governments1 as commons for the use of the inhabitants of the village generally1 and for thirty years past kept under inclosure for these purposes4 ,the legislature alone being competent to authorize the grant of lands in cases as yet unprovided for by the laws4 ,the ,secretary of ,state is of opinion that the report of the ,secretary of the north-western government1 with the papers therein referred to1 should be laid before ,congress for their determination4 ,authentic copies of them are herewith enclosed to the ,president of the ,united ,states4 ,,xvi4--,opinion on certain proceedings of the ,executive in the ,north-western ,territory4 ,december #ad1 #agij4 ,the ,secretary of ,state having had under his consideration1 the journal of the proceedings of the ,executive in the ,north-western ,territory1 thinks it his duty to extract therefrom1 for the notice of the ,president of the ,united ,states1 the articles of ,april #beth1 ,june #fth1 #bhth1 and #bith4 ,some of which are hereto annexed4 ,conceiving that the regulations1 purported in these articles1 are beyond the competence of the executive of the said government1 that they amount1 in fact1 to laws1 and as such1 could only flow from its regular legislature4 ,that it is the duty of the general government to guard its subordinate members from the encroachments of each other1 even when they are made through error or inadvertence1 and to cover its citizens from the exercise of powers not authorized by the law4 ,the ,secretary of ,state is of opinion that the said articles be laid before the ,attorney ,general for consideration1 and if he finds them to be against law1 that his opinion be communicated to the ,governor of the ,north-western ,territory1 for his future conduct4 ,the following are the extracts alluded to above4 ,extracts from the ,journal of the ,proceedings in the ,executive ,department of government in the ,territory of the ,united ,states1 north-west of the ,ohio1 reported to the ,president of the ,united ,states1 by ,winthrop ,sargent1 ,secretary4 ,april #be1 #agij4--,the governor was pleased to issue the following order1 viz43 ,all the inhabitants are forbidden to entertain any strangers1 white1 ,indian1 or negro1 let them come from whatsoever place1 without acquainting the officer commanding the troops1 of the names of such strangers1 and the place from whence they came4 ,and every stranger arriving at ,cahokia1 is ordered to present himself to said officer within two hours after his arrival1 on pain of imprisonment4 ,june #f1 #agij4--,the ,governor at ,kaskaskias1 was pleased to make the following proclamation3 ,the practice of selling spirituous liquors to the ,indians in the villages being attended with very ill consequences1 it is expressly prohibited2 and all and every person transgressing this order1 will be liable to be tried and fined at the pleasure of the court of quarter sessions of the peace4 ,and as it may be necessary that spirituous liquors should be vended in small quantities to white travellers and others2 to prevent all danger of imposition and extortion1 no person whosoever shall sell in any of the villages or their environs1 spirituous liquors to any white person1 traveller1 or inhabitant1 in any quantity less than one quart at one time1 without obtaining a license from the governor1 which license shall not be granted but upon the recommendation of the ,justices of the ,peace in their court of quarter sessions1 and on his or their giving security in the sum of two hundred dollars1 to abide by all the regulations made by law respecting retailers of spirituous liquors1 and the orders of the said court of quarter sessions in the premises in the meantime4 ,and for every offence1 he or they shall be liable to prosecution by indictment and fine at the pleasure of the court1 and to the forfeiture of their bonds4 ,nor shall any person undertake or exercise the calling or occupation of an ,inn-holder or ,tavern-keeper1 without obtaining in the same manner1 and under the same restrictions and penalties1 a license for so doing4 ,,proclamation4--,whereas1 his ,excellency1 ,arthur ,st4 ,clair1 ,esq41 governor and commander-in-chief of this ,territory1 did by proclamation given at the ,kaskaskias the #ajth instant1 strictly prohibit all persons1 not citizens of the ,united ,states or the ,territory1 from hunting or killing any kind of game within the same1 either for the flesh or skins1 upon penalty not only of forfeiting the flesh and skins which they might acquire1 but also prosecution and punishment as trespassers4 ,and it appearing to me to be particularly essential to the interests of this country1 that an observance of the order and prohibition should be obtained1 ,i do hereby call upon all civil and military officers1 who now are1 or hereafter may be appointed1 to use their best endeavors for detecting and bringing to justice every person who shall violate the same4 ,and1 whereas1 it appears to me to be expedient that government should receive information of all characters1 foreigners and others1 coming into the ,territory1 ,i do hereby order and direct that any person arriving at this1 or any of the military posts of the ,united ,states within the same1 should present himself to the commanding officer of the troops in two hours next after his arrival2 and the inhabitants are hereby forbidden to entertain such characters1 whether whites1 ,indians1 or negroes1 without immediate information thereof to the said commanding officers4 ,given under my hand and seal at the town of ,post ,vincennes1 and county of ,knox1 this #bhth day of ,june1 ,a4 ,d4 #agij1 and of the ,independence of the ,united ,states1 the fourteenth4 7,signed17 ,,winthrop ,,sargent4 ,june #bi1 #agij4--;,it is to be considered as a standing order hereafter1 that no person enrolled in the militia shall leave the village or stations1 for a longer absence than twenty-four hours1 without informing him 7,mayor ,hamtramck7 or the commanding officer for the time being1 of their intention4 ,and all intelligence or discoveries of ,indians1 to be immediately reported4 7,signed17 ,,winthrop ,,sargent4 ,,xvii4--,report on certain letters from the ,president to ,mr4 ,gouverneur ,morris1 and from ,mr4 ,morris to the ,president1 relative to our difficulties with ,england--#agij4 ,december #ae1 #agij4 ,the ,secretary of ,state having had under consideration the two letters of ,october #acth1 #aghi1 from the ,president of the ,united ,states1 to ,mr4 ,gouverneur ,morris2 and those of ,mr4 ,morris to the ,president1 of ,january #bb;d1 ,april #gth1 #acth1 ,may #ast1 #bith1 ,july #c;d1 ,august #afth1 and ,september #ahth1 referred to him by the ,president1 makes the following report thereon3 ,the ,president's letter of ,january #bb;d1 authorized ,mr4 ,morris to enter into conference with the ,british ministers in order to discover their sentiments on the following subjects3 #a4 ,their retention of the western posts contrary to the treaty of peace4 #b4 ,indemnification for the negroes carried off against the stipulations of the same treaty4 #c4 ,a treaty for the regulation of the commerce between the two countries4 #d4 ,the exchange of a minister4 ,the letters of ,mr4 ,morris before mentioned1 state the communications1 oral and written1 which have passed between him and the ministers2 and from these the ,secretary of ,state draws the following inferences3 #a4 ,that the ,british court is decided not to surrender the posts in any event2 and that they will urge as a pretext that though our courts of justice are now open to ,british subjects1 they were so long shut after the peace as to have defeated irremedially the recovery of debts in many cases4 ,they suggest1 indeed1 the idea of an indemnification on our part4 ,but probably were we disposed to admit their right to indemnification1 they would take care to set it so high as to insure a disagreement4 #b4 ,that as to indemnification for the negroes1 their measures for concealing them were in the first instance so efficacious1 as to reduce our demand for them1 so far as we can support it by direct proof1 to be very small indeed4 ,its smallness seems to have kept it out of discussion4 ,were other difficulties removed1 they would probably make none of this article4 #c4 ,that they equivocate on every proposal of a treaty of commerce1 and authorize in their communications with ,mr4 ,morris the same conclusions which have been drawn from those they had had from time to time with ,mr4 ,adams1 and those through ,mayor ,beckwith2 to wit1 that they do not mean to submit their present advantages in commerce to the risk which might attend a discussion of them1 whereon some reciprocity could not fail to be demanded4 ,unless1 indeed1 we would agree to make it a treaty of alliance as well as commerce1 so as to undermine our obligations with ,france4 ,this method of stripping that rival nation of its alliances1 they tried successfully with ,holland1 endeavored at it with ,spain1 and have plainly and repeatedly suggested to us4 ,for this they would probably relax some of the rigors they exercise against our commerce4 #d4 ,that as to a minister1 their ,secretary for foreign affairs is disposed to exchange one1 but meets with opposition in his cabinet1 so as to render the issue uncertain4 ,from the whole of which1 the ,secretary of ,state is of opinion that ,mr4 ,morris' letters remove any doubts which might have been entertained as to the intentions and dispositions of the ,british cabinet4 ,that it would be dishonorable to the ,united ,states1 useless and even injurious1 to renew the propositions for a treaty of commerce1 or for the exchange of a minister2 and that these subjects should now remain dormant1 till they shall be brought forward earnestly by them4 ,that the demands of the posts1 and of indemnification for the negroes1 should not be again made till we are in readiness to do ourselves the justice which may be refused4 ,that ,mr4 ,morris should be informed that he has fulfilled the object of his agency to the satisfaction of the ,president1 inasmuch as he has enabled him to judge of the real views of the ,british cabinet1 and that it is his pleasure that the matters committed to him be left in the situation in which the letter shall find them4 ,that a proper compensation be given to ,mr4 ,morris for his services herein1 which having been begun on the #bb;d of ,january1 and ended the #ahth of ,september1 comprehend a space of near eight months2 that the allowance to an agent may be properly fixed anywhere between the half and the whole of what is allowed to a ,charg d'affaires2 which1 according to the establishment of the ,united ,states at the time of this appointment1 was at the rate of #c1jjj a year2 consequently1 that such a sum of between one and two thousand dollars be allowed him as the ,president shall deem proper1 on a view of the interference which this agency may have had with ,mr4 ,morris' private pursuits in ,europe4 ,,xviii4--,report relative to the ,mediterranean trade4 ,december #bh1 #agij4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred by the ,house of ,representatives so much of the speech of the ,president of the ,united ,states to both ,houses of ,congress1 as relates to the trade of the ,united ,states in the ,mediterranean1 with instructions to report thereupon to the ,house1 has had the same under consideration1 and thereupon makes the following report3 ,the loss of the records of the custom houses in several of the ,states1 which took place about the commencement and during the course of the late war1 has deprived us of official information1 as to the extent of our commerce and navigation in the ,mediterranean sea4 ,according to the best which may be obtained from other sources meriting respect1 it may be concluded that about one-sixth of the wheat and flour exported from the ,united ,states1 and about one-fourth in value of their dried and pickled fish1 and some rice1 found their best markets in the ,mediterranean ports2 that these articles constituted the principal part of what we sent into that sea2 that that commerce loaded outwards from eighty to one hundred ships1 annually1 of twenty thousand tons1 navigated by about twelve hundred seamen4 ,it was abandoned early in the war4 ,and after the peace which ensued1 it was obvious to our merchants1 that their adventures into that sea would be exposed to the depredations of the piratical ,states on the coast of ,barbary4 ,congress1 too1 was very early attentive to this danger1 and by a commission of the #abth of ,may1 #aghd1 authorized certain persons1 named ministers plenipotentiary for that purpose1 to conclude treaties of peace and amity with the ,barbary powers4 ,and it being afterwards found more expedient that the negotiations should be carried on at the residences of those powers4 ,congress1 by a farther commission1 bearing date the #aath of ,march1 #aghe1 empowered the same ministers plenipotentiary to appoint agents to repair to the said powers at their proper residences1 and there to negotiate such treaties4 ,the whole expenses were limited to eighty thousand dollars4 ,agents were accordingly sent to ,morocco and ,algiers4 ,before the appointment of the one to ,morocco1 it was known that a cruiser of that ,state had taken a vessel of the ,united ,states2 and that the emperor1 on the friendly interposition of the court of ,madrid had liberated the crew1 and made restitution of the vessel and cargo1 as far as their condition admitted4 ,this was a happy presage of the liberal treaty he afterwards concluded with our agent1 still under the friendly mediation of ,spain1 and at an expense of between nine and ten thousand dollars only4 ,on his death1 which has taken place not long since1 it becomes necessary1 according to their usage1 to obtain immediately a recognition of the treaty by his successor1 and consequently1 to make provision for the expenses which may attend it4 ,the amount of the former furnishes one ground of estimate2 but the character and dispositions of the successor1 which are unknown here1 may influence it materially4 ,the friendship of this power is important1 because our ,atlantic as well as ,mediterranean trade is open to his annoyance1 and because we carry on a useful commerce with his nation4 ,the ,algerines had also taken two vessels of the ,united ,states1 with twenty-one persons on board1 whom they retained as slaves4 ,on the arrival of the agent sent to that regency1 the dey refused utterly to treat of peace on any terms1 and demanded #ei1dif dollars for the ransom of our captives4 ,this mission therefore proved ineffectual4 ,while these negotiations were on foot at ,morocco and ,algiers1 an ambassador from ,tripoli arrived in ,london4 ,the ministers plenipotentiary of the ,united ,states met him in person4 ,he demanded for the peace of that ,state1 thirty thousand guineas2 and undertook to engage that of ,tunis for a like sum4 ,these demands were beyond the limits of ,congress1 and of reason1 and nothing was done4 ,nor was it of importance1 as1 ,algiers remaining hostile1 the peace of ,tunis and ,tripoli was of no value1 and when that of the former should be obtained1 theirs would soon follow4 ,our navigation1 then1 into the ,mediterranean1 has not been resumed at all since the peace4 ,the sole obstacle has been the unprovoked war of ,algiers2 and the sole remedy must be to bring that war to an end1 or to palliate its effects4 ,its effects may1 perhaps1 be palliated by insuring our ships and cargoes destined for that sea1 and by forming a convention with the regency1 for the ransom of our seamen1 according to a fixed tariff4 ,that tariff will1 probably1 be high1 and the rate of insurance so settled1 in the long run1 as to pay for the vessels and cargoes captured1 and something more4 ,what proportion will be captured nothing but experience can determine4 ,our commerce differs from that of most of the nations with whom the predatory ,states are in habits of war4 ,theirs is spread all over the face of the ,mediterranean1 and therefore must be sought for all over its face4 ,ours must all enter at a strait only five leagues wide2 so that their cruisers1 taking a safe and commanding position near the strait's mouth1 may very effectually inspect whatever enters it4 ,so safe a station1 with a certainty of receiving for their prisoners a good and stated price1 may tempt their cupidity to seek our vessels particularly4 ,nor is it certain that our seamen could be induced to engage in that navigation1 though with the security of ,algerine faith that they would be liberated on the payment of a fixed sum4 ,the temporary deprivation of liberty1 perhaps chains1 the danger of the pest1 the perils of the engagement preceding their surrender1 and possible delays of the ransom1 might turn elsewhere the choice of men1 to whom all the rest of the world is open4 ,in every case1 these would be embarrassments which would enter into the merchants' estimate1 and endanger the preference of foreign bottoms not exposed to them4 ,and upon the whole1 this expedient does not fulfil our wish of a complete re-establishment of our commerce in that sea4 ,a second plan might be to obtain peace by purchasing it4 ,for this we have the example of rich and powerful nations1 in this instance counting their interest more than their honor4 ,if1 conforming to their example1 we determine to purchase a peace1 it is proper to inquire what a peace may cost4 ,this being merely a matter of conjecture1 we can only compare together such opinions as have been obtained1 and from them form one for ourselves4 ,mr4 ,wolf1 a respectable ,irishman1 who had resided very long at ,algiers1 thought a peace might be obtained from that regency1 and the redemption of our captives included1 for sixty or seventy thousand pounds sterling4#be ,his character and opinion both merited respect4 ,yet his estimate being the lowest of all who have hazarded an opinion on this subject1 one is apt to fear his judgment might have been biassed by the hope he entertained that the ,united ,states would charge him with this negotiation4 ,captain ,o',brien1 one of our captives1 who had been in ,algiers four years and a half at the date of his last letter1 a very sensible man1 and to whom we are indebted for very minute information1 supposes that peace alone1 might be bought for that sum1 that is to say1 for three hundred and twenty-two thousand dollars4 ,the ,tripoline ambassador1 before mentioned1 thought that peace could be made with the three smaller powers for ninety thousand pounds sterling1 to which were to be added the expenses of the mission and other incidental expenses4 ,but he could not answer for ,algiers2 they would demand more4 ,the ministers plenipotentiary1 who conferred with him1 had judged that as much must be paid to ,algiers as to the other three powers together2 and consequently1 that according to this measure1 the peace of ,algiers would cost from an hundred to an hundred and twenty-five thousand pounds sterling2 or from four hundred and sixty to five hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars4 ,the latter sum seemed to meet the ideas of the ,count de ,vergennes1 who1 from a very long residence at ,constantinople1 was a good judge of what related to the porte1 or its dependencies4 ,a person whose name is not free to be mentioned here1 a native of the continent of ,europe1 who had long lived1 and still lives at ,algiers1 with whom the minister plenipotentiary of the ,united ,states1 at ,paris1 had many and long conversations1 and found his information full1 clear1 and consistent1 was of opinion the peace of ,algiers could not be bought by the ,united ,states for less than one million of dollars4 ,and when that is paid1 all is not done4 ,on the death of a dey1 7and the present one is between seventy and eighty years of age17 respectable presents must be made to the successor1 that he may recognize the treaty and very often he takes the liberty of altering it4 ,when a consul is sent or changed1 new presents must be made4 ,if these events leave a considerable interval1 occasion must be made of renewing presents4 ,and with all this they must see that we are in condition to chastise an infraction of the treaty2 consequently some marine force must be exhibited in their harbor from time to time4 ,the late peace of ,spain with ,algiers is said to have cost from three to five millions of dollars4 ,having received the money1 they take the vessels of that nation on the most groundless pretexts2 counting1 that the same force which bound ,spain to so hard a treaty1 may break it with impunity4 ,their treaty with ,france1 which had expired1 was about two years ago renewed for fifty years4 ,the sum given at the time of renewal is not known4 ,but presents are to be repeated every ten years1 and a tribute of one hundred thousand dollars to be annually paid4 ,yet perceiving that ,france1 embarrassed at home with her domestic affairs1 was less capable of acting abroad1 they took six vessels of that nation in the course of the last year1 and retain the captives1 forty-four in number1 in slavery4 ,it is the opinion of ,captain ,o',brien1 that those nations are best treated who pay a smaller sum in the beginning1 and an annual tribute afterwards4 ,in this way he informs us that the ,dutch1 ,danes1 ,swedes1 and ,venetians pay to ,algiers1 from twenty-four to thirty thousand dollars a year1 each2 the two first in naval stores1 the two last chiefly in money4 ,it is supposed1 that the peace of the ,barbary ,states costs ,great ,britain about sixty thousand guineas1 or two hundred and eighty thousand dollars a year4 ,but it must be noted that these facts cannot be authentically advanced2 as from a principle of self-condemnation1 the governments keep them from the public eye as much as possible4 ,nor must we omit finally to recollect1 that the ,algerines1 attentive to reserve always a sufficient aliment for their piracies1 will never extend their peace beyond certain limits1 and consequently1 that we may find ourselves in the case of those nations to whom they refuse peace at any price4 ,the third expedient is to repel force by force4 ,several statements are hereto annexed of the naval force of ,algiers1 taken in #aghe1 #aghf1 #aghg1 #aghh1 and #aghi1 differing in small degrees1 but concurring in the main4 ,from these it results that they have usually had about nine chebecs1 from ten to thirty-six guns1 and four galleys1 which have been reduced by losses to six chebecs and four galleys4 ,they have a forty-gun frigate on the stocks1 and expect two cruisers from the grand seignior4 ,the character of their vessels is1 that they are sharp built and swift1 but so light as not to stand the broadside of a good frigate4 ,their guns are of different calibres1 unskilfully pointed and worked4 ,the vessels illy manuvred1 but crowded with men1 one third ,turks1 the rest ,moors1 of determined bravery1 and resting their sole hopes on boarding4 ,but two of these vessels belong to the government1 the rest being private property4 ,if they come out of the harbor together1 they separate immediately in quest of prey2 and it is said they were never known to act together in any instance4 ,nor do they come out at all1 when they know there are vessels cruising for them4 ,they perform three cruises a year1 between the middle of ,april and ,november1 when they unrig and lay up for the winter4 ,when not confined within the straits1 they rove northwardly to the channel1 and westwardly to the westward islands4 ,they are at peace at present1 with ,france1 ,spain1 ,england1 ,venice1 the ,united ,netherlands1 ,sweden1 and ,denmark2 and at war with ,russia1 ,austria1 ,portugal1 ,naples1 ,sardinia1 ,genoa1 and ,malta4 ,should the ,united ,states propose to vindicate their commerce by arms1 they would1 perhaps1 think it prudent to possess a force equal to the whole of that which may be opposed to them4 ,what that equal force would be1 will belong to another department to say4 ,at the same time it might never be necessary to draw out the whole at once1 nor perhaps any proportion of it1 but for a small part of the year2 as it is reasonable to presume that a concert of operation might be arranged among the powers at war with the ,barbary ,states1 so as that1 each performing a tour of given duration1 and in given order1 a constant cruise during the eight temperate months of every year1 may be kept up before the harbor of ,algiers1 till the object of such operations be completely obtained4 ,portugal has singly1 for several years past1 kept up such a cruise before the straits of ,gibraltar1 and by that means has confined the ,algerines closely within4 ,but two of their vessels have been out of the straits in the last five years4 ,should ,portugal effect a peace with them1 as has been apprehended for some time1 the ,atlantic will immediately become the principal scene of their piracies2 their peace with ,spain having reduced the profits of their ,mediterranean cruises below the expenses of equipment4 ,upon the whole1 it rests with ,congress to decide between war1 tribute1 and ransom1 as the means of re-establishing our ,mediterranean commerce4 ,if war1 they will consider how far our own resources shall be called forth1 and how far they will enable the ,executive to engage1 in the forms of the constitution1 the co-operation of other powers4 ,if tribute or ransom1 it will rest with them to limit and provide the amount2 and with the ,executive1 observing the same constitutional forms1 to take arrangements for employing it to the best advantage4 ,no4 #a4--;,extract of a letter from ,richard ,o',brien1 one of the ,american captives at ,algiers1 to ,congress4 ,algiers1 ,december #bf1 #aghi4 ,it was the opinion of ,mr4 ,john ,wolf1 who resided many years in this city1 that the ,united ,states of ,america may obtain a peace for one hundred years with this regency1 for the sum of sixty or seventy thousand pounds sterling1 and the redemption of fifteen ,americans included4 ,mr4 ,wolf was the ,british charg des affaires in ,algiers1 and was much the friend of ,america1 but he is no more4 ,i have now been four years and a half in captivity1 and ,i have much reason to think1 that ,america may obtain a peace with ,algiers for the sum of sixty-five or seventy thousand pounds1 considering the present state of ,algiers4 ,that this regency would find it their interest to take two or three ,american cruisers in part payment for making a peace2 and also would take masts1 yards1 plank1 scantling1 tar1 pitch1 and turpentine1 and ,philadelphia iron1 as a part payment2 all to be regulated at a certain fixed price by treaty4 ,no4 #b4--;,extract of a letter from the ,honorable ,john ,adams1 ,minister ,plenipotentiary for the ,united ,states at ,london1 to the ,honorable ,john ,jay1 ,secretary for ,foreign ,affairs4 ,london1 ,february #bb1 #aghf ,on ,monday evening another conference was held with the ,tripolitan ambassador4 ,when he began to explain himself concerning his demands1 he said they would be different according to the duration of the treaty4 ,if that were perpetual1 they would be greater2 if for a term of years1 less2 his advice was that it should be perpetual4 ,once signed by the bashaw1 dey1 and other officers1 it would be indissoluble and binding forever upon all their successors4 ,but if a temporary treaty were made1 it might be difficult and expensive to revive it4 ,for a perpetual treaty1 such as they now had with ,spain1 a sum of thirty thousand guineas must be paid upon the delivery of the articles signed by the dey and other officers4 ,if it were agreed to1 he would send his secretary by land to ,marseilles1 and from thence1 by water1 to ,tripoli1 who should bring it back by the same route1 signed by the dey1 c4 ,he had proposed so small a sum in consideration of the circumstances1 but declared it was not half of what had been lately paid them by ,spain4 ,if we chose to treat upon a different plan1 he would make a treaty perpetual upon the payment of twelve thousand five hundred guineas for the first year1 and three thousand guineas annually1 until the thirty thousand guineas were paid4 ,it was observed that these were large sums1 and vastly beyond expectation2 but his excellency answered1 that they never made a treaty for less4 ,upon the arrival of a prize1 the dey and other officers are entitled1 by their laws1 to large shares1 by which they might make greater profits than those sums amounted to1 and they never would give up this advantage for less4 ,he was told1 that although there was full power to treat1 the ,american ministers were limited to a much smaller sum2 so that it would be impossible to do anything until we wrote to ,congress and know their pleasure4 ,colonel ,smith was present at this1 as he had been at the last conference1 and agreed to go to ,paris1 to communicate all to ,mr4 ,jefferson1 and persuade him to come here1 that we may join in farther conferences1 and transmit the result to ,congress4 ,the ambassador believed that ,tunis and ,morocco would treat upon the same terms1 but could not answer for ,algiers4 ,they would demand more4 ,when ,mr4 ,jefferson arrives1 we shall insist upon knowing the ultimatum1 and transmit it to ,congress4 ,congress will perceive that one hundred and twenty thousand guineas will be indispensable to conclude with the four powers at this rate1 besides a present to the ambassadors1 and their incidental charges4 ,besides this1 a present of five hundred guineas is made1 upon the arrival of a consul in each ,state4 ,no man wishes more fervently that the expense could be less1 but the fact cannot be altered1 and the truth ought not to be concealed4 ,it may be reasonably concluded that this great affair cannot be finished for much less than two hundred thousand pounds sterling4 ,no4 #c4--;,extract of a ,letter from the ,honorable ,thomas ,jefferson1 ,minister ,plenipotentiary for the ,united ,states at ,paris1 to the ,honorable ,john ,jay1 ,secretary for foreign ,affairs4 ,paris1 ,may #bc1 #aghf4 ,letters received both from ,madrid and ,algiers1 while ,i was in ,london1 having suggested that treaties with the ,states of ,barbary would be much facilitated by a previous one with the ,ottoman ,porte1 it was agreed between ,mr4 ,adams and myself1 that on my return ,i should consult1 on this subject1 the ,count ,de ,vergennes1 whose long residence at ,constantinople rendered him the best judge of its expediency4 ,various circumstances have put it out of my power to consult him till to-day4 ,i stated to him the difficulties we were likely to meet with at ,algiers1 and asked his opinion1 what would be the probable expense of a diplomatic mission to ,constantinople1 and what its effects at ,algiers4 ,he said that the expense would be very great2 for that presents must be made at that court1 and every one would be gaping after them2 and that it would not procure us a peace at ,algiers one penny the cheaper4 ,he observed that the ,barbary ,states acknowledged a sort of vassalage to the ,porte1 and availed themselves of that relation when anything was to be gained by it2 but that whenever it subjected them to the demand from the ,porte1 they totally disregarded it2 that money was the sole agent4 ,he cited the present example of ,spain1 which1 though having a treaty with the ,porte1 would probably be obliged to buy a peace at ,algiers1 at the expense of upwards of six millions of livres4 ,i told him we had calculated1 from the demands and information of the ,tripoline ambassador at ,london1 that to make peace with the four ,barbary ,states would cost us between two and three hundred thousand guineas1 if bought with money4 ,the sum did not seem to exceed his expectations4 ,i mentioned to him1 that considering the uncertainty of a peace1 when bought1 perhaps ,congress might think it more eligible to establish a cruise of frigates in the ,mediterranean1 and even blockade ,algiers4 ,he supposed it would require ten vessels1 great and small4 ,i observed to him that ,m4 ,de ,massiac had formerly done it with five2 he said it was true1 but that vessels of relief would be necessary4 ,i hinted to him that ,i thought the ,english capable of administering aid to the ,algerines4 ,he seemed to think it impossible1 on account of the scandal it would bring on them4 ,i asked him what had occasioned the blockade by ,m4 ,de ,massiac1 he said an infraction of their treaty by the ,algerines4 ,no4 #d4--;,extract of a ,letter from ,richard ,o',brien to the ,hon4 ,thomas ,jefferson4 ,algiers1 ,april #bh1 #aghg4 ,it seems the ,neapolitan ambassador had obtained a truce with this regency for three months2 and the ambassador wrote his court of his success2 but about the #ast of ,april1 when the cruisers were fitting out1 the ambassador went to the dey1 and hoped the dey would give the necessary orders to the captains of his cruisers not to take the ,neapolitan vessels4 ,the dey said the meaning of the truce was not to take the ,neapolitan cruisers1 but if his chebecks should meet the ,neapolitan merchantmen to take them and send them for ,algiers4 ,the ambassador said1 the ,neapolitan cruisers would not want a pass on those terms4 ,the dey said1 if his chebecks should meet either men of war or merchant vessels1 to take them2 so gave orders accordingly4 ,the ,algerines sailed the #ith instant1 and are gone1 ,i believe1 off the coast of ,italy4 ,this shows there is very little confidence to be put in the royal word4 ,no principle of national honor will bind those people2 and ,i believe not much confidence to be put in them in treaties4 ,the ,algerines are not inclinable to a peace with the ,neapolitans4 ,i hear of no negotiation4 ,when the two frigates arrive with the money for the ransom of the slaves1 ,i believe they are done with the ,neapolitans4 ,extract of a ,letter from ,richard ,o',brien to the ,hon4 ,thomas ,jefferson4 ,algiers1 ,june #ac1 #aghi4 ,the cruisers had orders to take the ,danes2 but ,i believe ,denmark1 suspecting that on account of their alliance with ,russia1 that the grand seignior would order the regency of ,algiers to make war against the ,danes2 accordingly1 the ,danes have evacuated the ,mediterranean seas1 until the affairs of ,europe are more settled4 ,the ,danish ship with the tribute is shortly expected4 ,she is worth fifty thousand dollars2 so that the ,algerines will not make known publicly their intention of breaking with ,denmark1 until this ship arrives with the tribute4 ,i am very sure that ,mr4 ,robindar is very sensible of the intention of those sea-robbers1 the terror and scourge of the ,christians4 ,the reason the ,algerines have not committed any depredations on the ,english1 is1 that the cruisers have not met with any of them richly loaded2 for if they had met a rich ship from ,london for ,livorna1 they would certainly have brought her into port1 and said that such ship was loaded for the enemy of ,algiers at ,livorna2 but if that was not a sufficient excuse1 hove overboard or clipt the pass4 ,consul ,logie has been treated with much contempt by the ,algerine ministry2 and you may depend1 that when the dey goes to his long home1 that his successor will not renew the peace with ,great ,britain1 without a large sum of money is paid1 and very valuable presents4 ,this ,i well know2 the whole ministry says1 that the peace with the ,english is very old1 and that the ,english must conform to the custom of other nations1 in giving the government here money and presents4 ,in fact1 the ,algerines are trying their endeavors to find some nation to break the peace with them4 ,i think1 if they had treated the ,english in such a manner as they have the ,french1 that the ,english would resent it4 ,extract of a ,letter from ,richard ,o',brien to the ,hon4 ,thomas ,jefferson4 ,algiers1 ,june #ac1 #aghi4 ,what dependence or faith could be given to a peace with the ,algerines1 considering their present haughtiness1 and with what contempt and derision do they treat all nations2 so that1 in my opinion1 until the ,algerines more strictly adhere to the treaties they have already made1 it would be impolitic in any nation to try to make a peace here2 for ,i see they take more from the nations they are at peace with1 than from those they are at declared war with4 ,the ,portuguese1 ,i hope1 will keep the ,algerines inside the straits2 for only consider the bad consequence of the ,algerines going into the mar ,grandi4 ,should the ,portuguese make a sudden peace with this regency1 the ,algerines would immediately go out of the straits1 and of course1 take many an ,american4 ,no4 #e4--;,extract of a ,letter from the ,hon4 ,john ,adams1 ,esq41 ,minister ,plenipotentiary of the ,united ,states at the ,court of ,great ,britain1 to the ,hon4 ,john ,jay1 ,esq41 ,secretary for ,foreign ,affairs4 ,february #af1 #aghf4 ,the ,american commerce can be protected from these ,africans only by negotiation1 or by war4 ,if presents should be exacted from us1 as ample as those which are given by ,england1 the expense may amount to sixty thousand pounds sterling a year1 an enormous sum to be sure2 but infinitely less than the expense of fighting4 ,two frigates of #cj guns each would cost as much to fit them for the sea1 besides the accumulating charges of stores1 provisions1 pay1 and clothing4 ,the powers of ,europe generally send a squadron of men of war with their ministers1 and offer battle at the same time that they propose treaties and promise presents4 ,no4 #f4--,several statements of the ,marine force of ,algiers4--,public and private ,may #bj1 #aghf4--,mr4 ,lamb says it consists of #i ,chebecs from #cf to #h guns2 manned1 the largest with #djj men1 #aj ,row ,galleys and so in proportion4 ,may #bg1 #aghg4--,mr4 ,randall furnishes two statements1 viz43 ,a more general one--#a ,setye of #cd guns4 #b #cb #a #bf #a #bd #a ,chebec #bj #a #ah #a #aj --- #h #d half-galleys1 carrying from #abj to #acj ,moors4 #c galliots of #gj1 #fj1 and #ej ,moors4 ,a more particular one as follows3 #a of #cb guns1 viz4 #b eighteens1 #bd nines1 #f fours1 and #dej men4 #a of #bh #b twelves1 #bd #b sixes1 #djj #a of #bd #bj fours1 #cej #a of #bj #bj sixes1 #cjj #b of #ah #ah #bfj #a of #af #af #bej #b small craft4 --- #i #ee gun-boats1 carrying #a twelve pounder each1 for defence of the harbor4 ,june #h1 #aghf4--;,a letter from the three ,american captains1 ,o',brien1 ,coffin1 and ,stephens1 state them as #a of #cb #a of #cj #c of #bd #c of #ah #a of #ab --- #i and #ee gun-boats4 ,september #be1 #aghg4--;,captain ,o',brien furnishes the following statement #a of #cj guns1 #djj men1 #ajf feet length1 straight keel4 #a of #bf #cbj #if #b of #bb #bdj #hj #a of #bb #bdj #ge #a of #bb #bdj #gj #a of #ah #bjj #gj #a of #af #ahj #fd #a of #ab #aej #ej --- #i ,galleys #a of #d #gj #dj #b of #b #df #cb #a of #b #dj #cb ,february #e1 #aghh4--,statement by the inhabitants of ,algiers1 spoken of in the report4 #i vessels from #cf down to #bj guns4 #d or #e smaller4 ,about this date the ,algerines lost two or three vessels1 stranded or taken4 ,december1 #aghi4--;,captain ,o',brien furnishes the latest statement4 #a ship of #bd guns1 received lately from ,france4 #e large cruisers4 --- #f #c galleys1 and #fj gun-boats4 ,in the fall of #aghi1 they laid the keel of a #dj gun frigate1 and they expect two cruisers from the grand seignior4 ,no4 #g4--,translation of a ,letter from ,count ,d',estaing to the ,hon4 ,thomas ,jefferson1 ,esq4 ,paris1 ,may #ag1 #aghd4 ,,sir1--,in giving you an account of an opinion of ,mr4 ,massiac1 and which absolutely corresponds with my own1 ,i cannot too much observe how great a difference may take place in the course of forty years between the means which he required and those which political circumstances1 that ,i cannot ascertain1 may exact4 ,this ,secretary of ,state1 afterwards vice-,admiral1 had the modesty1 when a captain1 to propose a means for the reduction of ,algiers1 less brilliant to himself1 but more sure and economical than the one government was about to adopt4 ,they wanted him to undertake a bombardment2 he proposed a simple blockade4 ,all the force he requested was a single man-of-war1 two strong frigates1 and two sloops-of-war4 ,i am convinced1 that by blocking up ,algiers by cross-anchoring1 and with a long tow1 that is to say1 with several cables spliced to each other1 and with iron chains1 one might1 if necessary1 always remain there1 and there is no ,barbarian power thus confined1 which would not sue for peace4 ,during the war before last the ,english remained1 even in winter1 at anchor before ,morbian1 on the coast of ,brittany1 which is a much more dangerous coast4 ,expeditious preparation for sailing of the vessels which form the blockade1 which should be of a sufficient number to prevent anything from entering or going out1 while the rest remain at their stations1 the choice of these stations1 skilful manuvres1 strict watch during the night1 every precaution against the element which every seaman ought to be acquainted with2 also1 against the enemy to prevent the sudden attack of boats1 and to repel them in case they should make an attack by boats prepared for the purpose1 frequent refreshments for the crews1 relieving the men1 an unshaken constancy and exactness in service1 are the means1 which in my opinion1 would render the event indubitable4 ,bombardments are but transitory4 ,it is1 if ,i may so express myself1 like breaking glass windows with guineas4 ,none have produced effect against the barbarians4 ,even an imperfect blockade1 were one to have the patience and courage to persist therein1 would occasion a perpetual evil1 it would be insupportable in the long run4 ,to obtain the end proposed no advantage ought to be lost4 ,if several powers would come to a good understanding1 and pursue a plan formed on the principles of humanity2 if they were not counteracted by others1 it would require but a few years to compel the barbarians to cease being pirates2 they would become merchants in spite of themselves4 ,it is needless to observe1 that the unsuccessful attempts of ,spain1 and those under which the republic of ,venice1 perhaps1 hides other views1 have increased the strength as well as the self-love of all the barbarians4 ,we are assured that the ,algerines have fitted out merchantmen with heavy cannon4 ,this would render it necessary to block the place with two ships1 so that one of the two might remain moored near the bar1 while the other might prepare to support such of the frigates as should give chase4 ,but their chebecs1 even their frigates1 and all their vessels1 although overcharged with men1 are moreover so badly armed and manuvred that assistance from without would be most to be feared4 ,your excellency has told me the only true means of bringing to terms the only people who can take a pleasure in disturbing our commerce4 ,you see1 ,i speak as an ,american citizen2 this title1 dear to my heart1 the value of which ,i justly prize1 affords me the happy opportunity of offering1 still more particularly1 the homage1 the sincere attachment1 and the respect with which ,i have the honor to be1 c4 ,,estaing4 ,,footnote3 #be ,see ,no4 #a accompanying this report4 ,,xix4--,report on the ,algerine ,prisoners4 ,december #bh1 #agij4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 having had under consideration the situation of the citizens of the ,united ,states in captivity at ,algiers1 makes the following report thereupon to the ,president of the ,united ,states3 ,when the ,house of ,representatives1 at their late session1 were pleased to refer to the ,secretary of ,state1 the petition of our citizens in captivity at ,algiers1 there still existed some expectation that certain measures1 which had been employed to effect their redemption1 the success of which depended on their secrecy1 might prove effectual4 ,information received during the recess of ,congress has so far weakened those expectations1 as to make it now a duty to lay before the ,president of the ,united ,states1 a full statement of what has been attempted for the relief of these our suffering citizens1 as well before1 as since he came into office1 that he may be enabled to decide what further is to be done4 ,on the #beth of ,july1 #aghe1 the schooner ,maria1 ,captain ,stevens1 belonging to a ,mr4 ,foster1 of ,boston1 was taken off ,cape ,st4 ,vincents1 by an ,algerine corsair2 and1 five days afterwards1 the ship ,dauphin1 ,captain ,o',brien1 belonging to ,messieurs ,irvins of ,philadelphia1 was taken by another ,algerine1 about fifty leagues westward of ,lisbon4 ,these vessels1 with their cargoes and crews1 twenty-one persons in number1 were carried into ,algiers4 ,congress had some time before commissioned ministers plenipotentiary for entering into treaties of amity and commerce with the ,barbary ,powers1 and to send to them proper agents for preparing such treaties4 ,an agent was accordingly appointed for ,algiers1 and his instructions prepared1 when the ,ministers ,plenipotentiary received information of these captures4 ,though the ransom of captives was not among the objects expressed in their commissions1 because at their dates the case did not exist1 yet they thought it their duty to undertake that ransom1 fearing that the captives might be sold and dispersed through the interior and distant countries of ,africa1 if the previous orders of ,congress should be waited for4 ,they therefore added a supplementary instruction to the agent to negotiate their ransom4 ,but1 while acting thus without authority1 they thought themselves bound to offer a price so moderate as not to be disapproved4 ,they therefore restrained him to two hundred dollars a man2 which was something less than had been just before paid for about three hundred ,french captives1 by the ,mathurins1 a religious order of ,france1 instituted in ancient times for the redemption of ,christian captives from the infidel ,powers4 ,on the arrival of the agent at ,algiers1 the dey demanded fifty-nine thousand four hundred and ninety-six dollars for the twenty-one captives1 and could be brought to abate but little from that demand4 ,the agent1 therefore1 returned in #aghf1 without having effected either peace or ransom4 ,in the beginning of the next year1 #aghg1 the ,minister ,plenipotentiary of the ,united ,states at ,paris procured an interview with the general of the religious order of ,mathurins1 before mentioned1 to engage him to lend his agency1 at the expense of the ,united ,states1 for the redemption of their captive citizens4 ,he proffered at once all the services he could render1 with the liberality and the zeal which distinguish his character4 ,he observed1 that he had agents on the spot1 constantly employed in seeking out and redeeming the captives of their own country2 that these should act for us1 as for themselves2 that nothing could be accepted for their agency2 and that he would only expect that the price of redemption should be ready on our part1 so as to cover the engagement into which he should enter4 ,he added1 that1 by the time all expenses were paid1 their last redemption had amounted to near two thousand five hundred livres a man1 and that he could by no means flatter us that they could redeem our captives as cheap as their own4 ,the pirates would take advantage of its being out of their ordinary line4 ,still he was in hopes they would not be much higher4 ,the proposition was then submitted to ,congress1 that is to say1 in ,february1 #aghg1 and on the #aith of ,september1 in the same year1 their ,minister ,plenipotentiary at ,paris received their orders to embrace the offers of the ,mathurins4 ,this he immediately notified to the general1 observing1 however1 that he did not desire him to enter into any engagements till a sufficient sum to cover them should be actually deposited in ,paris4 ,the general wished that the whole might be kept rigorously secret1 as1 should the barbarians suspect him to be acting for the ,united ,states1 they would demand such sums as he could never agree to give1 even with our consent1 because it would injure his future purchases from them4 ,he said he had information from his agent at ,algiers1 that our captives received so liberal a daily allowance as to evince that it came from a public source4 ,he recommended that this should be discontinued2 engaging that he would have an allowance administered to them1 much short indeed of what they had hitherto received1 but such as was given to his own countrymen1 quite sufficient for physical necessities1 and more likely to prepare the opinion1 that as they were subsisted by his charity1 they were to be redeemed by it also4 ,these ideas1 suggested to him by the danger of raising his market1 were approved by the ,minister ,plenipotentiary2 because1 this being the first instance of a redemption by the ,united ,states1 it would form a precedent1 because a high price given by us might induce these pirates to abandon all other nations in pursuit of ,americans2 whereas1 the contrary would take place1 could our price of redemption be fixed at the lowest point4 ,to destroy1 therefore1 every expectation of a redemption by the ,united ,states1 the bills of the ,spanish consul at ,algiers1 who had made the kind advances before spoken of for the sustenance of our captives1 were not answered4 ,on the contrary1 a hint was given that these advances had better be discontinued1 as it was not known that they would be reimbursed4 ,it was necessary even to go further1 and to suffer the captives themselves and their friends to believe for awhile1 that no attention was paid to them1 no notice taken of their letters4 ,they are still under this impression4 ,it would have been unsafe to trust them with a secret1 the disclosure of which might forever prevent their redemption1 by raising the demands of the captors to sums which a due regard for our seamen1 still in freedom1 would forbid us to give4 ,this was the most trying of all circumstances1 and drew from them the most afflicting reproaches4 ,it was a twelvemonth afterwards before the money could be deposited in ,paris1 and the negotiation be actually put into train4 ,in the meantime the general had received information from ,algiers of a very considerable change of prices there4 ,within the last two or three years the ,spaniards1 the ,neapolitans1 and the ,russians1 had redeemed at exorbitant sums4 ,slaves were become scarce1 and would hardly be sold at any price4 ,still he entered on the business with an assurance of doing the best in his power2 and he was authorized to offer as far as three thousand livres1 or five hundred and fifty-five dollars a man4 ,he wrote immediately to consult a confidential agent at ,marseilles1 on the best mode of carrying this business into effect2 from whom he received the answer ,no4 #b1 hereto annexed4 ,nothing further was known of his progress or prospects1 when the ,house of ,representatives were pleased1 at their last session1 to refer the petition of our captives at ,algiers to the ,secretary of ,state4 ,the preceding narrative shows that no report could have then been made without risking the object1 of which some hopes were still entertained4 ,later advices1 however1 from the charg des affaires of the ,united ,states1 at ,paris1 informs us1 that these measures1 though not yet desperate1 are not to be counted on4 ,besides the exorbitance of price1 before feared1 the late transfer of the lands and revenues of the clergy in ,france to the public1 by withdrawing the means1 seems to have suspended the proceedings of the ,mathurins in the purposes of their institution4 ,it is time1 therefore1 to look about for something more promising1 without relinquishing1 in the meanwhile1 the chance of success through them4 ,endeavors to collect information1 which have been continued a considerable time1 as to the ransoms which would probably be demanded from us1 and those actually paid by other nations1 enable the ,secretary of ,state to lay before the ,president the following short view1 collected from original papers now in his possession1 or from information delivered to him personally4 ,passing over the ransoms of the ,mathurins1 which are kept far below the common level by special circumstances3 ,in #aghf1 the dey of ,algiers demanded from our agent #ei1dif for twenty-one captives1 which was #b1hcc a man4 ,the agent flattered himself they could be ransomed for #a1bjj apiece4 ,his secretary informed us1 at the same time1 that ,spain had paid #a1fjj4 ,in #aghg1 the ,russians redeemed at #a1edf a man4 ,in #aghh1 a well-informed inhabitant of ,algiers assured the ,minister ,plenipotentiary of the ,united ,states at ,paris1 that no nation had redeemed1 since the ,spanish treaty1 at less than from #bej to #cjj sterling1 the medium of which is #a1bcg4 ,captain ,o',brien1 at the same date1 thinks we must pay #a1hjj1 and mentions a ,savoy captain1 just redeemed at #d1jgd4 ,in #aghi1 ,mr4 ,logie1 the ,english consul at ,algiers1 informed a person who wished to ransom one of our common sailors1 that he would cost from #dej to #ejj sterling1 the mean of which is #b1acg4 ,in ,december of the same year1 ,captain ,o',brien thinks our men will now cost #b1bij each1 though a ,jew merchant believes he could get them for #b1bfd4 ,in #agij1 ,july #ith1 a ,mr4 ,simpson1 of ,gibraltar1 who1 at some particular request1 had taken pains to find for what sum our captives could be redeemed1 finds that the fourteen will cost #cd1gi1bbh1 which is #b1dhe a man4 ,at the same date1 one of them1 a ,scotch boy1 a common mariner1 was actually redeemed at #h1jjj livres1 equal to #a1dha1 which is within nineteen dollars of the price ,simpson states for common men2 and the charg des affaires of the ,united ,states at ,paris is informed that the whole may be redeemed at that rate1 adding fifty per cent4 on the captains1 which would bring it to #a1ega a man4 ,it is found then that the prices are #a1bjj1 #a1bcg1 #a1dha1 #a1edf1 #a1ega1 #a1fjj1 #a1hjj1 #b1acg1 #b1bfd1 #b1dhe1 #b1hcc1 and #b1ibj dollars a man1 not noticing that of #d1jgd1 because it was for a captain4 ,in #aghf1 there were #b1bjj captives in ,algiers1 which1 in #aghi1 had been reduced by death or ransom to #fee4 ,of ours six have died1 and one has been ransomed by his friends4 ,from these facts and opinions1 some conjecture may be formed of the terms on which the liberty of our citizens may be obtained4 ,but should it be thought better to repress force by force1 another expedient for their liberation may perhaps offer4 ,captures made on the enemy may perhaps put us into possession of some of their mariners1 and exchange be substituted for ransom4 ,it is not indeed a fixed usage with them to exchange prisoners4 ,it is rather their custom to refuse it4 ,however1 such exchanges are sometimes effected1 by allowing them more or less of advantage4 ,they have sometimes accepted of two ,moors for a ,christian1 at others they have refused five or six for one4 ,perhaps ,turkish captives may be objects of greater partiality with them1 as their government is entirely in the hands of ,turks1 who are treated in every instance as a superior order of beings4 ,exchange1 too1 will be more practicable in our case1 as our captives have not been sold to private individuals1 but are retained in the hands of the ,government4 ,the liberation of our citizens has an intimate connection with the liberation of our commerce in the ,mediterranean1 now under the consideration of ,congress4 ,the distresses of both proceed from the same cause1 and the measures which shall be adopted for the relief of the one1 may1 very probably1 involve the relief of the other4 ,,xx4--,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred by the ,house of ,representatives1 the representation from the ,general ,court of the ,commonwealth of ,massachusetts1 on the subjects of the cod and whale fisheries1 together with the several papers accompanying it1 has had the same under consideration1 and thereupon makes the following report3 ,february #a1 #agia4 ,the representation sets forth that1 before the late war1 about four thousand seamen1 and about twenty-four thousand tons of shipping1 were annually employed from that ,state1 in the whale fishery1 the produce whereof was about three hundred and fifty thousand pounds lawful money a year4 ,that1 previous to the same period1 the cod fishery of that ,state employed four thousand men1 and twenty-eight thousand tons of shipping1 and produced about two hundred and fifty thousand pounds a year4 ,that these branches of business1 annihilated during the war1 have been1 in some degree1 recovered since2 but that they labor under many and heavy embarrassments1 which1 if not removed1 or lessened1 will render the fisheries every year less extensive and important4 ,that these embarrassments are1 heavy duties on their produce abroad1 and bounties on that of their competitors2 and duties at home on several articles1 particularly used in the fisheries4 ,and it asks that the duties be taken off2 that bounties be given to the fishermen2 and the national influence be used abroad1 for obtaining better markets for their produce4 ,the cod and whale fisheries1 carried on by different persons1 from different ports1 in different vessels1 in different seas1 and seeking different markets1 agree in one circumstance1 in being as unprofitable to the adventurer1 as important to the public4 ,a succinct view of their rise1 progress1 and present state1 with different nations1 may enable us to note the circumstances which have attended their prosperity1 and their decline2 to judge of the embarrassments which are said to oppress ours2 to see whether they depend on our own will1 and may1 therefore1 be remedied immediately by ourselves1 or1 whether depending on the will of others1 they are without the reach of remedy from us1 either directly or indirectly4 ,their history being as unconnected as their practice1 they shall be separately considered4 ,within twenty years after the supposed discovery of ,newfoundland1 by the ,cabots1 we find that the abundance of fish on its banks1 had already drawn the attention of the people of ,europe4 ,for1 as early as #aeag1 or #aeai1 we are told of fifty ships being seen there at one time4 ,the first adventurers in that fishery were the ,biscayans1 of ,spain1 the ,basques and ,bas-,bretons1 of ,france1 all united anciently in language1 and still in habits1 and in extreme poverty4 ,the last circumstance enabled them long to retain a considerable share of the fishery4 ,in #aegg1 the ,french had one hundred and fifty vessels there2 the ,spaniards had still one hundred1 and the ,portuguese fifty1 when the ,english had only fifteen4 ,the ,spaniards and ,portuguese seem at length to have retired silently1 the ,french and ,english claiming the fishery exclusively1 as an appurtenance to their adjacent colonies1 and the profits being too small for nations surcharged with the precious metals proceeding from their mines4 ,without materials to trace the intermediate progress1 we only know that1 so late as #agdd1 the ,french employed there five hundred and sixty-four ships1 and twenty-seven thousand five hundred seamen1 and took one million two hundred and forty-six thousand quintals of fish1 which was three times the extent to which ,england and her colonies together1 carried this fishery at that time4 ,the ,english1 in the beginning of the seventeenth century1 had employed1 generally1 about one hundred and fifty vessels in the ,newfoundland fishery4 ,about #afgj we find them reduced to eighty1 and one hundred1 the inhabitants of ,new ,england beginning now to supplant them4 ,a little before this1 the ,british ,parliament perceiving that their citizens were unable to subsist on the scanty profits which sufficed for their poorer competitors1 endeavored to give them some advantage by prohibiting the importation of foreign fish2 and1 at the close of the century1 they formed some regulations for their government and protection1 and remitted to them some duties4 ,a successful war enabled them1 in #agac1 to force from the ,french a cession of the ,island of ,newfoundland2 under these encouragements1 the ,english and ,american fisheries began to thrive4 ,in #agca we find the ,english take two hundred thousand quintals of fish1 and the ,americans two hundred and thirty thousand1 besides the refuse fish1 not fit for ,european markets4 ,they continue to gain ground1 and the ,french to lose it1 insomuch that1 about #agee1 they are said to have been on a par2 and1 in #agfh1 the ,french have only two hundred and fifty-nine vessels1 of twenty-four thousand four hundred and twenty tons1 nine thousand seven hundred and twenty-two seamen1 taking two hundred thousand quintals1 while ,america alone1 for some three or four years before that1 and so on1 to the commencement of the late war1 employed six hundred and sixty-five vessels1 of twenty-five thousand six hundred and fifty tons1 and four thousand four hundred and five seamen1 and took from three hundred and fifty thousand to upwards of four hundred thousand quintals of fish1 and ,england a still greater quantity1 five hundred and twenty-six thousand quintals1 as is said4 ,spain had formally relinquished her pretensions to a participation in these fisheries1 at the close of the preceding war2 and1 at the end of this1 the adjacent continent and islands being divided between the ,united ,states1 the ,english and ,french1 7for the last retained two small islands merely for this object17 the right of fishing was appropriated to them also4 ,france1 sensible of the necessity of balancing the power of ,england on the water1 and1 therefore1 of improving every resource for raising seamen1 and seeing that her fishermen could not maintain their competition without some public patronage1 adopted the experiment of bounties on her own fish1 and duties on that of foreign nations brought into her markets4 ,but1 notwithstanding this1 her fisheries dwindle1 from a change taken place1 insensibly1 in the character of her navigation1 which1 from being the most economical1 is now become the most expensive4 ,in #aghf1 she is said to have employed but seven thousand men in this fishery1 and to have taken four hundred and twenty-six thousand quintals2 and1 in #aghg1 but six thousand men1 and one hundred and twenty-eight thousand quintals4 ,she seems not yet sensible that the unthriftiness of her fisheries proceeds from the want of economy1 and not the want of markets2 and that the encouragement of our fishery abridges that of a rival nation1 whose power on the ocean has long threatened the loss of all balance on that element4 ,the plan of the ,english ,government1 since the peace1 has been to prohibit all foreign fish in their markets1 and they have given from eighteen to fifty thousand pounds sterling on every fishing vessel complying with certain conditions4 ,this policy is said to have been so far successful1 as to have raised the number of seamen employed in that business1 in #aghf1 to fourteen thousand1 and the quantity of fish taken1 to #gcb1jjj quintals4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the fisheries of the ,united ,states1 annihilated during the war2 their vessels1 utensils1 and fishermen destroyed2 their markets in the ,mediterranean and ,british ,america lost1 and their produce dutied in those of ,france2 their competitors enabled by bounties to meet and undersell them at the few markets remaining open1 without any public aid1 and1 indeed1 paying aids to the public2--such were the hopeless auspices under which this important business was to be resumed4 ,yet it was resumed1 and1 aided by the mere force of natural advantages1 they employed1 during the years #aghf1 #aghg1 #aghh1 and #aghi1 on an average1 five hundred and thirty-nine vessels1 of nineteen thousand one hundred and eighty-five tons1 three thousand two hundred and eighty-seven seamen1 and took two hundred and fifty thousand six hundred and fifty quintals of fish4 99 99 99 99 99 ,and an official paper 99 99 99 99 99 shows that1 in the last of those years1 our exportation amounted to three hundred and seventy-five thousand and twenty quintals1 and thirty thousand four hundred and sixty-one barrels2 deduction made of three thousand seven hundred and one quintals1 and six thousand three hundred and forty-three barrels of foreign fish1 received and re-exported4 99 99 99 99 99 ,still1 however1 the calculations 99 99 99 99 99 which accompany the representation1 show that the profits of the sales in the years #aghg and #aghh1 were too small to afford a living to the fishermen1 and on those of #aghi1 there was such a loss as to withdraw thirty-three vessels1 of the town of ,marblehead alone1 from the further pursuit of this business2 and the apprehension is1 that1 without some public aid1 those still remaining will continue to withdraw1 and this whole commerce be engrossed by a single nation4 ,this rapid view of the cod fishery enables us to discern under what policy it has nourished or declined in the hands of other nations1 and to mark the fact1 that it is too poor a business to be left to itself1 even with the nation most advantageously situated4 ,it will now be proper to count the advantages which aid1 and the disadvantages which oppose us1 in this conflict4 ,our advantages are-- #a4 ,the neighborhood of the great fisheries1 which permits our fishermen to bring home their fish to be salted by their wives and children4 #b4 ,the shore fisheries1 so near at hand1 as to enable the vessels to run into port in a storm1 and so lessen the risk1 for which distant nations must pay insurance4 #c4 ,the winter fisheries1 which1 like household manufactures employ portions of time1 which would otherwise be useless4 #d4 ,the smallness of the vessels1 which the shortness of the voyage enables us to employ1 and which1 consequently1 require but a small capital4 #e4 ,the cheapness of our vessels1 which do not cost above the half of the ,baltic fir vessels1 computing price and duration4 #f4 ,their excellence as sea boats1 which decreases the risk and quickens the return4 #g4 ,the superiority of our mariners in skill1 activity1 enterprise1 sobriety1 and order4 #h4 ,the cheapness of provisions4 #i4 ,the cheapness of casks1 which1 of itself1 is said to be equal to an extra profit of fifteen per cent4 ,these advantages are of such force1 that1 while experience has proved that no other nation can make a mercantile profit on the ,newfoundland fishery1 nor can support it without national aid1 we can make a living profit1 if vent for our fish can be procured4 ,of the disadvantages opposed to us1 those which depend on ourselves1 are-- ,tonnage and naval duties on the vessels employed in the fishery4 ,impost duties on salt4 ,on tea1 rum1 sugar1 molasses1 hooks1 lines1 and leads1 duck1 cordage1 and cables1 iron1 hemp1 and twine1 used in the fishery2 coarse woollens1 worn by the fishermen1 and the poll tax levied by the ,state on their persons4 ,the statement ,no4 #f1 shows the amount of these1 exclusive of the ,state tax and drawback on the fish exported1 to be #e #be per man1 or #eg #ge per vessel of sixty-five tons4 ,when a business is so nearly in equilibrio that one can hardly discern whether the profit be sufficient to continue it or not1 smaller sums than these suffice to turn the scale against it4 ,to these disadvantages1 add ineffectual duties on the importation of foreign fish4 ,in justification of these last1 it is urged that the foreign fish received1 is in exchange for the produce of agriculture4 ,to which it may be answered1 that the thing given1 is more merchantable than that received in exchange1 and agriculture has too many markets to be allowed to take away those of the fisheries4 ,it will rest1 therefore1 with the wisdom of the ,legislature to decide1 whether prohibition should not be opposed to prohibition1 and high duty to high duty1 on the fish of other nations2 whether any1 and which1 of the naval and other duties may be remitted1 or an equivalent given to the fisherman1 in the form of a drawback1 or bounty2 and whether the loss of markets abroad1 may not1 in some degree1 be compensated1 by creating markets at home2 to which might contribute the constituting fish a part of the military ration1 in stations not too distant from navigation1 a part of the necessary sea stores of vessels1 and the encouraging private individuals to let the fishermen share with the cultivator1 in furnishing the supplies of the table4 ,a habit introduced from motives of patriotism1 would soon be followed from motives of taste2 and who will undertake to fix the limits to this demand1 if it can be once excited1 with a nation which doubles1 and will continue to double1 at very short periods8 ,of the disadvantages which depend on others1 are-- #a4 ,the loss of the ,mediterranean markets4 #b4 ,exclusions from the markets of some of our neighbors4 #c4 ,high duties in those of others2 and1 #d4 ,bounties to the individuals in competition with us4 ,the consideration of these will find its place more aptly1 after a review of the condition of our whale fishery shall have led us to the same point4 ,to this branch of the subject1 therefore1 we will now proceed4 ,the whale fishery was first brought into notice of the southern nations of ,europe1 in the fifteenth century1 by the same ,biscayans and ,basques who led the way to the fishery of ,newfoundland4 ,they began it on their own coasts1 but soon found that the principal residence of the whale was in the ,northern seas1 into which1 therefore1 they pursued him4 ,in #aegh they employed twenty-five ships in that business4 ,the ,dutch and ,hamburghers took it up after this1 and about the middle of the seventeenth century the former employed about two hundred ships1 and the latter about three hundred and fifty4 ,the ,english endeavored also to participate of it4 ,in #afgb1 they offered to their own fishermen a bounty of six shillings a ton1 on the oil they should bring home1 and instituted1 at different times1 different exclusive companies1 all of which failed of success4 ,they raised their bounty1 in #agcc1 to twenty shillings a ton1 on the admeasurement of the vessel4 ,in #agdj1 to thirty shillings1 with a privilege to the fishermen against being impressed4 ,the ,basque fishery1 supported by poverty alone1 had maintained but a feeble existence1 before competitors aided by the bounties of their nation1 and was1 in fine1 annihilated by the war of #agde1 at the close of which the ,english bounty was raised to forty shillings4 ,from this epoch1 their whale fishery went on between the limits of twenty-eight and sixty-seven vessels1 till the commencement of the last war4 ,the ,dutch1 in the meantime1 had declined gradually to about one hundred and thirty ships1 and have1 since that1 fallen down to less than half that number4 ,so that their fishery1 notwithstanding a bounty of thirty florins a man1 as well as that of ,hamburg1 is now nearly out of competition4 ,in #agae1 the ,americans began their whale fishery4 ,they were led to it at first by the whales which presented themselves on their coasts4 ,they attacked them there in small vessels of forty tons4 ,as the whale1 being infested1 retired from the coast1 they followed him farther and farther into the ocean1 still enlarging their vessels with their adventures1 to sixty1 one hundred1 and two hundred tons4 ,having extended their pursuit to the ,western ,islands1 they fell in1 accidentally1 with the spermaceti whale1 of a different species from that of ,greenland1 which alone had hitherto been known in commerce3 more fierce and active1 and whose oil and head matter was found to be more valuable1 as it might be used in the interior of houses without offending the smell4 ,the distinction now first arose between the ,northern and ,southern fisheries3 the object of the former being the ,greenland whale1 which frequents the ,northern coasts and seas of ,europe and ,america2 that of the latter being the spermaceti whale1 which was found in the ,southern seas1 from the ,western ,islands and coast of ,africa1 to that of ,brazil1 and still on to the ,falkland ,islands4 ,here1 again1 within soundings1 on the coast of ,brazil1 they found a third species of whale1 which they called the black or ,brazil whale1 smaller than the ,greenland1 yielding a still less valuable oil1 fit only for summer use1 as it becomes opaque at #ej degrees of ,fahrenheit's termometer1 while that of the spermaceti whale is limpid to #da1 and of the ,greenland whale to #cf1 of the same thermometer4 ,it is only worth taking1 therefore1 when it falls in the way of the fishermen1 but not worth seeking1 except when they have failed of success against the spermaceti whale1 in which case1 this kind1 easily found and taken1 serves to moderate their loss4 ,in #agga the ,americans had one hundred and eighty-three vessels1 of thirteen thousand eight hundred and twenty tons1 in the ,northern fishery1 and one hundred and twenty-one vessels1 of fourteen thousand and twenty tons1 in the ,southern1 navigated by four thousand and fifty-nine men4 ,at the beginning of the late war1 they had one hundred and seventy-seven vessels in the ,northern1 and one hundred and thirty-two in the ,southern fishery4 ,at that period1 our fishery being suspended1 the ,english seized the opportunity of pushing theirs4 ,they gave additional bounties of #ejj1 #djj1 #cjj1 #bjj1 #ajj sterling1 annually1 to the five ships which should take the greatest quantities of oil4 ,the effect of which was such1 as1 by the year #aghf1 to double the quantity of common oil necessary for their own consumption4 ,finding1 on a review of the subject1 at that time1 that their bounties had cost the ,government #ac #ajs4 sterling a man1 annually1 or sixty per cent4 on the cargoes1 a part of which went consequently to ease the purchases of this article made by foreign nations1 they reduced the northern bounty from forty to thirty shillings the ton of admeasurement4 ,they had1 some little time before1 turned their attention to the ,southern fishery1 and given very great bounties in it1 and had invited the fishermen of the ,united ,states to conduct their enterprises4 ,under their guidance1 and with such encouragement1 this fishery1 which had only begun with them in #aghd or #aghe1 was rising into value4 ,in #aghh they increased their bounties1 and the temptations to our fishermen1 under the general description of foreigners who had been employed in the whale fishery1 to pass over with their families and vessels to the ,british dominions1 either in ,america or ,europe1 but preferably to the latter4 ,the effect of these measures had been prepared1 by our whale oils becoming subject1 in their market1 to the foreign duty of #ah #es4 sterling the ton1 which1 being more than equal to the price of the common oil1 operated as a prohibition on that1 and gave to their spermaceti oil a preference over ours to that amount4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the fishermen of the ,united ,states1 left without resource1 by the loss of their market1 began to think of accepting the ,british invitation1 and of removing1 some to ,nova ,scotia1 preferring smaller advantages in the neighborhood of their ancient country and friends1 others to ,great ,britain1 postponing country and friends to high premiums4 ,the ,government of ,france could not be inattentive to these proceedings4 ,they saw the danger of letting four or five thousand seamen1 of the best in the world1 be transferred to the marine strength of another nation1 and carry over with them an art1 which they possessed almost exclusively4 ,to give time for a counterplan1 the ,marquis de ,lafayette1 the valuable friend and citizen of this1 as well as that country1 wrote to a gentleman in ,boston1 to dissuade the fishermen from accepting the ,british proposals1 and to assure them that their friends in ,france would endeavor to do something for them4 ,a vessel was then arrived from ,halifax at ,nantucket1 to take off those who had proposed to remove4 ,two families had gone abroad1 and others were going4 ,in this moment1 the letter arriving1 suspended their designs4 ,not another went abroad1 and the vessel returned to ,halifax with only the two families4 ,the plan adopted by the ,french ministry1 very different from that of the first mover1 was to give a counter invitation to the ,nantucket men to remove and settle in ,dunkirk1 offering them a bounty of fifty livres 7between nine and ten dollars7 a ton on the admeasurement of the vessels they should equip for the whale fishery1 with some other advantages4 ,nine families only1 of thirty-three persons1 accepted the invitation4 ,this was in #aghe4 ,in #aghf1 the ministry were led to see that their invitation would produce but little effect1 and that the true means of preventing the emigration of our fishermen to the ,british dominions would be to enable them still to follow their calling from their native country1 by giving them a new market for their oils1 instead of the old one they had lost4 ,the duties were1 therefore1 abated on ,american whale oil immediately1 and a further abatement promised by the letter ,no4 #h1 and1 in ,december1 #aghg1 the arrt ,no4 #i was passed4 ,the rival fishermen immediately endeavored to turn this measure to their own advantage1 by pouring their whale oils into the markets of ,france1 where they were enabled1 by the great premiums received from their ,government1 perhaps1 too1 by extraordinary indemnifications1 to undersell both the ,french and ,american fishermen4 ,to repel this measure1 ,france shut her ports to all foreign fish oils whatever1 by the arrt ,no4 #aj4 ,the ,british whale fishery fell1 in consequence1 the ensuing year from two hundred and twenty-two to one hundred and seventy-eight ships4 ,but this general exclusion has palsied our fishery also4 ,on the #gth of ,december1 #aghh1 therefore1 by the arrt ,no4 #aa1 the ports of ,france still remaining shut to all other nations1 were again opened to the produce of the whale fisheries of the ,united ,states1 continuing1 however1 their endeavors to recover a share in this fishery themselves1 by the aid of our fishermen4 ,in #aghd1 #aghe1 #aghf1 they had had four ships4 ,in #aghg1 three4 ,in #aghh1 seventeen in the two fisheries of four thousand five hundred tons4 ,these cost them in bounty #bbe1jjj livres1 which divided on one thousand five hundred and fifty tons of oil1 the quantity they took1 amounted to #ade livres 7near twenty-seven dollars7 the ton1 and1 on about one hundred natives on board the seventeen ships1 7for there were one hundred and fifty ,americans engaged by the voyage7 came to #b1bbe livres1 or about #daf dollars a man4 ,we have had1 during the years #aghg1 #aghh and #aghi1 on an average1 ninety-one vessels1 of five thousand eight hundred and twenty tons1 in the northern1 and thirty-one of four thousand three hundred and ninety tons in the southern fishery4 99 99 99 99 99 ,these details will enable ,congress to see with what a competition we have to struggle for the continuance of this fishery1 not to say its increase4 ,against prohibitory duties in one country1 and bounties to the adventurers in both of those which are contending with each other for the same object1 ours have no auxiliaries1 but poverty and rigorous economy4 ,the business1 unaided1 is a wretched one4 ,the ,dutch have peculiar advantages for the northern fishery1 as being within six or eight days' sail of the grounds1 as navigating with more economy than any other nation in ,europe1 their seamen content with lower wages1 and their merchants with lower profit4 ,yet the memorial ,no4 #ac1 from a committee of the whale merchants to the ,states ,general of ,holland1 in the year #agge1 states that fourteen millions of guilders1 equal to five million six hundred thousand dollars1 has been lost in that fishery in forty-seven years1 being about one hundred and twenty thousand dollars a year4 ,the ,states ,general1 thereupon1 gave a bounty of thirty guilders a man to the fishermen4 ,a person immediately acquainted with the ,british whale fishery1 and whose information merits confidence1 has given assurance that the ships employed in their northern fishery1 in #aghh1 sunk #hjj each1 on an average1 more than the amount of the produce and bounties4 ,an ,english ship of three hundred tons and forty-two seamen1 in this fishery1 generally brings home1 after a four months' voyage1 twenty-five tons of oil1 worth #dcg #ajs4 sterling2 but the wages of the officers and seamen will be #djj2 there remain but #cg #ajs41 not worth taking into account1 towards the outfit and merchants' profit4 ,these1 then1 must be paid by the ,government2 and it is on this idea that the ,british bounty is calculated4 ,our vessels for the northern fishery average sixty-four tons1 and cost1 when built1 fitted out1 and victualled for the first voyage1 about three thousand dollars4 ,they have taken1 on an average1 the three last years1 according to the statement ,no4 #ab1 eighteen tons of oil1 worth1 at our market1 nine hundred dollars1 which are to pay all expenses1 and subsist the fishermen and merchant4 ,our vessels for the southern fishery average one hundred and forty tons1 and cost1 when built1 fitted out1 and victualled1 for their first voyage1 about six thousand five hundred dollars4 ,they have taken on an average1 the three last years1 according to the same statement1 thirty-two tons of oil each1 worth at our market three thousand two hundred dollars1 which are1 in like manner1 to pay all expenses1 and subsist the owners and navigators4 ,these expenses are great1 as the voyages are generally of twelve months' duration4 ,no hope can arise of their condition being bettered by an augmentation of the price of oil4 ,this is kept down by the competition of the vegetable oils1 which answer the same purposes1 not quite so well1 but well enough to become preferable1 were the price to be raised1 and so well1 indeed1 as to be more generally used than the fish oils for lighting houses and cities4 ,the ,american whale fishery is principally followed by the inhabitants of the island of ,nantucket--a sand bar of about fifteen miles long1 and three broad1 capable of maintaining1 by its agriculture1 about twenty families2 but it employed in these fisheries1 before the war1 between five or six thousand men and boys2 and1 in the only harbor it possesses1 it had one hundred and forty vessels1 one hundred and thirty-two of which were of the larger kind1 as being employed in the southern fishery4 ,in agriculture1 then1 they have no resource2 and1 if that of their fishery cannot be pursued from their own habitations1 it is natural they should seek others from which it can be followed1 and preferably those where they will find a sameness of language1 religion1 laws1 habits1 and kindred4 ,a foreign emissary has lately been among them1 for the purpose of renewing the invitations to a change of situation4 ,but1 attached to their native country1 they prefer continuing in it1 if their continuance there can be made supportable4 ,this brings us to the question1 what relief does the condition of this fishery require8 #a4 ,a remission of duties on the articles used for their calling4 #b4 ,a retaliating duty on foreign oils1 coming to seek a competition with them in or from our ports4 #c4 ,free markets abroad4 #a4 ,the remission of duties will stand on nearly the same ground with that to the cod fishermen4 #b4 ,the only nation whose oil is brought hither for competition with our own1 makes ours pay a duty of about eighty-two dollars the ton1 in their ports4 ,theirs is brought here1 too1 to be reshipped fraudulently1 under our flag1 into ports where it could not be received under theirs1 and ought not to be covered by ours1 if we mean to preserve our own admission into them4 ,the #c;d and principal object is to find markets for the vent of oil4 ,portugal1 ,england1 ,holland1 ,sweden1 ,denmark1 ,prussia1 ,russia1 the ,hanse towns1 supply themselves and something more4 ,spain and ,italy receive supplies from ,england1 and need the less1 as their skies are clearer4 ,france is the only country which can take our surplus1 and they take principally of the common oil2 as the habit is but commencing with them of ascribing a just value to spermaceti whale4 ,some of this1 however1 finds its vent there4 ,there was1 indeed1 a particular interest perpetually soliciting the exclusion of our oils from their markets4 ,the late government there saw well that what we should lose thereby would be gained by others1 not by themselves4 ,and we are to hope that the present government1 as wise and friendly1 will also view us1 not as rivals1 but as co-operators against a common rival4 ,friendly arrangements with them1 and accommodation to mutual interest1 rendered easier by friendly dispositions existing on both sides1 may long secure to us this important resource for our seamen4 ,nor is it the interest of the fisherman alone1 which calls for the cultivation of friendly arrangements with that nation2 besides five-eights of our whale oil1 and two-thirds of our salted fish1 they take from us one-fourth of our tobacco1 three-fourths of our live stock 99 99 99 99 99 a considerable and growing portion of our rice1 great supplies1 occasionally1 of other grain2 in #aghi1 which1 indeed1 was extraordinary1 four millions of bushels of wheat1 and upwards of a million of bushels of rye and barley 99 99 99 99 99 and nearly the whole carried in our own vessels4 99 99 99 99 99 ,they are a free market now1 and will1 in time1 be a valuable one for ships and ship timber1 potash1 and peltry4 ,england is the market for the greatest part of our spermaceti oil4 ,they impose on all our oils a duty of eighteen pounds five shillings sterling the ton1 which1 as to the common kind1 is a prohibition1 as has been before observed1 and1 as to the spermaceti1 gives a preference of theirs over ours to that amount1 so as to leave1 in the end1 but a scanty benefit to the fishermen2 and1 not long since1 by a change of construction1 without any change of law1 it was made to exclude our oils from their ports1 when carried in our vessels4 ,on some change of circumstance1 it was construed back again to the reception of our oils1 on paying always1 however1 the same duty of eighteen pounds five shillings4 ,this serves to show that the tenure by which we hold the admission of this commodity in their markets1 is as precarious as it is hard4 ,nor can it be announced that there is any disposition on their part to arrange this or any other commercial matter1 to mutual convenience4 ,the ex parte regulations which they have begun for mounting their navigation on the ruins of ours1 can only be opposed by counter regulations on our part4 ,and the loss of seamen1 the natural consequence of lost and obstructed markets for our fish and oil1 calls1 in the first place1 for serious and timely attention4 ,it will be too late when the seaman shall have changed his vocation1 or gone over to another interest4 ,if we cannot recover and secure for him these important branches of employment1 it behooves us to replace them by others equivalent4 ,we have three nurseries for forming seamen3 #a4 ,our coasting trade1 already on a safe footing4 #b4 ,our fisheries1 which1 in spite of natural advantages1 give just cause of anxiety4 #c4 ,our carrying trade1 our only resource of indemnification for what we lose in the other4 ,the produce of the ,united ,states1 which is carried to foreign markets1 is extremely bulky4 ,that part of it which is now in the hands of foreigners1 and which we may resume into our own1 without touching the rights of those nations who have met us in fair arrangements by treaty1 or the interests of those who1 by their voluntary regulations1 have paid so just and liberal a respect to our interests1 as being measured back to them again1 places both parties on as good ground1 perhaps1 as treaties could place them--the proportion1 ,i say1 of our carrying trade1 which may be resumed without affecting either of these descriptions of nations1 will find constant employment for ten thousand seamen1 be worth two millions of dollars1 annually1 will go on augmenting with the population of the ,united ,states1 secure to us a full indemnification for the seamen we lose1 and be taken wholly from those who force us to this act of self protection in navigation4 ,hence1 too1 would follow1 that their ,newfoundland ships1 not receiving provisions from us in their bottoms1 nor permitted 7by a law of their own7 to receive in ours1 must draw their subsistence from ,europe1 which would increase that part of their expenses in the proportion of four to seven1 and so far operate as a duty towards restoring the level between them and us4 ,the tables ,no4 #b and #ab1 will show the quantity of tonnage1 and1 consequently1 the mass of seamen whose interests are in distress2 and ,no4 #ag1 the materials for indemnification4 ,if regulations exactly the counterpart of those established against us1 would be ineffectual1 from a difference of circumstances1 other regulations equivalent can give no reasonable ground of complaint to any nation4 ,admitting their right of keeping their markets to themselves1 ours cannot be denied of keeping our carrying trade to ourselves4 ,and if there be anything unfriendly in this1 it was in the first example4 ,the loss of seamen1 unnoticed1 would be followed by other losses in a long train4 ,if we have no seamen1 our ships will be useless1 consequently our ship timber1 iron1 and hemp2 our ship building will be at an end1 ship carpenters go over to other nations1 our young men have no call to the sea1 our produce1 carried in foreign bottoms1 be saddled with war-freight and insurance in times of war2 and the history of the last hundred years shows1 that the nation which is our carrier has three years of war for every four years of peace4 7,no4 #ah47 ,we lose1 during the same periods1 the carriage for belligerent powers1 which the neutrality of our flag would render an incalculable source of profit2 we lose at this moment the carriage of our own produce to the annual amount of two millions of dollars1 which1 in the possible progress of the encroachment1 may extend to five or six millions1 the worth of the whole1 with an increase in the proportion of the increase of our numbers4 ,it is easier1 as well as better1 to stop this train at its entrance1 than when it shall have ruined or banished whole classes of useful and industrious citizens4 ,it will doubtless be thought expedient that the resumption suggested should take effect so gradually1 as not to endanger the loss of produce for the want of transportation2 but that1 in order to create transportation1 the whole plan should be developed1 and made known at once1 that the individuals who may be disposed to lay themselves out for the carrying business1 may make their calculations on a full view of all circumstances4 ,on the whole1 the historical view we have taken of these fisheries1 proves they are so poor in themselves1 as to come to nothing with distant nations1 who do not support them from their treasury4 ,we have seen that the advantages of our position place our fisheries on a ground somewhat higher1 such as to relieve our treasury from giving them support2 but not to permit it to draw support from them1 nor to dispense the government from the obligation of effectuating free markets for them2 that1 for the great proportion of our salted fish1 for our common oil1 and a part of our spermaceti oil1 markets may perhaps be preserved1 by friendly arrangements towards those nations whose arrangements are friendly to us1 and the residue be compensated by giving to the seamen thrown out of business the certainty of employment in another branch1 of which we have the sole disposal4 ,,xxi4--,opinion against the constitutionality of a ,national ,bank4 ,february #ae1 #agia4 ,the bill for establishing a ,national ,bank undertakes among other things3-- #a4 ,to form the subscribers into a corporation4 #b4 ,to enable them in their corporate capacities to receive grants of land2 and so far is against the laws of ,mortmain4#bf #c4 ,to make alien subscribers capable of holding lands2 and so far is against the laws of alienage4 #d4 ,to transmit these lands1 on the death of a proprietor1 to a certain line of successors2 and so far changes the course of ,descents4 #e4 ,to put the lands out of the reach of forfeiture or escheat2 and so far is against the laws of ,forfeiture and ,escheat4 #f4 ,to transmit personal chattels to successors in a certain line2 and so far is against the laws of ,distribution4 #g4 ,to give them the sole and exclusive right of banking under the national authority2 and so far is against the laws of ,monopoly4 #h4 ,to communicate to them a power to make laws paramount to the laws of the ,states2 for so they must be construed1 to protect the institution from the control of the ,state legislatures2 and so1 probably1 they will be construed4 ,i consider the foundation of the ,constitution as laid on this ground3 ,that all powers not delegated to the ,united ,states1 by the ,constitution1 nor prohibited by it to the ,states1 are reserved to the ,states or to the people4 ,x,i,ith amendment4 ,to take a single step beyond the boundaries thus specially drawn around the powers of ,congress1 is to take possession of a boundless field of power1 no longer susceptible of any definition4 ,the incorporation of a bank1 and the powers assumed by this bill1 have not1 in my opinion1 been delegated to the ,united ,states1 by the ,constitution4 #a4 ,they are not among the powers specially enumerated3 for these are3 #ast4 ,a power to lay taxes for the purpose of paying the debts of the ,united ,states2 but no debt is paid by this bill1 nor any tax laid4 ,were it a bill to raise money1 its origination in the ,senate would condemn it by the ,constitution4 #b;d4 ,to borrow money4 ,but this bill neither borrows money nor ensures the borrowing it4 ,the proprietors of the bank will be just as free as any other money holders1 to lend or not to lend their money to the public4 ,the operation proposed in the bill1 first1 to lend them two millions1 and then to borrow them back again1 cannot change the nature of the latter act1 which will still be a payment1 and not a loan1 call it by what name you please4 #c4 ,to regulate commerce with foreign nations1 and among the ,states1 and with the ,indian tribes4 ,to erect a bank1 and to regulate commerce1 are very different acts4 ,he who erects a bank1 creates a subject of commerce in its bills2 so does he who makes a bushel of wheat1 or digs a dollar out of the mines2 yet neither of these persons regulates commerce thereby4 ,to make a thing which may be bought and sold1 is not to prescribe regulations for buying and selling4 ,besides1 if this was an exercise of the power of regulating commerce1 it would be void1 as extending as much to the internal commerce of every ,state1 as to its external4 ,for the power given to ,congress by the ,constitution does not extend to the internal regulation of the commerce of a ,state1 7that is to say of the commerce between citizen and citizen17 which remain exclusively with its own legislature2 but to its external commerce only1 that is to say1 its commerce with another ,state1 or with foreign nations1 or with the ,indian tribes4 ,accordingly the bill does not propose the measure as a regulation of trade1 but as productive of considerable advantages to trade4 ,still less are these powers covered by any other of the special enumerations4 ,,ii4 ,nor are they within either of the general phrases1 which are the two following3-- #a4 ,to lay taxes to provide for the general welfare of the ,united ,states1 that is to say1 to lay taxes for the purpose of providing for the general welfare4 ,for the laying of taxes is the power1 and the general welfare the purpose for which the power is to be exercised4 ,they are not to lay taxes ad libitum for any purpose they please2 but only to pay the debts or provide for the welfare of the ,union4 ,in like manner1 they are not to do anything they please to provide for the general welfare1 but only to lay taxes for that purpose4 ,to consider the latter phrase1 not as describing the purpose of the first1 but as giving a distinct and independent power to do any act they please1 which might be for the good of the ,union1 would render all the preceding and subsequent enumerations of power completely useless4 ,it would reduce the whole instrument to a single phrase1 that of instituting a ,congress with power to do whatever would be for the good of the ,united ,states2 and1 as they would be the sole judges of the good or evil1 it would be also a power to do whatever evil they please4 ,it is an established rule of construction where a phrase will bear either of two meanings1 to give it that which will allow some meaning to the other parts of the instrument1 and not that which would render all the others useless4 ,certainly no such universal power was meant to be given them4 ,it was intended to lace them up straitly within the enumerated powers1 and those without which1 as means1 these powers could not be carried into effect4 ,it is known that the very power now proposed as a means was rejected as an end by the ,convention which formed the ,constitution4 ,a proposition was made to them to authorize ,congress to open canals1 and an amendatory one to empower them to incorporate4 ,but the whole was rejected1 and one of the reasons for rejection urged in debate was1 that then they would have a power to erect a bank1 which would render the great cities1 where there were prejudices and jealousies on the subject1 adverse to the reception of the ,constitution4 #b4 ,the second general phrase is1 to make all laws necessary and proper for carrying into execution the enumerated powers4 ,but they can all be carried into execution without a bank4 ,a bank therefore is not necessary1 and consequently not authorized by this phrase4 ,it has been urged that a bank will give great facility or convenience in the collection of taxes4 ,suppose this were true3 yet the ,constitution allows only the means which are necessary1 not those which are merely convenient for effecting the enumerated powers4 ,if such a latitude of construction be allowed to this phrase as to give any non-enumerated power1 it will go to every one1 for there is not one which ingenuity may not torture into a convenience in some instance or other1 to some one of so long a list of enumerated powers4 ,it would swallow up all the delegated powers1 and reduce the whole to one power1 as before observed4 ,therefore it was that the ,constitution restrained them to the necessary means1 that is to say1 to those means without which the grant of power would be nugatory4 ,but let us examine this convenience and see what it is4 ,the report on this subject1 page #c1 states the only general convenience to be1 the preventing the transportation and re-transportation of money between the ,states and the treasury1 7for ,i pass over the increase of circulating medium1 ascribed to it as a want1 and which1 according to my ideas of paper money1 is clearly a demerit47 ,every ,state will have to pay a sum of tax money into the treasury2 and the treasury will have to pay1 in every ,state1 a part of the interest on the public debt1 and salaries to the officers of government resident in that ,state4 ,in most of the ,states there will still be a surplus of tax money to come up to the seat of government for the officers residing there4 ,the payments of interest and salary in each ,state may be made by treasury orders on the ,state collector4 ,this will take up the great export of the money he has collected in his ,state1 and consequently prevent the great mass of it from being drawn out of the ,state4 ,if there be a balance of commerce in favor of that ,state against the one in which the government resides1 the surplus of taxes will be remitted by the bills of exchange drawn for that commercial balance4 ,and so it must be if there was a bank4 ,but if there be no balance of commerce1 either direct or circuitous1 all the banks in the world could not bring up the surplus of taxes1 but in the form of money4 ,treasury orders then1 and bills of exchange may prevent the displacement of the main mass of the money collected1 without the aid of any bank2 and where these fail1 it cannot be prevented even with that aid4 ,perhaps1 indeed1 bank bills may be a more convenient vehicle than treasury orders4 ,but a little difference in the degree of convenience1 cannot constitute the necessity which the constitution makes the ground for assuming any non-enumerated power4 ,besides2 the existing banks will1 without a doubt1 enter into arrangements for lending their agency1 and the more favorable1 as there will be a competition among them for it2 whereas the bill delivers us up bound to the national bank1 who are free to refuse all arrangement1 but on their own terms1 and the public not free1 on such refusal1 to employ any other bank4 ,that of ,philadelphia1 ,i believe1 now does this business1 by their post-notes1 which1 by an arrangement with the treasury1 are paid by any ,state collector to whom they are presented4 ,this expedient alone suffices to prevent the existence of that necessity which may justify the assumption of a non-enumerated power as a means for carrying into effect an enumerated one4 ,the thing may be done1 and has been done1 and well done1 without this assumption2 therefore1 it does not stand on that degree of necessity which can honestly justify it4 ,it may be said that a bank whose bills would have a currency all over the ,states1 would be more convenient than one whose currency is limited to a single ,state4 ,so it would be still more convenient that there should be a bank1 whose bills should have a currency all over the world4 ,but it does not follow from this superior conveniency1 that there exists anywhere a power to establish such a bank2 or that the world may not go on very well without it4 ,can it be thought that the ,constitution intended that for a shade or two of convenience1 more or less1 ,congress should be authorized to break down the most ancient and fundamental laws of the several ,states2 such as those against ,mortmain1 the laws of ,alienage1 the rules of descent1 the acts of distribution1 the laws of escheat and forfeiture1 the laws of monopoly8 ,nothing but a necessity invincible by any other means1 can justify such a prostitution of laws1 which constitute the pillars of our whole system of jurisprudence4 ,will ,congress be too straight-laced to carry the constitution into honest effect1 unless they may pass over the foundation-laws of the ,state government for the slightest convenience of theirs8 ,the negative of the ,president is the shield provided by the constitution to protect against the invasions of the legislature3 #a4 ,the right of the ,executive4 #b4 ,of the ,judiciary4 #c4 ,of the ,states and ,state legislatures4 ,the present is the case of a right remaining exclusively with the ,states1 and consequently one of those intended by the ,constitution to be placed under its protection4 ,it must be added1 however1 that unless the ,president's mind on a view of everything which is urged for and against this bill1 is tolerably clear that it is unauthorised by the ,constitution2 if the pro and the con hang so even as to balance his judgment1 a just respect for the wisdom of the legislature would naturally decide the balance in favor of their opinion4 ,it is chiefly for cases where they are clearly misled by error1 ambition1 or interest1 that the ,constitution has placed a check in the negative of the ,president4 ,,footnote3 #bf ,though the ,constitution controls the laws of ,mortmain so far as to permit ,congress itself to hold land for certain purposes1 yet not so far as to permit them to communicate a similar right to other corporate bodies4 ,,xxii4--,opinion relative to locating the ,ten ,mile ,square for the ,federal ,government1 and building the ,federal city4 ,march #aa1 #agia4 ,objects which may merit the attention of the ,president1 at ,georgetown4 ,the commissioners to be called into action4 ,deeds of cession to be taken from the land-holders4 ,site of the capitol and ,president's house to be determined on4 ,proclamation completing the location of the territory1 and fixing the site of the capitol4 ,town to be laid off4 ,squares of reserve are to be decided on for the capitol1 ,president's house1 offices of government1 townhouse1 prison1 market1 and public walks4 ,other squares for present sale designated4 ,terms of sale to be settled4 ,as there is not as yet a town legislature1 and things may be done before there is one to prevent them1 which yet it would be desirable to prevent1 it would seem justifiable and expedient that the ,president should form a capitulary of such regulations as he may think necessary to be observed1 until there shall be a town legislature to undertake this office2 such capitulary to be indented1 signed1 sealed1 and recorded1 according to the laws of conveyance in ,maryland4 ,and to be referred to in every deed for conveyance of the lots to purchasers1 so as to make a part thereof4 ,the same thing might be effected1 by inserting special covenants for every regulation in every deed2 but the former method is the shortest4 ,i cannot help again suggesting here one regulation formerly suggested1 to wit3 ,to provide for the extinguishment of fires1 and the openness and convenience of the town1 by prohibiting houses of excessive height4 ,and making it unlawful to build on any one's purchase any house with more than two floors between the common level of the earth and the eaves1 nor with any other floor in the roof than one at the eaves4 ,to consider in what way the contracts for the public buildings shall be made1 and whether as many bricks should not be made this summer as may employ brick-layers in the beginning of the season of #agib1 till more can be made in that season4 ,with respect to the amendment of the location so as to include ,bladensburgh4 ,i am of opinion it may be done with the consent of the legislature of ,maryland1 and that that consent may be so far counted on1 as to render it expedient to declare the location at once4 ,illustration ,the location ,a ,b ,c ,d ,a having been once made1 ,i consider as obligatory and unalterable1 but by consent of parties1 except so far as was necessary to render it practicable by a correction of the beginning4 ,that correction might be lawfully made either by stopping at the river1 or at the spring of ,hunting creek1 or by lengthening the course from the court-house so that the second course should strike the mouth of ,hunting creek4 ,i am of opinion1 therefore1 that the beginning at the mouth of ,hunting creek1 is legally justifiable4 ,but ,i would advise the location ,e ,f ,g ,h ,e to be hazarded so as to include ,bladensburgh1 because it is a better location1 and ,i think will certainly be confirmed by ,maryland4 ,that ,state will necessarily have to pass another act confirming whatever location shall be made1 because her former act authorized the delegates then in office1 to convey the lands4 ,but as they were not located1 no conveyance has been made1 and those persons are now out of office1 and dispersed4 ,suppose the non-concurrence of ,maryland should defeat the location ,e ,f ,g ,h ,e1 it can only be done on this principle1 that the first location ,a ,b ,c ,d ,a was valid1 and unalterable1 but by mutual consent4 ,then their non-concurrence will re-establish the first location ,a ,b ,c ,d ,a1 and the second location will be good for the part ,e ,i ,d ,k ,e without their concurrence1 and this will place us where we should be were we now to complete the location ,e ,b ,c ,k ,e4 ,consequently1 the experiment of an amendment proposed can lose nothing1 and may gain1 and probably will gain1 the better location4 ,when ,i say it can lose nothing1 ,i count as nothing1 the triangle ,a ,i ,e1 which would be in neither of the locations4 ,perhaps this might be taken in afterwards1 either with or without the consent of ,virginia4 ,,xxiii4--,report on the policy of securing particular marks to ,manufacturers1 by law4 ,december #i1 #agia4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred by the ,house of ,representatives the petition of ,samuel ,breck and others1 proprietors of a sail-cloth manufactory in ,boston1 praying that they may have the exclusive privilege of using particular marks for designating the sail-cloth of their manufactory1 has had the same under consideration1 and thereupon ,reports1 ,that it would1 in his opinion1 contribute to fidelity in the execution of manufacturers1 to secure to every manufactory an exclusive right to some mark on its wares1 proper to itself4 ,that this should be done by general laws1 extending equal right to every case to which the authority of the ,legislature should be competent4 ,that these cases are of divided jurisdiction3 ,manufactures made and consumed within a ,state being subject to ,state legislation1 while those which are exported to foreign nations1 or to another ,state1 or into the ,indian ,territory1 are alone within the legislation of the ,general ,government4 ,that it will1 therefore1 be reasonable for the ,general ,government to provide in this behalf by law for those cases of manufacture generally1 and those only which relate to commerce with foreign nations1 and among the several ,states1 and with the ,indian ,tribes4 ,and that this may be done by permitting the owner of every manufactory1 to enter in the records of the court of the district wherein his manufactory is1 the name with which he chooses to mark or designate his wares1 and rendering it penal in others to put the same mark to any other wares4 ,,xxiv4--,opinion relative to the demolition of ,mr4 ,carroll's house by ,major ,l',enfant1 in laying out the ,federal ,city4 ,december #aa1 #agia4 ,observations on ,major ,l',enfant's letter of ,december #gth1 #agia1 to the ,president1 justifying his demolition of the house of ,mr4 ,carroll1 of ,duddington4 ,he says that ,mr4 ,carroll erected his house partly on a main street1 and altogether on ground to which the public had a more immediate title than himself could claim4 ,when blaming ,mr4 ,carroll1 then1 he considers this as a street2 but when justifying himself1 he considers it not yet as a street1 for to account for his not having pointed out to ,carroll a situation where he might build1 he says1 ,the ,president had not yet sanctioned the plan for the distribution of the city1 nor determined if he would approve the situation of the several areas proposed to him in that plan for public use1 and that ,i would have been highly to be blamed to have anticipated his opinion thereon4 ,this latter exculpation is solid2 the first is without foundation4 ,the plan of the city has not yet been definitely determined by the ,president4 ,sale to individuals1 or partition decide the plan as far as these sales or partitions go4 ,a deed with the whole plan annexed1 executed by the ,president1 and recorded1 will ultimately fix it4 ,but till a sale1 or partition1 or deed1 it is open to alteration4 ,consequently1 there is as yet no such thing as a street1 except adjacent to the lots actually sold or divided2 the erection of a house in any part of the ground cannot as yet be a nuisance in law4 ,mr4 ,carroll is tenant in common of the soil with the public1 and the erection of a house by a tenant in common on the common property1 is no nuisance4 ,mr4 ,carroll has acted imprudently1 intemperately1 foolishly2 but he has not acted illegally4 ,there must be an establishment of the streets1 before his house can become a nuisance in the eye of the law4 ,therefore1 till that establishment1 neither ,major ,l',enfant1 nor the commissioners1 would have had a right to demolish his house1 without his consent4 ,the ,major says he had as much right to pull down a house1 as to cut down a tree4 ,this is true1 if he has received no authority to do either1 but still there will be this difference3 ,to cut down a tree or to demolish a house in the soil of another1 is a trespass2 but the cutting a tree1 in this country1 is so slight a trespass1 that a man would be thought litigious who should prosecute it2 if he prosecuted civilly1 a jury would give small damages2 if criminally1 the judge would not inflict imprisonment1 nor impose but a small fine4 ,but the demolition of a house is so gross a trespass1 that any man would prosecute it2 if civilly1 a jury would give great damages2 if criminally1 the judge would punish heavily by fine and imprisonment4 ,in the present case1 if ,carroll was to bring a civil action1 the jury would probably punish his folly by small damages2 but if he were to prosecute criminally1 the judge would as probably vindicate the insult on the laws1 and the breach of the peace1 by heavy fines and imprisonment4 ,so that if ,major ,l',enfant is right in saying he had as much authority to pull down a house as to cut down a tree1 still he would feel a difference in the punishment of the law4 ,but is he right in saying he had as much authority to pull down a house as to cut down a tree8 ,i do not know what have been the authorities given him expressly or by implication1 but ,i can very readily conceive that the authorities which he has received1 whether from the ,president or from the commissioners1 whether verbal or written1 may have gone to the demolition of trees1 and not houses4 ,i am sure he has received no authority1 either from the ,president or commissioners1 either expressly or by implication1 to pull down houses4 ,an order to him to mark on the ground the lines of the streets and lots1 might imply an order to remove trees or small obstructions1 where they insuperably prevented his operations2 but a person must know little of geometry who could not1 in an open field1 designate streets and lots1 even where a line passed through a house1 without pulling the house down4 ,in truth1 the blame on ,major ,l',enfant1 is for having pulled down the house1 of his own authority1 and when he had reason to believe he was in opposition1 to the sentiments of the ,president2 and his fault is aggravated by its having been done to gratify private resentment against ,mr4 ,carroll1 and most probably not because it was necessary2 and the style in which he writes the justification of his act1 shows that a continuation of the same resentment renders him still unable to acquiesce under the authority from which he has been reproved4 ,he desires a line of demarcation between his office1 and that of the commissioners4 ,what should be this line8 and who is to draw it8 ,if we consider the matter under the act of ,congress only1 the ,president has authority only to name the commissioners1 and to approve or disapprove certain proceedings of theirs4 ,they have the whole executive power1 and stand between the ,president and the subordinate agents4 ,in this view1 they may employ or dismiss1 order and countermand1 take on themselves such parts of the execution as they please1 and assign other parts to subordinate agents4 ,consequently1 under the act of ,congress1 their will is the line of demarcation between subordinate agents1 while no such line can exist between themselves and their agents4 ,under the deed from the proprietors to the ,president1 his powers are much more ample4 ,i do not accurately recollect the tenor of the deed2 but ,i am pretty sure it was such as to put much more ample power into the hands of the ,president1 and to commit to him the whole execution of whatever is to be done under the deed2 and this goes particularly to the laying out the town3 so that as to this1 the ,president is certainly authorized to draw the line of demarcation between ,l',enfant and the commissioners4 ,but ,i believe there is no necessity for it1 as far as ,i have been able to judge1 from conversations and consultations with the commissioners4 ,i think they are disposed to follow implicitly the will of the ,president1 whenever they can find it out2 but ,l',enfant's letters do not breathe the same moderation or acquiescence2 and ,i think it would be much safer to say to him1 the orders of the commissioners are your line of demarcation1 than by attempting to define his powers1 to give him a line where he may meet with the commissioners foot to foot1 and chicane and raise opposition to their orders whenever he thinks they pass his line4 ,i confess1 that on a view of ,l',enfant's proceedings and letters latterly1 ,i am thoroughly persuaded that1 to render him useful1 his temper must be subdued2 and that the only means of preventing his giving constant trouble to the ,president1 is to submit him to the unlimited control of the commissioners2 we know the discretion and forbearance with which they will exercise it4 ,,xxv4--,opinion relative to certain lands on ,lake ,erie1 sold by the ,united ,states to ,pennsylvania4 ,december #ai1 #agia4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred1 by the ,president of the ,united ,states1 a letter from the ,governor of ,pennsylvania1 with the documents therein mentioned1 on the subject of certain lands on ,lake ,erie1 having had the same under consideration1 thereupon ,reports3-- ,that ,congress1 by their resolution of ,june #fth1 #aghh1 directed the ,geographer ,general of the ,united ,states to ascertain the quantity of land belonging to the ,united ,states between ,pennsylvania and ,lake ,erie1 and authorized a sale thereof4 ,that a sale was accordingly made to the commonwealth of ,pennsylvania4 ,that ,congress1 by their resolution of ,september #dth1 #aghh1 relinquished to the said commonwealth all their right to the government and jurisdiction of the said tract of land2 but the right of soil was not transferred by the resolution4 ,that a survey of the said tract has been since made1 and the amount of the purchase money been settled between the comptrollers of the ,united ,states and of the said commonwealth1 and that the ,governor of ,pennsylvania declares in the said letter1 to the ,president of the ,united ,states1 that he is ready to close the transaction on behalf of the said commonwealth4 ,that there is no person at present authorized1 by law1 to convey to the said commonwealth the right of soil1 in the said tract of land4 ,and the ,secretary of ,state is therefore of opinion that the said letter and documents should be laid before the legislature of the ,united ,states to make such provision by law for conveying the said right of soil1 as they in their wisdom shall think fit4 ,,xxvi4--,report relative to negotiations with ,spain to secure the free navigation of the ,mississippi1 and a port on the same4 ,december #bb1 #agia4 ,the ,secretary of ,state reports to the ,president of the ,united ,states1 that one of the commissioners of ,spain1 in the name of both1 has lately communicated to him verbally1 by order of his court1 that his ,catholic ,majesty1 apprized of our solicitude to have some arrangement made respecting our free navigation of the river ,mississippi1 and the use of a port thereon1 is ready to enter into treaty thereon at ,madrid4 ,the ,secretary of ,state is of opinion that this overture should be attended to without delay1 and that the proposal of treating at ,madrid1 though not what might have been desired1 should yet be accepted1 and a commission plenipotentiary made out for the purpose4 ,that ,mr4 ,carmichael1 the present charg de affaires of the ,united ,states at ,madrid1 from the local acquaintance which he must have acquired with persons and circumstances1 would be an useful and proper member of the commission2 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 of4 ,that the fund appropriated by the act providing the means of intercourse between the ,united ,states and foreign nations1 will insufficiently furnish the ordinary and regular demands on it1 and is consequently inadequate to the mission of an additional commissioner express from hence4 ,that1 therefore1 it will be advisable1 on this account1 as well as for the sake of despatch1 to constitute some one of the ministers of the ,united ,states in ,europe1 jointly with ,mr4 ,carmichael1 commissioners plenipotentiary for the special purpose of negotiating and concluding1 with any person or persons duly authorized by his ,catholic ,majesty1 a convention or treaty for the free navigation of the river ,mississippi by the citizens of the ,united ,states1 under such accommodations with respect to a port1 and other circumstances1 as may render the said navigation practicable1 useful1 and free from dispute2 saving to the ,president and ,senate their respective rights as to their ratification of the same2 and that the said negotiation be at ,madrid1 or such other place in ,spain1 as shall be desired by his ,catholic ,majesty4 ,march #ah1 #agib4 ,the appointment of ,mr4 ,carmichael and ,mr4 ,short1 as commissioners to negotiate1 with the court of ,spain1 a treaty or convention relative to the navigation of the ,mississippi1 and which perhaps may be extended to other interests1 rendering it necessary that the subjects to be treated of should be developed1 and the conditions of arrangement explained3 ,the ,secretary of ,state reports to the ,president of the ,united ,states the following observations on the subjects of negotiation between the ,united ,states of ,america and the court of ,spain1 to be communicated by way of instruction to the commissioners of the ,united ,states1 appointed as before mentioned1 to manage that negotiation4 ,these subjects are1 ,i4 ,boundary4 ,,ii4 ,the navigation of the ,mississippi4 ,,iii4 ,commerce4 ,i4 ,as to boundary1 that between ,georgia and ,florida is the only one which will need any explanation4 ,spain sets up a claim to possessions within the ,state of ,georgia1 founded on her having rescued them by force from the ,british during the late war4 ,the following view of the subject seems to admit no reply3 ,the several ,states now comprising the ,united ,states of ,america1 were1 from their first establishment1 separate and distinct societies1 dependent on no other society of men whatever4 ,they continued at the head of their respective governments the executive magistrate who presided over the one they had left1 and thereby secured1 in effect1 a constant amity with the nation4 ,in this stage of their government their several boundaries were fixed2 and particularly the southern boundary of ,georgia1 the only one now in question1 was established at the #cast degree of latitude from the ,apalachicola westwardly2 and the western boundary1 originally the ,pacific ocean1 was1 by the treaty of ,paris1 reduced to the middle of the ,mississippi4 ,the part which our chief magistrate took in a war1 waged against us by the nation among whom he resided1 obliged us to discontinue him1 and to name one within every ,state4 ,in the course of this war we were joined by ,france as an ally1 and by ,spain and ,holland as associates2 having a common enemy1 each sought that common enemy wherever they could find him4 ,france1 on our invitation1 landed a large army within our territories1 continued it with us two years1 and aided us in recovering sundry places from the possession of the enemy4 ,but she did not pretend to keep possession of the places rescued4 ,spain entered into the remote western part of our territory1 dislodged the common enemy from several of the posts they held therein1 to the annoyance of ,spain2 and perhaps thought it necessary to remain in some of them1 as the only means of preventing their return4 ,we1 in like manner1 dislodged them from several posts in the same western territory1 to wit3 ,vincennes1 ,cahokia1 ,kaskaskia1 c41 rescued the inhabitants1 and retained constantly afterwards both them and the territory under our possession and government4 ,at the conclusion of the war1 ,great ,britain1 on the #cjth of ,november1 #aghb1 by treaty acknowledged our independence1 and our boundary1 to wit3 the ,mississippi to the west1 and the completion of the #cast degree1 c4 to the south4 ,in her treaty with ,spain1 concluded seven weeks afterwards1 to wit1 ,january #bjth1 #aghc1 she ceded to her the two ,floridas1 which had been defined in the proclamation of #agfc1 and ,minorca2 and by the eighth article of the treaty1 ,spain agreed to restore1 without compensation1 all the territories conquered by her1 and not included in the treaty1 either under the head of cessions or restitutions1 that is to say1 all except ,minorca and the ,floridas4 ,according to this stipulation1 ,spain was expressly bound to have delivered up the possessions she had taken within the limits of ,georgia1 to ,great ,britain1 if they were conquests on ,great ,britain1 who was to deliver them over to the ,united ,states2 or rather1 she should have delivered them to the ,united ,states themselves1 as standing quoad hoc in the place of ,great ,britain4 ,and she was bound by natural rights to deliver them to the same ,united ,states on a much stronger ground1 as the real and only proprietors of those places which she had taken possession of in a moment of danger1 without having had any cause of war with the ,united ,states1 to whom they belonged1 and without having declared any2 but1 on the contrary1 conducting herself in other respects as a friend and associate4 ,vattel1 #a4 #c1 #abb4 ,it is an established principle1 that conquest gives only an inchoate treaty of peace1 which does not become perfect till confirmed by the treaty of peace1 and by a renunciation or abandonment by the former proprietor4 ,had ,great ,britain been that former proprietor1 she was so far from confirming to ,spain the right to the territory of ,georgia1 invaded by ,spain1 that she expressly relinquished to the ,united ,states any right that might remain in her2 and afterwards completed that relinquishment1 by procuring and consolidating with it the agreement of ,spain herself to restore such territory without compensation4 ,it is still more palpable1 that a war existing between two nations1 as ,spain and ,great ,britain1 could give to neither the right to seize and appropriate the territory of a third1 which is even neutral1 much less which is an associate in the war1 as the ,united ,states were with ,spain4 ,see1 on this subject1 ,grotius1 #a4 #c1 c4 #f1 #bf4 ,puffendorf1 #a4 #h1 c4 #ag1 #bc4 ,vattel1 #a4 #c1 #aig1 #aih4 ,on the conclusion of the general peace1 the ,united ,states lost no time in requiring from ,spain an evacuation of their territory ,this has been hitherto delayed by means which we need not explain to that court1 but which have been equally contrary to our right and to our consent4 ,should ,spain pretend1 as has been intimated1 that there was a secret article of treaty between the ,united ,states and ,great ,britain1 agreeing1 if at the close of the war the latter should retain the ,floridas1 that then the southern boundary of ,georgia should be the completion of the #cb;d degree of latitude1 the commissioners may safely deny all knowledge of the fact1 and refuse conference on any such postulatum4 ,or1 should they find it necessary to enter into any argument on the subject1 they will of course do it hypothetically2 and in that way may justly say1 on the part of the ,united ,states2 suppose that the ,united ,states1 exhausted by a bloody and expensive war with ,great ,britain1 might have been willing to have purchased peace by relinquishing1 under a particular contingency1 a small part of their territory1 it does not follow that the same ,united ,states1 recruited and better organized1 must relinquish the same territory to ,spain without striking a blow4 ,the ,united ,states1 too1 have irrevocably put it out of their power to do it1 by a new constitution1 which guarantees every ,state against the invasion of its territory4 ,a disastrous war1 indeed1 might1 by necessity1 supersede this stipulation1 7as necessity is above all law17 and oblige them to abandon a part of a ,state2 but nothing short of this can justify or obtain such an abandonment4 ,the southern limits of ,georgia depend chiefly on1 #a4 ,the charter of ,carolina to the lords proprietors1 in #affc1 extending southwardly to the river ,matheo1 now called ,st4 ,john1 supposed in the charter to be in latitude #ca1 and so west in a direct line as far as the ,south ,sea4 ,see the charter in #dth#bg ,memoires de l',amerique1 #eed4 #b4 ,on the proclamation of the ,british ,king1 in #agfc1 establishing the boundary between ,georgia and the two ,floridas to begin on the ,mississippi1 in thirty-one degrees of latitude north of the equator1 and running eastwardly to the ,appalachicola2 thence1 along the said river to the mouth of the ,flint2 thence1 in a direct line1 to the source of ,st4 ,mary's river1 and down the same to the ocean4 ,this proclamation will be found in ,postlethwayte voce ,british ,america4 #c4 ,on the treaties between the ,united ,states and ,great ,britain1 of ,november #cj1 #aghb1 and ,september #c1 #aghc1 repeating and confirming these ancient boundaries1-- ,there was an intermediate transaction1 to wit3 a convention concluded at the ,pardo1 in #agci1 whereby it was agreed that ,ministers ,plenipotentiary should be immediately appointed by ,spain and ,great ,britain for settling the limits of ,florida and ,carolina4 ,the convention is to be found in the collections of treaties4 ,but the proceedings of the ,plenipotentiaries are unknown here4 ,qu4 ,if it was on that occasion that the southern boundary of ,carolina was transferred from the latitude of ,matheo or ,st4 ,john's river further north to the ,st4 ,mary's8 ,or was it the proclamation of #agfc1 which first removed this boundary8 ,if the commissioners can procure in ,spain a copy of whatever was agreed on in consequence of the convention of the ,pardo1 it is a desirable ,state paper here4 ,to this demonstration of our rights may be added the explicit declaration of the court of ,spain1 that she would accede to them4 ,this took place in conversations and correspondence thereon between ,mr4 ,jay1 ,minister ,plenipotentiary for the ,united ,states at the court at ,madrid1 the ,marquis de ,la ,fayette1 and the ,count de ,florida ,blanca4 ,monsieur de ,la ,fayette1 in his letter of ,february #ai1 #aghc1 to the ,count de ,florida ,blanca1 states the result of their conversations on limits in these words3 ,with respect to limits1 his ,catholic ,majesty has adopted those that are determined by the preliminaries of the #cjth of ,november1 between the ,united ,states and the court of ,london4 ,the ,count de ,florida ,blanca1 in his answer of ,february #bb;d1 to ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 says1 although it is his ,majesty's intention to abide for the present by the limits established by the treaty of the #cjth of ,november1 #aghb1 between the ,english and the ,americans1 the ,king intends to inform himself particularly whether it can be in any ways inconvenient or prejudicial to settle that affair amicably with the ,united ,states2 and ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 in his letter of the same day to ,mr4 ,jay1 wherein he had inserted the preceding1 says1 on receiving the answer of the ,count de ,florida ,blanca1 7to wit3 his answer1 before mentioned1 to ,m4 de ,la ,fayette17 ,i desired an explanation respecting the addition that relates to the limits4 ,i was answered1 that it was a fixed principle to abide by the limits established by the treaty between the ,english and the ,americans2 that his remark related only to mere unimportant details1 which he wished to receive from the ,spanish commandants1 which would be amicably regulated1 and would by no means oppose the general principle4 ,i asked him1 before the ,ambassador of ,france1 ,m4 de ,montmorin1 whether he would give me his word of honor for it2 he assured me he would1 and that ,i might engage it to the ,united ,states4 ,see the report sent herewith4 ,,ii4--,the navigation of the ,mississippi4 ,our right to navigate that river1 from its source to where our southern boundary strikes it1 is not questioned4 ,it is from that point downwards1 only1 that the exclusive navigation is claimed by ,spain2 that is to say1 where she holds the country on both sides1 to wit3 ,louisiana on the west1 and ,florida on the east4 ,our right to participate in the navigation of that part of the river1 also1 is to be considered1 under #a4 ,the ,treaty of ,paris of #agfc1 #b4 ,the ,revolution ,treaty of #aghb-c4 #c4 ,the law of nature and nations4 #a4 ,the war of #agee-agfc1 was carried on jointly by ,great ,britain and the thirteen colonies1 now the ,united ,states of ,america1 against ,france and ,spain4 ,at the peace which was negotiated by our common magistrate1 a right was secured to the subjects of ,great ,britain 7the common designation of all those under his government7 to navigate the ,mississippi in its whole breadth and length1 from its source to the sea1 and expressly that part which is between the island of ,new ,orleans and the right bank of the river1 as well as the passage both in and out of its mouth2 and that the vessels should not be stopped1 visited1 or subjected to the payment of any duty whatsoever4 ,these are the words of the treaty1 article ,,vii4 ,florida was at the same time ceded by ,spain1 and its extent westwardly was fixed to the lakes ,pontchartrain and ,maurepas1 and the river ,mississippi2 and ,spain received soon after from ,france a cession of the island of ,new ,orleans1 and all the country she held westward of the ,mississippi1 subject of course to our right of navigating between that country and the island previously granted to us by ,france4 ,this right was not parcelled out to us in severalty1 that is to say1 to each the exclusive navigation of so much of the river as was adjacent to our several shores--in which way it would have been useless to all--but it was placed on that footing on which alone it could be worth anything1 to wit3 as a right to all to navigate the whole length of the river in common4 ,the import of the terms and the reason of the thing prove it was a right of common in the whole1 and not a several right to each of a particular part4 ,to which may be added the evidence of the stipulation itself1 that we should navigate between ,new ,orleans and the western bank1 which1 being adjacent to none of our ,states1 could be held by us only as a right of common4 ,such was the nature of our right to navigate the ,mississippi1 as far as established by the treaty of ,paris4 #b4 ,in the course of the ,revolutionary war1 in which the thirteen colonies1 ,spain1 and ,france1 were opposed to ,great ,britain1 ,spain took possession of several posts held by the ,british in ,florida4 ,it is unnecessary to inquire whether the possession of half a dozen posts scattered through a country of seven or eight hundred miles extent1 could be considered as the possession and conquest of that country4 ,if it was1 it gave still but an inchoate right1 as was before explained1 which could not be perfected but by the relinquishment of the former possession at the close of the war2 but certainly it could not be considered as a conquest of the river1 even against ,great ,britain1 since the possession of the shores1 to wit1 of the island of ,new ,orleans on the one side1 and ,louisiana on the other1 having undergone no change1 the right in the water would remain the same1 if considered only in its relation to them2 and if considered as a distinct right1 independent of the shores1 then no naval victories obtained by ,spain over ,great ,britain1 in the course of the war1 gave her the color of conquest over any water which the ,british fleet could enter4 ,still less can she be considered as having conquered the river1 as against the ,united ,states1 with whom she was not at war4 ,we had a common right of navigation in the part of the river between ,florida1 the island of ,new ,orleans1 and the western bank1 and nothing which passed between ,spain and ,great ,britain1 either during the war1 or at its conclusion1 could lessen that right4 ,accordingly1 at the treaty of ,november1 #aghb1 ,great ,britain confirmed the rights of the ,united ,states to the navigation of the river1 from its source to its mouth1 and in ,january1 #aghc1 completed the right of ,spain to the territory of ,florida1 by an absolute relinquishment of all her rights in it4 ,this relinquishment could not include the navigation held by the ,united ,states in their own right1 because this right existed in themselves only1 and was not in ,great ,britain4 ,if it added anything to the rights of ,spain respecting the river between the eastern and western banks1 it could only be that portion of right which ,great ,britain had retained to herself in the treaty with the ,united ,states1 held seven weeks before1 to wit1 a right of using it in common with the ,united ,states4 ,so that as by the treaty of #agfc1 the ,united ,states had obtained a common right of navigating the whole river from its source to its mouth1 so by the treaty of #aghb1 that common right was confirmed to them by the only power who could pretend claims against them1 founded on the state of war2 nor has that common right been transferred to ,spain by either conquest or cession4 ,but our right is built on ground still broader and more unquestionable1 to wit3 #c4 ,on the law of nature and nations4 ,if we appeal to this1 as we feel it written on the heart of man1 what sentiment is written in deeper characters than that the ocean is free to all men1 and their rivers to all their inhabitants8 ,is there a man1 savage or civilized1 unbiased by habit1 who does not feel and attest this truth8 ,accordingly1 in all tracts of country united under the same political society1 we find this natural right universally acknowledged and protected by laying the navigable rivers open to all their inhabitants4 ,when their rivers enter the limits of another society1 if the right of the upper inhabitants to descend the stream is in any case obstructed1 it is an act of force by a stronger society against a weaker1 condemned by the judgment of mankind4 ,the late case of ,antwerp and the ,scheldt was a striking proof a general union of sentiment on this point2 as it is believed that ,amsterdam had scarcely an advocate out of ,holland1 and even there its pretensions were advocated on the ground of treaties1 and not of natural right4 7,the commissioners would do well to examine thoroughly what was written on this occasion47 ,the commissioners will be able perhaps to find1 either in the practice or the pretensions of ,spain1 as to the ,dauro1 ,tagus1 and ,guadiana1 some acknowledgments of this principle on the part of that nation4 ,this sentiment of right in favor of the upper inhabitants must become stronger in the proportion which their extent of country bears to the lower4 ,the ,united ,states hold #fjj1jjj square miles of habitable territory on the ,mississippi and its branches1 and this river and its branches afford many thousands of miles of navigable waters penetrating this territory in all its parts4 ,the inhabitable grounds of ,spain below our boundary and bordering on the river1 which alone can pretend any fear of being incommoded by our use of the river1 are not the thousandth part of that extent4 ,this vast portion of the territory of the ,united ,states has no other outlet for its productions1 and these productions are of the bulkiest kind4 ,and in truth1 their passage down the river may not only be innocent1 as to the ,spanish subjects on the river1 but cannot fail to enrich them far beyond their present condition4 ,the real interests then of all the inhabitants1 upper and lower1 concur in fact with their rights4 ,if we appeal to the law of nature and nations1 as expressed by writers on the subject1 it is agreed by them1 that1 were the river1 where it passes between ,florida and ,louisiana1 the exclusive right of ,spain1 still an innocent passage along it is a natural right in those inhabiting its borders above4 ,it would indeed be what those writers call an imperfect right1 because the modification of its exercise depends in a considerable degree on the conveniency of the nation through which they are to pass4 ,but it is still a right as real as any other right1 however well-defined2 and were it to be refused1 or to be so shackled by regulations1 not necessary for the peace or safety of its inhabitants1 as to render its use impracticable to us1 it would then be an injury1 of which we should bee entitled to demand redress4 ,the right of the upper inhabitants to use this navigation is the counterpart to that of those possessing the shore below1 and founded in the same natural relations with the soil and water4 ,and the line at which their rights meet is to be advanced or withdrawn1 so as to equalize the inconveniences resulting to each party from the exercise of the right by the other4 ,this estimate is to be fairly made with a mutual disposition to make equal sacrifices1 and the numbers on each side are to have their due weight in the estimate4 ,spain holds so very small a tract of habitable land on either side below our boundary1 that it may in fact be considered as a strait of the sea2 for though it is eighty leagues from our boundary to the mouth of the river1 yet it is only here and there in spots and slips that the land rises above the level of the water in times of inundation4 ,there are1 then1 and ever must be1 so few inhabitants on her part of the river1 that the freest use of its navigation may be admitted to us without their annoyance4 ,for authorities on this subject1 see ,grot4 #a4 #b4 c4 #b #aa1 #ab1 #ac1 c4 #c4 #g1 #h1 #ab4 ,puffendorf1 #a4 #c4 c4 #c4 #c1 #d1 #e1 #f4 ,wolff's ,inst4 #caj1 #caa1 #cab4 ,vattel1 #a4 #a4 #bib4 #a4 #b4 #abc to #aci4 ,illustration ,it is essential to the interests of both parties that the navigation of the river be free to both1 on the footing on which it was defined by the treaty of ,paris1 viz43 through its whole breadth4 ,the channel of the ,mississippi is remarkably winding1 crossing and recrossing perpetually from one side to the other of the general bed of the river4 ,within the elbows thus made by the channel1 there is generally an eddy setting upwards1 and it is by taking advantage of these eddies1 and constantly crossing from one to another of them1 that boats are enabled to ascend the river4 ,without this right the whole river would be impracticable both to the ,americans and ,spaniards4 ,it is a principle that the right to a thing gives a right to the means1 without which it could not be used1 that is to say1 that the means follow their end4 ,thus1 a right to navigate a river1 draws to it a right to moor vessels to its shores1 to land on them in cases of distress1 or for other necessary purposes1 c4 ,this principle is founded in natural reason1 is evidenced by the common sense of mankind1 and declared by the writers before quoted4 ,see ,grot4 #a4 #b4 c4 #b4 #ae4 ,puffend4 #a4 #c4 c4 #c4 #h4 ,vattel1 #a4 #b4 #abi4 ,the ,roman law1 which1 like other municipal laws1 placed the navigation of their rivers on the footing of nature1 as to their own citizens1 by declaring them public1#bh 7flumina publica sunt1 hoc est populi ,romani1 ,inst4 #b4 t4 #a4 #b17 declared also that the right to the use of the shores was incident to that of the water4 ,ibid1 #a1 #c1 #d1 #e4 ,the laws of every country probably do the same4 ,this must have been so understood between ,france and ,great ,britain1 at the treaty of ,paris1 when a right was ceded to ,british subjects to navigate the whole river1 and expressly that part between the island of ,new ,orleans and the western bank1 without stipulating a word about the use of the shores1 though both of them belonged then to ,france1 and were to belong immediately to ,spain4 ,had not the use of the shores been considered as incident to that of the water1 it would have been expressly stipulated2 since its necessity was too obvious to have escaped either party4 ,accordingly1 all ,british subjects used the shores habitually for the purposes necessary to the navigation of the river2 and when a ,spanish ,governor undertook at one time to forbid this1 and even cut loose the vessels fastening to their shores1 a ,british frigate went immediately1 moored itself to the shore opposite to the town of ,new ,orleans1 and set out guards with orders to fire on such as might attempt to disturb her moorings4 ,the ,governor acquiesced1 the right was constantly exercised afterwards1 and no interruption ever offered4 ,this incidental right extends even beyond the shores1 where circumstances render it necessary to the exercise of the principal right2 as1 in the case of a vessel damaged1 where the mere shore could not be a safe deposit for her cargo till she could be repaired1 she may remove it into safe ground off the river4 ,the ,roman law shall be quoted here too1 because it gives a good idea both of the extent and the limitations of this right4 ,ins4 #a4 #b4 t4 #a4 #d4 #bi,riparum quoque usus publicus est1 ut volunt jura gentium1 sicut et ipsius fluminis usus publicus est4 ,itaque et navigium ad ripes appellere1 et funes de arboribus ibi natis religare1 et navis onera in his locis reponere1 liberum quique est sicuti nec per flumen ipsum navigare quisquam prohibetur4 ,and again1 #e1 #cjlittorum quoque usus publicus1 sive juri gentium est1 ut et ipsius maris et ob id data est facultas volentibus1 casas ibi sibi componere1 in quas se recipere possint1 c4 ,again1 #a4 #ca,nemo igitur ad littora maris accedere prohibitur2 veluti deambulare aut navem appellere1 sic tamen ut a villis1 id est domiciliis monumentisque ibi positis1 et ab edificiis abstineat1 nec iis damnum inferat4 ,among incidental rights are those of having pilots1 buoys1 beacons1 landmarks1 light-houses1 c41 to guide the navigators4 ,the establishment of these at joint expense1 and under joint regulations1 may be the subject of a future convention4 ,in the meantime1 both should be free to have their own1 and refuse those of the other1 both as to use and expense4 ,very peculiar circumstances attending the river ,mississippi1 require that the incidental right of accommodation on the shore1 which needs only occasional exercise on other rivers1 should be habitual and constant on this4 ,sea vessels cannot navigate that river1 nor the river vessels go to sea4 ,the navigation would be useless then without an entrept where these vessels might safely deposit their own cargoes1 and take those left by the others2 and where warehouses and keepers might be constantly established for the safeguard of the cargoes4 ,it is admitted1 indeed1 that the incidental right thus extended into the territory of the bordering inhabitants1 is liable to stricter modifications in proportion as it interferes with their territorial right4 ,but the inconveniences of both parties are still to have their weight1 and reason and moderation on both sides are to draw the line between them4 ,as to this1 we count much on the liberality of ,spain1 on her concurrence in opinion with us1 that it is for the interest of both parties to remove completely this germ of discord from between us1 and draw our friendship as close as circumstances proclaim that it should be1 and on the considerations which make it palpable that a convenient spot placed under our exclusive occupation1 and exempted from the jurisdiction and police of their government1 is far more likely to preserve peace than a mere free port1 where eternal altercations would keep us in eternal ill humor with each other4 ,the policy of this measure1 and indeed of a much larger concession1 having been formerly sketched in a paper of ,july #abth1 #agij1 sent to the commissioners severally1 they are now referred to that4 ,if this be agreed to1 the manner of fixing on that extra territorial spot becomes highly interesting4 ,the most desirable to us1 would be a permission to send commissioners to choose such spot1 below the town of ,new ,orleans1 as they should find most convenient4 ,if this be refused1 it would be better now to fix on the spot4 ,our information is1 that the whole country below the town1 and for sixty miles above it1 on the western shore1 is low1 marshy1 and subject to such deep inundation for many miles from the river1 that if capable of being reclaimed at all by banking1 it would still never afford an entrept sufficiently safe2 that on the eastern side the only lands below the town1 not subject to inundation1 are at the ,detour aux ,anglais1 or ,english ,turn1 the highest part of which1 is that whereon the fort ,st4 ,marie formerly stood4 ,even this is said to have been raised by art1 and to be very little above the level of the inundations4 ,this spot then is what we would fix on1 if obliged now to decide1 with from one to as many square miles of the circumjacent lands as can be obtained1 and comprehending expressly the shores above and below the site of the fort as far as possible4 ,but as to the spot itself1 the limits1 and even whether it shall be extra territorial1 or only a free port1 and what regulations it shall be laid under1 the convenience of that ,government is entitled to so much respect and attention on our part1 that the arrangement must be left to the management of the commissioners1 who will doubtless use their best efforts to obtain all they can for us4 ,the worst footing on which the determination of the ground could be placed1 would be a reference to joint commissioners2 because their disagreement1 a very probable1 nay1 a certain event1 would undo the whole convention1 and leave us exactly where we now are4 ,unless indeed they will engage to us1 in case of such disagreement1 the highest ground at the ,detour aux ,anglais1 of convenient extent1 including the landings and harbor thereto adjacent4 ,this would ensure us that ground1 unless better could be found and mutually preferred1 and close the delay of right under which we have so long labored for peace-sake4 ,it will probably be urged1 because it was urged on a former occasion1 that1 if ,spain grants to us the right of navigating the ,mississippi1 other nations will become entitled to it by virtue of treaties giving them the rights of the most favored nation4 ,two answers may be given to this3 #a4 ,when those treaties were made1 no nations could be under contemplation but those then existing1 or those at most who might exist under similar circumstances4 ,america did not then exist as a nation2 and the circumstances of her position and commerce1 are so totally dissimilar to everything then known1 that the treaties of that day were not adapted to any such being4 ,they would better fit even ,china than ,america2 because1 as a manufacturing nation1 ,china resembles ,europe more4 ,when we solicited ,france to admit our whale oils into her ports1 though she had excluded all foreign whale oils1 her minister made the objection now under consideration1 and the foregoing answer was given4 ,it was found to be solid2 and the whale oils of the ,united ,states are in consequence admitted1 though those of ,portugal and the ,hanse towns1 and of all other nations1 are excluded4 ,again1 when ,france and ,england were negotiating their late treaty of commerce1 the great dissimilitude of our commerce 7which furnishes raw materials to employ the industry of others1 in exchange for articles whereon industry has been exhausted7 from the commerce of the ,european nations 7which furnishes things ready wrought only7 was suggested to the attention of both negotiators1 and that they should keep their nations free to make particular arrangements with ours1 by communicating to each other only the rights of the most favored ,european nation4 ,each was separately sensible of the importance of the distinction2 and as soon as it was proposed by the one1 it was acceded to by the other1 and the word ,european was inserted in their treaty4 ,it may fairly be considered then as the rational and received interpretation of the diplomatic term1 gentis amicissim#cb that it has not in view a nation unknown in many cases at the time of using the term1 and so dissimilar in all cases as to furnish no ground of just reclamation to any nation4 ,but the decisive answer is1 that ,spain does not grant us the navigation of the river4 ,we have an inherent right to it2 and she may repel the demand of any other nation by candidly stating her act to have been1 what in truth it is1 a recognition only1 and not a grant4 ,if ,spain apprehends that other nations may claim access to our ports in the ,mississippi1 under their treaties with us1 giving them a right to come and trade in all our ports1 though we would not choose to insert an express stipulation against them1 yet we shall think ourselves justified to acquiesce in fact1 under any regulations ,spain may from time to time establish against their admission4 ,should ,spain renew another objection1 which she relied much on before that the ,english at the ,revolution treaty could not cede to us what ,spain had taken from them by conquest1 and what of course they did not possess themselves1 the preceding observations furnish sufficient matter for refutation4 ,to conclude the subjects of boundary and navigation1 each of the following conditions is to be considered by the commissioners as a sine qu non4 #a4 ,that our southern boundary remain established at the completion of thirty-one degrees of latitude on the ,mississippi1 and so on to the ocean1 as has been before described1 and our western one along the middle of the channel of the ,mississippi1 however that channel may vary1 as it is constantly varying1 and that ,spain cease to occupy or to exercise jurisdiction in any part northward or eastward of these boundaries4 #b4 ,that our right be acknowledged of navigating the ,mississippi1 in its whole breadth and length1 from its source to the sea1 as established by the treaty of #agfc4 #c4 ,that neither the vessels1 cargoes1 or the persons on board1 be stopped1 visited1 or subjected to the payment of any duty whatsoever2 or1 if a visit must be permitted1 that it be under such restrictions as to produce the least possible inconvenience4 ,but it should be altogether avoided1 if possible1 as the parent of perpetual broils4 #d4 ,that such conveniences be allowed us ashore1 as may render our right of navigation practicable and under such regulations as may bon fide respect the preservation of peace and order alone1 and may not have in object to embarrass our navigation1 or raise a revenue on it4 ,while the substance of this article is made a sine qu non1 the modifications of it are left altogether to the discretion and management of the commissioners4 ,we might add1 as a fifth sine qu non1 that no phrase should be admitted in the treaty which could express or imply that we take the navigation of the ,mississippi as a grant from ,spain4 ,but1 however disagreeable it would be to subscribe to such a sentiment1 yet1 were the conclusion of a treaty to hang on that single objection1 it would be expedient to waive it1 and to meet1 at a future day1 the consequences of any resumption they may pretend to make1 rather than at present1 those of a separation without coming to any agreement4 ,we know not whether ,spain has it in idea to ask a compensation for the ascertainment of our right4 #a4 ,in the first place1 she cannot in reason ask a compensation for yielding what we have a right to1 that is to say1 the navigation of the river1 and the conveniences incident to it of natural right4 #b4 ,in the second place1 we have a claim on ,spain for indemnification for nine years' exclusion from that navigation1 and a reimbursement of the heavy duties 7not less for the most part than #ae per cent4 on extravagant valuations7 levied on the commodities she has permitted to pass to ,new ,orleans4 ,the relinquishment of this will be no unworthy equivalent for any accommodations she may indulge us with1 beyond the line of our strict right4 ,and this claim is to be brought into view in proper time and manner1 merely to be abandoned in consideration of such accommodations4 ,we have nothing else to give in exchange4 ,for as to territory1 we have neither the right nor the disposition to alienate an inch of what belongs to any member of our ,union4 ,such a proposition1 therefore1 is totally inadmissible1 and not to be treated of for a moment4 #c4 ,on the former conferences on the navigation of the ,mississippi1 ,spain chose to blend with it the subject of commerce2 and1 accordingly1 specific propositions thereon passed between the negotiators4 ,her object1 then1 was to obtain our renunciation of the navigation1 and to hold out commercial arrangements1 perhaps as a lure to us2 perhaps1 however1 she might then1 and may now1 really set a value on commercial arrangements with us1 and may receive them as a consideration for accommodating us in the navigation2 or1 may wish for them1 to have the appearance of receiving a consideration4 ,commercial arrangements1 if acceptable in themselves1 will not be the less so if coupled with those relating to navigation and boundary4 ,we have only to take care that they be acceptable in themselves4 ,there are two principles which may be proposed as the basis of a commercial treaty3 #a4 ,that of exchanging the privileges of native citizens2 or1 #b4 ,those of the most favored nation4 #a4 ,with the nations holding important possessions in ,america1 we are ready to exchange the rights of native citizens1 provided they be extended through the whole possessions of both parties1 but the propositions of ,spain1 made on the former occasion1 7a copy of which accompanies this17 were1 that we should give their merchants1 vessels1 and productions1 the privilege of native merchants1 vessels1 and productions1 through the whole of our possessions1 and they give the same to ours only in ,spain and the ,canaries4 ,this is inadmissible1 because unequal2 and1 as we believe that ,spain is not ripe for an equal exchange on this basis1 we avoid proposing it4 #b4 ,though treaties1 which merely exchange the rights of the most favored nations1 are not without all inconvenience1 yet they have their conveniences also4 ,it is an important one1 that they leave each party free to make what internal regulations they please1 and to give what preferences they find expedient to native merchants1 vessels1 and productions4 ,and as we already have treaties on this basis1 with ,france1 ,holland1 ,sweden1 and ,prussia1 the two former of which are perpetual1 it will be but small additional embarrassment to extend it to ,spain4 ,on the contrary1 we are sensible it is right to place that nation on the most favored footing1 whether we have a treaty with them or not1 and it can do us no harm to secure by treaty a reciprocation of the right4 ,of the four treaties before mentioned1 either the ,french or the ,prussian might be taken as a model4 ,but it would be useless to propose the ,prussian2 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 other2 and1 without this equivalent1 we would not agree to tie our own hands so materially in war1 as would be done by the #bc;d article1 which renounces the right of fitting out privateers1 or of capturing merchant vessels4 ,the ,french treaty1 therefore1 is proposed as the model4 ,in this1 however1 the following changes are to be made4 ,we should be admitted to all the dominions of ,spain1 to which any other foreign nation is1 or may be admitted4 ,article #e being an exemption from a particular duty in ,france1 will of course be omitted1 as inapplicable to ,spain4 ,article #h to be omitted1 as unnecessary with ,morocco1 and inefficacious1 and little honorable with any of the ,barbary powers4 ,but it may furnish occasion to sound ,spain on the project of a convention of the powers at war with the ,barbary ,states1 to keep up1 by rotation1 a constant cruise of a given force on their coasts1 till they shall be compelled to renounce forever1 and against all nations1 their predatory practices4 ,perhaps the infidelities of the ,algerines to their treaty of peace with ,spain1 though the latter does not choose to break openly1 may induce her to subsidize us to cruise against them with a given force4 ,article #i and #aj1 concerning fisheries1 to be omitted1 as inapplicable4 ,article #aa4 ,the first paragraph of this article1 respecting the droit d'aubaine1 to be omitted2 that law being supposed peculiar to ,france4 ,article #ag1 giving asylum in the ports of either to the armed vessels of the other1 with the prizes taken from the enemies of that other1 must be qualified as it is in the #aith article of the ,prussian treaty2 as the stipulation in the latter part of the article1 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 parties1 would forbid us in case of a war between ,france and ,spain1 to give shelter in our ports to prizes made by the latter on the former1 while the first part of the article would oblige us to shelter those made by the former on the latter--a very dangerous covenant1 and which ought never to be repeated in any other instance4 ,article #bi4 ,consuls should be received in all the ports at which the vessels of either party may be received4 ,article #cj1 concerning free ports in ,europe and ,america4 ,free ports in the ,spanish possessions in ,america1 and particularly at the ,havana1 ,san ,domingo1 in the island of that name1 and ,st4 ,john of ,porto ,rico1 are more to be desired than expected4 ,it can1 therefore1 only be recommended to the best endeavors of the commissioners to obtain them4 ,it will be something to obtain for our vessels1 flour1 c41 admission to those ports during their pleasure4 ,in like manner1 if they could be prevailed on to re-establish our right of cutting log-wood in the bay of ,campeachy1 on the footing on which it stood before the treaty of #agfc1 it would be desirable1 and not endanger1 to us1 any contest with the ,english1 who1 by the ,revolution treaty1 are restrained to the south-eastern parts of ,yucatan4 ,article #ca4 ,the act of ratification1 on our part1 may require a twelvemonth from the date of the treaty1 as the ,senate meets regularly but once a year2 and to return it to ,madrid1 for exchange1 may require four months more4 ,it would be better1 indeed1 if ,spain would send her ratification to be exchanged by her representative here4 ,the treaty must not exceed twelve or fifteen years' duration1 except the clauses relating to boundary1 and the navigation of the ,mississippi1 which must be perpetual and final4 ,indeed1 these two subjects had better be in a separate instrument4 ,there might have been mentioned a third species of arrangement1 that of making special agreements on every special subject of commerce1 and of setting a tariff of duty to be paid on each side1 on every particular article2 but this would require in our commissioners a very minute knowledge of our commerce1 as it is impossible to foresee every proposition of this kind which might be brought into discussion1 and to prepare them for it by information and instruction from hence4 ,our commerce1 too1 is1 as yet1 rather in a course of experiment1 and the channels in which it will ultimately flow1 are not sufficiently known to enable us to provide for it by special agreement4 ,nor have the exigencies of our new government1 as yet1 so far developed themselves1 as that we can know to what degree we may or must have recourse to commerce for the purposes of revenue4 ,no common consideration1 therefore1 ought to induce us1 as yet1 to arrangements of this kind4 ,perhaps nothing should do it with any nation1 short of the privileges of natives in all their possessions1 foreign and domestic4 ,it were to be wished1 indeed1 that some positively favorable stipulations respecting our grain1 flour1 and fish1 could be obtained1 even on our giving reciprocal advantages to some other commodities of ,spain1 say her wines and brandies4 ,but1 #ast4 ,if we quit the ground of the most favored nation1 as to certain articles for our convenience1 ,spain may insist on doing the same for other articles for her convenience1 and thus our commissioners will get themselves on the ground of a treaty of detail1 for which they will not be prepared4 #b;d4 ,if we grant favor to the wines and brandies of ,spain1 then ,portugal and ,spain will demand the same2 and in order to create an equivalent1 ,portugal may lay a duty on our fish and grain1 and ,france1 a prohibition on our whale oils1 the removal of which will be proposed as an equivalent4 ,this much1 however1 as to grain and flour1 may be attempted4 ,there has1 not long since1 been a considerable duty laid on them in ,spain4 ,this was while a treaty on the subject of commerce was pending between us and ,spain1 as that court considers the matter4 ,it is not generally thought right to change the state of things pending a treaty concerning them4 ,on this consideration1 and on the motive of cultivating our friendship1 perhaps the commissioners may induce them to restore this commodity to the footing on which it was1 on opening the conferences with ,mr4 ,gardoqui1 on the #bfth day of ,july1 #aghe4 ,if ,spain says1 do the same by your tonnage on our vessels1 the answer may be1 that our foreign tonnage affects ,spain very little1 and other nations very much2 whereas the duty on flour in ,spain affects us very much1 and other nations very little4 ,consequently1 there would be no equality in reciprocal relinquishment1 as there had been none in the reciprocal innovation2 and ,spain1 by insisting on this1 would1 in fact1 only be aiding the interests of her rival nations1 to whom we should be forced to extend the same indulgence4 ,at the time of opening the conferences1 too1 we had1 as yet1 not erected any system2 our government itself being not yet erected4 ,innovation then was unavoidable on our part1 if it be innovation to establish a system4 ,we did it on fair and general ground2 on ground favorable to ,spain4 ,but they had a system1 and1 therefore1 innovation was avoidable on their part4 ,it is known to the commissioners that we found it expedient to ask the interposition of ,france1 lately1 to bring on this settlement of our boundary1 and the navigation of the ,mississippi4 ,how far that interposition has contributed to produce it1 is uncertain4 ,but we have reason to believe that her further interference would not produce an agreeable effect on ,spain4 ,the commissioners1 therefore1 are to avoid all further communications on the subject with the ministers of ,france1 giving them such explanations as may preserve their good dispositions4 ,but if1 ultimately1 they shall find themselves unable to bring ,spain to agreement on the subject of the navigation and boundary1 the interposition of ,france1 as a mutual friend1 and the guarantee of our limits1 is then to be asked1 in whatever light ,spain may choose to consider it4 ,should the negotiations on the subject of navigation and boundary assume1 at any time1 an unhopeful aspect1 it may be proper that ,spain should be given to understand1 that1 if they are discontinued without coming to any agreement1 the ,government of the ,united ,states cannot be responsible for the longer forbearance of their western inhabitants4 ,at the same time the abandonment of the negotiation should be so managed as that1 without engaging us to a further suspension of the exercise of our rights1 we may not be committed to resume them on the instant4 ,the present turbid situation of ,europe cannot leave us long without a safe occasion of resuming our territory and navigation1 and of carving for ourselves those conveniences1 on the shores1 which may facilitate and protect the latter effectually and permanently4 ,we had a right to expect that1 pending a negotiation1 all things would have remained in statu quo1 and that ,spain would not have proceeded to possess herself of other parts of our territory4 ,but she has lately taken and fortified a new post on the ,walnut hills1 above the mouth of the ,yazoo river1 and far above the #cast degree4 ,this garrison ought to have been instantly dislodged2 but for our wish to be in friendship with ,spain1 and our confidence in her assurances to bide by the limits established in our treaty with ,england1 complaints of this unfriendly and uncandid procedure may be brought forward or not1 as the commissioners shall see expedient4 ,,footnotes3 #bg ,mr4 ,short is desired to purchase this book at ,amsterdam1 or ,paris1 as he may not find it at ,madrid1 and when it shall have answered the purposes of this mission1 let it be sent here for the use of the ,secretary of ,state's office4 #bh ,rivers belong to the public1 that is to say to the ,roman people4 #bi ,the use of the banks belong also to the public by the laws of nations1 as the use of the river itself does4 ,therefore1 every one is free to moor his vessel to the bank1 to fasten his cables to the trees growing on it1 to deposit the cargo of his vessel in those places in like manner as every one is free to navigate the river itself4 #cj ,the use of the shores also belongs to the public1 or is under the law of nations1 as is that of the sea itself4 ,therefore it is1 that those who choose1 have a right to build huts there1 into which they may betake themselves4 #ca ,nobody1 therefore1 is prohibited from landing on the sea shore1 walking there1 or mooring their vessel there1 so nevertheless that they keep out of the villas1 that is1 the habitations1 monuments1 and public buildings1 erected there1 and do them no injury4 #cb ,the most favored nation4 ,,xxvii4--,report on the case of ,charles ,russell and others1 claiming certain lands4 ,january #ba1 #agib4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred1 by the ,president of the ,united ,states1 the letter of the ,governor of ,virginia of ,january #gth1 #agib1 with the report of a committee of the ,house of ,delegates of that commonwealth1 of ,december #abth1 #agia1 and resolution of the ,general ,assembly thereon1 of ,december #agth1 on the case of ,charles ,russell1 late an officer in the service of the said commonwealth1 stating that a considerable part of the tract of country allotted for the officers and soldiers having fallen into the ,state of ,north ,carolina on the extension of their common boundary1 the legislature of the said ,state had1 in #agha1 passed an act substituting in lieu thereof the tract of country between the said boundary and the rivers ,mississippi1 ,ohio1 ,tennessee1 and subjecting the same to the claims of their officers and soldiers4 ,that the said ,charles ,russell had in consequence thereof1 directed warrants for two thousand six hundred and sixty-six and two-thirds acres of land to be located within the said tract of country2 but that the same belonging to the ,chickasaws1 he is unable to obtain a right thereto1 and that there are other officers and soldiers of the said commonwealth under like circumstances3 ,reports1 ,that the tract of country before described1 is within the boundaries of the ,chickasaw nation as established by the treaty of ,hopewell1 the #afth day of ,january #aghf4 ,that the right of occupancy of the said lands1 therefore1 being vested in the said nation1 the case of the said ,charles ,russell1 and other officers and soldiers of the said commonwealth1 becomes proper to be referred to the legislature of the ,united ,states for their consideration4 ,,xxviii4--,report relative to negotiations at ,madrid4 ,march #g1 #agib4 ,the ,secretary of ,state having understood1 from communications with the commissioners of his ,catholic ,majesty1 subsequent to that which he reported to the ,president on the #bb;d of ,december last1 that though they considered the navigation of the ,mississippi as the principal object of negotiation between the two countries1 yet it was expected by their court that the conferences would extend to all the matters which were under negotiation on the former occasion with ,mr4 ,gardoqui1 and particularly to some arrangements of commerce1 is of opinion1 that1 to renew the conferences on this subject also1 since they desire it1 will be but friendly and respectful1 and can lead to nothing without our own consent2 and that1 to refuse it1 might obstruct the settlement of the questions of navigation and boundary2 and1 therefore1 reports to the ,president of the ,united ,states1 the following observations and instructions to the commissioners of the ,united ,states1 appointed to negotiate with the court of ,spain a treaty or convention relative to the navigation of the ,mississippi2 which observations and instructions1 he is of opinion1 should be laid before the ,senate of the ,united ,states1 and their decision be desired1 whether they will advise and consent that a treaty be entered into by the commissioners of the ,united ,states with ,spain conformable thereto4 ,after stating to our commissioners the foundation of our rights to navigate the ,mississippi1 and to hold our southern boundary at the #cast degree of latitude1 and that each of these is to be a sine qu non1 it is proposed to add as follows3 ,on the former conferences on the navigation of the ,mississippi1 ,spain chose to blend with it the subject of commerce2 and1 accordingly1 specific propositions thereon passed between the negotiators4 ,her object then was to obtain our renunciation of the navigation1 and to hold out commercial arrangements perhaps as a lure to us4 ,perhaps1 however1 she might then1 and may now1 really set a value on commercial arrangements with us1 and may receive them as a consideration for accommodating us in the navigation1 or may wish for them to have the appearance of receiving a consideration4 ,commercial arrangements1 if acceptable in themselves1 will not be the less so1 if coupled with those relating to navigation and boundary4 ,we have only to take care that they be acceptable in themselves4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,xxix4--,opinion on the ,bill apportioning ,representation4 ,april #d1 #agib4 ,the ,constitution has declared that representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several ,states according to their respective numbers4 ,that the number of representatives shall not exceed one for every #cj1jjj1 but each ,state shall have at least one representative1 and until such enumeration shall be made1 the ,state of ,new ,hampshire shall be entitled to choose #c1 ,massachusetts #b4 ,the bill for apportioning representatives among the several ,states1 without explaining any principle at all1 which may show its conformity with the constitution1 to guide future apportionments1 says1 that ,new ,hampshire shall have #c members1 ,massachusetts #af1 c4 ,we are1 therefore1 to find by experiment what has been the principle of the bill2 to do which1 it is proper to state the federal or representable numbers of each ,state1 and the numbers allotted to them by the bill4 ,they are as follows3-- ,members4 ,vermont #he1ecb #c ,new ,hampshire #ada1hbc #e ,massachusetts #dge1cbg #af ,rhode ,island #fh1ddd #b ,connecticut #bhe1ida #h ,new ,york #ceb1iae #aa ,new ,jersey #agi1eef #f ,pennsylvania #dcb1hhj #ad ,delaware #ee1ech #b ,maryland #bgh1eac #i ,virginia #fcj1eeh #ba ,kentucky #fh1gje #b ,north ,carolina #cec1eba #aa ,south ,carolina #bjf1bcf #f ,georgia #gj1hdc #b --------- --- #c1fcf1cab #abj ,it happens that this representation1 whether tried as between great and small ,states1 or as between north and south1 yields1 in the present instance1 a tolerably just result2 and1 consequently1 could not be objected to on that ground1 if it were obtained by the process prescribed in the ,constitution2 but if obtained by any process out of that1 it becomes arbitrary and inadmissible4 ,the #ast member of the clause of the ,constitution above cited is express1 that representatives shall be apportioned among the several ,states according to their respective numbers4 ,that is to say1 they shall be apportioned by some common ratio--for proportion1 and ratio1 are equivalent words2 and1 in the definition of proportion among numbers1 that they have a ratio common to all1 or in other words1 a common divisor4 ,now1 trial will show that there is no common ratio1 or divisor1 which1 applied to the numbers of each ,state1 will give to them the number of representatives allotted in this bill4 ,for trying the several ratios of #bi1 #cj1 #ca1 #cb1 #cc1 the allotments would be as follows3-- #bi #cj #ca #cb #cc ,the ,bill -- -- -- -- -- -------- ,vermont #b #b #b #b #b #c ,new ,hampshire #d #d #d #d #d #e ,massachusetts #af #ae #ae #ad #ad #af ,rhode ,island #b #b #b #b #b #b ,connecticut #h #g #g #g #g #h ,new ,york #ab #aa #aa #aa #aj #aa ,new ,jersey #f #e #e #e #e #f ,pennsylvania #ad #ad #ac #ac #ac #ad ,delaware #a #a #a #a #a #b ,maryland #i #i #h #h #h #i ,virginia #ba #ba #bj #ai #ai #ba ,kentucky #b #b #b #b #b #b ,north ,carolina #ab #aa #aa #aa #aj #ab ,south ,carolina #g #f #f #f #f #g ,georgia #b #b #b #b #b #b --- --- --- --- --- --- #aah #aab #aji #ajg #aje #abj ,then the bill reverses the constitutional precept1 because1 by it1 representatives are not apportioned among the several ,states1 according to their respective numbers4 ,it will be said that1 though1 for taxes1 there may always be found a divisor which will apportion them among the ,states according to numbers exactly1 without leaving any remainder1 yet1 for representatives1 there can be no such common ratio1 or divisor1 which1 applied to the several numbers1 will divide them exactly1 without a remainder or fraction4 ,i answer1 then1 that taxes must be divided exactly1 and representatives as nearly as the nearest ratio will admit2 and the fractions must be neglected1 because the ,constitution calls absolutely that there be an apportionment or common ratio1 and if any fractions result from the operation1 it has left them unprovided for4 ,in fact it could not but foresee that such fractions would result1 and it meant to submit to them4 ,it knew they would be in favor of one part of the ,union at one time1 and of another at another1 so as1 in the end1 to balance occasional irregularities4 ,but instead of such a single common ratio1 or uniform divisor1 as prescribed by the ,constitution1 the bill has applied two ratios1 at least1 to the different ,states1 to wit1 that of #cj1jbf to the seven following3 ,rhode ,island1 ,new ,york1 ,pennsylvania1 ,maryland1 ,virginia1 ,kentucky and ,georgia2 and that of #bg1ggj to the eight others1 namely3 ,vermont1 ,new ,hampshire1 ,massachusetts1 ,connecticut1 ,new ,jersey1 ,delaware1 ,north ,carolina1 and ,south ,carolina1 as follows3-- ,rhode ,island #fh1ddd divided by #cj1jbf gives #b ,new ,york #ceb1iae #aa ,pennsylvania #dcb1hhj #ad ,maryland #bgh1eac #i ,virginia #fcj1eeh #ba ,kentucky #eh1gje #b ,georgia #gj1hdc #b ,vermont #he1ecb divided by #bg1ggj gives #c ,new ,hampshire #ada1hbc #e ,massachusetts #dge1cbg #af ,connecticut #bce1ida #h ,new ,jersey #agi1eef #f ,delaware #ee1ech #b ,north ,carolina #cec1eba #ab ,south ,carolina #bjf1bcf #g ,and if two ratios be applied1 then fifteen may1 and the distribution become arbitrary1 instead of being apportioned to numbers4 ,another member of the clause of the ,constitution which has been cited1 says the number of representatives shall not exceed one for every #cj1jjj1 but each ,state shall have at least one representative4 ,this last phrase proves that it had no contemplation that all fractions1 or numbers below the common ratio were to be unrepresented2 and it provides especially that in the case of a ,state whose whole number shall be below the common ratio1 one representative shall be given to it4 ,this is the single instance where it allows representation to any smaller number than the common ratio1 and by providing especially for it in this1 shews it was understood that1 without special provision1 the smaller number would in this case1 be involved in the general principle4 ,the first phrase of the above citations1 that the number of representatives shall not exceed one for every #cj1jjj1 is violated by this bill which has given to eight ,states a number exceeding one for every #cj1jjj1 to wit1 one for every #bg1ggj4 ,in answer to this1 it is said that this phrase may mean either the #cj1jjj in each ,state1 or the #cj1jjj in the whole ,union1 and that in the latter case it serves only to find the amount of the whole representation2 which1 in the present state of population1 is #abj members4 ,suppose the phrase might bear both meanings1 which will common sense apply to it8 ,which did the universal understanding of our country apply to it8 ,which did the ,senate and ,representatives apply to it during the pendency of the first bill1 and even till an advanced stage of this second bill1 when an ingenious gentleman found out the doctrine of fractions1 a doctrine so difficult and inobvious1 as to be rejected at first sight by the very persons who afterwards became its most zealous advocates8 ,the phrase stands in the midst of a number of others1 every one of which relates to ,states in their separate capacity4 ,will not plain common sense then1 understand it1 like the rest of its context1 to relate to ,states in their separate capacities8 ,but if the phrase of one for #cj1jjj is only meant to give the aggregate of representatives1 and not at all to influence their apportionment among the ,states1 then the #abj being once found1 in order to apportion them1 we must recur to the former rule which does it according to the numbers of the respective ,states2 and we must take the nearest common divisor1 as the ratio of distribution1 that is to say1 that divisor which1 applied to every ,state1 gives to them such numbers as1 added together1 come nearest to #abj4 ,this nearest common ratio will be found to be #bh1feh1 and will distribute #aai of the #abj members1 leaving only a single residuary one4 ,it will be found too to place #if1fdh fractional numbers in the eight northernmost ,states1 and #ajf1ehb in the seven southernmost4 ,the following table shows it3 ,ratio1 #bh1feh ,fraction4 ------ ,vermont #he1hcb #b #bg1haf ,new ,hampshire #ada1hbc #d #bf1cia ,massachusetts #dge1cbg #af #ac1eii ,rhode ,island #fh1ddd #b #aj1gbh ,connecticut #bce1ida #h #e1jgg ,new ,york #ceb1iae #ab #f1fai ,new ,jersey #aai1hef #f #f1djh ,pennsylvania #dcb1hhj #ae #aj #if1fdh ,delaware #ee1ech #a #bf1fhj ,maryland #bgh1ejc #i #ah1aia ,virginia #fcj1eeh #ba #bd1edj ,kentucky #fh1gje #b #aj1ihi ,north ,carolina #cec1eba #ab #g1bbe ,south ,carolina #bjf1bcf #g #d1bcj ,virginia #gj1hdc #b #bc1acg #aje1ehb --------- ---- ------- ------- #c1fcf1cab #aai #bjb1bcj #bjb1bcj ,whatever may have been the intention1 the effect of neglecting the nearest divisor1 7which leaves but one residuary member17 and adopting a distant one 7which leaves eight71 is merely to take a member from ,new ,york and ,pennsylvania1 each1 and give them to ,vermont and ,new ,hampshire4 ,but it will be said1 this is giving more than one for #cj1jjj4 ,true1 but has it not been just said that the one for #cj1jjj is prescribed only to fix the aggregate number1 and that we are not to mind it when we come to apportion them among the ,states8 ,that for this we must recur to the former rule which distributes them according to the numbers in each ,state8 ,besides does not the bill itself apportion among seven of the ,states by the ratio of #bg1ggj8 which is much more than one for #cj1jjj4 ,where a phrase is susceptible of two meanings1 we ought certainly to adopt that which will bring upon us the fewest inconveniences4 ,let us weigh those resulting from both constructions4 ,from that giving to each ,state a member for every #cj1jjj in that ,state results the single inconvenience that there may be large portions unrepresented1 but it being a mere hazard on which ,state this will fall1 hazard will equalize it in the long run4 ,from the others result exactly the same inconvenience4 ,a thousand cases may be imagined to prove it4 ,take one4 ,suppose eight of the ,states had #de1jjj inhabitants each1 and the other seven #dd1iii each1 that is to say each one less than each of the others4 ,the aggregate would be #fgd1iic1 and the number of representatives at one for #cj1jjj of the aggregate1 would be #bb4 ,then1 after giving one member to each ,state1 distribute the seven residuary members among the seven highest fractions1 and though the difference of population be only an unit1 the representation would be the double4 ,fractions4 #ast4 #de1jjj #b #ae1jjj #b;d4 #de1jjj #b #ae1jjj #c;d4 #de1jjj #b #ae1jjj #dth4 #de1jjj #b #ae1jjj #eth4 #de1jjj #b #ae1jjj #fth4 #de1jjj #b #ae1jjj #gth4 #de1jjj #b #ae1jjj #hth4 #de1jjj #a #ae1jjj #ith4 #dd1iii #a #ad1iii #ajth4 #dd1iii #a #ad1iii #aath4 #dd1iii #a #ad1iii #abth4 #dd1iii #a #ad1iii #acth4 #dd1iii #a #ad1iii #adth4 #dd1iii #a #ad1iii #aeth4 #ad1iii ------- -- #fgd1iic #bb ,here a single inhabitant the more would count as #cj1jjj4 ,nor is this case imaginable1 only it will resemble the real one whenever the fractions happen to be pretty equal through the whole ,states4 ,the numbers of our census happen by accident to give the fractions all very small1 or very great1 so as to produce the strongest case of inequality that could possibly have occurred1 and which may never occur again4 ,the probability is that the fractions will generally descend gradually from #bi1iii to #a4 ,the inconvenience then of large unrepresented fractions attends both constructions2 and while the most obvious construction is liable to no other1 that of the bill incurs many and grievous ones4 #a4 ,if you permit the large fraction in one ,state to choose a representative for one of the small fractions in another ,state1 you take from the latter its election1 which constitutes real representation1 and substitute a virtual representation of the disfranchised fractions1 and the tendency of the doctrine of virtual representation has been too well discussed and appreciated by reasoning and resistance on a former great occasion to need development now4 #b4 ,the bill does not say that it has given the residuary representatives to the greatest fraction2 though in fact it has done so4 ,it seems to have avoided establishing that into a rule1 lest it might not suit on another occasion4 ,perhaps it may be found the next time more convenient to distribute them among the smaller ,states2 at another time among the larger ,states2 at other times according to any other crotchet which ingenuity may invent1 and the combinations of the day give strength to carry2 or they may do it arbitrarily by open bargains and cabal4 ,in short this construction introduces into ,congress a scramble1 or a vendue for the surplus members4 ,it generates waste of time1 hot blood1 and may at some time1 when the passions are high1 extend a disagreement between the two ,houses1 to the perpetual loss of the thing1 as happens now in the ,pennsylvania assembly2 whereas the other construction reduces the apportionment always to an arithmetical operation1 about which no two men can ever possibly differ4 #c4 ,it leaves in full force the violation of the precept which declares that representatives shall be apportioned among the ,states according to their numbers1 i4 e41 by some common ratio4 ,viewing this bill either as a violation of the constitution1 or as giving an inconvenient exposition of its words1 is it a case wherein the ,president ought to interpose his negative8 ,i think it is4 #a4 ,the non-user of his negative begins already to excite a belief that no ,president will ever venture to use it2 and has1 consequently1 begotten a desire to raise up barriers in the ,state legislatures against ,congress1 throwing off the control of the constitution4 #b4 ,it can never be used more pleasingly to the public1 than in the protection of the constitution4 #c4 ,no invasions of the constitution are fundamentally so dangerous as the tricks played on their own numbers1 apportionment1 and other circumstances respecting themselves1 and affecting their legal qualifications to legislate for the union4 #d4 ,the majorities by which this bill has been carried 7to wit3 of one in the ,senate and two in the ,representatives7 show how divided the opinions were there4 #e4 ,the whole of both houses admit the constitution will bear the other exposition1 whereas the minorities in both deny it will bear that of the bill4 #f4 ,the application of any one ratio is intelligible to the people1 and will1 therefore be approved1 whereas the complex operations of this bill will never be comprehended by them1 and though they may acquiesce1 they cannot approve what they do not understand4 ,,xxx4--,opinion relative to a case of recapture1 by citizens of the ,united ,states1 of slaves escaped into ,florida1 and of an ,american captain enticing ,french slaves from ,st4 ,domingo4 ,december #c1 #agib4 ,complaint has been made by the ,representatives of ,spain that certain individuals of ,georgia entered the ,state of ,florida1 and without any application to the ,government1 seized and carried into ,georgia1 certain persons1 whom they claimed to be their slaves4 ,this aggression was thought the more of1 as there exists a convention between that government and the ,united ,states against receiving fugitive slaves4 ,the minister of ,france has complained that the master of an ,american vessel1 while lying within a harbor of ,st4 ,domingo1 having enticed some negroes on board his vessel1 under pretext of employment1 bought them off1 and sold them in ,georgia as slaves4 #a4 ,has the general government cognizance of these offences8 #b4 ,if it has1 is any law already provided for trying and punishing them8 #a4 ,the ,constitution says ,congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes1 duties1 imposts1 and excises1 to pay the debts c41 provide for the common defence and general welfare of the ,united ,states4 ,i do not consider this clause as reaching the point4 ,i suppose its meaning to be1 that ,congress may collect taxes for the purpose of providing for the general welfare1 in those cases wherein the ,constitution empowers them to act for the general welfare4 ,to suppose that it was meant to give them a distinct substantive power1 to do any act which might tend to the general welfare1 is to render all the enumerations useless1 and to make their powers unlimited4 ,we must seek the power therefore in some other clause of the ,constitution4 ,it says further1 that ,congress shall have power to define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas1 and offences against the law of nations4 ,these offences were not committed on the high seas1 and consequently not within that branch of the clause4 ,are they against the law of nations1 taken as it may be in its whole extent1 as founded1 #ast1 in nature2 #b;d1 usage2 #c;d1 convention8 ,so much may be said in the affirmative1 that the legislators ought to send the case before the judiciary for discussion2 and the rather1 when it is considered that unless the offenders can be punished under this clause1 there is no other which goes directly to their case1 and consequently our peace with foreign nations will be constantly at the discretion of individuals4 #b4 ,have the legislators sent this question before the ,courts by any law already provided8 ,the act of #aghi1 chapter #bj1 section #i1 says the district courts shall have cognizance concurrent with the courts of the several ,states1 or the circuit courts1 of all causes1 where an alien sues for a tort only1 in violation of the law of nations3 but what if there be no alien whose interest is such as to support an action for the tort8--which is precisely the case of the aggression on ,florida4 ,if the act in describing the jurisdiction of the ,courts1 had given them cognizance of proceedings by way of indictment or information against offenders under the law of nations1 for the public wrong1 and on the public behalf1 as well as to an individual for the special tort1 it would have been the thing desired4 ,the same act1 section #ac1 says1 the ,supreme ,court shall have exclusively all such jurisdiction of suits or proceedings against ambassadors1 or other public ministers1 or their domestics or domestic servants1 as a court of law can have or exercise consistently1 with the law of nations4--,still this is not the case1 no ambassador1 c41 being concerned here4 ,i find nothing else in the law applicable to this question1 and therefore presume the case is still to be provided for1 and that this may be done by enlarging the jurisdiction of the courts1 so that they may sustain indictments and informations on the public behalf1 for offences against the law of nations4 ,a note added by ,mr4 ,jefferson at a later period4 ,on further examination it does appear that the #aath section of the judiciary act above cited gives to the circuit courts exclusively1 cognizance of all crimes and offences cognizable under the authority of the ,united ,states1 and not otherwise provided for4 ,this removes the difficulty1 however1 but one step further2--for questions then arise1 #ast4 ,what is the peculiar character of the offence in question2 to wit1 treason1 felony1 misdemeanor1 or trespass8 #b;d4 ,what is its specific punishment--capital or what8 #c;d4 ,whence is the venue to come8 ,,xxxi4--,report on ,assays at the ,mint1 communicated to the ,house of ,representatives1 ,january #h1 #agic4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred1 by the ,president of the ,united ,states1 the resolution of the ,house of ,representatives of the #bith of ,november1 #agib1 on the subject of experiments of ,france1 ,england1 ,spain1 and ,portugal1 reports3 ,that assays and experiments have been1 accordingly1 made at the mint1 by the director1 and under his care and inspection1 of sundry gold and silver coins of ,france1 ,england1 ,spain1 and ,portugal1 and of the quantity of fine gold and alloy in each of them1 and the specific gravities of those of gold given in by the director1 a copy of which1 and of the letter covering it1 are contained in the papers marked ,a and ,b4 ,a4 ,january #g1 #agic4 ,,sir3--,i have1 herewith1 enclosed the result of our assays1 c41 of the coins of ,france1 ,england1 ,spain1 and ,portugal4 ,in the course of the experiments1 a very small source of error was detected1 too late for the present occasion1 but which will be carefully guarded against in future4 ,i am1 with the most perfect esteem1 your most obedient humble servant1 ,,david ,,rittenhouse1 ,director of the ,mint4 ,,thomas ,,jefferson1 ,secretary of ,state4 ,b4 ,assay of gold coins4 ,in #bd grains4 ,date ----------------------------- ,specific ,fine gold4 ,alloy4 gravity4 ---------------------------------------- ---------------------- grs4 #cb pts4 grs4 #cb pts4 #agbf #ba #af #b #af #ag4dh #agcd #ba #ai #b #ac #ag4ch ,french guineas1 #agdb #ba #bf #b #jf #ag4eh #agec #ba #jc #b #bi #ag4bc #agge #ba #bb #b #aj #ag4eg #aghf #ba #bb #b #aj #ag4ea ,double do4 #aghi #ba #bb #b #aj #ag4ej #agij #ba #be #b #jg #ag4eg #aggf #ba #ba #b #aa #ag4ec #aghj #ba #jj #c #jj #ag4eg ,spanish pistoles1 #aghf #ba #ah #b #ad #ag4fc #aghh #ba #jb #b #cj #ag4jj #agee #ba #bh #b #jd #ag4gh #aggg #ba #ca #b #ja #ag4ge #aghe #ba #cj #b #jb #ag4gh ,english guineas1 #aghh #ba #ca #b #ja #ag4gi #aghi #bb #jc #a #bi #ag4gh #agia #bb #ja #a #ca #ag4gd ---------------------------------------- --------------------- #agci #ba #ca #b #ja #ag4fc #aggj #bb #je #a #bg #ag4gh ,half johannes of #aggf #bb #je #a #bg #ag4hg ,portugal1 #aghe #ba #cj #b #jb #ag4fh #aghh #ba #ca #b #ja #ag4gh ,silver coins4 ,in #ab ounces4 ,date4 -------------------------------- ,fine silver4 ,alloy4 ---------------------------------------- ------------------------- oz4 dwts4 grs4 oz4 dwts4 grs4 ,english half-crown of ,william ,,iii4 #aj #ai #ji #a #jj #ad ,english shilling1 #aghg #aa #jj #jb #j #ai #ba ,french crown1 #agia #aj #af #jj #a #jd #jj ,do4 half-crown1 #agci #aj #ag #jj #a #jc #jj ,do4 #agib #aj #af #ai #a #jc #je #aggb #aj #ae #je #a #jd #ai ,spanish dollar of #aghb #aj #ad #jb #a #je #ba #agij #aj #ad #jj #a #jf #jj #agia #aj #ad #ba #a #je #jb ,,mint1 ,january #g1 #agic4 ,assayed by ,mr4 ,david ,ott1 under my inspection1 at the mint1 in pursuance of a resolution of ,congress of ,november #bi1 #agib4 ,i have added the specific gravity of each piece of gold coin4 ,,david ,,rittenhouse1 ,director of the ,mint4 ,,xxxii4----,report on the petition of ,john ,rogers1 relative to certain lands on the north-east side of the ,tennessee4 ,february #af1 #agic4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred1 by the ,house of ,representatives of the ,united ,states1 the petition of ,john ,rogers1 setting forth1 that as an officer of the ,state of ,virginia1 during the last war1 he became entitled to two thousand acres of lands on the north-east side of the ,tennessee1 at its confluence with the ,ohio1 and to two thousand four hundred acres in different parcels1 between the same river and the ,mississippi1 all of them within the former limit of ,virginia1 which lands were allotted to him under an act of the ,legislature of ,virginia1 before its deed of cession to the ,united ,states2 that by the treaty of ,hopewell1 in #aghf1 the part of the country comprehending these lands was ceded to the ,chickasaw ,indians2 and praying compensation for the same1 ,reports1 ,that the portion of country comprehending the said parcels of land1 has been ever understood to be claimed1 and has certainly been used1 by the ,chickasaw and ,cherokee ,indians for their hunting grounds4 ,the ,chickasaws holding exclusively from the ,mississippi to the ,tennessee1 and extending their claim across that river1 eastwardly1 into the claims of the ,cherokees1 their conterminous neighbors4 ,that the government of ,virginia was so well apprized of the rights of the ,chickasaws to a portion of country within the limit of that ,state1 that about the year #aghj1 they instructed their agent1 residing with the southern ,indians1 to avail himself of the first opportunity which should offer1 to purchase the same from them1 and that1 therefore1 any act of that ,legislature allotting these lands to their officers and soldiers must probably have been passed on the supposition1 that a purchase of the ,indian right could be made1 which purchase1 however1 has never been made4 ,that1 at the treaty of ,hopewell1 the true boundary between the ,united ,states on the one part1 and the ,cherokees and ,chickasaws on the other1 was examined into and acknowledged1 and by consent of all parties1 the unsettled limits between the ,cherokees and ,chickasaws were at the same time ascertained1 and in that part particularly1 were declared to be the highlands dividing the waters of the ,cumberland and ,tennessee1 whereby the whole of the petitioner's locations were found to be in the ,chickasaw country4 ,that the right of occupation of the ,cherokees and ,chickasaws in this portion of the country1 having never been obtained by the ,united ,states1 or those under whom they claim it1 cannot be said to have been ceded by them at the treaty of ,hopewell1 but only recognized as belonging to the ,chickasaws1 and retained to them4 ,that the country south of the ,ohio was formerly contested between the ,six ,nations and the southern ,indians for hunting grounds4 ,that the ,six ,nations sold for a valuable consideration to the then government their right to that country1 describing it as extending from the mouth of the ,tennessee upwards4 ,that no evidence can at this time and place be procured1 as to the right of the southern ,indians1 that is to say1 the ,cherokees and ,chickasaws1 to the same country2 but it is believed that they voluntarily withdrew their claims within the ,cumberland river1 retaining their right so far1 which consequently could not be conveyed from them1 or to us1 by the act of the ,six ,nations1 unless it be proved that the ,six ,nations had acquired a right to the country between the ,cumberland and ,tennessee rivers by conquest over the ,cherokees and ,chickasaws1 which it is believed cannot be proved4 ,that1 therefore1 the locations of the petitioner must be considered as made within the ,indian territory1 and insusceptible of being reduced into his possession1 till the ,indian right be purchased4 ,that this places him on the same footing with ,charles ,russell and others1 officers of the same ,state1 who had located their bounty lands in like manner1 within the ,chickasaw lines1 whose case was laid before the ,house of ,representatives of the ,united ,states at the last session1 and remains undecided on2 and that the same and no other measure should be dealt to this petitioner which shall be provided for them4 ,,xxxiii4--,report relative to the ,boundaries of the ,lands between the ,ohio and the ,lakes acquired by treaties from the ,indians4 ,march #aj1 #agic4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 according to instructions received from the ,president of the ,united ,states1 ,reports1 ,that1 for the information of the commissioners appointed to treat with the western ,indians1 he has examined the several treaties entered into with them subsequent to the declaration of ,independence1 and relating to the lands between the ,ohio and the lakes1 and also the extent of the grants1 reservations1 and appropriations of the same lands1 made either by the ,united ,states1 or by individual ,states within the same period1 and finds that the lands obtained by the said treaties1 and not so granted1 reserved1 or appropriated1 are bounded by the following lines1 to wit3 ,northwardly4 ,by a line running from the fork of the ,tuscarora's branch of the ,muskingum1 at the crossing-place above ,fort ,lawrence4 ,westwardly 7towards the portage of the ,big-,miami7 to the main branch of that river1 then down the ,miami1 to the fork of that river next below the old fort1 which was taken by the ,french in #ageb1 thence due west to the river ,de la ,panse1 and down that river to the ,wabash2 which lines were established with the ,wiandots1 ,delawares1 ,chippawas1 and ,ottawas1 by the treaty of ,fort ,mc,intosh1 and with the ,shawanese by that of the ,great ,miami4 ,westwardly4 ,by the bounds of the ,wabash ,indians4 ,eastwardly4 ,by the million of acres appropriated to military claimants1 by the resolution of ,congress of ,october #bc1 #aghg1 and lying in the angle between the seventh range of townships counted westwardly1 from the ,pennsylvania boundary1 and the tenth range counted from the ,ohio northwardly along the said seventh1 which million of acres may perhaps extend westwardly1 so as to comprehend the twelfth range of townships1 counted in that direction from the ,pennsylvania boundary1 under which view the said twelfth range may be assumed for the eastern boundary of the territory now under consideration1 from the said tenth range to the ,indian line4 ,southwardly4 ,by the northern boundary of the said tenth range of townships to the ,sioto river1 and along the said river to what shall be the northern limits of the appropriations for the ,virginia line2 7which two last lines are those of the lands granted to the ,sioto company17 thence along what shall be the northern limits of the said appropriations of the ,virginia line to the little ,miami1 and along the same to what shall be the northern limit of one million of acres of land purchased by ,john ,c4 ,symmes2 thence due west along the said northern limit of the said ,john ,c4 ,symmes1 to the ,great ,miami1 and down the same to its mouth1 then along the ,ohio to ,general ,clark's lands1 and round the said lands to the ,ohio again1 and down the same to the ,wabash1 or the lands of the ,indians inhabiting it4 ,which several lines are delineated on the copy of ,hutchins' map accompanying this report2 the dotted parts of the delineation denoting that they are conjectural4 ,and it is further necessary to apprize the commissioners that though the points at which these several lines touches the ,ohio1 are taken from actual surveys1 yet the country included by the said lines1 not being laid down from actual survey1 their lengths and intersections with each other1 and with the watercourses1 as appearing in the maps1 are not at all to be relied on4 ,no notice is here taken of the lands at the mouth of the ,ohio appropriated for military bounties by the same resolution of ,congress of ,october #bb1 #aghg1 nor of the settlement of ,cahokea1 ,kaskaskia1 ,post ,vincennes1 c41 because these can concern no ,indians but those of the ,illinois and ,wabash1 whose interests should be transacted with themselves separately1 and not be permitted to be placed under the patronage of the western ,indians4 ,,xxxiv4--,report on the proceedings of the ,secretary of ,state to transfer to ,europe the annual fund of #dj1jjj1 appropriated to that ,department4 ,april #ah1 #agic4 ,the ,secretary of ,state thinking it his duty to communicate to the ,president his proceedings of the present year for transferring to ,europe the annual fund of #dj1jjj appropriated to the ,department of ,state1 7a report whereof1 was unnecessary the two former years1 as monies already in the hands of our bankers in ,europe were put under his orders17 ,reports1 ,that in consequence of the ,president's order of ,march #bc;d1 he received from the ,secretary of the ,treasury1 ,march #cast1 a warrant on the ,treasurer for #ci1ejj2 that it being necessary to purchase private bills of exchange to transfer the money to ,europe1 he consulted with persons acquainted with that business1 who advised him not to let it be known that he was to purchase bills at all1 as it would raise the exchange2 and to defer the purchase a few days until the ,british packet should be gone1 on which event bills generally sunk some few per cent4 ,he therefore deferred the purchase1 or giving any orders for it till ,april #ajth1 when he engaged ,mr4 ,vaughan 7whose line of business enabled him to do it without suspicion17 to make the purchase for him4 ,he then delivered the warrant to the ,treasurer1 and received a credit at the ,bank of the ,united ,states for #ci1ejj1 whereon he had an account opened between ,the ,department of ,state and the ,bank of the ,united ,states4 ,that ,mr4 ,vaughan procured for him the next day the following bills3 ,willing1 ,morris1 and ,swanwich1 on ,john and ,francis ,baring ,co41 ,london1 #c1jjjac1jjj4 ,walter ,stewart on ,joseph ,birch1 ,march1 ,liverpool1 #djja1gcc #cc4 ,robert ,gilmer ,co41 on ,james ,strachan and ,james ,mackenzie1 ,london1 endorsed by ,mordecai ,lewis4 #bjj #aej #fjj #b1fjj #bej -------------------- #d1jjj #ag1ccc #cc4 ,averaging #ds4 #g-ch_/ajj;d4 the dollar1 or about #b per cent4 above par1 which added to the one per cent loss heretofore always sustained on the government bills 7which allowed but #ii florins1 instead of #ajj do4 for every #dj7 will render the fund somewhat larger this year than heretofore2 that these bills being drawn on ,london1 7for none could be got on ,amsterdam but to considerable loss1 added to the risk of the present possible situation of that place71 he had them made payable to ,mr4 ,pinckney1 and enclosed them to him by ,captain ,cutting1 in the letter of ,april #abth1 now communicated to the ,president1 and at the same time wrote the letters of the same date to our bankers at ,amsterdam and to ,col4 ,humphreys1 now also communicated to the ,president1 which will place under his view the footing on which this business is put1 and which is still subject to any change he may think proper to direct1 as neither the letters1 nor bills are yet gone4 ,the ,secretary of ,state proposes1 hereafter1 to remit in the course of each quarter #aj1jjj for the ensuing quarter1 as that will enable him to take advantage of the times when exchange is low4 ,he proposes to direct1 at this time1 a further purchase of #ab1aff #ff1 7which with the #ejj formerly obtained and #ag1ccc #cc now remitted1 will make #cj1jjj of this year's fund17 at long sight1 which circumstance with the present low rate of exchange1 will enable him to remit it to advantage4 ,he has only further to add that he delivered to ,mr4 ,vaughan orders on the bank of the ,united ,states in favor of the persons themselves from whom the bills were purchased1 for their respective sums4 ,,xxxv4--,opinion on the question whether the ,united ,states have a right to renounce their treaties with ,france1 or to hold them suspended till the government of that country shall be established4 ,april #bh1 #agic4 ,i proceed in compliance with the requisition of the ,president to give an opinion in writing on the general question1 whether the ,united ,states have a right to renounce their treaties with ,france1 or to hold them suspended till the government of that country shall be established8 ,in the consultation at the ,president's on the #aith inst41 the ,secretary of the ,treasury took the following positions and consequences4 ,france was a monarchy when we entered into treaties with it2 but it has declared itself a republic1 and is preparing a republican form of government4 ,as it may issue in a republic or a military despotism1 or something else which may possibly render our alliance with it dangerous to ourselves1 we have a right of election to renounce the treaty altogether1 or to declare it suspended till their government shall be settled in the form it is ultimately to take2 and then we may judge whether we will call the treaties into operation again1 or declare them forever null4 ,having that right of election1 now1 if we receive their minister without any qualifications1 it will amount to an act of election to continue the treaties2 and if the change they are undergoing should issue in a form which should bring danger on us1 we shall not be then free to renounce them4 ,to elect to continue them is equivalent to the making a new treaty1 at this time1 in the same form1 that is to say1 with a clause of guarantee2 but to make a treaty with a clause of guarantee1 during a war1 is a departure from neutrality1 and would make us associates in the war4 ,to renounce or suspend the treaties1 therefore1 is a necessary act of neutrality4 ,if ,i do not subscribe to the soundness of this reasoning1 ,i do most fully to its ingenuity4 ,i shall now lay down the principles which1 according to my understanding1 govern the case4 ,i consider the people who constitute a society or nation as the source of all authority in that nation2 as free to transact their common concerns by any agents they think proper2 to change these agents individually1 or the organization of them in form or function whenever they please2 that all the acts done by these agents under the authority of the nation1 are the acts of the nation1 are obligatory to them and enure to their use1 and can in no wise be annulled or affected by any change in the form of the government1 or of the persons administering it1 consequently the treaties between the ,united ,states and ,france1 were not treaties between the ,united ,states and ,louis ,capet1 but between the two nations of ,america and ,france2 and the nations remaining in existence1 though both of them have since changed their forms of government1 the treaties are not annulled by these changes4 ,the law of nations1 by which this question is to be determined1 is composed of three branches4 #a4 ,the moral law of our nature4 #b4 ,the usages of nations4 #c4 ,their special conventions4 ,the first of these only concerns this question1 that is to say the moral law to which man has been subjected by his creator1 and of which his feelings or conscience1 as it is sometimes called1 are the evidence with which his creator has furnished him4 ,the moral duties which exist between individual and individual in a state of nature1 accompany them into a state of society1 and the aggregate of the duties of all the individuals composing the society constitutes the duties of that society towards any other2 so that between society and society the same moral duties exist as did between the individuals composing them1 while in an unassociated state1 and their maker not having released them from those duties on their forming themselves into a nation4 ,compacts then1 between nation and nation1 are obligatory on them by the same moral law which obliges individuals to observe their compacts4 ,there are circumstances1 however1 which sometimes excuse the non-performance of contracts between man and man2 so are there also between nation and nation4 ,when performance1 for instance1 becomes impossible1 non-performance is not immoral2 so if performance becomes self-destructive to the party1 the law of self-preservation overrules the laws of obligation in others4 ,for the reality of these principles ,i appeal to the true fountains of evidence1 the head and heart of every rational and honest man4 ,it is there nature has written her moral laws1 and where every man may read them for himself4 ,he will never read there the permission to annul his obligations for a time1 or forever1 whenever they become dangerous1 useless1 or disagreeable2 certainly not when merely useless or disagreeable1 as seems to be said in an authority which has been quoted1 7,vattel1 p4 #b1 #aig7 and though he may1 under certain degrees of danger1 yet the danger must be imminent1 and the degree great4 ,of these1 it is true1 that nations are to be judges for themselves2 since no one nation has a right to sit in judgment over another1 but the tribunal of our consciences remains1 and that also of the opinion of the world4 ,these will revise the sentence we pass in our own case1 and as we respect these1 we must see that in judging ourselves we have honestly done the part of impartial and rigorous judges4 ,but reason which gives this right of self-liberation from a contract in certain cases1 has subjected it to certain just limitations4 ,i4 ,the danger which absolves us must be great1 inevitable and imminent4 ,is such the character of that now apprehended from our treaties with ,france8 ,what is that danger8 #ast4 ,is it that if their government issues in a military despotism1 an alliance with them may taint us with despotic principles8 ,but their government when we allied ourselves to it1 was perfect despotism1 civil1 and military1 yet the treaties were made in that very state of things1 and1 therefore1 that danger can furnish no just cause4 #b;d4 ,is it that their government may issue in a republic1 and too much strengthen our republican principles8 ,but this is the hope of the great mass of our constituents1 and not their dread4 ,they do not look with longing to the happy mean of a limited monarchy4 #c;d4 ,but1 says the doctrine ,i am combatting1 the change the ,french are undergoing1 may possibly end in something we know not what1 and may bring on us danger we know not whence4 ,in short1 it may end in a ,raw-head and bloody bones in the dark4 ,very well--let ,raw-head and bloody bones come4 ,we shall be justified in making our peace with him by renouncing our ancient friends and his enemies2 for observe1 it is not the possibility of danger which absolves a party from his contract for that possibility always exists1 and in every case4 ,it existed in the present one1 at the moment of making the contract4 ,if possibilities would void contracts1 there never could be a valid contract1 for possibilities hang over everything4 ,obligation is not suspended till the danger is become real1 and the moment of it so imminent1 that we can no longer avoid decision without forever losing the opportunity to do it4 ,but can a danger which has not yet taken its shape1 which does not yet exist1 and never may exist which cannot therefore be defined--can such a danger1 ,i ask1 be so imminent that if we fail to pronounce on it in this moment1 we can never have another opportunity of doing it8 #d4 ,as to the danger apprehended1 ,is it that 7the treaties remaining valid7 the clause guaranteeing their ,west ,indian lands will engage us in the war8 ,but does the guarantee engage us to enter into the war on any event8 ,are we to enter into it before we are called on by our allies8 ,have we been called on by them8 ,shall we ever be called on8 ,is it their interest to call on us8 ,can they call on us before their islands are invaded1 or immediately threatened8 ,if they can save them themselves1 have they a right to call on us8 ,are we obliged to go to war at once1 without trying peaceable negotiations with their enemy8 ,if all these questions are against us1 there are still others left behind4 ,are we in a condition to go to war8 ,can we be expected to begin before we are in condition8 ,will the islands be lost if we do not save them8 ,have we the means of saving them8 ,if we cannot save them1 are we bound to go to war for a desperate object8 ,many1 if not most of these questions offer grounds of doubt whether the clause of guarantee will draw us into the war4 ,consequently1 if this be danger apprehended1 it is not yet certain enough to authorize us in sound morality to declare1 at this moment1 the treaties null4 #e4 ,is danger apprehended from the #agth article of the treaty of commerce1 which admits ,french ships of war and privateers to come and go freely1 with prizes made on their enemies1 while their enemies are not to have the same privilege with prizes made on the ,french8 ,but ,holland and ,prussia have approved of this article in our treaty with ,france1 by subscribing to an express salvo of it in our treaties with them4 7,dutch treaty #bb1 convention #f4 ,prussian treaty #ai47 ,and ,england1 in her last treaty with ,france1 7,art4 #dj17 has entered into the same stipulation verbatim1 and placed us in her ports on the same footing in which she is in ours1 in case of a war of either of us with ,france4 ,if we are engaged in such a war1 ,england must receive prizes made on us by the ,french1 and exclude those made on the ,french by us4 ,nay1 further2 in this very article of her treaty with ,france1 is a salvo of any similar article in any anterior treaty of either party2 and ours with ,france being anterior1 this salvo confirms it expressly4 ,neither of these three powers1 then1 have a right to complain of this article in our treaty4 #f4 ,is the danger apprehended from the #bb;d article of our treaty of commerce1 which prohibits the enemies of ,france from fitting out privateers in our posts1 or selling their prizes here2 but we are free to refuse the same thing to ,france1 there being no stipulation to the contrary2 and we ought to refuse it on principles of fair neutrality4 #g4 ,but the reception of a minister from the republic of ,france1 without qualifications1 it is thought1 will bring us into danger2 because this1 it is said1 will determine the continuance of the treaty1 and take from us the right of self-liberation1 when at any time hereafter our safety would require us to use it4 ,the reception of the minister at all1 7in favor of which ,colonel ,hamilton has given his opinion1 though reluctantly1 as he confessed17 is an acknowledgment of the legitimacy of their government2 and if the qualifications meditated are to deny that legitimacy1 it will be a curious compound which is to admit and to deny the same thing4 ,but ,i deny that the reception of a minister has any thing to do with the treaties4 ,there is not a word in either of them about sending ministers4 ,this has been done between us under the common usage of nations1 and can have no effect either to continue or annul the treaties4 ,but how can any act of election have the effect to continue a treaty which is acknowledged to be going on still8--for it was not pretended the treaty was void1 but only voidable if we choose to declare it so4 ,to make it void1 would require an act of election1 but to let it go on1 requires only that we should do nothing2 and doing nothing can hardly be an infraction of peace or neutrality4 ,but ,i go further and deny that the most explicit declaration made at this moment that we acknowledge the obligation of the treaties1 could take from us the right of non-compliance at any future time1 when compliance would involve us in great and inevitable danger4 ,i conclude1 then1 that few of these sources threaten any danger at all2 and from none of them is it inevitable2 and consequently1 none of them give us the right at this moment of releasing ourselves from our treaties4 ,,ii4 ,a second limitation on our right of releasing ourselves1 is that we are to do it from so much of the treaties only as is bringing great and inevitable danger on us1 and not from the residue1 allowing the other party a right at the same time1 to determine whether on our non-compliance with that part1 they will declare the whole void4 ,this right they would have1 but we should not4 ,vattel1 #b4 #bjb4 ,the only part of the treaty which can really lead us into danger1 is the clause of guarantee4 ,that clause is all that we could suspend in any case1 and the residue will remain or not at the will of the other party4 ,,iii4 ,a third limitation is that when a party from necessity or danger withholds compliance with part of a treaty1 it is bound to make compensation where the nature of the case admits and does not dispense with it4 #b ,vattel1 #cbd4 ,wolf1 #bgj4 #ddc4 ,if actual circumstances excuse us from entering into the war under the clause of guarantee1 it will be a question whether they excuse us from compensation4 ,our weight in the war admits of an estimate2 and that estimate would form the measure of compensation4 ,if1 in withholding a compliance with any part of the treaties we do it without just cause or compensation1 we give to ,france a cause of war1 and so become associated in it on the other side4 ,an injured friend is the bitterest of foes1 and ,france has not discovered either timidity1 or over-much forbearance on the late occasions4 ,is this the position we wish to take for our constituents8 ,it is certainly not the one they would take for themselves4 ,i will proceed now to examine the principal authority which has been relied on for establishing the right of self-liberation2 because though just in part1 it would lead us far beyond justice1 if taken in all the latitude of which his expressions would admit4 ,questions of natural right are triable by their conformity with the moral sense and reason of man4 ,those who write treatises of natural law1 can only declare what their own moral sense and reason dictate in the several cases they state4 ,such of them as happen to have feelings and a reason coincident with those of the wise and honest part of mankind1 are respected and quoted as witnesses of what is morally right or wrong in particular cases4 ,grotius1 ,puffendorf1 ,wolf1 and ,vattel are of this number4 ,where they agree their authority is strong2 but where they differ1 7and they often differ17 we must appeal to our own feelings and reason to decide between them4 ,the passages in question shall be traced through all these writers2 that we may see wherein they concur1 and where that concurrence is wanting4 ,it shall be quoted from them in the order in which they wrote1 that is to say1 from ,grotius first1 as being the earliest writer1 ,puffendorf next1 then ,wolf1 and lastly ,vattel1 as latest in time4 ,,grotius #b4 #af4 #af4 ,hither must be referred the common question concerning personal and real treaties4 ,if indeed it be with a free people1 there can be no doubt but that the engagement is in its nature real1 because the subject is a permanent thing1 and even though the government of the ,state be changed into a kingdom1 the treaty remains2 because the same body remains though the head is changed2 and as it was before now1 the government which is exercised by a king does not cease to be the government of the people4 ,there is an exception when the object seems peculiar to the government1 as if free cities contract a league for the defence of their freedom4 ,,puffendorf #h4 #i4 #f4 ,it is certain that every alliance made with a republic is real in its nature1 and continues consequently to the terms agreed on by the treaty1 although the magistrates who concluded it be dead before1 so that the form of government is changed even from a democracy to a monarchy1 for in this case the people do not cease to be the same1 and the king1 in the case supposed1 being established by the consent of the people who abolished the republican government1 is understood to accept the crown with all the engagements which the people confessing it had contracted as being free and governing themselves4 ,there must nevertheless be an exception of the alliances contracted with a view to preserve the present government2 as if two republics league for mutual defence against those who would undertake to invade their liberty2 for if one of these two people consent afterwards voluntarily to change the form of the government1 the alliance ends of itself1 because the reason on which it was founded no longer subsists4 ,,wolf #aadf4 ,the alliance which is made with a free people1 or with a popular government1 is a real alliance2 and as when the form of government changes1 the people remain the same 7for it is the association which forms the people1 and not the manner of administering the government74 ,this alliance subsists1 though the form of government changes1 unless1 as is evident1 the reason of the alliance was particular to the popular state4 ,,vattel #b4 #aig4 ,the same question presents itself in real alliances1 and in general on every alliance made with a ,state1 and not in particular with a king for the defence of his person4 ,we ought1 without doubt1 to defend our ally against all invasion1 against all foreign violence1 and even against rebel subjects4 ,we ought1 in like manner1 to defend a republic against the enterprises of an oppressor of the public liberty4 ,but we ought to recollect that we are the ally of the state or of the nation1 and not its judge4 ,if the nation has deposed its king in form2 if the people of a republic have driven away its magistrates1 and have established themselves free1 or if they have acknowledged the authority of an usurper1 whether expressly or tacitly1 to oppose these domestic arrangements--to contest their justice or validity--would be to meddle with the government of the nation1 and to do it an injury4 ,the ally remains the ally of the state1 notwithstanding the change which has taken place2 but if this change renders the alliance useless1 dangerous1 or disagreeable to it1 it is free to renounce it2 for it may say with truth1 that it would not have allied itself with this nation1 if it had been under the present form of its government4 ,the doctrine then of ,grotius1 ,puffendorf1 and ,wolf is1 that treaties remain obligatory1 notwithstanding any change in the form of government1 except in the single case1 where the preservation of that form was the object of the treaty2 there the treaty extinguishes1 not by the election or declaration of the party remaining in statu quo1 but independently of that1 by the evanishment of the object4 ,vattel lays down in fact the same doctrine1 that treaties continue obligatory1 notwithstanding a change of government by the will of the other party2--that to oppose that will would be a wrong2 and that the ally remains an ally1 notwithstanding the change4 ,so far he concurs with all the previous writers3--but he then adds what they had not said nor could say2 but if this change renders the alliance useless1 dangerous or disagreeable to it1 it is free to renounce it4 ,it was unnecessary for him to have specified the exception of danger in this particular case1 because the exception exists in all cases1 and its extent has been considered2 but when he adds that1 because a contract is become merely useless or disagreeable we are free to renounce it1--he is in opposition to ,grotius1 ,puffendorf1 and ,wolf1 who admit no such license against the obligation of treaties1 and he is in opposition to the morality of every honest man to whom we may safely appeal to decide whether he feels himself free to renounce a contract the moment it becomes merely useless or disagreeable to him4 ,we may appeal to ,vattel himself in those parts of his book where he cannot be misunderstood1 and to his known character1 as one of the most zealous and constant advocates for the preservation of good faith in all our dealings4 ,let us hear him on other occasions2 and first where he shows what degree of danger or injury will authorize self-liberation from a treaty3 ,if simple lesion1 7lesion--the loss sustained by selling a thing for less than half value1 which degree of loss renders the sale void by the ,roman law17 if simple lesion1 says he1 or some degree of disadvantage in a treaty does not suffice to render it invalid1 it is not so as to inconvenience which would go to the ruin of the nation4 ,as every treaty ought to be made by sufficient power1 a treaty pernicious to the ,state is null1 and not at all obligatory4 ,no governor of a nation having power to engage things capable of destroying the ,state1 for the safety of which the empire entrusts to him1 the nation itself1 bound necessarily to whatever its preservation and safety require1 cannot enter into engagements contrary to its indispensable obligations4 ,here then we find that the degree of injury or danger which he deems sufficient to liberate us from a treaty1 is that which would go to the absolute ruin or destruction of the ,state2--not simply the lesion of the ,roman law1 not merely the being disadvantageous or dangerous2 for as he himself says1 ,section #aeh1 lesion cannot render a treaty invalid4 ,it is his duty who enters into engagements1 to weigh well all things before he concludes4 ,he may do with his property what he pleases4 ,he may relinquish his rights or renounce his advantages1 as he judges proper4 ,the acceptant is not obliged to inform himself of his motives nor to weigh then just value4 ,if we could free ourselves from a compact because we find ourselves injured by it1 there would be nothing firm in the contracts of nations4 ,civil laws may set limits to lesion1 and determine the degree capable of producing a nullity of the contract2 but sovereigns acknowledge no judge4 ,how establish lesion among them8 ,who will determine the degree sufficient to invalidate a treaty8 ,the happiness and peace of nations require manifestly that their treaties should not depend on a means of nullity so vague and so dangerous4 ,let us hear him again on the general subject of the observation of treaties1 ,section #afc3 ,it is demonstrated in natural law that he who promises another1 confers on him a perfect right to require the thing promised1 and that consequently1 not to observe a perfect promise is to violate the right of another2 it is as manifest injustice as to plunder any one of their right4 ,all the tranquillity1 the happiness and security of mankind1 rest on justice or the obligation to respect the rights of others4 ,the respect of others for our right of domain and property is the security of our actual possessions4 ,the faith of promises is the security for the things which cannot be delivered or executed on the spot4 ,no more security1 no more commerce among men1 if they think themselves not bound to preserve faith1 to keep their word4 ,this obligation1 then1 is as necessary as it is natural and indubitable among nations who live together in a state of nature1 and who acknowledge no superior on earth4 ,to maintain order and peace in their society1 nations and their governors then ought to observe inviolably their promises and their treaties4 ,this is a great truth1 although too often neglected in practice1 is generally acknowledged by all nations1 the reproach of perfidy is a bitter affront among sovereigns4 ,now he who does not observe a treaty is assuredly perfidious1 since he violates his faith4 ,on the contrary1 nothing is so glorious to a prince and his nation as the reputation of inviolable fidelity to his word4 ,again1 ,section #bai1 ,who will doubt that treaties are of the things sacred among nations8 ,they decide matters the most important2 they impose rules on the pretensions of sovereigns1 they cause the rights of nations to be acknowledged2 they assume their most precious interests4 ,among political bodies1 sovereigns1 who acknowledge no superior on earth1 treaties are the only means of adjusting their different pretensions2 of establishing a rule1 to know on what to count1 on what to depend4 ,but treaties are but vain words1 if nations do not consider them as respectable engagements1 as rules inviolable for sovereigns1 and sacred through the whole earth4 ,section #bbj3 ,the faith of treaties1 that firm and sincere will1 that invincible constancy in fulfilling engagements1 of which a declaration is made in a treaty1 is then holy and sacred among nations1 whose safety and repose it ensures2 and if nations will not be wanting to themselves1 they will load with infamy whoever violates his faith4 ,after evidence so copious and explicit of the respect of this author for the sanctity of treaties1 we should hardly have expected that his authority would have been resorted to for a wanton invalidation of them whenever they should become merely useless or disagreeable4 ,we should hardly have expected that1 rejecting all the rest of his book1 this scrap would have been culled and made the hook whereon to hang such a chain of immoral consequences4 ,had the passage accidentally met our eye1 we should have imagined it had fallen from the author's pen under some momentary view1 not sufficiently developed to found a conjecture what he meant1 and we may certainly affirm that a fragment like this cannot weigh against the authority of all other writers2 against the uniform and systematic doctrine of the very work from which it is torn2 against the moral feelings and the reason of all honest men4 ,if the terms of the fragment are not misunderstood1 they are in full contradiction to all the written and unwritten evidences of morality4 ,if they are misunderstood1 they are no longer a foundation for the doctrines which have been built on them4 ,but even had this doctrine been as true as it is manifestly false1 it would have been asked1 to whom is it that the treaties with ,france have become disagreeable8 ,how will it be proved that they are useless8 ,the conclusion of the sentence suggests a reflection too strong to be suppressed1 for the party may say with truth that it would not have allied itself with this nation if it had been under the present form of its government4 ,the republic of the ,united ,states allied itself with ,france when under a despotic government4 ,she changes her government1 and declares it shall be a republic2 prepares a form of republic extremely free1 and in the meantime is governing herself as such4 ,and it is proposed that ,america shall declare the treaties void1 because it may say with truth that it would not have allied itself with that nation if it had been under the present form of its government4 ,who is the ,american who can say with truth that he would not have allied himself to ,france if she had been a republic8 ,or that a republic of any form would be as disagreeable as her ancient despotism8 ,upon the whole ,i conclude1 that the treaties are still binding1 notwithstanding the change of government in ,france2 that no part of them but the clause of guarantee holds up danger1 even at a distance1 and consequently that a liberation from no other part would be prepared in any case2 that if that clause may ever bring danger1 it is neither extreme nor imminent1 nor even probable that the authority for renouncing a treaty1 when useless or disagreeable1 is either misunderstood or in opposition to itself1 to all other writers1 and to every moral feeling2 that were it not so1 these treaties are in fact neither useless or disagreeable2 that the receiving a minister from ,france at this time is an act of no significance with respect to the treaties1 amounting neither to an admission nor denial of them1 forasmuch as he comes not under any stipulation in them2 that were it an explicit admission1 or were it an express declaration of their obligation now to be made1 it would not take from us that right which exists at all times1 of liberating ourselves when an adherence to the treaties would be ruinous or destructive to the society2 and that the not renouncing the treaties now is so far from being a breach of neutrality1 that the doing it would be the breach1 by giving just cause of war to ,france4 ,,xxxvi4--,opinion relative to granting of passports to ,american vessels4 ,may #c1 #agic4 ,it has been stated in our treaties with the ,french1 ,dutch and ,prussians1 that when it happens that either party is at war1 and the other neutral1 the neutral shall give passports of a certain tenor to the vessels belonging to their subjects1 in order to avoid dissension2 and it has been thought that passports of such high import to the persons and property of our citizens should have the highest sanction2 that of the signature of the ,president1 and seal of the ,united ,states4 ,the authority of ,congress also1 in the case of sea letters to ,east ,india vessels1 was in favor of this sanction4 ,it is now become a question whether these passports shall be given only to ships owned and built in the ,united ,states1 or may be given also to those owned in the ,united ,states1 though built in foreign countries4 ,the persons and property of our citizens are entitled to the protection of our government in all places where they may lawfully go4 ,no laws forbid a merchant to buy1 own1 and use a foreign-built vessel4 ,she is1 then1 his lawful property1 and entitled to the protection of his nation whenever he is lawfully using her4 ,the laws indeed1 for the encouragement of ship building1 have given to home-built vessels the exclusive privilege of being registered and paying lighter duties4 ,to this privilege1 therefore1 the foreign-built vessel1 though owned at home1 does not pretend4 ,but the laws have not said that they withdraw their protection from the foreign-built vessel4 ,to this protection1 then1 she retains her title1 notwithstanding the preference given to the home-built vessel as to duties4 ,it would be hard indeed because the law has given one valuable right to home-built vessels1 to infer that it had taken away all rights from those foreign-built4 ,in conformity with the idea that all the vessels of a ,state are entitled to its protection1 the treaties before mentioned have settled that passports shall be given1 not merely to the vessels built in the ,united ,states1 but to the vessels belonging to them2 and when one of these nations shall take a vessel1 if she has not such a passport1 they are to conclude she does not belong to the ,united ,states1 and is therefore lawful prize2 so that to refuse these passports to foreign-built vessels belonging to our merchants1 is to give them up to capture with their cargoes4 ,the most important interests of the ,united ,states hang upon this question4 ,the produce of the earth is their principle source of wealth4 ,our home-built vessels would suffice for the transportation of a very small part of this produce to market1 and even a part of these vessels will be withdrawn by high premiums to other lines of business4 ,all the rest of our produce1 then1 must remain on our hands1 or have its price reduced by a war insurance4 ,many descriptions of our produce will not bear this reduction1 and would1 therefore1 remain on hand4 ,we shall lose also a great proportion of the profits of navigation4 ,the great harvest for these is when other nations are at war1 and our flag neutral4 ,but if we can augment our stock of shipping only by the slow process of building1 the harvest will be over while we are only preparing instruments to reap it4 ,the moment of breeding seamen will be lost for want of bottoms to embark them in4 ,france and ,holland permit our vessels to be neutralized with them2 not even to suffer theirs to be purchased here might give them just cause to revoke the privilege of naturalization given to ours1 and would inflict on the ship-building ,states and artizans a severe injury4 ,objection4 ,to protect foreign-built vessels will lessen the demand for ship building here4 ,answer4 ,not at all2 because as long as we can build cheaper than other nations1 we shall be employed in preference to others2 besides1 shall we permit the greatest part of the produce of our fields to rot on our hands1 or lose half its value by subjecting it to high insurance1 merely that our ship builders may have brisker employ8 ,shall the whole mass of our farmers be sacrificed to the class of ship wrights8 ,objection4 ,there will be collusive transfers of foreign ships to our merchants1 merely to obtain for them the cover of our passports4 ,answer4 ,the same objection lies to giving passports to home-built vessels4 ,they may be owned1 and are owned by foreigners1 and may be collusively re-transferred to our merchants to obtain our passports4 ,to lessen the danger of collusion1 however1 ,i should be for delivering passports in our own ports only1 if they were to be sent blank to foreign ports to be delivered there1 the power of checking collusion would be small1 and they might be employed to cover purposes of no benefit to us 7which we ought not to countenance71 and to throw our vessels out of business2 but if issued only to vessels in our own ports1 we can generally be certain that the vessel is our property2 and always that the cargo is of our produce4 ,state the case that it shall be found that all our shipping1 home-built and foreign-built1 is inadequate to the transportation of our produce to market2 so that after all these are loaded1 there shall yet remain produce on hand4 ,this must be put into vessels owned by foreigners4 ,should these obtain collusively the protection of our passport1 it will cover their vessel indeed1 but it will cover also our cargo4 ,i repeat it then1 that if the issuing passports be confined to our ports1 it will be our own vessels for the most part1 and always our cargoes which will be covered by them4 ,i am1 therefore1 of opinion1 that passports ought to be issued to all vessels belonging to citizens of the ,united ,states1 but only on their clearing out from our own ports1 and for that voyage only4 ,,xxxvii4--,opinion relative to case of a ,british vessel captured by a ,french vessel1 purchased by ,french citizens1 and fitted out as a ,privateer in one of our ports4 ,may #af1 #agic4 ,the facts suggested1 or to be taken for granted1 because the contrary is not known1 in the case now to be considered1 are1 that a vessel was purchased at ,charleston1 and fitted out as a privateer by ,french citizens1 manned with foreigners chiefly1 but partly with citizens of the ,united ,states4 ,the command given to a ,french citizen by a regular commission from his government2 that she has made prize of an ,english vessel in the open sea1 and sent her into ,philadelphia4 ,the ,british minister demands restitution1 and the question is1 whether the ,executive of the ,united ,states shall undertake to make it8 ,this transaction may be considered1 #ast1 as an offence against the ,united ,states2 #b;d1 as an injury to ,great ,britain4 ,in the first view it is not now to be taken up4 ,the opinion being1 that it has been an act of disrespect to the jurisdiction of the ,united ,states1 of which proper notice is to be taken at a proper time4 ,under the second point of view1 it appears to me wrong on the part of the ,united ,states 7where not constrained by treaties7 to permit one party in the present war to do what cannot be permitted to the other4 ,we cannot permit the enemies of ,france to fit out privateers in our ports1 by the #bb;d article of our treaty4 ,we ought not1 therefore1 to permit ,france to do it2 the treaty leaving us free to refuse1 and the refusal being necessary to preserve a fair neutrality4 ,yet considering that the present is the first case which has arisen2 that it has been in the first moment of the war1 in one of the most distant ports of the ,united ,states1 and before measures could be taken by the government to meet all the cases which may flow from the infant state of our government1 and novelty of our position1 it ought to be placed by ,great ,britain among the accidents of loss to which a nation is exposed in a state of war1 and by no means as a premeditated wrong on the part of the government4 ,in the last light it cannot be taken1 because the act from which it results placed the ,united ,states with the offended1 and not the offending party4 ,her minister has seen himself that there could have been on our part neither permission or connivance4 ,a very moderate apology then from the ,united ,states ought to satisfy ,great ,britain4 ,the one we have made already is ample1 to wit1 a pointed disapprobation of the transaction1 a promise to prosecute and punish according to law such of our citizens as have been concerned in it1 and to take effectual measures against a repetition4 ,to demand more would be a wrong in ,great ,britain2 for to demand satisfaction beyond what is adequate1 is wrong4 ,but it is proposed further to take the prize from the captors and restore her to the ,english4 ,this is a very serious proposition4 ,the dilemma proposed in our conferences1 appears to me unanswerable4 ,either the commission to the commander of the privateer was good1 or not good4 ,if not good1 then the tribunals of the country will take cognizance of the transaction1 receive the demand of the former owner1 and make restitution of the capture2 and there being1 on this supposition1 regular remedy at law1 it would be irregular for the government to interpose4 ,if the commission be good1 then the capture having been made on the high seas1 under a valid commission from a power at war with ,great ,britain1 the ,british owner has lost all his right1 and the prize would be deemed good1 even in his own courts1 were the question to be brought before his own courts4 ,he has now no more claim on the vessel than any stranger would have who never owned her1 his whole right being transferred by the laws of war to the captor4 ,the legal right then being in the captors1 on what ground can we take it from him8 ,not on that of right1 for the right has been transferred to him4 ,it can only be by an act of force1 that is to say1 of reprisal for the offence committed against us in the port of ,charleston4 ,but the making reprisal on a nation is a very serious thing4 ,remonstrance and refusal of satisfaction ought to precede2 and when reprisal follows1 it is considered as an act of war1 and never yet failed to produce it in the case of a nation able to make war2 besides1 if the case were important enough to require reprisal1 and ripe for that step1 ,congress must be called on to take it2 the right of reprisal being expressly lodged with them by the ,constitution1 and not with the ,executive4 ,i therefore think that the satisfaction already made to the government of ,great ,britain is quite equal to what ought to be desired in the present case2 that the property of the ,british owner is transferred by the laws of war to the captor2 that for us to take it from the captor would be an act of force or reprisal1 which the circumstances of the case do not justify1 and to which the powers of the ,executive are not competent by the ,constitution4 ,,xxxviii4-,opinion on the proposition of the ,secretary of the ,treasury to open a new ,loan4 ,june #e1 #agic4 ,instructions having been given to borrow two millions of florins in ,holland1 and the ,secretary of the ,treasury proposing to open a further loan of three millions of florins1 which he says a comprehensive view of the affairs of the ,united ,states1 in various relations1 appears to him to recommend1 the ,president is pleased to ask whether ,i see any objections to the proposition8 ,the power to borrow money is confided to the ,president by the two acts of the #dth and #abth of ,august1 #agij1 and the monies1 when borrowed1 are appropriated to two purposes only3 to wit1 the twelve millions to be borrowed under the former1 are appropriated to discharge the arrears of interest and instalments of the foreign debt2 and the two millions1 under the latter1 to the purchase of the public debt1 under direction of the trustees of the sinking fund4 ,these appropriations render very simple the duties of the ,president in the discharge of this trust4 ,he has only to look to the payment of the foreign debt1 and the purchase of the general one4 ,and in order to judge for himself of the necessity of the loan proposed for effecting these two purposes1 he will need from the treasury the following statements3-- ,a4 ,a statement of the nett amount of the loans already made under these acts1 adding to that the two millions of florins now in course of being borrowed4 ,this will form the debit of the trust4 ,the credit side of the account will consist of the following statements1 to wit3-- ,b4 ,amount of the principal and interest of foreign debt1 paid and payable1 to the close of #agib4 ,c4 ,ditto1 payable to the close of #agic4 ,d4 ,ditto1 payable to the close of #agid 7for ,i think our preparations should be a year beforehand74 ,e4 ,amount of monies necessary for the sinking fund to the end of #agid4 ,if the amount of the four last articles exceeds the first1 it will prove a further loan necessary1 and to what extent4 ,the treasury alone can furnish these statements with perfect accuracy4 ,but to show that there is probable cause to go into the examination1 ,i will hazard a statement from materials which1 though perhaps not perfectly exact1 are not much otherwise4 ,report of ,january #c1 #agic4 ,new ,edition4 ,dr4 ,the trust for loans4 ,a4 ,to nett amount of loans to ,june #a1 #agib1 as stated in the treasury report1 to wit1 #ah1fgh1jjj florins1 at #ii florins to #dj1 the treasury exchange #g1ede1iab ,to loan now going on for #b1jjj1jjj florins #hjh1jhj ---------- #h1cec1iib ,cr4 ,florins4 ,b4 ,by charges on remittances to ,france #aj1jgc #a ,by reimbursement to ,spain #fhj1jjj ,by interest paid to foreign officers #aje1jjj ---------- #gie1jic #a #cba1bci #df ,by principal paid to foreign officers #aia1caf #ij ,by amount of ,french debt1 principal and ,livres4 interest1 payable to end of #agia #bf1jjj1jjj ,by ditto1 for #agib #c1dej1jjj ---------- #bi1dej1jjj #e1cde1aga ,c4 ,by ditto1 for #agic #c1daj1jjj #fah1iae ,d4 ,by ditto1 for #agid #c1bej1jjj #efi1hgf ,e4 ,by necessary for sinking fund at #ej1jjj a month1 from ,july #a1 #agic1 to ,dec4 #ca1 #agid #ijj1jjj ,balance which will remain in hands of the trust1 at end of #agid #chg1dgd #fd ------------- #h1cec1iib #fj ,so that instead of an additional loan being necessary1 the monies already borrowed will suffice for all the purposes to which they can be legally applied to the end of #agid1 and leave a surplus of #chg #dgd #fd to cover charges and errors4 ,and as1 on account of the unsettled state of the ,french government1 it is not proposed to pay in advance1 or but little so1 any further sum would be lying at a dead interest and risk4 ,perhaps it might be said that new monies must be borrowed for the current domestic service of the year4 ,to this ,i should answer1 that no law has authorized the opening of a loan for this purpose4 ,if it should be said that the monies heretofore borrowed are so far put out of our power that we cannot command them before an instalment will be due1 ,i should answer1 that certainly ,i would rather borrow than fail in a payment2 but if borrowing will secure a payment in time1 the two millions of florins now borrowing are sufficient to secure it4 ,if we cannot get this sum in time1 then we cannot get an additional sum in time4 ,the above account might be stated in another way1 which might1 perhaps1 be more satisfactory1 to wit3 ,dr4 ,the trust for loans4 ,to nett amount of loans to ,june #a1 #agib4 #ah1fgh1jjj florins1 at #ii florins to #dj #g1ede1iab ,cr4 ,florins ,by charges on remittances to ,france #aj1jgc #a ,by reimbursement to ,spain #fhj1jjj ,by interest paid to foreign officers #aje1jjj --------- #gie1jgc #a #cba1bci #df ,by principal paid to foreign officers #aia1caf #ij ,by payments to ,france #aj1jgc1jdc #h #d1jfi1iah #ed ,livres4 ,by ditto to ,st4 ,domingo #d1jjj1jjj #gbf1jjj ,by ditto to do4 #c1jjj1jjj #edd1ejj ,by do4 to ,mr4 ,ternant ,i state this by memory #bd1jjj #d1cef ,balance in hand to be carried to new debit #a1fhh1eha #aj ------------- #g1ede1iab #jj ,dr4 ,the trust for loans4 ,to balance as per contra #a1fhh1eha #aj ,to two millions of florins1 new loan1 when effected #hjh1jhj ------------- #b1dif1ffa #aj ,cr4 ,by the following payments when made1 to wit3 ,balance due to ,france1 to close of year #agib ,livres4 7#e1cde1aga-e1cdd1ggd #ed7 #cif #df ,instalments and interest to close of year #agic #c1daj1jjj #fah1iae do4 do #agid #c1bej1jjj #ehi1hge ,necessary for sinking fund from ,july #a1 #agic1 to ,december #ca1 #agid #ijj1jjj ,balance will then be in hand to be carried to new debit #chg1dgd #fd ------------- #b1dif1ffa #aj ,by this statement1 it would seem as if all the payments to ,france1 hitherto made and ordered1 would not acquit the year #agib4 ,so that we have never yet been clear of arrears to her4 ,the amount of the ,french debt is stated according to the convention1 and the interest is calculated accordingly4 ,interest on the ten million loan is known to have been paid for the years #aghd1 #aghe1 and is therefore deducted4 ,it is not known whether it was paid on the same loan for the years #aghf-g-h-i1 previous to the payment of ,december #c1 #agij1 or whether it was included in that payment2 therefore this is not deducted4 ,but if1 in fact1 it was paid before that day1 it will then have lessened the debt so much1 to wit1 #djj1jjj livres a year1 for four years1 making #a1fjj1jjj florins1 equal to #bij1djj1 which sum would put us in advance near half of the instalments of #agic4 ,note1--livres are estimated at #ah_/ajj cents1 proposed by the ,secretary of the ,treasury to the ,french ministry as the par of the metals1 to be the rate of conversion4 ,this uncertainty with respect to the true state of our account with ,france1 and the difference of the result from what has been understood1 shows that the gentlemen who are to give opinions on this subject1 must do it in the dark1 and suggests to the ,president the propriety of having an exact statement of the account with ,france communicated to them1 as the ground on which they are to give opinions4 ,it will probably be material in that about to be given on the late application of ,mr4 ,genet1 on which the ,secretary of the ,treasury is preparing a report4 ,,xxxix4--,opinion relative to the policy of a new loan4 ,june #ag1 #agic ,i cannot see my way clear in the case which the ,president has been pleased to ask my opinion1 but by recurring to these leading questions3 ,of the #g1hih1iii #hh borrowed1 or rather of the #g1ede1iab1 nett proceeds thereof1 how much has been applied to the payment of the foreign1 and purchase of the general debt8 ,to the balance thereof1 which should be on hand1 and the two millions of florins now borrowing1 is any and what addition necessary1 for the same objects1 for the years #agic1 #agid8 ,the statement furnished by the ,secretary of the ,treasury does not answer these questions4 ,it only shows what has been done with somewhat less than three millions out of near eight millions of dollars which have been borrowed1 and in so doing it takes credit for two sums which are not to come out of this sum1 and therefore not to be left in the account4 ,they are the following3 #a4 ,a sum of #bhd1ija #hi expended in purchases of the public debt4 ,in the general report of the trustees of the sinking fund1 made to ,congress the #bc;d of ,february last1 and printed1 it appears1 page #bi1 that the whole amount of monies laid out by them was #a1cjb1djg #fd1 from which were to be deducted1 as is mentioned in the note there subjoined1 the purchases made out of the interest fund 7then about #ej1jjj as well as ,i recollect74 ,call the sum paid then #a1beb1djg #fd4 ,by the ,treasury report1 p4 #ch1 7new edition17 it appears that the surplus of domestic revenue to the end of #agij1 appropriated to this object1 was #a1cgd1fef #dj1 and p4 #cd1 that the monies drawn from ,europe on account of the foreign loans1 were not the instrument of these purchases2 and in some part1 to which ,i am not able just now to turn1 ,i recollect pretty certainly that it is said these purchases were actually carried to account1 as was proper1 against the domestic surplus1 consequently they are not to be allowed in the foreign account also4 ,or if allowed in this1 the sum will then be due from the surplus account1 and so must lessen the sum to be borrowed for the sinking fund1 which amounts to the same4 #b4 ,the #ast instalment due to the bank #bjj1jjj4 ,though the first payment of the subscription of the ,united ,states to the bank might have been made1 in the first instant1 out of the foreign monies to be immediately repaid to them by the money borrowed of the bank1 yet this useless formality was avoided1 and it was a mere operation of the pen on paper1 without the displacement of a single dollar4 ,see reports p4 #ab4 ,and1 in any event1 the final reimbursement was never to be made out of the foreign fund1 which was appropriated solely to the payment of the foreign1 and purchase of the general debt4 ,these two sums1 therefore1 of #bhd1ija #hi and #bjj1jjj are to be added to the balance of #ege1dhd #bh subject to future disposition1 and will make #a1jej1chf #ag actually here1 and still to be applied to the proper appropriation4 ,however1 this account1 as before observed1 being only of a part of the monies borrowed1 no judgment can be formed from it of the expediency of borrowing more2 nor should ,i have stopped to make a criticism on it1 but to show why no such sums as the two above mentioned1 were inserted in the general account sketched for the ,president1 ,june #e4 ,i must add that the miscellaneous sum of #di1djj in this account1 is probably covered by some other articles of that as far as it is chargeable on this fund2 because that account1 under one form or another1 takes up all the articles chargeable on this fund which had appeared in the printed reports4 ,i must1 therefore1 proceed to renew my statement of ,june #e1 inserting therein the #ast instalment of the ,dutch loan of #djd1jdj #dj payable this month1 which not having been mentioned in any of the reports heretofore published1 was not inserted in my statement4 ,i will add a like sum for the year #agid1 because ,i think we should now prepare for the whole of that year4 ,as the ,secretary of the ,treasury does not seem to contemplate the furnishing any fixed sum for the sinking fund1 ,i shall leave that article out of the account4 ,the ,president can easily add to its result any sum he may decide to have furnished to that fund4 ,the account1 so corrected1 will stand thus3 ,dr4 ,the trust for loans4 ,to nett amount of loans to ,june #a1 #agib #g1ede1iab ,to loan now going on for #b1jjj1jjj florins #hjh1jhj ---------- #h1cec1iib ,cr4 ,florins4 ,by charges on remittances to ,france #aj1jgc #a ,by reimbursement to ,spain #fhj1jjj ,by interest paid to foreign officers #aje1jjj ------- #gie1jgc #acba1bci #df ,by principal paid to foreign officers #aia1caf #ij ,by amount of ,french debt1 principal and interest ,livres4 payable to end of #agia #bf1jjj1jjj ,by ditto for #agib #c1dej1jjj ---------- #bi1dej1jjj #e1cde1aga ,by ditto for #agic #c1daj1jjj #fah1iae ,by #ast instalment of ,dutch debt due ,june #agic #djd1jdj #dj ,by instalments and interest to ,france for #agid #c1bej1jjj #efi1hge ,by instalment to ,holland for #agid #djd1jdj #dj ,balance will then remain in hands of the trust1 #dii1cic #hd ------------ #h1cec1iib #jj ,so that it appears there would be a balance in the hands of this trust1 at the close of #agid1 of #dii1cic #hd1 were no monies to be furnished in the meantime to the sinking fund2 but should the ,president determine to furnish that with the #ijj1jjj proposed in my statement of ,june #e1 then a loan would be necessary for about #djj1jjj1 say in near round numbers1 #a1jjj1jjj of guilders1 in addition to the #b1jjj1jjj now borrowing4 ,i am1 individually1 of opinion that that sum ought to be furnished to the sinking fund1 and consequently that an additional loan1 to this extent1 should be made1 considering the subject in a legal point of view only4 ,the reasons in favor of the extension are1 ,the apprehension of the extension of our war to other ,indian nations1 and perhaps to ,europe itself4 ,the disability this might produce to borrow at all1 this is1 in my judgment1 a weighty consideration4 ,the possibility that the government of ,france may become so settled as that we may hazard the anticipation of payment1 and so avoid dead interest4 ,the reasons against it are1 ,the possibility that ,france may continue1 for some time yet1 so unsettled as to render an anticipation of payments hazardous4 ,the risk of losing the capital borrowed by a successful invasion of the country of deposit1 if it be left in ,europe2 or by an extension of the bankruptcies now shaking the most solid houses2 and when and where they will end we know not4 ,the loss of interest on the dead sum1 if the sum itself be safe4 ,the execution of a power for one object1 which was given to be executed but for a very different one4 ,the commitment of the ,president1 on this account1 to events1 or to the criticisms of those who1 though the measures should be perfectly wise1 may misjudge it through error or passion4 ,the apprehension that the head of the department means to provide idle money to be lodged in the banks ready for the corruption of the next legislature1 as it is believed the late ones were corrupted1 by gratifying particular members with vast discounts for objects of speculation4 ,i confess that the last reasons have most weight with me4 ,,xl4--,report on the privileges and restrictions on the commerce of the ,united ,states in foreign countries4 ,december #af1 #agic4 ,,sir1--,according to the pleasure of the ,house of ,representatives1 expressed in their resolution of ,february #bc1 #agia1 ,i now lay before them a report on the privileges and restrictions on the commerce of the ,united ,states in foreign countries4 ,in order to keep the subject within those bounds which ,i supposed to be under the contemplation of the ,house1 ,i have restrained my statements to those countries only with which we carry on a commerce of some importance1 and to those articles also of our produce which are of sensible weight in the scale of our exports2 and even these articles are sometimes grouped together1 according to the degree of favor or restriction with which they are received in each country1 and that degree expressed in general terms without detailing the exact duty levied on each article4 ,to have gone fully into these minuti1 would have been to copy the tariffs and books of rates of the different countries1 and to have hidden1 under a mass of details1 those general and important truths1 the extraction of which1 in a simple form1 ,i conceived would best answer the inquiries of the ,house1 by condensing material information within those limits of time and attention1 which this portion of their duties may justly claim4 ,the plan1 indeed1 of minute details which have been impracticable with some countries1 for want of information4 ,since preparing this report1 which was put into its present form in time to have been given in to the last session of ,congress1 alterations of the conditions of our commerce with some foreign nations have taken place--some of them independent of war2 some arising out of it4 ,france has proposed to enter into a new treaty of commerce with us1 on liberal principles2 and has1 in the meantime1 relaxed some of the restraints mentioned in the report4 ,spain has1 by an ordinance of ,june last1 established ,new ,orleans1 ,pensacola1 and ,st4 ,augustine into free ports1 for the vessels of friendly nations having treaties of commerce with her1 provided they touch for a permit at ,corcubion in ,gallicia1 or at ,alicant2 and our rice is1 by the same ordinance1 excluded from that country4 ,the circumstances of war have necessarily given us freer access to the ,west ,indian islands1 whilst they have also drawn on our navigation vexations and depredations of the most serious nature4 ,to have endeavored to describe all these1 would have been as impracticable as useless1 since the scenes would have been shifting while under description4 ,i therefore think it best to leave the report as it was formed1 being adapted to a particular point of time1 when things were in their settled order1 that is to say1 to the summer of #agib4 ,i have the honor to be1 c4 ,to the ,speaker of the ,house of ,representatives of the ,united ,states of ,america4 ,the ,secretary of ,state1 to whom was referred1 by the ,house of ,representatives1 the report of a committee on the written message of the ,president of the ,united ,states1 of the #adth of ,february1 #agia1 with instruction to report to ,congress the nature and extent of the privileges and restrictions of the commercial intercourse of the ,united ,states with foreign nations1 and the measures which he should think proper to be adopted for the improvement of the commerce and navigation of the same1 has had the same under consideration1 and thereupon makes the following ,report3 ,the countries with which the ,united ,states have their chief commercial intercourse are ,spain1 ,portugal1 ,france1 ,great ,britain1 the ,united ,netherlands1 ,denmark1 and ,sweden1 and their ,american possessions2 and the articles of export1 which constitute the basis of that commerce1 with their respective amounts1 are1 ,bread-stuff1 that is to say1 bread grains1 meals1 and bread1 to the annual amount of #g1fdi1hhg ,tobacco #d1cdi1efg ,rice #a1gec1gif ,wood #a1bfc1ecd ,salted fish #ida1fif ,pot and pearl ash #hci1jic ,salted meats #eii1acj ,indigo #ecg1cgi ,horses and mules #cci1gec ,whale oil #beb1eia ,flax seed #bcf1jgb ,tar1 pitch and turpentine #bag1agg ,live provisions #acg1gdc ,ships ,foreign goods #fbj1bgd ,to descend to articles of smaller value than these1 would lead into a minuteness of detail neither necessary nor useful to the present object4 ,the proportions of our exports1 which go to the nations before mentioned1 and to their dominions1 respectively1 are as follows3 ,to ,spain and its dominions #b1jje1ijg ,portugal and its dominions #a1bhc1dfb ,france and its dominions #d1fih1gce ,great ,britain and its dominions #i1cfc1daf ,the ,united ,netherlands and their dominions #a1ifc1hhj ,denmark and its dominions #bbd1dae ,sweden and its dominions #dg1bdj ,our imports from the same countries1 are1 ,spain and its dominions #cce1aaj ,portugal and its dominions #eie1gfc ,france and its dominions #b1jfh1cdh ,great ,britain and its dominions #ae1bhe1dbh ,united ,netherlands and their dominions #a1agb1fib ,denmark and its dominions #cea1cfd ,sweden and its dominions #ad1cbe ,these imports consist mostly of articles on which industry has been exhausted4 ,our navigation1 depending on the same commerce1 will appear by the following statement of the tonnage of our own vessels1 entering in our ports1 from those several nations and their possessions1 in one year2 that is to say2 from ,october1 #aghi1 to ,september1 #agij1 inclusive1 as follows3 ,tons4 ,spain #ai1fie ,portugal #bc1egf ,france #aaf1daj ,great ,britain #dc1ehj ,united ,netherlands #eh1heh ,denmark #ad1fee ,sweden #gej ,of our commercial objects1 ,spain receives favorably our bread-stuff1 salted fish1 wood1 ships1 tar1 pitch1 and turpentine4 ,on our meals1 however1 as well as on those of other foreign countries1 when re-exported to their colonies1 they have lately imposed duties of from half-a-dollar to two dollars the barrel1 the duties being so proportioned to the current price of their own flour1 as that both together are to make the constant sum of nine dollars per barrel4 ,they do not discourage our rice1 pot and pearl ash1 salted provisions1 or whale oil2 but these articles1 being in small demand at their markets1 are carried thither but in a small degree4 ,their demand for rice1 however1 is increasing4 ,neither tobacco nor indigo are received there4 ,our commerce is permitted with their ,canary islands under the same conditions4 ,themselves1 and their colonies1 are the actual consumers of what they receive from us4 ,our navigation is free with the kingdom of ,spain2 foreign goods being received there in our ships on the same conditions as if carried in their own1 or in the vessels of the country of which such goods are the manufacture or produce4 ,portugal receives favorably our grain and bread1 salted fish1 and other salted provisions1 wood1 tar1 pitch1 and turpentine4 ,for flax-seed1 pot and pearl ash1 though not discouraged1 there is little demand4 ,our ships pay #bj per cent4 on being sold to their subjects1 and are then free-bottoms4 ,foreign goods 7except those of the ,east ,indies7 are received on the same footing in our vessels as in their own1 or any others2 that is to say1 on general duties of from #bj to #bh per cent41 and1 consequently1 our navigation is unobstructed by them4 ,tobacco1 rice1 and meals1 are prohibited4 ,themselves and their colonies consume what they receive from us4 ,these regulations extend to the ,azores1 ,madeira1 and the ,cape de ,verd islands1 except that in these1 meals and rice are received freely4 ,france receives favorably our bread-stuffs1 rice1 wood1 pot and pearl ashes4 ,a duty of #e sous the quintal1 or nearly #d cents1 is paid on our tar1 pitch1 and turpentine4 ,our whale oils pay #f livres the quintal1 and are the only foreign whale oils admitted4 ,our indigo pays #e livres the quintal1 their own #b2 but a difference of quality1 still more than a difference of duty1 prevents its seeking that market4 ,salted beef is received freely for re-exportation2 but if for home consumption1 it pays five livres the quintal4 ,other salted provisions pay that duty in all cases1 and salted fish is made lately to pay the prohibitory one of twenty livres the quintal4 ,our ships are free to carry thither all foreign goods which may be carried in their own or any other vessels1 except tobaccoes not of our own growth2 and they participate with theirs1 the exclusive carriage of our whale oils and tobaccoes4 ,during their former government1 our tobacco was under a monopoly1 but paid no duties2 and our ships were freely sold in their ports1 and converted into national bottoms4 ,the first national assembly took from our ships this privilege4 ,they emancipated tobacco from its monopoly1 but subjected it to duties of eighteen livres1 fifteen sous the quintal1 carried in their own vessels1 and five livres carried in ours--a difference more than equal to the freight of the article4 ,they and their colonies consume what they receive from us4 ,great ,britain receives our pot and pearl ashes free1 whilst those of other nations pay a duty of two shillings and three pence the quintal4 ,there is an equal distinction in favor of our bar iron2 of which article1 however1 we do not produce enough for our own use4 ,woods are free from us1 whilst they pay some small duty from other countries4 ,indigo and flax seed are free from all countries4 ,our tar and pitch pay eleven pence1 sterling1 the barrel4 ,from other alien countries they pay about a penny and a third more4 ,our tobacco1 for their own consumption1 pays one shilling and three pence1 sterling1 the pound1 custom and excise1 besides heavy expenses of collection2 and rice1 in the same case1 pays seven shillings and fourpence1 sterling1 the hundred weight2 which1 rendering it too dear1 as an article of common food1 it is consequently used in very small quantity4 ,our salted fish and other salted provisions1 except bacon1 are prohibited4 ,bacon and whale oils are under prohibitory duties2 so are our grains1 meals1 and bread1 as to internal consumption1 unless in times of such scarcity as may raise the price of wheat to fifty shillings1 sterling1 the quarter1 and other grains and meals in proportion4 ,our ships1 though purchased and navigated by their own subjects1 are not permitted to be used1 even in their trade with us4 ,while the vessels of other nations are secured by standing laws1 which cannot be altered but by the concurrent will of the three branches of the ,british legislature1 in carrying thither any produce or manufacture of the country to which they belong1 which may be lawfully carried in any vessels1 ours1 with the same prohibition of what is foreign1 are further prohibited by a standing law1 7#ab ,car4 #b1 #ah1 sect4 #c17 from carrying thither all and any of our own domestic productions and manufactures4 ,a subsequent act1 indeed1 has authorized their executive to permit the carriage of our own productions in our own bottoms1 at its sole discretion2 and the permission has been given from year to year by proclamation1 but subject every moment to be withdrawn on that single will2 in which event1 our vessels having anything on board1 stand interdicted from the entry of all ,british ports4 ,the disadvantage of a tenure which may be so suddenly discontinued1 was experienced by our merchants on a late occasion1#cc when an official notification that this law would be strictly enforced1 gave them just apprehensions for the fate of their vessels and cargoes despatched or destined for the ports of ,great ,britain4 ,the minister of that court1 indeed1 frankly expressed his personal conviction1 that the words of the order went farther than was intended1 and so he afterwards officially informed us2 but the embarrassments of the moment were real and great1 and the possibility of their renewal lays our commerce to that country under the same species of discouragement as to other countries1 where it is regulated by a single legislator2 and the distinction is too remarkable not to be noticed1 that our navigation is excluded from the security of fixed laws1 while that security is given to the navigation of others4 ,our vessels pay in their ports one shilling and nine pence1 sterling1 per ton1 light and trinity dues1 more than is paid by ,british ships1 except in the port of ,london1 where they pay the same as ,british4 ,the greater part of what they receive from us1 is re-exported to other countries1 under the useless charges of an intermediate deposit1 and double voyage4 ,from tables published in ,england1 and composed1 as is said1 from the books of their customhouses1 it appears1 that of the indigo imported there in the years #aggc1 '#d1 '#e1 one-third was re-exported2 and from a document of authority1 we learn1 that of the rice and tobacco imported there before the war1 four-fifths were re-exported4 ,we are assured1 indeed1 that the quantities sent thither for re-exportation since the war1 are considerably diminished1 yet less so than reason and national interest would dictate4 ,the whole of our grain is re-exported when wheat is below fifty shillings the quarter1 and other grains in proportion4 ,the ,united ,netherlands prohibit our pickled beef and pork1 meals and bread of all sorts1 and lay a prohibitory duty on spirits distilled from grain4 ,all other of our productions are received on varied duties1 which may be reckoned1 on a medium1 at about three per cent4 ,they consume but a small proportion of what they receive4 ,the residue is partly forwarded for consumption in the inland parts of ,europe1 and partly re-shipped to other maritime countries4 ,on the latter portion they intercept between us and the consumer1 so much of the value as is absorbed in the charges attending an intermediate deposit4 ,foreign goods1 except some ,east ,india articles1 are received in vessels of any nation4 ,our ships may be sold and neutralized there1 with exceptions of one or two privileges1 which somewhat lessen their value4 ,denmark lays considerable duties on our tobacco and rice1 carried in their own vessels1 and half as much more1 if carried in ours2 but the exact amount of these duties is not perfectly known here4 ,they lay such as amount to prohibitions on our indigo and corn4 ,sweden receives favorably our grains and meals1 salted provisions1 indigo1 and whale oil4 ,they subject our rice to duties of sixteen mills the pound weight1 carried in their own vessels1 and of forty per cent4 additional on that1 or twenty-two and four-tenths mills1 carried in ours or any others4 ,being thus rendered too dear as an article of common food1 little of it is consumed with them4 ,they consume some of our tobaccoes1 which they take circuitously through ,great ,britain1 levying heavy duties on them also2 their duties of entry1 town duties1 and excise1 being #d4cd dollars the hundred weight1 if carried in their own vessels1 and of forty per cent4 on that additional1 if carried in our own or any other vessels4 ,they prohibit altogether our bread1 fish1 pot and pearl ashes1 flax-seed1 tar1 pitch1 and turpentine1 wood1 7except oak timber and masts17 and all foreign manufactures4 ,under so many restrictions and prohibitions1 our navigation with them is reduced to almost nothing4 ,with our neighbors1 an order of things much harder presents itself4 ,spain and ,portugal refuse1 to all those parts of ,america which they govern1 all direct intercourse with any people but themselves4 ,the commodities in mutual demand between them and their neighbors1 must be carried to be exchanged in some port of the dominant country1 and the transportation between that and the subject state1 must be in a domestic bottom4 ,france1 by a standing law1 permits her ,west ,india possessions to receive directly our vegetables1 live provisions1 horses1 wood1 tar1 pitch1 turpentine1 rice1 and maize1 and prohibits our other bread stuff2 but a suspension of this prohibition having been left to the colonial legislatures1 in times of scarcity1 it was formerly suspended occasionally1 but latterly without interruption4 ,our fish and salted provisions 7except pork7 are received in their islands under a duty of three colonial livres the quintal1 and our vessels are as free as their own to carry our commodities thither1 and to bring away rum and molasses4 ,great ,britain admits in her islands our vegetables1 live provisions1 horses1 wood1 tar1 pitch1 and turpentine1 rice and bread stuff1 by a proclamation of her executive1 limited always to the term of a year1 but hitherto renewed from year to year4 ,she prohibits our salted fish and other salted provisions4 ,she does not permit our vessels to carry thither our own produce4 ,her vessels alone may take it from us1 and bring in exchange rum1 molasses1 sugar1 coffee1 cocoa-nuts1 ginger1 and pimento4 ,there are1 indeed1 some freedoms in the island of ,dominica1 but1 under such circumstances1 as to be little used by us4 ,in the ,british continental colonies1 and in ,newfoundland1 all our productions are prohibited1 and our vessels forbidden to enter their ports4 ,their governors1 however1 in times of distress1 have power to permit a temporary importation of certain articles in their own bottoms1 but not in ours4 ,our citizens cannot reside as merchants or factors within any of the ,british plantations1 this being expressly prohibited by the same statute of #ab ,car4 #b1 c4 #ah1 commonly called the navigation act4 ,in the ,danish ,american possessions a duty of #e per cent4 is levied on our corn1 corn meal1 rice1 tobacco1 wood1 salted fish1 indigo1 horses1 mules and live stock1 and of #aj per cent4 on our flour1 salted pork and beef1 tar1 pitch and turpentine4 ,in the ,american islands of the ,united ,netherlands and ,sweden1 our vessels and produce are received1 subject to duties1 not so heavy as to have been complained of2 but they are heavier in the ,dutch possessions on the continent4 ,to sum up these restrictions1 so far as they are important3 ,,first4 ,in ,europe-- ,our bread stuff is at most times under prohibitory duties in ,england1 and considerably dutied on re-exportation from ,spain to her colonies4 ,our tobaccoes are heavily dutied in ,england1 ,sweden and ,france1 and prohibited in ,spain and ,portugal4 ,our rice is heavily dutied in ,england and ,sweden1 and prohibited in ,portugal4 ,our fish and salted provisions are prohibited in ,england1 and under prohibitory duties in ,france4 ,our whale oils are prohibited in ,england and ,portugal4 ,and our vessels are denied naturalization in ,england1 and of late in ,france4 ,,second4 ,in the ,west ,indies-- ,all intercourse is prohibited with the possessions of ,spain and ,portugal4 ,our salted provisions and fish are prohibited by ,england4 ,our salted pork and bread stuff 7except maize7 are received under temporary laws only1 in the dominions of ,france1 and our salted fish pays there a weighty duty4 ,,third4 ,in the article of navigation-- ,our own carriage of our own tobacco is heavily dutied in ,sweden1 and lately in ,france4 ,we can carry no article1 not of our own production1 to the ,british ports in ,europe4 ,nor even our own produce to her ,american possessions4 ,such being the restrictions on the commerce and navigation of the ,united ,states2 the question is1 in what way they may best be removed1 modified or counteracted8 ,as to commerce1 two methods occur4 #a4 ,by friendly arrangements with the several nations with whom these restrictions exist3 ,or1 #b4 ,by the separate act of our own legislatures for countervailing their effects4 ,there can be no doubt but that of these two1 friendly arrangement is the most eligible4 ,instead of embarrassing commerce under piles of regulating laws1 duties and prohibitions1 could it be relieved from all its shackles in all parts of the world1 could every country be employed in producing that which nature has best fitted it to produce1 and each be free to exchange with others mutual surplusses for mutual wants1 the greatest mass possible would then be produced of those things which contribute to human life and human happiness2 the numbers of mankind would be increased1 and their condition bettered4 ,would even a single nation begin with the ,united ,states this system of free commerce1 it would be advisable to begin it with that nation2 since it is one by one only that it can be extended to all4 ,where the circumstances of either party render it expedient to levy a revenue1 by way of impost1 on commerce1 its freedom might be modified1 in that particular1 by mutual and equivalent measures1 preserving it entire in all others4 ,some nations1 not yet ripe for free commerce in all its extent1 might still be willing to mollify its restrictions and regulations for us1 in proportion to the advantages which an intercourse with us might offer4 ,particularly they may concur with us in reciprocating the duties to be levied on each side1 or in compensating any excess of duty by equivalent advantages of another nature4 ,our commerce is certainly of a character to entitle it to favor in most countries4 ,the commodities we offer are either necessaries of life1 or materials for manufacture1 or convenient subjects of revenue2 and we take in exchange1 either manufactures1 when they have received the last finish of art and industry1 or mere luxuries4 ,such customers may reasonably expect welcome and friendly treatment at every market4 ,customers1 too1 whose demands1 increasing with their wealth and population1 must very shortly give full employment to the whole industry of any nation whatever1 in any line of supply they may get into the habit of calling for from it4 ,but should any nation1 contrary to our wishes1 suppose it may better find its advantage by continuing its system of prohibitions1 duties and regulations1 it behooves us to protect our citizens1 their commerce and navigation1 by counter prohibitions1 duties and regulations1 also4 ,free commerce and navigation are not to be given in exchange for restrictions and vexations2 nor are they likely to produce a relaxation of them4 ,our navigation involves still higher considerations4 ,as a branch of industry1 it is valuable1 but as a resource of defence1 essential4 ,its value1 as a branch of industry1 is enhanced by the dependence of so many other branches on it4 ,in times of general peace it multiplies competitors for employment in transportation1 and so keeps that at its proper level2 and in times of war1 that is to say1 when those nations who may be our principal carriers1 shall be at war with each other1 if we have not within ourselves the means of transportation1 our produce must be exported in belligerent vessels1 at the increased expense of war-freight and insurance1 and the articles which will not bear that1 must perish on our hands4 ,but it is as a resource of defence that our navigation will admit neither neglect nor forbearance4 ,the position and circumstances of the ,united ,states leave them nothing to fear on their land-board1 and nothing to desire beyond their present rights4 ,but on their seaboard1 they are open to injury1 and they have there1 too1 a commerce which must be protected4 ,this can only be done by possessing a respectable body of citizen-seamen1 and of artists and establishments in readiness for ship-building4 ,were the ocean1 which is the common property of all1 open to the industry of all1 so that every person and vessel should be free to take employment wherever it could be found1 the ,united ,states would certainly not set the example of appropriating to themselves1 exclusively1 any portion of the common stock of occupation4 ,they would rely on the enterprise and activity of their citizens for a due participation of the benefits of the seafaring business1 and for keeping the marine class of citizens equal to their object4 ,but if particular nations grasp at undue shares1 and1 more especially1 if they seize on the means of the ,united ,states1 to convert them into aliment for their own strength1 and withdraw them entirely from the support of those to whom they belong1 defensive and protecting measures become necessary on the part of the nation whose marine resources are thus invaded2 or it will be disarmed of its defence2 its productions will lie at the mercy of the nation which has possessed itself exclusively of the means of carrying them1 and its politics may be influenced by those who command its commerce4 ,the carriage of our own commodities1 if once established in another channel1 cannot be resumed in the moment we may desire4 ,if we lose the seamen and artists whom it now occupies1 we lose the present means of marine defence1 and time will be requisite to raise up others1 when disgrace or losses shall bring home to our feelings the error of having abandoned them4 ,the materials for maintaining our due share of navigation1 are ours in abundance4 ,and1 as to the mode of using them1 we have only to adopt the principles of those who put us on the defensive1 or others equivalent and better fitted to our circumstances4 ,the following principles1 being founded in reciprocity1 appear perfectly just1 and to offer no cause of complaint to any nation3 #a4 ,where a nation imposes high duties on our productions1 or prohibits them altogether1 it may be proper for us to do the same by theirs2 first burdening or excluding those productions which they bring here1 in competition with our own of the same kind2 selecting next1 such manufactures as we take from them in greatest quantity1 and which1 at the same time1 we could the soonest furnish to ourselves1 or obtain from other countries2 imposing on them duties lighter at first1 but heavier and heavier afterwards1 as other channels of supply open4 ,such duties having the effect of indirect encouragement to domestic manufactures of the same kind1 may induce the manufacturer to come himself into these ,states1 where cheaper subsistence1 equal laws1 and a vent of his wares1 free of duty1 may ensure him the highest profits from his skill and industry4 ,and here1 it would be in the power of the ,state governments to co-operate essentially1 by opening the resources of encouragement which are under their control1 extending them liberally to artists in those particular branches of manufacture for which their soil1 climate1 population and other circumstances have matured them1 and fostering the precious efforts and progress of household manufacture1 by some patronage suited to the nature of its objects1 guided by the local informations they possess1 and guarded against abuse by their presence and attentions4 ,the oppressions on our agriculture1 in foreign ports1 would thus be made the occasion of relieving it from a dependence on the councils and conduct of others1 and of promoting arts1 manufactures and population at home4 #b4 ,where a nation refuses permission to our merchants and factors to reside within certain parts of their dominions1 we may1 if it should be thought expedient1 refuse residence to theirs in any and every part of ours1 or modify their transactions4 #c4 ,where a nation refuses to receive in our vessels any productions but our own1 we may refuse to receive1 in theirs1 any but their own productions4 ,the first and second clauses of the bill reported by the committee1 are well formed to effect this object4 #d4 ,where a nation refuses to consider any vessel as ours which has not been built within our territories1 we should refuse to consider as theirs1 any vessel not built within their territories4 #e4 ,where a nation refuses to our vessels the carriage even of our own productions1 to certain countries under their domination1 we might refuse to theirs of every description1 the carriage of the same productions to the same countries4 ,but as justice and good neighborhood would dictate that those who have no part in imposing the restriction on us1 should not be the victims of measures adopted to defeat its effect1 it may be proper to confine the restriction to vessels owned or navigated by any subjects of the same dominant power1 other than the inhabitants of the country to which the said productions are to be carried4 ,and to prevent all inconvenience to the said inhabitants1 and to our own1 by too sudden a check on the means of transportation1 we may continue to admit the vessels marked for future exclusion1 on an advanced tonnage1 and for such length of time only1 as may be supposed necessary to provide against that inconvenience4 ,the establishment of some of these principles by ,great ,britain1 alone1 has already lost us in our commerce with that country and its possessions1 between eight and nine hundred vessels of near #dj1jjj tons burden1 according to statements from official materials1 in which they have confidence4 ,this involves a proportional loss of seamen1 shipwrights1 and ship-building1 and is too serious a loss to admit forbearance of some effectual remedy4 ,it is true we must expect some inconvenience in practice from the establishment of discriminating duties4 ,but in this1 as in so many other cases1 we are left to choose between two evils4 ,these inconveniences are nothing when weighed against the loss of wealth and loss of force1 which will follow our perseverance in the plan of indiscrimination4 ,when once it shall be perceived that we are either in the system or in the habit of giving equal advantages to those who extinguish our commerce and navigation by duties and prohibitions1 as to those who treat both with liberality and justice1 liberality and justice will be converted by all into duties and prohibitions4 ,it is not to the moderation and justice of others we are to trust for fair and equal access to market with our productions1 or for our due share in the transportation of them2 but to our own means of independence1 and the firm will to use them4 ,nor do the inconveniences of discrimination merit consideration4 ,not one of the nations before mentioned1 perhaps not a commercial nation on earth1 is without them4 ,in our case one distinction alone will suffice3 that is to say1 between nations who favor our productions and navigation1 and those who do not favor them4 ,one set of moderate duties1 say the present duties1 for the first1 and a fixed advance on these as to some articles1 and prohibitions as to others1 for the last4 ,still1 it must be repeated that friendly arrangements are preferable with all who will come into them2 and that we should carry into such arrangements all the liberality and spirit of accommodation which the nature of the case will admit4 ,france has1 of her own accord1 proposed negotiations for improving1 by a new treaty on fair and equal principles1 the commercial relations of the two countries4 ,but her internal disturbances have hitherto prevented the prosecution of them to effect1 though we have had repeated assurances of a continuance of the disposition4 ,proposals of friendly arrangement have been made on our part1 by the present government1 to that of ,great ,britain1 as the message states2 but1 being already on as good a footing in law1 and a better in fact1 than the most favored nation1 they have not1 as yet1 discovered any disposition to have it meddled with4 ,we have no reason to conclude that friendly arrangements would be declined by the other nations1 with whom we have such commercial intercourse as may render them important4 ,in the meanwhile1 it would rest with the wisdom of ,congress to determine whether1 as to those nations1 they will not surcease ex parte regulations1 on the reasonable presumption that they will concur in doing whatever justice and moderation dictate should be done4 ,,footnote3 #cc ,april #ab1 #agib4 ,,xli4--,report on the ,mint4 ,communicated to the ,senate1 ,december #ca1 #agic4 ,,philadelphia1 ,december #cj1 #agic4 ,,sir1--,i am informed1 by the ,director of the ,mint1 that an impediment has arisen to the coinage of the precious metals1 which it is my duty to lay before you4 ,it will be recollected1 that1 in pursuance of the authority vested in the ,president1 by ,congress1 to procure artists from abroad1 if necessary1 ,mr4 ,drost1 at ,paris1 so well known by the superior style of his coinage1 was engaged for our mint2 but that1 after occasioning to us a considerable delay1 he declined coming4 ,that thereupon1 our minister at ,london1 according to the instructions he had received1 endeavored to procure1 there1 a chief coiner and assayer2 that1 as to the latter1 he succeeded in sending over a ,mr4 ,albion ,coxe1 for that office1 but that he could procure no person there more qualified to discharge the duties of chief coiner1 than might be had here2 and1 therefore1 did not engage one4 ,the duties of this last office have consequently been1 hitherto1 performed1 and well performed1 by ,henry ,voight1 an artist of the ,united ,states1 but the law requiring these officers to give a security1 in the sum of ten thousand dollars each1 neither is able to do it4 ,the coinage of the precious metals has1 therefore1 been prevented for some time past1 though1 in order that the mint might not be entirely idle1 the coinage of copper has been going on2 the trust in that1 at any one point of time1 being of but small amount4 ,it now remains to determine how this difficulty is to be got over4 ,if by discharging these officers1 and seeking others1 it may well be doubted if any can be found in the ,united ,states1 equally capable of fulfilling their duties2 and to seek them from abroad1 would still add to the delay2 and if found either at home or abroad1 they must still be of the description of artists whose circumstances and connections rarely enable them to give security in so large a sum4 ,the other alternative would be to lessen the securityship in money1 and to confide that it will be supplied by the vigilance of the director1 who1 leaving as small masses of metal in the hands of the officers1 at any one time1 as the course of their process will admit1 may reduce the risk to what would not be considerable4 ,to give an idea of the extent of the trust to the several officers1 both as to sum and time1 it may be proper to state the course of the business1 according to what the director is of opinion it should be4 ,the treasurer1 he observes1 should receive the bullion2 the assayer1 by an operation on a few grains of it1 is to ascertain its fineness4 ,the treasurer is then to deliver it to the refiner1 to be melted and mixed to the standard fineness2 the assayer here1 again1 examining a few grains of the melted mass1 and certifying when it is of due fineness2 the refiner then delivers it to the chief coiner1 to be rolled and coined1 and returns it1 when coined1 to the treasurer4 ,by this it appears1 that a few grains only1 at a time1 are in the hands of the assayer1 the mass being confided1 for operation1 to the refiner and chief coiner4 ,it is to be observed that the law has not taken notice of the office of refiner1 though so important an officer ought1 it should seem1 to be of the ,president's nomination1 and ought to give a security nearly equal to that required from the chief coiner4 ,i have thought it my duty to give this information under an impression that it is proper to be communicated to the ,legislature1 who will decide1 in their wisdom1 whether it will be expedient to make it the duty of the treasurer to receive and keep the bullion before coinage2 ,to lessen the pecuniary security required from the chief coiner and assayer2 and ,to place the office of the refiner under the same nomination with that of the other chief officers2 to fix his salary1 and require due security4 ,i have the honor to be1 with the most perfect respect and attachment1 sir1 your most obedient and most humble servant4 ,,end ,,of ,,vol4 ,,vii4 ,,index ,,to ,,vol4 ,,vii4 ,,adams1 ,,john--,his estimate of life1 #cj4 ,his reading1 #ei1 #fi4 ,his religious opinions1 #ei1 #fh1 #bai1 #bhj4 ,calumnies of ,pickering against1 #eh1 #fb4 ,his views of metaphysics1 #ga4 ,his views of ,bonaparte1 #ga4 ,letter of condolence to1 from ,mr4 ,jefferson1 #ajg4 ,oldest signer of the ,declaration of ,independence1 #bah1 #bai4 ,,adams1 ,j4 ,q4--,made ,secretary of ,state1 #he4 ,,alexander1 ,,emperor--,his character and views1 #bj4 ,,advice--,letter of1 #dja4 ,,anatomy--,experiments in1 #chh4 ,,anglo ,,saxon--,the language1 #daf4 ,,apocalypse1 ,,the--,view of1 #cid4 ,,astronomy--,new method of finding longitude1 #bbc1 #bbf4 ,,banks--,evils of the ,banking system1 #fd1 #aaa1 #aae4 ,suspension of1 #adb4 ,distress resulting therefrom1 #aea4 ,jefferson's plan for reducing circulating medium1 #adf4 ,,barbary ,,states--,their piracies1 #bej4 ,efforts to redeem ,algerine prisoners1 #ecb4 ,,bolingbroke1 ,,lord--,his writings1 #aig4 ,,bonaparte--,his character1 #bge4 ,,books--,should be imported free of duty1 #bbj4 ,,campbell1 ,,col4--,hero of ,king's ,mountain1 #bfh4 ,,capitol--,whether there should be any inscription on new one1 #da4 ,,chemistry--,progress of1 #bei4 ,,cincinnati ,,society--,history of1 #cfh4 ,,classics--,the study of1 #aca4 ,,climate--,of western country1 #cge4 ,,coinage--,report on copper coinage1 #dfb4 ,report on coins1 weights and measures1 #dgb4 ,,colonization ,,of ,,negroes--,views on1 #ccb4 ,,commerce--,treaties with ,european powers1 #dcf4 ,our ,mediterranean trade1 #eai4 ,restriction and privileges of our foreign commerce1 #fcf4 ,free ,trade1 how far practicable1 #fdf4 ,,committees ,,of ,,correspondence--,origin of1 #abj4 ,,compensation ,,law--,unpopularity of1 #gh4 ,,congress--,whether it has a right to adjourn to a new place of meeting without consent of ,president1 #die4 ,,consolidation--,dangers of1 #bbc1 #bic1 #dcj4 ,rapid strides towards1 #dbf1 #dcj4 ,,constitution--,rules for interpreting1 #bif1 #ccf1 #cdb1 #ceh4 ,distribution of powers between ,state and ,federal governments1 #big1 #ceh4 ,who the final arbiter between ,state and ,federal governments1 #bih1 #ceh4 ,should be easily amendable1 #cbc1 #ccf4 ,similarity of ,constitutions of different ,states1 #cbc4 ,,courts1 ,,county--,magistrates of1 should be elected by the people1 #ab1 #ah4 ,,cuba--,should not be allowed to pass to ,england1 #bhh1 #bii4 ,people of1 how affected1 #bii4 ,should belong to the ,u4 ,states1 #caf4 ,,david1 ,,king--,his description of a good man1 #ccg4 ,,debt1 ,,foreign--,how it should be managed1 #ejf4 ,,drawbacks--,should be repealed1 #f4 ,,education--,general plan of1 #ih1 #ahg1 #cbb1 #cih4 ,female education1 #aja4 ,northern teachers and professors1 #ahg4 ,common school system of ,virginia a failure1 #bef4 ,,eloquence--,models of1 #bca4 ,,embargo--,circumstances under which1 resorted to1 #cgc4 ,circumstances which led to its repeal1 #dbe1 #dca4 ,treasonable conduct of ,massachusetts in relation to1 #dbe1 #dca4 ,,england--,feeling of towards ,u4 ,states1 #db1 #eai4 ,debt of1 #dc4 ,condition and prospects of1 #de1 #dh1 #bcb4 ,constitution of1 #dh4 ,parties in1 #ej4 ,discontents in1 #aif4 ,origin of her constitution1 #cee4 ,effects of ,norman conquest1 #dac4 ,indemnity for slaves carried off by1 during ,revolutionary war1 #eah4 ,commercial relations of1 with ,united ,states1 #eah4 ,,europe--,condition of1 #ahb1 #aic1 #bag1 #bdd1 #bhh4 ,revolutions in1 #cjg4 ,,expatriation--,exists as a natural right1 #gb4 ,,france--,condition of1 #ff1 #gf4 ,return to1 of ,louis ,,xviii41 #hb4 ,constitution of1 #hf4 ,allied powers depart1 #aji4 ,her revolution1 #cjb4 ,her progress in science1 #cbc4 ,whether our treaties with1 remain ,obligatory after her revolution1 #faa4 ,not allowed to equip privateers in our ports1 #bbf4 ,,franklin1 ,,benjamin--,calumnies against1 #ajh4 ,,fisheries--,report on ,cod fisheries1 #ehh4 ,history of ,cod fisheries1 #ech4 ,history of whale fisheries1 #edd4 ,,generations--,one has no right to bind another1 #af1 #ai1 #caa1 #cei4 ,,government--,views on1 #c1 #bfc1 #cjg1 #cah1 #ceg4 ,should reflect will of people in all its departments1 #i1 #cai4 ,is progressive1 #ae4 ,should be remodelled from time to time1 #ad1 #ai4 ,principle of representation1 #cb4 ,must be adapted to each particular people1 #ef4 ,majority must govern1 #ge4 ,europe cannot bear republican government1 #cbe4 ,,greek--,pronunciation of1 #aab1 #acg4 ,the ablative case in1 #bgb1 #cdj4 ,,grief--,its uses and abuses1 #cc1 #cg4 ,,hamilton1 ,a4--,his monarchical principles1 #chi4 ,,history--,course of1 indicated for ,university of ,virginia1 #dab4 ,,improvement1 ,,internal--,progress of1 #ge1 #dbb4 ,power of1 does not belong to federal government1 #gi4 ,,independence1 ,,declaration ,,of--,its history1 #abb1 #cjd4 ,jefferson's opinion of ,mecklenburg ,declaration1 #abh4 ,authorship of1 #djg4 ,original rough draft of1 #dji4 ,the house in which written1 #daj4 ,celebration of #ejth anniversary of1 #dej4 ,,indians--,their language1 #if1 #djj4 ,plan for civilizing1 #bcc4 ,the right to extinguish ,indian titles belongs to federal and not ,state governments1 #dfg4 ,,jay1 ,,john--,why he did not sign ,declaration of ,independence1 #cjh4 ,,jefferson1 ,,thomas--,his estimate of life1 #be1 #dba4 ,decay of his faculties1 #eb1 #agi1 #cbg4 ,resigned to death1 #eb1 #bdc4 ,oppressed by correspondence1 #ed1 #bed4 ,his occupations in his old age1 #aaa1 #aaf4 ,his habits of life1 #aaf4 ,materials for his biography1 #aag4 ,application for his portrait1 #bjc4 ,complains of publication of his letters1 #bbb4 ,settlements of his accounts on his return from ,france1 #bci1 #bdf4 ,his relations with ,j4 ,adams1 #cad4 ,calumnies of ,pickering1 #cfb4 ,his relations with ,washington unaffected by the ,mazzei letter1 #cfd4 ,their friendship uninterrupted to the last1 #cgj4 ,his losses by security debt1 #dcc4 ,,judiciary1 ,,federal--,decisions of1 do not bind other departments of the government1 #acd1 #agg4 ,each department decides for itself1 #acd1 #agg4 ,danger to our system from encroachments of1 #aib1 #aii1 #baf1 #bef1 #bgh1 #bic1 #cba1 #djc4 ,,kentucky ,,resolutions--,drawn by ,jefferson1 #bbi4 ,,kosciusko--,his will1 #ih4 ,his services to ,united ,states1 #ajf4 ,,la ,,fayette--,his visit to ,united ,states1 #cgh1 #cgi4 ,,lands1 ,,public--,settlements on1 #hc4 ,,langdon1 ,,governor--,his relations with ,jefferson1 #aed4 ,,language--,is progressive1 #agd1 #dah4 ,,law--,course of reading in1 #bjg4 ,common law no part of law of ,united ,states1 #bea4 ,christianity no part of common law1 #cei4 ,origin of common law1 #cha4 ,,law1 ,,international--,principle of free ships make free goods c41 not law of nations1 #bgj4 ,,lee1 ,r4 ,h4--,biography of1 #dbb4 ,,lewis ,,and ,,clarke--,journal of their expedition1 #ia4 ,,livingston1 ,e4--,his code1 #chc1 #dhc4 ,,loan--,proposition for new loan1 #fbi4 ,,lotteries--,jefferson applies for leave to sell his property by lottery1 #dcd4 ,,louisiana--,boundaries of1 #ea4 ,,manufactures--,whether a mark should be secured to each by law1 #efc4 ,,materialism--,views on1 #aec1 #age4 ,,mazzei ,,letter--,history and explanation of1 #cfd4 ,,metaphysics--,views on1 #aec1 #age4 ,,ministers--,senate has no right to negative the grade of a minister1 it can only negative the person appointed by the ,executive1 #dfe4 ,,missions1 ,,religious--,to foreign ,states objectionable1 #bhg4 ,,mint--,the coiner at the mint unable to give security1 #fea4 ,,mississippi ,,river--,our right to navigate1 #efh4 ,,missouri ,,question--#aej1 #aea1 #aid1 #bjj4 ,evil of a geographical line1 #aea1 #aeh1 #aei1 #ahj1 #ahb1 #aid4 ,,monroe1 ,,james--,his election to ,presidency1 #hj4 ,,navy--,origin of navy of ,united ,states1 #bfa1 #bfd4 ,,neutrality--,a neutral nation may refuse belligerents right to pass through its territory1 #eji4 ,,novels--,evil of1 #ajb4 ,,offices--,rotation in1 #aij4 ,,optics--,views on1 suggested1 #beh4 ,,oratory--,defects of modern1 #cdg4 ,,paine1 ,,thomas--,his writings1 #aig4 ,,parties--,history of1 in ,u4 ,s41 #bgg1 #bij4 ,original views of federal and republican1 #bij4 ,republican party becomes federalized1 #cbe1 #cdb4 ,necessity of1 #cgf4 ,a strong monarchical party at the beginning of our government1 #cij4 ,,posts1 ,,north-,,western--,england refuses to surrender1 #eah4 ,,quakers--,character of1 #ff4 ,,randolph1 ,,peyton--,character of1 #bj4 ,,religion--,jefferson's views on1 #bh1 #fa1 #abg1 #afd1 #agj1 #ahe1 #baj1 #bde1 #beb1 #beg1 #bff1 #bfi1 #bha4 ,system of ,jesus compared with ancient philosophers1 #ach1 #aef1 #afd1 #ahe4 ,jesus as a reformer1 #afd4 ,modern fanaticism1 #agj4 ,religious intolerance1 #cif4 ,,representation--,bill apportioning1 #eid4 ,,revolution1 ,,the--,who begun it1 #ii1 #ajc1 #aba4 ,circumstances attending ,declaration of ,independence1 #abb4 ,,revolutionary ,,debt--,those due soldiers of ,north ,carolina and ,virginia should be paid to themselves and not their assignees1 #dfi4 ,,roman ,,people ,,and ,,constitution--#adh1 #aej4 ,,sciences--,distribution of1 #cci4 ,progress of ,france in1 #cbg4 ,,slaves--,not entitled to be represented1 #cf4 ,emancipation of1 #eh1 #caj4 ,amelioration of condition of1 #djc1 #dcg4 ,re-capture of slaves escaped to ,florida1 #fja4 ,,society--,its progress1 #cgg4 ,,south ,,american ,,provinces--,incapable of self-government1 #fg1 #ge1 #ajd1 #baj4 ,,spain--,treaty with1 rejected1 #afj4 ,,taylor1 ,,john--,jefferson's opinion of his constitution construed1 #bac1 #baf4 ,,tracy1 ,,destutt--,his works1 #ch1 #ee4 ,,university ,,of ,,virginia--,organization of1 #ha1 #afa1 #agc1 #aif1 #cbi1 #cib1 #dda4 ,religious objections to appointment of ,dr4 ,cooper in1 #aef1 #afb1 #aga4 ,difficulties surrounding1 #bja1 #bjd1 #bcg1 #cib4 ,necessity for a southern ,university1 #bje4 ,arrangement for religious worship1 #bfg4 ,students allowed to select tickets1 #cjj4 ,difficulties of discipline1 #cja4 ,progress of1 #cji4 ,selection of professors for1 #cdh4 ,inculcation of federal doctrines in1 should be guarded against1 #cig4 ,necessity for an ,anatomical ,hall1 #cic1 #cih4 ,appointment of foreign professors1 #dae4 ,library of1 #dcb4 ,establishment of school of ,botany1 #dch1 #dda4 ,,united ,,states--,true policy of1 #f4 ,animosity to ,england growing out of last war1 #bb4 ,relations of1 with ,european powers1 #bhh4 ,relations of1 with ,england1 #bb4 ,danger of dissolution of ,union1 #ahb4 ,should disconnect their policy from that of ,europe1 #ahc1 #cae4 ,dangers which threaten them1 #baa1 #bad4 ,,vander ,,kemp--,history of1 #bi4 ,,virginia--,programme of new constitution for1 #i4 ,arnold's invasion of1 #add1 #ddd4 ,historical documents of1 #cab4 ,her first constitution1 #cdd4 ,defects in1 #cae4 ,authorship of bill of rights1 constitution of1 #dje1 #djg4 ,,war--,benefits of the last war1 #ff4 ,,wards--,counties should be divided into1 #ce4 ,,washington1 ,,gen4--,authorship of ,farewell ,address1 #bia4 ,no unkind feeling between him and ,jefferson on account of ,mazzei letter1 #cfd4 ,forms and ceremonies adopted during his administration1 #cfg4 ,he was a true republican1 #cga4 ,,washington ,,city--,locating of1 #eab1 #efa4 ,,water--,report on methods of obtaining fresh water from salt1 #dee4 ,,weights ,,and ,,measures--,a standard of1 #hg4 ,report on1 #dgb4 ,,whiskey--,evils of its cheapness1 #bhe4 ,,william ,,and ,,mary ,,college--,its foundation1 #cbh4 ,proposition to consolidate it with ,university1 #cej1 #chd4 ,its charter is under the power of the legislature1 #cej1 #chd4 ,,wines--,use of beneficial1 #aaj4