“The memorial seems well designed to answer the end proposed; and by the time it is revised and new-dressed, you will probably (either in the resolutions, which are or will be handed to me, or in the newspaper publications, which you promised to be attentive to) have seen all the objections against the treaty which have any realforce in them, and which may be fit subjects for representation in the memorial, or in the instructions, or both.“But how much longer the presentation of the memorial can be delayed without exciting unpleasant sensations here, or involving serious evils elsewhere, you, who are at the scene of information and action, can decide better than I. In a matter, however, so interesting and pregnant with consequences as this treaty, there ought to be no precipitation; but, on the contrary, every step should be explored before it is taken, and every word weighed before it is uttered or delivered in writing.”
“The memorial seems well designed to answer the end proposed; and by the time it is revised and new-dressed, you will probably (either in the resolutions, which are or will be handed to me, or in the newspaper publications, which you promised to be attentive to) have seen all the objections against the treaty which have any realforce in them, and which may be fit subjects for representation in the memorial, or in the instructions, or both.
“But how much longer the presentation of the memorial can be delayed without exciting unpleasant sensations here, or involving serious evils elsewhere, you, who are at the scene of information and action, can decide better than I. In a matter, however, so interesting and pregnant with consequences as this treaty, there ought to be no precipitation; but, on the contrary, every step should be explored before it is taken, and every word weighed before it is uttered or delivered in writing.”
Washington arrived at Philadelphia on the eleventh of August. His return was hastened by a mysterious letter from Colonel Pickering, the secretary of war, dated the thirty-first of July. “On the subject of the treaty,” he said, “I confess I feel extreme solicitude, and for aspecial reason, which can be communicated to you only in person. I entreat, therefore, that you will return with all convenient speed to the seat of government. In the meantime, for the reason above referred to, I pray you to decide on no important political measure, in whatever form it may be presented to you. Mr. Wolcott and I (Mr. Bradford concurring) waited on Mr. Randolph, and urged his writing to request your return. He wrote in our presence, but we concluded a letter from one of us also expedient.”
On the day after his arrival, the president called a cabinet meeting. Mr. Pickering had already explained the mysterious hints in his letter, by handing to Washington some papers which had excited suspicions concerning Secretary Randolph's conduct. When the cabinet had convened, the president submitted the question, “What shall be done with the treaty?” Randolph not only insisted upon the repeal of the provision order already alluded to, as a preliminary to ratification, but took the ground that the treaty ought not to be ratified at all, pending the war with Great Britain and France. The other members of the cabinet were in favor of immediate ratification, with a strong memorial against the provision order. In this opinion Washington coincided, and on the eighteenth the ratification was signed by the president. Randolph was directed tocomplete the memorial which he had commenced, and also instructions for further negotiations.
Washington's feelings had been deeply moved by the papers which Pickering placed in his hands. The chief of these was a despatch of M. Fauchet, the French minister, to his government, late in the autumn of 1794, and which had been intercepted. In that despatch, Fauchet gave a sketch of the rise of parties in the United States, in substantial accordance with Jefferson's views, and then he commented freely upon the Whiskey Insurrection in western Pennsylvania, then drawing to a close. Echoing the sentiments of the democratic leaders, Fauchet, professing to have his information from Randolph, declared that the insurrection grew out of political hostility to Hamilton. It was Hamilton's intention, he said, in enforcing the excise, “to mislead the president into unpopular courses, and to introduce absolute power under pretext of giving energy to the government.”
In his further comments, the minister, in deprecation of the conduct of professed republicans, and the general co-operation with the president in putting down the insurrection, said: “Of the governors whose duty it was to appear at the head of the requisitions, the governor of Pennsylvania alone [Mifflin] enjoyed the name of republican. His opinions of the secretary of the treasury, and of his systems, were known to be unfavorable. The secretary of this state [Dallas] possessed great influence in the popular society of Philadelphia, which in its turn influenced those of other states; of course he merited attention. It appears that these men, with others unknown to me, were balancing to decide on their party. Two or three days before the proclamation was published, and of course before the cabinet had resolved on its measures, Mr. Randolph came to me with an air of great eagerness, and made to me the overtures of which I have given an account in my No. 6.[83]
Thus, with some thousands of dollars, the republic could have decided on civil war or on peace! Thus the consciences of the pretended patriots of America already have their prices! What will be the old age of this government, if it is thus already decrepit?”
After speaking of Hamilton's financial schemes as the instrument of making “of a whole nation a stock-jobbing, speculating, and selfish people,” and asserting that “riches alone here fix consideration, and, as no one likes to be despised, they are universally sought after,” he makes some exceptions among the leading republicans by name, and continues:—
“As soon as it was decided that the French republic purchased no men to do their duty, there were to be seen individuals, about whose conduct the government could at least form uneasy conjectures, giving themselves up with scandalous ostentation to its views, and ever seconding its declarations. The popular societies [democratic] soon emitted resolutions stamped with the same spirit, which, although they may not have been prompted by love of order, might nevertheless have been omitted, or uttered with less solemnity. Then were seen, coming from the very men whom we have been accustomed to regard as having little friendship for the treasurer, harangues without end, in order to give a new direction to the public mind.”
This despatch had been intercepted at sea, found its way to the British cabinet, and was forwarded to Mr. Hammond, the British minister at Philadelphia. He placed it in the hands of Mr. Wolcott, the secretary of the treasury, for he ascribed the delay in the ratification of the treaty to Randolph's influence. It was translated by Mr. Pickering, and he, as we have seen, submitted it to the president on his arrival at the seat of government. Washington revolved it in his mind with great concern; but other matters of greater moment demanding his immediate attention after his arrival, he postponed all action upon it until the question of ratifying the treaty should be settled. On the day after the signing of that instrument, the president, in the presence of all the cabinet officers, handed the intercepted despatch to Mr. Randolph, with a request that he should read it and make such explanations as he might think fit.
This was the first intimation Mr. Randolph had of the existence of such a letter. He perused it carefully without perceptible emotion, and with equal composure he commented upon each paragraph in order. He declared that he had never asked for, nor received, any money from the French minister for himself or others, and had never made any improper communications to Fauchet of the measures of the government. He said that he wished more leisure to examine the letter, and he proposed to put further observations in writing. He complained, perhaps justly, of the president's manner in bringing the subject to his notice, without any private intimation of such intention; and he added, that in consideration of the treatment he had received, he could not think of remaining in office a moment longer.
On the same day Randolph tendered his resignation to the president. In his letter accompanying it, he said, “Your confidence in me, sir, has been unlimited, and, I can truly affirm, unabused. My sensations, then, can not be concealed, when I find that confidence so suddenly withdrawn, without a word or distant hint being previously dropped to me. This, sir, as I mentioned in your room, is a situation in which I can not hold my present office, and therefore I hereby resign it.
“It will not, however, be concluded from hence that I mean to relinquish the inquiry. No, sir—very far from it. I will also meet any inquiry; and to prepare for it, if I learn there is a chance of overtaking Mr. Fauchet before he sails, I will go to him immediately.[84]
“I have to beg the favor of you to permit me to be furnished with a copy of the letter, and I will prepare an answer to it; which I perceive that I can not do with the few hasty memoranda which I took with my pencil. I am satisfied, sir, that you will acknowledge one piece of justice to be due on this occasion, which is, that until an inquiry can be made, the affair shall continue in secrecy under your injunction. For, after pledging myself for a more specific investigation of all the suggestions, I here most solemnly deny that any overture came from me, which was to produce money to me or any others for me; and that in any manner, directly or indirectly, was a shilling ever received by me; nor was it ever contemplated by me that one shilling should be applied by Mr. Fauchet to any purpose relative to the insurrection.”
On the following day, Washington wrote to Mr. Randolph: “Whilst you are in pursuit of means to remove the strong suspicions arising from this letter, no disclosure of its contents will be made by me, and I will enjoin the same on the public officers who are acquainted with the purport of it, unless something will appear to render an explanation necessary on the part of the government, and of which I will be the judge.” He afterward said, “No man would rejoice more than I, to find that the suspicions which have resulted from the intercepted letter were unequivocally and honorably removed.”
A message from Randolph reached Fauchet before he was ready to embark, and the minister wrote to the late secretary, a declaration, denying that the latter had ever indicated a willingness to receive money for his own use, and also affirming that, in his letter to his government, he did not say anything derogatory to Mr. Randolph's character. With this declaration from the retiring French minister, and a reliance upon the general tenor of his conduct while in the cabinet, Randolph proceeded to prepare his vindication, at the same time publicly boasting to his friends, with a vindictive spirit, that he would bring things to view which would affect Washington more than anything which had yet appeared. Among other things which he proposed to do, in order to damage the reputation of Washington, was, to undertake to show, by the president's own letter to him on the twenty-second of July, that he (Washington)was opposed to the treaty which he had now so eagerly signed; and that the intercepted despatch had been communicated to Washington as part of a scheme concocted between the British minister and the cabinet officers to insure the ratification of the treaty, to drive Randolph from office, and to crush the republican party in the United States.
The paragraph in Washington's letter on which Randolph intended to base this charge was as follows: “My opinion respecting the treaty is the same now that it was; namely, not favorable to it, but that it is better to ratify it in the manner the senate have advised, and with the reservation already mentioned, than to suffer matters to remain as they are, unsettled.” The letter from which this is copied was on file in the office of the secretary of state; and Randolph, with evidences of a strangely bitter feeling toward Washington, applied to him for a copy of it, that he might publish it in his vindication. “You must be sensible, sir,” he said, “that I am inevitably driven to the discussion of many confidential and delicate points. I could, with safety, immediately appeal to the people of the United States, who can be of no party. But I shall wait for your answer to this letter, so far as it respects the paper desired, before I forward to you my general letter, which is delayed for no other cause. I shall also rely that any supposed error in the general letter in regard to facts will be made known to me, that I may correct it if necessary, and that you will consent to the whole affair, howsoever confidential and delicate, being exhibited to the world. At the same time, I prescribe to myself the condition not to mingle anything which I do not seriously conceive to belong to the subject.”
Utterly mistaking the character of Washington, and ungenerously presuming that the president would withhold his consent to the publication of the letter referred to, Randolph published in thePhiladelphia Gazette, two days after he wrote to Washington, the paragraph in his application which has just been quoted, and with it a note to the editor, saying, “The letter from which the enclosed is an extract relates principally to the requisition of a particular paper.My only view at present is to show to my fellow-citizens what is the state of my vindication.”
Washington was then at Mount Vernon, and the letter, an extract from which was published, could not have reached him when that paragraph was made public. It passed Washington while on his way to Philadelphia, and he did not receive it until the twentieth of October, twelve days after it was written. On the following day, Washington, with a perfect consciousness of his own rectitude at all times and under all circumstances, and with a noble generosity to which his assailant showed himself a stranger, wrote to him as follows:—
“It is not difficult, from the tenor of your letter, to perceive what your objects are. But, that you may have no cause to complain of the withholding of any paper, however private and confidential, which you shall think necessary in a case of so serious a nature, I have directed that you should have the inspection of my letter of the twenty-second of July, agreeably to your request; and you are at full liberty to publish without reserveanyandeveryprivate and confidential letter I ever wrote to you; nay, more—every word I ever uttered to you, or in your hearing, from whence you can derive any advantage in your vindication. I grant this permission, inasmuch as the extract alluded to manifestly tends to impress on the public mind an opinion that something has passed between us, which you should disclose with reluctance, from motives of delicacy with respect to me.”
In reference to Randolph's proposition to submit his vindication to the inspection of Washington, the latter remarked, “As you are no longer an officer of the government, and propose to submit your vindication to the public, it is not my desire, nor is it my intention, to receive it otherwise than through the medium of the press. Facts you can not mistake, and, if they are fairly and candidly stated, they will invite no comments.”
In December the pamphlet appeared, entitled, “A Vindication of Mr. Randolph's Resignation,” in which was a narrative of the principal events which we have just been considering, the correspondencebetween the president and Randolph, the whole of Fauchet's letter, and Randolph's remarks. “From the nature of the circumstances,” says Sparks, “Mr. Randolph had a difficult task to perform, as he was obliged to prove a negative, and to explain vague expressions and insinuations connected with his name in Fauchet's letter.” The statements which he made in proof of his innocence were not such as to produce entire conviction. “He moreover,” continues Sparks, “allowed himself to be betrayed into a warmth of temper and bitterness of feeling not altogether favorable to his candor. After all that has been made known, the particulars of his conversations with Fauchet and his designs are still matters of conjecture.”
In after life, Mr. Randolph deeply regretted the course that he pursued toward Washington at this time. In a letter to Judge Bushrod Washington, written in the summer of 1810, he said: “I do not retain the smallest degree of that feeling which roused me fifteen years ago against some individuals. For the world contains no treasure, deception, or charm, which can seduce me from the consolation of being in a state of good will towards all mankind; and I should not be mortified to ask pardon of any man with whom I have been at variance, for any injury which I may have done him. If I could now present myself before your venerated uncle, it would be my pride to confess my contrition, that I suffered my irritation, let the cause be what it might, to use some of those expressions respecting him, which, at this moment of my indifference to the ideas of the world, I wish to recall, as being inconsistent with my subsequent conviction.”[85]
It was thus with all the assaults ever made upon the character of Washington. They always failed to injure it in the slightest degree; and the sharpest and best-tempered shafts of malignity fell blunted and harmless from the invulnerable shield of his spotless integrity.
FOOTNOTES:[79]At a civic feast in Philadelphia, on the first of May, which was attended by a great number of American citizens, to celebrate the recent victories of France, the subjoined toasts were given. The managers of the feast sent the following invitation to President Washington:—“Sir: The subscribers, a committee in behalf of a number of American, French, and Dutch citizens, request the honor of your company to a civic festival, to be given on Friday, the seventeenth of April, appointed to celebrate the late victories of the French republic, and the emancipation of Holland.” The feast was postponed until the first of May. Washington did not attend; but the occasion was honored by the presence of the French minister and consul, and the consul of Holland. The following are the toasts:—The republic of France, whose triumphs have made this day a jubilee; may she destroy the race of kings, and may their broken sceptres and crowns, like the bones and teeth of the mammoth, be the only evidence that such monsters ever infested the earth.The republic of France; may the shores of Great Britain soon hail the tri-colored standard, and the people rend the air with shouts of 'Long live the republic!'The republic of France; may her navy clear the ocean of pirates, that the common high way of nations may no longer, like the highways of Great Britain, be a receptacle for robbers.The republic of France; may all free nations learn of her to transfer their attachment from men to principles, and from individuals to the people.The republic of France; may her example, in the abolition of titles and splendor, be a lesson to all republics to destroy those leavens of corruption.The republic of Holland; may the flame of liberty which they have rekindled never be permitted to expire for want of vigilance and energy.The republic of Holland; may her two sisters, the republics of France and America, form with her an invincible triumvirate in the cause of liberty.The republic of Holland; may she again give birth to a Van Tromp and a De Ruyter, who shall make the satellites of George tremble at their approach, and seek their safety in flight.The republic of Holland; may that fortitude which sustained her in the dire conflict with Philip the Second, and the success that crowned her struggles, be multiplied upon her in the hour of her regeneration.The republic of Holland; may that government which they are about establishing have neither the balances of aristocracy nor the checks of monarchy.The republic of America; may the sentiment that impelled her to resist a British tyrant's will, and the energy which rendered it effectual, prompt her to repel usurpation in whatever shape it may assail her.The republic of America; may the aristocracy of wealth, founded upon the virtues, the toils, and the blood of her Revolutionary armies, soon vanish, and, like the baseless fabric of a vision, leave not a wreck behind.The republic of America; may her government have public good for its object, and be purged of the dregs of sophisticated republicanism.The republic of America; may the alliance formed between her and France acquire vigor with age, and that man be branded as the enemy of liberty who shall endeavor to weaken or unhinge it.The republic of America; may her administration have virtue enough to defy the ordeal of patriotic societies, and patriotism enough to cherish instead of denouncing them.”[80]Old and New York, by J. W. Francis, M. D., LL.D. “Edward Livingston,” says Doctor Francis, (afterwards so celebrated for his Louisiana Code,) “was, I am informed, one of the violent numbers by whom the stones were thrown.”[81]History of the United States, Second Series, i, 550.[82]The names of the selectmen who addressed him were Ezekiel Price, Thomas Walley, William Boardman, Ebenezer Seaver, Thomas Crafts, Thomas Edwards, William Little, William Scollay, and Jesse Putnam.[83]In “No. 6,” written, it is supposed, some time in August, Fauchet, alluding to the breaking out of the Whiskey Insurrection, said: “Scarce was the commotion known when the secretary of state [Mr. Randolph] came to my house. All his countenance was grief. He requested of me a private conversation. 'It is all over,' he said to me; 'a civil war is about to ravage our unhappy country. Four men, by their talents, their influence, their energy, may save it. But—debtors of English merchants—they will be deprived of their liberty if they take the smallest step. Could you lend them instantaneous funds sufficient to shelter them from English persecution?' This inquiry astonished me. It was impossible for me to make a satisfactory answer. You know my want of power and my defect of pecuniary means. I shall draw myself from the affair by some common-place remarks, and by throwing myself on the pure and disinterested principles of the republic.”[84]Fauchet had been superseded by M. Adet, and had gone to New York to embark for France, when this difficulty occurred.[85]Marshall'sLife of Washington, ii. Appendix, Note xx.
[79]At a civic feast in Philadelphia, on the first of May, which was attended by a great number of American citizens, to celebrate the recent victories of France, the subjoined toasts were given. The managers of the feast sent the following invitation to President Washington:—“Sir: The subscribers, a committee in behalf of a number of American, French, and Dutch citizens, request the honor of your company to a civic festival, to be given on Friday, the seventeenth of April, appointed to celebrate the late victories of the French republic, and the emancipation of Holland.” The feast was postponed until the first of May. Washington did not attend; but the occasion was honored by the presence of the French minister and consul, and the consul of Holland. The following are the toasts:—The republic of France, whose triumphs have made this day a jubilee; may she destroy the race of kings, and may their broken sceptres and crowns, like the bones and teeth of the mammoth, be the only evidence that such monsters ever infested the earth.The republic of France; may the shores of Great Britain soon hail the tri-colored standard, and the people rend the air with shouts of 'Long live the republic!'The republic of France; may her navy clear the ocean of pirates, that the common high way of nations may no longer, like the highways of Great Britain, be a receptacle for robbers.The republic of France; may all free nations learn of her to transfer their attachment from men to principles, and from individuals to the people.The republic of France; may her example, in the abolition of titles and splendor, be a lesson to all republics to destroy those leavens of corruption.The republic of Holland; may the flame of liberty which they have rekindled never be permitted to expire for want of vigilance and energy.The republic of Holland; may her two sisters, the republics of France and America, form with her an invincible triumvirate in the cause of liberty.The republic of Holland; may she again give birth to a Van Tromp and a De Ruyter, who shall make the satellites of George tremble at their approach, and seek their safety in flight.The republic of Holland; may that fortitude which sustained her in the dire conflict with Philip the Second, and the success that crowned her struggles, be multiplied upon her in the hour of her regeneration.The republic of Holland; may that government which they are about establishing have neither the balances of aristocracy nor the checks of monarchy.The republic of America; may the sentiment that impelled her to resist a British tyrant's will, and the energy which rendered it effectual, prompt her to repel usurpation in whatever shape it may assail her.The republic of America; may the aristocracy of wealth, founded upon the virtues, the toils, and the blood of her Revolutionary armies, soon vanish, and, like the baseless fabric of a vision, leave not a wreck behind.The republic of America; may her government have public good for its object, and be purged of the dregs of sophisticated republicanism.The republic of America; may the alliance formed between her and France acquire vigor with age, and that man be branded as the enemy of liberty who shall endeavor to weaken or unhinge it.The republic of America; may her administration have virtue enough to defy the ordeal of patriotic societies, and patriotism enough to cherish instead of denouncing them.”
[79]At a civic feast in Philadelphia, on the first of May, which was attended by a great number of American citizens, to celebrate the recent victories of France, the subjoined toasts were given. The managers of the feast sent the following invitation to President Washington:—
“Sir: The subscribers, a committee in behalf of a number of American, French, and Dutch citizens, request the honor of your company to a civic festival, to be given on Friday, the seventeenth of April, appointed to celebrate the late victories of the French republic, and the emancipation of Holland.” The feast was postponed until the first of May. Washington did not attend; but the occasion was honored by the presence of the French minister and consul, and the consul of Holland. The following are the toasts:—The republic of France, whose triumphs have made this day a jubilee; may she destroy the race of kings, and may their broken sceptres and crowns, like the bones and teeth of the mammoth, be the only evidence that such monsters ever infested the earth.The republic of France; may the shores of Great Britain soon hail the tri-colored standard, and the people rend the air with shouts of 'Long live the republic!'The republic of France; may her navy clear the ocean of pirates, that the common high way of nations may no longer, like the highways of Great Britain, be a receptacle for robbers.The republic of France; may all free nations learn of her to transfer their attachment from men to principles, and from individuals to the people.The republic of France; may her example, in the abolition of titles and splendor, be a lesson to all republics to destroy those leavens of corruption.The republic of Holland; may the flame of liberty which they have rekindled never be permitted to expire for want of vigilance and energy.The republic of Holland; may her two sisters, the republics of France and America, form with her an invincible triumvirate in the cause of liberty.The republic of Holland; may she again give birth to a Van Tromp and a De Ruyter, who shall make the satellites of George tremble at their approach, and seek their safety in flight.The republic of Holland; may that fortitude which sustained her in the dire conflict with Philip the Second, and the success that crowned her struggles, be multiplied upon her in the hour of her regeneration.The republic of Holland; may that government which they are about establishing have neither the balances of aristocracy nor the checks of monarchy.The republic of America; may the sentiment that impelled her to resist a British tyrant's will, and the energy which rendered it effectual, prompt her to repel usurpation in whatever shape it may assail her.The republic of America; may the aristocracy of wealth, founded upon the virtues, the toils, and the blood of her Revolutionary armies, soon vanish, and, like the baseless fabric of a vision, leave not a wreck behind.The republic of America; may her government have public good for its object, and be purged of the dregs of sophisticated republicanism.The republic of America; may the alliance formed between her and France acquire vigor with age, and that man be branded as the enemy of liberty who shall endeavor to weaken or unhinge it.The republic of America; may her administration have virtue enough to defy the ordeal of patriotic societies, and patriotism enough to cherish instead of denouncing them.”
“Sir: The subscribers, a committee in behalf of a number of American, French, and Dutch citizens, request the honor of your company to a civic festival, to be given on Friday, the seventeenth of April, appointed to celebrate the late victories of the French republic, and the emancipation of Holland.” The feast was postponed until the first of May. Washington did not attend; but the occasion was honored by the presence of the French minister and consul, and the consul of Holland. The following are the toasts:—
[80]Old and New York, by J. W. Francis, M. D., LL.D. “Edward Livingston,” says Doctor Francis, (afterwards so celebrated for his Louisiana Code,) “was, I am informed, one of the violent numbers by whom the stones were thrown.”
[80]Old and New York, by J. W. Francis, M. D., LL.D. “Edward Livingston,” says Doctor Francis, (afterwards so celebrated for his Louisiana Code,) “was, I am informed, one of the violent numbers by whom the stones were thrown.”
[81]History of the United States, Second Series, i, 550.
[81]History of the United States, Second Series, i, 550.
[82]The names of the selectmen who addressed him were Ezekiel Price, Thomas Walley, William Boardman, Ebenezer Seaver, Thomas Crafts, Thomas Edwards, William Little, William Scollay, and Jesse Putnam.
[82]The names of the selectmen who addressed him were Ezekiel Price, Thomas Walley, William Boardman, Ebenezer Seaver, Thomas Crafts, Thomas Edwards, William Little, William Scollay, and Jesse Putnam.
[83]In “No. 6,” written, it is supposed, some time in August, Fauchet, alluding to the breaking out of the Whiskey Insurrection, said: “Scarce was the commotion known when the secretary of state [Mr. Randolph] came to my house. All his countenance was grief. He requested of me a private conversation. 'It is all over,' he said to me; 'a civil war is about to ravage our unhappy country. Four men, by their talents, their influence, their energy, may save it. But—debtors of English merchants—they will be deprived of their liberty if they take the smallest step. Could you lend them instantaneous funds sufficient to shelter them from English persecution?' This inquiry astonished me. It was impossible for me to make a satisfactory answer. You know my want of power and my defect of pecuniary means. I shall draw myself from the affair by some common-place remarks, and by throwing myself on the pure and disinterested principles of the republic.”
[83]In “No. 6,” written, it is supposed, some time in August, Fauchet, alluding to the breaking out of the Whiskey Insurrection, said: “Scarce was the commotion known when the secretary of state [Mr. Randolph] came to my house. All his countenance was grief. He requested of me a private conversation. 'It is all over,' he said to me; 'a civil war is about to ravage our unhappy country. Four men, by their talents, their influence, their energy, may save it. But—debtors of English merchants—they will be deprived of their liberty if they take the smallest step. Could you lend them instantaneous funds sufficient to shelter them from English persecution?' This inquiry astonished me. It was impossible for me to make a satisfactory answer. You know my want of power and my defect of pecuniary means. I shall draw myself from the affair by some common-place remarks, and by throwing myself on the pure and disinterested principles of the republic.”
[84]Fauchet had been superseded by M. Adet, and had gone to New York to embark for France, when this difficulty occurred.
[84]Fauchet had been superseded by M. Adet, and had gone to New York to embark for France, when this difficulty occurred.
[85]Marshall'sLife of Washington, ii. Appendix, Note xx.
[85]Marshall'sLife of Washington, ii. Appendix, Note xx.
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violence of party spirit—inflammatory appeals to the people—washington menaced with impeachment, and charged with plundering the treasury—newspaper discussions—hamilton in defence of the treaty—jefferson's appeal to madison to come to the rescue—proceedings in boston—reconstruction of the cabinet—arrival of young lafayette—washington's friendship for him—caution and expediency—the exiles and the congress—their home at mount vernon—their departure for france.
violence of party spirit—inflammatory appeals to the people—washington menaced with impeachment, and charged with plundering the treasury—newspaper discussions—hamilton in defence of the treaty—jefferson's appeal to madison to come to the rescue—proceedings in boston—reconstruction of the cabinet—arrival of young lafayette—washington's friendship for him—caution and expediency—the exiles and the congress—their home at mount vernon—their departure for france.
The ratification of the treaty increased the violence of party spirit. The batteries of fiercest vituperation were now opened upon the president, and the habitual courtesy with which he had been treated was lost sight of in the fury of party hate.
The opponents of the treaty saw only one more expedient to defeat it, now that they had failed to intimidate Washington or cause him to withhold his signature. They started the idea, as a forlorn hope, that although the president might ratify, it still rested with the house of representatives to refuse, if they chose, the pecuniary means to carry the treaty into effect, and thus to nullify it. They, therefore, resolved to use every effort to accomplish their purposes in this way. The elections in the several states were not yet completed, and they felt confident that a majority had already been chosen who were hostile to the treaty.
The most inflammatory addresses were circulated, to influence the people against the president and the treaty, and to form a public opinion that should bear with potency upon the supreme legislature. “The president,” said one of these addresses, “has thrown the gauntlet, and shame on the coward heart that refuses to take it up. He has declared war against the people, by treating theiropinions with contempt; he has forfeited his claim to their confidence, by acting in opposition to their will. Our liberties are in jeopardy, and we must either rescue them from the precipice or they will be lost for ever. One hope offers itself to us, and a consolatory one, too—thehouse of representatives of the United States. As we have looked in vain for patriotism from the president, let us turn our eyes toward that body; they are our immediate representatives; they feel our wants, participate in our injuries, and sympathize in our distresses. They never will submit to have our country degraded; they never will be passive under the outrages upon our constitution; they never will be the instruments of voting away the people's rights. As our application to the president has been treated with scorn, let us make our appeal to that body which has the power ofimpeachment, and we shall not find them step-fathers of their country. A treaty which has bartered away their rights can not, will not, be submitted to. Let us then, fellow-citizens, rally round our representatives, and we may still be free!”
Such appeals had a powerful effect; and a writer in theAurorawent so far as to charge Washington with having used the public money for his own private use! The charge was maintained with the most unblushing effrontery. When Congress met, petitions were forwarded to the house of representatives from all parts of the Union, bitterly denouncing the treaty, and praying that body to stand in the breach and rescue the country from the usurpations of the president and senate. The newspapers discussed the subject with great warmth; and Brockholst Livingston, over the signature of “Decius,” assailed the treaty with great ability. This aroused Hamilton, who had both spoken and written in favor of the treaty. He came to the tournament most gallantly, and, over the signature of “Camillus,” he dealt such powerful blows with his battle-axe of fact and logic; that “Decius” was quickly unhorsed. Jefferson, with his eagle vision, had watched the combat with intense interest from his eyry at Monticello; and when he saw the force of Hamilton's reasoning, and the power it must have upon the people, he shoutedto Madison to join the lists and do battle against “Camillus,” and a smaller champion called “Curtius.” “Hamilton,” he exclaimed in a letter to Madison on the twenty-first of September, “is really a colossus to the anti-republican party. Without numbers, he is a host within himself. They have got themselves into a defile, where they might be finished; but too much security on the republican part will give time to his talents and indefatigableness to extricate them. We have had only middling performers to oppose to him. In truth, when he comes forward, there is nobody but yourself who can meet him. His adversaries have begun the attack, he has the advantage of answering them, and remains unanswered himself. A solid reply might yet completely demolish what was too feebly attacked, and has gathered strength from the weakness of the attack.” With his usual alarm-bell notes, Jefferson then spoke of “Hamilton, Jay,” etc., as engaged “in the boldest act they ever ventured on to undermine the government;” and exclaimed, in conclusion, “For God's sake, take up your pen and give a fundamental reply to 'Curtius' and 'Camillus.'”[86]
The opposition found other champions of the treaty to meet than newspaper writers. The friends of that instrument and the government rallied in various forms. A few days before the president signed the ratification, the Boston Chamber of Commerce, like that of New York, representing a large and influential class to be affected by the treaty, passed a resolution, with only one dissenting voice, in favor of ratification. Some violent Boston republicans, to counteract these expressions, used the mobocratic argument and paraded an effigy of Jay in the streets, and concluded the performance by burning it, attacking the house of the editor of a federal paper (from which they were repulsed by firearms), and keeping the New England capital in a disturbed state for several days. Philadelphia merchants, on the contrary, in large numbers, signed a memorial taking ground in favor of the treaty. This was imitated elsewhere, and these memorials went into the house of representatives with the denunciatory petitions.
In the midst of all this storm, Washington remained calm, with his hand firmly resting upon the helm of state, and his eye steadily fixed upon the great compass and chart of integrity by which his course was always determined. In a reply to a friendly letter from General Knox, who assured him of a changing opinion in New England in favor of the treaty, he said:—
“Next to a conscientious discharge of my public duties, to carry along with me the approbation of my constituents would be the highest gratification my mind is susceptible of; but, the latter being secondary, I can not make the former yield to it, unless some criterion more infallible than partial (if they are not party) meetings can be discovered, as the touchstone of public sentiment. If any power on earth could, or the great Power above would, erect the standard of infallibility in political opinions, there is no being that inhabits this terrestrial globe that would resort to it with more eagerness than myself, so long as I remain a servant of the public. But as I have found no better guide, hitherto, than upright intentions and close investigation, I shall adhere to those maxims while I keep the watch, leaving it to those who will come after me to explore new ways, if they like or think them better.”
“Next to a conscientious discharge of my public duties, to carry along with me the approbation of my constituents would be the highest gratification my mind is susceptible of; but, the latter being secondary, I can not make the former yield to it, unless some criterion more infallible than partial (if they are not party) meetings can be discovered, as the touchstone of public sentiment. If any power on earth could, or the great Power above would, erect the standard of infallibility in political opinions, there is no being that inhabits this terrestrial globe that would resort to it with more eagerness than myself, so long as I remain a servant of the public. But as I have found no better guide, hitherto, than upright intentions and close investigation, I shall adhere to those maxims while I keep the watch, leaving it to those who will come after me to explore new ways, if they like or think them better.”
During the autumn, while these public discussions were at their height, Washington was called upon to reconstruct his cabinet on account of the resignation of Randolph, the secretary of state, and the death of Bradford, the attorney-general, both events having occurred in August. The president found some difficulty in filling Randolph's place. “In the appointment of the great officers of government,” Washington wrote to Colonel Carrington in October, “my aim has been to combine geographical situation, and sometimes other considerations, with abilities and fitness ofknowncharacters.” He had offered the place successively to Judge Paterson, of New Jersey, Thomas Johnson, of Maryland, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, of South Carolina, and Patrick Henry, of Virginia; but they all declined. In his letter to Henry, who, it was understood, was not very well pleased with the treaty, Washington said:—
“I persuade myself, sir, it has not escaped your observation that a crisis is approaching, that must, if it can not be arrested, soon decide whether order and good government shall be preserved, or anarchy and confusion ensue. I can most religiously aver, I have no wish that is incompatible with the dignity, happiness, and true interest of the people of this country. My ardent desire is, and my aim has been, as far as depended upon the executive department, to comply strictly with all our engagements, foreign and domestic; but to keep the United States free from political connection with every other country, to see them independent of all, and under the influence of none. In a word, I want anAmericancharacter, that the powers of Europe may be convinced we act forourselves, and not for others. This, in my judgment, is the only way to be respected abroad and happy at home; and not, by becoming the partisans of Great Britain or France, create dissentions, disturb the public tranquillity, and destroy, perhaps for ever, the cement which binds the Union.”
“I persuade myself, sir, it has not escaped your observation that a crisis is approaching, that must, if it can not be arrested, soon decide whether order and good government shall be preserved, or anarchy and confusion ensue. I can most religiously aver, I have no wish that is incompatible with the dignity, happiness, and true interest of the people of this country. My ardent desire is, and my aim has been, as far as depended upon the executive department, to comply strictly with all our engagements, foreign and domestic; but to keep the United States free from political connection with every other country, to see them independent of all, and under the influence of none. In a word, I want anAmericancharacter, that the powers of Europe may be convinced we act forourselves, and not for others. This, in my judgment, is the only way to be respected abroad and happy at home; and not, by becoming the partisans of Great Britain or France, create dissentions, disturb the public tranquillity, and destroy, perhaps for ever, the cement which binds the Union.”
After considerable delay, Colonel Pickering was transferred to the department of state, and James M'Henry, of Maryland, was appointed secretary of war. At the close of November, Charles Lee, of Virginia, accepted the office of attorney-general, as the successor of Bradford, and at the opening of Congress the cabinet was in working order, with apparently harmonious elements.
It was during these political agitations that George Washington Lafayette, a son of the marquis, arrived in the United States, to claim an asylum at the hands of Washington. He could not have appeared at a more inopportune moment; for political reasons rendered it inexpedient for the president, as such, to receive him; and to place him in his family might cause perplexities, connected with political affairs, prejudicial to the public tranquillity.
We have already noticed the flight of Lafayette from France before the fury of Jacobin fanaticism, and his incarceration in an Austrian dungeon, while his family were left to be the sport of fortune. In that dungeon the marquis was confined almost three years, in a cell three paces broad and five and a half long, containing no other ornament than two French verses which rhymed withthe words “to suffer and to die.” And yet his great soul went out to his suffering fellow-man as free as the air of heaven; and with a toothpick (for he was deprived of pen and ink) he wrote to a princess, who sympathized with him, on a scrap of paper which came to him almost miraculously, and with soot and water, these noble words: “I know not what disposition has been made of my plantation at Cayenne, but I hope Madame Lafayette will take care that the negroes who cultivate it shall preserve their liberty.” He had set them all free.
The marchioness, as soon as she was allowed the privilege, hastened to Olmutz with her daughters to share the dungeon with the husband and father; while their son, whom they had named in honor of their illustrious friend, came to the United States with his tutor, M. Frestel, consigned to the fatherly care of Washington. Young Lafayette was then about seventeen years of age.
The two exiles arrived at Boston at the close of the summer of 1795, and they immediately sent information of the fact to the president, who was just on the point of leaving Philadelphia for Mount Vernon. Washington's first impulse was to take the young man to his bosom and cherish him as a son; but, as we have observed, grave reasons of state denied him that pleasure. After brief reflection, he sent the letters of the exiles, to Senator Cabot, of Boston, saying:—
“To express all the sensibility which has been excited in my breast by the receipt of young Lafayette's letter, from the recollection of his father's merits, services and sufferings, from my friendship for him, and from my wishes to become a friend and father to his son, is unnecessary.”[87]Let me in a few words declare that I will be his friend; but the manner of becoming so, considering the obnoxious light in which his father is viewed by the French government, and my own situation as the executive of the United States, requires more time to consider, in all its relations, than I can bestow on it at present, the letters not having been in my hands more than an hour, and I myself on the point of setting out for Virginia to fetch my family back, whom I left there about the first of August.“The mode, which at the first view strikes me as the most eligible to answer his purposes and to save appearances, is, first, to administer all the consolation to the young gentleman that he can derive from the most unequivocal assurances of my standing in the place of, and becoming to him, a father, friend, protector, and supporter. But, secondly, for prudential motives, as they relate to myself, his mother and friends whom he has left behind, and to my official character, it would be best not to make these sentiments public; and of course it would be ineligible that he should come to the seat of the general government, where all the foreign characters (particularly those of his own nation) are residents, until it is seen what opinions will be excited by his arrival; especially, too, as I shall be necessarily absent five or six weeks from it, on business in several places. Thirdly, considering how important it is to avoid idleness and dissipation, to improve his mind, and to give him all the advantages which education can bestow, my opinion and my advice to him are, if he is qualified for admission, that he should enter as a student in the university in Cambridge, although it should be for a short time only; the expense of which, as also for every other means for his support, I will pay.... Let me pray you, my dear sir, to impress upon young Lafayette's mind, and indeed upon that of his tutor, that the reasons why I do not urge him to come to me have been frankly related, and that their prudence must appreciate them with caution. My friendship for his father, so far from being diminished, has increased in the ratio of his misfortunes; and my inclination to serve the son will be evidenced by my conduct.”
“To express all the sensibility which has been excited in my breast by the receipt of young Lafayette's letter, from the recollection of his father's merits, services and sufferings, from my friendship for him, and from my wishes to become a friend and father to his son, is unnecessary.”[87]Let me in a few words declare that I will be his friend; but the manner of becoming so, considering the obnoxious light in which his father is viewed by the French government, and my own situation as the executive of the United States, requires more time to consider, in all its relations, than I can bestow on it at present, the letters not having been in my hands more than an hour, and I myself on the point of setting out for Virginia to fetch my family back, whom I left there about the first of August.
“The mode, which at the first view strikes me as the most eligible to answer his purposes and to save appearances, is, first, to administer all the consolation to the young gentleman that he can derive from the most unequivocal assurances of my standing in the place of, and becoming to him, a father, friend, protector, and supporter. But, secondly, for prudential motives, as they relate to myself, his mother and friends whom he has left behind, and to my official character, it would be best not to make these sentiments public; and of course it would be ineligible that he should come to the seat of the general government, where all the foreign characters (particularly those of his own nation) are residents, until it is seen what opinions will be excited by his arrival; especially, too, as I shall be necessarily absent five or six weeks from it, on business in several places. Thirdly, considering how important it is to avoid idleness and dissipation, to improve his mind, and to give him all the advantages which education can bestow, my opinion and my advice to him are, if he is qualified for admission, that he should enter as a student in the university in Cambridge, although it should be for a short time only; the expense of which, as also for every other means for his support, I will pay.... Let me pray you, my dear sir, to impress upon young Lafayette's mind, and indeed upon that of his tutor, that the reasons why I do not urge him to come to me have been frankly related, and that their prudence must appreciate them with caution. My friendship for his father, so far from being diminished, has increased in the ratio of his misfortunes; and my inclination to serve the son will be evidenced by my conduct.”
General Knox, then in Boston, took much interest in the youngLafayette. In a letter to Washington, on the twenty-first of September, he said, “He goes by the name of Motier [a family name of his father], concealing his real name, lest some injury should arise to his mother, or to a young Mr. Russell of this town, now in France, who assisted in his escape.” Knox spoke of the exile as “a lovely young man, of excellent morals and conduct.”
Mr. Cabot readily undertook the duty solicited by Washington. He found Lafayette and his tutor in much perplexity. The attempt at concealment was futile. “Already M. Motier is known to too many persons,” wrote Mr. Cabot, “and a public festival announced by the French consul for Monday next, at which all their citizens in this vicinity are expected to attend, occasions serious embarrassments; to which is added, that some circumstances of delicacy relative to the family in which they are placed, make an immediate removal proper.” He further informed him that they were about to depart for New York, where they expected to be accommodated in the country-house of a French gentleman, their friend, where they would remain in retirement, until they should receive further directions from Washington. Mr. Cabot gave them letters to Colonel Wadsworth and Colonel Hamilton, and they departed.
In November, soon after his return to Philadelphia, Washington wrote an affectionate letter to young Lafayette, in which, after telling him the causes which rendered it necessary for them both to be circumspect, and desiring him to repair with his tutor to Colonel Hamilton, in the city of New York, who would see that they were well provided for, he said:—
“How long the causes which have withheld you from me may continue, I am not able at this moment to decide; but be assured of my wishes to embrace you, so soon as they shall have ceased, and that, whenever the period arrives, I shall do it with fervency. In the meantime, let me begin with fatherly advice to you to apply closely to your studies, that the season of your youth may be improved to the utmost, that you may be found the deserving son of a meritorious father.” To M. Frestel, Washington wrote at the same time, after directing him to read his letter to his pupil: “Tothe above I shall just add, that, as the preceptor and friend of M. de Lafayette, I pray you to count upon my attentions and friendship, and learn that it is my expectation that you will accompany him in whatever situation he may be placed; and moreover that you will let me know, at all times, what he has occasion for.”
“How long the causes which have withheld you from me may continue, I am not able at this moment to decide; but be assured of my wishes to embrace you, so soon as they shall have ceased, and that, whenever the period arrives, I shall do it with fervency. In the meantime, let me begin with fatherly advice to you to apply closely to your studies, that the season of your youth may be improved to the utmost, that you may be found the deserving son of a meritorious father.” To M. Frestel, Washington wrote at the same time, after directing him to read his letter to his pupil: “Tothe above I shall just add, that, as the preceptor and friend of M. de Lafayette, I pray you to count upon my attentions and friendship, and learn that it is my expectation that you will accompany him in whatever situation he may be placed; and moreover that you will let me know, at all times, what he has occasion for.”
The Congress at length took official notice of the presence of the son of Lafayette; and on the eighteenth of March, 1796, the house of representatives passed the following resolution and order:—
“Information having been given to this house that a son of General Lafayette is now within the United States;Resolved, that a committee be appointed to inquire into the truth of the said information, and report thereon; and what measures it would be proper to take if the same be true, to evince the grateful sense entertained by the country for the services of his father.“Ordered, that Mr. Livingston, Mr. Sherburne, and Mr. Murray, be appointed a committee pursuant to the said resolution.”
“Information having been given to this house that a son of General Lafayette is now within the United States;Resolved, that a committee be appointed to inquire into the truth of the said information, and report thereon; and what measures it would be proper to take if the same be true, to evince the grateful sense entertained by the country for the services of his father.
“Ordered, that Mr. Livingston, Mr. Sherburne, and Mr. Murray, be appointed a committee pursuant to the said resolution.”
As chairman of the committee, Mr. Livingston wrote to young Lafayette as follows:—
“Sir: Actuated by motives of gratitude to your father, and eager to seize every opportunity of showing their sense of his important services, the house of representatives have passed the resolution which I have the pleasure to communicate. The committee being directed to inquire into the fact of your arrival within the United States, permit me to advise your immediate appearance at this place, that the legislature of America may no longer be in doubt, whether the son of Lafayette is under their protection, and within the reach of their gratitude.“I presume to give this advice as an individual personally attached to your father, and very solicitous to be useful to any person in whose happiness he is interested. If I should have that good fortune on this occasion, it will afford me the greatest satisfaction.”
“Sir: Actuated by motives of gratitude to your father, and eager to seize every opportunity of showing their sense of his important services, the house of representatives have passed the resolution which I have the pleasure to communicate. The committee being directed to inquire into the fact of your arrival within the United States, permit me to advise your immediate appearance at this place, that the legislature of America may no longer be in doubt, whether the son of Lafayette is under their protection, and within the reach of their gratitude.
“I presume to give this advice as an individual personally attached to your father, and very solicitous to be useful to any person in whose happiness he is interested. If I should have that good fortune on this occasion, it will afford me the greatest satisfaction.”
This letter, and the resolutions of the house of representatives, young Lafayette forwarded to President Washington, and asked his advice as to the course he should pursue. Washington advised him to come to Philadelphia at the opening of the next session of Congress,occupy a room in his house, but to avoid society as much as possible. He complied, and remained in Philadelphia until the following spring, when Washington, on becoming a private citizen, embraced the son of his friend as if he had been his own child, and bore him to his home on the Potomac. There he remained until early in October, when the joyful news of the release of his father from confinement, and his restoration to his country and friends, caused him to leave for the seaboard to depart for France. He and M. Frestel sailed from New York on the twenty-sixth of October, 1797.
As young Lafayette was about to leave Mount Vernon, Washington placed a letter in his hands for his father, in which he said:—
“From the delicate and responsible situation in which I stood as a public officer, but more especially from a misconception of the manner in which your son had left France, till explained to me in a personal interview with himself, he did not come immediately into my family on his arrival in America, though he was assured, in the first moments of it, of my protection and support. His conduct, since he first set his feet on American ground, has been exemplary in every point of view, such as has gained him the esteem, affection, and confidence of all who have had the pleasure of his acquaintance. His filial affection and duty, and his ardent desire to embrace his parents and sisters in the first moments of their release, would not allow him to wait the authentic account of this much-desired event; but, at the same time that I suggested the propriety of this, I could not withhold my assent to the gratification of his wishes to fly to the arms of those whom he holds most dear, persuaded as he is, from the information he has received, that he shall find you all in Paris.“M. Frestel has been a true Mentor to George. No parent could have been more attentive to a favorite son; and he richly merits all that can be said of his virtues, of his good sense, and of his prudence. Both your son and he carry with them the vows and regrets of this family and all who know them. And you may be assured that yourself never stood higher in the affections of the people of this country than at the present moment.”[88]
“From the delicate and responsible situation in which I stood as a public officer, but more especially from a misconception of the manner in which your son had left France, till explained to me in a personal interview with himself, he did not come immediately into my family on his arrival in America, though he was assured, in the first moments of it, of my protection and support. His conduct, since he first set his feet on American ground, has been exemplary in every point of view, such as has gained him the esteem, affection, and confidence of all who have had the pleasure of his acquaintance. His filial affection and duty, and his ardent desire to embrace his parents and sisters in the first moments of their release, would not allow him to wait the authentic account of this much-desired event; but, at the same time that I suggested the propriety of this, I could not withhold my assent to the gratification of his wishes to fly to the arms of those whom he holds most dear, persuaded as he is, from the information he has received, that he shall find you all in Paris.
“M. Frestel has been a true Mentor to George. No parent could have been more attentive to a favorite son; and he richly merits all that can be said of his virtues, of his good sense, and of his prudence. Both your son and he carry with them the vows and regrets of this family and all who know them. And you may be assured that yourself never stood higher in the affections of the people of this country than at the present moment.”[88]