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b$frret arrival* tl»«r Ud all beta exUtnun*. I «1» Americitf Jeff^jVf ^ iSy 6 'disa^^rovLd*rawonV^olhc^T?^°on your^aoVm'°r.rst m.» n.y rv,
ld 'i«^Susdfwn S b«,rn C i«17.1 3 orl741::and«pen romance, and had nearly bpken «inct «ndpe™o" a | co
began to wax wroth. But he again resumed
his narrative.
“ A kittle while after, I .'nine among a |)
jibr who worshiped graven images, nnd was loot
exceedingly angry at their foolish idolatry
notliing in the retiren
and of War, or in the dis-
onsiderations which they
Jefferson himself was borne in 17-idor 1741:. ana open resistance. »„« ,,»« r-, nM9urP which made it
he always concealed his birth-day that it might j up the tn^.^ Ham.lton t, object **.« 'Sj~£E«SL ore" - ,, proper for me to a-
11 celebrations a g
s-Ot.ld not stay to argue the matter with them, | ons ;
ttrld proclaimed aloud, as I passed, that my j ! ,ov-1
daughter was coming to set them right.—
Didst thou visit these igunrant people ?”
“ I did—hot alas ! father, the very day b::t
ent before [ came, they had ail been swallow
ed up bv an inundation !”
“ Out upon thee !’’ cried Time, no 1 mger
Able to'restrain bis impatience at the dilatory
pace of his daughter. “Out upon thee!—
Of what use is it tl.at thou art gifted with the, - - - • ■ ,, , ! isteil ” •
grower to correct error and remedy tho mis-1 ljamcnt for shutting up the port ul K |v llie c
chiefs of calumny—of what consequence is it the 1st of June, he was one of to . < 1 1 '~ j c ,red of
tLtthou Shalt ever prevail where thou comes, members of the Virginia Legislature w ho (
always happens in great cin;
if thou art alw ays lagging behind the events
which 1 bring about ! Better uot come at all
ihgn too late.”
11 Father,” replied the. weeping daughter,
it is not that I am too slow, but that thou art
rp.o swift. Remember that heaven hath given
thee wings, and vigor to pursue an eteru i!
flight, while the feet of thy poor girl are. ten-
tier, and her limbs slow of pace. If then thou
vyouldst only slacken thy speed a little, I
might always keep up with thee and—”
” Pshaw!” exclaimed the old man, testily,
* ! I have not a moment to waste in hearing you
talk.”
Stf saying, lie spread his wings, shook his
iiu)ur glass at her in anger, and vaulted forth
on another journey round the world. His
"daughter ran after him ns last as she coidd,
and entreated lie would stop, but though she
tins ever since been trying, she has liefer been
iible to overtake the flight of Time. Those
who know best, however,' affirm that she will
undoubtedly cateli him at last, for “ Truth is
grt-at and must prevail.”
%:ooo :S> ,
MEMOIRS OF JEFFERSON.
FROM THE WESTMINSTER REVIEW.
Ythmoirs, Correspondence, and Private Pavers
of Thomas Jefferson, late President of the
United Stales. Now first published from
1 lire original Manuscripts. Kdited by Tho
mas Jefferson Randolph. 1 vols. 182(j.—
Colburn and Bendy.
This is one of the most important publica-
iipns ever presented to the world. In the ca
talogue of the benefactors of mankind, few
deserve so high a station as Thomas Jeffer
son. As the author of the Declaration of In
dependence, nnd as one of die principal mo
vers of the North American Revolution, his
■claims ou the gratitude and admiration oi pos-
„l?rity are divided with Washington, Franklin,
and others, so excellent in their respective
Bjihercs, that it might be difficult, and would ;
He then became a student oi law, and in 17(37 , vllU j ( ] |, U( | 1C most perfect Constitution iver i!
was inducted to the bar, at which lie continu-1 v j s( ,j bv (i 10 „( manHamilton tini/ted, mul
ed till the revolution. ^ said, “’Purge it of its corruption, and give to its
In 17011, lie became a member of the Virgi- j papular branch equality of representation, atui it
uia Legislature." In 177‘-3 he married Mrs. I would become an impracticable governmentas
_ Bathurst Skelton, a widow of 2d. In 1771,jit stands at present, with all its supposed defects,
i 55 is.! *•> *.w» 1...1 p~rf ••• •'» W r»-; “K
exact line which separated the political
these two gentlemen.” Adams was tor
hereditary branches and an honest elec
tive one; Hamilton for an hereditary king. v. itli a
■gencies) took the
lead out of the hands of the old ones, and who | i{ ouse 0 f Lords and Commons coirupted to lii
cariied a Resolution for fixing on the first oi j will, and standing between him and the pcop
June us “a day of fasting, humiliation and
prayer, to implore Heaven to avert from us
the evils of civil war, to inspire us with firm
ness in support of our rights, aud to turn the
hearts of the King and Parliament to modera
tion and justice.” The eflect of this measure
on the minds of tho people appears to have
been very great. Jefferson was one of the first
delegate’s to the Convention, which was then
Vol. iv. p. 461
Certainly of all the men that ever set about
establishing a “firm (if (Jorriiptcr-CJeneral
and Company” on the oilier side of the At
lantic, Hamilton was one of the most zealous
and efficient. Proceeding on the principle,
that mail could be governed by one of twoj
motives only, force or sinister interest, and
that force in the United State
usury
| had a right to expect a similar communication
of them, and conformed to the wishes amlopi-
ous oi” my fellow-citizens oi Georgia, when 1
determined to await it. An additional consi
deration was presented by tho lact that 1 had
been charged, at the moment of my depar
ture from this place, with the performance ol
certain public duties which were yet unfinish
ed) and my report concerning which you did
nof expect to receive until my return. 1 was
gratified to learn from yourself that you had
taif'en the same view of ihis subject, having
postponed the communication ol your wishes ^ ^
tonne until my arrival at this place, without |^ e
expecting in the mean time any communicati
on from me. It is due from inyse
stfito, that, from the moment
< , IIIUI, IIUIK (■■■ ’* w . . | 1 » t*l
imunicatioii referred to, I have considered;^
to your submitting them us you propose, as
you believe this to be necessary.
1 am, respectfully, yourob’t serv’t.
ANDREW JACKSON.
John M. Berrien, I sq.
——
from I 11K e. S. TEI-EOIUPH.
CORRESPONDECE.
Mr. Inghum to tin President.
Washington, 21st June, 1881.
The President of the United States:
Sm : Before I leave the city, it seems to be
due to the Government that 1 should perform
a painful duly, imposed upon me by the e-
vents of the last forty-eight hours. It is not
necessary forme now to detail tlie~circuttistan-
ces which have convinced me ot the existence
of vindicative personal hostility to me among
some of the officers of the Government near
your person, and supposod to be in your spe
cial confidence, which lias been particularly
developed within the last two weeks, aud lias j ser ^
finally displayed itself in an attempt to way
lay me ou toy way to the office yesterday, as I
I have to reason believe, fqr the purposed assas
sination. It you have not already been ap
° I prised of these movements, yon may perhaps
11 1 surprised to learn that the persons concern-
- 1 ed in them are the lute Secretary ol War and
nysell further to thfl actm „ Secretary ot War; and that the
when 1 saw the , e ecom | ,\ u( )j ior 0 f 'the Treasury, Register of
20th instant, about half past eight o’clock, and
never left the building until about half’after
two, when I walked down to the United States
Bank to attend to some Hank business. After
seeing the Teller ol the Bank, 1 informed* hi m
what 1 wanted done. I went to a barber’s shun
a little below Mr. Strother’s Hotel. On niv
return I called at the Register’s Office, a few
minutes before three o'clock, where 1 saw un
expectedly, Mr. Eaton—it being the first time
1 had seen him since last Saturday evening.
I remained in the Register’s Office about five
minutes, and then walked up to my own offi ce
in company with no other person than Mr. Ea
ton. Dr. Randolph was not there, nor did I
see him any where, on that day out of tho
W ar Office, until late in the evening. J , )e |_
ther saw nor heard of Mr. Ingham while I was
at the Treasury Department. I had no arms
of any desc ription about me.
I am very respectfully, vour most obedient
W. B. LEWIS.
>(ficial-ielation to you as terminated, or as |
isting only until my return to the city
Treasury, and the Treasurer of the Unit-
elected for choosing delegates to a gcnenl the question, ho adapted his financ
Turr.-H, Him f r* , uit; i ilthuht n
w as out „|l should enable me to conform to your wishes |ower part of the building
ial schemesP»y t!lu lu,mul surrender ol my office, which it. tment( and a j so g r „ C e
Congress ofjhe colonies, which met for the
first time, at Philadelphia, on the 5th oi Sep
tember, 1771. lie was himself one of the de
legates to the second Congress, in which he
took his seat on the 21st June. 1775.
On the seventh of June, l?(!ti, the dele
gates from Virginia (Jefferson being one,) in
obedience to instructions from their constitu
ents, proposed to Congress to declare the Co
lonies independent of Groat Britain. Flic
proposal was adopted, Jefferson drew up the
Declaration, which, after three days of discus
sion, was carried with sonic alterations, and
signed by every member present, except one.
It affords a remarkable proof of tho genera)
good sense and judgment of the members of
this Congress, that every change which was
sanctioned in this most important ot docu
ments was a change for the better.
Oil the 1st of June, 1779, Jefferson was ap
pointed Governor of the Commonwealth ol
Virginia. Al the end of the second year lie
resigned his administration, from a persuasion
that under the pressure of invasion the civil
niv wucatiuih m; cimiwitu ui.a liiiunt uu ^ , . . . * i
to the securing of a' majority in Congress.- '* <* e P" r P^c of this note to make.
° . J _ .1 j ■ j-j, »V r. i . i •• ii 11 li /• I \ r! ii I nn
’led States, were in their company: and that
the Treasurer’s and Register's rooms, in the
of the Treasury de
ary store between my
Mr. Smith to the President.
Washington. June 22d, 1881.
Sin :—In reply to your note of to-day, en
closing a copy of a letter from Mr. Ingham to
you, bearing date the 21st inst- I beg leave to
state, that the charges contained in Mr. lug.
ham's letter, as far as they relate to me, are
wholly untrue. 1 have had no participation or
agency, whatever, in tho controversy between
Major Eaton and Mr. Ingham. I have given
neither aid nor succour to Major Eaton, not
any one for him. I have not walked with him
nor near him. I have not sought Mr. Ingham,
because 1 have the consciousness ofhav-
ils duties with
country. Vu-
nfhicnced by those considerations which have
from von. ...totally ignorant of any want of bar
many in your cabinet, which either has, or
ought to have impeded the operations of your
The. act 'or paying off at par tho certificate
of debt given m the lattrr part of iho ltevoiu-j station to
tion, was one of these schemes. Many of the] )‘ !e ' oecat
certificates had been sold by the original holders m C endeavored to discharge
at two shillings in the pound As smm as tlm fidelity to yourself and to the
passing of the act was foreseen by Hamilton)
aud his friends, expresses were sentall over the
Union to purchase up the certificates, before the
holders, in the most distant places'especially,
could possibly know that Congress had pro
vided for their redemption at par. ‘‘Immense
sums were thus filched fioin the poor and ig
norant, and the fortunes accumulated by those
who had themselves been poor enotigh before.
Men thus enriched by the dexterity of. a lead
er, would follow of course the chief who was
leading them >o fortune, and become the zeal
ous instrument of his enterprises.”
Another of Hamilton’s fiscal maoa-uvres
was the Assumption. The debts contracted,
and the money expended, by the separate
States during the war, were pretended to have
been for general purposes; the amount, not
CSC Ol this note to make. lodgings and the office, were alternately occu- nor bl , en in (,j„ neighborhood. I have been
t.ien.sir, with cheerfulness from me. , )Sj thpjr rendezvous while lying it. wait:, uliarmt .d constantly, amKn all respects 1 have
whicn your couhdence had taneu , lhfJ former affording the best opportunity tor | been unconnected with any thing that threat-
observmg my approach. Apprised of these
movements on my return from taking leave oi
ny thing that threat
ened his safety. As to the charge that my of
fice was used for any such purposes as arc
been avowed’ by that portion of my colleagues j othpr j repaired ’to the office, to finish j
who have voluntarily separated themselves , (h(j j, uslneHg „f t (, e t | a y. a fi er which I return-j
some oi my friends, 1 found tnyseil obliged to nam ed by Mr. Ingham, it is not less -untrue
arm. and accompanied by my son and some , L j ian t ( ie rtS ( 0 f the statement. Major Eaton
was in my office twice, once, between ten. and
eleven o’clock, and once about fifteen raimitis
( !’d to my lodgings in the same company. It j before three ; each time be came alone, at.d
r I is proper to state, that the principal persons j IJOt remaiu more than ten. minutes.
, . r w ho had been thus employed for several hours, I I regret. Sir, tl.at Mr. Ingham, in making
ulininistration. I perform this act simpiy in o- [ r( . t j r( .,| f ron , [he Department, soon after I en- j c ( lar ^,. s 0 i such grave import, had not thought
becheiicc to your wil.. I have 1 not tru s \v t terec i nl y room, and that I received no moles- ; proper to refer to the authority upon which ho
cst disposition to discuss the question ol Iatjon f rom them, either at my ingress or- e- Oust'd his allegations, and awaited the issu
propriety. It is true that in a government 1 - ■ ... .■ .i
like ours, power is but a trust to be used lor
gross. But having recruited an additional j before he l«.f't the city,
force in the evening, they paraded until a late
the benefit of those who have delegated it; and hour on the streets near my lodging, heavily
and military power should lie united in a mili-j being ascertainable, w as guessed to be twenty
tiny commander; General Nelson was ap
pointed to succeed him. About this time he
appears to have been marked out as an espe
cial object of vengeance by Lord Cornwallis.
"Lord Cornwallis then proceeded to the Point
millions : the fair distribution of these twenty
millions among the several States, was the
subject of another guess; ami those w ho, in
tho midst of all this guessing, guessed that
the partisans of the Treasury got the lar.
of Fork, and encamped bis army from thence ail J . ; i lar t> of the spoil, were not the least correct
I along the main James River, to a seat of mine
certainly be invidious, to say which was the | called Elk-hill, opposite to l'.lk Island, and a little
<nost wise, the most disinterested, the most .. .c <t.„ n... n.....n r v.... ..-.it t
persevering in the perilous, and, at times, al
most hopcTes3 path, of arduous and self-de
voting duty. But American liberty was des
tined to a second, scarcely less perilous, tho’
loss conspicuous struggle; a struggle in which
there were no wounds, aud guns, and drums,
»0 fix tiro attention of Europe; hut one in
\yhieh the best energies of fueling and thought
were necessary to save the United States from
the effects of the vague terrors, with which ma
ny of their well-meaning citizens were inspir- ^ - - (0Q for lervlce - he cut
ed by the excesses of tho Wench t , ho ( |„-oHts; hucI he bun,ed all the fences of the
and which, being worked on with ail the arts
of persuasion, by a large and influential par
ty, in possession, for a time, of the govorn-
ihont, who saw, or professed to see, no safety
below the mouth of the Byrd Creek. [You w
see all these plnces exactly liiiii down in the amp
annexed to my notes on Virginia, printed by
Stockdulc.] I’le remained in this position ten
days, his own head quarters being in iriy house at
that place. I had time to remove most ot the c!-
feels out of the Iiouse. He destroyed nil my
growing crops of corn and tobacco; lie burnt
all my liarns, containing the same articles of the
lust year, linviggfirst taken what corn lie wanted;
lie used, as was to be expected, all my stock of
cuttle, sheep, and hogs, for the sustenance of his
army, and carried off all the horses capable oi
of those .too youn
plantation, so as to leave it ail absolute waste. He
carried off also about thirty slaves. Had this been
to give them freedom he would have done right ;
but it was to consign them to inevitable death,
then raping
or permanence for political institutions, but in : from the small pox and putrid fever .
a government of corrupt influence, had very in his camp.
f us ulu all this, I do not mean that be carried a-
.11 e people preserved them from this
Messing; but the main glory of the signal
ylctory over the domestic enemy belongs, on
rips occasion, undivided!) - to Jefferson.
The doctrines of anarchy anJ confusion, as
fliey were called here ; the doctrines against
which, under the watchword of “ social order”
und shouts “ for God and the King,” xve fired
away in thirty years nearly three thousand
<p,iihons of money in gunpowder, including
the cost of the machinery, animate and in
animate, by which the said gunpowder was
t’oroe over land and sen, for the final purpo
ses of ignition, rarefaction, expansion, und
explosion; the doctrines of the right of the
possessors of life and property to choose for
themselves the legislators who dispose of that
life and property; of the right of the go
verned to discuss fully and freely, in censure
as in praise, the public measures of their ni-
bout the torch in his own bunds, but that it was
all done under his eye; the situation of the house
in which lie was, commanding a view of every
part of the plantation, so that lie must have seen
every fire. I relate these things on my own
knowledge, in a great degree; as I was on the
ground soon after he left it. He treated the rest
of the neighborhood somewhat in the same style, ton to induce them to draw together for the
hut not with that spirit of total extermination
with whieli he seemed to rage over my posses
sions. Wherever he went the dwelling-houses
were plundered of every tiling which could be
carried off. Lord Cornwallis's character in Eng
land would forbid the belief that he shared in
the plunder; but that his table was served with
the plate thus pillaged from private houses can be
proved by many hundred eye witnesses.”—Vol
ii. p. 830.
On tiro fith of June, I7S.3, he was appoint
ed by the Legislature of Virginia a delegate to
Congress, which was then sitting at Annapo
lis ; and was one of the delegates who ratified
lew, cud tho principle? of their political and “ s ; ». M one 01 T «»"> •’aimed
•religious institutions; these doctrines were definitive treaty of peace which was sigu-
ftrought at once and efficiently into action on 01 ‘* t ^ arl3 ? u September, 1788,
th„ neressinn of Jefferson to the Presidenev and ra '‘tied m Congress, without a dissenting
t!|e accession of Jefferson to the Presidency
& “ the dissolution of social order,” which our
fire-and-sword logicians so long and con
fidently preached as the. infallible consequence
of the establishment of such maxims of go
vernment, consisted iu the total abolition of
internal taxes, in the rapid extinction of nati
onal debt, in the preservation of peace with
all the world, in the bloodless acquisition of
the important territory of Louisiana, and the
complete possession of tho Mississippi, in the
efficient protection aud ample reward of do
mestic industry, aud iu the establishment, bc-
•xiond the reach of injury from the combined
riespotisms of the earth, of an asylum for the
Oppressed aud unfortunate of all nations.
Mr. Randolph, the editor of tiiese volumes,
'hasUone little more than publish Jefferson’s,
-papers as he found them; not supplying any
connecting link, nor even the date of Jeffer
son's death. We do not much object to this,
because to impose on an executor the neces
sity of being an author, might be the cause of
depriving the world of many valuable remains.
A.11 that can fairly be required from any oue,
to whom the papers of another are consigned
iu Crust for the public, is an early and ungar
bled publication of nil that do not in any way
trespass on the privacy of the living. To re
quire more would be to require what must bp
sometimes difficult, sometimes impossible, and
uiways a source of delay. The publication
before us carries with it intrinsic evidence of
being an hone3t and complete publication of
ull papers of public interest. The sanctity of
vrivate life is respected throughout. It f-
bounds with materials of knowledge and re-
llectioo to the historian, the philosopher, the
patriot, the philanthropist; with examples of
bigh encouragement to all who make it their
study to ameliorate.the condition of thdft fel
low men; examples of the noblest objects
of public good, pursued through good and e-
y‘J fortune, through good and evil report, with
UiiJeviating and inflexible rectitude.
Tiie first paper in the collection is a memoir
df himself, which Jefferson began in 1821, at
tlje age of seventy-seven, but which he did
not bring dewn later than the 21st of March,
1790. The first settler of the family appears
tp bavi been from, the vicinity of Suowdon, a
fact which may be recorded to the honor of
Wales, though Jefferson is not a Cymric name.
This mast have beett at a very curly period of
guessers on the occasion.
Hamilton did not, and could not, corrupt a
majority of the Congress; but his purchased
partizans turned the balance which the honest
men of both parties had held nearly in cqui
poise. His next scheme was the Bank of the
United States at Philadelphia, which, till the
scat of government was removed to \\ ashing-
ton, gave the Treasury great and permanent
influence in the appointment and re-appoint-
ment of members of both Houses as Direc
tors.
General Washingston did not understand
these devices, and Jefferson, to whom they
were abhorrent, determined to withdraw from
all political connection with their authors and
He would allow of no coinpro-
that circumstances might exist in which
the necessity of self-vindication would justify
such an enquiry. The first consideration be
longs to those to w hom we are both and equal
ly accountable. From the influence of the
second you have relieved me by jour explicit
declaration that no complaint affecting either
mv official or individual conduct has at any
time reached you. You have assured me
that llie confidence which induced you o
riginaily to confer the appointment upon me
remains unshaken and undiminished, aud have
been pleased to express the regret which you
fed at the separation, which circumstances
have, in your view of tiie subject, rendered uti
avoidable. You have kindly added the as
surance of your continued good wishes for my
welfare, i’ou will not, therefore, refuse to
me the gratification of expressing my earnest
hope, tliat, under the influence of better coun
sels, vour own and the interests of our com
mon country may receive all the benefits which
you have anticipated from the.changft of your
confidential advisers. A very few days will
suffice to enable me to put my office in a
condition for the reception of rny successor,
and 1 will advise you of the fact as soon ns its
arrangement is complete.
I am, respectfully, Sir, your ob’t serv’t.
IN. MACPHERSON BERRIEN.
armed, and threatening an assault on thedwel
ling 1 reside in.
I do not present these facts to your notice
for the purpose of invoking your protection.
Ho lar as an individual may rely on his own
personal efforts, 1 am willing to meet this pe
ril ; and against an assault from numbers 1
have found an ample assurance of protection
in the generous tender of persona) service from
the citizens of Washington. Rut they are
communicated to you as the Chief Magistrate
of the United States, and most especially of
the District of Columbia, whose duties in
maintaining good order among its inhabitants,
and protecting their officers ol the Govern
ment in discharge of their duties, cannot be
unknown to yon.
I have only to add that, so far as I am in
formed, all (he persons engaged in giving
countenance to this business, are officers ol
the Government except the late Secretary of
W ar.
I have the honor to be, respectfully, your
obedient servant,
S. D. INGHAM.
t. *•*»« •' s--
he would give the^ general _Sorergppuv» c yjp—mttnt nave receivei your letter resigning
"hx cciife Mie~~national - will, and- -^ e office nf Attoris 1 e n era I.
impotent to coerce it; he would furnish it
with no means of corruption, or of intimida
tion, or of delusion. He was less dismayed
by tiie temporary excesses of the French Re
volution, than fixed in his abhorrence of the
inflictions of unrestrained power which had
preceded and caused it. Washington vainly
ongress
voice, on the 14th of January, 1781
Oil the 7th of May following, he was ap
pointed a minister plenipotentiary, in addition
to Mr. Adams and Dr. Franklin, for negotia
ting treaties of commerce with foreign na
tions. He arrived at Baris in August, accom
panied by Dr. Franklin from Pussy, and be
ing shortly afterwards joined by Mr. Adams
from tiie Hague. He remained.in Europe till
October, 178‘J, and witnessed tiie origin of
llie French Revolution, respecting which this
correspondence gives much interesting and
authentic detail and. much valuable opinion
and liis observations arc recapitulated in his (arisen between tiie
advancement of public busineso. It was im
possible; their principles were wide as the
poles asunder. Jefferson resigned his office
on the 81st of December, 1738.
“This gentleman,” says the biographer of
General M asliington, “withdrew from his po
litical station at a moment when he stood par
ticularly high in the esteem of his country
men. His fixed opposition to the financial
schemes which had been proposed by the H>-
cretary of the Treasury, and approved by the
legislative and executive departments of the
government; his ardent and undisguised at
tachment to the revolutionary party in France;
the dispositions which he was declared to
possess iu regard to Greal Britain, and the
popularity of his opinions respecting the con
stitotion of the United States, had devoted to
him that immense party, whose sentiments
were supposed to comport with his, on most
or all of these interesting subjects.
“To the opposite party lie had of course
become particularly unacceptable; but the
publication of his correspondence with Mr.
Genet, dissipated much of the prejudice
w hich had been excited against him. He had
in that correspondence maintained, with great
11 ability, the opinions embraced by tiie federal-
lists on those points of difference which had
unfinished Memoir. In this Memoir, begun,
lic it remembered, in 1821, he winds up this
portion of his subject thus:—
“Hero I discontinue my relation of the French j divided
Revolution T’Iip niimilpnpkx with wl'iHi 1 Iidvi* '
two republics, and which,
having become universally the subjects oi
discussion, had in some measure displaced
those topics on which parties had previously
The partiality for France that wa
The minuteness with which l have j conspicuous through the whole of it, detract-! f
so fur given its details, is disproportion! d to the I nothing from its merits in the opinion of
genera scale of mv narrative. Hut I have , he f riciui .s of the administration, because,
flimiirlit it lllctili^i<l llV tn>* mfni*i>ct ll‘ lie l f in . .......
thought it justified, by the interest which tin
whole world must tuk
As yet we arc hut in tiie first chapter of its liisto
I to support their own government iu a contro
In the conversation which I held with you,
the day before yesterday, upon this subject, it
was my desire to present to yon the considera
tions tiporj which I acted in accepting the re
signation of other members ofthe cabinet, and
to assure you, in regard to yourself, as well as
to them, that they imply no dissatisfaction with
the manner in which the duties ofthe respec
tive departments have been performed. It af
fords me great pleasure to find that you have
not misconceived the character of those con
siderations, and that you do justice to tiie per
sonal feelings with which they are unconnect
ed.
I will only add, that the determination to
change my cabinet was dictated by an impe
rious sense of public duty, and a thorough,
though painful conviction, that tlm steward
ship of power with which I am clothed, called
for it as a measure of justice to those who had
been alike invited to maintain near me the re
iation of confidential advisers. Perceiving
that the harmony in feeling, so necessary* to an
efficient administration had failed, in a consi
derable degree, to mark tiie course of this ;
and having assented, on this account, to the
voluntary retirement of the Secretaries of
State am! War, no alternative was left me hut
to give this assent a latitude co-extensive with |.. in „ in wajt
the embarrassments which it recognized, and j ( ot ■<
the duty which I owed to each member ofthe
cabinet.
In accepting your resignation ns Attorney
General I take pleasure in expressing my ap
probation ofthe zeal and efficiency with which
its duties have been performed, and in assur
ing you that you carry with you my best wish
es for your prosperity and happiness.
I am, very respectfully, vour ob't serv’t,
ANDREW JACKSON.
John M. Berrien, Esq.
P. S. You will please to continue to dis
charge the duties of tiie office of Attorney
al until you make all those arrange
I menu which you may deem lecessnry, which,
I when completed, aud l am notified thereof by
you, a successor will be appointed. A. J.
the Washing
Globe of Thursday Morning.
June 22d', 1831.
Messrs. Colour,l Campbell, Treasurer; Major
Smith, Register; Doctor Randolph, Acting
Secretary of IVar ; and Major l.twis, Se-
cond . Vt/llfP.T-,— r narT—fTTis tnomeiii recetv
ed the enclosed letter from Mr. Ingham, dated
Cist instant, and having immediately, on its re
ceipt, sent to ask an interview with him, I find
that he left the city before it reached me. I
wish you to state to me. if you. or either of
you, have had any agency or participation, and
if any to what extent, in the alleged miscon
duct imputed in his letter herewith enclosed.
I snrely have been deceived in your charac
ters if you a e capable of so far forgetting tiie
responsibilities ot' your stations as to partici
pate in the reprehensible conduct charged
To the serious charges contained in Mr. Ing
ham’s letter, which gave me the first informa
tion that I have had upon the subject of. his
difficulties, I wish you to give a prompt a.id
explicit answer,
Respectfully,
ANDREW JACKSON.
ry. The appeal to the rights of man, which had j vers y "'itb any nation whatever, they felt all
been made in tiie U. States, was taken up by ! the partialities for that republic which the cor-
France, first offfhc European nations. From her respomience expressed. The hostility of his
[lie spirit has spread over those of the South.— | enemies therefore was, for a tinfe, coiisidera-
The Tyrants of the North will onlyfnuUiply its j bly lessened, without a corresponding diminu-
inillioiis of human victims; their own sateiljtes i t i oa 0 f t| le attachment of his friends’. In of-
wHl he finally aud greatly ameliorated This is a fice wouId have been Dnpracti.’r.hle long to
wonderful instance of great events from small , . . 1
causes. So inscrulablt is the arrangement of preserve these dispositions; and it would have
causes and consequences iu this world, that a two been difficult to maintain that ascendancy
penny duty on tea, unjustly imposed, in a seques
tered part of it, changes tiie condition of all its
inhabitants.”--Vol. 1. p. 90.
~ Jefferson returned to America at the end of
1789, on a temporary leave of absence; but
he had scarcely landed in America, when he
received from General Washington (then Pre
sident) the appointment of Secretary of State,
and prevented Jjis intended return to Paris.—
Mucti as the cessation of his invaluable testi
mony to the progressive events of tiie French
Revolution is to be lamented, it is still evident
that his proper sphere of action was in Ameri
ca. Ilis residence in Europe had served, by
the contrasts which were continually before
his eyes in the condition of the people, to
conffirm him in the love of the young institu
tions of his own country; and his presence
in America was essential to the existence of
those institutions. Hamilton, the Secretary
of the Treasury, a staunch federalist, carried
which he held over the minds of those who
had supported, and probably would continue
fc*- support, every pretension of the French
republic, without departing from principles
ami measures which he had openly and ably
defended.”—See Marshall’s Life of H'ashing-
ton, vol. v. page 406.
DOMF.SVXC.
ATTORNEY GENERAL’S RESIGNATION.
At length the forma! resignation of the At
torney General has appeared. The following
is the correspondence with the President in
relation thereto :
From the O. S. Telegraph.
Washington, 15th June, 1831.
Sir : I herewith tender to you my resigna
tion of the office of Attorney General of the
United States. Two considerations restrain
ed me from taking this step at the moment
Washington, June 22, 1831.
Sir.; In conformity to the suggestion con
tained in my note of the 15th instant, I have
to inform you that the arrangements necessa
ry fo put tho office of Attorney General in a
condition for the reception of my successor,
are now- ctmplete.
The misrepresentations which are circulat
ed in the newspapers on the subject of niy re
tirement from office, make it proper that’this
correspondence should be submitted to the
public, as Enact of justice both tovpu and to
myself. *
I am, respectfully, Sir, vour ob’i serv’t,
JN. MACPHERSON BERRIEN.
To the President of the U. States.
Washington, June 22, 1831.
Sir: Your note of this day is received, ad
vising me, “ iu conformity to the suggestions
contained in my (your) note ofthe 15th inst.
I (you) have to inform you (me) that the
Sir ; I have had the honor to receive your
communication of this day, enclosing a copy
of a letter to you from the late Secretary ol
the Treasury of tiie 21st instant, complaining
of an attempt to way-lay him on the part of
certain officers of the Government, for the pur
pose ot assassination, and charging me with
being in their company, and my room in tiie
Treasury with being alternately occupied with
other officers as a rendezvous for them while
It might perhaps be sufficient
purpose for which you have referred
this communication to me, for me to apply to
the charges against me, a simple and unquali
fied denial. They are entirely destitute of llie
least foundation in truth; but to show you
more clearly how far I was from aiding or par
ticipating in any thing connected with this mat
ter complin ied of, I will beg your permission
to add the following circumstances. The late
Secretary of War, Major Eaton, never cou-
sulted me upon tlie subject of iiis controversy
with Mr. Ingham, nor did f even see him on
the day in question except in an accidental
meeting of a lew minutes. 1 never saw the
correspondence between thorn until it appear
ed in the Telegraph : and although 1 had heard
that a correspondence was going un which
might result in a personal ,conflict, 1 did not
believe it was likely to take place on that day,
or even that Washington was to be the scene
of it.
Trusting that these facts and explanations
will be entirely satisfactory to you, I cannot
withhold the expression of my astonishment,
that charges so wholly uncalled for and ground
less should have been made against me by a
gentleman with whom 1 never had (he least
cause of quarrel, anil with whom my official
intercourse, spice my entrance into tiie Trea
sury, had uniformly been of the/nost friendly
clogaatcr. 1 certainly had no idea of arming
againsf^iim, or of interfering in any way in his
dispute with Major Eaton.
1 have the honor to remain,
Your must obedient servant,
JOHN CAMPBELL.
The President of the' U. Slates.
Mr. Lewis to the President.
Washington, 22d June, 1831.
Sir ;—Your letter of this morning has this
arrangements necessary to put tiie office pfj moment been received, and in reply ! have to
the Attorney General in a condition for the
reception of my successor, are now complete.”
For reasons assigned in your note, you fur
ther observe, “ make it proper that this cor
respondence should he submitted to the pub
lic, as an act of justice both to you and my-
when your communication to the Secretary of I sell.” I am sure I can have nu objection I arrived at my office ou Monday morning, I present month.—Rich. Compiler.
say that the charge made against me by Mr.
Ingham of having been engaged in a conspi
racy against him, is devoid of truth. If there
were any such conspiracy aginst him, as alleg
ed in his letter to you of yesterday, it was en
tirely unknown to me.
With tiie highest respect, vourobt. sent,
T. L. SMITH.
To the President.
Mr. Randolph to the President.
Washington, 22d June, 1 SSI.
K:r:—In answer to-your letter of this date,
asking (he extent of my participation in the
controversy lately passed between Mr. Ingham,
and Major Eaton, and how far I am amenable
to the charges made by Mr. Ingham against
me, in his letter of yesterday. I have to reply,
that 1 had no further agency in the matter than
is shown in the correspondence between these
gentlemen, as puhhshed in the Telegraph nu
Tuesday last. 1 was nol with Major Eaton
more than ten minutes at any one lime between
9 and 3 o'clock on Monday, on which day the
charge of a combination for the purpose of as
sassinating Mr. Ingham is made by him against
me and others. 1 did not participate in, nor
did 1 know of any design to attack Mr. Ing
ham's residence asischatged by him, nor wn;
I armed at any time during the hours mention
ed, having no apprehension of danger from
Mr. Ingham, or those “ friends” whom he says
surrounded him. Maj. Eaton was alone when
he sought an interview Willi Mr. Ingham, a>
will be shewn by the certificates of two respec
table individuals.
Respectfully vours,
P. G. RANDOLPH.
Mr. Ingham left the pity at f o’clock A. M.
The letter was received bv the President
through the Post Office, at 8 o’clock A. M.
[ Washington dole.
—:ooooo:~ -
Fr.OM TIIK WASHINGTON GI.ODE.
V> e psve below a letter addressed to tis bv
iajor haion, intended to meet the charges
made by Mr. Ingham, u high we published yes
terday.
,, Jutttt 2M, 1931.
J'Lair:—! owe it to mysHf nnd to the
CftU J* of ,r,lf h to solicit the fnvnr’of offering a feiv
explnunlinus through tho Globe.
A strange letter of Mr. Ingham is published in#
y>nr paper tills morning, ft clinnms me with a
design to assassinate him ; and in having organiz-
,- d a conspiracy to accomplish it. Why did I not
organize tins hand from the War, rather than tlm
treasury, Department—for most ofthe gentle
men charged ar-^of the latter? Tho public will
not. I presume, give credii to such an accusation,
coming from such a source. Wantonly insulted
•y loglutm, " illj h view, F brlif*\ed, to pro*
M'ke an adjustment of our differences in an ho-
norahie way. I adopted the course which evident-
l> seemed to he. invited by my adversary ; and
which appeared to he (lie only alternative that
was left to mo.
I plead not guilty to this charge of conspiracy
and meditated assassination. From the moment
I perceived Hint Mr. Ingham was incapable o(
acting ns became a man, 1 resolved to pursue
that morse, which was suited to tho character of
one who had sought difficulties, and shunned nil
honorable accountability. I harbored no design
upon the benrl of one who had shown himself so
heartless Having ascertained tliat his sensibili
ties were to he found only upon the surface, I
meant to make the proper application.
On the 19th 1 notified him that unless the call I
had made np*n Mrn. «vnn promptly and properly
answered, he micht e„ P ect such treatment ns I
(iC 1 K'll his emidur.t deserved. My note ofthe
also advised him of my inl-ntion. Accord
ingly il appeared mnlter nf duty for me to dis
solve all mv connexv it with tiie administration of
the Government, How then enn Mr Inghflin
suppose tliat I would involve those gentlemen ill
a disgraceful eonspiraty against him—one in
which, ns public . Hirers, they eou'd not engage
even if iuelinntion find sanction Their own cha-
carters are a sufficient answer to the accusation,
unaided bv their positive denial of its truth. I
d'd endpnvnr to meet Mr. Tnghnni, and to settle
our difference. Unattended by nny one. I sought
after, nnd nivnitpd his appearance, during (he nc-
rusfnmrd hour for business, openly and af places
where Im daily passed to his office! He tins not to
tie found ! f parsed bv hut nt no time stopped at
or attempted io enter his Iiouse. ner to besiege it
bv day nr by night. I offer no statement here
tliat is not susceptible of tiie clearest proof.
Mv note nf tlio‘2fitli was written with indignant
feelings and under strong excitement; hence the
reason why any reference was nmdi*to a female.
I regret it; although the letter was a mere private
notice to Mr. Inghnm. and iva* so intended. By
me. it never was designed to meet, nor ever
would have met tire public eye. -
Respectfully, Ac. J. II. EATON.
M e understand by a gentleman juat from
Washington, that Mr. Taney has accepted the
appointment of Attorney General....and that
Judge White is daily expected to arrive at
Washington, to fkke charge of the Department
of War. The President has visited the Rip
Raps and Old Point to see his old friend Judge
Overton, who is sick.—Rich. Enq.
—too cooo:—
Mr. Monroe.—We learn with sincere re
gret, that a letter was received in this city by
last evening’s mail, from an intelligent 'riend
of Ex-President Monroe, stating that this dis
tinguished man was verv low—and that few
j hopes were entertained of his surviving the