IhavetoacknolegethereceiptofyourtwofavorsofMay27&
29,sincethedateofmylastwhichwasofthe2inst。Inthatofthe27thyousay`youmustnotmakeyourfinalexitfrompubliclifetillitwillbemarkedwithjustifyingcircumstanceswhichallgoodcitizenswillrespect,&towhichyourfriendscanappeal。’——Tomyfellow-citizensthedebtofservicehasbeenfully&faithfullypaid。
Iacknolegethatsuchadebtexists,thatatourofduty,inwhateverlinehecanbemostusefultohiscountry,isduefromeveryindividual。Itisnoteasyperhapstosayofwhatlengthexactlythistourshouldbe,butwemaysafelysayofwhatlengthitshouldnotbe。Notofourwholelife,forinstance,forthatwouldbetobebornaslave——notevenofaverylargeportionofit。Ihavenowbeeninthepublicservicefour&twentyyears;onehalfofwhichhasbeenspentintotaloccupationwiththeiraffairs,&absencefrommyown。Ihaveservedmytourthen。Nopositiveengagement,bywordordeed,bindsmetotheirfurtherservice。NocommitmentoftheirinterestsinanyenterprisebymerequiresthatIshouldseethemthroughit——IampledgedbynoactwhichgivesanytribunalacalluponmebeforeIwithdraw。Evenmyenemiesdonotpretendthis。I
standclearthenofpublicrightonallpoints——MyfriendsIhavenotcommitted。Nocircumstanceshaveattendedmypassagefromofficetooffice,whichcouldleadthem,&othersthroughthem,intodeceptionastothetimeImightremain;&particularlythey&allhaveknownwithwhatreluctanceIengaged&havecontinuedinthepresentone,&ofmyuniformdeterminationtoretirefromitatanearlyday——Ifthepublicthenhasnoclaimonme,&myfriendsnothingtojustify;thedecisionwillrestonmyownfeelingsalone。
Therehasbeenatimewhenthesewereverydifferentfromwhattheyarenow:whenperhapstheesteemoftheworldwasofhighervalueinmyeyethaneverythinginit。Butage,experience&reflection,preservingtothatonlyit’sduevalue,havesetahigherontranquility。Themotionofmybloodnolongerkeepstimewiththetumultoftheworld。Itleadsmetoseekforhappinessinthelapandloveofmyfamily,inthesocietyofmyneighbors&mybooks,inthewholesomeoccupationsofmyfarm&myaffairs,inaninterestoraffectionineverybudthatopens,ineverybreaththatblowsaroundme,inanentirefreedomofrestormotion,ofthoughtorincogitancy,owingaccounttomyselfaloneofmyhours&actions。
Whatmustbetheprincipleofthatcalculationwhichshouldbalanceagainstthesethecircumstancesofmypresentexistence!worndownwithlaboursfrommorningtonight,&daytoday;knowingthemasfruitlesstoothersastheyarevexatioustomyself,committedsinglyindesperate&eternalcontestagainstahostwhoaresystematicallyunderminingthepublicliberty&prosperity,eventherarehoursofrelaxationsacrificedtothesocietyofpersonsinthesameintentions,ofwhosehatredIamconsciouseveninthosemomentsofconvivialitywhentheheartwishesmosttoopenitselftotheeffusionsoffriendship&confidence,cutofffrommyfamily&
friends,myaffairsabandonedtochaos&derangement,inshortgivingeverythingIlove,inexchangeforeverythingIhate,andallthiswithoutasinglegratificationinpossessionorprospect,inpresentenjoymentorfuturewish——Indeedmydearfriend,dutybeingoutofthequestion,inclinationcutsoffallargument,&soneverlettherebemorebetweenyou&me,onthissubject。
Iincloseyousomepaperswhichhavepassedonthesubjectofanewloan。Youwillseebythemthatthepaper-Coryphaeusiseitherundaunted,ordesperate。Ibelievethatthestatementinclosedhassecuredadecisionagainsthisproposition——IdinedyesterdayinacompanywhereMorris&Binghamwere,&happenedtositbetweenthem。
InthecourseofaconversationafterdinnerMorrismadeoneofhiswarmdeclarationsthataftertheexpirationofhispresentSenatorialtermnothingonearthshouldeverengagehimtoserveagaininanypubliccapacity。Hedidthiswithsuchsolemnityasrendersitimpossibleheshouldnotbeinearnest——ThePresidentisnotwell。
Littlelingeringfevershavebeenhangingabouthimforaweekortendays,andhaveaffectedhislooksmostremarkably。Heisalsoextremelyaffectedbytheattacksmade&keptuponhiminthepublicpapers。IthinkhefeelsthosethingsmorethananypersonIeveryetmetwith。Iamsincerelysorrytoseethem。Irememberanobservationofyours,madewhenIfirstwenttoNewYork,thatthesatellites&sycophantswhichsurroundedhimhadwounduptheceremonialsofthegovernmenttoapitchofstatelinesswhichnothingbuthispersonalcharactercouldhavesupported,&whichnocharacterafterhimcouldevermaintain。Itappearsnowthatevenhiswillbeinsufficienttojustifythemintheappealofthetimestocommonsenseasthearbiterofeverything。Nakedhewouldhavebeensanctimoniouslyreverenced,butinvelopedintheragsofroyalty,theycanhardlybetornoffwithoutlaceration。Itisthemoreunfortunatethatthisattackisplantedonpopularground,ontheloveofthepeopletoFrance&it’scause,whichisuniversal——
GenetmentionsfreelyenoughinconversationthatFrancedoesnotwishtoinvolveusinthewarbyourguarantee。TheinformationfromSt。Domingo&Martiniqueisthatthosetwoislandsaredisposed&
abletoresistanyattackwhichGreatBritaincanmakeonthembyland。Ablockadewouldbedangerous,coulditbemaintainedinthatclimateforanylengthoftime。IdeliveredtoGenetyourlettertoRoland。Asthelatterisoutofoffice,hewilldirectittotheMinisteroftheInterior。Ifoundeverysyllableofitstrictlyproper。Yourploughsshallbedulyattendedto。HaveyouevertakennoticeofTull’shorse-houghingplough?Iampersuadedthatthat,whereyouwishyourworktobeveryexact,&ourgreatploughwherealessdegreewillsuffice,leaveusnothingtowishforfromothercountriesastoploughs,underourcircumstances——Ihavenotyetreceivedmythreshingmachine。Ifearthelatelong&heavyrainsmusthaveextendedtous,&affectedourwheat。Adieu。Yoursaffectionately。”MYFAMILY,MYFARM,ANDMYBOOKS”
_ToMrs。Church_
_Germantown,Nov。27th,1793_
Ihavereceived,mygoodfriend,yourkindletterofAugust19th,withtheextractfromthatofLafayette,forwhommyhearthasbeenconstantlybleeding。TheinfluenceoftheUnitedStateshasbeenputintoaction,asfarasitcouldbeeitherwithdecencyoreffect。ButIfearthatdistanceanddifferenceofprinciplegivelittleholdtoGeneralWashingtononthejailersofLafayette。
However,hisfriendsmaybeassuredthatourzealhasnotbeeninactive。YourlettergivesmethefirstinformationthatourdearfriendMadamedeCornyhasbeen,astoherfortuneamongthevictimsofthetimes。Sadtimes,indeed!andmuchlamentedvictim!Iknownocountrywheretheremainsofafortunecouldplacehersomuchathereaseasthis,andwherepublicesteemissoattachedtoworth,regardlessofwealth;butourmanners,andthestateofoursocietyhere,aresodifferentfromthosetowhichherhabitshavebeenformed,thatshewouldlosemoreperhapsinthatscale。AndMadameCoswayinaconvent!Iknewthattomuchgoodnessofheartshejoinedenthusiasmandreligion;butIthoughtthatveryenthusiasmwouldhavepreventedherfromshuttingupheradorationoftheGodoftheuniversewithinthewallsofacloister;thatshewouldratherhavesoughtthe_mountain-top。_HowhappyshouldIbethatitwere_mine_thatyou,she,andMadamedeCornywouldseek。Yousay,indeed,thatyouarecomingtoAmerica,butIknowthatmeansNewYork。InthemeantimeIamgoingtoVirginia。Ihaveatlengthbecomeabletofixthattothebeginningofthenewyear。Iamthentobeliberatedfromthehatedoccupationsofpolitics,andtoremaininthebosomofmyfamily,myfarm,andmybooks。Ihavemyhousetobuild,myfieldstofarm,andtowatchforthehappinessofthosewholaborformine。Ihaveonedaughtermarriedtoamanofscience,sense,virtue,andcompetence;inwhomindeedIhavenothingmoretowish。Theylivewithme。Iftheothershallbeasfortunate,indueprocessoftimeIshallimaginemyselfasblessedasthemostblessedofthepatriarchs。Nothingcouldthenwithdrawmythoughtsamomentfromhomebuttherecollectionofmyfriendsabroad。Ioftenputthequestion,whetheryourselfandKittywillevercometoseeyourfriendsatMonticello?butitismyaffectionandnotmyexperienceofthingswhichhasleavetoanswer,andIamdeterminedtobelievetheanswer,becauseinthatbeliefIfindIsleepsounder,andwakemorecheerful。_Enattendant_,Godblessyou。
Acceptthehomageofmysincereandconstantaffection。”LUCERNEANDPOTATOES”
_ToTenchCoxe_
_Monticello,May1,1794_
DEARSIR,——YourseveralfavorsofFeb。22,27,&March16。
whichhadbeenaccumulatinginRichmondduringtheprevalenceofthesmallpoxinthatplace,werelatelybroughttome,onthepermissiongiventheposttoresumehiscommunication。IamparticularlytothankyouforyourfavorinforwardingtheBee。YourlettersgiveacomfortableviewofFrenchaffairs,andlatereventsseemtoconfirmit。OvertheforeignpowersIamconvincedtheywilltriumphcompletely,&Icannotbuthopethatthattriumph,&theconsequentdisgraceoftheinvadingtyrants,isdestined,intheorderofevents,tokindlethewrathofthepeopleofEuropeagainstthosewhohavedaredtoembroiltheminsuchwickedness,andtobringatlength,kings,nobles,&prieststothescaffoldswhichtheyhavebeensolongdelugingwithhumanblood。IamstillwarmwheneverI
thinkofthesescoundrels,thoIdoitasseldomasIcan,preferringinfinitelytocontemplatethetranquilgrowthofmylucerne&
potatoes。Ihavesocompletelywithdrawnmyselffromthesespectaclesofusurpation&misrule,thatIdonottakeasinglenewspaper,norreadoneamonth;&Ifeelmyselfinfinitelythehappierforit。Wearealarmedherewiththeapprehensionsofwar;
andsincerelyanxiousthatitmaybeavoided;butnotattheexpenseeitherofourfaithorhonor。Itseemsmuchthegeneralopinionhere,thatthelatterhasbeentoomuchwoundednottorequirereparation,&toseekiteveninwar,ifthatbenecessary。Astomyself,Ilovepeace,andIamanxiousthatweshouldgivetheworldstillanotherusefullesson,byshowingtothemothermodesofpunishinginjuriesthanbywar,whichisasmuchapunishmenttothepunisherastothesufferer。Ilove,therefore,mr。Clarke’spropositionofcuttingoffallcommunicationwiththenationwhichhasconducteditselfsoatrociously。This,youwillsay,maybringonwar。Ifitdoes,wewillmeetitlikemen;butitmaynotbringonwar,&thentheexperimentwillhavebeenahappyone。Ibelievethiswarwouldbevastlymoreunanimouslyapprovedthananyoneweeverwereengagedin;becausetheaggressionshavebeensowanton&
bare-faced,andsounquestionablyagainstourdesire——Iamsorrymr。Cooper&Priestlydidnottakeamoregeneralsurveyofourcountrybeforetheyfixedthemselves。Ithinktheymighthavepromotedtheirownadvantagebyit,andhaveaidedtheintroductionofourimprovementwhereitismorewanting。Theprospectofwheatfortheensuingyearisabadone。Thisisallthesortofnewsyoucanexpectfromme。FromyouIshallbegladtohearallsortofnews,&particularlyanyimprovementsintheartsapplicabletohusbandryorhouseholdmanufacture。
WHISKEYREBELSANDDEMOCRATICSOCIETIES
_ToJamesMadison_
_Monticello,Dec。28,1794_
DEARSIR,——Ihavekeptmr。Jay’sletterapostortwo,withanintentionofconsideringattentivelytheobservationitcontains;
butIhavereallynowsolittlestomachforanythingofthatkind,thatIhavenotresolutionenougheventoendeavortounderstandtheobservations。Ithereforereturntheletter,nottodelayyouranswertoit,andbegyouinansweringforyourselftoassurehimofmyrespectsandthankfulacceptanceofChalmers’Treaties,whichIdonotpossess,andifyoupossessyourselfofthescopeofhisreasoning,makeanyanswertoityoupleaseforme。Ifithadbeenontherotationofmycrops,Iwouldhaveansweredmyself,lengthilyperhaps,butcertainly_congusto。_
Thedenunciationofthedemocraticsocietiesisoneoftheextraordinaryactsofboldnessofwhichwehaveseensomanyfromthefractionofmonocrats。Itiswonderfulindeed,thatthePresidentshouldhavepermittedhimselftobetheorganofsuchanattackonthefreedomofdiscussion,thefreedomofwriting,printing&
publishing。Itmustbeamatterofrarecuriositytogetatthemodificationsoftheserightsproposedbythem,andtoseewhatlinetheiringenuitywoulddrawbetweendemocraticalsocieties,whoseavowedobjectisthenourishmentoftherepublicanprinciplesofourconstitution,andthesocietyoftheCincinnati,_aself-created_
one,carvingoutforitselfhereditarydistinctions,loweringoverourConstitutioneternally,meetingtogetherinallpartsoftheUnion,periodically,withcloseddoors,accumulatingacapitalintheirseparatetreasury,correspondingsecretly®ularly,&ofwhichsocietytheverypersonsdenouncingthedemocratsarethemselvesthefathers,founders,&highofficers。Theirsightmustbeperfectlydazzledbytheglitteringofcrowns&coronets,nottoseetheextravaganceofthepropositiontosuppressthefriendsofgeneralfreedom,whilethosewhowishtoconfinethatfreedomtothefew,arepermittedtogoonintheirprinciples&practices。Ihereputoutofsightthepersonswhosemisbehaviorhasbeentakenadvantageoftoslanderthefriendsofpopularrights;andIamhappytoobserve,thatasfarasthecircleofmyobservation&informationextends,everybodyhaslostsightofthem,andviewstheabstractattemptontheirnatural&constitutionalrightsinallit’snakedness。Ihaveneverheard,orheardof,asingleexpressionoropinionwhichdidnotcondemnitasaninexcusableaggression。Andwithrespecttothetransactionsagainsttheexciselaw,itappearstomethatyouareallsweptawayinthetorrentofgovernmentalopinions,orthatwedonotknowwhatthesetransactionshavebeen。
Weknowofnonewhich,accordingtothedefinitionsofthelaw,havebeenanythingmorethanriotous。Therewasindeedameetingtoconsultaboutaseparation。Buttoconsultonaquestiondoesnotamounttoadeterminationofthatquestionintheaffirmative,stilllesstotheactingonsuchadetermination;butweshallsee,I
suppose,whatthecourtlawyers,&courtlyjudges,&would-beambassadorswillmakeofit。Theexciselawisaninfernalone。ThefirsterrorwastoadmititbytheConstitution;the2d。,toactonthatadmission;the3d&lastwillbe,tomakeittheinstrumentofdismemberingtheUnion,&settingusallafloattochusewhichpartofitwewilladhereto。Theinformationofourmilitia,returnedfromtheWestward,isuniform,thatthothepeoplethereletthempassquietly,theywereobjectsoftheirlaughter,notoftheirfear;
that1000mencouldhavecutofftheirwholeforceinathousandplacesoftheAlleganey;thattheirdetestationoftheexciselawisuniversal,andhasnowassociatedtoitadetestationofthegovernment;&thatseparationwhichperhapswasaverydistant&