The national intelligencer and Washington advertiser. (Washington City [D.C.]), 1800-10-31 00:00:00

The National Intelligencer,
AND WASHINGTON ADVERTISER.
VOL. I. WASHINGTON CITY, PRINTED BY SAMUEL HARRISON SMITH, NEW-JERSEY AVENUE, NEAR THE CAPITOL. No. I.
FIVE DOLLS. PER ANN.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31st. 1800.
PAID IN ADVANCE.
NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER.
The appearance of the NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER has been protracted to this day, by the unavoidable, though unanticipated embarrassments attending the removal of a Printing Office. The vessel, which contained the greater part of the materials, failed from Philadelphia on the 20th of September; but did not arrive in this City till the 25th inst. owing to her having been driven on shore by the violence of the late storm. This information is given to remove any censure that may have been thrown upon the Editor for his unexecuted delay.
The Editor, at the commencement of his duties, considers it as not improper to state the nature of the plan, which he intends to pursue, and concisely to notice the principles by which he proposes to regulate his own conduct, as well as those by which it is expected that Correspondents will regulate theirs.
Various political opinions divide the civilized world. These opinions in some cases are diffused by the press; in others by the sword.
Amidst this collision of hostile sentiments no surer safeguard of human happiness exists, than the liberty of the press.
There is truth in the declaration the venerable CONGRESS of Q uebec , speaking of the freedom of the press, say "The importance of this consists, besides the advancement of truth, science, morality, and the arts in general, in its diffusion of liberal sentiments on the administration of government, its ready communication of thoughts between subjects, and its consequential promotion of union among them, whereby oppressive officers are shamed or intimidated into more honorable and just modes of conducting affairs."
But while the Editor classes with our dearest right, the Liberty of the Press, he is decidedly inimical to its licentiousness.
As on the one hand, the conduct of public men and the tendency of public measures will be freely examined, so, on the other, private character will remain inviolable, nor shall indelicate or expressions be admitted, however disguised by fiction or enlivened by wit.
No sentiments whatever, on the prevalence of which the general good depends, will be excluded from enquiry and discussion. Guided by this principle, the editor need not caution the public against adhering to him, a belief in all the opinions which may occasionally be supported, or a disbelief of those which may be opposed. For as he means not to surrender his own sentiments, so he does not expect that those who write for the National Intelligencer will surrender theirs.
In the admission of compiled as well as original articles, it will be his object to be impartial, and to exhibit as they exist, the varying opinions and actions of men. Let it, however, be considered, that impartiality does not consist in the ACTUAL ADMISSION of as much political matter on one side as the other; but in a readiness to insert articles of merit on either side.
Aware of the equivocal character of professions, and convinced that the public judgment will be formed, as it ought to be, from the manner in which the National Intelligencer shall be conducted, the Editor will add only one remark. His Paper will be BORELY AMERICAN. It will be his effort to promote the true interests of his own Country, uninfluenced either by foreign attachments or enmities.
The following are the TERMS on which the National Intelligencer will be published, subjoined to which is the address which accompanied the Proposal Papers.
1. The NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER shall be printed three times a week on good semi paper, and with a new type.
2. The annual subscription shall be FIVE DOLLARS paid constantly in advance by all subscribers not residing in the City of Washington, and SIX DOLLARS paid by those who reside in the City; in which case the payment shall be half yearly. It being understood that subscribers, residing at a distance from the City of Washington, are invariably to pay for a year in advance, and in every such case the transmission of the Paper will cease as soon as the period shall expire for which payment shall have been made. No paper will be forwarded in any instance until the money is actually paid.
3. All Letters to be post paid.
The Editor of the NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER, impressed with the great importance of the present crisis, and with the strong necessity of having conducted, at the seat of the General Government, a newspaper, that may claim the reputation of being useful, by diffusing unperverted facts, and correct political ideas, has determined to enter upon the arduous duties which such an object involves. He is well apprised of the expense and exertion which such an establishment requires. But he confides in the prompt and energetic co-operation of the friends of truth and of their country in the different parts of the Union. As it is his firm determination, that nothing shall be admitted into the NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER, which shall wound national, or calm private character, so it is his unalterable purpose freely to insert, and earnestly to invite, whatever shall promote the general welfare. This, and this only, shall be the motive by which his professional deportment shall be guided.
Hitherto, in the management of the UNIVERSAL GAZETTE, the Editor has confined himself, agreeably to the original plan, to recording events as they occurred, with but little animadversion on their causes or effects; and as far as opinions were involved, to relating those of others rather than his own. The Universal Gazette will still be continued on the same plan; the only change that takes place, will arise from its being printed at the seat of government at Washington, instead of Philadelphia; whereby its value will be appreciated rather than impaired.
With respect to the National Intelligencer, another plan will be pursued. Over a faithful and comprehensive detail of facts will preside a spirit of investigation, a desire to enlighten, not only by fact, but by reason. The tendency of public measures, and the conduct of public men, will be examined with candour and truth.
In addition to the mass of information, formed by domestic and foreign events, and especially by a detailed statement of the debates and proceedings of Congress, as much original matter will be furnished as the exertions of the Editor shall be able to command. And if he be not deceived, he can promise the readers of the National Intelligencer, an organ, which shall communicate the language of truth with accuracy, with dignity, and with spirit.
FOR THE NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER.
Friends and Fellow Citizens,
Suffer an individual, whose happiness can neither be increased by your smiles, or diminished by your frowns, to address you. Retired from public cares, & unambitious of any honour which you can confer, he stands too high to be corrupted by motives of personal gain, and too low to be dazzled by the false splendors of distinction.
Realising his situation, he dares to call himself YOUR FRIEND; and if he can gain that confidence, which friendship has a right to claim, he will obtain all he desires. His, however, is no disinterested or romantic regard. With you he feels one common interest. On the same tenure with you rest his life, his property, his liberty, and every blessing that follows in the train of equal rights and impartial laws.
Under a good government, honestly administered, it is the duty of the citizen, not only to submit to the operation of the laws, but to aid their execution by expressing his approbation of them. For laws, however good, will, in a small degree, be unequal, and in proportion to such inequality will they produce partial dissatisfaction. When this inequality is either inevitable, or arises from virtuous misconception, it becomes the intelligent citizen to hush the spirit of discontent by the mild persuasions of reason, thereby convincing those who are less informed than himself, that though in some few cases an unequal burthen may be imposed, yet that on the whole, their operation is impartial and beneficial.
Such, my friends, has heretofore been my conduct. Though I never viewed the Federal Constitution as perfect; well knowing that God only possesses the power of making any thing perfect; yet considering it as friendly to human happiness, and believing that it would be the shield of our rights, it early obtained, and has since uniformly received my cordial support.
But events fresh in the memory of all of us, have convinced me of the imbecility of the most profound system that has ever been framed, when assailed by the arts, the passions, and the interests of corrupt or mistaken men. I begin to fear that the best system of government in theory is the worst in practice. For under a good system, men feeling themselves secure in the enjoyment of their rights, relapse into a state of fatal repose and apathy; while, under a bad one, they are perpetually on their guard to resist the encroachments of power.
I pray Heaven, that this may not be the case in the United States. If it ever should be the case, we may have nothing left us but the indulgence of SILENT and fruitless regrets.
Contemplating the measures of the Federal Government, dispassionately viewing their tendency, and observing the effect produced by them on the public mind, I have been compelled to ask myself this solemn question. Is the Government of the United States republican? The Constitution tells me that it is; the practice under that Constitution inspires me with doubt; the language of the Chief Magistrate rends the veil, and convinces me that it is not republican.
Why is it not so?
This is the enquiry, the solemn enquiry I desire every man to make. And in making it, fellow citizens, let us not cheat ourselves with a name. Such a deception may for a moment yield us ideal happiness; but if fatally indulged, will only add to the fury of the storm, that now impending over us, may soon burst upon us with destructive terrors.
When you adopted the Constitution you distributed certain powers, with a caution the most precise, to different departments of the government.
1. To your Representatives, directly chosen by yourselves, or indirectly by your state legislatures, you confided the sacred power of making laws.
2. To the President, you entrusted the execution of those laws.
3. To the Judiciary you gave the power of deciding controversies between individuals, or certain portions of the Society, agreeably to those laws.
In vesting these powers in the different departments, your object was by a division of them to prevent that concentration in one person, or in one body of persons, which in other countries had invariably terminated in despotism. You prohibited your President from being a legislator: you prohibited your representatives in Congress from holding executive or judicial places; you prohibited your judges from participating in legislative duties. And though the Constitution does not in terms forbid a union of judicial and executive authority, this omission appears to have arisen more from accident than design.
These barriers against the intermixture of dangerous and incompatible powers were considered as strong, as insurmountable. They were the universal boast of the system! Eloquence, no less than reason, was lavished in their praise. It was not barely understood by them that a President of the United States should not hold a seat in the legislature; it was understood that he should exercise no participation in making the laws, further than that of assenting to, or rejecting them, when submitted to him after their formation. The spirit of the Constitution cannot be doubted. Its language is equally remote from equivocation or obscurity.
ART. 1. SEC. 6. "No Senator, or Representative shall, during the time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emoluments whereof shall be increased during such time; and no person holding any office under the United States, shall be a member of either house, during his continuance in office."
Yet, on a review of the measures of the Government, it will appear that every measure of importance, every measure that has agitated the feelings of the nation, emanated from executive recommendation or influence.
Such has been the mighty power of Presidential favour, such the dread of Presidential enmity, that Congress after Congress have exhibited the mournful spectacle of republican independence at the commencement of their sittings, and of servile submission at their close. Let the assumption of the state debts, the ratification of the British Treaty, the passage of the Alien and Sedition laws, the establishment of the Army and Navy, and the several loans recently made, be reviewed, and they will collectively exhibit a mass of evidence to this effect, that amounts to demonstration.
Each of these measures owes its origin to the recommendation of the Executive authority; most of them were, when first proposed, rejected with disdain; all of them were persisted in by the power which originated them; and all of them were finally carried by a small majority.
Citizens of America! do you require higher proof to convince you that in reality the government which you willed to be republican, has ceased to be so. For that is not a republican government in which the will of one man is every thing, and the will of the people and their immediate representatives is nothing.
If you still doubt the supremacy of executive power, I ask you to consult your own feelings. What, at this crisis, most interests you? Is it the choice of your representatives in Congress? So far is this from being the case, that you pass them by with an apparently criminal indifference. It is the election of President that excites all your hopes, that suggests all your fears. Accordingly as you belong to one or the other of the great parties that divide America, is your firm conviction that all will be right if Jefferson or Adams be elected.
Would this election be of such gigantic magnitude, if the President had obeyed the Constitution by confining the exercise of his duties to the bare execution of the laws? Had this been the case, he would have been the servant of the legislature, instead of their master.
As it is, I leave you to judge who has assumed power denied by the Constitution, and who have surrendered power, by the same Constitution vested inherently in them.
A REPUBLICAN.
The following letter of JOHN ADAMS to TENCH COXE was published some time since. Mr. Adams on his arrival at Philadelphia received a letter from Thomas Pinckney on its contents; to which his second letter appears to be an answer. Subjoined to both are strictures made on the first letter by ALEXANDER HAMILTON in his pamphlet just published at New-York.
A LETTER OF JOHN ADAMS.
(A COPY.)
Quincey, May 1792.
DEAR SIR,
THE first thing I have to communicate to you, must be an explanation of the date of my Letter. The Legislature of Massachusetts, last Winter, upon a petition of the North Parish in Braintree, separated it from the rest of the town, erected it into a new one, and gave it the name of Quincey. By this measure, you see, they have deprived me of my title of "Duke of Braintree," and made it necessary that my Friends should write me in future, as an inhabitant of Quincey. So much for this Brimstone.
Something that interests me much more, is your obliging Letter of the 12th of this month.
I should have been happy to have seen Mr. Pinckney, before his departure; but more from individual curiosity, than from any opinion, that I could have given him any information of importance to him. If he has the talent of searching hearts, he will not be long at a loss: If he has not, no information of mine could give it him.
The Duke of Leeds once enquired of me, very kindly, after his Class-mates at Westminster-school, the two Mr. Pinckneys; which induces me to conclude, that our new Ambassadors has many powerful old Friends in England. Whether this is a recommendation of him for the office, or not, I have other reasons to believe, that his family have had their eyes fixed upon the embassy to St. James's for many years, even before I was sent there; and that they contributed to limit the duration of my commission to three years, in order to make way for themselves to succeed me. I wish they may find as much honor and pleasure in it as they expected, and that the public may derive from it, dignity and utility. But knowing as I do, the long intrigue, and insinuating, as I do much British Influence in the appointment, were I in any Executive Department, I should take the liberty to keep a vigilant eye upon them.
Accept of my thanks, for your reflections on the state of the Union, which I have read with all the pleasure, which the intelligence, information, accuracy and elegance of the remarks on Lord Sheffield inspired.
There is one secret which you must be careful to keep: Manufactures must have good Government. They cannot exist where they are without it, much less can they be introduced where they are not. But a great part of the People of America appear to be so determined to have no Government at all, that, if you let them know the

whole Truth, you will excite an unmanageable Party against Manufactures. Manufactures cannot live, much less thrive, without honor, fidelity, punctuality, public and private faith, a sacred respect to property, and the moral obligation of promises and contracts, virtues and habits which never did, and never will generally prevail in any populous nation, without a decisive, as well as an intelligent and honest Government. The science of political economy is but a late study, and is not yet generally understood among us. Though I have read most of the Authors of reputation on the subject, both among the French and English, I pretend not to have digested anything relative to it, with the precision of a Master. But to me it appears, that the general interests of Agriculture in particular, as well as of the Nation in general, will be promoted by a direct and judicious encouragement of Manufactures; and that it is only the Land-jobber, who can be benefited in the rapid rise of his monopoly, by drawing every labouring hand into the Wilderness to fell trees.
The continual accessions of Foreigners will endanger and destroy our peace, if we know not how to govern them. They will moreover corrupt our Elections, and tear us to pieces. Sufficient to the day, however, is its own evil; and in that day, and hour it always has been, and I doubt not always will be, given us to provide against its dangers.
Remember me affectionately to all Friends, and believe me to be,
Faithfully yours,
(Signed)
JOHN ADAMS.
MR. COXE.
Philadelphia, 26th October, 1800.
DEAR SIR,
It was only on yesterday, that I received the letter, you did me honor to write me on the 16th of September. In the friendly and respectful stile in which it is written, I pray you to accept of my hearty thanks; and you shall receive in my answer all the satisfaction in my power to give you.
Of the letter, which is published in my name, I have no copy, nor any very particular recollection. In general, I remember, that when Mr. Coxe was assistant to the Secretary of the Treasury, he was very assiduous in his attentions to me; made me many visits at my house and many invitations to his own, when I was at the seat of government, and wrote me many letters when I was absent from it. I have also an indistinct idea of his writing me a letter, before your embarkation for Europe, expressing a great anxiety, that an interview should take place between you and me, before you should depart, and an opinion that it would be in my power to communicate to you, some useful information and advice relative to the subject of your mission. As I knew of nothing that could make it necessary for you to take a journey to Philadelphia, it is probable I wrote him something like the letter that is published. This, however, has been manifestly, either carelessly copied or unfaithfully printed, that I must refer to the original letter, which, if it is in my hand writing will be easily known.
It may not be easy for me to give you a clear idea of the situation I was in, when that letter was written. In order to accomplish this necessary purpose, as well as I can, it must be observed, that in May, 1792, it was my misfortune to be wholly unacquainted with all the gentlemen who bear the name of Pinckney. I had never seen one of them in my life, as I can recollect, and I knew not that there were more than two. When I heard of your appointment, I recollected the conversation with the Marquis of Carmarthen, now Duke of Leeds, and imagined it probable that his Lordship might have intimated, directly or indirectly, to some one near the President, that one of the Mr. Pinckneys would be agreeable at Court. I never had an idea of any other influence, than that which is very common in Europe, when one government cautions intimations to be given to another, that the appointment of some particular gentleman, would be agreeable; and I now fully believe that my suspicion of even that kind of influence, was wholly unfounded in reality, though it had then some colour, in appearance.
The other insinuation concerning the Pinckney family had no other foundation than this. When I received my commission to the Court of St. James, I observed in it a limitation to three years. As I did not recollect any example of this before, I was at a loss for the reason of it; but as I did not intend at that time to remain in Europe, even so long a time as three years, I thought very little of it, until afterwards on my arrival in London, in 1793, I received information, without enquiry, that
Mr. Pinckney, a member of Congress from South Carolina, had said, that the limitation to three years, had been inserted in my commission, for the purpose of getting rid of me; that the mission to London was too good a thing for me, and that the intention was, as soon as I could be removed to send a Mr. Pinckney of South Carolina in my room."
When I heard of a Mr. Pinckney's appointment, this London information came into my mind and diverted me, because I supposed Mr. Pinckney after 8 years, had carried his point, and occasioned the sentiment expressed in the letter, which, from the sportive, playful, careless air of it, throughout, must be easily perceived to have been confidential.
It may be easily ascertained, who was the member of Congress in 1784 or 1785, when my commission was granted and dated, and when the limitation to three years was inserted.
On this occasion it is but justice and duty in me to declare, that I have not at this time, the smallest reason to believe or suspect, that you or your brother ever solicited any appointment under Government, abroad or at home; that the whole conduct of both, as far as it has come to my knowledge, and I have had considerable opportunities to know the conduct of both since 1792, has shewn minds candid, able and independent, wholly free from any kind of influence from Britain and from any improper bias in favour of that Country or any other; and that both have rendered, with honor and dignity to themselves, great and important services to our Country. And I will add, in the sincerity of my heart, that I know of no two gentlemen, whose characters and conduct, are more deserving of confidence.
I cannot conclude without observing, that we are fallen on evil times; on evil times indeed, are we fallen, if every private conversation is immediately to be betrayed and misrepresented in the newspapers, and if every frivolous and confidential letter is to be dragged by the hand of treachery from its oblivion of eight years and published by malice and revenge, for the purpose of making mischief.
I am, Sir, with great truth and regard, Your friend and humble Servant,
JOHN ADAMS.
P. S. As your letter has been so long on its way to me, I shall publish this answer immediately, which I hope you will excuse.
The Honourable Thomas Pinckney, Esq., Charleston, South Carolina.
Mr. Hamilton's Strictures.
"Occurrences which have either happened or come to light since the election of Mr. Adams to the presidency, confirming my unfavourable foreboding of his character, have given new and decisive energy in my mind, to the sentiment of his unfitness for the station."
"The letter which has just appeared in the public prints, written by him, when Vice President, to Tench Coxe, is of itself conclusive evidence of the justness of this sentiment. It is impossible to speak of this transaction in terms suited to its nature, without losing sight that Mr. Adams is President of the United States."
"This letter avows the suspicion, that the appointment of Mr. Pinckney, to the Court of London, had been procured or promoted by British Influence. And considering the parade with which the story of the Duke of Leeds is told, it is fair to consider, that circumstance is the principal, if not the sole ground of the odious and degrading suspicion."
"Let any man of candour or knowledge of the world pronounce on this species of evidence." Page 14.
"But a more serious question remains—How will Mr. Adams answer to the government and to his country, for having thus wantonly given the sanction of his opinion to the worst of the assertions which the enemies of the administration have impudently thrown upon it? Can we be surprised that such a torrent of slander has poured out against it, when a man, the second in official rank, the second in the favor of the friends of the government, stooped to become himself one of the calumniators? It is peculiarly unlucky for Mr. Adams in this affair, that he is known to have desired at the time, the appointment which was given to Mr. Pinckney. The President declined the measure, thinking that it was compatible neither with the spirit of the constitution, nor with the dignity of the government, to designate the Vice-President to such a station."
"This letter, better than volumes, develops the unfortunate character of Mr. Adams!" Page 20.
ALEXANDER HAMILTON, of New-York, has just published a Pamphlet replete with interesting political matter. Under the character of a vindication of himself, it is the vehicle of keen crimination of Mr. Adams, whom he declares unfit for the Presidency. The copy-right being secured, it is only permissible to make extracts from it: these, however, are selected in such a manner as not only to excite but reward curiosity.
"Having been repeatedly informed that Mr. Adams had delineated me as the leader of a British faction, and having understood that his partisans, to counteract the influence of my opinion, were pressing the same charge against me, I wrote him a letter on the subject, dated the first of August last: No reply having been given by him to this letter, I on the first of the present month, wrote him another. Page 45.
"To promote this co-operation, to defend my own character, to vindicate those friends, who with myself have been unkindly aspersed, are the inducements for writing this letter. Accordingly it will be my endeavor to regulate the communication of it in such a manner as will not be likely to deprive Mr. Adams of a single vote. Indeed it is much my wish, that its circulation could forever be confined within narrow limits. I am sensible of the inconveniences of giving publicity to a limited development of the character of the chief magistrate of our country; and I lament the necessity of taking a step which will involve that result. Yet to suppress truths, the disclosure of which is so interesting to the public welfare, as well as to the vindication of my friends and myself, did not appear to me justifiable." p. 51.
COPIES OF LETTERS,
(Above alluded to.)
New-York, August 1, 1800.
"SIR,
"It has been repeatedly mentioned to me, that you have on different occasions asserted the existence of a British faction in this country, embracing a number of leading or influential characters of the federal party, (as usually denominated) and that you have sometimes named me; others, alluded to me as one of this description of persons; & I have likewise been assured that some of your warm adherents, for electioneering purposes, have employed a corresponding language. I must, Sir, take it for granted, that you cannot have made such assertions or insinuation, without being willing to avow them; and to assign the reason to a party who may conceive himself injured by them. I therefore trust, that you will not deem it improper, that I apply directly to yourself, to ascertain from you, in reference to your own declarations, whether the information I have received has been correct or not; and if correct, what are the grounds upon which you have founded the suggestions?"
With respect,
I have the honor to be,
Sir,
Your obedient servant,
(Signed) ALEX. HAMILTON.
To JOHN ADAMS, ESQ.
President of the United States.
NO VII.
THE SECOND LETTER.
"New-York October 1, 1800
"SIR,
"The time which has elapsed since my letter of the 1st of August was delivered to you, precludes the further expectation of an answer."
"From this silence I will draw no inference; nor will I presume to judge of the fitness of silence upon such an occasion, on the part of the chief magistrate of a republic towards a citizen, who without a stain has discharged so many important public trusts."
"But thus much I will affirm, that by whomsoever a charge of the kind mentioned in my former letter, may at any time have been made or insinuated against me, it is a base, wicked, and cruel calumny; destitute even of a plausible pretext to excuse the folly, or mask the depravity which must have dictated it."
"With due respect,
"I have the honor to be
Sir,
Your Obedient Servant
(Signed) "ALEX. HAMILTON."
TO JOHN ADAMS, ESQ.
President of the United States.
"The circumstances of my late military situation have much less to do with my personal discontent than some others. In re-
spect to them, I shall only say, that I owe my appointment to the station and rank I held, to the express stipulation of General Washington who accepted the command of the army: afterwards peremptorily insisted upon by him in opposition to the strong wishes of the President; and that though second in rank, I was not promoted to the first place when it became vacant by the death of the Commander in Chief. As to the former, I should have no cause to complain, if there had not been an apparent inconsistency in the measures of the President: if he had not nominated me first on the list of major generals, and attempted afterwards to place me third in rank!"
"On other topics my sensations are less neutral. As I have been assured, from respectable authorities, Mr. Adams has repeatedly indulged himself in virulent and indecent abuse of me; if he has denounced me a man destitute of every moral principle; if he has stigmatized me as the leader of a British faction; then certainly I have a right to think that I have been most cruelly and wickedly traduced; then have I an exclusive right to appeal to all those who have been spectators of my public actions; to all who are acquainted with my private character in its various relations, whether such treatment of me by Mr. Adams, is of a nature to weaken or strengthen his claim to the approbation of wise and good men; then now to far yield to the consciousness of what I am, As to declare, that in the cardinal points of public and private rectitude, above all in pure and disinterested zeal for the interests and services of this country, I shrink not from a comparison with any arrogant pretender to superior and exclusive merit."
"I ought to premise, that the ground upon which I stand, is different from that of most of those who are confounded with me in pursuit of the same end. While our object is common, our motives are variously dissimilar. A party well affected to Mr. Adams, have no other wish, than to take a double chance against Mr. JEFFERSON. Another part feeling a diminution of confidence in him, still hope that the general tenor of his conduct will be essentially right. Few go as far in their obligations as I do. Not denying to Mr. Adams patriotism and integrity, and even talents of a certain kind, I should be deficient of candor were I to conceal the conviction, that he does not possess the talents adapted to the administration of government, and that there are great and intrinsic defects in his character, which unfit him for the office of chief magistrate." Page 4.
"Being among the guests appointed to dine with the Count De Vergennes, minister for foreign affairs, Mr. Adams thought it to give a specimen of American politeness, by conducting Madam Vergennes to dinner; in the way she was pleased to make retribution in the current coin of French politeness, by saying to him, "Monsieur Adams, vous etes le Washington de negociation."—Stating this incident (Mr. Adams in his journal) makes this comment upon it—"These people have a very pretty knack of paying compliments." He might have added, they have also a very dextrous knack at disguising a sarcasm." Page 9.
"Mr. Adams, you are the Washington of negotiation."
"It was agreed that a few votes should be diverted from Mr. Adams to other persons, so as to ensure to General Washington a plurality. Great was my astonishment, and equally great my regret, when afterwards, I learned from persons of unquestionable veracity, that Mr. Adams had complained of unfair treatment, in not having been permitted to take an equal chance with general Washington, by having the votes to an uninfluenced currency." P. 9.
"The outlet (of Mr. Adams's administration) was distinguished by a few, in which his friends lamented as temporizing. It had the air of a lure for the favour of his opponents at the expence of his sincerity; but being of an unequivocal complexion, to which no precise design can be annexed, it is barely mentioned as a circumstance, which, in conjunction with others of a more positive tint, may serve to explain his character." P. 20.
"The friends of the government were not agreed as to ulterior measures. Some were for immediate and unqualified war; others for a more mitigated course; the dissolution of treaties, preparation of force by land and sea—partial hostilities of a defensive tendency, leaving to France the option of seeking accommodation, or proceeding to open war." p. 23.

The session which ensued the promulgation of the dispatches of our commissioners, was about to commence. Mr. Adams arrived at Philadelphia from his seat in Quincy. The tone of his mind seemed to have been raised, rather than depressed.
"It was suggested to him, that it might be expedient to insert in his speech to Congress, a sentiment of this import; That after the repeatedly rejected advances of this country, its dignity required that it should be left with France in future, to make the first overture, that if desirous of reconciliation, she would evince the disposition, by sending a minister to this government, he would be received with the respect due to his character, and treated with in the frankness of a sincere accommodation."
"The suggestion was received in a manner both indignant and intemperate."
"Mr. Adams declared as a sentiment which he adopted on mature reflection:— That if France should send a minister to morrow he would order him back the day after."
"So imprudent an idea was easily refuted. Little argument was requisite to shew that by a similar system of retaliation, when our government in a particular instance had refused the envoy of another, nations might entail upon each other perpetual hostility; mutually barring the avenues of explanation."
"In less than forty eight hours from this extraordinary sally, the mind of Mr. Adams underwent a total revolution—he resolved not only to insert in his speech the sentiment which had been proposed to him, but to go farther, and to declare, that if France would give explicit assurances of receiving a minister from this country, with due respect, he would send one." Page 24, 25.
WASHINGTON CITY.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31st, 1800.
The NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER is this day presented to the Public. It is the first Paper printed in WASHINGTON; and from the vicinity of the Editor to the Capitol, the seat of the public bodies, he expects to be enabled to furnish the earliest and most correct notices of their deliberations. The crisis of national affairs is deeply interesting, whether contemplated in relation to our internal or external situation. Fully impressed with the sacred duties of the press in such times, and sensible how much good or mischief may be effected by the virtuous or vicious application of the power with which public opinion has invested it, truth and truth only, shall be the guide of the Editor. In many instances he will doubtless be deceived. But in all instances a consciousness of error will be followed by a candid renunciation of it.
The design of the National Intelligencer is to diffuse correct information through the whole extent of the union. From the whole extent, therefore, of the union, it must derive the patronage that shall sustain it; and every friend to its plan is invited to promote it, by making known its nature and character to his fellow citizens in his neighbourhood.
For this sole purpose, not in the unworthy spirit of solicitation, it is intended to forward a few of the early numbers to citizens of respectability in the several states, who are requested to use their good offices, if they consider the Paper worthy encouragement.
In New-Jersey, the Electors of President and Vice President were to have been chosen on the 30th Inst. by the Legislature of that State.
In North Carolina, the election for Electors takes place on the first Monday in November, by the people in districts.
In Virginia, the election takes place on the first Monday in November, by the people, by a general vote.
The result of the Pennsylvania election for Members of Congress, as far as it is yet ascertained, stands thus: Messrs. Jones, Leib, Gallatin, Smulie, Gregg, Brown, Muhlenburg, Stewart, Hanna, Baird, republicans, and Messrs. Hemphill and Elic federalists, are elected.
The election for Members of Congress for the next Congress, takes place in Massachusetts on the 3d day of November.
General C. C. Pinckney has been chosen a Senator in the Legislature of South Carolina, for the district of Charleston. General Pinckney has 623 votes, and Col. Wm. Lee 236.
The Third Middle District of the state
of Massachusetts have made choice of Nathan Read, to represent them in Congress March next. The whole number of votes being 2939, 1470 make a majority; Mr. Read the federal candidate had 1567, and Mr. Crowninshield 1364.
ISRAEL SMITH, the republican candidate, is chosen to represent the Western District of Vermont in the Congress of the United States. In the Eastern District of the State there was no choice. The principal candidates were Mr. Morris and Mr. Niles.
ISAAC TICHENOR, is elected governor, and PAUL BRIGHAM, lieutenant governor, of the state of Vermont. Majority of votes for governor, 3,700.
The Governor of Pennsylvania has convened the Legislature of that State, to take into consideration the measures proper to be pursued, to ensure to that State an election of Electors of President and Vice President.
The Commissioners of Health of Baltimore, have informed the citizens, that there is in their opinion no danger in returning to that city.
A bridge has been built over Cayuga Lake, (N. Y.) It is one and a quarter of a mile in length, supported by 200 arches, is wide enough for 3 waggons to pass abreast, and cost 150,000 dollars.
Extract of a letter from the American consul at Bourdeaux, to a respectable house in New-York, received per the Benjamin Franklin, arrived at Philadelphia, dated August 30, 1800.
"The envoys of the United States continue in Paris still. The negotiation is, I believe, pursuing with more celerity than heretofore, and authorizes the expectation of a speedy and favorable result."
The Freemasons in Prussia, have submitted their book of laws to the King, who has approved of them.
Among the greatest misfortunes which have befallen this country, is the violent ill-will existing among men who entertain different moral principles. The evils which this ill-will produces are so numerous and so widely extended, as to interfere with the usual intercourse of society, to disturb the peace of families, and to calumniate and in some cases destroy the reputations of the most virtuous citizens. A life rendered illustrious by acts of public utility, and endeared by offices of private worth, is often blasted by the malignant breath of this demon. Viewing the man who differs from me in certain political tenets as my enemy, his virtues are at once ascribed to hypocrisy, and his foibles converted into crimes; while, on the other hand, the profligacy of him, who coincides with me in opinion, is either denied, or palliated on the ground of the imperfection of human nature. Of course virtue and vice become convertible terms. They cease to depend upon the open, undisguised actions of men. They exclusively attach themselves to classes of individuals who profess certain speculative tenets!
Citizens of America! is this right? Is it your wish to be happy? If this be your wish, can it be realised any other way than by making virtue your directors? And is virtue of any party? Does she attach herself exclusively to those men who entertain certain beliefs; does she fly from those who entertain different beliefs? Believe me this is not the case. Men, equally good, and equally great, hold sentiments unequivocally hostile. Their views of national policy differ in every point.
This difference may be a subject of regret, but ought it to be a source of hatred?
What is the first duty of every good citizen? Clearly, to promote the general good. This he does in the surest way, by the industrious pursuit of his private occupation, and by co-operating in the formation and execution of those measures, on which the peace and welfare of his country depend. With respect to personal employment, we all agree to leave men entirely to themselves. A shoemaker does not quarrel with a taylor for pursuing a business different from his own. Every man is acknowledged to be the best judge of his own talents for any particular calling, and so far at least, "all nature's difference is all nature's peace."
But when men meet together in their political capacity to devise means for securing their present, and extending their future happiness, they are found essentially to differ. And from what does this arise?
It arises undoubtedly in some degree from the sinister motives of a few men, who would pursue their own interests at the expense of those of their fellow men; but it arises in a still greater degree from the different portions of information possessed by different men. By the great mass of mankind the same objects are sought; it is only respecting the means they disagree.
Now, is there any reason, is there any virtue, in my calling a man a knave, who at worst only deserves the epithet of a fool? Farther, is it not still more irrational for me, who may be but moderately informed myself, to calumniate, by ascribing to him corrupt motives, an individual, whose strength of mind or acquired knowledge qualifies more correctly to discern the true path of national glory?
Is there a citizen, who reads these remarks, and does not acknowledge their truth? If there be such an one, let him blush for his want of understanding. He is a weak man, whose vanity cherishes the belief that he governs others, while in reality he is the slave of his own prejudices.
COMMUNICATION.
Result of late Elections.
PENNSYLVANIA.
   COUNTIES, REPUBLICAN, FEDERAL.     Philadelphia City 1,693 1,684   County 2,742 765   Delaware 546 752   Montgomery 2,012 1,240   Bucks 2,177 1,654   Lancaster 1,926 2,275   Dauphin 1,736 468   Northampton 2,344 147   Westmoreland 1,093 0   York 1,376 629   Adams 621 857   Allegheny 949 555   19,220 11,026  
These counties being those from which returns have been received contain about one half of the citizens of Pennsylvania. In the remaining counties, it is probable that the republican tickets will succeed by larger majorities.
NEW-JERSEY.
   COUNTIES, REPUBLICAN, FEDERAL.     Gloucester 755 1,446   Bergen 852 1,151   Essex 1,666 12   Middlesex 812 1,589   Somerset 413 1,410   Huntingdon 1,217 1,281   Burlington 520 2,806   6,235 9,695  
Of the remaining counties, two are almost unanimously republican, and others doubtful, from which it is probable that the above proportion of votes in the remaining counties will be changed favorably to the republican interest.
DELAWARE.
   COUNTIES, REPUBLICAN, FEDERAL.     New-Castle 1,247 1,030   Kent 720 811   Sussex 373 963   2,340 2,704   2,340   Majority for federal ticket. 364  
MARYLAND.
   COUNTIES, REPUBLICAN, FEDERAL.     Montgomery 565 1,171   Prince George 901 1,013   Baltimore 2,035 995   Annapolis 184 119   Washington 196 Majority.   Frederick 60   3,941 3298  
From the foregoing statements, which have been condensed from scattered accounts, it appears that the republican ticket has prevailed by bold majorities in the large states of Pennsylvania and Maryland and that the federal ticket has succeeded in New Jersey by a considerable majority, and in Delaware by the small majority of 364 votes out of 5,044.
The above accounts are incomplete, inasmuch as they relate to Pennsylvania, New-Jersey, and Maryland. But they unequivocally establish the great change which has taken place in public opinion, and prove that Pennsylvania is unfhaken in
her republicanism. A majority, comparatively small, gave victory to the democratic ticket one year ago, on the election of Mr. McKean; that majority was not more than a tenth part of the total number of votes. The result of the election this year, gives to the republican ticket two votes to one for the federal: the result in respect to Members of Congress will probably give the democrats 11 Members out of 15: and the two federal Members succeeded, the one only by a majority of 349, and the other by a majority of about 370.
Maryland in her election, has made a bold stand. The existing law vests the election of Electors of a President in the PEOPLE. It was attempted by the friends of Mr. Adams and Mr. Pinckney, to divest the people of the choice by placing in the State Legislature Representatives, who would abrogate the present mode, and assume it themselves; thereby expecting to insure to the federal ticket for President and Vice President all the votes of Maryland. They have been foiled. The people have elected 48 republicans out of 80, the whole number of Members. What was the motive? Was the opposition given to the proposed change an opposition barely to the mode? No; common sense dictates that it was to the substance. It was the effect intended to be produced that roused the people. The question was Jefferson or Adams; and the citizens of Maryland voted in the proportion of 48 to 32, that is of 3 to 2 for Mr. Jefferson.
The result of the Delaware election is federal. But the tenor by which federalism is held in that State must be viewed as precarious when it is observed that Mr. Bayard's majority was only 364, and when it is recollected that both its neighbours, Pennsylvania and Maryland, are decidedly republican.
If it be wished to form an opinion of the political complexion of these four middle States in the aggregate (and on that complexion will almost every case of National importance depend, owing to the balanced state of Eastern and Southern politics) it will appear that the total votes as above stated are
   REPUB. FEDERAL.     Delaware 2,340 2,704   Pennsylvania 19,220 11,026   Maryland 3,941 3,298   New-Jersey 6,235 2,695   31,736 26,723   Whole number 58,459  
These four States have 37 electors. If the whole number above be divided by 37, 1580 votes will be entitled to an elector: and dividing each of the above total votes for the republican and federal tickets, it follows that the public spirit of those States, if fairly expressed, would give Mr. Jefferson 20 votes, and Mr. Adams 17 votes. In this event Mr. Jefferson would undoubtedly be President, without a single vote from South Carolina, and with no more than six votes from North Carolina, which his opponents allow him.
The PRESIDENT of the United States left Philadelphia on Monday last, and is expected to arrive here this day.
FORTY DOLLARS REWARD.
FOR Apprehending and securing in any Goal, so that the Subscriber gets him again A NEGRO MAN named NACE, ran away some time in the month of October, aged Thirty years, about five feet high, light complexion, wears his hair queued, a well set truncky fellow. I have cause to believe he is in the City of Washington. It is unnecessary to describe his Clothing as he will have it in his power to change them. I will give TWENTY DOLLARS if ten miles from home, FORTY DOLLARS if twenty miles, and the above reward if a greater distance.
ZACHARIAH SOTHORON. Charles County near Benedict, October 31
BOARDING AND LODGING.
THE Subscriber respectfully informs the members of the ensuing Congress and the Public, that he has taken the two houses in square No. 690, on the New Jersey Avenue opposite the house at present occupied by Thomas Law, Esq. where he can accommodate either single Gentlemen or those who have families. The houses were finished last spring, so that no danger can be apprehended from damp walls. He has Stableage for several horses and two good Carriage houses.
ROBERT W. PEACOCK.
City of Washington, October 31st 1800.
WANTED
A CARRIER TO DELIVER THE
NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER.

The Editor of the National Intelligencer has received a French work lately printed at Hamburg, entitled "An account of the Transportation to Cayenne of citizens BARTHELEMY, PICHEGRUE, &c. written by General RAMEL, one of the exiles."
The performance contains much curious information and is dictated by a spirit of lively indignation. The following abstract is made, in which, without quoting the precise words of the writer, his spirit of composition is preserved. The facts and ideas stated are those of the author.
In the interesting account given by RAMEL, of the exile of himself and his companions, there is an exhibition of the greatest sufferings endured with uncommon fortitude and patience, of almost unparalleled cruelty and inhumanity, and of the most affecting fidelity and benevolence. Ignorant of the cause of their condemnation, they were torn from their country and their families, and exiled to a desert infested with every evil.
Previous to their leaving Paris they were allowed an interview with their wives and children. Far from alleviating, this but increased their wretchedness. As they were entering the carriages, which were to bear them from their prison, TEL-LIER, a servant of Barthelemy, rushed through the crowd, bearing an order from the directory which permitted him to accompany his master. He gave this order to Augerau, the superintending officer, who, after reading it, asked "do you then intend to unite your fate to that of these ruined men; whatever events may await them, be assured they will never return to this country;" "yes my determination is made," replied Tellier "and I esteem myself most fortunate in being allowed to partake the misfortunes of my master; "well madman" answered the officer "go perish with him," and then added, "Soldiers, see that this man is joined to the number of villains." Tellier flew to his master, threw himself at his feet; Barthelemy stooped to embrace him, happy, at this fatal moment, to press to his bosom so faithful a friend. "This man, says Ramel, "ever shewed the same fidelity and unshaken courage, and was ever afterwards treated as one of our companions."
On the road from Paris to Rochfort they were exposed to every kind of indignity and insult; and their lodgings and provisions were so bad, that their health was injured. Before quitting the prisons of Blois, a last and cruel interview took place between MARBOIS and his wretched wife. This lady was at her seat, near Metz, when she heard of the arrestation of her husband. She instantly set off for Paris, but did not arrive there until he had left it; she followed the route he had taken, without waiting to ask permission of the directory to see him, if she should overtake him on the road. This occasioned her much difficulty, as the officers on guard used this pretext to refuse her admittance to the prison. At last, a few moments before our departure she gained admission, but was limited to a quarter of an hour during which time an officer held his watch in his hand; when the last minute had arrived, Marbois, collecting all his strength, conducted his respectable companion towards the other exiles; who scarcely recollected Barthelemy & du Coudray, so much were they already altered. "My friends," said he "I present to you Madam Marbois who, at this moment of separation, wishes to bid you farewell. They surrounded her with transport; she did not with them courage only, but strength and health sufficient to support their sufferings. Agitated and drowned in tears, the last moment arrived; "Go, go, said Marbois, with firmness, "it is now time;" he embraced her, then, taking her in his arms, carried her to the door of the prison, which he opened and closed himself, and then fell senseless on the pavement. They flew to his succour. The moment he recovered, he exclaimed, "I am myself again, I have found a new and unfailing source of courage." In truth from that moment, he was less oppressed with languor, he regained his strength, and with it that firmness and serenity, which ever accompany true courage.
These unhappy men at last embarked, and during their whole voyage suffered the evils of the most rigorous confinement, of hunger and thirst, of insult, cruelty and disease. But amidst the inhuman wretches who tormented them, they discovered three persons, who often nobly and generously risked their own lives, in affording some little alleviation of their misery; by whose good offices their lives were preserved and their spirits cheered.
At last they arrived at the destined place. The fort at Cayenne, where they were confined, afforded the most miserable accommodation. In dark and damp huts, or hard matresses, without a chair, table, or any kind of convenience, were these diseased and half famished sufferers condemned to dwell, a biscuit, a glass of rum, and bad water were their only nourishment. There exposed to insects and reptiles numerous and poisonous, to a burning sun, to a fatal climate, to the jests and revilings of negroes and soldiers, were they confined, without a ray of hope to cheer the gloom that environed them.
A few days after their arrival, the venerable Murinai fell sick. He became delirious the instant he was attacked. His companions could afford him no aid, and before any relief could be procured from the commandant of the fort the unhappy old man had breathed his last. To the latest moment he displayed an example of perfect resignation and courage. Almost dying, Ramel gathered all the strength he had left, and tottered to the apartment of the general. He found him suspended in his hammock, no one near him, his limbs extended, his mouth open and dry; he gave him a few drops of water. The old man made one more struggle with death, and then expired. What a spectacle! the father of a numerous family, thus abandoned in the last moments of his life! Few scenes could so forcibly teach the vicissitudes of human affairs and the uncertainty of human enjoyments.
MARBOIS, whose serenity seemed to increase with the increase of his miseries, displayed a constant cheerfulness and tranquillity, which by those who did not know him, or those who did not hear him talk of his wife and family, might have been mistaken for insensibility. He understood better than most others, how to vary and employ his leisure hours. He purchased a few books, in which he often read. He likewise laboured with his hands, always chusing those objects, which might promote the comfort of his companions. He fabricated several articles of furniture, and even made a violin, and would play on it, while the negroes danced. Marbois undertook likewise to clear an avenue of orange-trees, from the underwood, which obstructed the path; he engaged the negroes (by whom he was greatly beloved) to assist him in this laborious task, and thus afforded his companions the luxury of a shaded walk. Tronçon du Coudray supported his sufferings, with a courage equal to that of his friend. It was when he spoke of the 18th of Fructidor, that his calmness and patience gave way to rage and indignation. Tronçon wrote his memoirs and laboured so incessantly at his task, that his health suffered. He composed the funeral oration of his colleague general Murinai; he collected his unfortunate companions around him and pronounced it with the same solemnity and the same grace that he had displayed, when speaking before the tribunal of the Council of Ancients. All the soldiers of the garrison, all the negroes, thronged to hear him.
His affecting eloquence, his voice full of harmony, his pathetic description of the misery of France, the energy with which he spoke of the courage, the loyalty, the innocence of the good old man whom they had lost, drew tears from every eye.
LAFOND carried on his countenance, the impression of deep and settled melancholy. He spoke only of his family, of his six children, and of his wife, whose portrait was ever in his hands.
PICHEGRU, always firm, exhibited that confidence and that kind of presentiment of a better fate, which though imaginary, has the power of cheering and supporting us in adversity, and which evinces a mind too strong and elastic to be long depressed by misfortune. His principal occupation was learning English. He sang, and his companions often joined him; it was not ballads nor love songs they chose, but animated and military airs, with words applicable to their situation.
BARTHELEMY, so reduced and debilitated, that the protraction of his life was a miracle which astonished every one, possessed an internal strength, a vigour of soul, which his mild and calm manners would not lead one to expect, but whose energy was ever developed in the occurrence of any trying circumstance. Aided by his faithful Tellier, he charged himself with the task of freeing this miserable colony from the scorpions and poisonous insects by which they were half devoured.
Such were some of the men, whose sad reverse of fortune proclaimed so loudly the vicissitudes of human life. Du Coudray and Lafond were seized with a dreadful and fatal disease, and after agonizing for 30 days, fell victims to it. Almost a year, did these unfortunate exiles continue to suffer
beyond the power of imagination to conceive, till despair determined them to attempt their escape.
Captain Tilly, an American, on board an American vessel, allowed himself to be taken by a French privateer, and conducted to the port of Sinamary. Here by his generous aid, and that of the noble Baric, his pilot, the wretched deputies escaped from their prison. Baric was their pilot, and in a small canoe, without any provisions, and exposed to the heat of the sun, to tempests, and to hunger, they for many days struggled with these difficulties, and were at last received by the benevolent inhabitants, & governor of Surinam, with every testimony of joy and congratulation. Here they resided some time, and after recruiting that strength which had been exhausted by such long and cruel sufferings, they sailed for England, where they arrived the 21st of September, the anniversary of the day on which they had left Rochefort.
Description of Laura by Petrarch.
She was seated in the midst of those ladies who are her general companions, and appeared like a beautiful rose in a parterre, surrounded with flowers smaller and less blooming. Her air was more touching than usual. She was dressed perfectly plain, and without pearls, garlands, or any gay colours. Though she was not melancholy, she did not appear with her usual cheerfulness. She was serious and thoughtful. She did not sing as usual, nor speak with the sweetness that charmed every one. She had the air of a person who fears an evil not yet arrived. In taking leave, I sought in her looks a consolation for my own sufferings. Her eyes had an expression I had never seen before in them. I deposited to their keeping my heart and my thoughts, as to faithful friends on whom I could with safety depend. Her altered clothes and air, her countenance, a certain concern mixed with grief which I saw in her face, predicted the sorrows that threatened me.
Letter of St. Evremont to Ninon L'Enclos.
"The last letter I receive from Madam D'Enclos always appears to me the best; and this is not because the sense of the present pleasure prevails over the remembrance of the past; but the true reason is that your mind receives new vigour and improvement every day. If it be with your health as with your understanding, I shall but maintain the challenge you propose, or the best appetite. I made trial of mine against Lady Sandwich at an entertainment the other day at Lord Jersey's, and was not worsted. Her Ladyship's wit is acknowledged by all the world, and her good taste is manifest by the esteem she expresses for you. She did not get the better of me in praising you, any more than in eating.
You are of all countries; as much esteemed at London as at Paris. You are of all times; and when I allege you for the honour of mine, the young immediately name you to give the same advantage to theirs. Thus you are mistress both of the past and present: I wish with all my soul, that you may yet extend your power considerably over the future! It is not fame I have here in view; that is sufficiently secured to you already: I am thinking of what is more essential, namely life; of which eight days are more worth than eight centuries of glory after death!
The above letter was written by Evremont, when near 90 years old, to Ninon, near 80.
The following MEMORIAL is circulating in the State of Pennsylvania. To the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Representation and Memorial of the undersigned Citizens thereof.
Your Memorialists observed, with great regret, the rising of the Legislature in March last, without passing a law for the appointment of Electors of the President of the United States.
It is unnecessary, and might be unfavorable to temperate deliberation, to enter into a consideration of the causes, which prevented the enacting of a law giving to the people an opportunity of making a choice, in the manner heretofore invariably practiced in Pennsylvania; Nor do your memorialists conceive, that any Public Good could arise from a demonstration, that the districts proposed would not have produced an expression of the Public Will in this State.
An extraordinary Meeting of the Legislature having been called by the Governor's Proclamation, to take place in November, a number of the Citizens of the State beg leave to lay before you, their earnest wishes on the occasion. We hope nothing will, by any means, occur to deprive Pennsylvania of her full
share in electing the President. We are the more earnest upon this subject, because this great, populous, and opulent State, though it has always generously declined to propose one of its citizens for the Federal Chief Magistracy, is left without any concern in the conducting of the five Executive and Law Departments, and without any share in the Supreme Federal Judiciary Departments, and without any participation in the numerous foreign missions. All the states on the Delaware, with the exception of a New-Jersey Judge, are in the same situation.
Facts so well known, and so important as these, will receive the consideration of a wise and faithful Legislature, who will not fail duly to estimate their vast consequence. This state would most sensibly feel so extraordinary a deprivation of its just share in the great Departments, if it were likewise to be ultimately deprived of Electors, for choosing the President of the United States.
It is not from a mere spirit of jealousy, but from a just and necessary prudence, that you memorialists beg leave, most seriously and urgently, to press upon your attention the known determination of the Eastern states, to choose their Electors by the ballot of their Legislatures; so as to secure the appointment of men friendly to those two personal interests in our country, which have given to Massachusetts and Connecticut the exclusive command of the Executive Powers.
The taxable property, productions, imports, and commerce of this great state, are probably equal to those of Massachusetts and Connecticut together, and will increase more in the next four years. Yet these two states have the lead and ascendancy in the Presidential council, in the direction of the influential departments of the purse and the sword, and in the most important missions to Great Britain, France, Germany and Spain, and the two first seats in the supreme judicial court; while there is not a single Pennsylvanian to protect the rights and interests of the state in any of those appointments, or in any other direction of a department or in any mission. These hard and undeniable truths demand the more serious consideration, because Pennsylvania enjoys but a sixteenth part of the votes in the senate; though we have probably a sixth of the white population, and of the taxable and dutiable property; an extensive foreign trade; and 28 millions of territory, happily situated as to climate and centrality.
The late Elections for Congress have given a clear and certain indication of the Public Sentiment in this State. There will appear to be elected ten or perhaps eleven Members, by majorities favorable to such an alteration in the Federal Chief Magistracy, as might relieve Pennsylvania, and the middle States, from the evils complained of; and we cannot but suppose, that the Electors of the other two or three would sacrifice inferior considerations to secure the Elective Right of Pennsylvania, and distributive Justice among the States; which is necessary to confidence and harmony. It is our policy to be as much United in securing a Chief Magistrate known to be just to Pennsylvania, as Massachusetts and Connecticut are determined to be in securing a President, & Vice President, who with their Friends may continue to preserve an undue share of the Executive, Judiciary and Diplomatic powers in their hands.
Your Memorialists, therefore, relying on your faithful attachment to their just Interests and Rights, respectfully hope, that you will proceed to make, by the established Legislative mode of joint ballot, such an appointment of Electors as will express the evident will of Pennsylvania and secure that legitimate weight in the Federal Councils and Proceedings, of which she has been so long and so clearly deprived.
And in order that this state may not be hereafter exposed to the danger of being unrepresented in the person of the first magistrates of the Union, we beg leave to suggest the propriety of the Legislature, establishing by law, the mode of appointing the Electors of President and Vice-President in future, by a popular election, as we earnestly wish that they may never again be chosen in any other manner, than by the immediate voice of the people; and although necessity obliges us at this moment, to have recourse to a less desirable mode, we are anxious that such measures may be taken for the future, as that it may not be drawn into a precedent.