Alabama state intelligencer., 1831-09-03
Bkue Spring. .JnLn 3I. 1891.

Blue Spring, July 3l, 1881. DEAR SR:-Yours of the 16th instant this day received, accompanied with statement, which, it seems you have prepared for the pubic perporting to contain separate conversations with the President and myself relative to allegation made in the pub l lie Journals that General Jackson had authorized member of Congress to require of Messrs, Berrien, Branch and yourself and your families to associate with Major Eaton and his family, under the penalty of being dismissed from office. You refer to two articles in the Globe justify your appeal to the pub l lie, previously to receiving my answer m which it appeared that had denied the above allegation if it had any alusion to me. After the publication of this accusation against General Jackson, received letter from a friend, intimatng that was the mem- Der of Congress to whom allusion made, and re- quested to know if had made such commu- nicaton. In my answer, confined myself to the specific accusation thus publicly made against the President and which is attributable to yourself and most unequivocally denied that General Jackson ever made such requison through me, and as positively denied ever having made such state ment to you. On the contrary, asserted, and now repeat did inform you, in each and every interview, that the President disclalmed any right or intention to interfere in any manner whatever with the egu- aton of your private or social intercourse.
 Thus, in matter in which l was engaged to serve you and other friends in a matter of delicate and highly confidential nature. and in which succeeded, unexpectedly found myself presented in the pub | lie journals as a witness impeachng one of those f"i~ds, and ascribing 10 him de larations which he never made and placed in that attitude by yod ssif respect and selfdefence called upon me to correct that erroneous statement. cannot, therefore, agree with you that did in any degree change my view of the subject in considering 1t improper in any of the parties to come before the public without the op portunity of comparing different recollectons. But if you feel under any obligations of personal or political character to come before the public pre- vlousy you will find me ready yourself to meet any responsibilityor difficulty which such course may produce. Upto this date have considered my correspondence with you and MT Berrien of char. acter not to be divulged to any one, and therefore have confined it to my own bosom. The object of my first letter to you to declare frankly and didly in the spirit of perfect respect and friendship that was misunderstood. provided was the mem- Der of Congress to whom reference made, that you might have in your power to correct your mis- apprehenslons of my communications.
 l did not see how it could mpeach your character | or lessen yOurreputat0n to consider and acknowledge it mistake, without your assumption of the ground that you understood me better than understood my self, and that you could make the public believe so | My standard of confidence and friendship, arising from personal and political intimacy of twenty years, would have dictated that course to me. Such n could have been injurious to none and less troublesome to all. But, so far as am concerned feel perfectly willing to take the course adopted by yourself of placing our views before the public. l do not, however, think that it will be much benefit ted by our abors; and am farther induced to be- lieve that the public will place less value upon the controversy than you do. In denying the coniden- tial character of our conversation you urge, consideration that the intimaton to invite Major Ea ton and his family to your large parties offensive although you are kind enough to believe that did not intend it. If the nature of the suggestion changed in your mind the character of the conversa tion and the relation of that perfect friendship which had so long existed, would it not have been mag unanimous in you to have advised me of it? I now come to the material point in controversy General Jackson, through required of you to in- vite Major Eaton and his family to your large par ties. This suggestion made upon my sponsiblllty with an anxious desire more effectually to reconcile the then existing difficulties. But Ge- neral Jackson never did make such requisition in 1 any manner whatever, directly indirectly; nor did ever intimate to you that he had made such a demand The complaint made by General Jack son against thIs part of his cabinet specific, that he had been informed, and was induced to believe, that they were using their influence to have Major Eaton and his family excluded from all respectable circles, for the purpose of degrading him, and thus drive him from office; and that the attempt had been made even upon the foreign ministers, and in one case had produced the desired effect He pro- posed no mode of accommodation or satisfaction but declared expressly that if such the fact he would dismiss them from office. He then read to | me a paper containing the principles upon which he intended to act, which dscaimed the right to inter- fere with the social relations of his cabinet Acting in the capacity of mutual friend, and obeying the i'm pulse of my mind, can it be supposed that Iwoud have misrepresented any of the parties, and thus defeat the object 1 had in vew7 l should have considered it gross violation of the ties of that friendship which then existed between us to have carried to you such message, as that you should invite Major Eaton and his family, or any other per- sons, to your large small parties. under menace Ofdismissal from office. When the President men, toned this charge of conspiracy vindicaIed you against it. gave it as my opinion that he was mis- informed. To prevent rupture, requested the President to postpone calling upon those members of his cabinet till Saturday, that might have the op- portunty of two days to converse with them.
 When made my report to the President I in- formed him that was confirmed in my opinion pre- viousy expressed, that he had been misnformed as to the combination and conspiracy | informed him of your unequvocal and positive denial of the fact and communicated every thing which transpired between us calculated to satisfy his mind on the subject It was this report of mine that gave him satisfaction and changed his feelings and determination his grOund as you have supposed; with me he had no ground to change. He had assumed none except that which have stated, nor did ever make use of 'aoi' "" ession to you that he had changed ms ground. It IS true that informed you that the President was very much excited but do not now recoliect the precise language used to convey my Idea of that excitement. presume you had the ad vantage Of your private memoranda when you say l compared him to a roaring Lion.
 You attribute to me another declaration which never made-that on our way to MT Berriens I stat ed that the President had informed me that he would invite Mr Branch MT Berrien, and yourself to meet hlm on the next Friday, when he would inform you of hls determination in the presence of Dr Ely. never conceived nor communicated such an idea.
 The paragraph is substantially correct when that part in reference to Dr Ely is expunged.
 It IS true, in some of our various conversations the name of Dr Ely was mentioned but in copnex-