The Feliciana Democrat. (Clinton, La.) 1855-186?, 1859-02-05
THOMAS JEFFERSON.

THOMAS JEFFERSON.
The following passage, in relation to the
mncied indignty OF President Jefferson towards
the British Ambassador, is from the recently
issued life Of Thos. Jefferson, hy Randall:
We will let Mr.. Thomas Moore the Irish
poet, preface it in passage taken from letter
he wrote TO his mother from Baltimore June
18th 1904, which is published il Lord RuSscls
Memoirs, Journal and Correspondence Of
Moore:
II writes Moore stopped at Washington
with Mr. and Mrs. Merry for near week
they have been treated with the most pointed
incivilitv by the present Democratic President,
Mr.. jefferson; and it is only the prccarious
situation Of Great Britain which could possibly
induce it to overlook such indecent, though ut
the same time, petty hostility. was prescn.
ted by Mr.. Merry to the Secretary Of State
and the PRESIDENT
The incident and petty hostility to Mr.. and
Mrs Merry was manifested in this wise
They were invited to dine at the Presidents.
When dinner was announced Mr. Jefferson
Glanced 20 be standing by and talking with
Mrs Madison nj some distance from Mrs. Mcr.
anu III tlt w WV
Mr.. Merry regarded this rs almost an insult
Such sir was made by the angry ambGSsa
dor, that Madison wrote Monroe (who had
succeeded Mr.. King ~ our minister to Eng
handy, apprisng him Of the facts 10 enable him
to answer IN expected call Of the British Gov
crnmcnt, for official explanations. Monroe,
however, got his first information from friend
" British under-Secrciary, who minated that
he would soon probably he Of the matter
through different channel. The minister
was delighted. Within a very short period
the wife Of an English under secretary had
been accorded precedence over his own, under
analogous circumstances He had no great
fund of hnmor but the absurdty Of the whole
affair. and the excellent materials in his pos
session for reply 10 II call for explanations
struck him in a most amusing light. Shaking
with merriment, he limited to his informant the
satisfaction the call would give him lie neg
cr afterwards heard lisp on the subject.
Mrs Merry tossed her head without shaking
the peace of two nations, and poor Mrs Mad
son was saved from involuntary firing another
Troy But Merry never forgot this "poin'cd
inciyiity though lie and his friends knew
that by an express regulation at the White
House, all etiquette in respect to official pre-
ccdence was formally abolished, and though
with the most stringent etiquette of the CclcS
tial Empire i'll force. it would seem an anu
sing specimen Of imnerimence in him 10 clnin
priority over til, Secretary Of State Of the
United States.
But the farce was not ended Mrs. Merry
thcnceforth cschcwed the Presidential man
sion. and if her husband went there, it was
ouly officially After the clamor subducd, the
President felt good.natured desire to put an
end TO this frivolous matter, and to relieve the
offended digntarles from the awkwardncSS of
their position. Accordingly he made inquiry
through common friend (lle representative,
wo think, of the Swedish Government whcth
er Mr.. and Mrs. Merry would accept an invita-
ton to family dinner The former was I'm.
derStood to give an affirmative answer, and the
invitation was sent, written in the Presidents
own hand The minister replied by addressing
the Secretary of State to know whether he was
invited in his private or his official capacity; if
in the one, he must obtain the permission of his
sovereign if in the other. he must receive an
assurance in advance that he would be treated
as became his position. The Secretary of
State" put an end to the correspondence in a
very dry note and here the affair ended
Mr.. Thomas Moore had an individual cause
of complaint against the President the history
and consequences of which would be in no way
worth repeating, except for characteristic
anecdote they chance to furnish of the latter
Moore was as he remarks, presented to the
President by Mr. Merry. lie had then pub
llshed nothing which had crossed the Atlantic
but
-" gentle Liilys moral song
To soothe the mania of the amorous throng."
Mr.. Jefferson knew not the "young CatuIlus
of his day" and had no conception that he
stood in the dangerous presence of the hero Of
Chalk Farm, or of the welder of the better
londcd Wennons Of q clever lumnonnnr Ancnr.