University of Virginia Library

TO JAMES MONROE.

The last of your favors come to hand bears date
Septr 8, 1795, of which a duplicate has also been received.
The others which it may be proper to acknowledge
or reacknowledge are of Novr 30th, 1794,
which was opened at Halifax, & forwarded to me in
that state,—Decr 18, 1794, covering a copy of one of
the same date to Mr. Randolph; Feby 18, 1795,
covering a copy of one of Feby 12 to the same,—
Feby 25, covering a duplicate of ditto,—June 13, inclosing
a copy of a letter of May 4, from Mr. Short,—
June 3–28–30,–July 26, covering the correspondence
with Jay; and August 15.—As I cannot now give
minute answers to each of these letters, & the necessity
of them as to most has been superseded, I shall
proceed to the object most immediately interesting
to you, to wit the posture of things here resulting
from the embassy of Mr. Jay. The Treaty concluded
by him did not arrive till a few days after the
3d of March which put an end to the last session of
Congs. According to previous notification to the
Senators that branch assembled on the 28th of June,

the contents of the Treaty being in the mean time
impenetrably concealed. I understood it was even
withheld from the Secretaries at War & the Treasury,
that is Pickering & Wolcot. The Senate, after a
few weeks consultation, ratified the Treaty as you
have seen. The injunction of secrecy was then dissolved
by a full House, and quickly after restored
sub modo, in a thin one. Mr. Mason disregarding
the latter vote sent the Treaty to the press, from
whence it flew with an electric velocity to every part
of the Union. The first impression was universally
& simultaneously against it. Even the mercantile
body, with the exception of Foreigners and demi-Americans,
joined in the general condemnation.
Addresses to the P. agst his ratification, swarmed
from all quarters, and without a possibility of preconcert,
or party influence. In short it appeared
for a while that the latent party in favor of the
Treaty, were struck dumb by the voice of the Nation.
At length however, doubts began to be thrown out
in New York, whether the Treaty was as bad as was
represented. The Chamber of commerce proceeded
to an address to the P., in which they hinted at war
as the tendency of rejecting the Treaty, but rested
the decision with the constituted authorities. The
Boston Chamber of Commerce followed the example,
as did a few inland villages. For all the details on
this subject I refer to the Gazettes, which I presume
you continue to receive from the Department of
State. It appears that the struggle in the public
mind was anxiously contemplated by the President,
who had bound himself first not to disclose the
Treaty till it should be submitted to the Senate, and
in the next place, not to refuse his sanction if it
should receive that of the Senate. On the receipt
here, however of the predatory orders renewed by G.
B., the President as we gather from Mr. Randolph's
pamphlet[115] was advised not to ratify the Treaty unless
they should be revoked and adhered to this
resolution, from the adjournment of the Senate,
about the last of June till the middle of August. At
the latter epoch Mr. Fauchet's intercepted letter
became known to him, and as no other circumstance
on which a conjecture can be founded has been
hinted to the public, his change of opinion, has been
referred to some impression made by that letter, or
by comments upon it, altho' it cannot easily be explained
how the merits of the Treaty, or the demerits
of the provision order could be affected by the
one or the other. As soon as it was known that the
P. had yielded his ratification the [116] Br party were reinforced
by those who bowed to the name of constituted
authority, and those who are implicitly devoted to
the Pr. Principal Merchants of Philada, with others
amounting to abt four hundred, took the lead in an
address of approbation. There is good reason to believe
that many subscriptions were obtd by the Banks,
whose directors solicited them and by the influence of
Br capitalists. In Baltimore Charleston, & the other
commercial towns, except Philada, New York, &
boston, no similar proceeding has been attainable.
Acquiescence has been inculcated with the more success
by exaggerated pictures of the public prosperity, an
appeal to the popular feeling for the President, and the
bugbear of war; still, however there is little doubt that
the real sentiment of the mass of the community is
hostile to the treaty. How far it may prove impregnable,
must be left to events. A good deal will depend
on the result of the session, & more than ought,
on external contingencies. You will see how the
Session opened in the President's Speech & the
answer to it.[117] That you may judge the better on
the subject, I add in the margin of the latter, the
clause expunged, as not true in itself, and as squinting
too favorably at the Treaty. This is the only
form in which the pulse of the House has been felt.
It is pretty certain that a majority disapproves the
Treaty but it is not yet possible to ascertain their
ultimate object, as matters now are. The Speech of
the Pr was well adapted to his view. The answer was
from a Committee, consisting of myself, Sedgwick, &
Sitgrove, in the first instance, with the addition of
two other members on the recommitment. In the first
committee, my two colleagues were of the Treaty party;
and, in the second, there was a willingness to say all
that truth wd permit. This explanation will assist
you in comprehending the transaction.

Since the answer, as passed, & was presented, no has
been said or done in relation to the Treaty. It is much
to be feared that the majority against the Treaty will
be broken to pieces by lesser & collateral differences.
Some will say it is too soon to take up the subject
before it is officially presented in its finished form;
others will then say it is too late. The opportunity of
declaring the sense of the House in the answer to the
speech was sacrificed to the opinion of some, from whom
more decision was expected than will be experienced
towards an immediate consideration of the subject by
itself. The truest policy seems to be, to take up the
business as soon as a majority can be ascertained; but
not to risk that event on a preliminary question.
What the real state of opinions may be, is now under
enquiry. I am not sanguine as to the result. There
is a clear majority who disapprove the Treaty, but it
will dwindle under the influence of causes well known
to you; more especially as the States, instead of
backing the wavering, are themselves rather giving
way. Virginia has indeed set a firm example; but
Maryland, North Carolina, & New Hampshire, have

counteracted it, &c New York will soon follow with
some strong proceedings on the same side.

I am glad to find by your letters that Fr, notw the
late Treaty, continues to be friendly. A magnanimous
conduct will conduce to her interest as well as
ours. It must ult baffle the insidious projects for
bartering our honour and our Trade to Br pride & Br
monopoly. The fifteenth article of the Treaty is evidently
meant to put Br on a better footing than Fr &
prev a further Treaty with the latter; since it secures
to Br, gratuitously, all privileges that may be granted
to others for an equivalent, and of course obliges Fr, at
her sole expense, to include the interest of Br in her
future treaties with us. But if the Treaty should take
effect, this abominable part will be of short duration,
and, in the mean time, something may perhaps, may
be done, towd. disconcerting the mischief in some degree.
You will observe a navigation act is always in our
power. The article relating to the Mississippi, being
permanent, may be more embarrassing, yet possibly
not without some antidote for its poison. I intended
to go on in Cypher, but the tediousness obliges me to
conclude the present letter, in order to seize a conveyance
just known to me. Mr. R's pamphlet is
just out. Mr. Tazewell will send that & several other
things collected for you by this conveyance. Pickering
is Secretary of State—Chs Lee Attorney Genl.;
no Secy. at War. The Senate have negatived Rutledge
as chief Justice. Mr. Jones keeps you informed
of your private affairs.—He & Mr. Jefferson are well.
I have just recd your two favors of Octr 23 & 24,

with the accompaniments, by Mr. Murray. The
articles have probably not arrived in the same ship,
as Mr. Yard has no information from N. Y. thereon.
Accept from Mrs. M. & myself ten thousand thanks
for your & Mrs. Monroe's goodness, which will, as
generally happens probably draw more trouble upon
you. Mr. Yard & Mrs. Y. well,—Your friends at
New York so, too.