University of Virginia Library

1. CHAP. I.
The Beer House.

Having thus far cultivated the bog-trotter
by washing, and currying his person,
forming his movements; refining
his manners, and give him some ideas of
delicacy of behavior, it now remained to
indoctrinate him in a knowledge of politics:
and for this purpose, as he could
not read the Gazettes, or other publications,
it became necessary, to give him the
opportunity of oral information, on political
questions: and as attending the debates
of Congress, and hearing only, in
the galleries, would not put it in his power
to join occasionally in the debates, and
exercise himself in speaking; the attending

private clubs, or spending evenings,
occasionally, at beer houses, seemed the
more eligible means to be adopted. Accordingly
an evening, after this, the Captain
taking him to a beer house, and occupying
a bench, called for a mug of
ale, and bade Teague attend to the conversations
that were going forward.

The redemption of what are called certificates
was at that time the subject of debate.
It is well known to the readers of
the present day in America, but which
perhaps will not be so well understood
when this work comes to be read an hundred
years hence, that the United States,
having incurred debts during the war with
Great Britain, and being unable at that
time to discharge them, could only give,
certificates of the respective sums due to
the several creditors; these they did give
to the soldiers of their army, to those from
whom they had purchased articles, or
who had rendered any service: The prospect
not being immediate of the public being
in a condition of taking up these, and
the necessity of many of the holders pressing,
they had transferred their right in
the certificates for a fourth, fifth, or sixth
of their nominal value; in some cases, at
a much lower rate. The question was,

whether under these circumstances, the
original holder should be bound by the contract,
and the transferree ought to take
the whole sum from the public.

It was stated on one side, that it was
the folly of the holder to make the contract.
There was no fraud or imposition
in the case; what he did was with his eyes
open. There was no undue advantage on
the part of the purchaser, for he took no
more than the place of the holder; and
the bargain was fair and equal on both
sides. The one had a present certainty
which he preferred: the other an uncertainty
of a greater sum, of which he chose
to run the risk. The purchaser who gave
credit to the bills of the states, stood in a
better point of view than the holder, who
distrusting payment, had parted with
them.

On the other side it was contended,
that the certificates being only the evidence
of the debt, the receiving that was no
payment; that real service was rendered,
and real payment should be made;
that the purchaser discovered a distrust of
the credit of the government as well as
the holder, in not giving the full value,
and therefore stood on no better ground;
that from the prevailing ideas under which

these contracts were made, the holder did
conceive himself parting with these securities
at an under value, and the purchaser,
as obtaining them at that rate, but neither
had an idea that the loss on the one
hand, or the advantage on the other,
could be so great as on the principle of the
provision made for the discharge of the
public debt it had come to be; that for
these and other reasons measures ought to
have been adopted of a discrimination between
the original holders and the transferrees.

Teague had listened attentively, and,
contrary to the injunction of the Captain,
with his mouth open. He would willingly
have taken a part in the debates, but
the Captain, thinking the subject too abstruse
to begin with, did not seem to approve
of it, and shaking his head, repressed
the disposition of the bog-trotter.

The next topic of argument, was that
of the assumption of the state debts. In
order to understand this we must state;
that, in carrying on the war against Great
Britain, contracts were made, and debts
incurred, on the faith of the confederated
states, by their representatives in Congress,
and this was called the continental debt.
At the same time, contracts were made

and debts incurred, on the faith of individual
states, by their representatives in
the state legislature, and this was called the
state debt. This whole debt, continental
and state, had been thrown into one mass,
and the payment assumed by the Congress.
The policy of this measure was now canvassed.
On the one side, it was contended,
that as the whole debt, continental
or state, was payable by the United States,
each state paying the quota apportioned
by the resolves of the former Congress,
and having credit for what state debt
contracted on account of the war, was
over or beyond this quota, the question
was no more than this, whether the ways
and means of raising money for the discharge
of its proportion of the state debt,
should remain with any state, as was before
in the case of furnishing its quota;
or whether the United States, assuming
the debt in the first instance, should take
upon themselves to discharge the whole;
that it came to the same thing, as the debt
was payable by the whole, and the only
question, was with whom it should lie to
devise ways and means, to discharge it;
that the system of finance became more
simple, when the United States, assumed
the whole, and provided for the payment
by ways and means of their own at once;
that it would contribute to the energy and
secure the establishment of the federal government,
to have that government the
immediate debtor of the whole amount.

To this it was answered, that each state
was a better judge of the ways and means,
within itself, for the raising money to discharge
its debt; and while the United
States, now having command of the imposts
should necessarily take upon them to
collect and provide for the discharge of
the continental debt, properly so called;
yet it might be left with each state as before,
to collect and pay over what was
called the state debt; receiving credit from
the United States, and having a right to
draw from thence, any overplus of that
proportion which by the resolves of the
former Congress they ought to pay of
the whole debt.

The Captain thinking this subject also
above the comprehension of the Irishman,
was not willing that he should speak yet.

The next topic was that of the incorportion
of the bank of the United States,
some contending that no power was given
by the constitution to the general government
to incorporate banks; others asserting
that though not expressly, yet under

the article of paying debts, &c. and making
laws necessary for that purpose, it
was by implication given.

The Captain thought this also above the
reach of Teague, and obliged him to be
silent.

The next subject of argument was the
policy of the war carrying on against the
Indians. By some it was contended that
an Indian was a good creature, simple and
inoffensive, like a young child; that you
might put your finger in his mouth, and
he would not bite; that by speaking softly
and kindly, and giving him victuals and
drink, and leggins, and breech-clouts, and
blankets, you might do what you please
with him; that when you gave him ammunition
and fire arms, he would go out
and kill turkies, and shoot down squirrels,
and bring you in a deer, now and then; that
there was no such thing as an Indian stealing
a horse, or burning a house, or taking
a scalp, unless you had first stolen his
horse, or burnt his house, or made a
catch at his scalp; that when you made a
treaty with these people, they had such a
love of justice, such a sense of honor, such
a perfect command of themselves, and
their young men, that, there was no danger
of their departing from the treaty.

On the other hand it was advanced,
that, as a savage differed little from a beast
of prey; a wolf, or a panther of the
woods; was rude; his passions violent,
attached to no farm; cultivating no art;
his only amusement, or sense of honour,
war; or hunting, the image of war;
his sense of justice, little; his sense of honour,
none at all; no government in his
state of society; no security for individual
or national engagements; that fear
pervading the mass, by reaching the feelings,
and apprehensions of each individual
was the only principle by which they
could be governed; that instead of treaties
and giving goods, as heretofore, it
became us to retaliate by a heavy war
against them, and to make known, by
feeling, our superior strength.

Such were the arguments on each side
of this question; when the Captain looking
at Teague, and observing that he was
anxious to advance his opinion, assenting
with a bow, or inclination of his head, he
seemed to signify that he might speak.

But before we hear him, it will be necessary
to observe, that during the preceding
arguments, the company had taken
notice of him, as he sat beside the Captain
with a mug of beer before them; and

had wondered in their own minds, who
he could be; for though he was a little
brushed up by this time, as may be supposed,
having been at the levee, and taught
to dance, and received lessons of delicacy,
and what not; nevertheless, there was
still an uncoothness in his appearance that
could not be all at once shaken off.

“His form had yet not lost all her original
roughness: nor appeared less than a paddy
dressed; and the excess of rusticity removed.”
He therefore the more easily
engaged attention, when raising his voice,
he addressed them as follows:

Plase your honours, said he; I have
heard of dese Indians, when I was trating
with the Captain my master. I came
acrass one o' dem, who affer'd a hundred
dallars for my scoolp; he was going to a
traty here abouts. But my good master
the Captain took my part, and didn't let
him take it aff; de vile savages! O! I
have heard of dese Indians; plase your
honours; they come out of de woods, and
stale shape, like de rabbers in Ireland, and
burn houses, and take scoolps; trate wid
dese! I would trate wid dem, wid a good
shelelah, or a tomahawk to break der
heads. Give dem goods! by Shaint Patrick,
I would give dem a good bullet

hole in deir faces; or shoot dem trough
de backside for deir pains. If I was in
Cangress, and God love your shouls, I
wish you would put me dere, I would
make a law to coot dem aff, every one o'
dem. O! if my uncle Phelim, and my
cousins Dennis and Dermot, and my brother
Murtock, and de oder boys was
here, we would chase dem, as you would
chase one of deir own shape; and keep
dem aff de country, and send dem home
to eat paratoes. God love your shouls,
raise a good party and go out upon dem,
and bring dem to de coort, and not let
dem be staling shape, and taking scoolps
from de poor people.

You tink to plase dem, by spaking good
words to dem. Spake a good cudgel upon
der heads, and bid dem be asy dear honies,
and keep at deir homes, and plant
paratoes, and be hang'd in deir own country;
plase your honours. Trate wid dem!
Trate wid de woolves or de bears, dat
roon troo de woods: I would trate wid a
good knock in deir troat, and be doon
wid dem.

From the manner in which he spoke,
of having been in danger of losing his scalp,
and the Captain rescuing him, it was understood
that he had been in a campaign

against the Indians, and his fervour was
excused, and thought natural. Those
particularly who were for using force
against the savages, thought the Irish gentleman
had spoken very well.

Encouraged with this success, the bog-trotter
was confirmed in his opinion, that
he was fit for any political appointment;
and the Captain himself, began to entertain
better hopes of his advances than he
had yet done.