DEARSIR——SinceyourfavorofJuly10。minehavebeenofJuly17。23and28。ThelastinclosedabillofexchangefromMr。GrandonTessierforpound46-17-10sterl。toanswerGenl。Sullivan’sbillforthatsum。Ihopeitgotsafetohand,tho’Ihavebeenanxiousaboutitasitwentbypostandmylettersthro’thatchannelsometimesmiscarry。
FromtheseparationoftheNotablestothepresentmomenthasbeenperhapsthemostinterestingintervaleverknowninthiscountry。ThepropositionsoftheGovernment,approvedbytheNotables,wereprecioustothenationandhavebeeninanhonestcourseofexecution,someofthembeingcarriedintoeffect,andotherspreparing。AbovealltheestablishmentoftheProvincialassemblies,someofwhichhavebeguntheirsessions,bidfairtobetheinstrumentforcircumscribingthepowerofthecrownandraisingthepeopleintoconsideration。Theelectiongiventothemiswhatwilldothis。Tho’theministerwhoproposedtheseimprovementsseemstohavemeantthemasthepriceofthenewsupplies,thegamehasbeensoplayedastosecuretheimprovementstothenationwithoutsecuringtheprice。TheNotablesspokesoftlyonthesubjectoftheadditionalsupplies,buttheparliamenttookthemuproundly,refusedtoregistertheedictsforthenewtaxes,tillcompelledinabedofjusticeandpreferedthemselvestobetransferredtoTroyesratherthanwithdrawtheiropposition。Itisurgedprincipallyagainsttheking,thathisrevenueis130。millionsmorethanthatofhispredecessorwas,andyethedemands120。millionsfurther。Youwillseethiswellexplainedinthe`Conferenceentreunministred’etatetunConseillerauparlement’whichIsendyouwithsomeothersmallpamphlets。InthemeantimealltonguesinParisandinFranceasitissaidhavebeenletloose,andneverwasalicenseofspeakingagainstthegovernmentexercisedinLondonmorefreelyormoreuniversally。Caracatures,placards,bonmots,havebeenindulgedinbyallranksofpeople,andIknowofnowellattestedinstanceofasinglepunishment。Forsometimemobsof10;20;
30,000peoplecollecteddaily,surroundedtheparliamenthouse,huzzaedthemembers,evenenteredthedoorsandexaminedintotheirconduct,tookthehorsesoutofthecarriagesofthosewhodidwell,anddrewthemhome。Thegovernmentthoughtitprudenttopreventthese,drewsomeregimentsintotheneighborhood,multipliedtheguards,hadthestreetsconstantlypatrolledbystrongparties,suspendedprivilegedplaces,forbadallclubs,etc。Themobshaveceased:perhapsthismaybepartlyowingtotheabsenceofparliament。TheCountd’Artois,senttoholdabedofjusticeintheCourdesAides,washissedandhootedwithoutreservebythepopulace;thecarriageofMadamedeIforgetthenameinthequeen’sliverywasstoppedbythepopulaceunderabeliefthatitwasMadamedePolignac’swhomtheywouldhaveinsulted,thequeengoingtothetheateratVersailleswithMadamedePolignacwasreceivedwithageneralhiss。Theking,longinthehabitofdrowninghiscaresinwine,plungesdeeperanddeeper;thequeencriesbutsinson。TheCountd’Artoisisdetested,andMonsieur[Louis,ComtedeProvence]thegeneralfavorite。TheArchbishopofThoulouseismadeMinistreprincipale,avirtuous,patrioticandablecharacter。TheMarechaldeCastriesretiredyesterdaynotwithstandingstrongsollicitationstoremaininoffice。TheMarechaldeSegurretiredatthesametime,promptedtoitbythecourt。Theirsuccessorsarenotyetknown。M。deSt。PristgoesAmbassadortoHollandintheroomofVeractransferredtoSwitzerland,andtheCountdeMoustiergoestoAmericaintheroomoftheChevalierdelaLuzernewhohasapromiseofthefirstvacancy。Thesenominationsarenotyetmadeformally,buttheyaredecidedonandthepartiesareorderedtopreparefortheirdestination。AsithasbeenlongsinceIhavehadaconfidentialconveiancetoyou,IhavebroughttogethertheprincipalfactsfromtheadjournmentoftheNotablestothepresentmomentwhich,asyouwillperceivefromtheirnature,requiredaconfidentialconveyance。Ihavedoneittheratherbecause,tho’youwillhaveheardmanyofthemandseentheminthepublicpapers,yetfloatinginthemassoflieswhichconstitutetheatmospheresofLondonandParis,youmaynothavebeensureoftheirtruth:andI
havementionedeverytruthofanyconsequencetoenableyoutostampasfalsethefactspretermitted。Ithinkthatinthecourseofthreemonthstheroyalauthorityhaslost,andtherightsofthenationgained,asmuchground,byarevolutionofpublicopiniononly,asEnglandgainedinallhercivilwarsundertheStuarts。Iratherbelievetootheywillretainthegroundgained,becauseitisdefendedbytheyoungandthemiddleaged,inoppositiontotheoldonly。Thefirstpartyincreases,andthelatterdiminishesdailyfromthecourseofnature。Youmaysupposethatunderthissituation,warwouldbeunwelcometoFrance。ShewillsurelyavoiditifnotforcedbythecourtsofLondonandBerlin。Ifforced,itisprobableshewillchangethesystemofEuropetotallybyanalliancewiththetwoempires,towhomnothingwouldbemoredesireable。Intheeventofsuchacoalition,notonlyPrussiabutthewholeEuropeanworldmustreceivefromthemtheirlaws。ButFrancewillprobablyendeavortopreservethepresentsystemifitcanbedonebysacrifisingtoacertaindegreethepretensionsofthepatrioticpartyinHolland。Butofallthesemattersyoucanjudge,inyourposition,wherelesssecrecyisobserved,betterthanIcan。
IhavenewsfromAmericaaslateasJuly19。NothinghadthentranspiredfromtheFederalconvention。Iamsorrytheybegantheirdeliberationsbysoabominableaprecedentasthatoftyingupthetonguesoftheirmembers。Nothingcanjustifythisexamplebuttheinnocenceoftheirintentions,andignoranceofthevalueofpublicdiscussions。Ihavenodoubtthatalltheirothermeasureswillbegoodandwise。Itisreallyanassemblyofdemigods。Genl。
WashingtonwasofopiniontheyshouldnotseparatetillOctober。I
havethehonourtobewitheverysentimentoffriendshipandrespectDearSirYourmostobedientandmosthumbleservant,AMOOSEFROMNEWHAMPSHIRE
_ToBuffon_
_Paris,Octob。1,1787_
SIR,——IhadthehonourofinformingyousometimeagothatI
hadwrittentosomeofmyfriendsinAmerica,desiringtheywouldsendmesuchofthespoilsoftheMoose,Caribou,Elk&deerasmightthrowlightonthatclassofanimals;butmoreparticularlytosendmethecompleteskeleton,skin,&hornsoftheMoose,insuchconditionasthattheskinmightbesewedup&stuffedonit’sarrivalhere。Iamhappytobeabletopresenttoyouatthismomentthebones&skinofaMoose,thehornsoftheCaribou,theelk,thedeer,thespikedhornedbuck,&theRoebuckofAmerica。TheyallcomefromNewHampshire&Massachusetts。Igiveyoutheirpopularnames,asitrestswithyourselftodecidetheirrealnames。TheskinoftheMoosewasdrestwiththehairon,butagreatdealofithascomeoff,andtherestisreadytodropoff。Thehornsoftheelkareremarkablysmall。Ihavecertainlyseenofthemwhichwouldhaveweighedfiveorsixtimesasmuch。ThisistheanimalwhichwecallelkintheSouthernpartsofAmerica,andofwhichIhavegivensomedescriptionintheNotesonVirginia,ofwhichIhadthehonourofpresentingyouacopy。Ireallydoubtwhethertheflat-hornedelkexistsinAmerica;andIthinkthismaybeproperlyclassedwiththeelk,theprincipaldifferencebeinginthehorns。IhaveseentheDaim,theCerf,theChevreuilofEurope。ButtheanimalwecallElk,andwhichmaybedistinguishedastheRound-hornedelk,isverydifferentfromthem。IhaveneverseentheBrand-hirtzorCerfd’Ardennes,northeEuropeanelk。CouldIgetasightofthemI
thinkIshouldbeabletosaytowhichofthemtheAmericanelkresemblesmost,asIamtolerablywellacquaintedwiththatanimal。
ImustobservealsothatthehornsoftheDeer,whichaccompanythesespoils,arenotofthefifthorsixthpartoftheweightofsomethatIhaveseen。Thisindividualhasbeenofage,accordingtoourmethodofjudging。Ihavetakenmeasuresparticularlytobefurnishedwithlargehornsofourelk&ourdeer,&thereforebegofyounottoconsiderthosenowsentasfurnishingaspecimenoftheirordinarysize。IreallysuspectyouwillfindthattheMoose,theRoundhornedelk,&theAmericandeerarespeciesnotexistinginEurope。TheMooseisperhapsofanewclass。Iwishthesespoils,Sir,mayhavethemeritofaddinganythingnewtothetreasuresofnaturewhichhavesofortunatelycomeunderyourobservation,&ofwhichsheseemstohavegivenyouthekey:theywillinthatcasebesomegratificationtoyou,whichitwillalwaysbepleasingtometohaveprocured,havingthehonortobewithsentimentsofthemostperfectesteem&respect,Sir,yourmostobedient,&mosthumbleservant。
THENEWCONSTITUTION
_ToWilliamS。Smith_
_Paris,Nov。13,1787_
DEARSIR,——IamnowtoacknoledgethereceiptofyourfavorsofOctoberthe4th,8th,&26th。InthelastyouapologiseforyourlettersofintroductiontoAmericanscominghere。Itissofarfromneedingapologyonyourpart,thatitcallsforthanksonmine。I
endeavortoshewcivilitiestoalltheAmericanswhocomehere,&
willgivemeopportunitiesofdoingit:anditisamatterofcomforttoknowfromagoodquarterwhattheyare,&howfarImaygoinmyattentionstothem。CanyousendmeWoodmason’sbillsforthetwocopyingpressesfortheM。delaFayette,&theM。deChastellux?
Thelattermakesonearticleinaconsiderableaccount,ofoldstanding,andwhichIcannotpresentforwantofthisarticle——I
donotknowwhetheritistoyourselforMr。AdamsIamtogivemythanksforthecopyofthenewconstitution。Ibegleavethroughyoutoplacethemwheredue。ItwillbeyetthreeweeksbeforeIshallreceivethemfromAmerica。Thereareverygoodarticlesinit:&
verybad。Idonotknowwhichpreponderate。WhatwehavelatelyreadinthehistoryofHolland,inthechapterontheStadtholder,wouldhavesufficedtosetmeagainstachiefmagistrateeligibleforalongduration,ifIhadeverbeendisposedtowardsone:&whatwehavealwaysreadoftheelectionsofPolishkingsshouldhaveforeverexcludedtheideaofonecontinuableforlife。Wonderfulistheeffectofimpudent&perseveringlying。TheBritishministryhavesolonghiredtheirgazetteerstorepeatandmodelintoeveryformliesaboutourbeinginanarchy,thattheworldhasatlengthbelievedthem,theEnglishnationhasbelievedthem,theministersthemselveshavecometobelievethem,&whatismorewonderful,wehavebelievedthemourselves。Yetwheredoesthisanarchyexist?Wherediditeverexist,exceptinthesingleinstanceofMassachusetts?Andcanhistoryproduceaninstanceofrebellionsohonourablyconducted?I
saynothingofit’smotives。Theywerefoundedinignorance,notwickedness。Godforbidweshouldeverbe20yearswithoutsucharebellion。Thepeoplecannotbeall,&always,wellinformed。Thepartwhichiswrongwillbediscontentedinproportiontotheimportanceofthefactstheymisconceive。Iftheyremainquietundersuchmisconceptionsitisalethargy,theforerunnerofdeathtothepublicliberty。Wehavehad13。statesindependent11。years。Therehasbeenonerebellion。Thatcomestoonerebellioninacentury&ahalfforeachstate。Whatcountrybeforeeverexistedacentury&
halfwithoutarebellion?&whatcountrycanpreserveit’slibertiesiftheirrulersarenotwarnedfromtimetotimethattheirpeoplepreservethespiritofresistance?Letthemtakearms。Theremedyistosetthemrightastofacts,pardon&pacifythem。Whatsignifyafewliveslostinacenturyortwo?Thetreeoflibertymustberefreshedfromtimetotimewiththebloodofpatriots&tyrants。Itisit’snaturalmanure。OurConventionhasbeentoomuchimpressedbytheinsurrectionofMassachusetts:andinthespurofthemomenttheyaresettingupakitetokeepthehen-yardinorder。IhopeinGodthisarticlewillberectifiedbeforethenewconstitutionisaccepted——YouaskmeifanythingtranspireshereonthesubjectofS。America?Notaword。Iknowthattherearecombustiblematerialsthere,andthattheywaitthetorchonly。Butthiscountryprobablywilljointheextinguishers——Thewantoffactsworthcommunicatingtoyouhasoccasionedmetogivealittleloosetodissertation。Wemustbecontentedtoamuse,whenwecannotinform。
MOREONTHECONSTITUTION
_ToJohnAdams_
_Paris,Nov。13,1787_
DEARSIR——ThiswillbedeliveredyoubyyoungMr。Rutledge。
Yourknowledgeofhisfatherwillintroducehimtoyournotice。Hemeritsitmoreoveronhisownaccount。
IamnowtoacknolegeyourfavorsofOct。8and26。ThatofAugust25。wasdulyreceived,norcanIrecollectbywhataccidentI
waspreventedfromacknolegingitinmineofSep。28。Ithasbeenthesourceofmysubsistencehitherto,andmustcontinuetobesotillIreceivelettersontheaffairsofmoneyfromAmerica。VanStaphorsts&Willinkshaveansweredmydraughts——YourbooksforM。
delaFayettearereceivedhere。Iwillnotifyittohim,whoisatpresentwithhisprovincialassemblyinAuvergne。
LittleissaidlatelyoftheprogressofthenegociationsbetweenthecourtsofPetersburg,Vienna,andVersailles。Thedistanceoftheformerandthecautious,unassumingcharacterofit’sministerhereisonecauseofdelays:agreateroneisthegreedinessandinstablecharacteroftheemperor。NordoIthinkthatthePrincipalhere[Brienne]willbeeasilyinducedtolendhimselftoanyconnectionwhichshallthreatenawarwithinaconsiderablenumberofyears。Hisownreignwillbethatofpeaceonly,inallprobability;andwereanyaccidenttotumblehimdown,thiscountrywouldimmediatelygirdonit’sswordandbuckler,andtrusttooccurrencesforsuppliesofmoney。Thewoundtheirhonourhassustainedfestersintheirhearts,anditmaybesaidwithtruththattheArchbishopandafewpriests,determinedtosupporthismeasuresbecauseproudtoseetheirordercomeagainintopower,aretheonlyadvocatesforthelineofconductwhichhasbeenpursued。Itissaidandbelievedthro’ParisliterallythattheCountdeMonmorin`pleuroitcommeunenfant[”weptlikeachild”]’whenobligedtosignthecounterdeclaration。Consideringthephraseasfigurative,I
believeitexpressesthedistressofhisheart。Indeedhehasmadenosecretofhisindividualopinion。InthemeantimethePrincipalgoesonwithafirmandpatrioticspirit,inreformingthecruelabusesofthegovernmentandpreparinganewconstitutionwhichwillgivetothispeopleasmuchlibertyastheyarecapableofmanaging。
ThisIthinkwillbethegloryofhisadministration,because,tho’agoodtheoristinfinance,heisthoughttoexecutebadly。Theyareabouttoopenaloanof100。millionstosupplypresentwants,anditissaidtheprefaceoftheArretwillcontainapromiseoftheConvocationoftheStatesgeneralduringtheensuingyear。12。or15。
provincialassembliesarealreadyinaction,andaregoingonwell;
andIthinkthattho’thenationsuffersinreputation,itwillgaininfinitelyinhappinessunderthepresentadministration。IinclosetoMr。JayapamphletwhichIwillbegofyoutoforward。Ileaveitopenforyourperusal。Whenyoushallhavereadit,besogoodastostickawaferinit。Itisnotyetpublished,norwillbeforsomedays。Thiscopyhasbeencededtomeasafavor。
Howdoyoulikeournewconstitution?Iconfesstherearethingsinitwhichstaggerallmydispositionstosubscribetowhatsuchanassemblyhasproposed。Thehouseoffederalrepresentativeswillnotbeadequatetothemanagementofaffairseitherforeignorfederal。TheirPresidentseemsabadeditionofaPolishking。Hemaybereelectedfrom4。yearsto4。yearsforlife。Reasonandexperienceprovetousthatachiefmagistrate,socontinuable,isanofficerforlife。Whenoneortwogenerationsshallhaveprovedthatthisisanofficeforlife,itbecomesoneverysuccessionworthyofintrigue,ofbribery,offorce,andevenofforeigninterference。ItwillbeofgreatconsequencetoFranceandEnglandtohaveAmericagovernedbyaGallomanorAngloman。Onceinoffice,andpossessingthemilitaryforceoftheunion,withouteithertheaidorcheckofacouncil,hewouldnotbeeasilydethroned,evenifthepeoplecouldbeinducedtowithdrawtheirvotesfromhim。Iwishthatattheendofthe4。yearstheyhadmadehimforeverineligibleasecondtime。
IndeedIthinkallthegoodofthisnewconstitutionmighthavebeencouchedinthreeorfournewarticlestobeaddedtothegood,old,andvenerablefabrick,whichshouldhavebeenpreservedevenasareligiousrelique——PresentmeandmydaughtersaffectionatelytoMrs。Adams。Theyoungeronecontinuestospeakofherwarmly。
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