首页 >出版文学> LETTERS>第34章

第34章

  Ihavehithertoavoidedpublicnewsinmyletterstoyou,becauseyoursituationinsuredyouacommunicationofmyletterstoMr。Jay。Thiscircumstancebeingchanged,Ishallinfutureindulgemyselfinthesedetailstoyou。TherehadbeensomeslighthopesthatanaccommodationmightbeaffectedbetweentheTurks&twoempiresbutthesehopesdonotstrengthen,andtheseasonisapproachingwhichwillputanendtothemforanothercampaignatleast。TheaccidenttotheKingofEnglandhashadgreatinfluenceontheaffairsofEurope。HismediationjoinedwiththatofPrussia,wouldcertainlyhavekeptDenmarkquiet,andsohaveleftthetwoempiresinthehandsoftheTurks&Swedes。ButtheinactivitytowhichEnglandisreduced,leavesDenmarkmorefree,andshewillprobablygooninoppositiontoSweden。TheK。ofPrussiatoohadadvancedsofarthathecanscarcelyretire。ThisisrenderedthemoredifficultbythetroubleshehasexcitedinPoland。Hecannotwellabandonthepartyhehadbroughtforwardtheresothatitisverypossiblehemaybeengagedintheensuingcampaign。Francewillbequietthisyear,becausethisyearatleastisnecessaryforsettlingherfutureconstitution。TheStateswillmeetthe27thofApril:andthepublicmindwillIthinkbythattimeberipeforajustdecisionoftheQuestionwhethertheyshallvotebyordersorpersons。Ithinkthereisamajorityofthenoblesalreadyforthelatter。Ifso,theiraffairscannotbutgoonwell。Besidessettlingforthemselvesatolerablyfreeconstitution,perhapsasfreeaoneasthenationisyetpreparedtobear,theywillfundtheirpublicdebts。Thiswillgivethemsuchacreditaswillenablethemtoborrowanymoneytheymaywant,&ofcoursetotakethefieldagainwhentheythinkproper。AndIbelievetheymeantotakethefieldassoonastheycan。TheprideofeveryindividualinthenationsuffersundertheignominiestheyhavelatelybeenexposedtoandIthinkthestatesgeneralwillgivemoneyforawartowipeoffthereproach。Therehavearisennewbickeringsbetweenthiscourt&
  theHague,andthepaperswhichhavepassedshewthemostbitteracrimonyranklingattheheartofthisministry。TheyhaverecalledtheirambassadorfromtheHaguewithoutappointingasuccessor。TheyhavegivenanotetotheDietofPolandwhichshewsadisapprobationoftheirmeasures。TheinsanityoftheKingofEnglandhasbeenfortunateforthemasitgivesthemtimetoputtheirhouseinorder。
  TheEnglishpaperstellyoutheKingiswell:andeventheEnglishministrysayso。Theywillnaturallysetthebestfootforemost:andtheyguardhispersonsowellthatitisdifficultforthepublictocontradictthem。TheKingisprobablybetter,butnotwellbyagreatdeal。1。Hehasbeenbled,andjudiciousphysicianssaythatinhisexhaustedstatenothingcouldhaveinducedarecurrencetobleedingbutsymptomsofrelapse。2。ThePrinceofWalestellstheIrishdeputationhewillgivethemadefinitiveanswerinsomedays;
  butifthekinghadbeenwellhecouldhavegivenitatonce。3。
  Theytalkofpassingastandinglawforprovidingaregencyinsimilarcases。Theyapprehendthentheyarenotyetclearofthedangerofwantingaregency。4。Theyhavecarriedthekingtochurch;butitwashisprivatechapel。Ifhebewellwhydonottheyshewhimpubliclytothenation,&raisethemfromthatconsternationintowhichtheyhavebeenthrownbytheprospectofbeingdeliveredovertotheprofligatehandsoftheprinceofWales。Inshort,judgingfromlittlefactswhichareknowninspiteoftheirteeththeKingisbetter,butnotwell。Possiblyheisgettingwell,butstill,timewillbewantingtosatisfyeventheministrythatitisnotmerelyalucidinterval。ConsequentlytheycannotinterruptFrancethisyearinthesettlementofheraffairs,&afterthisyearitwillbetoolate。
  AsyouwillbeinasituationtoknowwhentheleaveofabsencewillbegrantedmewhichIhaveasked,willyoubesogoodastocommunicateitbyalinetoMr。Lewis&Mr。Eppes?Ihopetoseeyouinthesummer,andthatifyouarenototherwiseengaged,youwillencampwithmeatMonticelloforawhile。
  SCIENCEANDLIBERTY
  _ToJosephWillard_
  _Paris,March24,1789_
  SIR,——IhavebeenlatelyhonoredwithyourletterofSeptemberthe24th,1788,accompaniedbyadiplomaforaDoctorateofLaws,whichtheUniversityofHarvardhasbeenpleasedtoconferonme。ConscioushowlittleImeritit,Iamthemoresensibleoftheirgoodnessandindulgencetoastranger,whohashadnomeansofservingormakinghimselfknowntothem。Ibegyoutoreturnthemmygratefulthanks,andtoassurethemthatthisnoticefromsoeminentaseatofscience,isveryprecioustome。
  ThemostremarkablepublicationswehavehadinFrance,forayearortwopast,arethefollowing。`Lesvoyagesd’Anacharsisparl’AbbeBarthelemi,’sevenvolumes,octavo。ThisisaveryelegantdigestofwhateverisknownoftheGreeks;useless,indeed,tohimwhohasreadtheoriginalauthors,butveryproperforonewhoreadsmodernlanguagesonly。TheworksoftheKingofPrussia。TheBerlineditionisinsixteenvolumes,octavo。ItissaidtohavebeenguttedatBerlin;andhereithasbeenstillmoremangled。Thereareoneortwoothereditionspublishedabroad,whichpretendtohaverectifiedthemaltreatmentbothofBerlinandParis。Sometimewillbenecessarytosettlethepublicmind,astothebestedition。
  MontignothasgivenustheoriginalGreek,andaFrenchtranslationoftheseventhbookofPotolemy’sgreatwork,underthetitleof`Etatdesetoilesfixesausecondsiecle,’inquarto。HehasgiventhedesignationofthesamestarsbyFlamsteadandBeyer,andtheirpositionintheyear1786。Averyremarkableworkisthe`MechaniqueAnalytique,’ofLeGrange,inquarto。Heisallowedtobethegreatestmathematiciannowliving,andhispersonalworthisequaltohisscience。Theobjectofhisworkistoreducealltheprinciplesofmechanicstothesingleoneoftheequilibrium,andtogiveasimpleformulaapplicabletothemall。Thesubjectistreatedinthealgebraicmethod,withoutdiagramstoassisttheconception。
  Mypresentoccupationsnotpermittingmetoreadanythingwhichrequiresalongandundisturbedattention,Iamnotabletogiveyouthecharacterofthisworkfrommyownexamination。IthasbeenreceivedwithgreatapprobationinEurope。InItaly,theworksofSpallanzaniondigestionandgeneration,arevaluable。Though,perhaps,toominute,andthereforetedious,hehasdevelopedsomeusefultruths,andhisbookiswellworthattention;itisinfourvolumes,octavo。Clavigaro,anItalianalso,whohasresidedthirty-sixyearsinMexico,hasgivenusahistoryofthatcountry,whichcertainlymeritsmorerespectthananyotherworkonthesamesubject。HecorrectsmanyerrorsofDr。Robertson;andthoughsoundphilosophywilldisapprovemanyofhisideas,wemuststillconsideritasanusefulwork,andassuredlythebestwepossessonthesamesubject。Itisinfourthinvolumes,smallquarto。DelaLandhasnotyetpublishedafifthvolume。
  Thechemicaldisputeabouttheconversionandreconversionofairandwater,continuesstillundecided。Argumentsandauthoritiesaresobalanced,thatwemaystillsafelybelieve,asourfathersdidbeforeus,thattheseprinciplesaredistinct。Aschismofanotherkind,hastakenplaceamongthechemists。Aparticularsetofthemhere,haveundertakentoremodelallthetermsofthescience,andtogivetoeverysubstanceanewname,thecomposition,andespeciallytheterminationofwhich,shalldefinetherelationinwhichitstandstoothersubstancesofthesamefamily。Butthescienceseemstoomuchinitsinfancyasyet,forthisreformation;because,infact,thereformationofthisyearmustbereformedagainthenextyear,andsoon,changingthenamesofsubstancesasoftenasnewexperimentsdevelopepropertiesinthemundiscoveredbefore。Thenewnomenclaturehas,accordingly,beenalreadyprovedtoneednumerousandimportantreformations。Probablyitwillnotprevail。Itisespousedbytheminorityonlyhere,andbyveryfew,indeed,oftheforeignchemists。ItisparticularlyrejectedinEngland。
  Inthearts,Ithinktwoofourcountrymenhavepresentedthemostimportantinventions。Mr。Paine,theauthorofCommonSense,hasinventedanironbridge,whichpromisestobecheaperbyagreatdealthanstone,andtoadmitofamuchgreaterarch。Hesupposesitmaybeventuredforanarchoffivehundredfeet。HehasobtainedapatentforitinEngland,andisnowexecutingthefirstexperimentwithanarchofbetweenninetyandonehundredfeet。Mr。Rumseyhasalsoobtainedapatentforhisnavigationbytheforceofsteam,inEngland,andissolicitingasimilaronehere。Hisprincipalmeritisintheimprovementoftheboiler,and,insteadofthecomplicatedmachineryofoarsandpaddles,proposedbyothers,thesubstitutionofsosimpleathingasthereactionofastreamofwateronhisvessel。HeisbuildingaseavesselatthistimeinEngland,andshewillbereadyforanexperimentinMay。Hehassuggestedagreatnumberofmechanicalimprovementsinavarietyofbranches;anduponthewhole,isthemostoriginalandthegreatestmechanicalgeniusI
  haveeverseen。ThereturnoflaPeyrousewheneverthatshallhappenwillprobablyaddtoourknowledgeinGeography,BotanyandNaturalHistory。Whatafieldhaveweatourdoorstosignaliseourselvesin!TheBotanyofAmericaisfarfrombeingexhausted,itsMineralogyisuntouched,anditsNaturalHistoryorZoology,totallymistakenandmisrepresented。AsfarasIhaveseen,thereisnotonesinglespeciesofterrestrialbirdscommontoEuropeandAmerica,andIquestioniftherebeasinglespeciesofquadrupeds。Domesticanimalsaretobeexcepted。Itisforsuchinstitutionsasthatoverwhichyoupresidesoworthily,Sir,todojusticetoourcountry,itsproductionsanditsgenius。Itistheworktowhichtheyoungmen,whomyouareforming,shouldlaytheirhands。Wehavespenttheprimeofourlivesinprocuringthemthepreciousblessingofliberty。Letthemspendtheirsinshewingthatitisthegreatparentof_science_andofvirtue;andthatanationwillbegreatinboth,alwaysinproportionasitisfree。Nobodywishesmorewarmlyforthesuccessofyourgoodexhortationsonthissubject,thanhewhohasthehonortobe,withsentimentsofgreatesteemandrespect,Sir,yourmostobedienthumbleservant,AREPORTFROMVERSAILLES
  _ToJohnJay_
  _Paris,May9,1789_
  SIR,——SincemyletterofMarchthe1st,bythewayofHavre,andthoseofMarchthe12thand15th,bythewayofLondon,noopportunityofwritinghasoccurred,tillthepresenttoLondon。
  TherearenosymptomsofaccommodationbetweentheTurksandtwoempires,norbetweenRussiaandSweden。TheEmperorwas,onthe16thofthelastmonth,expectedtodie,certainly;hewas,however,alittlebetterwhenthelastnewscameaway,sothathopeswereentertainedofhim;butitisagreedthathecannotgetthebetterofhiscomplaintsultimately,sothathislifeisnotatallcountedon。
  TheDanesprofess,asyet,todonomoreagainstSwedenthanfurnishtheirstipulatedaid。TheagitationofPolandisstillviolent,thoughsomewhatmoderatedbythelatechangeinthedemeanoroftheKingofPrussia。Heismuchlessthrasonicthanhewas。ThisisimputedtotheturnwhichtheEnglishpoliticsmayberationallyexpectedtotake。ItisverydifficulttogetatthetruestateoftheBritishKing;butfromthebestinformationwecanget,hismadnesshasgoneoff,butheisleftinastateofimbecilityandmelancholy。TheyaregoingtocarryhimtoHanover,toseewhethersuchajourneymayrelievehim。TheQueenaccompanieshim。IfEnglandshould,bythisaccident,bereducedtoinactivity,thesoutherncountriesofEuropemayescapethepresentwar。Uponthewhole,theprospectforthepresentyear,ifnounforeseenaccidenthappens,is,certainpeaceforthepowersnotalreadyengaged,aprobabilitythatDenmarkwillnotbecomeaprincipal,andamerepossibilitythatSwedenandRussiamaybeaccommodated。TheinteriordisputesofSwedenaresoexactlydetailedintheLeydengazette,thatIhavenothingtoaddonthatsubject。
  Therevolutionofthiscountryhasadvancedthusfar,withoutencounteringanythingwhichdeservestobecalledadifficulty。
  Therehavebeenriotsinafewinstances,inthreeorfourdifferentplaces,inwhichtheremayhavebeenadozenortwentyliveslost。
  Theexacttruthisnottobegotat。Afewdaysago,amuchmoreseriousriottookplaceinthiscity,inwhichitbecamenecessaryforthetroopstoengageinregularactionwiththemob,andprobablyaboutonehundredofthelatterwerekilled。Accountsvaryfromtwentytotwohundred。TheywerethemostabandonedbandittiofParis,andneverwasariotmoreunprovokedandunpitied。Theybegan,underapretencethatapapermanufacturerhadproposedinanassembly,toreducetheirwagestofifteensousaday。Theyrifledhishouse,destroyedeverythinginhismagazinesandshops,andwereonlystoppedintheircareerofmischief,bythecarnageabovementioned。Neitherthisnoranyotheroftheriots,havehadaprofessedconnectionwiththegreatnationalreformationgoingon。
  TheyaresuchashavehappenedeveryyearsinceIhavebeenhere,andaswillcontinuetobeproducedbycommonincidents。TheStatesGeneralwereopenedonthe4thinstant,byaspeechfromthethrone,onebytheGardedesSceaux,andonefromMr。Neckar。Ihopetheywillbeprintedintimetosendyouherewith:lesttheyshouldnot,I