首页 >出版文学> LETTERS>第65章

第65章

  Take,forinstance,thechequerboardforaplan。Lettheblacksquaresonlybebuildingsquares,andthewhiteonesbeleftopen,inturfandtrees。Everysquareofhouseswillbesurroundedbyfouropensquares,andeveryhousewillfrontanopensquare。Theatmosphereofsuchatownwouldbelikethatofthecountry,insusceptibleofthemiasmatawhichproduceyellowfever。IhaveaccordinglyproposedthattheenlargementsofthecityofNewOrleans,whichmustimmediatelytakeplace,shallbeonthisplan。
  Butitisonlyincaseofenlargementstobemade,orofcitiestobebuilt,thatthismeansofpreventioncanbeemployed。
  The_genusirritabilevatum_couldnotlettheauthoroftheRuinspublishanewwork,withoutseekinginitthemeansofdiscreditingthatpuzzlingcomposition。Someoneofthoseholycalumniatorshasselectedfromyournewworkeveryscrapofasentence,which,detachedfromitscontext,coulddispleaseanAmericanreader。Acentohasbeenmadeofthese,whichhasrunthroughaparticulardescriptionofnewspapers,andexcitedadisapprobationeveninfriendlyminds,whichnothingbutthereadingofthebookwillcure。Buttimeandtruthwillatlengthcorrecterror。
  Ourcountrymenaresomuchoccupiedinthebusyscenesoflife,thattheyhavelittletimetowriteorinvent。Agoodinventionhere,therefore,issuchararityasitislawfultooffertotheacceptanceofafriend。AMr。HawkinsofFrankford,nearPhiladelphia,hasinventedamachinewhichhecallsapolygraph,andwhichcarriestwo,three,orfourpens。Thatoftwopens,withwhichIamnowwriting,isbest;andissoperfectthatIhavelaidasidethecopying-press,foratwelvemonthpast,andwritealwayswiththepolygraph。Ihavedirectedonetobemade,ofwhichIaskyouracceptance。BywhatconveyanceIshallsenditwhileHavreisblockaded,Idonotyetknow。Ithinkyouwillbepleasedwithit,andwilluseithabituallyasIdo;becauseitrequiresonlythatdegreeofmechanicalattentionwhichIknowyoutopossess。IamgladtohearthatM。Cabanisisengagedinwritingonthereformationofmedicine。Itneedsthehandofareformer,andcannotbeinbetterhandsthanhis。WillyoupermitmyrekspectstohimandtheAbbedelaRochetofindaplacehere。
  Awordnowonourpoliticalstate。Thetwopartieswhichprevailedwithsomuchviolencewhenyouwerehere,arealmostwhollymeltedintoone。AtthelatePresidentialelectionIhavereceivedonehundredandsixty-twovotesagainstfourteenonly。Connecticutisstillfederalbyasmallmajority;andDelawareonapoise,asshehasbeensince1775,andwillbetillAnglomanywithheryieldstoAmericanism。Connecticutwillbewithusinashorttime。Thoughthepeopleinmasshavejoinedus,theirleadershadcommittedthemselvestoofartoretract。Pridekeepsthemhostile;theybroodovertheirangrypassions,andgivethemventinthenewspaperswhichtheymaintain。Theystillmakeasmuchnoiseasiftheywerethewholenation。Unfortunately,thesebeingthemercantilepapers,publishedchieflyintheseaports,aretheonlyoneswhichfindtheirwaytoEurope,andmakeveryfalseimpressionsthere。Iamhappytohearthatthelatederangementofyourhealthisgoingoff,andthatyouarere-established。Isincerelyprayforthecontinuanceofthatblessing,andwithmyaffectionatesalutations,tenderyouassurancesofgreatrespectandattachment。
  P。S。Thesheetswhichyoureceivearethoseofthecopyingpenofthepolygraph,notoftheonewithwhichIhavewritten。
  NEWSOFCAPTAINLEWIS
  _ToC。F。deC。Volney_
  _Washington,Feb。11,1806_
  DEARSIR,——SincemineofFeb。18ofthelastyear,IhavereceivedyoursofJuly2。IhavebeenconstantlylookingoutforanopportunityofsendingyourPolygraph;buttheblockadeofHavrehascutoffthatresource,andIhavefearedtosendittoaportfromwhichtherewouldbeonlylandcarriage。AsafeconveyancenowofferingtoNantes,&undertheparticularcareofMr。Skipwith,whoisreturningtoFrance,hewilltakecareofitfromNantesbylandifaneasycarriageisfound,orifnot,thenbythecanalofBriare。
  Anotheryear’sconstantuseofasimilaroneattachesmemoreandmoretoitasamostvaluableconvenience。IsendyoualsoapamphletpublishedhereagainsttheEnglishdoctrinewhichdeniestoneutralsatradeinwarnotopentotheminpeaceinwhichyouwillfinditpulverizedbyalogicnottobecontroverted。
  OurlastnewsofCaptnLewiswasthathehadreachedtheupperpartoftheMissouri,&hadtakenhorsestocrosstheHighlandstotheColumbiariver。HepassedthelastwinteramongtheManians1610
  milesabovethemouthoftheriver。Sofarhehaddelineateditwithasgreataccuracyaswillprobablybeeverappliedtoit,ashiscourses&distancesbymensurationwerecorrectedbyalmostdailyobservationsoflatitudeandlongitude。WithhismaphesentusspecimensorinformationofthefollowinganimalsnotbeforeknowntothenortherncontinentofAmerica。1。ThehornsofwhatisperhapsaspeciesofOvisAmmon。2。Anewvarietyofthedeerhavingablacktail。3。Anantelope。4。Thebadger,notbeforeknownoutofEurope。5。Anewspeciesofmarmotte。6。Awhiteweasel。7。Themagpie。8。ThePrairiehen,saidtoresembletheGuineahenpeintade。9。Apricklylizard。Totheseareaddedaconsiderablecollectionofminerals,notyetanalyzed。HewinteredinLat。47
  degrees20’andfoundthemaximumofcold43degreesbelowthezeroofFahrenheit。WeexpecthehasreachedthePacific,andisnowwinteringontheheadoftheMissouri,andwillbeherenextautumn。
  HavingbeendisappointedinourviewofsendinganexploringpartyuptheRedriverthelastyear,theyweresentuptheWashita,asfarasthehotsprings,underthedirectionofMr。Dunbar。Hefoundthetemperatureofthesprings150degreesofFahrenheit&thewaterperfectlypotablewhencooled。Weobtainalsothegeographyofthatriver,sofarwithperfectaccuracy。OurpartyisjustatthistimesettingoutfromNatcheztoascendtheRedriver。Theseexpeditionsaresolaborious,&hazardous,thatmenofscience,usedtothetemperature&inactivityoftheircloset,cannotbeinducedtoundertakethem。Theyareheadedthereforebypersonsqualifiedexpresslytogiveusthegeographyoftheriverswithperfectaccuracy,andofgoodcommonknolegeandobservationintheanimal,vegetable&mineraldepartments。Whentherouteshallbeonceopenandknown,scientificmenwillundertake,&verify&classit’ssubjects。Ouremigrationtothewesterncountryfromthesestatesthelastyearisestimatedatabout100,000。Iconjecturethataboutone-halfthenumberofourincreasewillemigratewestwardlyannually。Anewspaperparagraphtellsme,withsomedetails,thatthesocietyofagricultureofParishadthoughtamould-boardofmyconstructionworthytheirnotice&Mr。Dupontconfirmsitinaletter,butnotspecifyinganythingparticular。Isendhimamodelwithanadvantageouschangeintheform,inwhichhowevertheprincipleisrigorouslythesame。ImentionthistoyoulestheshouldhaveleftFranceforAmerica,andInoticeitnootherwiselestthereshouldhavebeenanyerrorintheinformation。PresentmyrespectfulsalutationstoDoctr。Cabanis&acceptthemyourselfwithassurancesofmyconstantfriendship&attachment。
  ANATIONALACADEMY
  _ToJoelBarlow_
  _Feb。24,1806_
  IreturnyouthedraftofthebillfortheestablishmentofaNationalAcademy&UniversityatthecityofWashington,withsuchalterationsaswetalkedoverthelastnight。Theyarechieflyverbal。IhaveoftenwishedwecouldhaveaPhilosophicalsocietyoracademysoorganizedasthatwhilethecentralacademyshouldbeattheseatofgovernment,it’smembersdispersedoverthestates,shouldconstitutefiliatedacademiesineachstate,publishtheircommunications,fromwhichthecentralacademyshouldselectunpublishedwhatshouldbemostchoice。Inthiswayallthememberswheresoeverdispersedmightbebroughtintoaction,andanusefulemulationmightarisebetweenthefiliatedsocieties。PerhapsthegreatsocietiesnowexistingmightincorporatethemselvesinthiswaywiththeNationalone。Buttimedoesnotallowmetopursuethisidea,norperhapshadwetimeatalltogetitintothepresentbill。
  IprocuredanAgriculturalsocietytobeestablishedvoluntarilyonthisplan,butithasdonenothing。Friendlysalutations。
  COURTINGALEXANDER
  _TotheEmperorAlexander_
  _Washington,April19,1806_
  IoweanacknowledgmenttoyourImperialMajestyforthegreatsatisfactionIhavereceivedfromyourletterofAug。20,1805,andembracetheopportunityitaffordsofgivingexpressiontothesincererespectandvenerationIentertainforyourcharacter。Itwillbeamongthelatestandmostsoothingcomfortsofmylife,tohaveseenadvancedtothegovernmentofsoextensiveaportionoftheearth,andatsoearlyaperiodofhislife,asovereignwhoserulingpassionistheadvancementofthehappinessandprosperityofhispeople;andnotofhisownpeopleonly,butwhocanextendhiseyeandhisgoodwilltoadistantandinfantnation,unoffendinginitscourse,unambitiousinitsviews。
  TheeventsofEuropecometoussolate,andsosuspiciously,thatobservationsonthemwouldcertainlybestale,andpossiblywideoftheiractualstate。Fromtheirgeneralaspect,however,IcollectthatyourMajesty’sinterpositioninthemhasbeendisinterestedandgenerous,andhavinginviewonlythegeneralgoodofthegreatEuropeanfamily。Whenyoushallproceedtothepacificationwhichistore-establishpeaceandcommerce,thesamedispositionsofmindwillleadyoutothinkofthegeneralintercourseofnations,andtomakethatprovisionforitsfuturemaintenancewhich,intimespast,ithassomuchneeded。ThenorthernnationsofEurope,attheheadofwhichyourMajestyisdistinguished,arehabituallypeaceable。
  TheUnitedStatesofAmerica,likethem,areattachedtopeace。Wehavethenwiththemacommoninterestintheneutralrights。Everynationindeed,onthecontinentofEurope,belligerentaswellasneutral,isinterestedinmaintainingtheserights,inliberalizingthemprogressivelywiththeprogressofscienceandrefinementofmorality,andinrelievingthemfromrestrictionswhichtheextensionoftheartshaslongsincerenderedunreasonableandvexatious。
  TwopersonagesinEurope,ofwhichyourMajestyisone,haveitintheirpower,attheapproachingpacification,torendereminentservicetonationsingeneral,byincorporatingintotheactofpacification,acorrectdefinitionoftherightsofneutralsonthehighseas。Suchadefinition,declaredbyallthepowerslatelyorstillbelligerent,wouldgivetothoserightsaprecisionandnotoriety,andcoverthemwithanauthority,whichwouldprotecttheminanimportantdegreeagainstfutureviolation;andshouldanyfurthersanctionbenecessary,thatofanexclusionoftheviolatingnationfromcommercialintercoursewithalltheothers,wouldbepreferredtowar,asmoreanalogoustotheoffence,moreeasyandlikelytobeexecutedwithgoodfaith。Theessentialarticlesoftheserights,too,aresofewandsimpleaseasilytobedefined。
  HavingtakennopartinthepastorexistingtroublesofEurope,wehavenoparttoactinitspacification。Butasprinciplesmaythenbesettledinwhichwehaveadeepinterest,itisagreathappinessforusthattheyareplacedundertheprotectionofanumpire,who,lookingbeyondthenarrowboundsofanindividualnation,willtakeunderthecoverofhisequitytherightsoftheabsentandunrepresented。Itisonlybyahappyconcurrenceofgoodcharactersandgoodoccasions,thatastepcannowandthenbetakentoadvancethewell-beingofnations。Ifthepresentoccasionbegood,IamsureyourMajesty’scharacterwillnotbewantingtoavailtheworldofit。Bymonumentsofsuchgoodoffices,mayyourlifebecomeanepochinthehistoryoftheconditionofman;andmayHewhocalleditintobeing,forthegoodofthehumanfamily,giveitlengthofdaysandsuccess,andhaveitalwaysinHisholykeeping。
  ATRIBUTEOFGRATITUDE
  _ToDr。EdwardJenner_
  _Monticello,May14,1806_
  SIR,——Ihavereceivedacopyoftheevidenceatlargerespectingthediscoveryofthevaccineinoculationwhichyouhavebeenpleasedtosendme,andforwhichIreturnyoumythanks。
  Havingbeenamongtheearlyconverts,inthispartoftheglobe,toitsefficiency,Itookanearlypartinrecommendingittomycountrymen。Iavailmyselfofthisoccasionofrenderingyouaportionofthetributeofgratitudeduetoyoufromthewholehumanfamily。Medicinehasneverbeforeproducedanysingleimprovementofsuchutility。Harvey’sdiscoveryofthecirculationofthebloodwasabeautifuladditiontoourknowledgeoftheanimaleconomy,butonareviewofthepracticeofmedicinebeforeandsincethatepoch,Idonotseeanygreatameliorationwhichhasbeenderivedfromthatdiscovery。Youhaveerasedfromthecalendarofhumanafflictionsoneofitsgreatest。Yoursisthecomfortablereflectionthatmankindcanneverforgetthatyouhavelived。Futurenationswillknowbyhistoryonlythattheloathsomesmall-poxhasexistedandbyyouhasbeenextirpated。
  Acceptmyferventwishesforyourhealthandhappinessandassurancesofthegreatestrespectandconsideration。
  SCHISMANDTHEMAJORITYLEADSHIP
  _ToBarnabasBidwell_
  _Washington,July5,1806_
  SIR,——YourfavorofJunethe21sthasbeendulyreceived。WehavenotasyetheardfromGeneralSkinneronthesubjectofhisoffice。Threepersonsareproposedonthemostrespectablerecommendations,andundercircumstancesofsuchequalityasrendersitdifficulttodecidebetweenthem。Butitshallbedoneimpartially。IsincerelycongratulateyouonthetriumphofrepublicanisminMassachusetts。TheHydraoffederalismhasnowlostallitsheadsbuttwo。ConnecticutIthinkwillsoonfollowMassachusetts。Delawarewillprobablyremainwhatiteverhasbeen,amerecountyofEngland,conqueredindeed,andheldunderbyforce,butalwaysdisposedtocounter-revolution。Ispeakofitsmajorityonly。
  OurinformationfromLondoncontinuestogiveushopesofanaccommodationthereonboththepointsof`accustomedcommerceandimpressment。’Inthistheremustprobablybesomemutualconcession,becausewecannotexpecttoobtaineverythingandyieldnothing。