Dallas County, Texas - The whole text, 1892 (part 1 of 32)

The whole text

"A people that take no pride in the noble achievements of remote ancestors will never achieve anything worthy to be rcmcmliered with pr'de by remote descendants." - Ma<aulay.

Contents

EORGE WASHINGTON, the " Father of liis Country" and its lirst President, 1789- '97, was born February 22, 1732, in Wash- '-'if - ington Parish, Westmoreland Count}', Virginia. His father, Augustine Washinijton, first married Jane But- ier, who bore him four cfiiiiCT'^O^ dren, and March 6, 1730, he married Mary Ball. Of six children by his second marriage, George was the eldest, tlie otiicrs being Betty, Sanuiel, John, Augustine, Charles and Mildred, of whom the youngest died in infancy. Little is known of the early years of Washington, beyond the fact that the house in which he was born was burned during his early childhood, and that his father thereupon moved tf) another farm, inherited from his paternal ancestors, situated in Stafforti Count}', on the north bank of the l^appahannock, where he acted as agent of the Principio Iron Works in the immediate vicinity, and died there in 1743.

From earliest childhood George developed a noble character. He had a vigorous constitution, a fine form, and great bodily strength. His education was somewhat defective, being confined to the elementary branches taught him by his mother and at a neighboring school. He developed, however, a fondness for mathematics, and enjoyed in that branch the instructions of a private teacher. On leaving school he resided for some time at Mount Vernon with his half brother, Lawrence, who acted as his guardian, and who had married a daughter of his neighbor at Bclvoir on the Potomac, the wealthy William Fairfax, for some time president of the executive council of the colony. Both Fairfax and his son-in-law, Lawrence Washington, had served with distinction in 1740 as officers of an American battalion at the siege of Carthagena, and were friends and correspondents of Admiral Vernon, for whom the latter's residence on the Potomac has been named. George's inclinations were for a similar career, and a midshi[)man's warrant was procured for him, probably through the influence of the Admiral ; but through the opposition of his motlier the project was abandoned. The family connection with the Fairfaxes, however, opened another career for the young man, who, at the age of sixteen, was appointed surveyor to the immense estates of the eccentric Lord Fairfax, who was then on a visit at Belvoir, and who shortly afterward established his baronial residence at Green way Court, in the Shenandoah Vallc}'.

In 1 75 1, when the Virginia mihtia were put urder training with a view to active service against France, Washington, though only nineteen years of age, was appointed Adjutant with the rank of Major. In September of that year the faiHng health of Lawrence Washington rendered it necessary for him to seek a warmer climate, and Ge irge accompanied him in a voyage to Bai xidoes. They returned early in 1752, and Lawrence shortly afterward died, leaving hi ^ large property to an infant daughter. In his will George was named one of the executors and as eventual heir to Mount Vernon, and by the death of the infant niece soon succeeded to that estate.

'On the arrival of Robert Dinwiddie as Lieutenant-Governor of Virginia in 1752 the militia was reorganized, and the province divided into four districts. Washington was commissioned by Dinwiddie Adjutant-General of the Northern District in 1753, and in November of that year a most important as well as hazardous mission was assigned him. This was to proceed to the Canadian posts recently established on French Creek, near Lake Erie, to demand in the name of the King of England the witiidrawal of the French from a tcrritor3' claimed by Virginia. This enterprise had been declined by more than one officer, since it involved a journey through an extensive and almost unexplored wilderness in the occupancy of savage Indian tribes, either hostile to the English, or of doubtful attachment. Major Washington, however, accepted the commission with alacrit}' ; and, accompanied by Cajitain Gist, he reached Fort Le Boeuf on French Creek, delivered his dispatches and received reply, which, of course, was a polite refusal to surrender the posts. This reply was of such a character as to induce the Assembly of Virginia to authorize the executive to raise a regiment of 300 men for the purpose of maintaining the asserted rights of the British crown over the territory claimed. As Washington declined to be a candidate for that post, the command of this regiment was given to Colonel Joshua Fry, and Major Washington, at his own request, was commissioned Lieutenant-Colonel. On the march to Ohio, news was received that a party previously sent to build a fort at the confluence of the Monongahela with the Ohio had been driven back by a considerable French force, which had completed the work there begun, and named it Fort Duquesne, in honor of the Marquis Duquesne, then Governor of Canada. This was the beginning of the great " French and Indian war," which continued seven years. On the death of Colonel Fry, Wasiiington succeeded to the command of the regiment, and so well did he fulfill his trust tiiat tlie Virginia Assembly commissioned him as Connnander-in-Chief of all the forces raised in the colony.

A cessation of all Indian hostility on the frontier having followed the expulsion of the French from the Ohio, the object of Washington was accomplished and he resigned his commission as Commander-in- Chief of the Virginia forces. He then proceeded to Williamsburg to take his seat in the General Assembly, of which he had been elected a member.

January 17, 1759, Washington married Mrs. Martha (Dandridge) Custis, a young and beautiful widow of great wealth, and devoted himself for the ensuing fifteen years to the quiet pursuits of agriculture, interrupted only by his annual attendance in winter upon the Colonial Legislature at Williamsburg, until summoned by his country to enter upon that other arena in which his fame was to become world wide.

George Washington

self-government, which, after ten years, culminated by act of Parliament of the port of Boston. It was at the instance of \'irginia that a congress of all the colonics was called to meet at Philadelphia Septembers, '774' tosecure their common liberties - if possible b}' peaceful means. To this Congress Colonel Washington was sent as a delegate. On dissolving in October, it recommciulcd tiie colonies to send deputies to another Congress the following spring. In ihe meantime several of the colonies felt impelled to raise local forces to repel insults and aggressions on the part of British troops, so that on the assembling of the next Congress, May lo, 1775, tiie war preparations of the mother country' were unmistakable. The battles of Concord and Lexington had been fought. Among the earliest acts, therefore, of the Congress was the selection of a commander-in-chief of the colonial forces. This office was unanimously conferred upon Washington, still a member of the Congress. He accepted it on June 19, but on tiie express condition he should receive no salarj-.

He immediately repaired to the vicinity of Boston, against which point the British ministry had concentrated their forces. As early as April General Gage had 3,000 troops in and around this proscribed cit)-. During the fall and winter the British policy clearly indicated a purpose to divide public sentiment and to build up a British party in the colonies. Those who sided with tlie n)inistry were stigmatized by the patriots as " Tories," while the patriots took to themselves the name of " Whigs."

As early as 1776 the leading men had come to the conclusion that there was no hope except in separatic)n and independence. In May of that year Washington wrote from the head of the army in New York: "A reconciliation with Cireat Britain is impossible When I took

It is not the object of this sketch to trace the military acts of the patriot hero, to whose hands the fortunes and liberties of the United States were coiifided during the seven years' bloody struggle that ensued until the treaty of 1783, in which England acknowledged the independence of each of the thirteen States, and negotiated with them, jointl}', as separate sovereignties. 1 he ' merits of VV'ashington as a military chieflain have been considerabl}- discussed, especially b)' writers in his own country. During the war he was most bitterly assailed for incompetency, and great efforts were made to disjjlace him ; but he never for a motuent lost the confidence of either the Congress or the people. December 4, 1783, the great commander took leave of his officers in most affectionate and patriotic terms, and went to Annapolis, Maryland, where the Congress of the States was in session, and to that bodv, when peace and order prevailed everywhere, resigned his commission and retired to Mount Vernon.

It was in 1788 that Washington was called to the chief magistracy of the nation. He received every electoral vote cast in all the colleges of the States voting for the office of President. The 4tli of March, 1789, was the time appointed for the Government of the United Stales to begin its operations, but several weeks elapsed before quorums of both the newly constituted houses of the Congress were assembled. The city of New Yoik was the place where the Congrees then met. April 16 Washington left his home to enter upon the discharge of his new duties. He set out with a purpose ot tniveling i)rivately, and witiiout attracting an)- uublic attention ; but this was impossible. Everywhere on his way he was met with tnronging crowds, eager to see the man wnom the}' regarded as the chief defender of their liberties, and everywhere he was hailed with those public manifestations of joy, regard and love which spring spontaneously from the hearts of an affectionate and grateful people. His reception in New York was marked by a grandeur and an enthusiasm never before witnessed in that metropolis. The inauguration took place April 30, in the presence of an immense multitude which had assembled to witness the new and imposing ceremony. The oath of office was administered by Robert R. Livingston, Chancellor of the State. When this sacred pledge was given, he retired with the other officials into the Senate chamber, where he delivered his inaugural address to both houses of the newly constituted Congress in joint assembly.

In the manifold details of liis civil administration, Washington proved himself equal to the requirements of his position. The greater portion of the first session of the hrst Congress was occupied in passing the necessary statutes fc^r putting the new organization into complete operation. In the discussions brought up in the course of this legislation the nature and character of the new system came under general review. On no one of them did any decided antagonism of opinion arise. All held it to be a limited government, clothed only with specific powers conferred by delegation from the States. There was no change in the name of the legislative department ; it still remained "the Congress of the United States of America." There was no change in the original flag of the country, and none in the seal, which still remains with the Grecian escutcheon borne by the eagle, with other emblems, under the great and expressive motto, "i; Phtribiis Umiin."

The first division of parties arose upon the manner of construing the powers delegated, and they were first styled " strict constructionists" and " latitudinarian constructionists." The former were for confining the action of the Government strictly within its specific and limited sphere, while the others were for enlarging its powers by inference and implication. Hamilton and Jefferson, both members of the first cabinet, were regarded as the chief leaders, respect ivel}', of these rising antagonistic parties which have existed, under different names from that day to this. Washington n-as re garded as holding a neutral position between them, though, by mature deliberation, he vetoed the first apportionment bill, in 1790, passed b}' the party headed by Hamilton, which was based upon a principle constructively leading to centralization or consolidation. This was the first exercise of the veto power under the present Constitution. It created considerable excitement at the time. Another bill was soon passed in pursuance of Mr. Jefferson's views, which has been adhered to in principle in every ap portionment act passed since.

At the second session of the new Congress, Washington announced the gratifying fact of " the accession of North Carolina" to the Constitution of 1787, and June I of the same year he announced by special message the like "accession of the State of Rhode Island," with his congratulations on the happy event which " united under the general Government" all the States which were originally confederated.

In 1792, at the second Presidential election, Washington was desirous to retire; but he 3ielded to the general wish of the country, and was again chosen President by the unanimous vote of every electoral college. At the third election, 1796, he was again most urgently entreated to consent to remain in the executive chair. This he positively refused. In September, before the election, he gave to his countr3'men his memorable Farewell Address, which in language, sentiment and patriotism was a fit and crowning glory of his illustrious life. After March 4, 1797, he again retired to Mount Vernon for peace, quiet and repose.

His administration for the two terms had been successful beyond the expectation and hopes of even the most sanguine of his friends. The finances of the country were no longer in an embarrassed condition, the public credit was fully restored, life was given to every department of industry, the workings of the new system in allowing Congress to raise revenue from duties on imports proved to be not only harmonious in its federal action, but astonishing in its results upon the commerce and trade of all the States. The exports from the Union increased from $ 1 9,000,000 to over $56,000,- 000 per annum, while the imports increased in about the same proportion. Three new members had been added to the Union. The progress of the States in their new career under their new organization thus far was exceedingly encouraging, not only to the friends of liberty within their own limits, but to their s)-mpathizing allies in ail climes r.nd countries.

chief to quit his repose at Mount Vernon and take command of all the United States forces, with liic rank of Lieutcnant-General, when war was threatened with France in 1798, nothing need here be stated, except to note the fact as an unmistakable testimonial of the high regard in which he was still held by his coiintrvmen, of all shades of political opinion. He patriotically accepted this trust, but a treaty of peace put a stop to all action under it. He again retired to Mount Vernon, where, alter a short and severe illness, he died December 14, 1799, in the sixty-eighth year of his age. The whole countr}- was filled with gloom by this sad intelligence. Men of all parties in politics and creeds in religion, in every State in the Union, united with Congress in " paying honor to the man, first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen."

jf Braintree, Massachu setts, October 30, 1735. His father was a farmer of moderate means, a worthy and indnstrious man. He was a deacon in the church, and was ver3-desironsof gi"ing his son a collegiate education, hoping that he would become a minister of the gospel. But, as up to this time, the age of fourteen, he had been only a play-boy in the fields and forests, he had no taste for books, he chose farming. On being set to work, however, b)' his father out in the field, the very first day converted the boy into a lover of books.

Accordingly, at the age of sixteen he entered Harvard College, and graduated in 1755, at the age of twenty, highly esteemed for integrity, energy and ability. Thus, having no capital but his education, he started out into the stormy world at a time of great political excitement, as France and England were then engaged in their great seven-years struggle for the mastery over the New World. The fire of patriotism seized young Adams, and ff)r a time he studied over the question whether he should take to the law, to politics or the army. He wrote a remarkable letter to a friend, making prophecies concerning the future greatness of this country which have since been more than fulfilled. For two years he taught school and studied law, wasting no odd moments, and at the eariy age of twenty-two years he opened a law office in his native town. His inherited powers f)f mind and untiring devotion to his profession caused him to rise rapidly in public esteem.

In October, 1764, Mr. x\dams married Miss Abigail Smith, daughter of a clergyman at Weymouth and a lad}' of rare personal and intellectual endowments, who afterward contributed much to her husband's celebrit)'.

Soon, the oppression of the British in America reached its climax. The Boston merchants employed an attorney by the name of James Otis to argue the legality of oppressive tax law before the Superior Court. Adams heard the argument, and afterward wrote to a friend concerning the ability displayed, as follows: "Otis was a Hame of fire. With a promptitude of classical allusion, a depth of research, a rapid summary of historical events and dates, a profusion of legal authorities and a prophetic glance into futurity, lie hurried awa_v all before him. Aiitfrican independence was then and there born. Every man of an immensely crowded audience appeared to me to go awa}', as I did, ready to take up arms."

Soon Mr. Adams wrote an essay to be read before the literary club of his town, upon the state of affairs, which was so able as to attract public attention. It was published in American journals, republished in England, and was pronounced by the friends of the colonists there as " one of the very best productions ever seen from North America."

Tlie memorable Stamp Act was now issued, and Adams entered with all the ardor of his soul into political life in order to resist it. He drew up a series of resolutions remonstrating against the act, which were adopted at a puljlic meeting of the citizens of liraintrec, and which were subsequently adopted, word for word, by moxo. than forty towns in the State. Popular commcjtion prevented the landing of the Stamp Act papers, and the English autiiorities then closed the courts. The town of Boston therefore appointed Jeremy Grid- Ic}', James Otis and John Adams to argue a petition before the Governor and council for the re-opening of the courts; and while the two first mentioned attorneys based tlieir argument upon tiie distress caused to the peojile by tiie measure, Adams boldly claimed that the Stamp Act was a violation both of the English Constitution and the charter of the Provinces. It is said that this was the first direct denial of the imlimiled right of Parliament over the colonies. Soon after this the Stamp Act was repealed.

Directly Mr. ,^.dams was employed to defend Anscll Nickerson, who had killed an Englishman in the act of impressing him (Nickerson) into the King's service, and his client was acquitted, the court thus establishing the principle that the infamous royal prerogative of impressment could have no existence in the colonial code. But in 1770 Messrs. Adams and Josiah Quincy defended a party of British soldiers who had been arrested for murder when they had been only obeying Governmental orders; and when reproached for thus apparently deserting the cause of popular liberty, Mr. Adams replied that he would a thousandfold rather live under the domination of the worst o( England's kings than under that of a lawless mob. Ne.\t, after s,Mving a term as a member of the Colonial Legislature from Boston, Mr. Adams, finding his health affected by too great labor, retired to iiis native home at Braintrec.

The year 1774 sor)n arrived, with its famous Boston '- Tea Party," the first open act of rebellion. Adams was sent to the Congress at Philadelphia; and when the Attorney-General announced that Great Britain had " determined on her system, and that her power to execute it was irresistible," Adams replied : " I know that Great Britain has determined on her system, and that very determination determines me on mine. You know tliat I have been constant in my o(ii)ositioii to her measures. The die is now cast. I have passed the Rubicon. Sink or swim, live or die, with ni)' country, is my unalterable determination." The lumor beginning to prevail at Piiiladelfihia that the Congress had independence in view, Adams foresaw that it was too soon to declare it openly. Hj advised every one to remain quiet in that respect; and as soon as it became apparent that he himself was for independence, he was advised to hide himself, which he did.

The next year the great Revolutionary war opened in earnest, and Mrs. Adams, residing near Boston, kept her husbantl advised by letter of all the events transpiring in her vicinity. The battle of Bunker HiL' came on. Congress had to do something immediately. The first thing was to choose a commander-in-chief for the - we can't say " army " - the fighting men of the colonics. The New England delegation was almost unanimous in favor of appointing General Ward, then at the head of the Massachusetts forces, but Mr. Adams urged the appointment of George Washington, then almost unknown outside of his own State. He was appointed without o])position. Mr. Adams offered the resolution, which was adopted, annulling all the ro3'ai authority in the colonies. Having thus prepared the way, a few weeks later, viz., June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, who a few months before had declared that the British Government would abandon its oppressive measures, now offered the memorable resolution, seconded by Adams, " that these United States are, and of right ought to be, free and independent." Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Sherman and Livingston were then appointed a committee to draught a declaration of independence. Mr. Jefferson desired Mr. Adams to draw up I he bold document, but the latter persuaded Mr. Jefferson to perform that responsible task. The Declaration drawn up, Mr. Adams became its foremost defender on the floor of Congress. It was signed by all the fifty-five members present, and the next day Mr. Adams wrote to his wife how great a deed was done, and how proud he was of it. Mr. Adains continued to be the leading man of Congress, and the leading advocate of American independence. Above all other Americans, he was considered by every one the principal shining mark for British vengeance. Thus circumstanced, he was appointed to the most dangerous task of crossing the ocean in winter, exposed to capture by the British, who knew of his mission, which was to visit Paris and solicit the co-operation of the French. Besides, to take himself awa}' from the country of which he was the most prominent defender, at that critical time, was an act of the greatest selfsacrifice. Sure enough, while crossing the sea, he had two very narrow escapes from capture ; and the transit was otherwise a stormy and eventful one. During the summer of 1779 he returned home, but was immediately dispatched back to France, to be in readiness there to negotiate terms of peace and commerce with Great Britain as soon as the latter power was ready for such business. But as Dr. Franklin was more popular than heat the court of France, Mr. Adams repaired to Holland, where he was far more successful as a diplomatist.

The treaty of peace between the United States and England was finally signed at Paris, January 21, 1783; and the re-action from so great excitement as Mr. Adams had so long been experiencing threw him into a dangerous fever. Before he fully recovered he was in London, whence he was dispatched again to Amsterdam to negotiate another loan. Compliance with this order undermined his physical constitution for life.

In 1785 Mr. Adams was appointed envoy to the court of St. James, to meet face to face the very king who had regarded him as an arch traitor! Accordingly he repaired thither, where he did actuall)' meet and converse with George III.! After a residence there for about three years, he obtained permission to return to America. While in London he wrote and published an able work, in three volumes, entitled : " A Defense of the American Constitution."

The Articles, of Confederation proving inefficient, as Adams had prophesied, a carefully draughted Constitution was adopted in 1789, when George Washington was elected President of the new nation, and Adams Vice-President. Congress met for a time in New York, but was removed to Philadelpiiia for ten years, until suitable buildings should be erected at the new capital in the District of Columbia. Mr. Adams then moved his family to Philadelphia. Toward the close of his term of office the French Revolution culminated, when Adams and Washington rather sympathized with England, and Jefferson with France. The Presidential election of 1796 resulted in giving Mr. Adams the first place by a small majority, and Mr. Jefferson the second place.

Mr. Adams's administration was conscientious, patriotic and able. The period was a turbulent one, and even an archangel could not have reconciled the hostile parties. Partisanism with reference to England and France was bitter, and for four years Mr. Adams struggled through almost a constant tempest of assaults. In fact, he was not truly a popular man, and his chagrin at not receiving a re-election was so great that he did not even remain at Philadelphia to witness the inauguration of Mr. Jefferson, his successor. The friendly intimacy between these two men was interrupted for about thirteen years of their life. Adams finally made the first advances toward a restoration of their mutual friendship, which were gratefully accepted by Jefferson.

Mr. Adams was glad of his opportunity to retire to private lile, where he could rest his mind and enjoy the comforts of home. By a thousand bitter experiences he found the path of public duty a thorny one. For twenty-six years his service of the public was as arduous, self-sacrificing and devoted as ever fell to the lot of man. In one important sense he was as much the " Father of his Country " as was Washington in another sense. During these long years of anxiety and toil, in which he was laying, broad and deep, the foundations of the greatest nation the sun ever shone upon, he received from his impoverished country a meager support. The only privilege he carried with him into his retirement was that of franking his letters.

Although taking no active part in public affairs, both himself and his son, John Quincy, nobly supported the policy of Mr. Jefferson in resisting the encroachments of England, who persisted in searching American ships on the high seas and dragging from them any sailors that might be designated by any pert lieutenant as British subjects. Even for this noble support Mr. Adams was maligned by thousands of bitter enemies ! On this occasion, for the first time since his retirement, he broke silence and drew up a very able paper, exposing the atrocity of the British pretensions.

Mr. Adams outlived nearly all his family. Though his physical frame began to give way many years before his death, his mental powers retained their strength and vigor to the last. In his ninetieth year he was gladdened by the popular elevation of his son to the Presidential office, the highest in the gift of the people. A few months more passed away and the 4lh of July, 1826. arrived. The people, unaware of the near approach of the end of two great lives - that of Adams and Jefferson - were making unusual preparations for a national holiday. Mr. Adams lay upon his couch, listening to the ringing of bells, the waftures of martial music and the roar of cannon, with silent emotion. Only four days before, he had given for a public toast, " Independence forever." About two o'clock in the afternoon he said, "And Jefferson still survives." But he was mistaken by an hour or so; and in a few minutes he had breathed his last.

[HOMASJEFFERson, the third President of the United States, i8oi-'9, was born April 2, 1743, the eldest child of his parents, Peter and Jane (Randolph) Jefferson, near Charlottesville, Albemarle County, Virginia, upon the slopes of the Blue Ridge. When he -was fourteen years of age, his father died, leaving a widow and eight children. She was a beautiful and accomplished lady, a good letter-writer, with a fund of humor, and an admirable housekeeper. His parents belonged totlie Church of England, and are said to be of Welch origin. But little is known of them, however.

Thomas was naturally of a serious turn of mind, apt to learn, and a favorite at school, his choice studies being mathematics and the classics. At the age of seventeen he entered William and Mary College, in an advanced class, and lived in rather an expensive style, consequently being much caressed by gay society. That he was not ruined, is proof of his stamina of character. But during his second year he discarded society, his horses and even his favorite violin, and devoted thenceforward fifteen hours a day to hard study, becoming extraordinarily proficient in Latin and Greek authors.

On leaving college, before he was twentyone, he commenced the study of law, and pursued it diligently until he was well qualified for practice, upon which he entered in 1767. By this time he was also versed in French, Spanish, Italian and Anglo-Saxon, and in the criticism of the fine arts. Being very polite and polished in his manners, he won the friendship of all whom he met. Though able with his pen, he was not fluent in public speech.

In 1769 he was chosen a member of the Virginia Legislature, and was the largest slave-holding member of that body. He introduced a bill empowering slave-holders to manumit their slaves, but it was rejected by an overwhelming vote.

In 1770 Mr. Jefferson met with a great loss ; his house at Shadwell was burned, and his valuable library of 2,000 volumes was consumed. But he was wealthy enough to replace the tnost of it, as from his 5,000 acres tilled by slaves and his practice at the bar his income amounted to about $5,000 a year.

young widow, who owned 40,000 acres of land and 130 slaves; yet he labored assiduously for the abolition of slavery. For his new home he selected a majestic rise of land upon his large estate at Shadwell, called Monticello, whereon he erected a mansion of modest yet elegant architecture. Here he lived in luxury, indulging his taste in magnificent, high-blooded horses.

At this period the British Government gradually became more insolent and oppressive toward the American colonies, and Mr. Jefferson was ever one of the most foremost to resist its encroachments. From time to time he drew up resolutions of remonstrance, which were finally adopted, thus proving his ability as a statesman and as a leader. By the year 1774 he became quite busy, both with voice and pen, in defending the right of the colonies to defend themselves. His pamphlet entitled: "A Summary View of the Rights of British America," attracted much attention in England. The following year he, in company with George Washington, served as an executive committee in measures to defend by arms the State of Virginia. As a Member of the Congress, he was not a speechmaker, yet in conversation and upon committees he was so frank and decisive that he always made a favorable impression. But as late as the autumn of 1775 he remained in hopes of reconciliation with the parent country.

At length, however, the hour arrived for draughting the " Declaration of Independence," and this responsible task was devolved upon Jefferson. Franklin, and Adams suggested a few verbal corrections before it was submitted to Congress, which was June 28, 1776, only si.x days before it was adopted. During the three days of the fiery ordeal of criticism tlirough which it passed in Congress, Mr. Jefferson opened nf)t his lips. John Adams was the main champion of the Declaration on the floor of Congress. The signing of this document was one of the most solemn and momentous occasions ever attended to by man. Prayer and silence reigned throughout the hall, and each signer realized that if American independence was not finally sustained by arms he was doomed to the scaffold.

After the colonies became independent States, Jefferson resigned for a time his seat in Congress in order to aid in organizing the government of Virginia, of which State he was chosen Governor in 1779, when he was thirty-six years of age. At this time the British had possession of Georgia and were invading South Carolina, and at one time a British officer, Farlcton, sent a secret expedition to Monticello to capture the Governor. Five minutes after Mr. Jefferson escaped with his family, his mansion was in possession of the enemy ! The British troops also destroyed his valuable plantation on the James River. " Had they carried off the slaves," said Jefferson, with characteristic magnanimity, "to give them freedom, they would have done right."

The year 1781 was a gloomy one for the Virginia Governor. While confined to his secluded home in the forest by a sick' and dying wife, a party arose against him throughout the State, severely criticising his course as Governor. Being very sensitive to reproach, this touched him to the quick, and the heap of troubles then surrounding him nearly crushed him. He resolved, in despair, to retire from public life for the rest of his days. For weeks Mr. Jefferson sat lovingly, but with a crushed heart, at the bedside of his sick wife, during which time unfeeling letters were sent to him, accusing him of weakness and unfaithi fulness to duty. All this, after he had lost so much property and at the same time done so much for his country! After her death he actually fainted away, and remained so long insensible that it was feared

In the spring of 1782 the people of England compelled their king to make to the Americans overtures of peace, and in November following, Mr. Jefferson was reappointed by Congress, unanimously and without a single adverse remark, minister plenipotentiary to negotiate a treaty.

In March, 1784, Mr. Jefferson was appointed on a committee to draught a plan for the government of the Northwestern Territory. His slavery-prohibition clause in that plan was stricken out by the proslavery majority of the committee; but amid all the controversies and wrangles of politicians, he made it a rule never to contradict anybody or engage in any discussion as a debater.

In company with Mr. Adams and Dr. Franklin, Mr. Jefferson was appointed in May, 1784, to act as minister plenipotentiary in the negotiation of treaties of commerce with foreign nations. Accordingly, he went to Paris and satisfactorily accomplished his mission. The suavity and high bearing of his manner made all the French his friends; and even Mrs. Adams at one time wrote to her sister that he was " the chosen of the earth." But all the honors that he received, both at home and abroad, seemed to make no change in the simplicity of his republican tastes. On his return to America, he found two parties respecting the foreign commercial policy, Mr. Adams sympathizing with that in favor of England and himself favoring France.

On the inauguration of General Washington as President, Mr. Jefferson was chosen by him for the office of Secretary of State. At this time the rising storm of the French Revolution became visible, and Washington watched it with great anxiety. His cabine; was divided in their views of constitutional government as well as regarding the issues in France. General Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury, was the leader of the so-called Federal party, while Mr. Jefferson was the leader of the Republican party. At the same time there was a strong monarchical party in this country, with which Mr. Adams sympathized. Some important financial measures, which were prop<ised by Hamilton and finally adopted by the cabinet and approved bv Washington, were opposed b}' Mr. Jefferson ; and his enemies then began to reproach him with holding office under an administration whose views he opposed. The President poured oil on the troubled waters. On his re-election to the Presidency he desired Mr. Jefferson to remain in the cabinet, but the latter sent in his resignation at two different times, probably because he was dissatisfied with some of the measures of the Government. His final one was not received until January i, 1794, when General Washington parted from him with great regret.

Jefferson then retired to his quiet home at Monticello, to enjoy a good rest, not even reading the newspapers lest the political gossip should disquiet him. On the President's again calling him back to the office of Secretarj' of State, he replied that no circumstances would ever again tempt him to engage in anything public! But, while all Europe was ablaze with war, and France in the throes of a bloody revolution and the principal theater of the conflict, a new Presidential election in this coiuitry came on. John Adams was the Federal candidate and Mr. Jefferson became the Republican candidate. The result of the election was the promotion of the latter to the Vice- Presidency, while the former was chosen President. In this contest Mr. Jefferson really did not desire to hav^ either office, he was " so weary " of party strife. He loved the retirement of home more than any other place on the earth.

But for four long years liis Vice-Presidency passed joylessly away, while the partisan strife between Federalist and Republican was ever growing hotter. The former party split and the result of the fourth general election was the elevation of Mr. Jefferson to the Presidency ! with Aaron Burr as Vice-President. These men being at the head of a growing jjarty, their election was hailed everywhere with joy. On the other hand, many of the Federalists turned pale, as they believed what a portion of the pulpit and the press had been preaching - that Jefferson was a " scoffing atheist," a "Jacobin," the " incarnation of all evil," '- breathing threatening and slaughter! "

Mr. Jefferson's inaugural address contained nothing but the noblest sentiments, expressed in fme language, and his personal behavior afterward exhibited the extreme of American, democratic simplicit)'. His disgust of European court etiquette grew upon him with age. He believed that General Washington was somewhat distrustful of the idtimate success of a po])nlar Government, and that, imbued with a little admiration of the forms of a monarchical Government, he had instituted levees, birthdays, pompcjus meetings with Congress, etc. Jefferson was always polite, even to slaves everywhere he met them, and carried in his countenance the indications of an accommodating disposition.

The political principles of the Jeffcrsonian party nf)w swept the countiy, and Mr. Jefferson himself swayed an influence which was never exceeded even by Washington. Under his administration, in 1803, tiie Louisiana purchase was made, for $1 5,000,000. the " Louisiana Territory " purchased comprising all the land west of tiie Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean.

The year 1804 witnessed another severe loss in his family. His highlv accom]>lished and most beloved daughter Maria sickened and died, causing as great grief in the

The same year he was re-elected to the Presidency, with George Clinton as Vice- President. During his second term our relations with England became more complicated, and on June 22, 1807, near Hampton Roads, the United -States frigate Chesapeake was fired upon by the British man-of-war f^eopard, and was made to surrender. Phree men were killed and ten wounded. Jefferson demanded reparation. England grew insolent. It became evident that war was determined upon by the latter power. More than 1,200 Americans were forced into the British service upon the high seas. Before any satisfactory solution was reached, Mr. Jefferson's Presidential term closed. Amid all these public excitements he thought constantly of the welfare of his family, and longed for the time when he could return home to remain. There, at Monticello, his subsequent life was very similar to that of Washington at Mt. Vernon. His iios|)italitv toward his numerous friends, indulgence of his slaves, and misfortunes to his property, etc., finally involved him in debt. For years his home resembleil a fashionable watering-place. During the summer, thirty-seven house servants were required! It was presided over by his daughter, Mrs. Randolph.

Mr. Jefferson did much for the establishment of the University at Charlottesville, making it unsectarian, in keeping with the spirit of American institutions, but poverty and the feebleness of old age prevented him from doing what he would. He even went so far as to petition the Legislature for permission to ilispose of some of his possessions by lottery, in order to raise the necessary funds fcjr home expenses. It was granted ; but before the plan was carried out, Mr. Jefferson died, July 4, 1826, at 12:50 P. M.

Presidents Of The United States

AMES MADISON, the fourth President of the United States, iSog-'ij, was born at Port Conwa\-. Prince George County, Virginia, March i6, 175 1. His father. Colonel James Madison, was a wealthy planter, residing upon a very fine estate called Montpelier," only twenty-fiye miles from the home of Thomas Jefferson at Monticello. The closest personal and political attachment existed between these illustrious men from their early youth until death.

James was the eldest of a famil}' of seven children, four sons and three daughters, all of whom attained maturity. His early education was conducted mostly at home, under a private tutor. Being naturally intellectual ill his tastes, he consecrated himself with luuisual vigor to study . At a very early age he made considerable i)roficiency in the Greek, Latin, French and Spanish languages. In 1769 he entered Princeton College, New Jersey, of which the illustrious Dr. Weatherspoon was then President. He graduated in 1771, with a character of the utmost purity, and a mind highl}- disciplined and stored with all the learning which embellished and gave efficiency to his subsequent career. After graduating he pursued a course of reading for several months, under the guidance of President Weatherspoon, and in 1772 returned to Virginia, where he continued in incessant study for two years, nominally directed to the law, but really including extended researches in theology, philosophy and general literature.

The Church of England was the established church in Virginia, invested with all the prerogatives and immunities which it enjoyed in the fatherland, and other denominations labored under serious disabilities, the enforcement of which was rightly or wrongl}' characterized b}' them as persecution. Madison took a prominent stand in behalf of the removal of all disabilities, repeatedly appeared in the court of his own county to defend the Baptist nonconformists, and was elected from Orange County to the Virginia Convention in the spring of 1766, when he signalized the beginning of his public career by procuring the passage of an amendment to the Declaration of as prepared by George Mason, substituting for "toleration" a more emphatic assertion of religious liberty.

In 1776 he was elected a member of the Virgmia Convention to frame the Constitution of the State. Like Jefferson, he took but little part in the public debates. His main strength la)' in his conversational influence and in his pen. In November, 1777, he was chosen a member of the Council of State, and in March, 1780, took his seat in the Continental Congress, where he first gained prominence through his energetic opposition to the issue of paper money by the States. He continued in Congress three years, one of its most active and influential members.

In 1784 Mr. Madison was elected a member of the Virginia Legislature. He rendered important service by promoting and participating in that revision of the statutes which effectually abolished the remnants of the feudal system subsistent up to that time in the form of entails, primogeniture, and State support given the Anglican Church ; and his " Memorial and Remonstrance" against a general assessment for the support of religion is one of the ablest papers which emanated from his pen. It settled the question of the entire separation of church and State in Virginia.

" Trained in these successive schools, he acquired a habit of self-possession which placed at ready command the rich resources of his luminous and discriminating mind and of iiis extensive information, and rendered him the first of every assembly of which he afterward became a member. Never wandering from his subject into vain declamation, but pursuing it closely in language pure, classical and copious, soothing always the feelings of his adversaries by civilities and softness of expression, he rose to the eminent station which he held in the great N?n.ional Convention of 1787; and in that of Virginia, which followed, he sustained the new Constitution in all its parts, bearing oflf the palm against the logic of George Mason and the fervid declamation of Patrick Henr^'. With these consummate powers were united a pure and spotless virtue which no calumny has ever attempted to sully. Of the power and polish of his pen, and of the wisdom of his administration in the highest office of the nation, I need say nothing. They have spoken, and will forever speak, for themselves."

In January, 1786, Mr. Madison took the initiative in proposing a meeting of State Commissioners to devise measures for more satisfactory commercial relations between the States. A meeting was held at Annapolis to discuss this subject, and but five States were represented. The convention issued another call, drawn up by Mr. Madison, urging all the States to send their delegates to Philadelphia, in Ma)', 1787, to draught a Constitution for the United States. The delegates met at the time appointed, every State except Rhode Island being represented. George Washington was chosen president of the convention, an,d the present Constitution of the United States was then and tliere formed. There was no mind and no pen more active in framing this immortal document than the mind and pen of James Madison. He was, perhaps, its ablest advocate in the pages of the Federalist.

Mr. Madison was a member of the first four Congresses, i789-'97, in which lie maintained a moderate opposition to Hamilton's financial policy. He declined the mission to France and the Secretaryship of State, and, gradually identifying himself with the Republican party, became from 1792 its avowed leader. In 1796 he was its choice for the Presidency as successor to Washington. Mr. Jefferson wrote: "There is not another person in the United States with whom, being placed at the helm of our affairs, my mind would be so completely at rest for the fortune of our political bark." But Mr. Madison declined to be a candidate. His term in Congress had expired, and he returned from New York to his beautiful retreat at Montpelier.

In 1794 Mr. Madison married a young widow of remarkable powers of fascination - Mrs. Todd. Her maiden name was Dorothy Paine. She was born in 1767, in Virginia, of Quaker parents, and had been educated in the strictest rules of that sect. When but eighteen years of age she married a young lawyer and moved to Philadelphia, where she was introduced to brilliant scenes of fashionable life. She speedily laid aside the dress and address of the Quakeress, and became one of the most fascinating ladies of the republican court. In New York, after the death of her husband, she was the belle of the season and was surrounded with admirers. Mr. Madison won the prize. She proved an invaluable helpmate. In Washington she was the lite of society. If there was any diffident, timid young girl just making her appearance, she found in Mrs. Madison an encouraa-ine friend.

During the stormy administration of John Adams Madison remained in private life, but was the author of the celebrated " Resolutions of 1798," adopted by the Virginia Legislature, in condemnation of the Alien and Sedition laws, as well as of the " report" in which he defended those resolutions, which is, by many, considered his ablest State paper.

The storm passed away ; the Alien and Sedition laws were repealed, John Adams lost his re-election, and in 1801 Thomas Jefferson was chosen President. The great reaction in public sentiment which seated Jefferson in the presidential chair was largely owing to the writings of Madison, who was consequentl}' well entitled to the post of Secretary of State. With great ability he discharged the duties of this responsible

As Mr. Jefferson was a widower, and neither of his daughters could be often with him, Mrs. Madison usually presided over the festivities of the White House; and as her husband succeeded Mr. Jetferson, holding his office for two terms, this remarkable woman was the mistress of the presidential mansion for sixteen years.

Mr. Madison being entirely engrossed by the cares of his office, all the duties of social life devolved upon his accomplished wife. Never were such responsibilities more ably discharged. The most bitter foes of her husband and of the administration were received with the frankly proffered hand and the cordial smile of welcome; and the influence of this gentle woman in alla3'ing the bitterness of party rancor became a great and salutary power in the nation.

As the term of Mr. Jefferson's Presidency drew near its close, party strife was roused to the utmost to elect his successor. It was a death-grapple between the two great parties, the Federal and Republican. Mr. Madison was chosen President by an elec toral vote of 122 to 53, and was inaugurated March 4, 1809, at a critical period, when the relations of the United States with Great Britain were becoming embittered, and his first term was passed in diplomatic quarrels, aggravated by the act of non-intercourse of May, 1 8 10, and finally resulting in a declaration of war.

On the i8th of June, 181 2, President Madison gave his approval to an act of Congress declaring war against Great Britain. Notwithstanding the bitter hostility of the Federal party to the war, the country in general approved ; and in the autumn Madison was re-elected to the Presidency by 128 electoral votes to 89 in favor of George Clinton.

deiicy to liis Secretary of State and intimate friend, James Monroe, and retired to his ancestral estate at Montpelier, where he passed the evening of his davs surrounded by attached friends and enjoying the merited respect of the whole nation. He took pleasure in promoting agriculture, as president of the county society, and in watchingthedevelopment of the University of Virginia, of which lie was long rector and visitor. In extreme old age he sat in 1829 as a member of the convention called to reform the Virginia Constitution, where his appearance was hailed with the most genuine interest and satisfaction, though he was too intirm io participate in the active work of revision. Small in stature, slender and delicate in form, with a countenance full of intelligence, and expressive alike of mildness and dignity, he attracted the attention of all who attended the convention, and was treated with the utmost deference. He seldom addressed the assembly, though he always appeared self-possessed, and watched with unflagging interest the progress of every measure. Though the convention sat sixteen weeks, he spoke only twice; but when he did speak, the whole house paused to listen. His voice was feeble though his enunciation was very distinct. One of the reporters, Mr. Stansburv, relates the following anecdote of Mr. Madison's last speech:

" The next day, as there was a great call for it, and the report had not been returned for publication, I sent my son with a respectful note, requesting the manuscript. My son was a lad of sixteen, whom I had taken with me to act as amanuensis. On delivering my note, he was received with the utmost politeness, and requested to come up into Mr. Madison's room and wait while his e)'e ran over the paper, as company had prevented his attending to it. He did so, and Mr. Madison sat down to correct the report. The lad stood near him so that his eye fell on the paper. Coming to a certain sentence in the speech, Mr. Madison erased a word and substituted another ; but hesitated, and not feeling satisfied with the second word, drew his pen through it also. My son w.as young, ignorant of the world, and unconscious of the solecism of which he was about to be guilty, when, in all simplicity, he suggested a word. Probably no other pcrstju then living would have taken such a liberty. But the sage, instead ol regarding such an intrusion with a frown, raised his eyes to the boy"s face with a pleased surprise, and said, ' Thank you, sir ; it is the very word,' and immediately inserted it. I saw him the next day, and he mentioned the circumstance, with a compliment on the young critic."

Mr. Madison died at Montpelier, June 28, 1836, at the advanced age of eighty-five. While not possessing the highest order of talent, and deficient in oratorical powers, he was pre-eminently a statesman, ol a well, balanced mind. His attainments were solid, his knowledge copious, his judgment generally sound, his powers of anal3sis and logical statement rarely surpassed, his language and literary style correct and polished, his conversation witty, his temperament sanguine and trustful, his integrity unquestioned, his manners siinple, courteous and winning. By these rare qualities he conciliated the esteem not only of friends, but of political opponents, in a greater degree than any American statesman in the present century.

Mrs. Madison survived her husband thirteen years, and died July 12, 1849, '" ^^^ eighty-second year of her age. She was one of the most remarkable women our country has i)r<xluced. Even now she is admiringly remembered in Washington as " Dolly Madison," and it is fitting that her memory should descend to posterity in company with thatof the companion of her life.

AMES MONROE, the fifth President of the United States, 1817-25, was born in Westmoreland County Virginia, April 28, 1758. He was a son of Spence Monroe, and a descendant of a Scottish cavalier family. Like all his predecessors thus far in the Presidential chair, he enjoyed all the advantages of education which the country could then afford. He was early sent to a fine classical school, and at the age of sixteen entered William and Mary College.. In 1776, when he had been in college but two years, the Declaration of Independence was adopted, and our feeble militia, without arms, amunition or clothing, were struggling against the trained armies of England. James Monroe left college, hastened to General Washington's headquarters at New York and enrolled himself as a cadet in the army.

At Trenton Lieutenant Monroe so distinguished himself, receiving a wound in his shoulder, that he was promoted to a Captaincy. Upon recovering from his wound, he was invited to act as aide to Lord Sterling, and in that capacity he took an active part in the battles of Brandywine, Germantown and Monmouth. At Germantown he stood by the side of Lafayette when the French Marquis received his wound. General Washington, who had formed a high idea of young Monroe's abilitv, sent him to Virginia to raise a new regiment, of which he was to be Colonel; but so exhausted was Virginia at that time that the effort proved unsuccessful. He, however, received his commission.

Finding no opportunity' to enter the army as a commissioned officer, he returned to his original plan of studying law, and entered the office of Thomas Jefferson, who was then Governor of Virginia. He developed a very noble character, frank, manly and sincere. Mr. Jefferson said of him:

In 1782 he was elected to the Assembly of Virginia, and was also appointed a member of the Executive Council. The next year he was chosen delegate to the Continental Congress for a term of three years. He was present at Annapolis when Washington surrendered his commission of Commander-in-chief.

With Washington, Jefferson and Madison he felt deeply the inefficiency of the old Articles of Confederation, and urged the formation of a new Constitution, which should invest the Central Government with something like national power. Influenced by these views, he introduced a resolution lliat Congress sliuuld be empowered to regulate trade, and to lay an impost duty of five per cent. The resolution was referred to a committee of which he was chairman. The report and the discussion which rose upon it led to the convention of five States at Annapolis, and the consequent general convention at Philadelphia, which, in 1787, drafted the Constitution of the United States.

At this time there was a controversy between New York and Massachusetts in reference t<j their boundaries. The high esteem in which C(jlonel Monroe was held is indicated bv the fact that he was appointed one of the judges to decide the controvers}-. While in New York attending Congress, he married Miss Kortright, a young lady distinguished alike for her beauty and accomplishments. For nearly fifty years this happy union remained unbroken. In London and in Paris, as in her own country, Mrs. Monroe won admiration and affection by the loveliness of her person, the brilliancv of her intellect, and the amiability of her character.

Returning to Virginia, Colonel Monroe commenced the practice of law at Fredericksburg. He was ver}- soon elected to a seat in the State Legislature, and the next )'ear he was chosen a member oi the Virginia convention which was assembled to decide upon the acceptance or rejection of the Constitution which had been drawn up at Philadelphia, and was now submitted to the several States. Deeply as he felt the imperfections of the old Confederacy, he was opposed to the new Constitution, thinking, with many others of the Republican party, that it gave too much power to the Central Government, and not enough to the individual States.

In 1789 he became a member of the United States Senate, which office he held acceptably to his constituents, and with honor to himself for four years.

Having opposed the Constituticjii as not leaving enough power with the States, he, of course, became more and more identified with the Re[)ublican party. Thus he found himself in cordial co-operati(jn with Jefferson and Madison. The great Republican party became the dominant power which ruled the land.

George Washington was then President. England had espoused the cause of the Bourbons against the principles of the French Revolution. President Washing ton issued a proclamation of neutralit)' between these contending powers. France had helped us in the struggle for our liberties. All the despotisms of Europe were now combined t<J prevent the French from escaping from tyrannv a thousandfold worse than that which we had endured. Colonel Monroe, more magnanimous than prudent, was anxious that we should help our old allies in their extremitv. He violently opposed the President's proclamation as ungrateful and wanting in magnanimity.

Washington, who could appreciate such a character, developed his calm, serene, almost divine greatness bv ap|)ointing that very James Monroe, who was denouncing the policy of the Government, as the Minister of that Government to the republic of France. He was directed b^' Washington to express to the French people our warmest sympathy, communicating to them corresponding resolves approved by the President, and adopted by both houses of Congress.

Mr. Monroe was welcomed by the National Convention in France with the most enthusiastic demonstrations of respect and affection. He was publicly introduced to that body, and received the embrace of the President, Merlin de Douay, after having been addressed in a speech ghjwing with congratulations, and with expressions of desire that harmony might ever exist be tu'ttn the I wo nations. Tlie flags of the two repubUcs were intertwined in the hall of the convention. Mr. ^^onroe presented the American colors, and received those of France in retnrn. The course which he pursued in Paris was so annoying to England and to the friends of England in this country that, near the close of Washington's administration, iVIr. Monroe, was recalled.

After his retnrn Colonel Monroe wrote a book of 400 pages, entitled " A View of the Conduct of the Executive in Foreign Affairs." In this work he very ably advocated his side of the question; but, with the magnanimitv of the man, he recorded a warm tribute to the patriotism, ability and spotless integrity of John Jay, between wiiom and himself there was intense antag onism ; and in subsequent years he expressed in warmest terms his perfect veneration for the character of Georg-e Washington.

Shortlv alter his return to this country Colonel Monroe was elected Governor of Virginia, and held that office for three years, the period limited by the Constitution. In 1802 he was an Envoy to France, and to Spain in 1805, and was Minister to England in 1803. In 1806 he returned to his quiet home in Virginia, and witii his wife and children and an ample ci:)mpetence from his paternal estate, enjoyed a few years of domestic repose.

In 1809 Mr. Jefferson's second term of office expired, and many of the Republican party were anxious to nominate James Monroe as his successor. The majoritv were in favor of Mr. Madison. Mr. Monroe withdrew his name and was soon after chosen a second time Governor of Virginia. He soon resigned that office to accept the position of Secretary of State, offered him by President Madison. The correspondence which he then carried on with the British Government demonstrated that there was no hope of any peaceful adjustment of our difficidties with the cabinet of St. James. War was consequently declared in June, 1812. Immediately after the sack of Washington the Secretary of War resigned, and Mr. Monroe, at tiie earnest request of Mr. Madison, assumed the additional duties of the War Department, without resigning his position as Secretary of State. It has been confidently stated, that, iiad Mr. Monroe's energies been in the War Department a few months earlier, the disaster at Washington would not have occurred.

Theduties now devolvingupon Mr. Monroe were extremely arduous. Ten thousand men, picked from the veteran armies of England, were sent with a powerful fleet to New Orleans to acquire possession of the mouths of the Mississippi. Our finances were in the most deplorable condition. The treasury was exhausted and our credit gone. And yet it was necessary to make the most rigorous preparations to meet the foe. In this crisis James Monroe, the Secretary of W^ar, witii virtue unsurpassed in Greek or Roman story, stepped forward and pledged his own individual credit as subsidiarv to tiiat of the nation, and thus succeeded in placing the city of New Orleans in such a posture of defense, that it was enabled successful!)- to repel the invoider.

Mr. Monroe was trulv the armor-bearer of President Madison, and the most efficient business man in his cabinet. His energy in the double capacity of Secretary, both of State and War, pervaded all the departments of the country. He proposed to increase the army to 100,000 men, a measure which he deemed absolutely necessary to save us from ignominious defeat, but which, at the same time, he knew would render his name so unpopular as to preclude the possibilitv of his being a successful candidate for the Presidency.

The happy result of the conference at Ghent in securing peace rendered tlie increase of the army uiuiecessary; but it is not too much to say that James Monroe placed in the hands of Andrew Jackscjn the weapon with which to beat off the foe at New Orleans. Upon the return of peace Mr. Monroe resigned the department of war, devoting himself entirely to the duties of Secretary of State. These he continued to discharge until the close of President Madison's administration, with zeal which was never abated, and with an ardor of

" Its object is to introduce and establish the American system of keeping out of our land all foreign powers; of never permitting those of Europe to intermeddle with the affairs of our nation. It is to maintain our own principle, not to depart from it."

December 2, 1823, President Monroe sent a message to Congress, declaring it to be the policy of this Government not to entangle ourselves with the broils of Euself-devotion which made him almost for- j rope, and not to allow Europe to interfere

Mr. Madison's second term expired in March, 1817, and Mr. Monroe succeeded to the Presitlency. He was a candidate of the Republican party, now taking the name of the Democratic Rciniblican. In 1S21 he was re-elected, with scarcely any ()i)position. Out cf 232 electoral votes, he received 231. The slavery question, which subsequently assumed such formidable dimensions, now began to make its appearance. The State of Missouri, which had been carved out of that immense territorv which we had purchased of France, applied lor admission to the Union, with a slavery Constitution. There were not a few who foresaw the evils impending. After the debate of a week it was decided that Missouri could not be admitted into the Union with slavery. This im|)ortant question was at length settled by a compromise pioposed by Henry Clay.

The famous "Monroe Doctrine," of which so much has been said, originated in this way: In 1823 it was rumored that the Holy Alliance was about to interfere to prevent the establisliment of Rei)ublican liberty in the European colonies of South America. President Monroe wrote to his old friend Thomas Jeflerson for advice in the emergency. In his reply under date of with tlie affairs of nations on the American continent; and the doctrine was announced, that any attempt on the part of the European powers " to extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere would be regarded by the United States as dangerous to our peace and safety."

March 4, 1S25, Mr. Monroe surrendered the presidential chair to his Secretary of State, John Quincy Adams, and retired, with the universal respect of the nation, to his private residence at Oak Hill, Loudoun County, Virginia. His time had been so entirely consecrated to his countrv, that he had neglected his |)ecuniary interests, and was deeply involved in debt. The welfare of his country had ever been uppermost in his mind.

For many years Mrs. Monroe was in such feeble health that she rarely appeared in public. In 1830 Mr. Monroe took up his residence with his son-in-law in New York, where he died on the 4th of July, 1831. The citizens of New York conducted his obsequies with pageants more imposing than had ever been witnessed there before. Our country will ever cherish his memory with pride, gratefully enrolling his name in the list of its bcnefact(;rs, pronouncing him the worthy successor of the illustrious men who had preceded him in the. presidential chair.

Ohn Quincy Adams

the sixth President of the United States, 1825-9, was born in the rural home of his honored father, John Adams, in Q u i n c y , Massachusetts, July II, 1767. His mother, a woman of exalted worth, watched over his childhood diirins:;^ the almost constant absence of his father. He commenced his education at the village school, skiving at an early period indications of superior mental endowments.

When eleven years of age he sailed with his father for Europe, where tiie latter was associated with Franklin and Lee as Minister Plenipotentiary. The intelligence of John Quincy attracted the attention of these men and received from them flattering marks of attention. Mr. Adams had scarcely returned to this country in 1779 ere he was again sent abroad, and John Quincy again accompanied him. On this voyage he commenced a diary, which practice he continued, with but few interruptions, until his death- He journeyed with his father from Fcrrol, in Spaiu, to Paris. Here he applied himself for r-ix months to study; then accompanied his father to Holland, where he entered, first a school in Amsterdam, and then the University of Lcyden. In 1781, when only fourteen years of age, he was selected by Mr. Dana, our Minister to the Russian court, as his private secretary. In this school of incessant labor he spent fourteen months, and then returned alone to Holland through Sweden, Denmark, Hamburg and Bremen. Again he resumed his studies under a private tutor, at The Hague.

lu the spring of 1782 he accompanied his father to Paris, forming acquaintance with the most distinguished men on the Continent. After a short visit to England, he returned to Paris and studied until May, 17S5, when he returned to America, leaving his father an embassador at the court of St. James. In 1786 he entered the junior class in Harvard University, and graduated with the second honor of his class. The oration he delivered on this occasion, the " Importance of Public Faith to the Well-being of a Community," was published - an event very rare in this or any other land.

Upon leaving college at the age of twenty he studied law three years with the Hon. Theophilus Parsons in Newburyport. In 1790 he opened a law office in Boston. The profession was crowded with able men, and the fees were small. The first vcar he had no clients, but not a moment was lost. The second year passed away, still no clients, and still he was dependent upon his parents for support. Anxiously he awaited the third year. The reward now came. Clients began to enter his office, and before the end of the year he was so crowded with business that all solicitude respecting a suppoit was at an end.

When Great Britain commenced war against France, in 1793, Mr. Adams wrote some articles, urging entire neutrality on the part of the United States. The view was not a popular one. Many felt that as France had helped us, we were bound to hc'p France. But President Washington coincided with Mr. Adams, and issued his proclamation of neutrality. His writings at this time in the Boston journals gave him so high a reputation, that in June, 1794, he was appointed bv Washington resident Minister at tiic Netherlands. In July, 1797, hcleft The Hague to go to Portugal as Minister Plenipotentiary. Washington at this time wrote to his father, John Adams:

" Without intending to compliment the father or the mother, or to censure an}' others, I give it as my decided opinion, that Mr. Adams is the most valuable character we have abroad; and there remains no doubt in my mind that he will prove the ablest of our diplomatic corps."

On his way to Portugal, upon his arrival in London, he met with dispatches directing him to the court of Berlin, but requesting him to remain in London until he should receive instructi(jns. Wiiile waiting he was married to Miss Louisa Catherine Johnson, to whom he had been previously engaged. Miss Johnson was a daughter of Mr. Joshua Johnson, American Consul in London, and was a lady endowed with that beauty and those accomplishments which fitted her to move in the elevated sphere for which she was destined.

In July, 1799, having fulfilled all the purposes of his mission, .Mr. .\dams returned. In 1802 he was chosen to the Senate of Massachusetts from Boston, and then was elected Senator of the United States for six years from March 4, 1804. His reputation, his ability and his experience, placed him immediately among the most prominent and influential members of that body. He sustained the Government in its measures of resistance to the encroachments of England, destroying our commerce and insulting our flag. There was no man in America more familiar with the arrogance of the British court upon these points, and no one mf)re resolved to present a firm resistance. This course, so truly patriotic, and which scarcely a voice will now be found to condemn, alienated him from the Federal party dominant in Boston, and subjected him to censure.

In 1805 Mr. Adams was chosen jirolcssor of rhetoric in Harvard College. His lectures at this place were subsequently published. In 1809 '1^ ^vas sent as Minister to Russia. He was one of the commissioners that negotiated the treaty of peace with Great Britain, signed December 24, 18 14, and he was appointed Minister to the court of St. James in 1815. In 1817 he became Secretary of State in Mr. Monroe's cabinet in which position he remained eight years. Few will now contradict the assertion that the duties of that office were never more ably discharged. Probably the most important measure which Mr. Adams conducted was the purchase of Florida from Spain for $5,000,000.

The campaign of 1S24 was an exciting one. Four candidates were in the field. Of the 260 electoral votes that were cast, Andrew Jackson received ninety-nine; John Quincy Adams, eighty-four; William H. Crawford, forty-one, and Henry Clay, thirty-seven. As there was no choice by the people, the question went to the House

The friends of all disappointed candidates now combined in a venomous assault upon Mr. Adams. There is nothing more disgraceful in the past history of our country than the abuse which was poured in one uninterrupted stream ui)on this highminded, upright, patriotic man. There was never an administration more pure in principles, more conscientiously devoted to the best interests of the country, than that of John Ouincy Adams; and never, perhaps, was there an administration more unscrupulously assailed. Mr. Adams took his seat in the presidential chair resolved not to know an)' partisanship, but only to consult for the interests of the whole Republic,

He refused to dismiss any man from office for his political views. If he was a faithful ofificer that was enough. Bitter must have been his disappointment to find that the Nation could not appreciate such conduct.

Mr. Adams, in his public manners, was cold and repulsive; though with his personal friends he was at times very genial. This chilling address very seriously detracted from his popularity. No one can read an impartial record of his administration without admitting that a UKjre noble example of uncompromising dignity can scarcely be found. It was stated publicly that Mr. Adams' administration was to be put down, " though it be as pure as the angels which stand at the right hand of the throne of God." Many of the active participants in these scenes lived to regret the course they pursued. Some years after, Warren R. Davis, of South Carolina, turning to Mr. Adams, then a member of the House of Representatives, said:

" Well do I remember the enthusiastic zeal with which we reproached the administration of that gentleman, and the ardor and vehemence with which wc labored to bring in another. For the share 1 had in these transactions, and it was not a small one, I hope God will forgive me, for I shall never forgive myself.

March 4, 1829, Mr. Adams retired from the Presidency and was succeeded by Andrew Jackson, the latter receiving 168 out of 261 electoral votes. John C. Calhoun was elected Vice-President. The slavery question now began to assume pretentious magnitude. Mr. Adams returned to Quincy, and pursued his studies with unabated zeal. But he was not long permittc.'d to remain in retirement. In November, 1830, he was elected to Congress. In this he recognized the principle that it is honorable for the General ol yesterday to act as Corporal to-day, if by so doing he can render service to his country. Deep as are our obligations to John Quincy Adams for his services as embassador, as Secretary of State and as President; in his capacity as legislator in the House of Representatives, he conferred benefits upon our land which eclipsed all the rest, and which can never be over-estimated.

For seventeen years, until his death, he occupied the post of Representative, towering above all his peers, ever ready to do brave battle for freedom, and winning the title of " the old man eloquent." Upon taking his seat in the House he announced that he should hold himself bound to no party. He was usually the first in his place in the morning, and the last to leave his seat in the evening. Not a measure could escape his scrutin}-. The battle which he fought, almost singly, against the pro-slavery party in the Government, was sublime in its moral daiiiig and heroism. For persisting in presenting petitions for the abolition of slavery, he was threatened with indictment b)' the Grand Jury, with expulsion from the House, with assassination; but no threats could intimidate him, and his final triumph was complete.

On one occasion Mr. Adams presented a petition, signed by several women, against the annexation of Texas for the purpose of cutting it up into slave States. Mr. Howard, of Maryland, said that these women discredited not only themselves, but their section of the country, by turning from their domestic duties to the conflicts of political life.

"Are women," exclaimed Mr. Adams, " to have no opinions or actions on subjects relating to the general welfare ? Where did the gentleman get his principle? Did he find it in sacred history, - in the language of Miriam, the prophetess, in one of the noblest and sublime songs of triumph that ever met the human eye or ear? Did the gentleman never hear of Deborah, to whom the children of Israel came up for judgment ? Has he forgotten the deed of Jael, who slew the dreaded enemy of her country ? Has he forgotten Esther, who, by her petition saved her people and her country?

" To go from sacred history to profane, does the gentleman there find it ' discreditable ' for women to take an interest in political affairs? Has he forgotten the Spartan mother, who said to her son when going out to battle, ' My son, come back to me with thy shield, or upon thy shield ? ' Does he remember Cloelia and her hundred companions, who swam across the river uni''er a shower of darts, escaping from Porsena ? Has he forgotten Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi ? Does he not remember Portia, the wife of Brutus and the daughter of Cato?

" To come to later periods, what says the history of our Anglo-Saxon ancestors ? To say noth'ng of Boadicea, the British heroine in the time of the Cassars, what name is more illustrious than that of Elizabeth ? Or, if he will go to the continent, will he not find the names of Maria Theresa of Hungary, of the two Catherines of

In January, 1842, Mr. Adams presented a petition from forty-five citizens of Haverhill, Massachusetts, praying for a peaceable dissolution of the Union. The pro-slavery party in Congress, who were then plotting the destruction of the Government, were aroused to a pretense of commotion such as even our stormy hall of legislation has rarely witnessed. They met in caucus, and, finding that they probably would not be able to expel Mr. Adams from the House drew up a series of resolutions, which, if adopted, would inflict upon him disgrace, equivalent to expulsion. Mr. Adams had presented the petition, which was most respectfully worded, and had moved that it be referred to a committee instructed to report an answer, showing the reason whj the prayer ought not to be granted.

It was the 25th of January-. The whole body of the pro-slavery party came crowding together in the House, prepared to crush Mr. Adams forever. One of the number, Thomas F. Marshall, of Kentucky, was appointed to read the resolutions, which accused Mr. Adams of high treason, of having insulted the Government, and 01 meriting expulsion; but for which deserved punishment, the House, in its great mercy, would substitute its severest censure. With the assumption of a very solemn and magisterial air, there being breathless silence in the audience, Mr. Marshall hurled the carefully prepared anathemas at his victim. Mr. Adams stood alone, the whole pro-slavery party against him.

As soon as the resolutions were read, every eye being fixed upon him, that bold old man, whose scattered locks were whitened by seventy-five years, casting a withering glance in the direction of his assailants>

" In reply to this audacious, atrocious charge of high treason, I call for the reading of the first paragraph of the Declaration of Independence. Read it ! Read it! and see what that sa3's of the rights of a people to reform, to change, and to dissolve their Government.'

The attitude, the manner, the tone, the words; the venerable old man, with flashing eye and flushed cheek, and whose very form seemed to expand under the inspiration of the occasion - all presented a scene overflowing in its sublimity. There was breathless silence as that paragraph was read, in defense of whose principles our fathers had pledged their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor. It was a proud hour to Mr. Adams as they were all compelled to listen to the words:

" That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; and that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of those ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundations on such principles and organizing its powers in such form as shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness."

foe. The heroic old man looked around upon the audience, and thundered out, " Read that again ! " It was again read. Then in a few fiery, logical words he stated his defense in terms which even prejudiced minds could not resist. His discomfited assailants made several attempts to rally. After a conflict of eleven days they gave up vanquished and their resolution was ignominiously laid upon the table.

In January, 1846, when seventy-eight years of age, he took part in the great debate on the Oregon question, displaying intellectual vigor, and an extent and accuracy of acquaintance with the subject that excited great admiration.

On the 2 1 St of February, 1848, he rose on the floor of Congress with a paper in his hand to address the Speaker. Suddenly he fell, stricken by paralysis, and was caught in the arms of those around him. For a time he was senseless and was conveyed to a sofa in the rotunda. With reviving consciousness he opened his eyes, looked calmly around and said, " Tkis is the end of earth." Then after a moment's pause, he added, " / am cojitent." These were his last words, and he soon breathed his last, in the apartment beneath the dome of the capitol - the theater of his labors and his triumphs. In the language of hymnology, he " died at his post;" he " ceased at once to work and live."

Andrew Jackson

j^oj^ywr^v^^ ment, Union Coun- Vi^ ty, North Carolina, March i6, 1767. His parents were Scotch-Irish, natives of Carrickfergiis, who came to America in 1765, and settled on Twelve-Mile Creek, a tributar)^ of the Catawba. His father, who was a poor farm laborer, died shortly before Andrew's birth, when his mother removed to Waxhaw, where some relatives resided.

Few particulars of the childhood of Jackson have been preserved. His education was of the most limited kind, and he showed no fondness for books. He grew up to be a tall, lank boy, with coarse hair and freckled cheeks, with bare feet dangling from trousers too short for him, ver)' fond of athletic sports, running, boxing and wrestling. He was generous to the younger and weaker bo3's, but very irascible and overbearing with his equals and superiors. He was profane - a vice in which he surpassed all other men. The character of his mother

In 1780, at the age of thirteen, Andrew, or Andy, as he was called, with his brother Robert, volunteered to serve in the Revolutionary forces under General Sumter, and was a witness of the latter's defeat at Hanging Rock. In the following year the brothers were made prisoners, and confined in Camden, experiencing brutal treatment from their captors, and being spectators of General Green's defeat at Hobkirk Hill. Through their mother's exertions the boys were exchanged while suffering from smallpox. In two days Robert was dead, and And)' apparently dying. The strength of his constitution triumphed, and he regained health and vigor.

As he was getting better, his mother heard the cry of anguish from the prisoners whom the British held in Charleston, among whom were the sons of her sisters. She hastened to their relief, was attacked by fever, died and was buried where her grave could never be found. Thus Andrew Jackson, when fourteen years of age, was left alone in the world, without father, mother, sister or brother, and without one dollar which he could call his own. He soon entered a saddler's shop, and labored diligently for six months. But gradually, as health returned, he became more and more a wild, reckless, lawless boy. He gambled, drank and was regarded as about the worst character that could be found.

He now turned schoolmaster. He could teach the alphabet, perhaps the multiplication table; and as he was a very bold boy, it is possible he might have ventured to teach a little writing. But he soon began to think of a profession and decided to study law. With a very slender purse, and on the back of a very fine horse, he set out for Salisbury, North Carolina, where he entered the law office of Mr. McCay. Here he remained two years, professedly studying law. He is still remembered in traditions of Salisbury, which say:

" Andrew Jackson was the most roaring, rollicking, horse-racing, card-playing, mischievous fellow that ever lived in Salisbury. He did not trouble the law-books much."

Andrew was now, at the age of twenty, a tall young man, being over six feet in height. He was slender, remarkably graceful and dignified in his manners, an exquisite horseman, and developed, amidst his loathesome profanity and multiform vices, a vein of rare magnanimity. His temper was fiery in the extreme; but it was said of him that no man knew better than Andrew Jackson when to get angry and when not.

In 1786 he was admitted to the bar, and two years later removed to Nashville, in what was then the western district of North Carolina, with the appointment of solicitor, or public prosecutor. It was an office of little honor, small emolument and great peril. Few men could be found to accept it.

And now Andrew Jackson commenced vigorously to practice law. It was an important part of his business to collect debts. It required nerve. During the first seven years of his residence in those wilds he traversed the almost pathless forest between Nashville and Jonesborough, a distance of 200 miles, twenty-two times. Hostile Indians were constant!}' on the watch, and a man was liable at any moment to be shot down in his own field. Andrew Jackson was just the man for this service - a wild, daring, rough backwoodsman. Daily he made hair-breadth escapes. He seemed to bear a charmed life. Boldly, alone or with few companions, he traversed the forests, encountering all perils and triumphing over all.

In 1790 Tennessee became a Territory, and Jackson was appointed, by President Washington, United States Attorney for the new district. In 1791 he married Mrs. Rachel Robards (daughter of Colonel John Donelson), whom he supposed to have been divorced in that year by an act of the Legislature of Virginia. Two years after this Mr. and Mrs. Jackson learned, to their great surprise, that Mr. Robards had just obtained a divorce in one of the courts of Kentucky, and that the act of the Virginia Legislature was not final, but conditional. To remedy the irregularity as much as possible, a new license was obtained and the marriage ceremony was again performed.

It proved to be a marriage of rare felicity. Probably there never was a more affectionate union. However rough Mr. Jackson might have been abroad, he was always gentle and tender at home; and through all the vicissitudes of their lives, he treated Mrs. Jackson with the most chivalric attention.

Under the circumstances it was not unnatural that the facts in the case of this marriage were so misrepresented b}' opponents in the political campaigns a quarter or a century later as to become the basis of serious charges against Jackson's morality which, however, have been satisfactorily attested by abundant evidence.

United States Attorney, which demanded frequent journeys through the wilderness and exposed him to Indian hostilities. He acquired considerable propertj- in land, and obtained such influence as to be chosen a member of the convention which framed the Constitution for the new State of Tennessee, in 1796, and in that year was elected its first Representative in Congress. Albert Gallatin thus describes the first appearance of the Hon. Andrew Jackson in the House:

" A tall, lank, uncouth-looking personage, with locks of hair hanging over his face and a cue down his back, tied with an eel skin; his dress singular, his manners and deportment those of a rough backwoodsman."

Jackson was an earnest advocate of the Democratic party. Jefferson was his idol. He admired Bonaparte, loved France and hated England. As Mr. Jackson took his seat, General Washington, whose second term of office was just expiring, delivered his last speech to Congress. A committee drew up a complimentary address in reply. Andrew Jackson did not approve the address and was one of twelve who voted against it.

Tennessee had fitted out an expedition against the Indians, contrary to the policy of the Government. A resolution was introduced that the National Government should pa)- the expenses. Jackson advocated it and it was carried. This rendered him very popular in Tennessee. A vacancy chanced soon after to occur in the Senate, and Andrew Jackson was chosen United States Senator by the State of Tennessee. John Adams was then President and Thomas Jefferson, Vice-President.

In 1798 Mr. Jackson returned to Tennessee, and resigned his seat in the Senate. Soon after he was chosen Judge of the Supreme Court of that State, with a salary of $600. This office he held six years. It is said that his decisions, though sometimes ungrammatical, were generally right. He did not enjoy his seat upon the bench, and renounced the dignity in 1804. About this time he was chosen Major-General of militia, and lost the title of judge in that of General.

When he retired from the Senate Chamber, he decided to try his fortune through trade. He purchased a stock of goods in Philadelphia and sent them to Nashville, where he opened a store. He lived about thirteen miles from Nashville, on a tract of land of several thousand acres, mostly uncultivated. He used a small block-house for a store, from a narrow window of which he sold goods to the Indians. As he had an assistant his office as judge did not materially interfere with his business.

As to slavery, born in the midst of it, the idea never seemed to enter his mind that it could be wrong. He eventually became an extensive slave owner, but he was one of the most humane and gentle of masters.

In 1804 Mr. Jackson withdrew from politics and settled on a plantation which he called the Hermitage, near Nashville. He set up a cotton-gin, formed a partnership and traded in New Orleans, making the voyage on flatboats. Through his hot temper he became involved in several quarrels and " affairs of honor," during this period, in one of which he was severely wounded, but had the misfortune to kill his opponent, Charles Dickinson. For a time this affair greatly injured General Jackson's popularity. The verdict then was, and continues to be, that General Jackson was outrageously wrong. If hesubsequently felt any remorse he never revealed it to anyone.

In 1805 Aaron Burr had visited Nashville and been a guest of Jackson, with whom he corresponded on the subject of a war with Spain, which was anticipated and desired by them, as well as by the people of the Southwest generally.

combinations which led to his trial for treason. He was warmly received by Jackson, at whose instance a public ball was given in his honor at Nashville, and contracted with the latter for boats and provisions. Early in 1807, when Burr had been proclaimed a traitor by President Jefferson, volunteer forces for the Federal service were organized at Nashville under Jackson's command; but his energ}- and activity did not shield him from suspicions of connivance in the supposed treason. He was summoned to Richmond as a witness in Burr's trial, but was not called to the stand, probably because he was out-spoken in his partisanship.

On the outbreak of the war with Great Britain in 1812, Jackson tendered his services, and in January, 181 3, embarked for New Orleans at the head of the Tennessee contingent. In March he received an order to disband his forces; but in September he again took the field, in the Creek war, and in conjunction with his former partner, Colonel Coffee, inflicted upon the Indians the memorable defeat at Talladega, Emuckfaw and Tallapoosa.

In May, 1814, Jackson, who had now acquired a national reputation, was appointed a Major-General of the United States army, and commenced a campaign against the British in Florida. He conducted the defense at Mobile, September 15, seized upon Pensacola, November 6, and immediately transported the bulk of his troops to New Orleans, then threatened by a powerful naval force. Martial law was declared in Louisiana, the State militia was called to arms, engagements with the British were fought December 23 and 28, and after re-enforcements had been received on both sides the famous victory of January 8, 181 5, rrowned Jackson's fame as a soldier, and made him the typical American hero of the first half of the nineteenth century.

might easily have involved the United States in war both with Spain and Great Britain. Fortunately the peril was averted by the cession of Florida to the United States; and Jackson, who had escaped a trial for the irregularity of his conduct onl}' through a division of opinion in Monroe's cabinet, was appointed in 1821 Governor of the new Territory. Soon after he declined the appointment of minister to Mexico.

In 1823 Jackson was elected to the United States Senate, and nominated b)^ the Tennessee Legislature for the Presidenc3\ This candidacy, though a matter of surprise, and even merryment, speedily became popular, and in 1824, when the stormy electoral canvas resulted in the choice of John Quincy Adams by the House of Representatives, General Jackson received the largest popular vote among the four candidates.