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J O HN
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D O C T R IN E
182
3
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BY
WORTH IN G TON CHA U N C EY FORD
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AN D
W IT H
EM ANC I PAT I ON UND E R M ART I AL LAW
(
—
1 8 1 9 1 84 2
BY
CHA RLES FRAN C I S ADA M S
[R E PR IN TE D F RO M
P RO C EE D ING S O T H E M A SSA C HU S ETT S
S O C I ET Y O R JA N U A RY 1 9 02 ]
T HE
F
,
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,
C AMBRIDGE
JO H N
WILSO N
AND
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JO H N
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BY
W O R T H I N G T O N CH A UNC E Y F O R D
2 39 9 34
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JOHN
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A M a bl e t o u s e i n thi s pl a c e on ly a p art o f th e u n publ i sh e d
mat e ria l I ha v e fo u n d b e ari n g up o n th e g e n e s i s of th e M o n r o e
D o c tri n e N o r can th e full c o n n e c ti on o f thi s n e w mat e ria l
w ith w hat h as a l r e ad y b ee n p ri n t e d b e d e v e l o p e d as th e s t o ry
)
w o ul d ta k e me b a ck t o 1 81 7 an d fo r w ard t o 1 8 2 8 w e r e I t o
att e mp t a f ull r e l ati o n I th e r efo r e c on fi n e my s e l f t o s o me
i mpo rt an t p a p e r s me r e ly addin g that I ha v e fo u n d o th e r qu it e
as i mp o rta n t p a p e r s w hi c h w i ll r e c e i v e att e n ti o n at a l at e r ti me
T h e n o tabl e e n u n c iati o n o f th e d o c tri n e that A me ri c a w as
n o l o n g e r o p e n t o c o l o n i z ati o n by an y E u r o p e a n p o w e r i s hard ly
t o u c h e d up on i n th e p a p e rs n o w p ri n t e d I t w as a d o c tri n e
that admi t t e dl y came fr om j o h n Q u i n cy A da ms an d th e r e h as
With w hat r e
n e ve r b ee n an y d o ub t as t o i t s a u th o r s hi p
mai n s of t h e M o n ro e d o CtTin e a r e a s o n a bl e d o ub t h as b ee n
mai n tai n e d ; bu t I thi n k th e d o cu me n t s n o w publ i s h e d w ill
s h o w that n o me mb e r o f M o n r o e s C a b i n e t , e xc e p t hi s S e c r e
tar y of Stat e h e l d a p os iti v e O p i n i on o n th e g e n e ra l p has e s of
C a n n i n g s p r o p os al s an d of th e Ru s s ia n c ommu n i c atio n s or
s ucc e e d e d i n attai n i n g a p o s i t i o n w hi c h w as d efe n s i bl e fr o m
e ve r y p o i n t o f v i e w X M Q IIIZQ e hi ms e lf h as l o n g b e e n j u dg e d ):
as u n l ik el y t o tak e s o e x tr e me a s t a n d i n th e fa c e o f a ll i e d
E u ro p e for h e w as by n at u r e a ti mid man an d w as at thi s
ti me i n p o o r h e al th i H e had had a l arg e exp e ri e n c e i n dipl o
mati c s e r v i c e bu t it w as o n th e s id e o f fai lu r e an d dis a pp o i n t
me n t i T hi s i s n o t t o b e w o n d e r e d at , fo r a l o n g s p oo n w as
n e e de d t o su
n n i n g i n h i s day s o f a n ti J a c
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o b i n i s m o r w ith T a ll e y ra n d u n d e r a c hi ef e v e n mo r e u n s c ru u
p
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l o u s tha n hims e l f I t i s di fficul t t o s e e th e radi c al Mo n ro e
of 1 7 9 4 i n th e p r e s idi n g g e n i u s o f th e e ra o f g o o d fe e l i n g
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a pp e n dix w i ll b e fo u n d c e rtai n d e s p at c h e s fro m R i c h
ard Ru s h t o th e S e c r e tary of Stat e Ru sh i n h i s Me moran da
”
p ri n t s thr e e o f h i s
o f a R e s id e n c e at th e C o u rt o f Lo n d on
d e sp at c h e s r e l ati n g t o h i s c on fe r e n c e s w ith C a n n i n g o n th e
affair s of S o u th A me ri c a as fo ll o w s : N o 32 5 A u g u s t 2 3
No 326 Au g ust 2 8 ( p
1 82 3 ( p
an d N o 3 3 1
S e p t e mb e r 1 9 ( p
Mr A da ms s r e ply c o ve r e d n ot o n ly
th e s e d e s p at c h e s bu t a l s o N o s 3 2 3 3 30 3 32 334 an d 3 36
w hi c h ar e n o w p ri n t e d fo r th e fi rs t ti me w ith t h e n o t e s o f
C a n n i n g e n cl o s e d i n th e m or r efe rr e d t o i n th e o th e r commu
1
n i c at i o n s
F r om th e M o n r o e p a p e r s I ta k e a p ri v at e l e tt e r
fr o m R i c hard Ru sh t o M o n ro e dat e d S e p t e mb e r 1 5 an d fr o m
th e s a me s o u r c e a l e tt e r fro m Dan i e l Sh e l d o n S e c r e tary o f
th e A me ri c a n Le gati on at P ari s t o J o h n Q u i n cy A da ms dat e d
O c t ob e r 3 0
F r o m th e A da ms ma n u s c rip t s at Q u i n cy I tak e
l e tt e r s fr om R i c hard Ru s h t o th e S e c r e tar y of Stat e dat e d
N o v e mb e r 2 6 an d D e c e mb e r 2 7 w it h a p ri v at e an d co n fid e n
tia l n o t e fro m G e o rg e C a n n i n g t o R i c hard Ru s h dat e d D e
I n th e s e t w e l v e l e tt e r s th e s t o r y o f th e E n g l i s h
c e mb e r 1 3
ad v a n c e s i s t o l d w ith all th e d e tai l s s a v e s uc h as w e r e gi ve n
i n th e thr e e i mp o rta n t d e s p at c h e s publ i s h e d by Ru s h i n h i s
”
Me mo ran da an d th e y c o n s tit u t e th e fi rs t c ha p t e r o r di v i s i on
o f my mat e ria l
U n fo rt u n at e ly th e Me mo irs o f J o h n Q u i n cy A da ms c o n
tai n n o e n tri e s fr o m S e p t e mb e r 1 1 1 8 2 3 w h e n th e w rit e r w as
s ti l l at Q u i n cy an d N o ve mb e r 7 w h e n th e fi r s t effe c t s o f C an
o r e w ith o u t
n in
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an y r e c o rd o f th e effe c t th e y p r o d uc e d up o n A da ms an d th e
me mb e rs o f th e C ab i n e t
Up o n th e P r e s id e n t w e k n o w th e y
had a p r o fo u n d i n flu e n c e l e adi n g h i m t o t ur n fo r ad v i c e an d
a s si s tan c e t o J effe rs on an d M ad i s o n t o w h o m h e s e n t c op i e s o f
th e s e c on fi d e n tia l p ap e rs
a so me w hat u n us u al s t e p an d n o t
a l ittl e i n di s c r ee t F o r an a cc id e n t w o ul d ha v e pl a c e d Ru s h
i n a mos t a w k w ard p o s iti on an d c o ul d n o t ha v e b e e n pl e a s a n t
fo r Ada ms w h o k n e w n o thi n g o f thi s r efe r e n c e
Mon r o e s
l e tt e r t o J e fie r s o n h as n e ve r b ee n p ri n t e d an d w as as foll o w s :
In
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T h e s e p ape rs ar e t ake n from t h e fil e s of t h e D e partment of S tate an d by t h e
courte sy of th t D e p art me nt I ob tain e d co p i e s
B e s o g o d a s t o s e d t h e c o p i e s me nti o n e d i n our me e t i n g t d ay o f t h
corre sp o n d ence b e t wee M r Ru h an d Mr Cann in g s ince I d ee m t h e s ub je ct o f
t h e high e s t i mp ortanc e
Jam s Monroe t o A d ms Wa hi gt n O ctob er 1 1
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M O NRO E TO JE FF E R S O N
.
1 82 3
O A " H I LL O ctob er
D E A R S I R — I tr ans mit to yo u t wo despatches which were r e cei v d
fr o m M r Rush while I was lately in Washi n gton which involve inter
ests o f the highest impor tance T hey contain t wo letters f rom M r
Cannin g suggesting designs of the holy alliance against the I n de pen
prop o sing a cooperation between G Britain
dence o f 8 A merica
the U S tates in support o f it against the members o f that alliance
The project ai ms i n the first instance at a mere expr essio n o f Opinion
s o me what in the abstract but which it is expected by M r Canning
will ha ve a great political effect by defeating the combinati o n By M r
B ush s ans wers which are also in closed y o u will s e e the ligh t in which
he views the subj ect
the extent to which he may have gone M any
important consideration s are involved in this proposition
Shall we
entangle ourselves at all in E ur opean politicks
wars o n the side o f
any p ower against others presuming that a concert by agreement o f
I f a case c an exist in
the kind prop o sed may lead to that result ?
which a sound maxim may
ought to be departed from is n o t the
present instan ce precisel y that case ?
Has not the epoch ar r i v d
when G Britain must take her stand either on the side of the monarchs
in conse quence either i n favor o f
o f E urope o r o f the U States
D espotism o r o f liberty
may it not be pr e su m d that aware of that
necessity her governmen t has s e i z d o n the present oc currence as that
whi ch it deems the mos t suitable t o ann o unce mark the comme n c
ment of that career
o w n impressi o n is that we O ught t o meet the proposal o f the
B r itish gov E to make it kno wn that we would view an interference
o n the part o f the E uropean po wers an d esp e cially an attack o n the
Colonies by them as an attack on ourselves presuming that if they
succeeded with them they w ould extend it to u s I am sensible however
of the extent
di fficulty o f the q uestion
shall be happy to have
yours
M r M adison s O pinions o n it I do n o t wish to trouble
either o f you with small obj ec ts bu t the present one is vital involving
the high interests fo r w hich we have s o long so faith fully
barmo
n i ou sl
Be so kind as to enclose to him the de
y contended together
s pat ch e s
with an intimation o f the motive W ith great respect &c
JA M E S M ON R O E
Re e d O ct 2 3 1
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Fr m t h Jeffe rson M SS i n t h e D p artm nt f S tate Was hin gt n D C
I f or w r d y u t wo m t i mp rtan t l tters s e nt t o m by t h e P s i d e nt n d a dd
h i l e tte r t o me by w hi h y
T his y u w ill
w ill p e rc e i v h i p r i ma f ci v i ws
b e s o go od
t re turn t o m an d f or w r d t h oth r t hi m
Jeffe rs n t M d
i on O ctob er 2 4 1 82 3 M S
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8
Th e r e s ul t of thi s c on s ul tati on w e r e th e l e tt e rs fr om J e fie r
s on t o M o n r o e , O c t o b e r 2 4 t h fr o m M adi s o n t o M on r o e O c t ob e r
3 0t h an d fr o m M adi s o n t o J e ffe rs on No ve mb e r l s t w hi c h ar e
t o o W e ll k n o w n an d a cc e s s i bl e t o r e qu ir e e v e n a s u mmar y o f
th e ir c on t e n ts I t i s h o w e v e r w o rth n o ti n g that M o n r o e
k e p t th e s e r e pl i e s by h i m n o t s h o w i n g th e m t o A da ms u n til
N o v e mb e r 1 5 th o r n e ar ly t w o w e e k s a ft e r th e ir r e c e i p t
Whi l e thi s i n t e r c ha n g e o f o p i n i on s o n th e C an n i n g /pr op o s al s
w as tak i n g pl a c e a n e w e l e me n t w as i n tr o d u c e d by th e s ta n d
tak e n by Ru s sia I t w as n o t u n u s u a l fo r th e r ul e r o f t hat
E mpir e t o tak e th e g o v e r n me n t s o f o th e r c o u n tri e s i n t o h i s
c o n fi d e n c e an d dis pl a y b efo r e th e m s o me o f th e p ol iti c a l p rin
c i p l e s w hi c h c o n tr o ll e d h i s a c ti o n s o r e xpl ai n s o me o f th e
mo ti ve s w hi c h a c t u at e d h i s c o u n c i l s
As a me mb e r o f th e
H o ly A l l ia n c e h e w as b o u n d by i t s d e c i s i o n s an d w as O ft e n
mad e th e s p o k e s ma n o f i t s p o l i cy
S uc h u tt e ra n c e s u s u ally
t o o k th e fo r m o f cir cul ar l e tt e r s addr e ss e d t o th e d ifie r e n t
c a b i n e ts o f E u ro p e an d s o far as I am a b le t o di s c o ve r
had n o t fo r s o me y e ars b ee n addr e ss e d t o th e U n it e d Stat e s
Thi s w as o n ly n at u ra l fo r t h e U n it e d S tat e s had d e l i be rat e ly
i s o l at e d its e lf fr o m E u r o p e a n c o u n c il s an d c o ul d hard ly e x
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c on cl a ve s o f th e P o w e rs d e al i n g w ith matt e r s o n w hi c h o ur
r e p r e s e n tati ve s w e r e e v e r a s s e rti n g th e y c o ul d gi v e n o o p i n i o n
o r pl e dg e o f a c ti o n
Fu rth e r th e v e ry p ol iti c a l sy s t e m o f th e
U n it e d Stat e s w as s o O pp o s e d t o that d o mi n ati n g E u ro p e that
gro u n d fo r c o mmo n a c ti on c o ul d n o t b e fo u n d I f E n gl a n d
w ith h e r r e l ati ve ly l i b e ra l sy s t e m an d man y mut u a l i n t e r e s t s
w ith c o n ti n e n tal E u r o p e , fo u n d h e r s e l f u n abl e t o a c t w ith th e
H o ly All ia n c e it was o u t o f th e qu e s ti o n fo r th e U n it e d Stat e s
w ith o u t an y of th e s e i n t e r e s ts t o ta k e p art i n th e ir p r o c e e d
i n g s T h e r e w as e ve ry r e as o n fo r k ee p i n g e n tir e ly a l o o f an d
e v e n i n a matt e r that did c on c e r n o u r c o u n try l i k e th e n e g o
t i at i o n s on th e sl a v e trad e it w as o n ly as a matt e r o f fa v o r that
th e Un it e d Stat e s w as i n fo rme d o f th e c o n clu s i o n s an d as a
matt e r o f gra c e i n v it e d t o gi v e i t s adh e r e n c e t o th e r e s ul t I t
w as th e r efo r e an u n u s u a l e p i s o d e t o r e c e i ve fr o m th e Ru ss ia n
mi n i s t e r c ommu n i c ati o n s b e ari n g u p o n p u b l i c p ol i cy
Th e
n at u r e o f th o s e c o mmu n i c ati o n s i s b e s t e xpl ai n e d i n th e e l a b o
rat e me mo ra n d um p r e p ar e d by M r A da ms for s ub mi ssi on t o
1
t h e P r e s id e n t
1 Pr i nte d
p t p 26
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9
th e fi rs t w e e k i n N o v e mb e r thr ee d e sp at c h e s fr om Ru s h
1
r e a c h e d th e D e p art me n t an d th e Me mo irs agai n b e gi n t o
r e c o rd th e C a b i n e t mee ti n g s T o C a n n i n g s o rigi n a l p ro p o s al s
th e r e w as n o e xc e p ti on t o b e ta k e n e xc e p t o n th e gr o u n d of
a c e rtai n v ag u e n e ss as t o th e p os si b il ity of e n tir e c o op e rati o n
H e had i n h i s fi ve h e ad s e xp r e ss e d o n ly w hat th e g o v e r n me n t
o f th e U n it e d Stat e s had a l r e ad y a cc e p t e d as i t s p o l i cy
Th e
g u ard e d u tt e ra n c e s o f Ru s h i n h i s e xc ha n g e o f n o t e s w ith
C a n n i n g had g o n e as far as it w as p o s s i b l e t o g o w ith o u t
p o siti v e i n s tr uc ti on s fro m th e ad mi n i s trati o n an d th o s e i n
s t r u c t i o n s c o ul d ha v e b ee n i s s u e d w ith o u t u n d uly b i n di n g o u r
g o v e r n me n t t o fo l l ow Gr e at Britai n i n e v e ry c o n ti n g e n cy
Th e P r e s id e n t by th e v e ry fo r m o f h i s qu e s ti o n s t o J effe r s o n
i mp l i e d that h e w o ul d e v e n fa vo r a d e p art u r e i n thi s i n s ta n c e
fr o m th e traditi o n a l p o l i cy o f i s ol ati o n
B u t C a n n in g blu n
d e r e d H e i n ti mat e d t o Ru s h that th e A ll ian c e had i n t e n ti o n s
agai n s t th e l at e S p an i s h c ol o n i e s o f S o u th A me ri c a an d u rg e d
th e A me ri c a n mi n i s t e r t o e n t e r i n t o a d e fi n it e an d b i n di n g
c o mp a c t Ye t h e did n o t t e ll Ru s h fr o m w hat s o u r c e h e h ad
o b tai n e d thi s i n fo r mati o n a n d th u s ga v e ri s e t o a s u s p i c i o n that
h i s s o l i c it u d e w as n o t e n tir e ly dis i n t e r e s t e d o r h i s u rg e n cy was
n o t c a lcul at e d t o c o mp r o mit Ru s h fo r th e b e n e fi t o f th e Briti s h
g o ve rn me n t Up o n th e d e s p at c h e s fr o m Ru s h A da ms co mg
“
me n t e d : T h e o bj e c t o f C a n n i n g a pp e ar s t o ha v e b e e n t o
o b tai n s o me publ i c pl e dg e fr o m th e g o v e r n me n t o f th e U n it e d
Stat e s o s t e n s i bly agai n s t th e fo r c i bl e i n t e r fe r e n c e o f th e H oly
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A ll ia n c e b e t w e e n S p ai n an d S o u th A me ri c a "
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p
B y j o i n in g w ith h e r th e r efo r e i n h e r p r o p o s e d d e cl arati o n w e
gi v e h e r a s ub s ta n tia l an d p e rha p s i n c o n v e n i e n t pl e dg e agai n s t
” 2
o u r s e l v e s an d r e a lly o b tai n n o thi n g i n r e t u r n
I n pl a c e o f a c o —op e rati o n w ith Gr e at Britai n A da ms fa v o r e d
s e i z i n g t h e o pp o rt u n ity o fl e r e d by th e c o mmu n i c ati o n s fr o m th e
Ru s s ia n mi n i s t e r T h e g o v e r n me n t o f th e U n it e d S tat e s w hil e
d e c l i n i n g th e o v e rt u r e o f Gr e at Britai n c o ul d th u s ta k e i t s
s ta n d agai n s t th e H o ly A ll ia n c e
I t w o ul d b e mo r e c a n did
In
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T h e se we re numb e re d 3 30 33 1 an d 3 32 a d we re d ate d Se p t e mber 8
d 20 r e s p e c t i v e l y
N o 3 30 i s e n d ors e d as re c e i ve d N o ve mb e r 5 whil e N o s
d 3 3 2 w e re r e ce i ve d N ove mb e r 3
2
M e moirs of Joh n Q ui ncy A d ams V I 1 77 1 78
1
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10
w e ll as mo r e dig n i fi e d t o a v o w o u r p ri n c i pl e s e xpl i c itly t o
Ru ss ia an d F ra n c e tha n t o c o me i n as a c o ck b o at i n th e w a k e
”
o f t h e Briti s h man o f w ar
T hi s w as th e p o l i cy that w as d i s
cu ss e d u n d e r ma n y fo r ms by th e C a b i n e t d u ri n g th e mo n th o f
N o ve mb e r an d fo r w hi c h A da ms fo u ght s o w ell
I t w as at thi s s tag e that th e fi rs t o f o u r A da ms ma n u s c ri p t s
w as s ub mitt e d t o th e C a b i n e t
th e dra ft o f h i s r e ply t o
Bar on T uy l l I t app e ar s t o ha ve b ee n p r e p ar e d o n O c to b e r 1 8
t w o day s a ft e r th e l e tt e r fr o m B ar o n T u yl l had b ee n r e c e i ve d
bu t it w as n o t l aid b efo r e th e C a b i n e t ti ll N o ve mb e r 7 A s
th e c o mmu n i c ati o n s w it h th e Ru ss ia n Mi n i s t e r had b ee n p art
v e r b al an d p art i n w riti n g th e S e c r e tary th ou ght it w o ul d b e
o n l y p r o p e r t o r e p l y i n th e s a me ma n n e r
T o a n s we r th e
w h ol e i n o n e w ritt e n n o t e might p l a c e th e Bar o n i n an a w k
“
w ard p r e di c a me n t B u t h e w ar n e d th e P r e s id e n t that t h e
a n s w e r t o b e gi v e n t o Bar o n T uyl l th e i n s tr uc ti o n s t o M r Ru s h
r e l ati ve t o th e p r op os al s o f M r C a n n i n g th os e t o Mr M idd l e
t o n at s
an d th o s e t o th e mi n i s t e r w h o mu s t b e
ur
s e n t t o F ra n c e mu s t a ll b e p art o f a c o mb i n e d sy s t e m o f p o l i cy
”
an d ada pt e d t o e a c h o th e r
T h e d r aft o f th e n o t e t o Bar o n d e T uyl l w as as fo ll o w s
as
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A D AM S
’
S
D R AF T
1
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B ARON DE T U Y LL
E
oy E xtra ord in ary
M i i s t e r P leni p ote nt i ary from R us i a
1 82 3
D E PA R T M E N T O F S T A TE WA SH I N G T O N W
?
4
I have had the honour o f receivin g your Note of the 1 6 inst
SIR
c ommunicating the in formation that His I mperial M ajesty the E mperor
o f all the Russias has determined in no cas e wh a t s o e ve r to receive any
agent whats oever either from the G overnment o f the Republic o f C o
lumbia o r from any other of the G overnments de facto which o w e
their existence t o the E vents o f w hich the n e w World h as for som e
years past been the theatre
I n fluenced by the considerations which prescribe it as a duty to inde
penden t C h r i s ti a n Nations of C h r i s t i a n s t o entertain with each other
the friendly relations which sentiments of humanity and their mutual
interests re q uire an d satisfied tha t those o f South A merica had bec o me
irrevocably I ndependent o f Spain the Go vernment o f the United State s
B [ have interchanged M inisters Plenipotentiary with the Republic o f
Colo mbia have app ointed M inisters of the same Rank t o the G overn
T
HE
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nv
n
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w
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Wh at i
i t lic we r al
1
a
l s d i n b rack e t wa str uck o ut by t h e Pre s i dent Words
s o o mi tte d fr m t h e fin al f orm o f t hi s l e tte r
s en c o e
e
s
o
s
.
.
in
11
ments o f M exico Buenos Ayres and Chili have received a M inis t e r
and other D iplomatic Agents fro m M exico and w ill continue to receive
and send Agents Diplomatic and Co mmercial in their intercourse with
the other A merican In dependant Nations as in the per formance o f
their social duties and i n the pursuit o f their la wful I nterests th ey
shall fin d exp ed i en t p roper While regretting that the political prin
c ipl e s maintained by His I mperial M ajesty and his allies have n o t yet
led the I mperial G o vernment to the same result and that they have not
seen fit t o receive the d ip l oma t i c ag en t M inister of Peace said to have
be en commissioned by the Republican G overnment o f Colombia to r e
side near his I mperial M aj esty the G overnment o f the United States
respecting in others that sel f dependent Sovereignty w hich they e x e r
cise themselves receive fro m you the in formation o f his M aj e sty s deter
mination o n this subj ect in the Spirit of Candour frankness and o f
amicable disposition with which it is given ]
D I avail mysel f o f the occasion t o reiterate to yo u Si r the assu r
ance o f my distinguished Co n siderati o n
C Fro m the in formati o n contained in your No te it appears th at the
political Principles maintained by His I mperial M ajesty and his allies
have n o t led the I mperial G overnmen t to the same result I am i n
structed by the President t o assu r e y o u that the G overnment o f the
United Sta t es respecting in others the I ndependence o f the Sovereign
authority W hich they e xercise the mselves receiv e the communication
o f H I M s determination o n that subject in the Spi r it o f Candour
franknes s an d o f a micable disposition with which it is made D
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M o NR OE
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S U G G E ST E D CH ANG E S
s
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1
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T he g o vern ment o f t h e U States th o ught it p roper t o ac
kno wledge their i n de pe n dan ce i n M arch
by an act which was
then published to the w o rld T his govern ment has since interchanged
ministers with the republic o f C olumbia h as app o inted ministers o f the
same rank to t h e governments o f M exi co Buenos Ayres
Chili
has received a minister
other dipl omatic agen ts from Mexico and
r e se r v d i n other respects the same intercou r se with those n e w States
p
that they have with other p o wers
By a recurrence t o the message of the Presiden t a co py o f which is
enclosed y ou will find that this measure was ado pted on great c on
sideration ; that the attention o f this gov had been called to the co n
test betw een the parent c o untry the Colonies fro m an early period
h ad be co me
that it h ad marked the course o f events with impartiality
perfectly satisfied that Spain could n o t reestablish her authority ove r
them that in fact the new States were completely i n dependant C
B
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S ee
Monroe s l e tter o n
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p 13
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12
[ Under
those circumstances my gov has heard with great regre t t h e
in formation c on t ai n d in your note that the political principles main
t ai n d by his I mp e rial M ajesty
his allies have not yet led the I mp e rial
gov t to the same result I am instructe d ho wever by the President t o
assure you that this communication o f H I M s d e termination on this
of
subj ect has been r e ce i vd in the spirit o f candour frankness
amicable dispositi o n w ith which it is given ]
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I t w as C a l h o u n w h o o bj e c t e d t o th e w o rd s Ch r i st i an , an
n e x e d t o i n d e p e n d e n t n ati o n s , an d o
e a ce , add e d t o th e w o rd
fp
mi n i s t er
I n s p it e o f A da ms e xp l a i n i n g that
a ll th e p o i n t o f
.
my n o t e w as i n th e s e t w o w o rd s , as my o bj e c t w as t o pu t th e
E mp e ro r i n th e w r o n g i n th e fa c e o f th e w o rl d as mu c h as p o s
”
s i bl e
th e y w e r e s tr uck fro m th e dra ft T h e c a b in e t mee ti n g
c a me t o a n e n d b efo r e th e fo r m o f th e n o t e had b ee n d e t e r
mi n e d b u t d e v e l o p e d s o me di ffe r e n c e o f O p i n i o n upo n th e man
n e r o f r e ply i n g t o th e Ru s s ia n
c ommu n i c ati o n s W ith th e
P r e s id e n t A da ms agr ee d t o c o n fi n e h i s w ritt e n r e ply t o th e
,
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,
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pu rp o rt o f th e Bar o n s w ritt e n n o t e an d t o s e e th e Bar on
agai n up on th e v e rb a l p art o f h i s c o mmu n i c ati on Thi s w o ul d
b e l i mite d t o an e xp r e ss i o n o f th e i n t e n ti o n o n th e p art o f th e
U n it e d S t at e s t o c o n ti n u e t o r e mai n n e u tral
B efo r e th e S e c r e tary c o u l d s e e th e Ru s s ian M i n i s t e r o n th e
n e x t da
f
l
o
n
o
M
r
e
b
e
ga
ha
v
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d
ub
t
h
e
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t
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th
e
o
n
n
d
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t
o
a
s
o
y
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lo w in g n ot e :
’
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JA NIE S
M O N RO E
TO J O H N
Y
N
C
U
I
Q
ADAM S
.
v 8 1 823
D E AR S I R — I called t o co n fer a mo ment with you respe cting the
concerns depending w ith the minister o f Russia bu t not mee ting with
you and hearing that you are expec t ed to have an interview with the
minister o f Russia t o day I drop you a fe w lines on that subj e ct
I n the interview I think that it will be p ro per to extend yo ur con
versation
en quiries to every point which see ms to be embraced by
his note
in fo rmal co mmunica tion with a vie w t o make it t h e basis
o f all s ubse q uent measures either with Congress or through M r Rush
‘
with the British gov I f you see no impro priety in it I thi nk that I
“
w ould ask him w hether he intended by the terms
p olitical prin ciples
t o re fer to the gover n ments established in the new s tates as dis t inguish
i n g them fro m those o f E urope 1
the strict import j ustifies the con cl u
1 T he
B aron s ai d t h e wor ds w ere us e d i n t h e i s tr ucti on s of t h e Governme t
t o hi m an d h e und e r t o o d t h e m t o h ave re fe re nce t o t h e righ t o f su p re macy of
S p ai n o ver h er c ol oni e s I h ad so un d ers t o od t h em my s el f an d h d n o t e nte r
t ai n e d a m o ment s d o ub t as t o t h e i r me an i g
M e mo irs of Jo h n Qu in cy Adam s
No
r
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VI
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13
si o n that he does and that i s s u ppo r ted by all the recent m ovement s o f
the allied powers in E urope Still t o give it that constr u cti o n w ithout
his san cti on in this form might be objected to hereaf ter I merely
suggest this for your consideration to which I add that i f there be
ca use to doubt the propriety of the step you had better decline it for
fu rther re flection especially as other O pportunities w ill present them
selves i n future con ferences w ith him o n the same subject
O n the other point I need add nothing at this time I nd eed I do not
know that I can say anything in addition to w hat was suggested on it
yesterday I t is probable that something may occu r in your co n fere nce
which may make it proper to enlarge the S phere o f the communication
}
J M
JA M E S M ON RO E TO J O HN Q UI N C Y A D A M S
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D EAR S I R — L
I n cl o s e you a modification o f y u r note in reply to
~e
p
that o f the Russian minister fo r your c o n si de r at i o n LJ T h e part fo r which
it is proposed to b e a substitute is marked w ith a pencil — tho much o f
that thus marked is retained Y o u will be able to decide h o w far such
a modification w ill be proper from w hat may have taken place in your
con ference with the minister T he object is to so ften the c o mmu n ic a
tion in some degree without losing any p ortion of the decision called
fo r by the occasion
J M
N ov 10
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r
,
T h e P r e sid e n t s me s s ag e w as t o b e s e n t t o C o n gr e s s e arly i n
D e c e mb e r an d th e u s u a l p ro c e d u r e w as foll o w e d i n c o mp o s
i n g that d o cu me n t
T h e h e ad o f e a c h D e p art me n t dr e w u p a
me mo ra n d u m o f th e i mp o rta n t matt e rs p e rtai n i n g t o h i s D e
a
r
t
m
e
n
t
o
m
n
b
th
att
e
r
that
w
e
r
e
p
e
n
di
g
a
n
d
m
att
e
r
th
at
s
s
p
had b ee n a cc o mpl i s h e d
O n N o v e mb e r 1 3 t h A da ms mad e
s uc h a me mo ra n d u m fo r h i s D e p art me n t bu t fo u n d th e P r e s i
”
“
d e n t s til l a l t o g e th e r u n s e ttl e d i n h i s o w n min d o n th e an
“
s w e r t o b e gi ve n
t o C a n n i n g s p r o p o s al s an d
a l arme d far
b e y o n d a n y thi n g that I c o ul d ha v e c on c e i ve d p os s ibl e w ith
th e fe ar that th e H o ly A ll ia n c e ar e a b o u t t o r e s t o r e i mme
”
d i at e l y a l l S o u th A me ri c a t o S p ai n
I n thi s v i e w h e w as
s upp o rt e d by C a l h o u n
a man w h o c e rtai n ly d i d n o t e rr o n th e
s id e o f a c h e e r ful o p ti mi s m an d th e s u rr e n d e r o f C adi z t o th e
1
From t h e A d ams M S S
2 I bid
I n o ti n g t h e r e ce i p t o f t hi s l e tt e r fro m t h e Pr e s i d e nt A dams s ay s
I t hi nk als o o f p rop o i n g n o t h e r mo d i fic at i on
T h e M e mo i rs ( V I 1 84 ) t e ll
u s w h at t hi s mo d i ficat i o n w as —
l e avi n g o ut e n tire l y t h e e xpres si on of re gre t
w hi ch h e ap prov e d
’
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14
Fr e n c h w as th e i mme diat e c a u s e of thi s d e sp air A dams
p r e s s e d for a d e c i s i o n e ith e r t o a cc e p t or t o d e cl i n e C a n n i n g s
ad v a n c e s an d a d e s p at c h c o ul d th e n b e p r e p ar e d c on fo rma bl e
1
t o e ith e r d e c i s i o n
I f C a l h o u n w as th e a l ar mi s t me mb e r o f th e C a b i n e t , A da ms
w as at th e o th e r e x tr e me
A s w e ll e xp e c t C hi mb o ra zo t o s i n k
b e n e ath th e o c e a n h e b e l i e v e d as t o l oo k t o th e H o ly All ian c e
t o r e s t o r e t h e S p a n i s h d o mi n i o n up o n th e A me ri c a n c o n ti n e n t
If th e S o u th A me ri c a n s r e a lly had s o fragi l e g o ve r n me n t s as
C a l h o u n r e p r e s e n t e d th e m t o b e , th e r e w as e v e ry r e a s on n o t
t o i n v o l v e th e U n it e d S tat e s i n th e ir fat e
W ith i n d e c is i o n
i n th e P r e s id e n t an d dar k a pp r e h e n s i o n i n C a l h o u n A da ms
a l o n e h e l d a d e fi n it e O p i n i o n an d i n cl e ar p hra s e h e e xp r e s s e d
it i n s u mmati on o f th e C ab i n e t di s cu s s i o n
.
’
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,
th o ught we sh ould b r ing the whole an s w er t o M r Canning s pro
l
s
o
a
s
to
a
test
right
and
wr
ng
Considering
the
South
A
mericans
o
f
o
p
as independent nati o ns they themselves and n o other nation had the
r i gh t to dispose o f their conditi on
We have n o right to dispose o f
them either al o ne o r in conjunction with other nations Neither have
any other n ations the right o f disposing o f them without their consent
This principle will g ive us a clue to answer all M r Canning s questi on s
”2
w ith candor an d confiden ce and I a m to dra f t a dispatch accordingly
“
I
’
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’
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‘
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,
B efo r e th e dra ft h ad b e e n p r e p ar e d t w o mo r e d e sp at c h e s w e r e
r e c e i ve d fr om Ru sh dat e d th e 2 d an d 1 0t h o f O c t o b e r i n d i c at
i n g a d e c id e d c ha n g e i n C a n n i n g s t o n e an d a l mo s t an i n d i ffe r
e n c e o n h i s p art t o pu r s u e fu rth e r th e p r oj e c t o f u n it e d a c ti o n
T h e i mme diat e c a u s e of thi s c o o l i n g i n e n th u s ia sm c o ul d n o t
th e n b e k n o w n t o o u r mi n i s t e r b u t it w as t o b e fo u n d i n a
c o n fe r e n c e b e t w ee n C a n n i n g an d P ri n c e d e P o l ig n a c on S p a n
i s h a ffair s d u ri n g w hi c h th e r e p r e s e n tati v e o f F ra n c e ga v e
p o s iti ve a ss u ra n c e s o n th e l i n e s o f C a n n i n g s id e a s Th e
P ri n c e d e P o l ig n a c d e cl ar e d
,
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’
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’
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,
T hat his G overnment believed it to be utterly hopeless to reduce
Spanish America to the state o f its former r elations to Spain
“
T hat F rance disclaimed on Her part any intention o r desire t o avail
Hersel f of the present State o f the Col o nies or o f the present situation
o f F rance to wards Spain
to appropriate to He r sel f any part o f the
Spanish Possessions in A merica o r to obtai n fo r Hersel f any ex clusive
advantages ;
1 M mo i r
V I 18 5
s of J o h n Q u i nc y A d am
“
,
,
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s,
e
2
I bid 1 86
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15
A nd that like E ngland She w ould will ingly se e the Mo ther
Country in po ssessi on o f superior commercial advantages by amicable
arrangements ; and would be contented like H e r to rank after the
Mother Country among the most favoured nations ;
“ Lastly that She abj ured in any case any desig n o f acting agai n st
1
the Colonies by force of arms
“
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”
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Th e dra ft o f th e r e ply t o al l o f Ru sh s de s pat ch e s on C an
n in
n
m
1
h
p
r
o
p
o
s
a
l
w
p
r
e
p
ar
e
d
o
N
o
v
e
b
e
r
n
d
gi
ve
n
s
a
t
a
s
s
7
g
t o th e Pr e s id e n t o n th e s a me da y
W hat e v e r may ha v e b e e n
th e g e n e ra l i n t e n ti on o f A da ms i n p r e p ari n g thi s dra ft th e
s c o p e o f h i s p o l i cy w as gr e at ly e n l arg e d by c e rtai n c o mmu n i
c ati o n s mad e by th e Ru s s ia n M i n i s t e r I t w as s u ffic i e n tly
aggra v ati n g t o ha v e b e e n l e c t u r e d o n p ol iti c al p ri n c i pl e s i n
th e n o t e i n s tr u c ti n g th e mi n i s t e r t o mak e it k n o w n that th e
E mp e r o r w o ul d r e c e i ve n o r e p r e s e n tati ve s fr o m th e l at e S p a n
i s h c ol o n i e s
T h e fe w p ol iti c a l r e mark s i n r e ply i n clu d e d i n
A da ms s n o t e t o Bar o n T uyl l had b e e n r u th l e ss ly cu t o u t by
th e P r e s id e n t as t e n di n g t o irritat e h i s I mp e ria l M aj e s ty
F r o m a s tat e me n t o f p ri n c i pl e it had b e e n t u r n e d as A da ms
j
” 2
“
o
s
a
n
n
s
T
h
e
ly
o
i
t
th
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ta
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t
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ll
Stat
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m
s
s
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o
g y
l ati o n w as that it e n tir e ly s ati s fi e d th e Ru s si a n mi n i s t e r B u t
n o w a n o th e r Ru s s ia n ma n i fe s t o w as c o mmu n i c at e d
e xpl ai n
i n g mo r e fully th e v i e w s an d i n t e n ti o n s o f th e H o l y A l l ia n c e ,
an d c o u c h e d i n l a n g u ag e w hi c h o n ly an au t o c rat c o ul d e m
3
pl oy
Thi s ga v e A da ms h i s o p e n i n g If th e E mp e r o r s e t up
t o b e th e mo u th pi e c e o f Di v i n e P r o v id e n c e it w o u l d b e w e ll
t o i n ti mat e that thi s c o u n try did n o t r e c o g n i z e th e l a n gu ag e
a l so u n d e r th e g u idan c e
sp ok e n
an d had a d e s ti n y o f i t s o w n
If A l e x a n d e r c o ul d e xpl o it h i s p ol iti
o f Di v i n e Pr o v i d e n c e t
c a l p ri n c i pl e s th o s e of a b r u ta l r e p r e s s i ve p o l i cy th e U n it e d
Stat e s c o ul d s h o wthat a n o th e r sy s t e m o f g o ve r n me n t r e mo t e
traditi on s an d ad mi n is tr ati o n ,
an d s e p arat e fr o m E u r o p e a n
c o ul d gi v e ri s e t o a n e w an d mor e a c ti v e p o l iti c a l p ri n c i pl e
t h e c o n s e n t o f th e g o v e r n e d b e t wee n w hi c h an d th e E mp e r o r
th e r e c o u l d n o t e x i s t e ve n a s e n ti me n ta l sy mp ath y I f th e
H o ly A l lia n c e c o ul d b oa s t o f i t s s tr e n gth an d agr e e me n t w h e n
e n gag e d i n s ta mp i n g o u t all O pp os iti o n t o le giti ma cy th e
U n it e d Stat e s h e ari n g th e w hi sp e ri n gs o f a p r oj e c t e d A me ri c an
1 T h e c on fe re nc e was h e l d O ct o be r 9 t h
2 M e mo ir s o f J o h n
Q u i n y Ad ams V I 2 0 1
3 Th s
i p ap e r i pr in te d p t p 34
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m
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16
u n i o n w ith it s e l f at th e h e ad , an A ll ia n c e that did n ot arr ogat e
t o its e l f th e e p ith e t o f H o ly c o ul d d e ma n d that th e E u r op e a n
c o n c e rt ju s ti fy i t s e x i s t e n c e i t s a c ti o n s an d i t s mo ti ve s by r e c
o rd s o th e r tha n th e bl o o d y s c e n e s at N a pl e s i n F ra n c e an d
i n S p ai n
H e r e w as A da ms s O pp o rt u n ity I t w as n o l o n g e r
C a n n i n g w h o w as t o b e a n s w e r e d ; it w as E u r o p e — an d h e
s e i z e d it as o n l
ii
i
a
:
a
s
t
r
f
gr
u
d
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m
a
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f
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o
t
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y
f
fin d i n th e v e r y r e a s o n s o f h is o ppo n e n t th e b e s t o f s upp o rt fo r
h i s o w n p o s iti o n
Ye t C a n n i n g mu s t be a n s w e r e d
T h e dra ft o f A da ms s n o te
t o Ru s h w as a me n d e d by th e P r e s id e n t ;an d th e S e c r e tar y p r e
1
p ar e d a s ub s tit u t e fo r th o s e a me n d me n t s
T hi s p a p e r w as as
fo l l o ws
,
,
,
,
’
.
.
,
'
'
,
.
’
.
.
AD AM S
’
D E AR T
s
2
.
R IC H ARD R U SH E nvoy E xtraor d inary an d M i ni ste r Pl e ni p o te nti ary U S
nd o
D E PA RTM E N T O F S T A T E WA SH I N G T ON 2 9 N ove mb e r 1 82 3
S I R — Y our despatches numbered 3 23 3 2 5 3 2 6 3 3 0 3 3 1 3 3 2 3 34
and 3 3 6 have been rece ived containing the Reports o f your Con ferences
and copies o f y o ur confidential C orrespondence w ith M S e cre t ary Can
ning in relation to certain pr O po s al s made by him tending to a concert
o f principles with reference to the Affairs o f South A merica bet ween
the United States and G reat Britain and a c o mbined and candid mani
fe s t at io n o f them to the World
T he whole subj ect has [been ] received the deliberate consideration o f
the President under a deep impressio n o f its general impor tance a full
conviction o f the high interests and sacr e d principles involv e d in it and
an anxious solicitude for the cultivation o f that harmony o f opinions and
unity o f obj ect betw e en the British and A merican Nations upon which
s o much o f the Peace and Happiness and Liberty o f the world obviously
depend
I am directed t o express to yo u the President s entire approbation
o u have p u rs u ed
i
r
o f the course w hich
n
e ferring to your G overn
y
N 76
Lo
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,
n
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,
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,
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’
,
1
J a mes M on r oe
J oh n Q ui ncy A d a ms
to
.
D E AR
s en d y o u sk e t ch } y o l ft wi th m f a l e tter t M E R h
a d w hi c h i f y o u
w i t h me d m n t whi c h a e i t e n d e d for y o ur c o s i d e r t i o
pp r ve I w i h w h e a o p y i m d e th t w
b m i t t o a me t i g o f a ll t h e
me mb e rs f t h e d mE
I f yo
ee
y bje c t i o n t o t h s e a me n d me n t s w e w ill co n fe r o t h e s ubje ct
T h e ot h e r s k e t ch e s I w ill re t urn s s o o n a s I may be ab l e
J M
No
2 0 23
From t h e A d ams M S S
Wh at i s e clo d i brack e t f bo t h A d am a d M onro e s p ap er w
t h e fin al f orm o f t hi s d e s p atc h
o mi tte d i
SIR ,
n
a
o
a
e
s
,
th e
s,
r
1
W
u
n
n
s
a
,
a
e
n
a
.
us
,
n
n
e
su
o
e
n
,
a
v
o
e, o
e
‘l
a
an
c
n
,
o
u s
I
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r
.
2
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.
n
n
se
n
s
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s s
.
n
’
s
as
18
them as Independent States we do and shall j ustly an d [p r ovi d ed t h e i r
a ccommo d a ti o n w i t h S p a i n be fou n d e d on t h a t ba s i s ] n e c e ssarily claim
in o ur relations w ith them political and co mmercial to be placed upon a
footing o f e qual favo ur w ith the most favoured Nation
”
4 We aim not at the possession o f any portion o f them ourselves
“
5
We could not see any p o rti o n o f them transfe rred to any other
”
Power with indifference
I n both these positions we fully concur
A nd we add
That we could not see with indifference any attempt [by one o r more
powers o f E urope to disp ose o f the F reed o m or I ndependence o f those
States witho ut th e ir c onsent o r against their will ]
[T o this principle in o ur vie w o f this subj ect all the rest are subor
Without this our concurrence w ith G reat Britain upon all the
di n at e
rest would be useles s ] I t is upon this gr o und alone as we conceive
that a firm and determined stand could n o w be jointly taken by Great
Britain and the United States in behal f o f the I n d ep en d en ce of N a t i on s
and never i n the History o f M ankind was there a period when a stand
so taken and maintained would exhibit to p resent and future ages a
more glorious example o f Po wer animated by Justice and devoted to
the ends o f b e n e fice n ce
[With the addition o f this principle i f assented t o by the British
G overnment y o u are authorised to j oin in any act formal or in formal
which shall manife st the concurrence of the t wo G overnments o n this
mo me n tous o ccasion But you will explicitly state that without this
basis o f Right and moral obliga t ion we can s e e no foundation upon
which the concurrent acti on of the two G ove rnments c an be harmonized
I f the destinies o f South A merica are to be trucked and bartered b e
tween Spain and her E uropean Allies by amicable negotiation or other
wise w ithout consulting the feelings o r the rights o f the Pe ople w h o
inhabit that po rtion o f our Hemispher e ]
[T h e ground o f Resistance which we w ould O ppose t o any i n t erfer
e n ce o f the E uropean A llies between Spain and South A meri ca is not
founded on any partial interest o f o u r o wn o r of others I f the Coloni e s
belonged t o Spain we should obj ect to any trans fer o f them t o other
Nations w hich w o uld materially affect our interests o r rights but with
that exce pti o n we sh o uld consider Spain as possessing the co mmon
Power o f disposing o f her o wn T erritories O ur present opposition to
the disposal o f any part of the A merican Continents by Spain w ith her
E uropean allies is that th e y do n ot belong to Spain and can no mor e be
disposed of by her than by the United States
With regard to the I slands of Cuba and Porto Rico t o t h e I uhah i
tants of which the f ree Co nstitution o f Spain as accepte d an d sworn to
by t h e " ing h as been extended we consider them as possessing the
right of determining for the ms elves their co urse of conduct un der the
,
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-
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19
subver si o n of tha t Constitution by foreign M ilitary p o wer O ur o wn
interest and w ish would be that they should continue in their politi cal
connection with Spain under the administration o f a free Constituti on
an d in the enjoyment o f their Liberties as n o w possessed ; w e could n o t
s e e the m tr a
ns ferred to any o ther Power or subj ected to the antient and
exploded dominion o f Spain with indi fference We aim n o t at the pos
session o f the m o urselve s ]
t
I am with great Respe c t Si r y o u r very hu mble and ob e d S e r v
.
,
,
,
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,
t
,
,
M ON R O E S A M E N D M E NT S
amendment pr o posed t o first li n e
pa :
provided their acco mo dat io n with Spain wa s be fo unded on that
’
.
,
substitute the fol lo wi n g a fter attempt i n 6 line
any attempt by o n e or more powers o f E urope t o res t ore those n e w
States to the crown of Spain o r to deprive the m in any manner what
ever o f the freedom and independence which they have a cq uired
[M u ch l ess cou l d we beh ol d wi t h i n d ifier en ce t h e t r a n sfer of t h os e n ew
th
.
,
,
,
,
,
,
'
”
f
e sp eci a l l y of
g ov
,
or
o
an
yp
th e
f
or t i o n
o
sp a n
i s h p os s es s i o n s , t o
t h e t er r i t or i es, bor d er i n g
on
,
o r n ea r e s t
o t h er
p
o we r s ,
t o th e
omit in next par g the passage marked substitute the follo win g
w ith a vie w to this o bje c t it is indispensable that t h e British gov
take like ground with that which is n o w held by the US t at e s — that
t —
it recognize the i n de pe n dan ce o f the n e w gov ? T hat measure b e ing
taken we may t hen harmonize in al l the [n ecessa r y] arrangements and
acts which may be necessary for i t s accomplishment [t h e o bject ] I t
is upon thi s ground alone &ca [to the end o f the
omit the residue substit ut e something like the following
“
[ W e have no intention o f ac q uiring any porti o n o f the spanish
p o ssessions fo r o urselves nor shall w e ever do it by for ce Cuba is
that portion the admissi o n o f which into o u r union would be the most
9
e ligible but it is the wish o f this
ov
that
it
remain
at
least
f
or
the
g
pr e sent attached to Spain We have de cl ar d this sentiment publi ckly
shall continue to act o n it I t could not be admitted into o u r union
unless it should first d e clare its i n de pe n dan ce
that i n de p e n dan ce
shoul d be ackno wledged by Spain events which may not occur fo r a
great length o f time and which the US t at e s will rather discourage th an
promote ]
'
O n this basis this gov i is willing t o move in concert with G Britain
for the purposes specified
[with a vie w ho w ever to th at obj ect it [i s s u bmi t t e d ] merits co n si d
cration wh e ther it will n o t [be mos t a d va n t ag eou s t o] contribu te most
e fle c t u all y to its accomplishment a pe rfe ct understanding being esta b
l i s h ed b etwee n the t wo g ov
tha t they act for the present , u ntil s om e
h
t
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,
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”
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20
emi n en t
d anger
should occu r separately each making such r e pr e se n
t at i o n t o the allied p o wers or to either o f them as shall b e de e md most
Since the receipt o f your letters a co mmuni cation has b e en
a d v i s e abl e
made by Baron T the Russian minis t er here to the following effect
then
state
his
letter
respecting
minister
&
ca
also the in formal com
[
S tate also the instructions given to M M iddlet on
mun i cat i on
the p urport o f those which will be given to the minister at Pari s ] O n
this subject it will be proper for you to communicate f reely with M r
t
Canning as to ascertain fully the sentiments o f h is gov
He w ill
doubtless be explicit as t o the danger of any movement o f the allied
powers o r of any o r either o f them for t h e subj ugati on o r trans fer o f
any portion o f the territo ry in question from Spain t o any other p ower
I f there be no such danger there will be no motive for such co n cert
and it is only on satis factory proo f o f th at dan ger that you are author
i z e d t o pr o vide fo r i t ]
,
,
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?
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A D A M S S S U B S TITUT E
We b elieve ho wever that for the most e ffect ual [object] accomplish
ment o f the object comm on t o both G overnments a perfect und e rstan ding
w ith regard to it bein g es t ablished between the m it will be most ad v is
able that they should act separately each making such Representation t o
the Continental E uropean Al lies o r either o f them as circumstances may
render proper and mutually communicating to each other the purport
o f such Representations and all in formati o n respecting the measures and
purposes o f the Al lies the kno wledge o f which may enlighten the Coun
cils o f G reat B ritain and o f the United State s in this course o f policy
and towards the hon ourable end which will be common to them both
Should an emergency o ccur in w hich a joi n t mani festation o f Opinion by
the two G overnments may t e n d to in fluence the Councils o f the E uro
pean Allies e ither in the aspect o f persuasion o r o f admonition you
will make it kno wn to us without delay and we shall according to the
principles o f o ur G overnment and in the forms prescribed by ou r Con
s t i t u t i o n cheerfully join in any ac t by which we may contribute t o s u p
port the cause o f human freedo m and the I ndependence o f the South
A me r ican N ations
’
.
,
,
,
,
,
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-
,
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,
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,
,
,
,
.
th e s e p ap e rs w e r e e x a mi n e d i n C ab i n e t
mee ti n g
C an n i n g had s aid that Gr e at Britai n w o ul d n o t
thro w an y i mp éd i me n t i n th e w ay o f an arra n g e me n t b e t w e e n
th e c o l o n i e s an d mot h e r c o u n try by a mi c a bl e n e g o tiati o n
H e w o u l d n o t obj e c t t o th e c ol o n i e s u n d e r that me th o d gra n t
i n g t o S p ai n c o mme r c ia l p ri v i l e g e s gr e at e r tha n th o s e g i v e n
T hi s did n ot mee t th e w i sh e s o f A da ms w h o
t o o th e r n ati o n s
d e sir e d for th e U n it e d Stat e s th e foo ti n g of th e mos t fa v o r e d
O n N o v e mb e r 2 1 s t
.
[
h
'
,
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,
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,
21
ati on T h e Pr e sjdgn gfiid n ot u n d e r sta n d th e full me a n i n g
“
o f thi s w i s h
w hi c h
an d p r o p o s e d a mod i fy i n g a me n d me n t
s ee me d t o ad mit that w e s h o ul d n o t o b j
en t
e ct t o an arra n g e m
by whi c h s p e c ial fa v o rs o r e v e n a r e s t o rat ion o f au th o rity
”
might b e c on c e d e d t o S ain
T hi s was t o a cc e p t C a n n i n g s
g
p os iti o n t o th e ful l RI 1 d pe r h aps e v e n w e n t fu rth e r fo r th e
r e s t o rati on o f S p a n i s h a u th o rity c o ul d hard ly ha v e o cc u rr e d t o
a man w h o s tart e d fr o m th e b e l i ef that th e r e c o v e ry of th e C ol
B o th C al h o u n an d A dams s t r e n
o n i e s by S p ai n w as h op e l e s s
“
u o us l y o bj e c t e d
T h e P r e s id e n t ul ti mat e ly a cc e d e d t o th e
s u bs ta n c e o f th e p hra s e as I had i n th e fi r s t i n s ta n c e mad e th e
dra ft ; bu t fi n ally r e qu ir e d that th e p hra s e o l ogy o f it s h o u l d
b e v ari e d A l mo s t a ll t h e o th e r ad
e n ts p r op qsed by th e
P r e s id e n t we r e o pp o s e d p p i p cip al l y by M r C al h o g n w h o mo s t
e x pl i cit Iy p r efe rr e d m l a s t s ub s t it ut e d p aragra p h t o th e P r e s i
y
d e n t s p r oj e c t e d a me n d me n t T h e P r e s id e n t did n o t i n s i s t
u p o n an
f
i
a
e
n
e
t
w
hi
c
h
w
e
r
e
n o t ad mitt e d by g e n
o
h
s
m
d
n
s
y
e ra l c o n s e n t an d th e fi n a l p a p e r th o u gh c on s id e ra bly v ari e d
”1
fr o m my o rigi n a l dra ft w i ll b e c o n fo r ma bl e t o my o wn v i e w s
A s uppl e me n tary d e s p at c h i n t e n d e d for Ru s h i s n o w p ri n t e d
for th e fi r s t ti me
n
.
,
,
,
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’
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g
,
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M
,
r . “
’
m
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,
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R I C H A RD RU SH E nvoy E xtraord i n ary an d Mi ni ste r P l eni p tenti ary
U S Lo n d o n
D E PA R T M E N T O S T A TE W A SH I N G TO N 30 N ove mb e r 1 823
T he I nstructions contained in my Letter dat ed yesterday were
SIR
given w ith a vie w to enable you to return an explicit answer to the pr o
l
e r to you
s
a
s
contained
in
M
r
Secret
a
ry
Canning
s
confidential
Lett
o
p
o f A ugust last
T he obj ect o f this despatch is t o communi
of the
cate to you the views o f the President with regard to a more general
consideration of the affairs o f South A merica ; to serve for y our gov
e r n me n t and t o be us e d according to your discretion in any furth e r
intercourse which you may have w ith the British Cabinet o n this
subj ect
Ig ggv i e wi n g the p r qposal s o f M r C annin g and t h e discussion o f
th e m in your Correspondence an mC o n fe r e n ce s the Presiden t has with
r e t satis faction adverted t o them in the li ht o f an ov er t u r e from the
g é
g
British G overnment t owards a confidenti al concert o f O pini ons and o f
O perations bet we en us and them wi th j s fe r e n ce to the co untries here
to fore subj ect to Spain in this Hemisphere I n t hg g pg sjtio n o f the
r i n c i l es o f the British G o vernment as expressed in the
positions
p
p
fi gt;
o f M r Canning s Letter w e perc eive noth i n
with
which
we
cannot
g
1 M moi r
e
s o f J o h n Q u i ncy A d ams V I 1 9 3
No
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77
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22
ch eerfully concur w ith thefi cfipt ion o f that which s t il} p en s
the
i
n o f the I n
i
o
rec
t
p
n
m
t
i
n
N
e
ce
o
f
the
a
o
s
as
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on
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o f Ti me an d Ci r c umst an ces
Confident as w e are that the T ime is at
hand whe n G r e at Britai n to preserve her o wn consis te ncy must co me
to this ackno wledgment we are a w are that S h e may perhaps be desirous
o f reserving t o hersel f the wh ol e meri t o f it w ith t h e South A mericans
and that she m
a
f
ield
more
readily
o
t
h
e
d
cisive
act
o
recog
e
a
y fin l ly y
E
n i on N
h e n gp pe ar in g to be Spontaneous than when u rged upon her by
ti
an
f
orei
sugg
ion
T
he
point
itsel
f
has
been
so
earnestly
pressed
s
e
t
y
gn
i rT your correspondence and con fere n ces w ith M r Canning and is so
explicitly stated in my despatch o f yesterday as i n di sp en s a bl e in our
vie w to w ards a co operation of the two G overnmen ts up o n this impor
tant interest that the President does not think it necessary that you
S hould d well upon it with much solicitude T h e objg ct io n s exhibited
by M r Canning against the measure as stated pa r ticularly in your
despatches are so feeble and your ans wers to them s o conclusive
that a fter the distinct avo w al o f o u r s e ntiments i m ay perh aps best
conduce t o the ultimate en ti r e coincidence o f p urposes between the t wo
G overn ments t o leave the choice o f T i me fo r the r e cog n i t io n wh i c h
M a gan n in g has rese rved to t h e e x cl u si v e c on si de r at io n o f the British
Ministers themselves
We receive the pr Opo sal s themselves and all that has hitherto passed
concerning the m accordi n g t o the re q ues t o f Mr Canning as confiden ti a l
A s a first advance o f th at character which has ever been made by the
British G ov e rnm e nt in relation to the f o r eig n affairs betw een the t wo
Nations we would meet it with cordiality and with the true spirit o f
confi dence w hich is candour T he observati o ns o f M r Cannin g in
reply to your remark t hat the policy o f the United States has hitherto
been entirely distin c t and separate from all interference in the compli
cations o f E uropean Politics have great w eight and the co nsiderations
involved in them had already been subjects o f much deliberation among
ourselves A s a member o f the E uropean community G reat Britain
has relation s with all t h e other Po wers o f E urope which the United
States have not and with w hich it is their unaltered determination not
to interfere But Ameri can Aflai r s whether of the Northern o r o f the
Southern Continent c an henceforth not b e e x cl ude d from t h e i n t e r fe r
ence o f the United States All q uestions o f policy relating to them
have a bearing s o direct upon the Rights and I nterests o f the United
S tates the mselves that they cannot be lef t at the disposal o f E uropean
Po w ers animated and directed exclusively by E uropean principles and
interests A w are o f the deep i mportance of u n i t e dw en ds and councils
w ith those o f G reat Britain in this emergency we see no possible basis
h
0
hich
that
rmonious
concert
o
f
sures
c
m
e
f
ound
ot
er
w
h
a
a
e
m
e
d
b
2
than the genera l principle of South A mer ican I n dependence S o l ong
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23
m
a y as we cer
we
s
t ai n l y d o concu r with her i n the aversion to the trans fer t o any o th er
r yet
f
o
e
r
o
f
any
the
c
l
nies
in
t
h
is
Hemisphere
hereto
ore
o
o
f
o
d
belo n gi ng to Spain ; but the principles o f that aversion so far as they
are common i t both parties resting only upon a casual coincidence o f
interests in a National p o int of view s elfish o n both sides would be
liable to dissolutio n by every change o f phase in the as pects o f E uro
pean Politics So that G reat Britain nego ti ating at once with the
E uropean Alliance and wi th u s concerning A merica with out being
bound by any permanent co mmunity o f principle [but o nly by a casual
coincidence o f interest with
would still be free t o accommodate her
policy to any o f those distributions o f power and partitions o f T erritory
which have fo r the last hal f century been the ultima ratio o f all E uro
pean political arrangements While w e bound to her by engage ments
commensurate only with the momentary community o f o u r separate
particular interests and sel f excluded from all Negotiati o n with the
E uropean Alliance should still be liable to see E urop e an Sovereigns
dispose o f A merican I nterests w ithou t consulting ei t her with us o r
with any of the A merican Nations over whose destinies they would thus
assume an arbitrary superintenden ce and controul
I t w as stated to y ou by M r Canning that in the event o f a proposal
for a E uropean Congress t o determine upon measures rel ating to South
A merica he should propose that you as the R e presentative of the
United States should be invited to attend at the same and that i n the
case either o f a re fusal to give you that invitation or o f your declining
to accept it i f give n G reat Britain would reserve to hersel f the right o f
declining also t o attend The Presiden t approves your determination
n o t to attend
in case the invitation should be given ; and we are not
aware o f any circumstances under which we should deem it expedi e nt
that a M inister of the United Sta tes should be authoriz e d to attend
at such a Congress i f the invitation to that e fie ct should be address e d
to this G overnment itsel f We should certainly decli n e atte nding
unless the South A merican G overnments should also be invited to
attend by th ei r R e pr es entatives and as the Repr e sentatives o f I nde
pendent Nations We would n o t sanction by o u r presen ce an y meet
i n g p f E ur o pe an Potentates to di s p o s a of A merican Republics
We
shall if such meeting gh o ul d t ak e pl ace wi t h a v iew to any result o f
hos t ile action solemnly pr o t e s t a ai n s t it and against all the melancholy
and ca1ami t o u s conseq uences which may result fr o m it We earnestl y
h O p e that G reat Britain wi ll do the same
I t has been observed that through the whole co urse of the Corre
S o n de n ce and o f the Con ferences between M r Can ning and you he
p
B r i t ai mw it h h o l ds t h e
r e at
a
w
reco g n i t i o n o ft
h at ,
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rd s e ncl o e d have b e en struck ou t i n p enc il
o f wh at h a d b e e n al re ad y e xpre s s e d
1
T h e wo
s
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as e
v i d e ntl y a re pe ti t i o n
24
did not disclose the specific in formation up o n whi ch he apprehended s o
immediate an interpositi o n o f the E uropean Allies in the affairs o f
South A merica as w ould have w arranted or req uired the measure
which he proposed to be take n in concert with yo u be for e this G ov
could be advised of it A nd this remark has drawn the
e r n me n t
more atte ntion u pon observing the apparent coolness and apparent
indifference with w hich he treated the subject at your last con ferences
after the peculiar earnestness and solemnity o f his firs t advances I t
w ould have been more satis fac t ory here and w ould have a fforded m o re
distinct light for deliberation i f the confidence in which his proposal s
originated had at once bee n entire T his suggestio n is now made with
a vie w to the future ; and to mani fest the disposition on o u r part t o meet
and return confidence without reserve
The circumstances of M r G allatin s private concerns having induced
him t o decline returning to E urope at this time and the posture of
Affairs re quiring in the O pinion o f the President the immedia t e renew al
o f Negotiations with F rance M r J ames Bro w n has been appoin t ed to
that M ission and is expected very sh o rtly t o pr oceed upon it
I am with great Respect &c
1
H
Y
J
O
N
UIN
A
D
A
M
C
S ]
Q
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X
"
}
at th e s a me c a b i n e t mee ti n g o f N o ve mb e r 2 1 that
A da ms o u tl i n e d h i s i n t e n d e d r e p l y t o th e l at e r c o mmu n i ca
ti o n s r e c e i ve d fr o m B aron T uyl l a p a p e r t o b e fi r s t c o mmu n i
cat e d v e r b a l ly a n d a ft e r w ard s d e l i v e r e d t o h i m c o n fi de n tia lly
m
My pu rp o s e w o ul d b e I n a mo d e rat e an d c o n c i l i at o r y ma n n e r
bu t w ith a fir m an d d e t e rmi n e d s p irit t o d e cl ar e o u r di s s e n t
fr o m th e p ri n c ipl e s a v o w e d i n th o s e c o mmu n i c ati o n s ; t o a s s e rt
th o s e up o n w hi c h o ur o wn G o v e rn me n t i s fo u n d e d an d w hi l e
dis cl ai mi n g all i n t e n ti o n o f att e mp ti n g t o p r op agat e th e m by
fo r c e an d all i n t e rfe r e n c e w ith th e p o l iti c a l a ffairs of E ur o p e
t o d e cl ar e o u r e xp e c tati o n an d h o p e that th e E u r op e a n p o we r s
w ill e qu ally a b s tai n fro m th e att e mp t t o s p r e ad th e ir p ri n c i p le s
i n th e A me ri c a n h e mi s p h e r e o r t o s ubj u gat e by fo r c e an y p ar t
”
o f th e s e c o n ti n e n t s t o th e ir w i l l
W hil e th e P r e sid e n t a pp r o ve d th i s id e a h i s fi r s t draft of h is
me ss ag e s h o w e d h e had n o t c o mp r e h e n d e d th e g e n e ra l dri ft o f
th e S e c r e tary s i n t e n ti o n s i n th e c o n d uc t of th e fo r e ig n r e l a
ti o n s o f th e U n it e d S tat e s I n c all i n g th e C a b i n e t me e ti n g fo r
th e 2 l s t h e had i n clu d e d a mo n g th e qu e s ti on s t o b e c on s id e r e d
w h e th e r an y
i f an y w hat n o ti c e shall b e tak e n o f Gr ee c e
F o m t h e A d m M SS
Me moirs o f Joh n Q ui cy A d am V I 1 9 4
:
I t was
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rg e n cy o f th e s e t wo men w as that th e P r e s id e n t modifi e d h i s
p aragra p h s o n for e ig n aflai r s an d mad e th e m c on fo rmabl e t o
th e s p irit of A da ms s po s i t i o_
J
n/
T h e ev id e n c e gi ve n i n th e s e p ag e s a ll t e n d s t o s h o w that it
w as A da ms a l on e w h o ga v e t o n e t o th e di s cu ss i o n s i n C ab i n e t
o n th e C a n n i n g p r o p os iti o n s an d it w as d u e t o h i s e ffo rt s that
th e qu e s ti o n p a s s e d fr o m that o f a c omb i n ati on mo r e o r l e s s
d e fi n e d w ith Gr e at Britai n for h e r o wn i n t e r e s t e d v i e w s an d
ai ms t o that of a g e n e ra l an d i n d e p e n d e n t p o l i cy di s ti n c t l y
A me ri c a n an d b ro ad e n o u gh t o b e ar th e h e a v y bu rd e n s l aid
up o n it s i n c e I t i s n ot l i k e l y that th e ma n u s c ri p t o f M o n r oe s
me s s ag e o f 1 82 3 i s i n e x i s t e n c e n o r i s i t l i k e l y t h at it w o u l d
S h o w th e p aragra p h s a n n o u n c i n g th e M on r oe d oc tr i n e t o b e i n
A da ms s w riti n g Ye t it was c e rtai n l y Ada ms an d n o t M on
r o e w h o s p o k e i n th o s e p arag raph s
I ha v e s tat e d th e r e i s n o e n try i n th e diary of J o h n Q u i n cy
A da ms fro m S e p t e mb e r 1 1 t o N o v e mb e r 7 1 823 F ro m th e
A da ms ma n u s c ri p ts I ta k e a p a p e r p r e p ar e d by th e S e c r e tary
o f S tat e for s ub mis s i o n t o th e P r e s id e n t
gi v i n g an a cc o u nt o f
h i s c o n ve r s ati o n s w ith B ar o n T u yl l th e M i n i s t e r o f Ru s s ia
i n t h e U n it e d Sta t e s
Thi s p ap e r i s o f s p e c ia l v a lu e b e c a u s e
it s uppl i e s w hat th e Diary d o e s n ot gi ve , th e p r e l i mi n ary
s tag e s o f th e i n t e r c o u r s e
T h e v ari o u s p ap e r s me n ti o n e d i n
thi s a cc o un t ar e a l s o g i v e n b e c a u s e th e y ar e e s s e n tia l t o a
c ompl e t e u n d e rs ta n di n g of th e s c op e o f A da ms s r e ply
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A D AM S
A C C OUNT O F H I S C OMMUNI C A TION S W IT H B A R ON T U YLL
h
L
O n the 1 6 of O ctober 1 8 2 3 the Baron de T uyl l the Russian Min
ister at an inter vie w with me at the O ffice o f the D epartment of State
in formed me that the E mperor o f Russia having learnt that G eneral
D evereux had been appointed as a M inister Plenipote n tiary fr om the
G overnment o f the Republic o f Colombia t o reside at his Court had
deter mined not to receive him i n that capacity : nor to receive any
agent from any o f the G overnments recently formed in the new world
and that he B aron T uyl l was instructed to make this deter mination
o f his I mperial M aj esty kno wn so that there might no doubt be enter
t ai n e d in that respect with regard to his intentions
T hat he had not
been instructed to make an ofli ci al communication of this fact t o the
A merican G overnm ent ; but that as he considered su ch a commun i ca
tion the m ost effectual means o f making it kn own t o them and thereby
o f fulfil ling the inte ntions o f his sovereign as indi cated in his i n s tr uc
ti ons he S h ould address t o me an o fficial N o te t o that effect
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The Baron added that by t wo s everal I n s truc ti o ns o f p ri or date s in
J une an d D ece mber 1 8 22 he had been in formed o f the satis faction with
which the E mpero r had observed that the G overnmen t o f the United
S tates when recognizing the In dependence o f the S outh A merican
State s had de clared that it w as not their intention to deviate from the
neutrality which t hey had until then ob s e r v d i n the c on tests between
Spain and her A merican Colonies ; and that it was the wish and h Ope
o f the E mpe r o r that the United State s should persevere in that cou rse
o f neutrality
T he Baron added that he h ad not thought it ne cessary
to com municate o ffi cially the purp o rt of these I nstructions and that he
should n o t refer to them in the N ote which he n o w prop o s e d to transmit
to the D epartment o f S tate but having concluded to give in the form
o f a Note the in formation of the E mperor s determination with re g ard
to the M issio n of G eneral D evereux he had thought the o ccasi o n a
proper one fo r makin g a verbal co mmunication of the p ur port o f his
prior I nstru c ti o ns
I o bserved to the Baro n de T ayl l that up o n the President s return
fro m V irginia which was expected in a very fe w days I would lay
be fo re him as well the Note w hich I s h o uld in the meantime recei ve
from the Baron as the purport of the o ral c ommunication which he
then made to me T hat I should probably be in structed t o ret ur n a
written answer to his Note and that I sh o uld also be directed what to
T hat t h e D eclaration o f the
s ay in ans w er to his verbal re marks
A meri can G overn ment when they recognized the Southern A merican
Nati o ns that they would persevere in the neutrality till then observed
betwee n Spain and her emancipated Colonies had been made under the
observan c e o f a like neutrality by all the E uropean Po wers to the s ame
conte s t T hat s o l o ng as that state o f things should c o ntinue I could
take up o n me to assu re the Baron that the United States would n o t
depart from the neutrality so declared by them But that i f o n e o r
more o f the E uropean p o wers S h o uld depart f ro m their neutrality that
change o f circumstances would necessarily bec o me a subj ect of further
deliberati o n i n this Government t h e result o f whi ch it was not i n my
power t o foretell
O n the same day I received from the Baron de T uyl l the Note C o py
1
o f which ma rked 1 is herewith enclosed
2 1 o f O c t ober the Baro n again called at the O ffice o f the
o f State and read to me the draught o f a despatch that he
had prepared giving an account to his G overn ment o f the pur port o f
h
the con feren c e between us o f the l 6
He said that being desirous o f
making the statement with perfect accuracy he submitted this draught
to me with a view to making any alteration in it which I might thi nk
tha t to t h e ac co mplishment o f that o bje ct it would re qui re I oh
1 Pr i nte d on
pag e 3 2 p st
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S erved that it appeared t o me to be quite corr ect with t h e excepti o n
that in the statement o f the final remarks that I had m ade to him he
had s o con centrated t h e substance o f it as t o give t o it a tone o f dryn ess
in the man n er which had not been i n tended by me T hat he was
aware the co nversation between us had be en in man n er al t ogether
friendly and confidential and that a fter saying t o him that I sh ould r e
p ort t o the President the purport of his com munication t o me and
answer it accordin g to the directions that I should receive fr om him I
had added that I could at once take it upon mysel f t o assure him that
while the E uropean P o wers should conti nue t o observe thei r n eutr ality
between Spain and So uth A merica the United S tates wo uld n o t depart
fro m theirs
But that a change of the State o f the questio n by fo r
e ig n and E uropean interposition would necessarily give rise to de l i b
c rati o n here the r es ult o f which he must perceive it was n o t for me
The relations between the United S tates and R ussia had
t o fo retell
al ways been of the most f riendly character and I kne w it w as the
~
f
earnes t wish o the President that they should so continue T he Per
so nal Relations in which I had stood fo r several years with the Russ ian
Go vernment and the p roo f o f F riendship which during that peri od the
E mperor Alexander h ad repeatedly given to the United States had left
I
o n my mind an indelible impression o f re spe c t for his character
should regret the possible in ference that might be dra wn by the I m
perial G ove rnment fr o m the compressed substance o f what I had said
to him that it h ad been in terms as sh o rt and dry as it appeared in
his rep o rt He said that he i mmediately saw the for ce o f my re mark
and would alter his despatch acco r dingly
O n the 2 4 3 o f O ctober he came again t o the o ffice and read t o me
the amended draft of his despatch to the general correctness of which
I assented
H e af ter wards as will appear furnished me with a copy
o f it as sent t o his Co u rt dated 1
1
2
3
O
ct
ber
o
8
9
A t this con ference o f the
o f O ct o ber the Baro n inti m
a ted t o me
a wish that the substance o f his Note of the 1 16 O ctober might be
published in the form o f an E dito r ial Ar ticle i n the National I n t e l l i
gencer o r that an article which he sho uld prepare stating the fact that
s uch communicati o n had been made by him to this G o vernment might
be inserted by his direction n ot as official bu t yet as from an authentic
sou rce He said that his motive for this wish was to discharge faith
fully his duty to his G overnment which had enj oined h i m not t o su ffer
any doubt t o be en ter tained with reg ard to the E mpero r s i n tention s
o n the s ubj ect t o which it r elates
I observed that as to an E dito rial paragraph apparen t ly auth or itative
s tating the fac t o f his written communicati o n it would d o ubtless excite
much at t ention an d lead to the en quiry what answer had been given to
i t T hat I sh o uld send h im an answer w h ich I supp os ed w ould be o f a
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ature n o t t o re quire a reply and that the corresp on dence on that sub
h
T
hat
a
f
t
er
e sho uld re ceive the answer
e
c t w o uld terminate with it
j
i f he stil l des ired that the whole transaction should be m ad e publi c I
did not apprehend there would be any objec tion o n ou r part to make it
s o either in the form o f a ne w spaper paragraph o r by the publicatio n
But perhaps the most suitable manner would be
o f the two Notes
that they should be communicate d with the documents ac c o mpanying
the President s Message to Congress at their approaching Session
That with reg ard to a publi cation by h i s direction I had to remark ;
that fro m the pe rfec t freedom of the Press in this Country foreign M in
ister a if they chose to avail themselves o f it possessed the means o f
operating upo n the public mind in a manner not accessi ble to them in
c ountr ie s w here the Press w as under the c o ntroul o f the G overnment
F oreign M inisters in the United States had o ften so availed themselves
but never with any success ; and al ways with a result o f disservi ce
of it
r ather than o f se r vice to their o wn G overnment We co nsidered it as an
i mpr oper expedi e nt for them to resor t t o A nd that as betwee n Nati o n
and Nati on n o foreign M inister in the United States could with pr o
i
t
i
insert
r
e
n the p ublic print s any thing that an A merican M inister
p
y
in his Country would by the exi s ting state o f the Press be deb ar r d from
publishing there
That in the present cas e i f he sh o uld pub l ish a statement o f the com
mu n i cat i o n made by him it would immediately ex cite the en quiry what
ans wer had been returned to it by this G overnment A n en q uiry which
up o n the M eeting o f Congress could not fail to present itsel f in the for m
o f a Resoluti o n in one o r the other House calling upon the E xe c utive
fo r in formation co nce r ning it and the natu ral answer to which wo uld
be the co mmunication o f the t wo Notes But in the meantime the
first publi cation from h i m would give rise to animadversions i n the
public Prints and perhaps in Congress which might be u nacceptable
both t o h i m and to his G overnment and the character of whic h would
readily occu r to his own Reflecti ons
He said he beli e ved the best mode of givin g the publicity t o the
whole subj ect which might be ne cessary to give effe ct to the views o f
his Govern ment w o uld be by the com muni cati o n o f the pape rs t o C on
gress as I had proposed But if it was agreeable to me he w o uld
wait t o receive my answer and would then re q uest another intervie w
with me at which he would candidly state to me h i s definitive wishes
with regard to the p ublication
Up o n the Pres ident s return fro m V irginia o n the
o f N o vembe r
I laid before h i m the No t e of 1 6 O ctober received from Baro n T uyl l
an d reported t o him the sub s tan ce o f the Con fere n ce s between
the
Baro n an d me as her e related After a co nsultation with the M e m
bers o f the Administration the n in Wa shing ton I was di re cte d by
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30
the President to re quest anothe r i n terview w ith the Baro n ; which
accordingly t o ok pla ce on the
I then told him that I had submitted to the President the Note from
him declar ing the E mperor s determination not to receive any M inister
or Agent fro m any o f the S o uth A merican States to which I should
shortly send h i m an ans w er : that I had also repo r ted to the President
the substan ce of o u r verbal con ferences : o f what had bee n said by h im
and of my answers T hat the President had directed me t o s ay that
he approved o f my answers as far as they had g o ne and t o add that he
received the observations of the Russian G overnment relating to the
neu trality o f the United States in the contest bet ween Spain and the
I ndepe ndent States o f S outh A merica amicably ; and in return fo r
the m wished h i m to express to the Court t h e h Op e of th e Gover n men t
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Un i ted S t a t es
th e
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on
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ti n u e t o
After some conversation the Baron desired
me t o repeat what I had said that he might be s ure o f perfectly under
standing me : which I did He then observed that he should i mme di
ately prepare a dispatch to his G overnment relating t o the p urport o f
this c onversation and ( it being Saturday) that to be s ure of its accuracy
he w ould send it t o my house the next day re q uesting me t o make any
observations upon it that I sh ould think advi sable
A t this con feren ce upon a s uggestio n from the President I en q uired
“
o f the Baron W hat was the import o f the words p olitical principles
in his note of
O ctober He said they were used in the I nstructions
o f his G overnment to him and he u nderstood them as having r e feren c e
to the right o f Supremacy o f Spai n over her Colonies ; and that this
appeared to h i m t o be so clearly their meaning that he did n o t think it
would be n e c e ssary for h i m t o ask o f his G overnment an explanation of
them The Baron reminded me o f my observation at a fo rmer meeting
that my answer to his Note would probably not be o f a nature to require a
reply : and o f my engagement to re fer it for further advisement whethe r
and h o w the correspo n dence should be published I told him I remem
bered both and still believed that my answer to his note would require
no reply b ut that o f that he would himsel f j udge An d I s t ated to h i m
w hat I s upp o sed would be the subs t ance o f my ans wer ; upon which he
1
made n o remark
T he next day 9 November he sent to my house the dra ft of his
despatch which aft er pe ru sing it I return ed to him with a private and
1
A n acknowle d gment of t h e re ce i p t o f h i s n o t e ; a s tate me n t th at we h a d
rece i e d an d s e nt M in i sters a d Age nts i n o r i nte rco ur e w i th t h e i nd e p e nd e nt
S o t h A me ri c n S t te
d h l d c ont i n ue t o d t h e ame r gre tti n g t h at t h e
E mp ro r
p oli ti l p ri cip l s h ad n ot y e t l e d h i s Go vernme nt t o t h me o
I saw by t h e B ar o s c o un t e nanc e t h at h e w a s o t a li t t l e aff e t e d a t
e l us i on
H e t o o k l e ave o f me h o we v e r i n p e rfe ct g o o d h um o r
t hi s state me t
M emo irs
o f Jo h n Q ui n cy A d ams VI 1 8 2
o bs er v e
th e
sa
n e u t r al i t .
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31
co nfiden tial n o te c ontaining two observati ons relati n g t o it T he first
that in reporting my part of the preceeding day s c onversati o n he had
used the expressions o f contest bet ween Spain a n d h er Colon i es while
I had then and in all o u r con ferences spoken o f them as the I n de pe n d
ent A merican States hereto fore Spanish C o l o nies and I suggested to h i m
the propriety of making the report o f what was said by me co n formable
to this fact The second that as the despatch c oncluded by stating t o
his Court that before making it up he had for the sake o f accuracy
submitted it to my inspection as he had also done with regard to the
prior despatch o f s? O ctober I thought it necessary w ith a vie w to
the certainty o f e qual accuracy i n my reports t o the President o f the
c ontents o f his despatches to re q uest copies o f the m both T he next
day he S ent me confidentially copies o f both the latter o f them dated
1 8 2 3 and amended con fo r mably t o the suggestion in my con
fid e n t i al note to him o f the preceding day
Copies o f t hese papers
marked 2 and 3 are annexed
O n the
o f November t h e answer copy o f which is marked N 4
h
was sent to the Baron O n the 1 7 the Baron re q uested another inter
V ie w with me in conse q uences o f f resh despatches received from his
G o vern ment I received h i m o n the s ame day ; when he read to me
a Letter t o h i m fr om C ount Nesselrode dated about the last o f August
in fo rming him o f the intended departure o f the E mperor Alexander
fro m S Petersburg o n a tour o f inspecti o n o f his armies which wo uld
probably occupy about three mo nth s ; with assurances th at no m ove
ment o f hostility was contemplated in connection with this J ourney
but that the preservation of general Peace was still the object o f the
E mperor s earnest solicitude
T he Baro n co mmunicated t o me at the sa me time extract s fr o m t wo
other despatches received from his C ou rt one dated 3 0 August N S
containing an exposition o f t h e views o f the E mperor Alexander and
o f his A llies Austria Prussia and F rance in relation to the A ffairs o f
Spain and Portugal and the other dated 1 September N S replying
to des p atches received from the Baron a fter his first arrival here and
relating particularly to the Negotiation concerning the North west
Coast o f A merica and the I mperial Uk az e o f the 1 3 Septe mber 1 8 2 1
He l e ft these extracts with me to be submitt e d i n confidence to the
Pr e sident and with permission to take a copy o f that o f t h e
of
A ugust He declared his entire sati sfa ction with my answer to h is
1
1
note o f 1 6 O ctober
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n t o f th e
o n fe r e n c e w ith Bar o n
H
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f
o ll o w s a n
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cc
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T u yl l , o f N o v e mb e r 2 7 t h as gi ve n i n th e Me mo irs v o l v i
pp 2 1 2
1 From t h e A d ams M SS
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32
BA RO N
T UYLL
TO
S E C R E TA R Y O F S T AT E
T HE
.
L E mpe r e u r mon A uguste M aitre ayant é té in formé
M ON S I E U R
que la R egence Républi caine de Colombia avait nomm é des Agens di
i
l
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uropéennes
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de division d E v r e ux avait re cu une destination semblable pour St
Pe te r sb ou r g sa M ajesté I mperiale a e n jo u i t a son M i n i st er e de me
prevenir que fidel e aux principes politi ques qu E l l e suit de concert
avec s e s al l i es E lle n e pourra dans aucun cas recevoir s upr es d E l l e
a u c un agent quelcon q ue soit de l a Regence de Co lombia soit d auc un
des autres Gouv e r n e men s de fait qui doivent leur existence aux ev ene
ments dont l e nouveau monde a été depuis q uel q ues années 1e theatre
Co mme i1 m est pr escrit de n e pas laisser subsister 1e moindre doute s ur
l e s intenti o ns de sa M ajest é I mp é riale a cet égard j ai j ugé M onsieu r
devoir po rter cett e determination a votre connaissanc e e t je saisis cet t e
occasion pour v ous r éitérer l assurance de la haute co n sid er at io n avec
laquelle j ai l h on n e ur d etre M onsieur votre tre s humble e t tres o be i s
sant serviteur
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WA SH IN G TO N
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1s
1
O ctobre
BARO N
AS E
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MR
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C
LE
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TO
T UYLL
OM TE DE
U YL L
N
C
O UNT
S
NE S E L
ROD E
.
E SS E LROD E
WA SH ING T O N 1e 19 oct bre 1 82 3
M L E C OMT E
Pour remplir les o rdres que V E x m a fait l hou
neur de me transmettre par sa dep eche en date du 1 4 Juin dernier j ai
adress é l e
octobre a M 1e Se cretaire d E t at Adams la lettr e ci an
n e x é e en C O pi e
A yant jugé M l e Comte que cette demarche oflici el l e demandait n u
d e v e l oppe me n t plu s étend u des principes e t de la fa con de voir de n otre
Cour concernant la q uestion des Colonies E spagnoles d A mé r i qu e je
me rendis cc m eme j our au D epartement des afiai r e s etrangeres e t je
prévins M l e Secrétaire d E t at du Contenu de l o fli ce q u il allait rece
voir de ma part Je passai ensuite a m e x pl ique r envers c c ministre
relativement a l obje t ci dessus mentionné dans n u sens e n t i er e men t con
forme aux d epeches de V E x d u 1 J uillet e t d a 12; D ece mbre 1 822
n i s par exprimer a u nom de S
t
et
M
r e ur
notre
A
ugus
e
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j
p
M aitre 1e v oeu e t l espoir q ue l e G ouvernem e nt des E t ats Unis per
s i s t e r a dans l e systeme de neutralité entre l E S a n e e t les Colonies
p g
E spagnoles d A mé r ique q u il un n o n ca vouloir suivre a l épo que ou i1
reconn ut l i n dep e n dan ce e t l e x i s t e n ce politi q ue de ces derniers pay s
M r Adams me répondit : q u il po uvait m assu r e r qu au ssi l o n g t e ms
o
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Fr m
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A dam M S S
s
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34
pays e ntre l E spag n e e t s es Co lo n ies Améri cain es que de cc q u il
m av ai t r ép ondu de m eme verbalement a ce suj et
M r A dams me dit ensuite q ue M r 1e Pr esi de n t avai t pleine ment
approuv e cette response de M r 1e Secretaire d E t at q u il l avait de
plus chargé de m assu r er que l es observations q u au nom de S M
l E mp e r e u r jav ais pr ésen t ées au G ou verne ment des E tats Unis relative
ment au po int susmentionn é avaient é t é re cues a micalement par M r l e
Pr esi de n t e t q ue ce dernier d ésirait q u en portant cette assurance a la
connaissance de ma Cour jy aj o utasse si multané ment l e x p r e s sio n de
“
v oeu que forme d e son cot é l e Pr es iden t des E tats Unis : q ue S a
M ajesté I mp ériale put trouver bon de continuer de m eme a suivre l o
systeme de neutrali t é qu E lle a ju squ a pr ese n t obse rvé dans l e s di ffe
r e n ce s
q ui subsistent entre l E s pag n e e t les E t ats i n depe n dan s ci devant
”
Co lonies d E s pag n e en A me r i que
J ai pensé devoir prier M r Adams de prendre lecture de mon rapport
en date d u 19 O ctobre q ue c e ministre a re co nnu rendre fidel e me n t 1e
sens de ce q ui s e st pass é dans n os p remi eres c on fer e n c es e t j ai en core
adO t é auj o urd hui la m eme marc h e a fi
r
r
n
m
u
t
de
m
ass
u
e
d
a
t
a
ieux
n
p
de l e xac t i t u de de la présente d é pech e
1
T
U YLL
J ai l h on n e u r d etre &c lit e
[
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C
E xtra i t
O UN T
NE
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SS E LROD E TO BARON
ST
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PE T
T U YLL
E R S R O UR G
1e 30
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.
A out
,
1 823
.
principes qu u n e c our a r é sol u de suivre, s ont é tablis avec
r ec i si on ; qu and 1e but q u elle s e propose est claire ment indi qu é les
p
événements deviennent fa ciles a juger pour Ses M inistres
Agents
diplomati q ues Ceux de l E mpe r e u r n avaient do nc pas bes oin d in
s t r uc t i o n s nouvelles p o ur appré cier 85 co nsidere r s ou s leur vrai point
de vue les heureux chan gements qui vien nent de s accompl ir dan s la
P é n i n sule
Pénétrés de l e spr i t qui di rige la politi qu e de S a M ajest é I mpe riale
ils aur o nt applaudi aux de clarations dont ce s changements ont été pré
c édés exprim é l es v oeux les plus sinceres en f aveur d u n e entreprise
qui embrasse de si hau ts i n t er et s
a nnonc é san s h es i t at i o n qu e l E m
r e ur
l
l
m
o
voyaient
avec
senti
ent
de
j
ie
la
e
s
e
s
i
e
n
i
l
a
e
s
r
b
e
t
a
u
v
p
marche des troupes de S M T C c ouronnée d un double succes par l e
co nco urs des peuples aux q uels l ar mé e fran aise a offert u ne gé n é reuse
c
as sistan ce
par l affr an ch i s s e me n t de s paI s ou la r ev ol u t io n e t ai t par
ve n ue a dé t r On e r l au t o r i té l egiti me
Auj ourd hui que l e s artisans des malheurs de l E S pagn e ren ferm é s
dans Cadiz da n s Bar ce l o n e peuvent bien en co re abreuver de n ou
Q uand
l es
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Fr m t h e A dams M S S
o
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35
veau x ou trage s le ur s p ris o nniers augustes mai s n on asservir
tyran
n i s e r leu r patrie
a
u
j
urd
h
ui qu e l e P o r tu gal a n o ble ment se c o u é 1e
o
;
j oug d u n e odieuse faction no us sommes ar r iv es a une é po que o h il n e
sera p o int in u tile de v o us in for mer des d ecisio n s des vues ul t érieures
de S a Majesté I mp é riale
La force des armes d ép l oy ée a prop o s ; environn ée de toutes les
garanties que r éclamait la r es ol u t ion d y avoir recours ; tempé r é e par
toutes les pro messe s q ui pouvaient tran quill ise r
t outes les mesures
les pe uple sur leur avenir s outenue e n fin par cette puissan ce d u n io n
d acco rd q ui a cr éé de nos j o u rs u n nouveau systeme politi que : la
fo rce des armes n a e n e n q uel qu e s o rte qu a s e laisse r app e r ce v oi r p o u r
de mas que r au x yeux d u monde u n despotis me qu av ai e n t tro p s ou ven t
r é vo q u é en doute o u l e r r e u r des hommes a t h eor i e s qui s abu s ai en t i n
volon tai r ement peu t etre sur l e v er i t abl e é tat des ch o ses ou la mauvaise
fo i des hommes a projets criminel s qu i n e cherchaient que les moyen s
d étendre de propager la contagion des memes malheurs
E n E spagn e la nati on tou te e n t i er e attendait impatiemment l o cca
sion de prouve r que la plus c oupable imp o sture avait seule pu lui pr é t e r
ces voe ux s ubversi fs de l o r d r e social ce d ési r d av il i r la Religion
1e T r On e q ue d émentait d avance cha q ue page de s o n hist o ire
En
Portugal il a s ufli d un exemple du courage d u n je une Prince p o u r
q ue l é di fice r e v ol u t ion n ai r e t o mb at an premier choc
p ou r ainsi dire
de s a propre faiblesse C est u n e gr ande
consolante le co n q ue la
Pr ovidence D ivine n o us réservait E lle accorde la ju stificat ion d un
éclatant tr io mphe au x desseins des M onarq ues q ui o n t pris l e n g ag e
ment de marcher dans s e s voies ; mais peu t etre n a t on pas assez oh
serve que les m ém o rables év énements dont n o us som me s t é m o ins
marq uen t u ne nouvelle phase de la civilisation E ur op éenne
San s
la rai so n des peuples a
s affai bl ir l e patriotis me para i t S etre é clair é
fait n u gr and pas e n r e co n n o i s s an t que da n s l e syst eme actuel de
l E u r o pe les con qu et e s s o nt impossible s ; qu e l e s S o uver ains q ui avait
mis leur g loire a r éparer les e fle t s de ces anciennes interventi o ns don t
la malveillan ce essayait en core d al l ar me r la cr édulit é p ubli q ue n e r e
n o u v e l e r a ie n t p o int ce
q
u
e
ces
u i l s avaient touj o u rs c ondamn é
q
vieilles haines nationales qui repoussaient jusqu au x services rendus
par une main etrangere devaient di spar ai tr e d evant un sentiment u n i
v e r s el
devan t l e besoin d Opp oser une digue i mpen et r abl e au retour des
t ro ubles
des r ev ol u t io n s d o nt nous avons tous é t é trente an s les
j ou e ts e t les victimes Q ue l o n compare l E s pag n e telle que n ou s la
peignaient des predictions S inistres a l E sp ag n e telle qu elle s e mo n tre
auj ourd hui q ue l on suive les r apides pr og r es de la b on ne cau se depuis
l au n é e derni ere
o n se convaincra de ces utiles v é r i t és o n ve rr a q ue
la paix en se rétablissant au ra pou r base la con vi c tio n gé n é r alement
ac qui s e de s pr é ci e ux avan tages d un e p oliti q ue qui a délivre l a F ran ce
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en 1 8 1 4 s t 1 8 1 5 v ol é au secour s de l I tal ie en 1 8 2 1 b ris é les chain es
du Portugal o n 1 8 2 3 ; d une politi que qui n a p o ur
de l E spagn e
obj et que de garantir la tran quillité de to us les E tats dont se comp o se
l e monde c ivi lisé
Agents de l E mpe r e ur n e perdent pas
I l importe q ue les M inistres
de vue ces graves con si der at i on s qu i l s les développent to utes l e s fois
u i l s trouvent l o cc as i o n de les faire apprécier
q
elle a fait trop de bien po u r qu o n
L A l l i an ce a et e trop calomniée
l
n t les r é sultat s a co té
n e doive pas con fo ndre ses accusateurs en
a
a
p c
l h o n n e ur d a v o i r aflr an ch i
des imputations
sauv é les peuples a
les perdre
co t e d a reproche de v o ul o ir les asservir
T out autorise a cro ire q ue cette salutaire Alliance acc omplira sans
La Re volution expirante
o bsta cle sérieu x l oe u v r e dont elle s o ccu p e
peu t bien compter quel q ues j ours de plus o u de moins d agon i e mais i 1
lui sera plus difficil e q ue j amais de redevenir Puissance ; car les M o
n ar qu e s Alli é s s o nt décidés a n e pas transiger a n e pas m eme t raiter
avec elle Certes ils n e conseillero nt e n E spagne u i les vengeances
leur premier principe sera constammen t que 1 inn o
u i les r eac t i o n s ;
cence obtienne u ne j uste garan tie l e r r e ur u n noble pard on ; mais ils
sou te nu par l e cri me ; i l s
n e sauraient r e co n n ai t r e ancien droit créé
n o sauraient practiser avec ceux q u on a vus renouvele r a l isle de Leon
a Madrid a S eville des attentats q ui prouvent l e m é pris ouvert de
t ou t c c q ue les hommes devraient respecter l e plus dans l i n t é r é t de leur
repos
de leur bonheur
C est avec cette d et e r mi n at io n qu a ét é
form e que sera poursuivi l e si ege de Cadix O n ne posera les armes
qu au mo ment o u la liberté du roi aura e n fin é t é c o n quise assurée
Ce moment sera celui o iI les Al l i es rempliront enver s l E spag n e l e
de leurs devoirs Il s s e garderont de
re ste de leurs engageme n ts
p o rter la plus l egere atteinte a l in de pe n dan ce du Ro i sous l e rapport
de l ad min i s t r at io n i n t é rieure de s e s E tats mais par l o r gan e de leurs
A mbassadeurs ( S a M aj esté I mpériale se propose alors d accr é dit e r tem
r ai r e me n t 1e Lieutenan t G énéral Pozzo di Borgo au p r e s de S M C
o
p
)
ils é l e v e r on t la voix de l amiti e ils useront de ses privil eges ils pr o fi
t e r on t de leur p o sition pour insister avec en e rgie s u r la nécessit é d em
p é cher que l avenir n e repr oduise les erreu r s du pas se de c on fie r a
des I nstitutions fortes monarchi que
toutes nationales les destinées
de rendre dés ormais inutile l as sis tan ce q u elle
futures de l E Sp ag n e
a re cue o n y fondant n u gouvernement d ont la s u r é t é résidera dan s l e
bien m eme dont i1 sera l i n st r ume n t l au t e u r
Les Al l i es ne pour r an t signaler u i les l o ix u i les mesures n i les
h o mmes les plu s capable de réaliser de te lles intentions Mais il s croi
raient man quer a une de leurs obligations les plus essentielles s ils
n av e r t i s sai e n t F erdinand V I I
redevenue libre que le u r entreprise
que s i
deman ds e n co re un e dern i ers ap ol ogie aux yeux de l E ur ope
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la pro spe r i t é de l E spag n e n e n e st la con seque n ce i mmedi at e ils n au
ront rien fait u i p o ur lui n i pour eux
L E mpe r e u r souhai t e avec la m eme sinc é rit é
l e meme d é si n t é
r e s se me n t n u b o nheur du rable a la Nation portugaise
N0 3 co mmu n ica
ti on s j ointes a celles des Cours d Au t r ich e de F rance e t de Pruss a qui
partage ce désir e n oflr i ro n t la meilleure preuve au Cabinet de Lis
n ous n au r o n s plus de voeu x a former
ou
bon n e
s i l e nouveau
g
v e r n e me n t d a P o rtugal pr é pare avec pruden ce
maturité les mat é riau x
d une restauration solide s il les met en oe uvre quand l E spagn e
pourra se livrer au x m emes s o ins
s il rivalise de z ele avec l s Cabinet
de M adrid p our decide r a l av an t ag e r é cipro que des deux E tats les
q uestion s de p oliti que ext é rieure
administrative qu il s on t l un a
l autre a médit er a résoudr e
T el est l e sens dans le quel o n t agi da n s le quel co ntinueront d agir
l E mpe r e u r
ses Al l i es
V ous etes auto rise? a faire usage de la presente dan s vos rappo rt s co n
1
fide n t i e l s avec l e go uvernement des E tats Uni s d A mé r i qu e
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0
O n N o v e mb e r 2 5 ,
A da ms mad e a dra ft of ob s e r v ati o n s
u p o n th e c o mmu n i c ati o n s r e c e n tly r e c e i ve d fr o m th e B ar o n d e
T uy l th e Ru s s ia n M i n i s t e r T o o k t h e p a p e r t o g e th e r w ith
th e s tat e me n t I h ad p r e p ar e d o f w hat h as p a ss e d b e t w e e n
h i m an d me an d a ll th e p a p e rs r e c e i ve d fr o m h i m t o th e
” 2
P r e s id e n t
T h e p a p e r is as foll o w s :
“
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O B S E R V A TI ON S
O N T H E C OMMUNI C A TION S R E C E NT L Y R E C E I V E D
3
F R OM T H E M INI S T E R O F R U S S I A
.
T he G overnment o f the United States o f A merica is [essentially]
“
R ep u bl i ca n
By their Constitu tion it is provided that The Un ite d
States shall gu aranty to every State in this Union a R ep u bl i ca n fo r m
”
o f G overnment and shall protect each o f t he m fro m invasion
[T he principles o f this form o f Polity are ; 1 that the I nstitu tio n
.
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,
From t h e A d ms M S S
T h s e con d xtr ct w as an e xp s i ti o
f p ri nc i p l e re l t i g t t h e affa i rs f
d P ortu g l i n a t n e f p
S p ai
ionat e xu l t t i n at t h c nt r re l ut i n
i n P ort g l d t h e i mp en d i g uc s f t h e Fre nc h army i S p i ; an 1
T riump h e over t h e fall n cau e f re v luti on w i t h t rdy p r mi of de t mi
t i t k e p i t d wn d i s l i m rs f l l i nt n t i n f m ak in g c nqu sts b i tt r
c mp l i t
t i ns
f b i n g c a lu mn i t e d
d
e p r gr p h of c m p u
ck
wl
d gin g th t
p olo gy i y e t d e t m n ki d f t h i nva i n f S p in whic h i t
i s i n t h p we r
l y f F rd inan d t o f ur i h by mak in g h i s p e op l e h app y T h at
p ar gr p h i
ati re u p on t h e re st f t h e p pe r M e m irs o f Joh n Q incy
Ad m V I 190
M e moi rs o f J h n Q ui ncy A dam V I 1 9 9
3
W h at i s e n cl os e d b e t we en b r ck ets wa s truck out of t h e p pe r
1
a
e
n
a
e
a
an
u
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o
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on
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o
e
e
a
e
a
a
2
e
s
on
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s
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a
o
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s u
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e
an
on
a a
o
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u
e
n
n s
o
e
a
nc
s o
o
s,
o
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a
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a
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s
e
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no
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vo
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se s
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or
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a
o
ou
e
o
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o
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a
an a
a
s,
c a
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ce s
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as s
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38
G overnmen t to be lawful , mu s t be pa cifi c t hat is founded upon
the consent and by the agreement o f th o se who are governed ; and 2
that each Nation i s exclusively the j udge of the G over n ment bes t suited
t o itsel f and th a t no other Nation can j u s tly inter fere by force to impose
a di fferent G o vernment up o n it The first o f these principles may be
des ignated as the principle o f Li ber ty
the second as the principle o f
National I n dep en den ce — They are bo th Pri n cipl e s of Peace and of
G ood Will to Men ]
[ A necessary conse quence o f the second o f these principle s is that]
The United States re cognize in other Nations the right which they
claim and exercise for themselves o f es tablishing and o f m odi fying
their own G overnments according E
t c their own judgments and v iews
o f their interests
not encroaching upon the rights of others
A ware tha t the Monar chical principle of G overnment is difier e n t
fr o m theirs the Un i t ed States have n ever s ought a con flict with it for
interests not their o wn Warranted by the principle of National Inde
n de n ce whi ch forms one o f t h e bases o f their political Institutions
e
p
they h a ve desired Peace C o mmer ce and Honest Friendship with all
other Nati ons and e n tangling all iances with none
From all the combinati ons o f E uropean Politics relative t o the dis
t r ib ut io n o f Pow e r or the A dministrati o n o f G overnment th e United
States have studiously kep t themselve s al o o f They have not sought
by the pro pagation o f their principles to disturb the Pe ace or to inte r
me ddle with the policy of any part o f E urope I n the Independen ce
o f Nations they have respected the organization o f their G o vernments
however di fferent fro m their own and [R epublican to the las t drop of
bl o od in their vein s ] they have thought it no sacrifice o f their principles
to cultivate with sincerity and assiduity Peace and Friendship e v en
with the most absolu t e Monarchies and their Sovereigns
To the Rev olution a nd War which has severed the immense Terri
tories on the america n [ T er r i tor i es] continents hereto fore subj e ct to
the d ominion o f Spain from the yoke o f that power the United States
hav e observed an undeviating neutrality S o lo n g as the remotest
pro spect existed that Spain by Negotiation or by arms could recover
the possession s h e had once held of those C ountries the Un ited State s
forbo re t o en q uire by what title sh e had held them a nd how s h e had
fulfilled towards them the duties o f all G overnments to t h e Pe o ple
under their charge When t h e South American Nations after succes
declaring
their
Independence
h
ad maintained it until no rational
s i v el
y
doubt could remain that the dominion o f Spain o ver the m was irre
the United S tates recognized them as Independent
c o v e r abl y l o st
Nations and have entered into tho s e relations with them commercial
and political inciden t t o that Condition Re lations th e more important
t o the i n terests o f the United S ta te s as the wh ole of th os e em a n cipat ed
of
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Regi o ns are s itu a t e d in their own Hemisphere and as the m ost e x te n
sive p opulous and powerful o f the new Nations are in their immediate
vicinity ; and o n e of them bordering upon the Te rritories of this Union
To the contest between Spain and South A merica all the E uropean
P o wers have also remained neutral The maritime Nations hav e freely
entered into commercial in t ercourse with the South A merican s which
they c o uld not have done while the C olo nial G overnment of Spain
exi sted The neutrality of E urope was one o f the foundations up o n
which the United S tate s formed their judgment in recognizing the
So uth A merican Independen ce ; they considered and still consider that
from this neutrality the E uropean Nations cann o t right fully depart
A mong the Powers o f E urope Russia is one with whom the United
S tates have entertained the most friendly and mutually ben e ficial inte r
Through all the vicissitudes o f War and Rev olution of which
course
the world fo r the last thirty years has been the theatre the good under
standing be tween the two G overnments h as bee n uninterrupted The
E mperor A lexander in particular h as no t ceas ed t o mani fest sentiments
o f Friendship and go o d will to the United States from the period o f his
a ccession t o the throne to this m o ment and the United S tates on their
part h ave as invariably sh o wn the interest which they take i n his
Friendship and the s oli citude with which they wish to retain it
In the commu n icatio n s r e cently r e ceived from the Baron de T uyl l so
far as they relate to the immediate objects of intercourse between t h e
two G overnments the President sees with high s ati sfaction the avowal
o f unabated co rdiality and kindness towards the United S tates o n th e
part o f the E mperor
With regard to the c o mmunicati ons which relate to the Affairs o f
Spain and Portugal and to th o se o f South A merica while sensible
o f the candour and frankness with which they are made the Presiden t
indulges the hope that they are not intended e i th er to mark an E r a
e ither o f change
i n the friendly dispositions o f the E mperor t o wards
the United S tates or o f ho stility t o the principles upo n whi ch their
G o ve rnments are founded ;or o f deviation from the system o f n eutrality
hith e rto obser v ed by him and h i s a llies in the con tes t between Spai n
and A merica
To the Notifi cation that the E mperor in conformity with t h e p o l i t i ca l
r i n ci l es maintained by hi msel f and his A llies has determined to r e
p
p
c e iv e no A gent from any o f the G overnments d e fa ct o which have been
recently formed in the new World it h as been thought sufficient to
an swer that the United Sta tes faith ful to t h e i r political principles have
r e cognis ed and n o w co n sider them as the G overnmen t s of I n dependent
Nati on s
To the signific at ion of the E mperor s ho pe an d desire that th e United
S ta tes s hould continu e to o bs e rve th e n e utrality whi ch th ey ha v e pr o
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claim ed betwe e n S pai n and S o uth Am e rica the an swer h as bee n that
the Neutrality of the Uni t ed States will be mai n tained as long as that
o f E urope apart from Spain shall c o n ti nue and that they h O p e that o f
th e Imperial G o v ernm ent o f Russia will be continued
[T o the c onfidential communication fr o m the Baron d e T uyl l of the
E x tract dated S Petersburg 3 0 A ugust 1 8 2 3 So far as it relate s
to the affairs o f Spai n and Portugal the on ly remark which it is thought
necessary to make i s o f the great satis faction with which the President
has noticed th a t paragraph which co n t ains t h e frank and solemn admis
“
t h e u n der t a ki n g of t h e All i es yet deman ds a l a st A ol ogy t o th e
s ions that
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In the general declarati ons that the allied Monarchs will never com
p o und and never will even treat with the R ev ol u ti on and that their
policy has only for its object by for ci bl e interposition to guaranty the
tran quility o f a ll t h e S t a tes of wh i ch th e ci vi l i se d w or l d i s comp osed the
President wishes to perceive sentiments the appli cation of which is
limited an d intended in their results to be limite d to the Affairs o f
E urope
That the S phere of th e ir op e ratio n s was not in ten ded to embrace th e
United States o f A merica n o r any po r tion o f the A merican Hemi
S phere
A nd finally deeply desiro us as the United Sta te s are of pres e rv in g
the general peace o f the world their friendly intercourse with al l the
E uro pean Nations an d especially the m o st cordial h arm ony and good
will with the Impe rial G overnment o f Russia it is due as well to their
o wn unalterable Se n timen ts as t o the explicit av o wal o f them called
fo r by t he c ommunications received fr o m the Baron de T u yll to declare
That the United States o f A merica an d their G overnment could
the forcible interposition of any E uropean
n o t see with indi fference
P o wer o ther than Spain either to rest ore the dominion o f Spain over
her emancipated Colonies in A merica or t o es tablish Mo n archical G o v
e rn me n t s in those Countries o r t o trans fer any of the p o sses s i o n s here
to fore or yet subject to Spain in the American Hemisphe re t o an y
other E uro pe a n Po w e r
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D EPAR TM E NT
OF
S T A T E WA S H INGT O N
27
Nove mb er 1 82 3
re markab l e d i s cu ss i o n t h i s p a p er c a us e d i n t h e C ab i n e t
i s t o o l o n g fo r i n s ert i on i n t h i s p l a c e an d i s fu lly de sc r i bed i n t h e
”
—
9
M e mo ir s o f J oh n Q u i n c y A da ms v ol v i pp 1 9 2 1 2 T h at
t h e t i mi d i t y o f t h e Pre s i de n t w as a w ake n ed t h at re co rd sh o w s
b u t t h e p er s i s te n c e o f A da ms , a n d t h e v ery w e ig h t y ar g u me n t s
h e adva n c e d i n i t s fav o r , i n d u c ed M o n r o e t o y i e l d , b u t n ot
Fo r t h e p ap er
u n t i l i t w as t o o l ate for t h e p u rp os e i n t e n ded
T he
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42
pe rsuaded you will find by the mes sage, as t o th e part we o ugh t t o ac t
toward the allied powers i n regard t o
A merica I consider the
cause o f tha t country as essentially ou r own That the crisis i s fully
a s menacing as has been supposed is con fir md by re c ent co mmun i c a
tions from another q uarter, with whi ch I will make you acq uainted in
my next The most unpleasant circumstance in these communications
is th a t Mr Canning s zeal has much abated o f late W hether this
t
‘
pr o ceeds fro m the unwillingness o f his g ov t o re cognize the new g ov
or fro m o ffers made to it by the allied powers t o seduce it into their
scale we know no t We shall nevertheless be on our guard against
any contingency Very respectfully and sin cerely Yo urs
JAM E S M O N R O E
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Re e d D e c
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M O NRO E T O S
G O U VE R NEUR
L
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WA S H I NGT O N D e c 4 1823
D E AR S A M U E L — I have only a m o ment to in form you that your
aunt escaped her chill la s t night
is much better today She was
bled yesterday h ad als o t aken s o me Cal o mel t o which we attri bute
thi s improvement
I s end you two C opies o f the mes sage bet te r prin te d than that whi ch
I sent yesterday with the in formation which we possess o f the views
appli cable to
O f the alli e d powers which altho
am: to uch us on
pri n ciple it was thought a duty t o advert to the subject
in pl ain
terms It has bee n done nevertheless in mild r e spectful
friendly
terms Had I omitted t o put the country on i ts guard
any thi ng
had o ccur r d o f a serious chara cte r I should pro bably have been ce n
surd as it is they may l ook be fore them and what may be d e emed
expedient I S hall be glad to hear in what light the w a rn ing is
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v i e wd
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I h ope that neither you Mr Till o ts o n or Mr Morris will pledge
eith e r y oursel ves or me in favo r o f Mr Ra n dolph further than as to
the res pectability of his character
wh at I hav e h eard o f his estate
which I stated that I had not seen I think it valuable
that h e
would n o t misrepresent facts Be o n y our guard as to this Tell Maria
that we are much relieved by the favo rable change in her mothers
he al th If sh e escapes t o morrow we trust that all further a n xiety
will cease affe ctionate rega rds attend you all
Yo ur frie n d
2
J AM E S M O N R O E
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1
2
From t h e Jeffers on Pap e rs i n t h e D epartment of S tate Wash i n gton D C
From t h e M on roe Papers i n t h e Ne w York P ub l ic Li brary
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M ONR O E T O JE FF ER S O N
.
WA S H INGT O N D e c 1823
th
—
D E AR S I R
S h o rtly aft e r the re ceip t o f yo urs o f the 2 4
of
O ctober
while the su bject treate d in it was under con siderati o n
the Russian minister drew the attenti on o f th e g ov ? t o the sam e s ub
e
c t tho in a ve ry di ffere n t se n se fr o m tha t in whi ch it had bee n don e
j
by Mr Can ni n g B aro n T uyl l an n o u n cd i n an offi cial l etter an d as
was understood by Order o f the E mperor that having heard that the
republic o f Columbia h ad appointed a mi n is ter t o Russia he wished it
to be disti n ctly un derst ood t hat he would n o t re ceive him n or w ould
”
he receive any min ister from any o f the new g ov de facto o f which
the new world had been re cently the theatre O n another occasio n
he O b s e r v d that the E mperor h ad seen wi t h great satis faction the
t
t
declaration o f this g ov when those n e w g ov were re cogn ized that it
was the intention o f the US t at e s to remain neutral He gave this
intimation for the purp o se o f ex pressing t h e wish o f h is m aster that
we would persevere in the same policy He commu n icated s o o n
t
a fterwards an extract of a letter fro m his gov i n which the conduct
o f the allied powers
in r e gard to Naple s Spai n
P o rtugal was
reviewed and that policy e x pl ain d distinctly avowing their d et e r mi
nation to crush all revolutionary m ovements
thereby to pres e rv e
“
order in the civilized world
The terms
civilized world were
probably intended to be applied to E urope o nly but admi t e d an ap
plication to this hemisphere also These comm un ications were r e ce i vd
as proo fs O f can dour
a friendly disp o siti o n to the US tat e s bu t
were nevertheless an s we r d in a manner e qually explicit frank
direct to ea ch poin t In regard to neutrality it was O b se r v d when
t
that se n t i m was decl ar d that the other p o wers o f E urope had n o t
i f they sh o uld
taken side with Spain — that they were the n n eutral
change their policy the s t ate o f thin gs on which o ur neutrality was
de cl ar d being al t er d we would not be b o u n d by that declaration
1
but might change our policy also
Informal n otes or rather a
r oce s
f
f
f
v
erb
a
l
what
passed
in
co
erence
t
o
su
h
e
ect
were
o
n
f
c
p
e x ch an d
between
Mr
A
dams
the
Russian
minis
t
er
with
an
g
u nderstanding however t hat they should be held confidential
When the chara c ter o f these communications o f that from Mr
Canning
that fro m the Russian minister is considerd
the time
whe n made it leaves little doubt that some proj ect against the n e w
“
gov is con templated In what form i s un certain It is hoped that
t h e se n timents e x pr e ssd in the message will give a check to it
We
c ertainly meet in full extent the proposition o f Mr Can ning
in the
1 T o t hi s
an d pre su mabl y a
p oi t in t hi ck l in e s ; sh wi g a chan g e o f pe
ch an ge i n ti me what follo ws b ein g wri t te n at a later d y
’
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44
mode to give it the grea test effect If his gov make s a S imilar de cl f
By t aking the
t h e project will it may be pr e s u md be abandoned
s t ep here it is done in a m a nner m o re conciliatory with
respectful
the other powers than i f taken in E ngland and as it
t o Russia
?
is thought with mo re credit to our gov Had we mov d in the first
instance in E ngland separated as she is in part from those po wers
our union with her be in g marked might have p r od ucd irritation with
them
We know that Russia dreads a co nne ction between the
G Britain , or harmony in policy Moving on our own
US t at e s
grou n d the apprehension that u n less sh e retreat s that e fie c t may be
Had
we
mov
d
in
r o d ucd may be a motive with her fo r retreating
p
E nglan d it is pr o bable that it would have been i n fe r r d that we acted
u n der her influence
at her instigation
thus have lost credit as
well with o u r s o uthern neighbours as with the allied powers
i
There is some danger that the British gov when it sees the part
we have taken may endeavour to throw the whole burden on us and
profit in case of such interposition o f the allied powers ; o f her neutral
ity at our expense But I think that this would be impossible after
wha t h as pass d on the subject ; besides it does not follow from what
h as be e n said that we S hould be bound to engage in the war in such
event O f this intimations may be given should it be necessary A
messenger will d epart fo r E ngl1 with despatches for Mr Rush in a
?
fe w days wh o will go on to S Pe t e r sb with others to Mr Middleton
An d considering the crisis it has o c cu r r d that a S pecial mission o f
the first consideration from the country directe d to E n gl i in the first
instance with power t o attend any congress that may be c on v e n d
am : or Mexico migh t ha v e the happiest effect
o n the affr s of S
You shall hear fr o m me further o n this subject
Very si n cerely y o ur friend
no
sig
n
a
tur
e
E n d orse d re c d D ec 1 1 1
[
]
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R IC HARD RU S H T O T HE S E C RE T A RY O F S T A TE
( Re c
’
.
d 9 th O ctob er )
.
L O N D O N A u gu s t 1 9 1823
When my in t e r v1 e w with Mr Canning on Saturday was about
SIR
to close I transiently asked him whether notwithstanding the late news
from Spain we might not h O pe that the Spaniards would get the be tter
I had allusion to the defectio n of Bal tast e r o s in
o f all their di fficulties
A ndalusia an event seeming to threaten with new dangers the consti
His reply was ge neral importing nothing more than
t u t io n al cau s e
his Opinion o f the increased difficulties and dangers with whi ch n u
doubtedly this event was calculated to surround the Spanish cause
1
From t h e Je ffers on P ape rs i n t h e D epartm ent of S tat e Was hin gt on D C
N o 32 3
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Pursuing the to pick o f S p a ni sh affairs I r e marked that sh ould
Fra n ce ultima t ely effect her purp oses in Spain there was at lea s t
the cons olatio n le ft that G reat Britain w ould not allow her to g o
farther an d lay her hands up o n the Spanish col o nies brin ging them too
under her grasp I here had i n my mind the sentiments promulgated
upon this subj ect in Mr Canning s n o t e to the British ambassad o r at
Paris of the 3 l s t of March during the negotiations that prec eded the
i n vasi o n o f Sp ain
It w ill be recollected that the British government
s ay in this note that time and the c ourse o f events appeared t o have
substantially decided the q uesti o n of the separation o f these c olo n ies
from the mother country although their formal recognitio n as inde
pendent states by G reat Britai n might be ha stened o r retarded by
external circumstances as well as by the intern al conditio n o f those
new states themselves ; and tha t as his Britannic maje s ty di s claimed
all intention o f appropriating to himsel f the small e st por t i o n of the late
Spanish possessi o ns in A merica he was also satisfied that n o attempt
w ould be made by Fran ce t o bring any o f them und e r her do minion
either by c o n quest o r by ces s ion from Spain
By this we are t o under s tand in terms su fficiently distin ct that
Great Britain would n o t be passive under such an attempt by Fran ce
and Mr Canning on my having re ferred to this note asked me what
I thought my government would s ay to going hand i n hand with this
in the same sentiment ; n o t as he added that any con cert i n action
under it could become necessary between the two cou n tries but that
the S impl e fact o f our being known t o hold t h e same s entiment would
he had no doubt by its moral e ffect put do wn the intenti o n o n the
par t o f Fran ce admitting that S he should ever entertain it Thi s
be lie f was founded he sai d up o n the large share o f th e maritime
power of the world which G reat Britain and the United S tates shar e d
be t ween them and the co nse quent influence which the knowledge that
they held a co mm o n Opinion upo n a q uestion o n whi ch such large
time i nterests present and future hung could n ot fail t o pro duce upon
the rest of the wo rld
I replied that in what m a n n er my go v ernme n t w ould l oo k upon
such a suggesti o n I was un able to say but that I would c ommuni
cate it in the same in formal manner in which he thr e w it out I
said h owever that I did n o t think I should do s o with full advantage
u nless he would at the same time enlighten me as to the precise situa
tion in which H is Majesty s government s to o d at this m oment in relation
to those new s tates and e specially on the material point of their own
independence
He replied that G rea t Britai n cer tainly n ever aga in in te n ded t o lend
her in strumentality or aid whether by medi atio n o r o th e rwise towards
making up th e dispute betw e en S pain and her c ol on ie s ; bu t that if this
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46
result co uld still h e bro ugh t abo u t sh e w ould n ot in te rfe re to p r even t
it Upon my in timating that I h ad sup po s ed that all idea o f S pa in
ever recovering her authority over the coloni e s had long sin ce gone by
he explained by saying that he di d n ot mean to contro v ert that opinion,
fo r he t oo b elieved that the day had arriv e d when al l A merica might be
considered as l o st to E urope s o far as the tie o f po litical dependen c e
was concerned
All that he meant was th a t if Spai n and th e col onies
S h oul d s till be able to bring the dispute n ot yet totally extinct between
them t o a cl ose u p o n terms satis facto r y to bo th sides an d which should
at the sa me time secure to S pain comm e rcial or o ther advan tages not
extended t o o ther nations that Great Brit ai n woul d not Object to a
compromise i n this spirit of pre ference t o Spain Al l that sh e would
a s k would be t o stand upon as favor e d a fo oting as any o t her nation
after S pain Upo n my again alluding to the improbability o f the dis
pute ever settling down now even upo n thi s basis he said that it was
not h is intention t o main tain such a position and that he had express e d
himself as above rather fo r the purpose o f in di ca ting the fe eli n g which
this cabinet still h ad towards Spa in i n relation t o the co n tr oversy than
o f predicting results
Wishing how e ver to be stil l more specifical ly in formed I asked
whether G reat Britain was at this m o ment taking an y step or con
t e mpl at i n g a n y which had re ference t o the recogn ition o f these sta t es
th is being the point in which we felt the chief interest
He replied that she had taken none wha te ver as yet but was up o n
t h e eve of taking one n o t fin al but preparatory and which would still
leave her at large to re cognize or not according t o the position of events
at a future period
The meas ure in q uestion was to send ou t one
or more individuals under auth ority from this gove rnment to S outh
A merica not strictly di plomatic but clothed with po wers in t h e nature
o f a co mmi ss ion o f in q uiry an d which in short he des cri b e d as an alo
gous to those exercised by our c o mmis s io n ers in 1 8 1 7 an d t hat upon th e
result o f thi s co mmis sion much might depend as to the ul terior condu c t
I ask e d whether I was to un ders tand th at i t would
o f G reat Britain
co mprehe n d all the n e w s t a te s or whi ch o f them ; t o which he r e plied
that for the p resent it would be limi t e d to Mexic o
Revertin g to his fi rs t id e a he again said that he hop ed th at Fran ce
wo uld not should even eve n ts in the P e ninsula be favorable to h er
exte n d her views to South A meri ca fo r the purpose o f r educing the
co lonies nominally perhaps fo r Spain but in e flec t to subserve e n ds o f
her o wn ; but that in case S he s hould m editate s uch a pol icy he was
satisfied that the knowledge o f the United States being Oppo sed to it as
w ell as G reat Britain could n o t fail to have i t s influence in checking
her steps I n this way he th ou ght go od might be done by prevention
As t o the form i n wh ich
an d pe ac e ful pr o s pe cts a ll round incre as ed
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su ch knowl e dge might b e made to reach Fran ce an d even the o the r
powers o f E urope h e said in c onclus ion that that might pr obably b e
arranged in a manner that woul d be free from objectio n
I aga in told him that I w ould co nvey h i s suggestio ns t o you for the
in formation o f the President and impart to him whatev e r re ply I might
rec ei v e My own in ference rather is that his propo siti o n w a s a fo rt u
i to u s one ; yet he entered into it I th ought with s om e i n tere s t and
appeared t o re ceiv e with a co rresponding s atis faction the as suran c e I
gave him that it S hould be made known to the President I did n o t
feel mysel f at liberty t o express any Opini o n u n favorable t o it a nd w as
as care ful t o gi v e n o ne in its favor
Mr Canning menti o ned to me at this s ame interv iew that a l at e
co n fidential despatch which he had seen from Count N es s elrode to
Count Lie v en dated I think in June co ntained declaration s res p e ct
ing the Russian ukas e relati v e t o th e n o rthwe s t coast that w e re s atis
factory ; that they we n t t o Sh o w that it would probably n o t be e x ecut ed
i n a manner to give ca use o f compl a in t to other natio n s and that i n
particular it had n o t ye t been e xecuted i n an y i n stance under ord e rs
issued by Russia subseq uently to its first promulga tion
I hav e th e h o nor to r e main with v ery great respect
Your obedien t ser v an t
R I CH AR D R US H
H on orabl e JO H N QU INCY A DA M S S e cre tary o f S tate
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n c l os ur e w i th M r B u sh
(
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’
s
N o 3 2 5 , Aug u s t 2 3 ,
.
GE O RGE C AN NIN G T O R IC H A R D RU S H
.
Pri vate an d co fid e n ti al
F O RE I GN O F F IC E A u g 20 1 82 3
M Y D E AR S I R — Be fore leaving Town I am desirou s o f b ringing
be fo r e you i n a m o re distinct but still in an unofficial and co nfidential
S hape the questio n which we S h ortly discussed the last time that I had
the pl easure o f seeing you
Is not the moment come when o ur G overnments migh t unders tan d
each other as t o the Spanish A meri ca n Col o nies ? A nd i f we can
arrive at such an understanding would it not be expedient fo r our
selves and beneficial fo r all the w o rld that the principles o f it should
be clearly settled and pl ainly av o wed ?
F or our sel v es we have no disguise
1
We con ceiv e the r e co v ery o f the Col on ies by S pai n t o be
h opeless
2 We co n cei ve th e q ue sti o n of the recognitio n o f them as Inde
pen dent S ta tes to be on e o f time and circumstan ces
3 W e ar e h owe ver by no mean s di spo se d t o thr o w any im edi
p
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48
m e nt in the way o f an arrangemen t betw e en them and th e m o th e r
country by amica ble n ego tiation s
4 We aim not at the pos s ession o f any p ortion o f them ourselves
5 We c ould not s e e any portion o f them t r an s ferred to any other
Power with indi fference
I f these Opinions and feeling s are as I firmly belie v e them to be
commo n to your G o vernment with o urs why should we hesitate mutu
ally to co n fide them to each other an d to declare them in the face o f
the world ?
I f there be any E ur o p ean P o wer which cherishes other projects
which looks to a forcible e n t erprize for reducing the colonies to s ubju
f
on
the
behal
or
in
or
which
meditates
the
at i on
t
h
e name of Spain
g
acquisition o f any part o f them to itsel f by cession or by con q uest ;
s uch a declara tion on th e part o f your government and o urs would be
at on ce the most e ffectual and the least o ffensive mode of intimating o ur
j o int disapprobatio n o f such projects
It would at the same time put an end to all the jealousies o f S pai n
with respect to her remaining Colonies and to agitation which prevails
i n those Colonies an agitation which it w ould be but humane t o allay ;
b e ing determined ( as we are ) not to profit by enco uraging it
D o you con c ei ve that under the power which you have recently
received yo u are authorized t o enter into negotiation and to S ign any
Con v ention u pon this subject ? D O you conceive if that be not withi n
y o ur co m peten ce you could exchange with me minis t erial notes upon it ?
N othing c o uld be more gratifying to me than to join with y ou i n such
a w o rk and I am persuaded there has seldo m in the history o f t h e
w orld occurred an O pportunity whe n s o small an e flb r t o f t w o friendly
G o v e rnments might pr oduce s o une qui vo cal a go od and prevent such
extensive cala mitie s
I s h al l be absent from London but three weeks at the utmost ; but
ne v er s o far dis t ant but that I can rece ive and reply to any communi
catio n within three or four days
I have the honor t o be
My Dear Sir with great res pe ct and e s teem
Yo ur obedient and faith ful servant
R 1 R U S H E sqr
Signed
G
E
O
R
G
E
C
A
NN
I
N
G
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E
n cl osu r e wi th M r B u sh
(
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’
s
N o 3 2 6 , Aug u st 2 8,
GE O RGE C ANNIN G T O
.
R IC HARD
RU S H
.
Pri vate an d c onfid enti al
LI VERP OO L A ugu s t 2 3 1 82 3
Since I wro t e to you O n the 2 0t h an additional
M Y D E AR S I R
moti ve h as o ccurred for wishing that w e might be abl e to co me t o s ome
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50
zcl osu r e
fl
(
Mr B u sh
w i th
.
’
N o 3 3 0, S ep tember 8,
s
.
GE O RGE C ANNIN G T O R IC H ARD RU S H
.
Pri vate an d C onfid ential
S T O RR S WE STM O R L AN D Au g 3 1 1 823
M Y D E AR S I R
I h ave n ow t o acknowledge the re ceipt o f your
ans we r t o bo th my l e tters ; and whatev er may be the practical result
o f ou r c o n fidential communication it is an unmixed satis faction t o me
that the S pirit i n which it began o n my part has been met so co rdially
o n y o urs
To a practical r e sult eminen tly ben e fi ci al I see no obs tacle ; ex cep t
i n your want o f sp e cific p o wers and in the delay whi ch may inter
vene before you can proc ure them ; and during which events may get
be fore us
Had you fel t yoursel f auth o rized t o entertain any formal pro po sition
and t o decide upon it without re ference home I would immediately
have taken measures for a ssembling my Colleagues in London upo n my
return in o rder to be enabled t o submit to you as the a ct of my govern
ment all that I have stated to you as my own s en t i men ts and theirs
But with such a delay i n prospe ct I think I S hould hardly be jus tified
in proposing to bin d ourselves t o any thing positively and unco ndition
ally ; and think on the other h and that a prop o sition q ualified either in
res pect to the contingency of y o ur c on currence in it or with re ference
t o p os s ible ch an ge o f circum s ta n ces w o uld want the d e cisi o n an d frank
n ess whi ch I should wish to mark our proce ed ing
Not that I anticipate any change of circumstances which c ould vary
the v iews opened to you in my first letter :
nor that after what you
hav e written to me i n return I apprehend any essential dissimilarity of
views o n the part of your G overnment
But w e must n ot place ourselve s in a p ositio n in which if called up o n
from other q uarters fo r an Opinion we cann o t give a c l e ar and definite
a cc o unt not o nly of what we think and feel but of what we hav e done
To be able t o say in an
o r are doin g upon the ma t ter in q uestion
swer t o such an appeal that the United States and G reat Britain con
cur in thinking s o a nd s o — would be well To anticipate any such
appeal by a voluntary declaration to the same e ffect would be still better
B ut t o have t o say that we are in c o mmu n ication with the United
States but have n o conclusive understanding with them would be i n
our free agency would thus b e fettered with respect
co n v enient
to other Powers ; while our agre e ment with you would be yet
u n asc e r t ained
What appears t o me therefore the most advi s able is that you should
s e e i n my uno fficial communication en o ugh h ope o f good to warrant
you i n r e qu iring Po wers and Instructio n s from y o ur G o v ern me n t o n
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51
th is point in a dditi on to the others upon whi ch you have r e cen tly been
instruc ted and empowered treating that communicati o n n o t as a pro p
o si t i o n m ade to you but as the evidence of the nature o f a propositio n
which it w o uld have been my desire t o make to you if I had fou n d yo u
provided with authority t o entertain it
I have the honor to be with the greatest es te em and re s pe c t
My De ar Sir
Yo ur o bedi e nt an d faith ful s erv an t
n ed
E
Sig
C
A
NN
I
N
O
G
G
(
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RIC H ARD R U S H E sr
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et c
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e tc
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etc
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R IC H ARD RU S H T O T HE S E C RE T A RY O F S T A T E
( Re c
’
.
.
d 3 r d Nov )
.
LO N D O N S e pte mbe r 2 0 1 823
S I R — N otwith s tanding what I have said o f the publick advantage
which ( as I have presumed to think and still think ) would be likely t o
res ult from gi ving me a colleague in the n eg ociat ion S hould it all come
on I shall o f course prepare mysel f to go thro ugh it alone S hould the
President decide n o t t o send on e out
But as in your number seventy two I am in formed that I S hall prob
ably have one in the eve n t o f Mr G allatin s return to E urope or if a
successor t o him should soon be appointed I have concluded to pause
until I hear from you again on this point In my con ference with Mr
Canning the day be fore yesterday our attention was so exclus ively e n
grosse d by the South A merican s ubject that that of the n eg oci at i on
When however I had finished reading the
was n o t m e ntioned by him
introductory reflections o f your number seventy t wo I stated to him
what you had written to me respecting a colleag ue and that as I h ad
therefore some reason to expect one contingently I should deem it
proper and even incumben t upon me t o wait a while until this contin
gen oy was decided or u n til I heard s o methi ng m o re o f it fr o m my gov
e rn me n t as I probably should soon
I found Mr Canning unprepared as yet to de signate in what manner
or to what extent the n e g o ci at ion would be taken up by this gov
e r n me n t
H e barel y hin ted at the n umber an d compli cati on o f the
subjects whi ch I had laid be fore him
Mr Hughes reached L ondon o n the night o f the sixth instant an d
went away on the twelfth His sh ort stay ad ded to his own engage
ments as well as mine whilst he did stay made it imp o ssible for me to
impart to him i n personal interviews the vari ous an d voluminous
matter embraced in my late instructions Nevertheless u n derstanding
your re que st in this respect as con t ain e d i n y our nu mber s even ty t wo
No
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pi rit th at he ought in s o me way to be afforded the o p
r t u n i t y by me o f b e ing made ac qu ainted with it all it appeared that
o
p
nothin g was le ft but t o send him the instr uctions themselve s I accord
i n g l y tra n smitted the m all by a car e ful hand to his lod gin gs on the
morning o f the ninth instant that they mi ght remai n by him for p e rusal
at his own c on ven ience and they were all safely returned to me on the
day o f his departure They co n sisted o f your despatches fr o m number
6 4 t o 7 2 i n cl usive with all th e ir enclos ures
I hav e the hon o r t o remain etc , etc
RI CH A R D R USH
H onorable JOH N QU INCY A DAMS Se cre tary of S tate
to
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R IC HARD RUS H T O PRE S I DE NT M O N R O E
.
Pri vate
L O N D ON Se p te mb er 1 5 1 82 3
D E AR S I R
M r Can n ing was to have returned from his coun try
e x cursion on the 1 1 t h instant but I have n ot yet heard if he has g ot
back In the meantime I am giving mysel f up to investigation s which
may the bette r prepa re me fo r taking in hand the various subj ects which
I have be en instruct ed to arrange by n eg oc i at i on with this government
I continue to feel their impor t an ce an d can o nly ag ain promise a dili
gent and faith ful attenti on t o them all
I shall expect to rec e ive an invi t ation to an in te rview from Mr Can
n ing v ery shortly a fter he does return
The topick o f Spanish A meri
can affairs will doubtless be resu med in our co n v ersations and it is my
intenti on t o urge upon him the imm ed iate and une quivocal recognition
by G reat Britain Upon no other footing what
o f th o s e n e w states
e v er sh all I feel warran t e d i n a cceding t o the proposals he has m ade
I S hall continue t o receive i n a conciliatory manner his further
t o me
ove rt ures S hould he medi ta te any ; but I am bound to own that I shall
not be abl e t o a v oid at bo ttom some distrust o f the m otives of all su ch
advanc es to m e whether dir ec tly or indire ct ly by this government at
this particular j un ctur e of the w o rld
A s rega rds the principles o f t r afii ck an d especially as regar ds the
whole r an ge o f her foreign tr ade w e have it is true witne ssed o f late
on the par t o f this nation an approach t o more liberality than has gov
erned her hereto for e It is po ssibl e that sh e may go far ther i n this
policy a policy irresistibly recommended and as sh e will n o t scruple
hers el f t O ad mi t forc ed upon her by the changing cir cumstan ces of the
commercial world
Bu t as regar ds th e princi ples o f political fre edom
w heth e r in relatio n to he rs el f o r o ther s ta tes we shall not find it easy
t o pe rcei v e as yet an y such fav or abl e alteration i n her co n duct
E ven
i f there be in dicatio n s o f a coming chan ge in this latter l ine t oo the
moti ves O f i t ar e pe rh aps n o t al l of a natur e t o c h al l e n ge ou r re ady co n
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Coo pe ratio n
W e h ave seen her w age a war of 2 0 y ea rs
at a cost of treasure an d blood in calculable in supp o rt of th e i n de pen d
ence of o th e r states ( as Sh e s aid ) when th a t indep e nde n ce was threat
ened by a movement proceedin g from the p eop l e o f Fran ce We hav e
seen her at the close o f th a t c on te s t aban donin g t h e great i n terests o f
th e people o f o ther state s anxi o us appar en tly only abo ut monarchs
We have s een h e r at the s am e ep oc h b e co me in e ffec t a
an d throne s
membe r of the H oly Al lian ce ; th o ug h S he could n o t in form an d co n
E ve n the n the
t i n ue to abet its prin ciples up to the at tack o n Naples
sep aration w as but parti al an d true t o her sympathy with the mo
n ar ch i cal principle we find her faith pled ged an d her flee t s rea dy to
interpos e no t on any new ex tremity o f wro n g or oppre s sio n t o the
n t o the royal family
o l e o f Napl e s
ce
but
on
any
m
l
e
sta
t
io
Sin
e
o
p p
the present year set in sh e h as pro claimed and until n o w cautiously
mai n ta in ed h e r neu trality under an a t tack by F rance upon t h e inde
n als
n de n c e o f Spain as u n ju s t as ne farious a nd as cruel
as
the
an
e
p
o f mankind can re c ount this attack havin g bee n made up o n the pe ople
It
o f a c o untry by a legiti mate king urged o n by l e gitima t e n obles
is th u s that Britain has be e n fr o m the ve ry beginning po sitiv ely o r
negatively auxiliary t o the e vils with which this Alliance un der the
mark of Chr istia n ity has already affe cted the old and is n o w men acing
the new world It is under this last stretch o f ambition that sh e seems
abo ut to be roused not as we seem forced t o in fer after al l we h ave
seen fr o m any obj ections to the arbitrary pri n ciples of the C o mb in a
tion for the same men ar e still substantially a t the he ad o f her affair s
but rather from the apprehensio n s which are n o w probably coming upo n
her touching her o wn influ e n ce an d s tandi n g through the formidable
and encroaching career o f these con ti n e n tal poten tate s
S he a t last
perceives a crisis l ikely to come o n bringing with it peril to h e r o wn
commercial pro spects on the o t her S ide o f the A tlan tic and t o her
poli tical sway in bo th hemispheres Hence pr obably som e o f h e r r e
cent and remarkable solicitude s The former war o f 2 0 y e ar s more
than once shook her pro spe ri ty an d bro ught haz ards to her e xis tence
though fo r the mo s t part sh e was s urr ou n ded by alli e s A s e co n d war
of like duration with n o a lly for h e r i n E urop e migh t n ot h a ve a seco nd
field of Waterloo fo r i t s te rmi n atio n Such ar e the pro sp e cti ve d angers
tha t possibly do n o t es cape her
The estima te which I have form ed of the genius of this gov e rn men t
as well as of the characters o f the men wh o direct o r who i n fluen ce all
i t s Operations would lead me t o fear that we are n ot as y e t likely t o
witness any very material changes i n the part which Bri ta in h as ac te d
i n the world fo r the past fi fty years when the cau s e o f fr eed o m has
been at stake ; the part w hi ch s h e ac t e d in 1 7 7 4 in Ame ri ca which sh e
h a s sin ce ac ted i n E urop e an d i s n ow ac ti n g i n Ir el an d I shall ther e
fid e n ce
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54
find it hard to keep from my mind the suspi ci on that the approaches
o f her ministers to me at this portentous juncture fo r a concert o f policy
which they have not heretofore co urted with the United States are
b ottomed on their own calculations I wish that I could sincerely s e e
in them a true concern fo r the rights and liberties o f mankind Never
t h e l e s s whatever may be the mo t i ve of these approaches i f they give
promise o f leading to good efiect s effects which the United States from
principle an d from policy w oul d delight to hail I grant that a dispas
s i o n at e and friendly ear should be tur n ed to them
and such shall be
my aim in the duties be fore m e
In exhibiting the foreg oing summary o f the Opinions which have be en
impre ssed upon me during my publick re s idence in this quarter I
w o uld n o t have it in ferred that I inte nd they should comprehend the
imputation o f any Sinister motives to wards the United S tates as pe ou
liar to the British cabinet as it is n o w composed I am so far fr om
thinking s o that I believe the present cabinet to be as well dispos e d
towards us permanently as any party in E ngland and at this moment
more cordially s o than any other party I believe that i f E ar l G rey
and his associates were to come into power tomorrow that we should
not get better terms i f as go od in our approaching n eg o ciat io n should
it c ome o n as from Mr Canning and his associates I would s ay the
same thing o f a cabinet to be composed of such men as Sir Francis Bur
dett and Mr Hobh o use ; and should it happen that Mr Can n ing and
Lord Liverpool ever become ac tively and publickly in their o fficial places
the advocates o f a p olicy m o re intimate an d friendly in all respects
towards the Uni te d State s than any hitherto adopted ( a contingency not
impossible no matter fr o m what motives arising) I do n o t fear to pre
di ct that we shall in the end s e e the whigs and re formers the decided
Op po nen ts of su ch a policy A s regards the be n e fice n t principle o f
abolishing privateering for ex ample I should little expect to s ee the
whigs its patrons since I have heard Sir James Macintosh denounce it
in parliament S ince I have been here
I remain dear s i r with the highes t respect
Yo ur faith ful an d at tached s ert
1
s
e
Pr e id nt M ON R O E
RI CHAR D R US H
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R IC H ARD RU S H T O T HE
( Rec
’
d
19 N o v
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S E C RE T ARY
O F S T AT E
.
)
LO N D O N O ctob er 2 1 82 3
S I R — I h a d an o ther in tervie w with Mr Canning on the twenty
sixth of l as t month at Glouces t er Lo dge his residence a sh ort dis ta n ce
fr om t own
1 F rom t h e M onroe M SS
D epartme nt of S tate Washin gton D C
N o 3 34
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Th e i mm e dia te mo ti v e of his in vi ting me t o this in te rv i e w was t o
sh e w me a desp a tch which he h ad jus t received from S ir Charles
S tewart the British A mbassad o r a t Paris which h ad a bearing upon o ur
l a te con ferences respecting Sp anish America It recounted a short co n
ve rs a tion which he had had with our charge d aflair e s at t h at Court
Mr Sheldon the pur por t o f which was that Sir Charles hav ing taken
o ccasion t o mention to Mr Sheld o n the projects of France and the
Allian ce up o n Spanish A meri ca Mr Sheldon replied that the go vern
ment o f the United State s was aware o f them all and disapproved o f
them Mr Canning in ferring that this reply o f o u r charg e d affaires
probably rested up o n some instru cti o ns or in formatio n from the go v e rn
ment o f the Unite d Stat e s als o in ferred that it might lend its aid
towards my consent t o his proposals of the 2 0t h o f August He add ed
that the despatch o f Sir Charles S tewart had proceeded from n o previ
Mr
Can
ou s c o mmunicati o n whatever from him
n ing) up o n the subje c t
(
but had been altoge t h e r written o n his o wn motion
I replied that what instruction s or in fo rmation the Legation o f the
United S tates at Paris might h a ve rec eived u po n this subject I co uld
n o t undertake t o sa
with
nfidenc
e
but
that
I
ar
ely
belie
v
ed
any
sc
c
co
y
had reached it which were not c o mm on to me That c ertainly I had
n o ne o ther than t h ose general ins tructions which I had already men
t io n ed to him e v idently ne v er framed to meet the precise crisis which
he S upposed to be at hand re specting Spanish Americ a but under the
comprehensive S pirit o f which I was nevertheless willing to go fo rw a rd
with him in his proposals up o n th e te rm s I had s tated in th e h op e o f
meeting this crisis
He n o w declared that this governmen t felt great embarrassments as
regarded the immediate rec ognition o f these new states embarrass
ments which h ad not been common to the Un ited S tates and asked
whether I c o uld not give my assent to h is p r O po sal s on a promise by
G re a t Britain o f futu r e ackn owledgment To this intimation I gave
an im me diate and une quivocal refusal Further co nversation pas sed
between us tho u gh chiefly of a desultory nature ( it shall be reported at
a future time ) an d the con ference ended by h is saying that he would
i n vite me to another interview i n the c ourse o f a fe w days
Having waited until n o w without yet hearing fro m him I h ave
concluded to write you thus much o f w hat passed on the 2 6 t h without
more delay It does n o t fall within any o f my intentions to accede
to Mr Canning s overtures but on the basis o f a p r ev i ous and explicit
ackn o wledgment o f t h e new states by this governme n t in m an ner as
formal and ample in all respects as was done by the United S tates
whose act o f acknowledgment will be the example upon which I sh al l
s t and E v en then the g uarded manner in which al o n e my consent
will be gi v en whe n I co me to use the name o f my go v ernme n t will I
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trus t be fo un d to fr ee th e st e p fro m all serio us ex cep tion on my part
s h o ul d I fi n ally take it
I canno t be unawa re tha t in this wh ole t ran sa ction the British
cabine t are s tri ving fo r their own ends ; yet i f th e se ends promise in
this ins tan ce t o be also auspicious to the safety and independen ce o f
all S panis h A me rica I pers uad e mysel f that we cannot look upon t hem
bu t with approbati o n
E n glan d it is true has given h e r c o untenance
and stil l does t o all the evils with which the holy Alliance hav e
a ffli c ted E uro pe ; bu t i f sh e at length h as determined to stay the
ca r ee r o f th e ir formidable and d ee o t i ck ambition in the other bemis
p
h
e
t
r
e
the
Uni
te
d
S
t
a
te
s
ee
m
to
it
to
all
t
h
e
policy
and
o
a
ll
the
o
e
s
w
p
pri n c iple s o f their sys te m to hail the e ffe cts whatever may be the
mot i v e s o f her conduct
Mr Can ni n g at th e clos e o f t h e ab o ve in te rvie w expresse d h is
d e sire that in informing my government o f h is communica tions to me
I w ould treat them as entirely co nfidential as well the v erbal as the
writ ten ; the mo re s o if no act resulted fro m them That no act will
re sult from the m i s my prese n t be lie f
I have the h on or t o remai n with ve r y g reat respect
Your obedient servant
R I C H AR D R USH
H on orable J O H N QUINCY ADAM S S ecre t ary of S tate
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RIC HARD RU S H T O T HE
( Re c d
’
1 9 Nov
.
O F S TA T E
S E C RE T A R Y
.
)
LO N D O N O ct o b er 1 0 1 82 3
At the con feren ce with Mr Canning the day be fore yester
S IR
d ay h e s aid n othi ng o f S panish A merican affairs except b arely to
remark at parting that he should send ofi consuls to the new states
very s o on perhaps i n the c ourse o f this month I asked whether
He said he believed they might as well
con s u l s or commercial agents
be call ed by the former n ame as they would be invest e d with the
p o wers and charged with the duties that bel onge d t o the con sular
I asked if they would be re ceived in that capacity by the go v
o ffice
e r n me n t s bet we en which and G reat Brit a in no politi cal or diplomatic
relations had yet been formed He said that this he did n o t kn ow
with any certainty ; he rather supposed that th ey would be received
I sa w him again at the foreign Office ye s terday an d he said not one
single w o rd relative to South America alth ough the occasion was
altogether favorable fo r resuming the topick had he been dispos ed to
resume it I there fo r e consider that al l further discussion between us
in relati o n to it is n o w at an end I h ad mysel f rega r ded the qu es
tions i n volv ed in t h e dis cus si on as essentially changed by the arrival
No 33 6
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doub t and hav e n o t now so l o ng as this catastrophe can be kept from
crossing the path o f British interests and British ambition This
nation in its collective corporate capacity has no more sympathy
with
and freedom now than it had on the plains o f
Lexington in A merica ; than it S howed during the whole p rogress of
the French revolution in E urope or at the close o f its first great act at
Vienna in 1 8 1 5 ; than it exhibited lately at Naples in proclaiming a
neutrality in all other e v ents save that o f the sa fety o f the royal family
there ; or still more recently when it sto od aloo f whil s t France and
the Holy Alliance avowed their intention o f crushing the liberties
o f uno ffending Spain
o f cru shing them too upon pretex ts so wholly
unjustifiable and enormous that E nglish ministers fo r very Shame were
reduced to the dilemma o f speculatively protesting against them whilst
they allo wed them to go into full action With a king in the hand s o f
his minister s with an aristocracy o f unbounded opulence and pride
with what is called a house o f commons c onsti t uted es s entially by this
aristoc racy and al ways mo v ed by its influence E n gland can in reality
never look with complacency upon popular and e q ual rights whether
abroad or at home She therefore moves in her natural orbit when
For their own s akes
S h e wars positively or negatively against them
b
s v er wa t i s sh e atsvc s
al o n
n i
i
a
li s
~~ afi s
I n the c o n ference with Mr Canning at G loucester Lodge on the
2 6 t h o f last month he in formed me that this governme n t had sent out
three commissioners to Mexico with Objects such as I have already
state d in a former c ommunica ti o n to you Should the c ourse and
progress o f events a fter their arrival in Mexico render recognition by
G reat Britain a dvisable one o f the s e commissioner s was furnished he
said w ith contingent c redentials to be minister another would be con
stitute d secretary o f Legation and the third consul He also said that
these app o intments as well as those o f commercial agents or consuls
whichsoever they might be to go to the new states generally would
probably have the e ffect o f inviting in the end further approaches from
them all to an intercourse with G reat Britain which approaches sh o uld
they be made might be met by G reat Bri tain according to circumstances
It may perhaps afio r d room for co nj ect ure what has led to the pre f
erence o f Mexico over the other ex colonies fo r such a provisionary
diplomatic representation I have heard a rumour that an eye to some
immediate advantage from th e mines o f that country has been the
motive Whilst the inde p ende n ce of Mexi co has been o f more recent
establishment it seems not less true that her advances to internal sta
b il i t y have been less sure than we have seen in s o me o f the other n e w
states Mr Canning himsel f in one o f our conversations thought fit to
select Mexico as affording a prominent illustration o f interior dis quiet
Whe t her t hen the abo v e rumour is the key t o this early pre feren ce or
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the proximi ty o f this n e w sta te to the te rri t ories o f the Un i te d S t ate s
o r what c o n siderations may hav e led t o it a little more time will prob
ably disclos e I t may res t on the mere fa ct o f h e r gr e ate r populati o n
and riches
Mr Can n in g also in formed me that or ders would be given by this
governme n t to i t s s q uadron in t he Wes t Indies to pro te ct t he trade of
Bri t ish subjec t s ( to t he ex ten t of making reprisals i f necessary) wi t h
t he Spanish colonies i n case t he licence for this t rade which t he Cort es
gran ted i n January las t was no t renewed I t will be recollected tha t
t he same decree of t he Cor tes in t ha t mon t h which se ttled under a
t hreat o f reprisals t he Bri t ish claims upon Spai n for cap t ures laid
Open t he trade of the u l tra marine provinces t o Bri tain for ten years
This period o f t i me bein g upon t he eve of expiring the i n ten tion of
Bri tain is to revive t he orders for reprisals by her s q uadron unless t he
t ime be ex te n ded
So much for a measure agai n s t Spain in her prese n t ex tremi ty I t
will nex t be see n t ha t her e x colon ies come in for t heir share of this
promp t an d summary s pecies o f remedy o f which Bri tain is se tting o t her
na t ions t he example for Mr Canning also in formed me t ha t i f t he C o
l o mbi an go v ern me n t did n o t make speedy repara t ion fo r t he alleged
aggressio n commi tted u po n a Bri t ish ship by t he for t a t Bocachica a t
t he en trance o f t he bay of Car t hagena orders would be given t o block
ade t ha t por t H e remarked tha t t he blockade would be confined merely
t o Bocachica as a measure of local redress o ther sat is fac t io n having
been re fused an d t ha t i t was in tended t ha t an explana t ion to t his
effec t S hould be given t o t he governmen t of Colombia t hrough a neu tral
minis ter residing a t t ha t governmen t
H e added t ha t his wish was
t ha t t he min is ter of the Uni ted S ta tes S hould be t he channel of com
mu n i cat i on In t o t he de tail o f circums tances t ha t belong t o t his alleged
aggres s ion Mr Canni n g did n ot go From the accoun t I have had of
i t from t he Colombian min is ter in t his ci ty Mr B ave n ga I in fer and
believe that t he offence was on t he S ide o f the Bri t is h ship
The subj ec t of blockade being men t ioned Mr Can n ing asked me i f
I kn ew i n wha t man ner my governme n t would be likely t o view the
t urning o ff of our friga t e by t he Fren ch s q uadron from before Cadiz
wi t h our minis ters Mr Nelson and Mr Rodney on b oard I said t ha t
I did no t and i n t urn asked him how E ngland would ac t under similar
circums tan ces His firs t reply consis ted of an expression o f his sat is
fact ion t ha t E ngland had had t he good for t une to escape from such a
di ffi cul ty a t t his j u nc t ure and t ha t t he q ues t ion had fallen in to such
good hands as ours " Bu t nex t I asked how a Bri tish blockading
force would t rea t a neu t ral friga t e under t he same circums tan ces
He
said he would be q ui t e candid in his answer ; that all t hings considered
i t did n ot be come E ngland t o r ea s on d own mar i t i me or bel l iger en t
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60
t ha t t he case was an u n u sual on e ; he recollecte d in m odern
his tory bu t one o ther in s ta nce of a besieged king which was t ha t of
t he king o f Denmark ; t h a t had a n eu tral S hip of war a Russ ian frigat e
fo r exam ple a ttemp ted to en t er t he harbour of Copenhagen wh en t he
Bri t ish fle e t was inves t in g i t the Captain alleging that he was carrying a
le tter to the Dan ish kin g he mus t say t hat he t hough t t he Bri t ish
admiral would no t have p ermi tted the frigate t o pass for such a purpose ;
he e ven inclined t o b elieve tha t a n eu tral v essel of war would n ot have
been allowed t o pass under such circums tances for any purpose These
were his sen t imen t s t hough he spoke he said wi t h o u t an y full or exact
examina t i on of t he subj ec t
I replied tha t nei ther was I mas ter of t he s u bj ec t though awake t o
t he interes t o f i t ; t hat I had fro m a personal curiosi ty been t urn ing
i n a c ursory manner to some o f t he admiral ty books in t he hope o f ge t
t ing ligh t upo n i t bu t as ye t could only say tha t I had fou n d n othing
I was di sposed t o t hink t ha t book learn in g u pon t he poin t w ould be
found scan ty and t h at i t would have t o be decided by recurring to
f
an
d
rinciples
No
t
hing
ur
t
her
was
aid
t
he
sub
j
ec
t
I mus t own
s
on
p
t ha t I draw no very favorable augury to par t s of o ur com in g negocia
t ion from as much as fell from him whils t we were upon i t
Throughou t t he progress of our di scussion on Spanish American
affairs I t h ough t i t proper t o apprize Mr Rav e n ga con fi den t ially of all
t ha t was going on I take t his o p por t uni ty of saying tha t I have had
e q ual pleasure in all my personal in t ercourse w i t h t his gen tleman and
in my a ttem pt s t o subser v e t he in t eres t s of his cou n try
A t t he close of my in terv iew wi t h Mr Canning I took occasion t o say
t o him that i f n o o bj ect ions exis ted t o t he re q ues t I S hould be glad to
be furnished vn t h a copy o f t he n o te fr om Count Nessel rode to Coun t
Lieven rela t i v e t o t he Russian ukase of which I have made men t ion
in my number 3 2 3 H e replied that he would ha v e bee n hap py to
comply wi th my re qu es t bu t t ha t hav ing asked Coun t Lieven for per
mission t o give ou t a copy o f t he no t e t he Coun t had said that he did
n o t feel au t horized t o gran t a copy wi t h t ha t view
I have t he honor to remai n wi t h very grea t respec t
Your obedien t servan t
R I CH AR D R US H
1
f
Honorabl e J O HN QU INCY ADA MS S e cre tary o S tat e
d o ctr i n es
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S pan i sh Ameri ca top ic k h as b e e d roppe d b y Mr C an n i g i a mo t
e x traord i ary man n e r
i d t o me o i t S i n ce t h e 2 6
N o t n oth e r w or d h s h e
f l as t mo th at t h e i n t e rv i e w at G l o uc e t e r L o dge wh i ch I h e d e s cri b ed i n
my d e p tch e s t t h e d e part me n t a d h e h s o w g n e o ut of t o wn t o pe d t h e
re mai d e r of t h i
I s h ll n o t re w t h t op ic k d
d p t f t h e n e xt month
sh o ul d b e wh i ch I do n o t e x pe t I h all d e cl i e g o i g i n t o i t
gai
y i g th t
I m s t n o w w ai t un ti l I h e ar from my gover me n t R u sh t o Mon roe 22
O ctob er 1 82 3
1
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n
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ar
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61
D ANIE L
S HELD O N
T O JO H N QU INC Y A DAM S
.
PAR IS 30 O ct ob er 182 3
Soon after t he date of my dispat ch of t he 1 8 t h of t his mon th
I was in formed by t he Bri tish E mbassador t ha t he had con ferr ed wi t h
t he French Minis ters
de Chat eaubrian d an d M de Vi l l e l e) on t h e
subj ec t of t he Spanish A meri can Colonies He t old me tha t his obj ec t
had been t o pre v en t them from engaging has t ily in an y measures rela t
in g t o t hose Colonies and t ha t he had in sis ted t ha t wha t ever measures
migh t be taken should be adop ted i n common and after con sul ta tion
among t he powers real ly in teres ted in t he q ues t ion which were E ng
land Fran ce an d the U S alone the in teres t of t he grea t Con t inen tal
Powers o f E urope being on t his par t icular p o in t on ly of a secondary
n a t ure
The french Mi n is ters assured him t hat t hey w ould undertake
n o t hing by t he mselves and t ha t t he subjec t would be brough t forward
for mu t ual considera t ion
In t he Journal des D é ba t s t he Min is terial
paper of t o day will be fo u nd an art icle confirmin g e n t irely t his prin
ci p l e
I t is however mos t probable t ha t France will insis t upo n t he
co n currence of t he Con t inen ta l Powers and will rej ec t en tire ly t ha t o f
t he U S The subj ec t has n e v er b een men t ioned t o me in any way
wha tever by any of t he Fre n ch minis ters The mo t ive for t his course
on their par t is obvious enough
t he Un i ted S tates ha v in g ack n ow l
/
edged t he independence o f t he Colonies t hey canno t be expected t o
concur in or assen t to any measures no t having t ha t resul t for t heir
basis ; and t hey are no t ye t prepared here t o go t ha t lengt h t hough i t
i s d iffi cul t to co n ceive t ha t E ngland would consen t t o any plan which
would aga i n place t he Colonies under t he dominion o f Spain A t all
even t s no Steps are likely to be taken has t ily or immediately in rela
t io n t o t hose coun tries ; and i n deed t he affairs o f t he mo ther Coun try
will ye t re q uire for some t ime all t he cares of t his G overnmen t The
Ar t icle o f t he Journal des d é ba t s announces t ha t Councils of moder a
t ion have a t las t made some impression on the " ing The cou r se he
w as taking alarmed n ot o n ly t he Minis t ry bu t t he Poli t icians here
who are many degrees higher t oned t han t he Minis try E ven Russia
is obliged t o insis t upon modera t ion and Pozzo who is gone t o Madri d
w ill exercise t he i n flue n ce o f t ha t Power t o so ft en down t he sys t e m
t he " ing is disp osed t o adop t and which fr om his untrac table natu re
t here is gr eat di ffi cul ty i n persuading him t o aban don I ha v e t he
ho n or t o be wi t h grea t Respec t Sir your mos t O be d
very h u mble
“
servan t ( e )
D S HE L D ON
T h e Ho
JO H N QU INCY A DA MS S e cre t ry of S t ate Wa shin gton
1
m
o
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e
2
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30
3
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SI R ,
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Fro m t h e M o n roe Papers in
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r
r
1
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th e
r
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Depart ment of S t ate Washi n gto D C
,
n,
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62
R I C H A R D RU S H
T O T HE
S E C RE T A RY
OF
S T A TE
.
O
ve mber 2 6 1 82 3
S I R — I had a n int e r v ie w w ith Mr C a nn i n g on the t w e n ty fou rth
i n sta n t at t he fo reig n offi c e whe n he a ffo rded m e s ome i n fo rmati on on
Sp a n ish Ameri ca n affairs which I now p roc eed to l ay b e fo re yo u
H e be gan by say i n g that o u r conv ersat ion s on this su bje ct at Gl ou ce s
ter Lodge ( on the 2 6 t h of S e p te mb er ) ha v i n g l ed him t o conclu de
that no thi n g coul d be a cco m pl ished b et w ee n u s ow i n g t o the gr o u n d
w hi ch I h ad fe l t it n e cessary to t ak e res p e cti n g the i m med i ate re cog
n i t i on o f the l ate colon ies by G reat Britai n
he had dee m ed it i n d i s
p e n sa bl e as no m o re time w as t o b e lo st that G reat Britai n sh o u l d
herse l f wi th ou t a ny concert w ith the Un ited S tates com e t o a n
e xpl a n ati on w ith F ra nce H e had a cco rdi n gly see n t he P ri nc e de
Polig n ac the F re nch A mba ssad o r at this cou rt a n d stated t o him that
as it w as fi t that the t wo cou rts sh oul d un dersta n d ea c h o ther dis
t i n ct l y on the Sp a n ish A m eri c a n q u esti on i t w as his i n te n ti on t o
un fol d the v ie w s of Great Britai n i n a n offi cia l no te t o hi m the
p ri nce o r t o S ir C har l es S te w art t he British A mb assad o r at P ar i s t o
b e co mmun i cated t o the F re nch Cou rt 5 o r i n the fo rm of a n o ra l con
fere nc e wit h the P r inc e hi m se l f — w hi che v er o f these mo des the l atter
might i n di cate as p re fera bl e The P ri nce tak i n g s om e i n ter va l t o
de cide i t w as fi n a lly agreed t o ad op t the m eth o d o f o ra l con fere nc e
wi t h the p re ca u ti on of m aki n g a m i nu te o f the conv ersati on ; s o tha t
ea ch gov er nm e n t m ight ha v e i n its po ssessi on a re co rd o f w hat p assed
t o b e p re v i ou s ly asse n ted t o as co rr e c t on bo th sides
I n p u rs u a nc e of this co u rse Mr C a nn i n g he l d se v era l con fere nc es
w i t h the P ri nc e de Pol ig n a c i n the ear ly p art o f O ctob er i n w hi c h
ea ch p arty un fol ded the v ie w s o f th e ir res p e cti v e gov er nm e n ts on this
bra nch of p ubl i c a ffairs a n d agreed u pon the w ri t te n m e mo ra n d u m o r
p a p er w hi ch was to e mbo dy t hem
This p a p er Mr C a nn i n g said w as of a n atu re w hi ch did no t l ea v e
him at liberty t o offer m e a copy of it ; bu t he had i nv ited m e to the
fo reig n o ffi ce for the p u rpo se of readi n g it t o m e ha v i n g only si nc e
his ret u r n t o to wn l ast w ee k e xhi b ited it t o the mi n isters of o ther
pow ers and no t y et t o a ll o f the m
H e a cco rdi n gly read the p a p er t o me W he n he had clo sed I sa i d
t o hi m no t w ithsta n di n g w hat had p re v i ou s ly fa ll en from him a bou t
no t gi v i n g a copy o f it that its w h ol e m atter was s o i n ter wov e n w ith
o u r p as t d i s cu ssi on s
v er ba l a n d w ritte n upon the same s ubje ct that I
cou l d not he lp think in g that my gov er nm e n t woul d n at u ra lly e xp e ct a
copy as the regu l ar termi n ati on of a su bje ct the p re vi o u s stages of
w hi ch it had b e en m y s p e cial d u ty t o m a k e know n to my g ov ernm en t
N o 34 6
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L N D ON , N o
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63
this remark he re pl ied that he wou l d w i ll ing ly fu rnish me w ith a
copy of that p art of it w hi ch em bo died t he v ie w s of this gov ernme n t
bu t that where t h o se of F ra nc e w ere at stak e he did n o t fee l tha t he
had the sa m e dis creti o n ; u po n w h ich foo ti n g my re m ark s was l eft
w ith ou t m o re comme n tary
I a m there fo re re l i e v ed fr o m the tas k o f re ca p it ul ati n g t o yo u t he
con te nt s o f that po rti on o f this p a p er o f w hi ch I may e xp e c t t o re cei v e
a copy The po i n ts w hi ch chie fly arres t ed m y atte ntion as n e w t o
me ( a n d t hese I n ow co m mun i c ate W ith o u t w ai t i n g for t he p a p er
i tse lf) w ere that G reat Br i ta in de cl ares that she w i ll re cog ni ze t he
in de p e n de nc e o f t he colon ies fi rst i n cas e F r an ce s h ou l d emp l oy
i
h
i
i
n
se
a
n
e
r
s
e
r
o
r
se
con
d
ly
o
ce
n
a
i
t
h
r
u
t
i
o
c
i
n
a
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e
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a
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b
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-
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g t o h er a n ci en t s ys t e m, s h o u l d
of B r i t a i n w i t h t h os e co l o n i es
r e v er t i n
a tte
,
mp t
t o p ut
to th e
a s t op
B u t it is no t said w ha t Br i tain
w i ll d o be yon d re cog n izi n g t heir i n de p e n de nc e h e r ult eri o r cond u ct
b e in g l e f t to b e s h a p ed as w e m ay i n fer by ul teri o r e v e n ts S he
cl ai m s a r ight t o trade wi th the coloni es o n th e fo oti n g of a p er mi s
s i on g i v e n by S p a i n h er s e l
s
o
lon
g
b
a
ck
as
as
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q
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nt
1
1
8
0
f
fo r Br i ti sh m ediati on o ffere d at tha t da y b e tw ee n t he p are n t state a n d
the colon ies As regards t he fo r m o f g ov er nm e n t m o s t des i ra bl e fo r
the colon ies as i n de p ende n t state s a p re fere nc e is e xp ressed fo r
mo n ar ch y co u l d it b e p ra c ti c a bl e
W it h t he e xc e p ti o n of the fo rego i n g po i n ts I re coll e c t no thi n g
materia l i n the p a p er as regards the policy o r i n te n t ion s of G rea t
Brita in no t hereto fo re m ade known i n my ow n co mm un i cation s u pon
thi s s ubj e ct b eginn i n g w i t h t hat o f the 1 9 t h of A u g u st a n d con ti n u ed
i n my numb ers 3 2 5 3 2 6 33 0 334 a n d 3 36 The l etter of Mr C a n
n in g t o S ir C har l e s S t u art o f the 31 s t o f Mar ch 1 823 is sti ll ass umed
as the b asis of the pol i cy o f G reat Britai n
T o re po rt w ith the re q u isite fi de l ity the v ie w s of F ra nc e from th i s
p a p er read ov er bu t on c e t o me I m ight fi n d a n o ffi c e mo re hazard ou s
fr o m the fa c t o f m y ha v ing had l ess a cq u ai n ta nc e b e fo reha n d w i t h
them I sh a ll there fo re n ot atte mp t t o d o s o w ith a ny detai l fro m
a fear that I mi gh t err I ha v e a l s o the con fide n t h op e that a n e n ti re
copy of it a l th ou gh no t gi v e n t o m e will get to you r ha n ds t hrough
s om e o ther cha nn e l I a m n o t a bl e for my own share t o dis cern t h e
ade q u ate m o ti v es for w ra pp i n g it up i n s uch se c re cy a n d ha v e l itt l e
d oub t bu t that e v e n the publ i c j ou rn al s o f E u r op e w i ll b efo re v ery
lon g e nli gh t e n u s w ith suffi cie n t p re ci s ion upon a ll its conte n ts
The Lon d on j ou r n a l s of the p rese n t w e e k h a v e t hemse lv es made a
b egi nn in g t ow ards this end
H a v i n g said th u s m u ch I w i ll p roc eed i n m y e n de avou rs t o state
t he mai n po i n ts of this p a p er w here it w as i ll u strati v e o f the pol i cy of
F ra nc e
t r a de
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64
It de cl ares that F ra nce l ik e E n gl a n d regards the re cov ery o f
the colon ies by Sp ai n as h op e l ess
2 It e xp resses the d e t er mi n a t i o n ( I thin k this w as the v ery wo rd)
o f F ran c e
no t t o assist Sp a in i n atte mp ti n g their r e con qu est
3 It e xp resses the desire of F ra nc e t o see the dis p u t e made u p by
ami ca bl e arra n geme n ts be t w ee n the mo ther co untry and the coloni es
4 It dis cl a i ms for F ra nc e a ll idea o f deri v ing e xclu si v e comm er c ia l
ad va n tage s fro m the coloni es say i n g that l i k e Engl a n d she only ask s
t o b e pl a ced on the foo ti n g of t he mo st fa vo red nati on after Sp a in
5 It know s n o t w ha t there is t o b e r ecog n i zed as i n de p e n d e n t
i n the colon ies F ran c e regardi n g a ll g ov er nm e n t there as a mock ery
The reas on i n g em ploy ed is to this e ffe ct
6 It l a bo rs to sh ow the n e c essity o f assem bl ing a con gress t o
w hi ch E n gl a n d sh ou l d b e a p arty ( w hi ch she de cl i n es) t o b ri n g a bou t
the b e n e vol e n t e n d o f re cl ai m i n g th o se remo te regi o ns from their p ast
erro rs a n d m a kin g u p the d i s pu te b e tw ee n the m a n d the p a r e n t sta t e
upon term s satisfa ct ory t o both as the pol i cy wo rth y of bo th
These w ere the materia l poi n ts of the p a p er as I coll e c ted the m
I am sensi bl e that I state s om e o f them i n a w a y to start fu rther
q u esti on s as t o their tru e m ea n i n g qu esti on s w hi c h I could my se l f
raise with o u t at this m o me n t b ei n g a bl e t o res olv e the m W he ther
am on g o th e r things F ra nce i s to a b s tai n from a ll k i n ds of aid to
Sp ai n ( fo rc e she say s she w i ll no t em ploy) d o es no t a pp ear q u ite cl ear
t o m y re coll e c ti o n
The a pp rehe n si on s of Britain h ow e v er see m to be
ful ly all ay ed at l east for the p rese n t o n the s co re of F re nch ag gran
d i ze me n t i n Sp anish Ameri c a a n d it is c ertai n that she d o e s no t now
a n ti c i p ate any s p eedy interrup ti on of the p ea c e of E u r op e fro m this
ca u se
W hether her a pp rehe n si on s on this s co re w ere e v er rea l n o t wi t h
sta n din g M r C an n i n g s ad va nc es to me o r w hether F ranc e fro m
un easi n ess at a p ro s p e ct o f colli si o n w ith Britain has herse l f r e
c eded for a w h i l e from her am b iti ou s p roje cts a n d only fo r a w hil e
are poin ts ar oun d w hi ch there may be s om e ob s curity The l a n g u age
w hi c h she n ow h ol ds t o Britai n is obv io u s ly at v aria nc e wi th that
w hi c h her ma n i festo s b reathed w he n her troop s e n tered Sp ai n i n
the s p ri n g H er d upl i city there fo re i n this w h ol e p e nin s ul ar w ar
fr om her me mo ra bl e a vow a l s res p e c ti n g the co rd on sa n itaire t o the
p rese n t time a pp ears t o ha v e b ee n as sig n a l as her a mbi ti on
In t he cou rse of the p a p er on the British s i de there is a llu si on t o
the i n terest that the U n ited S tates ha v e i n t he qu esti on w hi ch is
met on the side of F ra nc e by a de cl arati on that she d o es no t p ro fess
t o be a c q u ai n ted w i t h o ur v ie w s on t he s ubje c t
It is i n t h e p art
w hi c h re l a t es t o t he asse mblin g o f a con gress
I might p rob a bly ha v e
m ade my se l f m o re a ccurate ly m aster of t h e w h ol e p a p er by re cu rrin g
1
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p ra ct ica l res ul t n o r b e co me m atter of dis cu ssi o n b et w ee n ou r res p e c ti ve
gov er nm e n ts w ill b e con sidered as ha v i n g p assed b et w ee n two indi v id
n al s re ly i n g upo n ea c h o thers h ono u r a n d dis c reti on
I co mm unicate t he p a p er t o yo u i n s u ch a w ay as t o re l ie v e you
fr om a ny di ffic u l ty i n tra n smitti n g it t o yo u r G ov er n me n t
I hav e the honou r t o b e w ith great e stee m a n d regard my dear Si r
fai t h fu l ser v a n t
yo u r O be d
1
G EO R G E C AN N I N G
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R IC HARD RU S H
S E C R ETA R Y
T O T HE
OF
S T A TE
.
ecemb er 27 1 82 3
I n m y l etter No 3 4 6 o f t he 2 6 t h o f Nov em be r I had the
SI R
h ono r t o me n t ion that I re q u ested o f Mr C a nn ing a Oopy of the p a p er
w h ich he read t o m e em bo dy i n g t he v ie w s of E n g l a n d a n d F ra nc e re l
ati v e t o Sp a n ish A m eri ca a n d that he re pli ed that he wou l d d o s o o f
as m u c h of it as re l a t ed t o E n gl a n d bu t that ov er the po rti on o f i t that
con tai n ed the e xpo sition of the v ie w s o f F ra nc e he d i d no t fee l that he
w as at l i b erty t o e x ercise the same op ti on The atte mp t t o dra w th i s
lin e seemed t o me at the ti m e un ne c essary a n d p erha p s woul d ha v e
b een fo u n d no t v ery easy i n p ra ct ic e a n d a cco rdi n g ly i n t he i n ter vi e w
w hi ch I had wi t h Mr Cann in g on t he t w e l fth of t h i s mon th re ferri n g
agai n t o the a bov e p a p er a n d t o the re q u est I had m ade o f hi m t o b e
fu r n ished w ith a copy o f the w h ol e of it he said that he now fe l t hi m
se l f a bl e to comply the F re nc h G ov er n me n t ha vi n g fu r n ished ot her
states w ith a copy o f it a n d he p r om ised t o se n d m e the en t ire copy
i n a fe w da y s I ha v e a b stai n ed fro m me n t ion i n g this p ro mise t o y o u
i n my i n ter m e di ate co m m u n i cati on s p re ferri n g t o w ait un ti l the p a p er
itse l f rea ched me
I ha v e this da y re cei v ed it a ccomp a n ied by a n o te fr om Mr Ca n
”
n i n g dated the 1 3 t h i n sta n t a n d headed Con fi de n tia l i n w hi ch he
i n fo rms me that I a m at l i b erty to comm uni cate i t t o my gov er n me nt
bu t only as a con fide n t i a l p a p er no t to b e m ade public i n the U n ited
S tates A no te of a fe w l i n es fr o m Mr Pl a n ta dated y esterda y e x
pl ai n s the de l ay w hi ch has ta k e n pl a c e in se n di n g it t o me A not her
no te fro m Mr C a nnin g dated a l s o on the 1 3 th i n sta n t a n d headed
p ri vate a n d con fi de n t i a l w as re cei v ed at the sa m e t i me i n w hi ch he
re v er t s to w ha t p assed b et w ee n u s i n the s umm er on th i s Sp a n ish
Ameri can q u es t i on states his reas on for ha v i n g g on e on t o a c t w ith ou t
my concurre nc e a n d i n timates a h op e that n either the Un ited S tates
no r G rea t Bri t ai n w i ll now b e c a ll ed upon to l ift the i r vo i ce agai n st
the d e sig n s that w ere re c e n tly a pp rehe n ded I n this l atter no te i t w i ll
N o 35 4
.
L ON D ON , D
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1
F
rom t h e A d ams M SS
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67
a l s o b e p e r cei v e d w hat ren ew e d an x i e ty is manifested that t he wh ol e
s u bje c t may b e treated by my gov ernm ent as e n tire ly co n fi de n tia l I
ha v e re pl i e d in two se p arate n o tes of this date to bo th of Mr C a nn ing s
and enclo se cop i e s of a ll t he co rres pon de n ce It w i ll be seen i n Mr
C an n ing s no tes that he des cri b es the p a p er as ha v i n g b een read t o me
o n the 1 2 t h i n stant
This is a mista k e H e read it t o me o n the
2 4 t h o f Nov em be r as my co mm un i cati o n t o yo u o f the 2 6 t h o f that
m on th sh ow s The mi sta k e is no t materia l a n d is only n o ti ce d l e st it
sh oul d o therw ise b e infe rred th at the p a p er was re ad t o me a se cond
ti m e w hi c h w as no t the case
It is pl ain in my b e l ie f that this e x tra o rdin ary s ol i citu de for s e cre cy
s p ri n gs fro m an un w i ll i n g n ess i n this gov er n me n t t o ris k the co rdia l ity
o f its sta n di ng w ith the Holy A ll ia nc e t o any greate r e x te n t tha n c a n
b e a vo ided Al l s e ri ou s da n ger t o Sp anish Ameri ca b ei n g now at an
e n d I d o no t at p resent see w hat there is t o p re v ent a retur n t o that
e ffe c ti v e amity be t w een G reat Britain a n d that a ll ian c e w hi ch has here
to fo re e x isted E v e n ts t he m o st re c e n t a n d a u th o ritati v e j u stify u s i n
s a y i n g that n o atte m p t upon the l i b erties O f E u r op e
w i ll essentia lly
throw Britai n off fro m the conn e x i on o r i mp air her co e q ua l a ll egia nc e
t o the m on ar chi ca l p ri nci pl e ; a n d the a u the n ti c p a p er of her gov er n
me n t w hi ch I this day tra n smit indi cates that the da n ger o f dis un i on
fr om the Sp a n ish A m eri c a n q u esti on has had its s o u r c e n o t i n a ny co n
c er n of Br i ta in at fresh strides of Ty ra nny i n the a ll ia nce b u t i n a n
am b iti ou s un easi n ess in her Counci l s at F re nch o r o ther Con ti n e n ta l
inter po siti on rea chi n g a po i n t w hi c h threate n ed at l ast t o tre nc h upon
the comm er cia l e mp ire Of E n gl a n d a n em p ire ov er w hi ch her states
me n n e v er c ease to k ee p the m o st jea lou s w at ch As regards the esse n
tia l rights of the Sp a n ish A m eri ca n S tates their i n ter n a l pol ity a n d
o rga n izati on it w i ll b e see n from the p a p er that the fo reign S e cre tary
o f E n g l a n d p er m its the m o st re vol ti n g d oc tri n es t o b e l aid d own by
the Am b assad o r of F ra nc e w ith ou t on e wo rd of disse n t or di sapprob a
ti on Som e of the q u esti on s that started t o my m i n d w he n I u n der
t ook to re po rt the con te n ts o f this p a p er t o yo u fro m ha v i n g h e ard it
read are no t e n tire ly s olv ed I m u st say on a mo re d e l i b erate e xami
n ati on O f it
I n m y i n ter v ie w w ith Mr C a nn i n g o n the 1 2 t h of this m on th h e
said that the Con tine n ta l pow ers had i n te n ded t o h ol d a Con gress n o t
as the y n ow a ll eged
t o co erc e the l ate Colonies b u t t o assist Sp ai n
w ith their de l ib eration s a n d ad v i c e t owards re cov eri n g their s u p re ma cy
ov er them ; bu t that Sp ain s p r opo sa l s had b ee n of a n atu re t o fru strate
a ll their w ishes Their Offer t o assist her as a bov e had l ate ly b een
made throu gh the Fre nch A mb assad o r at Madrid Sp ai n throu gh t he
same cha nn e l had si mply said i n re ply that F ra nc e Ru ssia and the
o ther all i es had no thing t o d o b u t t o furnish shi p s troop s and m one y
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68
the r s con qu es t w hi c h be ing e ffe cted S pai n w as ready t o re qu ite
the m a ll by a gra n t of e q u i va l ent ad v a n tages to be dra wn from the
Coloni e s F ranc e had se n t these p r opo sal s back t o Sp ai n as n o t fi t t o
be e n te rtai n ed a n d th u s as Mr C a nn i n g s e e med t o i n fer has v an i shed
the p roje ct of the Co ngr ess O ne o ther s cheme on ly re m a in ed he
said for redu ci n g the Colon ies m o re w i l d h ow e v e r as he added tha n
a ll fo rme r o nes This w as by an associ ati o n in the form of a p ri v ate
i ci en t nu m
comp a ny t o be co m po sed o f ca p ita l ists and b an k e rs i n su fi
be rs a n d deri vi n g a charter fro m Sp ai n w hi ch com p a ny w ith th e ir
fu nds w ere t o hire shi p s and troop s for the re co n q u est and see k their
remu n erati on in c e rtain e xclu si v e rights of trade t o be granted to them
a n d a l so i n the tra n sfer t o the m of a n inte rest i n t he mines of Me x i co
and P eru So m e m odi fi cati on of this v isi on ary s che m e has si nc e made
a fi gu re i n the j o u r n a l s of E u rop e ser v i n g i n this co untry at l east to
e xcite the p u bl i c derisi o n
B u t t he mo st de cisi v e blow t o a ll despo t ick interferen c e w ith t h e
ne w S tates is that w hi ch it h as re c ei v ed in the P reside n t s Mess age at
the op e n i n g of Co ngress It w as look ed for here w ith e x tra o rdi n ary
i n terest at thi s j u nctu re an d I ha v e heard t hat t he British p a ck et
w hi ch l e ft N e w Yo rk t he be gi n ni n g o f this m on th was i n stru c ted t o
w ait for it a n d b ri n g it ov er w ith a ll s p eed It is c ertain that this
v esse l fi rst b ro ught it ha vi n g arri v ed at F a lmo u th o n the 2 4 t h in stan t
O n its p u bl i city in Lon d on w hi ch follow ed as s oon after w ards as po s
s i bl e the c redit o f a ll t h e Sp a n ish Ameri ca n s e cu rities immediate ly
ro se a n d t h e q u esti on of the fina l and co m pl ete sa fety of t he ne w
S tate s fro m a ll E u rop ean co erci on is n ow considered as at re st
I h av e the h on or t o re mai n w ith v ery gre at re s p e ct yo u r O b t s er v t
1
R I C H AR D RU S H
1 F r om t h e A dam s M S S
fo r
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JOHN
I
Y
U
A
D
NC
M
A
S
Q
E M AN CIP A T I O N U N D E R M A R T I A L L A W ( 1 81 9
BY
CHA RLE S FRA NC I S A D AM S
-
1 84 2 )
U
I
Y
C
N
Q
JOHN
AD AM S
AN D
EMANCI PATI ON UN DER MA RTIA L L AW ( 1 8 1 9
re c e n tly a v ery sugges t i v e E n gli sh book j us t
”
fr o m t he p ress e n titl ed I mp e r i u m e t L ib er t as I c a m e a c r o ss
S i r M o u n t s t uar t G ra n t D u ff re co rds in h i s
t h e follo w i n g :
N ot es fr om a D i ary t h e sayin g o f a n O l d E n gli sh J esu i t :
I t i s sur p r i s i n g h o w m u ch g oo d a m a n m a y d o i n t he w o rl d
i f he a llo w s o t hers to t a k e t h e c red i t o f i t
T h i s p reg n a nt i f s o m e w ha t cyni c al u tt era n c e w as re c all ed
to my m e mo ry by t he p a p er n a t u r a lly i n t eres tin g t o m e j us t
read by M r F o rd L ookin g b a ck o v er t he h i s to ry of t h e Uni t ed
S t a t es durin g t he l as t c e n t ury I t h ink t here w o u l d b e a ge n
era l c on c urre n c e of opin i on t ha t t h e t w o m o s t not a bl e u tt er
a n e c s o f p res i de n t s o f t he Un i t ed S t a t es durin g t he w h ol e
h u n dred y ears w ere t he p res i de n ti a l M essage o f 1 8 2 3 in wh i c h
”
th e
M on r o e D o c t r i n e s o c all ed w as e n u n ci a t ed a n d t he
E m a n c ip a tion P r o cl a m a t ion o f P res i de n t L in c oln o f J a n uar y
1 1 86 3
T h o ugh se p ara t e d o n e fr o m t he o t her by fo r ty y ears
o f ti m e t h e in fl ue n c e o f t h o se t w o p r on u n c i a m e nto s — fo r bot h
o f t he m
w ere p ron u n c i a m e nto s i n t h e s t r i c t se n se o f t he
w o rd — i s s till fe lt a n d t he y are c on s t a ntly re ferre d to i n
fa mili ar s p ee c h
E ve ry on e for i n s t an c e kno w s to a c er t a in
e xt e n t w ha t i s m ea n t w h e n re fere n c e i s made to t he M o n r o e
D o c t r in e O r t o th e E ma n c ip a tion P r o cl a m a tion I n c om m on
p arl a n c e t he de fin i t e
i s a l w ay s p re fix e d to ea ch
I n t h e p a p er j us t read M r F o rd has sh o w n t ha t t h o u gh
t h e fa mo us d o c t r in e se t fo r t h
c a ll ed by t he n a m e o f M o n r o e
i n t h e M essage o f 1 823 o r i g in a t ed a lmo s t v er ba t i m l i t er a t i m e t
a n ct u a t i m as w e ll as in s c op e a n d s pi r it w i t h M on r o e s S e c
p
f
S
t
a
t
e
I
n
v
i
e
w
O f t h e c ontin ue d a n d lon g d i s c uss ion
r e t ar
o
y
R E AD I N G
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72
as to au t h o rshi p w he t her t he d o ct ri n e i n q ues tion t ook i t s
shap e w i t h P res i de nt or Se cre t ary i t i s a m a tt er of no littl e
surp ri se to m e t ha t t h e d o c u m e n t ary e v i d e n c e j us t p r o du c ed
by Mr F o rd n o w fi rs t se es t he l igh t I t has q u i e tly re po se d
i n t h e fil es at Q u in cy p erfe c tly a c c ess ibl e t hr o ugh mo re t ha n
Ye t s t ra n ge as it a pp ears a n d i s i t n e v er o c
fo r ty y ears
a n d a pp are ntly it n e v er
c urred to m e t o look fo r i t b e fo re
o c c urred t o my fa t he r s o to d o w he n at w o r k on t h e M e mo i rs
”
M u ch in cl uded in t ha t p u bl i c a tion mi gh t
o f J Q A da m s
ha v e b e e n om i t t ed t o ad v a n t age i f t h e d o c u m e nt s M r
F o rd h as t o da y b ro ugh t t o li gh t h ad t here fo u n d a pl a c e
i n s t ead
A s t o P resi de n t Li n c oln s P r o cl a m a t i on o f E m a n cip a tion , t h e
se c on d mo s t me m o ra bl e p res i de nti a l u t t era n c e of a c e n t ury i t
i s a fa c t t h o ugh o n e w h i c h has n o t y e t fo u n d i t s fu lly re c o g
ni z ed pl a ce i n h i s to ry t ha t Mon r o e s S e cre t ary o f S t a t e w as
hard ly l ess clo se ly i de ntifi e d w i th i t t ha n w it h t he fi rs t hardly
l ess me mo ra bl e a n d fa mo us u tt era n c e o f fo r ty y ears p re v i o us
A y ear ag o I had o cc as ion to de li v er a n address at t h e ded i ca
t ion o f t h e b u i l d in g o f t h e S t a t e Hi s t o r i c a l S o ci e t y a t Mad i s on
Wi s con s i n I n t h e c o urse o f t ha t address my s u bj e c t l ed me
to re fer t o t he a t t it ude t ak e n by J Q A da m s i n c er t a i n m e mo;
it
rabl e e pi s o des o f h i s C on gress ion a l l i fe c onn e c t e d w i t h t h e
grea t S l a v ery de b a t e a n d I c all ed a t t e n tion to t he fa ct t ha t he
t he n e n u n ci at ed th e p r i n c ipl e o f c on s tit u tion al i nt er n a tio na l
l aw w hi ch a ft er w ards fur ni shed t h e b as i s o f L in c oln s Pr o cl a
ma tion T h o ugh mo re t ha n t w e nty
u t t era n c e s cl early bl a ze d t he p a t h t o t ha t grea t s t at e p ap e r
a n d i t s far rea ch in g c on se q ue n c es
So
T h e re co rd o n t h i s point is o f m u ch h i s to r i c a l i n t eres t
far as I de v e lop e d i t in t h e address to w h i ch I ha v e re ferre d
at M ad i s on I p r opo se fo r t he p ur po se o f c on v e ni e n t re fere n c e
to in c o rpo ra t e i t i n o ur P r o ceed in gs w i t h M r F o rd s p a pe r i n
t h i s w ay b r in g i n g t h e c onn e c ti on o f J Q A da m s w it h on e o f
t h o se i mpo r t a n t S t a t e p a p ers i n c lo se c onj un c tion w i t h h i s
c onn e c tion w i t h t h e ot her
I n d oin g s o mo re o v er s t i m u l a t ed by t he su ccess w h i ch has
a t t e n ded M r F o rd s e x a min a tion o f t he fil es in c onn e c tion
w i t h t he M on r o e d o c t rin e I ha v e p u t t he p a p ers a t Q u in cy t o
a s i m i l ar e x a m in a tion i n c onn e c tion w it h t h e E m a n cipa tion
P r o cl a m a t i on I no w t here fo re in c o rpo r a t e i n to t h e P r o c eed
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74
my min d on th o se t wo po i nt s the s tu rdies t o f th e a boliti oni s t s woul d ha v e
d i sa vo wed the s e ntim e nt s o f the i r champ i on
’
.
“
A li ttl e m o re
A da m s m ade t he
se v e n w ee k s a ft er t hus w ri t i n g M r
follo w i n g e n t r i es i n h i s d i ary
t ha n
,
.
#5 5 "
M ay 2 5 i h
A t the Hou se the motion o f Rob er ts on t o re comm i t
Pi n ck n e y s s l av ery r e po r t w i th in s t r u ct i on s to re po r t a res olution de
n o con s titut i on a l a uth o r ity to a bol ish s l a v e r y
c l ar i n
t
ha
t
Con
gress
has
g
in t h e D is t ri ct o f Columbia as an a m e n dm e nt to the moti on fo r p ri ntin g
a n e xt r a numb er o f the re po r t w as fi rs t con sidered Rob er ts on fi ni shed
his s p ee ch w hi ch w as v ehe m e nt
I mm edi a t e ly a ft er the conclu si on o f Rob er t s on s s p e e ch I addressed
the Sp ea ke r but he ga v e the floo r to O we n s o f G e o rgia on e o f the
s i g nin g m e mb e rs O f the comm i tt ee wh o mov ed the p re v i ou s qu e sti on
a n d re fu sed to w i thdra w i t I t w as se con d ed a n d c arr i ed by y e as a n d
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,
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Da
s
y
.
The h ou r o f on e c a m e a n d t he o rder o f th e day w as c all ed — a
j oint res olution from the S e n a t e a uth o ri zin g the P reside nt to c a u se
ra ti on s t o b e fu r n ished to s ufferin g fu gi ti ve s fr om In d i a n h o s til i ti es in
Al a b a m a a n d G e o rg i a Comm i tt ee o f the w h ol e o n the Un ion a n d a
d e b a t e O f fi v e h ou rs in w hi ch I m ade a s p ee ch o f a bou t a n h ou r w herei n
I op en ed the w h ol e s ubje ct of the Me x i ca n I n dia n N egr o a n d E n gl ish
w ar
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“
w as in t h e c o urse o f t h i s s p ee c h t ha t M r A da m s fi rs t
e n u n c i a t e d t he p rin cipl e o f e m a n cip a tion t hr o ugh mar ti a l l a w
H e d i d s o in
i n fo r c e u n der t he C on s t i t u tion i n ti me o f w ar
t h e follo w in g p assage :
It
.
,
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.
?
o
r
C
ha
i
r
m
a
n
are
read
y
f
o
r
a
ll
t
hese
w
a
s
A
Me
x
i
c
a
n
u
Mr
y
A ge n era l I n
w ar ? A w ar w i th G rea t Br it ai n i f not w i th F ra n ce
?
A s e rvil e w ar ? A n d as an i n e v ita bl e con se q u enc e o f the m
d i a n w ar
all a civil w ar ? F o r it mu s t ulti m a t e ly t ermin a t e in a w ar o f colo rs as
w e ll as o f ra c es An d do you im agi n e tha t w h il e with you r e y es op e n
ou are w i l f ully k i n d l i n g a n d the n clo si n g you r e y es a n d blin d ly r u sh in g
y
i nto the m ; d o you i m ag in e tha t whi l e in the v e ry n a tu re o f th i n gs you r
o w n Souther n a n d South w es t er n St a t es mu s t b e t he Fl a n ders o f thes e
complic a t ed w ars the b a ttl e fi el d o n whi ch the l as t grea t b a ttl e mu s t b e
fou gh t b e tw ee n s l a v ery a n d e m a ncip a ti on ; d o yo u i m ag in e tha t yo ur
Co n gress will hav e no co n s tituti on a l a uth o rity to i nt er fere w i th the i n
Si r
s t i t u t i o n o f s l a v er y i n a n y w ay in the St a t es o f th i s Con federa cy ?
the y mu s t a n d will i nter fe re with i t — p erha p s t o s u s tai n i t by w ar ;
p erha p s t o abol ish it by t rea ti es o f p e ac e a n d the y w i ll not only po s
“ ‘
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75
sess the con s ti tution a l po we r s o to i n te r fere but th ey w ill be boun d i n
d uty t o d o i t by the e xp ress p rovision s of th e Con s ti tuti on it se l f F r om
th e i n s t a nt tha t yo ur s l av e h ol di n g Sta te s b e co m e the thea t re o f w ar
civ il s e r vil e o r fo reign from tha t i n s t a nt th e w ar pow ers o f Co n gress
e xte n d to i nte rfere nc e w i th the i n s titution o f s l a v ery i n e v ery w a y i n
wh i ch i t can b e i nt erfer e d w i th fr o m a cl ai m o f i n de mn i ty fo r s l av es
t aken o r de s t roy ed to th e cessi on o f the Sta te bu rde n ed w i th s l a v e ry to
a fo reig n pow er
,
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-
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’
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The follo w in g re fere n c es to t h i s s p ee ch are t he n fo u n d i n
d i ary
th e
occup ied a ll t h e l eis u re O f the day a n d e v e n i n g
i n w ri tin g out fo r p ubl i c a ti on m y s p e e ch m ade l as t W ed n esday i n the
H o u se o f R e p r e s e nta ti v es — on e o f the mo s t hazard ou s tha t I e v er
m a de a n d the r e ce pti on o f w hi ch e ve n by the p e opl e o f my own D i s t ri ct
a n d St a t e is a lto g e th e r unc e r tai n
“
J an e 2 d
My S p ee ch on the dis t ri buti on o f ra ti on s to the fu gi
t i v e s fr o m I n dia n h o s til i ties i n A l ab a m a a n d G e o rgia w as publi sh e d in
the N a tion al I ntelli ge nc er o f th i s mo r n i n g a n d a s ub s cr ipt i on p a p er w as
cir cul a t ed i n th e Hou se fo r p ri ntin g i t in a p a mp hl e t fo r whi ch G al es
tol d m e there w ere tw e nty five h un dred C opi es o rde r e d S ev era l m e m
b ers o f the Hou se of both p ar ti e s s pok e o f it t o m e s om e w i th s t r o n g
d i sse nt
Ju n e 1 9 th
My s p e e ch o n th e ra ti on s com es b a ck w i th e ch oe s of
th un deri n g vi tup e ra tion fro m th e South a n d W e s t an d wi th o n e un i ve r
sa l shout o f a ppl a u s e fr o m the No r th a n d E as t This is a c a u se upon
whi ch I a m e nt eri n g a t th e l as t s t age o f l ife a n d wi th the c er t a inty tha t
I ca nnot ad v a nc e i n i t far ; my c areer mu s t clo s e l ea v i n g th e ca u se a t
the thresh ol d T o O p e n the w ay fo r others is a ll tha t I ca n d o Th e
ca u s e is goo d and grea t
i
ll ay 2 9 t h
I was
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S o far as t he re c o rd g o es t he d o c t r i n e w as n o t aga in pr o
po u n ded by M r A da m s u ntil 1 84 1 O n t he 7 t h o f J u n e o f
t ha t y e ar he m ade a s p e e c h i n t h e Ho use o f R e p rese nt a ti v es in
su ppo r t o f a mo tion for t he re p eal o f t he t w e n ty fir s t r u l e o f
t h e Ho use c om m only kno w n as t he A t her ton G a
t
h
s
f
i
O
g
s p ee c h no re po r t e xi s t s b u t i n t h e c o urse o f i t he aga i n e n u n
c i at e d t he m ar t i a l l a w t he o ry o f e m a n c ip a tion
T he n e x t da y
he w as follo w e d in de b a t e by C J I n gers oll of P e nn syl v a ni a
c ha i r m a n o f t he C om mitt ee on
F o re i g n A ffa i rs w h o took
o cc as ion to de cl are t ha t w ha t he had heard t h e day p re v io us
had m ade h i s bloo d c urd l e w ith h o rr o r
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76
Mr Ada m s h e re r o s e i n e xpl a n a ti on a n d sa i d h e d id not say tha t
i n the e ve nt of a s er v il e w ar o f i n s u rre ction of sl a v es the Con s tituti on
o f the Unit ed S ta t e s woul d b e a t a n e n d
W ha t he d i d say w as th i s tha t
i n the e v e nt of a ser vil e w ar o r in s u rre ction O f sl av es i f the p e opl e o f
the fr ee St a te s w ere c all ed upon to s upp ress the i n s u rre ction an d to
s p e n d their bloo d a n d t r eas u re in putti n g a n e n d t o the w ar a war in
whi ch th e dis tin g ui shed V irgi n ia n the auth o r o f the D e cl ara ti on o f I n
”
de p e n de nc e had said tha t God has no a tt r ibute i n favo r o f the m as te r
—
the n he woul d not say tha t Con gre ss m igh t n o t i nt erfere w i th the
i n s ti tuti on o f s l av e ry i n th e S ta t es a n d tha t thr ou gh the tr eaty maki n g
o we r un i v ersa l e m a nci p a ti on m igh t not b e t he r e s ult
p
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-
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The follo w i n g y ea r t he c on t e ntion w as aga i n d i s c ussed l n
t he c o urse o f t he m e mo ra bl e de b a t e o n t he H a v erh ill P e t i
t ion
Mr A da m s w as t he n bitt erly assa il ed by H e n ry A
W i se o f V i rgi ni a a n d T h om as F M arshall o f " e nt u cky Mr
A da m s a t th e ti m e d i d n o t re ply to t he m o n t h i s head ; b u t ,
on t h e fi
l th O f t h e follo w in g A p r il o c cas ion o ffered a n d he
t he n on c e mo re l a i d d o w n t he l a w o n t h e su bj e c t as he u n der
s too d i t a n d as i t w as su b se q ue ntly p u t i n fo rc e :
“
’
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,
I woul d l ea v e tha t in s tituti on to t h e e xclu si v e con sidera ti on a n d
m an age m e nt o f the Sta t es mo re p e culi arly int eres te d i n i t j u s t as lo n g
as the y c a n k ee p w i thi n their o wn boun ds S O far I ad m i t tha t Con
gress has no pow er to m eddl e w i th i t As lon g as they d o not s te p out
o f t heir O wn boun ds a n d d o not put t he q u es t i on to the p e opl e O f the
Unit ed St a t es w h o se p ea c e w el fare a n d ha pp in ess are all a t s t a ke s o
lon g I w i ll agree to l eav e the m to t he m se lv es B ut w he n a m e mber
fr om a free St a t e b r in gs fo r w ard c er t ai n res oluti on s fo r wh ich i n s t ead
o f r eas o n in g to dis p r ov e his po s iti on s you vot e a c e n s u re upon hi m a n d
tha t wi th out hear i n g i t is q uit e a nother affair A t t h e ti m e this w as
d on e I sa id tha t as far as I coul d un d e rs t a n d the res olution s p r o
po sed by t he ge ntl e m a n fr om Oh io [M n G idd in gs ] there w ere s om e o f
the m fo r w h ich I was ready to vot e a n d s om e whi ch I mu s t vot e agai n s t ;
a n d I will now t e ll th i s Hou se my co n s ti tu e n t s a n d the wo rl d o f m a n
kin d tha t the res olution aga in s t wh ich I sh o ul d ha v e vot ed was tha t in
wh ich he de cl ares tha t wha t are c all e d the s l a v e Sta t es hav e the e xclu
s i v e r i gh t O f co n s ult a tion on the s ubje ct o f s l a v ery Fo r tha t res oluti on
I n e v er woul d vote b e c a u se I b e l ie v e tha t i t i s not j u s t a n d do es n o t
cont ai n con s ti tution a l d oct rin e I b e l ie v e tha t so lon g as the sl a ve
S ta t es are a bl e to su s t ai n their i n s ti tution s w i th ou t g oin g a b r o ad or
c a llin g upon other p ar t s o f the Un i on to a i d t h e m o r a ct on t h e s u bje ct
s o lo n g I w i ll con se nt ne v er to i nt er fere
i “ I hav e said this a n d I r e p e a t i t bu t i f th ey com e t o th e fr ee St a t e s
;
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a
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77
a n d s ay t o th e m you mu s t he lp u s to k e e p down o u r sl a v e s yo u m ust
aid u s i n a n i n s u rre cti on an d a ci vi l w ar the n I say tha t w i th tha t c all
co me s a full a n d pl e n ar y po we r to th i s Hou se a n d to th e S en a t e ov e r
the wh ol e s ubje ct I t is a w ar powe r I say i t is a w ar pow er a n d
wh e n you r countr y is actu ally i n war w he ther i t b e a w ar o f i nv asi on
o r a w ar o f
has pow er t o c arry o n th e w ar a n d
mu s t ca r ry i t o n a cco rdi n g to the l a w s o f w ar ; a n d by the l a w s o f w ar
an i nv aded count r y has a ll i t s l a w s a n d m un i ci p a l i n s ti tuti on s s w e pt by
the bo ard a n d m ar tia l l a w t ak es the pl a ce of th e m Thi s powe r i n
Con gress h as p erha p s n e ve r b ee n call e d i nto e x e r cise un der the p re s
e nt Con s ti tuti on of th e Un ited St a t e s B ut w he n the l a w s o f w ar are
i n fo r c e wha t I as k is on e o f th o se l a w s ? I t is thi s : tha t w he n a
country is i nvade d a n d two h o s til e ar mies ar e se t i n m ar tia l arra y the
comm a n de rs o f both ar m ies hav e powe r to e m a nci p a t e a ll th e s l a v e s i n
"
t he i nv ad ed te rri to ry r No r is th i s a m ere the o re ti c s t a t e m e nt The
h i s to r y O f South A m eri c a sh ow s tha t the d octri n e has b ee n c arri e d i nto
p racti c a l e x e cuti o n w i thi n th e l as t th i r ty y ears Sl a v er y w as abol ished
i n Colombia fi rs t by the Sp a n ish G e n era l M o rillo an d se con dly by
t h e A m eri ca n G e n era l B ol i v a r
I t w as abolished by v ir tu e of a m il i
tar y comm a n d gi v e n a t the head o f the ar my a n d i t s abol i ti on continu es
to be l a w to this da y I t w as abol ished by the l a w s o f w ar a n d not by
mun i cip a l e n a ctm e nt s ; the pow er w as e x er cised by mil i t ary comm a n d
e r s un de r i n s t r ucti on s o f cou rse fr om t heir r e s p e ct i ve G ov er nm e nt s
A n d here I re cu r aga in to the e x a mpl e o f G e n eral Ja ck s on W ha t are
u now a bout i n Con gress ?
o
Y
u
are
p
ass
in
g
a
gra
nt
re
f
un
d
to
o
t
o
y
G e n era l J a cks on t h e a mount o f a c er t ai n fin e i mpo s e d upon him by a
Judge un de r the l a w s o f the S ta t e o f Lou isia n a
Yo u ar e g o i n g to r e
fun d hi m the mon e y w i th i nte res t an d this you are g o i n g to d o b e cau s e
the i mpo si ti on o f the fin e w as unj u s t A n d wh y w as i t unj u s t ? Be
c au s e G e n e ra l Ja ck s o n w as a cti n g un d e r the l a w s o f w ar a n d b e c au se
the mom e nt you pl a ce a m il i t ary comm a n der i n a dis t ri ct whi ch is t he
thea t re o f w ar the l a w s O f w ar a pply t o tha t dis tri ct
I m igh t fu r n ish a thou sa n d p r oo fs to sh ow tha t th e p re te n sion s o f
ge ntl e me n to the sa ncti ty o f their mun i c i p a l i n s ti tution s u n der a s t a t e
o f a ctu a l i nv asi on a n d o f a ctu a l w ar whe ther ser vi l e civil o r fo reig n
is wh olly un foun ded an d tha t the l aw s o f w ar d o in a ll s uch c ases t ak e
the p re cede n ce I l a y this d own as the l a w o f n a ti on s ‘1 sa y tha t the
m i l i t ary a uth o ri ty t a k es fo r the t i m e the pl a c e o f a ll mun i ci p a l i n s t i t u
tion s a n d s l a v ery a mon g the res t ; an d tha t un d e r tha t s t a t e o f th in gs
s o far fr om i ts b ein g tr u e tha t the St a t es w here s l a v ery e x is t s ha v e
the e xclu s iv e m a n age m e nt O f the s ubje ct not only th e P re side nt o f th e
Un i t ed St a te s but the comm a n der o f the ar my h as pow e r t o o rde r the
un i v ersa l e m a nci p a t ion o f the sl av e s I ha v e giv e n h e re mo re i n de t ai l
a p ri ncipl e whi ch I hav e as s er te d on this floo r b efo re now an d o f whi ch
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78
I ha ve no mo re d oub t th an tha t you S ir occupy th a t C hair I gi v e i t
i n i ts de ve lopm ent i n o rder tha t a ny ge ntl e m a n fr om a ny p ar t o f t h e
Union m ay if he thi nk s p r op er de ny th e t r uth o f th e po s ition a n d m ay
m ai nt ai n h i s de ni a l ; n o t by i n d i gn a ti on not by p assi on a n d fu ry but
by s oun d a n d s ob er reas onin g fr om the l a w s o f n a ti on s a n d the l a w s o f
w ar A n d i f my po si tion c a n be a n s w er e d a n d re fut ed I shall re c eiv e
the re futa t i on wi th pl e as u re ; I shall b e gl ad to li s t e n t o reas on aside
of reas on
as I s a
f
r
o
m
i
n
dig
n
a
t
i
on
a
n
d
p
assi
on
A
n
d
i
f
by
t
h
e
f
o
r
c
e
y
in g my un ders t a n din g can b e conv i nced I he re pl edge my s el f to re cant
wha t I ha v e asser te d
L e t my po si ti on b e a n s w e re d l e t m e b e tol d l e t my con s ti tu e nt s
b e tol d the p e opl e o f my Sta t e b e tol d
a State wh o se s o i l tol era te s
not t h e foot o f a sl a v e — tha t th ey are boun d by th e Con s ti tuti on to
a lon g a n d to il s om e m ar ch un der bu r n i n g s umm e r s un s a n d a d e adly
Souther n clim e fo r th e s upp ressi on Of a ser v i l e w ar ; tha t the y are
boun d to le av e thei r bodi es to r ot upon the sa n ds of C ar ol i n a t o l ea v e
their w i v e s a n d their chi l dre n o r pha n s tha t th o se w h o c a nnot m ar ch
are boun d to pou r ou t their t reas u r e s w h il e th e ir s on s o r b r others ar e
pou ri n g o u t th e ir bloo d to s upp re ss a serv il e combi n e d w i th a ci vi l o r
a fo reig n w ar a n d y e t tha t there e xis t s no pow er b eyon d the l i m i t s o f
the sl a v e Sta te wh e re s uch w ar i s ragi n g to e m a nci p a t e the sl a v es I s ay
l e t this b e p r ov ed
I a m O pe n to convi cti on but till tha t conv i cti on
com es I put i t fo r th not as a dictat e o f f eel i n g but as a s e ttl ed m a x i m
o f th e l a ws o f n a ti on s t ha t i n s uc h a case t h e m i l i t ary s u p ers e des the
ci vil pow er
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Wit h on e e x c e ption , t h e only c om me nt on t h i s u t t era n c e
m ade by M r A da m s i n h i s d i ary w as t h e follo w i n g : M y
s p ee ch o f t h i s da y s t u n g t h e sl av e o cr acy to m ad n ess
“
M r A da m s d o es n o t see m t o ha v e re ferred t o t h e su bj e ct
aga in o n t h e floo r o f t h e Ho use o f R e p rese nt a t i v es n or i s a ny
a ll us ion to i t fo u n d i n h i s su b se q ue n t p u bli she d u tt era n c es
Hi s e n u n ci a tion o f t he p r i n c ipl e h o w e v er w as n o t fo rg ott e n
T he C i v i l W ar b r ok e o u t e x a c tly nin e t e e n y ears fr o m t he t i m e
o f R e pr e
t
h
A
p
r
l
t
ha
t
M
r
A
da
m
s
de
li
v
ered
in
Ho
use
i
2
1
4
e
8
(
)
s e n t a t i v e s t he s p ee c h fr o m w h i c h t h e l as t o f t he fo reg oin g e x
t ra c t s w as t a k e n D ur in g t h e fi rs t y ear o f t he w ar o n t he 3 0t h
o f A ugus t 1 8 6 1 M ajo r G e n era l Jo h n C F r em on t t he n in c o m
ma n d o f t h e M ilit ary D e p ar tm e nt o f t h e W es t i ssued a p r o c
l amat i o n in w h i c h , a mon g o t her t h in gs w as t h e follo w in g
w h o sh a ll
t h e sla v e s
o f a ll p ers on s i n t he S t a t e o f M i ss o ur i
t ak e u p ar m s aga in s t t he Unit e d S t a t es
are here by d e
Th i s p r o cl a m a t i on , a ft er w ards re v ok ed by
cl ar e d fre e m e n
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79
P res i de n t L in coln im m ed i a t e ly a tt ra c t ed m u ch noti c e , an d
w as w i de ly d i s c ussed T he N e w Yo r k T r ib u n e in i t s i ssu e
‘
1 8 6 1 c ont a i n ed a n ed ito r i a l e nti tl ed Jo h n
o f S e pt e mb er 1
Q u in c y A da m s o n S l a v ery E m a n c ip a tion as A ff e c t e d by W ar
i n w h i c h t h e p r in cipl es l a i d d o w n in t he s p e e ch o f 1 84 2 w ere
q u ot e d a n d a ppl i ed t o t he a c t i on o f G e n era l F r em ont The
ar ti cl e w as v ery ge n era lly re pr int ed a n d t h e re c o r d fur ther e x
a mi n e d
S u b se q ue ntly C har l es S u mn er made fu ll use of t he
ma t er i a l t hus c oll e c t ed in a s p ee c h de li v ere d b e fo re t h e R e p u b
l i ca n S t a t e C on v e ntion a t Wo r c es t er Massa chuse t t s O c tob er
M r S u m n er t he n sa i d : NO a t t e mp t to a n s w er [M r
1
A da ms ] w as e v e r made
M ea n w h il e h i s w o rds ha v e s too d
as a to w er in g l a n d m ark a n d b ea con
F i n ally M r Willi a m
W h i tin g , o f Bo s ton , t he n S oli c i t o r o f t he W ar D e p ar tm e nt
i n c o rpo ra t ed ( pp 7 7— 8 2) n e arly a ll t he e xt ra c t s u sed by M r
Su m n er i n a p a mp h l e t e ntitl ed The W ar Po w ers o f t he
P res i de nt p u bli shed by h i m dur i n g t h e su m m e r o f 1 8 6 2
s om e m on t hs b e fo re t he i ssua n ce o f L i n c oln s p re li mi n ary
”
p r o cl a m a tion O f t he 2 2d o f t he follo w in g S e pt e mb er
S o m u c h for t he re c o rd on t h i s s u bj e c t here to fo re p u bli she d
”
“
M e moi rs a n d t he u np u bli shed fil es at
I n o w t ur n t o t h e
“
Q u in cy T he M e m oi rs se e m to i n d i c a t e t ha t t h i s q ues tion
fi rs t o cc u pi ed t he a t t e n t i on o f M r A dams s ixt ee n y ears b e fo re
d eli v erin g h i s s p e e c h o f A p r il 1 8 36 in t he Ho use o f Re pr e
w i t h t he fa m o us d i s c uss ion
a n d in
c onn e c tion
s e n t at i v e s
w h i ch l ed t o t h e s o c a ll ed M i ss o uri C o mp r o mi se o f 1 8 2 0
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D ec ember 27 , 1 8 1 9
H is [Jefle r son s ] D e cl ara t i on of I n de
n de n c e is a n a b r i dged A lco r a n o f pol i ti c a l d oct ri n e l ay i n g O p e n the
e
p
fi rs t foun da tion s o f c ivi l s ocie ty ; but he d o es not a pp e ar to h a v e be e n
a w are th a t it a l s o l aid O p e n a p re cipic e i nto w hi ch the s l a v e h ol d in g
pl a nt ers O f his count ry s oon er or l a t er mu s t fall
Th e s e eds o f the
D e cl ara ti on o f I n de p e n de nc e ar e y e t m a tu rin g
Th e har v es t w ill b e
w h a t W es t the p ai nt er c a ll s the te rri bl e s ubl i m e
’
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-
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”
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,
M r A da m s at t ha t t im e w as Se c re t ary o f S t a t e in t he fi rs t
M on r o e ad mini s t ra tion in w h i c h J o h n C C al h o u n a l s o ser v e d
as head o f t he War D e p ar tm e nt T he q u es t i on o f s l a v ery
t he n fi rs t p rese nt ed i t se l f as a se ct ion a l i ssue a n d w as t he
su bj e ct o f a n gry de b a t e
.
,
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,
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1
W o rk s
,
v ol . v i
.
—23 ; a
19
pp
.
l so v o l
.
v ii
.
p 1 42
.
.
80
Th e Miss ou ri q u es ti on has tak e n s uch h ol d o f
my fe e lin gs a n d im agi n a ti on tha t fi n din g m y ide as conn e ct ed wi th i t
v ery num e r ou s but con fu sed fo r w a nt of arra n ge m e nt I hav e within
these fe w day s b e gu n to comm i t the m to p a p er loo se ly as the y ari se in
my mi n d There are v ie w s o f the s ubje ct wh ich ha v e not y e t be e n t a k e n
by a ny of the s p eak ers o r w ri ters by wh om i t has b ee n dis cu ssed v ie w s
whi ch the ti m e h as n o t y e t arri v ed fo r p res e ntin g t o the publ ic but which
in all p r ob a bil i ty i t w ill b e n e c essary to p rese nt hereafte r I tak e i t fo r
gra nt ed tha t the p res e nt q u es tion is a m ere p rea mbl e a titl e p age t o a
grea t t r agi c volum e I ha v e hi ther to res e r v ed my O pin i o n s u pon i t as
it has b ee n O bviou sly p r op er fo r m e to d o The ti me m ay a n d I thi nk
will com e whe n i t will b e my d uty e q u ally cl ear to give my O pi n i on
a n d i t is e v e n now p r op e r fo r m e to b egi n the p re p ara tion o f my sel f fo r
tha t e m e rge ncy The P res ide nt thi n k s this qu es tion will b e wink ed
B ut s o d o not I M uch a m I m is t ak e n i f i t is
a w a y by a comp r omi se
”
not des tined to s u r vi v e his politic a l a n d i n di vid ua l life a n d min e
Ja n u a r y 1 0, 1 8 20
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The follo w in g c o n v ersa tion i s re co rded as ha v i n g a t t h i s t im e
t ak e n pl a c e b e t w ee n M r A da m s a n d Mr C al h o u n
.
.
s om e conv ersa tion w i th C a lh oun on the
sl a v e q u e sti on p e n d in g i n Con gress H e said he did n o t th ink i t woul d
p ro d u ce a d i ss olution o f the Union but i f it s h oul d the South woul d
b e fr om n e c ess ity comp e ll ed t o fo r m a n a ll ia nc e o ffe n s iv e a n d de fe n s iv e
with G rea t Bri tai n
I said tha t woul d b e r e tu r nin g t o the colon ia l s ta t e
“
H e said y e s p re tty much but i t woul d b e fo r c ed upon th e m
I p ress e d th e conve rsa ti on no fu r th e r ; but if th e diss olution o f the
Un ion sh oul d r es ult fr o m the s l a v e q u e s ti on i t i s as O bvi ou s as a ny
thin g th at c a n b e fo r e see n o f futu ri ty tha t i t mu s t sh o r tly a ft er
w ards b e follow e d by t h e univ ersa l e ma ncip a ti on o f the s l a v es
Sl a ve ry i s the grea t a n d foul s t ai n upon the No r th Am eri ca n Union a n d
it is a cont e mpl ation wo r thy o f the m o s t e x alt ed s oul w he ther i t s tot al
a bol i tion is o r i s not p ra cti ca bl e : i f p ra ctic abl e by wha t m ea n s i t may
be e flecte d a n d if a choic e o f m ea n s be w i thi n th e S cop e of the O bje ct
wha t mea n s woul d a ccompl ish i t a t the s m all e s t co s t O f h um a n s uffe r
A diss oluti o n a t l eas t t e mpo rary o f the Un i on as now con s ti
anc e
t u t e d woul d b e c er t ai nly n e c essar y an d the d i ss ol ut i on mu s t b e u pon a
point involvi n g the qu es tion o f sl a v ery a n d no other The Un i on mi gh t
th e n b e re o rga n ized on the fun da m e nta l p r incipl e O f e m a ncip a ti on
This O bje ct is v as t i n its comp ass a w ful i n i t s p r o s p e ct s s ubl i m e a n d
b ea uti ful i n i t s iss u e A l i fe de vot ed to i t would b e n obly s p e nt o r
”
sacri fice d
2 9 1 82 0
I f s l a v ery b e the des ti n ed s wo rd i n the h an d
ge l wh ich i s t o se v e r the ti e s o f this Un i on th e
F e br u a r y 2 4 , 1 8 2 0
I h ad
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82
ploy ed two h ou rs i n r e visi n g th e m a n d foun d v e r y fe w a n d sli gh t co r
re ction s t o m ak e This s p ee ch w as m ade un der dee p a n d s ol e mn
conv i cti on of d uty I ts iss u es are with the F a ther O f s pi r its I mu s t
a bide by i ts con se q u e nces May the y b e a u sp i ci ou s t o the p ea ce of my
count r y a n d to h um a n fr eedom
,
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.
T he follo w in g e xt ra c t s fr o m
t o t he s p ee ch
th e
c
o rres pon de n c e al s o re l a t e
M A SS M y 7 1 836
D EAR S IR
As to the O pin i on o f you r con s titu e nt s upon the
s ubje ct O f Sl a v er y I sh oul d th i n k a v er y l arge m aj o ri ty o f the m ar e
O ppo sed to i t m a ny o f w h om h ow e v er disa pp r ov e o f the m eas u res o f
the Anti Sl a v ery p ar ty o f whi ch numb er I d o n ot hesi ta t e to say I
am —
Som e O f you r frie nds in th i s D i s t r i ct ar e v ery much int e r es t ed
i n b ehal f o f t h e sl a ve a n d woul d ha v e the m all fre e regardl ess o f con
se qu e nc e s — O u r town with a si n gl e e xc e pt ion h as b e e n fre e from
a ny mob S pi ri t a nd i t has b ee n a grea t rel ie f t o the o rder ly po r tion o f
o u r i n ha b i t a nt s tha t the A nt i Sl a v er y L e ctu rers
hav e k e pt fr om u s
publi c O p i nion i n o u r town is de cidedly agai n s t th e i nc e n d i ary mov e
m e nt s of the fa n a tic a l p ar t of the Abol i ti on p ar ty
An d re m ai n w i th v ery grea t resp e ct
S SAM PS ON
PLY M O U T
H,
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t h i s l e tt er
follo w s :
T
o
S SA
.
M P SON
E sq C o
”
fr om
a
c
.
o n s t i t ue n t M r A da m s re pli ed as
.
lle ctor Of t h e C ust oms
l mouth
Py
-
M ass
t_
fs
W A S H I N G T ON 2 1 M ay 1 836
.
Th i s s ubj e ct o f Sl av e ry whi ch i s grad u a lly an d
irres i s tibly a b s o rbi n g a ll others i n the de l ib era tion s o f Con gress i s as
you kno w o n e o f e xt re m e de lic a cy w i th re fere n c e to th e Un i on o f
these St a t es a n d the compl i c a t ed Sy s t e m o f o u r N a ti on a l an d St a t e
G ov er nm e nt s M y own O p i ni on s u pon the s ubje ct are th o se o f a
n a ti v e o f the Commonw ealth wh o se ch ildre n t ak e p ride i n the r e co l
l e ction tha t i n th e fi rs t C e n s u s o f the P e opl e t a ke n un der the C o n s t i t u
tion o f the Un i t ed S ta t es S h e s too d alon e i n the re tu r n o f the wo rd
“
“
non e upon the column un der the head O f Sl a v es
I h ol d Sl av ery
in utt er a bh o rr e nc e a n d look fo r w ard to th e ti m e w h e n i t Sha ll v a ni sh
fr om the fa c e of th e E ar th as on e o f the grea t s tages in the i mp rov e
m e nt of the condi ti on o f m a n upon thi s t erra q u e ou s glob e
B ut i n the pol i tic al Con s ti tution of thi s Un i on I am un der Bon ds
The P eo pl e o f the fr ee St a t es ( by w h ich I here m ea n the St a t es w i th
o u t Sl a v es) ha v e fo r m ed a feder al comp a ct with th o se i n w hi c h Sl a v ery
fo r m s a p ar t o f their pol i tic a l s y s t e m a n d o f the s ocial con d ition o f
The t er m s o f this comp act I tak e to b e th at so far
t h e i r i nha b i ta nt s
D EA R S I R,
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83
Sl a ve ry is an ins ti tuti on o f i nte r n a l a n d d ome s ti c pol icy th e fr ee
a n d the S l a ve St a t es S hall b e r e s p e cti ve ly l eft by ea ch other to m a n age
th eir o wn a ffairs i n the i r own w a y Tha t Sl a v er y a n d a ll tha t code o f
L a w s by w hi ch i t is es ta bl ishe d a n d m a int ai n ed S ha ll b e l e ft e xclu si v e ly
to th e regul a tion o f the St a t es the m s e lv es i n th eir s e p ara te a n d i n de pe n
de nt c a p a citi es Tha t w i th t he l egis l a tion o f the Sl a v e St a t es upon
th e se s ubj e ct s s o far as i t re l a te s to int er n a l a n d d om es ti c pol i cy w i th
o u t e nc r o a chi n g upon the r i gh t s o f t h e fr e e S ta te s o r o f t heir P e opl e
th e fr e e St a t es shall not i nterfere
A n d the p e opl e of the free S t a t es ha v e i n the n a ti on a l comp a ct g on e
fu r ther They hav e n o t re co g ni z e d Sl a v ery as a l awfu l con d iti on i n
the re l a tion s b e twe e n m e n The y ha v e not a cknowl edged Sl a v ery as
a n el e m e nt o f the common Con s ti tuti on The y ha v e s tu d iou s ly a n d it
mi gh t a lmo s t b e said affe ct edly a vo ided the u se o f the wo rd e v e n w hi l e
m a ki n g p rov isi on fo r the t hi n g B ut i n the s p iri t o f con cess ion t o t h e
Sl a v e h oldi n g Sta t es the y did s ti pul a t e fi rs t tha t the S l a v e h ol de r s
S h oul d b e allow ed a re p r e se nt a ti on i n t h e n a t i on a l L egis l a tu re f o r t h e ir
”
“
Sl a v es un der the w him si c a l de no min a ti on o f a ll other p ers on s a n d
s e con dly tha t t h e v woul d a llo w no re fu ge w i th in the i r bo rd e rs to the
fug itiv e Sl av e n o w des c ri b ed as a p ers on hel d to s e r vi c e o r l abou r
— but woul d d e l i v er u
s
uc
h
p
ers
on
n cl ai m o f th e p ar ty to w h om
o
p
s u ch servi c e o r l a bou r m ay b e d ue
A n d fu r ther the free St a te s ha v e concu rred w i th the Sl a v e h ol d in g
St a t es i n g iv i n g to Con gress th e pow e r t o p r ov ide fo r c a ll in g fo r th the
m ilitia to s upp r ess i n sur r ecti on a n d i n m a k i n g i t th e ir d uty to p r ote ct
ea ch o f the Sl a ve h ol din g S t a te s ( on the a pplic a ti on o f i t s L egis l a tu re
o r o f it s e x e cuti v e w h e n t h e L egis l a tu r e c a nnot b e conv e n e d
aga
in
s
t
)
as
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-
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domest i c
We
i l
v o en ce .
the re fo re boun d by the n a ti on a l comp a ct n ot only to a b s t a in
fr om a ll meas u res t he t e n de ncy o f w h ich woul d b e to p r ovok e i n sur r e c
tion a mon g the Sl a ve s but to g iv e a ll o u r aid a n d e x er ti on s to s upp ress
in s u rr e ction i f it S h oul d b r e a k o u t I c a nnot a pp r ov e there fo re o f the
A nti Sl a v ery Soci e ties no r o f the mov e m e n ts o f the A bol i t i oni s t s u rgin g
l eg i sl a t i v e a cti on fo r the s upp ression o f Sl a v ery No r c a n I vot e fo r
o r s uppo r t the p ra y er o f a ny p e ti tion fo r t h e a boliti on o f Sl av er y o r t he
Sl a v e t rade i n the D is t r ict o f Columbi a a t th i s ti m e
B ut on th e other h a n d I c a nnot s ub s cr ib e to th e d oct rin e tha t the
powe r to e x er ci se excl u si v e l eg i sl a tion i n a ll c as e s wha t s o e v er d o es not
inclu de the po w er to aboli sh Sl a v ery O n the cont rary I h ol d as fi r mly
t o the O pinion tha t i t d o es i nclu de the pow er as I do to the b e l ie f t ha t
there is a r ul er o f the Univ e rse a n d tha t I a m a ccount a bl e t o hi m fo r
my O pi n i on s as w ell as o f my a cti on s The y ar e ar ti cl es O f the sa m e
No r c a n I
fai th a n d i n my m i n d a n d hear t ar e i n diss olubly to ge ther
gi v e my as s ent t o a grea t po r tion of the re po r t o f the se l e ct Commit
ar e
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84
te e to w h om th e A bolition P e ti ti on s w ere re ferred a n d a C opy o f whi ch
I will se n d you wi t h th i s l e tt er I d i sse nt fr om e a ch a n d e v ery on e o f
their r e s olution s the fi rs t an d se con d o f w h ich the y w ere in s t r uct ed by
the Hou se to re po r t ; aga in s t w h ich in s tr uction s I re co rded my vot e
Th e i r third res olution the y w ere not in s t r ucte d to re po r t a n d i t is s till
mo re e xc e ption a bl e tha n the fi rs t two b e c au se it s tr ik es di re ctl y a t the
Con s ti tuti on a l righ t o f P e tition a n d a t th e f re e d om O f de b a t e in the
Hou se I ha ve th ou gh t it p rop er th u s c a n didly to avow to you my opi n io n s
upon this s ubje ct fi rs t as to on e o f my con s titu e nt s h ol d i n g as I b e li e v e
se nti m e nt s p ers on a lly frie n d ly to m e ; a n d se condly as to a n o ffi c er o f
th e G ov er nm e nt un der t h e p rese nt Ad mini s t ra ti o n boun d i n d uty to it s
s uppo r t ; an d p erha p s a pp r ovi n g mo re tha n I a m abl e to d o it s m easu res
a n d it s ge n era l policy I sha ll p r ob ably e xp ress s om e o f these O pin i on s
i n the Hou se b e fo re the clo se o f the p rese nt S ess ion as w e ll as upon
other s u bje ct s i f po ssi bl e s till mo re mom e ntou s a n d upon wh ich my
vi e ws are mo re ad v erse to th o se of the p rese nt Ad mini s tra tion e v e n tha n
the y are to the q u es tion upon Sl av ery a n d the Sl a v e trade wh ich th i s
re po r t has b rou gh t up fo r d i s cu ss ion I a llu de to the Me xi c a n w ar with
wh ich w e are threa t e n ed a n d to the I n dia n a n d N egr o w ar a l ready rag
i n g with in o u r bo rders
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T he follo w in g i s fr o m a l e tt er addresse d to Mr A da m s by
Be nj a m in L u n d y t he w e ll kno w n e m a n c ip a t o r w h o se p r op er ty
w as t wo y ears l a t er des t r oy ed by t he p r o sl a v e ry m ob t h a t
fi red P e nn syl v a ni a H all P h il ade lp h i a
.
-
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,
PH I L A D E LPH I A , 5 t h M o 2 7t h , 1 836
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.
”
E S T EE M E D F RI E N D :
I pe r ci ev e the
i c e is b r ok e n in th e
Hou s e o f R e p res e nt a t i v es P e rse v e ra nc e p er s ev er an ce my frie n d 1
Agai n I a m i n grea t has t e
M o s t R es p e ctfully Thi n e &c
Ho
J Q A D AM S
B LU N D Y
.
,
,
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,
n
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.
T o t h i s Mr
M ay 2 5 :
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A da m s re pli ed re ferri n g to t he s p ee ch
,
M Y F R I E N D BE NJ A M I N LU N D Y — Ph i l ad e lph i a
W A S H I N G T ON 2 Jun e 1 836
,
,
of
.
.
”
Th e i c e is b r ok e n i n t he Hou se o f R e p rese nta ti v es
a n d you will see i n the N a tion a l I nt e lli ge nc e r o f thi s day h ow I ha v e
b ee n obliged to b rea k i t I ha v e not y e t b ee n a bl e to O bt a in p er mi s
si on from the Hou s e to offer the two R es olution s c all i n g fo r in fo r m a tio n
fr om t he P res i de nt re l a t in g to ou r affairs w i th Me xi co no r e v e n to
ass i g n the reas on s fo r my vot e on the Sl a vi sh R es olution s o f the Sl av ery
Commi tt ee B ut I ha v e ta k e n the occ asi on o f a nothe r m eas u re to
thr ow out s om e re fl e ction s o n both th o se s ubje ct s as w e ll as upon o u r
Ye s
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85
Indian War wh i ch I h o pe may lead o u r coun trymen t o think of th e m
The speech will be printed in a pamphlet and I will s end
s eri o usly
you a copy of it
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T he
an d
foll o w i n g l e tters
re pl i e s re l ate
to the
s
a me
sp
e e ch
:
B O RDE NT OW N M ay 30 1 836
D E AR S I R — I trust that you will s oon give us i n exten s o — as i f
it were a full written dis co urse your late speech relating to the
Texian q uestion O n this head o ur countrymen including those o f
—
the middle and northern States
seem to need authoritative lessons
I have been shocked at the pr o flig at e sentiments
o f morality and policy
and dispositio n s which have been s o generally displayed and regard them
altogether as more ominous for the Union and the A merican character
than anything which has oc curred
1 R O B E R T WA L SH
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R O B ER T
W A LS H
E
m B r d t wn N J
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en o
o
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WA S H I NGT O N
,
3
J une
,
1836
.
.
Your Letters o f the
a nd
ultimo have been duly
recei v ed My speech o n the resolution fo r issuing rations to the fugi
t i v e s from Indian Hostilities in Alabama and G eorgia made on the
2 5 ¢ ultimo was published in the National Intelligencer yesterday and
will be printed in a pamphlet The absurd rules o f the House o f Rep
r e s e n t at i v e s
constru ed as they are by a slave holding Speaker sustained
by a presidential electioneering majority seal the lips o f every member
o f the House when the Speaker and maj ority so pleas e
up on t h e s u b
ee t r e a l l
b
H
u se and give unbounded license in Committee
f
e
o
r
e
h
e
o
t
f
y
o f the Whole to s ay anything upon any subject h e the q uestio n be fore
the Committee what it may O n the morning upon which my speech
was made the G ag that is the Previous Question had been applied
to three Resolutions on Sl avery reported by a Committee o n the A bo
l i t i on Petitions
The first of these Resolutions was
“
That Congress possess no Constitutional authority to i n terfer e i n
w
an
a
f
o f the States o f this
with
the
institution
Slavery
in
any
o
y
y
”
Uni on
I had voted with onl y eight other members o f the House against
this resolution and as the sturdiest o f the Abolition Petiti o ns had
n o t denied this positi o n but it had been a dmi t t ed by them all
and as I
kn e w my vote without argument w ould startle multitudes o f my own
constituents I asked o f the House o nl y fiv e minutes o f time to give
my reasons fo r my vote and had been denied I had twi ce asked per
mission o f the House to o ffer two resolutions cal ling for in formation
respecti n g the state o f o u r affairs with Mexico and had been denied
D E AR S I R ,
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The second time by a minority o f the House because it re quires a
maj ority o f two thirds to suspend the Rules
I was there fore c o mpelled to make the Resolution fo r distributing
rations to t h e fugitives from Indian revenge in A labama and G eorgia
the text for a commentary o n Mexico Texas Indian Wars and Treaties
and Slavery ; and to compress into one speech matter redundant fo r
three or four It was accordingly desul t ory and rendered more so by
the perpetual interruptions against which I was obliged to make my
way My Opinion s o n the whole subject presented views so difie r e n t
from th ose of any one here that I scarcely knew how t hey would be
received by any party O n the M e xican subject I was much aided by
the in formation that I had gathered from the papers o f Columbus in
the N ati on a l Ga zett e O n the resoluti o n that Congress possess no
consti tutional power to interfere i n a n y way with the institution of
Slavery in any o f the States o f this Con federacy my po sitions will be
as unexpected to the public as they were to the House Yet t here is
no principle of which I feel more confident N0 one has yet contested
my argument on that point in the House and Mr Wise wh o r epr e
sen t s the District including Southampton in Virginia and who re fused
to vote o n the Resol ution because he denied the right o f Co n gress to
pass any Resolution at all upon the subject distinctly admitted in an
f
me
that
Congress
have
the
constitutional
right
to
inter
ere
s we r i n
g
The right
i n the Institution o f Slavery in the States f or i ts s upp or t
in every way i n the case o f war ap pears to me so
o f inter ference
clear that I know not how i t c an be contested The greatest exciteme n t
apparent in the House was o n the charges against the policy o f t h e
present Administration towards the Indians and particularly against
G eorgia and Alabama Feeble answers were attempted at the time
by members from the two S tates as well as by Mr Thompson o f South
Carolina ; and I have private [intimations ] from several o f them that
they i n t en d to justi fy their po l icy and that o f the present A dministra
tion beyond the power of reply
What the public Opinion o f the North will be upon my S peech is
altogether uncertain in my own estimation Land jobbing and Presi
dent jobbing hav e so perverted the mind and heart o f a large portion
o f our People and they work so insidiously upon the feelings and con
duct o f the whole mass that truth finds an ear as unwilling in the
primary assemblies as in the Halls of the Capitol For the last twelve
mont h s the subserviency of the North to Southern Slavery has been s o
obse quious and sycophantic that I am sometimes constrained to doub t
whether I was bor n among a Nation o f Freemen These ebul litions o f
Texian enthusiasm have all the appearance to me o f Fraud playin g
u pon t he wires o f Frenzy A nd who could have believed that it is t h e
Democracy o f N e w York and Pennsylvania that is running in the
fro n t ra n ks [o f] this recreant race o f servility ?
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A N DA L U SI A
J un e 5 1 836
M Y D E AR S I R — I c ann o t deny mysel f t h e pleasure O f thankin g
you fo r the high gratification which I received last evening from read
"
ing your speech in the Nat Intelligencer The mos t uncom fortable
s ymptom o f the strange dist e mper which afflicts the country
is the
conduct of some o f our public men who seem to v ibrate perpetually
between two panic fears — the dread of o ffending the E xecutive and
the terror of the populace While many of them are overawed by the
presen ce and the patronage o f persons in O fii ce there are others s ubdu e d
by an anxiety s carcely less servile about the newspapers and the
rabble Between them the voice of manliness and independence h as
little chan ce o f being heard It was there fore with singular satis faction
that I felt it break forth s o fully distinctly and powerfully in a tone
the more grate ful because always associated with delightful r e co l l e c
tions O ur people seem to be running wild with all sorts o f in fatua
tion and never re quired more than now to be rebuked into sobriety I
pray you not to renounce that very necessary tho irksome function
which no one can perform s o success fully as yoursel f and t o let us
enjoy fre quent man i festatio n s o f that intellect which cannot be r e
pressed and will n o t be suppressed
Present my bes t respects to Mrs A dams and believe me alway s
With gre at regard
N B IDD L E
b
l
Hon
J O H N Q A DA MS Washin g ton D C
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WA S H I NGT ON
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10
J un e
1 8 36
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N I C H O LA S B I DD L E E sq" Phil d el p hi
t
M Y D E AR S I R
Your Letter O f the 5 inst co me s e qually cheering
”
“
—M
and seasonable
Facit indignatio v e r s u m
Spee
ch w as ex
y
t o r t e d from me by the foolery o f the three Resolutions reported by the
Slavery Committe e and the cormorant appetite with which the H o use
had swallowed them It is remarkable that although I have been at
tacked i n the House with the bitterest virulence fo r my commentary
on the tender mercies o f G eorgia toward s the Indians and fo r my pre
diction that i f we take Texas John Bull will t ake Cuba not one word
has be en said in reply to my assertion that as incidental to the War
power Congress must in the event o f a war in any o f the slave hold
ing States possess the auth ority to interfere i n e v ery way with the
institution o f Slavery i n the S tate within which the war would exist
I have not found a man hardy enough to deny the position
The
speech as printed in the Intelligencer makes me s ay that I do not admi t
that even the Peace Powers o f Congress give them authority to in
t e r fe r e i n a n y way with Slavery in the S ta t es
I said directly the
reverse I said I did not admit that Congress p o sse s s n o authority t o
a
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interfere with Slavery i n an y way even among the Peace Powers
They have at least the power to interfere with Slavery in the way o f
supporting it
I feel mysel f strengthe n ed in c onfidence o f the correctness o f my
own Opinions by the concurrence o f yours ; and I am encouraged by
your exhortation to continue my endeavours to Ope n the eyes o f our
country t o the precipice be fore them Upo n this subject however I
ne e d the curb rather than the spur My co urse in the House o f R e pr e
s e n t at i v e s has p ut me t o the ban o f a l l the Preside n tial parties
and
made me obnoxious to all the Sectional rapacity o f the South and t h e
West The Whigs in both Houses and the senatorial par ty in their
controversies with the President consummated their own ruin by t h e
false position which they took in the dispute with Fr ance and the wan
ton attack upon the House O f Representatives o n the closing night o f
the last Congress so strangely renewed by Mr Webster in his Speech
to the Senate o n the 1 4 of last January A ssailed as I was indirectly
in that speech it was impossible fo r me to remain sil ent and it was
e qually impos sible fo r me to speak without blasti n g the last h Op e o f his
supporters fo r the presidential succession These constituted perhaps
a majority o f the people o f my own State and accordingly he and his
partizans have undertaken to demolish me in my own District where
they have already given notice o f their intention to contest my r e el e c
tion to the next Congress O n the other hand my influen ce and my
v o te excluded David Newland from the House of Representatives and
thereby lost to a certainty t h e vote of North Carolina to Mr Van
Buren i f the electi o n should come into the House This o f course lost
me all possible favour with the Van Bur e n i t e s and my disclosure o f
the purpose to plu n ge us into a war with Mexico fo r the con q uest o f
Te xas and the restoration o f Slavery has irretrievably ruined me with
the Jack so n i t e s
I have received intimations from some o f the dearest personal fri ends
that I have upon earth that I have undertaken more than in the
present conditio n o f our country it is possible fo r man to perform
That we mu s t be governed by parties and that every party mus t have
a head That all political conduct must be accommodated to the main
object o f party pursuits an d that t o bid defiance one day to one pres
i de n t i al Candidate and the next day to his competitor is mere political
Quixotism
sallying forth in search o f G iants an d coming in conflict
with every Windmill To these kind and friendly w a rnings I scarcely
know what t o reply but that having deliberately fixed my purpose o f
making this experiment upon the virtue and intelligence o f the People
and having persevered in it through good and evil Fortune it is too
late fo r me to depart from it now I have made moral principle and
n dard o f my conduct throughout my
a
rty
or
selfish
purpose
the
sta
n ot
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hapless race o f native A mericans which we are exterminating with
such merciless and pe r fidi o u s cruelty extorted from me o n that o ccasion
could contribute even a mite t o alleviate or avert their fate
A ccept once more the as surance o f my warmest wishes and prayers
that your E uropean tour may be prosperous an d profitable t o yoursel f
and to all your family ; and that i n due time you may all wi t h e q ual
satis faction return t o your Country and to your friends A m ong whom
I h O pe you will n o t cea s e t o c o nsider as e v er fai th fully
Yours
,
,
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,
.
fr o m o n e of t h e ab ol i t i o n i s t s o f t h e day i s
n o t w i t h o u t i n tere s t as s h edd i n g l i g h t o n t h e co n d i t i o n s t h e n
i
n
i
n
h
re
va
l
i
g
fre
e
S
ta
e
t
e
t
s
p
P H ILADE LPH I A
mo : 2 9212 1 836
E S T EE M E D F R I E N D —I would not occupy thy important time by
the perusal o f a solitary line from my pen were i t not that I hol d thee
ri chly entitled to the thanks o f every friend o f humanity fo r the b old
and noble stand thou hast made in relatio n to the affairs o f Texas I
rejoice that thy eyes have been opened so as to discern that the hand
of Pr o vide n ce ma
of
l
f
clear
y
be
seen
as
th
e
director
the
movements
o
y
the des pis ed gro ssly tr aduced vilified and persecuted friends of Human
Rights and eternal R igh t eous Un i o n the Abolitionists o f the country
Thro our instr umentality facts have been noted and preserved rela
t ive to the wicked objects and i n te n tions of the slave h olding and slave
trading Sectio n o f o ur Nation which w o uld otherwise have kept from
view their base and detestable machinations for the purpose o f eter
n iz in
t
h
e curse of Slavery upon us
g
I trust th o u has t discovered th a t no time should be l o st in proclaim
ing t h e whole truth upo n the housetops that our No rthern brethren
may feel their o w n danger and save themselves from speedy ru in
It is useless fo r me to draw a pic t ure o f the ne cessary events which
would follo w the introduction o f Texas into this Union under its present
auspices and the acknowle dged designs o f the instigato rs o f the present
revol t Thy long intimacy with the instituti ons o f our government
and the bearing of p olitical movements upon its ultimate wel far e render
it en t irely s u pe r e rr ogat o r y Thy experience knowledge and wisdom
will easily c onceive a full length likeness o f the Angel o f Judgment and
Justice ( the day o f mercy having pas sed by) whose phial o f Retribution
is ready t o be p oured out upon this guilty Nation whose m e asure I b e
lieve will be full i f Tex a s i s added as a Slave Section
Nothing but the real permanent prosperity o f my Country which I
lo ve with all her faults would have induced me to brave the oblo q uy
abuse &c which has a waited the little band who were coadjutors with
m e in rending the vail which co vered t he de formiti e s o f republi can
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despo tism an d in unma sking the mons te r whi ch was abo ut to pla n t h i s
iron h oo f upon the ne ck of the G enius o f Li berty who had under G od
led our Fathers thro the dark valley o f the Shadow o f death i n the
revoluti o nary Struggle and placed their feet upo n the ro ck o f deliver
ance from Tyranny and oppression
E xcuse me my dear friend fo r I love the very Sou n d of Liberty and
I h O pe that fo r the remain der o f thy li fe which is n o t likely to be very
long thou wilt u n flin ch i n g l y sustain her broad principles and de fend
her glorious Temple so that at the end of thy course thou mayst leave
a n enduring monument in the hear t s o f her c hildren
an d be welcomed
am on g the Spirits o f th e jus t made p erfect
A s ever thy friend
ED W I N P A T L EE M D
N 1 5 2 N 5 9} St
J Q A DA MS
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P S My best respects to W ? Slade
I hope to s e e you both o n
your retu r n home
I f any o f thy speeches S hould be printed in pa mph
let form may I r e qu e s t a copy ?
E P A
"
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mo 1 6 1 8 36
P H I LADE LPH I A
H I G H L Y E S T EE M E D F R I E N D
A s c oming even ts cast their Shad o ws
be fore and the whole chain o f proceedings during this session o f Con
gres s have concl usively shown that the deep laid plot o f engra fting
the system o f Slavery n o t only on the descendants o f A frica in the
South but upon the fr ee men o f the North was foreseen and predic t ed
by the A ntislavery bo dy : and as every mome n t is n o w precious fo r the
enlightenment o f our fellow citizens I have dared again to address
thee fo r the purpose o f asking whether the deep interest thou art now
actuated by and the co nse q uent cl ear v i s i on thy en quiries h a ve pro
d u ce d would warran t thy appearance be fore the three A n tislavery S o
fo r the en s uing
of
as their O rator
c ie t i e s o f this City and County
?
July
O n the same day 1 83 3 I first appeared be fore my fello w
citizens in an address o n the subje ct of Slavery a copy of which I sen t
thee The cause being one nearest t o my heart I publicly p l edged
mysel f to deliver a similar address every
o f July as long as I live d
and mental and corporeal strength would admit and as our Country
was cursed by this foul stain
The following Jan " I spoke again be fore the Female So ciety o f this
City This address was al s o published and a copy sent to thee
A young attorney o f excellent standing delivered an O ration on the
o f July 1 8 3 4
Th e sta t e o f excitement w as s o great last year that no person co uld
be found co urageous enough to come forward Finding thi s to be the
This a ddress was
case I had it an n o un ced that I should appe ar again
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extemporaneo us and without n o tes and was delivered before a highly
respectable audience in the Musical Fund Hall It was not published
altho it gave great satis faction to the auditory among whom were
several Slaveholder s wh o treated me with cordial attenti o n a fter the
meeting
“
The coming 4 E has no orator engaged and as I do not wish t o i m
s
o
p e mysel f u pon the public and as even a distant agen t or me mbe r o f
the A nti Slavery Society w ould not probably be acceptable just n o w
to the community I do most heartily o n behal f o f the Societies here
desire th o u mayst grant the re q uest If more agreeable to thee to
dwell up o n Constitutional , inherent individual rights & c — without
bearing too heavily upon the S i n o f S l a ver y we shall be entirely
satisfied
Please reply as s o on as c o nvenient and con fer an additi onal favor
upon the F riends of Freedom and thy sincere friend
E P AT L EE
J Q A DA MS
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fo ll o wi n g
is t h e
re ply
of
M r A da ms :
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WA S H INGT ON
,
25
Ju
n e,
18 36
.
F R I E N D E P A TL EE — Philad e lph i a
R E S PE C T E D F R I END
I have lately received two letters from you
in relatio n to the course which I have during t h e present sessi o n o f
Congress pursued on subj ects connected with that part o f our political
condition which results from the existence o f Slavery in our Con feder
ated Republic — the most un fortunate most perplexing and most
alarming o f all the elements of our civil and political Institutions In
the National Intelligencer o f this morning you will find the Report
o f my part in the debate upon the Bill fo r the admission o f the State
o f A rkansas into the Un ion
and I presume you will perceive on the
one hand how far short my opinions on the subject of A merican Slavery
fall o f the standard which you believe to be that o f the true faith and
on the other h o w very far my concurren ce with your opinions tran
scends that which throughout the present Session has been the t r i u m~
phant Standard o f Slavery i n t h e House o f R e presentatives o f t h e
United States You will s e e that the utmost extent to which I v c n
t u r e d to O ffer a proposition restrictive upon the overbearing influence
o f Slavery was a proviso withholding the assent o f Congress from that
A rticle in the Constitution o f the State o f A rkansas which prohibits
the Legislature itsel f from emancipating Slaves without the consent
o f their owners
You will s e e that upon this proposition only 3 2
votes in its favour could be obtained in the Committee o f the Whole to
9 0 v o tes against it
A nd as in the Committee o f the Whole the yeas
ro
osition
an d nays cannot be ta ken s o you will fi nd th a t when my
p p
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93
re n ew ed in the Ho u se the yeas an d nays wer e n o t allo wed t o be
t ak e n upo n it there
They were cu t O ff by th e previous questi on
called for in a manner unexampled by a Slav e hol d ing member
authorized against the rules an d usages of the House by a S lav e hold
ing Speaker and sustained upon my appeal from his decision by a
majority o f ten vote s You will also see that of the 9 7 votes which
thus sustained the de cision o f the Speaker five were given by members
fro m Pennsylvania and twenty by members from the S ta te o f New
York Had these votes been on the Liberty list up o n this q uestion
the Sp e aker s d e cisi o n would have been reversed by a vote o f 1 1 2 to
72
Nine te en members from Pennsyl vania and only eight fro m New
York v o ted against the decision
The effe c t o f the Re s olutio n o f the House to lay upon the table with
out further n o tice all petitions memorials propositi o ns or papers r e
lating to Sla v ery o r the ab olition of Slavery was at o nce a suppression
and an unconstitutional restri ction up o n the
o f the right o f Petiti o n
rights o f the members o f the H o use to o ffer Resolutions u pon sub
t
s o f great public imp o rtance ; and per fectly withi n the scope o f de
e
c
j
liberation i n the House ever S ince the existence o f the G overnment
The effect o f the de cision o f the Speaker was to d e ny to me the
freedom o f debate upon the subject imm e d iately be fore the Ho u se and
to deprive me o f the constitutional right o f having the ye a s and nays
recorded upon the q uestion o f an amendment which I had o ffered to a
Bill under consideration i n th e House
Both these operations have been e fie ct e d by the Representatives o f
Freemen in their own States unsullied with the taint o f Slavery and
above all by Representatives o f the Pe ople o f New York and Pe n n syl
vania The Repre se n tative s must be supposed to speak the voice o f
their consti tu e nts It is a new feature in the ch aracter o f the people of
New York an d Pe n nsylvania to take the side o f Slavery against Free
dom : how long they will chuse to sustain this position in the affairs
and Opinions o f the world it is not fo r me to foretell
o f July is the day fixed upon fo r closing the
The
resent
s ession
p
I shall o f course be necessarily detained here until a fter
o f Congress
that day I would very cheerfully address the A nti S lavery S ocieties
o n that day but although concurring in their abstract Opini o ns concern
ing Slavery and lamenting the delusi on which especially fo r the last
year h as in fected the soil o f Freedom itsel f with an unnatural and
fan atical sympathy with Slavery it would be o f little avail that I should
speak to the people o f Pennsylvania o n their own S o il while my voice
is stifled by the will of their Rep resentatives in the Legislative Hall o f
the Nation
I believe tha t the final issue be t ween Sl avery a nd E ma n cip ati on ( a
word which I prefer t o ab oliti o n ) is t o be mad e u p o n thi s Continent of
was
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North A meri ca I w o uld h O pe i f I could th a t i t wil l be made up
p ea ceably and settled without bloodshed — but it must come It is
appro aching by su ch means as it i s the spe cial prerogative o f Provi
den ce to empl oy The Soc iety o f F r i en d s are amo n g the m os t e ffe c
tive instruments to the at t ainment of the end be cause all their paths
are Pea ce Bound as I am by the co m pact in the C o nstitution o f the
Un ite d States in my politica l capac ity I have endeavoured to retard
rather than to has ten the conflict between the parties which must ulti
mate ly be unavoidable What I have d o n e hi t herto h as been de feu
s i v e l y to maintain my own
rights an d the free in s titutions o f the
Country I hope th ey will n o t pe rish in my hands — but the People
themselv e s can al o ne e ffe ctually main tain them
I am ve ry res pe c tfully your frie n d
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fro m J o s i a h Q ui n cy M r A da ms s l i fe
Pre s i de n t o f H arvard C oll e g e
T he
foll o wi n g
l on g fri e n d , t h e n
’
w as
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.
CA M BR I DG E
1 3 Ju n e 1 83 6
M Y DEAR SIR
You will not I trust deem it obtrusive i f I take
t h e liberty to express to you m y thanks for the noble stand you have
made against the projects which have fo r their in tent the admission of
Texas into the Union ; and also for the notice you have given o f your
de te rmination to resist the extensio n o f slavery to Arkansas
I know n o t that any co n gressio n al exertion o f this or any former
session has been received in this q uarter with more ge n eral and heart
felt applause t han has been yours relative to Texas
I suppose h o w
ever the even t is i n evitable a s I take it fo r granted to be the policy o f
administration and the co incident interest o f the slave States Should
it take place I should deem it the deathblo w to the Constitution had
not that instrument already received s o many wounds o f that kind as to
S ho w that it possesses a mysterious v itality which sets calculation at
defiance
A s to Slavery in the new Sta tes I think that Northern men owe it
to their o wn character as well as t o that of their country to meet every
attempt to extend the evil to n e w States with the most d ecided oppo
It is the onl y way in which they can mani fest that the acqu i
sit io n
e s ce n c e they have shown in the c o ntinua n ce o f slavery in the Union
h as been compelled by their respect to the relations and Obligations o f
the Constitution Let their acq uiescen ce be limited by those obliga
tions Let every attempt to extend the ini quitous traffic in human
beings and to plan t the evil in o ther states be man fully and persever
i n gl y resisted
J O S I A H QU IN C Y
H on J O H N Q A DA MS
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C AM B R I D G E June
1 83 6
M Y D E AR S I R — A cce pt my thanks fo r an a uthentica ted co py o f
y o ur spe ech whi ch I received yesterday I h ad read it per sa ltum in
t h e news papers but I was not c o ntented with those scraps which always
smelt o f the dish and the caterer Bu t what yo u have s ent m e is t h e
heart lu n gs liver and lights and I assure you
w hole head and pluck
I feas ted o n the sav oury repast bu t it had this difference from our ordi
n ary meals — the mor e I swallowed the m o re I longed fo r
with o ut
feeling s atiety ; and dige s tion has g o ne o n to entir e satis faction and
E ven the rascally Atl as ext o ls th e speech
w ith no small delight
and to that degree th a t he fel t the necessity o f saying something i m
pudent o f the spe aker for his flying a l on e like an E agle instead of
belonging t o a flock like a go o se
I have been not onl y much plea s e d with t h e n obl e e ffusion as an
orati o n bu t i n s tr u ct e d as a very fir s t rate political L e cture I guess
it must have expanded the mind o f the President and t hat o f Mr Van
Buren — s o ready are people t o ju dge others by themselves I o b
served that some tried to stop you by the dis o rderly cry o f or der "
“
o r d er ; and by that mean subter fuge o f a coward
the prev i o us q ues
”
tion or something like it I imagine however that some o f your
hearers must have s at abo u t as easy as a man on a wo ol combe r s
hatchel I mean some o f your South or South western members a nd
who n o t wishing to retire were c ompelled to adopt the Indian philo
”
sophy of Gr i n an d bea r i t
especially that por tion o f the ph il i pic
which regards the N eg r oes fo r they know th a t bla ck cl oud wil l sooner
or later bust over their affrighted heads
I had procured one o f Mitchell s large maps an d p o red over it with
the pl e asing a ssiduity o f Uncle To by himsel f but I hav e n o Co rporal
Trim t o imbibe an d wo n der at my kn o wledge o f thi s Newfo u n dl an d o f
the United S ta tes
W he n you S peak o f the Island o f C U B A I fi nd mysel f a t h ome with
you I spent five month s there ; and c o vered more p ages of it than
any Island I ever visited There I first became acquainted with C ol
M i r a n da and renewed our ac quaintance a fter he came to Boston
I
used to t ell him that Cuba belo nged to us fo r it was only one o f our
own Mountains with its head out o f water I never viewed a country
with such admiration I n e v e r saw the wonders o f vegetati o n ex ce pt
there Pl a nts flowe rs and fruit and rapid vegetatio n surpa s sed e v ery
thing I ever s a w be fore or since Their ri vulets and br o oks exceeded
in beauty anything I ever saw forming a striking contrast with the
very mean and degraded i n habitants
I c o veted t h e harb o ur o f
Havana as well as their glori ou s land and aromatic v egetables I
o ften whispered to several o f my co untrymen there that we must and
ought to hav e Cu ba I have mentioned it in my E ssay on Ju n i us
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96
and called it the A merican Great Britai n
the future capital or fu ture
metropolis o f ou r new world —that the Spaniards were unworthy of it
What you have said o f it has called up a fresh th e finest natural s cen ery
I ev er beheld
We have g o t Continent enough
Perhaps t oo much B ut I do
wish that we owned the S ummer Island or Bermuda — merely as
a naval station Commodore E lliot assured me that he conversed
largely with G eneral Jackson o n the importance of the w a ter s — o r
w a t er skap e o f Charleston S C and its neighborhood as a naval s t a
tion in spite of their misunderstood bars and shoals and that in his
l
n u l l i fic at io n cruise whe n he had the command by s e a and G en Scott
by land he c orrected many false notions concerning their sea board
and communicated his ideas to President Jackson I more than o nce
tou ched the subject in my correspondence with G overnor Levi Wo o d
bury The same o fficer gave him important in formatio n respecting
Rhode Island an d F a l l r i ver as a connecting chain o f defence with the
outer harbour o f Boston via Quincy or rather Cohasset by means o f
t wo or three fortified Posts
Now i f all t his does n o t betray a man bitten with Uncle T obyi s m I
shall be glad to know it It is remarkable the Spaniards though they
hav e the most gold and silver are the poorest nation on earth and the
best and most costly and most numerous fortifications of stone with
the least energy fo r de fending them The Moro castle an d indeed the
wh ole range o f their stone masonry which encircles the harbo r o f the
Havanna looks like it ; and so do the bays a nd harbours o f T e n e r ifie
where I resided more th an a month not to mention the wonder ful
w orks at Ferrol
You r s peech is almost t o o long t o be treated as Alderman Beck ford s
famous s pee ch t o G eorge the Third was in G uildhall yet it deserves it
more
When do you expect to take o ff your harness dro p yo ur traces and
r oll at Quincy ?
Will they let you come h o me by mowing time ; but
unless o ur dismal weather should change greatly you may not be al
“
lowed to make hay while the s u n shines for a cloud yet hangs o v er
us The People and their M ag n a t es are busy in preparing to p l ay
B u n ker hill ba ttl e whe n Alexander E verett is to s ay G race A c cept
the affectionate regards o f
B E NJ ? WA T E R H O US E
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6
th
mo
22
n
d
1 8 36
E A ST FA LL O W F I E LD CH E ST ER C PE NN
R E S PE C T E D F R I E N D
T h ough personally entirely a stranger t o
thee yet I cannot rest satisfied in my own mind without returning thee
in some method or form on behal f o f mysel f and a large and i n cr eas i n g
A
O
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98
P S Please assure Wi l l i a m S l ade o f Vermont that his name is
warmly cherished by us and by every friend o f man fo r his noble
“
exertions to rescue our prayers and petitions from being nailed to the
”
”
table or th e fa mi ly v a u l t of a l l th e Oap u l et s
J F JR
J Q A
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M r A da ms as i s u s u al w i t h pu b l i c me n , w as at t h i s t i me i n
co n s ta n t re c e i p t o f l e tter s o f a t h reate n i n g o r ab u s i v e ch ara c ter
T h e y h av e n o w n o t mu c h h i s t o r i c a l va l u e b u t a s i n g l e sp e c i
me n may b e w o rth pre s erv i n g I t w as w r i tte n an d re c e i v ed
mo re t h a n t w o mo n t h s afte r t h e adjo u r n me n t o f C on g re ss an d
w h il e M r A da ms w as at Q ui n cy
G LA SG OW " E NT U C " Y 1 2 S e pt 1 836
D R S IR
I s e e in the latest news that your sp e ech in Congress o n
the Texian War has bee n received in Mexico with accl e mat i on univ er
s al
and that you are called t h e Demosthenes of A merica
I am at a loss to conceive what kind of motives prompted you to de
grade yoursel f s o l o w as to make so i mflami n t o r y and anti republican
speech and manifest in such indubitable characteristics your detestation
and ab h o r e n ce to a free G overnment Your ungovernable ambitious
propensity s t r i pd you o f your hypocritical mask last A utumn and ever
S inc [e] you have been an object o f scorn and ridicule to the A merican
people You have tried to paliate your heinous o ffences and cloke your
abandoned degradation by sneaking into party enthusiasm but the dif
forent partes were not s o far estranged from decency as you i magi n d
you were hu rled from their ranks with i n v ide ou s contempt and you
withered beneath their j ust and indignant wrath an d the oration
under consideration shows clearly and o bv i ou l y the fallen co ndition
into wh i ch you hav e precipitated yoursel f You are not only a Hart
ford conventionist
a Blue Light Federalist but an unprincipled and
disorganised A bolitionist a declared enemy to the country which gave
you birth and which you have stained by your lonesome and di s con sat e
abandonment o f principles which you formally held sacred and a friend
and advocate o f Mexican cruelty and u su pr e t ion Why did yo u not
pause be fore you took that fatal step which will s t ain America in such
dark an d foul colo u rs that time wi l l never e ffase
Did s h e not make
you her President ? An d are you s o debased as to forget such di s t i n g i sh
ing favours so s o on and trea t her with su ch horrid and unheard o f ingra
i t ud e ? Y ou s i r justly merit the withering sc o rn and indign ant c on de m
n ation o f every A merican Citizen fo r making the orati o n now under
review I presume you thought your s el f the E arl o f Chatham and in the
Bri tish Parliamen t thunde ring against the i n i qui t iou s cruety of Briti sh
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99
warfa r e you S peak o f our G ove r n m e n t as t ring t o arrest the p ogres s
o f freedom and forging manacles fo r the i n h ab i t an c o f Mexic o and mur
dering with o ut cause the i n n oc e n Et ] and uno ffending Indians and retai n
ing in slavery the pure e n l igh e n d and hu ma ne Negro s Perhaps you
had a design in thus speaking as the U S h ave cast you into th e vorte x
o f in famy you wish to get a fo ot hold i n Mexico an d as Sant A n na
has fallen you thi n k there is a chance to succeed him and in order to
satiate your dem o n like revenge upon our G overnment e xcite
the
bloodthirsty savage and the hard hearted and ignoran t Negros into
c r e ul
invasion
and
intestinal
r e b e l i o n w h i l e you with y o ur hord e o f
y
Mexican de spor adoe s will march o n and aid the bl oo dy int e n ti on s a nd
finally overthrow our Co untry which is fre e do m s la s t hope
L
D
R
A
N
D
A
Yours
Q
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d u r i n g t h e fo ll o wi n g wi n ter ( J a n u ar y 2 3 1 8 3 7) t h at
M r Ada ms e n tere d o n h i s h i s t o r i c s tr uggl e o ver t h e r ig h t o f
on
i
H
h
n w r o te as foll o ws o f C a l h ou n
i
o
m
et
t
i
t
e
f
r
er
e
h
s
p
a s so ci ate i n t h e C ab i n e t :
I t w as
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WA S H INGT O N
,
23
March
,
183 7
.
CH AR LE S F A DA MS B oston
M Y D E AR S O N
Slavery an d the question s inevitably fo l
lowing from it will hence forth mingle with every conflict o f parties i n
the Union The certain and desperate assault upon the whole manu
fac t u r i n g interest o f New E ngland which as sure as you live will
s ignalize the next Session o f Congress is indissolubly interlinked with
Slavery The annexation o f Texas at the hazard o f a War with
Mexico which nothing but a special interp o sition o f Providen ce can
prevent is entwined with the Vitals of Slavery Calhoun is spurring
the A dministration into a quarrel wi t h G reat Britain fo r three Cargoes
o f Slaves driven by stress o f weather into the Islands o f Bermuda and
the Baham as an d there emancipated I S ent yo u the Document con
taining the corresponden ce between the G overnments o f the United
States and G reat Britain upon the claims o f our Slave traders fo r
indemnity I s ay cor r e sp o n d en ce but it is al l on one side Th e first
case that o f the Comet happened in 1 8 3 1 And our Secretari e s o f
State and E n voys E xtraordinary and C h ar g e d a ffaires have bee n ever
since pinching the successive British Administrations fo r i n d emn i ty to
the Slave traders In six years the only an swer they have got from
the British Administration is that the matter has be e n re ferred to t h e
L a w Ofii cer s of t h e C r o wn — and th e se learned Thebans have n o t
yet learnt the distinction between the Piracy of the African and the
law ful Commerce o f the A merican Slave trade Calhoun made the
call for the Document and up o n its production tro u n ce d O ld Hickory
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soundly fo r n o t being m o re saucy in his demands up o n John Bull to
indemni fy the dealers in human flesh fo r their P R O P E R T Y Calhoun 3
object is evidently to put stumbling blocks across the path of t h e
little Magician But his claim and his doc uments are a disgrace to
our Country ; and if his own political condition were not desperation he
should have seen how ungraciously a call came from h i m upon the
Union t o sustain by War the domestic Slavery of the South while he
is making the welkin ring with clamours against the right o f the Unio n
to in t erfere with the domestic Slavery of the South in any manner
whatever
’
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WA S H INGT O N
,
27
M arch
,
1 83 7
.
I A H BA Y LE Y E s q Har d wi ck V ermon t
SIR
Yo u observe that I have hereto fore shown that Co n
gress under the War p o wer is authori z ed in some cases to meddle with
the subject o f Slavery ; and you en quire whether the trade reg ulating
power does n o t place the Slave question very much under the c o ntrol
o f Congress ?
But Sir please to o bserve that o n the very same day when as you
think I proved that Congress is authorized in some cases to meddle
with the subject o f Slavery the House o f Representatives o f the United
States did by a majority o f one hundr e d and e ighty two vo te s to nine
Re solve That Congress possesses no Constitu t ional authority to inter
fere in any way with the institution o f Slavery in any o f the States o f
this Con federacy
and that when this Resolution was passed, I asked
and entreated o f the house only five minutes o f time to pro v e its
ut t er falsehood and was answered by
the Previous Question
O f that minority o f nine I was one
and three others w e re members
from Vermont
It was also resolved on the next day by a majority o f
1 3 2 votes to 4 5
That Congress o ugh t n o t to interfere i n a n y way
with Slavery in the District o f Columbia
Upon that Resolution I asked to be e xc used from v o ting ; because
not being allo wed to assign my reasons fo r v oting against it I did not
choose to exp ose mysel f t o the in ference that my Opinion was that Con
gress o ug h t at that time to abolish Slavery in the District o f Columbia
The Resolution its el f was of a piece with all the rest absurd and false
It is not the business o f o n e H ouse of C o ngress to resolve what the
whole Congress ought n o t to do Their busin ess is to do what they
ought to do ; and to abstain fro m doing what they ought not to do ;
without wasting their time in passing Negative Resolutions It was
there fore absurd It was false becau s e there are ways in which Con
gress ought to interfere with Slavery in the District o f Columbia par
t i cul ar l y t o prohibit the abominable tra ffic which has s o lon disho n oured
g
t h e City under their e x clusive jurisdiction
"
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1 02
United States and G reat Bri t ain o f and co ncerning the Cargoes o f t hree
slave trading ships owned by citizens o f the United States and di s
t u r b e d in this their law ful commerce by the emancipation o f their car
goes i n the Islands o f Bermuda and o f New Providence There you
will see the inter ference o f the G overnment o f the United Stat es not
only with the Institution o f Slavery in the States but w ith the British
Law which makes the Slave trade Piracy upon the O cean and with the
emancipation laws of G reat Britain hersel f
I leave all th i s to your meditations ; but re quest you not to publish
this letter at present ; nor without my consent hereafter Not that I
wish to c o nceal or disguise my Opinions upon these subject s ; but b e
cause I have made most of them p u blic in other ways and because I
would n o t willingly contribute to agitation or excitement beyon d the
necessities o f the time I would cheer ful ly engage not to interfere with
the institutio n o f Slavery in the States in any manner i f t h e Slavery in
the States would forbear to in terfere with the free institutions o f my
nati ve Commonwealth and o f the Unio n
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SA M UE L WE B Phil d e l phi a
M Y R E S PE C T E D F RI E N D
B,
a
WA S H INGT ON
,
23
Apri l
,
1 83 9
.
.
You believe that the question
“
h ow ca n S l a ver y be a bo l i s h ed
the easiest part o f the subject under
consideration A nd y our plan is that the Slave holders by A cts o f
their o wn Legislatures or other competent authority surrender their
Slaves and Real E state to Commissioners at their present v alue an d
receive sto cks at interest to be redeemed by the increased value o f the
Lands by the E mancipation o f the Slaves and the sale o f the Lands
to them in small farms fo r their cultivation But as the practicabili ty
o f this measure depends upon its being sanctioned by the Legislatures
I fear it ca n not be expected to be made
o f the Slave holding States
speedily palatable to them or to their c on sti t uents
I am not sure that my own proposal which I would if permitted
have O ffered to the House has any fairer chance of success My hopes
a t a n y t i me are
o f a p eacea bl e abolition o f Slavery in this Country
not sanguine To an y ot h er mode o f abolition I must not only with
hold al l voluntary agency o f mine but must avow my most determined
Opposition
To preserve my own freedom an d that o f my fellow citi
zens from the usurpations o f Sl avery as far as may be in my power I
S hall hold to be my irremissible duty To resist as far as possible all
measures adapted or intended to strengthen support or perpetuate t h e
institution o f Slavery I hold mysel f e qually bound but fo r its abo
l i t i o n however desirable I can countenance no appeal to force nor any
unwarranted by the Constituti o n of the United
a ct
o f legislation
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1 03
States or against the will o f th ose wh ose in terest s are to [t oo] exclu
f
f
s ive l
a
ected
by
the
Law
y
I am with great re sp e ct and este em your fell o w citiz e n an d fri e n d
,
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,
JO S H UA LEAV ITT an d H B S T A NT O N E s gi o f t h e C ommitt ee o f
N e w Y o rk
arra g e me n t of t h e A me ri can A nti Sl ave ry S oc i e ty
QU I NCY 1 1 July 1 83 9
F E LL O W C I T IZ E N S
I have received your letter of the 2 09 ulti mo
inviting my attendance at the National A ntislavery Convention to be held
at Albany on W ednesday the 3 1 O f the present month To this i n v i
t at i o n you ha v e been pleased to add an earnest a djurati on to consider
this invita tion as a solemn call on me to aid in the rescue o f my
Coun try ; and that if I cannot attend in p e rs o n I should communicate
to the Convention a written expressio n o f my views
The Dissolution o f the Union may in deed be the forerunner to the
Ab olition o f Slav e ry but then it will not be e fie c t e d peaceably nor
with the consent o f the Masters A civil savage and servile war
would be the natural i f not the necessary conse quence o f the dissolu
tion o f our Union and that the result of that war would be the total
abolition of Slavery throughout this Country is highly probable I f
that were the avowed object o f the A merican A nti Slavery Society I
should be compelled to acknowledge that the adaptation o f their means
to their ends was ingenious and skil ful but i f the imputation o f being
a Man stealer cast upon e v ery Slave holder were one o f them I S hould
still withhold my assent fro m it as neither just nor true
Since the close o f the last Session o f Congress I have published in
the National Intelligencer two letters addressed to the Petitioners
who had committed to my charge their petitions for presentation t o
the House o f Repre s entatives o f the United States Many o f these
petitions were fo r the rescinding of the G ag Resolutions o f the 1 2 i of
D e cE 1 83 8
Against the annexati o n o f Texas to this Unio n
fo r the
promotion o f universal Peace by the Institution o f a Congress o f
Nations fo r the recognition o f the Republic of Hayti — and fo r the
prohibition o f the Internal Slave trade To the accomplishment o f all
these objects I should have taken pleasure in giving my hearty C oopera
tion A decide d majority of the House perseveringly excluded them all
from debate
With regard to th e abolition o f Slavery in the District o f
Columbia and throughout t h e Union I asked but could not obtain the
permission o f the House to propose three Resolutions o f A mendment
t o the Constitution fo r the total abolition o f Slavery by providing that
all children born within the United States a fter a given and distant day
shall be born free That a fter a given and nearer day there shall be
neither Slavery nor in voluntary servitude except for the commission o f
crime at the s e at o f G overnment of the United States and that with
T
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the exception o f Florida n o Slave State shall be admitted hereafter into
the Union The House refused to receive the Res olutions and they
have met with as little favour from the Ab o litionists o ut o f the House
as they did from the House itsel f
That this mode o f abolitio n will ever b e found practicable I a m n o t
sanguine in the belie f; but that it is the only mode in which it could
be effected peaceably and without great injustice I do firmly believe ;
and that all the attempts to the immediate abolition o f Slavery by Law
without co mpensation t o the Master will not only prove utterly abor
tive but have a direct tendency to the dissol ution o f the Union and to
a combined civil servile and Savage War I s e e as clearly in the pros
e
c
t
f
o
f
uturity as I can see any e v ent already consummated in the
p
retro spect o f the past
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QU I NCY
,
31
J uly
,
1 83 9
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G ERR I T S M I T H E q Pe t e bo oug h Ne w York
D E AR S I R — I have received your kind and friendly letter o f the
1 6 1 inst" with peculiar gratification because though written with the
avowal o f Opinions di ffering from mine upon points o f great i mp ortance
to our common Country it bears the impress o f Christian Charity and
the marks o f a s pirit with which I take ple asure in communing even
while hopeless o f coming to a concurrence O f sentiment with regard to
one or two particular measures bearing upon objects which we have
e qually at heart
I am aware that the un qualified declaration o f my Opinion that the
immediate abolition o f Slavery in the District o f Columbia and the
Territory o f Florida by Act of C on gr ess is utterly impracticable and
would be eminently u nju s t has given ex tensive dissatis faction to that
numerous class o f my fellow citizens who call themselves and are called
by others a bol i t i on i s ts I have great respect fo r their virtuous prin
But con
c i pl e s and pure purposes and regret to lose their good will
tending as I have done and still do fo r t h ei r freedom o f Opinion and o f
speech what Opinion woul d T H E Y what Opinion would a fter ages enter
tain o f me i f I should basely surrender or disguise my own My
Opinion is the result o f my j udgment and is not under the controul o f
my will The p r a cti ca bi l i ty of p ea cea bl e i mmedi a t e a bol i t i o n o f
Slavery by Law in the District o f Columbia and the Territories is a
mere q uestion o f fact I say it is impracticable You do not despair
—
o
f
a
peace
l
and
bloodless
termination
A
merican
Slavery
but
f
u
f
o
”
“
our
hopes
But
the
A
bolition
o f Slavery
o f such an event are faint
y
in the District and the Territories would not brin g you one inch nearer
to the t er mi n a ti on of Amer i can S l a v er y Would the Abolition by
Act o f Congress O f Slavery in the District and i n Florida emancipate
one singl e Slave ? No l fo r we re it possible that such a Law should
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the multitudin o us pe t itio n s fo r the i mmedi a te uncompromised abo
l i t i o n o f Slav ery in the District o f Columbia and i n the Territo ries
that is to s ay i n Florida
These are
“
1
Con
1 A Letter to my Constituents t h e Inhabitants o f the 1 2
r e S S I o n al Distri c t o f Massachusetts dated 1 3 A u E 1 8 3 8
g
g
2 Spee ch o n the right o f Petition freedo m o f Speech and Texas
June and July 1 8 3 8
3 Disc o urse be fore the New York his t orical S o ciety 3 0 A pril 1 8 3 9
A nd also
4 A Letter t o the petitioners o f the 1 2 1 C ongressional District o f
M as sachusetts 4 June 1 83 9
The Letter of 1 3 A ugust 1 8 38 is a
report to my Co nstituents of what h ad occurred at the 1 and
13
Sessions o f the 2 5 Congress and o f my proceedings in them con form
able to the Resolutions o f a Conventi o n o f delegates from all parts o f
the District held on the 23 o f August 1 8 3 7 immediately be fore the
meeting o f Congress at the special Session
You will percei ve that among the Res olutions o f that Conventi on
there was not one having reference t o the immediate abolition o f Slav
ery i n the District o f Columbia and the Territory or indeed to Slavery
or its aboliti o n at all The Convention declared their entire appr ob a
tion O f the course that I had before that time pursued with regard to
the right o f Peti t ion and the annexati o n o f Texas and pledged
themsel v es to supp o rt me in the perse v ering pursuit of the same
course
The peace able abo lition o f Slavery throughout this Uni on has always
appeared to me a consummatio n devoutly to h e wished and I have
long entertained serious doub t s whether a long continuance o f the
Union can be compatible with the continued existence o f Slavery My
i n v ol u n t a r y anticipation s o f the future have been that Slavery will first
effect a dissolution o f the Unio n and that as a natural co nse quence o f
that event Wa r will abolish Slavery and terminate i n a mongrel breed
o f hal f blood E uropean and A frican race
A mulatto nation which
will cover the Southern hal f o f this Country from North Carolina to
Mexi co
This or the rein s titution O f Slavery throughout the United S tates
seem to me the only alternatives fo r the future prospects o f our Country
I have deemed it my duty to resist u n g u i s et c a l c i bu s the encroach
ments o f Slavery upon our free institutions but not to follow t h e stand
ard o f any Peter the Hermit in a crusade against the servile institutions
o f the South
Fro m my heart and soul I wish fo r the total extinction
o f Slavery throughout the earth and especially throughout this Union
but for my conduct as a Citizen and a Servant o f the People I must
abide by the compr o mise in the Constitution which I have s o o ften
sworn t o supp ort
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1 07
In Washing to n s farewell A ddress to the People o f the Uni ted S tates
“
he says all combinations and associations under whatever plausible
characte r with the real design to direct contro ul counteract or awe
the regular deliberation and action o f the constituted authorities are de
structive o f this fundament al prin ciple ( o f p opular government) and o f
”
fatal tendency
There is not in the farewell address one sen timent more valuable as
admon ition to his Cou n trymen than this — I have tre as ured it as a
j ewel ; and one o f the worst acts o f Mr Van Buren in my estimation was
narrowing dow n this maxim o f all embracing patriotism into a vene
mous and m alignant denunciation o f the antirepublican tendencies o f
associated w ea l th ; a s if the mis chief o f associated power was confined
to the action o f the r i ch
Since the days o f Washington I have al ways been o n my guard
against parti al associations to controul public measures I have never
been a membe r o f any one o f them : not even o f a Temperance
Society
A s s o ciations t o influence direct and contr o ul the ac ti o n o f the G ov
e r n me n t is however the universal expedient o f all parties
all inter
e s ts and all Opinions We have them in numberles s varieties o f
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The Colonization So ciety is one o f them A vast undertaking which
originated entirely with the Slave holders and by which the be n e vo
lence and humanity o f the No rthern an d E a s tern States co ntinue to be
egregiously duped
The coloured Colonists o f Liberia recei v ing their bread and Consti
t u t i on s o f So v ereig n independent Republics fr o m the American Colo
n i z at i o n S o ciety form the most extraordinary co mmunities o n the face
o f the E arth
The A merican Anti Slavery Society composed o f men n o t holding a
single Slave undertaking to coax and reason five millions o f t heir fellow
Citizens into t h e voluntary surrender o f twelve hundred millions o f
their property and commencing their discourse t o the heart by pro
claiming every holder o f a M a n in bondage a [Van S t eal er doomed by
the M o saic Law to be stoned to death is also t o t h e eye o f a rationa l
observer a very curious S h o w Peter Pindar represents Prudence
w h e n s h e goes into a ho u se as leaving all her op i n i on s with her pat
tens at t he door But it would seem as i f every man who enters into
a political association must leave not only his Opini on s but his co mmon
sense at the door
I have never b e e n permitted by the House of Representative s to give
my Opinions up o n the abolition q uestion generally nor upo n that o f
aboliti o n in the District o f C o lumbia My s truggle has been for t h e
freedo m
Right of Peti t ion
freedo m O f Debate
freedo m of S peech
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1 08
the Press The S outh immediately proscribed me as an Abolition
The Abolitionists sent almost all their petitions to me Many of
is t
them because their Representatives would not present them I never
gave the slightest countenance to their petitions fo r the immediate u h
compensated abolition o f Slavery in the District o f Columbia or else
where but the South thought and said I did and their Lecturers and
Newspaper E ditors w e r e beginning to hold up their rod of political ao
tion in terrorem and to give intimations that I must subscribe to their
whole creed or take the conse quence o f incurring their high displeasure
I found it necessary there fore to be per fectly explicit with them ; and
as I was not allowed to do it in the H ouse I addressed to them the
two letters which you will find herewith enclosed
I was very earnestly i n vited by Mr Leavitt and Mr Stanton to
at t end the late N ational Anti Slavery Convention at Albany ; but de
cl i n e d fo r reasons which I assigned to them in my answer
I f the total A bolition o f Slavery be in the purposes o f divine Pro
v i de n ce as I believe and fervently hope it is other agents and other
means will in its own due time be employed tha n either A merican Colo
n i z at i o n or A bolition Societies
O r i f these Societies o r either o f them
are to be made i nstrumental to the accomplishment o f the grand work
they must entirely change their mode s o f Operatio n and come d o wn
from the empyrean o f their fancy to the vapoury atmosphere o f this
nether world
I am with great respect Dear Sir Yo ur obed i S e r v t
of
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Pre s i de n t
W i lli a m H e n ry H arr i s o n d i ed i n A pr i l , 1 84 1
,
an
d
C o n g re s s w as c on ve n ed i n sp e c i a l s e s s i o n o n t h e 3 1 s t o f M a y
M r A da ms a t o n c e p re s s e d for an a me n d me n t o f t h e r u l e s o f
t h e At h
t h e H o u s e by t h e re p ea l o f t h e 2 1 s t r ul e k n o w n a s
”
E x c i te d deb ate s fo ll o w ed i n w h i ch M r A da ms
ert on g a g
t o o k a l e ad i n g p art H e n r y A W i s e o f V i rg i n i a a s s u med t h e
l ead i n g p art i n t h e debate o n t h e o t h er s i de s peak i n g u n der
g rea t e x c i te me n t an d w i t h i n d i c at i o n s o f e x tre me ph y s i c a l
e xh a u s t i o n ( M e mo i r s v ol x pp 4 7 8
T h e fo ll o w i n g
l e tter t h e n rea ch ed M r A da ms :
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V
I RGINI A June
15 t h 1 84 1
th at vil e Ince n diary JO H N Q A DA MS
O n parle peu quand la vani t é n e fait pas parler This french prov
erb applies to all such S lang whanging rascals like yoursel f Is your
pride o f abolition oratory not yet glutted ? Are you to spend the r e
?
main de r o f your days endeavoring to produce a civil and servile War
Do yo u like Aro n B urr wish t o ruin your C o untry be ca use you failed
T
o
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b e g a n N o w l e t me s u mmari z e
r
et
s u b mi t , t h os e o f a
h
o
p p
.
[
th e
u
t t e ra n c e s
.
T h ey
are
,
I
‘
.
H is [Jefferson s ] Declara t ion of Independen ce is an abridged
A lcoran o f poli t ical doc trine laying open t he firs t founda t ions of civil
socie ty ; bu t h e does no t appear to ha v e b ee n aware t ha t i t also laid
Open a precipice i n to which the slave holding plan t ers o f his coun try
soo n er or lat er m u s t fall
The seeds of the Declara t ion of Inde
n d e n c e are yet ma t uring
e
The
harves
t
will
be
wha
t
Wes
t
t
he
p
”
pain ter calls t he t errible sublime
The Missou ri q ues t ion has taken such hold o f my feelings
1 82 0
and i magina t io n t ha t finding my ideas connec ted wi t h i t very numer
ous bu t con fused for wan t o f arrangemen t I have wi thi n t hese fe w
days begu n to co mmi t t hem t o paper loosely as t hey arise in my mind
I take i t fo r gran ted tha t the presen t q u e s t ion is a mere pream
ble
a t i tlepage to a grea t tragic volume
The Presiden t thinks
t his q ues t ion will be winked away by a compromise Bu t so do n ot I
Much am I mis taken i f i t is n ot des t ined t o survive h i s poli t ical and
”
individual life and mine
I f t he dissolu t io n o f the U nion should resul t from t he slave q ues
t ion i t is as obvious as any th ing t ha t can be foreseen o f fu t uri ty tha t i t
mus t shor tly afterwards be followed by t he universal emancipat ion o f
t he slaves
A dissolu t ion a t leas t t emporary of t he Union as now
cons t i t u ted would be cer tainly necessary and t he dissolu t ion mus t be
upo n a poin t i n v olving t he q ues t ion o f slavery and no o ther The
U nion migh t t h e n be reorganized on t he funda men tal principle o f
emancipa t ion This obj ec t is vas t in i t s compass aw ful in i t s pros
pe et s sublime an d beau t i ful in i t s iss ue A li fe devo ted to i t would
”
be nobly spe n t or sacri ficed
“
I f slavery be t he des t ined sword in t he hand of t he des troying
angel which i s t o sever t he t ies O f t his Union t he same sword will cu t i n
sunder t he bonds o f slavery i t self A dissolu t io n of t h e U nion fo r t he
cause of slavery would be followed by a servile war in the slave hold
ing S ta tes co mbin ed wi t h a war be t ween the t wo severed port ions of
the U nion I t seems t o me t ha t i t s resul t mus t be t he ex t irpat ion o f
slavery from t his whole continen t ; and calami tous and desolating as
this course o f eve n t s in i t s progress mus t be so glorious would be i t s
final issue tha t as God shall j udge me I dare no t s ay t ha t i t is no t t o
”
be desired
1 83 6
Fro m t he ins tan t t ha t your slave holdi n g S ta tes bec o me t he
t heatre of war civil servile or foreign from tha t ins tan t t he war
powers o f Congress ex tend t o in terference wi t h the insti t u t ion of slavery
”
in every way in which i t can be in terfered wi th
This is a cause upon which I am en tering a t t he las t s t age of life
1 81 9
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wi t h t he certain ty t ha t I ca n no t advan ce in i t far ; my career
mus t close leaving t he cause a t t he t hreshold To o pen t he way fo r
”
o t hers is all tha t I can do The cause is g ood and great
“
This a c q uisi t ion o f Texas in dissolubly con n ected as i t is wi t h t he
issue n ow making up be t ween Slavery and E mancipa t ion forms a sub
e
t
c
j of con t empla t ion t oo colossal for t he grasp o f my unders tanding "
Is t he whole con t i n en t o f N or t h A merica t o cons t i tu t e on e C on federa
t ion or on e M il i tary Monarchy ? Has Mex ico b ee n eman ci pa ted from
Spain only t o b e con q uered by t he A nglo Saxo n race of our Union ?
This over flowing o f our popula t ion in t o Te xas w i t h t he express design
o f breaking i t o ff from Mexico
and annexing i t t o t he Nor thern Con
federacy under t he law o f pe r pe t ual Slavery has an o minous aspec t
u pon our fu t uri ty and t he facili ty wi t h which i t w ill prove t ha t Mexico
may be s t r i pp d o f her Terri tories
Where will i t end ?
I believe tha t t he final iss ue be t wee n Slavery and E mancipa t ion
f
a
word
which
I
pre
er t o abolition ) is t o b e made u p o n t his C on t i
(
nen t o f N or t h A merica I would hope i f I could tha t i t w ill be made
up peaceably and se ttled w i t ho u t bloodshed but i t mus t come I t
is approaching by s u ch means as i t is t h e special preroga tive of Pro vi
”
dence to employ
1 838
The conflic t be t ween t he principle o f liber ty and t he fac t
Slavery has now t he power
o f slavery is coming gradually t o an issue
and falls in t o convulsions at t he approach of freedom Tha t t he fall
o f slavery is prede t ermined in the counsels of O mnipo t ence I canno t
doub t ; i t is a par t of t he grea t moral improvemen t in t he condi t ion o f
B u t t he conflic t will be
man a tt es t ed by all t he records of his t ory
t errible and t he progress of improvemen t perhaps re trograde be fore i t s
”
final progress t o consummat ion
“
1 83 9
The Dissolu t ion o f t he U nion may indeed b e the fore
runner t o t he Aboli t ion of Slavery b u t t h e n i t will no t b e effec ted
peaceably nor wi t h t he consen t o f the Mas t ers A civil savage and
servile war would b e t he nat ural i f n o t t he necessary conse q uence of
t he dissolu t ion o f our Union and tha t t he resul t of tha t war would
b e t he t o tal aboli t ion of Slavery t hroughou t t his Coun try is highly
”
probable
I f t he t ime sho uld ever come when a maj ori ty o f bo t h Houses o f
Con gress and a Presiden t of t he Uni te d States would concur to enac t
t he i mmed i a te aboli t ion o f Slavery in t he Dis trict wi t hou t t h e con sen t
a nd agains t t h e will of t he Mas t ers — i t could b e no o t herwise than by
a u n animous vo te o f t he free agains t a unan imous v o t e of t he slave
holding represen tation Bu t I believe t ha t long before t hey can come
t o t his ex t remi ty the slave holding represen ta t ion would secede in a
mass and tha t t he S tates represented by them would secede from the
Unio n I k now t ha t among t he aboli t ionis t s t here are some leading
an
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1 12
and able men wh o con sider t his as a desirable even t I myself belie v e
t ha t i t would na t urally and in fallibly lead to t he to tal aboli t ion o f
Slavery bu t i t would be t hrough t he u l t ima t e opera t ion of a war more
t err ible t han the t hir ty years war which followed t he Wi tte n berg
t hesi s of Mart in Lu t her and I shrink fr om i t wi t h horror Tha t t he
slave holders of t he Sou th should flatter t hemselves t ha t by seceding
from t his Union t hey could es t ablish t heir peculiar ins t i t u t ions i n per
t
e
u
i
t
p
y is in my j udgmen t o n e o f t hose abs urd sel f del u sion s which
woul d be surprising if t hey did n ot com pose t he firs t chap ter in t he
his t ory o f human n a t ure The S laveholders d o s o flat ter t hemsel ve s
”
and will ac t accordingly
“
The peaceable aboli t ion o f Slavery t hroughou t this Union h as
always appeared to me a consummat ion de v ou tly t o h e wished and I
have long en ter tained serious doub t s whet her a long con t in uan ce of t he
Union can be compat ible with t he con t i n ued exis ten ce of Sla v ery My
i n vo l un t ar y an t icipa t io n s o f t he fu t ure ha v e been t ha t Slavery will
firs t effec t a dissolu t ion of t he Union and t hat as a na t ural c on se q uence
o f t ha t even t
Wa r will abolish Slavery an d t ermina t e i n a mongrel
”
breed o f hal f blood E uropean and African race
I f t he t o t al A boli t ion o f Slavery be in t he p urp o ses o f d ivine Prov
idence as I belie v e and fer ven tly hope i t is o ther agen t s and o ther
means will in i ts own due t ime be employed t han ei t her A merican
Colonizat ion or Aboli t ion Socie t ies O r i f t hese Socie t ies or ei ther o f
them are t o b e made ins trumen tal to t he accomplishmen t of t he gra n d
work t hey mus t en t irely change t heir modes of operat ion and come
d own from t he empyrean o f t heir fancy t o t he v apoury a t mosphere of
”
this ne t her world
“
I t is a war power I say i t is a war power and when
1 84 2
your coun try is act ually in war whe ther i t be a war of invasion or a
war of i n surrect ion Congress has p ower t o carr y on t he war and mus t
carry i t on according to t he laws of war ; and by t he laws of war an
in vaded coun try has all i t s laws and municipal ins t i t u t ions swep t by t he
board and mar t ial law takes t he place o f them This power i n Con
gress has perhaps ne v er been called i n to exercise under t he presen t
Cons t i t u t ion o f t he Uni ted S tates B u t w h e n t he laws of war are in
I t is t his : tha t when a
force what I ask is one o f t hose laws
coun try is invaded and t wo hos t ile armies are se t in mart ial array t he
commanders of bo t h armies have power to emancipate all the slaves in
t he i n v aded terri tory
“
I lay this down as t he law o f n a t ions I s ay tha t t he mili tary
au thori ty t akes for t he t ime t he place of all municipal ins t i t u tions and
sl avery among t he res t ; and t hat under t hat s tat e o f t hi n gs s o far
from i t s being t rue t ha t t he S ta tes w here slavery exis t s have the exclu
sive managemen t of t he subj ect n ot on ly t he Presiden t of t he Uni ted
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