initial commit of ebook 20183HEADmain

18 files changed, 28947 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6833f05
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitattributes
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+* text=auto
+*.txt text
+*.md text
diff --git a/20183-8.txt b/20183-8.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8a2be69
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-8.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,8762 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of John Quincy Adams, by John. T. Morse
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: John Quincy Adams
+       American Statesmen Series
+
+Author: John. T. Morse
+
+Release Date: December 26, 2006 [EBook #20183]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN QUINCY ADAMS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Christine P. Travers and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
+produced from images generously made available by The
+Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+[Transcriber's note: Obvious printer's errors have been corrected.
+The original spelling has been retained.
+Missing page numbers correspond to blank pages.
+Page numbers for illustration have been changed in the index to match
+the content of this file.]
+
+
+[Illustration: John Quincy Adams]
+
+
+
+
+                              American Statesmen
+
+                           STANDARD LIBRARY EDITION
+
+
+[Illustration: The Home of John Quincy Adams]
+
+
+                            HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN & CO.
+
+
+
+
+                              American Statesmen
+
+
+                              JOHN QUINCY ADAMS
+
+
+                                      BY
+
+
+                              JOHN T. MORSE, JR.
+
+
+
+
+                              BOSTON AND NEW YORK
+                         HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY
+                         The Riverside Press, Cambridge
+
+
+
+
+                           Copyright, 1882 and 1898,
+                             By JOHN T. MORSE, JR.
+
+                                Copyright, 1898,
+                           By HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN & CO.
+
+                            _All rights reserved._
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE                                                              (p. v)
+
+
+Nearly sixteen years have elapsed since this book was written. In that
+time sundry inaccuracies have been called to my attention, and have
+been corrected, and it may be fairly hoped that after the lapse of so
+long a period all errors in matters of fact have been eliminated. I am
+not aware that any fresh material has been made public, or that any
+new views have been presented which would properly lead to alterations
+in the substance of what is herein said. If I were now writing the
+book for the first time, I should do what so many of the later
+contributors to the series have very wisely and advantageously done: I
+should demand more space. But this was the first volume published, and
+at a time when the enterprise was still an experiment insistence upon
+such a point, especially on the part of the editor, would have been
+unreasonable. Thus it happens that, though Mr. Adams was appointed
+minister resident at the Hague in 1794, and thereafter continued in
+public life, almost without interruption, until his death in        (p. vi)
+February, 1848, the narrative of his career is compressed within
+little more than three hundred pages. The proper function of a work
+upon this scale is to draw a picture of the man.
+
+With the picture which I have drawn of Mr. Adams, I still remain
+moderately contented--by which remark I mean nothing more egotistical
+than that I believe it to be a correct picture, and done with whatever
+measure of skill I may happen to possess in portraiture. I should like
+to change it only in one particular, viz.: by infusing throughout the
+volume somewhat more of admiration. Adams has never received the
+praise which was his due, and probably he never will receive it. In
+order that justice should be done him by the public, his biographer
+ought to speak somewhat better of him than his real deserts would
+require. He presents one of those cases where exaggeration is the
+servant of truth; for this moderate excess of appreciation would only
+offset that discount from an accurate estimate which his personal
+unpopularity always has caused, and probably always will cause, to be
+made. He was a good instance of the rule that the world will for the
+most part treat the individual as the individual treats the world.
+Adams was censorious, not to say uncharitable in the extreme,      (p. vii)
+always in an attitude of antagonism, always unsparing and denunciatory.
+The measure which he meted has been by others in their turn meted to
+him. This habit of ungracious criticism was his great fault; perhaps
+it was almost his only very serious fault; it cost him dear in his
+life, and has continued to cost his memory dear since his death.
+Sometimes we are not sorry to see men get the punishments which they
+have brought on themselves; yet we ought to be sorry for Mr. Adams.
+After all, his fault-finding was in part the result of his respect for
+virtue and his hatred of all that was ignoble and unworthy. If he
+despised a low standard, at least he held his own standard high, and
+himself lived by the rules by which he measured others. Men with
+vastly greater defects have been much more kindly served both by
+contemporaries and by posterity. There can be no question that Adams
+deserved all the esteem which ought to be accorded to the highest
+moral qualities, to very high, if a little short of the highest,
+intellectual endowment, and to immense acquirements. His political
+integrity was of a grade rarely seen; and, in unison with his
+extraordinary courage and independence, it seemed to the average
+politician actually irritating and offensive. He was in the same
+difficulty in which Aristides the Just found himself. But neither (p. viii)
+assaults nor political solitude daunted or discouraged him. His career
+in the House of Representatives is a tale which has not a rival in
+congressional history. I regret that it could not be told here at
+greater length. Stubbornly fighting for freedom of speech and against
+the slaveholders, fierce and unwearied in old age, falling literally
+out of the midst of the conflict into his grave, Mr. Adams, during the
+closing years of his life, is one of the most striking figures of
+modern times. I beg the reader of this volume to put into its pages
+more warmth of praise than he will find therein, and so do a more
+correct justice to an honest statesman and a gallant friend of the
+oppressed. Doing this, he will improve my book in the particular
+wherein I think that it chiefly needs improvement.
+                                                  JOHN T. MORSE, JR.
+  July, 1898.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+                                               Page
+  Youth and Diplomacy                             1
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+  Secretary of State and President              101
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+  In the House of Representatives               225
+
+Index                                           309
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+John Quincy Adams                            Frontispiece
+
+     From the original painting by John Singleton
+     Copley, in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
+
+     Autograph from the Chamberlain collection,
+     Boston Public Library.
+
+     The vignette of Mr. Adams's home in Quincy
+     is from a photograph.
+                                                     Page
+William H. Crawford                                   107
+
+     From the painting by Henry Ulke, in the
+     Treasury Department at Washington.
+
+     Autograph from the Chamberlain collection,
+     Boston Public Library.
+
+Stratford Canning                                     149
+
+     After a drawing (1853) by George Richmond.
+     Autograph from "Life of Stratford Canning."
+
+Henry A. Wise                                         291
+
+     From a photograph by Brady, in the Library
+     of the State Department at Washington.
+
+     Autograph from the Chamberlain collection,
+     Boston Public Library.
+
+
+
+
+JOHN QUINCY ADAMS                                                  (p. 001)
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+YOUTH AND DIPLOMACY
+
+
+On July 11, 1767, in the North Parish of Braintree, since set off as
+the town of Quincy, in Massachusetts, was born John Quincy Adams. Two
+streams of as good blood as flowed in the colony mingled in the veins
+of the infant. If heredity counts for anything he began life with an
+excellent chance of becoming famous--_non sine dīs animosus infans_.
+He was called after his great-grandfather on the mother's side, John
+Quincy, a man of local note who had borne in his day a distinguished
+part in provincial affairs. Such a naming was a simple and natural
+occurrence enough, but Mr. Adams afterward moralized upon it in his
+characteristic way:--
+
+     "The incident which gave rise to this circumstance is not without
+     its moral to my heart. He was dying when I was baptized; and his
+     daughter, my grandmother, present at my birth, requested that I
+     might receive his name. The fact, recorded by my father at    (p. 002)
+     the time, has connected with that portion of my name a charm
+     of mingled sensibility and devotion. It was filial tenderness
+     that gave the name. It was the name of one passing from earth to
+     immortality. These have been among the strongest links of my
+     attachment to the name of Quincy, and have been to me through
+     life a perpetual admonition to do nothing unworthy of it."
+
+Fate, which had made such good preparation for him before his birth, was
+not less kind in arranging the circumstances of his early training and
+development. His father was deeply engaged in the patriot cause, and
+the first matters borne in upon his opening intelligence concerned the
+public discontent and resistance to tyranny. He was but seven years
+old when he clambered with his mother to the top of one of the high
+hills in the neighborhood of his home to listen to the sounds of conflict
+upon Bunker's Hill, and to watch the flaming ruin of Charlestown.
+Profound was the impression made upon him by the spectacle, and it was
+intensified by many an hour spent afterward upon the same spot during
+the siege and bombardment of Boston. Then John Adams went as a
+delegate to the Continental Congress at Philadelphia, and his wife and
+children were left for twelve months, as John Quincy Adams says,--it
+is to be hoped with a little exaggeration of the barbarity of      (p. 003)
+British troops toward women and babes,--"liable every hour of the day
+and of the night to be butchered in cold blood, or taken and carried
+into Boston as hostages, by any foraging or marauding detachment."
+Later, when the British had evacuated Boston, the boy, barely nine
+years old, became "post-rider" between the city and the farm, a
+distance of eleven miles each way, in order to bring all the latest
+news to his mother.
+
+Not much regular schooling was to be got amid such surroundings of
+times and events, but the lad had a natural aptitude or affinity for
+knowledge which stood him in better stead than could any dame of a
+village school. The following letter to his father is worth
+preserving:--
+
+                                   BRAINTREE, _June the 2d, 1777_.
+
+     DEAR SIR,--I love to receive letters very well, much better than
+     I love to write them. I make but a poor figure at composition, my
+     head is much too fickle, my thoughts are running after birds'
+     eggs, play and trifles till I get vexed with myself. I have but
+     just entered the 3d volume of Smollett, tho' I had designed to
+     have got it half through by this time. I have determined this
+     week to be more diligent, as Mr. Thaxter will be absent at Court
+     and I Cannot pursue my other Studies. I have Set myself a Stent
+     and determine to read the 3d volume Half out. If I can but    (p. 004)
+     keep my resolution I will write again at the end of the week
+     and give a better account of myself. I wish, Sir, you would give
+     me some instructions with regard to my time, and advise me how to
+     proportion my Studies and my Play, in writing, and I will keep
+     them by me and endeavor to follow them. I am, dear Sir, with a
+     present determination of growing better. Yours.
+
+     P.S. Sir, if you will be so good as to favor me with a Blank
+     book, I will transcribe the most remarkable occurrences I met
+     with in my reading, which will serve to fix them upon my mind.
+
+Not long after the writing of this model epistle, the simple village
+life was interrupted by an unexpected change. John Adams was sent on a
+diplomatic journey to Paris, and on February 13, 1778, embarked in the
+frigate Boston. John Quincy Adams, then eleven years old, accompanied
+his father and thus made his first acquaintance with the foreign lands
+where so many of his coming years were to be passed. This initial
+visit, however, was brief; and he was hardly well established at
+school when events caused his father to start for home. Unfortunately
+this return trip was a needless loss of time, since within three
+months of their setting foot upon American shores the two travellers
+were again on their stormy way back across the Atlantic in a leaky
+ship, which had to land them at the nearest port in Spain. One     (p. 005)
+more quotation must be given from a letter written just after the
+first arrival in France:--
+
+                                   PASSY, _September the 27th, 1778_.
+
+     HONORED MAMMA,--My Pappa enjoins it upon me to keep a Journal, or
+     a Diary of the Events that happen to me, and of objects that I
+     see, and of Characters that I converse with from day to day; and
+     altho' I am Convinced of the utility, importance and necessity of
+     this Exercise, yet I have not patience and perseverance enough to
+     do it so Constantly as I ought. My Pappa, who takes a great deal
+     of pains to put me in the right way, has also advised me to
+     Preserve Copies of all my letters, and has given me a Convenient
+     Blank Book for this end; and altho' I shall have the
+     mortification a few years hence to read a great deal of my
+     Childish nonsense, yet I shall have the Pleasure and advantage of
+     Remarking the several steps by which I shall have advanced in
+     taste, judgment and knowledge. A Journal Book and a letter Book
+     of a Lad of Eleven years old Can not be expected to Contain much
+     of Science, Literature, arts, wisdom, or wit, yet it may serve to
+     perpetuate many observations that I may make, and may hereafter
+     help me to recollect both persons and things that would other
+     ways escape my memory.
+
+He continues with resolutions "to be more thoughtful and industrious
+for the future," and reflects with pleasure upon the prospect that
+his scheme "will be a sure means of improvement to myself, and     (p. 006)
+enable me to be more entertaining to you." What gratification must
+this letter from one who was quite justified in signing himself her
+"dutiful and affectionate son" have brought to the Puritan bosom of
+the good mother at home! If the plan for the diary was not pursued
+during the first short flitting abroad, it can hardly be laid at the
+door of the "lad of eleven years" as a serious fault. He did in fact
+begin it when setting out on the aforementioned second trip to Europe,
+calling it
+
+                         A JOURNAL BY J. Q. A.,
+
+                       _From America to Spain._
+
+                               Vol. I.
+
+                  Begun Friday, 12 of November, 1779.
+
+The spark of life in the great undertaking flickered in a somewhat
+feeble and irregular way for many years thereafter, but apparently
+gained strength by degrees until in 1795, as Mr. C. F. Adams tells us,
+"what may be denominated the diary proper begins," a very vigorous
+work in more senses than one. Continued with astonishing persistency
+and faithfulness until within a few days of the writer's death, the
+latest entry is of the 4th of January, 1848. Mr. Adams achieved many
+successes during his life as the result of conscious effort, but   (p. 007)
+the greatest success of all he achieved altogether unconsciously. He
+left a portrait of himself more full, correct, vivid, and picturesque
+than has ever been bequeathed to posterity by any other personage of
+the past ages. Any mistakes which may be made in estimating his mental
+or moral attributes must be charged to the dulness or prejudice of the
+judge, who could certainly not ask for better or more abundant
+evidence. Few of us know our most intimate friends better than any of
+us may know Mr. Adams, if we will but take the trouble. Even the brief
+extracts already given from his correspondence show us the boy; it
+only concerns us to get them into the proper light for seeing them
+accurately. If a lad of seven, nine, or eleven years of age should
+write such solemn little effusions amid the surroundings and
+influences of the present day, he would probably be set down justly
+enough as either an offensive young prig or a prematurely developed
+hypocrite. But the precocious Adams had only a little of the prig and
+nothing of the hypocrite in his nature. Being the outcome of many
+generations of simple, devout, intelligent Puritan ancestors, living
+in a community which loved virtue and sought knowledge, all inherited
+and all present influences combined to make him, as it may be put  (p. 008)
+in a single word, sensible. He had inevitably a mental boyhood and
+youth, but morally he was never either a child or a lad; all his
+leading traits of character were as strongly marked when he was seven
+as when he was seventy, and at an age when most young people simply
+win love or cause annoyance, he was preferring wisdom to mischief, and
+actually in his earliest years was attracting a certain respect.
+
+These few but bold and striking touches which paint the boy are
+changed for an infinitely more elaborate and complex presentation from
+the time when the Diary begins. Even as abridged in the printing, this
+immense work ranks among the half-dozen longest diaries to be found in
+any library, and it is unquestionably by far the most valuable.
+Henceforth we are to travel along its broad route to the end; we shall
+see in it both the great and the small among public men halting onward
+in a way very different from that in which they march along the
+stately pages of the historian, and we shall find many side-lights, by
+no means colorless, thrown upon the persons and events of the
+procession. The persistence, fulness, and faithfulness with which it
+was kept throughout so busy a life are marvellous, but are also highly
+characteristic of the most persevering and industrious of men.     (p. 009)
+That it has been preserved is cause not only for thankfulness but
+for some surprise also. For if its contents had been known, it is
+certain that all the public men of nearly two generations who figure
+in it would have combined into one vast and irresistible conspiracy to
+obtain and destroy it. There was always a superfluity of gall in the
+diarist's ink. Sooner or later every man of any note in the United
+States was mentioned in his pages, and there is scarcely one of them,
+who, if he could have read what was said of him, would not have
+preferred the ignominy of omission. As one turns the leaves he feels
+as though he were walking through a graveyard of slaughtered
+reputations wherein not many headstones show a few words of measured
+commendation. It is only the greatness and goodness of Mr. Adams
+himself which relieve the universal atmosphere of sadness far more
+depressing than the melancholy which pervades the novels of George
+Eliot. The reader who wishes to retain any comfortable degree of
+belief in his fellow men will turn to the wall all the portraits in
+the gallery except only the inimitable one of the writer himself. For
+it would be altogether too discouraging to think that so wide an
+experience of men as Mr. Adams enjoyed through his long, varied, and
+active life must lead to such an unpleasant array of human faces   (p. 010)
+as those which are scattered along these twelve big octavos.
+Fortunately at present we have to do with only one of these
+likenesses, and that one we are able to admire while knowing also that
+it is beyond question accurate. One after another every trait of Mr.
+Adams comes out; we shall see that he was a man of a very high and
+noble character veined with some very notable and disagreeable
+blemishes; his aspirations were honorable, even the lowest of them
+being more than simply respectable; he had an avowed ambition, but it
+was of that pure kind which led him to render true and distinguished
+services to his countrymen; he was not only a zealous patriot, but a
+profound believer in the sound and practicable tenets of the liberal
+political creed of the United States; he had one of the most honest
+and independent natures that was ever given to man; personal integrity
+of course goes without saying, but he had the rarer gift of an
+elevated and rigid political honesty such as has been unfrequently
+seen in any age or any nation; in times of severe trial this quality
+was even cruelly tested, but we shall never see it fail; he was as
+courageous as if he had been a fanatic; indeed, for a long part of his
+life to maintain a single-handed fight in support of a despised or
+unpopular opinion seemed his natural function and almost exclusive
+calling; he was thoroughly conscientious and never knowingly did   (p. 011)
+wrong, nor even sought to persuade himself that wrong was right;
+well read in literature and of wide and varied information in nearly
+all matters of knowledge, he was more especially remarkable for his
+acquirements in the domain of politics, where indeed they were vast
+and ever growing; he had a clear and generally a cool head, and was
+nearly always able to do full justice to himself and to his cause; he
+had an indomitable will, unconquerable persistence, and infinite
+laboriousness. Such were the qualities which made him a great
+statesman; but unfortunately we must behold a hardly less striking
+reverse to the picture, in the faults and shortcomings which made him
+so unpopular in his lifetime that posterity is only just beginning to
+forget the prejudices of his contemporaries and to render concerning
+him the judgment which he deserves. Never did a man of pure life and
+just purposes have fewer friends or more enemies than John Quincy
+Adams. His nature, said to have been very affectionate in his family
+relations, was in its aspect outside of that small circle singularly
+cold and repellent. If he could ever have gathered even a small
+personal following his character and abilities would have insured him
+a brilliant and prolonged success; but, for a man of his calibre   (p. 012)
+and influence, we shall see him as one of the most lonely and desolate
+of the great men of history; instinct led the public men of his time
+to range themselves against him rather than with him, and we shall
+find them fighting beside him only when irresistibly compelled to do
+so by policy or strong convictions. As he had little sympathy with
+those with whom he was brought in contact, so he was very uncharitable
+in his judgment of them; and thus having really a low opinion of so
+many of them he could indulge his vindictive rancor without stint; his
+invective, always powerful, will sometimes startle us by its venom,
+and we shall be pained to see him apt to make enemies for a good cause
+by making them for himself.
+
+This has been, perhaps, too long a lingering upon the threshold. But
+Mr. Adams's career in public life stretched over so long a period that
+to write a full historical memoir of him within the limited space of
+this volume is impossible. All that can be attempted is to present a
+sketch of the man with a few of his more prominent surroundings
+against a very meagre and insufficient background of the history of
+the times. So it may be permissible to begin with a general outline of
+his figure, to be filled in, shaded, and colored as we proceed. At
+best our task is much more difficult of satisfactory achievement   (p. 013)
+than an historical biography of the customary elaborate order.
+
+During his second visit to Europe, our mature youngster--if the word
+may be used of Mr. Adams even in his earliest years--began to see a
+good deal of the world and to mingle in very distinguished society.
+For a brief period he got a little schooling, first at Paris, next at
+Amsterdam, and then at Leyden; altogether the amount was
+insignificant, since he was not quite fourteen years old when he
+actually found himself engaged in a diplomatic career. Francis Dana,
+afterward Chief Justice of Massachusetts, was then accredited as an
+envoy to Russia from the United States, and he took Mr. Adams with him
+as his private secretary. Not much came of the mission, but it was a
+valuable experience for a lad of his years. Upon his return he spent
+six months in travel and then he rejoined his father in Paris, where
+that gentleman was engaged with Franklin and John Jay in negotiating
+the final treaty of peace between the revolted colonies and the mother
+country. The boy "was at once enlisted in the service as an additional
+secretary, and gave his help to the preparation of the papers
+necessary to the completion of that instrument which dispersed all
+possible doubt of the Independence of his Country."
+
+On April 26, 1785, arrived the packet-ship Le Courier de L'Orient, (p. 014)
+bringing a letter from Mr. Gerry containing news of the appointment of
+John Adams as Minister to St. James's. This unforeseen occurrence made
+it necessary for the younger Adams to determine his own career, which
+apparently he was left to do for himself. He was indeed a singular
+young man, not unworthy of such confidence! The glimpses which we get
+of him during this stay abroad show him as the associate upon terms of
+equality with grown men of marked ability and exercising important
+functions. He preferred diplomacy to dissipation, statesmen to
+mistresses, and in the midst of all the temptations of the gayest
+capital in the world, the chariness with which he sprinkled his wild
+oats amid the alluring gardens chiefly devoted to the culture of those
+cereals might well have brought a blush to the cheeks of some among
+his elders, at least if the tongue of slander wags not with gross
+untruth concerning the colleagues of John Adams. But he was not in
+Europe to amuse himself, though at an age when amusement is natural
+and a tinge of sinfulness is so often pardoned; he was there with the
+definite and persistent purpose of steady improvement and acquisition.
+At his age most young men play the cards which a kind fortune puts
+into their hands, with the reckless intent only of immediate gain, (p. 015)
+but from the earliest moment when he began the game of life Adams
+coolly and wisely husbanded every card which came into his hand, with
+a steady view to probable future contingencies, and with the resolve
+to win in the long run. So now the resolution which he took in the
+present question illustrated the clearness of his mind and the
+strength of his character. To go with his father to England would be
+to enjoy a life precisely fitted to his natural and acquired tastes,
+to mingle with the men who were making history, to be cognizant of the
+weightiest of public affairs, to profit by all that the grandest city
+in the world had to show. It was easy to be not only allured by the
+prospect but also to be deceived by its apparent advantages. Adams,
+however, had the sense and courage to turn his back on it, and to go
+home to the meagre shores and small society of New England, there to
+become a boy again, to enter Harvard College, and come under all its
+at that time rigid and petty regulations. It almost seems a mistake,
+but it was not. Already he was too ripe and too wise to blunder. He
+himself gives us his characteristic and sufficient reasons:--
+
+     "Were I now to go with my father probably my immediate
+     satisfaction might be greater than it will be in returning    (p. 016)
+     to America. After having been travelling for these seven years
+     almost and all over Europe, and having been in the world and among
+     company for three; to return to spend one or two years in the
+     pale of a college, subjected to all the rules which I have so long
+     been freed from; and afterwards not expect (however good an opinion
+     I may have of myself) to bring myself into notice under three or
+     four years more, if ever! It is really a prospect somewhat
+     discouraging for a youth of my ambition, (for I have ambition
+     though I hope its object is laudable). But still
+
+                    'Oh! how wretched
+          Is that poor man, that hangs on Princes' favors,'
+
+     or on those of any body else. I am determined that so long as I
+     shall be able to get my own living in an honorable manner, I will
+     depend upon no one. My father has been so much taken up all his
+     lifetime with the interests of the public, that his own fortune
+     has suffered by it: so that his children will have to provide for
+     themselves, which I shall never be able to do if I loiter away my
+     precious time in Europe and shun going home until I am forced to
+     it. With an ordinary share of common sense, which I hope I enjoy,
+     at least in America I can live _independent_ and _free_; and
+     rather than live otherwise I would wish to die before the time
+     when I shall be left at my own discretion. I have before me a
+     striking example of the distressing and humiliating situation a
+     person is reduced to by adopting a different line of conduct, and
+     I am determined not to fall into the same error."
+
+It is needless to comment upon such spirit and sense, or upon      (p. 017)
+such just appreciation of what was feasible, wise, and right for him,
+as a New Englander whose surroundings and prospects were widely
+different from those of the society about him. He must have been
+strongly imbued by nature with the instincts of his birthplace to
+have formed, after a seven years' absence at his impressible age, so
+correct a judgment of the necessities and possibilities of his own
+career in relationship to the people and ideas of his own country.
+
+Home accordingly he came, and by assiduity prepared himself in a very
+short time to enter the junior class at Harvard College, whence he was
+graduated in high standing in 1787. From there he went to Newburyport,
+then a thriving and active seaport enriched by the noble trade of
+privateering in addition to more regular maritime business, and entered
+as a law student the office of Theophilus Parsons, afterwards the
+Chief Justice of Massachusetts. On July 15, 1790, being twenty-three
+years old, he was admitted to practice. Immediately afterward he
+established himself in Boston, where for a time he felt strangely
+solitary. Clients of course did not besiege his doors in the first
+year, and he appears to have waited rather stubbornly than cheerfully
+for more active days. These came in good time, and during the      (p. 018)
+second, third, and fourth years, his business grew apace to encouraging
+dimensions.
+
+He was, however, doing other work than that of the law, and much more
+important in its bearing upon his future career. He could not keep his
+thoughts, nor indeed his hands, from public affairs. When, in 1791,
+Thomas Paine produced the "Rights of Man," Thomas Jefferson acting as
+midwife to usher the bantling before the people of the United States,
+Adams's indignation was fired, and he published anonymously a series
+of refuting papers over the signature of Publicola. These attracted
+much attention, not only at home but also abroad, and were by many
+attributed to John Adams. Two years later, during the excitement
+aroused by the reception and subsequent outrageous behavior here of
+the French minister, Genet, Mr. Adams again published in the Boston
+"Centinel" some papers over the signature of Marcellus, discussing
+with much ability the then new and perplexing question of the
+neutrality which should be observed by this country in European wars.
+These were followed by more, over the signature of Columbus, and
+afterward by still more in the name of Barnevelt, all strongly
+reprobating the course of the crazy-headed foreigner. The writer was
+not permitted to remain long unknown. It is not certain, but it    (p. 019)
+is highly probable, that to these articles was due the nomination
+which Mr. Adams received shortly afterward from President Washington,
+as Minister Resident at the Hague. This nomination was sent in to the
+Senate, May 29, 1794, and was unanimously confirmed on the following
+day. It may be imagined that the change from the moderate practice of
+his Boston law office to a European court, of which he so well knew
+the charms, was not distasteful to him. There are passages in his
+Diary which indicate that he had been chafing with irrepressible
+impatience "in that state of useless and disgraceful insignificancy,"
+to which, as it seemed to him, he was relegated, so that at the age of
+twenty-five, when "many of the characters who were born for the
+benefit of their fellow creatures, have rendered themselves conspicuous
+among their contemporaries, ... I still find myself as obscure, as
+unknown to the world, as the most indolent or the most stupid of human
+beings." Entertaining such a restless ambition, he of course accepted
+the proffered office, though not without some expression of unexplained
+doubt. October 31, 1794, found him at the Hague, after a voyage of
+considerable peril in a leaky ship, commanded by a blundering captain.
+He was a young diplomat, indeed; it was on his twenty-seventh      (p. 020)
+birthday that he received his commission.
+
+The minister made his advent upon a tumultuous scene. All Europe was
+getting under arms in the long and desperate struggle with France.
+Scarcely had he presented his credentials to the Stadtholder ere that
+dignitary was obliged to flee before the conquering standards of the
+French. Pichegru marched into the capital city of the Low Countries,
+hung out the tri-color, and established the "Batavian Republic" as the
+ally of France. The diplomatic representatives of most of the European
+powers forthwith left, and Mr. Adams was strongly moved to do the same,
+though for reasons different from those which actuated his compeers.
+He was not, like them, placed in an unpleasant position by the new
+condition of affairs, but on the contrary he was very cordially
+treated by the French and their Dutch partisans, and was obliged to
+fall back upon his native prudence to resist their compromising
+overtures and dangerous friendship. Without giving offence he yet kept
+clear of entanglements, and showed a degree of wisdom and skill which
+many older and more experienced Americans failed to evince, either
+abroad or at home, during these exciting years. But he appeared to be
+left without occupation in the altered condition of affairs, and   (p. 021)
+therefore was considering the propriety of returning, when advices
+from home induced him to stay. Washington especially wrote that he
+must not think of retiring, and prophesied that he would soon be
+"found at the head of the diplomatic corps, be the government
+administered by whomsoever the people may choose." He remained,
+therefore, at the Hague, a shrewd and close observer of the exciting
+events occurring around him, industriously pursuing an extensive
+course of study and reading, making useful acquaintances, acquiring
+familiarity with foreign languages, with the usages of diplomacy and
+the habits of distinguished society. He had little public business to
+transact, it is true; but at least his time was well spent for his own
+improvement.
+
+An episode in his life at the Hague was his visit to England, where he
+was directed to exchange ratifications of the treaty lately negotiated
+by Mr. Jay. But a series of vexatious delays, apparently maliciously
+contrived, detained him so long that upon his arrival he found this
+specific task already accomplished by Mr. Deas. He was probably not
+disappointed that his name thus escaped connection with engagements so
+odious to a large part of the nation. He had, however, some further
+business of an informal character to transact with Lord Grenville, (p. 022)
+and in endeavoring to conduct it found himself rather awkwardly placed.
+He was not minister to the Court of St. James, having been only
+vaguely authorized to discuss certain arrangements in a tentative way,
+without the power to enter into any definitive agreement. But the
+English Cabinet strongly disliking Mr. Deas, who in the absence of Mr.
+Pinckney represented for the time the United States, and much
+preferring to negotiate with Mr. Adams, sought by many indirect and
+artful subterfuges to thrust upon him the character of a regularly
+accredited minister. He had much ado to avoid, without offence, the
+assumption of functions to which he had no title, but which were with
+designing courtesy forced upon him. His cool and moderate temper,
+however, carried him successfully through the whole business, alike in
+its social and its diplomatic aspect.
+
+Another negotiation, of a private nature also, he brought to a
+successful issue during these few months in London. He made the
+acquaintance of Miss Louisa Catherine Johnson, daughter of Joshua
+Johnson, then American Consul at London, and niece of that Governor
+Johnson, of Maryland, who had signed the Declaration of Independence
+and was afterwards placed on the bench of the Supreme Court of     (p. 023)
+the United States. To this lady he became engaged; and returning
+not long afterward he was married to her on July 26, 1797. It was a
+thoroughly happy and, for him, a life-long union.
+
+President Washington, toward the close of his second term, transferred
+Mr. Adams to the Court of Portugal. But before his departure thither
+his destination was changed. Some degree of embarrassment was felt
+about this time concerning his further continuance in public office,
+by reason of his father's accession to the Presidency. He wrote to his
+mother a manly and spirited letter, rebuking her for carelessly
+dropping an expression indicative of a fear that he might look for
+some favor at his father's hands. He could neither solicit nor expect
+anything, he justly said, and he was pained that his mother should not
+know him better than to entertain any apprehension of his feeling
+otherwise. It was a perplexing position in which the two were placed.
+It would be a great hardship to cut short the son's career because of
+the success of the father, yet the reproach of nepotism could not be
+lightly encountered, even with the backing of clear consciences.
+Washington came kindly to the aid of his doubting successor, and in a
+letter highly complimentary to Mr. John Quincy Adams strongly urged
+that well-merited promotion ought not to be kept from him,         (p. 024)
+foretelling for him a distinguished future in the diplomatic service.
+These representations prevailed; and the President's only action as
+concerned his son consisted in changing his destination from Portugal
+to Prussia, both missions being at that time of the same grade, though
+that to Prussia was then established for the first time by the making
+and confirming of this nomination.
+
+To Berlin, accordingly, Mr. Adams proceeded in November, 1797, and had
+the somewhat cruel experience of being "questioned at the gates by a
+dapper lieutenant, who did not know, until one of his private soldiers
+explained to him, who the United States of America were." Overcoming
+this unusual obstacle to a ministerial advent, and succeeding, after
+many months, in getting through all the introductory formalities, he
+found not much more to be done at Berlin than there had been at the
+Hague. But such useful work as was open to him he accomplished in the
+shape of a treaty of amity and commerce between Prussia and the United
+States. This having been duly ratified by both the powers, his further
+stay seemed so useless that he wrote home suggesting his readiness to
+return; and while awaiting a reply he travelled through some portions
+of Europe which he had not before seen. His recall was one of the  (p. 025)
+last acts of his father's administration, made, says Mr. Seward,
+"that Mr. Jefferson might have no embarrassment in that direction,"
+but quite as probably dictated by a vindictive desire to show how wide
+was the gulf of animosity which had opened between the family of the
+disappointed ex-President and his triumphant rival.
+
+Mr. Adams, immediately upon his arrival at home, prepared to return to
+the practice of his profession. It was not altogether an agreeable
+transition from an embassy at the courts of Europe to a law office in
+Boston, with the necessity of furbishing up long disused knowledge,
+and a second time patiently awaiting the influx of clients. But he
+faced it with his stubborn temper and practical sense. The slender
+promise which he was able to discern in the political outlook could
+not fail to disappoint him, since his native predilections were
+unquestionably and strongly in favor of a public career. During his
+absence party animosities had been developing rapidly. The first great
+party victory since the organization of the government had just been
+won, after a very bitter struggle, by the Republicans or Democrats, as
+they were then indifferently called, whose exuberant delight found its
+full counterpart in the angry despondency of the Federalists. That
+irascible old gentleman, the elder Adams, having experienced a     (p. 026)
+very Waterloo defeat in the contest for the Presidency, had ridden
+away from the capital, actually in a wild rage, on the night of the 3d
+of March, 1801, to avoid the humiliating pageant of Mr. Jefferson's
+inauguration. Yet far more fierce than this natural party warfare was
+the internal dissension which rent the Federal party in twain. Those
+cracks upon the surface and subterraneous rumblings, which the
+experienced observer could for some time have noted, had opened with
+terrible uproar into a gaping chasm, when John Adams, still in the
+Presidency, suddenly announced his determination to send a mission to
+France at a crisis when nearly all his party were looking for war.
+Perhaps this step was, as his admirers claim, an act of pure and
+disinterested statesmanship. Certainly its result was fortunate for
+the country at large. But for John Adams it was ruinous. At the moment
+when he made the bold move, he doubtless expected to be followed by
+his party. Extreme was his disappointment and boundless his wrath,
+when he found that he had at his back only a fraction, not improbably
+less than half, of that party. He learned with infinite chagrin that
+he had only a divided empire with a private individual; that it was
+not safe for him, the President of the United States, to originate
+any important measure without first consulting a lawyer quietly    (p. 027)
+engaged in the practice of his profession in New York; that, in short,
+at least a moiety, in which were to be found the most intelligent
+members, of the great Federal party, when in search of guidance,
+turned their faces toward Alexander Hamilton rather than toward John
+Adams. These Hamiltonians by no means relished the French mission, so
+that from this time forth a schism of intense bitterness kept the
+Federal party asunder, and John Adams hated Alexander Hamilton with a
+vigor not surpassed in the annals of human antipathies. His rage was
+not assuaged by the conduct of this dreaded foe in the presidential
+campaign; and the defeated candidate always preferred to charge his
+failure to Hamilton's machinations rather than to the real will of the
+people. This, however, was unfair; it was perfectly obvious that a
+majority of the nation had embraced Jeffersonian tenets, and that
+Federalism was moribund.
+
+To this condition of affairs John Quincy Adams returned. Fortunately
+he had been compelled to bear no part in the embroilments of the past,
+and his sagacity must have led him, while listening with filial
+sympathy to the interpretations placed upon events by his incensed
+parent, yet to make liberal allowance for the distorting effects   (p. 028)
+of the old gentleman's rage. Still it was in the main only natural for
+him to regard himself as a Federalist of the Adams faction. His
+proclivities had always been with that party. In Massachusetts the
+educated and well-to-do classes were almost unanimously of that way of
+thinking. The select coterie of gentlemen in the State, who in those
+times bore an active and influential part in politics, were nearly all
+Hamiltonians, but the adherents of President Adams were numerically
+strong. Nor was the younger Adams himself long left without his
+private grievance against Mr. Jefferson, who promptly used the
+authority vested in him by a new statute to remove Mr. Adams from the
+position of commissioner in bankruptcy, to which, at the time of his
+resuming business, he had been appointed by the judge of the district
+court. Long afterward Jefferson sought to escape the odium of this
+apparently malicious and, for those days, unusual action, by a very
+Jeffersonian explanation, tolerably satisfactory to those persons who
+believed it.
+
+On April 5, 1802, Mr. Adams was chosen by the Federalists of Boston to
+represent them in the State Senate. The office was at that time still
+sought by men of the best ability and position, and though it was
+hardly a step upward on the political ladder for one who had
+represented the nation in foreign parts for eight years, yet       (p. 029)
+Mr. Adams was well content to accept it. At least it reopened the door
+of political life, and moreover one of his steadfast maxims was never
+to refuse any function which the people sought to impose upon him. It
+is worth noting, for its bearing upon controversies soon to be
+encountered in this narrative, that forty-eight hours had not elapsed
+after Mr. Adams had taken his seat before he ventured upon a display
+of independence which caused much irritation to his Federalist
+associates. He had the hardihood to propose that the Federalist
+majority in the legislature should permit the Republican minority to
+enjoy a proportional representation in the council. "It was the first
+act of my legislative life," he wrote many years afterward, "and it
+marked the principle by which my whole public life has been governed
+from that day to this. My proposal was unsuccessful, and perhaps it
+forfeited whatever confidence might have been otherwise bestowed upon
+me as a party follower." Indeed, all his life long Mr. Adams was never
+submissive to the party whip, but voted upon every question precisely
+according to his opinion of its merits, without the slightest regard
+to the political company in which for the time being he might find
+himself. A compeer of his in the United States Senate once said    (p. 030)
+of him, that he regarded every public measure which came up as he
+would a proposition in Euclid, abstracted from any party considerations.
+These frequent derelictions of his were at first forgiven with a
+magnanimity really very creditable, so long as it lasted, especially
+to the Hamiltonians in the Federal party; and so liberal was this
+forbearance that when in February, 1803, the legislature had to elect
+a Senator to the United States Senate, he was chosen upon the fourth
+ballot by 86 votes out of 171. This was the more gratifying to him and
+the more handsome on the part of the anti-Adams men in the party,
+because the place was eagerly sought by Timothy Pickering, an old man
+who had strong claims growing out of an almost life-long and very
+efficient service in their ranks, and who was moreover a most stanch
+adherent of General Hamilton.
+
+So in October, 1803, we find Mr. Adams on his way to Washington, the
+raw and unattractive village which then constituted the national
+capital, wherein there was not, as the pious New Englander instantly
+noted, a church of any denomination; but those who were religiously
+disposed were obliged to attend services "usually performed on Sundays
+at the Treasury Office and at the Capitol." With what anticipations
+Mr. Adams's mind was filled during his journey to this embryotic   (p. 031)
+city his Diary does not tell; but if they were in any degree cheerful
+or sanguine they were destined to cruel disappointment. He was now
+probably to appreciate for the first time the fierce vigor of the
+hostility which his father had excited. In Massachusetts social
+connections and friendships probably mitigated the open display of
+rancor to which in Washington full sway was given. It was not only the
+Republican majority who showed feelings which in them were at least
+fair if they were strong, but the Federal minority were maliciously
+pleased to find in the son of the ill-starred John Adams a victim on
+whom to vent that spleen and abuse which were so provokingly
+ineffective against the solid working majority of their opponents in
+Congress. The Republicans trampled upon the Federalists, and the
+Federalists trampled on John Quincy Adams. He spoke seldom, and
+certainly did not weary the Senators, yet whenever he rose to his feet
+he was sure of a cold, too often almost an insulting, reception. By no
+chance or possibility could anything which he said or suggested please
+his prejudiced auditors. The worst augury for any measure was his
+support; any motion which he made was sure to be voted down, though
+not unfrequently substantially the same matter being afterward moved
+by somebody else would be readily carried. That cordiality,        (p. 032)
+assistance, and sense of fellowship which Senators from the same State
+customarily expect and obtain from each other could not be enjoyed by
+him. For shortly after his arrival in Washington, Mr. Pickering had
+been chosen to fill a vacancy in the other Massachusetts senatorship,
+and appeared upon the scene as a most unwelcome colleague. For a time,
+indeed, an outward semblance of political comradeship was maintained
+between them, but it would have been folly for an Adams to put faith
+in a Pickering, and perhaps _vice versa_. This position of his, as the
+unpopular member of an unpopular minority, could not be misunderstood,
+and many allusions to it occur in his Diary. One day he notes a motion
+rejected; another day, that he has "nothing to do but to make
+fruitless opposition;" he constantly recites that he has voted with a
+small minority, and at least once he himself composed the whole of
+that minority; soon after his arrival he says that an amendment
+proposed by him "will certainly not pass; and, indeed, I have already
+seen enough to ascertain that no amendments of my proposing will
+obtain in the Senate as now filled;" again, "I presented my three
+resolutions, which raised a storm as violent as I expected;" and on
+the same day he writes, "I have no doubt of incurring much censure
+and obloquy for this measure;" a day or two later he speaks of     (p. 033)
+certain persons "who hate me rather more than they love any
+principle;" when he expressed an opinion in favor of ratifying a
+treaty with the Creeks, he remarks quite philosophically, that he
+believes it "surprised almost every member of the Senate, and
+dissatisfied almost all;" when he wanted a committee raised he did not
+move it himself, but suggested the idea to another Senator, for "I
+knew that if I moved it a spirit of jealousy would immediately be
+raised against doing anything." Writing once of some resolutions which
+he intended to propose, he says that they are "another feather against
+a whirlwind. A desperate and fearful cause in which I have embarked,
+but I must pursue it or feel myself either a coward or a traitor."
+Another time we find a committee, of which he was a member, making its
+report when he had not even been notified of its meeting.
+
+It would be idle to suppose that any man could be sufficiently callous
+not to feel keenly such treatment. Mr. Adams was far from callous and
+he felt it deeply. But he was not crushed or discouraged by it, as
+weaker spirits would have been, nor betrayed into any acts of foolish
+anger which must have recoiled upon himself. In him warm feelings were
+found in singular combination with a cool head. An unyielding      (p. 034)
+temper and an obstinate courage, an invincible confidence in his own
+judgment, and a stern conscientiousness carried him through these
+earlier years of severe trial as they had afterwards to carry him
+through many more. "The qualities of mind most peculiarly called for,"
+he reflects in the Diary, "are firmness, perseverance, patience,
+coolness, and forbearance. The prospect is not promising; yet the part
+to act may be as honorably performed as if success could attend it."
+He understood the situation perfectly and met it with a better skill
+than that of the veteran politician. By a long and tedious but sure
+process he forced his way to steadily increasing influence, and by the
+close of his fourth year we find him taking a part in the business of
+the Senate which may be fairly called prominent and important. He was
+conquering success.
+
+But if Mr. Adams's unpopularity was partly due to the fact that he was
+the son of his father, it was also largely attributable not only to
+his unconciliatory manners but to more substantial habits of mind and
+character. It is probably impossible for any public man, really
+independent in his political action, to lead a very comfortable life
+amid the struggles of party. Under the disadvantages involved in this
+habit Mr. Adams labored to a remarkable degree. Since parties      (p. 035)
+were first organized in this Republic no American statesman has ever
+approached him in persistent freedom of thought, speech, and action.
+He was regarded as a Federalist, but his Federalism was subject to
+many modifications; the members of that party never were sure of his
+adherence, and felt bound to him by no very strong ties of political
+fellowship. Towards the close of his senatorial term he recorded, in
+reminiscence, that he had more often voted with the administration
+than with the opposition.
+
+The first matter of importance concerning which he was obliged to act
+was the acquisition of Louisiana and its admission as a state of the
+Union. The Federalists were bitterly opposed to this measure,
+regarding it as an undue strengthening of the South and of the slavery
+influence, to the destruction of the fair balance of power between the
+two great sections of the country. It was not then the moral aspect of
+the slavery element which stirred the northern temper, but only the
+antagonism of interests between the commercial cities of the North and
+the agricultural communities of the South. In the discussions and
+votes which took place in this business Mr. Adams was in favor of the
+purchase, but denied with much emphasis the constitutionality of the
+process by which the purchased territory was brought into the      (p. 036)
+fellowship of States. This imperfect allegiance to the party gave more
+offence than satisfaction, and he found himself soundly berated in
+leading Federalist newspapers in New England, and angrily threatened
+with expulsion from the party. But in the famous impeachment of Judge
+Chase, which aroused very strong feelings, Mr. Adams was fortunately
+able to vote for acquittal. He regarded this measure, as well as the
+impeachment of Judge Pickering at the preceding session, as parts of
+an elaborate scheme on the part of the President for degrading the
+national judiciary and rendering it subservient to the legislative
+branch of the government. So many, however, even of Mr. Jefferson's
+stanch adherents revolted against his requisitions on this occasion,
+and he himself so far lost heart before the final vote was taken, that
+several Republicans voted with the Federalists, and Mr. Adams could
+hardly claim much credit with his party for standing by them in this
+emergency.
+
+It takes a long while for such a man to secure respect, and great
+ability for him ever to achieve influence. In time, however, Mr. Adams
+saw gratifying indications that he was acquiring both, and in
+February, 1806, we find him writing:--
+
+     "This is the third session I have sat in Congress. I came in  (p. 037)
+     as a member of a very small minority, and during the two former
+     sessions almost uniformly avoided to take a lead; any other course
+     would have been dishonest or ridiculous. On the very few and
+     unimportant objects which I did undertake, I met at first with
+     universal opposition. The last session my influence rose a little,
+     at the present it has hitherto been apparently rising."
+
+He was so far a cool and clear-headed judge, even in his own case,
+that this encouraging estimate may be accepted as correct upon his
+sole authority without other evidence. But the fair prospect was
+overcast almost in its dawning, and a period of supreme trial and of
+apparently irretrievable ruin was at hand.
+
+Topics were coming forward for discussion concerning which no American
+could be indifferent, and no man of Mr. Adams's spirit could be silent.
+The policy of Great Britain towards this country, and the manner in
+which it was to be met, stirred profound feelings and opened such
+fierce dissensions as it is now difficult to appreciate. For a brief
+time Mr. Adams was to be a prominent actor before the people. It is
+fortunately needless to repeat, as it must ever be painful to remember,
+the familiar and too humiliating tale of the part which France and
+England were permitted for so many years to play in our national
+politics, when our parties were not divided upon American          (p. 038)
+questions, but wholly by their sympathies with one or other of these
+contending European powers. Under Washington the English party had,
+with infinite difficulty, been able to prevent their adversaries from
+fairly enlisting the United States as active partisans of France, in
+spite of the fact that most insulting treatment was received from that
+country. Under John Adams the same so-called British faction had been
+baulked in their hope of precipitating a war with the French. Now in
+Mr. Jefferson's second administration, the French party having won the
+ascendant, the new phase of the same long struggle presented the
+question, whether or not we should be drawn into a war with Great
+Britain. Grave as must have been the disasters of such a war in 1806,
+grave as they were when the war actually came six years later, yet it
+is impossible to recall the provocations which were inflicted upon us
+without almost regretting that prudence was not cast to the winds and
+any woes encountered in preference to unresisting submission to such
+insolent outrages. Our gorge rises at the narration three quarters of
+a century after the acts were done.
+
+Mr. Adams took his position early and boldly. In February, 1806, he
+introduced into the Senate certain resolutions strongly condemnatory
+of the right, claimed and vigorously exercised by the British,     (p. 039)
+of seizing neutral vessels employed in conducting with the enemies of
+Great Britain any trade which had been customarily prohibited by that
+enemy in time of peace. This doctrine was designed to shut out
+American merchants from certain privileges in trading with French
+colonies, which had been accorded only since France had become
+involved in war with Great Britain. The principle was utterly illegal
+and extremely injurious. Mr. Adams, in his first resolution,
+stigmatized it "as an unprovoked aggression upon the property of the
+citizens of these United States, a violation of their neutral rights,
+and an encroachment upon their national independence." By his second
+resolution, the President was requested to demand and insist upon the
+restoration of property seized under this pretext, and upon
+indemnification for property already confiscated. By a rare good
+fortune, Mr. Adams had the pleasure of seeing his propositions
+carried, only slightly modified by the omission of the words "to
+insist." But they were carried, of course, by Republican votes, and
+they by no means advanced their mover in the favor of the Federalist
+party. Strange as it may seem, that party, of which many of the
+foremost supporters were engaged in the very commerce which Great
+Britain aimed to suppress and destroy, seemed not to be so much    (p. 040)
+incensed against her as against their own government. The theory
+of the party was, substantially, that England had been driven into
+these measures by the friendly tone of our government towards France,
+and by her own stringent and overruling necessities. The cure was not
+to be sought in resistance, not even in indignation and remonstrance
+addressed to that power, but rather in cementing an alliance with her,
+and even, if need should be, in taking active part in her holy cause.
+The feeling seemed to be that we merited the chastisement because we
+had not allied ourselves with the chastiser. These singular notions of
+the Federalists, however, were by no means the notions of Mr. John
+Quincy Adams, as we shall soon see.
+
+On April 18, 1806, the Non-importation Act received the approval of
+the President. It was the first measure indicative of resentment or
+retaliation which was taken by our government. When it was upon its
+passage it encountered the vigorous resistance of the Federalists, but
+received the support of Mr. Adams. On May 16, 1806, the British
+government made another long stride in the course of lawless oppression
+of neutrals, which phrase, as commerce then was, signified little else
+than Americans. A proclamation was issued declaring the whole      (p. 041)
+coast of the European continent, from Brest to the mouth of the Elbe,
+to be under blockade. In fact, of course, the coast was not blockaded,
+and the proclamation was a falsehood, an unjustifiable effort to make
+words do the work of war-ships. The doctrine which it was thus
+endeavored to establish had never been admitted into international
+law, has ever since been repudiated by universal consent of all nations,
+and is intrinsically preposterous. The British, however, designed to
+make it effective, and set to work in earnest to confiscate all
+vessels and cargoes captured on their way from any neutral nation to
+any port within the proscribed district. On November 21, next following,
+Napoleon retaliated by the Berlin decree, so called, declaring the
+entire British Isles to be under blockade, and forbidding any vessel
+which had been in any English port after publication of his decree to
+enter any port in the dominions under his control. In January, 1807,
+England made the next move by an order, likewise in contravention of
+international law, forbidding to neutrals all commerce between ports
+of the enemies of Great Britain. On November 11, 1807, the famous
+British Order in Council was issued, declaring neutral vessels and
+cargoes bound to any port or colony of any country with which      (p. 042)
+England was then at war, and which was closed to English ships, to be
+liable to capture and confiscation. A few days later, November 25,
+1807, another Order established a rate of duties to be paid in England
+upon all neutral merchandise which should be permitted to be carried
+in neutral bottoms to countries at war with that power. December 17,
+1807, Napoleon retorted by the Milan decree, which declared
+denationalized and subject to capture and condemnation every vessel,
+to whatsoever nation belonging, which should have submitted to search
+by an English ship, or should be on a voyage to England, or should
+have paid any tax to the English government. All these regulations,
+though purporting to be aimed at neutrals generally, in fact bore
+almost exclusively upon the United States, who alone were undertaking
+to conduct any neutral commerce worthy of mention. As Mr. Adams
+afterwards remarked, the effect of these illegal proclamations and
+unjustifiable novel doctrines "placed the commerce and shipping of the
+United States, with regard to all Europe and European colonies (Sweden
+alone excepted), in nearly the same state as it would have been, if,
+on that same 11th of November, England and France had both declared
+war against the United States." The merchants of this country might as
+well have burned their ships as have submitted to these decrees.   (p. 043)
+
+All this while the impressment of American seamen by British ships of
+war was being vigorously prosecuted. This is one of those outrages so
+long ago laid away among the mouldering tombs in the historical
+graveyard that few persons now appreciate its enormity, or the extent
+to which it was carried. Those who will be at the pains to ascertain
+the truth in the matter will feel that the bloodiest, most costly, and
+most disastrous war would have been better than tame endurance of
+treatment so brutal and unjustifiable that it finds no parallel even
+in the long and dark list of wrongs which Great Britain has been wont
+to inflict upon all the weaker or the uncivilized peoples with whom
+she has been brought or has gratuitously forced herself into unwelcome
+contact. It was not an occasional act of high-handed arrogance that
+was done; there were not only a few unfortunate victims, of whom a
+large proportion might be of unascertained nationality. It was an
+organized system worked upon a very large scale. Every American seaman
+felt it necessary to have a certificate of citizenship, accompanied by
+a description of his features and of all the marks upon his person, as
+Mr. Adams said, "like the advertisement for a runaway negro slave."
+Nor was even this protection by any means sure to be always        (p. 044)
+efficient. The number of undoubted American citizens who were seized
+rose in a few years actually to many thousands. They were often taken
+without so much as a false pretence to right; but with the acknowledgment
+that they were Americans, they were seized upon the plea of a necessity
+for their services in the British ship. Some American vessels were
+left so denuded of seamen that they were lost at sea for want of hands
+to man them; the destruction of lives as well as property,
+unquestionably thus caused, was immense. When after the lapse of a
+long time and of infinite negotiation the American citizenship of some
+individual was clearly shown, still the chances of his return were
+small; some false and ignoble subterfuge was resorted to; he was not
+to be found; the name did not occur on the rolls of the navy; he had
+died, or been discharged, or had deserted, or had been shot. The more
+illegal the act committed by any British officer the more sure he was
+of reward, till it seemed that the impressment of American citizens
+was an even surer road to promotion than valor in an engagement with
+the enemy. Such were the substantial wrongs inflicted by Great
+Britain; nor were any pains taken to cloak their character; on the
+contrary, they were done with more than British insolence and
+offensiveness, and were accompanied with insults which alone       (p. 045)
+constituted sufficient provocation to war. To all this, for a long
+time, nothing but empty and utterly futile protests were opposed by
+this country. The affair of the Chesapeake, indeed, threatened for a
+brief moment to bring things to a crisis. That vessel, an American
+frigate, commanded by Commodore Barron, sailed on June 22, 1807, from
+Hampton Roads. The Leopard, a British fifty-gun ship, followed her,
+and before she was out of sight of land, hailed her and demanded the
+delivery of four men, of whom three at least were surely native
+Americans. Barron refused the demand, though his ship was wholly
+unprepared for action. Thereupon the Englishman opened his broadsides,
+killed three men and wounded sixteen, boarded the Chesapeake and took
+off the four sailors. They were carried to Halifax and tried by
+court-martial for desertion: one of them was hanged; one died in
+confinement, and five years elapsed before the other two were returned
+to the Chesapeake in Boston harbor. This wound was sufficiently deep
+to arouse a real spirit of resentment and revenge, and England went so
+far as to dispatch Mr. Rose to this country upon a pretended mission
+of peace, though the fraudulent character of his errand was sufficiently
+indicated by the fact that within a few hours after his departure the
+first of the above named Orders in Council was issued but had not  (p. 046)
+been communicated to him. As Mr. Adams indignantly said, "the same
+penful of ink which signed his instructions might have been used also
+to sign these illegal orders." Admiral Berkeley, the commander of the
+Leopard, received the punishment which he might justly have expected
+if precedent was to count for anything in the naval service of Great
+Britain,--he was promoted.
+
+It is hardly worth while to endeavor to measure the comparative
+wrongfulness of the conduct of England and of France. The behavior of
+each was utterly unjustifiable; though England by committing the first
+extreme breach of international law gave to France the excuse of
+retaliation. There was, however, vast difference in the practical
+effect of the British and French decrees. The former wrought serious
+injury, falling little short of total destruction, to American
+shipping and commerce; the latter were only in a much less degree
+hurtful. The immense naval power of England and the channels in which
+our trade naturally flowed combined to make her destructive capacity
+as towards us very great. It was the outrages inflicted by her which
+brought the merchants of the United States face to face with ruin;
+they suffered not very greatly at the hands of Napoleon. Neither could
+the villainous process of impressment be conducted by Frenchmen.   (p. 047)
+France gave us cause for war, but England seemed resolved to drive us
+into it.
+
+As British aggressions grew steadily and rapidly more intolerable, Mr.
+Adams found himself straining farther and farther away from those
+Federalist moorings at which, it must be confessed, he had long swung
+very precariously. The constituency which he represented was indeed in
+a quandary so embarrassing as hardly to be capable of maintaining any
+consistent policy. The New England of that day was a trading
+community, of which the industry and capital were almost exclusively
+centred in ship-owning and commerce. The merchants, almost to a man,
+had long been the most Anglican of Federalists in their political
+sympathies. Now they found themselves suffering utterly ruinous
+treatment at the hands of those whom they had loved overmuch. They
+were being ruthlessly destroyed by their friends, to whom they had
+been, so to speak, almost disloyally loyal. They saw their business
+annihilated, their property seized, and yet could not give utterance
+to resentment, or counsel resistance, without such a humiliating
+devouring of all their own principles and sentiments as they could by
+no possibility bring themselves to endure. There was but one road open
+to them, and that was the ignoble one of casting themselves wholly (p. 048)
+into the arms of England, of rewarding her blows with caresses, of
+submitting to be fairly scourged into a servile alliance with her. It
+is not surprising that the independent temper of Mr. Adams revolted at
+the position which his party seemed not reluctant to assume at this
+juncture. Yet not very much better seemed for a time the policy of the
+administration. Jefferson was far from being a man for troubled
+seasons, which called for high spirit and executive energy. His
+flotillas of gunboats and like idle and silly fantasies only excited
+Mr. Adams's disgust. In fact, there was upon all sides a strong dread
+of a war with England, not always openly expressed, but now perfectly
+visible, arising with some from regard for that country, in others
+prompted by fear of her power. Alone among public men Mr. Adams, while
+earnestly hoping to escape war, was not willing to seek that escape by
+unlimited weakness and unbounded submission to lawless injury.
+
+On November 17, 1807, Mr. Adams, who never in his life allowed fear to
+become a motive, wrote, with obvious contempt and indignation: "I
+observe among the members great embarrassment, alarm, anxiety, and
+confusion of mind, but no preparation for any measure of vigor, and an
+obvious strong disposition to yield all that Great Britain may     (p. 049)
+require, to preserve peace, under a thin external show of dignity and
+bravery." This tame and vacillating spirit roused his ire, and as it
+was chiefly manifested by his own party it alienated him from them
+farther than ever. Yet his wrath was so far held in reasonable check
+by his discretion that he would still have liked to avoid the perilous
+conclusion of arms, and though his impulse was to fight, yet he could
+not but recognize that the sensible course was to be content, for the
+time at least, with a manifestation of resentment, and the most vigorous
+acts short of war which the government could be induced to undertake.
+On this sentiment were based his introduction of the aforementioned
+resolutions, his willingness to support the administration, and his
+vote for the Non-importation Act in spite of a dislike for it as a
+very imperfectly satisfactory measure. But it was not alone his
+naturally independent temper which led him thus to feel so differently
+from other members of his party. In Europe he had had opportunities of
+forming a judgment more accurate than was possible for most Americans
+concerning the sentiments and policy of England towards this country.
+Not only had he been present at the negotiations resulting in the
+treaty of peace, but he had also afterwards been for several months
+engaged in the personal discussion of commercial questions with    (p. 050)
+the British minister of foreign affairs. From all that he had thus
+seen and heard he had reached the conviction, unquestionably correct,
+that the British were not only resolved to adopt a selfish course
+towards the United States, which might have been expected, but that
+they were consistently pursuing the further distinct design of crippling
+and destroying American commerce, to the utmost degree which their own
+extensive trade and great naval authority and power rendered possible.
+So long as he held this firm belief, it was inevitable that he should
+be at issue with the Federalists in all matters concerning our policy
+towards Great Britain. The ill-will naturally engendered in him by
+this conviction was increased to profound indignation when illiberal
+measures were succeeded by insults, by substantial wrongs in direct
+contravention of law, and by acts properly to be described as of real
+hostility. For Mr. Adams was by nature not only independent, but
+resentful and combative. When, soon after the attack of the Leopard
+upon the Chesapeake, he heard the transaction "openly justified at
+noon-day," by a prominent Federalist,[1] "in a public insurance office
+upon the exchange at Boston," his temper rose. "This," he afterward
+wrote, "this was the cause ... which alienated me from that day    (p. 051)
+and forever from the councils of the Federal party." When the news
+of that outrage reached Boston, Mr. Adams was there, and desired that
+the leading Federalists in the city should at once "take the lead in
+promoting a strong and clear expression of the sentiments of the
+people, and in an open and free-hearted manner, setting aside all
+party feelings, declare their determination at that crisis to support
+the government of their country." But unfortunately these gentlemen
+were by no means prepared for any such action, and foolishly left it
+for the friends of the administration to give the first utterance to a
+feeling which it is hard to excuse any American for not entertaining
+beneath such provocation. It was the Jeffersonians, accordingly, who
+convened "an informal meeting of the citizens of Boston and the
+neighboring towns," at which Mr. Adams was present, and by which he
+was put upon a committee to draw and report resolutions. These
+resolutions pledged a cheerful coöperation "in any measures, however
+serious," which the government might deem necessary and a support of
+the same with "lives and fortunes." The Federalists, learning too late
+that their backwardness at this crisis was a blunder, caused a town
+meeting to be called at Faneuil Hall a few days later. This also   (p. 052)
+Mr. Adams attended, and again was put on the committee to draft
+resolutions, which were only a little less strong than those of the
+earlier assemblage. But though many of the Federalists thus tardily
+and reluctantly fell in with the popular sentiment, they were for the
+most part heartily incensed against Mr. Adams. They threatened him
+that he should "have his head taken off for apostasy," and gave him to
+understand that he "should no longer be considered as having any
+communion with the party." If he had not already quite left them, they
+now turned him out from their community. But such abusive treatment
+was ill adapted to influence a man of his temper. Martyrdom, which in
+time he came to relish, had not now any terrors for him; and he would
+have lost as many heads as ever grew on Hydra, ere he would have
+yielded on a point of principle.
+
+                   [Footnote 1: Mr. John Lowell.]
+
+His spirit was soon to be demonstrated. Congress was convened in extra
+session on October 26, 1807. The administration brought forward the
+bill establishing an embargo. The measure may now be pronounced a
+blunder, and its proposal created a howl of rage and anguish from the
+commercial states, who saw in it only their utter ruin. Already a
+strong sectional feeling had been developed between the planters   (p. 053)
+of the South and the merchants of the North and East, and the latter
+now united in the cry that their quarter was to be ruined by the
+ignorant policy of this Virginian President. Terrible then was their
+wrath, when they actually saw a Massachusetts Senator boldly give his
+vote for what they deemed the most odious and wicked bill which had
+ever been presented in the halls of Congress. Nay, more, they learned
+with horror that Mr. Adams had even been a member of the committee
+which reported the bill, and that he had joined in the report.
+Henceforth the Federal party was to be like a hive of enraged hornets
+about the devoted renegade. No abuse which they could heap upon him
+seemed nearly adequate to the occasion. They despised him; they
+loathed him; they said and believed that he was false, selfish,
+designing, a traitor, an apostate, that he had run away from a failing
+cause, that he had sold himself. The language of contumely was
+exhausted in vain efforts to describe his baseness. Not even yet has
+the echo of the hard names which he was called quite died away in the
+land; and there are still families in New England with whom his
+dishonest tergiversation remains a traditional belief.
+
+Never was any man more unjustly aspersed. It is impossible to view all
+the evidence dispassionately without not only acquitting Mr.       (p. 054)
+Adams but greatly admiring his courage, his constancy, his independence.
+Whether the embargo was a wise and efficient or a futile and useless
+measure has little to do with the question of his conduct. The emergency
+called for strong action. The Federalists suggested only a temporizing
+submission, or that we should avert the terrible wrath of England by
+crawling beneath her lashes into political and commercial servitude.
+Mr. Jefferson thought the embargo would do, that it would aid him in
+his negotiations with England sufficiently to enable him to bring her
+to terms; he had before thought the same of the Non-importation Act.
+Mr. Adams felt, properly enough, concerning both these schemes, that
+they were insufficient and in many respects objectionable; but that to
+give the administration hearty support in the most vigorous measures
+which it was willing to undertake, was better than to aid an opposition
+utterly nerveless and servile and altogether devoid of so much as the
+desire for efficient action. It was no time to stay with the party of
+weakness; it was right to strengthen rather than to hamper a man so
+pacific and spiritless as Mr. Jefferson; to show a readiness to
+forward even his imperfect expedients; to display a united and
+indignant, if not quite a hostile front to Great Britain, rather   (p. 055)
+than to exhibit a tame and friendly feeling towards her. It was for
+these reasons, which had already controlled his action concerning the
+non-importation bill, that Mr. Adams joined in reporting the embargo
+bill and voted for it. He never pretended that he himself had any
+especial fancy for either of these measures, or that he regarded them
+as the best that could be devised under the circumstances. On the
+contrary, he hoped that the passage of the embargo would allow of the
+repeal of its predecessor. That he expected some good from it, and
+that it did some little good, cannot be denied. It did save a great
+deal of American property, both shipping and merchandise, from seizure
+and condemnation; and if it cut off the income it at least saved much
+of the principal of our merchants. If only the bill had been promptly
+repealed so soon as this protective purpose had been achieved, without
+awaiting further and altogether impossible benefits to accrue from it
+as an offensive measure, it might perhaps have left a better memory
+behind it. Unfortunately no one can deny that it was continued much
+too long. Mr. Adams saw this error and dreaded the consequences. After
+he had left Congress and had gone back to private life, he exerted all
+the influence which he had with the Republican members of Congress to
+secure its repeal and the substitution of the Non-intercourse      (p. 056)
+Act, an exchange which was in time accomplished, though much too tardily.
+Nay, much more than this, Mr. Adams stands forth almost alone as the
+advocate of threatening if not of actually belligerent measures. He
+expressed his belief that "our internal resources [were] competent to
+the establishment and maintenance of a naval force, public and
+private, if not fully adequate to the protection and defence of our
+commerce, at least sufficient to induce a retreat from hostilities,
+and to deter from a renewal of them by either of the warring parties;"
+and he insisted that "a system to that effect might be formed,
+ultimately far more economical, and certainly more energetic," than
+the embargo. But his "resolution met no encouragement." He found that
+it was the embargo or nothing, and he thought the embargo was a little
+better than nothing, as probably it was.
+
+All the arguments which Mr. Adams advanced were far from satisfying
+his constituents in those days of wild political excitement, and they
+quickly found the means of intimating their unappeasable displeasure
+in a way certainly not open to misapprehension. Mr. Adams's term of
+service in the Senate was to expire on March 3, 1809. On June 2 and 3,
+1808, anticipating by many months the customary time for filling   (p. 057)
+the coming vacancy, the legislature of Massachusetts proceeded to
+choose James Lloyd, junior, his successor. The votes were, in the
+Senate 21 for Mr. Lloyd, 17 for Mr. Adams; in the House 248 for Mr.
+Lloyd, and 213 for Mr. Adams. A more insulting method of administering
+a rebuke could not have been devised. At the same time, in further
+expression of disapprobation, resolutions strongly condemnatory of the
+embargo were passed. Mr. Adams was not the man to stay where he was
+not wanted, and on June 8 he sent in his letter of resignation. On the
+next day Mr. Lloyd was chosen to serve for the balance of his term.
+
+Thus John Quincy Adams changed sides. The son of John Adams lost the
+senatorship for persistently supporting the administration of Thomas
+Jefferson. It was indeed a singular spectacle! In 1803 he had been
+sent to the Senate of the United States by Federalists as a Federalist;
+in 1808 he had abjured them and they had repudiated him; in 1809, as
+we are soon to see, he received a foreign appointment from the
+Republican President Madison, and was confirmed by a Republican
+Senate. Many of Mr. Adams's acts, many of his traits, have been
+harshly criticised, but for no act that he ever did or ever was
+charged with doing has he been so harshly assailed as for this     (p. 058)
+journey from one camp to the other. The gentlemen of wealth, position,
+and influence in Eastern Massachusetts, almost to a man, turned
+against him with virulence; many of their descendants still cherish
+the ancestral prejudice; and it may yet be a long while before the
+last mutterings of this deep-rooted antipathy die away. But that they
+will die away in time cannot be doubted. Praise will succeed to blame.
+Truth must prevail in a case where such abundant evidence is
+accessible; and the truth is that Mr. Adams's conduct was not ignoble,
+mean, and traitorous, but honorable, courageous, and disinterested.
+Those who singled him out for assault, though deaf to his arguments,
+might even then have reflected that within a few years a large
+proportion of the whole nation had changed in their opinions as he had
+now at last changed in his, so that the party which under Washington
+hardly had an existence and under John Adams was not, until the last
+moment, seriously feared, now showed an enormous majority throughout
+the whole country. Even in Massachusetts, the intrenched camp of the
+Federalists, one half of the population were now Republicans. But that
+change of political sentiment which in the individual voter is often
+admired as evidence of independent thought is stigmatized in       (p. 059)
+those more prominent in politics as tergiversation and apostasy.
+
+It may be admitted that there are sound reasons for holding party
+leaders to a more rigid allegiance to party policy than is expected of
+the rank and file; yet certainly, at those periods when substantially
+new measures and new doctrines come to the front, the old party names
+lose whatever sacredness may at other times be in them, and the
+political fellowships of the past may properly be reformed. Novel
+problems cannot always find old comrades still united in opinions.
+Precisely such was the case with John Quincy Adams and the Federalists.
+The earlier Federalist creed related to one set of issues, the later
+Federalist creed to quite another set; the earlier creed was sound and
+deserving of support; the later creed was not so. It is easy to see,
+as one looks backward upon history, that every great and successful
+party has its mission, that it wins its success through the substantial
+righteousness of that mission, and that it owes its downfall to
+assuming an erroneous attitude towards some subsequent matter which
+becomes in turn of predominating importance. Sometimes, though rarely,
+a party remains on the right side through two or even more successive
+issues of profound consequence to the nation. The Federalist mission
+was to establish the Constitution of the United States as a        (p. 060)
+vigorous, efficient, and practical system of government, to prove its
+soundness, safety, and efficacy, and to defend it from the undermining
+assaults of those who distrusted it and would have reduced it to
+imbecility. Supplementary and cognate to this was the further task of
+giving the young nation and the new system a chance to get fairly
+started in life before being subjected to the strain of war and
+European entanglements. To this end it was necessary to hold in check
+the Jeffersonian or French party, who sought to embroil us in a
+foreign quarrel. These two functions of the Federalist party were
+quite in accord; they involved the organizing and domestic instinct
+against the disorganizing and meddlesome; the strengthening against
+the enfeebling process; practical thinking against fanciful theories.
+Fortunately the able men had been generally of the sound persuasion,
+and by powerful exertions had carried the day and accomplished their
+allotted tasks so thoroughly that all subsequent generations of
+Americans have been reaping the benefit of their labors. But by the
+time that John Adams had concluded his administration the great
+Federalist work had been sufficiently done. Those who still believe
+that there is an overruling Providence in the affairs of men and
+nations may well point to the history of this period in support    (p. 061)
+of their theory. Republicanism was not able to triumph till Federalism
+had fulfilled all its proper duty and was on the point of going wrong.
+
+During this earlier period John Quincy Adams had been a Federalist by
+conviction as well as by education. Nor was there any obvious reason
+for him to change his political faith with the change of party
+success, brought about as that was before its necessity was apparent
+but by the sure and inscrutable wisdom so marvellously enclosed in the
+great popular instinct. It was not patent, when Mr. Jefferson
+succeeded Mr. Adams, that Federalism was soon to become an unsound
+political creed--unsound, not because it had been defeated, but
+because it had done its work, and in the new emergency was destined to
+blunder. During Mr. Jefferson's first administration no questions of
+novel import arose. But they were not far distant, and soon were
+presented by the British aggressions. A grave crisis was created by
+this system of organized destruction of property and wholesale
+stealing of citizens, now suddenly practised with such terrible
+energy. What was to be done? What had the two great parties to advise
+concerning the policy of the country in this hour of peril?
+Unfortunately for the Federalists old predilections were allowed   (p. 062)
+now to govern their present action. Excusably Anglican in the bygone
+days of Genet's mission, they now remained still Anglican, when to be
+Anglican was to be emphatically un-American. As one reads the history
+of 1807 and 1808 it is impossible not to feel almost a sense of
+personal gratitude to John Quincy Adams that he dared to step out from
+his meek-spirited party and do all that circumstances rendered
+possible to promote resistance to insults and wrongs intolerable. In
+truth, he was always a man of high temper, and eminently a patriotic
+citizen of the United States. Unlike too many even of the best among
+his countrymen in those early years of the Republic, he had no foreign
+sympathies whatsoever; he was neither French nor English, but wholly,
+exclusively, and warmly American. He had no second love; the United
+States filled his public heart and monopolized his political
+affections. When he was abroad he established neither affiliations nor
+antipathies, and when he was at home he drifted with no party whose
+course was governed by foreign magnets. It needs only that this
+characteristic should be fully understood in order that his conduct in
+1808 should be not alone vindicated but greatly admired.
+
+At that time it was said, and it has been since repeated, that he  (p. 063)
+was allured by the loaves and fishes which the Republicans could
+distribute, while the Federalists could cast to him only meagre and
+uncertain crusts. Circumstances gave to the accusation such a
+superficial plausibility that it was believed by many honest men under
+the influence of political prejudice. But such a charge, alleged
+concerning a single act in a long public career, is to be scanned with
+suspicion. Disproof by demonstration is impossible; but it is fair to
+seek for the character of the act in a study of the character of the
+actor, as illustrated by the rest of his career. Thus seeking we shall
+see that, if any traits can be surely predicated of any man,
+independence, courage, and honesty may be predicated of Mr. Adams. His
+long public life had many periods of trial, yet this is the sole
+occasion when it is so much as possible seriously to question the
+purity of his motives--for the story of his intrigue with Mr. Clay to
+secure the Presidency was never really believed by any one except
+General Jackson, and the beliefs of General Jackson are of little
+consequence. From the earliest to the latest day of his public life,
+he was never a party man. He is entitled to the justification to be
+derived from this life-long habit, when, in 1807-8, he voted against
+the wishes of those who had hoped to hold him in the bonds of      (p. 064)
+partisan alliance. In point of fact, so far from these acts being a
+yielding to selfish and calculating temptation, they called for great
+courage and strength of mind; instead of being tergiversation, they
+were a triumph in a severe ordeal. Mr. Adams was not so dull as to
+underrate, nor so void of good feeling as to be careless of, the storm
+of obloquy which he had to encounter, not only in such shape as is
+customary in like instances of a change of sides in politics, but, in
+his present case, of a peculiarly painful kind. He was to seem
+unfaithful, not only to a party, but to the bitter feud of a father
+whom he dearly loved and greatly respected; he was to be reviled by
+the neighbors and friends who constituted his natural social circle in
+Boston; he was to alienate himself from the rich, the cultivated, the
+influential gentlemen of his neighborhood, his comrades, who would
+almost universally condemn his conduct. He was to lose his position as
+Senator, and probably to destroy all hopes of further political
+success so far as it depended upon the good will of the people of his
+own State. In this he was at least giving up a certainty in exchange
+for what even his enemies must admit to have been only an expectation.
+
+But in fact it is now evident that there was not upon his part even an
+expectation. At the first signs of the views which he was likely   (p. 065)
+to hold, that contemptible but influential Republican, Giles, of
+Virginia, also one or two others of the same party, sought to approach
+him with insinuating suggestions. But Mr. Adams met these advances in
+a manner frigid and repellent even beyond his wont, and far from
+seeking to conciliate these emissaries, and to make a bargain, or even
+establish a tacit understanding for his own benefit, he held them far
+aloof, and simply stated that he wished and expected nothing from the
+administration. His mind was made up, his opinion was formed; no bribe
+was needed to secure his vote. Not thus do men sell themselves in
+politics. The Republicans were fairly notified that he was going to do
+just as he chose; and Mr. Jefferson, the arch-enemy of all Adamses,
+had no occasion to forego his feud to win this recruit from that
+family.
+
+Mr. Adams's Diary shows unmistakably that he was acting rigidly upon
+principle, that he believed himself to be injuring or even destroying
+his political prospects, and that in so doing he taxed his moral
+courage severely. The whole tone of the Diary, apart from those few
+distinct statements which hostile critics might view with distrust, is
+despondent, often bitter, but defiant and stubborn. If in later life
+he ever anticipated the possible publication of these private      (p. 066)
+pages, yet he could hardly have done so at this early day. Among
+certain general reflections at the close of the year 1808, he writes:
+"On most of the great national questions now under discussion, my
+sense of duty leads me to support the Administration, and I find
+myself, of course, in opposition to the Federalists in general. But I
+have no communication with the President, other than that in the
+regular order of business in the Senate. In this state of things my
+situation calls in a peculiar manner for prudence; my political
+prospects are declining, and, as my term of service draws near its
+close, I am constantly approaching to the certainty of being restored
+to the situation of a private citizen. For this event, however, I hope
+to have my mind sufficiently prepared."
+
+In July, 1808, the Republicans of the Congressional District wished to
+send him to the House of Representatives, but to the gentleman who
+waited upon him with this proposal he returned a decided negative.
+Other considerations apart, he would not interfere with the reėlection
+of his friend, Mr. Quincy.
+
+Certain remarks, written when his senatorial term was far advanced,
+when he had lost the confidence of the Federalists without obtaining
+that of the Republicans, may be of interest at this point. He wrote,
+October 30, 1807: "I employed the whole evening in looking over    (p. 067)
+the Journal of the Senate, since I have been one of its members. Of
+the very little business which I have commenced during the four
+sessions, at least three fourths has failed, with circumstances of
+peculiar mortification. The very few instances in which I have
+succeeded, have been always after an opposition of great obstinacy,
+often ludicrously contrasting with the insignificance of the object in
+pursuit. More than one instance has occurred where the same thing
+which I have assiduously labored in vain to effect has been afterwards
+accomplished by others, without the least resistance; more than once,
+where the pleasure of disappointing me has seemed to be the prominent
+principle of decision. Of the preparatory business, matured in
+committees, I have had a share, gradually increasing through the four
+sessions, but always as a subordinate member. The merely laborious
+duties have been readily assigned to me, and as readily undertaken and
+discharged. My success has been more frequent in opposition than in
+carrying any proposition of my own, and I hope I have been
+instrumental in arresting many unadvised purposes and projects. Though
+as to the general policy of the country I have been uniformly in a
+small, and constantly deceasing minority; my opinions and votes have
+been much oftener in unison with the Administration than with      (p. 068)
+their opponents; I have met with at least as much opposition from
+my party friends as from their adversaries,--I believe more. I know
+not that I have made any personal enemies now in Senate, nor can I
+flatter myself with having acquired any personal friends. There have
+been hitherto two, Mr. Tracey and Mr. Plumer, upon whom I could rely,
+but it has pleased Providence to remove one by death, and the changes
+of political party have removed the other." This is a striking
+paragraph, certainly not written by a man in a very cheerful or
+sanguine frame of mind, not by one who congratulates himself on having
+skilfully taken the initial steps in a brilliant political career;
+but, it is fair to say, by one who has at least tried to do his duty,
+and who has not knowingly permitted himself to be warped either by
+passion, prejudice, party alliances, or selfish considerations.
+
+As early as November, 1805, Mr. Adams, being still what may be
+described as an independent Federalist, was approached by Dr. Rush
+with tentative suggestions concerning a foreign mission. Mr. Madison,
+then Secretary of State, and even President Jefferson were apparently
+not disinclined to give him such employment, provided he would be
+willing to accept it at their hands. Mr. Adams simply replied,     (p. 069)
+that he would not refuse a nomination merely because it came from Mr.
+Jefferson, though there was no office in the President's gift for
+which he had any wish. Perhaps because of the unconciliatory coolness
+of this response, or perhaps for some better reason, the nomination
+did not follow at that time. No sooner, however, had Mr. Madison
+fairly taken the oath of office as President than he bethought him of
+Mr. Adams, now no longer a Federalist, but, concerning the present
+issues, of the Republican persuasion. On March 6, 1809, Mr. Adams was
+notified by the President personally of the intention to nominate him
+as Minister Plenipotentiary to Russia. It was a new mission, the first
+minister ever nominated to Russia having been only a short time before
+rejected by the Senate. But the Emperor had often expressed his wish
+to exchange ministers, and Mr. Madison was anxious to comply with the
+courteous request. Mr. Adams's name was accordingly at once sent to
+the Senate. But on the following day, March 7, that body resolved that
+"it is inexpedient at this time to appoint a minister from the United
+States to the Court of Russia." The vote was seventeen to fifteen, and
+among the seventeen was Mr. Adams's old colleague, Timothy Pickering,
+who probably never in his life cast a vote which gave him so much  (p. 070)
+pleasure. Mr. Madison, however, did not readily desist from his
+purpose, and a few months later, June 26, he sent a message to the
+Senate, stating that the considerations previously leading him to
+nominate a minister to Russia had since been strengthened, and again
+naming Mr. Adams for the post. This time the nomination was confirmed
+with readiness, by a vote of nineteen to seven, Mr. Pickering, of
+course, being one of the still hostile minority.
+
+At noon on August 5, 1809, records Mr. Adams, "I left my house at the
+corner of Boylston and Nassau streets, in Boston," again to make the
+tedious and uncomfortable voyage across the Atlantic. A miserable and
+a dangerous time he had of it ere, on October 23, he reached St.
+Petersburg. Concerning the four years and a half which he is now to
+spend in Russia very little need be said. His active duties were of
+the simplest character, amounting to little more than rendering
+occasional assistance to American shipmasters suffering beneath the
+severities so often illegally inflicted by the contesting powers of
+Europe. But apart from the slender practical service to be done, the
+period must have been interesting and agreeable for him personally,
+for he was received and treated throughout his stay by the Emperor
+and his courtiers with distinguished kindness. The Emperor, who    (p. 071)
+often met him walking, used to stop and chat with him, while Count
+Romanzoff, the minister of foreign affairs, was cordial beyond the
+ordinary civility of diplomacy. The Diary records a series of court
+presentations, balls, fźtes, dinners, diplomatic and other, launches,
+displays of fireworks, birthday festivities, parades, baptisms, plays,
+state funerals, illuminations, and Te Deums for victories; in short,
+every species of social gayety and public pageant. At all these Mr.
+Adams was always a bidden and apparently a welcome guest. It must be
+admitted, even by his detractors, that he was an admirable
+representative of the United States abroad. Having already seen much
+of the distinguished society of European courts, but retaining a
+republican simplicity, which was wholly genuine and a natural part of
+his character and therefore was never affected or offensive in its
+manifestations, he really represented the best element in the politics
+and society of the United States. Winning respect for himself he won
+it also for the country which he represented. Thus he was able to
+render an indirect but essential service in cementing the kindly
+feeling which the Russian Empire entertained for the American Republic.
+Russia could then do us little good and almost no harm, yet the    (p. 072)
+friendship of a great European power had a certain moral value in
+those days of our national infancy. That friendship, so cordially
+offered, Mr. Adams was fortunately well fitted to conciliate, showing
+in his foreign callings a tact which did not mark him in other public
+relations. He was perhaps less liked by his travelling fellow
+countrymen than by the Russians. The paltry ambition of a certain
+class of Americans for introduction to high society disgusted him
+greatly, and he was not found an efficient ally by these would-be
+comrades of the Russian aristocracy. "The ambition of young Americans
+to crowd themselves upon European courts and into the company of
+nobility is a very ridiculous and not a very proud feature of their
+character," he wrote; "there is nothing, in my estimate of things,
+meaner than courting society where, if admitted, it is only to be
+despised." He himself happily combined extensive acquirements,
+excellent ability, diplomatic and courtly experience, and natural
+independence of character without ill-bred self-assertion, and never
+failed to create a good impression in the many circles into which his
+foreign career introduced him.
+
+The ambassadors and ministers from European powers at St. Petersburg
+were constantly wrangling about precedence and like petty matters of
+court etiquette. "In all these controversies," writes Mr. Adams,   (p. 073)
+"I have endeavored to consider it as an affair in which I, as an
+_American_ minister, had no concern; and that my only principle is to
+dispute upon precedence with nobody." A good-natured contempt for
+European follies may be read between the lines of this remark; wherein
+it may be said that the Monroe Doctrine is applied to court etiquette.
+
+He always made it a point to live within the meagre income which the
+United States allowed him, but seems to have suffered no diminution of
+consideration for this reason. One morning, walking on the Fontanka,
+he met the Emperor, who said: "Mons. Adams, il y a cent ans que je ne
+vous ai vu;" and then continuing the conversation, "asked me whether I
+intended to take a house in the country this summer. I said, No....
+'And why so?' said he. I was hesitating upon an answer when he
+relieved me from embarrassment by saying, 'Peut-źtre sont-ce des
+considerations de finance?' As he said it with perfect good humor and
+with a smile, I replied in the same manner: 'Mais Sire, elles y sont
+pour une bonne part.'"[2]
+
+                   [Footnote 2: An interesting sketch of his household
+                   and its expenses is to be found in ii. Diary, 193.]
+
+The volume of the journal which records this residence in St. Petersburg
+is very interesting as a picture of Russian life and manners in high
+society. Few travellers write anything nearly so vivid, so         (p. 074)
+thorough, or so trustworthy as these entries. Moreover, during the
+whole period of his stay the great wars of Napoleon were constantly
+increasing the astonishment of mankind, and created intense excitement
+at the Court of Russia. These feelings waxed stronger as it grew daily
+more likely that the Emperor would have to take his turn also as a
+party defendant in the great conflict. Then at last came the fact of
+war, the invasion of Russia, the burning of Moscow, the disastrous
+retreat of the invaders ending in ignominious flight, the advance of
+the allies, finally the capture of Paris. All this while Mr. Adams at
+St. Petersburg witnessed first the alarm and then the exultation of
+the court and the people as the rumors now of defeat, anon of victory,
+were brought by the couriers at tantalizing intervals; and he saw the
+rejoicings and illuminations which rendered the Russian capital so
+brilliant and glorious during the last portion of his residence. It
+was an experience well worth having, and which is pleasantly depicted
+in the Diary.
+
+In September, 1812, Count Romanzoff suggested to Mr. Adams the
+readiness of the Emperor to act as mediator in bringing about peace
+between the United States and England. The suggestion was promptly
+acted upon, but with no directly fortunate results. The American   (p. 075)
+government acceded at once to the proposition, and at the risk of an
+impolitic display of readiness dispatched Messrs. Gallatin and Bayard
+to act as Commissioners jointly with Mr. Adams in the negotiations.
+These gentlemen, however, arrived in St. Petersburg only to find
+themselves in a very awkward position. Their official character might
+not properly be considered as attaching unless England should accept
+the offer of mediation. But England had refused, in the first
+instance, to do this, and she now again reiterated her refusal without
+regard for the manifestation of willingness on the part of the United
+States. Further, Mr. Gallatin's nomination was rejected by the Senate
+after his departure, on the ground that his retention of the post of
+Secretary of the Treasury was incompatible, under the Constitution,
+with this diplomatic function. So the United States appeared in a very
+annoying attitude, her Commissioners were uncomfortable and somewhat
+humiliated; Russia felt a certain measure of vexation at the brusque
+and positive rejection of her friendly proposition on the part of
+Great Britain; and that country alone came out of the affair with any
+self-satisfaction.
+
+But by the time when all hopes of peace through the friendly offices
+of Russia were at an end, that stage of the conflict had been      (p. 076)
+reached at which both parties were quite ready to desist. The United
+States, though triumphing in some brilliant naval victories, had been
+having a sorry experience on land, where, as the Russian minister
+remarked, "England did as she pleased." A large portion of the people
+were extremely dissatisfied, and it was impossible to ignore that the
+outlook did not promise better fortunes in the future than had been
+encountered in the past. On the other hand, England had nothing
+substantial to expect from a continuance of the struggle, except heavy
+additional expenditure which it was not then the fashion to compel the
+worsted party to recoup. She accordingly intimated her readiness to
+send Commissioners to Göttingen, for which place Ghent was afterwards
+substituted, to meet American Commissioners and settle terms of
+pacification. The United States renewed the powers of Messrs. Adams,
+Bayard, and Gallatin, a new Secretary of the Treasury having in the
+meantime been appointed, and added Jonathan Russell, then Minister to
+Sweden, and Henry Clay. England deputed Lord Gambier, an admiral, Dr.
+Adams, a publicist, and Mr. Goulburn, a member of Parliament and Under
+Secretary of State. These eight gentlemen accordingly met in Ghent on
+August 7, 1814.
+
+It was upwards of four months before an agreement was reached.     (p. 077)
+During this period Mr. Adams kept his Diary with much more even than
+his wonted faithfulness, and it undoubtedly presents the most vivid
+picture in existence of the labors of treaty-making diplomatists. The
+eight were certainly an odd assemblage of peacemakers. The ill-blood
+and wranglings between the opposing Commissions were bad enough, yet
+hardly equalled the intestine dissensions between the American
+Commissioners themselves. That the spirit of peace should ever have
+emanated from such an universal embroilment is almost sufficiently
+surprising to be regarded as a miracle. At the very beginning, or even
+before fairly beginning, the British party roused the jealous ire of
+the Americans by proposing that they all should meet, for exchanging
+their full powers, at the lodgings of the Englishmen. The Americans
+took fire at this "offensive pretension to superiority" which was "the
+usage from Ambassadors to Ministers of an inferior order." Mr. Adams
+cited Martens, and Mr. Bayard read a case from Ward's "Law of Nations."
+Mr. Adams suggested sending a pointed reply, agreeing to meet the
+British Commissioners "at any place other than their own lodgings;"
+but Mr. Gallatin, whose valuable function was destined to be the
+keeping of the peace among his fractious colleagues, as well as    (p. 078)
+betwixt them and the Englishmen, substituted the milder phrase, "at
+any place which may be mutually agreed upon." The first meeting
+accordingly took place at the Hōtel des Pays Bas, where it was
+arranged that the subsequent conferences should be held alternately at
+the quarters of the two Commissions. Then followed expressions,
+conventional and proper but wholly untrue, of mutual sentiments of
+esteem and good will.
+
+No sooner did the gentlemen begin to get seriously at the work before
+them than the most discouraging prospects were developed. The British
+first presented their demands, as follows: 1. That the United States
+should conclude a peace with the Indian allies of Great Britain, and
+that a species of neutral belt of Indian territory should be
+established between the dominions of the United States and Great
+Britain, so that these dominions should be nowhere conterminous, upon
+which belt or barrier neither power should be permitted to encroach
+even by purchase, and the boundaries of which should be settled in
+this treaty. 2. That the United States should keep no naval force upon
+the Great Lakes, and should neither maintain their existing forts nor
+build new ones upon their northern frontier; it was even required that
+the boundary line should run along the southern shore of the       (p. 079)
+lakes; while no corresponding restriction was imposed upon Great
+Britain, because she was stated to have no projects of conquest as
+against her neighbor. 3. That a piece of the province of Maine should
+be ceded, in order to give the English a road from Halifax to Quebec.
+4. That the stipulation of the treaty of 1783, conferring on English
+subjects the right of navigating the Mississippi, should be now
+formally renewed.
+
+The Americans were astounded; it seemed to them hardly worth while to
+have come so far to listen to such propositions. Concerning the
+proposed Indian pacification they had not even any powers, the United
+States being already busied in negotiating a treaty with the tribes as
+independent powers. The establishment of the neutral Indian belt was
+manifestly contrary to the established policy and obvious destiny of
+the nation. Neither was the answer agreeable, which was returned by
+Dr. Adams to the inquiry as to what was to be done with those citizens
+of the United States who had already settled in those parts of
+Michigan, Illinois, and Ohio, included within the territory which it
+was now proposed to make inalienably Indian. He said that these
+people, amounting perhaps to one hundred thousand, "must shift for
+themselves." The one-sided disarmament upon the lakes and along the
+frontier was, by the understanding of all nations, such an         (p. 080)
+humiliation as is inflicted only on a crushed adversary. No return was
+offered for the road between Halifax and Quebec; nor for the right of
+navigating the Mississippi. The treaty of peace of 1783, made in
+ignorance of the topography of the unexplored northern country, had
+established an impossible boundary line running from the Lake of the
+Woods westward along the forty-ninth parallel to the Mississippi; and
+as appurtenant to the British territory, thus supposed to touch the
+river, a right of navigation upon it was given. It had since been
+discovered that a line on that parallel would never touch the
+Mississippi. The same treaty had also secured for the United States
+certain rights concerning the Northeastern fisheries. The English now
+insisted upon a re-affirmance of the privilege given to them, without
+a re-affirmance of the privilege given to the United States; ignoring
+the fact that the recent acquisition of Louisiana, making the
+Mississippi wholly American, materially altered the propriety of a
+British right of navigation upon it.
+
+Apart from the intolerable character of these demands, the personal
+bearing of the English Commissioners did not tend to mitigate the
+chagrin of the Americans. The formal civilities had counted with the
+American Commissioners for more than they were worth, and had      (p. 081)
+induced them, in preparing a long dispatch to the home government,
+to insert "a paragraph complimentary to the personal deportment" of
+the British. But before they sent off the document they revised it and
+struck out these pleasant phrases. Not many days after the first
+conference Mr. Adams notes that the tone of the English Commissioners
+was even "more peremptory, and their language more overbearing, than
+at the former conferences." A little farther on he remarks that "the
+British note is overbearing and insulting in its tone, like the two
+former ones." Again he says:--
+
+     "The tone of all the British notes is arrogant, overbearing, and
+     offensive. The tone of ours is neither so bold nor so spirited as
+     I think it should be. It is too much on the defensive, and too
+     excessive in the caution to say nothing irritating. I have seldom
+     been able to prevail upon my colleagues to insert anything in the
+     style of retort upon the harsh and reproachful matter which we
+     receive."
+
+Many little passages-at-arms in the conferences are recited which
+amply bear out these remarks as regards both parties. Perhaps,
+however, it should be admitted that the Americans made up for the
+self-restraint which they practised in conference by the disagreements
+and bickerings in which they indulged when consulting among        (p. 082)
+themselves. Mr. Gallatin's serene temper and cool head were hardly
+taxed to keep the peace among his excited colleagues. Mr. Adams and
+Mr. Clay were especially prone to suspicions and to outbursts of
+anger. Mr. Adams often and candidly admits as much of himself,
+apparently not without good reason. At first the onerous task of
+drafting the numerous documents which the Commission had to present
+devolved upon him, a labor for which he was well fitted in all
+respects save, perhaps, a tendency to prolixity. He did not, however,
+succeed in satisfying his comrades, and the criticisms to which they
+subjected his composition galled his self-esteem severely, so much so
+that erelong he altogether relinquished this function, which was
+thereafter performed chiefly by Mr. Gallatin. As early as August 21,
+Mr. Adams says, not without evident bitterness, that though they all
+were agreed on the general view of the subject, yet in his "exposition
+of it, one objects to the form, another to the substance, of almost
+every paragraph." Mr. Gallatin would strike out everything possibly
+offensive to the Englishmen; Mr. Clay would draw his pen through every
+figurative expression; Mr. Russell, not content with agreeing to all
+the objections of both the others, would further amend the construction
+of every sentence; and finally Mr. Bayard would insist upon        (p. 083)
+writing all over again in his own language. All this nettled Mr. Adams
+exceedingly. On September 24 he again writes that it was agreed to
+adopt an article which he had drawn, "though with objections to almost
+every word" which he had used. "This," he says, "is a severity with
+which I alone am treated in our discussions by all my colleagues.
+Almost everything written by any of the rest is rejected, or agreed to
+with very little criticism, verbal or substantial. But every line that
+I write passes a gauntlet of objections by every one of my colleagues,
+which finally issues, for the most part, in the rejection of it all."
+He reflects, with a somewhat forced air of self-discipline, that this
+must indicate some faultiness in his composition which he must try to
+correct; but in fact it is sufficiently evident that he was seldom
+persuaded that his papers were improved. Amid all this we see in the
+Diary many exhibitions of vexation. One day he acknowledges, "I cannot
+always restrain the irritability of my temper;" another day he
+informed his colleagues, "with too much warmth, that they might be
+assured I was as determined as they were;" again he reflects, "I, too,
+must not forget to keep a constant guard upon my temper, for the time
+is evidently approaching when it will be wanted." Mr. Gallatin alone
+seems not to have exasperated him; Mr. Clay and he were constantly (p. 084)
+in discussion, and often pretty hotly. Instead of coming nearer
+together, as time went on, these two fell farther apart. What Mr. Clay
+thought of Mr. Adams may probably be inferred from what we know that
+Mr. Adams thought of Mr. Clay. "Mr. Clay is losing his temper, and
+growing peevish and fractious," he writes on October 31; and constantly
+he repeats the like complaint. The truth is, that the precise New
+Englander and the impetuous Westerner were kept asunder not only by
+local interests but by habits and modes of thought utterly dissimilar.
+Some amusing glimpses of their private life illustrate this
+difference. Mr. Adams worked hard and diligently, allowing himself
+little leisure for pleasure; but Mr. Clay, without actually neglecting
+his duties, yet managed to find ample time for enjoyment. More than
+once Mr. Adams notes that, as he rose about five o'clock in the
+morning to light his own fire and begin the labors of the day by
+candle-light, he heard the parties breaking up and leaving Mr. Clay's
+rooms across the entry, where they had been playing cards all night
+long. In these little touches one sees the distinctive characters of
+the men well portrayed.
+
+The very extravagance of the British demands at least saved the    (p. 085)
+Americans from perplexity. Mr. Clay, indeed, cherished an "inconceivable
+idea" that the Englishmen would "finish by receding from the ground
+they had taken;" but meantime there could be no difference of opinion
+concerning the impossibility of meeting them upon that ground. Mr.
+Adams, never lacking in courage, actually wished to argue with them
+that it would be for the interests of Great Britain not less than of
+the United States if Canada should be ceded to the latter power.
+Unfortunately his colleagues would not support him in this audacious
+policy, the humor of which is delicious. It would have been infinitely
+droll to see how the British Commissioners would have hailed such a
+proposition, by way of appropriate termination of a conflict in which
+the forces of their nation had captured and ransacked the capital city
+of the Americans!
+
+On August 21 the Englishmen invited the Americans to dinner on the
+following Saturday. "The chance is," wrote Mr. Adams, "that before
+that time the whole negotiation will be at an end." The banquet,
+however, did come off, and a few more succeeded it; feasts not marked
+by any great geniality or warmth, except perhaps occasionally warmth
+of discussion. So sure were the Americans that they were about to
+break off the negotiations that Mr. Adams began to consider by     (p. 086)
+what route he should return to St. Petersburg; and they declined to
+renew the tenure of their quarters for more than a few days longer.
+Like alarms were of frequent occurrence, even almost to the very day
+of agreement. On September 15, at a dinner given by the American
+Commissioners, Lord Gambier asked Mr. Adams whether he would return
+immediately to St. Petersburg. "Yes," replied Mr. Adams, "that is, if
+you send us away." His lordship "replied with assurances how deeply he
+lamented it, and with a hope that we should one day be friends again."
+On the same occasion Mr. Goulburn said that probably the last note of
+the Americans would "terminate the business," and that they "must
+fight it out." Fighting it out was a much less painful prospect for
+Great Britain just at that juncture than for the United States, as the
+Americans realized with profound anxiety. "We so fondly cling to the
+vain hope of peace, that every new proof of its impossibility operates
+upon us as a disappointment," wrote Mr. Adams. No amount of pride
+could altogether conceal the fact that the American Commissioners
+represented the worsted party, and though they never openly said so
+even among themselves, yet indirectly they were obliged to recognize
+the truth. On November 10 we find Mr. Adams proposing to make      (p. 087)
+concessions not permitted by their instructions, because, as he said:--
+
+     "I felt so sure that [the home government] would now gladly take
+     the state before the war as the general basis of the peace, that
+     I was prepared to take on me the responsibility of trespassing
+     upon their instructions thus far. Not only so, but I would at
+     this moment cheerfully give my life for a peace on this basis. If
+     peace was possible, it would be on no other. I had indeed no hope
+     that the proposal would be accepted."
+
+Mr. Clay thought that the British would laugh at this: "They would say,
+Ay, ay! pretty fellows you, to think of getting out of the war as well
+as you got into it." This was not consoling for the representatives of
+that side which had declared war for the purpose of curing grievances
+and vindicating alleged rights. But that Mr. Adams correctly read the
+wishes of the government was proved within a very few days by the
+receipt of express authority from home "to conclude the peace on the
+basis of the _status ante bellum_." Three days afterwards, on November
+27, three and a half months after the vexatious haggling had been
+begun, we encounter in the Diary the first real gleam of hope of a
+successful termination: "All the difficulties to the conclusion of a
+peace appear to be now so nearly removed, that my colleagues all   (p. 088)
+consider it as certain. I myself think it probable."
+
+There were, however, some three weeks more of negotiation to be gone
+through before the consummation was actually achieved, and the ill
+blood seemed to increase as the end was approached. The differences
+between the American Commissioners waxed especially serious concerning
+the fisheries and the navigation of the Mississippi. Mr. Adams
+insisted that if the treaty of peace had been so far abrogated by the
+war as to render necessary a re-affirmance of the British right of
+navigating the Mississippi, then a re-affirmance of the American
+rights in the Northeastern fisheries was equally necessary. This the
+English Commissioners denied. Mr. Adams said it was only an exchange
+of privileges presumably equivalent. Mr. Clay, however, was firmly
+resolved to prevent all stipulations admitting such a right of
+navigation, and the better to do so he was quite willing to let the
+fisheries go. The navigation privilege he considered "much too
+important to be conceded for the mere liberty of drying fish upon a
+desert," as he was pleased to describe a right for which the United
+States has often been ready to go to war and may yet some time do so.
+"Mr. Clay lost his temper," writes Mr. Adams a day or two later,   (p. 089)
+"as he generally does whenever this right of the British to navigate
+the Mississippi is discussed. He was utterly averse to admitting it as
+an equivalent for a stipulation securing the contested part of the
+fisheries. He said the more he heard of this [the right of fishing],
+the more convinced he was that it was of little or no value. He should
+be glad to get it if he could, but he was sure the British would not
+ultimately grant it. That the navigation of the Mississippi, on the
+other hand, was an object of immense importance, and he could see no
+sort of reason for granting it as an equivalent for the fisheries."
+Thus spoke the representative of the West. The New Englander--the son
+of the man whose exertions had been chiefly instrumental in originally
+obtaining the grant of the Northeastern fishery privileges--naturally
+went to the other extreme. He thought "the British right of navigating
+the Mississippi to be as nothing, considered as a grant from us. It
+was secured to them by the peace of 1783, they had enjoyed it at the
+commencement of the war, it had never been injurious in the slightest
+degree to our own people, and it appeared to [him] that the British
+claim to it was just and equitable." Further he "believed the right to
+this navigation to be a very useless thing to the British.... But
+their national pride and honor were interested in it; the          (p. 090)
+government could not make a peace which would abandon it." The
+fisheries, however, Mr. Adams regarded as one of the most inestimable
+and inalienable of American rights. It is evident that the United
+States could ill have spared either Mr. Adams or Mr. Clay from the
+negotiation, and the joinder of the two, however fraught with
+discomfort to themselves, well served substantial American interests.
+
+Mr. Adams thought the British perfidious, and suspected them of not
+entertaining any honest intention of concluding a peace. On December
+12, after an exceedingly quarrelsome conference, he records his belief
+that the British have "insidiously kept open" two points, "for the
+sake of finally breaking off the negotiations and making all their
+other concessions proofs of their extreme moderation, to put upon us
+the blame of the rupture."
+
+On December 11 we find Mr. Clay ready "for a war three years longer,"
+and anxious "to begin to play at _brag_" with the Englishmen. His
+colleagues, more complaisant or having less confidence in their own
+skill in that game, found it difficult to placate him; he "stalked to
+and fro across the chamber, repeating five or six times, 'I will never
+sign a treaty upon the _status ante bellum_ with the Indian article.
+So help me God!'" The next day there was an angry controversy      (p. 091)
+with the Englishmen. The British troops had taken and held Moose
+Island in Passamaquoddy Bay, the rightful ownership of which was in
+dispute. The title was to be settled by arbitrators. But the question,
+whether the British should restore possession of the island pending
+the arbitration, aroused bitter discussion. "Mr. Goulburn and Dr.
+Adams (the Englishman) immediately took fire, and Goulburn lost all
+control of his temper. He has always in such cases," says the Diary,
+"a sort of convulsive agitation about him, and the tone in which he
+speaks is more insulting than the language which he uses." Mr. Bayard
+referred to the case of the Falkland Islands. "'Why' (in a transport
+of rage), said Goulburn, 'in that case we sent a fleet and troops and
+drove the fellows off; and that is what we ought to have done in this
+case.'" Mr. J. Q. Adams, whose extensive and accurate information more
+than once annoyed his adversaries, stated that, as he remembered it,
+"the Spaniards in that case had driven the British off,"--and Lord
+Gambier helped his blundering colleague out of the difficulty by
+suggesting a new subject, much as the defeated heroes of the Iliad
+used to find happy refuge from death in a god-sent cloud of dust. It
+is amusing to read that in the midst of such scenes as these the   (p. 092)
+show of courtesy was still maintained; and on December 13 the
+Americans "all dined with the British Plenipotentiaries," though "the
+party was more than usually dull, stiff, and reserved." It was
+certainly forcing the spirit of good fellowship. The next day Mr. Clay
+notified his colleagues that they were going "to make a damned bad
+treaty, and he did not know whether he would sign it or not;" and Mr.
+Adams also said that he saw that the rest had made up their minds "at
+last to yield the fishery point," in which case he also could not sign
+the treaty. On the following day, however, the Americans were
+surprised by receiving a note from the British Commissioners, wherein
+they made the substantial concession of omitting from the treaty all
+reference to the fisheries and the navigation of the Mississippi. But
+Mr. Clay, on reading the note, "manifested some chagrin," and "still
+talked of breaking off the negotiation," even asking Mr. Adams to join
+him in so doing, which request, however, Mr. Adams very reasonably
+refused. Mr. Clay had also been anxious to stand out for a distinct
+abandonment of the alleged right of impressment; but upon this point
+he found none of his colleagues ready to back him, and he was compelled
+perforce to yield. Agreement was therefore now substantially       (p. 093)
+reached; a few minor matters were settled, and on December 24, 1814,
+the treaty was signed by all the eight negotiators.
+
+It was an astonishing as well as a happy result. Never, probably, in
+the history of diplomacy has concord been produced from such discordant
+elements as had been brought together in Ghent. Dissension seemed to
+have become the mother of amity; and antipathies were mere
+preliminaries to a good understanding; in diplomacy as in marriage it
+had worked well to begin with a little aversion. But, in truth, this
+consummation was largely due to what had been going on in the English
+Cabinet. At the outset Lord Castlereagh had been very unwilling to
+conclude peace, and his disposition had found expression in the
+original intolerable terms prepared by the British Commissioners. But
+Lord Liverpool had been equally solicitous on the other side, and was
+said even to have tendered his resignation to the Prince Regent, if an
+accommodation should not be effected. His endeavors were fortunately
+aided by events in Europe. Pending the negotiations Lord Castlereagh
+went on a diplomatic errand to Vienna, and there fell into such
+threatening discussions with the Emperor of Russia and the King of
+Prussia, that he thought it prudent to have done with the American (p. 094)
+war, and wrote home pacific advices. Hence, at last, came such
+concessions as satisfied the Americans.
+
+The treaty established "a firm and universal peace between his
+Britannic Majesty and the United States." Each party was to restore
+all captured territory, except that the islands of which the title was
+in dispute were to remain in the occupation of the party holding them
+at the time of ratification until that title should be settled by
+commissioners; provision was made also for the determination of all
+the open questions of boundary by sundry boards of commissioners; each
+party was to make peace with the Indian allies of the other. Such
+were, in substance, the only points touched upon by this document. Of
+the many subjects mooted between the negotiators scarcely any had
+survived the fierce contests which had been waged concerning them. The
+whole matter of the navigation of the Mississippi, access to that
+river, and a road through American territory, had been dropped by the
+British; while the Americans had been well content to say nothing of
+the Northeastern fisheries, which they regarded as still their own.
+The disarmament on the lakes and along the Canadian border, and the
+neutralization of a strip of Indian territory, were yielded by the (p. 095)
+English. The Americans were content to have nothing said about
+impressment; nor was any one of the many illegal rights exercised by
+England formally abandoned. The Americans satisfied themselves with
+the reflection that circumstances had rendered these points now only
+matters of abstract principle, since the pacification of Europe had
+removed all opportunities and temptations for England to persist in
+her previous objectionable courses. For the future it was hardly to be
+feared that she would again undertake to pursue a policy against which
+it was evident that the United States were willing to conduct a
+serious war. There was, however, no provision for indemnification.
+
+Upon a fair consideration, it must be admitted that though the treaty
+was silent upon all the points which the United States had made war
+for the purpose of enforcing, yet the country had every reason to be
+gratified with the result of the negotiation. The five Commissioners
+had done themselves ample credit. They had succeeded in agreeing with
+each other; they had avoided any fracture of a negotiation which, up
+to the very end, seemed almost daily on the verge of being broken off
+in anger; they had managed really to lose nothing, in spite of the
+fact that their side had had decidedly the worst of the struggle.  (p. 096)
+They had negotiated much more successfully than the armies of their
+countrymen had fought. The Marquis of Wellesley said, in the House of
+Lords, that "in his opinion the American Commissioners had shown a
+most astonishing superiority over the British during the whole of the
+correspondence." One cannot help wishing that the battle of New Orleans
+had taken place a little earlier, or that the negotiation had fallen a
+little later, so that news of that brilliant event could have reached
+the ears of the insolent Englishmen at Ghent, who had for three months
+been enjoying the malicious pleasure of lending to the Americans
+English newspapers containing accounts of American misfortunes. But
+that fortunate battle was not fought until a few days after the eight
+Commissioners had signed their compact. It is an interesting
+illustration of the slowness of communication which our forefathers
+had to endure, that the treaty crossed the Atlantic in a sailing ship
+in time to travel through much of the country simultaneously with the
+report of this farewell victory. Two such good pieces of news coming
+together set the people wild with delight. Even on the dry pages of
+Niles's "Weekly Register" occurs the triumphant paragraph: "Who would
+not be an American? Long live the Republic! All hail! last asylum  (p. 097)
+of oppressed humanity! Peace is signed in the arms of victory!" It was
+natural that most of the ecstasy should be manifested concerning the
+military triumph, and that the mass of the people should find more
+pleasure in glorifying General Jackson than in exalting the Commissioners.
+The value of their work, however, was well proved by the voice of
+Great Britain. In the London "Times" of December 30 appeared a most
+angry tirade against the treaty, with bitter sneers at those who
+called the peace an "honorable" one. England, it was said, "had
+attempted to force her principles on America, and had failed." Foreign
+powers would say that the English "had retired from the combat with
+the stripes yet bleeding on their backs,--with the recent defeats at
+Plattsburgh and on Lake Champlain unavenged." The most gloomy
+prognostications of further wars with America when her naval power
+should have waxed much greater were indulged. The loss of prestige in
+Europe, "the probable loss of our trans-Atlantic provinces," were
+among the results to be anticipated from this treaty into which the
+English Commissioners had been beguiled by the Americans. These latter
+were reviled with an abuse which was really the highest compliment. The
+family name of Mr. Adams gained no small access of distinction in  (p. 098)
+England from this business.
+
+After the conclusion of the treaty Mr. Adams went to Paris, and
+remained there until the middle of May, 1815, thus having the good
+fortune to witness the return of Napoleon and a great part of the
+events of the famous "hundred days." On May 26 he arrived in London,
+where there awaited him, in the hands of the Barings, his commission
+as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Great Britain.
+His first duty was, in connection with Mr. Clay and Mr. Gallatin, to
+negotiate a treaty of commerce, in which business he again met the
+same three British Commissioners by whom the negotiations at Ghent had
+been conducted, of whose abilities the government appeared to
+entertain a better opinion than the Marquis of Wellesley had
+expressed. This negotiation had been brought so far towards conclusion
+by his colleagues before his own arrival that Mr. Adams had little to
+do in assisting them to complete it. This little having been done,
+they departed and left him as Minister at the Court of St. James. Thus
+he fulfilled Washington's prophecy, by reaching the highest rank in
+the American diplomatic service.
+
+Of his stay in Great Britain little need be said. He had few duties of
+importance to perform. The fisheries, the right of impressment,    (p. 099)
+and the taking away and selling of slaves by British naval officers
+during the late war, formed the subjects of many interviews between
+him and Lord Castlereagh, without, however, any definite results being
+reached. But he succeeded in obtaining, towards the close of his stay,
+some slight remission of the severe restrictions placed by England
+upon our trade with her West Indian colonies. His relations with a
+cabinet in which the principles of Castlereagh and Canning
+predominated could hardly be cordial, yet he seems to have been
+treated with perfect civility. Indeed, he was not a man whom it was
+easy even for an Englishman to insult. He remarks of Castlereagh,
+after one of his first interviews with that nobleman: "His deportment
+is sufficiently graceful, and his person is handsome. His manner was
+cold, but not absolutely repulsive." Before he left he had the
+pleasure of having Mr. Canning specially seek acquaintance with him.
+He met, of course, many distinguished and many agreeable persons
+during his residence, and partook of many festivities, especially of
+numerous civic banquets at which toasts were formally given in the
+dullest English fashion and he was obliged to display his capacity for
+"table-cloth oratory," as he called it, more than was agreeable to
+him. He was greatly bored by these solemn and pompous feedings.    (p. 100)
+Partly in order to escape them he took a house at Ealing, and lived
+there during the greater part of his stay in England. "One of the
+strongest reasons for my remaining out of town," he writes, "is to
+escape the frequency of invitations at late hours, which consume so
+much precious time, and with the perpetually mortifying consciousness
+of inability to return the civility in the same manner." The
+republican simplicity, not to say poverty, forced upon American
+representatives abroad, was a very different matter in the censorious
+and unfriendly society of London from what it had been at the kindly
+disposed Court of St. Petersburg. The relationship between the mother
+country and the quondam colonies, especially at that juncture, was
+such as to render social life intolerably trying to an under-paid
+American minister.
+
+Mr. Adams remained in England until June 15, 1817, when he sailed from
+Cowes, closing forever his long and honorable diplomatic career, and
+bidding his last farewell to Europe. He returned home to take the post
+of Secretary of State in the cabinet of James Monroe, then lately
+inaugurated as President of the United States.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II                                                         (p. 101)
+
+SECRETARY OF STATE AND PRESIDENT
+
+
+From the capitals of Russia and Great Britain to the capital of the
+United States was a striking change. Washington, in its early struggle
+for existence, was so unattractive a spot, that foreigners must have
+been at a loss to discover the principle which had governed the
+selection. It combined all the ugliness with all the discomfort of an
+unprosperous frontier settlement on an ill-chosen site. What must
+European diplomats have thought of a capital city where snakes two
+feet long invaded gentlemen's drawing-rooms, and a carriage, bringing
+home the guests from a ball, could be upset by the impenetrable depth
+of quagmire at the very door of a foreign minister's residence. A
+description of the city given by Mr. Mills, a Representative from
+Massachusetts, in 1815, is pathetic in its unutterable horror:--
+
+     "It is impossible [he writes] for me to describe to you my
+     feelings on entering this miserable desert, this scene of
+     desolation and horror.... My anticipations were almost        (p. 102)
+     infinitely short of the reality, and I can truly say that the
+     first appearance of this seat of the national government has
+     produced in me nothing but absolute loathing and disgust."
+
+If the place wore such a dreadful aspect to the simple denizen of a
+New England country town, what must it have seemed to those who were
+familiar with London and Paris? To them the social life must have been
+scarcely less dreary than the rest of the surroundings. Accordingly,
+with this change of scene, the Diary, so long a record of festivities
+sometimes dull and formal, but generally collecting interesting and
+distinguished persons, ceases almost wholly to refer to topics of
+society. Yet, of course, even the foul streets could not prevent
+people from occasionally meeting together. There were simple
+tea-drinkings, stupid weekly dinners at the President's, infrequent
+receptions by Mrs. Monroe, card-parties and conversation-parties,
+which at the British minister's were very "elegant," and at the French
+minister's were more gay. Mons. de Neuville, at his dinners, used to
+puzzle and astound the plain-living Yankees by serving dishes of
+"turkeys without bones, and puddings in the form of fowls, fresh cod
+disguised like a salad, and celery like oysters;" further, he
+scandalized some and demoralized others by having dancing on       (p. 103)
+Saturday evenings, which the New England ladies had been "educated to
+consider as holy time." Mr. and Mrs. Adams used to give weekly parties
+on Tuesday evenings, and apparently many persons stood not a little in
+awe of these entertainments and of the givers of them, by reason of
+their superior familiarity with the manners and customs of the best
+society of Europe. Mrs. Adams was, "on the whole, a very pleasant and
+agreeable woman; but the Secretary [had] no talent to entertain a
+mixed company, either by conversation or manners;" thus writes this
+same Mr. Mills, whose sentiments towards Mr. Adams were those of
+respect rather than of personal liking. The favorite dissipation then
+consisted in card-playing, and the stakes were too often out of all
+just proportion to the assets of the gamesters. At one time Mr. Clay
+was reputed to have lost $8,000, an amount so considerable for him as
+to weigh upon his mind to the manifest detriment of his public
+functions. But sometimes the gentlemen resident in the capital met for
+purposes less innocent than Saturday evening cotillons, or even than
+extravagant betting at the card-table, and stirred the dulness of
+society by a duel. Mr. Adams tells of one affair of this sort, fought
+between ex-Senator Mason, of Virginia, and his cousin, wherein the
+weapons used were muskets, and the distance was only six paces.    (p. 104)
+Mason was killed; his cousin was wounded, and only by a lucky
+accident escaped with his life. Mr. Adams had little time and less
+taste for either the amusements or the dangers thus offered to him; he
+preferred to go to bed in good season, to get up often long before
+daybreak, and to labor assiduously the livelong day. His favorite
+exercise was swimming in the Potomac, where he accomplished feats
+which would have been extraordinary for a young and athletic man.
+
+The most important, perplexing, and time-consuming duties then called
+for by the condition of public affairs happened to fall within Mr.
+Adams's department. Monroe's administration has been christened the
+"era of good feeling;" and, so far as political divisions among the
+people at large were concerned, this description is correct enough.
+There were no great questions of public policy dividing the nation.
+There could hardly be said to be two political parties. With the close
+of the war the malcontent Federalists had lost the only substantial
+principle upon which they had been able vigorously to oppose the
+administration, and as a natural consequence the party rapidly shrank
+to insignificant proportions, and became of hardly more importance
+than were the Jacobites in England after their last hopes had      (p. 105)
+been quenched by the failure of the Rebellion of '45. The Federalist
+faith, like Jacobitism, lingered in a few neighborhoods, and was
+maintained by a few old families, who managed to associate it with a
+sense of their own pride and dignity; but as an effective opposition
+or influential party organization it was effete, and no successor was
+rising out of its ruins. In a broad way, therefore, there was
+political harmony to a very remarkable degree.
+
+But among individuals there was by no means a prevailing good feeling.
+Not held together by the pressure exerted by the antagonism of a
+strong hostile force, the prominent men of the Cabinet and in Congress
+were busily employed in promoting their own individual interests.
+Having no great issues with which to identify themselves, and upon
+which they could openly and honorably contend for the approval of the
+nation, their only means for securing their respective private ends
+lay in secretly overreaching and supplanting each other. Infinite
+skill was exerted by each to inveigle his rival into an unpopular
+position or a compromising light. By a series of precedents Mr. Adams,
+as Secretary of State, appeared most prominent as a candidate for the
+succession to the Presidency. But Mr. Crawford, in the Treasury
+Department, had been very near obtaining the nomination instead    (p. 106)
+of Monroe, and he was firmly resolved to secure it so soon as Mr.
+Monroe's eight years should have elapsed. He, therefore, finding much
+leisure left upon his hands by the not very exacting business of his
+office, devoted his ingenuity to devising schemes for injuring the
+prestige of Mr. Adams. Mr. Clay also had been greatly disappointed
+that he had not been summoned to be Secretary of State, and so made
+heir apparent. His personal enmity was naturally towards Mr. Monroe;
+his political enmity necessarily also included Mr. Adams, whose
+appointment he had privately sought to prevent. He therefore at once
+set himself assiduously to oppose and thwart the administration, and
+to make it unsuccessful and unpopular. That Clay was in the main and
+upon all weighty questions an honest statesman and a real patriot must
+be admitted, but just at this period no national crisis called his
+nobler qualities into action, and his course was largely influenced by
+selfish considerations. It was not long before Mr. Calhoun also
+entered the lists, though in a manner less discreditable to himself,
+personally, than were the resources of Crawford and Clay. The daily
+narrations and comments of Mr. Adams display and explain in a manner
+highly instructive, if not altogether agreeable, the ambitions     (p. 107)
+and the manoeuvres, the hollow alliances and unworthy intrigues, not
+only of these three, but also of many other estimable gentlemen then
+in political life. The difference between those days and our own seems
+not so great as the _laudatores temporis acti_ are wont to proclaim
+it. The elaborate machinery which has since been constructed was then
+unknown; rivals relied chiefly upon their own astuteness and the aid
+of a few personal friends and adherents for carrying on contests and
+attaining ends which are now sought by vastly more complex methods.
+What the stage-coach of that period was to the railroads of to-day, or
+what the hand-loom was to our great cotton mills, such also was the
+political intriguing of cabinet ministers, senators, and
+representatives to our present party machinery. But the temper was no
+better, honor was no keener, the sense of public duty was little more
+disinterested then than now. One finds no serious traces of vulgar
+financial dishonesty recorded in these pages, in which Mr. Adams has
+handed down the political life of the second and third decades of our
+century with a photographic accuracy. But one does not see a much
+higher level of faithfulness to ideal standards in political life than
+now exists.
+
+[Illustration: Wm. H. Crawford.]
+
+As has been said, it so happened that in Mr. Monroe's              (p. 108)
+administration the heaviest burden of labor and responsibility rested
+upon Mr. Adams; the most important and most perplexing questions fell
+within his department. Domestic breaches had been healed, but foreign
+breaches gaped with threatening jaws. War with Spain seemed imminent.
+Her South American colonies were then waging their contest for
+independence, and naturally looked to the late successful rebels of
+the northern continent for acts of neighborly sympathy and good
+fellowship. Their efforts to obtain official recognition and the
+exchange of ministers with the United States were eager and persistent.
+Privateers fitted out at Baltimore gave the State Department scarcely
+less cause for anxiety than the shipbuilders of Liverpool gave to the
+English Cabinet in 1863-64. These perplexities, as is well known,
+caused the passage of the first "Neutrality Act," which first
+formulated and has since served to establish the principle of
+international obligation in such matters, and has been the basis of
+all subsequent legislation upon the subject not only in this country
+but also in Great Britain.
+
+The European powers, impelled by a natural distaste for rebellion by
+colonists, and also believing that Spain would in time prevail over
+the insurgents, turned a deaf ear to South American agents. But in the
+United States it was different. Here it was anticipated that the   (p. 109)
+revolted communities were destined to win; Mr. Adams records this as
+his own opinion; besides which there was also a natural sympathy felt
+by our people in such a conflict in their own quarter of the globe.
+Nevertheless, in many anxious cabinet discussions, the President and
+the Secretary of State established the policy of reserve and caution.
+Rebels against an established government are like plaintiffs in
+litigation; the burden of proof is upon them, and the neutral nations
+who are a sort of quasi-jurors must not commit themselves to a
+decision prematurely. The grave and inevitable difficulties besetting
+the administration in this matter were seriously enhanced by the
+conduct of Mr. Clay. Seeking nothing so eagerly as an opportunity to
+harass the government, he could have found none more to his taste than
+this question of South American recognition. His enthusiastic and
+rhetorical temperament rejoiced in such a topic for his luxuriant
+oratory, and he lauded freedom and abused the administration with a
+force of expression far from gratifying to the responsible heads of
+government in their troublesome task.
+
+Apart from these matters the United States had direct disputes of a
+threatening character pending with Spain concerning the boundaries of
+Louisiana. Naturally enough boundary lines in the half explored    (p. 110)
+wilderness of this vast continent were not then marked with that
+indisputable accuracy which many generations and much bloodshed had
+achieved in Europe; and of all uncertain boundaries that of Louisiana
+was the most so. Area enough to make two or three States, more or
+less, might or might not be included therein. Such doubts had proved a
+ready source of quarrel, which could hardly be assuaged by General
+Jackson marching about in unquestionable Spanish territory, seizing
+towns and hanging people after his lawless, ignorant, energetic
+fashion. Mr. Adams's chief labor, therefore, was by no means of a
+promising character, being nothing less difficult than to conclude a
+treaty between enraged Spain and the rapacious United States, where
+there was so much wrong and so much right on both sides, and such a
+wide obscure realm of doubt between the two that an amicable agreement
+might well seem not only beyond expectation but beyond hope.
+
+Many and various also were the incidental obstacles in Mr. Adams's
+way. Not the least lay in the ability of Don Onis, the Spanish
+Minister, an ambassador well selected for his important task and whom
+the American thus described:--
+
+     "Cold, calculating, wily, always commanding his own temper,   (p. 111)
+     proud because he is a Spaniard, but supple and cunning,
+     accommodating the tone of his pretensions precisely to the degree
+     of endurance of his opponent, bold and overbearing to the utmost
+     extent to which it is tolerated, careless of what he asserts or
+     how grossly it is proved to be unfounded, his morality appears to
+     be that of the Jesuits as exposed by Pascal. He is laborious,
+     vigilant, and ever attentive to his duties; a man of business and
+     of the world."
+
+Fortunately this so dangerous negotiator was hardly less anxious than
+Mr. Adams to conclude a treaty. Yet he, too, had his grave difficulties
+to encounter. Spanish arrogance had not declined with the decline of
+Spanish strength, and the concessions demanded from that ancient
+monarchy by the upstart republic seemed at once exasperating and
+humiliating. The career of Jackson in Florida, while it exposed the
+weakness of Spain, also sorely wounded her pride. Nor could the
+grandees, three thousand miles away, form so accurate an opinion of
+the true condition and prospects of affairs as could Don Onis upon
+this side of the water. One day, begging Mr. Adams to meet him upon a
+question of boundary, "he insisted much upon the infinite pains he had
+taken to prevail upon his government to come to terms of accommodation,"
+and pathetically declared that "the King's Council was composed    (p. 112)
+of such ignorant and stupid _nigauds_, grandees of Spain, and priests,"
+that Mr. Adams "could have no conception of their obstinacy and
+imbecility."
+
+Other difficulties in Mr. Adams's way were such as ought not to have
+been encountered. The only substantial concession which he was willing
+to make was in accepting the Sabine instead of the Rio del Norte as
+the southwestern boundary of Louisiana. But no sooner did rumors of
+this possible yielding get abroad than he was notified that Mr. Clay
+"would take ground against" any treaty embodying it. From Mr. Crawford
+a more dangerous and insidious policy was to be feared. Presumably he
+would be well pleased either to see Mr. Adams fail altogether in the
+negotiation, or to see him conclude a treaty which would be in some
+essential feature odious to the people.
+
+     "That all his conduct [wrote Mr. Adams] is governed by his views
+     to the Presidency, as the ultimate successor to Mr. Monroe, and
+     that his hopes depend upon a result unfavorable to the success or
+     at least to the popularity of the Administration, is perfectly
+     clear.... His talent is intrigue. And as it is in the foreign
+     affairs that the success or failure of the Administration will be
+     most conspicuous, and as their success would promote the
+     reputation and influence, and their failure would lead to     (p. 113)
+     the disgrace of the Secretary of State, Crawford's personal
+     views centre in the ill-success of the Administration in its
+     foreign relations; and, perhaps unconscious of his own motives,
+     he will always be impelled to throw obstacles in its way, and to
+     bring upon the Department of State especially any feeling of
+     public dissatisfaction that he can, ... and although himself a
+     member of the Administration, he perceives every day more clearly
+     that his only prospect of success hereafter depends upon the
+     failure of the Administration by measures of which he must take
+     care to make known his disapprobation."
+
+President Monroe was profoundly anxious for the consummation of the
+treaty, and though for a time he was in perfect accord with Mr. Adams,
+yet as the Spanish minister gradually drew nearer and nearer to a full
+compliance with the American demands, Monroe began to fear that the
+Secretary would carry his unyielding habit too far, and by insistence
+upon extreme points which might well enough be given up, would allow
+the country to drift into war.
+
+Fortunately, as it turned out, Mr. Adams was not afraid to take the
+whole responsibility of success or failure upon his own shoulders,
+showing indeed a high and admirable courage and constancy amid such
+grave perplexities, in which it seemed that all his future political
+fortunes were involved. He caused the proffered mediation of       (p. 114)
+Great Britain to be rejected. He availed himself of no aid save only
+the services of Mons. de Neuville, the French minister, who took a
+warm interest in the negotiation, expostulated and argued constantly
+with Don Onis and sometimes with Mr. Adams, served as a channel of
+communication and carried messages, propositions, and denials, which
+could better come filtered through a neutral go-between than pass
+direct from principal to principal. In fact, Mr. Adams needed no other
+kind of aid except just this which was so readily furnished by the
+civil and obliging Frenchman. As if he had been a mathematician
+solving a problem in dynamics, he seemed to have measured the precise
+line to which the severe pressure of Spanish difficulties would compel
+Don Onis to advance. This line he drew sharply, and taking his stand
+upon it in the beginning he made no important alterations in it to the
+end. Day by day the Spaniard would reluctantly approach toward him at
+one point or another, solemnly protesting that he could not make
+another move, by argument and entreaty urging, almost imploring, Mr.
+Adams in turn to advance and meet him. But Mr. Adams stood rigidly
+still, sometimes not a little vexed by the other's lingering manoeuvres,
+and actually once saying to the courtly Spaniard that he "was so   (p. 115)
+wearied out with the discussion that it had become nauseous;" and,
+again, that he "really could discuss no longer, and had given it up in
+despair." Yet all the while he was never wholly free from anxiety
+concerning the accuracy of his calculations as to how soon the Don
+might on his side also come to a final stand. Many a tedious and
+alarming pause there was, but after each halt progress was in time
+renewed. At last the consummation was reached, and except in the
+aforementioned matter of the Sabine boundary no concession even in
+details had been made by Mr. Adams. The United States was to receive
+Florida, and in return only agreed to settle the disputed claims of
+certain of her citizens against Spain to an amount not to exceed five
+million dollars; while the claims of Spanish subjects against the
+United States were wholly expunged. The western boundary was so
+established as to secure for this country the much-coveted outlet to
+the shores of the "South Sea," as the Pacific Ocean was called, south
+of the Columbia River; the line also was run along the southern banks
+of the Red and Arkansas rivers, leaving all the islands to the United
+States and precluding Spain from the right of navigation. Mr. Adams
+had achieved a great triumph.
+
+On February 22, 1819, the two negotiators signed and sealed the    (p. 116)
+counterparts of the treaty. Mr. Adams notes that it is "perhaps
+the most important day of my life," and justly called it "a great
+epoch in our history." Yet on the next day the "Washington City
+Gazette" came out with a strong condemnation of the Sabine concession,
+and expressed the hope that the Senate would not agree to it. "This
+paragraph," said Mr. Adams, "comes directly or indirectly from Mr.
+Clay." But the paragraph did no harm, for on the following day the
+treaty was confirmed by an unanimous vote of the Senate.
+
+It was not long, however, before the pleasure justly derivable from
+the completion of this great labor was cruelly dashed. It appeared
+that certain enormous grants of land, made by the Spanish king to
+three of his nobles, and which were supposed to be annulled by the
+treaty, so that the territory covered by them would become the public
+property of the United States, bore date earlier than had been
+understood, and for this reason would, by the terms of the treaty, be
+left in full force. This was a serious matter, and such steps as were
+still possible to set it right were promptly taken. Mr. Adams appealed
+to Don Onis to state in writing that he himself had understood that
+these grants were to be annulled, and that such had been the intention
+of the treaty. The Spaniard replied in a shape imperfectly         (p. 117)
+satisfactory. He shuffled, evaded, and laid himself open to suspicion
+of unfair dealing, though the charge could not be regarded as fully
+proved against him. Mr. Adams, while blaming himself for carelessness
+in not having more closely examined original documents, yet felt
+"scarce a doubt" that Onis "did intend by artifice to cover the grants
+while we were under the undoubting impression they were annulled;" and
+he said to M. de Neuville, concerning this dark transaction, that "it
+was not the ingenious device of a public minister, but '_une fourberie
+de Scapin_.'" Before long the rumor got abroad in the public prints in
+the natural shape of a "malignant distortion," and Mr. Adams was
+compelled to see with chagrin his supposed brilliant success
+threatening to turn actually to his grave discredit by reason of this
+unfortunate oversight.
+
+What might have been the result had the treaty been ratified by Spain
+can only be surmised. But it so befell--happily enough for the United
+States and for Mr. Adams, as it afterwards turned out--that the
+Spanish government refused to ratify. The news was, however, that they
+would forthwith dispatch a new minister to explain this refusal and to
+renew negotiations.
+
+For his own private part Mr. Adams strove to endure this buffet    (p. 118)
+of unkindly fortune with that unflinching and stubborn temper,
+slightly dashed with bitterness, which stood him in good stead in many
+a political trial during his hard-fighting career. But in his official
+capacity he had also to consider and advise what it behooved the
+administration to do under the circumstances. The feeling was
+widespread that the United States ought to possess Florida, and that
+Spain had paltered with us long enough. More than once in cabinet
+meetings during the negotiation the Secretary of State, who was always
+prone to strong measures, had expressed a wish for an act of Congress
+authorizing the Executive to take forcible possession of Florida and
+of Galveston in the event of Spain refusing to satisfy the reasonable
+demands made upon her. Now, stimulated by indignant feeling, his
+prepossession in favor of vigorous action was greatly strengthened,
+and his counsel was that the United States should prepare at once to
+take and hold the disputed territory, and indeed some undisputed
+Spanish territory also. But Mr. Monroe and the rest of the Cabinet
+preferred a milder course; and France and Great Britain ventured to
+express to this country a hope that no violent action would be
+precipitately taken. So the matter lay by for a while, awaiting the
+coming of the promised envoy from Spain.
+
+At this time the great question of the admission of Missouri into  (p. 119)
+the Union of States began to agitate Congress and the nation. Mr.
+Adams, deeply absorbed in the perplexing affairs of his department,
+into which this domestic problem did not enter, was at first careless
+of it. His ideas concerning the matter, he wrote, were a "chaos;" but
+it was a "chaos" into which his interest in public questions soon
+compelled him to bring order. In so doing he for the first time fairly
+exposes his intense repulsion for slavery, his full appreciation of
+the irrepressible character of the conflict between the slave and the
+free populations, and the sure tendency of that conflict to a
+dissolution of the Union. Few men at that day read the future so
+clearly. While dissolution was generally regarded as a threat not
+really intended to be carried out, and compromises were supposed to be
+amply sufficient to control the successive emergencies, the underlying
+moral force of the anti-slavery movement acting against the
+encroaching necessities of the slave-holding communities constituted
+an element and involved possibilities which Mr. Adams, from his
+position of observation outside the immediate controversy, noted with
+foreseeing accuracy. He discerned in passing events the "title-page to
+a great tragic volume;" and he predicted that the more or less distant
+but sure end must be an attempt to dissolve the Union. His own     (p. 120)
+position was distinctly defined from the outset, and his strong
+feelings were vigorously expressed. He beheld with profound regret the
+superiority of the slave-holding party in ability; he remarked sadly
+how greatly they excelled in debating power their lukewarm opponents;
+he was filled with indignation against the Northern men of Southern
+principles. "Slavery," he wrote, "is the great and foul stain upon the
+North American Union, and it is a contemplation worthy of the most
+exalted soul whether its total abolition is or is not practicable." "A
+life devoted to" the emancipation problem "would be nobly spent or
+sacrificed." He talks with much acerbity of expression about the
+"slave-drivers," and the "flagrant image of human inconsistency"
+presented by men who had "the Declaration of Independence on their
+lips and the merciless scourge of slavery in their hands." "Never," he
+says, "since human sentiments and human conduct were influenced by
+human speech was there a theme for eloquence like the free side of
+this question.... Oh, if but one man could arise with a genius capable
+of comprehending, and an utterance capable of communicating those
+eternal truths that belong to this question, to lay bare in all its
+nakedness that outrage upon the goodness of God, human slavery;    (p. 121)
+now is the time and this is the occasion, upon which such a man would
+perform the duties of an angel upon earth." Before the Abolitionists
+had begun to preach their great crusade this was strong and ardent
+language for a statesman's pen. Nor were these exceptional passages;
+there is much more of the same sort at least equally forcible. Mr.
+Adams notes an interesting remark made to him by Calhoun at this time.
+The great Southern chief, less prescient than Mr. Adams, declared that
+he did not think that the slavery question "would produce a
+dissolution of the Union; but if it should, the South would be from
+necessity compelled to form an alliance offensive and defensive with
+Great Britain."
+
+Concerning a suggestion that civil war might be preferable to the
+extension of slavery beyond the Mississippi, Adams said: "This is a
+question between the rights of human nature and the Constitution of
+the United States"--a form of stating the case which leaves no doubt
+concerning his ideas of the intrinsic right and wrong in the matter.
+His own notion was that slavery could not be got rid of within the
+Union, but that the only method would be dissolution, after which he
+trusted that the course of events would in time surely lead to
+reorganization upon the basis of universal freedom for all. He     (p. 122)
+was not a disunionist in any sense, yet it is evident that his strong
+tendency and inclination were to regard emancipation as a weight in
+the scales heavier than union, if it should ever come to the point of
+an option between the two.
+
+Strangely enough the notion of a forcible retention of the slave
+States within the Union does not seem to have been at this time a
+substantial element of consideration. Mr. Adams acknowledged that
+there was no way at once of preserving the Union and escaping from the
+present emergency save through the door of compromise. He maintained
+strenuously the power of Congress to prohibit slavery in the
+Territories, and denied that either Congress or a state government
+could establish slavery as a new institution in any State in which it
+was not already existing and recognized by law.
+
+This agitation of the slavery question made itself felt in a way
+personally interesting to Mr. Adams, by the influence it was exerting
+upon men's feelings concerning the still pending and dubious treaty
+with Spain. The South became anxious to lay hands upon the Floridas
+and upon as far-reaching an area as possible in the direction of
+Mexico, in order to carve it up into more slave States; the North, on
+the other hand, no longer cared very eagerly for an extension of the
+Union upon its southern side. Sectional interests were getting to  (p. 123)
+be more considered than national. Mr. Adams could not but recognize
+that in the great race for the Presidency, in which he could hardly
+help being a competitor, the chief advantage which he seemed to have
+won when the Senate unanimously ratified the Spanish treaty, had
+almost wholly vanished since that treaty had been repudiated by Spain
+and was now no longer desired by a large proportion of his own
+countrymen.
+
+Matters stood thus when the new Spanish envoy, Vivźs, arrived. Other
+elements, which there is not space to enumerate here, besides those
+referred to, now entering newly into the state of affairs, further
+reduced the improbability of agreement almost to hopelessness. Mr.
+Adams, despairing of any other solution than a forcible seizure of
+Florida, to which he had long been far from averse, now visibly
+relaxed his efforts to meet the Spanish negotiator. Perhaps no other
+course could have been more effectual in securing success than this
+obvious indifference to it. In the prevalent condition of public
+feeling and of his own sentiments Mr. Adams easily assumed towards
+General Vivźs a decisive bluntness, not altogether consonant to the
+habits of diplomacy, and manifested an unchangeable stubbornness which
+left no room for discussion. His position was simply that Spain might
+make such a treaty as the United States demanded, or might take    (p. 124)
+the consequences of her refusal. His dogged will wore out the
+Spaniard's pride, and after a fruitless delay the King and Cortes
+ratified the treaty in its original shape, with the important addition
+of an explicit annulment of the land grants. It was again sent in to
+the Senate, and in spite of the "continued, systematic, and laborious
+effort" of "Mr. Clay and his partisans to make it unpopular," it was
+ratified by a handsome majority, there being against it "only four
+votes--Brown, of Louisiana, who married a sister of Clay's wife;
+Richard M. Johnson, of Kentucky, against his own better judgment, from
+mere political subserviency to Clay; Williams, of Tennessee, from
+party impulses connected with hatred of General Jackson; and Trimble,
+of Ohio, from some maggot of the brain." Two years had elapsed since
+the former ratification, and no little patience had been required to
+await so long the final achievement of a success so ardently longed
+for, once apparently gained, and anon so cruelly thwarted. But the
+triumph was rather enhanced than diminished by all this difficulty and
+delay. A long and checkered history, wherein appeared infinite labor,
+many a severe trial of temper and hard test of moral courage, bitter
+disappointment, ignoble artifices of opponents, ungenerous         (p. 125)
+opposition growing out of unworthy personal motives at home, was now
+at last closed by a chapter which appeared only the more gratifying by
+contrast with what had gone before. Mr. Adams recorded, with less of
+exultation than might have been pardonable, the utter discomfiture of
+"all the calculators of my downfall by the Spanish negotiation," and
+reflected cheerfully that he had been left with "credit rather augmented
+than impaired by the result,"--credit not in excess of his deserts.
+Many years afterwards, in changed circumstances, an outcry was raised
+against the agreement which was arrived at concerning the southwestern
+boundary of Louisiana. Most unjustly it was declared that Mr. Adams
+had sacrificed a portion of the territory of the United States. But
+political motives were too plainly to be discerned in these tardy
+criticisms; and though General Jackson saw fit, for personal reasons,
+to animadvert severely upon the clause establishing this boundary
+line, yet there was abundant evidence to show not only that he, like
+almost everybody else, had been greatly pleased with it at the time,
+but even that he had then upon consultation expressed a deliberate and
+special approval.
+
+The same day, February 22, 1821, closed, says Mr. Adams, "two of the
+most memorable transactions of my life." That he should speak thus (p. 126)
+of the exchange of ratifications of the Spanish treaty is natural; but
+the other so "memorable transaction" may not appear of equal magnitude.
+It was the sending in to Congress of his report upon weights and
+measures. This was one of those vast labors, involving tenfold more
+toil than all the negotiations with Onis and Vivźs, but bringing no
+proportionate fame, however well it might be performed. The subject
+was one which had "occupied for the last sixty years many of the
+ablest men in Europe, and to which all the power and all the
+philosophical and mathematical learning and ingenuity of France and of
+Great Britain" had during that period been incessantly directed. It
+was fairly enough described as a "fearful and oppressive task." Upon
+its dry and uncongenial difficulties Mr. Adams had been employed with
+his wonted industry for upwards of four years; he now spoke of the
+result modestly as "a hurried and imperfect work." But others, who
+have had to deal with the subject, have found this report a solid and
+magnificent monument of research and reflection, which has not even
+yet been superseded by later treatises. Mr. Adams was honest in labor
+as in everything, and was never careless at points where inaccuracy or
+lack of thoroughness might be expected to escape detection.        (p. 127)
+Hence his success in a task upon which it is difficult to imagine other
+statesmen of that day--Clay, Webster, or Calhoun, for example--so much
+as making an effort. The topic is not one concerning which readers
+would tolerate much lingering. Suffice it then to say that the
+document illustrated the ability and the character of the man, and so
+with this brief mention to dismiss in a paragraph an achievement
+which, had it been accomplished in any more showy department, would
+alone have rendered Mr. Adams famous.
+
+It is highly gratifying now to look back upon the high spirit and
+independent temper uniformly displayed by Mr. Adams abroad and at home
+in all dealings with foreign powers. Never in any instance did he
+display the least tinge of that rodomontade and boastful extravagance
+which have given an underbred air to so many of our diplomats, and
+which inevitably cause the basis for such self-laudation to appear of
+dubious sufficiency. But he had the happy gift of a native pride which
+enabled him to support in the most effective manner the dignity of the
+people for whom he spoke. For example, in treaties between the United
+States and European powers the latter were for a time wont to name
+themselves first throughout the instruments, contrary to the custom of
+alternation practised in treaties between themselves. With some    (p. 128)
+difficulty, partly interposed, it must be confessed, by his own
+American coadjutors, Mr. Adams succeeded in putting a stop to this
+usage. It was a matter of insignificant detail, in one point of view;
+but in diplomacy insignificant details often symbolize important
+facts, and there is no question that this habit had been construed as
+a tacit but intentional arrogance of superiority on the part of the
+Europeans.
+
+For a long period after the birth of the country there was a strong
+tendency, not yet so eradicated as to be altogether undiscoverable, on
+the part of American statesmen to keep one eye turned covertly askance
+upon the trans-Atlantic courts, and to consider, not without a certain
+anxious deference, what appearance the new United States might be
+presenting to the critical eyes of foreign countries and diplomats.
+Mr. Adams was never guilty of such indirect admissions of an inferiority
+which apparently he never felt. In the matter of the acquisition of
+Florida, Crawford suggested that England and France regarded the
+people of the United States as ambitious and encroaching; wherefore he
+advised a moderate policy in order to remove this impression. Mr.
+Adams on the other side declared that he was not in favor of our
+giving ourselves any concern whatever about the opinions of any    (p. 129)
+foreign power. "If the world do not hold us for Romans," he said,
+"they will take us for Jews, and of the two vices I would rather be
+charged with that which has greatness mingled in its composition." His
+views were broad and grand. He was quite ready to have the world
+become "familiarized with the idea of considering our proper dominion
+to be the continent of North America." This extension he declared to
+be a "law of nature." To suppose that Spain and England could, through
+the long lapse of time, retain their possessions on this side of the
+Atlantic seemed to him a "physical, moral, and political absurdity."
+
+The doctrine which has been christened with the name of President
+Monroe seems likely to win for him the permanent glory of having
+originated the wise policy which that familiar phrase now signifies.
+It might, however, be shown that by right of true paternity the
+bantling should have borne a different patronymic. Not only is the
+"Monroe Doctrine," as that phrase is customarily construed in our day,
+much more comprehensive than the simple theory first expressed by
+Monroe and now included in the modern doctrine as a part in the whole,
+but a principle more fully identical with the imperial one of to-day
+had been conceived and shaped by Mr. Adams before the delivery of  (p. 130)
+Monroe's famous message. As has just been remarked, he looked forward
+to the possession of the whole North American continent by the United
+States as a sure destiny, and for his own part, whenever opportunity
+offered, he was never backward to promote this glorious ultimate
+consummation. He was in favor of the acquisition of Louisiana, whatever
+fault he might find with the scheme of Mr. Jefferson for making it a
+state; he was ready in 1815 to ask the British plenipotentiaries to
+cede Canada simply as a matter of common sense and mutual convenience,
+and as the comfortable result of a war in which the United States had
+been worsted; he never labored harder than in negotiating for the
+Floridas, and in pushing our western boundaries to the Pacific; in
+April, 1823, he wrote to the American minister at Madrid the significant
+remark: "It is scarcely possible to resist the conviction that the
+annexation of Cuba to our Federal Republic will be indispensable to
+the continuance and integrity of the Union." Encroachments never
+seemed distasteful to him, and he was always forward to stretch a
+point in order to advocate or defend a seizure of disputed North
+American territory, as in the cases of Amelia Island, Pensacola, and
+Galveston. When discussion arose with Russia concerning her        (p. 131)
+possessions on the northwest coast of this continent, Mr. Adams
+audaciously told the Russian minister, Baron Tuyl, July 17, 1823,
+"that we should contest the rights of Russia to _any_ territorial
+establishment on this continent, and that we should assume distinctly
+the principle that the American continents are no longer subjects for
+any new European colonial establishments." "This," says Mr. Charles
+Francis Adams in a footnote to the passage in the Diary, "is the first
+hint of the policy so well known afterwards as the Monroe Doctrine."
+Nearly five months later, referring to the same matter in his message
+to Congress, December 2, 1823, President Monroe said: "The occasion
+has been judged proper for asserting, as a principle in which the
+rights and interests of the United States are involved, that the
+American continents, by the free and independent condition which they
+have assumed and maintain, are henceforth not to be considered as
+subjects for future colonization by any European powers."
+
+It will be observed that both Mr. Adams and President Monroe used the
+phrase "continents," including thereby South as well as North America.
+A momentous question was imminent, which fortunately never called for
+a determination by action, but which in this latter part of 1823
+threatened to do so at any moment. Cautious and moderate as the    (p. 132)
+United States had been, under Mr. Adams's guidance, in recognizing
+the freedom and autonomy of the South American states, yet in time the
+recognition was made of one after another, and the emancipation of
+South America had come, while Mr. Adams was yet Secretary, to be
+regarded as an established fact. But now, in 1823-24, came mutterings
+from across the Atlantic indicating a strong probability that the
+members of the Holy Alliance would interfere in behalf of monarchical
+and anti-revolutionary principles, and would assist in the resubjugation
+of the successful insurgents. That each one of the powers who should
+contribute to this huge crusade would expect and receive territorial
+reward could not be doubted. Mr. Adams, in unison with most of his
+countrymen, contemplated with profound distrust and repulsion the
+possibility of such an European inroad. Stimulated by the prospect of
+so unwelcome neighbors, he prepared some dispatches, "drawn to
+correspond exactly" with the sentiments of Mr. Monroe's message, in
+which he appears to have taken a very high and defiant position. These
+documents, coming before the Cabinet for consideration, caused some
+flutter among his associates. In the possible event of the Holy
+Alliance actually intermeddling in South American affairs, it was  (p. 133)
+said, the principles enunciated by the Secretary of State would
+involve this country in war with a very formidable confederation. Mr.
+Adams acknowledged this, but courageously declared that in such a
+crisis he felt quite ready to take even this spirited stand. His
+audacious spirit went far in advance of the cautious temper of the
+Monroe administration; possibly it went too far in advance of the
+dictates of a wise prudence, though fortunately the course of events
+never brought this question to trial; and it is at least gratifying to
+contemplate such a manifestation of daring temper.
+
+But though so bold and independent, Mr. Adams was not habitually
+reckless nor prone to excite animosity by needless arrogance in action
+or extravagance in principle. In any less perilous extremity than was
+presented by this menaced intrusion of combined Europe he followed
+rigidly the wise rule of non-interference. For many years before this
+stage was reached he had been holding in difficult check the
+enthusiasts who, under the lead of Mr. Clay, would have embroiled us
+with Spain and Portugal. Once he was made the recipient of a very
+amusing proposition from the Portuguese minister, that the United
+States and Portugal, as "the two great powers of the western hemisphere,"
+should concert together a grand American system. The drollery pf   (p. 134)
+this notion was of a kind that Mr. Adams could appreciate, though
+to most manifestations of humor he was utterly impervious. But after
+giving vent to some contemptuous merriment he adds, with a just and
+serious pride: "As to an American system, we have it; we constitute
+the whole of it; there is no community of interests or of principles
+between North and South America." This sound doctrine was put forth in
+1820; and it was only modified in the manner that we have seen during
+a brief period in 1823, in face of the alarming vision not only of
+Spain and Portugal restored to authority, but of Russia in possession
+of California and more, France in possession of Mexico, and perhaps
+Great Britain becoming mistress of Cuba.
+
+So far as European affairs were concerned, Mr. Adams always and
+consistently refused to become entangled in them, even in the slightest
+and most indirect manner. When the cause of Greek liberty aroused the
+usual throng of noisy advocates for active interference, he contented
+himself with expressions of cordial sympathy, accompanied by perfectly
+distinct and explicit statements that under no circumstances could any
+aid in the way of money or auxiliary forces be expected from this
+country. Neutrals we were and would remain in any and all          (p. 135)
+European quarrels. When Stratford Canning urged, with the uttermost
+measure of persistence of which even he was capable, that for the
+suppression of the slave trade some such arrangement might be made as
+that of mixed tribunals for the trial of slave-trading vessels, and
+alleged that divers European powers were uniting for this purpose, Mr.
+Adams suggested, as an insuperable obstacle, "the general extra-European
+policy of the United States--a policy which they had always pursued as
+best suited to their own interests, and best adapted to harmonize with
+those of Europe. This policy had also been that of Europe, which had
+never considered the United States as belonging to her system.... It
+was best for both parties that they should continue to do so." In any
+European combinations, said Mr. Adams, in which the United States
+should become a member, she must soon become an important power, and
+must always be, in many respects, an uncongenial one. It was best that
+she should keep wholly out of European politics, even of such leagues
+as one for the suppression of the slave trade. He added, that he did
+not wish his language to be construed as importing "an unsocial and
+sulky spirit on the part of the United States;" for no such temper
+existed; it had simply been the policy of Europe to consider       (p. 136)
+this country as standing aloof from all European federations, and in
+this treatment "we had acquiesced, because it fell in with our own
+policy."
+
+In a word, Mr. Adams, by his language and actions, established and
+developed precisely that doctrine which has since been adopted by this
+country under the doubly incorrect name of the "Monroe Doctrine,"--a
+name doubly incorrect, because even the real "Monroe Doctrine" was not
+an original idea of Mr. Monroe, and because the doctrine which now
+goes by that name is not identical with the doctrine which Monroe did
+once declare. Mr. Adams's principle was simply that the United States
+would take no part whatsoever in foreign politics, not even in those
+of South America, save in the extreme event, eliminated from among
+things possible in this generation, of such an interference as was
+contemplated by the Holy Alliance; and that, on the other hand, she
+would permit no European power to gain any new foothold upon this
+continent. Time and experience have not enabled us to improve upon the
+principles which Mr. Adams worked out for us.
+
+Mr. Adams had some pretty stormy times with Mr. Stratford Canning--the
+same gentleman who in his later life is familiar to the readers of (p. 137)
+Kinglake's "History of the Crimean War" as Lord Stratford de
+Redclyffe, or Eltchi. That minister's overbearing and dictatorial
+deportment was afterwards not out of place when he was representing
+the protecting power of Great Britain in the court of the "sick man."
+But when he began to display his arrogance in the face of Mr. Adams he
+found that he was bearding one who was at least his equal in pride and
+temper. The naļve surprise which he manifested on making this
+discovery is very amusing, and the accounts of the interviews between
+the two are among the most pleasing episodes in the history of our
+foreign relations. Nor are they less interesting as a sort of
+confidential peep at the asperities of diplomacy. It appears that
+besides the composed and formal dignity of phrase which alone the
+public knows in published state papers and official correspondence,
+there is also an official language of wrath and retort not at all
+artificial or stilted, but quite homelike and human in its sound.
+
+One subject much discussed between Mr. Adams and Mr. Canning related
+to the English propositions for joint efforts to suppress the slave
+trade. Great Britain had engaged with much vigor and certainly with an
+admirable humanity in this cause. Her scheme was that each power
+should keep armed cruisers on the coast of Africa, that the        (p. 138)
+war-ships of either nation might search the merchant vessels of the
+other, and that mixed courts of joint commissioners should try all
+cases of capture. This plan had been urged upon the several European
+nations, but with imperfect success. Portugal, Spain, and the
+Netherlands had assented to it; Russia, France, Austria, and Prussia
+had rejected it. Mr. Adams's notion was that the ministry were, in
+their secret hearts, rather lukewarm in the business, but that they
+were so pressed by "the party of the saints in Parliament" that they
+were obliged to make a parade of zeal. Whether this suspicion was
+correct or not, it is certain that Mr. Stratford Canning was very
+persistent in the presentation of his demands, and could not be
+persuaded to take No for an answer. Had it been possible to give any
+more favorable reply no one in the United States in that day would
+have been better pleased than Mr. Adams to do so. But the obstacles
+were insuperable. Besides the undesirability of departing from the
+"extra-European policy," the mixed courts would have been
+unconstitutional, and could not have been established even by act of
+Congress, while the claims advanced by Great Britain to search our
+ships for English-born seamen in time of war utterly precluded the
+possibility of admitting any rights of search whatsoever upon her  (p. 139)
+part, even in time of peace, for any purpose or in any shape. In vain
+did the Englishman reiterate his appeal. Mr. Adams as often explained
+that the insistence of England upon her outrageous claim had rendered
+the United States so sensitive upon the entire subject of search that
+no description of right of that kind could ever be tolerated. "All
+concession of principle," he said, "tended to encourage encroachment,
+and if naval officers were once habituated to search the vessels of
+other nations in time of peace for one thing, they would be still more
+encouraged to practise it for another thing in time of war." The only
+way for Great Britain to achieve her purpose would be "to bind herself
+by an article, as strong and explicit as language can make it, never
+again in time of war to take a man from an American vessel." This of
+course was an inadmissible proposition, and so Mr. Stratford Canning's
+incessant urgency produced no substantial results. This discussion,
+however, was generally harmonious. Once only, in its earlier stages,
+Mr. Adams notes a remark of Mr. Canning, repeated for the second time,
+and not altogether gratifying. He said, writes Mr. Adams, "that he
+should always receive any observations that I may make to him with a
+just deference to my advance of years--over him. This is one of    (p. 140)
+those equivocal compliments which, according to Sterne, a Frenchman
+always returns with a bow."
+
+It was when they got upon the matter of the American settlement at the
+mouth of the Columbia River, that the two struck fire. Possession of
+this disputed spot had been taken by the Americans, but was broken up
+by the British during the war of 1812. After the declaration of peace
+upon the _status ante bellum_, a British government vessel had been
+dispatched upon the special errand of making formal return of the port
+to the Americans. In January, 1821, certain remarks made in debate in
+the House of Representatives, followed soon afterward by publication
+in the "National Intelligencer" of a paper signed by Senator Eaton,
+led Mr. Canning to think that the Government entertained the design of
+establishing a substantial settlement at the mouth of the river. On
+January 26 he called upon Mr. Adams and inquired the intentions of the
+Administration in regard to this. Mr. Adams replied that an increase
+of the present settlement was not improbable. Thereupon Mr. Canning
+dropping the air of "easy familiarity" which had previously marked the
+intercourse between the two, and "assuming a tone more peremptory"
+than Mr. Adams "was disposed to endure," expressed his great       (p. 141)
+surprise. Mr. Adams "with a corresponding change of tone" expressed
+equal surprise, "both at the form and substance of his address." Mr.
+Canning said that "he conceived such a settlement would be a direct
+violation of the article of the Convention of 20th October, 1818." Mr.
+Adams took down a volume, read the article, and said, "Now, sir, if
+you have any charge to make against the American Government for a
+violation of this article, you will please to make the communication
+in writing." Mr. Canning retorted, with great vehemence:--
+
+     "'And do you suppose, sir, that I am to be dictated to as to the
+     manner in which I may think proper to communicate with the
+     American Government?' I answered, 'No, sir. We know very well
+     what are the privileges of foreign ministers, and mean to respect
+     them. But you will give us leave to determine what communications
+     we will receive, and how we will receive them; and you may be
+     assured we are as little disposed to submit to dictation as to
+     exercise it.' He then, in a louder and more passionate tone of
+     voice, said: 'And am I to understand that I am to be refused
+     henceforth any conference with you upon the subject of my
+     mission?' 'Not at all, sir,' said I, 'my request is, that if you
+     have anything further to say to me _upon this subject_, you would
+     say it in writing. And my motive is to avoid what, both from the
+     nature of the subject and from the manner in which you        (p. 142)
+     have thought proper to open it, I foresee will tend only to
+     mutual irritation, and not to an amicable arrangement.' With some
+     abatement of tone, but in the same peremptory manner, he said,
+     'Am I to understand that you refuse any further conference with
+     me on this subject?' I said, 'No. But you will understand that I
+     am not pleased either with the grounds upon which you have sought
+     this conference, nor with the questions which you have seen fit
+     to put to me.'"
+
+Mr. Adams then proceeded to expose the impropriety of a foreign
+minister demanding from the Administration an explanation of words
+uttered in debate in Congress, and also said that he supposed that the
+British had no claim to the territory in question. Mr. Canning
+rejoined, and referred to the sending out of the American ship of war
+Ontario, in 1817, without any notice to the British minister[3] at
+Washington,--
+
+     "speaking in a very emphatic manner and as if there had been an
+     intended secret expedition ... which had been detected only by
+     the vigilance and penetration of the British minister. I
+     answered, 'Why, Mr. Bagot did say something to me about it; but I
+     certainly did not think him serious, and we had a good-humored
+     laughing conversation on the occasion.' Canning, with great
+     vehemence: 'You may rely upon it, sir, that it was no laughing
+     matter to him; for I have seen his report to his government and
+     know what his feelings concerning it were.' I replied,        (p. 143)
+     'This is the first intimation I have ever received that Mr. Bagot
+     took the slightest offence at what then passed between us, ...
+     and you will give me leave to say that when he left this
+     country'--Here I was going to add that the last words he said to
+     me were words of thanks for the invariable urbanity and
+     liberality of my conduct and the personal kindness which he had
+     uniformly received from me. But I could not finish the sentence.
+     Mr. Canning, in a paroxysm of extreme irritation, broke out: 'I
+     stop you there. I will not endure a misrepresentation of what I
+     say. I never said that Mr. Bagot took offence at anything that
+     had passed between him and you; and nothing that I said imported
+     any such thing.' Then ... added in the same passionate manner: 'I
+     am treated like a school-boy.' I then resumed: 'Mr. Canning, I
+     have a distinct recollection of the substance of the short
+     conversation between Mr. Bagot and me at that time; and it was
+     this'--'No doubt, sir,' said Canning, interrupting me again, 'no
+     doubt, sir, Mr. Bagot answered you like a man of good breeding
+     and good humor.'"
+
+                   [Footnote 3: Then Mr. Bagot.]
+
+Mr. Adams began again and succeeded in making, without further
+interruption, a careful recital of his talk with Mr. Bagot. While he
+was speaking Mr. Canning grew cooler, and expressed some surprise at
+what he heard. But in a few moments the conversation again became warm
+and personal. Mr. Adams remarked that heretofore he had thrown off (p. 144)
+some of the "cautious reserve" which might have been "strictly
+regular" between them, and that
+
+     "'so long as his (Canning's) professions had been supported by
+     his conduct'--Here Mr. Canning again stopped me by repeating with
+     great vehemence, 'My conduct! I am responsible for my conduct
+     only to my government!'"
+
+Mr. Adams replied, substantially, that he could respect the rights of
+Mr. Canning and maintain his own, and that he thought the best mode of
+treating this topic in future would be by writing. Mr. Canning then
+expressed himself as
+
+     "'willing to forget all that had now passed.' I told him that I
+     neither asked nor promised him to forget.... He asked again if he
+     was to understand me as refusing to confer with him further on
+     the subject. I said, 'No.' 'Would I appoint a time for that
+     purpose?' I said, 'Now, if he pleased.... But as he appeared to
+     be under some excitement, perhaps he might prefer some other
+     time, in which case I would readily receive him to-morrow at one
+     o'clock;' upon which he rose and took leave, saying he would come
+     at that time."
+
+The next day, accordingly, this genial pair again encountered. Mr.
+Adams noted at first in Mr. Canning's manner "an effort at coolness,
+but no appearance of cheerfulness or good humor. I saw there was   (p. 145)
+no relaxation of the tone he had yesterday assumed, and felt that
+none would on my part be suitable." They went over quietly enough some
+of the ground traversed the day before, Mr. Adams again explaining the
+impropriety of Mr. Canning questioning him concerning remarks made in
+debate in Congress. It was, he said, as if Mr. Rush, hearing in the
+House of Commons something said about sending troops to the Shetland
+Islands, should proceed to question Lord Castlereagh about it.
+
+     "'Have you,' said Mr. Canning, 'any claim to the Shetland
+     Islands?' 'Have you any _claim_,' said I, 'to the mouth of
+     Columbia River?' 'Why, do you not _know_,' replied he, 'that we
+     have a claim?' 'I do not _know_,' said I, 'what you claim nor
+     what you do not claim. You claim India; you claim Africa; you
+     claim'--'Perhaps,' said he, 'a piece of the moon.' 'No,' said I,
+     'I have not heard that you claim exclusively any part of the
+     moon; but there is not a spot on _this_ habitable globe that I
+     could affirm you do not claim!'"
+
+The conversation continued with alternations of lull and storm, Mr.
+Canning at times becoming warm and incensed and interrupting Mr.
+Adams, who retorted with a dogged asperity which must have been
+extremely irritating. Mr. Adams said that he did "not expect to be (p. 146)
+plied with captious questions" to obtain indirectly that which
+had been directly denied. Mr. Canning, "exceedingly irritated,"
+complained of the word "captious." Mr. Adams retaliated by reciting
+offensive language used by Mr. Canning, who in turn replied that he
+had been speaking only in self-defence. Mr. Canning found occasion to
+make again his peculiarly rasping remark that he should always strive
+to show towards Mr. Adams the deference due to his "more advanced
+years." After another very uncomfortable passage, Mr. Adams said that
+the behavior of Mr. Canning in making the observations of members of
+Congress a basis of official interrogations was a pretension the more
+necessary to be resisted because this
+
+     "'was not the first time it had been raised by a British minister
+     here.' He asked, with great emotion, who that minister was. I
+     answered, 'Mr. Jackson.' 'And you got rid of him!' said Mr.
+     Canning, in a tone of violent passion--'and you got rid of
+     him!--and you got rid of him!' This repetition of the same words,
+     always in the same tone, was with pauses of a few seconds between
+     each of them, as if for a reply. I said: 'Sir, my reference to
+     the pretension of Mr. Jackson was not'--Here Mr. Canning
+     interrupted me by saying: 'If you think that by reference to Mr.
+     Jackson I am to be intimidated from the performance of my     (p. 147)
+     duty you will find yourself greatly mistaken.' 'I had not,
+     sir,' said I, 'the most distant intention of intimidating you
+     from the performance of your duty; nor was it with the intention
+     of alluding to any subsequent occurrences of his mission;
+     but'--Mr. Canning interrupted me again by saying, still in a tone
+     of high exasperation,--'Let me tell you, sir, that your reference
+     to the case of Mr. Jackson is _exceedingly offensive_.' 'I do not
+     know,' said I, 'whether I shall be able to finish what I intended
+     to say, under such continual interruptions.'"
+
+Mr. Canning thereupon intimated by a bow his willingness to listen,
+and Mr. Adams reiterated what in a more fragmentary way he had already
+said. Mr. Canning then made a formal speech, mentioning his desire "to
+cultivate harmony and smooth down all remnants of asperity between the
+two countries," again gracefully referred to the deference which he
+should at all times pay to Mr. Adams's age, and closed by declaring,
+with a significant emphasis, that he would "never forget the respect
+due from him _to the American Government_." Mr. Adams bowed in silence
+and the stormy interview ended. A day or two afterward the disputants
+met by accident, and Mr. Canning showed such signs of resentment that
+there passed between them a "bare salutation."
+
+In the condition of our relations with Great Britain at the time   (p. 148)
+of these interviews any needless ill-feeling was strongly to be
+deprecated. But Mr. Adams's temperament was such that he always saw
+the greater chance of success in strong and spirited conduct; nor
+could he endure that the dignity of the Republic, any more than its
+safety, should take detriment in his hands. Moreover he understood
+Englishmen better perhaps than they have ever been understood by any
+other of the public men of the United States, and he handled and
+subdued them with a temper and skill highly agreeable to contemplate.
+The President supported him fully throughout the matter, and the
+discomfiture and wrath of Mr. Canning never became even indirectly a
+cause of regret to the country.
+
+As the years allotted to Monroe passed on, the manoeuvring among the
+candidates for the succession to the Presidency grew in activity.
+There were several possible presidents in the field, and during the
+"era of good feeling" many an aspiring politician had his brief period
+of mild expectancy followed in most cases only too surely by a hopeless
+relegation to obscurity. There were, however, four whose anticipations
+rested upon a substantial basis. William H. Crawford, Secretary of the
+Treasury, had been the rival of Monroe for nomination by the
+Congressional caucus, and had then developed sufficient strength   (p. 149)
+to make him justly sanguine that he might stand next to Monroe in the
+succession as he apparently did in the esteem of their common party.
+Mr. Clay, Speaker of the House of Representatives, had such
+expectations as might fairly grow out of his brilliant reputation,
+powerful influence in Congress, and great personal popularity. Mr.
+Adams was pointed out not only by his deserts but also by his position
+in the Cabinet, it having been the custom heretofore to promote the
+Secretary of State to the Presidency. It was not until the time of
+election was near at hand that the strength of General Jackson,
+founded of course upon the effect of his military prestige upon the
+masses of the people, began to appear to the other competitors a
+formidable element in the great rivalry. For a while Mr. Calhoun might
+have been regarded as a fifth, since he had already become the great
+chief of the South; but this cause of his strength was likewise his
+weakness, since it was felt that the North was fairly entitled to
+present the next candidate. The others, who at one time and another
+had aspirations, like De Witt Clinton and Tompkins, were never really
+formidable, and may be disregarded as insignificant threads in the
+complex political snarl which must be unravelled.
+
+[Illustration: Stratford Canning]
+
+As a study of the dark side of political society during this       (p. 150)
+period Mr. Adams's Diary is profoundly interesting. He writes with a
+charming absence of reserve. If he thinks there is rascality at work,
+he sets down the names of the knaves and expounds their various
+villainies of act and motive with delightfully outspoken frankness.
+All his life he was somewhat prone, it must be confessed, to
+depreciate the moral characters of others, and to suspect unworthy
+designs in the methods or ends of those who crossed his path. It was
+the not unnatural result of his own rigid resolve to be honest.
+Refraining with the stern conscientiousness, which was in the
+composition of his Puritan blood, from every act, whether in public or
+in private life, which seemed to him in the least degree tinged with
+immorality, he found a sort of compensation for the restraints and
+discomforts of his own austerity in judging severely the less
+punctilious world around him. Whatever other faults he had, it is
+unquestionable that his uprightness was as consistent and unvarying as
+can be reached by human nature. Yet his temptations were made the
+greater and the more cruel by the beliefs constantly borne in upon him
+that his rivals did not accept for their own governance in the contest
+the same rules by which he was pledged to himself to abide. Jealousy
+enhanced suspicion, and suspicion in turn pricked jealousy. It is  (p. 151)
+necessary, therefore, to be somewhat upon our guard in accepting
+his estimates of men and acts at this period; though the broad general
+impression to be gathered from his treatment of his rivals, even in
+these confidential pages, is favorable at least to his justice of
+disposition and honesty of intention.
+
+At the outset Mr. Clay excited Mr. Adams's most lively resentment. The
+policy which seemed most promising to that gentleman lay in antagonism
+to the Administration, whereas, in the absence of substantial party
+issues, there seemed, at least to members of that Administration, to
+be no proper grounds for such antagonism. When, therefore, Mr. Clay
+found or devised such grounds, the President and his Cabinet, vexed
+and harassed by the opposition of so influential a man, not
+unnaturally attributed his tactics to selfish and, in a political
+sense, corrupt motives. Thus Mr. Adams stigmatized his opposition to
+the Florida treaty as prompted by no just objection to its
+stipulations, but by a malicious wish to bring discredit upon the
+negotiator. Probably the charge was true, and Mr. Clay's honesty in
+opposing an admirable treaty can only be vindicated at the expense of
+his understanding,--an explanation certainly not to be accepted. But
+when Mr. Adams attributed to the same motive of embarrassing the   (p. 152)
+Administration Mr. Clay's energetic endeavors to force a recognition
+of the insurgent states of South America, he exaggerated the inimical
+element in his rival's motives. It was the business of the President
+and Cabinet, and preėminently of the Secretary of State, to see to it
+that the country should not move too fast in this very nice and
+perilous matter of recognizing the independence of rebels. Mr. Adams
+was the responsible minister, and had to hold the reins; Mr. Clay,
+outside the official vehicle, cracked the lash probably a little more
+loudly than he would have done had he been on the coach-box. It may be
+assumed that in advocating his various motions looking to the
+appointment of ministers to the new states and to other acts of
+recognition, he felt his eloquence rather fired than dampened by the
+thought of how much trouble he was making for Mr. Adams; but that he
+was at the same time espousing the cause to which he sincerely wished
+well is probably true. His ardent temper was stirred by this struggle
+for independence, and his rhetorical nature could not resist the
+opportunities for fervid and brilliant oratory presented by this
+struggle for freedom against medięval despotism. Real convictions were
+sometimes diluted with rodomontade, and a true feeling was to some
+extent stimulated by the desire to embarrass a rival.
+
+Entire freedom from prejudice would have been too much to expect   (p. 153)
+from Mr. Adams; but his criticisms of Clay are seldom marked by
+any serious accusations or really bitter explosions of ill-temper.
+Early in his term of office he writes that Mr. Clay has "already
+mounted his South American great horse," and that his "project is that
+in which John Randolph failed, to control or overthrow the Executive
+by swaying the House of Representatives." Again he says that "Clay is
+as rancorously benevolent as John Randolph." The sting of these
+remarks lay rather in the comparison with Randolph than in their
+direct allegations. In January, 1819, Adams notes that Clay has
+"redoubled his rancor against me," and gives himself "free swing to
+assault me ... both in his public speeches and by secret machinations,
+without scruple or delicacy." The diarist gloomily adds, that "all
+public business in Congress now connects itself with intrigues, and
+there is great danger that the whole Government will degenerate into a
+struggle of cabals." He was rather inclined to such pessimistic
+vaticinations; but it must be confessed that he spoke with too much
+reason on this occasion. In the absence of a sufficient supply of
+important public questions to absorb the energies of the men in public
+life, the petty game of personal politics was playing with unusual
+zeal. As time went on, however, and the South American questions   (p. 154)
+were removed from the arena, Adams's ill-feeling towards Clay became
+greatly mitigated. Clay's assaults and opposition also gradually
+dwindled away; go-betweens carried to and fro disclaimers, made by the
+principals, of personal ill-will towards each other; and before the
+time of election was actually imminent something as near the _entente
+cordiale_ was established as could be reasonably expected to exist
+between competitors very unlike both in moral and mental
+constitution.[4]
+
+                   [Footnote 4: For a deliberate estimate of Clay's
+                   character see Mr. Adams's Diary, v. 325.]
+
+Mr. Adams's unbounded indignation and profound contempt were reserved
+for Mr. Crawford, partly, it may be suspected by the cynically minded,
+because Crawford for a long time seemed to be by far the most
+formidable rival, but partly also because Crawford was in fact unable
+to resist the temptation to use ignoble means for attaining an end
+which he coveted too keenly for his own honor. It was only by degrees
+that Adams began to suspect the underhand methods and malicious
+practices of Crawford; but as conviction was gradually brought home to
+him his native tendency towards suspicion was enhanced to an extreme
+degree. He then came to recognize in Crawford a wholly selfish     (p. 155)
+and scheming politician, who had the baseness to retain his seat in
+Mr. Monroe's Cabinet with the secret persistent object of giving the
+most fatal advice in his power. From that time forth he saw in every
+suggestion made by the Secretary of the Treasury only an insidious
+intent to lead the Administration, and especially the Department of
+State, into difficulty, failure, and disrepute. He notes, evidently
+with perfect belief, that for this purpose Crawford was even covertly
+busy with the Spanish ambassador to prevent an accommodation of our
+differences with Spain. "Oh, the windings of the human heart!" he
+exclaims; "possibly Crawford is not himself conscious of his real
+motives for this conduct." Even the slender measure of charity
+involved in this last sentence rapidly evaporated from the poisoned
+atmosphere of his mind. He mentions that Crawford has killed a man in
+a duel; that he leaves unanswered a pamphlet "supported by documents"
+exhibiting him "in the most odious light, as sacrificing every
+principle to his ambition." Because Calhoun would not support him for
+the Presidency, Crawford stimulated a series of attacks upon the War
+Department. He was the "instigator and animating spirit of the whole
+movement both in Congress and at Richmond against Jackson and the
+Administration." He was "a worm preying upon the vitals of the     (p. 156)
+Administration in its own body." He "solemnly deposed in a court
+of justice that which is not true," for the purpose of bringing
+discredit upon the testimony given by Mr. Adams in the same cause. But
+Mr. Adams says of this that he cannot bring himself to believe that
+Crawford has been guilty of wilful falsehood, though convicted of
+inaccuracy by his own words; for "ambition debauches memory itself." A
+little later he would have been less merciful. In some vexatious and
+difficult commercial negotiations which Mr. Adams was conducting with
+France, Crawford is "afraid of [the result] being too favorable."
+
+To form a just opinion of the man thus unpleasantly sketched is
+difficult. For nearly eight years Mr. Adams was brought into close and
+constant relations with him, and as a result formed a very low opinion
+of his character and by no means a high estimate of his abilities.
+Even after making a liberal allowance for the prejudice naturally
+supervening from their rivalry there is left a residuum of condemnation
+abundantly sufficient to ruin a more vigorous reputation than Crawford
+has left behind him. Apparently Mr. Calhoun, though a fellow
+Southerner, thought no better of the ambitious Georgian than did Mr.
+Adams, to whom one day he remarked that Crawford was "a very       (p. 157)
+singular instance of a man of such character rising to the eminence he
+now occupies; that there has not been in the history of the Union
+another man with abilities so ordinary, with services so slender, and
+so thoroughly corrupt, who had contrived to make himself a candidate
+for the Presidency." Nor was this a solitary expression of the
+feelings of the distinguished South Carolinian.
+
+Mr. E. H. Mills, Senator from Massachusetts, and a dispassionate
+observer, speaks of Crawford with scant favor as "coarse, rough,
+uneducated, of a pretty strong mind, a great intriguer, and determined
+to make himself President." He adds: "Adams, Jackson, and Calhoun all
+think well of each other, and are united at least in one thing,--to
+wit, a most thorough dread and abhorrence of Crawford."
+
+Yet Crawford was for many years not only never without eager
+expectations of his own, which narrowly missed realization and might
+not have missed it had not his health broken down a few months too
+soon, but he had a large following, strong friends, and an extensive
+influence. But if he really had great ability he had not the good
+fortune of an opportunity to show it; and he lives in history rather
+as a man from whom much was expected than as a man who achieved    (p. 158)
+much. One faculty, however, not of the best, but serviceable, he had
+in a rare degree: he thoroughly understood all the artifices of
+politics; he knew how to interest and organize partisans, to obtain
+newspaper support, and generally to extend and direct his following
+after that fashion which soon afterward began to be fully developed by
+the younger school of our public men. He was the _avant courier_ of a
+bad system, of which the first crude manifestations were received with
+well-merited disrelish by the worthier among his contemporaries.
+
+It is the more easy to believe that Adams's distrust of Crawford was a
+sincere conviction, when we consider his behavior towards another
+dangerous rival, General Jackson. In view of the new phase which the
+relationship between these two men was soon to take on, Adams's hearty
+championship of Jackson for several years prior to 1825 deserves
+mention. The Secretary stood gallantly by the General at a crisis in
+Jackson's life when he greatly needed such strong official backing,
+and in an hour of extreme need Adams alone in the Cabinet of Monroe
+lent an assistance which Jackson afterwards too readily forgot. Seldom
+has a government been brought by the undue zeal of its servants into a
+quandary more perplexing than that into which the reckless military
+hero brought the Administration of President Monroe. Turned loose  (p. 159)
+in the regions of Florida, checked only by an uncertain and disputed
+boundary line running through half-explored forests, confronted by a
+hated foe whose strength he could well afford to despise, General
+Jackson, in a war properly waged only against Indians, ran a wild and
+lawless, but very vigorous and effective, career in Spanish
+possessions. He hung a couple of British subjects with as scant trial
+and meagre shrift as if he had been a medięval free-lance; he marched
+upon Spanish towns and peremptorily forced the blue-blooded commanders
+to capitulate in the most humiliating manner; afterwards, when the
+Spanish territory had become American, in his civil capacity as
+Governor, he flung the Spanish Commissioner into jail. He treated
+instructions, laws, and established usages as teasing cobwebs which
+any spirited public servant was in duty bound to break; then he
+quietly stated his willingness to let the country take the benefit of
+his irregular proceedings and make him the scapegoat or martyr if such
+should be needed. How to treat this too successful chieftain was no
+simple problem. He had done what he ought not to have done, yet
+everybody in the country was heartily glad that he had done it. He
+ought not to have hung Arbuthnot and Ambrister, nor to have seized (p. 160)
+Pensacola, nor later on to have imprisoned Callava; yet the general
+efficiency of his procedure fully accorded with the secret disposition
+of the country. It was, however, not easy to establish the propriety
+of his trenchant doings upon any acknowledged principles of law, and
+during the long period through which these disturbing feats extended,
+Jackson was left in painful solitude by those who felt obliged to
+judge his actions by rule rather than by sympathy. The President was
+concerned lest his Administration should be brought into indefensible
+embarrassment; Calhoun was personally displeased because the
+instructions issued from his department had been exceeded; Crawford
+eagerly sought to make the most of such admirable opportunities for
+destroying the prestige of one who might grow into a dangerous rival;
+Clay, who hated a military hero, indulged in a series of fierce
+denunciations in the House of Representatives; Mr. Adams alone stood
+gallantly by the man who had dared to take vigorous measures upon his
+own sole responsibility. His career touched a kindred chord in Adams's
+own independent and courageous character, and perhaps for the only
+time in his life the Secretary of State became almost sophistical in
+the arguments by which he endeavored to sustain the impetuous warrior
+against an adverse Cabinet. The authority given to Jackson to      (p. 161)
+cross the Spanish frontier in pursuit of the Indian enemy was
+justified as being only defensive warfare; then "all the rest," argued
+Adams, "even to the order for taking the Fort of Barrancas by storm,
+was incidental, deriving its character from the object, which was not
+hostility to Spain, but the termination of the Indian war." Through
+long and anxious sessions Adams stood fast in opposing "the unanimous
+opinions" of the President, Crawford, Calhoun, and Wirt. Their policy
+seemed to him a little ignoble and wholly blundering, because, he
+said, "it is weakness and a confession of weakness. The disclaimer of
+power in the Executive is of dangerous example and of evil
+consequences. There is injustice to the officer in disavowing him,
+when in principle he is strictly justifiable." This behavior upon Mr.
+Adams's part was the more generous and disinterested because the
+earlier among these doings of Jackson incensed Don Onis extremely and
+were near bringing about the entire disruption of that important
+negotiation with Spain upon which Mr. Adams had so much at stake. But
+few civilians have had a stronger dash of the fighting element than
+had Mr. Adams, and this impelled him irresistibly to stand shoulder to
+shoulder with Jackson in such an emergency, regardless of possible
+consequences to himself. He preferred to insist that the hanging   (p. 162)
+of Arbuthnot and Ambrister was according to the laws of war and to
+maintain that position in the teeth of Stratford Canning rather than
+to disavow it and render apology and reparation. So three years later
+when Jackson was again in trouble by reason of his arrest of Callava,
+he still found a stanch advocate in Adams, who, having made an argument
+for the defence which would have done credit to a subtle-minded
+barrister, concluded by adopting the sentiment of Hume concerning the
+execution of Don Pantaleon de Sa by Oliver Cromwell,--if the laws of
+nations had been violated, "it was by a signal act of justice
+deserving universal approbation." Later still, on January 8, 1824,
+being the anniversary of the victory of New Orleans, as if to make a
+conspicuous declaration of his opinions in favor of Jackson, Mr. Adams
+gave a great ball in his honor, "at which about one thousand persons
+attended."[5]
+
+                   [Footnote 5: Senator Mills says of this grand ball:
+                   "Eight large rooms were open and literally filled
+                   to overflowing. There must have been at least a
+                   thousand people there; and so far as Mr. Adams was
+                   concerned it certainly evinced a great deal of
+                   taste, elegance, and good sense.... Many stayed
+                   till twelve and one.... It is the universal opinion
+                   that nothing has ever equalled this party here
+                   either in brilliancy of preparation or elegance of
+                   the company."]
+
+He was in favor of offering to the General the position of         (p. 163)
+minister to Mexico; and before Jackson had developed into a rival of
+himself for the Presidency, he exerted himself to secure the
+Vice-Presidency for him. Thus by argument and by influence in the
+Cabinet, in many a private interview, and in the world of society,
+also by wise counsel when occasion offered, Mr. Adams for many years
+made himself the noteworthy and indeed the only powerful friend of
+General Jackson. Nor up to the last moment, and when Jackson had
+become his most dangerous competitor, is there any derogatory passage
+concerning him in the Diary.
+
+As the period of election drew nigh, interest in it absorbed
+everything else; indeed during the last year of Monroe's
+Administration public affairs were so quiescent and the public
+business so seldom transcended the simplest routine, that there was
+little else than the next Presidency to be thought or talked of. The
+rivalship for this, as has been said, was based not upon conflicting
+theories concerning public affairs, but solely upon individual
+preference for one or another of four men no one of whom at that
+moment represented any great principle in antagonism to any of the
+others. Under no circumstances could the temptation to petty intrigue
+and malicious tale-bearing be greater than when votes were         (p. 164)
+to be gained or lost solely by personal predilection. In such a
+contest Adams was severely handicapped as against the showy prestige
+of the victorious soldier, the popularity of the brilliant orator, and
+the artfulness of the most dexterous political manager then in public
+life. Long prior to this stage Adams had established his rule of
+conduct in the campaign. So early as March, 1818, he was asked one day
+by Mr. Everett whether he was "determined to do nothing with a view to
+promote his future election to the Presidency as the successor of Mr.
+Monroe," and he had replied that he "should do absolutely nothing." To
+this resolution he sturdily adhered. Not a breach of it was ever
+brought home to him, or indeed--save in one instance soon to be
+noticed--seriously charged against him. There is not in the Diary the
+faintest trace of any act which might be so much as questionable or
+susceptible of defence only by casuistry. That he should have
+perpetuated evidence of any flagrant misdoing certainly could not be
+expected; but in a record kept with the fulness and frankness of this
+Diary we should read between the lines and detect as it were in its
+general flavor any taint of disingenuousness or concealment; we should
+discern moral unwholesomeness in its atmosphere. A thoughtless
+sentence would slip from the pen, a sophistical argument would be  (p. 165)
+formulated for self-comfort, some acquaintance, interview, or
+arrangement would slide upon some unguarded page indicative of
+undisclosed matters. But there is absolutely nothing of this sort.
+There is no tinge of bad color; all is clear as crystal. Not an
+editor, nor a member of Congress, nor a local politician, not even a
+private individual, was intimidated or conciliated. On the contrary it
+often happened that those who made advances, at least sometimes
+stimulated by honest friendship, got rebuffs instead of encouragement.
+Even after the contest was known to have been transferred to the House
+of Representatives, when Washington was actually buzzing with the
+ceaseless whisperings of many secret conclaves, when the air was thick
+with rumors of what this one had said and that one had done, when, as
+Webster said, there were those who pretended to foretell how a
+representative would vote from the way in which he put on his hat,
+when of course stories of intrigue and corruption poisoned the honest
+breeze, and when the streets seemed traversed only by the busy tread
+of the go-betweens, the influential friends, the wire-pullers of the
+various contestants,--still amid all this noisy excitement and extreme
+temptation Mr. Adams held himself almost wholly aloof, wrapped in the
+cloak of his rigid integrity. His proud honesty was only not quite (p. 166)
+repellent; he sometimes allowed himself to answer questions
+courteously, and for a brief period held in check his strong natural
+propensity to give offence and make enemies. This was the uttermost
+length that he could go towards political corruption. He became for a
+few weeks tolerably civil of speech, which after all was much for him
+to do and doubtless cost him no insignificant effort. Since the days
+of Washington he alone presents the singular spectacle of a candidate
+for the Presidency deliberately taking the position, and in a long
+campaign really never flinching from it: "that, if the people wish me
+to be President I shall not refuse the office; but I ask nothing from
+any man or from any body of men."
+
+Yet though he declined to be a courtier of popular favor he did not
+conceal from himself or from others the chagrin which he would feel if
+there should be a manifestation of popular disfavor. Before the
+popular election he stated that if it should go against him he should
+construe it as the verdict of the people that they were dissatisfied
+with his services as a public man, and he should then retire to
+private life, no longer expecting or accepting public functions. He
+did not regard politics as a struggle in which, if he should now   (p. 167)
+be beaten in one encounter, he would return to another in the hope
+of better success in time. His notion was that the people had had
+ample opportunity during his incumbency in appointive offices to
+measure his ability and understand his character, and that the action
+of the people in electing or not electing him to the Presidency would
+be an indication that they were satisfied or dissatisfied with him. In
+the latter event he had nothing more to seek. Politics did not
+constitute a profession or career in which he felt entitled to persist
+in seeking personal success as he might in the law or in business.
+Neither did the circumstances of the time place him in the position of
+an advocate of any great principle which he might feel it his duty to
+represent and to fight for against any number of reverses. No such
+element was present at this time in national affairs. He construed the
+question before the people simply as concerning their opinion of him.
+He was much too proud to solicit and much too honest to scheme for a
+favorable expression. It was a singular and a lofty attitude even if a
+trifle egotistical and not altogether unimpeachable by argument. It
+could not diminish but rather it intensified his interest in a contest
+which he chose to regard not simply as a struggle for a glittering (p. 168)
+prize but as a judgment upon the services which he had been for a
+lifetime rendering to his countrymen.
+
+How profoundly his whole nature was moved by the position in which he
+stood is evident, often almost painfully, in the Diary. Any attempt to
+conceal his feeling would be idle, and he makes no such attempt. He
+repeats all the rumors which come to his ears; he tells the stories
+about Crawford's illness; he records his own temptations; he tries
+hard to nerve himself to bear defeat philosophically by constantly
+predicting it; indeed, he photographs his whole existence for many
+weeks; and however eagerly any person may aspire to the Presidency of
+the United States there is little in the picture to make one long for
+the preliminary position of candidate for that honor. It is too much
+like the stake and the flames through which the martyr passed to
+eternal beatitude, with the difference as against the candidate that
+he has by no means the martyr's certainty of reward.
+
+In those days of slow communication it was not until December, 1824,
+that it became everywhere known that there had been no election of a
+president by the people. When the Electoral College met the result of
+their ballots was as follows:--
+
+  General Jackson led with   99 votes.                             (p. 169)
+  Adams followed with        84   "
+  Crawford had               41   "
+  Clay had                   37   "
+                            ---
+  Total                     261 votes.
+
+Mr. Calhoun was elected Vice-President by the handsome number of 182
+votes.
+
+This condition of the election had been quite generally anticipated;
+yet Mr. Adams's friends were not without some feeling of
+disappointment. They had expected for him a fair support at the South,
+whereas he in fact received seventy-seven out of his eighty-four votes
+from New York and New England; Maryland gave him three, Louisiana gave
+him two, Delaware and Illinois gave him one each.
+
+When the electoral body was known to be reduced within the narrow
+limits of the House of Representatives, intrigue was rather stimulated
+than diminished by the definiteness which became possible for it. Mr.
+Clay, who could not come before the House, found himself transmuted
+from a candidate to a President-maker; for it was admitted by all that
+his great personal influence in Congress would almost undoubtedly
+confer success upon the aspirant whom he should favor. Apparently his
+predilections were at least possibly in favor of Crawford; but     (p. 170)
+Crawford's health had been for many months very bad; he had had a
+severe paralytic stroke, and when acting as Secretary of the Treasury
+he had been unable to sign his name, so that a stamp or die had been
+used; his speech was scarcely intelligible; and when Mr. Clay visited
+him in the retirement in which his friends now kept him, the fact
+could not be concealed that he was for the time at least a wreck. Mr.
+Clay therefore had to decide for himself, his followers, and the
+country whether Mr. Adams or General Jackson should be the next
+President of the United States. A cruel attempt was made in this
+crisis either to destroy his influence by blackening his character, or
+to intimidate him, through fear of losing his reputation for
+integrity, into voting for Jackson. An anonymous letter charged that
+the friends of Clay had hinted that, "like the Swiss, they would fight
+for those who pay best;" that they had offered to elect Jackson if he
+would agree to make Clay Secretary of State, and that upon his
+indignant refusal to make such a bargain the same proposition had been
+made to Mr. Adams, who was found less scrupulous and had promptly
+formed the "unholy coalition." This wretched publication, made a few
+days before the election in the House, was traced to a dull-witted
+Pennsylvania Representative by the name of Kremer, who had         (p. 171)
+obviously been used as a tool by cleverer men. It met, however, the
+fate which seems happily always to attend such ignoble devices, and
+failed utterly of any more important effect than the utter
+annihilation of Kremer. In truth, General Jackson's fate had been
+sealed from the instant when it had fallen into Mr. Clay's hands. Clay
+had long since expressed his unfavorable opinion of the "military
+hero," in terms too decisive to admit of explanation or retraction.
+Without much real liking for Adams, Clay at least disliked him much
+less than he did Jackson, and certainly his honest judgment favored
+the civilian far more than the disorderly soldier whose lawless career
+in Florida had been the topic of some of the great orator's fiercest
+invective. The arguments founded on personal fitness were strongly
+upon the side of Adams, and other arguments advanced by the Jacksonians
+could hardly deceive Clay. They insisted that their candidate was the
+choice of the people so far as a superiority of preference had been
+indicated, and that therefore he ought to be also the choice of the
+House of Representatives. It would be against the spirit of the
+Constitution and a thwarting of the popular will, they said, to prefer
+either of his competitors. The fallacy of this reasoning, if reasoning
+it could be called, was glaring. If the spirit of the Constitution (p. 172)
+required the House of Representatives not to _elect_ from three
+candidates before it, but only to induct an individual into the
+Presidency by a process which was in form voting but in fact only a
+simple certification that he had received the highest number of
+electoral votes, it would have been a plain and easy matter for the
+letter of the Constitution to have expressed this spirit, or indeed to
+have done away altogether with this machinery of a sham election. The
+Jackson men had only to state their argument in order to expose its
+hollowness; for they said substantially that the Constitution
+established an election without an option; that the electors were to
+vote for a person predestined by an earlier occurrence to receive
+their ballots. But besides their unsoundness in argument, their
+statistical position was far from being what they undertook to
+represent it. The popular vote had been so light that it really looked
+as though the people had cared very little which candidate should
+succeed; and to talk about a manifestation of the _popular will_ was
+absurd, for the only real manifestation had been of popular
+indifference. For example, in 1823 Massachusetts had cast upwards of
+66,000 votes in the state election, whereas in this national election
+she cast only a trifle more than 37,000. Virginia distributed      (p. 173)
+a total of less than 15,000 among all four candidates. Pluralities did
+not signify much in such a condition of sentiment as was indicated by
+these figures. Moreover, in six States, viz., Vermont, New York,
+Delaware, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, the electors were chosen
+by the legislatures, not by the people; so that there was no correct
+way of counting them at all in a discussion of pluralities. Guesses
+and approximations favored Adams, and to an important degree; for
+these six States gave to Adams thirty-six votes, to Jackson nineteen,
+to Crawford six, to Clay four. In New York, Jackson had hardly an
+appreciable following. Moreover, in other States many thousands of
+votes which had been "cast for no candidate in particular, but in
+opposition to the caucus ticket generally," were reckoned as if they
+had been cast for Jackson or against Adams, as suited the especial
+case. Undoubtedly Jackson did have a plurality, but undoubtedly it
+fell very far short of the imposing figure, nearly 48,000, which his
+supporters had the audacity to name.
+
+The election took place in the House on February 9, 1825. Daniel
+Webster and John Randolph were tellers, and they reported that there
+were "for John Quincy Adams, of Massachusetts, thirteen votes; for
+Andrew Jackson, of Tennessee, seven votes; for William H. Crawford,
+of Georgia, four votes." Thereupon the speaker announced Mr. Adams (p. 174)
+to have been elected President of the United States.
+
+This end of an unusually exciting contest thus left Mr. Adams in
+possession of the field, Mr. Crawford the victim of an irretrievable
+defeat, Mr. Clay still hopeful and aspiring for a future which had
+only disappointment in store for him, General Jackson enraged and
+revengeful. Not even Mr. Adams was fully satisfied. When the committee
+waited upon him to inform him of the election, he referred in his
+reply to the peculiar state of things and said, "could my refusal to
+accept the trust thus delegated to me give an opportunity to the
+people to form and to express with a nearer approach to unanimity the
+object of their preference, I should not hesitate to decline the
+acceptance of this eminent charge and to submit the decision of this
+momentous question again to their decision." That this singular and
+striking statement was made in good faith is highly probable. William
+H. Seward says that it was "unquestionably uttered with great
+sincerity of heart." The test of action of course could not be
+applied, since the resignation of Mr. Adams would only have made Mr.
+Calhoun President, and could not have been so arranged as to bring
+about a new election. Otherwise the course of his argument would   (p. 175)
+have been clear; the fact that such action involved an enormous
+sacrifice would have been to his mind strong evidence that it was a
+duty; and the temptation to perform a duty, always strong with him,
+became ungovernable if the duty was exceptionally disagreeable. Under
+the circumstances, however, the only logical conclusion lay in the
+inauguration, which took place in the customary simple fashion on
+March 4, 1825. Mr. Adams, we are told, was dressed in a black suit, of
+which all the materials were wholly of American manufacture. Prominent
+among those who after the ceremony hastened to greet him and to shake
+hands with him appeared General Jackson. It was the last time that any
+friendly courtesy is recorded as having passed between the two.
+
+Many men eminent in public affairs have had their best years embittered
+by their failure to secure the glittering prize of the Presidency. Mr.
+Adams is perhaps the only person to whom the gaining of that proud
+distinction has been in some measure a cause of chagrin. This strange
+sentiment, which he undoubtedly felt, was due to the fact that what he
+had wished was not the office in and for itself, but the office as a
+symbol or token of the popular approval. He had held important and
+responsible public positions during substantially his whole active (p. 176)
+life; he was nearly sixty years old, and, as he said, he now for the
+first time had an opportunity to find out in what esteem the people of
+the country held him. What he wished was that the people should now
+express their decided satisfaction with him. This he hardly could be
+said to have obtained; though to be the choice of a plurality in the
+nation and then to be selected by so intelligent a body of
+constituents as the Representatives of the United States involved a
+peculiar sanction, yet nothing else could fully take the place of that
+national indorsement which he had coveted. When men publicly profess
+modest depreciation of their successes they are seldom believed; but
+in his private Diary Mr. Adams wrote, on December 31, 1825:--
+
+     "The year has been the most momentous of those that have passed
+     over my head, inasmuch as it has witnessed my elevation at the
+     age of fifty-eight to the Chief Magistracy of my country, to the
+     summit of laudable or at least blameless worldly ambition; not
+     however in a manner satisfactory to pride or to just desire; not
+     by the unequivocal suffrages of a majority of the people; with
+     perhaps two thirds of the whole people adverse to the actual
+     result."
+
+No President since Washington had ever come into office so entirely
+free from any manner of personal obligations or partisan           (p. 177)
+entanglements, express or implied, as did Mr. Adams. Throughout the
+campaign he had not himself, or by any agent, held out any manner of
+tacit inducement to any person whomsoever, contingent upon his
+election. He entered upon the Presidency under no indebtedness. He at
+once nominated his Cabinet as follows: Henry Clay, Secretary of State;
+Richard Rush, Secretary of the Treasury; James Barbour, Secretary of
+War; Samuel L. Southard, Secretary of the Navy; William Wirt,
+Attorney-General. The last two were renominations of the incumbents
+under Monroe. The entire absence of chicanery or the use of influence
+in the distribution of offices is well illustrated by the following
+incident: On the afternoon following the day of inauguration President
+Adams called upon Rufus King, whose term of service as Senator from
+New York had just expired, and who was preparing to leave Washington
+on the next day. In the course of a conversation concerning the
+nominations which had been sent to the Senate that forenoon the
+President said that he had nominated no minister to the English court,
+and
+
+     "asked Mr. King if he would accept that mission. His first and
+     immediate impulse was to decline it. He said that his
+     determination to retire from the public service had been      (p. 178)
+     made up, and that this proposal was utterly unexpected to
+     him. Of this I was aware; but I urged upon him a variety of
+     considerations to induce his acceptance of it.... I dwelt with
+     earnestness upon all these motives, and apparently not without
+     effect. He admitted the force of them, and finally promised fully
+     to consider of the proposal before giving me a definite answer."
+
+The result was an acceptance by Mr. King, his nomination by the
+President, and confirmation by the Senate. He was an old Federalist,
+to whom Mr. Adams owed no favors. With such directness and simplicity
+were the affairs of the Republic conducted. It is a quaint and
+pleasing scene from the period of our forefathers: the President,
+without discussion of "claims" to a distinguished and favorite post,
+actually selects for it a member of a hostile political organization,
+an old man retiring from public life; then quietly walks over to his
+house, surprises him with the offer, and finding him reluctant
+urgently presses upon him arguments to induce his acceptance. But the
+whole business of office-seeking and office-distributing, now so
+overshadowing, had no place under Mr. Adams. On March 5 he sent in
+several nominations which were nearly all of previous incumbents.
+"Efforts had been made," he writes, "by some of the senators to obtain
+different nominations, and to introduce a principle of change or   (p. 179)
+rotation in office at the expiration of these commissions, which would
+make the Government a perpetual and unintermitting scramble for
+office. A more pernicious expedient could scarcely have been
+devised.... I determined to renominate every person against whom there
+was no complaint which would have warranted his removal." A notable
+instance was that of Sterret, naval officer at New Orleans, "a noisy
+and clamorous reviler of the Administration," and lately busy in a
+project for insulting a Louisiana Representative who had voted for Mr.
+Adams. Secretary Clay was urgent for the removal of this man,
+plausibly saying that in the cases of persons holding office at the
+pleasure of the Administration the proper course was to avoid on the
+one hand political persecution, and on the other any appearance of
+pusillanimity. Mr. Adams replied that if Sterret had been actually
+engaged in insulting a representative for the honest and independent
+discharge of duty, he would make the removal at once. But the design
+had not been consummated, and an _intention_ never carried into effect
+would scarcely justify removal.
+
+     "Besides [he added], should I remove this man for this cause it
+     must be upon some fixed principle, which would apply to others as
+     well as to him. And where was it possible to draw the line?   (p. 180)
+     Of the custom-house officers throughout the Union, four fifths
+     in all probability were opposed to my election. Crawford,
+     Secretary of the Treasury, had distributed these positions among
+     his own supporters. I had been urged very earnestly and from
+     various quarters to sweep away my opponents and provide with
+     their places for my friends. I can justify the refusal to adopt
+     this policy only by the steadiness and consistency of my adhesion
+     to my own. If I depart from this in one instance I shall be
+     called upon by my friends to do the same in many. An invidious
+     and inquisitorial scrutiny into the personal dispositions of
+     public officers will creep through the whole Union, and the most
+     selfish and sordid passions will be kindled into activity to
+     distort the conduct and misrepresent the feelings of men whose
+     places may become the prize of slander upon them."
+
+Mr. Clay was silenced, and Sterret retained his position, constituting
+thereafter only a somewhat striking instance among many to show that
+nothing was to be lost by political opposition to Mr. Adams.
+
+It was a cruel and discouraging fatality which brought about that a
+man so suicidally upright in the matter of patronage should find that
+the bitterest abuse which was heaped upon him was founded in an
+allegation of corruption of precisely this nature. When before the
+election the ignoble George Kremer anonymously charged that        (p. 181)
+Mr. Clay had sold his friends in the House of Representatives to Mr.
+Adams, "as the planter does his negroes or the farmer his team and
+horses;" when Mr. Clay promptly published the unknown writer as "a
+base and infamous calumniator, a dastard and a liar;" when next
+Kremer, being unmasked, avowed that he would make good his charges,
+but immediately afterward actually refused to appear or testify before
+a Committee of the House instructed to investigate the matter, it was
+supposed by all reasonable observers that the outrageous accusation
+Was forever laid at rest. But this was by no means the case. The
+author of the slander had been personally discredited; but the slander
+itself had not been destroyed. So shrewdly had its devisers who saw
+future usefulness in it managed the matter, that while Kremer slunk
+away into obscurity, the story which he had told remained an assertion
+denied, but not disproved, still open to be believed by suspicious or
+willing friends. With Adams President and Clay Secretary of State and
+General Jackson nominated, as he quickly was by the Tennessee
+Legislature, as a candidate for the next Presidential term, the
+accusation was too plausible and too tempting to be allowed to fall
+forever into dusty death; rather it was speedily exhumed from its
+shallow burial and galvanized into new life. The partisans of      (p. 182)
+General Jackson sent it to and fro throughout the land. No denial,
+no argument, could kill it. It began to gain that sort of half belief
+which is certain to result from constant repetition; since many minds
+are so constituted that truth may be actually, as it were,
+manufactured for them by ceaseless iteration of statement, the many
+hearings gaining the character of evidence.
+
+It is long since all students of American history, no matter what are
+their prejudices, or in whose interest their researches are
+prosecuted, have branded this accusation as devoid of even the most
+shadowy basis of probability, and it now gains no more credit than
+would a story that Adams, Clay, and Jackson had conspired together to
+get Crawford out of their way by assassination, and that his paralysis
+was the result of the drugs and potions administered in performance of
+this foul plot. But for a while the rumor stalked abroad among the
+people, and many conspicuously bowed down before it because it served
+their purpose, and too many others also, it must be confessed, did
+likewise because they were deceived and really believed it. Even the
+legislature of Tennessee were not ashamed to give formal countenance
+to a calumny in support of which not a particle of evidence had ever
+been adduced. In a preamble to certain resolutions passed by this  (p. 183)
+body upon this subject in 1827, it was recited that: "Mr. Adams
+desired the office of President; he went into the combination without
+it, and came out with it. Mr. Clay desired that of Secretary of State;
+he went into the combination without it, and came out with it." No
+other charge could have wounded Mr. Adams so keenly; yet no course was
+open to him for refuting the slander. Mr. Clay, beside himself with a
+just rage, was better able to fight after the fashion of the day--if
+indeed he could only find somebody to fight. This he did at last in
+the person of John Randolph, of Roanoke, who adverted in one of his
+rambling and vituperative harangues to "the coalition of Blifil and
+Black George--the combination unheard of till then of the Puritan and
+the black-leg." This language led naturally enough to a challenge from
+Mr. Clay. The parties met[6] and exchanged shots without result. The
+pistols were a second time loaded; Clay fired; Randolph fired into the
+air, walked up to Clay and without a word gave him his hand, which
+Clay had as it were perforce to take. There was no injury done save to
+the skirts of Randolph's long flannel coat which were pierced by one
+of the bullets.
+
+                   [Footnote 6: April 8, 1826.]
+
+By way of revenge a duel may be effective if the wrong man does    (p. 184)
+not happen to get shot; but as evidence for intelligent men a bloodier
+ending than this would have been inconclusive. It so happened,
+however, that Jackson, altogether contrary to his own purpose, brought
+conclusive aid to President Adams and Secretary Clay. Whether the
+General ever had any real faith in the charge can only be surmised.
+Not improbably he did, for his mental workings were so peculiar in
+their violence and prejudice that apparently he always sincerely
+believed all persons who crossed his path to be knaves and villains of
+the blackest dye. But certain it is that whether he credited the tale
+or not he soon began to devote himself with all his wonted vigor and
+pertinacity to its wide dissemination. Whether in so doing he was
+stupidly believing a lie, or intentionally spreading a known slander,
+is a problem upon which his friends and biographers have exhausted
+much ingenuity without reaching any certain result. But sure it is
+that early in the year 1827 he was so far carried beyond the bounds of
+prudence as to declare before many persons that he had proof of the
+corrupt bargain. The assertion was promptly sent to the newspapers by
+a Mr. Carter Beverly, one of those who heard it made in the presence
+of several guests at the Hermitage. The name of Mr. Beverly, at first
+concealed, soon became known, and he was of course compelled to    (p. 185)
+vouch in his principal. General Jackson never deserted his adherents,
+whether their difficulties were noble or ignoble. He came gallantly to
+the aid of Mr. Beverly, and in a letter of June 6 declared that early
+in January, 1825, he had been visited by a "member of Congress of high
+respectability," who had told him of "a great intrigue going on" of
+which he ought to be informed. This gentleman had then proceeded to
+explain that Mr. Clay's friends were afraid that if General Jackson
+should be elected President, "Mr. Adams would be continued Secretary
+of State (innuendo, there would be no room for Kentucky); that if I
+would say, or permit any of my confidential friends to say, that in
+case I were elected President, Mr. Adams should not be continued
+Secretary of State, by a complete union of Mr. Clay and his friends
+they would put an end to the Presidential contest in one hour. And he
+was of opinion it was right to fight such intriguers with their own
+weapons." This scarcely disguised suggestion of bargain and corruption
+the General said that he repudiated indignantly. Clay at once publicly
+challenged Jackson to produce some evidence--to name the "respectable"
+member of Congress who appeared in the very unrespectable light of (p. 186)
+advising a candidate for the Presidency to emulate the alleged
+baseness of his opponents. Jackson thereupon uncovered James Buchanan,
+of Pennsylvania. Mr. Buchanan was a friend of the General, and to what
+point it may have been expected or hoped that his allegiance would
+carry him in support of his chief in this dire hour of extremity is
+matter only of inference. Fortunately, however, his fealty does not
+appear to have led him any great distance from the truth. He yielded
+to the prevailing desire to pass along the responsibility to some one
+else so far as to try to bring in a Mr. Markley, who, however, never
+became more than a dumb figure in the drama in which Buchanan was
+obliged to remain as the last important character. With obvious
+reluctance this gentleman then wrote that if General Jackson had
+placed any such construction as the foregoing upon an interview which
+had occurred between them, and which he recited at length, then the
+General had totally misconstrued--as was evident enough--what he, Mr.
+Buchanan, had said. Indeed, that Jackson could have supposed him to
+entertain the sentiments imputed to him made Mr. Buchanan, as he said,
+"exceedingly unhappy." In other words, there was no foundation
+whatsoever for the charge thus traced back to an originator who denied
+having originated it and said that it was all a mistake. General   (p. 187)
+Jackson was left to be defended from the accusation of deliberate
+falsehood only by the charitable suggestion that he had been unable to
+understand a perfectly simple conversation. Apparently Mr. Adams and
+Mr. Clay ought now to be abundantly satisfied, since not only were
+they amply vindicated, but their chief vilifier seemed to have been
+pierced by the point which he had sharpened for them. They had yet,
+however, to learn what vitality there is in falsehood.
+
+General Jackson and his friends had alone played any active part in
+this matter. Of these friends Mr. Kremer had written a letter of
+retraction and apology which he was with difficulty prevented from
+publishing; Mr. Buchanan had denied all that he had been summoned to
+prove; a few years later Mr. Beverly wrote and sent to Mr. Clay a
+contrite letter of regret. General Jackson alone remained for the rest
+of his life unsilenced, obstinately reiterating a charge disproved by
+his own witnesses. But worse than all this, accumulations of evidence
+long and laboriously sought in many quarters have established a
+tolerably strong probability that advances of precisely the character
+alleged against Mr. Adams's friends were made to Mr. Clay by the most
+intimate personal associates of General Jackson. The discussion    (p. 188)
+of this unpleasant suspicion would not, however, be an excusable
+episode in this short volume. The reader who is curious to pursue the
+matter further will find all the documentary evidence collected in its
+original shape in the first volume of Colton's "Life of Clay,"
+accompanied by an argument needlessly elaborate and surcharged with
+feeling yet in the main sufficiently fair and exhaustive.
+
+Mr. Benton says that "no President could have commenced his administration
+under more unfavorable auspices, or with less expectation of a popular
+career," than did Mr. Adams. From the first a strong minority in the
+House of Representatives was hostile to him, and the next election
+made this a majority. The first indication of the shape which the
+opposition was to take became visible in the vote in the Senate upon
+confirming Mr. Clay as Secretary of State. There were fourteen nays
+against twenty-seven yeas, and an inspection of the list showed that
+the South was beginning to consolidate more closely than heretofore as
+a sectional force in politics. The formation of a Southern party
+distinctly organized in the interests of slavery, already apparent in
+the unanimity of the Southern Electoral Colleges against Mr. Adams,
+thus received further illustration; and the skilled eye of the     (p. 189)
+President noted "the rallying of the South and of Southern interests
+and prejudices to the men of the South." It is possible now to see
+plainly that Mr. Adams was really the first leader in the long crusade
+against slavery; it was in opposition to him that the South became a
+political unit; and a true instinct taught him the trend of Southern
+politics long before the Northern statesmen apprehended it, perhaps
+before even any Southern statesman had distinctly formulated it. This
+new development in the politics of the country soon received further
+illustration. The first message which Mr. Adams had occasion to send
+to Congress gave another opportunity to his ill-wishers. Therein he
+stated that the invitation which had been extended to the United
+States to be represented at the Congress of Panama had been accepted,
+and that he should commission ministers to attend the meeting. Neither
+in matter nor in manner did this proposition contain any just element
+of offence. It was customary for the Executive to initiate new
+missions simply by the nomination of envoys to fill them; and in such
+case the Senate, if it did not think the suggested mission desirable,
+could simply decline to confirm the nomination upon that ground. An
+example of this has been already seen in the two nominations of Mr.
+Adams himself to the Court of Russia in the Presidency of Mr.      (p. 190)
+Madison. But now vehement assaults were made upon the President,
+alike in the Senate and in the House, on the utterly absurd ground
+that he had transcended his powers. Incredible, too, as it may seem at
+this day it was actually maintained that there was no occasion
+whatsoever for the United States to desire representation at such a
+gathering. Prolonged and bitter was the opposition which the
+Administration was compelled to encounter in a measure to which there
+so obviously ought to have been instant assent if considered solely
+upon its intrinsic merits, but upon which nevertheless the discussion
+actually overshadowed all other questions which arose during the
+session. The President had the good fortune to find the powerful aid
+of Mr. Webster enlisted in his behalf, and ultimately he prevailed;
+but it was of ill augury at this early date to see that personal
+hostility was so widespread and so rancorous that it could make such a
+prolonged and desperate resistance with only the faintest pretext of
+right as a basis for its action. Yet a great and fundamental cause of
+the feeling manifested lay hidden away beneath the surface in the
+instinctive antipathy of the slaveholders to Mr. Adams and all his
+thoughts, his ways, and his doings. For into this question of      (p. 191)
+countenancing the Panama Congress, slavery and "the South" entered and
+imported into a portion of the opposition a certain element of
+reasonableness and propriety in a political sense. When we see the
+Southern statesmen banded against President Adams in these debates, as
+we know the future which was hidden from them, it almost makes us
+believe that their vindictiveness was justified by an instinctive
+forecasting of his character and his mission in life, and that without
+knowing it they already felt the influence of the acts which he was
+yet to do against them. For the South, without present dread of an
+abolition movement, yet hated this Panama Congress with a contemptuous
+loathing not alone because the South American states had freed all
+slaves within their limits, but because there was actually a fair
+chance that Hayti would be admitted to representation at the sessions
+as a sovereign state. That the President of the United States should
+propose to send white citizens of that country to sit cheek by jowl on
+terms of official equality with the revolted blacks of Hayti fired the
+Southern heart with rage inexpressible. The proposition was a further
+infusion of cement to aid in the Southern consolidation so rapidly
+going forward, and was substantially the beginning of the sense of
+personal alienation henceforth to grow steadily more bitter on     (p. 192)
+the part of the slaveholders towards Mr. Adams. Without designing
+it he had struck the first blow in a fight which was to absorb his
+energies for the rest of his life.
+
+Such evil forebodings as might too easily be drawn from the course of
+this debate were soon and amply fulfilled. The opposition increased
+rapidly until when Congress came together in December, 1827, it had
+attained overshadowing proportions. Not only was a member of that
+party elected Speaker of the House of Representatives, but a decided
+majority of both Houses of Congress was arrayed against the
+Administration--"a state of things which had never before occurred
+under the Government of the United States." All the committees too
+were composed of four opposition and only three Administration
+members. With more exciting issues this relationship of the executive
+and legislative departments might have resulted in dangerous collisions;
+but in this season of political quietude it only made the position of
+the President extremely uncomfortable. Mr. Van Buren soon became
+recognized as the formidable leader and organizer of the Jackson
+forces. His capacity as a political strategist was so far in advance
+of that of any other man of those times that it might have secured
+success even had he been encountered by tactics similar to his     (p. 193)
+own. But since on the contrary he had only to meet straightforward
+simplicity, it was soon apparent that he would have everything his own
+way. It was disciplined troops against the militia of honest merchants
+and farmers; and the result was not to be doubted. Mr. Adams and his
+friends were fond of comparing Van Buren with Aaron Burr, though
+predicting that he would be too shrewd to repeat Burr's blunders. From
+the beginning they declined to meet with his own weapons a man whom
+they so contemned. It was about this time that a new nomenclature of
+parties was introduced into our politics. The administrationists
+called themselves National Republicans, a name which in a few years
+was changed for that of Whigs, while the opposition or Jacksonians
+were known as Democrats, a title which has been ever since retained by
+the same party.
+
+The story of Mr. Adams's Administration will detain the historian, and
+even the biographer, only a very short time. Not an event occurred
+during those four years which appears of any especial moment. Our
+foreign relations were all pacific; and no grave crisis or great issue
+was developed in domestic affairs. It was a period of tranquillity, in
+which the nation advanced rapidly in prosperity. For many years dulness
+had reigned in business, but returning activity was encouraged by  (p. 194)
+the policy of the new Government, and upon all sides various
+industries became active and thriving. So far as the rule of Mr. Adams
+was marked by any distinguishing characteristic, it was by a care for
+the material welfare of the people. More commercial treaties were
+negotiated during his Administration than in the thirty-six years
+preceding his inauguration. He was a strenuous advocate of internal
+improvements, and happily the condition of the national finances
+enabled the Government to embark in enterprises of this kind. He
+suggested many more than were undertaken, but not perhaps more than it
+would have been quite possible to carry out. He was always chary of
+making a show of himself before the people for the sake of gaining
+popularity. When invited to attend the annual exhibition of the
+Maryland Agricultural Society, shortly after his inauguration, he
+declined, and wrote in his Diary: "To gratify this wish I must give
+four days of my time, no trifle of expense, and set a precedent for
+being claimed as an article of exhibition at all the cattle-shows
+throughout the Union." Other gatherings would prefer equally
+reasonable demands, in responding to which "some duty must be
+neglected." But the opening of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal was an
+event sufficiently momentous and national in its character to      (p. 195)
+justify the President's attendance. He was requested in the presence
+of a great concourse of people to dig the first shovelful of earth and
+to make a brief address. The speech-making was easy; but when the
+digging was to be done he encountered some unexpected obstacle and the
+soil did not yield to his repeated efforts. Not to be defeated,
+however, he stripped off his coat, went to work in earnest with the
+spade and raised the earth successfully. Naturally such readiness was
+hailed with loud applause and pleased the great crowd who saw it. But
+in Mr. Adams's career it was an exceptional occurrence that enabled
+him to conciliate a momentary popularity; it was seldom that he
+enjoyed or used an opportunity of gaining the cheap admiration or
+shallow friendship of the multitude.
+
+At least one moral to be drawn from the story of Mr. Adams's
+Presidency perhaps deserves rather to be called an _immoral_, and
+certainly furnishes unwelcome support to those persons who believe
+that conscientiousness is out of place in politics. It has been said
+that no sooner was General Jackson fairly defeated than he was again
+before the people as a candidate for the next election. An opposition
+to the new Administration was in process of formation actually before
+there had been time for that Administration to declare, much less  (p. 196)
+to carry out, any policy or even any measure. The opposition was
+therefore not one of principle; it was not dislike of anything done or
+to be done; it did not pretend to have a purpose of saving the people
+from blunders or of offering them greater advantages. It was simply an
+opposition, or more properly an hostility, to the President and his
+Cabinet, and was conducted by persons who wished in as short a time as
+possible themselves to control and fill those positions. The sole
+ground upon which these opponents stood was, that they would rather
+have General Jackson at the head of affairs than Mr. Adams. The issue
+was purely personal; it was so when the opposition first developed,
+and it remained so until that opposition triumphed.
+
+Under no circumstances can it be more excusable for an elective
+magistrate to seek personal good will towards himself than when his
+rival seeks to supplant him simply on the basis of enjoying a greater
+measure of such good will. Had any important question of policy been
+dividing the people, it would have been easy for a man of less moral
+courage and independence than belonged to Mr. Adams to select the side
+which he thought right, and to await the outcome at least with
+constancy. But the only real question raised was this: will Mr. Adams
+or General Jackson--two individuals representing as yet no         (p. 197)
+antagonistic policies--be preferred by the greater number of voters in
+1829? If, however, there was no great apparent issue open between
+these two men, at least there was a very wide difference between their
+characters, a point of some consequence in a wholly personal
+competition. It is easy enough now to see how this gaping difference
+displayed itself from the beginning, and how the advantage for winning
+was throughout wholly on the side of Jackson. The course to be pursued
+by Mr. Adams in order to insure victory was obvious enough; being
+simply to secure the largest following and most efficient support
+possible. The arts by which these objects were to be attained were not
+obscure nor beyond his power. If he wished a second term, as beyond
+question he did, two methods were of certain utility. He should make
+the support of his Administration a source of profit to the
+supporters; and he should conciliate good will by every means that
+offered. To the former end what more efficient means could be devised
+than a body of office-holders owing their positions to his appointment
+and likely to have the same term of office as himself? His neglect to
+create such a corps of stanch supporters cannot be explained on the
+ground that so plain a scheme of perpetuating power had not then   (p. 198)
+been devised in the Republic. Mr. Jefferson had practised it, to an
+extent which now seems moderate, but which had been sufficiently
+extensive to deprive any successor of the honor of novelty in originating
+it. The times were ripe for it, and the nation would not have revolted
+at it, as was made apparent when General Jackson, succeeding Mr.
+Adams, at once carried out the system with a thoroughness that has
+never been surpassed, and with a success in achieving results so great
+that almost no politician has since failed to have recourse to the
+same practice. Suggestions and temptations, neither of which were
+wanting, were however alike thrown away upon Mr. Adams. Friendship or
+hostility to the President were the only two matters which were sure
+to have no effect whatsoever upon the fate of an incumbent or an
+aspirant. Scarcely any removals were made during his Administration,
+and every one of the few was based solely upon a proved unfitness of
+the official. As a consequence very few new appointments were made,
+and in every instance the appointee was, or was believed to be, the
+fittest man without regard to his political bias. This entire
+elimination of the question of party allegiance from every department
+of the public service was not a specious protestation, but an
+undeniable fact at which friends grumbled bitterly, and upon which (p. 199)
+foes counted often with an ungenerous but always with an implicit
+reliance. It was well known, for example, that in the Customs
+Department there were many more avowed opponents than supporters of
+the Administration. What was to be thought, the latter angrily asked,
+of a president who refused to make any distinction between the sheep
+and the goats? But while Mr. Adams, unmoved by argument, anger, or
+entreaty, thus alienated many and discouraged all, every one was made
+acquainted with the antipodal principles of his rival. The consequence
+was inevitable; many abandoned Adams from sheer irritation; multitudes
+became cool and indifferent concerning him; the great number of those
+whose political faith was so weak as to be at the ready command of
+their own interests, or the interests of a friend or relative, yielded
+to a pressure against which no counteracting force was employed. In a
+word, no one who had not a strong and independent personal conviction
+in behalf of Mr. Adams found the slightest inducement to belong to his
+party. It did not require much political sagacity to see that in quiet
+times, with no great issue visibly at stake, a following thus composed
+could not include a majority of the nation. It is true that in fact
+there was opening an issue as great as has ever been presented to the
+American people,--an issue between government conducted with a     (p. 200)
+sole view to efficiency and honesty and government conducted very
+largely, if not exclusively, with a view to individual and party
+ascendency. The new system afterward inaugurated by General Jackson,
+directly opposite to that of Mr. Adams and presenting a contrast to it
+as wide as is to be found in history, makes this fact glaringly plain
+to us. But during the years of Mr. Adams's Administration it was dimly
+perceived only by a few. Only one side of the shield had then been
+shown. The people did not appreciate that Adams and Jackson were
+representatives of two conflicting principles of administration which
+went to the very basis of our system of government. Had the issue been
+as apparent and as well understood then as it is now, in retrospect,
+the decision of the nation might have been different. But
+unfortunately the voters only beheld two individuals pitted against
+each other for the popular suffrage, of whom one, a brilliant soldier,
+would stand by and reward his friends, and the other, an uninteresting
+civilian, ignored all distinction between friend and foe.
+
+It was not alone in the refusal to use patronage that Mr. Adams's
+rigid conscientiousness showed itself. He was equally obstinate in
+declining ever to stretch a point however slightly in order to     (p. 201)
+win the favor of any body of the people whether large or small. He
+was warned that his extensive schemes for internal improvement would
+alienate especially the important State of Virginia. He could not of
+course be expected to change his policy out of respect to Virginian
+prejudices; but he was advised to mitigate his expression of that
+policy, and to some extent it was open to him to do so. But he would
+not; his utterances went the full length of his opinions, and he
+persistently urged upon Congress many plans which he approved, but
+which he could not have the faintest hopes of seeing adopted. The
+consequence was that he displeased Virginia. He notes the fact in the
+Diary in the tone of one who endures persecution for righteousness'
+sake, and who means to be very stubborn in his righteousness. Again it
+was suggested to him to embody in one of his messages "something
+soothing for South Carolina." But there stood upon the statute books
+of South Carolina an unconstitutional law which had greatly
+embarrassed the national government, and which that rebellious little
+State with characteristic contumaciousness would not repeal. Under
+such circumstances, said Mr. Adams, I have no "soothing" words for
+South Carolina.
+
+It was not alone by what he did and by what he would not do that   (p. 202)
+Mr. Adams toiled to insure the election of General Jackson far more
+sedulously and efficiently than did the General himself or any of his
+partisans. In most cases it was probably the manner quite as much as
+the act which made Mr. Adams unpopular. In his anxiety to be upright
+he was undoubtedly prone to be needlessly disagreeable. His
+uncompromising temper put on an ungracious aspect. His conscientiousness
+wore the appearance of offensiveness. The Puritanism in his character
+was strongly tinged with that old New England notion that whatever is
+disagreeable is probably right, and that a painful refusal would lose
+half its merit in being expressed courteously; that a right action
+should never be done in a pleasing way; not only that no pill should
+be sugar-coated, but that the bitterest ingredient should be placed on
+the outside. In repudiating attractive vices the Puritans had rejected
+also those amenities which might have decently concealed or even
+mildly decorated the forbidding angularities of a naked Virtue which
+certainly did not imitate the form of any goddess who had ever before
+attracted followers. Mr. Adams was a complete and thorough Puritan,
+wonderfully little modified by times and circumstances. The ordinary
+arts of propitiation would have appeared to him only a feeble and
+diluted form of dishonesty; while suavity and graciousness of      (p. 203)
+demeanor would have seemed as unbecoming to this rigid official as
+love-making or wine-bibbing seem to a strait-laced parson. It was
+inevitable, therefore, that he should never avert by his words any
+ill-will naturally caused by his acts; that he should never soothe
+disappointment, or attract calculating selfishness. He was an adept in
+alienation, a novice in conciliation. His magnetism was negative. He
+made few friends; and had no interested following whatsoever. No one
+was enthusiastic on his behalf; no band worked for him with the ardor
+of personal devotion. His party was composed of those who had
+sufficient intelligence to appreciate his integrity and sufficient
+honesty to admire it. These persons respected him, and when election
+day came they would vote for him; but they did not canvass zealously
+in his behalf, nor do such service for him as a very different kind of
+feeling induced the Jackson men to do for their candidate.[7] The
+fervid laborers in politics left Mr. Adams alone in his chilling   (p. 204)
+respectability, and went over to a camp where all scruples were
+consumed in the glowing heat of a campaign conducted upon the single
+and simple principle of securing victory.
+
+                   [Footnote 7: Mr. Mills, in writing of Mr. Adams's
+                   inauguration, expressed well what many felt. "This
+                   same President of ours is a man that I can never
+                   court nor be on very familiar terms with. There is
+                   a cold, repulsive atmosphere about him that is too
+                   chilling for my respiration, and I shall certainly
+                   keep at a distance from its influence. I wish him
+                   God-speed in his Administration, and am heartily
+                   disposed to lend him my feeble aid whenever he may
+                   need it in a correct course; but he cannot expect
+                   me to become his warm and devoted partisan." A like
+                   sentiment was expressed also much more vigorously
+                   by Ezekiel Webster to Daniel Webster, in a letter
+                   of February 15, 1829. The writer there attributes
+                   the defeat of Mr. Adams to personal dislike to him.
+                   People, he said, "always supported his cause from a
+                   cold sense of duty," and "we soon satisfy ourselves
+                   that we have discharged our duty to the cause of
+                   any man when we do not entertain for him one
+                   personal kind feeling, nor cannot unless we
+                   disembowel ourselves like a trussed turkey of all
+                   that is human nature within us." With a candidate
+                   "of popular character, like Mr. Clay," the result
+                   would have been different. "The measures of his
+                   [Adams's] Administration were just and wise and
+                   every honest man should have supported them, but
+                   many honest men did not for the reason I have
+                   mentioned."--_Webster's Private Correspondence_,
+                   vol. i. p. 469.]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Mr. Adams's relations with the members of his Cabinet were friendly
+throughout his term. Men of their character and ability, brought into
+daily contact with him, could not fail to appreciate and admire the
+purity of his motives and the patriotism of his conduct; nor was he
+wanting in a measure of consideration and deference towards them
+perhaps somewhat greater than might have been expected from him,
+sometimes even carried to the point of yielding his opinion in     (p. 205)
+matters of consequence. It was his wish that the unity of the body
+should remain unbroken during his four years of office, and the wish
+was very nearly realized. Unfortunately, however, in his last year it
+became necessary for him to fill the mission to England, and Governor
+Barbour was extremely anxious for the place. It was already apparent
+that the coming election was likely to result in the succession of
+Jackson, and Mr. Adams notes that Barbour's extreme desire to receive
+the appointment was due to his wish to find a good harbor ere the
+approaching storm should burst. The remark was made without anger, in
+the tone of a man who had seen enough of the world not to expect too
+much from any of his fellow men; and the appointment was made,
+somewhat to the chagrin of Webster and Rush, either one of whom would
+have gladly accepted it. The vacancy thus caused, the only one which
+arose during his term, was filled by General Peter B. Porter, a
+gentleman whom Mr. Adams selected not as his own choice, but out of
+respect to the wishes of the Cabinet, and in order to "terminate the
+Administration in harmony with itself." The only seriously unpleasant
+occurrence was the treachery of Postmaster-General McLean, who saw fit
+to profess extreme devotion to Mr. Adams while secretly aiding General
+Jackson. His perfidy was not undetected, and great pressure was    (p. 206)
+brought to bear on the President to remove him. Mr. Adams, however,
+refused to do so, and McLean had the satisfaction of stepping from his
+post under Mr. Adams into a judgeship conferred by General Jackson,
+having shown his impartiality and judicial turn of mind, it is to be
+supposed, by declaring his warm allegiance to each master in turn.
+
+The picture of President Adams's daily life is striking in its
+simplicity and its laboriousness. This chief magistrate of a great
+nation was wont to rise before daybreak, often at four or five o'clock
+even in winter, not unfrequently to build and light his own fire, and
+to work hard for hours when most persons in busy life were still
+comfortably slumbering. The forenoon and afternoon he devoted to
+public affairs, and often he complains that the unbroken stream of
+visitors gives him little opportunity for hard or continuous labor.
+Such work he was compelled to do chiefly in the evening; and he did
+not always make up for early hours of rising by a correspondingly
+early bedtime; though sometimes in the summer we find him going to bed
+between eight and nine o'clock, an hour which probably few Presidents
+have kept since then. He strove to care for his health by daily
+exercise. In the morning he swam in the Potomac, often for a long  (p. 207)
+time; and more than once he encountered no small risk in this
+pastime. During the latter part of his Presidential term he tried
+riding on horseback. At times when the weather compelled him to walk,
+and business was pressing, he used to get his daily modicum of fresh
+air before the sun was up. A life of this kind with more of hardship
+than of relaxation in it was ill fitted to sustain in robust health a
+man sixty years of age, and it is not surprising that Mr. Adams often
+complained of feeling ill, dejected, and weary. Yet he never spared
+himself, nor apparently thought his habits too severe, and actually
+toward the close of his term he spoke of his trying daily routine as
+constituting a very agreeable life. He usually began the day by
+reading "two or three chapters in the Bible with Scott's and Hewlett's
+Commentaries," being always a profoundly religious man of the
+old-fashioned school then prevalent in New England.
+
+It could hardly have added to the meagre comforts of such a life to be
+threatened with assassination. Yet this danger was thrust upon Mr.
+Adams's attention upon one occasion at least under circumstances which
+gave to it a very serious aspect. The tranquillity with which he went
+through the affair showed that his physical courage was as imperturbable
+as his moral. The risk was protracted throughout a considerable    (p. 208)
+period, but he never let it disturb the even tenor of his daily
+behavior or warp his actions in the slightest degree, save only that
+when he was twice or thrice brought face to face with the intending
+assassin he treated the fellow with somewhat more curt brusqueness
+than was his wont. But when the danger was over he bore his would-be
+murderer no malice, and long afterward actually did him a kindly
+service.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Few men in public life have been subjected to trials of temper so
+severe as vexed Mr. Adams during his Presidential term. To play an
+intensely exciting game strictly in accordance with rigid moral rules
+of the player's own arbitrary enforcement, and which are utterly
+repudiated by a less scrupulous antagonist, can hardly tend to promote
+contentment and amiability. Neither are slanders and falsehoods
+mollifying applications to a statesman inspired with an upright and
+noble ambition. Mr. Adams bore such assaults, ranging from the charge
+of having corruptly bought the Presidency down to that of being a
+Freemason with such grim stoicism as he could command. The
+disappearance and probable assassination of Morgan at this time led to
+a strong feeling throughout the country against Freemasonry, and   (p. 209)
+the Jackson men at once proclaimed abroad that Adams was one of the
+brotherhood, and offered, if he should deny it, to produce the records
+of the lodge to which he belonged. The allegation was false; he was
+not a Mason, and his friends urged him to say so publicly; but he
+replied bitterly that his denial would probably at once be met by a
+complete set of forged records of a fictitious lodge, and the people
+would not know whom to believe. Next he was said to have bargained for
+the support of Daniel Webster, by promising to distribute offices to
+Federalists. This accusation was a cruel perversion of his very
+virtues; for its only foundation lay in the fact that in the
+venturesome but honorable attempt to be President of a nation rather
+than of a party, he had in some instances given offices to old
+Federalists, certainly with no hope or possibility of reconciling to
+himself the almost useless wreck of that now powerless and shrunken
+party, one of whose liveliest traditions was hatred of him. Stories
+were even set afloat that some of his accounts, since he had been in
+the public service, were incorrect. But the most extraordinary and
+ridiculous tale of all was that during his residence in Russia he had
+prostituted a beautiful American girl, whom he then had in his
+service, in order "to seduce the passions of the Emperor Alexander (p. 210)
+and sway him to political purposes."
+
+These and other like provocations were not only discouraging but very
+irritating, and Mr. Adams was not of that careless disposition which
+is little affected by unjust accusation. On the contrary he was
+greatly incensed by such treatment, and though he made the most stern
+and persistent effort to endure an inevitable trial with a patience
+born of philosophy, since indifference was not at his command, yet he
+could not refrain from the expression of his sentiments in his secret
+communings. Occasionally he allowed his wrath to explode with harmless
+violence between the covers of the Diary, and doubtless he found
+relief while he discharged his fierce diatribes on these private
+sheets. His vituperative power was great, and some specimens of it may
+not come amiss in a sketch of the man. The senators who did not call
+upon him he regarded as of "rancorous spirit." He spoke of the
+falsehoods and misrepresentations which "the skunks of party slander
+... have been ... squirting round the House of Representatives, thence
+to issue and perfume the atmosphere of the Union." His most intense
+hatred and vehement denunciation were reserved for John Randolph, whom
+he thought an abomination too odious and despicable to be described
+in words, "the image and superscription of a great man stamped     (p. 211)
+upon base metal." "The besotted violence" of Randolph, he said, has
+deprived him of "all right to personal civility from me;" and
+certainly this excommunication from courtesy was made complete and
+effective. He speaks again of the same victim as a "frequenter of gin
+lane and beer alley." He indignantly charges that Calhoun, as Speaker,
+permitted Randolph "in speeches of ten hours long to drink himself
+drunk with bottled porter, and in raving balderdash of the meridian of
+Wapping to revile the absent and the present, the living and the
+dead." This, he says, was "tolerated by Calhoun, because Randolph's
+ribaldry was all pointed against the Administration, especially
+against Mr. Clay and me." Again he writes of Randolph: "The rancor of
+this man's soul against me is that which sustains his life: the agony
+of [his] envy and hatred of me, and the hope of effecting my downfall,
+are [his] chief remaining sources of vitality. The issue of the
+Presidential election will kill [him] by the gratification of [his]
+revenge." So it was also with W. B. Giles, of Virginia. But Giles's
+abuse was easier to bear since it had been poured in torrents upon
+every reputable man, from Washington downwards, who had been prominent
+in public affairs since the adoption of the Constitution, so that  (p. 212)
+Giles's memory is now preserved from oblivion solely by the connection
+which he established with the great and honorable statesmen of the
+Republic by a course of ceaseless attacks upon them. Some of the
+foregoing expressions of Mr. Adams may be open to objection on the
+score of good taste; but the provocation was extreme; public retaliation
+he would not practise, and wrath must sometimes burst forth in
+language which was not so unusual in that day as it is at present. It
+is an unquestionable fact, of which the credit to Mr. Adams can hardly
+be exaggerated, that he never in any single instance found an excuse
+for an unworthy act on his own part in the fact that competitors or
+adversaries were resorting to such expedients.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The election of 1828 gave 178 votes for Jackson and only 83 for Adams.
+Calhoun was continued as Vice-President by 171 votes, showing plainly
+enough that even yet there were not two political parties, in any
+customary or proper sense of the phrase. The victory of Jackson had
+been foreseen by every one. What had been so generally anticipated
+could not take Mr. Adams by surprise; yet it was idle for him to seek
+to conceal his disappointment that an Administration which he      (p. 213)
+had conducted with his best ability and with thorough conscientiousness
+should not have seemed to the people worthy of continuance for another
+term. Little suspecting what the future had in store for him, he felt
+that his public career had culminated and probably had closed forever,
+and that if it had not closed exactly in disgrace, yet at least it
+could not be regarded as ending gloriously or even satisfactorily. But
+he summoned all his philosophy and fortitude to his aid; he fell back
+upon his clear conscience and comported himself with dignity, showing
+all reasonable courtesy to his successor and only perhaps seeming a
+little deficient in filial piety in presenting so striking a contrast
+to the shameful conduct of his father in a like crucial hour. His
+retirement brought to a close a list of Presidents who deserved to be
+called statesmen in the highest sense of that term, honorable men,
+pure patriots, and, with perhaps one exception, all of the first order
+of ability in public affairs. It is necessary to come far down towards
+this day before a worthy successor of those great men is met with in
+the list. Dr. Von Holst, by far the ablest writer who has yet dealt
+with American history, says: "In the person of Adams the last
+statesman who was to occupy it for a long time left the White House."
+General Jackson, the candidate of the populace and the             (p. 214)
+representative hero of the ignorant masses, instituted a new system of
+administering the Government in which personal interests became the
+most important element, and that organization and strategy were
+developed which have since become known and infamous under the name of
+the "political machine."
+
+While Mr. Adams bore his defeat like a philosopher, he felt secretly
+very depressed and unhappy by reason of it. He speaks of it as leaving
+his "character and reputation a wreck," and says that the "sun of his
+political life sets in the deepest gloom." On January 1, 1829, he
+writes: "The year begins in gloom. My wife had a sleepless and painful
+night. The dawn was overcast, and as I began to write my shaded lamp
+went out, self-extinguished. It was only for lack of oil, and the
+notice of so trivial an incident may serve but to mark the present
+temper of my mind." It is painful to behold a man of his vigor,
+activity, and courage thus prostrated. Again he writes:--
+
+     "Three days more and I shall be restored to private life, and
+     left to an old age of retirement though certainly not of repose.
+     I go into it with a combination of parties and public men against
+     my character and reputation, such as I believe never before was
+     exhibited against any man since this Union existed. Posterity
+     will scarcely believe it, but so it is, that this combination
+     against me has been formed and is now exulting in triumph     (p. 215)
+     over me, for the devotion of my life and of all the faculties
+     of my soul to the Union, and to the improvement, physical, moral,
+     and intellectual of my country."
+
+Melancholy words these to be written by an old man who had worked so
+hard and been so honest, and whose ambition had been of the kind that
+ennobles him who feels it! Could the curtain of the future have been
+lifted but for a moment what relief would the glimpse have brought to
+his crushed and wearied spirit. But though coming events may cast
+shadows before them, they far less often send bright rays in advance.
+So he now resolved "to go into the deepest retirement and withdraw
+from all connection with public affairs." Yet it was with regret that
+he foretold this fate, and he looked forward with solicitude to the
+effect which such a mode of life, newly entered upon at his age, would
+have upon his mind and character. He hopes rather than dares to
+predict that he will be provided "with useful and profitable
+occupation, engaging so much of his thoughts and feelings that his
+mind may not be left to corrode itself."
+
+His return to Quincy held out the less promise of comfort, because the
+old chasm between him and the Federalist gentlemen of Boston had been
+lately reopened. Certain malicious newspaper paragraphs, born of   (p. 216)
+the mischievous spirit of the wretched Giles, had recently set afloat
+some stories designed seriously to injure Mr. Adams. These were,
+substantially, that in 1808-9 he had been convinced that some among
+the leaders of the Federalist party in New England were entertaining a
+project for separation from the Union, that he had feared that this
+event would be promoted by the embargo, that he foresaw that the
+seceding portion would inevitably be compelled into some sort of
+alliance with Great Britain, that he suspected negotiations to this
+end to have been already set on foot, that he thereupon gave privately
+some more or less distinct intimations of these notions of his to
+sundry prominent Republicans, and even to President Jefferson. These
+tales, much distorted from the truth and exaggerated as usual, led to
+the publication of an open letter, in November, 1828, addressed by
+thirteen Federalists of note in Massachusetts to John Quincy Adams,
+demanding names and specifications and the production of evidence. Mr.
+Adams replied briefly, with dignity, and, considering the
+circumstances, with good temper, stating fairly the substantial import
+of what he had really said, declaring that he had never mentioned
+names, and refusing, for good reasons given, either to do so now   (p. 217)
+or to publish the grounds of such opinions as he had entertained.
+It was sufficiently clear that he had said nothing secretly which he
+had reason to regret; and that if he sought to shun the discussion
+opened by his adversaries, he was influenced by wise forbearance, and
+not at all by any fear of the consequences to himself. A dispassionate
+observer could have seen that behind this moderate, rather deprecatory
+letter there was an abundant reserve of controversial material held
+for the moment in check. But his adversaries were not dispassionate;
+on the contrary they were greatly excited and were honestly convinced
+of the perfect goodness of their cause. They were men of the highest
+character in public and private life, deservedly of the best repute in
+the community, of unimpeachable integrity in motives and dealings,
+influential and respected, men whom it was impossible in New England
+to treat with neglect or indifference. For this reason it was only the
+harder to remain silent beneath their published reproach when a
+refutation was possible. Hating Mr. Adams with an animosity not
+diminished by the lapse of years since his defection from their party,
+strong in a consciousness of their own standing before their fellow
+citizens, the thirteen notables responded with much acrimony to Mr.
+Adams's unsatisfactory letter. Thus persistently challenged and    (p. 218)
+assailed, at a time when his recent crushing political defeat made
+an attack upon him seem a little ungenerous, Mr. Adams at last went
+into the fight in earnest. He had the good fortune to be thoroughly
+right, and also to have sufficient evidence to prove and justify at
+least as much as he had ever said. All this evidence he brought
+together in a vindicatory pamphlet, which, however, by the time he had
+completed it he decided not to publish. But fortunately he did not
+destroy it, and his grandson, in the exercise of a wise discretion,
+has lately given it to the world. His foes never knew how deeply they
+were indebted to the self-restraint which induced him to keep this
+formidable missive harmless in his desk. Full of deep feeling, yet
+free from ebullitions of temper, clear in statement, concise in style,
+conclusive in facts, unanswerable in argument, unrelentingly severe in
+dealing with opponents, it is as fine a specimen of political
+controversy as exists in the language. Its historical value cannot be
+exaggerated, but apart from this as a mere literary production it is
+admirable. Happy were the thirteen that they one and all went down to
+their graves complaisantly thinking that they had had the last word in
+the quarrel, little suspecting how great was their obligation to Mr.
+Adams for having granted them that privilege. One would think      (p. 219)
+that they might have writhed beneath their moss-grown headstones
+on the day when his last word at length found public utterance, albeit
+that the controversy had then become one of the dusty tales of
+history.[8]
+
+                   [Footnote 8: It is with great reluctance that these
+                   comments are made, since some persons may think
+                   that they come with ill grace from one whose
+                   grandfather was one of the thirteen and was
+                   supposed to have drafted one or both of their
+                   letters. But in spite of the prejudice naturally
+                   growing out of this fact, a thorough study of the
+                   whole subject has convinced me that Mr. Adams was
+                   unquestionably and completely right, and I have no
+                   escape from saying so. His adversaries had the
+                   excuse of honesty in political error--an excuse
+                   which the greatest and wisest men must often fall
+                   back upon in times of hot party warfare.]
+
+But this task of writing a demolishing pamphlet against the prominent
+gentlemen of the neighborhood to which he was about to return for his
+declining years could hardly have been a grateful task. The passage
+from political disaster to social enmities could not but be painful;
+and Mr. Adams was probably never more unhappy than at this period of
+his life. The reward which virtue was tendering to him seemed unmixed
+bitterness.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Thus at the age of sixty-two years, Mr. Adams found himself that
+melancholy product of the American governmental system--an ex-President.
+At this stage it would seem that the fruit ought to drop from the  (p. 220)
+bough, no further process of development being reasonably probable
+for it. Yet Mr. Adams had by no means reached this measure of
+ripeness; he still enjoyed abundant vigor of mind and body, and to
+lapse into dignified decrepitude was not agreeable, indeed was hardly
+possible for him. The prospect gave him profound anxiety; he dreaded
+idleness, apathy, and decay with a keen terror which perhaps
+constituted a sufficient guaranty against them. Yet what could he do?
+It would be absurd for him now to furbish up the rusty weapons of the
+law and enter again upon the tedious labor of collecting a clientage.
+His property was barely sufficient to enable him to live respectably,
+even according to the simple standard of the time, and could open to
+him no occupation in the way of gratifying unremunerative tastes. In
+March, 1828, he had been advised to use five thousand dollars in a way
+to promote his reėlection. He refused at once, upon principle; but
+further set forth "candidly, the state of his affairs:"--
+
+     "All my real estate in Quincy and Boston is mortgaged for the
+     payment of my debts; the income of my whole private estate is
+     less than $6,000 a year, and I am paying at least two thousand of
+     that for interest on my debt. Finally, upon going out of office
+     in one year from this time, destitute of all means of         (p. 221)
+     acquiring property, it will only be by the sacrifice of that
+     which I now possess that I shall be able to support my family."
+
+At first he plunged desperately into the Latin classics. He had a
+strong taste for such reading, and he made a firm resolve to compel
+this taste now to stand him in good stead in his hour of need. He
+courageously demanded solace from a pursuit which had yielded him
+pleasure enough in hours of relaxation, but which was altogether
+inadequate to fill the huge vacuum now suddenly created in his time
+and thoughts. There is much pathos in this spectacle of the old man
+setting himself with ever so feeble a weapon, yet with stern
+determination, to conquer the cruelty of circumstances. But he knew,
+of course, that the Roman authors could only help him for a time, by
+way of distraction, in carrying him through a transition period. He
+soon set more cheerfully at work upon a memoir of his father, and had
+also plans for writing a history of the United States. Literature had
+always possessed strong charms for him, and he had cultivated it after
+his usual studious and conscientious fashion. But his style was too
+often prolix, sententious, and turgid--faults which marked nearly all
+the writing done in this country in those days. The world has      (p. 222)
+probably not lost much by reason of the non-completion of the
+contemplated volumes. He could have made no other contribution to the
+history of the country at all approaching in value or interest to the
+Diary, of which a most important part was still to be written. For a
+brief time just now this loses its historic character, but makes up
+for the loss by depicting admirably some traits in the mental
+constitution of the diarist. Tales of enchantment, he says, pleased
+his boyhood, but "the humors of Falstaff hardly affected me at all.
+Bardolph and Pistol and Nym were personages quite unintelligible to
+me; and the lesson of Sir Hugh Evans to the boy Williams was quite too
+serious an affair." In truth, no man can ever have been more utterly
+void of a sense of humor or an appreciation of wit than was Mr. Adams.
+Not a single instance of an approach to either is to be found
+throughout the twelve volumes of his Diary. Not even in the simple
+form of the "good story" could he find pleasure, and subtler delicacies
+were wasted on his well-regulated mind as dainty French dishes would
+be on the wholesome palate of a day-laborer. The books which bore the
+stamp of well-established approval, the acknowledged classics of the
+English, Latin, and French languages he read with a mingled sense of
+duty and of pleasure, and evidently with cultivated appreciation,  (p. 223)
+though whether he would have made an original discovery of their
+merits may be doubted. Occasionally he failed to admire even those
+volumes which deserved admiration, and then with characteristic
+honesty he admitted the fact. He tried Paradise Lost ten times before
+he could get through with it, and was nearly thirty years old when he
+first succeeded in reading it to the end. Thereafter he became very
+fond of it, but plainly by an acquired taste. He tried smoking and
+Milton, he says, at the same time, in the hope of discovering the
+"recondite charm" in them which so pleased his father. He was more
+easily successful with the tobacco than with the poetry. Many another
+has had the like experience, but the confession is not always so
+frankly forthcoming.
+
+Fate, however, had in store for Mr. Adams labors to which he was
+better suited than those of literature, and tasks to be performed
+which the nation could ill afford to exchange for an apotheosis of our
+second President, or even for a respectable but probably not very
+readable history. The most brilliant and glorious years of his career
+were yet to be lived. He was to earn in his old age a noble fame and
+distinction far transcending any achievement of his youth and middle
+age, and was to attain the highest pinnacle of his fame after he   (p. 224)
+had left the greatest office of the Government, and during a period
+for which presumably nothing better had been allotted than that he
+should tranquilly await the summons of death. It is a striking
+circumstance that the fullness of greatness for one who had been
+Senator, Minister to England, Secretary of State, and President,
+remained to be won in the comparatively humble position of a
+Representative in Congress.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III                                                        (p. 225)
+
+IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
+
+
+In September, 1830, Mr. Adams notes in his Diary a suggestion made to
+him that he might if he wished be elected to the national House of
+Representatives from the Plymouth district. The gentleman who threw
+out this tentative proposition remarked that in his opinion the
+acceptance of this position by an ex-President "instead of degrading
+the individual would elevate the representative character." Mr. Adams
+replied, that he "had in that respect no scruple whatever. No person
+could be degraded by serving the people as a Representative in
+Congress. Nor in my opinion would an ex-President of the United States
+be degraded by serving as a selectman of his town, if elected thereto
+by the people." A few weeks later his election was accomplished by a
+flattering vote, the poll showing for him 1817 votes out of 2565, with
+only 373 for the next candidate. He continued thenceforth to represent
+this district until his death, a period of about sixteen years. During
+this time he was occasionally suggested as a candidate for the     (p. 226)
+governorship of the State, but was always reluctant to stand. The
+feeling between the Freemasons and the anti-Masons ran very high for
+several years, and once he was prevailed upon to allow his name to be
+used by the latter party. The result was that there was no election by
+the people; and as he had been very loath to enter the contest in the
+beginning, he insisted upon withdrawing from before the legislature.
+We have now therefore only to pursue his career in the lower house of
+Congress.
+
+Unfortunately, but of obvious necessity, it is possible to touch only
+upon the more salient points of this which was really by far the most
+striking and distinguished portion of his life. To do more than this
+would involve an explanation of the politics of the country and the
+measures before Congress much more elaborate than would be possible in
+this volume. It will be necessary, therefore, to confine ourselves to
+drawing a picture of him in his character as the great combatant of
+Southern slavery. In the waging of this mighty conflict we shall see
+both his mind and his character developing in strength even in these
+years of his old age, and his traits standing forth in bolder relief
+than ever before. In his place on the floor of the House of
+Representatives he was destined to appear a more impressive figure
+than in any of the higher positions which he had previously        (p. 227)
+filled. There he was to do his greatest work and to win a peculiar and
+distinctive glory which takes him out of the general throng even of
+famous statesmen, and entitles his name to be remembered with an
+especial reverence. Adequately to sketch his achievements, and so to
+do his memory the honor which it deserves, would require a pen as
+eloquent as has been wielded by any writer of our language. I can only
+attempt a brief and insufficient narrative.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+In his conscientious way he was faithful and industrious to a rare
+degree. He was never absent and seldom late; he bore unflinchingly the
+burden of severe committee work, and shirked no toil on the plea of
+age or infirmity. He attended closely to all the business of the
+House; carefully formed his opinions on every question; never failed
+to vote except for cause; and always had a sufficient reason
+independent of party allegiance to sustain his vote. Living in the age
+of oratory, he earned the name of "the old man eloquent." Yet he was
+not an orator in the sense in which Webster, Clay, and Calhoun were
+orators. He was not a rhetorician; he had neither grace of manner nor
+a fine presence, neither an imposing delivery, nor even pleasing
+tones. On the contrary, he was exceptionally lacking in all these  (p. 228)
+qualities. He was short, rotund, and bald; about the time when he
+entered Congress, complaints become frequent in his Diary of weak and
+inflamed eyes, and soon these organs became so rheumy that the water
+would trickle down his cheeks; a shaking of the hand grew upon him to
+such an extent that in time he had to use artificial assistance to
+steady it for writing; his voice was high, shrill, liable to break,
+piercing enough to make itself heard, but not agreeable. This hardly
+seems the picture of an orator; nor was it to any charm of elocution
+that he owed his influence, but rather to the fact that men soon
+learned that what he said was always well worth hearing. When he
+entered Congress he had been for much more than a third of a century
+zealously gathering knowledge in public affairs, and during his career
+in that body every year swelled the already vast accumulation.
+Moreover, listeners were always sure to get a bold and an honest
+utterance and often pretty keen words from him, and he never spoke to
+an inattentive audience or to a thin house. Whether pleased or
+incensed by what he said, the Representatives at least always listened
+to it. He was by nature a hard fighter, and by the circumstances of
+his course in Congress this quality was stimulated to such a degree
+that parliamentary history does not show his equal as a gladiator. (p. 229)
+His power of invective was extraordinary, and he was untiring and
+merciless in his use of it. Theoretically he disapproved of sarcasm,
+but practically he could not refrain from it. Men winced and cowered
+before his milder attacks, became sometimes dumb, sometimes furious
+with mad rage before his fiercer assaults. Such struggles evidently
+gave him pleasure, and there was scarce a back in Congress that did
+not at one time or another feel the score of his cutting lash; though
+it was the Southerners and the Northern allies of Southerners whom
+chiefly he singled out for torture. He was irritable and quick to
+wrath; he himself constantly speaks of the infirmity of his temper,
+and in his many conflicts his principal concern was to keep it in
+control. His enemies often referred to it and twitted him with it. Of
+alliances he was careless, and friendships he had almost none. But in
+the creation of enmities he was terribly successful. Not so much at
+first, but increasingly as years went on, a state of ceaseless,
+vigilant hostility became his normal condition. From the time when he
+fairly entered upon the long struggle against slavery, he enjoyed few
+peaceful days in the House. But he seemed to thrive upon the warfare,
+and to be never so well pleased as when he was bandying hot words with
+slave-holders and the Northern supporters of slave-holders. When   (p. 230)
+the air of the House was thick with crimination and abuse he seemed to
+suck in fresh vigor and spirit from the hate-laden atmosphere. When
+invective fell around him in showers, he screamed back his retaliation
+with untiring rapidity and marvellous dexterity of aim. No odds could
+appall him. With his back set firm against a solid moral principle, it
+was his joy to strike out at a multitude of foes. They lost their heads
+as well as their tempers, but in the extremest moments of excitement
+and anger Mr. Adams's brain seemed to work with machine-like coolness
+and accuracy. With flushed face, streaming eyes, animated gesticulation,
+and cracking voice, he always retained perfect mastery of all his
+intellectual faculties. He thus became a terrible antagonist, whom all
+feared, yet fearing could not refrain from attacking, so bitterly and
+incessantly did he choose to exert his wonderful power of
+exasperation. Few men could throw an opponent into wild blind fury
+with such speed and certainty as he could; and he does not conceal the
+malicious gratification which such feats brought to him. A leader of
+such fighting capacity, so courageous, with such a magazine of
+experience and information, and with a character so irreproachable,
+could have won brilliant victories in public life at the head of   (p. 231)
+even a small band of devoted followers. But Mr. Adams never had and
+apparently never wanted followers. Other prominent public men were
+brought not only into collision but into comparison with their
+contemporaries. But Mr. Adams's individuality was so strong that he
+can be compared with no one. It was not an individuality of genius nor
+to any remarkable extent of mental qualities; but rather an
+individuality of character. To this fact is probably to be attributed
+his peculiar solitariness. Men touch each other for purposes of
+attachment through their characters much more than through their
+minds. But few men, even in agreeing with Mr. Adams, felt themselves
+in sympathy with him. Occasionally conscience, or invincible logic, or
+even policy and self-interest, might compel one or another politician
+to stand beside him in debate or in voting; but no current of fellow
+feeling ever passed between such temporary comrades and him. It was
+the cold connection of duty or of business. The first instinct of
+nearly every one was opposition towards him; coalition might be forced
+by circumstances but never came by volition. For the purpose of
+winning immediate successes this was of course a most unfortunate
+condition of relationships. Yet it had some compensations: it left
+such influence as Mr. Adams could exert by steadfastness and       (p. 232)
+argument entirely unweakened by suspicion of hidden motives or
+personal ends. He had the weight and enjoyed the respect which a
+sincerity beyond distrust must always command in the long run. Of this
+we shall see some striking instances.
+
+One important limitation, however, belongs to this statement of
+solitariness. It was confined to his position in Congress. Outside of
+the city of Washington great numbers of the people, especially in New
+England, lent him a hearty support and regarded him with friendship
+and admiration. These men had strong convictions and deep feelings,
+and their adherence counted for much. Moreover, their numbers steadily
+increased, and Mr. Adams saw that he was the leader in a cause which
+engaged the sound sense and the best feeling of the intelligent people
+of the country, and which was steadily gaining ground. Without such
+encouragement it is doubtful whether even his persistence would have
+held out through so long and extreme a trial. The sense of human
+fellowship was needful to him; he could go without it in Congress, but
+he could not have gone without it altogether.
+
+Mr. Adams took his seat in the House as a member of the twenty-second
+Congress in December, 1831. He had been elected by the National
+Republican, afterward better known as the Whig party, but one of   (p. 233)
+his first acts was to declare that he would be bound by no partisan
+connection, but would in every matter act independently. This course
+he regarded as a "duty imposed upon him by his peculiar position," in
+that he "had spent the greatest portion of his life in the service of
+the whole nation and had been honored with their highest trust." Many
+persons had predicted that he would find himself subjected to
+embarrassments and perhaps to humiliations by reason of his apparent
+descent in the scale of political dignities. He notes, however, that
+he encountered no annoyance on this score, but on the contrary he was
+rather treated with an especial respect. He was made chairman of the
+Committee on Manufactures, a laborious as well as an important and
+honorable position at all times, and especially so at this juncture
+when the rebellious mutterings of South Carolina against the
+protective tariff were already to be heard rolling and swelling like
+portentous thunder from the fiery Southern regions. He would have
+preferred to exchange this post for a place upon the Committee on
+Foreign Affairs, for whose business he felt more fitted. But he was
+told that in the impending crisis his ability, authority, and prestige
+were all likely to be needed in the place allotted to him to aid in
+the salvation of the country.
+
+The nullification chapter of our history cannot here be entered    (p. 234)
+upon at length, and Mr. Adams's connection with it must be very
+shortly stated. At the first meeting of his committee he remarks: "A
+reduction of the duties upon many of the articles in the tariff was
+understood by all to be the object to be effected;" and a little later
+he said that he should be disposed to give such aid as he could to any
+plan for this reduction which the Treasury Department should devise.
+"He should certainly not consent to sacrifice the manufacturing
+interest," he said, "but something of concession would be due from
+that interest to appease the discontents of the South." He was in a
+reasonable frame of mind; but unfortunately other people were rapidly
+ceasing to be reasonable. When Jackson's message of December 4, 1832,
+was promulgated, showing a disposition to do for South Carolina pretty
+much all that she demanded, Mr. Adams was bitterly indignant. The
+message, he said, "recommends a total change in the policy of the
+Union with reference to the Bank, manufactures, internal improvement,
+and the public lands. It goes to dissolve the Union into its original
+elements, and is in substance a complete surrender to the nullifiers
+of South Carolina." When, somewhat later on, the President lost his
+temper and flamed out in his famous proclamation to meet the       (p. 235)
+nullification ordinance, he spoke in tones more pleasing to Mr. Adams.
+But the ultimate compromise which disposed of the temporary dissension
+without permanently settling the fundamental question of the
+constitutional right of nullification was extremely distasteful to
+him. He was utterly opposed to the concessions which were made while
+South Carolina still remained contumacious. He was for compelling her
+to retire altogether from her rebellious position and to repeal her
+unconstitutional enactments wholly and unconditionally, before one jot
+should be abated from the obnoxious duties. When the bill for the
+modification of the tariff was under debate, he moved to strike out
+all but the enacting clause, and supported his motion in a long
+speech, insisting that no tariff ought to pass until it was known
+"whether there was any measure by which a State could defeat the laws
+of the Union." In a minority report from his own committee he strongly
+censured the policy of the Administration. He was for meeting,
+fighting out, and determining at this crisis the whole doctrine of
+state rights and secession. "One particle of compromise," he said,
+with what truth events have since shown clearly enough, would
+"directly lead to the final and irretrievable dissolution of the
+Union." In his usual strong and thorough-going fashion he was for  (p. 236)
+persisting in the vigorous and spirited measures, the mere brief
+declaration of which, though so quickly receded from, won for Jackson
+a measure of credit greater than he deserved. Jackson was thrown into
+a great rage by the threats of South Carolina, and replied to them
+with the same prompt wrath with which he had sometimes resented
+insults from individuals. But in his cool inner mind he was in
+sympathy with the demands which that State preferred, and though
+undoubtedly he would have fought her, had the dispute been forced to
+that pass, yet he was quite willing to make concessions, which were in
+fact in consonance with his own views as well as with hers, in order
+to avoid that sad conclusion. He was satisfied to have the instant
+emergency pass over in a manner rendered superficially creditable to
+himself by his outburst of temper, under cover of which he sacrificed
+the substantial matter of principle without a qualm. He shook his fist
+and shouted defiance in the face of the nullifiers, while Mr. Clay
+smuggled a comfortable concession into their pockets. Jackson,
+notwithstanding his belligerent attitude, did all he could to help
+Clay and was well pleased with the result. Mr. Adams was not. He
+watched the disingenuous game with disgust. It is certain that if he
+had still been in the White House, the matter would have had a     (p. 237)
+very different ending, bloodier, it may be, and more painful, but
+much more conclusive.
+
+For the most part Mr. Adams found himself in opposition to President
+Jackson's Administration. This was not attributable to any sense of
+personal hostility towards a successful rival, but to an inevitable
+antipathy towards the measures, methods, and ways adopted by the
+General so unfortunately transferred to civil life. Few intelligent
+persons, and none having the statesman habit of mind, befriended the
+reckless, violent, eminently unstatesmanlike President. His ultimate
+weakness in the nullification matter, his opposition to internal
+improvements, his policy of sacrificing the public lands to individual
+speculators, his warfare against the Bank of the United States
+conducted by methods the most unjustifiable, the transaction of the
+removal of the deposits so disreputable and injurious in all its
+details, the importation of Mrs. Eaton's visiting-list into the
+politics and government of the country, the dismissal of the oldest
+and best public servants as a part of the nefarious system of using
+public offices as rewards for political aid and personal adherence,
+the formation from base ingredients of the ignoble "Kitchen
+Cabinet,"--all these doings, together with much more of the like   (p. 238)
+sort, constituted a career which could only seem blundering,
+undignified, and dishonorable in the eyes of a man like Mr. Adams, who
+regarded statesmanship with the reverence due to the noblest of human
+callings.
+
+Right as Mr. Adams was generally in his opposition to Jackson, yet
+once he deserves credit for the contrary course. This was in the
+matter of our relations with France. The treaty of 1831 secured to
+this country an indemnity of $5,000,000, which, however, it had never
+been possible to collect. This procrastination raised Jackson's ever
+ready ire, and casting to the winds any further dunning, he resolved
+either to have the money or to fight for it. He sent a message to
+Congress, recommending that if France should not promptly settle the
+account, letters of marque and reprisal against her commerce should be
+issued. He ordered Edward Livingston, minister at Paris, to demand his
+passports and cross over to London. These eminently proper and
+ultimately effectual measures alarmed the large party of the timid;
+and the General found himself in danger of extensive desertions even
+on the part of his usual supporters. But as once before in a season of
+his dire extremity his courage and vigor had brought the potent aid of
+Mr. Adams to his side, so now again he came under a heavy debt of  (p. 239)
+gratitude to the same champion. Mr. Adams stood by him with generous
+gallantry, and by a telling speech in the House probably saved him
+from serious humiliation and even disaster. The President's style of
+dealing had roused Mr. Adams's spirit, and he spoke with a fire and
+vehemence which accomplished the unusual feat of changing the
+predisposed minds of men too familiar with speech-making to be often
+much influenced by it in the practical matter of voting. He thought at
+the time that the success of this speech, brilliant as it appeared,
+was not unlikely to result in his political ruin. Jackson would
+befriend and reward his thorough-going partisans at any cost to his
+own conscience or the public welfare; but the exceptional aid,
+tendered not from a sense of personal fealty to himself, but simply
+from the motive of aiding the right cause happening in the especial
+instance to have been espoused by him, never won from him any token of
+regard. In November, 1837, Mr. Adams, speaking of his personal
+relations with the President, said:--
+
+     "Though I had served him more than any other living man ever did,
+     and though I supported his Administration at the hazard of my own
+     political destruction, and effected for him at a moment when his
+     own friends were deserting him what no other member of Congress
+     ever accomplished for him--an unanimous vote of the House of  (p. 240)
+     Representatives to support him in his quarrel with France; though
+     I supported him in other very critical periods of his Administration,
+     my return from him was insult, indignity, and slander."
+
+Antipathy had at last become the definitive condition of these two
+men--antipathy both political and personal. At one time a singular
+effort to reconcile them--probably though not certainly undertaken
+with the knowledge of Jackson--was made by Richard M. Johnson. This
+occurred shortly before the inauguration of the war conducted by the
+President against the Bank of the United States; and judging by the
+rest of Jackson's behavior at this period, there was probably at least
+as much of calculation in his motives, if in fact he was cognizant of
+Johnson's approaches, as there was of any real desire to reėstablish
+the bygone relation of honorable friendship. To the advances thus made
+Mr. Adams replied a little coldly, not quite repellently, that Jackson,
+having been responsible for the suspension of personal intercourse,
+must now be undisguisedly the active party in renewing it. At the same
+time he professed himself "willing to receive in a spirit of
+conciliation any advance which in that spirit General Jackson might
+make." But nothing came of this intrinsically hopeless attempt. On
+the contrary the two drew rapidly and more widely apart, and       (p. 241)
+entertained concerning each other opinions which grew steadily more
+unfavorable, and upon Adams's part more contemptuous, as time went on.
+
+Fifteen months later General Jackson made his visit to Boston, and it
+was proposed that Harvard College should confer upon him the degree of
+Doctor of Laws. The absurdity of the act, considered simply in itself,
+was admitted by all. But the argument in its favor was based upon the
+established usage of the College as towards all other Presidents, so
+that its omission in this case might seem a personal slight. Mr. Adams,
+being at the time a member of the Board of Overseers, strongly opposed
+the proposition, but of course in vain. All that he could do was, for
+his own individual part, to refuse to be present at the conferring of
+the degree, giving as the minor reason for his absence, that he could
+hold no friendly intercourse with the President, but for the major
+reason that "independent of that, as myself an affectionate child of
+our Alma Mater, I would not be present to witness her disgrace in
+conferring her highest literary honors upon a barbarian who could not
+write a sentence of grammar and hardly could spell his own name." "A
+Doctorate of Laws," he said, "for which an apology was necessary, was
+a cheap honor and ... a sycophantic compliment." After the deed    (p. 242)
+was done, he used to amuse himself by speaking of "Doctor Andrew
+Jackson." This same eastern tour of Jackson's called forth many other
+expressions of bitter sarcasm from Adams. The President was ill and
+unable to carry out the programme of entertainment and exhibition
+prepared for him: whereupon Mr. Adams remarks:--
+
+     "I believe much of his debility is politic.... He is one of our
+     tribe of great men who turn disease to commodity, like John
+     Randolph, who for forty years was always dying. Jackson, ever
+     since he became a mark of public attention, has been doing the
+     same thing.... He is now alternately giving out his chronic
+     diarrhoea and making Warren bleed him for a pleurisy, and
+     posting to Cambridge for a doctorate of laws; mounting the
+     monument of Bunker's Hill to hear a fulsome address and receive
+     two cannon balls from Edward Everett," etc. "Four fifths of his
+     sickness is trickery, and the other fifth mere fatigue."
+
+This sounds, it must be confessed, a trifle rancorous; but Adams had
+great excuse for nourishing rancor towards Jackson.
+
+It is time, however, to return to the House of Representatives. It was
+not by bearing his share in the ordinary work of that body, important
+or exciting as that might at one time or another happen to be, that
+Mr. Adams was to win in Congress that reputation which has been    (p. 243)
+already described as far overshadowing all his previous career. A
+special task and a peculiar mission were before him. It was a part of
+his destiny to become the champion of the anti-slavery cause in the
+national legislature. Almost the first thing which he did after he had
+taken his seat in Congress was to present "fifteen petitions signed
+numerously by citizens of Pennsylvania, praying for the abolition of
+slavery and the slave-trade in the District of Columbia." He simply
+moved their reference to the Committee on the District of Columbia,
+declaring that he should not support that part of the petition which
+prayed for abolition in the District. The time had not yet come when
+the South felt much anxiety at such manifestations, and these first
+stones were dropped into the pool without stirring a ripple on the
+surface. For about four years more we hear little in the Diary
+concerning slavery. It was not until 1835, when the annexation of
+Texas began to be mooted, that the North fairly took the alarm, and
+the irrepressible conflict began to develop. Then at once we find Mr.
+Adams at the front. That he had always cherished an abhorrence of
+slavery and a bitter antipathy to slave-holders as a class is
+sufficiently indicated by many chance remarks scattered through his
+Diary from early years. Now that a great question, vitally         (p. 244)
+affecting the slave power, divided the country into parties and
+inaugurated the struggle which never again slept until it was settled
+forever by the result of the civil war, Mr. Adams at once assumed the
+function of leader. His position should be clearly understood; for in
+the vast labor which lay before the abolition party different tasks
+fell to different men. Mr. Adams assumed to be neither an agitator nor
+a reformer; by necessity of character, training, fitness, and official
+position, he was a legislator and statesman. The task which accident
+or destiny allotted to him was neither to preach among the people a
+crusade against slavery, nor to devise and keep in action the thousand
+resources which busy men throughout the country were constantly
+multiplying for the purpose of spreading and increasing a popular
+hostility towards the great "institution." Every great cause has need
+of its fanatics, its vanguard to keep far in advance of what is for
+the time reasonable and possible; it has not less need of the wiser
+and cooler heads to discipline and control the great mass which is set
+in motion by the reckless forerunners, to see to the accomplishment of
+that which the present circumstances and development of the movement
+allow to be accomplished. It fell to Mr. Adams to direct the       (p. 245)
+assault against the outworks which were then vulnerable, and to see
+that the force then possessed by the movement was put to such uses as
+would insure definite results instead of being wasted in endeavors
+which as yet were impossible of achievement. Drawing his duty from his
+situation and surroundings, he left to others, to younger men and more
+rhetorical natures, outside the walls of Congress, the business of
+firing the people and stirring popular opinion and sympathy. He was
+set to do that portion of the work of abolition which was to be done
+in Congress, to encounter the mighty efforts which were made to stifle
+the great humanitarian cry in the halls of the national legislature.
+This was quite as much as one man was equal to; in fact, it is certain
+that no one then in public life except Mr. Adams could have done it
+effectually. So obvious is this that one cannot help wondering what
+would have befallen the cause, had he not been just where he was to
+forward it in just the way that he did. It is only another among the
+many instances of the need surely finding the man. His qualifications
+were unique; his ability, his knowledge, his prestige and authority,
+his high personal character, his persistence and courage, his
+combativeness stimulated by an acrimonious temper but checked by a
+sound judgment, his merciless power of invective, his independence (p. 246)
+and carelessness of applause or vilification, friendship or enmity,
+constituted him an opponent fully equal to the enormous odds which the
+slave-holding interest arrayed against him. A like moral and mental
+fitness was to be found in no one else. Numbers could not overawe him,
+nor loneliness dispirit him. He was probably the most formidable
+fighter in debate of whom parliamentary records preserve the memory.
+The hostility which he encountered beggars description; the English
+language was deficient in adequate words of virulence and contempt to
+express the feelings which were entertained towards him. At home he
+had not the countenance of that class in society to which he naturally
+belonged. A second time he found the chief part of the gentlemen of
+Boston and its vicinity, the leading lawyers, the rich merchants, the
+successful manufacturers, not only opposed to him, but entertaining
+towards him sentiments of personal dislike and even vindictiveness.
+This stratum of the community, having a natural distaste for disquieting
+agitation and influenced by class feeling,--the gentlemen of the North
+sympathizing with the "aristocracy" of the South,--could not make
+common cause with anti-slavery people. Fortunately, however, Mr. Adams
+was returned by a country district where the old Puritan instincts (p. 247)
+were still strong. The intelligence and free spirit of New England
+were at his back, and were fairly represented by him; in spite of
+high-bred disfavor they carried him gallantly through the long
+struggle. The people of the Plymouth district sent him back to the
+House every two years from the time of his first election to the year
+of his death, and the disgust of the gentlemen of Boston was after all
+of trifling consequence to him and of no serious influence upon the
+course of history. The old New England instinct was in him as it was
+in the mass of the people; that instinct made him the real exponent of
+New England thought, belief, and feeling, and that same instinct made
+the great body of voters stand by him with unswerving constancy. When
+his fellow Representatives, almost to a man, deserted him, he was
+sustained by many a token of sympathy and admiration coming from among
+the people at large. Time and the history of the United States have
+been his potent vindicators. The conservative, conscienceless
+respectability of wealth was, as is usually the case with it in the
+annals of the Anglo-Saxon race, quite in the wrong and predestined to
+well-merited defeat. It adds to the honor due to Mr. Adams that his
+sense of right was true enough, and that his vision was clear enough,
+to lead him out of that strong thraldom which class feelings,      (p. 248)
+traditions, and comradeship are wont to exercise.
+
+But it is time to resume the narrative and to let Mr. Adams's acts--of
+which after all it is possible to give only the briefest sketch,
+selecting a few of the more striking incidents--tell the tale of his
+Congressional life.
+
+On February 14, 1835, Mr. Adams again presented two petitions for the
+abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia, but without giving
+rise to much excitement. The fusillade was, however, getting too thick
+and fast to be endured longer with indifference by the impatient
+Southerners. At the next session of Congress they concluded to try to
+stop it, and their ingenious scheme was to make Congress shot-proof,
+so to speak, against such missiles. On January 4, 1836, Mr. Adams
+presented an abolition petition couched in the usual form, and moved
+that it be laid on the table, as others like it had lately been. But
+in a moment Mr. Glascock, of Georgia, moved that the petition be not
+received. Debate sprang up on a point of order, and two days later,
+before the question of reception was determined, a resolution was
+offered by Mr. Jarvis, of Maine, declaring that the House would not
+entertain any petitions for the abolition of slavery in the District
+of Columbia. This resolution was supported on the ground that      (p. 249)
+Congress had no constitutional power in the premises. Some days
+later, January 18, 1836, before any final action had been reached upon
+this proposition, Mr. Adams presented some more abolition petitions,
+one of them signed by "one hundred and forty-eight ladies, citizens of
+the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; for, I said, I had not yet brought
+myself to doubt whether females were citizens." The usual motion not
+to receive was made, and then a new device was resorted to in the
+shape of a motion that the motion not to receive be laid on the table.
+
+On February 8, 1836, this novel scheme for shutting off petitions
+against slavery immediately upon their presentation was referred to a
+select committee of which Mr. Pinckney was chairman. On May 18 this
+committee reported in substance: 1. That Congress had no power to
+interfere with slavery in any State; 2. That Congress ought not to
+interfere with slavery in the District of Columbia; 3. That whereas
+the agitation of the subject was disquieting and objectionable, "all
+petitions, memorials, resolutions or papers, relating in any way or to
+any extent whatsoever to the subject of slavery or the abolition of
+slavery, shall, without being either printed or referred, be laid upon
+the table, and that no further action whatever shall be had        (p. 250)
+thereon." When it came to taking a vote upon this report a division of
+the question was called for, and the yeas and nays were ordered. The
+first resolution was then read, whereupon Mr. Adams at once rose and
+pledged himself, if the House would allow him five minutes' time, to
+prove it to be false. But cries of "order" resounded; he was compelled
+to take his seat and the resolution was adopted by 182 to 9. Upon the
+second resolution he asked to be excused from voting, and his name was
+passed in the call. The third resolution with its preamble was then
+read, and Mr. Adams, so soon as his name was called, rose and said: "I
+hold the resolution to be a direct violation of the Constitution of
+the United States, the rules of this House, and the rights of my
+constituents." He was interrupted by shrieks of "order" resounding on
+every side; but he only spoke the louder and obstinately finished his
+sentence before resuming his seat. The resolution was of course agreed
+to, the vote standing 117 to 68. Such was the beginning of the famous
+"gag" which became and long remained--afterward in a worse shape--a
+standing rule of the House. Regularly in each new Congress when the
+adoption of rules came up, Mr. Adams moved to rescind the "gag;" but
+for many years his motions continued to be voted down, as a        (p. 251)
+matter of course. Its imposition was clearly a mistake on the part of
+the slave-holding party; free debate would almost surely have hurt
+them less than this interference with the freedom of petition. They
+had assumed an untenable position. Henceforth, as the persistent
+advocate of the right of petition, Mr. Adams had a support among the
+people at large vastly greater than he could have enjoyed as the
+opponent of slavery. As his adversaries had shaped the issue he was
+predestined to victory in a free country.
+
+A similar scene was enacted on December 21 and 22, 1837. A "gag" or
+"speech-smothering" resolution being then again before the House, Mr.
+Adams, when his name was called in the taking of the vote, cried out
+"amidst a perfect war-whoop of 'order:' 'I hold the resolution to be a
+violation of the Constitution, of the right of petition of my
+constituents and of the people of the United States, and of my right
+to freedom of speech as a member of this House.'" Afterward, in
+reading over the names of members who had voted, the clerk omitted
+that of Mr. Adams, this utterance of his not having constituted a
+vote. Mr. Adams called attention to the omission. The clerk, by
+direction of the Speaker, thereupon called his name. His only reply
+was by a motion that his answer as already made should be entered  (p. 252)
+on the Journal. The Speaker said that this motion was not in order.
+Mr. Adams, resolute to get upon the record, requested that his motion
+with the Speaker's decision that it was not in order might be entered
+on the Journal. The next day, finding that this entry had not been
+made in proper shape, he brought up the matter again. One of his
+opponents made a false step, and Mr. Adams "bantered him" upon it
+until the other was provoked into saying that, "if the question ever
+came to the issue of war, the Southern people would march into New
+England and conquer it." Mr. Adams replied that no doubt they would if
+they could; that he entered his resolution upon the Journal because he
+was resolved that his opponent's "name should go down to posterity
+damned to everlasting fame." No one ever gained much in a war of words
+with this ever-ready and merciless tongue.
+
+Mr. Adams, having soon become known to all the nation as the
+indomitable presenter of anti-slavery petitions, quickly found that
+great numbers of people were ready to keep him busy in this trying
+task. For a long while it was almost as much as he could accomplish to
+receive, sort, schedule, and present the infinite number of petitions
+and memorials which came to him praying for the abolition of slavery
+and of the slave-trade in the District of Columbia, and opposing   (p. 253)
+the annexation of Texas. It was an occupation not altogether devoid
+even of physical danger, and calling for an amount of moral courage
+greater than it is now easy to appreciate. It is the incipient stage
+of such a conflict that tests the mettle of the little band of
+innovators. When it grows into a great party question much less
+courage is demanded. The mere presentation of an odious petition may
+seem in itself to be a simple task; but to find himself in a constant
+state of antagonism to a powerful, active, and vindictive majority in
+a debating body, constituted of such material as then made up the
+House of Representatives, wore hardly even upon the iron temper and
+inflexible disposition of Mr. Adams. "The most insignificant error of
+conduct in me at this time," he writes in April, 1837, "would be my
+irredeemable ruin in this world; and both the ruling political parties
+are watching with intense anxiety for some overt act by me to set the
+whole pack of their hireling presses upon me." But amid the host of
+foes, and aware that he could count upon the aid of scarcely a single
+hearty and daring friend, he labored only the more earnestly. The
+severe pressure against him begat only the more severe counter
+pressure upon his part.
+
+Besides these natural and legitimate difficulties, Mr. Adams was   (p. 254)
+further in the embarrassing position of one who has to fear as much
+from the imprudence of allies as from open hostility of antagonists,
+and he was often compelled to guard against a peculiar risk coming
+from his very coadjutors in the great cause. The extremists who had
+cast aside all regard for what was practicable, and who utterly
+scorned to consider the feasibility or the consequences of measures
+which seemed to them to be correct as abstract propositions of
+morality, were constantly urging him to action which would only have
+destroyed him forever in political life, would have stripped him of
+his influence, exiled him from that position in Congress where he
+could render the most efficient service that was in him, and left him
+naked of all usefulness and utterly helpless to continue that
+essential portion of the labor which could be conducted by no one
+else. "The abolitionists generally," he said, "are constantly urging
+me to indiscreet movements, which would ruin me, and weaken and not
+strengthen their cause." His family, on the other hand, sought to
+restrain him from all connection with these dangerous partisans.
+"Between these adverse impulses," he writes, "my mind is agitated
+almost to distraction.... I walk on the edge of a precipice almost
+every step that I take." In the midst of all this anxiety,         (p. 255)
+however, he was fortunately supported by the strong commendation of
+his constituents which they once loyally declared by formal and
+unanimous votes in a convention summoned for the express purpose of
+manifesting their support. His feelings appear by an entry in his
+Diary in October, 1837:--
+
+     "I have gone [he said] as far upon this article, the abolition of
+     slavery, as the public opinion of the free portion of the Union
+     will bear, and so far that scarcely a slave-holding member of the
+     House dares to vote with me upon any question. I have as yet been
+     thoroughly sustained by my own State, but one step further and I
+     hazard my own standing and influence there, my own final
+     overthrow, and the cause of liberty itself for an indefinite
+     time, certainly for more than my remnant of life. Were there in
+     the House one member capable of taking the lead in this cause of
+     universal emancipation, which is moving onward in the world and
+     in this country, I would withdraw from the contest which will
+     rage with increasing fury as it draws to its crisis, but for the
+     management of which my age, infirmities, and approaching end
+     totally disqualify me. There is no such man in the House."
+
+September 15, 1837, he says: "I have been for some time occupied day
+and night, when at home, in assorting and recording the petitions and
+remonstrances against the annexation of Texas, and other           (p. 256)
+anti-slavery petitions, which flow upon me in torrents." The next day
+he presented the singular petition of one Sherlock S. Gregory, who had
+conceived the eccentric notion of asking Congress to declare him "an
+alien or stranger in the land so long as slavery exists and the wrongs
+of the Indians are unrequited and unrepented of." September 28 he
+presented a batch of his usual petitions, and also asked leave to
+offer a resolution calling for a report concerning the coasting trade
+in slaves. "There was what Napoleon would have called a superb NO!
+returned to my request from the servile side of the House." The next
+day he presented fifty-one more like documents, and notes having
+previously presented one hundred and fifty more.
+
+In December, 1837, still at this same work, he made a hard but
+fruitless effort to have the Texan remonstrances and petitions sent to
+a select committee instead of to that on foreign affairs which was
+constituted in the Southern interest. On December 29 he "presented
+several bundles of abolition and anti-slavery petitions," and said
+that, having declared his opinion that the gag-rule was unconstitutional,
+null, and void, he should "submit to it only as to physical force."
+January 3, 1838, he presented "about a hundred petitions,          (p. 257)
+memorials, and remonstrances,--all laid on the table." January 15 he
+presented fifty more. January 28 he received thirty-one petitions, and
+spent that day and the next in assorting and filing these and others
+which he previously had, amounting in all to one hundred and twenty.
+February 14, in the same year, was a field-day in the petition campaign:
+he presented then no less than three hundred and fifty petitions, all
+but three or four of which bore more or less directly upon the slavery
+question. Among these petitions was one
+
+     "praying that Congress would take measures to protect citizens
+     from the North going to the South from danger to their lives.
+     When the motion to lay that on the table was made, I said that,
+     'In another part of the Capitol it had been threatened that if a
+     Northern abolitionist should go to North Carolina, and utter a
+     principle of the Declaration of Independence'--Here a loud cry of
+     'order! order!' burst forth, in which the Speaker yelled the
+     loudest. I waited till it subsided, and then resumed, 'that if
+     they could catch him they would hang him!' I said this so as to
+     be distinctly heard throughout the hall, the renewed deafening
+     shout of 'order! order!' notwithstanding. The Speaker then said,
+     'The gentleman from Massachusetts will take his seat;' which I
+     did and immediately rose again and presented another petition. He
+     did not dare tell me that I could not proceed without         (p. 258)
+     permission of the House, and I proceeded. The threat to hang
+     Northern abolitionists was uttered by Preston of the Senate
+     within the last fortnight."
+
+On March 12, of the same year, he presented ninety-six petitions,
+nearly all of an anti-slavery character, one of them for "expunging
+the Declaration of Independence from the Journals."
+
+On December 14, 1838, Mr. Wise, of Virginia, objected to the reception
+of certain anti-slavery petitions. The Speaker ruled his objection out
+of order, and from this ruling Wise appealed. The question on the
+appeal was taken by yeas and nays. When Mr. Adams's name was called,
+he relates:--
+
+     "I rose and said, 'Mr. Speaker, considering all the resolutions
+     introduced by the gentleman from New Hampshire as'--The Speaker
+     roared out, 'The gentleman from Massachusetts must answer Aye or
+     No, and nothing else. Order!' With a reinforced voice--'I refuse
+     to answer, because I consider all the proceedings of the House as
+     unconstitutional'--While in a firm and swelling voice I pronounced
+     distinctly these words, the Speaker and about two thirds of the
+     House cried, 'order! order! order!' till it became a perfect
+     yell. I paused a moment for it to cease and then said, 'a direct
+     violation of the Constitution of the United States.' While
+     speaking these words with loud, distinct, and slow            (p. 259)
+     articulation, the bawl of 'order! order!' resounded again from
+     two thirds of the House. The Speaker, with agonizing lungs,
+     screamed, 'I call upon the House to support me in the execution
+     of my duty!' I then coolly resumed my seat. Waddy Thompson, of
+     South Carolina, advancing into one of the aisles with a sarcastic
+     smile and silvery tone of voice, said, 'What aid from the House
+     would the Speaker desire?' The Speaker snarled back, 'The
+     gentleman from South Carolina is out of order!' and a peal of
+     laughter burst forth from all sides of the House."
+
+So that little skirmish ended, much more cheerfully than was often the
+case.
+
+December 20, 1838, he presented fifty anti-slavery petitions, among
+which were three praying for the recognition of the Republic of Hayti.
+Petitions of this latter kind he strenuously insisted should be
+referred to a select committee, or else to the Committee on Foreign
+Affairs, accompanied in the latter case with explicit instructions
+that a report thereon should be brought in. He audaciously stated that
+he asked for these instructions because so many petitions of a like
+tenor had been sent to the Foreign Affairs Committee, and had found it
+a limbo from which they never again emerged, and the chairman had said
+that this would continue to be the case. The chairman, sitting two
+rows behind Mr. Adams, said, "that insinuation should not be       (p. 260)
+made against a gentleman!" "I shall make," retorted Mr. Adams, "what
+insinuation I please. This is not an insinuation, but a direct,
+positive assertion."
+
+January 7, 1839, he cheerfully records that he presented ninety-five
+petitions, bearing "directly or indirectly upon the slavery topics,"
+and some of them very exasperating in their language. March 30, 1840,
+he handed in no less than five hundred and eleven petitions, many of
+which were not receivable under the "gag" rule adopted on January 28
+of that year, which had actually gone the length of refusing so much
+as a reception to abolition petitions. April 13, 1840, he presented a
+petition for the repeal of the laws in the District of Columbia, which
+authorized the whipping of women. Besides this he had a multitude of
+others, and he only got through the presentation of them "just as the
+morning hour expired." On January 21, 1841, he found much amusement in
+puzzling his Southern adversaries by presenting some petitions in
+which, besides the usual anti-slavery prayers, there was a prayer to
+refuse to admit to the Union any new State whose constitution should
+tolerate slavery. The Speaker said that only the latter prayer could
+be _received_ under the "gag" rule. Connor, of North Carolina,     (p. 261)
+moved to lay on the table so much of the petition as could be
+received. Mr. Adams tauntingly suggested that in order to do this it
+would be necessary to mutilate the document by cutting it into two
+pieces; whereat there was great wrath and confusion, "the House got
+into a snarl, the Speaker knew not what to do." The Southerners raved
+and fumed for a while, and finally resorted to their usual expedient,
+and dropped altogether a matter which so sorely burned their fingers.
+
+A fact, very striking in view of the subsequent course of events,
+concerning Mr. Adams's relation with the slavery question, seems
+hitherto to have escaped the attention of those who have dealt with
+his career. It may as well find a place here as elsewhere in a
+narrative which it is difficult to make strictly chronological.
+Apparently he was the first to declare the doctrine, that the
+abolition of slavery could be lawfully accomplished by the exercise of
+the war powers of the Government. The earliest expression of this
+principle is found in a speech made by him in May, 1836, concerning
+the distribution of rations to fugitives from Indian hostilities in
+Alabama and Georgia. He then said:--
+
+     "From the instant that your slave-holding States become the
+     theatre of war, civil, servile, or foreign, from that instant (p. 262)
+     the war powers of the Constitution extend to interference with
+     the institution of slavery in every way in which it can be
+     interfered with, from a claim of indemnity for slaves taken or
+     destroyed, to a cession of the State burdened with slavery to a
+     foreign power."
+
+In June, 1841, he made a speech of which no report exists, but the
+contents of which may be in part learned from the replies and
+references to it which are on record. Therein he appears to have
+declared that slavery could be abolished in the exercise of the
+treaty-making power, having reference doubtless to a treaty concluding
+a war.
+
+These views were of course mere abstract expressions of opinion as to
+the constitutionality of measures the real occurrence of which was
+anticipated by nobody. But, as the first suggestions of a doctrine in
+itself most obnoxious to the Southern theory and fundamentally
+destructive of the great Southern "institution" under perfectly
+possible circumstances, this enunciation by Mr. Adams gave rise to
+much indignation. Instead of allowing the imperfectly formulated
+principle to lose its danger in oblivion, the Southerners assailed it
+with vehemence. They taunted Mr. Adams with the opinion, as if merely
+to say that he held it was to damn him to everlasting infamy. The only
+result was that they induced him to consider the matter more       (p. 263)
+fully, and to express his belief more deliberately. In January, 1842,
+Mr. Wise attacked him upon this ground, and a month later Marshall
+followed in the same strain. These assaults were perhaps the direct
+incentive to what was said soon after by Mr. Adams, on April 14, 1842,
+in a speech concerning war with England and with Mexico, of which
+there was then some talk. Giddings, among other resolutions, had
+introduced one to the effect that the slave States had the exclusive
+right to be consulted on the subject of slavery. Mr. Adams said that
+he could not give his assent to this. One of the laws of war, he said,
+is
+
+     "that when a country is invaded, and two hostile armies are set
+     in martial array, the commanders of both armies have power to
+     emancipate all the slaves in the invaded territory."
+
+He cited some precedents from South American history, and continued:--
+
+     "Whether the war be servile, civil, or foreign, I lay this down
+     as the law of nations. I say that the military authority takes
+     for the time the place of all municipal institutions, slavery
+     among the rest. Under that state of things, so far from its being
+     true that the States where slavery exists have the exclusive
+     management of the subject, not only the President of the United
+     States but the commander of the army has power to order       (p. 264)
+     the universal emancipation of the slaves."
+
+This declaration of constitutional doctrine was made with much
+positiveness and emphasis. There for many years the matter rested. The
+principle had been clearly asserted by Mr. Adams, angrily repudiated
+by the South, and in the absence of the occasion of war there was
+nothing more to be done in the matter. But when the exigency at last
+came, and the government of the United States was brought face to face
+with by far the gravest constitutional problem presented by the great
+rebellion, then no other solution presented itself save that which had
+been suggested twenty years earlier in the days of peace by Mr. Adams.
+It was in pursuance of the doctrine to which he thus gave the first
+utterance that slavery was forever abolished in the United States.
+Extracts from the last-quoted speech long stood as the motto of the
+"Liberator;" and at the time of the Emancipation Proclamation Mr.
+Adams was regarded as the chief and sufficient authority for an act so
+momentous in its effect, so infinitely useful in a matter of national
+extremity. But it was evidently a theory which had taken strong hold
+upon him. Besides the foregoing speeches there is an explicit
+statement of it in a letter which he wrote from Washington April 4,
+1836, to Hon. Solomon Lincoln, of Hingham, a friend and            (p. 265)
+constituent. After touching upon other topics he says:--
+
+     "The new pretensions of the slave representation in Congress of a
+     right to refuse to receive petitions, and that Congress have no
+     constitutional power to abolish slavery or the slave-trade in the
+     District of Columbia, forced upon me so much of the discussion as
+     I did take upon me, but in which you are well aware I did not and
+     could not speak a tenth part of my mind. I did not, for example,
+     start the question whether by the law of God and of nature man
+     can hold _property_, HEREDITARY property, in man. I did not start
+     the question whether in the event of a servile insurrection and
+     war, Congress would not have complete unlimited control over the
+     whole subject of slavery, even to the emancipation of all the
+     slaves in the State where such insurrection should break out, and
+     for the suppression of which the freemen of Plymouth and Norfolk
+     counties, Massachusetts, should be called by Acts of Congress to
+     pour out their treasures and to shed their blood. Had I spoken my
+     mind on these two points, the sturdiest of the abolitionists
+     would have disavowed the sentiments of their champion."
+
+The projected annexation of Texas, which became a battle-ground
+whereon the tide of conflict swayed so long and so fiercely to and
+fro, profoundly stirred Mr. Adams's indignation. It is, he said, "a
+question of far deeper root and more overshadowing branches than   (p. 266)
+any or all others that now agitate this country.... I had opened it by
+my speech ... on the 25th May, 1836--by far the most noted speech that
+I ever made." He based his opposition to the annexation upon
+constitutional objections, and on September 18, 1837, offered a
+resolution that "the power of annexing the people of any independent
+State to this Union is a power not delegated by the Constitution of
+the United States to their Congress or to any department of their
+government, but reserved to the people." The Speaker refused to
+receive the motion, or even allow it to be read, on the ground that it
+was not in order. Mr. Adams repeated substantially the same motion in
+June, 1838, then adding "that any attempt by act of Congress or by
+treaty to annex the Republic of Texas to this Union would be an
+usurpation of power which it would be the right and the duty of the
+free people of the Union to resist and annul." The story of his
+opposition to this measure is, however, so interwoven with his general
+antagonism to slavery, that there is little occasion for treating them
+separately.[9]
+
+                   [Footnote 9: In an address to his constituents in
+                   September, 1842, Mr. Adams spoke of his course
+                   concerning Texas. Having mentioned Mr. Van Buren's
+                   reply, declining the formal proposition made in
+                   1837 by the Republic of Texas for annexation to the
+                   United States, he continued: "But the
+                   slave-breeding passion for the annexation was not
+                   to be so disconcerted. At the ensuing session of
+                   Congress numerous petitions and memorials for and
+                   against the annexation were presented to the House,
+                   ... and were referred to the Committee of Foreign
+                   Affairs, who, without ever taking them into
+                   consideration, towards the close of the session
+                   asked to be discharged from the consideration of
+                   them all. It was on this report that the debate
+                   arose, in which I disclosed the whole system of
+                   duplicity and perfidy towards Mexico, which had
+                   marked the Jackson Administration from its
+                   commencement to its close. It silenced the clamors
+                   for the annexation of Texas to this Union for three
+                   years till the catastrophe of the Van Buren
+                   Administration. The people of the free States were
+                   lulled into the belief that the whole project was
+                   abandoned, and that they should hear no more of
+                   slave-trade cravings for the annexation of Texas.
+                   Had Harrison lived they would have heard no more of
+                   them to this day, but no sooner was John Tyler
+                   installed in the President's House than
+                   nullification and Texas and war with Mexico rose
+                   again upon the surface, with eye steadily fixed
+                   upon the Polar Star of Southern slave-dealing
+                   supremacy in the government of the Union."]
+
+People sometimes took advantage of his avowed principles           (p. 267)
+concerning freedom of petition to put him in positions which they
+thought would embarrass him or render him ridiculous. Not much
+success, however, attended these foolish efforts of shallow wits. It
+was not easy to disconcert him or to take him at disadvantage. July
+28, 1841, he presented a paper of this character coming from sundry
+Virginians and praying that all the free colored population should be
+sold or expelled from the country. He simply stated as he handed in
+the sheet that nothing could be more abhorrent to him than this    (p. 268)
+prayer, and that his respect for the right of petition was his
+only motive for presenting this. It was suspended under the "gag"
+rule, and its promoters, unless very easily amused, must have been
+sadly disappointed with the fate and effect of their joke. On March 5,
+1838, he received from Rocky Mount in Virginia a letter and petition
+praying that the House would arraign at its bar and forever expel John
+Quincy Adams. He presented both documents, with a resolution asking
+that they be referred to a committee for investigation and report. His
+enemies in the House saw that he was sure to have the best of the
+sport if the matter should be pursued, and succeeded in laying it on
+the table. Waddy Thompson thoughtfully improved the opportunity to
+mention to Mr. Adams that he also had received a petition, "numerously
+signed," praying for Mr. Adams's expulsion, but had never presented
+it. In the following May Mr. Adams presented another petition of like
+tenor. Dromgoole said that he supposed it was a "quiz," and that he
+would move to lay it on the table, "unless the gentleman from
+Massachusetts wished to give it another direction." Mr. Adams said
+that "the gentleman from Massachusetts cared very little about it,"
+and it found the limbo of the "table."
+
+To this same period belongs the memorable tale of Mr. Adams's      (p. 269)
+attempt to present a petition from slaves. On February 6, 1837, he
+brought in some two hundred abolition petitions. He closed with one
+against the slave-trade in the District of Columbia purporting to be
+signed by "nine ladies of Fredericksburg, Virginia," whom he declined
+to name because, as he said, in the present disposition of the
+country, "he did not know what might happen to them if he did name
+them." Indeed, he added, he was not sure that the petition was
+genuine; he had said, when he began to present his petitions, that
+some among them were so peculiar that he was in doubt as to their
+genuineness, and this fell within the description. Apparently he had
+concluded and was about to take his seat, when he quickly caught up
+another sheet, and said that he held in his hand a paper concerning
+which he should wish to have the decision of the Speaker before
+presenting it. It purported to be a petition from twenty-two slaves,
+and he would like to know whether it came within the rule of the House
+concerning petitions relating to slavery. The Speaker, in manifest
+confusion, said that he could not answer the question until he knew
+the contents of the document. Mr. Adams, remarking that "it was one of
+those petitions which had occurred to his mind as not being what   (p. 270)
+it purported to be," proposed to send it up to the Chair for
+inspection. Objection was made to this, and the Speaker said that the
+circumstances were so extraordinary that he would take the sense of
+the House. That body, at first inattentive, now became interested, and
+no sooner did a knowledge of what was going on spread among those
+present than great excitement prevailed. Members were hastily brought
+in from the lobbies; many tried to speak, and from parts of the hall
+cries of "Expel him! Expel him!" were heard. For a brief interval no
+one of the enraged Southerners was equal to the unforeseen emergency.
+Mr. Haynes moved the rejection of the petition. Mr. Lewis deprecated
+this motion, being of opinion that the House must inflict punishment
+on the gentleman from Massachusetts. Mr. Haynes thereupon withdrew a
+motion which was so obviously inadequate to the vindictive gravity of
+the occasion. Mr. Grantland stood ready to second a motion to punish
+Mr. Adams, and Mr. Lewis said that if punishment should not be meted
+out it would "be better for the representatives from the slave-holding
+States to go home at once." Mr. Alford said that so soon as the
+petition should be presented he would move that it should "be taken
+from the House and burned." At last Mr. Thompson got a resolution  (p. 271)
+into shape as follows:--
+
+     "That the Hon. John Quincy Adams, by the attempt just made by him
+     to introduce a petition purporting on its face to be from slaves,
+     has been guilty of a gross disrespect to this House, and that he
+     be instantly brought to the bar to receive the severe censure of
+     the Speaker."
+
+In supporting this resolution he said that Mr. Adams's action was in
+gross and wilful violation of the rules of the House and an insult to
+its members. He even threatened criminal proceedings before the grand
+jury of the District of Columbia, saying that if that body had the
+"proper intelligence and spirit" people might "yet see an incendiary
+brought to condign punishment." Mr. Haynes, not satisfied with Mr.
+Thompson's resolution, proposed a substitute to the effect that Mr.
+Adams had "rendered himself justly liable to the severest censure of
+this House and is censured accordingly." Then there ensued a little
+more excited speech-making and another resolution, that Mr. Adams,
+
+     "by his attempt to introduce into this House a petition from
+     slaves for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia,
+     has committed an outrage on the feelings of the people of a large
+     portion of this Union; a flagrant contempt on the dignity     (p. 272)
+     of this House; and, by extending to slaves a privilege only
+     belonging to freemen, directly incites the slave population
+     to insurrection; and that the said member be forthwith called to
+     the bar of the House and be censured by the Speaker."
+
+Mr. Lewis remained of opinion that it might be best for the Southern
+members to go home,--a proposition which afterwards drew forth a
+flaming speech from Mr. Alford, who, far from inclining to go home,
+was ready to stay "until this fair city is a field of Waterloo and
+this beautiful Potomac a river of blood." Mr. Patton, of Virginia, was
+the first to speak a few words to bring members to their senses,
+pertinently asking whether Mr. Adams had "attempted to offer" this
+petition, and whether it did indeed pray for the abolition of slavery.
+It might be well, he suggested, for his friends to be sure of their
+facts before going further. Then at last Mr. Adams, who had not at all
+lost his head in the general hurly-burly, rose and said, that amid
+these numerous resolutions charging him with "high crimes and
+misdemeanors" and calling him to the bar of the House to answer for
+the same, he had thought it proper to remain silent until the House
+should take some action; that he did not suppose that, if he should be
+brought to the bar of the House, he should be "struck mute by the  (p. 273)
+previous question" before he should have been given an opportunity to
+"say a word or two" in his own defence. As to the facts: "I did not
+present the petition," he said, "and I appeal to the Speaker to say
+that I did not.... I intended to take the decision of the Speaker
+before I went one step towards presenting or offering to present that
+petition." The contents of the petition, should the House ever choose
+to read it, he continued, would render necessary some amendments at
+least in the last resolution, since the prayer was that slavery should
+_not_ be abolished!" The gentleman from Alabama may perchance find,
+that the object of this petition is precisely what he desires to
+accomplish; and that these slaves who have sent this paper to me are
+his auxiliaries instead of being his opponents."
+
+These remarks caused some discomfiture among the Southern members, who
+were glad to have time for deliberation given them by a maundering
+speech from Mr. Mann, of New York, who talked about "the deplorable
+spectacle shown off every petition day by the honorable member from
+Massachusetts in presenting the abolition petitions of his infatuated
+friends and constituents," charged Mr. Adams with running counter to
+the sense of the whole country with a "violence paralleled only    (p. 274)
+by the revolutionary madness of desperation," and twitted him with his
+political friendlessness, with his age, and with the insinuation of
+waning faculties and judgment. This little phial having been emptied,
+Mr. Thompson arose and angrily assailed Mr. Adams for contemptuously
+trifling with the House, which charge he based upon the entirely
+unproved assumption that the petition was not a genuine document. He
+concluded by presenting new resolutions better adapted to the recent
+development of the case:--
+
+     "1. That the Hon. John Quincy Adams, by an effort to present a
+     petition from slaves, has committed a gross contempt of this
+     House.
+
+     "2. That the member from Massachusetts above-named, by creating
+     the impression and leaving the House under such impression, that
+     the said petition was for the abolition of slavery, when he knew
+     that it was not, has trifled with the House.
+
+     "3. That the Hon. John Quincy Adams receive the censure of the
+     House for his conduct referred to in the preceding resolutions."
+
+Mr. Pinckney said that the avowal by Mr. Adams that he had in his
+possession the petition of slaves was an admission of communication
+with slaves, and so was evidence of collusion with them; and that Mr.
+Adams had thus rendered himself indictable for aiding and abetting (p. 275)
+insurrection. A _fortiori_, then, was he not amenable to the censure
+of the House? Mr. Haynes, of Georgia, forgetting that the petition had
+not been presented, announced his intention of moving that it should
+be rejected subject only to a permission for its withdrawal; another
+member suggested that, if the petition should be disposed of by
+burning, it would be well to commit to the same combustion the
+gentleman who presented it.
+
+On the next day some more resolutions were ready, prepared by
+Dromgoole, who in his sober hours was regarded as the best
+parliamentarian in the Southern party. These were, that Mr. Adams
+
+     "by stating in his place that he had in his possession a paper
+     purporting to be a petition from slaves, and inquiring if it came
+     within the meaning of a resolution heretofore adopted (as
+     preliminary to its presentation), has given color to the idea
+     that slaves have the right of petition and of his readiness to be
+     their organ; and that for the same he deserves the censure of the
+     House.
+
+     "That the aforesaid John Quincy Adams receive a censure from the
+     Speaker in the presence of the House of Representatives."
+
+Mr. Alford, in advocating these resolutions, talked about "this awful
+crisis of our beloved country." Mr. Robertson, though opposing     (p. 276)
+the resolutions, took pains "strongly to condemn ... the conduct of
+the gentleman from Massachusetts." Mr. Adams's colleague, Mr. Lincoln,
+spoke in his behalf, so also did Mr. Evans, of Maine; and Caleb
+Cushing made a powerful speech upon his side. Otherwise than this Mr.
+Adams was left to carry on the contest single-handed against the
+numerous array of assailants, all incensed and many fairly savage. Yet
+it is a striking proof of the dread in which even the united body of
+hot-blooded Southerners stood of this hard fighter from the North,
+that as the debate was drawing to a close, after they had all said
+their say and just before his opportunity came for making his
+elaborate speech of defence, they suddenly and opportunely became
+ready to content themselves with a mild resolution, which condemned
+generally the presentation of petitions from slaves, and, for the
+disposal of this particular case, recited that Mr. Adams had "solemnly
+disclaimed all design of doing anything disrespectful to the House,"
+and had "avowed his intention not to offer to present" to the House
+the petition of this kind held by him; that "therefore all further
+proceedings in regard to his conduct do now cease." A sneaking effort
+by Mr. Vanderpoel to close Mr. Adams's mouth by moving the         (p. 277)
+previous question involved too much cowardice to be carried; and so on
+February 9 the sorely bated man was at last able to begin his final
+speech. He conducted his defence with singular spirit and ability, but
+at too great length to admit of even a sketch of what he said. He
+claimed the right of petition for slaves, and established it so far as
+argument can establish anything. He alleged that all he had done was
+to ask a question of the Speaker, and if he was to be censured for so
+doing, then how much more, he asked, was the Speaker deserving of
+censure who had even put the same question to the House, and given as
+his reason for so doing that it was not only of novel but of difficult
+import! He repudiated the idea that any member of the House could be
+held by a grand jury to respond for words spoken in debate, and
+recommended the gentlemen who had indulged in such preposterous
+threats "to study a little the first principles of civil liberty,"
+excoriating them until they actually arose and tried to explain away
+their own language. He cast infinite ridicule upon the unhappy
+expression of Dromgoole, "giving color to an idea." Referring to the
+difficulty which he encountered by reason of the variety and disorder
+of the resolutions and charges against him with which "gentlemen from
+the South had pounced down upon him like so many eagles upon a     (p. 278)
+dove,"--there was an exquisite sarcasm in the simile!--he said:
+"When I take up one idea, before I can give color to the idea, it has
+already changed its form and presents itself for consideration under
+other colors.... What defence can be made against this new crime of
+giving color to ideas?" As for trifling with the House by presenting a
+petition which in the course of debate had become pretty well known
+and acknowledged to be a hoax designed to lead Mr. Adams into a
+position of embarrassment and danger, he disclaimed any such motive,
+reminding members that he had given warning, when beginning to present
+his petitions, that he was suspicious that some among them might not
+be genuine.[10] But while denying all intention of trifling with the
+House, he rejected the mercy extended to him in the last of the    (p. 279)
+long series of resolutions before that body. "I disclaim not," he
+said, "any particle of what I have done, not a single word of what I
+have said do I unsay; nay, I am ready to do and to say the same
+to-morrow." He had no notion of aiding in making a loophole through
+which his blundering enemies might escape, even though he himself
+should be accorded the privilege of crawling through it with them. At
+times during his speech "there was great agitation in the House," but
+when he closed no one seemed ambitious to reply. His enemies had
+learned anew a lesson, often taught to them before and often to be
+impressed upon them again, that it was perilous to come to close
+quarters with Mr. Adams. They gave up all idea of censuring him, and
+were content to apply a very mild emollient to their own smarting
+wounds in the shape of a resolution, to the effect that slaves did not
+possess the right of petition secured by the Constitution to the
+people of the United States.
+
+                   [Footnote 10: Mr. Adams afterward said: "I believed
+                   the petition signed by female names to be
+                   genuine.... I had suspicions that the other,
+                   purporting to be from slaves, came really from the
+                   hand of a master who had prevailed on his slaves to
+                   sign it, that they might have the appearance of
+                   imploring the members from the North to cease
+                   offering petitions for their emancipation, which
+                   could have no other tendency than to aggravate
+                   their servitude, and of being so impatient under
+                   the operation of petitions in their favor as to
+                   pray that the Northern members who should persist
+                   in presenting them should be expelled." It was a
+                   part of the prayer of the petition that Mr. Adams
+                   should be expelled if he should continue to present
+                   abolition petitions.]
+
+In the winter of 1842-43 the questions arising out of the affair of
+the Creole rendered the position then held by Mr. Adams at the head of
+the House Committee on Foreign Affairs exceedingly distasteful to the
+slave-holders. On January 21, 1842, a somewhat singular            (p. 280)
+manifestation of this feeling was made when Mr. Adams himself
+presented a petition from Georgia praying for his removal from this
+Chairmanship. Upon this he requested to be heard in his own behalf.
+The Southern party, not sanguine of any advantage from debating the
+matter, tried to lay it on the table. The petition was alleged by
+Habersham, of Georgia, to be undoubtedly another hoax. But Mr. Adams,
+loath to lose a good opportunity, still claimed to be heard on the
+charges made against him by the "infamous slave-holders." Mr. Smith,
+of Virginia, said that the House had lately given Mr. Adams leave to
+defend himself against the charge of monomania, and asked whether he
+was doing so. Some members cried "Yes! Yes!"; others shouted "No! he
+is establishing the fact." The wrangling was at last brought to an end
+by the Speaker's declaration, that the petition must lie over for the
+present. But the scene had been only the prelude to one much longer,
+fiercer, and more exciting. No sooner was the document thus
+temporarily disposed of than Mr. Adams rose and presented the petition
+of forty-five citizens of Haverhill, Massachusetts, praying the House
+"immediately to adopt measures peaceably to dissolve the union of
+these States," for the alleged cause of the incompatibility        (p. 281)
+between free and slave-holding communities. He moved "its reference to
+a select committee, with instructions to report an answer to the
+petitioners showing the reasons why the prayer of it ought not to be
+granted."
+
+In a moment the House was aflame with excitement. The numerous members
+who hated Mr. Adams thought that at last he was experiencing the
+divinely sent madness which foreruns destruction. Those who sought his
+political annihilation felt that the appointed and glorious hour of
+extinction had come; those who had writhed beneath the castigation of
+his invective exulted in the near revenge. While one said that the
+petition should never have been brought within the walls of the House,
+and another wished to burn it in the presence of the members, Mr.
+Gilmer, of Virginia, offered a resolution, that in presenting the
+petition Mr. Adams "had justly incurred the censure of the House."
+Some objection was made to this resolution as not being in order; but
+Mr. Adams said that he hoped that it would be received and debated and
+that an opportunity would be given him to speak in his own defence;
+"especially as the gentleman from Virginia had thought proper to play
+second fiddle to his colleague[11] from Accomac." Mr. Gilmer retorted
+that he "played second fiddle to no man. He was no fiddler, but    (p. 282)
+was endeavoring to prevent the music of him who,
+
+  'In the space of one revolving moon,
+  Was statesman, poet, fiddler, and buffoon.'"
+
+The resolution was then laid on the table. The House rose, and Mr.
+Adams went home and noted in his Diary, "evening in meditation," for
+which indeed he had abundant cause. On the following day Thomas F.
+Marshall, of Kentucky, offered a substitute for Gilmer's resolution.
+This new fulmination had been prepared in a caucus of forty members of
+the slave-holding party, and was long and carefully framed. Its
+preamble recited, in substance, that a petition to dissolve the Union,
+proposing to Congress to destroy that which the several members had
+solemnly and officially sworn to support, was a "high breach of
+privilege, a contempt offered to this House, a direct proposition to
+the Legislature and each member of it to commit perjury, and involving
+necessarily in its execution and its consequences the destruction of
+our country and the crime of high treason:" wherefore it was to be
+resolved that Mr. Adams, in presenting a petition for dissolution, had
+"offered the deepest indignity to the House" and "an insult to the
+people;" that if "this outrage" should be "permitted to pass unrebuked
+and unpunished" he would have "disgraced his country ... in the    (p. 283)
+eyes of the whole world;" that for this insult and this "wound at
+the Constitution and existence of his country, the peace, the security
+and liberty of the people of these States" he "might well be held to
+merit expulsion from the national councils;" and that "the House deem
+it an act of grace and mercy when they only inflict upon him their
+severest censure;" that so much they must do "for the maintenance of
+their own purity and dignity; for the rest they turned him over to his
+own conscience and the indignation of all true American citizens."
+
+                   [Footnote 11: Henry A. Wise.]
+
+These resolutions were then advocated by Mr. Marshall at great length
+and with extreme bitterness. Mr. Adams replied shortly, stating that
+he should wish to make his full defence at a later stage of the
+debate. Mr. Wise followed in a personal and acrimonious harangue; Mr.
+Everett[12] gave some little assistance to Mr. Adams, and the House
+again adjourned. The following day Wise continued his speech, very
+elaborately. When he closed, Mr. Adams, who had "determined not to
+interrupt him till he had discharged his full cargo of filthy invective,"
+rose to "make a preliminary point." He questioned the right of the
+House to entertain Marshall's resolutions since the preamble assumed
+him to be guilty of the crimes of subornation of perjury and       (p. 284)
+treason, and the resolutions themselves censured him as if he had been
+found guilty; whereas in fact he had not been tried upon these charges
+and of course had not been convicted. If he was to be brought to trial
+upon them he asserted his right to have the proceedings conducted
+before a jury of his peers, and that the House was not a tribunal
+having this authority. But if he was to be tried for contempt, for
+which alone he could lawfully be tried by the House, still there were
+an hundred members sitting on its benches who were morally
+disqualified to judge him, who could not give him an impartial trial,
+because they were prejudiced and the question was one "on which their
+personal, pecuniary, and most sordid interests were at stake." Such
+considerations, he said, ought to prevent many gentlemen from voting,
+as Mr. Wise had avowed that they would prevent him. Here Wise
+interrupted to disavow that he was influenced by any such reasons, but
+rather, he said, by the "personal loathing, dread, and contempt I feel
+for the man." Mr. Adams, continuing after this pleasant interjection,
+admitted that he was in the power of the majority, who might try him
+against law and condemn him against right if they would.
+
+                   [Footnote 12: Horace Everett, of Vermont.]
+
+     "If they say they will try me, they must try me. If they      (p. 285)
+     say they will punish me, they must punish me. But if they say
+     that in peace and mercy they will spare me expulsion, I disdain
+     and cast away their mercy; and I ask them if they will come to
+     such a trial and expel me. I defy them. I have constituents to go
+     to who will have something to say if this House expels me. Nor
+     will it be long before the gentlemen will see me here again."
+
+Such was the fierce temper and indomitable courage of this inflexible
+old man! He flung contempt in the face of those who had him wholly in
+their power, and in the same breath in which he acknowledged that
+power he dared them to use it. He charged Wise with the guilt of
+innocent blood, in connection with certain transactions in a duel, and
+exasperated that gentleman into crying out that the "charge made by
+the gentleman from Massachusetts was as base and black a lie as the
+traitor was base and black who uttered it." When he was asked by the
+Speaker to put his point of order in writing,--his own request to the
+like effect in another case having been refused shortly before,--he
+tauntingly congratulated that gentleman "upon his discovery of the
+expediency of having points of order reduced to writing--a favor which
+he had repeatedly denied to me." When Mr. Wise was speaking, "I
+interrupted him occasionally," says Mr. Adams, "sometimes to       (p. 286)
+provoke him into absurdity." As usual he was left to fight out his
+desperate battle substantially single-handed. Only Mr. Everett
+occasionally helped him a very little; while one or two others who
+spoke against the resolutions were careful to explain that they felt
+no personal good will towards Mr. Adams. But he faced the odds
+courageously. It was no new thing for him to be pitted alone against a
+"solid South." Outside the walls of the House he had some sympathy and
+some assistance tendered him by individuals, among others by Rufus
+Choate then in the Senate, and by his own colleagues from
+Massachusetts. This support aided and cheered him somewhat, but could
+not prevent substantially the whole burden of the labor and brunt of
+the contest from bearing upon him alone. Among the external
+manifestations of feeling, those of hostility were naturally largely
+in the ascendant. The newspapers of Washington--the "Globe" and the
+"National Intelligencer"--which reported the debates, daily filled
+their columns with all the abuse and invective which was poured forth
+against him, while they gave the most meagre statements, or none at
+all, of what he said in his own defence. Among other amenities he
+received from North Carolina an anonymous letter threatening him with
+assassination, having also an engraved portrait of him with the    (p. 287)
+mark of a rifle-ball in the forehead, and the motto "to stop the
+music of John Quincy Adams," etc., etc. This missive he read and
+displayed in the House, but it was received with profound indifference
+by men who would not have greatly objected to the execution of the
+barbarous threat.
+
+The prolonged struggle cost him deep anxiety and sleepless nights,
+which in the declining years of a laborious life told hardly upon his
+aged frame. But against all odds of numbers and under all
+disadvantages of circumstances the past repeated itself, and Mr. Adams
+alone won a victory over all the cohorts of the South. Several
+attempts had been made during the debate to lay the whole subject on
+the table. Mr. Adams said that he would consent to this simply because
+his defence would be a very long affair, and he did not wish to have
+the time of the House consumed and the business of the nation brought
+to a stand solely for the consideration of his personal affairs. These
+propositions failing, he began his speech and soon was making such
+headway that even his adversaries were constrained to see that the
+opportunity which they had conceived to be within their grasp was
+eluding them, as had so often happened before. Accordingly on February
+7 the motion to "lay the whole subject on the table forever" was   (p. 288)
+renewed and carried by one hundred and six votes to ninety-three.
+The House then took up the original petition and refused to receive it
+by one hundred and sixty-six to forty. No sooner was this consummation
+reached than the irrepressible champion rose to his feet and proceeded
+with his budget of anti-slavery petitions, of which he "presented
+nearly two hundred, till the House adjourned."
+
+Within a very short time there came further and convincing proof that
+Mr. Adams was victor. On February 26 he writes: "D. D. Barnard told me
+he had received a petition from his District, signed by a small number
+of very respectable persons, praying for a dissolution of the Union.
+He said he did not know what to do with it. I dined with him." By
+March 14 this dinner bore fruit. Mr. Barnard had made up his mind
+"what to do with it." He presented it, with a motion that it be
+referred to a select committee with instructions to report adversely
+to its prayer. The well-schooled House now took the presentation
+without a ripple of excitement, and was content with simply voting not
+to receive the petition.
+
+In the midst of the toil and anxiety imposed upon Mr. Adams by this
+effort to censure and disgrace him, the scheme, already referred to,
+for displacing him from the chairmanship of the Committee on       (p. 289)
+Foreign Affairs had been actively prosecuted. He was notified that the
+Southern members had formed a cabal for removing him and putting Caleb
+Cushing in his place. The plan was, however, temporarily checked, and
+so soon as Mr. Adams had triumphed in the House the four Southern
+members of the committee sent to the House a paper begging to be
+excused from further services on the committee, "because from recent
+occurrences it was doubtful whether the House would remove the
+chairman, and they were unwilling to serve with one in whom they had
+no confidence." The fugitives were granted, "by a shout of
+acclamation," the excuse which they sought for so welcome a reason,
+and the same was also done for a fifth member. Three more of the same
+party, nominated to fill these vacancies, likewise asked to be
+excused, and were so. Their letters preferring this request were "so
+insulting personally" to Mr. Adams as to constitute "gross breaches of
+privilege." "The Speaker would have refused to receive or present them
+had they referred to any other man in the House." They were published,
+but Mr. Adams, after some hesitation, determined not to give them the
+importance which would result from any public notice in the House upon
+his part. He could afford to keep silence, and judged wisely in doing
+so.
+
+Amid all the animosity and rancor entertained towards Mr. Adams,   (p. 290)
+there yet lurked a degree of respect for his courage, honesty, and
+ability which showed itself upon occasion, doubtless not a little to
+the surprise of the members themselves who were hardly conscious that
+they entertained such sentiments until startled into a manifestation
+of them. An eminent instance of this is to be found in the story of
+the troubled days preceding the organization of the twenty-sixth
+Congress. On December 2, 1839, the members elect of that body came
+together in Washington, with the knowledge that the seats of five
+gentlemen from New Jersey, who brought with them the regular
+gubernatorial certificate of their election, would be contested by
+five other claimants. According to custom Garland, clerk of the last
+House, called the assemblage to order and began the roll-call. When he
+came to New Jersey he called the name of one member from that State,
+and then said that there were five other seats which were contested,
+and that not feeling authorized to decide the dispute he would pass
+over the names of the New Jersey members and proceed with the roll
+till the House should be formed, when the question could be decided.
+Plausible as appeared this abstention from an exercise of authority in
+so grave a dispute, it was nevertheless really an assumption and   (p. 291)
+not a deprecation of power, and as such was altogether unjustifiable.
+The clerk's sole business was to call the names of those persons who
+presented the usual formal credentials; he had no right to take
+cognizance that the seats of any such persons might be the subject of
+a contest, which could properly be instituted, conducted, and
+determined only before and by the House itself when organized. But his
+course was not innocent of a purpose. So evenly was the House divided
+that the admission or exclusion of these five members in the first
+instance would determine the political complexion of the body. The
+members holding the certificates were Whigs; if the clerk could keep
+them out until the organization of the House should be completed, then
+the Democrats would control that organization, would elect their
+Speaker, and through him would make up the committees.
+
+[Illustration: Henry A. Wise]
+
+Naturally enough this arrogation of power by the clerk, the motives
+and consequences of which were abundantly obvious, raised a terrible
+storm. The debate continued till four o'clock in the afternoon, when a
+motion was made to adjourn. The clerk said that he could put no
+question, not even of adjournment, till the House should be formed.
+But there was a general cry to adjourn, and the clerk declared the
+House adjourned. Mr. Adams went home and wrote in his Diary that   (p. 292)
+the clerk's "two decisions form together an insurmountable objection
+to the transaction of any business, and an impossibility of organizing
+the House.... The most curious part of the case is, that his own
+election as clerk depends upon the exclusion of the New Jersey
+members." The next day was consumed in a fierce debate as to whether
+the clerk should be allowed to read an explanatory statement. Again
+the clerk refused to put the question of adjournment, but, "upon
+inspection," declared an adjournment. Some called out "a count! a
+count!" while most rushed out of the hall, and Wise cried loudly, "Now
+we are a mob!" The next day there was more violent debating, but no
+progress towards a decision. Various party leaders offered
+resolutions, none of which accomplished anything. The condition was
+ridiculous, disgraceful, and not without serious possibilities of
+danger. Neither did any light of encouragement break in any quarter.
+In the crisis there seemed, by sudden consent of all, to be a turning
+towards Mr. Adams. Prominent men of both parties came to him and
+begged him to interfere. He was reluctant to plunge into the
+embroilment; but the great urgency and the abundant assurances of
+support placed little less than actual compulsion upon him.
+Accordingly on December 5 he rose to address the House. He was     (p. 293)
+greeted as a _Deus ex machina_. Not speaking to the clerk, but turning
+directly to the assembled members, he began: "Fellow citizens! Members
+elect of the twenty-sixth Congress!" He could not resist the temptation
+of administering a brief but severe and righteous castigation to
+Garland; and then, ignoring that functionary altogether, proceeded to
+beg the House to _organize itself_. To this end he said that he would
+offer a resolution "ordering the clerk to call the members from New
+Jersey possessing the credentials from the Governor of that State."
+There had been already no lack of resolutions, but the difficulty lay
+in the clerk's obstinate refusal to put the question upon them. So now
+the puzzled cry went up: "How shall the question be put?" "I intend to
+put the question myself," said the dauntless old man, wholly equal to
+the emergency. A tumult of applause resounded upon all sides. Rhett,
+of South Carolina, sprang up and offered a resolution, that Williams,
+of North Carolina, the oldest member of the House, be appointed
+chairman of the meeting; but upon objection by Williams, he
+substituted the name of Mr. Adams, and put the question. He was
+"answered by an almost universal shout in the affirmative." Whereupon
+Rhett and Williams conducted the old man to the chair. It was a    (p. 294)
+proud moment. Wise, of Virginia, afterward said, addressing a
+complimentary speech to Mr. Adams, "and if, when you shall be gathered
+to your fathers, I were asked to select the words which in my judgment
+are calculated to give at once the best character of the man, I would
+inscribe upon your tomb this sentence, 'I will put the question
+myself!'" Doubtless Wise and a good many more would have been glad
+enough to put almost any epitaph on a tombstone for Mr. Adams.[13] It
+must, however, be acknowledged that the impetuous Southerners behaved
+very handsomely by their arch foe on this occasion, and were for once
+as chivalrous in fact as they always were in profession.
+
+                   [Footnote 13: Not quite two years later, pending a
+                   motion to reprimand Mr. Wise for fighting with a
+                   member on the floor of the House, that gentleman
+                   took pains insultingly to say, "that there was but
+                   one man in the House whose judgment he was
+                   unwilling to abide by," and that man was Mr.
+                   Adams.]
+
+Smooth water had by no means been reached when Mr. Adams was placed at
+the helm; on the contrary, the buffeting became only the more severe
+when the members were no longer restrained by a lurking dread of grave
+disaster if not of utter shipwreck. Between two bitterly incensed and
+evenly divided parties engaged in a struggle for an important prize,
+Mr. Adams, having no strictly lawful authority pertaining to       (p. 295)
+his singular and anomalous position, was hard taxed to perform his
+functions. It is impossible to follow the intricate and acrimonious
+quarrels of the eleven days which succeeded until on December 16, upon
+the eleventh ballot, R. M. T. Hunter, of Virginia, was elected Speaker,
+and Mr. Adams was relieved from the most arduous duty imposed upon him
+during his life. In the course of the debates there had been "much
+vituperation and much equally unacceptable compliment" lavished upon
+him. After the organization of the House, there was some talk of
+moving a vote of thanks, but he entreated that it should not be done.
+"In the rancorous and bitter temper of the Administration party,
+exasperated by their disappointment in losing their Speaker, the
+resolution of thanks," he said, "would have been lost if it had been
+offered." However this might have been, history has determined this
+occurrence to have been one of the most brilliant episodes in a life
+which had many distinctions.
+
+A few incidents indicative of respect must have been welcome enough in
+the solitary fight-laden career of Mr. Adams. He needed some
+occasional encouragement to keep him from sinking into despondency;
+for though he was of so unyielding and belligerent a disposition, of
+such ungracious demeanor, so uncompromising with friend and foe,   (p. 296)
+yet he was a man of deep and strong feelings, and in a way even
+very sensitive though a proud reserve kept the secret of this quality
+so close that few suspected it. His Diary during his Congressional
+life shows a man doing his duty sternly rather than cheerfully,
+treading resolutely a painful path, having the reward which attends
+upon a clear conscience, but neither light-hearted nor often even
+happy. Especially he was frequently disappointed at the returns which
+he received from others, and considered himself "ill-treated by every
+public man whom circumstances had brought into competition with him;"
+they had returned his "acts of kindness and services" with "gross
+injustice." The reflection did not induce him to deflect his course in
+the least, but it was made with much bitterness of spirit. Toward the
+close of 1835 he writes:--
+
+     "Among the dark spots in human nature which in the course of my
+     life I have observed, the devices of rivals to ruin me have been
+     sorry pictures of the heart of man.... H. G. Otis, Theophilus
+     Parsons, Timothy Pickering, James A. Bayard, Henry Clay, Jonathan
+     Russell, William H. Crawford, John C. Calhoun, Andrew Jackson,
+     Daniel Webster, and John Davis, W. B. Giles, and John Randolph,
+     have used up their faculties in base and dirty tricks to thwart
+     my progress in life and destroy my character."
+
+
+Truly a long and exhaustive list of enmities! One can but suspect  (p. 297)
+that a man of so many quarrels must have been quarrelsome. Certain it
+is, however, that in nearly every difference which Mr. Adams had in
+his life a question of right and wrong, of moral or political
+principle, had presented itself to him. His intention was always good,
+though his manner was so habitually irritating. He himself says that
+to nearly all these men--Russell alone specifically excepted--he had
+"returned good for evil," that he had "never wronged any one of them,"
+and had even "neglected too much his self-defence against them." In
+October, 1833, he said: "I subject myself to so much toil and so much
+enmity, with so very little apparent fruit, that I sometimes ask
+myself whether I do not mistake my own motives. The best actions of my
+life make me nothing but enemies." In February, 1841, he made a
+powerful speech in castigation of Henry A. Wise, who had been
+upholding in Southern fashion slavery, duelling, and nullification. He
+received afterward some messages of praise and sympathy, but noted
+with pain that his colleagues thought it one of his "eccentric, wild,
+extravagant freaks of passion;" and with a pathetic sense of
+loneliness he adds: "All around me is cold and discouraging and my own
+feelings are wound up to a pitch that my reason can scarcely       (p. 298)
+endure." A few days later he had the pleasure of hearing one of the
+members say, in a speech, that there was an opinion among many that
+Mr. Adams was insane and did not know what he said. While a fight was
+going on such incidents only fired his blood, but afterwards the
+reminiscence affected his spirits cruelly.
+
+In August, 1840, he writes that he has been twelve years submitting in
+silence to the "foulest and basest aspersions," to which it would have
+been waste of time to make reply, since the public ear had not been
+open to him. "Is the time arriving," he asks, "for me to speak? or
+must I go down to the grave and leave posterity to do justice to my
+father and to me?"
+
+He has had at least the advantage of saying his say to posterity in a
+very effective and convincing shape in that Diary, which so discomfited
+and enraged General Jackson. There is plain enough speaking in its
+pages, which were a safety valve whereby much wrath escaped. Mr. Adams
+had the faculty of forcible expression when he chose to employ it, as
+may be seen from a few specimen sentences. On March 28, 1840, he
+remarks that Atherton "this day emitted half an hour of his rotten
+breath against" a pending bill. Atherton was infamous as the mover of
+the "gag" resolution, and Mr. Adams abhorred him accordingly.      (p. 299)
+Duncan, of Cincinnati, mentioned as "delivering a dose of balderdash,"
+is described as "the prime bully of the Kinderhook Democracy," without
+"perception of any moral distinction between truth and falsehood, ...
+a thorough-going hack-demagogue, coarse, vulgar, and impudent, with a
+vein of low humor exactly suited to the rabble of a popular city and
+equally so to the taste of the present House of Representatives."
+Other similar bits of that pessimism and belief in the deterioration
+of the times, so common in old men, occasionally appear. In August,
+1835, he thinks that "the signs of the times are portentous. All the
+tendencies of legislation are to the removal of restrictions from the
+vicious and the guilty, and to the exercise of all the powers of
+government, legislative, judicial, and executive, by lawless
+assemblages of individuals." December 27, 1838, he looks upon the
+Senate and the House, "the cream of the land, the culled darlings of
+fifteen millions," and observes that "the remarkable phenomenon that
+they present is the level of intellect and of morals upon which they
+stand; and this universal mediocrity is the basis upon which the
+liberties of this nation repose." In July, 1840, he thinks that
+
+     "parties are falling into profligate factions. I have seen this
+     before; but the worst symptom now is the change in the        (p. 300)
+     manners of the people. The continuance of the present Administration
+     ... will open wide all the flood-gates of corruption. Will a change
+     produce reform? Pause and ponder! Slavery, the Indians, the public
+     lands, the collection and disbursement of public money, the tariff,
+     and foreign affairs:--what is to become of them?"
+
+On January 29, 1841, Henry A. Wise uttered "a motley compound of
+eloquence and folly, of braggart impudence and childish vanity, of
+self-laudation and Virginian narrow-mindedness." After him Hubbard, of
+Alabama, "began grunting against the tariff." Three days later Black,
+of Georgia, "poured forth his black bile" for an hour and a half. The
+next week we find Clifford, of Maine, "muddily bothering his trickster
+invention" to get over a rule of the House, and "snapping like a
+mackerel at a red rag" at the suggestion of a way to do so. In July,
+1841, we again hear of Atherton as a "cross-grained numskull ...
+snarling against the loan bill." With such peppery passages in great
+abundance the Diary is thickly and piquantly besprinkled. They are not
+always pleasant, perhaps not even always amusing, but they display the
+marked element of censoriousness in Mr. Adams's character, which it is
+necessary to appreciate in order to understand some parts of his
+career.
+
+If Mr. Adams never had the cheerful support of popularity, so      (p. 301)
+neither did he often have the encouragement of success. He said that
+he was paying in his declining years for the good luck which had
+attended the earlier portion of his life. On December 14, 1833, he
+calculates that he has three fourths of the people of Massachusetts
+against him, and by estranging the anti-Masons he is about to become
+obnoxious to the whole. "My public life will terminate by the
+alienation from me of all mankind.... It is the experience of all ages
+that the people grow weary of old men. I cannot flatter myself that I
+shall escape the common law of our nature." Yet he acknowledges that
+he is unable to "abstract himself from the great questions which
+agitate the country." Soon after he again writes in the same vein: "To
+be forsaken by all mankind seems to be the destiny that awaits my last
+days." August 6, 1835, he gives as his reason for not accepting an
+invitation to deliver a discourse, that "instead of having any
+beneficial influence upon the public mind, it would be turned as an
+instrument of obloquy against myself." So it had been, as he enumerates,
+with his exertions against Freemasonry, his labors for internal
+improvement, for the manufacturing interest, for domestic industry,
+for free labor, for the disinterested aid then lately brought      (p. 302)
+by him to Jackson in the dispute with France; "so it will be to the
+end of my political life."
+
+When to unpopularity and reiterated disappointment we add the physical
+ills of old age, it no longer surprises us to find Mr. Adams at times
+harsh and bitter beyond the excuse of the occasion. That he was a man
+of strong physique and of extraordinary powers of endurance, often
+surpassing those of young and vigorous men, is evident. For example,
+one day in March, 1840, he notes incidentally: "I walked home and
+found my family at dinner. From my breakfast yesterday morning until
+one this afternoon, twenty-eight hours, I had fasted." Many a time he
+showed like, if not quite equal vigor. But he had been a hard worker
+all his life, and testing the powers of one's constitution does not
+tend to their preservation; he was by no means free from the woes of
+the flesh or from the depression which comes with years and the dread
+of decrepitude. Already as early as October 7, 1833, he fears that his
+health is "irretrievable;" he gets but five hours a night of
+"disturbed unquiet sleep--full of tossings." February 17, 1834, his
+"voice was so hoarse and feeble that it broke repeatedly, and he could
+scarcely articulate. It is gone forever," he very mistakenly but
+despondingly adds, "and it is in vain for me to contend against    (p. 303)
+the decay of time and nature." His enemies found little truth in this
+foreboding for many sessions thereafter. Only a year after he had
+performed his feat of fasting for twenty-eight hours of business, he
+received a letter from a stranger advising him to retire. He admits
+that perhaps he ought to do so, but says that more than sixty years of
+public life have made activity necessary to him; it is the "weakness
+of his nature" which he has "intellect enough left to perceive but not
+energy to control," so that "the world will retire from me before I
+shall retire from the world."
+
+The brief sketch which can be given in a volume of this size of so
+long and so busy a life does not suffice even to indicate all its many
+industries. The anti-slavery labors of Mr. Adams during his Congressional
+career were alone an abundant occupation for a man in the prime of
+life; but to these he added a wonderful list of other toils and
+interests. He was not only an incessant student in history, politics,
+and literature, but he also constantly invaded the domain of science.
+He was Chairman of the Congressional Committee on the Smithsonian
+bequest, and for several years he gave much time and attention to it,
+striving to give the fund a direction in favor of science; he      (p. 304)
+hoped to make it subservient to a plan which he had long cherished for
+the building of a noble national observatory. He had much committee
+work; he received many visitors; he secured hours of leisure for his
+favorite pursuit of composing poetry; he delivered an enormous number
+of addresses and speeches upon all sorts of occasions; he conducted an
+extensive correspondence; he was a very devout man, regularly going to
+church and reading three chapters in his Bible every day; and he kept
+up faithfully his colossal Diary. For several months in the midst of
+Congressional duties he devoted great labor, thought, and anxiety to
+the famous cause of the slaves of the Amistad, in which he was induced
+to act as counsel before the Supreme Court. Such were the labors of
+his declining age. To men of ordinary calibre the multiplicity of his
+acquirements and achievements is confounding and incredible. He worked
+his brain and his body as unsparingly as if they had been machines
+insensible to the pleasure or necessity of rest. Surprisingly did they
+submit to his exacting treatment, lasting in good order and condition
+far beyond what was then the average of life and vigorous faculties
+among his contemporaries engaged in public affairs.
+
+In August, 1842, while he was still tarrying in the unwholesome    (p. 305)
+heats of Washington, he had some symptoms which he thought premonitory,
+and he speaks of the next session of Congress as probably the last
+which he should ever attend. March 25, 1844, he gives a painful sketch
+of himself. Physical disability, he says, must soon put a stop to his
+Diary. That morning he had risen "at four, and with smarting,
+bloodshot eyes and shivering hand, still sat down and wrote to fill up
+the chasm of the closing days of last week." If his remaining days
+were to be few he was at least resolved to make them long for purposes
+of unremitted labor.
+
+But he had one great joy and distinguished triumph still in store for
+him. From the time when the "gag" rule had been first established, Mr.
+Adams had kept up an unbroken series of attacks upon it at all times
+and by all means. At the beginning of the several sessions, when the
+rules were established by the House, he always moved to strike out
+this one. Year after year his motion was voted down, but year after
+year he renewed it with invincible perseverance. The majorities
+against him began to dwindle till they became almost imperceptible; in
+1842 it was a majority of four; in 1843, of three; in 1844 the
+struggle was protracted for weeks, and Mr. Adams all but carried the
+day. It was evident that victory was not far off, and a kind fate  (p. 306)
+had destined him to live not only to see but himself to win it.
+On December 3, 1844, he made his usual motion and called for the yeas
+and nays; a motion was made to lay his motion on the table, and upon
+that also the question was taken by yeas and nays--eighty-one yeas,
+one hundred and four nays, and his motion was _not_ laid on the table.
+The question was then put upon it, and it was carried by the handsome
+vote of one hundred and eight to eighty. In that moment the "gag" rule
+became a thing of the past, and Mr. Adams had conquered in his last
+fight. "Blessed, forever blessed, be the name of God!" he writes in
+recording the event. A week afterwards some anti-slavery petitions
+were received and actually referred to the Committee on the District
+of Columbia. This glorious consummation having been achieved, this
+advanced stage in the long conflict having been reached, Mr. Adams
+could not hope for life to see another goal passed. His work was
+nearly done; he had grown aged, and had worn himself out faithfully
+toiling in the struggle which must hereafter be fought through its
+coming phases and to its final success by others, younger men than he,
+though none of them certainly having over him any other militant
+advantage save only the accident of youth.
+
+His mental powers were not less than at any time in the past when, (p. 307)
+on November 19, 1846, he was struck by paralysis in the street
+in Boston. He recovered from the attack, however, sufficiently to
+resume his duties in Washington some three months later. His
+reappearance in the House was marked by a pleasing incident: all the
+members rose together; business was for the moment suspended; his old
+accustomed seat was at once surrendered to him by the gentleman to
+whom it had fallen in the allotment, and he was formally conducted to
+it by two members. After this, though punctual in attendance, he only
+once took part in debate. On February 21, 1848, he appeared in his
+seat as usual. At half past one in the afternoon the Speaker was
+rising to put a question, when he was suddenly interrupted by cries of
+"Stop! Stop!--Mr. Adams!" Some gentlemen near Mr. Adams had thought
+that he was striving to rise to address the Speaker, when in an
+instant he fell over insensible. The members thronged around him in
+great confusion. The House hastily adjourned. He was placed on a sofa
+and removed first to the hall of the rotunda and then to the Speaker's
+room. Medical men were in attendance but could be of no service in the
+presence of death. The stern old fighter lay dying almost on the very
+field of so many battles and in the very tracks in which he had    (p. 308)
+so often stood erect and unconquerable, taking and dealing so many
+mighty blows. Late in the afternoon some inarticulate mutterings were
+construed into the words, "Thank the officers of the House." Soon
+again he said intelligibly, "This is the last of earth! I am content!"
+It was his extreme utterance. He lay thereafter unconscious till the
+evening of the 23d, when he passed quietly away.
+
+He lies buried "under the portal of the church at Quincy" beside his
+wife, who survived him four years, his father and his mother. The
+memorial tablet inside the church bears upon it the words "Alteri
+Sęculo,"--surely never more justly or appropriately applied to any man
+than to John Quincy Adams, hardly abused and cruelly misappreciated in
+his own day but whom subsequent generations already begin to honor as
+one of the greatest of American statesmen, not only preėminent in
+ability and acquirements, but even more to be honored for profound,
+immutable honesty of purpose and broad, noble humanity of aims.
+
+
+
+
+INDEX                                                              (p. 311)
+
+
+ABOLITIONISTS, their part in anti-slavery movement, 244, 245;
+  urge Adams to extreme actions, 254.
+
+Adams, Abigail, shows battle of Bunker Hill to her son, 2;
+  life near Boston during siege, 2, 3;
+  letter of J. Q. Adams to, on keeping journal, 5;
+  warns him against asking office from his father as President, 23;
+  his spirited reply, 23.
+
+Adams, C. F., on beginning of Adams's diary, 6;
+  on Adams's statement of Monroe doctrine, 131.
+
+Adams, John, influence of his career in Revolution upon his son, 2;
+  leaves family near Boston while attending Continental Congress, 2, 3;
+  letter of his son to, on reading, 3;
+  first mission to France, 4;
+  second one, 4;
+  advises his son to keep a diary and copies of letters, 5;
+  makes treaty of peace, 13;
+  appointed Minister to England, 14;
+  elected President, 23;
+  at Washington's suggestion, appoints J. Q. Adams Minister to Prussia, 24;
+  recalls him, 25;
+  his rage at defeat by Jefferson, 25, 26;
+  disrupts Federalist party by French mission, 26;
+  his rivalry with and hatred for Hamilton, 26, 27;
+  charges defeat to Hamilton, 27;
+  qualified sympathy of J. Q. Adams with, 27, 28;
+  his enemies and adherents in Massachusetts, 28;
+  his unpopularity hampers J. Q. Adams in Senate, 31, 34.
+
+Adams, John Quincy, birth, 1;
+  ancestry, 1;
+  named for his great-grandfather, 1;
+  describes incident connected with his naming, 1, 2;
+  early involved in outbreak of Revolution, 2;
+  life near Boston during the siege, 2, 3;
+  scanty schooling, 3;
+  describes his reading in letter to John Adams, 3, 4;
+  accompanies his father to France in 1778, 4;
+  and again to Spain, 4, 5;
+  tells his mother of intention to keep diary while abroad, 5, 6;
+  begins it in 1779, its subsequent success, 6;
+  its revelation of his character, 7, 10;
+  unchangeableness of his traits, 7, 8;
+  describes contemporaries bitterly in diary, 9, 10;
+  shows his own high character, 10;
+  also his disagreeable traits, 11, 12;
+  difficulty of condensing his career, 12;
+  his schooling in Europe, 13;
+  at fourteen acts as private secretary to Dana on mission to Russia, 13;
+  assists father in peace negotiations, 13;
+  his early gravity, maturity, and coolness, 14, 15;
+  decides not to accompany father to England, but return home, 15;
+  gives his reason for decision, 15, 16;
+  studies at Harvard, 17;
+  studies law with Parsons at Newburyport, 17;
+  begins practice in Boston in 1790, 17;
+  writes Publicola papers against Paine's "Rights of Man," 18;
+  writes in papers against Genet, 18;
+  his restlessness and ambition, 19.
+
+  _Foreign Minister._ Appointed Minister to the Hague, 19;
+    his voyage, 19;
+    in Holland at time of its capture by French, 20;
+    cordially received by French, 20;
+    his skill in avoiding entanglement, 20;
+    persuaded by Washington to remain, although without occupation, 21;
+    prevented from participating in Jay's negotiations over the treaty, 21;
+    has dealings with Grenville, 22;
+    marriage with Miss Johnson, 22, 23;
+    transferred to Portugal, 23;
+    question as to propriety of remaining minister after his father's
+      election, 23;
+    persuaded by Washington to remain, 23, 24;
+    appointed minister to Prussia, 24;
+    ratifies treaty of commerce, 24;
+    travels in Europe, 24;
+    recalled by his father, 25;
+    resumes practice of law, 25;
+    not involved in Federalist quarrels, 27, 28;
+    removed by Jefferson from commissionership in bankruptcy, 28;
+    elected to State Senate, 28;
+    irritates Federalists by proposing to allow Democrats a place in
+      council, 29;
+    his entire independence, 29, 30;
+    elected to United States Senate over Pickering, 30.
+
+  _United States Senator._ His journey to Washington, 30, 31;
+    unfriendly greeting from his father's enemies, 31;
+    isolation in the Senate, 32, 33;
+    unfriendly relations with Pickering, 32;
+    refuses to yield to unpopularity, 33, 34;
+    estranges Federalists by his absence of partisanship, 34, 35;
+    votes in favor of Louisiana purchase, although calling it
+      unconstitutional, 35, 36;
+    condemned by New England, 36;
+    votes for acquittal of Chase, 36;
+    realizes that he is conquering respect, 36, 37;
+    introduces resolutions condemning British seizures of neutrals, 38, 39;
+    and requesting President to insist on reparation, 39;
+    his measure carried by Democrats, 39;
+    comments on Orders in Council and Napoleon's decrees, 42, 46;
+    refuses to follow New England Federalists in advocating
+      submission, 47, 48;
+    disgusted at Jefferson's peace policy, 48;
+    but supports Non-importation Act, 49;
+    believes in hostile purpose of England, 49, 50;
+    urges Boston Federalists to promise support to government during
+      Chesapeake affair, 51;
+    attends Democratic and Federalist meetings to this effect, 51, 52;
+    read out of party by Federalists, 52;
+    votes for and supports embargo, 53;
+    execrated in New England, 53;
+    his patriotic conduct, 53-55;
+    his opinion of embargo, 55;
+    regrets its too long continuance, 55, 56;
+    advocates in vain military and naval preparations, 56;
+    refused reėlection by Massachusetts legislature, 56, 57;
+    resigns before expiration of term, 57;
+    harshly criticised then and since for leaving Federalists, 57, 58;
+    propriety and justice of his action, 58, 59;
+    led to do so by his American feeling, 61, 62;
+    absurdity of charge of office-seeking, 63;
+    disproved by his whole character and career, 63, 64;
+    his courage tested by necessity of abandoning friends, 64;
+    repels advances from Giles, 65;
+    statement of his feelings in his diary, 65, 66;
+    refuses election to Congress from Democrats, 66;
+    sums up barrenness of his career in Senate, 66-68;
+    approached by Madison in 1805 with suggestion of foreign mission, 68;
+    his cool reply, 69;
+    nominated Minister to Russia by Madison, 69;
+    appointment refused, then confirmed, 69, 70.
+
+  _Minister to Russia._ Peace of Ghent. His voyage, 70;
+    his life at St. Petersburg, 70, 71;
+    his success as foreign representative, 71, 72;
+    disgusted by snobbery of American travelers, 72;
+    declines to take part in squabbles for precedence, 72, 73;
+    hampered by meagre salary, 73;
+    describes Russia during Napoleonic wars, 74;
+    nominated to act as peace commissioner with England, 75, 76;
+    describes negotiations in his diary, 77;
+    suggests refusing to meet British commissioners at their lodgings, 77;
+    remarks on arrogance of British, 81;
+    vents irritation upon colleagues, 82, 83;
+    begins drafting communications, but abandons duty to Gallatin, 82;
+    nettled at criticisms of colleagues on his drafts, 82, 83;
+    quarrels with all but Gallatin, 84;
+    incompatible with Clay, 84;
+    urges strong counter-claims, 85;
+    thinks negotiations certain to fail, 86;
+    obliged to work for peace as defeated party, 86, 87;
+    willing to return to status quo, 87;
+    disagrees with Clay over fisheries and Mississippi navigation, 88;
+    determined to insist on fisheries, 89, 90, 92;
+    suspects British intend to prevent peace, 90;
+    controverts Goulburn, 91;
+    signs treaty, 93;
+    at Paris during Napoleon's "hundred days," 98;
+    appointed Minister to England, 98;
+    with Clay and Gallatin, makes treaty of commerce with England, 98;
+    his slight duties as minister, 98, 99;
+    bored by English dinners, 99, 100;
+    sensitive to small income, 100.
+
+  _Secretary of State._ Appointed, 100;
+    describes dullness of Washington in diary, 102;
+    as host, 103;
+    his habits of life, 104;
+    prominent candidate for succession to Monroe, 105;
+    intrigued against by Crawford, 106;
+    and by Clay and Calhoun, 106, 107;
+    expects Spanish colonies to gain independence, 109;
+    but maintains cautious public attitude, 109;
+    describes Spanish ambassador, 111;
+    negotiates concerning boundaries of Louisiana, 111, 112;
+    his position, 112;
+    fears opposition from Clay and Crawford, 112;
+    urged by Monroe not to claim too much, 113;
+    rejects English mediation, 114;
+    uses French Minister as go-between, 114;
+    succeeds in reaching a conclusion, 114, 115;
+    a triumph for his diplomacy, 115;
+    chagrined at discovery of Spanish land grants, 116, 117;
+    and at refusal of Spanish government to ratify treaty, 118;
+    urges the seizure of disputed territory, 118;
+    at first indifferent to Missouri question, 119;
+    soon appreciates the slavery issue, 119;
+    predicts an attempt to dissolve the Union, 119, 120;
+    sharp comments on slavery, slaveholders, and Northern weakness, 120;
+    notes Calhoun's threat of alliance of slave States with England, 121;
+    thinks abolition impossible without disunion, 121, 122;
+    maintains power of Congress over slavery in Territories, 122;
+    realizes that failure of treaty damages his chance for presidency, 123;
+    refuses to reopen question with new Spanish envoy, 123;
+    forces ratification of treaty with annulment of land grants, 124;
+    his satisfaction with outcome of negotiations, 125, 126;
+    prepares report on weights and measures, 126;
+    its thoroughness, 127;
+    his pride of country without boastfulness in negotiations, 127, 128;
+    declines to consider what European courts may think, 128, 129;
+    considers it destiny of United States to occupy North America, 129;
+    considers annexation of Cuba probable, 130;
+    always willing to encroach within America, 130, 131;
+    tells Russia American continents are no longer open for colonies, 131;
+    fears possibility of European attack on Spain's colonies, 132;
+    willing to go to war against such an attack, 133;
+    but, in default of any, advocates non-interference, 133, 134;
+    refuses to interfere in European politics, 134;
+    unwilling to enter league to suppress slave trade, 135;
+    the real author of Monroe doctrine, 136;
+    dealings with Stratford Canning, 136;
+    his reasons for refusing to join international league to put down
+      slave trade, 138, 139;
+    discusses with him the Astoria question, 140-148;
+    insists on Canning's making communications on question in writing, 141;
+    stormy interviews with him, 142-147;
+    refuses to discuss remarks uttered in debate in Congress, 142, 145;
+    angry breach of Canning with, 147, 148;
+    success of his treatment of Canning, 148;
+    description in his diary of presidential intrigues, 150 ff.;
+    his censorious frankness, 150;
+    his judgments of men not to be followed too closely, 151;
+    accuses Clay of selfishness in opposition to Florida treaty, and in
+      urging recognition of Spanish colonies, 151, 152;
+    compares him to John Randolph, 153;
+    later becomes on better terms, 154;
+    his deep contempt for Crawford, 154;
+    gradually suspects him of malicious practices, 154, 155;
+    and of sacrificing everything to his ambition, 155, 156;
+    sustained by Calhoun in this estimate, 157;
+    supports Jackson in Cabinet, 158, 160;
+    strains his conscience to uphold Jackson's actions, 160, 161;
+    defends him against Canning, 162;
+    gives a ball in his honor, 162;
+    wishes to offer him position of Minister to Mexico, 163;
+    favors Jackson for Vice-President, 163;
+    determines to do nothing in his own behalf as candidate, 164;
+    no trace of any self-seeking in his diary, 164, 165;
+    holds aloof at all stages, 165;
+    manages to be polite to all, 166;
+    yet prepares to be keenly hurt at failure, 166;
+    considers election a test of his career, 167;
+    and of his personal character in the eyes of the people, 167;
+    picture of his anxiety in his diary, 168;
+    receives second largest number of electoral votes, 169;
+    preferred by Clay to Jackson, 171;
+    elected by the House of Representatives, 173;
+    dissatisfied with the result, 174;
+    would have preferred a new election if possible, 174;
+    congratulated by Jackson at his inauguration, 175;
+    wishes office as a token of popular approval, 175;
+    realizes that this election does not signify that, 176.
+
+  _President._ Freedom from political indebtedness, 177;
+    his cabinet, 177;
+    asks Rufus King to accept English mission, 177, 178;
+    renominates officials, 178;
+    refuses to consider any rotation in office, 179;
+    refuses to punish officials for opposing his election, 179, 180;
+    charged with bargaining for Clay's support, 181-183;
+    unable to disprove it, 183;
+    story spread by Jackson, 184;
+    after disproof of story, continues to be accused by Jackson, 187;
+    meets strong opposition in Congress, 188;
+    notes combination of Southern members against him, 189;
+    sends message concerning Panama Congress, 189;
+    accused in Senate and House of having transcended his powers, 160;
+    aided by Webster, 190;
+    reasons for Southern opposition to, 191;
+    confronted by a hostile majority in both Houses, 192;
+    lack of events in his administration, 193;
+    advocates internal improvements, 194;
+    declines to make a show before people, 194;
+    his digging at opening of Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, 194, 195;
+    formation of personal opposition to his reėlection by Jackson,
+      195, 196;
+    his only chance of success to secure a personal following, 197;
+    refuses to remove officials for political reasons, 198;
+    fails to induce any one except independent men to desire his
+      reėlection, 199;
+    his position as representative of good government not understood, 200;
+    refuses to modify utterances on internal improvements, to appease
+      Virginia, 201;
+    refuses to "soothe" South Carolina, 201;
+    alienates people by personal stiffness and Puritanism, 202, 203;
+    fails to secure personal friends, 203;
+    friendly relations with Cabinet, 204, 205;
+    nominates Barbour Minister to England, 205;
+    fills vacancy with P. B. Porter at Cabinet's suggestion, 205;
+    refuses to remove McLean for double-dealing, 206;
+    his laboriousness, 206;
+    daily exercise, 206, 207;
+    threatened with assassination, 207, 208;
+    stoicism under slanders, 208;
+    refuses to deny accusation of being a Mason, 209;
+    accused of trying to buy support of Webster, 209;
+    other slanders, 209;
+    shows his wrath in his diary, 210;
+    hatred of Randolph, 210, 211;
+    of Giles, 211;
+    defeated in election of 1828, 212;
+    feels disgraced, 213, 214;
+    significance of his retirement, 213;
+    the last statesman in presidency, 213;
+    his depression, 214, 215;
+    looks forward gloomily to retirement, 215.
+
+  _In Retirement._ Returns to Quincy, 216;
+    followed by slanders of Giles, 216;
+    declines to enter into controversy with Federalists over disunion
+      movement of 1808, 216, 217;
+    attacked by the Federalists for his refusal, 217, 218;
+    prepares a crushing reply which he does not publish, 218;
+    dreads idleness, 220;
+    unable to resume law practice, 220;
+    his slight property, 221;
+    reads Latin classics, 221;
+    plans biographical and historical work, 221;
+    writes in diary concerning his reading, 222;
+    does not appreciate humor, 222;
+    has difficulty in reading Paradise Lost, 223;
+    learns to like Milton and tobacco, 223;
+    asked if willing to be elected to Congress, 225;
+    replies that he is ready to accept the office, 225;
+    elected in 1830, 225;
+    as candidate for governor, withdraws name in case of choice by
+      legislature, 226.
+
+  _Member of House of Representatives._
+    His principal task the struggle with Southern slaveholders, 226;
+    gains greater honor in this way than hitherto, 226, 227;
+    his diligence and independent action in the House, 227;
+    called "old man eloquent," 227;
+    not in reality a pleasing or impressive speaker, 227, 228;
+    but effective and well-informed, 228;
+    his excessive pugnacity, 229;
+    his enemies, 229, 230;
+    success as debater, 230;
+    absence of friends or followers, 231;
+    supported by people in New England, 232;
+    declares intention to be independent, 233;
+    greeted with respect, 233;
+    on Committee on Manufactures, 233;
+    willing to reduce duties to please South, 234;
+    condemns apparent surrender of Jackson to South Carolina, 234;
+    pleased with Jackson's nullification proclamation, 235;
+    wishes to coerce South Carolina before making concessions, 235;
+    insists on a decision of question of nullification, 235;
+    dissatisfied with Jackson's failure to push matters, 236;
+    in opposition to Jackson, 237, 238;
+    supports proposal of Jackson to take determined attitude toward
+      France, 239;
+    wins no gratitude from Jackson, 240;
+    receives attempt at reconciliation coolly, 240;
+    opposes granting of Doctorate of Laws to Jackson by Harvard, 241, 242;
+    considers Jackson's illness a sham, 242;
+    presents abolition petitions from beginning of term, 243;
+    does not favor abolition in District of Columbia, 243;
+    always disliked slavery and slaveholders, 243;
+    not an agitator or reformer, 244;
+    his qualifications to oppose slave power in Congress, 245, 246;
+    hostility in Congress and coldness in Boston, 246;
+    his support in his district, 247;
+    and among people of North, 247;
+    continues to present petitions, 248;
+    presents one signed by women, 249;
+    opposes assertion that Congress has no power to interfere with
+      slavery in a State, 250;
+    opposes gag rule, 250;
+    advocates right of petition, 251;
+    tries to get his protest entered on journal, 251, 252;
+    savage reply to an assailant, 252;
+    receives and presents floods of petitions, 252, 253;
+    single-handed in task, 253;
+    urged to rash movements by abolitionists, 254;
+    his conduct approved by constituents, 255;
+    resolves to continue, although alone, 255;
+    description in his diary of presentation of petitions, 255-261;
+    continues to protest against "gag" rule as unconstitutional, 256;
+    scores Preston for threatening to hang abolitionists, 257, 258;
+    defies the House and says his say, 258, 259;
+    wishes petitions referred to a select committee, 259;
+    passage at arms with chairman of Foreign Affairs Committee, 259, 260;
+    taunts Connor with folly of "gag" rule, 261;
+    holds that Congress, under war power, may abolish slavery, 261-263;
+    attacked by Southerners, 262, 263;
+    cites precedents, 263;
+    his theory followed by Lincoln, 264;
+    refers to the theory in letter, 265;
+    opposes annexation of Texas, 265, 266;
+    his reasons, 266 n.;
+    presents absurd petitions, 266;
+    presents petitions asking for his own expulsion, 268;
+    allows matter to drop, 268;
+    presents petition from slaves and asks opinion of speaker, 269;
+    fury of slaveholders against, 270;
+    resolutions of censure against, 271;
+    disconcerts opponents by his cool reply, 272, 273;
+    but receives new attacks and resolutions of censure, 274, 275;
+    defended by a few New Englanders, 276;
+    reluctance of Southerners to allow him to reply, 276;
+    his speech, 277-279;
+    sarcasms upon his enemies, 277, 278;
+    presents petition asking for his own removal from chairmanship of
+      Committee on Foreign Affairs, 280;
+    prevented from defending himself, 280;
+    presents petition for dissolution of Union while disapproving it,
+      280, 281;
+    resolutions of censure against, 281, 282;
+    attacked by Marshall and Wise, 283;
+    objects to injustice of preamble, 284;
+    defies his enemies and scorns mercy, 285;
+    bitter remarks on his opponents, 285;
+    helped by Everett, 286;
+    slight outside sympathy for, 286;
+    abused in newspapers, 286;
+    threatened with assassination, 286, 287;
+    willing to have matter laid on table, 287;
+    his triumph in the affair, 288;
+    attempt to drive him from Foreign Affairs Committee, 289;
+    refusal of Southerners to serve with, 289;
+    refuses to notice them, 289;
+    retains respect of House for his honesty, 290;
+    appealed to, to help organize House in 1839, 292;
+    his bold and successful action, 293-295;
+    praised by Wise, 294;
+    succeeds in presiding eleven days until organization, 294, 295;
+    deprecates a resolution of thanks, 295;
+    his occasional despondency and loneliness, 295, 296;
+    describes his enemies, 296;
+    tries to act justly to all of them, 297;
+    castigates Wise for dueling, 297;
+    called insane, 297, 298;
+    his bitter language on opponents in the Diary, 298-300;
+    low opinion of Congress, 299;
+    on partisanship, 299, 300;
+    describes his unpopularity, 301;
+    describes all his acts as turned to his discredit, 301;
+    his ill-health, 302, 303, 305;
+    chairman of committee on Smithsonian bequest, 303;
+    his religious and social activity, 304;
+    in Amistad case, 304;
+    continues attack upon gag rule, 305;
+    his final victory and exultation, 306;
+    struck by paralysis, 307;
+    greeted on return to House, 307;
+    his death in Capitol, 307, 308;
+    estimate of character and services, 308.
+
+  _Characteristics._ General view, 10-12, 308;
+    ambition, 16, 19, 25, 164-167;
+    censoriousness, 9, 12, 112, 150, 242;
+    conscientiousness, 66, 200, 277, 296;
+    coldness, 11, 34, 37, 165, 230, 240;
+    courage, 10, 15, 33, 54, 58, 64, 113, 208, 252, 253, 293;
+    dignity, 71, 99, 127, 213, 216;
+    diplomatic ability, 20, 22, 72, 114, 123, 137-148;
+    exercise, love of, 206, 207;
+    honor, 10, 22, 58, 63, 166;
+    ill-health, 302, 305;
+    independence, 10, 16, 29, 30, 48, 59, 127, 133, 246;
+    industry, 8, 11, 126, 206, 227;
+    invective, 12, 229, 230, 246, 252, 277-279, 281, 283-285, 298-300;
+    irritability, 83, 154, 210, 211, 302;
+    knowledge of politics, 11, 91, 228, 245;
+    legal ability, 18;
+    literary interests, 221-223;
+    melancholy, 214;
+    observation, power of, 74, 77, 111;
+    oratorical ability, 227, 228;
+    patriotism, 62, 127, 148;
+    persistence, 11, 25, 34, 114, 123, 143, 245;
+    personal appearance, 228;
+    pessimism, 19, 33, 67, 153, 272, 296, 299;
+    precocity, 17;
+    pride, 166, 167, 201;
+    prolixity, 82, 277;
+    pugnacity, 49, 50, 52, 81, 133, 141, 160, 228-236, 245, 246, 285;
+    Puritanism, 7, 30, 66, 150, 164, 202;
+    religious views, 30, 207, 304;
+    sensitiveness, 33, 83, 208, 298;
+    sobriety, 8, 14, 118;
+    social habits, 103, 202, 203;
+    suspiciousness, 82, 112, 138, 151, 296;
+    unpopularity, 195, 202-204, 231, 246, 253, 295, 301, 307.
+
+  _Political Opinions._ Appointments to office, 178-180, 197-200, 206;
+    cabinet relations with, 204, 205;
+    candidate, attitude of, 164-167, 197-206;
+    Chase, impeachment of, 36;
+    Chesapeake affair, 51;
+    Congress, powers over slavery, 122, 250, 261-265;
+    court etiquette, 73;
+    Cuba, annexation of, 130;
+    disunion, 119, 122, 281;
+    election of 1824, 174-176;
+    emancipation, 121;
+    embargo, 53, 56;
+    England, 47, 50, 51, 90, 145, 148;
+    English society, 100;
+    Federalist party, 28, 48, 50, 57, 61;
+    fisheries, 88, 90;
+    Florida, 115, 118, 123, 130;
+    France, policy towards, 239;
+    "gag" rule, 250, 251, 256, 257, 305, 306;
+    Genet, 118;
+    gunboat scheme, 48;
+    internal improvements, 194, 201;
+    Jackson's administration, 237;
+    Jackson's Florida career, 160, 163;
+    Louisiana, 35, 130;
+    Louisiana boundary, 112, 115;
+    manifest destiny, 130, 160;
+    Mississippi navigation, 88, 89;
+    Missouri Compromise, 121;
+    Monroe doctrine, 130, 131, 134-136;
+    non-importation, 40, 49, 55;
+    nullification, 234, 235;
+    Oregon, 140-143;
+    Panama Congress, 189;
+    party fidelity, 29, 30, 54, 59, 62, 233;
+    Republican party, 36, 65;
+    right of search, 38, 139;
+    slaveholders, 243, 257, 260;
+    slavery, 120, 121, 243, 255, 304;
+    slave trade, 135, 138;
+    Smithsonian bequest, 303;
+    Spanish-American republics, 109, 131-133;
+    Texas, annexation of, 265, 266;
+    treaty of Ghent, 77-98;
+    weights and measures, 126, 127.
+
+Adams, Dr. William, on English peace commission, 76;
+  suggests abandonment by United States of its citizens in proposed
+    Indian Territory, 79;
+  irritated at proposal that English restore possession of Moose Island
+    pending arbitration, 91;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98.
+
+Alexander, Emperor of Russia, desires to exchange ministers with United
+    States, 69;
+  his courtesy to Adams, 70, 71;
+  anecdote of Adams's conversation with, 73;
+  attempts to mediate between England and United States, 74, 75;
+  discussions with Castlereagh, 93;
+  slander concerning relations with Adams, 209, 210.
+
+Alford, Julius C., wishes to burn Adams's petition from slaves, 270;
+  threatens war, 272, 275.
+
+Ambrister. See Arbuthnot.
+
+Amistad case, share of Adams in, 304.
+
+Anti-Mason movement, used by Jacksonians against Adams, 208, 209;
+  connection of Adams within Massachusetts, 226, 301.
+
+Arbuthnot and Ambrister, hanged by Jackson, 160;
+  execution of, defended by Adams, 162.
+
+Atherton, Charles G., bitter remarks of Adams on, 298, 300.
+
+Austria, rejects England's plan for suppression of slave trade, 138.
+
+
+Bagot, Sir Charles, question of his opinion on Oregon question, discussed
+  by Canning and Adams, 142, 143.
+
+Bank, Jackson's attack on, 240.
+
+Barbour, James, appointed Secretary of War, 177;
+  desires mission to England, 205.
+
+Barings, give Adams his commission, 98.
+
+Barnard, D. D., by Adams's advice, presents petition for dissolution of
+  Union, 288.
+
+Barrou, James, commands Chesapeake when attacked by Leopard, 45.
+
+Bayard, James A., appointed peace commissioner, 75, 76;
+  resents proposal to meet at lodgings of English commissioners, 77;
+  criticises Adams's drafts of documents, 83;
+  enrages Goulburn, 91;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Benton, T. H., on unfavorable beginning to Adams's administration, 188.
+
+Berkeley, Admiral G. C., commands Leopard, and is promoted for attacking
+  Chesapeake, 46.
+
+Berlin decree, 41.
+
+Beverly, Carter, reports that Jackson has proof of Clay and Adams
+    bargain, 184;
+  upheld by Jackson, 185;
+  apologizes to Clay, 187.
+
+Black, Edward J., of Georgia, comment of Adams on, 300.
+
+Bonaparte, Napoleon, issues Berlin and Milan decrees, 41, 42;
+  seen during "hundred days" by Adams, 98.
+
+Brown, James, votes against Spanish treaty through Clay's influence, 124.
+
+Buchanan, James, refuses to substantiate Jackson's story of corrupt offer
+  from Clay in election of 1824, 186, 187.
+
+Burr, Aaron, compared by Adams to Van Buren, 193.
+
+
+Cabinet, relations of Adams to, 204, 205;
+  treachery of McLean, 205, 206.
+
+Calhoun, J. C., candidate for succession to Monroe, 106;
+  on Southern alliance with England in case of dissolution of Union, 121;
+  candidacy damaged by Southern origin, 149;
+  his opinion of Crawford, 156;
+  displeased at Jackson's disregard of instructions, 160;
+  elected Vice-President, 169;
+  irritation of Adams at his failure to suppress Randolph, 211;
+  reėlected Vice-President, 212;
+  accused by Adams of plotting to injure him, 296.
+
+Canada, desire of Adams for annexation of, 85, 130.
+
+Canning, George, seeks acquaintance with Adams, 99.
+
+Canning, Stratford, urges American submission to mixed tribunals to
+    suppress slave trade, 135;
+  his arrogance met by Adams, 136, 137;
+  discusses with Adams the suppression of slave trade, 137-139;
+  on Adams's superior years, 139;
+  high words with Adams over question of an American settlement at mouth
+    of Columbia, 140-147;
+  loses temper at request to put objections in writing, 141;
+  and at persistence of Adams in repeating words of previous English
+    minister, 142, 143;
+  his offer to forget subject declined by Adams, 144;
+  complains of Adams's language, 145, 146;
+  resents reference to Jackson's recall, 146, 147;
+  his anger shown later, 147;
+  this does not affect relations between countries, 148.
+
+Castlereagh, Lord, unwilling at first to conclude peace, 93;
+  influenced by attitude of Prussia and Russia, advises concessions, 94;
+  dealings with Adams, 99;
+  described by Adams, 99.
+
+Cavalla, ----, imprisoned by Jackson, 159, 160;
+  seizure defended by Adams, 162.
+
+Chase, Judge Samuel, his acquittal voted for by J. Q. Adams, 36.
+
+Chesapeake attacked by Leopard, 45;
+  effect upon Adams and Federalists, 50, 51.
+
+Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, incident of Adams's opening of, 195.
+
+Choate, Rufus, sympathizes with Adams when attacked by resolutions of
+  censure, 286.
+
+Civil service, appointments to, under Adams, 178-180, 196, 198, 199,
+    206, 209;
+  under Jackson, 198.
+
+Clay, Henry, on peace commission, 76;
+  his irascibility, 82, 84;
+  criticises Adams's figurative style in documents, 82;
+  irritates Adams, 84;
+  his conviviality, 84;
+  thinks English will recede, 85;
+  then thinks English will refuse to accept _status ante bellum_, 87;
+  willing to sacrifice fisheries to prevent English Mississippi
+    navigation, 88, 89;
+  thinks fisheries of little value, 89;
+  willing to meet English with defiance, 90;
+  threatens not to sign treaty, 90, 92;
+  abandoned by colleagues on point of impressment, 92;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98;
+  his gambling habits, 103;
+  jealous of Adams's appointment as Secretary of State, 106;
+  leads opposition to administration, 108;
+  wishes to recognize independence of Spanish colonies, 109;
+  threatens to oppose treaty accepting Sabine as Louisiana boundary, 112;
+  opposes treaty with Spain, 116;
+  fails to prevent ratification, 124;
+  ambitious for presidency, 149;
+  low motives for opposition to administration as signed by Adams, 151;
+  his honesty in advocating recognition of South American republics, 152;
+  compared by Adams to Randolph, 153;
+  becomes reconciled with Adams before election, 154;
+  denounces Jackson, 160;
+  vote for, in 1824, 169;
+  able to decide choice of President by influence in Congress, 169;
+  at first prefers Crawford, 169, 170;
+  charged with having offered to support either Jackson or Adams, 170;
+  his preference for Adams over Jackson, 171;
+  appointed Secretary of State, 177;
+  urges removal of Sterret for proposing an insult to Adams, 179;
+  calls author of bargain slander a liar, 181;
+  charge against, repeated by Tennessee legislature, 183;
+  duel with Randolph, 183;
+  challenges Jackson to produce evidence, 185;
+  exonerated by Buchanan, 187;
+  and by Kremer and Beverly, 187;
+  actually receives advances from Jackson's friends, 187, 188;
+  opposition to his nomination as Secretary of State, 188;
+  abused by Randolph, 211;
+  engineers compromise with South Carolina, 236;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Clifford, Nathan, of Maine, contemptuously described by Adams, 300.
+
+Clinton, De Witt, his candidacy for President in 1824, 149.
+
+Congress, in election of 1824, 165, 169-172;
+  influence of Clay in, 169;
+  elects Adams President, 172, 173;
+  investigates bargain story, 181;
+  opposition in, to Adams, from the beginning, 188;
+  attacks Adams's intention to send delegates to Panama Congress, 190;
+  opposes Adams throughout administration, 192;
+  resolutions denying its power to interfere with slavery debated in
+    House, 249, 250;
+  position of Adams with regard to its power to abolish slavery in the
+    States, 250, 261-265;
+  its degeneracy lamented by Adams, 299.
+
+Connor, John C., taunted by Adams in Congress, 261.
+
+Constitution of United States, in relation to Louisiana purchase, 35;
+  prohibits submission of United States to mixed foreign tribunals
+    for suppressing slave trade, 138;
+  in connection with election of 1824, 172;
+  held by Adams to forbid "gag" rule, 250, 256, 258;
+  held by Adams to justify abolition of slavery under war power, 261-265;
+  in relation to Texas annexation, 266.
+
+Crawford, W. H., his ambitions for the presidency, 105, 106, 148;
+  intrigues against Adams, 106, 154;
+  his action described by Adams, 112, 113;
+  advises moderate policy to remove foreign prejudices against United
+    States, 128;
+  contempt of Adams for, 154;
+  accused by Adams of all kinds of falsity and ambition, 155, 156, 296;
+  his real character, 156, 157;
+  Calhoun's opinion of, 156;
+  described by Mills, 157;
+  a party politician, 158;
+  eager to ruin Jackson, 160;
+  vote for, in 1824, 169;
+  his illness causes abandonment by Clay. 170;
+  receives four votes in House of Representatives, 173;
+  fills custom-houses with supporters, 180.
+
+Creeks, treaty with, discussed in Senate, 33.
+
+Creole affair, 279.
+
+Cuba, its annexation expected by Adams, 130.
+
+Cushing, Caleb, defends Adams against resolutions of censure, 276;
+  movement to put him in Adams's place on Committee on Foreign Affairs,
+    289.
+
+
+Dana, Francis, takes Adams as private secretary to Russia, 13.
+
+Davis, John, accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Deas, Mr., exchanges ratifications of Jay treaty, 21;
+  disliked by English cabinet, 22.
+
+Democratic party, organized as opposition to Adams, 192;
+  managed by Van Buren, 192, 193, 195;
+  not based on principle, but on personal feeling, 196;
+  its attacks upon Adams, 208-210;
+  its methods condemned by Adams, 237.
+
+Diary, suggested by John Adams, 5;
+  begun, 6;
+  its nature and content, 7, 8;
+  its bitterness, 9, 10;
+  picture of the author, 10, 11;
+  quotations from, in Boston, 19;
+  during career in Senate, 32, 34;
+  on damaging party, 66;
+  during peace negotiations, 77, 82, 83, 89, 90;
+  during election of 1824, 150, 151, 164, 168;
+  in election of 1828, 201, 210, 211;
+  during anti-slavery career, 255, 292, 296, 298-300;
+  in last years, 301-303, 305, 306.
+
+Diplomatic history, mission of Dana to Russia, 13;
+  mission of Adams to Holland, 19-21;
+  to Prussia, 24;
+  Rose's mission to United States, 45, 46;
+  mission of Adams to Russia, 70-74;
+  offer of Russia to mediate in war of 1812, 74, 75;
+  refusal by England, 75;
+  peace negotiations, 76-98 (see treaty of Ghent);
+  commercial negotiations with England, 98;
+  mission of Adams to England, 98-100;
+  negotiations of Adams with Spain, 110-118, 123-125;
+  question of Sabine River boundary, 112, 116;
+  final agreement, details of treaty, acquisition of Florida, 115;
+  and Western outlet to Pacific, 115;
+  dispute over Spanish land grants, 116, 117;
+  rejection of treaty by Spain, 117;
+  renewed mission of Vivźs, 123;
+  ratification of treaty, 124;
+  independent attitude of United States under Adams, 127, 128;
+  Monroe doctrine, 129-136;
+  dealings with Russia over Alaska, 130, 131;
+  proposal of Portugal for an alliance, 133;
+  dealings of Adams with Greek revolt, 134;
+  dealings of Adams with Stratford Canning over slave trade, 135, 137;
+  high words over Columbia River settlement, 140-147;
+  refusal of Adams to explain words uttered in Congress, 142, 145-147;
+  commercial treaties in Adams's administration, 194.
+
+"Doughfaces," attacks of Adams upon, 120, 229.
+
+Dromgoole, George C., remark on petition to expel Adams, 268;
+  introduces resolutions of censure on Adams, 275;
+  ridiculed by Adams, 277, 278.
+
+Duncan, Alexander, bitterly described by Adams, 299.
+
+
+Eaton, Senator J. H., leads Canning to suspect American plan to colonize
+    Oregon, 140.
+
+Eaton, Mrs., her influence in Jackson's administration, 237.
+
+Election of 1824, candidates, 148, 149;
+  Adams's opinion of them, 151-163;
+  choice simply between persons, not principles, 163;
+  Adams refuses to canvass for himself, 164, 165;
+  electoral college votes for four candidates, 168, 169;
+  influence of Clay in House proves decisive factor, 169, 170;
+  Crawford discarded, 170;
+  the Clay-Adams bargain story started, 170;
+  claims of Jackson men, 171;
+  difficulty of discovering popular vote, 172, 173;
+  choice of Adams, 173, 174;
+  subsequent history of bargain story, 180-188.
+
+Election of 1828, question of principle veiled by personality of
+    candidates, 196, 197, 200;
+  choice of Jackson, 212;
+  its significance, 213, 214.
+
+Embargo, proposed by Jefferson, 52;
+  supported by Adams, 53;
+  opposed by Federalists, 53;
+  preferred by Adams to submission, 54, 55;
+  its effects, 55;
+  its repeal urged by Adams, 55, 56.
+
+England, ratifies Jay treaty, 21;
+  tries to induce Adams to negotiate instead of Deas, 22;
+  its commercial policy toward United States, 37, 38;
+  its right of search protested against by Adams, 39;
+  Non-importation Act adopted against, 40;
+  proclaims blockade, 41;
+  issues Orders in Council, 41, 42;
+  its policy of impressment, 43, 44;
+  refuses compensation for Chesapeake affair and promotes Berkeley, 45;
+  its policy understood by Adams, 49, 50;
+  embargo against, 51-55;
+  refuses Russia's offer to mediate in war of 1812, 75;
+  wins victories, 76;
+  willing to treat directly, 76;
+  appoints commissioners, 76;
+  demands great concessions, 78, 79;
+  ready, if necessary, to continue war, 86;
+  alters policy and concludes treaty, 93, 94;
+  dissatisfied with treaty, 97;
+  commercial treaty with, 98;
+  mission of Adams to, 98-100;
+  social life of Adams in, 99, 100;
+  its offer to mediate between United States and Spain rejected, 114;
+  hopes no violent action will be taken against Spain, 118;
+  endeavors to induce United States to join in suppressing slave
+    trade, 135, 137;
+  its sincerity suspected by Adams, 138;
+  its claim to right of search causes refusal of request, 138, 139;
+  its claims to Oregon discussed by Canning and Adams, 140, 142, 143, 145;
+  Adams's opinion of its territorial claims, 145.
+
+Era of good feeling, 104;
+  characterized by personal rivalries, 105;
+  question of presidential succession, 105, 106;
+  intrigues, 106, 107, 148.
+
+Evans, George, defends Adams from resolutions of censure, 270.
+
+Everett, Edward, his address to Jackson condemned as fulsome by Adams, 242.
+
+Everett, Horace, defends Adams against resolutions of censure, 283, 286.
+
+Everett, Mr., told by Adams of determination to do nothing to secure
+    election, 164.
+
+
+Federalist party, defeated by Jefferson, 25, 26;
+  dissensions in, between John Adams and Hamilton, 26, 27;
+  J. Q. Adams a member of, 28;
+  elects Adams to State Senate, 28;
+  irritated by his independence, 29;
+  elects him United States senator, 30;
+  antipathy of, in Senate, toward son of John Adams, 31;
+  opposes Louisiana purchase, 35;
+  condemns Adams for favoring Louisiana, 36;
+  supports English policy, 38;
+  angered against Jefferson for not submitting to English aggression,
+    39, 40, 53;
+  opposes Non-importation Act, 40;
+  urged by Adams to resent Chesapeake affair, 51;
+  does so, but condemns Adams for participating in Republican meeting, 52;
+  its outburst of fury at Adams for supporting embargo, 53, 54;
+  refuses to reėlect him, 57;
+  discussion of its part in United States history, 59-62;
+  its success in organization, 59, 60;
+  supported by Adams as long as it remains sound, 61;
+  takes false position after 1807, 62;
+  disappears, 104, 105;
+  thirteen members demand evidence of Adams's statement concerning plans
+    for disunion, 216;
+  their rejoinder to his reply, 217, 218;
+  proved to have planned disunion by Adams's unpublished pamphlet, 218,
+    219.
+
+Fisheries, intention of English to ignore, in treaty of Ghent, 80, 88;
+  disputes over, between Adams and Clay, 88-90;
+  finally omitted from treaty, 92, 94;
+  later negotiations over, 99.
+
+Florida, question of its acquisition, 110, 111;
+  acquired by treaty, 115;
+  its seizure advocated by Adams against Monroe, 118, 123;
+  treaty concerning, opposed by Clay, 151;
+  illegal actions of Jackson in, 159.
+
+Foreign Affairs, Committee on, petition for Adams's removal from, 280;
+  refusal of Southern members to serve on, with Adams, 289.
+
+France, conquers Holland, 20;
+  attitude of John Adams toward, 26;
+  replies to English blockade by Berlin and Milan decrees, 41, 42;
+  unable to damage American shipping as much as England, 46, 47;
+  war with Russia, 74;
+  hopes no violent action will be taken against Spain, 118;
+  rejects England's plan for suppression of slave trade, 138;
+  its slowness in paying debt causes Jackson to break off diplomatic
+    relations, 238.
+
+Franklin, Benjamin, negotiates treaty of peace, 13.
+
+
+"Gag" rule, adopted over Adams's protest, 250, 251;
+  effort of Adams to get his protest on journal, 251, 252;
+  further protests of Adams against, 256, 258, 305;
+  difficulties in enforcing, 260;
+  dwindling majorities for, 305;
+  repealed on Adams's motion, 306.
+
+Gallatin, Albert, appointed peace commissioner, 75;
+  his appointment rejected by Senate, 75;
+  reappointed, 76;
+  moderates resentment of colleagues at English pretensions, 77, 82;
+  acts as peacemaker in conference, 82;
+  supplants Adams in drafting documents, 82;
+  on good terms with Adams, 84;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98.
+
+Gambier, Lord, on English peace commission, 76;
+  laments Adams's intention to return to St. Petersburg, 86;
+  interposes to calm a quarrel, 91;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98.
+
+Garland, Hugh A., attempts to secure organization of House of
+    Representatives without taking in contested seats, 290;
+  intends to give House to Democrats, 291;
+  refuses to put any question until House is organized, 291, 292;
+  prevents organization, 292;
+  pushed aside by Adams, 293.
+
+Garrison, William Lloyd, adopts Adams's theory of power of Congress over
+    slavery, 264.
+
+Genet, E. C., his course attacked by Adams in papers, 18.
+
+Gerry, Elbridge, notifies John Adams of appointment as Minister to
+    England, 14.
+
+Giddings, Joshua R., his position on power of Congress over slavery not
+    indorsed by Adams, 263.
+
+Giles, W. B., attempts to win Adams to support Jefferson, 65;
+  abuses Adams, 211, 296;
+  his memory preserved solely by his slanders, 212;
+  circulates slanders in New England against Adams, 216.
+
+Gilmer, Thomas W., offers resolution of censure on Adams for presenting
+    petition to dissolve the Union, 281;
+  denies Adams's charge of imitating Wise, 281, 282.
+
+Glascock, Thomas, moves that anti-slavery petition be not received, 248.
+
+Goulburn, Henry, on English peace commission, 76;
+  thinks war must continue, 86;
+  loses temper with Bayard and Adams, 91;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98.
+
+Grantland, Seaton, wishes to punish Adams for presenting petition from
+    slaves, 270.
+
+Greece, revolt of, refusal of Adams to commit United States to
+    interference, 134.
+
+Gregory, Sherlock S., his eccentric anti-slavery petition, 256.
+
+Grenville, Lord, dealings of Adams with, in 1795, 22.
+
+Gunboat scheme, despised by Adams, 48.
+
+
+Habersham, Richard W., alleges petition for removal of Adams to be a
+    hoax, 280.
+
+Hamilton, Alexander, real leader of Federalist party during John Adams's
+    administration, 27;
+  his feud with Adams, 27;
+  his influence in Massachusetts, 28, 30.
+
+Harvard College, studies of John Quincy Adams in, 17;
+  its proposal to confer degree upon Jackson opposed by Adams, 241;
+  confers the degree, 241, 242.
+
+Haynes, Charles E., moves rejection of Adams's petition from slaves,
+    270, 275;
+  moves to make censure of Adams severe, 271.
+
+Hayti, its possible representation at Panama Congress causes South to
+    advocate refusal to send delegates, 191;
+  petitions for recognition of, 259.
+
+Holland, mission of Adams to, 20;
+  conquered by France, 20;
+  made into "Batavian Republic," 20;
+  agrees to suppress slave trade, 138.
+
+Holy Alliance, fear of its attempting to reconquer Spanish colonies,
+    132, 134, 136.
+
+House of Representatives, Adams's career in, 225-308;
+  election of Adams to, 225;
+  his labors in committee and other work of, 227;
+  solitariness of Adams in, 231;
+  his position in, with regard to tariff of 1833, 235;
+  debate in, over Jackson's policy to France, 239;
+  anti-slavery petitions presented in, at first without remark, 243, 248;
+  debates plans to prevent their reception, 248-250;
+  adopts "gag" rule against Adams's protest, 251;
+  attempts of Adams to infringe its rule, 257, 258;
+  debates power to abolish slavery, 262;
+  debates proposed censure of Adams for presenting a petition from
+    slaves, 269-279;
+  resolves that slaves do not possess right of petition, 279;
+  Adams's speech in reply, 277-279;
+  attempts to censure Adams for presenting petition for dissolution of
+    Union, 280-288;
+  lays subject on table, 288;
+  does not resent a second disunion petition, 288;
+  refusal of Garland to organize according to custom, in 1839, 290-292;
+  appeals to Adams, 292; organized by his leadership, 293-295;
+  pays compliment to Adams on his return after illness, 307;
+  death of Adams in, 307, 308.
+
+Hubbard, David, comment of Adams on, 300.
+
+Hunter, R. M. T., elected Speaker of House, 295.
+
+
+Impressment, description of its exercise by England and effects upon
+    United States, 43-45;
+  difficulty of reclaiming impressed Americans, 44, 45;
+  the Chesapeake affair, 45, 46;
+  not mentioned in treaty of Ghent, 92, 95;
+  later negotiations over, 99.
+
+Indians, propositions concerning, in peace negotiations, 78;
+  dissensions over, between American commissioners, 90;
+  article concerning, 94.
+
+Internal improvements, Adams's advocacy of, 194, 201.
+
+
+Jackson, Andrew, his view of Adams's office-seeking, 63;
+  wins battle of New Orleans, 96, 97;
+  his outrages in Spanish territory, 110;
+  enrages Spain, 111;
+  approves Adams's Spanish treaty, later condemns it, 125;
+  becomes candidate for presidency in 1824, 149;
+  his Indian wars in Florida, 158, 159;
+  hangs Arbuthnot and Ambrister, 159;
+  captures Pensacola, 159;
+  difficulty of praising or blaming him, 159, 160;
+  condemned by President and Cabinet, 160;
+  and by Clay, 160;
+  defended by Adams, 160-162;
+  ball in his honor given by Adams, 162;
+  supported for Minister to Mexico and for Vice-President by Adams. 163;
+  on good terms with Adams up to election, 163;
+  receives largest electoral vote in 1824, 169;
+  said to have refused offer of Clay to bargain for support, 170;
+  impossibility of Clay's supporting him, 171;
+  popular argument for his choice, 171, 172;
+  absurdity of claim of popular will in favor of, 172, 173;
+  vote for, in House of Representatives, 174;
+  enraged at defeat, 174;
+  yet greets Adams at inauguration, 175;
+  nominated for President by Tennessee legislature, 181;
+  spreads tale of Clay and Adams's bargain, 184;
+  declares he has proof, 184, 185;
+  tells story of offer from Clay, 185;
+  calls upon Buchanan for testimony, 186;
+  his statements disavowed by Buchanan, 186, 187;
+  continues to repeat story, 187;
+  his candidacy for 1828 purely on personal grounds, 195-197, 200;
+  advantages all on his side, 197;
+  originator of spoils system, 198;
+  his position as advocate of unsound government not understood in 1828,
+    200;
+  secretly aided by McLean, 205, 206;
+  rewards him by a judgeship, 206;
+  elected President in 1828, 212;
+  begins a new era, 213, 214;
+  his message of 1832 condemned by Adams, 234;
+  his proclamation against nullification upheld by Adams, 235;
+  ultimately yields to South Carolina, 236;
+  his administration condemned by Adams, 237;
+  its character, 237;
+  recommends vigorous action against France, 238;
+  supported by Adams in House, 239;
+  continues to hate Adams, 239, 240;
+  futile attempt of Johnson to reconcile him with Adams, 240, 241;
+  granted degree of Doctor of Laws by Harvard, 241, 242;
+  suspected by Adams of feigning illness for effect, 242.
+
+Jackson, F. J., his recall referred to in conversation between Canning
+    and Adams, 146.
+
+Jarvis, Leonard, introduces resolution that House will not entertain
+    abolition petitions, 248.
+
+Jay treaty, ratified, 21.
+
+Jefferson, Thomas, negotiates treaties of commerce, 13;
+  republishes Paine's "Rights of Man," 18;
+  his inauguration avoided by John Adams, 26;
+  removes J. Q. Adams from position of commissioner in bankruptcy, 28;
+  attempts to explain apparent malice, 28;
+  Adams's view of his attacks on Pickering and Chase, 36;
+  approves Non-importation Act, 40;
+  inefficient in war-time, 48, 54;
+  advocates embargo, 54;
+  not reconciled with J. Q. Adams in spite of latter's support, 65;
+  unconciliatory reply of Adams to, when offered a mission, 69;
+  his desire to make Louisiana a State opposed by Adams, 130;
+  begins political use of offices to secure reėlection, 198;
+  said to have been warned by Adams of Federalist disunion plots, 216.
+
+Johnson, Joshua, father-in-law of Adams, 22.
+
+Johnson, Louisa Catherine, marries Adams, 22, 23;
+  in Washington society, 103.
+
+Johnson, Richard M., led by Clay to oppose Spanish treaty, 124;
+  endeavors to reconcile Adams and Jackson, 240;
+  his probable motives, 240.
+
+Johnson, Thomas, Governor, connected by marriage with Adams, 22.
+
+
+King, Rufus, description of Adams's offer of English mission to, 177, 178.
+
+Kremer, George, originates bargain slander against Clay and Adams,
+    171, 180;
+  refuses to testify before House Committee, 181;
+  writes a retraction and apology, 187.
+
+
+Leopard. See Chesapeake.
+
+Lewis, Dixon H., urges punishing Adams for offering petition from
+    slaves, 270;
+  wishes Southern members to go home, 272.
+
+Lincoln, Solomon, letter of Adams to, on power of Congress over
+    slavery, 265.
+
+Lincoln, Levi, defends Adams against resolution of censure, 276.
+
+Liverpool, Lord, his anxiety to conclude peace, 93.
+
+Livingston, Edward, ordered by Jackson to demand passports from
+    France, 238.
+
+Lloyd, James, Jr., chosen Senator in Adams's place, 57.
+
+Louisiana, acquisition opposed by Federalist party, 35;
+  supported by Adams, although, in his eyes, unconstitutional, 35;
+  negotiations with Spain concerning its boundary, 110, 112, 114-116;
+  proposed boundary at Sabine opposed by Clay, 112, 116;
+  boundaries agreed upon in treaty, 115;
+  dispute over Spanish land grants in, 116, 117, 124;
+  the boundary later attacked, but, at the time of treaty, approved, 125.
+
+Lowell, John, justifies action of Leopard in attacking Chesapeake, 50.
+
+
+McLean, J. T., professes devotion to Adams and aids Jackson, 205, 206;
+  rewarded by Jackson with a judgeship, 206.
+
+Madison, James, as Secretary of State, favors giving Adams a foreign
+    mission, 68;
+  as President, appoints him Minister to Russia, 69, 70.
+
+Manifest destiny, upheld by Adams, 130.
+
+Mann, Abijah, Jr., of New York, attacks Adams in Congress, 273, 274.
+
+"Marcellus" papers, 18.
+
+Manufactures, Committee on, Adams a member of, 233.
+
+Marshall, Thomas F., attacks Adams for advocating power of Congress
+    over slavery, 263;
+  offers resolution of censure on Adams for presenting disunion
+    petition, 282, 283.
+
+Markley, Philip S., mentioned by Buchanan in Clay-Adams bargain story, 186.
+
+Mason, S. T., killed in a duel, 103, 104.
+
+Massachusetts, upper classes in, belong to Federalist party, 28;
+  legislature of, sends Adams to United States Senate, 30;
+  refuses to reėlect him, 56, 57;
+  condemns embargo, 57;
+  lasting bitterness in, against Adams, for his change of party,
+    58, 216-218;
+  anti-Mason movement in, 226, 301;
+  educated society in, disapproves of Adams's anti-slavery position, 246;
+  farmers support him, 247, 255.
+
+Milan decree issued, 42.
+
+Mills, E. H., describes Washington city, 101;
+  describes Mr. and Mrs. Adams, 103;
+  describes Crawford, 157;
+  describes Adams's ball in honor of Jackson, 162;
+  on reasons for Adams's personal unpopularity, 203 n.
+
+Milton, Adams's opinion of, 223.
+
+Mississippi navigation, demand of English for, in treaty of Ghent, 80, 88;
+  disputes over, between Clay and Adams, 88;
+  finally omitted from treaty, 92, 94.
+
+Missouri, admission of, 119.
+
+Monroe, James, appoints Adams Secretary of State, 100;
+  social life of, 102;
+  character of his administration, 104, 133;
+  enmity of Clay toward, 106;
+  anxious for treaty with Spain, dreads Adams's obstinacy, 113;
+  refuses to seize Florida, 118;
+  his connection with "Monroe doctrine," 129, 131;
+  anticipated by Adams, 131;
+  not the originator of modern idea of non-interference, 136;
+  alarmed at Jackson's conduct in Florida, 160.
+
+Monroe doctrine, enlarged by modern interpretation, 129;
+  outlined by Adams in reply to Russia, 131;
+  stated by Monroe, 131;
+  its principles followed out by Adams, 132-148.
+
+Morgan, William, his alleged assassination by Masons, 208.
+
+
+Neutrality Act, passed to prevent privateering against Spain, 108.
+
+Neuville, Hyde de, social doings of, in Washington, 102, 103;
+  aids Adams in Spanish treaty, 114;
+  remark of Adams to, on Onis's policy, 117.
+
+New England, policy of merchants of, in advocating submission to
+    England, 47, 48;
+  condemns embargo, 52;
+  supports Adams for President in 1824, 169;
+  applauds his anti-slavery course, 232.
+
+New Jersey, disputed election in, prevents organization of House of
+    Representatives, 290-292.
+
+New Orleans, battle of, 96;
+  celebrations over, 96, 97.
+
+New York, supports Adams in 1824, 169;
+  chooses electors by legislature, 173.
+
+Niles's "Weekly Register," celebrates battle of New Orleans, 96, 97.
+
+Non-importation, act for, passed, 40;
+  opposed by Federalists, supported by Adams, 40, 49;
+  its substitution for embargo urged by Adams, 56.
+
+Nullification, opinion of Adams on, 235, 236.
+
+
+Observatory, National, desire of Adams to found, 304.
+
+Onis, Don, Spanish Minister, his character described by Adams, 111;
+  complains to Adams of folly of home government, 111, 112;
+  expostulations of De Neuville with, 114;
+  forced to yield to Adams's terms, 114, 115;
+  tries to evade explanation of royal land grants, 116, 117;
+  angered at Jackson's doings, 161.
+
+Orders in Council, 41, 42.
+
+Oregon question, debated between Adams and Canning, 140-145.
+
+Otis, Harrison Gray, accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+
+Paine, Thomas, his "Rights of Man" attacked by Adams, 18.
+
+Panama Congress, recommendation of Adams to send commissioners to, 189;
+  question debated in Congress, 189, 190;
+  reasons why South objected, 191.
+
+Parsons, Theophilus, studies of J. Q. Adams in his law office, 17;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Patton, John Mercer, urges Southern members to be cautious in matter of
+    censuring Adams, 272.
+
+Petitions, anti-slavery, presented in House by Adams, 243, 248, 249,
+    252, 256-258, 260, 288;
+  others presented, 267, 269;
+  for dissolution of Union, 281, 288 (see "Gag" rule).
+
+Pichegru, Charles, French General, conquers Netherlands, 20.
+
+Pickering, Timothy, defeated by J. Q. Adams for Senator, 30;
+  his relations with Adams in Senate, 32;
+  votes against Adams's appointment as Minister to Russia, 69, 70;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Pickering, John, Adams's view of his impeachment, 36.
+
+Pinckney, Thomas, Minister to England, 22.
+
+Pinckney, Henry Laurens, reports on powers of Congress with regard to
+    slavery, 249;
+  attacks Adams for presenting petition from slaves, 274.
+
+Plumer, William, supports Adams in Senate, 68.
+
+Porter, Peter B., appointed Secretary of War at desire of Cabinet, 205.
+
+Portugal, proposed mission of Adams to, 23, 24;
+  proposes an alliance with United States, 133, 134;
+  agrees to suppress slave trade, 138.
+
+Preston, William C., threatens to hang abolitionists, 258.
+
+Privateers in Monroe's administration, 108.
+
+Prussia, mission of Adams to, 24;
+  treaty of commerce with, 24;
+  rejects English plan for suppression of slave trade, 138.
+
+"Publicola" papers, 18.
+
+Puritan traits in Adams, 7, 30;
+  in Adams's constituents, 247.
+
+
+Quincy, John, great-grandfather of Adams, anecdote as to how Adams was
+    named after him, 1, 2.
+
+Quincy, Josiah, refusal of Adams to run against for Congress, 66.
+
+
+Randolph, John, his enmity compared by Adams to that of Clay, 153;
+  teller in election of 1824, 173;
+  on "Blifil and Black George," 183;
+  duel with Clay, 183;
+  hatred of Adams for, 210, 211;
+  his abuse of Adams, 211, 296.
+
+Republican party, elects Jefferson, 25;
+  fair-minded proposal of Adams concerning its representation on council
+    in Massachusetts, 29;
+  thought by Adams to be planning attack on judiciary, 36;
+  favors France, 38;
+  anticipates Federalists of Boston in condemning Chesapeake affair, 51;
+  endeavors to win over Adams, 65, 68;
+  wishes to send him to Congress, 66.
+
+Rhett, Robert Barnwell, offers resolution that Williams be chairman,
+    substitutes name of Adams, 293;
+  conducts him to chair, 293.
+
+Robertson, John, opposes resolutions of censure, but condemns Adams, 276.
+
+Romanzoff, Count, his friendliness with Adams, 71;
+  suggests Russian mediation in war of 1812, 74.
+
+Rose, G. H., his fruitless mission to America after Chesapeake affair, 45.
+
+Rush, Dr. Benjamin, approaches Adams on subject of foreign mission, 68.
+
+Rush, Richard, appointed Secretary of Treasury, 177;
+  wishes appointment as minister to England, 205.
+
+Russell, Jonathan, on peace commission, 76;
+  criticises Adams's drafts of documents, 82;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296;
+  attitude of Adams toward, 297.
+
+Russia, mission of Dana to, 13;
+  mission of Adams to, 70-74;
+  life in, 71, 73, 74;
+  its friendship for United States, 72;
+  war with France, 74;
+  offers to mediate between England and United States, 74;
+  its offer declined, 75;
+  dispute with, over Alaska, 130;
+  statement of Adams to, on Monroe doctrine, 131;
+  rejects English plan for suppression of slave trade, 138.
+
+
+Sectionalism, in Louisiana purchase, 35;
+  in connection with embargo, 52, 53;
+  in connection with Missouri question, 122, 123;
+  appears in parties during Adams's administration, 188, 189;
+  growth of, during debate over Texas annexation, 243.
+
+Senate of the United States, election of Adams to, 30;
+  unpopularity of Adams in, 31-33;
+  rejects all his proposals, 31, 32;
+  debates acquisition of Louisiana, 35;
+  impeaches Chase, 36;
+  increased influence of Adams in, 36, 37;
+  adopts Adams's resolutions demanding indemnity for British seizures, 39;
+  his career in, reviewed by Adams, 66-68;
+  refuses, then accepts, Adams's nomination as Minister to Russia, 69, 70;
+  rejects Gallatin's nomination as peace commissioner, 75.
+
+Seward, W. H., on John Adams's recall of J. Q. Adams before end of
+  term, 25;
+  on Adams's dissatisfaction with election of 1824, 174.
+
+Shakespeare, Adams's opinion of, 222.
+
+Slaveholders in Congress, their hatred of Adams, 229, 246;
+  attacked by Adams, 258, 259;
+  outwitted by Adams, 261, 273;
+  condemn Adams for arguing possibility of abolition under war power,
+    262, 264;
+  enraged at Adams's having a petition from slaves, 269, 270;
+  move to censure him, 271;
+  discomfited by discovery of nature of petition, 273;
+  renew attempt to censure, 274, 275;
+  abandon it, 276, 279;
+  bitterly attacked by Adams in his defense, 277-279;
+  try to censure Adams for presenting disunion petition, 281-283;
+  defied by Adams, 283-285;
+  threaten Adams with assassination, 286, 287;
+  abandon attempt, 287, 288;
+  refuse to serve on committee with Adams, 289;
+  respect his courage, 290;
+  applaud his energy in carrying out organization of House, 293, 294.
+
+Slavery, strengthened by Louisiana purchase, 35;
+  made a political issue by Missouri question, 119;
+  opinions of Adams concerning, 119-121;
+  extension of, opposed by Adams, 121;
+  formation of a party devoted to, 188-192;
+  attack upon, hastened by Texas question, 243;
+  Adams's part in war against, 244-248;
+  right of Congress to abolish, under war power, 250, 261-265.
+
+Slaves, English seizures of, during war of 1812, negotiations
+    concerning, 99.
+
+Slave trade, refusal of Adams to submit United States to mixed tribunals
+    for its repression, 135-137;
+  English proposal for combined effort, 137, 138.
+
+Smith, William, accuses Adams of monomania, 280.
+
+Smithsonian bequest, connection of Adams with, 303.
+
+South, the, Calhoun its leader in 1824, 149;
+  does not support Adams for President, 169, 188;
+  begins to form a new slavery party in Adams's administration, 188, 189;
+  opposes Panama Congress because of Hayti's share in it, 191.
+
+Southard, Samuel L., reappointed Secretary of Navy, 177.
+
+South Carolina, refusal of Adams to placate, in 1828, 201;
+  protests against tariff, 233;
+  its punishment for nullification desired by Adams, 234-237;
+  Jackson's vacillation toward, condemned by Adams, 234-236;
+  gains its point from Clay, 236.
+
+Spain, danger of war with, in Monroe's administration, 108;
+  question of revolted colonies, 108, 109;
+  disputes over Louisiana boundary and Florida, 109, 110;
+  sends Onis to negotiate, 111;
+  its policy hampers Onis, 111, 112;
+  negotiations, 113-116;
+  repudiates Onis's treaty, 117;
+  accepts original treaty, 124;
+  agrees to suppress slave trade, 138;
+  angered at Jackson's excesses in Florida, 161.
+
+Spanish-American republics, wish aid from United States, 108;
+  frowned down by European countries, 108;
+  sympathy for, in United States, 108, 109;
+  recognition urged by Clay, 109, 152;
+  recognized gradually, 132;
+  danger of attempt to reconquer by Holy Alliance, 132, 133;
+  protected by Monroe doctrine, 131-134.
+
+Sterret, ----, his removal urged by Clay for planning an insult to
+    Adams, 179;
+  not removed by Adams, 180.
+
+
+Tariff, Adams's views upon, 234;
+  compromise tariff of 1833, considered by Adams a surrender, 235.
+
+Tennessee, renominates Jackson for President, 181;
+  repeats bargain story, 183.
+
+Texas, proposal to annex, arouses Northern opposition to slavery, 243;
+  indignation of Adams at, 265, 266;
+  held by Adams to be unconstitutional, 266.
+
+Thaxter, ----, teacher of Adams, 3.
+
+Thompson, Waddy, sarcastic remark of, 259;
+  neglects to present petition for Adams's expulsion, 268;
+  introduces resolution of censure upon Adams, 271;
+  threatens Adams with criminal proceedings, 271;
+  presents new resolutions, 274;
+  scored by Adams, 277.
+
+Tompkins, Daniel D., candidate for President in 1824, 149.
+
+Times, London, condemns treaty of Ghent, 97.
+
+Tracy, Uriah, supports Adams in Senate, 68.
+
+Treaty of Ghent, meeting of commissioners, 76;
+  irritation during negotiations, 77;
+  preliminary conflict as to place of meeting, 77, 78;
+  large demands of England for cession of territory and other
+    advantages, 78, 79;
+  discussion over proposed belt of neutral Indian territory, 79;
+  and of demand for Mississippi navigation, 80;
+  complaints by Americans of manners of English, 80-82;
+  bickerings among Americans, 81-84;
+  difficulties in drafting documents, 82, 83;
+  social intercourse between commissioners, 85, 92;
+  expected failure of negotiations, 86;
+  _status ante bellum_ proposed by Adams, 87;
+  sanctioned by United States, 87;
+  dissensions among commissioners over Mississippi navigation and
+    fisheries, 88-90;
+  over Moose Island, 91;
+  English offer to omit fisheries and Mississippi, 92;
+  abandonment of impressment article by Americans, 92;
+  peculiarities of negotiation, 93;
+  alteration of English policy, 93;
+  terms of treaty, 94;
+  a success for Americans, 95, 96;
+  rejoicings over, in America, 96;
+  condemned in England, 97.
+
+Trimble, Cary A., of Ohio, opposes Spanish treaty, 124.
+
+Tuyl, Baron, discussion of Adams with, concerning Alaska, 131.
+
+
+Van Buren, Martin, becomes manager of Jackson's followers, 192;
+  compared by Adams to Burr, 193.
+
+Vanderpoel, Aaron, tries to prevent Adams from replying to resolutions
+    of censure by previous question, 270.
+
+Virginia, refusal of Adams to placate, in election of 1828, 201.
+
+Vivźs, General, supplants Onis, 123;
+  Adams's stubborn attitude toward, 123, 124;
+  forced to yield, 124.
+
+Von Holst, H. C., calls Adams last of the statesmen to be President, 213.
+
+
+War of 1812, a defeat for United States, 76, 86.
+
+War power of Congress, held by Adams to justify emancipation of
+    slaves, 261-265.
+
+Washington, George, appoints Adams Minister to Holland, 19;
+  urges him to remain in diplomacy, 21;
+  transfers him to Portugal, 23;
+  urges John Adams not to hesitate to promote him, 23, 24.
+
+Washington city, absence of church in, 30;
+  described in 1815, 101, 102;
+  society in, 102, 103.
+
+Webster, Daniel, describes intriguing in presidential election of 1824,
+    165;
+  teller in election of 1824, 173;
+  supports Adams in matter of Panama Congress, 190;
+  desires appointment as Minister to England, 205;
+  Adams said to have bargained for his support, 209;
+  accused by Adams of plotting to injure him, 296.
+
+Webster, Ezekiel, ascribes Adams's defeat to unpopularity of his manners,
+    204.
+
+Weights and measures, report of Adams upon, 126, 127;
+  its character and ability, 126, 127.
+
+Wellesley, Marquis of, on superiority of American diplomacy in treaty of
+    Ghent, 96, 98.
+
+Whig party, begins in defense of Adams's administration, 193;
+  lacks personal interest in him, 199;
+  chilled by Adams's manner, 202-204;
+  Adams a member of, 232, 233.
+
+Williams, Joseph L., of Tennessee, opposes Spanish treaty, 124.
+
+Williams, Lewis, proposes Adams for chairman of House, 293.
+
+Wise, Henry A., objects to reception of anti-slavery petitions, 258;
+  attacks Adams for holding that Congress may interfere with slavery
+    in the States, 263;
+  again attacks him, 283;
+  expresses his loathing, 284;
+  taunted with murder by Adams, his bitter reply, 285;
+  compliments Adams on organizing House, 294;
+  later, when reprimanded for fighting, insults Adams, 294;
+  castigated by Adams for dueling and Southern views, 297, 300.
+
+Wirt, William, reappointed Attorney-General, 177.
+
+
+
+
+The Riverside Press
+
+CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A.
+ELECTROTYPED AND PRINTED BY
+H. O. HOUGHTON AND CO.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of John Quincy Adams, by John. T. Morse
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN QUINCY ADAMS ***
+
+***** This file should be named 20183-8.txt or 20183-8.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        http://www.gutenberg.org/2/0/1/8/20183/
+
+Produced by Christine P. Travers and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
+produced from images generously made available by The
+Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+http://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+http://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at http://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit http://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations.
+To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     http://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
diff --git a/20183-8.zip b/20183-8.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e07eeae
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-8.zip
diff --git a/20183-h.zip b/20183-h.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7fac05d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h.zip
diff --git a/20183-h/20183-h.htm b/20183-h/20183-h.htm
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a1bb0c2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/20183-h.htm
@@ -0,0 +1,11407 @@
+<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN">
+<html>
+
+<head>
+<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
+<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of John Quincy Adams - John T. Morse Jr</title>
+
+
+<style type="text/css">
+<!--
+
+body {font-size: 1em; text-align: justify; margin-left: 5%; margin-right: 5%;}
+
+h1  {font-size: 1.4em; text-align: center; margin-top: 2em; margin-bottom: 2em;}
+h2  {font-size: 1.2em; text-align: center; margin-top: 4em; margin-bottom: 2em;}
+h3  {font-size: 1.2em; text-align: center; margin-top: 4em; margin-bottom: 1em;}
+h4  {text-align: center; margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 2em;}
+h6  {font-size: 0.8em; text-align: center;}
+
+.p2 {margin-top: 2em;}
+
+.pagenum  {visibility: hidden; position: absolute; right:0; font-size: smaller;
+text-align: right; color: #C0C0C0; background-color: inherit;}
+
+.smcap  {font-variant: small-caps; font-size: 0.9em;}
+
+.left60 {margin-left: 60%;}
+
+.quote {margin-left: 05%; font-size: 0.9em;}
+
+.poem {margin-left: 10%; font-size: 0.9em;}
+.poem1 {margin-left: 20%; font-size: 0.9em;}
+
+a {text-decoration: none;}
+
+.figcenter {margin: auto; text-align: center;}
+
+.c20 {width: 20%;}
+.c50 {width: 50%;}
+
+.index {margin-left: 5%;}
+.index-5 {margin-left: -5%;}
+.index5 {margin-left: 5%;}
+
+-->
+</style>
+
+</head>
+
+<body>
+
+
+<pre>
+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of John Quincy Adams, by John. T. Morse
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: John Quincy Adams
+       American Statesmen Series
+
+Author: John. T. Morse
+
+Release Date: December 26, 2006 [EBook #20183]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN QUINCY ADAMS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Christine P. Travers and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
+produced from images generously made available by The
+Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+
+
+<p>[Transcriber's note: Obvious printer's errors have been corrected.
+The original spelling has been retained.<br>
+Missing page numbers correspond to blank pages.]</p>
+
+<a id="img001" name="img001"></a>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/img001.jpg" width="400" height="484"
+alt="John Quincy Adams" title="">
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+
+<h1>American Statesmen</h1>
+
+<h2>STANDARD LIBRARY EDITION</h2>
+
+<a id="img002" name="img002"></a>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/img002.jpg" width="400" height="403"
+alt="The Home of John Quincy Adams" title="">
+</div>
+
+
+<h4>HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN &amp; CO.</h4>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<h2>American Statesmen</h2>
+
+<h1>JOHN QUINCY ADAMS</h1>
+
+<h4>BY</h4>
+
+<h1>JOHN T. MORSE, JR.</h1>
+
+<a id="img003" name="img003"></a>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 150px;">
+<img src="images/img003.jpg" width="150" height="201"
+alt="Front" title="">
+</div>
+
+
+<h4>BOSTON AND NEW YORK<br>
+HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY<br>
+The Riverside Press, Cambridge</h4>
+
+
+
+
+
+<h6>Copyright, 1882 and 1898,<br>
+<span class="smcap">By JOHN T. MORSE, JR.</span></h6>
+
+<h6>Copyright, 1898,<br>
+<span class="smcap">By HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN &amp; CO.</span></h6>
+
+<h6><i>All rights reserved.</i></h6>
+
+
+
+
+<h2>PREFACE</h2>
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="pagev" name="pagev"></a>(p. v)</span>
+
+
+<p>Nearly sixteen years have elapsed since this book was written. In that
+time sundry inaccuracies have been called to my attention, and have
+been corrected, and it may be fairly hoped that after the lapse of so
+long a period all errors in matters of fact have been eliminated. I am
+not aware that any fresh material has been made public, or that any
+new views have been presented which would properly lead to alterations
+in the substance of what is herein said. If I were now writing the
+book for the first time, I should do what so many of the later
+contributors to the series have very wisely and advantageously done: I
+should demand more space. But this was the first volume published, and
+at a time when the enterprise was still an experiment insistence upon
+such a point, especially on the part of the editor, would have been
+unreasonable. Thus it happens that, though Mr. Adams was appointed
+minister resident at the Hague in 1794, and thereafter continued in
+public life, almost without interruption, until his
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="pagevi" name="pagevi"></a>(p. vi)</span> death in
+February, 1848, the narrative of his career is compressed within
+little more than three hundred pages. The proper function of a work
+upon this scale is to draw a picture of the man.</p>
+
+<p>With the picture which I have drawn of Mr. Adams, I still remain
+moderately contented&mdash;by which remark I mean nothing more egotistical
+than that I believe it to be a correct picture, and done with whatever
+measure of skill I may happen to possess in portraiture. I should like
+to change it only in one particular, viz.: by infusing throughout the
+volume somewhat more of admiration. Adams has never received the
+praise which was his due, and probably he never will receive it. In
+order that justice should be done him by the public, his biographer
+ought to speak somewhat better of him than his real deserts would
+require. He presents one of those cases where exaggeration is the
+servant of truth; for this moderate excess of appreciation would only
+offset that discount from an accurate estimate which his personal
+unpopularity always has caused, and probably always will cause, to be
+made. He was a good instance of the rule that the world will for the
+most part treat the individual as the individual treats the world.
+Adams was censorious, not to say uncharitable in the extreme,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="pagevii" name="pagevii"></a>(p. vii)</span>
+always in an attitude of antagonism, always unsparing and
+denunciatory. The measure which he meted has been by others in their
+turn meted to him. This habit of ungracious criticism was his great
+fault; perhaps it was almost his only very serious fault; it cost him
+dear in his life, and has continued to cost his memory dear since his
+death. Sometimes we are not sorry to see men get the punishments which
+they have brought on themselves; yet we ought to be sorry for Mr.
+Adams. After all, his fault-finding was in part the result of his
+respect for virtue and his hatred of all that was ignoble and
+unworthy. If he despised a low standard, at least he held his own
+standard high, and himself lived by the rules by which he measured
+others. Men with vastly greater defects have been much more kindly
+served both by contemporaries and by posterity. There can be no
+question that Adams deserved all the esteem which ought to be accorded
+to the highest moral qualities, to very high, if a little short of the
+highest, intellectual endowment, and to immense acquirements. His
+political integrity was of a grade rarely seen; and, in unison with
+his extraordinary courage and independence, it seemed to the average
+politician actually irritating and offensive. He was in the same
+difficulty
+in <span class="pagenum"><a id="pageviii" name="pageviii"></a>(p. viii)</span>
+which Aristides the Just found himself. But
+neither assaults nor political solitude daunted or discouraged him.
+His career in the House of Representatives is a tale which has not a
+rival in congressional history. I regret that it could not be told
+here at greater length. Stubbornly fighting for freedom of speech and
+against the slaveholders, fierce and unwearied in old age, falling
+literally out of the midst of the conflict into his grave, Mr. Adams,
+during the closing years of his life, is one of the most striking
+figures of modern times. I beg the reader of this volume to put into
+its pages more warmth of praise than he will find therein, and so do a
+more correct justice to an honest statesman and a gallant friend of
+the oppressed. Doing this, he will improve my book in the particular
+wherein I think that it chiefly needs improvement.<br>
+<span class="left60">JOHN T. MORSE, JR.</span><br>
+  July, 1898.</p>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<h2>CONTENTS</h2>
+
+
+<div class="figcenter">
+<p>CHAPTER I.</p>
+
+<p class="smcap"><a href="#page001">Youth and Diplomacy</a></p>
+
+<p class="p2">CHAPTER II.</p>
+<p class="smcap"><a href="#page101">Secretary of State and President</a></p>
+
+<p class="p2">CHAPTER III.</p>
+<p class="smcap"><a href="#page225">In the House of Representatives</a></p>
+
+<p class="p2 smcap"><a href="#page311">Index</a></p>
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<h2>ILLUSTRATIONS</h2>
+
+
+<div class="figcenter">
+<p><span class="smcap"><a href="#img001">John Quincy Adams</a></span><br>
+
+From the original painting by John Singleton Copley,
+in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.<br>
+
+Autograph from the Chamberlain collection, Boston
+Public Library.</p>
+
+<p class="p2"><a href="#img002"></a>
+The vignette of Mr. Adams's home in Quincy is
+from a photograph.</p>
+
+
+<p class="p2"><span class="smcap"><a href="#img004">William H. Crawford</a></span><br>
+
+From the painting by Henry Ulke, in the Treasury
+Department at Washington.<br>
+Autograph from the Chamberlain collection, Boston
+Public Library.</p>
+
+
+<p class="p2"><span class="smcap"><a href="#img005">Stratford Canning</a></span><br>
+After a drawing (1853) by George Richmond.<br>
+Autograph from "Life of Stratford Canning."</p>
+
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="smcap"><a href="#img006">Henry A. Wise</a></span><br>
+From a photograph by Brady, in the Library of the
+State Department at Washington.<br>
+Autograph from the Chamberlain collection, Boston
+Public Library.</p>
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<h1>JOHN QUINCY ADAMS
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page001" name="page001"></a>(p. 001)</span></h1>
+
+
+<h3>CHAPTER I</h3>
+
+<h4>YOUTH AND DIPLOMACY</h4>
+
+
+<p>On July 11, 1767, in the North Parish of Braintree, since set off as
+the town of Quincy, in Massachusetts, was born John Quincy Adams. Two
+streams of as good blood as flowed in the colony mingled in the veins
+of the infant. If heredity counts for anything he began life with an
+excellent chance of becoming famous&mdash;<i>non sine dīs animosus infans</i>.
+He was called after his great-grandfather on the mother's side, John
+Quincy, a man of local note who had borne in his day a distinguished
+part in provincial affairs. Such a naming was a simple and natural
+occurrence enough, but Mr. Adams afterward moralized upon it in his
+characteristic way:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "The incident which gave rise to this circumstance is not without
+     its moral to my heart. He was dying when I was baptized; and his
+     daughter, my grandmother, present at my birth, requested that I
+     might receive
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page002" name="page002"></a>(p. 002)</span>
+     his name. The fact, recorded by my father
+     at the time, has connected with that portion of my name a charm
+     of mingled sensibility and devotion. It was filial tenderness
+     that gave the name. It was the name of one passing from earth to
+     immortality. These have been among the strongest links of my
+     attachment to the name of Quincy, and have been to me through
+     life a perpetual admonition to do nothing unworthy of it."
+</p>
+
+<p>Fate, which had made such good preparation for him before his birth,
+was not less kind in arranging the circumstances of his early training
+and development. His father was deeply engaged in the patriot cause,
+and the first matters borne in upon his opening intelligence concerned
+the public discontent and resistance to tyranny. He was but seven
+years old when he clambered with his mother to the top of one of the
+high hills in the neighborhood of his home to listen to the sounds of
+conflict upon Bunker's Hill, and to watch the flaming ruin of
+Charlestown. Profound was the impression made upon him by the
+spectacle, and it was intensified by many an hour spent afterward upon
+the same spot during the siege and bombardment of Boston. Then John
+Adams went as a delegate to the Continental Congress at Philadelphia,
+and his wife and children were left for twelve months, as John Quincy
+Adams says,&mdash;it
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page003" name="page003"></a>(p. 003)</span>
+is to be hoped with a little exaggeration of
+the barbarity of British troops toward women and babes,&mdash;"liable every
+hour of the day and of the night to be butchered in cold blood, or
+taken and carried into Boston as hostages, by any foraging or
+marauding detachment." Later, when the British had evacuated Boston,
+the boy, barely nine years old, became "post-rider" between the city
+and the farm, a distance of eleven miles each way, in order to bring
+all the latest news to his mother.</p>
+
+<p>Not much regular schooling was to be got amid such surroundings of
+times and events, but the lad had a natural aptitude or affinity for
+knowledge which stood him in better stead than could any dame of a
+village school. The following letter to his father is worth
+preserving:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="quote">
+<p><span class="left60 smcap">Braintree</span>,
+<i>June the 2d, 1777</i>.<br>
+<span class="smcap">Dear Sir</span>,&mdash;I love to receive letters
+very well, much better than
+     I love to write them. I make but a poor figure at composition, my
+     head is much too fickle, my thoughts are running after birds'
+     eggs, play and trifles till I get vexed with myself. I have but
+     just entered the 3d volume of Smollett, tho' I had designed to
+     have got it half through by this time. I have determined this
+     week to be more diligent, as Mr. Thaxter will be absent at Court
+     and I Cannot pursue my other Studies. I have Set myself a Stent
+     and determine to read the 3d volume Half out. If I
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page004" name="page004"></a>(p. 004)</span> can
+     but keep my resolution I will write again at the end of the week
+     and give a better account of myself. I wish, Sir, you would give
+     me some instructions with regard to my time, and advise me how to
+     proportion my Studies and my Play, in writing, and I will keep
+     them by me and endeavor to follow them. I am, dear Sir, with a
+     present determination of growing better. Yours.</p>
+
+<p>P.S. Sir, if you will be so good as to favor me with a Blank
+     book, I will transcribe the most remarkable occurrences I met
+     with in my reading, which will serve to fix them upon my mind.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Not long after the writing of this model epistle, the simple village
+life was interrupted by an unexpected change. John Adams was sent on a
+diplomatic journey to Paris, and on February 13, 1778, embarked in the
+frigate Boston. John Quincy Adams, then eleven years old, accompanied
+his father and thus made his first acquaintance with the foreign lands
+where so many of his coming years were to be passed. This initial
+visit, however, was brief; and he was hardly well established at
+school when events caused his father to start for home. Unfortunately
+this return trip was a needless loss of time, since within three
+months of their setting foot upon American shores the two travellers
+were again on their stormy way back across the Atlantic in a leaky
+ship, which had
+to <span class="pagenum"><a id="page005" name="page005"></a>(p. 005)</span>
+land them at the nearest port in Spain.
+One more quotation must be given from a letter written just after the
+first arrival in France:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="quote">
+     <p> <span class="left60 smcap">Passy</span>, <i>September the 27th, 1778</i>.<br>
+
+     <span class="smcap">Honored Mamma</span>,&mdash;My Pappa enjoins it upon me to keep a Journal, or
+     a Diary of the Events that happen to me, and of objects that I
+     see, and of Characters that I converse with from day to day; and
+     altho' I am Convinced of the utility, importance and necessity of
+     this Exercise, yet I have not patience and perseverance enough to
+     do it so Constantly as I ought. My Pappa, who takes a great deal
+     of pains to put me in the right way, has also advised me to
+     Preserve Copies of all my letters, and has given me a Convenient
+     Blank Book for this end; and altho' I shall have the
+     mortification a few years hence to read a great deal of my
+     Childish nonsense, yet I shall have the Pleasure and advantage of
+     Remarking the several steps by which I shall have advanced in
+     taste, judgment and knowledge. A Journal Book and a letter Book
+     of a Lad of Eleven years old Can not be expected to Contain much
+     of Science, Literature, arts, wisdom, or wit, yet it may serve to
+     perpetuate many observations that I may make, and may hereafter
+     help me to recollect both persons and things that would other
+     ways escape my memory.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>He continues with resolutions "to be more thoughtful and industrious
+for the future," and reflects with pleasure upon the prospect that
+his <span class="pagenum"><a id="page006" name="page006"></a>(p. 006)</span>
+scheme "will be a sure means of improvement to myself,
+and enable me to be more entertaining to you." What gratification must
+this letter from one who was quite justified in signing himself her
+"dutiful and affectionate son" have brought to the Puritan bosom of
+the good mother at home! If the plan for the diary was not pursued
+during the first short flitting abroad, it can hardly be laid at the
+door of the "lad of eleven years" as a serious fault. He did in fact
+begin it when setting out on the aforementioned second trip to Europe,
+calling it</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter">
+<p><span class="smcap">A Journal by</span> J. Q. A.,</p>
+
+<p><i>From America to Spain.</i></p>
+
+<p>Vol. I.</p>
+
+<p>Begun Friday, 12 of November, 1779.</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The spark of life in the great undertaking flickered in a somewhat
+feeble and irregular way for many years thereafter, but apparently
+gained strength by degrees until in 1795, as Mr. C. F. Adams tells us,
+"what may be denominated the diary proper begins," a very vigorous
+work in more senses than one. Continued with astonishing persistency
+and faithfulness until within a few days of the writer's death, the
+latest entry is of the 4th of January, 1848. Mr. Adams achieved many
+successes during
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page007" name="page007"></a>(p. 007)</span>
+his life as the result of conscious effort,
+but the greatest success of all he achieved altogether unconsciously.
+He left a portrait of himself more full, correct, vivid, and
+picturesque than has ever been bequeathed to posterity by any other
+personage of the past ages. Any mistakes which may be made in
+estimating his mental or moral attributes must be charged to the
+dulness or prejudice of the judge, who could certainly not ask for
+better or more abundant evidence. Few of us know our most intimate
+friends better than any of us may know Mr. Adams, if we will but take
+the trouble. Even the brief extracts already given from his
+correspondence show us the boy; it only concerns us to get them into
+the proper light for seeing them accurately. If a lad of seven, nine,
+or eleven years of age should write such solemn little effusions amid
+the surroundings and influences of the present day, he would probably
+be set down justly enough as either an offensive young prig or a
+prematurely developed hypocrite. But the precocious Adams had only a
+little of the prig and nothing of the hypocrite in his nature. Being
+the outcome of many generations of simple, devout, intelligent Puritan
+ancestors, living in a community which loved virtue and sought
+knowledge, all inherited and all present influences combined
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page008" name="page008"></a>(p. 008)</span>
+to make him, as it may be put in a single word, sensible. He had
+inevitably a mental boyhood and youth, but morally he was never either
+a child or a lad; all his leading traits of character were as strongly
+marked when he was seven as when he was seventy, and at an age when
+most young people simply win love or cause annoyance, he was
+preferring wisdom to mischief, and actually in his earliest years was
+attracting a certain respect.</p>
+
+<p>These few but bold and striking touches which paint the boy are
+changed for an infinitely more elaborate and complex presentation from
+the time when the Diary begins. Even as abridged in the printing, this
+immense work ranks among the half-dozen longest diaries to be found in
+any library, and it is unquestionably by far the most valuable.
+Henceforth we are to travel along its broad route to the end; we shall
+see in it both the great and the small among public men halting onward
+in a way very different from that in which they march along the
+stately pages of the historian, and we shall find many side-lights, by
+no means colorless, thrown upon the persons and events of the
+procession. The persistence, fulness, and faithfulness with which it
+was kept throughout so busy a life are marvellous, but are also highly
+characteristic of the most persevering and industrious of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page009" name="page009"></a>(p. 009)</span>
+men. That it has been preserved is cause not only for thankfulness but
+for some surprise also. For if its contents had been known, it is
+certain that all the public men of nearly two generations who figure
+in it would have combined into one vast and irresistible conspiracy to
+obtain and destroy it. There was always a superfluity of gall in the
+diarist's ink. Sooner or later every man of any note in the United
+States was mentioned in his pages, and there is scarcely one of them,
+who, if he could have read what was said of him, would not have
+preferred the ignominy of omission. As one turns the leaves he feels
+as though he were walking through a graveyard of slaughtered
+reputations wherein not many headstones show a few words of measured
+commendation. It is only the greatness and goodness of Mr. Adams
+himself which relieve the universal atmosphere of sadness far more
+depressing than the melancholy which pervades the novels of George
+Eliot. The reader who wishes to retain any comfortable degree of
+belief in his fellow men will turn to the wall all the portraits in
+the gallery except only the inimitable one of the writer himself. For
+it would be altogether too discouraging to think that so wide an
+experience of men as Mr. Adams enjoyed through his long, varied, and
+active life must lead to such an unpleasant array of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page010" name="page010"></a>(p. 010)</span>
+human
+faces as those which are scattered along these twelve big octavos.
+Fortunately at present we have to do with only one of these
+likenesses, and that one we are able to admire while knowing also that
+it is beyond question accurate. One after another every trait of Mr.
+Adams comes out; we shall see that he was a man of a very high and
+noble character veined with some very notable and disagreeable
+blemishes; his aspirations were honorable, even the lowest of them
+being more than simply respectable; he had an avowed ambition, but it
+was of that pure kind which led him to render true and distinguished
+services to his countrymen; he was not only a zealous patriot, but a
+profound believer in the sound and practicable tenets of the liberal
+political creed of the United States; he had one of the most honest
+and independent natures that was ever given to man; personal integrity
+of course goes without saying, but he had the rarer gift of an
+elevated and rigid political honesty such as has been unfrequently
+seen in any age or any nation; in times of severe trial this quality
+was even cruelly tested, but we shall never see it fail; he was as
+courageous as if he had been a fanatic; indeed, for a long part of his
+life to maintain a single-handed fight in support of a despised or
+unpopular opinion seemed his natural function and almost exclusive
+calling;
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page011" name="page011"></a>(p. 011)</span>
+he was thoroughly conscientious and never knowingly
+did wrong, nor even sought to persuade himself that wrong was right;
+well read in literature and of wide and varied information in nearly
+all matters of knowledge, he was more especially remarkable for his
+acquirements in the domain of politics, where indeed they were vast
+and ever growing; he had a clear and generally a cool head, and was
+nearly always able to do full justice to himself and to his cause; he
+had an indomitable will, unconquerable persistence, and infinite
+laboriousness. Such were the qualities which made him a great
+statesman; but unfortunately we must behold a hardly less striking
+reverse to the picture, in the faults and shortcomings which made him
+so unpopular in his lifetime that posterity is only just beginning to
+forget the prejudices of his contemporaries and to render concerning
+him the judgment which he deserves. Never did a man of pure life and
+just purposes have fewer friends or more enemies than John Quincy
+Adams. His nature, said to have been very affectionate in his family
+relations, was in its aspect outside of that small circle singularly
+cold and repellent. If he could ever have gathered even a small
+personal following his character and abilities would have insured him
+a brilliant and prolonged success; but, for a man of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page012" name="page012"></a>(p. 012)</span> his
+calibre and influence, we shall see him as one of the most lonely and
+desolate of the great men of history; instinct led the public men of
+his time to range themselves against him rather than with him, and we
+shall find them fighting beside him only when irresistibly compelled
+to do so by policy or strong convictions. As he had little sympathy
+with those with whom he was brought in contact, so he was very
+uncharitable in his judgment of them; and thus having really a low
+opinion of so many of them he could indulge his vindictive rancor
+without stint; his invective, always powerful, will sometimes startle
+us by its venom, and we shall be pained to see him apt to make enemies
+for a good cause by making them for himself.</p>
+
+<p>This has been, perhaps, too long a lingering upon the threshold. But
+Mr. Adams's career in public life stretched over so long a period that
+to write a full historical memoir of him within the limited space of
+this volume is impossible. All that can be attempted is to present a
+sketch of the man with a few of his more prominent surroundings
+against a very meagre and insufficient background of the history of
+the times. So it may be permissible to begin with a general outline of
+his figure, to be filled in, shaded, and colored as we proceed. At
+best our task is much more difficult of satisfactory achievement
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page013" name="page013"></a>(p. 013)</span>
+than an historical biography of the customary elaborate order.</p>
+
+<p>During his second visit to Europe, our mature youngster&mdash;if the word
+may be used of Mr. Adams even in his earliest years&mdash;began to see a
+good deal of the world and to mingle in very distinguished society.
+For a brief period he got a little schooling, first at Paris, next at
+Amsterdam, and then at Leyden; altogether the amount was
+insignificant, since he was not quite fourteen years old when he
+actually found himself engaged in a diplomatic career. Francis Dana,
+afterward Chief Justice of Massachusetts, was then accredited as an
+envoy to Russia from the United States, and he took Mr. Adams with him
+as his private secretary. Not much came of the mission, but it was a
+valuable experience for a lad of his years. Upon his return he spent
+six months in travel and then he rejoined his father in Paris, where
+that gentleman was engaged with Franklin and John Jay in negotiating
+the final treaty of peace between the revolted colonies and the mother
+country. The boy "was at once enlisted in the service as an additional
+secretary, and gave his help to the preparation of the papers
+necessary to the completion of that instrument which dispersed all
+possible doubt of the Independence of his Country."</p>
+
+<p>On <span class="pagenum"><a id="page014" name="page014"></a>(p. 014)</span>
+April 26, 1785, arrived the packet-ship Le Courier de
+L'Orient, bringing a letter from Mr. Gerry containing news of the
+appointment of John Adams as Minister to St. James's. This unforeseen
+occurrence made it necessary for the younger Adams to determine his
+own career, which apparently he was left to do for himself. He was
+indeed a singular young man, not unworthy of such confidence! The
+glimpses which we get of him during this stay abroad show him as the
+associate upon terms of equality with grown men of marked ability and
+exercising important functions. He preferred diplomacy to dissipation,
+statesmen to mistresses, and in the midst of all the temptations of
+the gayest capital in the world, the chariness with which he sprinkled
+his wild oats amid the alluring gardens chiefly devoted to the culture
+of those cereals might well have brought a blush to the cheeks of some
+among his elders, at least if the tongue of slander wags not with
+gross untruth concerning the colleagues of John Adams. But he was not
+in Europe to amuse himself, though at an age when amusement is natural
+and a tinge of sinfulness is so often pardoned; he was there with the
+definite and persistent purpose of steady improvement and acquisition.
+At his age most young men play the cards which a kind fortune puts
+into their hands, with the reckless
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page015" name="page015"></a>(p. 015)</span>
+intent only of immediate
+gain, but from the earliest moment when he began the game of life
+Adams coolly and wisely husbanded every card which came into his hand,
+with a steady view to probable future contingencies, and with the
+resolve to win in the long run. So now the resolution which he took in
+the present question illustrated the clearness of his mind and the
+strength of his character. To go with his father to England would be
+to enjoy a life precisely fitted to his natural and acquired tastes,
+to mingle with the men who were making history, to be cognizant of the
+weightiest of public affairs, to profit by all that the grandest city
+in the world had to show. It was easy to be not only allured by the
+prospect but also to be deceived by its apparent advantages. Adams,
+however, had the sense and courage to turn his back on it, and to go
+home to the meagre shores and small society of New England, there to
+become a boy again, to enter Harvard College, and come under all its
+at that time rigid and petty regulations. It almost seems a mistake,
+but it was not. Already he was too ripe and too wise to blunder. He
+himself gives us his characteristic and sufficient reasons:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="quote">
+<p> "Were I now to go with my father probably my immediate
+     satisfaction might be greater than it will be
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page016" name="page016"></a>(p. 016)</span> in
+     returning to America. After having been travelling for these
+     seven years almost and all over Europe, and having been in the
+     world and among company for three; to return to spend one or two
+     years in the pale of a college, subjected to all the rules which
+     I have so long been freed from; and afterwards not expect
+     (however good an opinion I may have of myself) to bring myself
+     into notice under three or four years more, if ever! It is really
+     a prospect somewhat discouraging for a youth of my ambition, (for
+     I have ambition though I hope its object is laudable). But still</p>
+
+<p class="poem">
+<span class="poem1">'Oh! how wretched</span><br>
+  Is that poor man, that hangs on Princes' favors,'</p>
+
+
+<p> or on those of any body else. I am determined that so long as I
+     shall be able to get my own living in an honorable manner, I will
+     depend upon no one. My father has been so much taken up all his
+     lifetime with the interests of the public, that his own fortune
+     has suffered by it: so that his children will have to provide for
+     themselves, which I shall never be able to do if I loiter away my
+     precious time in Europe and shun going home until I am forced to
+     it. With an ordinary share of common sense, which I hope I enjoy,
+     at least in America I can live <i>independent</i> and <i>free</i>; and
+     rather than live otherwise I would wish to die before the time
+     when I shall be left at my own discretion. I have before me a
+     striking example of the distressing and humiliating situation a
+     person is reduced to by adopting a different line of conduct, and
+     I am determined not to fall into the same error."</p>
+</div>
+
+
+<p>It <span class="pagenum"><a id="page017" name="page017"></a>(p. 017)</span>
+is needless to comment upon such spirit and sense, or upon
+such just appreciation of what was feasible, wise, and right for him,
+as a New Englander whose surroundings and prospects were widely
+different from those of the society about him. He must have been
+strongly imbued by nature with the instincts of his birthplace to
+have formed, after a seven years' absence at his impressible age, so
+correct a judgment of the necessities and possibilities of his own
+career in relationship to the people and ideas of his own country.</p>
+
+<p>Home accordingly he came, and by assiduity prepared himself in a very
+short time to enter the junior class at Harvard College, whence he was
+graduated in high standing in 1787. From there he went to Newburyport,
+then a thriving and active seaport enriched by the noble trade of
+privateering in addition to more regular maritime business, and
+entered as a law student the office of Theophilus Parsons, afterwards
+the Chief Justice of Massachusetts. On July 15, 1790, being
+twenty-three years old, he was admitted to practice. Immediately
+afterward he established himself in Boston, where for a time he felt
+strangely solitary. Clients of course did not besiege his doors in the
+first year, and he appears to have waited rather stubbornly than
+cheerfully for more active days. These came
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page018" name="page018"></a>(p. 018)</span>
+in good time,
+and during the second, third, and fourth years, his business grew
+apace to encouraging dimensions.</p>
+
+<p>He was, however, doing other work than that of the law, and much more
+important in its bearing upon his future career. He could not keep his
+thoughts, nor indeed his hands, from public affairs. When, in 1791,
+Thomas Paine produced the "Rights of Man," Thomas Jefferson acting as
+midwife to usher the bantling before the people of the United States,
+Adams's indignation was fired, and he published anonymously a series
+of refuting papers over the signature of Publicola. These attracted
+much attention, not only at home but also abroad, and were by many
+attributed to John Adams. Two years later, during the excitement
+aroused by the reception and subsequent outrageous behavior here of
+the French minister, Genet, Mr. Adams again published in the Boston
+"Centinel" some papers over the signature of Marcellus, discussing
+with much ability the then new and perplexing question of the
+neutrality which should be observed by this country in European wars.
+These were followed by more, over the signature of Columbus, and
+afterward by still more in the name of Barnevelt, all strongly
+reprobating the course of the crazy-headed foreigner. The writer was
+not permitted
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page019" name="page019"></a>(p. 019)</span>
+to remain long unknown. It is not certain, but
+it is highly probable, that to these articles was due the nomination
+which Mr. Adams received shortly afterward from President Washington,
+as Minister Resident at the Hague. This nomination was sent in to the
+Senate, May 29, 1794, and was unanimously confirmed on the following
+day. It may be imagined that the change from the moderate practice of
+his Boston law office to a European court, of which he so well knew
+the charms, was not distasteful to him. There are passages in his
+Diary which indicate that he had been chafing with irrepressible
+impatience "in that state of useless and disgraceful insignificancy,"
+to which, as it seemed to him, he was relegated, so that at the age of
+twenty-five, when "many of the characters who were born for the
+benefit of their fellow creatures, have rendered themselves
+conspicuous among their contemporaries, ... I still find myself as
+obscure, as unknown to the world, as the most indolent or the most
+stupid of human beings." Entertaining such a restless ambition, he of
+course accepted the proffered office, though not without some
+expression of unexplained doubt. October 31, 1794, found him at the
+Hague, after a voyage of considerable peril in a leaky ship, commanded
+by a blundering captain. He was a young diplomat, indeed;
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page020" name="page020"></a>(p. 020)</span> it
+was on his twenty-seventh birthday that he received his commission.</p>
+
+<p>The minister made his advent upon a tumultuous scene. All Europe was
+getting under arms in the long and desperate struggle with France.
+Scarcely had he presented his credentials to the Stadtholder ere that
+dignitary was obliged to flee before the conquering standards of the
+French. Pichegru marched into the capital city of the Low Countries,
+hung out the tri-color, and established the "Batavian Republic" as the
+ally of France. The diplomatic representatives of most of the European
+powers forthwith left, and Mr. Adams was strongly moved to do the
+same, though for reasons different from those which actuated his
+compeers. He was not, like them, placed in an unpleasant position by
+the new condition of affairs, but on the contrary he was very
+cordially treated by the French and their Dutch partisans, and was
+obliged to fall back upon his native prudence to resist their
+compromising overtures and dangerous friendship. Without giving
+offence he yet kept clear of entanglements, and showed a degree of
+wisdom and skill which many older and more experienced Americans
+failed to evince, either abroad or at home, during these exciting
+years. But he appeared to be left without occupation in the altered
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page021" name="page021"></a>(p. 021)</span>
+condition of affairs, and therefore was considering the
+propriety of returning, when advices from home induced him to stay.
+Washington especially wrote that he must not think of retiring, and
+prophesied that he would soon be "found at the head of the diplomatic
+corps, be the government administered by whomsoever the people may
+choose." He remained, therefore, at the Hague, a shrewd and close
+observer of the exciting events occurring around him, industriously
+pursuing an extensive course of study and reading, making useful
+acquaintances, acquiring familiarity with foreign languages, with the
+usages of diplomacy and the habits of distinguished society. He had
+little public business to transact, it is true; but at least his time
+was well spent for his own improvement.</p>
+
+<p>An episode in his life at the Hague was his visit to England, where he
+was directed to exchange ratifications of the treaty lately negotiated
+by Mr. Jay. But a series of vexatious delays, apparently maliciously
+contrived, detained him so long that upon his arrival he found this
+specific task already accomplished by Mr. Deas. He was probably not
+disappointed that his name thus escaped connection with engagements so
+odious to a large part of the nation. He had, however, some further
+business <span class="pagenum"><a id="page022" name="page022"></a>(p. 022)</span>
+of an informal character to transact with Lord
+Grenville, and in endeavoring to conduct it found himself rather
+awkwardly placed. He was not minister to the Court of St. James,
+having been only vaguely authorized to discuss certain arrangements in
+a tentative way, without the power to enter into any definitive
+agreement. But the English Cabinet strongly disliking Mr. Deas, who in
+the absence of Mr. Pinckney represented for the time the United
+States, and much preferring to negotiate with Mr. Adams, sought by
+many indirect and artful subterfuges to thrust upon him the character
+of a regularly accredited minister. He had much ado to avoid, without
+offence, the assumption of functions to which he had no title, but
+which were with designing courtesy forced upon him. His cool and
+moderate temper, however, carried him successfully through the whole
+business, alike in its social and its diplomatic aspect.</p>
+
+<p>Another negotiation, of a private nature also, he brought to a
+successful issue during these few months in London. He made the
+acquaintance of Miss Louisa Catherine Johnson, daughter of Joshua
+Johnson, then American Consul at London, and niece of that Governor
+Johnson, of Maryland, who had signed the Declaration of Independence
+and was afterwards placed on the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page023" name="page023"></a>(p. 023)</span>
+bench of the Supreme Court
+of the United States. To this lady he became engaged; and returning
+not long afterward he was married to her on July 26, 1797. It was a
+thoroughly happy and, for him, a life-long union.</p>
+
+<p>President Washington, toward the close of his second term, transferred
+Mr. Adams to the Court of Portugal. But before his departure thither
+his destination was changed. Some degree of embarrassment was felt
+about this time concerning his further continuance in public office,
+by reason of his father's accession to the Presidency. He wrote to his
+mother a manly and spirited letter, rebuking her for carelessly
+dropping an expression indicative of a fear that he might look for
+some favor at his father's hands. He could neither solicit nor expect
+anything, he justly said, and he was pained that his mother should not
+know him better than to entertain any apprehension of his feeling
+otherwise. It was a perplexing position in which the two were placed.
+It would be a great hardship to cut short the son's career because of
+the success of the father, yet the reproach of nepotism could not be
+lightly encountered, even with the backing of clear consciences.
+Washington came kindly to the aid of his doubting successor, and in a
+letter highly complimentary to Mr. John Quincy Adams strongly urged
+that well-merited
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page024" name="page024"></a>(p. 024)</span>
+promotion ought not to be kept from him,
+foretelling for him a distinguished future in the diplomatic service.
+These representations prevailed; and the President's only action as
+concerned his son consisted in changing his destination from Portugal
+to Prussia, both missions being at that time of the same grade, though
+that to Prussia was then established for the first time by the making
+and confirming of this nomination.</p>
+
+<p>To Berlin, accordingly, Mr. Adams proceeded in November, 1797, and had
+the somewhat cruel experience of being "questioned at the gates by a
+dapper lieutenant, who did not know, until one of his private soldiers
+explained to him, who the United States of America were." Overcoming
+this unusual obstacle to a ministerial advent, and succeeding, after
+many months, in getting through all the introductory formalities, he
+found not much more to be done at Berlin than there had been at the
+Hague. But such useful work as was open to him he accomplished in the
+shape of a treaty of amity and commerce between Prussia and the United
+States. This having been duly ratified by both the powers, his further
+stay seemed so useless that he wrote home suggesting his readiness to
+return; and while awaiting a reply he travelled through some portions
+of Europe which he had not before seen.
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page025" name="page025"></a>(p. 025)</span>
+His recall was one
+of the last acts of his father's administration, made, says Mr.
+Seward, "that Mr. Jefferson might have no embarrassment in that
+direction," but quite as probably dictated by a vindictive desire to
+show how wide was the gulf of animosity which had opened between the
+family of the disappointed ex-President and his triumphant rival.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams, immediately upon his arrival at home, prepared to return to
+the practice of his profession. It was not altogether an agreeable
+transition from an embassy at the courts of Europe to a law office in
+Boston, with the necessity of furbishing up long disused knowledge,
+and a second time patiently awaiting the influx of clients. But he
+faced it with his stubborn temper and practical sense. The slender
+promise which he was able to discern in the political outlook could
+not fail to disappoint him, since his native predilections were
+unquestionably and strongly in favor of a public career. During his
+absence party animosities had been developing rapidly. The first great
+party victory since the organization of the government had just been
+won, after a very bitter struggle, by the Republicans or Democrats, as
+they were then indifferently called, whose exuberant delight found its
+full counterpart in the angry despondency of the Federalists. That
+irascible old gentleman, the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page026" name="page026"></a>(p. 026)</span>
+elder Adams, having experienced
+a very Waterloo defeat in the contest for the Presidency, had ridden
+away from the capital, actually in a wild rage, on the night of the 3d
+of March, 1801, to avoid the humiliating pageant of Mr. Jefferson's
+inauguration. Yet far more fierce than this natural party warfare was
+the internal dissension which rent the Federal party in twain. Those
+cracks upon the surface and subterraneous rumblings, which the
+experienced observer could for some time have noted, had opened with
+terrible uproar into a gaping chasm, when John Adams, still in the
+Presidency, suddenly announced his determination to send a mission to
+France at a crisis when nearly all his party were looking for war.
+Perhaps this step was, as his admirers claim, an act of pure and
+disinterested statesmanship. Certainly its result was fortunate for
+the country at large. But for John Adams it was ruinous. At the moment
+when he made the bold move, he doubtless expected to be followed by
+his party. Extreme was his disappointment and boundless his wrath,
+when he found that he had at his back only a fraction, not improbably
+less than half, of that party. He learned with infinite chagrin that
+he had only a divided empire with a private individual; that it was
+not safe for him, the President of the United States, to originate
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page027" name="page027"></a>(p. 027)</span>
+any important measure without first consulting a lawyer
+quietly engaged in the practice of his profession in New York; that,
+in short, at least a moiety, in which were to be found the most
+intelligent members, of the great Federal party, when in search of
+guidance, turned their faces toward Alexander Hamilton rather than
+toward John Adams. These Hamiltonians by no means relished the French
+mission, so that from this time forth a schism of intense bitterness
+kept the Federal party asunder, and John Adams hated Alexander
+Hamilton with a vigor not surpassed in the annals of human
+antipathies. His rage was not assuaged by the conduct of this dreaded
+foe in the presidential campaign; and the defeated candidate always
+preferred to charge his failure to Hamilton's machinations rather than
+to the real will of the people. This, however, was unfair; it was
+perfectly obvious that a majority of the nation had embraced
+Jeffersonian tenets, and that Federalism was moribund.</p>
+
+<p>To this condition of affairs John Quincy Adams returned. Fortunately
+he had been compelled to bear no part in the embroilments of the past,
+and his sagacity must have led him, while listening with filial
+sympathy to the interpretations placed upon events by his incensed
+parent, yet to make liberal allowance for the distorting
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page028" name="page028"></a>(p. 028)</span>
+effects of the old gentleman's rage. Still it was in the main only
+natural for him to regard himself as a Federalist of the Adams
+faction. His proclivities had always been with that party. In
+Massachusetts the educated and well-to-do classes were almost
+unanimously of that way of thinking. The select coterie of gentlemen
+in the State, who in those times bore an active and influential part
+in politics, were nearly all Hamiltonians, but the adherents of
+President Adams were numerically strong. Nor was the younger Adams
+himself long left without his private grievance against Mr. Jefferson,
+who promptly used the authority vested in him by a new statute to
+remove Mr. Adams from the position of commissioner in bankruptcy, to
+which, at the time of his resuming business, he had been appointed by
+the judge of the district court. Long afterward Jefferson sought to
+escape the odium of this apparently malicious and, for those days,
+unusual action, by a very Jeffersonian explanation, tolerably
+satisfactory to those persons who believed it.</p>
+
+<p>On April 5, 1802, Mr. Adams was chosen by the Federalists of Boston to
+represent them in the State Senate. The office was at that time still
+sought by men of the best ability and position, and though it was
+hardly a step upward on the political ladder for one who had
+represented
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page029" name="page029"></a>(p. 029)</span>
+the nation in foreign parts for eight years, yet
+Mr. Adams was well content to accept it. At least it reopened the door
+of political life, and moreover one of his steadfast maxims was never
+to refuse any function which the people sought to impose upon him. It
+is worth noting, for its bearing upon controversies soon to be
+encountered in this narrative, that forty-eight hours had not elapsed
+after Mr. Adams had taken his seat before he ventured upon a display
+of independence which caused much irritation to his Federalist
+associates. He had the hardihood to propose that the Federalist
+majority in the legislature should permit the Republican minority to
+enjoy a proportional representation in the council. "It was the first
+act of my legislative life," he wrote many years afterward, "and it
+marked the principle by which my whole public life has been governed
+from that day to this. My proposal was unsuccessful, and perhaps it
+forfeited whatever confidence might have been otherwise bestowed upon
+me as a party follower." Indeed, all his life long Mr. Adams was never
+submissive to the party whip, but voted upon every question precisely
+according to his opinion of its merits, without the slightest regard
+to the political company in which for the time being he might find
+himself. A compeer of his in the United States
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page030" name="page030"></a>(p. 030)</span>
+Senate once
+said of him, that he regarded every public measure which came up as he
+would a proposition in Euclid, abstracted from any party
+considerations. These frequent derelictions of his were at first
+forgiven with a magnanimity really very creditable, so long as it
+lasted, especially to the Hamiltonians in the Federal party; and so
+liberal was this forbearance that when in February, 1803, the
+legislature had to elect a Senator to the United States Senate, he was
+chosen upon the fourth ballot by 86 votes out of 171. This was the
+more gratifying to him and the more handsome on the part of the
+anti-Adams men in the party, because the place was eagerly sought by
+Timothy Pickering, an old man who had strong claims growing out of an
+almost life-long and very efficient service in their ranks, and who
+was moreover a most stanch adherent of General Hamilton.</p>
+
+<p>So in October, 1803, we find Mr. Adams on his way to Washington, the
+raw and unattractive village which then constituted the national
+capital, wherein there was not, as the pious New Englander instantly
+noted, a church of any denomination; but those who were religiously
+disposed were obliged to attend services "usually performed on Sundays
+at the Treasury Office and at the Capitol." With what anticipations
+Mr. Adams's mind was filled during his journey to
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page031" name="page031"></a>(p. 031)</span> this
+embryotic city his Diary does not tell; but if they were in any degree
+cheerful or sanguine they were destined to cruel disappointment. He
+was now probably to appreciate for the first time the fierce vigor of
+the hostility which his father had excited. In Massachusetts social
+connections and friendships probably mitigated the open display of
+rancor to which in Washington full sway was given. It was not only the
+Republican majority who showed feelings which in them were at least
+fair if they were strong, but the Federal minority were maliciously
+pleased to find in the son of the ill-starred John Adams a victim on
+whom to vent that spleen and abuse which were so provokingly
+ineffective against the solid working majority of their opponents in
+Congress. The Republicans trampled upon the Federalists, and the
+Federalists trampled on John Quincy Adams. He spoke seldom, and
+certainly did not weary the Senators, yet whenever he rose to his feet
+he was sure of a cold, too often almost an insulting, reception. By no
+chance or possibility could anything which he said or suggested please
+his prejudiced auditors. The worst augury for any measure was his
+support; any motion which he made was sure to be voted down, though
+not unfrequently substantially the same matter being afterward moved
+by somebody else would be
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page032" name="page032"></a>(p. 032)</span>
+readily carried. That cordiality,
+assistance, and sense of fellowship which Senators from the same State
+customarily expect and obtain from each other could not be enjoyed by
+him. For shortly after his arrival in Washington, Mr. Pickering had
+been chosen to fill a vacancy in the other Massachusetts senatorship,
+and appeared upon the scene as a most unwelcome colleague. For a time,
+indeed, an outward semblance of political comradeship was maintained
+between them, but it would have been folly for an Adams to put faith
+in a Pickering, and perhaps <i>vice versa</i>. This position of his, as the
+unpopular member of an unpopular minority, could not be misunderstood,
+and many allusions to it occur in his Diary. One day he notes a motion
+rejected; another day, that he has "nothing to do but to make
+fruitless opposition;" he constantly recites that he has voted with a
+small minority, and at least once he himself composed the whole of
+that minority; soon after his arrival he says that an amendment
+proposed by him "will certainly not pass; and, indeed, I have already
+seen enough to ascertain that no amendments of my proposing will
+obtain in the Senate as now filled;" again, "I presented my three
+resolutions, which raised a storm as violent as I expected;" and on
+the same day he writes, "I have no doubt of incurring much censure
+and <span class="pagenum"><a id="page033" name="page033"></a>(p. 033)</span>
+obloquy for this measure;" a day or two later he speaks
+of certain persons "who hate me rather more than they love any
+principle;" when he expressed an opinion in favor of ratifying a
+treaty with the Creeks, he remarks quite philosophically, that he
+believes it "surprised almost every member of the Senate, and
+dissatisfied almost all;" when he wanted a committee raised he did not
+move it himself, but suggested the idea to another Senator, for "I
+knew that if I moved it a spirit of jealousy would immediately be
+raised against doing anything." Writing once of some resolutions which
+he intended to propose, he says that they are "another feather against
+a whirlwind. A desperate and fearful cause in which I have embarked,
+but I must pursue it or feel myself either a coward or a traitor."
+Another time we find a committee, of which he was a member, making its
+report when he had not even been notified of its meeting.</p>
+
+<p>It would be idle to suppose that any man could be sufficiently callous
+not to feel keenly such treatment. Mr. Adams was far from callous and
+he felt it deeply. But he was not crushed or discouraged by it, as
+weaker spirits would have been, nor betrayed into any acts of foolish
+anger which must have recoiled upon himself. In him warm feelings were
+found in singular combination
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page034" name="page034"></a>(p. 034)</span>
+with a cool head. An
+unyielding temper and an obstinate courage, an invincible confidence
+in his own judgment, and a stern conscientiousness carried him through
+these earlier years of severe trial as they had afterwards to carry
+him through many more. "The qualities of mind most peculiarly called
+for," he reflects in the Diary, "are firmness, perseverance, patience,
+coolness, and forbearance. The prospect is not promising; yet the part
+to act may be as honorably performed as if success could attend it."
+He understood the situation perfectly and met it with a better skill
+than that of the veteran politician. By a long and tedious but sure
+process he forced his way to steadily increasing influence, and by the
+close of his fourth year we find him taking a part in the business of
+the Senate which may be fairly called prominent and important. He was
+conquering success.</p>
+
+<p>But if Mr. Adams's unpopularity was partly due to the fact that he was
+the son of his father, it was also largely attributable not only to
+his unconciliatory manners but to more substantial habits of mind and
+character. It is probably impossible for any public man, really
+independent in his political action, to lead a very comfortable life
+amid the struggles of party. Under the disadvantages involved in this
+habit Mr. Adams
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page035" name="page035"></a>(p. 035)</span>
+labored to a remarkable degree. Since
+parties were first organized in this Republic no American statesman
+has ever approached him in persistent freedom of thought, speech, and
+action. He was regarded as a Federalist, but his Federalism was
+subject to many modifications; the members of that party never were
+sure of his adherence, and felt bound to him by no very strong ties of
+political fellowship. Towards the close of his senatorial term he
+recorded, in reminiscence, that he had more often voted with the
+administration than with the opposition.</p>
+
+<p>The first matter of importance concerning which he was obliged to act
+was the acquisition of Louisiana and its admission as a state of the
+Union. The Federalists were bitterly opposed to this measure,
+regarding it as an undue strengthening of the South and of the slavery
+influence, to the destruction of the fair balance of power between the
+two great sections of the country. It was not then the moral aspect of
+the slavery element which stirred the northern temper, but only the
+antagonism of interests between the commercial cities of the North and
+the agricultural communities of the South. In the discussions and
+votes which took place in this business Mr. Adams was in favor of the
+purchase, but denied with much emphasis the constitutionality of the
+process by which the purchased
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page036" name="page036"></a>(p. 036)</span>
+territory was brought into
+the fellowship of States. This imperfect allegiance to the party gave
+more offence than satisfaction, and he found himself soundly berated
+in leading Federalist newspapers in New England, and angrily
+threatened with expulsion from the party. But in the famous
+impeachment of Judge Chase, which aroused very strong feelings, Mr.
+Adams was fortunately able to vote for acquittal. He regarded this
+measure, as well as the impeachment of Judge Pickering at the
+preceding session, as parts of an elaborate scheme on the part of the
+President for degrading the national judiciary and rendering it
+subservient to the legislative branch of the government. So many,
+however, even of Mr. Jefferson's stanch adherents revolted against his
+requisitions on this occasion, and he himself so far lost heart before
+the final vote was taken, that several Republicans voted with the
+Federalists, and Mr. Adams could hardly claim much credit with his
+party for standing by them in this emergency.</p>
+
+<p>It takes a long while for such a man to secure respect, and great
+ability for him ever to achieve influence. In time, however, Mr. Adams
+saw gratifying indications that he was acquiring both, and in
+February, 1806, we find him writing:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "This is the third session I have sat in Congress. I
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page037" name="page037"></a>(p. 037)</span>
+     came in as a member of a very small minority, and during the two
+     former sessions almost uniformly avoided to take a lead; any
+     other course would have been dishonest or ridiculous. On the very
+     few and unimportant objects which I did undertake, I met at first
+     with universal opposition. The last session my influence rose a
+     little, at the present it has hitherto been apparently rising."
+</p>
+
+<p>He was so far a cool and clear-headed judge, even in his own case,
+that this encouraging estimate may be accepted as correct upon his
+sole authority without other evidence. But the fair prospect was
+overcast almost in its dawning, and a period of supreme trial and of
+apparently irretrievable ruin was at hand.</p>
+
+<p>Topics were coming forward for discussion concerning which no American
+could be indifferent, and no man of Mr. Adams's spirit could be
+silent. The policy of Great Britain towards this country, and the
+manner in which it was to be met, stirred profound feelings and opened
+such fierce dissensions as it is now difficult to appreciate. For a
+brief time Mr. Adams was to be a prominent actor before the people. It
+is fortunately needless to repeat, as it must ever be painful to
+remember, the familiar and too humiliating tale of the part which
+France and England were permitted for so many years to play in our
+national politics, when our parties were
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page038" name="page038"></a>(p. 038)</span>
+not divided upon
+American questions, but wholly by their sympathies with one or other
+of these contending European powers. Under Washington the English
+party had, with infinite difficulty, been able to prevent their
+adversaries from fairly enlisting the United States as active
+partisans of France, in spite of the fact that most insulting
+treatment was received from that country. Under John Adams the same
+so-called British faction had been baulked in their hope of
+precipitating a war with the French. Now in Mr. Jefferson's second
+administration, the French party having won the ascendant, the new
+phase of the same long struggle presented the question, whether or not
+we should be drawn into a war with Great Britain. Grave as must have
+been the disasters of such a war in 1806, grave as they were when the
+war actually came six years later, yet it is impossible to recall the
+provocations which were inflicted upon us without almost regretting
+that prudence was not cast to the winds and any woes encountered in
+preference to unresisting submission to such insolent outrages. Our
+gorge rises at the narration three quarters of a century after the
+acts were done.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams took his position early and boldly. In February, 1806, he
+introduced into the Senate certain resolutions strongly condemnatory
+of the <span class="pagenum"><a id="page039" name="page039"></a>(p. 039)</span>
+right, claimed and vigorously exercised by the
+British, of seizing neutral vessels employed in conducting with the
+enemies of Great Britain any trade which had been customarily
+prohibited by that enemy in time of peace. This doctrine was designed
+to shut out American merchants from certain privileges in trading with
+French colonies, which had been accorded only since France had become
+involved in war with Great Britain. The principle was utterly illegal
+and extremely injurious. Mr. Adams, in his first resolution,
+stigmatized it "as an unprovoked aggression upon the property of the
+citizens of these United States, a violation of their neutral rights,
+and an encroachment upon their national independence." By his second
+resolution, the President was requested to demand and insist upon the
+restoration of property seized under this pretext, and upon
+indemnification for property already confiscated. By a rare good
+fortune, Mr. Adams had the pleasure of seeing his propositions
+carried, only slightly modified by the omission of the words "to
+insist." But they were carried, of course, by Republican votes, and
+they by no means advanced their mover in the favor of the Federalist
+party. Strange as it may seem, that party, of which many of the
+foremost supporters were engaged in the very commerce which Great
+Britain <span class="pagenum"><a id="page040" name="page040"></a>(p. 040)</span>
+aimed to suppress and destroy, seemed not to be so
+much incensed against her as against their own government. The theory
+of the party was, substantially, that England had been driven into
+these measures by the friendly tone of our government towards France,
+and by her own stringent and overruling necessities. The cure was not
+to be sought in resistance, not even in indignation and remonstrance
+addressed to that power, but rather in cementing an alliance with her,
+and even, if need should be, in taking active part in her holy cause.
+The feeling seemed to be that we merited the chastisement because we
+had not allied ourselves with the chastiser. These singular notions of
+the Federalists, however, were by no means the notions of Mr. John
+Quincy Adams, as we shall soon see.</p>
+
+<p>On April 18, 1806, the Non-importation Act received the approval of
+the President. It was the first measure indicative of resentment or
+retaliation which was taken by our government. When it was upon its
+passage it encountered the vigorous resistance of the Federalists, but
+received the support of Mr. Adams. On May 16, 1806, the British
+government made another long stride in the course of lawless
+oppression of neutrals, which phrase, as commerce then was, signified
+little else than Americans. A proclamation
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page041" name="page041"></a>(p. 041)</span>
+was issued
+declaring the whole coast of the European continent, from Brest to the
+mouth of the Elbe, to be under blockade. In fact, of course, the coast
+was not blockaded, and the proclamation was a falsehood, an
+unjustifiable effort to make words do the work of war-ships. The
+doctrine which it was thus endeavored to establish had never been
+admitted into international law, has ever since been repudiated by
+universal consent of all nations, and is intrinsically preposterous.
+The British, however, designed to make it effective, and set to work
+in earnest to confiscate all vessels and cargoes captured on their way
+from any neutral nation to any port within the proscribed district. On
+November 21, next following, Napoleon retaliated by the Berlin decree,
+so called, declaring the entire British Isles to be under blockade,
+and forbidding any vessel which had been in any English port after
+publication of his decree to enter any port in the dominions under his
+control. In January, 1807, England made the next move by an order,
+likewise in contravention of international law, forbidding to neutrals
+all commerce between ports of the enemies of Great Britain. On
+November 11, 1807, the famous British Order in Council was issued,
+declaring neutral vessels and cargoes bound to any port or colony of
+any country with
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page042" name="page042"></a>(p. 042)</span>
+which England was then at war, and which
+was closed to English ships, to be liable to capture and confiscation.
+A few days later, November 25, 1807, another Order established a rate
+of duties to be paid in England upon all neutral merchandise which
+should be permitted to be carried in neutral bottoms to countries at
+war with that power. December 17, 1807, Napoleon retorted by the Milan
+decree, which declared denationalized and subject to capture and
+condemnation every vessel, to whatsoever nation belonging, which
+should have submitted to search by an English ship, or should be on a
+voyage to England, or should have paid any tax to the English
+government. All these regulations, though purporting to be aimed at
+neutrals generally, in fact bore almost exclusively upon the United
+States, who alone were undertaking to conduct any neutral commerce
+worthy of mention. As Mr. Adams afterwards remarked, the effect of
+these illegal proclamations and unjustifiable novel doctrines "placed
+the commerce and shipping of the United States, with regard to all
+Europe and European colonies (Sweden alone excepted), in nearly the
+same state as it would have been, if, on that same 11th of November,
+England and France had both declared war against the United States."
+The merchants of this country might as well have
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page043" name="page043"></a>(p. 043)</span>
+burned
+their ships as have submitted to these decrees.</p>
+
+<p>All this while the impressment of American seamen by British ships of
+war was being vigorously prosecuted. This is one of those outrages so
+long ago laid away among the mouldering tombs in the historical
+graveyard that few persons now appreciate its enormity, or the extent
+to which it was carried. Those who will be at the pains to ascertain
+the truth in the matter will feel that the bloodiest, most costly, and
+most disastrous war would have been better than tame endurance of
+treatment so brutal and unjustifiable that it finds no parallel even
+in the long and dark list of wrongs which Great Britain has been wont
+to inflict upon all the weaker or the uncivilized peoples with whom
+she has been brought or has gratuitously forced herself into unwelcome
+contact. It was not an occasional act of high-handed arrogance that
+was done; there were not only a few unfortunate victims, of whom a
+large proportion might be of unascertained nationality. It was an
+organized system worked upon a very large scale. Every American seaman
+felt it necessary to have a certificate of citizenship, accompanied by
+a description of his features and of all the marks upon his person, as
+Mr. Adams said, "like the advertisement for a runaway negro slave."
+Nor was even this protection by any means
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page044" name="page044"></a>(p. 044)</span>
+sure to be always
+efficient. The number of undoubted American citizens who were seized
+rose in a few years actually to many thousands. They were often taken
+without so much as a false pretence to right; but with the
+acknowledgment that they were Americans, they were seized upon the
+plea of a necessity for their services in the British ship. Some
+American vessels were left so denuded of seamen that they were lost at
+sea for want of hands to man them; the destruction of lives as well as
+property, unquestionably thus caused, was immense. When after the
+lapse of a long time and of infinite negotiation the American
+citizenship of some individual was clearly shown, still the chances of
+his return were small; some false and ignoble subterfuge was resorted
+to; he was not to be found; the name did not occur on the rolls of the
+navy; he had died, or been discharged, or had deserted, or had been
+shot. The more illegal the act committed by any British officer the
+more sure he was of reward, till it seemed that the impressment of
+American citizens was an even surer road to promotion than valor in an
+engagement with the enemy. Such were the substantial wrongs inflicted
+by Great Britain; nor were any pains taken to cloak their character;
+on the contrary, they were done with more than British insolence and
+offensiveness, and were accompanied
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page045" name="page045"></a>(p. 045)</span>
+with insults which alone
+constituted sufficient provocation to war. To all this, for a long
+time, nothing but empty and utterly futile protests were opposed by
+this country. The affair of the Chesapeake, indeed, threatened for a
+brief moment to bring things to a crisis. That vessel, an American
+frigate, commanded by Commodore Barron, sailed on June 22, 1807, from
+Hampton Roads. The Leopard, a British fifty-gun ship, followed her,
+and before she was out of sight of land, hailed her and demanded the
+delivery of four men, of whom three at least were surely native
+Americans. Barron refused the demand, though his ship was wholly
+unprepared for action. Thereupon the Englishman opened his broadsides,
+killed three men and wounded sixteen, boarded the Chesapeake and took
+off the four sailors. They were carried to Halifax and tried by
+court-martial for desertion: one of them was hanged; one died in
+confinement, and five years elapsed before the other two were returned
+to the Chesapeake in Boston harbor. This wound was sufficiently deep
+to arouse a real spirit of resentment and revenge, and England went so
+far as to dispatch Mr. Rose to this country upon a pretended mission
+of peace, though the fraudulent character of his errand was
+sufficiently indicated by the fact that within a few hours after his
+departure the first
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page046" name="page046"></a>(p. 046)</span>
+of the above named Orders in Council was
+issued but had not been communicated to him. As Mr. Adams indignantly
+said, "the same penful of ink which signed his instructions might have
+been used also to sign these illegal orders." Admiral Berkeley, the
+commander of the Leopard, received the punishment which he might
+justly have expected if precedent was to count for anything in the
+naval service of Great Britain,&mdash;he was promoted.</p>
+
+<p>It is hardly worth while to endeavor to measure the comparative
+wrongfulness of the conduct of England and of France. The behavior of
+each was utterly unjustifiable; though England by committing the first
+extreme breach of international law gave to France the excuse of
+retaliation. There was, however, vast difference in the practical
+effect of the British and French decrees. The former wrought serious
+injury, falling little short of total destruction, to American
+shipping and commerce; the latter were only in a much less degree
+hurtful. The immense naval power of England and the channels in which
+our trade naturally flowed combined to make her destructive capacity
+as towards us very great. It was the outrages inflicted by her which
+brought the merchants of the United States face to face with ruin;
+they suffered not very greatly at the hands of Napoleon. Neither could
+the villainous process of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page047" name="page047"></a>(p. 047)</span>
+impressment be conducted by
+Frenchmen. France gave us cause for war, but England seemed resolved
+to drive us into it.</p>
+
+<p>As British aggressions grew steadily and rapidly more intolerable, Mr.
+Adams found himself straining farther and farther away from those
+Federalist moorings at which, it must be confessed, he had long swung
+very precariously. The constituency which he represented was indeed in
+a quandary so embarrassing as hardly to be capable of maintaining any
+consistent policy. The New England of that day was a trading
+community, of which the industry and capital were almost exclusively
+centred in ship-owning and commerce. The merchants, almost to a man,
+had long been the most Anglican of Federalists in their political
+sympathies. Now they found themselves suffering utterly ruinous
+treatment at the hands of those whom they had loved overmuch. They
+were being ruthlessly destroyed by their friends, to whom they had
+been, so to speak, almost disloyally loyal. They saw their business
+annihilated, their property seized, and yet could not give utterance
+to resentment, or counsel resistance, without such a humiliating
+devouring of all their own principles and sentiments as they could by
+no possibility bring themselves to endure. There was but one road open
+to them, and that was the ignoble
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page048" name="page048"></a>(p. 048)</span>
+one of casting themselves
+wholly into the arms of England, of rewarding her blows with caresses,
+of submitting to be fairly scourged into a servile alliance with her.
+It is not surprising that the independent temper of Mr. Adams revolted
+at the position which his party seemed not reluctant to assume at this
+juncture. Yet not very much better seemed for a time the policy of the
+administration. Jefferson was far from being a man for troubled
+seasons, which called for high spirit and executive energy. His
+flotillas of gunboats and like idle and silly fantasies only excited
+Mr. Adams's disgust. In fact, there was upon all sides a strong dread
+of a war with England, not always openly expressed, but now perfectly
+visible, arising with some from regard for that country, in others
+prompted by fear of her power. Alone among public men Mr. Adams, while
+earnestly hoping to escape war, was not willing to seek that escape by
+unlimited weakness and unbounded submission to lawless injury.</p>
+
+<p>On November 17, 1807, Mr. Adams, who never in his life allowed fear to
+become a motive, wrote, with obvious contempt and indignation: "I
+observe among the members great embarrassment, alarm, anxiety, and
+confusion of mind, but no preparation for any measure of vigor, and an
+obvious strong disposition to yield
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page049" name="page049"></a>(p. 049)</span>
+all that Great Britain
+may require, to preserve peace, under a thin external show of dignity
+and bravery." This tame and vacillating spirit roused his ire, and as
+it was chiefly manifested by his own party it alienated him from them
+farther than ever. Yet his wrath was so far held in reasonable check
+by his discretion that he would still have liked to avoid the perilous
+conclusion of arms, and though his impulse was to fight, yet he could
+not but recognize that the sensible course was to be content, for the
+time at least, with a manifestation of resentment, and the most
+vigorous acts short of war which the government could be induced to
+undertake. On this sentiment were based his introduction of the
+aforementioned resolutions, his willingness to support the
+administration, and his vote for the Non-importation Act in spite of a
+dislike for it as a very imperfectly satisfactory measure. But it was
+not alone his naturally independent temper which led him thus to feel
+so differently from other members of his party. In Europe he had had
+opportunities of forming a judgment more accurate than was possible
+for most Americans concerning the sentiments and policy of England
+towards this country. Not only had he been present at the negotiations
+resulting in the treaty of peace, but he had also afterwards been for
+several months engaged in the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page050" name="page050"></a>(p. 050)</span>
+personal discussion of
+commercial questions with the British minister of foreign affairs.
+From all that he had thus seen and heard he had reached the
+conviction, unquestionably correct, that the British were not only
+resolved to adopt a selfish course towards the United States, which
+might have been expected, but that they were consistently pursuing the
+further distinct design of crippling and destroying American commerce,
+to the utmost degree which their own extensive trade and great naval
+authority and power rendered possible. So long as he held this firm
+belief, it was inevitable that he should be at issue with the
+Federalists in all matters concerning our policy towards Great
+Britain. The ill-will naturally engendered in him by this conviction
+was increased to profound indignation when illiberal measures were
+succeeded by insults, by substantial wrongs in direct contravention of
+law, and by acts properly to be described as of real hostility. For
+Mr. Adams was by nature not only independent, but resentful and
+combative. When, soon after the attack of the Leopard upon the
+Chesapeake, he heard the transaction "openly justified at noon-day,"
+by a prominent
+Federalist,<a id="footnotetag1" name="footnotetag1"></a><a href="#footnote1">[1]</a>
+"in a public insurance office upon the
+exchange at Boston," his temper rose. "This," he afterward wrote,
+"this <span class="pagenum"><a id="page051" name="page051"></a>(p. 051)</span>
+was the cause ... which alienated me from that day and
+forever from the councils of the Federal party." When the news of that
+outrage reached Boston, Mr. Adams was there, and desired that the
+leading Federalists in the city should at once "take the lead in
+promoting a strong and clear expression of the sentiments of the
+people, and in an open and free-hearted manner, setting aside all
+party feelings, declare their determination at that crisis to support
+the government of their country." But unfortunately these gentlemen
+were by no means prepared for any such action, and foolishly left it
+for the friends of the administration to give the first utterance to a
+feeling which it is hard to excuse any American for not entertaining
+beneath such provocation. It was the Jeffersonians, accordingly, who
+convened "an informal meeting of the citizens of Boston and the
+neighboring towns," at which Mr. Adams was present, and by which he
+was put upon a committee to draw and report resolutions. These
+resolutions pledged a cheerful coöperation "in any measures, however
+serious," which the government might deem necessary and a support of
+the same with "lives and fortunes." The Federalists, learning too late
+that their backwardness at this crisis was a blunder, caused a town
+meeting to be called at Faneuil Hall
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page052" name="page052"></a>(p. 052)</span>
+a few days later. This
+also Mr. Adams attended, and again was put on the committee to draft
+resolutions, which were only a little less strong than those of the
+earlier assemblage. But though many of the Federalists thus tardily
+and reluctantly fell in with the popular sentiment, they were for the
+most part heartily incensed against Mr. Adams. They threatened him
+that he should "have his head taken off for apostasy," and gave him to
+understand that he "should no longer be considered as having any
+communion with the party." If he had not already quite left them, they
+now turned him out from their community. But such abusive treatment
+was ill adapted to influence a man of his temper. Martyrdom, which in
+time he came to relish, had not now any terrors for him; and he would
+have lost as many heads as ever grew on Hydra, ere he would have
+yielded on a point of principle.</p>
+
+<p>His spirit was soon to be demonstrated. Congress was convened in extra
+session on October 26, 1807. The administration brought forward the
+bill establishing an embargo. The measure may now be pronounced a
+blunder, and its proposal created a howl of rage and anguish from the
+commercial states, who saw in it only their utter ruin. Already a
+strong sectional feeling had been developed between the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page053" name="page053"></a>(p. 053)</span>
+planters of the South and the merchants of the North and East, and the
+latter now united in the cry that their quarter was to be ruined by
+the ignorant policy of this Virginian President. Terrible then was
+their wrath, when they actually saw a Massachusetts Senator boldly
+give his vote for what they deemed the most odious and wicked bill
+which had ever been presented in the halls of Congress. Nay, more,
+they learned with horror that Mr. Adams had even been a member of the
+committee which reported the bill, and that he had joined in the
+report. Henceforth the Federal party was to be like a hive of enraged
+hornets about the devoted renegade. No abuse which they could heap
+upon him seemed nearly adequate to the occasion. They despised him;
+they loathed him; they said and believed that he was false, selfish,
+designing, a traitor, an apostate, that he had run away from a failing
+cause, that he had sold himself. The language of contumely was
+exhausted in vain efforts to describe his baseness. Not even yet has
+the echo of the hard names which he was called quite died away in the
+land; and there are still families in New England with whom his
+dishonest tergiversation remains a traditional belief.</p>
+
+<p>Never was any man more unjustly aspersed. It is impossible to view all
+the evidence dispassionately without
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page054" name="page054"></a>(p. 054)</span>
+not only acquitting Mr.
+Adams but greatly admiring his courage, his constancy, his
+independence. Whether the embargo was a wise and efficient or a futile
+and useless measure has little to do with the question of his conduct.
+The emergency called for strong action. The Federalists suggested only
+a temporizing submission, or that we should avert the terrible wrath
+of England by crawling beneath her lashes into political and
+commercial servitude. Mr. Jefferson thought the embargo would do, that
+it would aid him in his negotiations with England sufficiently to
+enable him to bring her to terms; he had before thought the same of
+the Non-importation Act. Mr. Adams felt, properly enough, concerning
+both these schemes, that they were insufficient and in many respects
+objectionable; but that to give the administration hearty support in
+the most vigorous measures which it was willing to undertake, was
+better than to aid an opposition utterly nerveless and servile and
+altogether devoid of so much as the desire for efficient action. It
+was no time to stay with the party of weakness; it was right to
+strengthen rather than to hamper a man so pacific and spiritless as
+Mr. Jefferson; to show a readiness to forward even his imperfect
+expedients; to display a united and indignant, if not quite a hostile
+front <span class="pagenum"><a id="page055" name="page055"></a>(p. 055)</span>
+to Great Britain, rather than to exhibit a tame and
+friendly feeling towards her. It was for these reasons, which had
+already controlled his action concerning the non-importation bill,
+that Mr. Adams joined in reporting the embargo bill and voted for it.
+He never pretended that he himself had any especial fancy for either
+of these measures, or that he regarded them as the best that could be
+devised under the circumstances. On the contrary, he hoped that the
+passage of the embargo would allow of the repeal of its predecessor.
+That he expected some good from it, and that it did some little good,
+cannot be denied. It did save a great deal of American property, both
+shipping and merchandise, from seizure and condemnation; and if it cut
+off the income it at least saved much of the principal of our
+merchants. If only the bill had been promptly repealed so soon as this
+protective purpose had been achieved, without awaiting further and
+altogether impossible benefits to accrue from it as an offensive
+measure, it might perhaps have left a better memory behind it.
+Unfortunately no one can deny that it was continued much too long. Mr.
+Adams saw this error and dreaded the consequences. After he had left
+Congress and had gone back to private life, he exerted all the
+influence which he had with the Republican members of Congress to
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page056" name="page056"></a>(p. 056)</span>
+secure its repeal and the substitution of the Non-intercourse
+Act, an exchange which was in time accomplished, though much too
+tardily. Nay, much more than this, Mr. Adams stands forth almost alone
+as the advocate of threatening if not of actually belligerent
+measures. He expressed his belief that "our internal resources [were]
+competent to the establishment and maintenance of a naval force,
+public and private, if not fully adequate to the protection and
+defence of our commerce, at least sufficient to induce a retreat from
+hostilities, and to deter from a renewal of them by either of the
+warring parties;" and he insisted that "a system to that effect might
+be formed, ultimately far more economical, and certainly more
+energetic," than the embargo. But his "resolution met no
+encouragement." He found that it was the embargo or nothing, and he
+thought the embargo was a little better than nothing, as probably it
+was.</p>
+
+<p>All the arguments which Mr. Adams advanced were far from satisfying
+his constituents in those days of wild political excitement, and they
+quickly found the means of intimating their unappeasable displeasure
+in a way certainly not open to misapprehension. Mr. Adams's term of
+service in the Senate was to expire on March 3, 1809. On June 2 and 3,
+1808, anticipating by many
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page057" name="page057"></a>(p. 057)</span>
+months the customary time for
+filling the coming vacancy, the legislature of Massachusetts proceeded
+to choose James Lloyd, junior, his successor. The votes were, in the
+Senate 21 for Mr. Lloyd, 17 for Mr. Adams; in the House 248 for Mr.
+Lloyd, and 213 for Mr. Adams. A more insulting method of administering
+a rebuke could not have been devised. At the same time, in further
+expression of disapprobation, resolutions strongly condemnatory of the
+embargo were passed. Mr. Adams was not the man to stay where he was
+not wanted, and on June 8 he sent in his letter of resignation. On the
+next day Mr. Lloyd was chosen to serve for the balance of his term.</p>
+
+<p>Thus John Quincy Adams changed sides. The son of John Adams lost the
+senatorship for persistently supporting the administration of Thomas
+Jefferson. It was indeed a singular spectacle! In 1803 he had been
+sent to the Senate of the United States by Federalists as a
+Federalist; in 1808 he had abjured them and they had repudiated him;
+in 1809, as we are soon to see, he received a foreign appointment from
+the Republican President Madison, and was confirmed by a Republican
+Senate. Many of Mr. Adams's acts, many of his traits, have been
+harshly criticised, but for no act that he ever did or ever was
+charged with doing has he
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page058" name="page058"></a>(p. 058)</span>
+been so harshly assailed as for
+this journey from one camp to the other. The gentlemen of wealth,
+position, and influence in Eastern Massachusetts, almost to a man,
+turned against him with virulence; many of their descendants still
+cherish the ancestral prejudice; and it may yet be a long while before
+the last mutterings of this deep-rooted antipathy die away. But that
+they will die away in time cannot be doubted. Praise will succeed to
+blame. Truth must prevail in a case where such abundant evidence is
+accessible; and the truth is that Mr. Adams's conduct was not ignoble,
+mean, and traitorous, but honorable, courageous, and disinterested.
+Those who singled him out for assault, though deaf to his arguments,
+might even then have reflected that within a few years a large
+proportion of the whole nation had changed in their opinions as he had
+now at last changed in his, so that the party which under Washington
+hardly had an existence and under John Adams was not, until the last
+moment, seriously feared, now showed an enormous majority throughout
+the whole country. Even in Massachusetts, the intrenched camp of the
+Federalists, one half of the population were now Republicans. But that
+change of political sentiment which in the individual voter is often
+admired as evidence of independent thought is stigmatized
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page059" name="page059"></a>(p. 059)</span> in
+those more prominent in politics as tergiversation and apostasy.</p>
+
+<p>It may be admitted that there are sound reasons for holding party
+leaders to a more rigid allegiance to party policy than is expected of
+the rank and file; yet certainly, at those periods when substantially
+new measures and new doctrines come to the front, the old party names
+lose whatever sacredness may at other times be in them, and the
+political fellowships of the past may properly be reformed. Novel
+problems cannot always find old comrades still united in opinions.
+Precisely such was the case with John Quincy Adams and the
+Federalists. The earlier Federalist creed related to one set of
+issues, the later Federalist creed to quite another set; the earlier
+creed was sound and deserving of support; the later creed was not so.
+It is easy to see, as one looks backward upon history, that every
+great and successful party has its mission, that it wins its success
+through the substantial righteousness of that mission, and that it
+owes its downfall to assuming an erroneous attitude towards some
+subsequent matter which becomes in turn of predominating importance.
+Sometimes, though rarely, a party remains on the right side through
+two or even more successive issues of profound consequence to the
+nation. The Federalist mission was
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page060" name="page060"></a>(p. 060)</span>
+to establish the
+Constitution of the United States as a vigorous, efficient, and
+practical system of government, to prove its soundness, safety, and
+efficacy, and to defend it from the undermining assaults of those who
+distrusted it and would have reduced it to imbecility. Supplementary
+and cognate to this was the further task of giving the young nation
+and the new system a chance to get fairly started in life before being
+subjected to the strain of war and European entanglements. To this end
+it was necessary to hold in check the Jeffersonian or French party,
+who sought to embroil us in a foreign quarrel. These two functions of
+the Federalist party were quite in accord; they involved the
+organizing and domestic instinct against the disorganizing and
+meddlesome; the strengthening against the enfeebling process;
+practical thinking against fanciful theories. Fortunately the able men
+had been generally of the sound persuasion, and by powerful exertions
+had carried the day and accomplished their allotted tasks so
+thoroughly that all subsequent generations of Americans have been
+reaping the benefit of their labors. But by the time that John Adams
+had concluded his administration the great Federalist work had been
+sufficiently done. Those who still believe that there is an overruling
+Providence in the affairs of men and nations may
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page061" name="page061"></a>(p. 061)</span>
+well point
+to the history of this period in support of their theory.
+Republicanism was not able to triumph till Federalism had fulfilled
+all its proper duty and was on the point of going wrong.</p>
+
+<p>During this earlier period John Quincy Adams had been a Federalist by
+conviction as well as by education. Nor was there any obvious reason
+for him to change his political faith with the change of party
+success, brought about as that was before its necessity was apparent
+but by the sure and inscrutable wisdom so marvellously enclosed in the
+great popular instinct. It was not patent, when Mr. Jefferson
+succeeded Mr. Adams, that Federalism was soon to become an unsound
+political creed&mdash;unsound, not because it had been defeated, but
+because it had done its work, and in the new emergency was destined to
+blunder. During Mr. Jefferson's first administration no questions of
+novel import arose. But they were not far distant, and soon were
+presented by the British aggressions. A grave crisis was created by
+this system of organized destruction of property and wholesale
+stealing of citizens, now suddenly practised with such terrible
+energy. What was to be done? What had the two great parties to advise
+concerning the policy of the country in this hour of peril?
+Unfortunately for the Federalists old predilections
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page062" name="page062"></a>(p. 062)</span> were
+allowed now to govern their present action. Excusably Anglican in the
+bygone days of Genet's mission, they now remained still Anglican,
+when to be Anglican was to be emphatically un-American. As one reads
+the history of 1807 and 1808 it is impossible not to feel almost a
+sense of personal gratitude to John Quincy Adams that he dared to step
+out from his meek-spirited party and do all that circumstances
+rendered possible to promote resistance to insults and wrongs
+intolerable. In truth, he was always a man of high temper, and
+eminently a patriotic citizen of the United States. Unlike too many
+even of the best among his countrymen in those early years of the
+Republic, he had no foreign sympathies whatsoever; he was neither
+French nor English, but wholly, exclusively, and warmly American. He
+had no second love; the United States filled his public heart and
+monopolized his political affections. When he was abroad he
+established neither affiliations nor antipathies, and when he was at
+home he drifted with no party whose course was governed by foreign
+magnets. It needs only that this characteristic should be fully
+understood in order that his conduct in 1808 should be not alone
+vindicated but greatly admired.</p>
+
+<p>At that time it was said, and it has been since repeated,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page063" name="page063"></a>(p. 063)</span>
+that he was allured by the loaves and fishes which the Republicans
+could distribute, while the Federalists could cast to him only meagre
+and uncertain crusts. Circumstances gave to the accusation such a
+superficial plausibility that it was believed by many honest men under
+the influence of political prejudice. But such a charge, alleged
+concerning a single act in a long public career, is to be scanned with
+suspicion. Disproof by demonstration is impossible; but it is fair to
+seek for the character of the act in a study of the character of the
+actor, as illustrated by the rest of his career. Thus seeking we shall
+see that, if any traits can be surely predicated of any man,
+independence, courage, and honesty may be predicated of Mr. Adams. His
+long public life had many periods of trial, yet this is the sole
+occasion when it is so much as possible seriously to question the
+purity of his motives&mdash;for the story of his intrigue with Mr. Clay to
+secure the Presidency was never really believed by any one except
+General Jackson, and the beliefs of General Jackson are of little
+consequence. From the earliest to the latest day of his public life,
+he was never a party man. He is entitled to the justification to be
+derived from this life-long habit, when, in 1807-8, he voted against
+the wishes of those who had hoped to hold him in the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page064" name="page064"></a>(p. 064)</span> bonds
+of partisan alliance. In point of fact, so far from these acts being a
+yielding to selfish and calculating temptation, they called for great
+courage and strength of mind; instead of being tergiversation, they
+were a triumph in a severe ordeal. Mr. Adams was not so dull as to
+underrate, nor so void of good feeling as to be careless of, the
+storm of obloquy which he had to encounter, not only in such shape as
+is customary in like instances of a change of sides in politics, but,
+in his present case, of a peculiarly painful kind. He was to seem
+unfaithful, not only to a party, but to the bitter feud of a father
+whom he dearly loved and greatly respected; he was to be reviled by
+the neighbors and friends who constituted his natural social circle in
+Boston; he was to alienate himself from the rich, the cultivated, the
+influential gentlemen of his neighborhood, his comrades, who would
+almost universally condemn his conduct. He was to lose his position as
+Senator, and probably to destroy all hopes of further political
+success so far as it depended upon the good will of the people of his
+own State. In this he was at least giving up a certainty in exchange
+for what even his enemies must admit to have been only an expectation.</p>
+
+<p>But in fact it is now evident that there was not upon his part even an
+expectation. At the first
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page065" name="page065"></a>(p. 065)</span>
+signs of the views which he was
+likely to hold, that contemptible but influential Republican, Giles,
+of Virginia, also one or two others of the same party, sought to
+approach him with insinuating suggestions. But Mr. Adams met these
+advances in a manner frigid and repellent even beyond his wont, and
+far from seeking to conciliate these emissaries, and to make a
+bargain, or even establish a tacit understanding for his own benefit,
+he held them far aloof, and simply stated that he wished and expected
+nothing from the administration. His mind was made up, his opinion was
+formed; no bribe was needed to secure his vote. Not thus do men sell
+themselves in politics. The Republicans were fairly notified that he
+was going to do just as he chose; and Mr. Jefferson, the arch-enemy of
+all Adamses, had no occasion to forego his feud to win this recruit
+from that family.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams's Diary shows unmistakably that he was acting rigidly upon
+principle, that he believed himself to be injuring or even destroying
+his political prospects, and that in so doing he taxed his moral
+courage severely. The whole tone of the Diary, apart from those few
+distinct statements which hostile critics might view with distrust, is
+despondent, often bitter, but defiant and stubborn. If in later life
+he ever anticipated the possible publication of these private
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page066" name="page066"></a>(p. 066)</span>
+pages, yet he could hardly have done so at this early day. Among
+certain general reflections at the close of the year 1808, he writes:
+"On most of the great national questions now under discussion, my
+sense of duty leads me to support the Administration, and I find
+myself, of course, in opposition to the Federalists in general. But I
+have no communication with the President, other than that in the
+regular order of business in the Senate. In this state of things my
+situation calls in a peculiar manner for prudence; my political
+prospects are declining, and, as my term of service draws near its
+close, I am constantly approaching to the certainty of being restored
+to the situation of a private citizen. For this event, however, I hope
+to have my mind sufficiently prepared."</p>
+
+<p>In July, 1808, the Republicans of the Congressional District wished to
+send him to the House of Representatives, but to the gentleman who
+waited upon him with this proposal he returned a decided negative.
+Other considerations apart, he would not interfere with the reėlection
+of his friend, Mr. Quincy.</p>
+
+<p>Certain remarks, written when his senatorial term was far advanced,
+when he had lost the confidence of the Federalists without obtaining
+that of the Republicans, may be of interest at this point. He wrote,
+October 30, 1807: "I employed
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page067" name="page067"></a>(p. 067)</span>
+the whole evening in looking
+over the Journal of the Senate, since I have been one of its members.
+Of the very little business which I have commenced during the four
+sessions, at least three fourths has failed, with circumstances of
+peculiar mortification. The very few instances in which I have
+succeeded, have been always after an opposition of great obstinacy,
+often ludicrously contrasting with the insignificance of the object in
+pursuit. More than one instance has occurred where the same thing
+which I have assiduously labored in vain to effect has been afterwards
+accomplished by others, without the least resistance; more than once,
+where the pleasure of disappointing me has seemed to be the prominent
+principle of decision. Of the preparatory business, matured in
+committees, I have had a share, gradually increasing through the four
+sessions, but always as a subordinate member. The merely laborious
+duties have been readily assigned to me, and as readily undertaken and
+discharged. My success has been more frequent in opposition than in
+carrying any proposition of my own, and I hope I have been
+instrumental in arresting many unadvised purposes and projects. Though
+as to the general policy of the country I have been uniformly in a
+small, and constantly deceasing minority; my opinions and votes have
+been <span class="pagenum"><a id="page068" name="page068"></a>(p. 068)</span>
+much oftener in unison with the Administration than
+with their opponents; I have met with at least as much opposition from
+my party friends as from their adversaries,&mdash;I believe more. I know
+not that I have made any personal enemies now in Senate, nor can I
+flatter myself with having acquired any personal friends. There have
+been hitherto two, Mr. Tracey and Mr. Plumer, upon whom I could rely,
+but it has pleased Providence to remove one by death, and the changes
+of political party have removed the other." This is a striking
+paragraph, certainly not written by a man in a very cheerful or
+sanguine frame of mind, not by one who congratulates himself on having
+skilfully taken the initial steps in a brilliant political career;
+but, it is fair to say, by one who has at least tried to do his duty,
+and who has not knowingly permitted himself to be warped either by
+passion, prejudice, party alliances, or selfish considerations.</p>
+
+<p>As early as November, 1805, Mr. Adams, being still what may be
+described as an independent Federalist, was approached by Dr. Rush
+with tentative suggestions concerning a foreign mission. Mr. Madison,
+then Secretary of State, and even President Jefferson were apparently
+not disinclined to give him such employment, provided he would be
+willing to accept it
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page069" name="page069"></a>(p. 069)</span>
+at their hands. Mr. Adams simply
+replied, that he would not refuse a nomination merely because it came
+from Mr. Jefferson, though there was no office in the President's gift
+for which he had any wish. Perhaps because of the unconciliatory
+coolness of this response, or perhaps for some better reason, the
+nomination did not follow at that time. No sooner, however, had Mr.
+Madison fairly taken the oath of office as President than he bethought
+him of Mr. Adams, now no longer a Federalist, but, concerning the
+present issues, of the Republican persuasion. On March 6, 1809, Mr.
+Adams was notified by the President personally of the intention to
+nominate him as Minister Plenipotentiary to Russia. It was a new
+mission, the first minister ever nominated to Russia having been only
+a short time before rejected by the Senate. But the Emperor had often
+expressed his wish to exchange ministers, and Mr. Madison was anxious
+to comply with the courteous request. Mr. Adams's name was accordingly
+at once sent to the Senate. But on the following day, March 7, that
+body resolved that "it is inexpedient at this time to appoint a
+minister from the United States to the Court of Russia." The vote was
+seventeen to fifteen, and among the seventeen was Mr. Adams's old
+colleague, Timothy Pickering, who probably never in his life
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page070" name="page070"></a>(p. 070)</span>
+cast a vote which gave him so much pleasure. Mr. Madison, however, did
+not readily desist from his purpose, and a few months later, June 26,
+he sent a message to the Senate, stating that the considerations
+previously leading him to nominate a minister to Russia had since been
+strengthened, and again naming Mr. Adams for the post. This time the
+nomination was confirmed with readiness, by a vote of nineteen to
+seven, Mr. Pickering, of course, being one of the still hostile
+minority.</p>
+
+<p>At noon on August 5, 1809, records Mr. Adams, "I left my house at the
+corner of Boylston and Nassau streets, in Boston," again to make the
+tedious and uncomfortable voyage across the Atlantic. A miserable and
+a dangerous time he had of it ere, on October 23, he reached St.
+Petersburg. Concerning the four years and a half which he is now to
+spend in Russia very little need be said. His active duties were of
+the simplest character, amounting to little more than rendering
+occasional assistance to American shipmasters suffering beneath the
+severities so often illegally inflicted by the contesting powers of
+Europe. But apart from the slender practical service to be done, the
+period must have been interesting and agreeable for him personally,
+for he was received and treated throughout his stay by the Emperor
+and <span class="pagenum"><a id="page071" name="page071"></a>(p. 071)</span>
+his courtiers with distinguished kindness. The Emperor,
+who often met him walking, used to stop and chat with him, while Count
+Romanzoff, the minister of foreign affairs, was cordial beyond the
+ordinary civility of diplomacy. The Diary records a series of court
+presentations, balls, fźtes, dinners, diplomatic and other, launches,
+displays of fireworks, birthday festivities, parades, baptisms, plays,
+state funerals, illuminations, and Te Deums for victories; in short,
+every species of social gayety and public pageant. At all these Mr.
+Adams was always a bidden and apparently a welcome guest. It must be
+admitted, even by his detractors, that he was an admirable
+representative of the United States abroad. Having already seen much
+of the distinguished society of European courts, but retaining a
+republican simplicity, which was wholly genuine and a natural part of
+his character and therefore was never affected or offensive in its
+manifestations, he really represented the best element in the politics
+and society of the United States. Winning respect for himself he won
+it also for the country which he represented. Thus he was able to
+render an indirect but essential service in cementing the kindly
+feeling which the Russian Empire entertained for the American
+Republic. Russia could then do us little good
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page072" name="page072"></a>(p. 072)</span>
+and almost no
+harm, yet the friendship of a great European power had a certain moral
+value in those days of our national infancy. That friendship, so
+cordially offered, Mr. Adams was fortunately well fitted to
+conciliate, showing in his foreign callings a tact which did not mark
+him in other public relations. He was perhaps less liked by his
+travelling fellow countrymen than by the Russians. The paltry ambition
+of a certain class of Americans for introduction to high society
+disgusted him greatly, and he was not found an efficient ally by these
+would-be comrades of the Russian aristocracy. "The ambition of young
+Americans to crowd themselves upon European courts and into the
+company of nobility is a very ridiculous and not a very proud feature
+of their character," he wrote; "there is nothing, in my estimate of
+things, meaner than courting society where, if admitted, it is only to
+be despised." He himself happily combined extensive acquirements,
+excellent ability, diplomatic and courtly experience, and natural
+independence of character without ill-bred self-assertion, and never
+failed to create a good impression in the many circles into which his
+foreign career introduced him.</p>
+
+<p>The ambassadors and ministers from European powers at St. Petersburg
+were constantly wrangling about precedence and like petty matters of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page073" name="page073"></a>(p. 073)</span>
+court etiquette. "In all these controversies," writes Mr.
+Adams, "I have endeavored to consider it as an affair in which I, as
+an <i>American</i> minister, had no concern; and that my only principle is
+to dispute upon precedence with nobody." A good-natured contempt for
+European follies may be read between the lines of this remark; wherein
+it may be said that the Monroe Doctrine is applied to court etiquette.</p>
+
+<p>He always made it a point to live within the meagre income which the
+United States allowed him, but seems to have suffered no diminution of
+consideration for this reason. One morning, walking on the Fontanka,
+he met the Emperor, who said: "Mons. Adams, il y a cent ans que je ne
+vous ai vu;" and then continuing the conversation, "asked me whether I
+intended to take a house in the country this summer. I said, No....
+'And why so?' said he. I was hesitating upon an answer when he
+relieved me from embarrassment by saying, 'Peut-źtre sont-ce des
+considerations de finance?' As he said it with perfect good humor and
+with a smile, I replied in the same manner: 'Mais Sire, elles y sont
+pour une bonne
+part.'"<a id="footnotetag2" name="footnotetag2"></a><a href="#footnote2">[2]</a></p>
+
+<p>The volume of the journal which records this residence in St.
+Petersburg is very interesting as a picture of Russian life and
+manners in high
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page074" name="page074"></a>(p. 074)</span>
+society. Few travellers write anything
+nearly so vivid, so thorough, or so trustworthy as these entries.
+Moreover, during the whole period of his stay the great wars of
+Napoleon were constantly increasing the astonishment of mankind, and
+created intense excitement at the Court of Russia. These feelings
+waxed stronger as it grew daily more likely that the Emperor would
+have to take his turn also as a party defendant in the great conflict.
+Then at last came the fact of war, the invasion of Russia, the burning
+of Moscow, the disastrous retreat of the invaders ending in
+ignominious flight, the advance of the allies, finally the capture of
+Paris. All this while Mr. Adams at St. Petersburg witnessed first the
+alarm and then the exultation of the court and the people as the
+rumors now of defeat, anon of victory, were brought by the couriers at
+tantalizing intervals; and he saw the rejoicings and illuminations
+which rendered the Russian capital so brilliant and glorious during
+the last portion of his residence. It was an experience well worth
+having, and which is pleasantly depicted in the Diary.</p>
+
+<p>In September, 1812, Count Romanzoff suggested to Mr. Adams the
+readiness of the Emperor to act as mediator in bringing about peace
+between the United States and England. The suggestion was promptly
+acted upon, but with no
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page075" name="page075"></a>(p. 075)</span>
+directly fortunate results. The
+American government acceded at once to the proposition, and at the
+risk of an impolitic display of readiness dispatched Messrs. Gallatin
+and Bayard to act as Commissioners jointly with Mr. Adams in the
+negotiations. These gentlemen, however, arrived in St. Petersburg only
+to find themselves in a very awkward position. Their official
+character might not properly be considered as attaching unless England
+should accept the offer of mediation. But England had refused, in the
+first instance, to do this, and she now again reiterated her refusal
+without regard for the manifestation of willingness on the part of the
+United States. Further, Mr. Gallatin's nomination was rejected by the
+Senate after his departure, on the ground that his retention of the
+post of Secretary of the Treasury was incompatible, under the
+Constitution, with this diplomatic function. So the United States
+appeared in a very annoying attitude, her Commissioners were
+uncomfortable and somewhat humiliated; Russia felt a certain measure
+of vexation at the brusque and positive rejection of her friendly
+proposition on the part of Great Britain; and that country alone came
+out of the affair with any self-satisfaction.</p>
+
+<p>But by the time when all hopes of peace through the friendly offices
+of Russia were at an
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page076" name="page076"></a>(p. 076)</span>
+end, that stage of the conflict had
+been reached at which both parties were quite ready to desist. The
+United States, though triumphing in some brilliant naval victories,
+had been having a sorry experience on land, where, as the Russian
+minister remarked, "England did as she pleased." A large portion of
+the people were extremely dissatisfied, and it was impossible to
+ignore that the outlook did not promise better fortunes in the future
+than had been encountered in the past. On the other hand, England had
+nothing substantial to expect from a continuance of the struggle,
+except heavy additional expenditure which it was not then the fashion
+to compel the worsted party to recoup. She accordingly intimated her
+readiness to send Commissioners to Göttingen, for which place Ghent
+was afterwards substituted, to meet American Commissioners and settle
+terms of pacification. The United States renewed the powers of Messrs.
+Adams, Bayard, and Gallatin, a new Secretary of the Treasury having in
+the meantime been appointed, and added Jonathan Russell, then Minister
+to Sweden, and Henry Clay. England deputed Lord Gambier, an admiral,
+Dr. Adams, a publicist, and Mr. Goulburn, a member of Parliament and
+Under Secretary of State. These eight gentlemen accordingly met in
+Ghent on August 7, 1814.</p>
+
+<p>It <span class="pagenum"><a id="page077" name="page077"></a>(p. 077)</span>
+was upwards of four months before an agreement was
+reached. During this period Mr. Adams kept his Diary with much more
+even than his wonted faithfulness, and it undoubtedly presents the
+most vivid picture in existence of the labors of treaty-making
+diplomatists. The eight were certainly an odd assemblage of
+peacemakers. The ill-blood and wranglings between the opposing
+Commissions were bad enough, yet hardly equalled the intestine
+dissensions between the American Commissioners themselves. That the
+spirit of peace should ever have emanated from such an universal
+embroilment is almost sufficiently surprising to be regarded as a
+miracle. At the very beginning, or even before fairly beginning, the
+British party roused the jealous ire of the Americans by proposing
+that they all should meet, for exchanging their full powers, at the
+lodgings of the Englishmen. The Americans took fire at this "offensive
+pretension to superiority" which was "the usage from Ambassadors to
+Ministers of an inferior order." Mr. Adams cited Martens, and Mr.
+Bayard read a case from Ward's "Law of Nations." Mr. Adams suggested
+sending a pointed reply, agreeing to meet the British Commissioners
+"at any place other than their own lodgings;" but Mr. Gallatin, whose
+valuable function was destined to be the keeping of the peace among
+his fractious
+colleagues, <span class="pagenum"><a id="page078" name="page078"></a>(p. 078)</span>
+as well as betwixt
+them and the Englishmen, substituted the milder phrase, "at any place
+which may be mutually agreed upon." The first meeting accordingly took
+place at the Hōtel des Pays Bas, where it was arranged that the
+subsequent conferences should be held alternately at the quarters of
+the two Commissions. Then followed expressions, conventional and
+proper but wholly untrue, of mutual sentiments of esteem and good
+will.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner did the gentlemen begin to get seriously at the work before
+them than the most discouraging prospects were developed. The British
+first presented their demands, as follows: 1. That the United States
+should conclude a peace with the Indian allies of Great Britain, and
+that a species of neutral belt of Indian territory should be
+established between the dominions of the United States and Great
+Britain, so that these dominions should be nowhere conterminous, upon
+which belt or barrier neither power should be permitted to encroach
+even by purchase, and the boundaries of which should be settled in
+this treaty. 2. That the United States should keep no naval force upon
+the Great Lakes, and should neither maintain their existing forts nor
+build new ones upon their northern frontier; it was even required that
+the boundary line should run along the southern
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page079" name="page079"></a>(p. 079)</span>
+shore of the
+lakes; while no corresponding restriction was imposed upon Great
+Britain, because she was stated to have no projects of conquest as
+against her neighbor. 3. That a piece of the province of Maine should
+be ceded, in order to give the English a road from Halifax to Quebec.
+4. That the stipulation of the treaty of 1783, conferring on English
+subjects the right of navigating the Mississippi, should be now
+formally renewed.</p>
+
+<p>The Americans were astounded; it seemed to them hardly worth while to
+have come so far to listen to such propositions. Concerning the
+proposed Indian pacification they had not even any powers, the United
+States being already busied in negotiating a treaty with the tribes as
+independent powers. The establishment of the neutral Indian belt was
+manifestly contrary to the established policy and obvious destiny of
+the nation. Neither was the answer agreeable, which was returned by
+Dr. Adams to the inquiry as to what was to be done with those citizens
+of the United States who had already settled in those parts of
+Michigan, Illinois, and Ohio, included within the territory which it
+was now proposed to make inalienably Indian. He said that these
+people, amounting perhaps to one hundred thousand, "must shift for
+themselves." The one-sided disarmament upon the lakes and along the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page080" name="page080"></a>(p. 080)</span>
+frontier was, by the understanding of all nations, such an
+humiliation as is inflicted only on a crushed adversary. No return was
+offered for the road between Halifax and Quebec; nor for the right of
+navigating the Mississippi. The treaty of peace of 1783, made in
+ignorance of the topography of the unexplored northern country, had
+established an impossible boundary line running from the Lake of the
+Woods westward along the forty-ninth parallel to the Mississippi; and
+as appurtenant to the British territory, thus supposed to touch the
+river, a right of navigation upon it was given. It had since been
+discovered that a line on that parallel would never touch the
+Mississippi. The same treaty had also secured for the United States
+certain rights concerning the Northeastern fisheries. The English now
+insisted upon a re-affirmance of the privilege given to them, without
+a re-affirmance of the privilege given to the United States; ignoring
+the fact that the recent acquisition of Louisiana, making the
+Mississippi wholly American, materially altered the propriety of a
+British right of navigation upon it.</p>
+
+<p>Apart from the intolerable character of these demands, the personal
+bearing of the English Commissioners did not tend to mitigate the
+chagrin of the Americans. The formal civilities had counted with the
+American Commissioners for
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page081" name="page081"></a>(p. 081)</span>
+more than they were worth, and
+had induced them, in preparing a long dispatch to the home government,
+to insert "a paragraph complimentary to the personal deportment" of
+the British. But before they sent off the document they revised it and
+struck out these pleasant phrases. Not many days after the first
+conference Mr. Adams notes that the tone of the English Commissioners
+was even "more peremptory, and their language more overbearing, than
+at the former conferences." A little farther on he remarks that "the
+British note is overbearing and insulting in its tone, like the two
+former ones." Again he says:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "The tone of all the British notes is arrogant, overbearing, and
+     offensive. The tone of ours is neither so bold nor so spirited as
+     I think it should be. It is too much on the defensive, and too
+     excessive in the caution to say nothing irritating. I have seldom
+     been able to prevail upon my colleagues to insert anything in the
+     style of retort upon the harsh and reproachful matter which we
+     receive."
+</p>
+
+<p>Many little passages-at-arms in the conferences are recited which
+amply bear out these remarks as regards both parties. Perhaps,
+however, it should be admitted that the Americans made up for the
+self-restraint which they practised in conference by the disagreements
+and bickerings in which they indulged when consulting
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page082" name="page082"></a>(p. 082)</span>
+among
+themselves. Mr. Gallatin's serene temper and cool head were hardly
+taxed to keep the peace among his excited colleagues. Mr. Adams and
+Mr. Clay were especially prone to suspicions and to outbursts of
+anger. Mr. Adams often and candidly admits as much of himself,
+apparently not without good reason. At first the onerous task of
+drafting the numerous documents which the Commission had to present
+devolved upon him, a labor for which he was well fitted in all
+respects save, perhaps, a tendency to prolixity. He did not, however,
+succeed in satisfying his comrades, and the criticisms to which they
+subjected his composition galled his self-esteem severely, so much so
+that erelong he altogether relinquished this function, which was
+thereafter performed chiefly by Mr. Gallatin. As early as August 21,
+Mr. Adams says, not without evident bitterness, that though they all
+were agreed on the general view of the subject, yet in his "exposition
+of it, one objects to the form, another to the substance, of almost
+every paragraph." Mr. Gallatin would strike out everything possibly
+offensive to the Englishmen; Mr. Clay would draw his pen through every
+figurative expression; Mr. Russell, not content with agreeing to all
+the objections of both the others, would further amend the
+construction of every sentence; and
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page083" name="page083"></a>(p. 083)</span>
+finally Mr. Bayard would
+insist upon writing all over again in his own language. All this
+nettled Mr. Adams exceedingly. On September 24 he again writes that it
+was agreed to adopt an article which he had drawn, "though with
+objections to almost every word" which he had used. "This," he says,
+"is a severity with which I alone am treated in our discussions by all
+my colleagues. Almost everything written by any of the rest is
+rejected, or agreed to with very little criticism, verbal or
+substantial. But every line that I write passes a gauntlet of
+objections by every one of my colleagues, which finally issues, for
+the most part, in the rejection of it all." He reflects, with a
+somewhat forced air of self-discipline, that this must indicate some
+faultiness in his composition which he must try to correct; but in
+fact it is sufficiently evident that he was seldom persuaded that his
+papers were improved. Amid all this we see in the Diary many
+exhibitions of vexation. One day he acknowledges, "I cannot always
+restrain the irritability of my temper;" another day he informed his
+colleagues, "with too much warmth, that they might be assured I was as
+determined as they were;" again he reflects, "I, too, must not forget
+to keep a constant guard upon my temper, for the time is evidently
+approaching when it will be wanted." Mr. Gallatin alone seems
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page084" name="page084"></a>(p. 084)</span>
+not to have exasperated him; Mr. Clay and he were constantly in
+discussion, and often pretty hotly. Instead of coming nearer together,
+as time went on, these two fell farther apart. What Mr. Clay thought
+of Mr. Adams may probably be inferred from what we know that Mr. Adams
+thought of Mr. Clay. "Mr. Clay is losing his temper, and growing
+peevish and fractious," he writes on October 31; and constantly he
+repeats the like complaint. The truth is, that the precise New
+Englander and the impetuous Westerner were kept asunder not only by
+local interests but by habits and modes of thought utterly dissimilar.
+Some amusing glimpses of their private life illustrate this
+difference. Mr. Adams worked hard and diligently, allowing himself
+little leisure for pleasure; but Mr. Clay, without actually neglecting
+his duties, yet managed to find ample time for enjoyment. More than
+once Mr. Adams notes that, as he rose about five o'clock in the
+morning to light his own fire and begin the labors of the day by
+candle-light, he heard the parties breaking up and leaving Mr. Clay's
+rooms across the entry, where they had been playing cards all night
+long. In these little touches one sees the distinctive characters of
+the men well portrayed.</p>
+
+<p>The very extravagance of the British demands at
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page085" name="page085"></a>(p. 085)</span>
+least saved
+the Americans from perplexity. Mr. Clay, indeed, cherished an
+"inconceivable idea" that the Englishmen would "finish by receding
+from the ground they had taken;" but meantime there could be no
+difference of opinion concerning the impossibility of meeting them
+upon that ground. Mr. Adams, never lacking in courage, actually wished
+to argue with them that it would be for the interests of Great Britain
+not less than of the United States if Canada should be ceded to the
+latter power. Unfortunately his colleagues would not support him in
+this audacious policy, the humor of which is delicious. It would have
+been infinitely droll to see how the British Commissioners would have
+hailed such a proposition, by way of appropriate termination of a
+conflict in which the forces of their nation had captured and
+ransacked the capital city of the Americans!</p>
+
+<p>On August 21 the Englishmen invited the Americans to dinner on the
+following Saturday. "The chance is," wrote Mr. Adams, "that before
+that time the whole negotiation will be at an end." The banquet,
+however, did come off, and a few more succeeded it; feasts not marked
+by any great geniality or warmth, except perhaps occasionally warmth
+of discussion. So sure were the Americans that they were about to
+break <span class="pagenum"><a id="page086" name="page086"></a>(p. 086)</span>
+off the negotiations that Mr. Adams began to consider
+by what route he should return to St. Petersburg; and they declined to
+renew the tenure of their quarters for more than a few days longer.
+Like alarms were of frequent occurrence, even almost to the very day
+of agreement. On September 15, at a dinner given by the American
+Commissioners, Lord Gambier asked Mr. Adams whether he would return
+immediately to St. Petersburg. "Yes," replied Mr. Adams, "that is, if
+you send us away." His lordship "replied with assurances how deeply he
+lamented it, and with a hope that we should one day be friends again."
+On the same occasion Mr. Goulburn said that probably the last note of
+the Americans would "terminate the business," and that they "must
+fight it out." Fighting it out was a much less painful prospect for
+Great Britain just at that juncture than for the United States, as the
+Americans realized with profound anxiety. "We so fondly cling to the
+vain hope of peace, that every new proof of its impossibility operates
+upon us as a disappointment," wrote Mr. Adams. No amount of pride
+could altogether conceal the fact that the American Commissioners
+represented the worsted party, and though they never openly said so
+even among themselves, yet indirectly they were obliged to recognize
+the truth. On November
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page087" name="page087"></a>(p. 087)</span>
+10 we find Mr. Adams proposing to
+make concessions not permitted by their instructions, because, as he
+said:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "I felt so sure that [the home government] would now gladly take
+     the state before the war as the general basis of the peace, that
+     I was prepared to take on me the responsibility of trespassing
+     upon their instructions thus far. Not only so, but I would at
+     this moment cheerfully give my life for a peace on this basis. If
+     peace was possible, it would be on no other. I had indeed no hope
+     that the proposal would be accepted."
+</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Clay thought that the British would laugh at this: "They would
+say, Ay, ay! pretty fellows you, to think of getting out of the war as
+well as you got into it." This was not consoling for the
+representatives of that side which had declared war for the purpose of
+curing grievances and vindicating alleged rights. But that Mr. Adams
+correctly read the wishes of the government was proved within a very
+few days by the receipt of express authority from home "to conclude
+the peace on the basis of the <i>status ante bellum</i>." Three days
+afterwards, on November 27, three and a half months after the
+vexatious haggling had been begun, we encounter in the Diary the first
+real gleam of hope of a successful termination: "All the difficulties
+to the conclusion of a peace appear to be now
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page088" name="page088"></a>(p. 088)</span>
+so nearly
+removed, that my colleagues all consider it as certain. I myself think
+it probable."</p>
+
+<p>There were, however, some three weeks more of negotiation to be gone
+through before the consummation was actually achieved, and the ill
+blood seemed to increase as the end was approached. The differences
+between the American Commissioners waxed especially serious concerning
+the fisheries and the navigation of the Mississippi. Mr. Adams
+insisted that if the treaty of peace had been so far abrogated by the
+war as to render necessary a re-affirmance of the British right of
+navigating the Mississippi, then a re-affirmance of the American
+rights in the Northeastern fisheries was equally necessary. This the
+English Commissioners denied. Mr. Adams said it was only an exchange
+of privileges presumably equivalent. Mr. Clay, however, was firmly
+resolved to prevent all stipulations admitting such a right of
+navigation, and the better to do so he was quite willing to let the
+fisheries go. The navigation privilege he considered "much too
+important to be conceded for the mere liberty of drying fish upon a
+desert," as he was pleased to describe a right for which the United
+States has often been ready to go to war and may yet some time do so.
+"Mr. Clay lost his temper," writes Mr. Adams
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page089" name="page089"></a>(p. 089)</span>
+a day or two
+later, "as he generally does whenever this right of the British to
+navigate the Mississippi is discussed. He was utterly averse to
+admitting it as an equivalent for a stipulation securing the contested
+part of the fisheries. He said the more he heard of this [the right of
+fishing], the more convinced he was that it was of little or no value.
+He should be glad to get it if he could, but he was sure the British
+would not ultimately grant it. That the navigation of the Mississippi,
+on the other hand, was an object of immense importance, and he could
+see no sort of reason for granting it as an equivalent for the
+fisheries." Thus spoke the representative of the West. The New
+Englander&mdash;the son of the man whose exertions had been chiefly
+instrumental in originally obtaining the grant of the Northeastern
+fishery privileges&mdash;naturally went to the other extreme. He thought
+"the British right of navigating the Mississippi to be as nothing,
+considered as a grant from us. It was secured to them by the peace of
+1783, they had enjoyed it at the commencement of the war, it had never
+been injurious in the slightest degree to our own people, and it
+appeared to [him] that the British claim to it was just and
+equitable." Further he "believed the right to this navigation to be a
+very useless thing to the British.... But their
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page090" name="page090"></a>(p. 090)</span>
+national
+pride and honor were interested in it; the government could not make a
+peace which would abandon it." The fisheries, however, Mr. Adams
+regarded as one of the most inestimable and inalienable of American
+rights. It is evident that the United States could ill have spared
+either Mr. Adams or Mr. Clay from the negotiation, and the joinder of
+the two, however fraught with discomfort to themselves, well served
+substantial American interests.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams thought the British perfidious, and suspected them of not
+entertaining any honest intention of concluding a peace. On December
+12, after an exceedingly quarrelsome conference, he records his belief
+that the British have "insidiously kept open" two points, "for the
+sake of finally breaking off the negotiations and making all their
+other concessions proofs of their extreme moderation, to put upon us
+the blame of the rupture."</p>
+
+<p>On December 11 we find Mr. Clay ready "for a war three years longer,"
+and anxious "to begin to play at <i>brag</i>" with the Englishmen. His
+colleagues, more complaisant or having less confidence in their own
+skill in that game, found it difficult to placate him; he "stalked to
+and fro across the chamber, repeating five or six times, 'I will never
+sign a treaty upon the <i>status ante bellum</i> with the Indian article.
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page091" name="page091"></a>(p. 091)</span>
+So help me God!'" The next day there was an angry controversy
+with the Englishmen. The British troops had taken and held Moose
+Island in Passamaquoddy Bay, the rightful ownership of which was in
+dispute. The title was to be settled by arbitrators. But the question,
+whether the British should restore possession of the island pending
+the arbitration, aroused bitter discussion. "Mr. Goulburn and Dr.
+Adams (the Englishman) immediately took fire, and Goulburn lost all
+control of his temper. He has always in such cases," says the Diary,
+"a sort of convulsive agitation about him, and the tone in which he
+speaks is more insulting than the language which he uses." Mr. Bayard
+referred to the case of the Falkland Islands. "'Why' (in a transport
+of rage), said Goulburn, 'in that case we sent a fleet and troops and
+drove the fellows off; and that is what we ought to have done in this
+case.'" Mr. J. Q. Adams, whose extensive and accurate information more
+than once annoyed his adversaries, stated that, as he remembered it,
+"the Spaniards in that case had driven the British off,"&mdash;and Lord
+Gambier helped his blundering colleague out of the difficulty by
+suggesting a new subject, much as the defeated heroes of the Iliad
+used to find happy refuge from death in a god-sent cloud of dust. It
+is amusing to read that
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page092" name="page092"></a>(p. 092)</span>
+in the midst of such scenes as these
+the show of courtesy was still maintained; and on December 13 the
+Americans "all dined with the British Plenipotentiaries," though "the
+party was more than usually dull, stiff, and reserved." It was
+certainly forcing the spirit of good fellowship. The next day Mr. Clay
+notified his colleagues that they were going "to make a damned bad
+treaty, and he did not know whether he would sign it or not;" and Mr.
+Adams also said that he saw that the rest had made up their minds "at
+last to yield the fishery point," in which case he also could not sign
+the treaty. On the following day, however, the Americans were
+surprised by receiving a note from the British Commissioners, wherein
+they made the substantial concession of omitting from the treaty all
+reference to the fisheries and the navigation of the Mississippi. But
+Mr. Clay, on reading the note, "manifested some chagrin," and "still
+talked of breaking off the negotiation," even asking Mr. Adams to join
+him in so doing, which request, however, Mr. Adams very reasonably
+refused. Mr. Clay had also been anxious to stand out for a distinct
+abandonment of the alleged right of impressment; but upon this point
+he found none of his colleagues ready to back him, and he was
+compelled perforce to yield. Agreement was therefore now
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page093" name="page093"></a>(p. 093)</span>
+substantially reached; a few minor matters were settled, and on
+December 24, 1814, the treaty was signed by all the eight negotiators.</p>
+
+<p>It was an astonishing as well as a happy result. Never, probably, in
+the history of diplomacy has concord been produced from such
+discordant elements as had been brought together in Ghent. Dissension
+seemed to have become the mother of amity; and antipathies were mere
+preliminaries to a good understanding; in diplomacy as in marriage it
+had worked well to begin with a little aversion. But, in truth, this
+consummation was largely due to what had been going on in the English
+Cabinet. At the outset Lord Castlereagh had been very unwilling to
+conclude peace, and his disposition had found expression in the
+original intolerable terms prepared by the British Commissioners. But
+Lord Liverpool had been equally solicitous on the other side, and was
+said even to have tendered his resignation to the Prince Regent, if an
+accommodation should not be effected. His endeavors were fortunately
+aided by events in Europe. Pending the negotiations Lord Castlereagh
+went on a diplomatic errand to Vienna, and there fell into such
+threatening discussions with the Emperor of Russia and the King of
+Prussia, that he thought it prudent
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page094" name="page094"></a>(p. 094)</span>
+to have done with the
+American war, and wrote home pacific advices. Hence, at last, came
+such concessions as satisfied the Americans.</p>
+
+<p>The treaty established "a firm and universal peace between his
+Britannic Majesty and the United States." Each party was to restore
+all captured territory, except that the islands of which the title was
+in dispute were to remain in the occupation of the party holding them
+at the time of ratification until that title should be settled by
+commissioners; provision was made also for the determination of all
+the open questions of boundary by sundry boards of commissioners; each
+party was to make peace with the Indian allies of the other. Such
+were, in substance, the only points touched upon by this document. Of
+the many subjects mooted between the negotiators scarcely any had
+survived the fierce contests which had been waged concerning them. The
+whole matter of the navigation of the Mississippi, access to that
+river, and a road through American territory, had been dropped by the
+British; while the Americans had been well content to say nothing of
+the Northeastern fisheries, which they regarded as still their own.
+The disarmament on the lakes and along the Canadian border, and the
+neutralization of a strip of Indian territory,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page095" name="page095"></a>(p. 095)</span>
+were yielded
+by the English. The Americans were content to have nothing said about
+impressment; nor was any one of the many illegal rights exercised by
+England formally abandoned. The Americans satisfied themselves with
+the reflection that circumstances had rendered these points now only
+matters of abstract principle, since the pacification of Europe had
+removed all opportunities and temptations for England to persist in
+her previous objectionable courses. For the future it was hardly to be
+feared that she would again undertake to pursue a policy against which
+it was evident that the United States were willing to conduct a
+serious war. There was, however, no provision for indemnification.</p>
+
+<p>Upon a fair consideration, it must be admitted that though the treaty
+was silent upon all the points which the United States had made war
+for the purpose of enforcing, yet the country had every reason to be
+gratified with the result of the negotiation. The five Commissioners
+had done themselves ample credit. They had succeeded in agreeing with
+each other; they had avoided any fracture of a negotiation which, up
+to the very end, seemed almost daily on the verge of being broken off
+in anger; they had managed really to lose nothing, in spite of the
+fact that their side had had
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page096" name="page096"></a>(p. 096)</span>
+decidedly the worst of the
+struggle. They had negotiated much more successfully than the armies
+of their countrymen had fought. The Marquis of Wellesley said, in the
+House of Lords, that "in his opinion the American Commissioners had
+shown a most astonishing superiority over the British during the whole
+of the correspondence." One cannot help wishing that the battle of New
+Orleans had taken place a little earlier, or that the negotiation had
+fallen a little later, so that news of that brilliant event could have
+reached the ears of the insolent Englishmen at Ghent, who had for
+three months been enjoying the malicious pleasure of lending to the
+Americans English newspapers containing accounts of American
+misfortunes. But that fortunate battle was not fought until a few days
+after the eight Commissioners had signed their compact. It is an
+interesting illustration of the slowness of communication which our
+forefathers had to endure, that the treaty crossed the Atlantic in a
+sailing ship in time to travel through much of the country
+simultaneously with the report of this farewell victory. Two such good
+pieces of news coming together set the people wild with delight. Even
+on the dry pages of Niles's "Weekly Register" occurs the triumphant
+paragraph: "Who would not be an American? Long
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page097" name="page097"></a>(p. 097)</span>
+live the
+Republic! All hail! last asylum of oppressed humanity! Peace is signed
+in the arms of victory!" It was natural that most of the ecstasy
+should be manifested concerning the military triumph, and that the
+mass of the people should find more pleasure in glorifying General
+Jackson than in exalting the Commissioners. The value of their work,
+however, was well proved by the voice of Great Britain. In the London
+"Times" of December 30 appeared a most angry tirade against the
+treaty, with bitter sneers at those who called the peace an
+"honorable" one. England, it was said, "had attempted to force her
+principles on America, and had failed." Foreign powers would say that
+the English "had retired from the combat with the stripes yet bleeding
+on their backs,&mdash;with the recent defeats at Plattsburgh and on Lake
+Champlain unavenged." The most gloomy prognostications of further wars
+with America when her naval power should have waxed much greater were
+indulged. The loss of prestige in Europe, "the probable loss of our
+trans-Atlantic provinces," were among the results to be anticipated
+from this treaty into which the English Commissioners had been
+beguiled by the Americans. These latter were reviled with an abuse
+which was really the highest compliment. The family name of Mr. Adams
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page098" name="page098"></a>(p. 098)</span>
+gained no small access of distinction in England from this
+business.</p>
+
+<p>After the conclusion of the treaty Mr. Adams went to Paris, and
+remained there until the middle of May, 1815, thus having the good
+fortune to witness the return of Napoleon and a great part of the
+events of the famous "hundred days." On May 26 he arrived in London,
+where there awaited him, in the hands of the Barings, his commission
+as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Great Britain.
+His first duty was, in connection with Mr. Clay and Mr. Gallatin, to
+negotiate a treaty of commerce, in which business he again met the
+same three British Commissioners by whom the negotiations at Ghent had
+been conducted, of whose abilities the government appeared to
+entertain a better opinion than the Marquis of Wellesley had
+expressed. This negotiation had been brought so far towards conclusion
+by his colleagues before his own arrival that Mr. Adams had little to
+do in assisting them to complete it. This little having been done,
+they departed and left him as Minister at the Court of St. James. Thus
+he fulfilled Washington's prophecy, by reaching the highest rank in
+the American diplomatic service.</p>
+
+<p>Of his stay in Great Britain little need be said. He had few duties of
+importance to perform. The
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page099" name="page099"></a>(p. 099)</span>
+fisheries, the right of
+impressment, and the taking away and selling of slaves by British
+naval officers during the late war, formed the subjects of many
+interviews between him and Lord Castlereagh, without, however, any
+definite results being reached. But he succeeded in obtaining, towards
+the close of his stay, some slight remission of the severe
+restrictions placed by England upon our trade with her West Indian
+colonies. His relations with a cabinet in which the principles of
+Castlereagh and Canning predominated could hardly be cordial, yet he
+seems to have been treated with perfect civility. Indeed, he was not a
+man whom it was easy even for an Englishman to insult. He remarks of
+Castlereagh, after one of his first interviews with that nobleman:
+"His deportment is sufficiently graceful, and his person is handsome.
+His manner was cold, but not absolutely repulsive." Before he left he
+had the pleasure of having Mr. Canning specially seek acquaintance
+with him. He met, of course, many distinguished and many agreeable
+persons during his residence, and partook of many festivities,
+especially of numerous civic banquets at which toasts were formally
+given in the dullest English fashion and he was obliged to display his
+capacity for "table-cloth oratory," as he called it, more than was
+agreeable to him. He
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page100" name="page100"></a>(p. 100)</span>
+was greatly bored by these solemn and
+pompous feedings. Partly in order to escape them he took a house at
+Ealing, and lived there during the greater part of his stay in
+England. "One of the strongest reasons for my remaining out of town,"
+he writes, "is to escape the frequency of invitations at late hours,
+which consume so much precious time, and with the perpetually
+mortifying consciousness of inability to return the civility in the
+same manner." The republican simplicity, not to say poverty, forced
+upon American representatives abroad, was a very different matter in
+the censorious and unfriendly society of London from what it had been
+at the kindly disposed Court of St. Petersburg. The relationship
+between the mother country and the quondam colonies, especially at
+that juncture, was such as to render social life intolerably trying to
+an under-paid American minister.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams remained in England until June 15, 1817, when he sailed from
+Cowes, closing forever his long and honorable diplomatic career, and
+bidding his last farewell to Europe. He returned home to take the post
+of Secretary of State in the cabinet of James Monroe, then lately
+inaugurated as President of the United States.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<h3>CHAPTER II
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page101" name="page101"></a>(p. 101)</span></h3>
+
+<h4>SECRETARY OF STATE AND PRESIDENT</h4>
+
+
+<p>From the capitals of Russia and Great Britain to the capital of the
+United States was a striking change. Washington, in its early struggle
+for existence, was so unattractive a spot, that foreigners must have
+been at a loss to discover the principle which had governed the
+selection. It combined all the ugliness with all the discomfort of an
+unprosperous frontier settlement on an ill-chosen site. What must
+European diplomats have thought of a capital city where snakes two
+feet long invaded gentlemen's drawing-rooms, and a carriage, bringing
+home the guests from a ball, could be upset by the impenetrable depth
+of quagmire at the very door of a foreign minister's residence. A
+description of the city given by Mr. Mills, a Representative from
+Massachusetts, in 1815, is pathetic in its unutterable horror:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "It is impossible [he writes] for me to describe to you my
+     feelings on entering this miserable desert, this scene of
+     desolation and horror.... My anticipations were
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page102" name="page102"></a>(p. 102)</span>
+almost
+     infinitely short of the reality, and I can truly say that the
+     first appearance of this seat of the national government has
+     produced in me nothing but absolute loathing and disgust."
+</p>
+
+<p>If the place wore such a dreadful aspect to the simple denizen of a
+New England country town, what must it have seemed to those who were
+familiar with London and Paris? To them the social life must have been
+scarcely less dreary than the rest of the surroundings. Accordingly,
+with this change of scene, the Diary, so long a record of festivities
+sometimes dull and formal, but generally collecting interesting and
+distinguished persons, ceases almost wholly to refer to topics of
+society. Yet, of course, even the foul streets could not prevent
+people from occasionally meeting together. There were simple
+tea-drinkings, stupid weekly dinners at the President's, infrequent
+receptions by Mrs. Monroe, card-parties and conversation-parties,
+which at the British minister's were very "elegant," and at the French
+minister's were more gay. Mons. de Neuville, at his dinners, used to
+puzzle and astound the plain-living Yankees by serving dishes of
+"turkeys without bones, and puddings in the form of fowls, fresh cod
+disguised like a salad, and celery like oysters;" further, he
+scandalized some and demoralized others by having
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page103" name="page103"></a>(p. 103)</span>
+dancing on
+Saturday evenings, which the New England ladies had been "educated to
+consider as holy time." Mr. and Mrs. Adams used to give weekly parties
+on Tuesday evenings, and apparently many persons stood not a little in
+awe of these entertainments and of the givers of them, by reason of
+their superior familiarity with the manners and customs of the best
+society of Europe. Mrs. Adams was, "on the whole, a very pleasant and
+agreeable woman; but the Secretary [had] no talent to entertain a
+mixed company, either by conversation or manners;" thus writes this
+same Mr. Mills, whose sentiments towards Mr. Adams were those of
+respect rather than of personal liking. The favorite dissipation then
+consisted in card-playing, and the stakes were too often out of all
+just proportion to the assets of the gamesters. At one time Mr. Clay
+was reputed to have lost $8,000, an amount so considerable for him as
+to weigh upon his mind to the manifest detriment of his public
+functions. But sometimes the gentlemen resident in the capital met for
+purposes less innocent than Saturday evening cotillons, or even than
+extravagant betting at the card-table, and stirred the dulness of
+society by a duel. Mr. Adams tells of one affair of this sort, fought
+between ex-Senator Mason, of Virginia, and his cousin, wherein the
+weapons
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page104" name="page104"></a>(p. 104)</span>
+used were muskets, and the distance was only six
+paces. Mason was killed; his cousin was wounded, and only by a lucky
+accident escaped with his life. Mr. Adams had little time and less
+taste for either the amusements or the dangers thus offered to him; he
+preferred to go to bed in good season, to get up often long before
+daybreak, and to labor assiduously the livelong day. His favorite
+exercise was swimming in the Potomac, where he accomplished feats
+which would have been extraordinary for a young and athletic man.</p>
+
+<p>The most important, perplexing, and time-consuming duties then called
+for by the condition of public affairs happened to fall within Mr.
+Adams's department. Monroe's administration has been christened the
+"era of good feeling;" and, so far as political divisions among the
+people at large were concerned, this description is correct enough.
+There were no great questions of public policy dividing the nation.
+There could hardly be said to be two political parties. With the close
+of the war the malcontent Federalists had lost the only substantial
+principle upon which they had been able vigorously to oppose the
+administration, and as a natural consequence the party rapidly shrank
+to insignificant proportions, and became of hardly more importance
+than were the Jacobites in
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page105" name="page105"></a>(p. 105)</span>
+England after their last hopes
+had been quenched by the failure of the Rebellion of '45. The
+Federalist faith, like Jacobitism, lingered in a few neighborhoods,
+and was maintained by a few old families, who managed to associate it
+with a sense of their own pride and dignity; but as an effective
+opposition or influential party organization it was effete, and no
+successor was rising out of its ruins. In a broad way, therefore,
+there was political harmony to a very remarkable degree.</p>
+
+<p>But among individuals there was by no means a prevailing good feeling.
+Not held together by the pressure exerted by the antagonism of a
+strong hostile force, the prominent men of the Cabinet and in Congress
+were busily employed in promoting their own individual interests.
+Having no great issues with which to identify themselves, and upon
+which they could openly and honorably contend for the approval of the
+nation, their only means for securing their respective private ends
+lay in secretly overreaching and supplanting each other. Infinite
+skill was exerted by each to inveigle his rival into an unpopular
+position or a compromising light. By a series of precedents Mr. Adams,
+as Secretary of State, appeared most prominent as a candidate for the
+succession to the Presidency. But Mr. Crawford, in the Treasury
+Department, had
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page106" name="page106"></a>(p. 106)</span>
+been very near obtaining the nomination
+instead of Monroe, and he was firmly resolved to secure it so soon as
+Mr. Monroe's eight years should have elapsed. He, therefore, finding
+much leisure left upon his hands by the not very exacting business of
+his office, devoted his ingenuity to devising schemes for injuring the
+prestige of Mr. Adams. Mr. Clay also had been greatly disappointed
+that he had not been summoned to be Secretary of State, and so made
+heir apparent. His personal enmity was naturally towards Mr. Monroe;
+his political enmity necessarily also included Mr. Adams, whose
+appointment he had privately sought to prevent. He therefore at once
+set himself assiduously to oppose and thwart the administration, and
+to make it unsuccessful and unpopular. That Clay was in the main and
+upon all weighty questions an honest statesman and a real patriot must
+be admitted, but just at this period no national crisis called his
+nobler qualities into action, and his course was largely influenced by
+selfish considerations. It was not long before Mr. Calhoun also
+entered the lists, though in a manner less discreditable to himself,
+personally, than were the resources of Crawford and Clay. The daily
+narrations and comments of Mr. Adams display and explain in a manner
+highly instructive, if not altogether agreeable,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page107" name="page107"></a>(p. 107)</span>
+the
+ambitions and the man&oelig;uvres, the hollow alliances and unworthy
+intrigues, not only of these three, but also of many other estimable
+gentlemen then in political life. The difference between those days
+and our own seems not so great as the <i>laudatores temporis acti</i> are
+wont to proclaim it. The elaborate machinery which has since been
+constructed was then unknown; rivals relied chiefly upon their own
+astuteness and the aid of a few personal friends and adherents for
+carrying on contests and attaining ends which are now sought by vastly
+more complex methods. What the stage-coach of that period was to the
+railroads of to-day, or what the hand-loom was to our great cotton
+mills, such also was the political intriguing of cabinet ministers,
+senators, and representatives to our present party machinery. But the
+temper was no better, honor was no keener, the sense of public duty
+was little more disinterested then than now. One finds no serious
+traces of vulgar financial dishonesty recorded in these pages, in
+which Mr. Adams has handed down the political life of the second and
+third decades of our century with a photographic accuracy. But one
+does not see a much higher level of faithfulness to ideal standards in
+political life than now exists.</p>
+
+<a id="img004" name="img004"></a>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/img004.jpg" width="400" height="532"
+alt=" Wm. H. Crawford" title="">
+</div>
+<a id="img004b" name="img004b"></a>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/img004b.jpg" width="400" height="78"
+alt=" Wm. H. Crawford" title="">
+</div>
+
+
+<p>As has been said, it so happened that in Mr. Monroe's
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page108" name="page108"></a>(p. 108)</span>
+administration the heaviest burden of labor and responsibility rested
+upon Mr. Adams; the most important and most perplexing questions fell
+within his department. Domestic breaches had been healed, but foreign
+breaches gaped with threatening jaws. War with Spain seemed imminent.
+Her South American colonies were then waging their contest for
+independence, and naturally looked to the late successful rebels of
+the northern continent for acts of neighborly sympathy and good
+fellowship. Their efforts to obtain official recognition and the
+exchange of ministers with the United States were eager and
+persistent. Privateers fitted out at Baltimore gave the State
+Department scarcely less cause for anxiety than the shipbuilders of
+Liverpool gave to the English Cabinet in 1863-64. These perplexities,
+as is well known, caused the passage of the first "Neutrality Act,"
+which first formulated and has since served to establish the principle
+of international obligation in such matters, and has been the basis of
+all subsequent legislation upon the subject not only in this country
+but also in Great Britain.</p>
+
+<p>The European powers, impelled by a natural distaste for rebellion by
+colonists, and also believing that Spain would in time prevail over
+the insurgents, turned a deaf ear to South American agents. But in the
+United States it was different.
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page109" name="page109"></a>(p. 109)</span>
+Here it was anticipated that
+the revolted communities were destined to win; Mr. Adams records this
+as his own opinion; besides which there was also a natural sympathy
+felt by our people in such a conflict in their own quarter of the
+globe. Nevertheless, in many anxious cabinet discussions, the
+President and the Secretary of State established the policy of reserve
+and caution. Rebels against an established government are like
+plaintiffs in litigation; the burden of proof is upon them, and the
+neutral nations who are a sort of quasi-jurors must not commit
+themselves to a decision prematurely. The grave and inevitable
+difficulties besetting the administration in this matter were
+seriously enhanced by the conduct of Mr. Clay. Seeking nothing so
+eagerly as an opportunity to harass the government, he could have
+found none more to his taste than this question of South American
+recognition. His enthusiastic and rhetorical temperament rejoiced in
+such a topic for his luxuriant oratory, and he lauded freedom and
+abused the administration with a force of expression far from
+gratifying to the responsible heads of government in their troublesome
+task.</p>
+
+<p>Apart from these matters the United States had direct disputes of a
+threatening character pending with Spain concerning the boundaries of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page110" name="page110"></a>(p. 110)</span>
+Louisiana. Naturally enough boundary lines in the half
+explored wilderness of this vast continent were not then marked with
+that indisputable accuracy which many generations and much bloodshed
+had achieved in Europe; and of all uncertain boundaries that of
+Louisiana was the most so. Area enough to make two or three States,
+more or less, might or might not be included therein. Such doubts had
+proved a ready source of quarrel, which could hardly be assuaged by
+General Jackson marching about in unquestionable Spanish territory,
+seizing towns and hanging people after his lawless, ignorant,
+energetic fashion. Mr. Adams's chief labor, therefore, was by no means
+of a promising character, being nothing less difficult than to
+conclude a treaty between enraged Spain and the rapacious United
+States, where there was so much wrong and so much right on both sides,
+and such a wide obscure realm of doubt between the two that an
+amicable agreement might well seem not only beyond expectation but
+beyond hope.</p>
+
+<p>Many and various also were the incidental obstacles in Mr. Adams's
+way. Not the least lay in the ability of Don Onis, the Spanish
+Minister, an ambassador well selected for his important task and whom
+the American thus described:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "Cold,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page111" name="page111"></a>(p. 111)</span>
+     calculating, wily, always commanding his own
+     temper, proud because he is a Spaniard, but supple and cunning,
+     accommodating the tone of his pretensions precisely to the degree
+     of endurance of his opponent, bold and overbearing to the utmost
+     extent to which it is tolerated, careless of what he asserts or
+     how grossly it is proved to be unfounded, his morality appears to
+     be that of the Jesuits as exposed by Pascal. He is laborious,
+     vigilant, and ever attentive to his duties; a man of business and
+     of the world."
+</p>
+
+<p>Fortunately this so dangerous negotiator was hardly less anxious than
+Mr. Adams to conclude a treaty. Yet he, too, had his grave
+difficulties to encounter. Spanish arrogance had not declined with the
+decline of Spanish strength, and the concessions demanded from that
+ancient monarchy by the upstart republic seemed at once exasperating
+and humiliating. The career of Jackson in Florida, while it exposed
+the weakness of Spain, also sorely wounded her pride. Nor could the
+grandees, three thousand miles away, form so accurate an opinion of
+the true condition and prospects of affairs as could Don Onis upon
+this side of the water. One day, begging Mr. Adams to meet him upon a
+question of boundary, "he insisted much upon the infinite pains he had
+taken to prevail upon his government to come to terms of
+accommodation," and pathetically
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page112" name="page112"></a>(p. 112)</span>
+declared that "the King's
+Council was composed of such ignorant and stupid <i>nigauds</i>, grandees
+of Spain, and priests," that Mr. Adams "could have no conception of
+their obstinacy and imbecility."</p>
+
+<p>Other difficulties in Mr. Adams's way were such as ought not to have
+been encountered. The only substantial concession which he was willing
+to make was in accepting the Sabine instead of the Rio del Norte as
+the southwestern boundary of Louisiana. But no sooner did rumors of
+this possible yielding get abroad than he was notified that Mr. Clay
+"would take ground against" any treaty embodying it. From Mr. Crawford
+a more dangerous and insidious policy was to be feared. Presumably he
+would be well pleased either to see Mr. Adams fail altogether in the
+negotiation, or to see him conclude a treaty which would be in some
+essential feature odious to the people.</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "That all his conduct [wrote Mr. Adams] is governed by his views
+     to the Presidency, as the ultimate successor to Mr. Monroe, and
+     that his hopes depend upon a result unfavorable to the success or
+     at least to the popularity of the Administration, is perfectly
+     clear.... His talent is intrigue. And as it is in the foreign
+     affairs that the success or failure of the Administration will be
+     most conspicuous, and as their success would promote the
+     reputation and influence, and
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page113" name="page113"></a>(p. 113)</span>
+their failure would lead
+     to the disgrace of the Secretary of State, Crawford's personal
+     views centre in the ill-success of the Administration in its
+     foreign relations; and, perhaps unconscious of his own motives,
+     he will always be impelled to throw obstacles in its way, and to
+     bring upon the Department of State especially any feeling of
+     public dissatisfaction that he can, ... and although himself a
+     member of the Administration, he perceives every day more clearly
+     that his only prospect of success hereafter depends upon the
+     failure of the Administration by measures of which he must take
+     care to make known his disapprobation."
+</p>
+
+<p>President Monroe was profoundly anxious for the consummation of the
+treaty, and though for a time he was in perfect accord with Mr. Adams,
+yet as the Spanish minister gradually drew nearer and nearer to a full
+compliance with the American demands, Monroe began to fear that the
+Secretary would carry his unyielding habit too far, and by insistence
+upon extreme points which might well enough be given up, would allow
+the country to drift into war.</p>
+
+<p>Fortunately, as it turned out, Mr. Adams was not afraid to take the
+whole responsibility of success or failure upon his own shoulders,
+showing indeed a high and admirable courage and constancy amid such
+grave perplexities, in which it seemed that all his future political
+fortunes were
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page114" name="page114"></a>(p. 114)</span>
+involved. He caused the proffered mediation of
+Great Britain to be rejected. He availed himself of no aid save only
+the services of Mons. de Neuville, the French minister, who took a
+warm interest in the negotiation, expostulated and argued constantly
+with Don Onis and sometimes with Mr. Adams, served as a channel of
+communication and carried messages, propositions, and denials, which
+could better come filtered through a neutral go-between than pass
+direct from principal to principal. In fact, Mr. Adams needed no other
+kind of aid except just this which was so readily furnished by the
+civil and obliging Frenchman. As if he had been a mathematician
+solving a problem in dynamics, he seemed to have measured the precise
+line to which the severe pressure of Spanish difficulties would compel
+Don Onis to advance. This line he drew sharply, and taking his stand
+upon it in the beginning he made no important alterations in it to the
+end. Day by day the Spaniard would reluctantly approach toward him at
+one point or another, solemnly protesting that he could not make
+another move, by argument and entreaty urging, almost imploring, Mr.
+Adams in turn to advance and meet him. But Mr. Adams stood rigidly
+still, sometimes not a little vexed by the other's lingering
+man&oelig;uvres, and actually once saying
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page115" name="page115"></a>(p. 115)</span>
+to the courtly
+Spaniard that he "was so wearied out with the discussion that it had
+become nauseous;" and, again, that he "really could discuss no longer,
+and had given it up in despair." Yet all the while he was never wholly
+free from anxiety concerning the accuracy of his calculations as to
+how soon the Don might on his side also come to a final stand. Many a
+tedious and alarming pause there was, but after each halt progress was
+in time renewed. At last the consummation was reached, and except in
+the aforementioned matter of the Sabine boundary no concession even in
+details had been made by Mr. Adams. The United States was to receive
+Florida, and in return only agreed to settle the disputed claims of
+certain of her citizens against Spain to an amount not to exceed five
+million dollars; while the claims of Spanish subjects against the
+United States were wholly expunged. The western boundary was so
+established as to secure for this country the much-coveted outlet to
+the shores of the "South Sea," as the Pacific Ocean was called, south
+of the Columbia River; the line also was run along the southern banks
+of the Red and Arkansas rivers, leaving all the islands to the United
+States and precluding Spain from the right of navigation. Mr. Adams
+had achieved a great triumph.</p>
+
+<p>On February 22, 1819, the two negotiators signed
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page116" name="page116"></a>(p. 116)</span>
+and sealed
+the counterparts of the treaty. Mr. Adams notes that it is "perhaps
+the most important day of my life," and justly called it "a great
+epoch in our history." Yet on the next day the "Washington City
+Gazette" came out with a strong condemnation of the Sabine concession,
+and expressed the hope that the Senate would not agree to it. "This
+paragraph," said Mr. Adams, "comes directly or indirectly from Mr.
+Clay." But the paragraph did no harm, for on the following day the
+treaty was confirmed by an unanimous vote of the Senate.</p>
+
+<p>It was not long, however, before the pleasure justly derivable from
+the completion of this great labor was cruelly dashed. It appeared
+that certain enormous grants of land, made by the Spanish king to
+three of his nobles, and which were supposed to be annulled by the
+treaty, so that the territory covered by them would become the public
+property of the United States, bore date earlier than had been
+understood, and for this reason would, by the terms of the treaty, be
+left in full force. This was a serious matter, and such steps as were
+still possible to set it right were promptly taken. Mr. Adams appealed
+to Don Onis to state in writing that he himself had understood that
+these grants were to be annulled, and that such had been the intention
+of the treaty. The Spaniard replied in
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page117" name="page117"></a>(p. 117)</span>
+a shape imperfectly
+satisfactory. He shuffled, evaded, and laid himself open to suspicion
+of unfair dealing, though the charge could not be regarded as fully
+proved against him. Mr. Adams, while blaming himself for carelessness
+in not having more closely examined original documents, yet felt
+"scarce a doubt" that Onis "did intend by artifice to cover the grants
+while we were under the undoubting impression they were annulled;" and
+he said to M. de Neuville, concerning this dark transaction, that "it
+was not the ingenious device of a public minister, but '<i>une fourberie
+de Scapin</i>.'" Before long the rumor got abroad in the public prints in
+the natural shape of a "malignant distortion," and Mr. Adams was
+compelled to see with chagrin his supposed brilliant success
+threatening to turn actually to his grave discredit by reason of this
+unfortunate oversight.</p>
+
+<p>What might have been the result had the treaty been ratified by Spain
+can only be surmised. But it so befell&mdash;happily enough for the United
+States and for Mr. Adams, as it afterwards turned out&mdash;that the
+Spanish government refused to ratify. The news was, however, that they
+would forthwith dispatch a new minister to explain this refusal and to
+renew negotiations.</p>
+
+<p>For his own private part Mr. Adams strove to
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page118" name="page118"></a>(p. 118)</span>
+endure this
+buffet of unkindly fortune with that unflinching and stubborn temper,
+slightly dashed with bitterness, which stood him in good stead in many
+a political trial during his hard-fighting career. But in his official
+capacity he had also to consider and advise what it behooved the
+administration to do under the circumstances. The feeling was
+widespread that the United States ought to possess Florida, and that
+Spain had paltered with us long enough. More than once in cabinet
+meetings during the negotiation the Secretary of State, who was always
+prone to strong measures, had expressed a wish for an act of Congress
+authorizing the Executive to take forcible possession of Florida and
+of Galveston in the event of Spain refusing to satisfy the reasonable
+demands made upon her. Now, stimulated by indignant feeling, his
+prepossession in favor of vigorous action was greatly strengthened,
+and his counsel was that the United States should prepare at once to
+take and hold the disputed territory, and indeed some undisputed
+Spanish territory also. But Mr. Monroe and the rest of the Cabinet
+preferred a milder course; and France and Great Britain ventured to
+express to this country a hope that no violent action would be
+precipitately taken. So the matter lay by for a while, awaiting the
+coming of the promised envoy from Spain.</p>
+
+<p>At
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page119" name="page119"></a>(p. 119)</span>
+this time the great question of the admission of Missouri
+into the Union of States began to agitate Congress and the nation. Mr.
+Adams, deeply absorbed in the perplexing affairs of his department,
+into which this domestic problem did not enter, was at first careless
+of it. His ideas concerning the matter, he wrote, were a "chaos;" but
+it was a "chaos" into which his interest in public questions soon
+compelled him to bring order. In so doing he for the first time fairly
+exposes his intense repulsion for slavery, his full appreciation of
+the irrepressible character of the conflict between the slave and the
+free populations, and the sure tendency of that conflict to a
+dissolution of the Union. Few men at that day read the future so
+clearly. While dissolution was generally regarded as a threat not
+really intended to be carried out, and compromises were supposed to be
+amply sufficient to control the successive emergencies, the underlying
+moral force of the anti-slavery movement acting against the
+encroaching necessities of the slave-holding communities constituted
+an element and involved possibilities which Mr. Adams, from his
+position of observation outside the immediate controversy, noted with
+foreseeing accuracy. He discerned in passing events the "title-page to
+a great tragic volume;" and he predicted that the more or less distant
+but sure
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page120" name="page120"></a>(p. 120)</span>
+end must be an attempt to dissolve the Union. His
+own position was distinctly defined from the outset, and his strong
+feelings were vigorously expressed. He beheld with profound regret the
+superiority of the slave-holding party in ability; he remarked sadly
+how greatly they excelled in debating power their lukewarm opponents;
+he was filled with indignation against the Northern men of Southern
+principles. "Slavery," he wrote, "is the great and foul stain upon the
+North American Union, and it is a contemplation worthy of the most
+exalted soul whether its total abolition is or is not practicable." "A
+life devoted to" the emancipation problem "would be nobly spent or
+sacrificed." He talks with much acerbity of expression about the
+"slave-drivers," and the "flagrant image of human inconsistency"
+presented by men who had "the Declaration of Independence on their
+lips and the merciless scourge of slavery in their hands." "Never," he
+says, "since human sentiments and human conduct were influenced by
+human speech was there a theme for eloquence like the free side of
+this question.... Oh, if but one man could arise with a genius capable
+of comprehending, and an utterance capable of communicating those
+eternal truths that belong to this question, to lay bare in all its
+nakedness that outrage upon the goodness of God, human slavery;
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page121" name="page121"></a>(p. 121)</span>
+now is the time and this is the occasion, upon which such a man
+would perform the duties of an angel upon earth." Before the
+Abolitionists had begun to preach their great crusade this was strong
+and ardent language for a statesman's pen. Nor were these exceptional
+passages; there is much more of the same sort at least equally
+forcible. Mr. Adams notes an interesting remark made to him by Calhoun
+at this time. The great Southern chief, less prescient than Mr. Adams,
+declared that he did not think that the slavery question "would
+produce a dissolution of the Union; but if it should, the South would
+be from necessity compelled to form an alliance offensive and
+defensive with Great Britain."</p>
+
+<p>Concerning a suggestion that civil war might be preferable to the
+extension of slavery beyond the Mississippi, Adams said: "This is a
+question between the rights of human nature and the Constitution of
+the United States"&mdash;a form of stating the case which leaves no doubt
+concerning his ideas of the intrinsic right and wrong in the matter.
+His own notion was that slavery could not be got rid of within the
+Union, but that the only method would be dissolution, after which he
+trusted that the course of events would in time surely lead to
+reorganization upon the basis of universal freedom for all. He
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page122" name="page122"></a>(p. 122)</span>
+was not a disunionist in any sense, yet it is evident that his
+strong tendency and inclination were to regard emancipation as a
+weight in the scales heavier than union, if it should ever come to the
+point of an option between the two.</p>
+
+<p>Strangely enough the notion of a forcible retention of the slave
+States within the Union does not seem to have been at this time a
+substantial element of consideration. Mr. Adams acknowledged that
+there was no way at once of preserving the Union and escaping from the
+present emergency save through the door of compromise. He maintained
+strenuously the power of Congress to prohibit slavery in the
+Territories, and denied that either Congress or a state government
+could establish slavery as a new institution in any State in which it
+was not already existing and recognized by law.</p>
+
+<p>This agitation of the slavery question made itself felt in a way
+personally interesting to Mr. Adams, by the influence it was exerting
+upon men's feelings concerning the still pending and dubious treaty
+with Spain. The South became anxious to lay hands upon the Floridas
+and upon as far-reaching an area as possible in the direction of
+Mexico, in order to carve it up into more slave States; the North, on
+the other hand, no longer cared very eagerly for an extension of the
+Union upon its southern side. Sectional interests were
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page123" name="page123"></a>(p. 123)</span>
+getting to be more considered than national. Mr. Adams could not but
+recognize that in the great race for the Presidency, in which he could
+hardly help being a competitor, the chief advantage which he seemed to
+have won when the Senate unanimously ratified the Spanish treaty, had
+almost wholly vanished since that treaty had been repudiated by Spain
+and was now no longer desired by a large proportion of his own
+countrymen.</p>
+
+<p>Matters stood thus when the new Spanish envoy, Vivźs, arrived. Other
+elements, which there is not space to enumerate here, besides those
+referred to, now entering newly into the state of affairs, further
+reduced the improbability of agreement almost to hopelessness. Mr.
+Adams, despairing of any other solution than a forcible seizure of
+Florida, to which he had long been far from averse, now visibly
+relaxed his efforts to meet the Spanish negotiator. Perhaps no other
+course could have been more effectual in securing success than this
+obvious indifference to it. In the prevalent condition of public
+feeling and of his own sentiments Mr. Adams easily assumed towards
+General Vivźs a decisive bluntness, not altogether consonant to the
+habits of diplomacy, and manifested an unchangeable stubbornness which
+left no room for discussion. His position was simply that Spain might
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page124" name="page124"></a>(p. 124)</span>
+make such a treaty as the United States demanded, or might
+take the consequences of her refusal. His dogged will wore out the
+Spaniard's pride, and after a fruitless delay the King and Cortes
+ratified the treaty in its original shape, with the important addition
+of an explicit annulment of the land grants. It was again sent in to
+the Senate, and in spite of the "continued, systematic, and laborious
+effort" of "Mr. Clay and his partisans to make it unpopular," it was
+ratified by a handsome majority, there being against it "only four
+votes&mdash;Brown, of Louisiana, who married a sister of Clay's wife;
+Richard M. Johnson, of Kentucky, against his own better judgment, from
+mere political subserviency to Clay; Williams, of Tennessee, from
+party impulses connected with hatred of General Jackson; and Trimble,
+of Ohio, from some maggot of the brain." Two years had elapsed since
+the former ratification, and no little patience had been required to
+await so long the final achievement of a success so ardently longed
+for, once apparently gained, and anon so cruelly thwarted. But the
+triumph was rather enhanced than diminished by all this difficulty and
+delay. A long and checkered history, wherein appeared infinite labor,
+many a severe trial of temper and hard test of moral courage, bitter
+disappointment, ignoble artifices of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page125" name="page125"></a>(p. 125)</span>
+opponents, ungenerous
+opposition growing out of unworthy personal motives at home, was now
+at last closed by a chapter which appeared only the more gratifying by
+contrast with what had gone before. Mr. Adams recorded, with less of
+exultation than might have been pardonable, the utter discomfiture of
+"all the calculators of my downfall by the Spanish negotiation," and
+reflected cheerfully that he had been left with "credit rather
+augmented than impaired by the result,"&mdash;credit not in excess of his
+deserts. Many years afterwards, in changed circumstances, an outcry
+was raised against the agreement which was arrived at concerning the
+southwestern boundary of Louisiana. Most unjustly it was declared that
+Mr. Adams had sacrificed a portion of the territory of the United
+States. But political motives were too plainly to be discerned in
+these tardy criticisms; and though General Jackson saw fit, for
+personal reasons, to animadvert severely upon the clause establishing
+this boundary line, yet there was abundant evidence to show not only
+that he, like almost everybody else, had been greatly pleased with it
+at the time, but even that he had then upon consultation expressed a
+deliberate and special approval.</p>
+
+<p>The same day, February 22, 1821, closed, says Mr. Adams, "two of the
+most memorable transactions
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page126" name="page126"></a>(p. 126)</span>
+of my life." That he should
+speak thus of the exchange of ratifications of the Spanish treaty is
+natural; but the other so "memorable transaction" may not appear of
+equal magnitude. It was the sending in to Congress of his report upon
+weights and measures. This was one of those vast labors, involving
+tenfold more toil than all the negotiations with Onis and Vivźs, but
+bringing no proportionate fame, however well it might be performed.
+The subject was one which had "occupied for the last sixty years many
+of the ablest men in Europe, and to which all the power and all the
+philosophical and mathematical learning and ingenuity of France and of
+Great Britain" had during that period been incessantly directed. It
+was fairly enough described as a "fearful and oppressive task." Upon
+its dry and uncongenial difficulties Mr. Adams had been employed with
+his wonted industry for upwards of four years; he now spoke of the
+result modestly as "a hurried and imperfect work." But others, who
+have had to deal with the subject, have found this report a solid and
+magnificent monument of research and reflection, which has not even
+yet been superseded by later treatises. Mr. Adams was honest in labor
+as in everything, and was never careless at points where inaccuracy or
+lack of thoroughness might be expected to
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page127" name="page127"></a>(p. 127)</span>
+escape detection.
+Hence his success in a task upon which it is difficult to imagine
+other statesmen of that day&mdash;Clay, Webster, or Calhoun, for
+example&mdash;so much as making an effort. The topic is not one concerning
+which readers would tolerate much lingering. Suffice it then to say
+that the document illustrated the ability and the character of the
+man, and so with this brief mention to dismiss in a paragraph an
+achievement which, had it been accomplished in any more showy
+department, would alone have rendered Mr. Adams famous.</p>
+
+<p>It is highly gratifying now to look back upon the high spirit and
+independent temper uniformly displayed by Mr. Adams abroad and at home
+in all dealings with foreign powers. Never in any instance did he
+display the least tinge of that rodomontade and boastful extravagance
+which have given an underbred air to so many of our diplomats, and
+which inevitably cause the basis for such self-laudation to appear of
+dubious sufficiency. But he had the happy gift of a native pride which
+enabled him to support in the most effective manner the dignity of the
+people for whom he spoke. For example, in treaties between the United
+States and European powers the latter were for a time wont to name
+themselves first throughout the instruments, contrary to the custom of
+alternation practised in treaties between
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page128" name="page128"></a>(p. 128)</span>
+themselves. With
+some difficulty, partly interposed, it must be confessed, by his own
+American coadjutors, Mr. Adams succeeded in putting a stop to this
+usage. It was a matter of insignificant detail, in one point of view;
+but in diplomacy insignificant details often symbolize important
+facts, and there is no question that this habit had been construed as
+a tacit but intentional arrogance of superiority on the part of the
+Europeans.</p>
+
+<p>For a long period after the birth of the country there was a strong
+tendency, not yet so eradicated as to be altogether undiscoverable, on
+the part of American statesmen to keep one eye turned covertly askance
+upon the trans-Atlantic courts, and to consider, not without a certain
+anxious deference, what appearance the new United States might be
+presenting to the critical eyes of foreign countries and diplomats.
+Mr. Adams was never guilty of such indirect admissions of an
+inferiority which apparently he never felt. In the matter of the
+acquisition of Florida, Crawford suggested that England and France
+regarded the people of the United States as ambitious and encroaching;
+wherefore he advised a moderate policy in order to remove this
+impression. Mr. Adams on the other side declared that he was not in
+favor of our giving ourselves any concern whatever about
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page129" name="page129"></a>(p. 129)</span>
+the
+opinions of any foreign power. "If the world do not hold us for
+Romans," he said, "they will take us for Jews, and of the two vices I
+would rather be charged with that which has greatness mingled in its
+composition." His views were broad and grand. He was quite ready to
+have the world become "familiarized with the idea of considering our
+proper dominion to be the continent of North America." This extension
+he declared to be a "law of nature." To suppose that Spain and England
+could, through the long lapse of time, retain their possessions on
+this side of the Atlantic seemed to him a "physical, moral, and
+political absurdity."</p>
+
+<p>The doctrine which has been christened with the name of President
+Monroe seems likely to win for him the permanent glory of having
+originated the wise policy which that familiar phrase now signifies.
+It might, however, be shown that by right of true paternity the
+bantling should have borne a different patronymic. Not only is the
+"Monroe Doctrine," as that phrase is customarily construed in our day,
+much more comprehensive than the simple theory first expressed by
+Monroe and now included in the modern doctrine as a part in the whole,
+but a principle more fully identical with the imperial one of to-day
+had been conceived and shaped
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page130" name="page130"></a>(p. 130)</span>
+by Mr. Adams before the
+delivery of Monroe's famous message. As has just been remarked, he
+looked forward to the possession of the whole North American continent
+by the United States as a sure destiny, and for his own part, whenever
+opportunity offered, he was never backward to promote this glorious
+ultimate consummation. He was in favor of the acquisition of
+Louisiana, whatever fault he might find with the scheme of Mr.
+Jefferson for making it a state; he was ready in 1815 to ask the
+British plenipotentiaries to cede Canada simply as a matter of common
+sense and mutual convenience, and as the comfortable result of a war
+in which the United States had been worsted; he never labored harder
+than in negotiating for the Floridas, and in pushing our western
+boundaries to the Pacific; in April, 1823, he wrote to the American
+minister at Madrid the significant remark: "It is scarcely possible to
+resist the conviction that the annexation of Cuba to our Federal
+Republic will be indispensable to the continuance and integrity of the
+Union." Encroachments never seemed distasteful to him, and he was
+always forward to stretch a point in order to advocate or defend a
+seizure of disputed North American territory, as in the cases of
+Amelia Island, Pensacola, and Galveston. When discussion arose with
+Russia concerning her
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page131" name="page131"></a>(p. 131)</span>
+possessions on the northwest coast of
+this continent, Mr. Adams audaciously told the Russian minister, Baron
+Tuyl, July 17, 1823, "that we should contest the rights of Russia to
+<i>any</i> territorial establishment on this continent, and that we should
+assume distinctly the principle that the American continents are no
+longer subjects for any new European colonial establishments." "This,"
+says Mr. Charles Francis Adams in a footnote to the passage in the
+Diary, "is the first hint of the policy so well known afterwards as
+the Monroe Doctrine." Nearly five months later, referring to the same
+matter in his message to Congress, December 2, 1823, President Monroe
+said: "The occasion has been judged proper for asserting, as a
+principle in which the rights and interests of the United States are
+involved, that the American continents, by the free and independent
+condition which they have assumed and maintain, are henceforth not to
+be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European
+powers."</p>
+
+<p>It will be observed that both Mr. Adams and President Monroe used the
+phrase "continents," including thereby South as well as North America.
+A momentous question was imminent, which fortunately never called for
+a determination by action, but which in this latter part of 1823
+threatened to do so at any moment. Cautious
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page132" name="page132"></a>(p. 132)</span>
+and moderate as
+the United States had been, under Mr. Adams's guidance, in recognizing
+the freedom and autonomy of the South American states, yet in time the
+recognition was made of one after another, and the emancipation of
+South America had come, while Mr. Adams was yet Secretary, to be
+regarded as an established fact. But now, in 1823-24, came mutterings
+from across the Atlantic indicating a strong probability that the
+members of the Holy Alliance would interfere in behalf of monarchical
+and anti-revolutionary principles, and would assist in the
+resubjugation of the successful insurgents. That each one of the
+powers who should contribute to this huge crusade would expect and
+receive territorial reward could not be doubted. Mr. Adams, in unison
+with most of his countrymen, contemplated with profound distrust and
+repulsion the possibility of such an European inroad. Stimulated by
+the prospect of so unwelcome neighbors, he prepared some dispatches,
+"drawn to correspond exactly" with the sentiments of Mr. Monroe's
+message, in which he appears to have taken a very high and defiant
+position. These documents, coming before the Cabinet for
+consideration, caused some flutter among his associates. In the
+possible event of the Holy Alliance actually intermeddling in South
+American affairs,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page133" name="page133"></a>(p. 133)</span>
+it was said, the principles enunciated by
+the Secretary of State would involve this country in war with a very
+formidable confederation. Mr. Adams acknowledged this, but
+courageously declared that in such a crisis he felt quite ready to
+take even this spirited stand. His audacious spirit went far in
+advance of the cautious temper of the Monroe administration; possibly
+it went too far in advance of the dictates of a wise prudence, though
+fortunately the course of events never brought this question to trial;
+and it is at least gratifying to contemplate such a manifestation of
+daring temper.</p>
+
+<p>But though so bold and independent, Mr. Adams was not habitually
+reckless nor prone to excite animosity by needless arrogance in action
+or extravagance in principle. In any less perilous extremity than was
+presented by this menaced intrusion of combined Europe he followed
+rigidly the wise rule of non-interference. For many years before this
+stage was reached he had been holding in difficult check the
+enthusiasts who, under the lead of Mr. Clay, would have embroiled us
+with Spain and Portugal. Once he was made the recipient of a very
+amusing proposition from the Portuguese minister, that the United
+States and Portugal, as "the two great powers of the western
+hemisphere," should
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page134" name="page134"></a>(p. 134)</span>
+concert together a grand American
+system. The drollery of this notion was of a kind that Mr. Adams could
+appreciate, though to most manifestations of humor he was utterly
+impervious. But after giving vent to some contemptuous merriment he
+adds, with a just and serious pride: "As to an American system, we
+have it; we constitute the whole of it; there is no community of
+interests or of principles between North and South America." This
+sound doctrine was put forth in 1820; and it was only modified in the
+manner that we have seen during a brief period in 1823, in face of the
+alarming vision not only of Spain and Portugal restored to authority,
+but of Russia in possession of California and more, France in
+possession of Mexico, and perhaps Great Britain becoming mistress of
+Cuba.</p>
+
+<p>So far as European affairs were concerned, Mr. Adams always and
+consistently refused to become entangled in them, even in the
+slightest and most indirect manner. When the cause of Greek liberty
+aroused the usual throng of noisy advocates for active interference,
+he contented himself with expressions of cordial sympathy, accompanied
+by perfectly distinct and explicit statements that under no
+circumstances could any aid in the way of money or auxiliary forces be
+expected from this country. Neutrals we
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page135" name="page135"></a>(p. 135)</span>
+were and would
+remain in any and all European quarrels. When Stratford Canning urged,
+with the uttermost measure of persistence of which even he was
+capable, that for the suppression of the slave trade some such
+arrangement might be made as that of mixed tribunals for the trial of
+slave-trading vessels, and alleged that divers European powers were
+uniting for this purpose, Mr. Adams suggested, as an insuperable
+obstacle, "the general extra-European policy of the United States&mdash;a
+policy which they had always pursued as best suited to their own
+interests, and best adapted to harmonize with those of Europe. This
+policy had also been that of Europe, which had never considered the
+United States as belonging to her system.... It was best for both
+parties that they should continue to do so." In any European
+combinations, said Mr. Adams, in which the United States should become
+a member, she must soon become an important power, and must always be,
+in many respects, an uncongenial one. It was best that she should keep
+wholly out of European politics, even of such leagues as one for the
+suppression of the slave trade. He added, that he did not wish his
+language to be construed as importing "an unsocial and sulky spirit on
+the part of the United States;" for no such temper existed;
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page136" name="page136"></a>(p. 136)</span>
+it had simply been the policy of Europe to consider this country as
+standing aloof from all European federations, and in this treatment
+"we had acquiesced, because it fell in with our own policy."</p>
+
+<p>In a word, Mr. Adams, by his language and actions, established and
+developed precisely that doctrine which has since been adopted by this
+country under the doubly incorrect name of the "Monroe Doctrine,"&mdash;a
+name doubly incorrect, because even the real "Monroe Doctrine" was not
+an original idea of Mr. Monroe, and because the doctrine which now
+goes by that name is not identical with the doctrine which Monroe did
+once declare. Mr. Adams's principle was simply that the United States
+would take no part whatsoever in foreign politics, not even in those
+of South America, save in the extreme event, eliminated from among
+things possible in this generation, of such an interference as was
+contemplated by the Holy Alliance; and that, on the other hand, she
+would permit no European power to gain any new foothold upon this
+continent. Time and experience have not enabled us to improve upon the
+principles which Mr. Adams worked out for us.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams had some pretty stormy times with Mr. Stratford Canning&mdash;the
+same gentleman who in his later life is familiar to the readers of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page137" name="page137"></a>(p. 137)</span>
+Kinglake's "History of the Crimean War" as Lord Stratford de
+Redclyffe, or Eltchi. That minister's overbearing and dictatorial
+deportment was afterwards not out of place when he was representing
+the protecting power of Great Britain in the court of the "sick man."
+But when he began to display his arrogance in the face of Mr. Adams he
+found that he was bearding one who was at least his equal in pride and
+temper. The naļve surprise which he manifested on making this
+discovery is very amusing, and the accounts of the interviews between
+the two are among the most pleasing episodes in the history of our
+foreign relations. Nor are they less interesting as a sort of
+confidential peep at the asperities of diplomacy. It appears that
+besides the composed and formal dignity of phrase which alone the
+public knows in published state papers and official correspondence,
+there is also an official language of wrath and retort not at all
+artificial or stilted, but quite homelike and human in its sound.</p>
+
+<p>One subject much discussed between Mr. Adams and Mr. Canning related
+to the English propositions for joint efforts to suppress the slave
+trade. Great Britain had engaged with much vigor and certainly with an
+admirable humanity in this cause. Her scheme was that each power
+should keep armed cruisers on the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page138" name="page138"></a>(p. 138)</span>
+coast of Africa, that the
+war-ships of either nation might search the merchant vessels of the
+other, and that mixed courts of joint commissioners should try all
+cases of capture. This plan had been urged upon the several European
+nations, but with imperfect success. Portugal, Spain, and the
+Netherlands had assented to it; Russia, France, Austria, and Prussia
+had rejected it. Mr. Adams's notion was that the ministry were, in
+their secret hearts, rather lukewarm in the business, but that they
+were so pressed by "the party of the saints in Parliament" that they
+were obliged to make a parade of zeal. Whether this suspicion was
+correct or not, it is certain that Mr. Stratford Canning was very
+persistent in the presentation of his demands, and could not be
+persuaded to take No for an answer. Had it been possible to give any
+more favorable reply no one in the United States in that day would
+have been better pleased than Mr. Adams to do so. But the obstacles
+were insuperable. Besides the undesirability of departing from the
+"extra-European policy," the mixed courts would have been
+unconstitutional, and could not have been established even by act of
+Congress, while the claims advanced by Great Britain to search our
+ships for English-born seamen in time of war utterly precluded the
+possibility of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page139" name="page139"></a>(p. 139)</span>
+admitting any rights of search whatsoever
+upon her part, even in time of peace, for any purpose or in any shape.
+In vain did the Englishman reiterate his appeal. Mr. Adams as often
+explained that the insistence of England upon her outrageous claim had
+rendered the United States so sensitive upon the entire subject of
+search that no description of right of that kind could ever be
+tolerated. "All concession of principle," he said, "tended to
+encourage encroachment, and if naval officers were once habituated to
+search the vessels of other nations in time of peace for one thing,
+they would be still more encouraged to practise it for another thing
+in time of war." The only way for Great Britain to achieve her purpose
+would be "to bind herself by an article, as strong and explicit as
+language can make it, never again in time of war to take a man from an
+American vessel." This of course was an inadmissible proposition, and
+so Mr. Stratford Canning's incessant urgency produced no substantial
+results. This discussion, however, was generally harmonious. Once
+only, in its earlier stages, Mr. Adams notes a remark of Mr. Canning,
+repeated for the second time, and not altogether gratifying. He said,
+writes Mr. Adams, "that he should always receive any observations that
+I may make to him with a just deference to
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page140" name="page140"></a>(p. 140)</span>
+my advance of
+years&mdash;over him. This is one of those equivocal compliments which,
+according to Sterne, a Frenchman always returns with a bow."</p>
+
+<p>It was when they got upon the matter of the American settlement at the
+mouth of the Columbia River, that the two struck fire. Possession of
+this disputed spot had been taken by the Americans, but was broken up
+by the British during the war of 1812. After the declaration of peace
+upon the <i>status ante bellum</i>, a British government vessel had been
+dispatched upon the special errand of making formal return of the port
+to the Americans. In January, 1821, certain remarks made in debate in
+the House of Representatives, followed soon afterward by publication
+in the "National Intelligencer" of a paper signed by Senator Eaton,
+led Mr. Canning to think that the Government entertained the design of
+establishing a substantial settlement at the mouth of the river. On
+January 26 he called upon Mr. Adams and inquired the intentions of the
+Administration in regard to this. Mr. Adams replied that an increase
+of the present settlement was not improbable. Thereupon Mr. Canning
+dropping the air of "easy familiarity" which had previously marked the
+intercourse between the two, and "assuming a tone more peremptory"
+than Mr. Adams "was disposed to endure," expressed his
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page141" name="page141"></a>(p. 141)</span>
+great
+surprise. Mr. Adams "with a corresponding change of tone" expressed
+equal surprise, "both at the form and substance of his address." Mr.
+Canning said that "he conceived such a settlement would be a direct
+violation of the article of the Convention of 20th October, 1818." Mr.
+Adams took down a volume, read the article, and said, "Now, sir, if
+you have any charge to make against the American Government for a
+violation of this article, you will please to make the communication
+in writing." Mr. Canning retorted, with great vehemence:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "'And do you suppose, sir, that I am to be dictated to as to the
+     manner in which I may think proper to communicate with the
+     American Government?' I answered, 'No, sir. We know very well
+     what are the privileges of foreign ministers, and mean to respect
+     them. But you will give us leave to determine what communications
+     we will receive, and how we will receive them; and you may be
+     assured we are as little disposed to submit to dictation as to
+     exercise it.' He then, in a louder and more passionate tone of
+     voice, said: 'And am I to understand that I am to be refused
+     henceforth any conference with you upon the subject of my
+     mission?' 'Not at all, sir,' said I, 'my request is, that if you
+     have anything further to say to me <i>upon this subject</i>, you would
+     say it in writing. And my motive is to avoid what, both from the
+     nature of the subject and from the manner in which you
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page142" name="page142"></a>(p. 142)</span>
+     have thought proper to open it, I foresee will tend only to
+     mutual irritation, and not to an amicable arrangement.' With some
+     abatement of tone, but in the same peremptory manner, he said,
+     'Am I to understand that you refuse any further conference with
+     me on this subject?' I said, 'No. But you will understand that I
+     am not pleased either with the grounds upon which you have sought
+     this conference, nor with the questions which you have seen fit
+     to put to me.'"
+</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams then proceeded to expose the impropriety of a foreign
+minister demanding from the Administration an explanation of words
+uttered in debate in Congress, and also said that he supposed that the
+British had no claim to the territory in question. Mr. Canning
+rejoined, and referred to the sending out of the American ship of war
+Ontario, in 1817, without any notice to the British
+minister<a id="footnotetag3" name="footnotetag3"></a><a href="#footnote3">[3]</a>
+at
+Washington,&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "speaking in a very emphatic manner and as if there had been an
+     intended secret expedition ... which had been detected only by
+     the vigilance and penetration of the British minister. I
+     answered, 'Why, Mr. Bagot did say something to me about it; but I
+     certainly did not think him serious, and we had a good-humored
+     laughing conversation on the occasion.' Canning, with great
+     vehemence: 'You may rely upon it, sir, that it was no laughing
+     matter to him; for I have seen his report to his government and
+     <span class="pagenum"><a id="page143" name="page143"></a>(p. 143)</span>
+know what his feelings concerning it were.' I replied,
+     'This is the first intimation I have ever received that Mr. Bagot
+     took the slightest offence at what then passed between us, ...
+     and you will give me leave to say that when he left this
+     country'&mdash;Here I was going to add that the last words he said to
+     me were words of thanks for the invariable urbanity and
+     liberality of my conduct and the personal kindness which he had
+     uniformly received from me. But I could not finish the sentence.
+     Mr. Canning, in a paroxysm of extreme irritation, broke out: 'I
+     stop you there. I will not endure a misrepresentation of what I
+     say. I never said that Mr. Bagot took offence at anything that
+     had passed between him and you; and nothing that I said imported
+     any such thing.' Then ... added in the same passionate manner: 'I
+     am treated like a school-boy.' I then resumed: 'Mr. Canning, I
+     have a distinct recollection of the substance of the short
+     conversation between Mr. Bagot and me at that time; and it was
+     this'&mdash;'No doubt, sir,' said Canning, interrupting me again, 'no
+     doubt, sir, Mr. Bagot answered you like a man of good breeding
+     and good humor.'"
+</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams began again and succeeded in making, without further
+interruption, a careful recital of his talk with Mr. Bagot. While he
+was speaking Mr. Canning grew cooler, and expressed some surprise at
+what he heard. But in a few moments the conversation again became warm
+and personal. Mr. Adams remarked that heretofore
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page144" name="page144"></a>(p. 144)</span>
+he had
+thrown off some of the "cautious reserve" which might have been
+"strictly regular" between them, and that</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "'so long as his (Canning's) professions had been supported by
+     his conduct'&mdash;Here Mr. Canning again stopped me by repeating with
+     great vehemence, 'My conduct! I am responsible for my conduct
+     only to my government!'"
+</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams replied, substantially, that he could respect the rights of
+Mr. Canning and maintain his own, and that he thought the best mode of
+treating this topic in future would be by writing. Mr. Canning then
+expressed himself as</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "'willing to forget all that had now passed.' I told him that I
+     neither asked nor promised him to forget.... He asked again if he
+     was to understand me as refusing to confer with him further on
+     the subject. I said, 'No.' 'Would I appoint a time for that
+     purpose?' I said, 'Now, if he pleased.... But as he appeared to
+     be under some excitement, perhaps he might prefer some other
+     time, in which case I would readily receive him to-morrow at one
+     o'clock;' upon which he rose and took leave, saying he would come
+     at that time."
+</p>
+
+<p>The next day, accordingly, this genial pair again encountered. Mr.
+Adams noted at first in Mr. Canning's manner "an effort at coolness,
+but
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page145" name="page145"></a>(p. 145)</span>
+no appearance of cheerfulness or good humor. I saw there
+was no relaxation of the tone he had yesterday assumed, and felt that
+none would on my part be suitable." They went over quietly enough some
+of the ground traversed the day before, Mr. Adams again explaining the
+impropriety of Mr. Canning questioning him concerning remarks made in
+debate in Congress. It was, he said, as if Mr. Rush, hearing in the
+House of Commons something said about sending troops to the Shetland
+Islands, should proceed to question Lord Castlereagh about it.</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "'Have you,' said Mr. Canning, 'any claim to the Shetland
+     Islands?' 'Have you any <i>claim</i>,' said I, 'to the mouth of
+     Columbia River?' 'Why, do you not <i>know</i>,' replied he, 'that we
+     have a claim?' 'I do not <i>know</i>,' said I, 'what you claim nor
+     what you do not claim. You claim India; you claim Africa; you
+     claim'&mdash;'Perhaps,' said he, 'a piece of the moon.' 'No,' said I,
+     'I have not heard that you claim exclusively any part of the
+     moon; but there is not a spot on <i>this</i> habitable globe that I
+     could affirm you do not claim!'"
+</p>
+
+<p>The conversation continued with alternations of lull and storm, Mr.
+Canning at times becoming warm and incensed and interrupting Mr.
+Adams, who retorted with a dogged asperity which must have been
+extremely irritating. Mr. Adams said
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page146" name="page146"></a>(p. 146)</span>
+that he did "not expect
+to be plied with captious questions" to obtain indirectly that which
+had been directly denied. Mr. Canning, "exceedingly irritated,"
+complained of the word "captious." Mr. Adams retaliated by reciting
+offensive language used by Mr. Canning, who in turn replied that he
+had been speaking only in self-defence. Mr. Canning found occasion to
+make again his peculiarly rasping remark that he should always strive
+to show towards Mr. Adams the deference due to his "more advanced
+years." After another very uncomfortable passage, Mr. Adams said that
+the behavior of Mr. Canning in making the observations of members of
+Congress a basis of official interrogations was a pretension the more
+necessary to be resisted because this</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "'was not the first time it had been raised by a British minister
+     here.' He asked, with great emotion, who that minister was. I
+     answered, 'Mr. Jackson.' 'And you got rid of him!' said Mr.
+     Canning, in a tone of violent passion&mdash;'and you got rid of
+     him!&mdash;and you got rid of him!' This repetition of the same words,
+     always in the same tone, was with pauses of a few seconds between
+     each of them, as if for a reply. I said: 'Sir, my reference to
+     the pretension of Mr. Jackson was not'&mdash;Here Mr. Canning
+     interrupted me by saying: 'If you think that by reference to Mr.
+     Jackson I am to be intimidated from
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page147" name="page147"></a>(p. 147)</span>
+the performance of
+     my duty you will find yourself greatly mistaken.' 'I had not,
+     sir,' said I, 'the most distant intention of intimidating you
+     from the performance of your duty; nor was it with the intention
+     of alluding to any subsequent occurrences of his mission;
+     but'&mdash;Mr. Canning interrupted me again by saying, still in a tone
+     of high exasperation,&mdash;'Let me tell you, sir, that your reference
+     to the case of Mr. Jackson is <i>exceedingly offensive</i>.' 'I do not
+     know,' said I, 'whether I shall be able to finish what I intended
+     to say, under such continual interruptions.'"
+</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Canning thereupon intimated by a bow his willingness to listen,
+and Mr. Adams reiterated what in a more fragmentary way he had already
+said. Mr. Canning then made a formal speech, mentioning his desire "to
+cultivate harmony and smooth down all remnants of asperity between the
+two countries," again gracefully referred to the deference which he
+should at all times pay to Mr. Adams's age, and closed by declaring,
+with a significant emphasis, that he would "never forget the respect
+due from him <i>to the American Government</i>." Mr. Adams bowed in silence
+and the stormy interview ended. A day or two afterward the disputants
+met by accident, and Mr. Canning showed such signs of resentment that
+there passed between them a "bare salutation."</p>
+
+<p>In
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page148" name="page148"></a>(p. 148)</span>
+the condition of our relations with Great Britain at the
+time of these interviews any needless ill-feeling was strongly to be
+deprecated. But Mr. Adams's temperament was such that he always saw
+the greater chance of success in strong and spirited conduct; nor
+could he endure that the dignity of the Republic, any more than its
+safety, should take detriment in his hands. Moreover he understood
+Englishmen better perhaps than they have ever been understood by any
+other of the public men of the United States, and he handled and
+subdued them with a temper and skill highly agreeable to contemplate.
+The President supported him fully throughout the matter, and the
+discomfiture and wrath of Mr. Canning never became even indirectly a
+cause of regret to the country.</p>
+
+<p>As the years allotted to Monroe passed on, the man&oelig;uvring among the
+candidates for the succession to the Presidency grew in activity.
+There were several possible presidents in the field, and during the
+"era of good feeling" many an aspiring politician had his brief period
+of mild expectancy followed in most cases only too surely by a
+hopeless relegation to obscurity. There were, however, four whose
+anticipations rested upon a substantial basis. William H. Crawford,
+Secretary of the Treasury, had been the rival of Monroe for nomination
+by the Congressional caucus,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page149" name="page149"></a>(p. 149)</span>
+and had then developed
+sufficient strength to make him justly sanguine that he might stand
+next to Monroe in the succession as he apparently did in the esteem of
+their common party. Mr. Clay, Speaker of the House of Representatives,
+had such expectations as might fairly grow out of his brilliant
+reputation, powerful influence in Congress, and great personal
+popularity. Mr. Adams was pointed out not only by his deserts but also
+by his position in the Cabinet, it having been the custom heretofore
+to promote the Secretary of State to the Presidency. It was not until
+the time of election was near at hand that the strength of General
+Jackson, founded of course upon the effect of his military prestige
+upon the masses of the people, began to appear to the other
+competitors a formidable element in the great rivalry. For a while Mr.
+Calhoun might have been regarded as a fifth, since he had already
+become the great chief of the South; but this cause of his strength
+was likewise his weakness, since it was felt that the North was fairly
+entitled to present the next candidate. The others, who at one time
+and another had aspirations, like De Witt Clinton and Tompkins, were
+never really formidable, and may be disregarded as insignificant
+threads in the complex political snarl which must be unravelled.</p>
+
+<a id="img005" name="img005"></a>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/img005.jpg" width="400" height="595"
+alt="Stratford Canning" title="">
+</div>
+<a id="img005b" name="img005b"></a>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/img005b.jpg" width="400" height="104"
+alt="Stratford Canning" title="">
+</div>
+
+<p>As
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page150" name="page150"></a>(p. 150)</span>
+a study of the dark side of political society during this
+period Mr. Adams's Diary is profoundly interesting. He writes with a
+charming absence of reserve. If he thinks there is rascality at work,
+he sets down the names of the knaves and expounds their various
+villainies of act and motive with delightfully outspoken frankness.
+All his life he was somewhat prone, it must be confessed, to
+depreciate the moral characters of others, and to suspect unworthy
+designs in the methods or ends of those who crossed his path. It was
+the not unnatural result of his own rigid resolve to be honest.
+Refraining with the stern conscientiousness, which was in the
+composition of his Puritan blood, from every act, whether in public or
+in private life, which seemed to him in the least degree tinged with
+immorality, he found a sort of compensation for the restraints and
+discomforts of his own austerity in judging severely the less
+punctilious world around him. Whatever other faults he had, it is
+unquestionable that his uprightness was as consistent and unvarying as
+can be reached by human nature. Yet his temptations were made the
+greater and the more cruel by the beliefs constantly borne in upon him
+that his rivals did not accept for their own governance in the contest
+the same rules by which he was pledged to himself to abide. Jealousy
+
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page151" name="page151"></a>(p. 151)</span>
+enhanced suspicion, and suspicion in turn pricked jealousy.
+It is necessary, therefore, to be somewhat upon our guard in accepting
+his estimates of men and acts at this period; though the broad general
+impression to be gathered from his treatment of his rivals, even in
+these confidential pages, is favorable at least to his justice of
+disposition and honesty of intention.</p>
+
+<p>At the outset Mr. Clay excited Mr. Adams's most lively resentment. The
+policy which seemed most promising to that gentleman lay in antagonism
+to the Administration, whereas, in the absence of substantial party
+issues, there seemed, at least to members of that Administration, to
+be no proper grounds for such antagonism. When, therefore, Mr. Clay
+found or devised such grounds, the President and his Cabinet, vexed
+and harassed by the opposition of so influential a man, not
+unnaturally attributed his tactics to selfish and, in a political
+sense, corrupt motives. Thus Mr. Adams stigmatized his opposition to
+the Florida treaty as prompted by no just objection to its
+stipulations, but by a malicious wish to bring discredit upon the
+negotiator. Probably the charge was true, and Mr. Clay's honesty in
+opposing an admirable treaty can only be vindicated at the expense of
+his understanding,&mdash;an explanation certainly not to be accepted. But
+when Mr. Adams attributed to the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page152" name="page152"></a>(p. 152)</span>
+same motive of embarrassing
+the Administration Mr. Clay's energetic endeavors to force a
+recognition of the insurgent states of South America, he exaggerated
+the inimical element in his rival's motives. It was the business of
+the President and Cabinet, and preėminently of the Secretary of State,
+to see to it that the country should not move too fast in this very
+nice and perilous matter of recognizing the independence of rebels.
+Mr. Adams was the responsible minister, and had to hold the reins; Mr.
+Clay, outside the official vehicle, cracked the lash probably a little
+more loudly than he would have done had he been on the coach-box. It
+may be assumed that in advocating his various motions looking to the
+appointment of ministers to the new states and to other acts of
+recognition, he felt his eloquence rather fired than dampened by the
+thought of how much trouble he was making for Mr. Adams; but that he
+was at the same time espousing the cause to which he sincerely wished
+well is probably true. His ardent temper was stirred by this struggle
+for independence, and his rhetorical nature could not resist the
+opportunities for fervid and brilliant oratory presented by this
+struggle for freedom against medięval despotism. Real convictions were
+sometimes diluted with rodomontade, and a true feeling was to some
+extent stimulated by the desire to embarrass a rival.</p>
+
+<p>Entire
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page153" name="page153"></a>(p. 153)</span>
+freedom from prejudice would have been too much to
+expect from Mr. Adams; but his criticisms of Clay are seldom marked by
+any serious accusations or really bitter explosions of ill-temper.
+Early in his term of office he writes that Mr. Clay has "already
+mounted his South American great horse," and that his "project is that
+in which John Randolph failed, to control or overthrow the Executive
+by swaying the House of Representatives." Again he says that "Clay is
+as rancorously benevolent as John Randolph." The sting of these
+remarks lay rather in the comparison with Randolph than in their
+direct allegations. In January, 1819, Adams notes that Clay has
+"redoubled his rancor against me," and gives himself "free swing to
+assault me ... both in his public speeches and by secret machinations,
+without scruple or delicacy." The diarist gloomily adds, that "all
+public business in Congress now connects itself with intrigues, and
+there is great danger that the whole Government will degenerate into a
+struggle of cabals." He was rather inclined to such pessimistic
+vaticinations; but it must be confessed that he spoke with too much
+reason on this occasion. In the absence of a sufficient supply of
+important public questions to absorb the energies of the men in public
+life, the petty game of personal politics was playing with unusual
+zeal.
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page154" name="page154"></a>(p. 154)</span>
+As time went on, however, and the South American
+questions were removed from the arena, Adams's ill-feeling towards
+Clay became greatly mitigated. Clay's assaults and opposition also
+gradually dwindled away; go-betweens carried to and fro disclaimers,
+made by the principals, of personal ill-will towards each other; and
+before the time of election was actually imminent something as near
+the <i>entente cordiale</i> was established as could be reasonably expected
+to exist between competitors very unlike both in moral and mental
+constitution.<a id="footnotetag4" name="footnotetag4"></a><a href="#footnote4">[4]</a></p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams's unbounded indignation and profound contempt were reserved
+for Mr. Crawford, partly, it may be suspected by the cynically minded,
+because Crawford for a long time seemed to be by far the most
+formidable rival, but partly also because Crawford was in fact unable
+to resist the temptation to use ignoble means for attaining an end
+which he coveted too keenly for his own honor. It was only by degrees
+that Adams began to suspect the underhand methods and malicious
+practices of Crawford; but as conviction was gradually brought home to
+him his native tendency towards suspicion was enhanced to an extreme
+degree. He then
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page155" name="page155"></a>(p. 155)</span>
+came to recognize in Crawford a wholly
+selfish and scheming politician, who had the baseness to retain his
+seat in Mr. Monroe's Cabinet with the secret persistent object of
+giving the most fatal advice in his power. From that time forth he saw
+in every suggestion made by the Secretary of the Treasury only an
+insidious intent to lead the Administration, and especially the
+Department of State, into difficulty, failure, and disrepute. He
+notes, evidently with perfect belief, that for this purpose Crawford
+was even covertly busy with the Spanish ambassador to prevent an
+accommodation of our differences with Spain. "Oh, the windings of the
+human heart!" he exclaims; "possibly Crawford is not himself conscious
+of his real motives for this conduct." Even the slender measure of
+charity involved in this last sentence rapidly evaporated from the
+poisoned atmosphere of his mind. He mentions that Crawford has killed
+a man in a duel; that he leaves unanswered a pamphlet "supported by
+documents" exhibiting him "in the most odious light, as sacrificing
+every principle to his ambition." Because Calhoun would not support
+him for the Presidency, Crawford stimulated a series of attacks upon
+the War Department. He was the "instigator and animating spirit of the
+whole movement both in Congress and at Richmond against Jackson and
+the Administration."
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page156" name="page156"></a>(p. 156)</span>
+He was "a worm preying upon the vitals
+of the Administration in its own body." He "solemnly deposed in a
+court of justice that which is not true," for the purpose of bringing
+discredit upon the testimony given by Mr. Adams in the same cause. But
+Mr. Adams says of this that he cannot bring himself to believe that
+Crawford has been guilty of wilful falsehood, though convicted of
+inaccuracy by his own words; for "ambition debauches memory itself." A
+little later he would have been less merciful. In some vexatious and
+difficult commercial negotiations which Mr. Adams was conducting with
+France, Crawford is "afraid of [the result] being too favorable."</p>
+
+<p>To form a just opinion of the man thus unpleasantly sketched is
+difficult. For nearly eight years Mr. Adams was brought into close and
+constant relations with him, and as a result formed a very low opinion
+of his character and by no means a high estimate of his abilities.
+Even after making a liberal allowance for the prejudice naturally
+supervening from their rivalry there is left a residuum of
+condemnation abundantly sufficient to ruin a more vigorous reputation
+than Crawford has left behind him. Apparently Mr. Calhoun, though a
+fellow Southerner, thought no better of the ambitious Georgian than
+did Mr. Adams, to whom one day
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page157" name="page157"></a>(p. 157)</span>
+he remarked that Crawford was
+"a very singular instance of a man of such character rising to the
+eminence he now occupies; that there has not been in the history of
+the Union another man with abilities so ordinary, with services so
+slender, and so thoroughly corrupt, who had contrived to make himself
+a candidate for the Presidency." Nor was this a solitary expression of
+the feelings of the distinguished South Carolinian.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. E. H. Mills, Senator from Massachusetts, and a dispassionate
+observer, speaks of Crawford with scant favor as "coarse, rough,
+uneducated, of a pretty strong mind, a great intriguer, and determined
+to make himself President." He adds: "Adams, Jackson, and Calhoun all
+think well of each other, and are united at least in one thing,&mdash;to
+wit, a most thorough dread and abhorrence of Crawford."</p>
+
+<p>Yet Crawford was for many years not only never without eager
+expectations of his own, which narrowly missed realization and might
+not have missed it had not his health broken down a few months too
+soon, but he had a large following, strong friends, and an extensive
+influence. But if he really had great ability he had not the good
+fortune of an opportunity to show it; and he lives in history rather
+as a man from whom much was expected than as a man who
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page158" name="page158"></a>(p. 158)</span>
+achieved much. One faculty, however, not of the best, but serviceable,
+he had in a rare degree: he thoroughly understood all the artifices of
+politics; he knew how to interest and organize partisans, to obtain
+newspaper support, and generally to extend and direct his following
+after that fashion which soon afterward began to be fully developed by
+the younger school of our public men. He was the <i>avant courier</i> of a
+bad system, of which the first crude manifestations were received with
+well-merited disrelish by the worthier among his contemporaries.</p>
+
+<p>It is the more easy to believe that Adams's distrust of Crawford was a
+sincere conviction, when we consider his behavior towards another
+dangerous rival, General Jackson. In view of the new phase which the
+relationship between these two men was soon to take on, Adams's hearty
+championship of Jackson for several years prior to 1825 deserves
+mention. The Secretary stood gallantly by the General at a crisis in
+Jackson's life when he greatly needed such strong official backing,
+and in an hour of extreme need Adams alone in the Cabinet of Monroe
+lent an assistance which Jackson afterwards too readily forgot. Seldom
+has a government been brought by the undue zeal of its servants into a
+quandary more perplexing than that into which the reckless military
+hero brought the Administration
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page159" name="page159"></a>(p. 159)</span>
+of President Monroe. Turned
+loose in the regions of Florida, checked only by an uncertain and
+disputed boundary line running through half-explored forests,
+confronted by a hated foe whose strength he could well afford to
+despise, General Jackson, in a war properly waged only against
+Indians, ran a wild and lawless, but very vigorous and effective,
+career in Spanish possessions. He hung a couple of British subjects
+with as scant trial and meagre shrift as if he had been a medięval
+free-lance; he marched upon Spanish towns and peremptorily forced the
+blue-blooded commanders to capitulate in the most humiliating manner;
+afterwards, when the Spanish territory had become American, in his
+civil capacity as Governor, he flung the Spanish Commissioner into
+jail. He treated instructions, laws, and established usages as teasing
+cobwebs which any spirited public servant was in duty bound to break;
+then he quietly stated his willingness to let the country take the
+benefit of his irregular proceedings and make him the scapegoat or
+martyr if such should be needed. How to treat this too successful
+chieftain was no simple problem. He had done what he ought not to have
+done, yet everybody in the country was heartily glad that he had done
+it. He ought not to have hung Arbuthnot and Ambrister, nor to have
+seized
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page160" name="page160"></a>(p. 160)</span>
+Pensacola, nor later on to have imprisoned Callava;
+yet the general efficiency of his procedure fully accorded with the
+secret disposition of the country. It was, however, not easy to
+establish the propriety of his trenchant doings upon any acknowledged
+principles of law, and during the long period through which these
+disturbing feats extended, Jackson was left in painful solitude by
+those who felt obliged to judge his actions by rule rather than by
+sympathy. The President was concerned lest his Administration should
+be brought into indefensible embarrassment; Calhoun was personally
+displeased because the instructions issued from his department had
+been exceeded; Crawford eagerly sought to make the most of such
+admirable opportunities for destroying the prestige of one who might
+grow into a dangerous rival; Clay, who hated a military hero, indulged
+in a series of fierce denunciations in the House of Representatives;
+Mr. Adams alone stood gallantly by the man who had dared to take
+vigorous measures upon his own sole responsibility. His career touched
+a kindred chord in Adams's own independent and courageous character,
+and perhaps for the only time in his life the Secretary of State
+became almost sophistical in the arguments by which he endeavored to
+sustain the impetuous warrior against an adverse Cabinet. The
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page161" name="page161"></a>(p. 161)</span>
+authority given to Jackson to cross the Spanish frontier in
+pursuit of the Indian enemy was justified as being only defensive
+warfare; then "all the rest," argued Adams, "even to the order for
+taking the Fort of Barrancas by storm, was incidental, deriving its
+character from the object, which was not hostility to Spain, but the
+termination of the Indian war." Through long and anxious sessions
+Adams stood fast in opposing "the unanimous opinions" of the
+President, Crawford, Calhoun, and Wirt. Their policy seemed to him a
+little ignoble and wholly blundering, because, he said, "it is
+weakness and a confession of weakness. The disclaimer of power in the
+Executive is of dangerous example and of evil consequences. There is
+injustice to the officer in disavowing him, when in principle he is
+strictly justifiable." This behavior upon Mr. Adams's part was the
+more generous and disinterested because the earlier among these doings
+of Jackson incensed Don Onis extremely and were near bringing about
+the entire disruption of that important negotiation with Spain upon
+which Mr. Adams had so much at stake. But few civilians have had a
+stronger dash of the fighting element than had Mr. Adams, and this
+impelled him irresistibly to stand shoulder to shoulder with Jackson
+in such an emergency, regardless of possible consequences to
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page162" name="page162"></a>(p. 162)</span>
+himself. He preferred to insist that the hanging of Arbuthnot and
+Ambrister was according to the laws of war and to maintain that
+position in the teeth of Stratford Canning rather than to disavow it
+and render apology and reparation. So three years later when Jackson
+was again in trouble by reason of his arrest of Callava, he still
+found a stanch advocate in Adams, who, having made an argument for the
+defence which would have done credit to a subtle-minded barrister,
+concluded by adopting the sentiment of Hume concerning the execution
+of Don Pantaleon de Sa by Oliver Cromwell,&mdash;if the laws of nations had
+been violated, "it was by a signal act of justice deserving universal
+approbation." Later still, on January 8, 1824, being the anniversary
+of the victory of New Orleans, as if to make a conspicuous declaration
+of his opinions in favor of Jackson, Mr. Adams gave a great ball in
+his honor, "at which about one thousand persons
+attended."<a id="footnotetag5" name="footnotetag5"></a><a href="#footnote5">[5]</a></p>
+
+<p>He
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page163" name="page163"></a>(p. 163)</span>
+was in favor of offering to the General the position of
+minister to Mexico; and before Jackson had developed into a rival of
+himself for the Presidency, he exerted himself to secure the
+Vice-Presidency for him. Thus by argument and by influence in the
+Cabinet, in many a private interview, and in the world of society,
+also by wise counsel when occasion offered, Mr. Adams for many years
+made himself the noteworthy and indeed the only powerful friend of
+General Jackson. Nor up to the last moment, and when Jackson had
+become his most dangerous competitor, is there any derogatory passage
+concerning him in the Diary.</p>
+
+<p>As the period of election drew nigh, interest in it absorbed
+everything else; indeed during the last year of Monroe's
+Administration public affairs were so quiescent and the public
+business so seldom transcended the simplest routine, that there was
+little else than the next Presidency to be thought or talked of. The
+rivalship for this, as has been said, was based not upon conflicting
+theories concerning public affairs, but solely upon individual
+preference for one or another of four men no one of whom at that
+moment represented any great principle in antagonism to any of the
+others. Under no circumstances could the temptation to petty intrigue
+and malicious tale-bearing be greater than when votes were
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page164" name="page164"></a>(p. 164)</span>
+to be gained or lost solely by personal predilection. In such a
+contest Adams was severely handicapped as against the showy prestige
+of the victorious soldier, the popularity of the brilliant orator, and
+the artfulness of the most dexterous political manager then in public
+life. Long prior to this stage Adams had established his rule of
+conduct in the campaign. So early as March, 1818, he was asked one day
+by Mr. Everett whether he was "determined to do nothing with a view to
+promote his future election to the Presidency as the successor of Mr.
+Monroe," and he had replied that he "should do absolutely nothing." To
+this resolution he sturdily adhered. Not a breach of it was ever
+brought home to him, or indeed&mdash;save in one instance soon to be
+noticed&mdash;seriously charged against him. There is not in the Diary the
+faintest trace of any act which might be so much as questionable or
+susceptible of defence only by casuistry. That he should have
+perpetuated evidence of any flagrant misdoing certainly could not be
+expected; but in a record kept with the fulness and frankness of this
+Diary we should read between the lines and detect as it were in its
+general flavor any taint of disingenuousness or concealment; we should
+discern moral unwholesomeness in its atmosphere. A thoughtless
+sentence would slip from the pen, a
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page165" name="page165"></a>(p. 165)</span>
+sophistical argument
+would be formulated for self-comfort, some acquaintance, interview, or
+arrangement would slide upon some unguarded page indicative of
+undisclosed matters. But there is absolutely nothing of this sort.
+There is no tinge of bad color; all is clear as crystal. Not an
+editor, nor a member of Congress, nor a local politician, not even a
+private individual, was intimidated or conciliated. On the contrary it
+often happened that those who made advances, at least sometimes
+stimulated by honest friendship, got rebuffs instead of encouragement.
+Even after the contest was known to have been transferred to the House
+of Representatives, when Washington was actually buzzing with the
+ceaseless whisperings of many secret conclaves, when the air was thick
+with rumors of what this one had said and that one had done, when, as
+Webster said, there were those who pretended to foretell how a
+representative would vote from the way in which he put on his hat,
+when of course stories of intrigue and corruption poisoned the honest
+breeze, and when the streets seemed traversed only by the busy tread
+of the go-betweens, the influential friends, the wire-pullers of the
+various contestants,&mdash;still amid all this noisy excitement and extreme
+temptation Mr. Adams held himself almost wholly aloof, wrapped in the
+cloak
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page166" name="page166"></a>(p. 166)</span>
+of his rigid integrity. His proud honesty was only not
+quite repellent; he sometimes allowed himself to answer questions
+courteously, and for a brief period held in check his strong natural
+propensity to give offence and make enemies. This was the uttermost
+length that he could go towards political corruption. He became for a
+few weeks tolerably civil of speech, which after all was much for him
+to do and doubtless cost him no insignificant effort. Since the days
+of Washington he alone presents the singular spectacle of a candidate
+for the Presidency deliberately taking the position, and in a long
+campaign really never flinching from it: "that, if the people wish me
+to be President I shall not refuse the office; but I ask nothing from
+any man or from any body of men."</p>
+
+<p>Yet though he declined to be a courtier of popular favor he did not
+conceal from himself or from others the chagrin which he would feel if
+there should be a manifestation of popular disfavor. Before the
+popular election he stated that if it should go against him he should
+construe it as the verdict of the people that they were dissatisfied
+with his services as a public man, and he should then retire to
+private life, no longer expecting or accepting public functions. He
+did not regard politics as a struggle in
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page167" name="page167"></a>(p. 167)</span>
+which, if he should
+now be beaten in one encounter, he would return to another in the hope
+of better success in time. His notion was that the people had had
+ample opportunity during his incumbency in appointive offices to
+measure his ability and understand his character, and that the action
+of the people in electing or not electing him to the Presidency would
+be an indication that they were satisfied or dissatisfied with him. In
+the latter event he had nothing more to seek. Politics did not
+constitute a profession or career in which he felt entitled to persist
+in seeking personal success as he might in the law or in business.
+Neither did the circumstances of the time place him in the position of
+an advocate of any great principle which he might feel it his duty to
+represent and to fight for against any number of reverses. No such
+element was present at this time in national affairs. He construed the
+question before the people simply as concerning their opinion of him.
+He was much too proud to solicit and much too honest to scheme for a
+favorable expression. It was a singular and a lofty attitude even if a
+trifle egotistical and not altogether unimpeachable by argument. It
+could not diminish but rather it intensified his interest in a contest
+which he chose to regard not simply as a
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page168" name="page168"></a>(p. 168)</span>
+struggle for a
+glittering prize but as a judgment upon the services which he had been
+for a lifetime rendering to his countrymen.</p>
+
+<p>How profoundly his whole nature was moved by the position in which he
+stood is evident, often almost painfully, in the Diary. Any attempt to
+conceal his feeling would be idle, and he makes no such attempt. He
+repeats all the rumors which come to his ears; he tells the stories
+about Crawford's illness; he records his own temptations; he tries
+hard to nerve himself to bear defeat philosophically by constantly
+predicting it; indeed, he photographs his whole existence for many
+weeks; and however eagerly any person may aspire to the Presidency of
+the United States there is little in the picture to make one long for
+the preliminary position of candidate for that honor. It is too much
+like the stake and the flames through which the martyr passed to
+eternal beatitude, with the difference as against the candidate that
+he has by no means the martyr's certainty of reward.</p>
+
+<p>In those days of slow communication it was not until December, 1824,
+that it became everywhere known that there had been no election of a
+president by the people. When the Electoral College met the result of
+their ballots was as follows:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="quote">
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page169" name="page169"></a>(p. 169)</span>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" summary="Result of the ballot">
+<colgroup>
+    <col class="c50">
+    <col class="c20">
+</colgroup>
+
+<tbody>
+<tr>
+  <td>
+General Jackson led with
+  </td>
+  <td>
+99 votes.
+  </td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+  <td>
+Adams followed with
+  </td>
+  <td>
+84&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"
+  </td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+  <td>
+Crawford had
+  </td>
+  <td>
+41&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"
+  </td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+  <td>
+Clay had
+  </td>
+  <td>
+37&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"
+  </td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+  <td>
+&nbsp;
+  </td>
+  <td>
+---
+  </td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+  <td>
+Total
+  </td>
+  <td>
+261 votes.
+  </td>
+</tr>
+
+</tbody>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<p>Mr. Calhoun was elected Vice-President by the handsome number of 182
+votes.</p>
+
+<p>This condition of the election had been quite generally anticipated;
+yet Mr. Adams's friends were not without some feeling of
+disappointment. They had expected for him a fair support at the South,
+whereas he in fact received seventy-seven out of his eighty-four votes
+from New York and New England; Maryland gave him three, Louisiana gave
+him two, Delaware and Illinois gave him one each.</p>
+
+<p>When the electoral body was known to be reduced within the narrow
+limits of the House of Representatives, intrigue was rather stimulated
+than diminished by the definiteness which became possible for it. Mr.
+Clay, who could not come before the House, found himself transmuted
+from a candidate to a President-maker; for it was admitted by all that
+his great personal influence in Congress would almost undoubtedly
+confer success upon the aspirant whom he should favor. Apparently his
+predilections were at least possibly in favor of Crawford; but
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page170" name="page170"></a>(p. 170)</span>
+Crawford's health had been for many months very bad; he had had a
+severe paralytic stroke, and when acting as Secretary of the Treasury
+he had been unable to sign his name, so that a stamp or die had been
+used; his speech was scarcely intelligible; and when Mr. Clay visited
+him in the retirement in which his friends now kept him, the fact
+could not be concealed that he was for the time at least a wreck. Mr.
+Clay therefore had to decide for himself, his followers, and the
+country whether Mr. Adams or General Jackson should be the next
+President of the United States. A cruel attempt was made in this
+crisis either to destroy his influence by blackening his character, or
+to intimidate him, through fear of losing his reputation for
+integrity, into voting for Jackson. An anonymous letter charged that
+the friends of Clay had hinted that, "like the Swiss, they would fight
+for those who pay best;" that they had offered to elect Jackson if he
+would agree to make Clay Secretary of State, and that upon his
+indignant refusal to make such a bargain the same proposition had been
+made to Mr. Adams, who was found less scrupulous and had promptly
+formed the "unholy coalition." This wretched publication, made a few
+days before the election in the House, was traced to a dull-witted
+Pennsylvania Representative by the name
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page171" name="page171"></a>(p. 171)</span>
+of Kremer, who had
+obviously been used as a tool by cleverer men. It met, however, the
+fate which seems happily always to attend such ignoble devices, and
+failed utterly of any more important effect than the utter
+annihilation of Kremer. In truth, General Jackson's fate had been
+sealed from the instant when it had fallen into Mr. Clay's hands. Clay
+had long since expressed his unfavorable opinion of the "military
+hero," in terms too decisive to admit of explanation or retraction.
+Without much real liking for Adams, Clay at least disliked him much
+less than he did Jackson, and certainly his honest judgment favored
+the civilian far more than the disorderly soldier whose lawless career
+in Florida had been the topic of some of the great orator's fiercest
+invective. The arguments founded on personal fitness were strongly
+upon the side of Adams, and other arguments advanced by the
+Jacksonians could hardly deceive Clay. They insisted that their
+candidate was the choice of the people so far as a superiority of
+preference had been indicated, and that therefore he ought to be also
+the choice of the House of Representatives. It would be against the
+spirit of the Constitution and a thwarting of the popular will, they
+said, to prefer either of his competitors. The fallacy of this
+reasoning, if reasoning it could be called, was glaring. If the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page172" name="page172"></a>(p. 172)</span>
+spirit of the Constitution required the House of Representatives
+not to <i>elect</i> from three candidates before it, but only to induct an
+individual into the Presidency by a process which was in form voting
+but in fact only a simple certification that he had received the
+highest number of electoral votes, it would have been a plain and easy
+matter for the letter of the Constitution to have expressed this
+spirit, or indeed to have done away altogether with this machinery of
+a sham election. The Jackson men had only to state their argument in
+order to expose its hollowness; for they said substantially that the
+Constitution established an election without an option; that the
+electors were to vote for a person predestined by an earlier
+occurrence to receive their ballots. But besides their unsoundness in
+argument, their statistical position was far from being what they
+undertook to represent it. The popular vote had been so light that it
+really looked as though the people had cared very little which
+candidate should succeed; and to talk about a manifestation of the
+<i>popular will</i> was absurd, for the only real manifestation had been of
+popular indifference. For example, in 1823 Massachusetts had cast
+upwards of 66,000 votes in the state election, whereas in this
+national election she cast only a trifle more than 37,000. Virginia
+distributed
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page173" name="page173"></a>(p. 173)</span>
+a total of less than 15,000 among all four
+candidates. Pluralities did not signify much in such a condition of
+sentiment as was indicated by these figures. Moreover, in six States,
+viz., Vermont, New York, Delaware, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana,
+the electors were chosen by the legislatures, not by the people; so
+that there was no correct way of counting them at all in a discussion
+of pluralities. Guesses and approximations favored Adams, and to an
+important degree; for these six States gave to Adams thirty-six votes,
+to Jackson nineteen, to Crawford six, to Clay four. In New York,
+Jackson had hardly an appreciable following. Moreover, in other States
+many thousands of votes which had been "cast for no candidate in
+particular, but in opposition to the caucus ticket generally," were
+reckoned as if they had been cast for Jackson or against Adams, as
+suited the especial case. Undoubtedly Jackson did have a plurality,
+but undoubtedly it fell very far short of the imposing figure, nearly
+48,000, which his supporters had the audacity to name.</p>
+
+<p>The election took place in the House on February 9, 1825. Daniel
+Webster and John Randolph were tellers, and they reported that there
+were "for John Quincy Adams, of Massachusetts, thirteen votes; for
+Andrew Jackson, of Tennessee, seven votes; for William H. Crawford,
+of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page174" name="page174"></a>(p. 174)</span>
+Georgia, four votes." Thereupon the speaker announced Mr.
+Adams to have been elected President of the United States.</p>
+
+<p>This end of an unusually exciting contest thus left Mr. Adams in
+possession of the field, Mr. Crawford the victim of an irretrievable
+defeat, Mr. Clay still hopeful and aspiring for a future which had
+only disappointment in store for him, General Jackson enraged and
+revengeful. Not even Mr. Adams was fully satisfied. When the committee
+waited upon him to inform him of the election, he referred in his
+reply to the peculiar state of things and said, "could my refusal to
+accept the trust thus delegated to me give an opportunity to the
+people to form and to express with a nearer approach to unanimity the
+object of their preference, I should not hesitate to decline the
+acceptance of this eminent charge and to submit the decision of this
+momentous question again to their decision." That this singular and
+striking statement was made in good faith is highly probable. William
+H. Seward says that it was "unquestionably uttered with great
+sincerity of heart." The test of action of course could not be
+applied, since the resignation of Mr. Adams would only have made Mr.
+Calhoun President, and could not have been so arranged as to bring
+about a new election. Otherwise the course of his
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page175" name="page175"></a>(p. 175)</span>
+argument
+would have been clear; the fact that such action involved an enormous
+sacrifice would have been to his mind strong evidence that it was a
+duty; and the temptation to perform a duty, always strong with him,
+became ungovernable if the duty was exceptionally disagreeable. Under
+the circumstances, however, the only logical conclusion lay in the
+inauguration, which took place in the customary simple fashion on
+March 4, 1825. Mr. Adams, we are told, was dressed in a black suit, of
+which all the materials were wholly of American manufacture. Prominent
+among those who after the ceremony hastened to greet him and to shake
+hands with him appeared General Jackson. It was the last time that any
+friendly courtesy is recorded as having passed between the two.</p>
+
+<p>Many men eminent in public affairs have had their best years
+embittered by their failure to secure the glittering prize of the
+Presidency. Mr. Adams is perhaps the only person to whom the gaining
+of that proud distinction has been in some measure a cause of chagrin.
+This strange sentiment, which he undoubtedly felt, was due to the fact
+that what he had wished was not the office in and for itself, but the
+office as a symbol or token of the popular approval. He had held
+important and responsible public positions
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page176" name="page176"></a>(p. 176)</span>
+during
+substantially his whole active life; he was nearly sixty years old,
+and, as he said, he now for the first time had an opportunity to find
+out in what esteem the people of the country held him. What he wished
+was that the people should now express their decided satisfaction with
+him. This he hardly could be said to have obtained; though to be the
+choice of a plurality in the nation and then to be selected by so
+intelligent a body of constituents as the Representatives of the
+United States involved a peculiar sanction, yet nothing else could
+fully take the place of that national indorsement which he had
+coveted. When men publicly profess modest depreciation of their
+successes they are seldom believed; but in his private Diary Mr. Adams
+wrote, on December 31, 1825:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "The year has been the most momentous of those that have passed
+     over my head, inasmuch as it has witnessed my elevation at the
+     age of fifty-eight to the Chief Magistracy of my country, to the
+     summit of laudable or at least blameless worldly ambition; not
+     however in a manner satisfactory to pride or to just desire; not
+     by the unequivocal suffrages of a majority of the people; with
+     perhaps two thirds of the whole people adverse to the actual
+     result."
+</p>
+
+<p>No President since Washington had ever come into office so entirely
+free from any manner of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page177" name="page177"></a>(p. 177)</span>
+personal obligations or partisan
+entanglements, express or implied, as did Mr. Adams. Throughout the
+campaign he had not himself, or by any agent, held out any manner of
+tacit inducement to any person whomsoever, contingent upon his
+election. He entered upon the Presidency under no indebtedness. He at
+once nominated his Cabinet as follows: Henry Clay, Secretary of State;
+Richard Rush, Secretary of the Treasury; James Barbour, Secretary of
+War; Samuel L. Southard, Secretary of the Navy; William Wirt,
+Attorney-General. The last two were renominations of the incumbents
+under Monroe. The entire absence of chicanery or the use of influence
+in the distribution of offices is well illustrated by the following
+incident: On the afternoon following the day of inauguration President
+Adams called upon Rufus King, whose term of service as Senator from
+New York had just expired, and who was preparing to leave Washington
+on the next day. In the course of a conversation concerning the
+nominations which had been sent to the Senate that forenoon the
+President said that he had nominated no minister to the English court,
+and</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "asked Mr. King if he would accept that mission. His first and
+     immediate impulse was to decline it. He said that his
+     determination to retire from the public service
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page178" name="page178"></a>(p. 178)</span> had
+     been made up, and that this proposal was utterly unexpected to
+     him. Of this I was aware; but I urged upon him a variety of
+     considerations to induce his acceptance of it.... I dwelt with
+     earnestness upon all these motives, and apparently not without
+     effect. He admitted the force of them, and finally promised fully
+     to consider of the proposal before giving me a definite answer."
+</p>
+
+<p>The result was an acceptance by Mr. King, his nomination by the
+President, and confirmation by the Senate. He was an old Federalist,
+to whom Mr. Adams owed no favors. With such directness and simplicity
+were the affairs of the Republic conducted. It is a quaint and
+pleasing scene from the period of our forefathers: the President,
+without discussion of "claims" to a distinguished and favorite post,
+actually selects for it a member of a hostile political organization,
+an old man retiring from public life; then quietly walks over to his
+house, surprises him with the offer, and finding him reluctant
+urgently presses upon him arguments to induce his acceptance. But the
+whole business of office-seeking and office-distributing, now so
+overshadowing, had no place under Mr. Adams. On March 5 he sent in
+several nominations which were nearly all of previous incumbents.
+"Efforts had been made," he writes, "by some of the senators to obtain
+different
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page179" name="page179"></a>(p. 179)</span>
+nominations, and to introduce a principle of
+change or rotation in office at the expiration of these commissions,
+which would make the Government a perpetual and unintermitting
+scramble for office. A more pernicious expedient could scarcely have
+been devised.... I determined to renominate every person against whom
+there was no complaint which would have warranted his removal." A
+notable instance was that of Sterret, naval officer at New Orleans, "a
+noisy and clamorous reviler of the Administration," and lately busy in
+a project for insulting a Louisiana Representative who had voted for
+Mr. Adams. Secretary Clay was urgent for the removal of this man,
+plausibly saying that in the cases of persons holding office at the
+pleasure of the Administration the proper course was to avoid on the
+one hand political persecution, and on the other any appearance of
+pusillanimity. Mr. Adams replied that if Sterret had been actually
+engaged in insulting a representative for the honest and independent
+discharge of duty, he would make the removal at once. But the design
+had not been consummated, and an <i>intention</i> never carried into effect
+would scarcely justify removal.</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "Besides [he added], should I remove this man for this cause it
+     must be upon some fixed principle, which would apply to others as
+     well as to him. And where
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page180" name="page180"></a>(p. 180)</span>
+was it possible to draw the
+     line? Of the custom-house officers throughout the Union, four
+     fifths in all probability were opposed to my election. Crawford,
+     Secretary of the Treasury, had distributed these positions among
+     his own supporters. I had been urged very earnestly and from
+     various quarters to sweep away my opponents and provide with
+     their places for my friends. I can justify the refusal to adopt
+     this policy only by the steadiness and consistency of my adhesion
+     to my own. If I depart from this in one instance I shall be
+     called upon by my friends to do the same in many. An invidious
+     and inquisitorial scrutiny into the personal dispositions of
+     public officers will creep through the whole Union, and the most
+     selfish and sordid passions will be kindled into activity to
+     distort the conduct and misrepresent the feelings of men whose
+     places may become the prize of slander upon them."
+</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Clay was silenced, and Sterret retained his position, constituting
+thereafter only a somewhat striking instance among many to show that
+nothing was to be lost by political opposition to Mr. Adams.</p>
+
+<p>It was a cruel and discouraging fatality which brought about that a
+man so suicidally upright in the matter of patronage should find that
+the bitterest abuse which was heaped upon him was founded in an
+allegation of corruption of precisely this nature. When before the
+election the ignoble George Kremer anonymously charged that
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page181" name="page181"></a>(p. 181)</span>
+Mr. Clay had sold his friends in the House of Representatives to Mr.
+Adams, "as the planter does his negroes or the farmer his team and
+horses;" when Mr. Clay promptly published the unknown writer as "a
+base and infamous calumniator, a dastard and a liar;" when next
+Kremer, being unmasked, avowed that he would make good his charges,
+but immediately afterward actually refused to appear or testify before
+a Committee of the House instructed to investigate the matter, it was
+supposed by all reasonable observers that the outrageous accusation
+Was forever laid at rest. But this was by no means the case. The
+author of the slander had been personally discredited; but the slander
+itself had not been destroyed. So shrewdly had its devisers who saw
+future usefulness in it managed the matter, that while Kremer slunk
+away into obscurity, the story which he had told remained an assertion
+denied, but not disproved, still open to be believed by suspicious or
+willing friends. With Adams President and Clay Secretary of State and
+General Jackson nominated, as he quickly was by the Tennessee
+Legislature, as a candidate for the next Presidential term, the
+accusation was too plausible and too tempting to be allowed to fall
+forever into dusty death; rather it was speedily exhumed from its
+shallow burial and galvanized into
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page182" name="page182"></a>(p. 182)</span>
+new life. The partisans
+of General Jackson sent it to and fro throughout the land. No denial,
+no argument, could kill it. It began to gain that sort of half belief
+which is certain to result from constant repetition; since many minds
+are so constituted that truth may be actually, as it were,
+manufactured for them by ceaseless iteration of statement, the many
+hearings gaining the character of evidence.</p>
+
+<p>It is long since all students of American history, no matter what are
+their prejudices, or in whose interest their researches are
+prosecuted, have branded this accusation as devoid of even the most
+shadowy basis of probability, and it now gains no more credit than
+would a story that Adams, Clay, and Jackson had conspired together to
+get Crawford out of their way by assassination, and that his paralysis
+was the result of the drugs and potions administered in performance of
+this foul plot. But for a while the rumor stalked abroad among the
+people, and many conspicuously bowed down before it because it served
+their purpose, and too many others also, it must be confessed, did
+likewise because they were deceived and really believed it. Even the
+legislature of Tennessee were not ashamed to give formal countenance
+to a calumny in support of which not a particle of evidence had ever
+been adduced. In a preamble to
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page183" name="page183"></a>(p. 183)</span>
+certain resolutions passed by
+this body upon this subject in 1827, it was recited that: "Mr. Adams
+desired the office of President; he went into the combination without
+it, and came out with it. Mr. Clay desired that of Secretary of State;
+he went into the combination without it, and came out with it." No
+other charge could have wounded Mr. Adams so keenly; yet no course was
+open to him for refuting the slander. Mr. Clay, beside himself with a
+just rage, was better able to fight after the fashion of the day&mdash;if
+indeed he could only find somebody to fight. This he did at last in
+the person of John Randolph, of Roanoke, who adverted in one of his
+rambling and vituperative harangues to "the coalition of Blifil and
+Black George&mdash;the combination unheard of till then of the Puritan and
+the black-leg." This language led naturally enough to a challenge from
+Mr. Clay. The parties
+met<a id="footnotetag6" name="footnotetag6"></a><a href="#footnote6">[6]</a>
+and exchanged shots without result. The
+pistols were a second time loaded; Clay fired; Randolph fired into the
+air, walked up to Clay and without a word gave him his hand, which
+Clay had as it were perforce to take. There was no injury done save to
+the skirts of Randolph's long flannel coat which were pierced by one
+of the bullets.</p>
+
+<p>By way of revenge a duel may be effective if the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page184" name="page184"></a>(p. 184)</span>
+wrong man
+does not happen to get shot; but as evidence for intelligent men a
+bloodier ending than this would have been inconclusive. It so
+happened, however, that Jackson, altogether contrary to his own
+purpose, brought conclusive aid to President Adams and Secretary Clay.
+Whether the General ever had any real faith in the charge can only be
+surmised. Not improbably he did, for his mental workings were so
+peculiar in their violence and prejudice that apparently he always
+sincerely believed all persons who crossed his path to be knaves and
+villains of the blackest dye. But certain it is that whether he
+credited the tale or not he soon began to devote himself with all his
+wonted vigor and pertinacity to its wide dissemination. Whether in so
+doing he was stupidly believing a lie, or intentionally spreading a
+known slander, is a problem upon which his friends and biographers
+have exhausted much ingenuity without reaching any certain result. But
+sure it is that early in the year 1827 he was so far carried beyond
+the bounds of prudence as to declare before many persons that he had
+proof of the corrupt bargain. The assertion was promptly sent to the
+newspapers by a Mr. Carter Beverly, one of those who heard it made in
+the presence of several guests at the Hermitage. The name of Mr.
+Beverly, at first concealed, soon
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page185" name="page185"></a>(p. 185)</span>
+became known, and he was
+of course compelled to vouch in his principal. General Jackson never
+deserted his adherents, whether their difficulties were noble or
+ignoble. He came gallantly to the aid of Mr. Beverly, and in a letter
+of June 6 declared that early in January, 1825, he had been visited by
+a "member of Congress of high respectability," who had told him of "a
+great intrigue going on" of which he ought to be informed. This
+gentleman had then proceeded to explain that Mr. Clay's friends were
+afraid that if General Jackson should be elected President, "Mr. Adams
+would be continued Secretary of State (innuendo, there would be no
+room for Kentucky); that if I would say, or permit any of my
+confidential friends to say, that in case I were elected President,
+Mr. Adams should not be continued Secretary of State, by a complete
+union of Mr. Clay and his friends they would put an end to the
+Presidential contest in one hour. And he was of opinion it was right
+to fight such intriguers with their own weapons." This scarcely
+disguised suggestion of bargain and corruption the General said that
+he repudiated indignantly. Clay at once publicly challenged Jackson to
+produce some evidence&mdash;to name the "respectable" member of Congress
+who appeared in the very unrespectable light of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page186" name="page186"></a>(p. 186)</span>
+advising a
+candidate for the Presidency to emulate the alleged baseness of his
+opponents. Jackson thereupon uncovered James Buchanan, of
+Pennsylvania. Mr. Buchanan was a friend of the General, and to what
+point it may have been expected or hoped that his allegiance would
+carry him in support of his chief in this dire hour of extremity is
+matter only of inference. Fortunately, however, his fealty does not
+appear to have led him any great distance from the truth. He yielded
+to the prevailing desire to pass along the responsibility to some one
+else so far as to try to bring in a Mr. Markley, who, however, never
+became more than a dumb figure in the drama in which Buchanan was
+obliged to remain as the last important character. With obvious
+reluctance this gentleman then wrote that if General Jackson had
+placed any such construction as the foregoing upon an interview which
+had occurred between them, and which he recited at length, then the
+General had totally misconstrued&mdash;as was evident enough&mdash;what he, Mr.
+Buchanan, had said. Indeed, that Jackson could have supposed him to
+entertain the sentiments imputed to him made Mr. Buchanan, as he said,
+"exceedingly unhappy." In other words, there was no foundation
+whatsoever for the charge thus traced back to an originator who denied
+having originated
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page187" name="page187"></a>(p. 187)</span>
+it and said that it was all a mistake.
+General Jackson was left to be defended from the accusation of
+deliberate falsehood only by the charitable suggestion that he had
+been unable to understand a perfectly simple conversation. Apparently
+Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay ought now to be abundantly satisfied, since not
+only were they amply vindicated, but their chief vilifier seemed to
+have been pierced by the point which he had sharpened for them. They
+had yet, however, to learn what vitality there is in falsehood.</p>
+
+<p>General Jackson and his friends had alone played any active part in
+this matter. Of these friends Mr. Kremer had written a letter of
+retraction and apology which he was with difficulty prevented from
+publishing; Mr. Buchanan had denied all that he had been summoned to
+prove; a few years later Mr. Beverly wrote and sent to Mr. Clay a
+contrite letter of regret. General Jackson alone remained for the rest
+of his life unsilenced, obstinately reiterating a charge disproved by
+his own witnesses. But worse than all this, accumulations of evidence
+long and laboriously sought in many quarters have established a
+tolerably strong probability that advances of precisely the character
+alleged against Mr. Adams's friends were made to Mr. Clay by the most
+intimate personal associates of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page188" name="page188"></a>(p. 188)</span>
+General Jackson. The
+discussion of this unpleasant suspicion would not, however, be an
+excusable episode in this short volume. The reader who is curious to
+pursue the matter further will find all the documentary evidence
+collected in its original shape in the first volume of Colton's "Life
+of Clay," accompanied by an argument needlessly elaborate and
+surcharged with feeling yet in the main sufficiently fair and
+exhaustive.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Benton says that "no President could have commenced his
+administration under more unfavorable auspices, or with less
+expectation of a popular career," than did Mr. Adams. From the first a
+strong minority in the House of Representatives was hostile to him,
+and the next election made this a majority. The first indication of
+the shape which the opposition was to take became visible in the vote
+in the Senate upon confirming Mr. Clay as Secretary of State. There
+were fourteen nays against twenty-seven yeas, and an inspection of the
+list showed that the South was beginning to consolidate more closely
+than heretofore as a sectional force in politics. The formation of a
+Southern party distinctly organized in the interests of slavery,
+already apparent in the unanimity of the Southern Electoral Colleges
+against Mr. Adams, thus received further illustration; and
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page189" name="page189"></a>(p. 189)</span>
+the skilled eye of the President noted "the rallying of the South and
+of Southern interests and prejudices to the men of the South." It is
+possible now to see plainly that Mr. Adams was really the first leader
+in the long crusade against slavery; it was in opposition to him that
+the South became a political unit; and a true instinct taught him the
+trend of Southern politics long before the Northern statesmen
+apprehended it, perhaps before even any Southern statesman had
+distinctly formulated it. This new development in the politics of the
+country soon received further illustration. The first message which
+Mr. Adams had occasion to send to Congress gave another opportunity to
+his ill-wishers. Therein he stated that the invitation which had been
+extended to the United States to be represented at the Congress of
+Panama had been accepted, and that he should commission ministers to
+attend the meeting. Neither in matter nor in manner did this
+proposition contain any just element of offence. It was customary for
+the Executive to initiate new missions simply by the nomination of
+envoys to fill them; and in such case the Senate, if it did not think
+the suggested mission desirable, could simply decline to confirm the
+nomination upon that ground. An example of this has been already seen
+in the two nominations of Mr. Adams
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page190" name="page190"></a>(p. 190)</span>
+himself to the Court of
+Russia in the Presidency of Mr. Madison. But now vehement assaults
+were made upon the President, alike in the Senate and in the House, on
+the utterly absurd ground that he had transcended his powers.
+Incredible, too, as it may seem at this day it was actually maintained
+that there was no occasion whatsoever for the United States to desire
+representation at such a gathering. Prolonged and bitter was the
+opposition which the Administration was compelled to encounter in a
+measure to which there so obviously ought to have been instant assent
+if considered solely upon its intrinsic merits, but upon which
+nevertheless the discussion actually overshadowed all other questions
+which arose during the session. The President had the good fortune to
+find the powerful aid of Mr. Webster enlisted in his behalf, and
+ultimately he prevailed; but it was of ill augury at this early date
+to see that personal hostility was so widespread and so rancorous that
+it could make such a prolonged and desperate resistance with only the
+faintest pretext of right as a basis for its action. Yet a great and
+fundamental cause of the feeling manifested lay hidden away beneath
+the surface in the instinctive antipathy of the slaveholders to Mr.
+Adams and all his thoughts, his ways, and his doings. For into this
+question of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page191" name="page191"></a>(p. 191)</span>
+countenancing the Panama Congress, slavery and
+"the South" entered and imported into a portion of the opposition a
+certain element of reasonableness and propriety in a political sense.
+When we see the Southern statesmen banded against President Adams in
+these debates, as we know the future which was hidden from them, it
+almost makes us believe that their vindictiveness was justified by an
+instinctive forecasting of his character and his mission in life, and
+that without knowing it they already felt the influence of the acts
+which he was yet to do against them. For the South, without present
+dread of an abolition movement, yet hated this Panama Congress with a
+contemptuous loathing not alone because the South American states had
+freed all slaves within their limits, but because there was actually a
+fair chance that Hayti would be admitted to representation at the
+sessions as a sovereign state. That the President of the United States
+should propose to send white citizens of that country to sit cheek by
+jowl on terms of official equality with the revolted blacks of Hayti
+fired the Southern heart with rage inexpressible. The proposition was
+a further infusion of cement to aid in the Southern consolidation so
+rapidly going forward, and was substantially the beginning of the
+sense of personal alienation henceforth
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page192" name="page192"></a>(p. 192)</span>
+to grow steadily
+more bitter on the part of the slaveholders towards Mr. Adams. Without
+designing it he had struck the first blow in a fight which was to
+absorb his energies for the rest of his life.</p>
+
+<p>Such evil forebodings as might too easily be drawn from the course of
+this debate were soon and amply fulfilled. The opposition increased
+rapidly until when Congress came together in December, 1827, it had
+attained overshadowing proportions. Not only was a member of that
+party elected Speaker of the House of Representatives, but a decided
+majority of both Houses of Congress was arrayed against the
+Administration&mdash;"a state of things which had never before occurred
+under the Government of the United States." All the committees too
+were composed of four opposition and only three Administration
+members. With more exciting issues this relationship of the executive
+and legislative departments might have resulted in dangerous
+collisions; but in this season of political quietude it only made the
+position of the President extremely uncomfortable. Mr. Van Buren soon
+became recognized as the formidable leader and organizer of the
+Jackson forces. His capacity as a political strategist was so far in
+advance of that of any other man of those times that it might have
+secured success even had
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page193" name="page193"></a>(p. 193)</span>
+he been encountered by tactics
+similar to his own. But since on the contrary he had only to meet
+straightforward simplicity, it was soon apparent that he would have
+everything his own way. It was disciplined troops against the militia
+of honest merchants and farmers; and the result was not to be doubted.
+Mr. Adams and his friends were fond of comparing Van Buren with Aaron
+Burr, though predicting that he would be too shrewd to repeat Burr's
+blunders. From the beginning they declined to meet with his own
+weapons a man whom they so contemned. It was about this time that a
+new nomenclature of parties was introduced into our politics. The
+administrationists called themselves National Republicans, a name
+which in a few years was changed for that of Whigs, while the
+opposition or Jacksonians were known as Democrats, a title which has
+been ever since retained by the same party.</p>
+
+<p>The story of Mr. Adams's Administration will detain the historian, and
+even the biographer, only a very short time. Not an event occurred
+during those four years which appears of any especial moment. Our
+foreign relations were all pacific; and no grave crisis or great issue
+was developed in domestic affairs. It was a period of tranquillity, in
+which the nation advanced rapidly in prosperity. For many years
+dulness had
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page194" name="page194"></a>(p. 194)</span>
+reigned in business, but returning activity was
+encouraged by the policy of the new Government, and upon all sides
+various industries became active and thriving. So far as the rule of
+Mr. Adams was marked by any distinguishing characteristic, it was by a
+care for the material welfare of the people. More commercial treaties
+were negotiated during his Administration than in the thirty-six years
+preceding his inauguration. He was a strenuous advocate of internal
+improvements, and happily the condition of the national finances
+enabled the Government to embark in enterprises of this kind. He
+suggested many more than were undertaken, but not perhaps more than it
+would have been quite possible to carry out. He was always chary of
+making a show of himself before the people for the sake of gaining
+popularity. When invited to attend the annual exhibition of the
+Maryland Agricultural Society, shortly after his inauguration, he
+declined, and wrote in his Diary: "To gratify this wish I must give
+four days of my time, no trifle of expense, and set a precedent for
+being claimed as an article of exhibition at all the cattle-shows
+throughout the Union." Other gatherings would prefer equally
+reasonable demands, in responding to which "some duty must be
+neglected." But the opening of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal was an
+event
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page195" name="page195"></a>(p. 195)</span>
+sufficiently momentous and national in its character
+to justify the President's attendance. He was requested in the
+presence of a great concourse of people to dig the first shovelful of
+earth and to make a brief address. The speech-making was easy; but
+when the digging was to be done he encountered some unexpected
+obstacle and the soil did not yield to his repeated efforts. Not to be
+defeated, however, he stripped off his coat, went to work in earnest
+with the spade and raised the earth successfully. Naturally such
+readiness was hailed with loud applause and pleased the great crowd
+who saw it. But in Mr. Adams's career it was an exceptional occurrence
+that enabled him to conciliate a momentary popularity; it was seldom
+that he enjoyed or used an opportunity of gaining the cheap admiration
+or shallow friendship of the multitude.</p>
+
+<p>At least one moral to be drawn from the story of Mr. Adams's
+Presidency perhaps deserves rather to be called an <i>immoral</i>, and
+certainly furnishes unwelcome support to those persons who believe
+that conscientiousness is out of place in politics. It has been said
+that no sooner was General Jackson fairly defeated than he was again
+before the people as a candidate for the next election. An opposition
+to the new Administration was in process of formation actually before
+there had been time for that Administration to
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page196" name="page196"></a>(p. 196)</span>
+declare, much
+less to carry out, any policy or even any measure. The opposition was
+therefore not one of principle; it was not dislike of anything done or
+to be done; it did not pretend to have a purpose of saving the people
+from blunders or of offering them greater advantages. It was simply an
+opposition, or more properly an hostility, to the President and his
+Cabinet, and was conducted by persons who wished in as short a time as
+possible themselves to control and fill those positions. The sole
+ground upon which these opponents stood was, that they would rather
+have General Jackson at the head of affairs than Mr. Adams. The issue
+was purely personal; it was so when the opposition first developed,
+and it remained so until that opposition triumphed.</p>
+
+<p>Under no circumstances can it be more excusable for an elective
+magistrate to seek personal good will towards himself than when his
+rival seeks to supplant him simply on the basis of enjoying a greater
+measure of such good will. Had any important question of policy been
+dividing the people, it would have been easy for a man of less moral
+courage and independence than belonged to Mr. Adams to select the side
+which he thought right, and to await the outcome at least with
+constancy. But the only real question raised was this: will Mr. Adams
+or General Jackson&mdash;two
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page197" name="page197"></a>(p. 197)</span>
+individuals representing as yet no
+antagonistic policies&mdash;be preferred by the greater number of voters in
+1829? If, however, there was no great apparent issue open between
+these two men, at least there was a very wide difference between their
+characters, a point of some consequence in a wholly personal
+competition. It is easy enough now to see how this gaping difference
+displayed itself from the beginning, and how the advantage for winning
+was throughout wholly on the side of Jackson. The course to be pursued
+by Mr. Adams in order to insure victory was obvious enough; being
+simply to secure the largest following and most efficient support
+possible. The arts by which these objects were to be attained were not
+obscure nor beyond his power. If he wished a second term, as beyond
+question he did, two methods were of certain utility. He should make
+the support of his Administration a source of profit to the
+supporters; and he should conciliate good will by every means that
+offered. To the former end what more efficient means could be devised
+than a body of office-holders owing their positions to his appointment
+and likely to have the same term of office as himself? His neglect to
+create such a corps of stanch supporters cannot be explained on the
+ground that so plain a scheme of perpetuating power
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page198" name="page198"></a>(p. 198)</span>
+had not
+then been devised in the Republic. Mr. Jefferson had practised it, to
+an extent which now seems moderate, but which had been sufficiently
+extensive to deprive any successor of the honor of novelty in
+originating it. The times were ripe for it, and the nation would not
+have revolted at it, as was made apparent when General Jackson,
+succeeding Mr. Adams, at once carried out the system with a
+thoroughness that has never been surpassed, and with a success in
+achieving results so great that almost no politician has since failed
+to have recourse to the same practice. Suggestions and temptations,
+neither of which were wanting, were however alike thrown away upon Mr.
+Adams. Friendship or hostility to the President were the only two
+matters which were sure to have no effect whatsoever upon the fate of
+an incumbent or an aspirant. Scarcely any removals were made during
+his Administration, and every one of the few was based solely upon a
+proved unfitness of the official. As a consequence very few new
+appointments were made, and in every instance the appointee was, or
+was believed to be, the fittest man without regard to his political
+bias. This entire elimination of the question of party allegiance from
+every department of the public service was not a specious
+protestation, but an undeniable fact at which friends grumbled
+bitterly,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page199" name="page199"></a>(p. 199)</span>
+and upon which foes counted often with an
+ungenerous but always with an implicit reliance. It was well known,
+for example, that in the Customs Department there were many more
+avowed opponents than supporters of the Administration. What was to be
+thought, the latter angrily asked, of a president who refused to make
+any distinction between the sheep and the goats? But while Mr. Adams,
+unmoved by argument, anger, or entreaty, thus alienated many and
+discouraged all, every one was made acquainted with the antipodal
+principles of his rival. The consequence was inevitable; many
+abandoned Adams from sheer irritation; multitudes became cool and
+indifferent concerning him; the great number of those whose political
+faith was so weak as to be at the ready command of their own
+interests, or the interests of a friend or relative, yielded to a
+pressure against which no counteracting force was employed. In a word,
+no one who had not a strong and independent personal conviction in
+behalf of Mr. Adams found the slightest inducement to belong to his
+party. It did not require much political sagacity to see that in quiet
+times, with no great issue visibly at stake, a following thus composed
+could not include a majority of the nation. It is true that in fact
+there was opening an issue as great as has ever been presented to the
+American people,&mdash;an
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page200" name="page200"></a>(p. 200)</span>
+issue between government conducted with
+a sole view to efficiency and honesty and government conducted very
+largely, if not exclusively, with a view to individual and party
+ascendency. The new system afterward inaugurated by General Jackson,
+directly opposite to that of Mr. Adams and presenting a contrast to it
+as wide as is to be found in history, makes this fact glaringly plain
+to us. But during the years of Mr. Adams's Administration it was dimly
+perceived only by a few. Only one side of the shield had then been
+shown. The people did not appreciate that Adams and Jackson were
+representatives of two conflicting principles of administration which
+went to the very basis of our system of government. Had the issue been
+as apparent and as well understood then as it is now, in retrospect,
+the decision of the nation might have been different. But
+unfortunately the voters only beheld two individuals pitted against
+each other for the popular suffrage, of whom one, a brilliant soldier,
+would stand by and reward his friends, and the other, an uninteresting
+civilian, ignored all distinction between friend and foe.</p>
+
+<p>It was not alone in the refusal to use patronage that Mr. Adams's
+rigid conscientiousness showed itself. He was equally obstinate in
+declining ever to stretch a point however slightly in
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page201" name="page201"></a>(p. 201)</span>
+order
+to win the favor of any body of the people whether large or small. He
+was warned that his extensive schemes for internal improvement would
+alienate especially the important State of Virginia. He could not of
+course be expected to change his policy out of respect to Virginian
+prejudices; but he was advised to mitigate his expression of that
+policy, and to some extent it was open to him to do so. But he would
+not; his utterances went the full length of his opinions, and he
+persistently urged upon Congress many plans which he approved, but
+which he could not have the faintest hopes of seeing adopted. The
+consequence was that he displeased Virginia. He notes the fact in the
+Diary in the tone of one who endures persecution for righteousness'
+sake, and who means to be very stubborn in his righteousness. Again it
+was suggested to him to embody in one of his messages "something
+soothing for South Carolina." But there stood upon the statute books
+of South Carolina an unconstitutional law which had greatly
+embarrassed the national government, and which that rebellious little
+State with characteristic contumaciousness would not repeal. Under
+such circumstances, said Mr. Adams, I have no "soothing" words for
+South Carolina.</p>
+
+<p>It was not alone by what he did and by what he
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page202" name="page202"></a>(p. 202)</span>
+would not do
+that Mr. Adams toiled to insure the election of General Jackson far
+more sedulously and efficiently than did the General himself or any of
+his partisans. In most cases it was probably the manner quite as much
+as the act which made Mr. Adams unpopular. In his anxiety to be
+upright he was undoubtedly prone to be needlessly disagreeable. His
+uncompromising temper put on an ungracious aspect. His
+conscientiousness wore the appearance of offensiveness. The Puritanism
+in his character was strongly tinged with that old New England notion
+that whatever is disagreeable is probably right, and that a painful
+refusal would lose half its merit in being expressed courteously; that
+a right action should never be done in a pleasing way; not only that
+no pill should be sugar-coated, but that the bitterest ingredient
+should be placed on the outside. In repudiating attractive vices the
+Puritans had rejected also those amenities which might have decently
+concealed or even mildly decorated the forbidding angularities of a
+naked Virtue which certainly did not imitate the form of any goddess
+who had ever before attracted followers. Mr. Adams was a complete and
+thorough Puritan, wonderfully little modified by times and
+circumstances. The ordinary arts of propitiation would have appeared
+to him only a feeble and diluted
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page203" name="page203"></a>(p. 203)</span>
+form of dishonesty; while
+suavity and graciousness of demeanor would have seemed as unbecoming
+to this rigid official as love-making or wine-bibbing seem to a
+strait-laced parson. It was inevitable, therefore, that he should
+never avert by his words any ill-will naturally caused by his acts;
+that he should never soothe disappointment, or attract calculating
+selfishness. He was an adept in alienation, a novice in conciliation.
+His magnetism was negative. He made few friends; and had no interested
+following whatsoever. No one was enthusiastic on his behalf; no band
+worked for him with the ardor of personal devotion. His party was
+composed of those who had sufficient intelligence to appreciate his
+integrity and sufficient honesty to admire it. These persons respected
+him, and when election day came they would vote for him; but they did
+not canvass zealously in his behalf, nor do such service for him as a
+very different kind of feeling induced the Jackson men to do for their
+candidate.<a id="footnotetag7" name="footnotetag7"></a><a href="#footnote7">[7]</a>
+The fervid laborers in politics left
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page204" name="page204"></a>(p. 204)</span>
+Mr. Adams
+alone in his chilling respectability, and went over to a camp where
+all scruples were consumed in the glowing heat of a campaign conducted
+upon the single and simple principle of securing victory.</p>
+
+<p class="p2"> </p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams's relations with the members of his Cabinet were friendly
+throughout his term. Men of their character and ability, brought into
+daily contact with him, could not fail to appreciate and admire the
+purity of his motives and the patriotism of his conduct; nor was he
+wanting in a measure of consideration and deference towards them
+perhaps somewhat greater than might have been expected from him,
+sometimes even carried to the point of yielding his opinion
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page205" name="page205"></a>(p. 205)</span>
+in matters of consequence. It was his wish that the unity of the body
+should remain unbroken during his four years of office, and the wish
+was very nearly realized. Unfortunately, however, in his last year it
+became necessary for him to fill the mission to England, and Governor
+Barbour was extremely anxious for the place. It was already apparent
+that the coming election was likely to result in the succession of
+Jackson, and Mr. Adams notes that Barbour's extreme desire to receive
+the appointment was due to his wish to find a good harbor ere the
+approaching storm should burst. The remark was made without anger, in
+the tone of a man who had seen enough of the world not to expect too
+much from any of his fellow men; and the appointment was made,
+somewhat to the chagrin of Webster and Rush, either one of whom would
+have gladly accepted it. The vacancy thus caused, the only one which
+arose during his term, was filled by General Peter B. Porter, a
+gentleman whom Mr. Adams selected not as his own choice, but out of
+respect to the wishes of the Cabinet, and in order to "terminate the
+Administration in harmony with itself." The only seriously unpleasant
+occurrence was the treachery of Postmaster-General McLean, who saw fit
+to profess extreme devotion to Mr. Adams while secretly aiding General
+Jackson. His
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page206" name="page206"></a>(p. 206)</span>
+perfidy was not undetected, and great pressure
+was brought to bear on the President to remove him. Mr. Adams,
+however, refused to do so, and McLean had the satisfaction of stepping
+from his post under Mr. Adams into a judgeship conferred by General
+Jackson, having shown his impartiality and judicial turn of mind, it
+is to be supposed, by declaring his warm allegiance to each master in
+turn.</p>
+
+<p>The picture of President Adams's daily life is striking in its
+simplicity and its laboriousness. This chief magistrate of a great
+nation was wont to rise before daybreak, often at four or five o'clock
+even in winter, not unfrequently to build and light his own fire, and
+to work hard for hours when most persons in busy life were still
+comfortably slumbering. The forenoon and afternoon he devoted to
+public affairs, and often he complains that the unbroken stream of
+visitors gives him little opportunity for hard or continuous labor.
+Such work he was compelled to do chiefly in the evening; and he did
+not always make up for early hours of rising by a correspondingly
+early bedtime; though sometimes in the summer we find him going to bed
+between eight and nine o'clock, an hour which probably few Presidents
+have kept since then. He strove to care for his health by daily
+exercise. In the morning he swam in the Potomac, often
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page207" name="page207"></a>(p. 207)</span>
+for a
+long time; and more than once he encountered no small risk in this
+pastime. During the latter part of his Presidential term he tried
+riding on horseback. At times when the weather compelled him to walk,
+and business was pressing, he used to get his daily modicum of fresh
+air before the sun was up. A life of this kind with more of hardship
+than of relaxation in it was ill fitted to sustain in robust health a
+man sixty years of age, and it is not surprising that Mr. Adams often
+complained of feeling ill, dejected, and weary. Yet he never spared
+himself, nor apparently thought his habits too severe, and actually
+toward the close of his term he spoke of his trying daily routine as
+constituting a very agreeable life. He usually began the day by
+reading "two or three chapters in the Bible with Scott's and Hewlett's
+Commentaries," being always a profoundly religious man of the
+old-fashioned school then prevalent in New England.</p>
+
+<p>It could hardly have added to the meagre comforts of such a life to be
+threatened with assassination. Yet this danger was thrust upon Mr.
+Adams's attention upon one occasion at least under circumstances which
+gave to it a very serious aspect. The tranquillity with which he went
+through the affair showed that his physical courage was as
+imperturbable as his moral.
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page208" name="page208"></a>(p. 208)</span>
+The risk was protracted
+throughout a considerable period, but he never let it disturb the even
+tenor of his daily behavior or warp his actions in the slightest
+degree, save only that when he was twice or thrice brought face to
+face with the intending assassin he treated the fellow with somewhat
+more curt brusqueness than was his wont. But when the danger was over
+he bore his would-be murderer no malice, and long afterward actually
+did him a kindly service.</p>
+
+<p class="p2"> </p>
+
+<p>Few men in public life have been subjected to trials of temper so
+severe as vexed Mr. Adams during his Presidential term. To play an
+intensely exciting game strictly in accordance with rigid moral rules
+of the player's own arbitrary enforcement, and which are utterly
+repudiated by a less scrupulous antagonist, can hardly tend to promote
+contentment and amiability. Neither are slanders and falsehoods
+mollifying applications to a statesman inspired with an upright and
+noble ambition. Mr. Adams bore such assaults, ranging from the charge
+of having corruptly bought the Presidency down to that of being a
+Freemason with such grim stoicism as he could command. The
+disappearance and probable assassination of Morgan at this time led to
+a strong feeling throughout the country against
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page209" name="page209"></a>(p. 209)</span>
+Freemasonry,
+and the Jackson men at once proclaimed abroad that Adams was one of
+the brotherhood, and offered, if he should deny it, to produce the
+records of the lodge to which he belonged. The allegation was false;
+he was not a Mason, and his friends urged him to say so publicly; but
+he replied bitterly that his denial would probably at once be met by a
+complete set of forged records of a fictitious lodge, and the people
+would not know whom to believe. Next he was said to have bargained for
+the support of Daniel Webster, by promising to distribute offices to
+Federalists. This accusation was a cruel perversion of his very
+virtues; for its only foundation lay in the fact that in the
+venturesome but honorable attempt to be President of a nation rather
+than of a party, he had in some instances given offices to old
+Federalists, certainly with no hope or possibility of reconciling to
+himself the almost useless wreck of that now powerless and shrunken
+party, one of whose liveliest traditions was hatred of him. Stories
+were even set afloat that some of his accounts, since he had been in
+the public service, were incorrect. But the most extraordinary and
+ridiculous tale of all was that during his residence in Russia he had
+prostituted a beautiful American girl, whom he then had in his
+service, in order "to seduce the passions
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page210" name="page210"></a>(p. 210)</span>
+of the Emperor
+Alexander and sway him to political purposes."</p>
+
+<p>These and other like provocations were not only discouraging but very
+irritating, and Mr. Adams was not of that careless disposition which
+is little affected by unjust accusation. On the contrary he was
+greatly incensed by such treatment, and though he made the most stern
+and persistent effort to endure an inevitable trial with a patience
+born of philosophy, since indifference was not at his command, yet he
+could not refrain from the expression of his sentiments in his secret
+communings. Occasionally he allowed his wrath to explode with harmless
+violence between the covers of the Diary, and doubtless he found
+relief while he discharged his fierce diatribes on these private
+sheets. His vituperative power was great, and some specimens of it may
+not come amiss in a sketch of the man. The senators who did not call
+upon him he regarded as of "rancorous spirit." He spoke of the
+falsehoods and misrepresentations which "the skunks of party slander
+... have been ... squirting round the House of Representatives, thence
+to issue and perfume the atmosphere of the Union." His most intense
+hatred and vehement denunciation were reserved for John Randolph, whom
+he thought an abomination too odious and despicable to be described
+
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page211" name="page211"></a>(p. 211)</span>
+in words, "the image and superscription of a great man
+stamped upon base metal." "The besotted violence" of Randolph, he
+said, has deprived him of "all right to personal civility from me;"
+and certainly this excommunication from courtesy was made complete and
+effective. He speaks again of the same victim as a "frequenter of gin
+lane and beer alley." He indignantly charges that Calhoun, as Speaker,
+permitted Randolph "in speeches of ten hours long to drink himself
+drunk with bottled porter, and in raving balderdash of the meridian of
+Wapping to revile the absent and the present, the living and the
+dead." This, he says, was "tolerated by Calhoun, because Randolph's
+ribaldry was all pointed against the Administration, especially
+against Mr. Clay and me." Again he writes of Randolph: "The rancor of
+this man's soul against me is that which sustains his life: the agony
+of [his] envy and hatred of me, and the hope of effecting my downfall,
+are [his] chief remaining sources of vitality. The issue of the
+Presidential election will kill [him] by the gratification of [his]
+revenge." So it was also with W. B. Giles, of Virginia. But Giles's
+abuse was easier to bear since it had been poured in torrents upon
+every reputable man, from Washington downwards, who had been prominent
+in public affairs
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page212" name="page212"></a>(p. 212)</span>
+since the adoption of the Constitution, so
+that Giles's memory is now preserved from oblivion solely by the
+connection which he established with the great and honorable statesmen
+of the Republic by a course of ceaseless attacks upon them. Some of
+the foregoing expressions of Mr. Adams may be open to objection on the
+score of good taste; but the provocation was extreme; public
+retaliation he would not practise, and wrath must sometimes burst
+forth in language which was not so unusual in that day as it is at
+present. It is an unquestionable fact, of which the credit to Mr.
+Adams can hardly be exaggerated, that he never in any single instance
+found an excuse for an unworthy act on his own part in the fact that
+competitors or adversaries were resorting to such expedients.</p>
+
+<p class="p2"> </p>
+
+<p>The election of 1828 gave 178 votes for Jackson and only 83 for Adams.
+Calhoun was continued as Vice-President by 171 votes, showing plainly
+enough that even yet there were not two political parties, in any
+customary or proper sense of the phrase. The victory of Jackson had
+been foreseen by every one. What had been so generally anticipated
+could not take Mr. Adams by surprise; yet it was idle for him to seek
+to conceal his disappointment that an Administration which
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page213" name="page213"></a>(p. 213)</span>
+he had conducted with his best ability and with thorough
+conscientiousness should not have seemed to the people worthy of
+continuance for another term. Little suspecting what the future had in
+store for him, he felt that his public career had culminated and
+probably had closed forever, and that if it had not closed exactly in
+disgrace, yet at least it could not be regarded as ending gloriously
+or even satisfactorily. But he summoned all his philosophy and
+fortitude to his aid; he fell back upon his clear conscience and
+comported himself with dignity, showing all reasonable courtesy to his
+successor and only perhaps seeming a little deficient in filial piety
+in presenting so striking a contrast to the shameful conduct of his
+father in a like crucial hour. His retirement brought to a close a
+list of Presidents who deserved to be called statesmen in the highest
+sense of that term, honorable men, pure patriots, and, with perhaps
+one exception, all of the first order of ability in public affairs. It
+is necessary to come far down towards this day before a worthy
+successor of those great men is met with in the list. Dr. Von Holst,
+by far the ablest writer who has yet dealt with American history,
+says: "In the person of Adams the last statesman who was to occupy it
+for a long time left the White House." General Jackson, the candidate
+of the populace and the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page214" name="page214"></a>(p. 214)</span>
+representative hero of the ignorant
+masses, instituted a new system of administering the Government in
+which personal interests became the most important element, and that
+organization and strategy were developed which have since become known
+and infamous under the name of the "political machine."</p>
+
+<p>While Mr. Adams bore his defeat like a philosopher, he felt secretly
+very depressed and unhappy by reason of it. He speaks of it as leaving
+his "character and reputation a wreck," and says that the "sun of his
+political life sets in the deepest gloom." On January 1, 1829, he
+writes: "The year begins in gloom. My wife had a sleepless and painful
+night. The dawn was overcast, and as I began to write my shaded lamp
+went out, self-extinguished. It was only for lack of oil, and the
+notice of so trivial an incident may serve but to mark the present
+temper of my mind." It is painful to behold a man of his vigor,
+activity, and courage thus prostrated. Again he writes:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "Three days more and I shall be restored to private life, and
+     left to an old age of retirement though certainly not of repose.
+     I go into it with a combination of parties and public men against
+     my character and reputation, such as I believe never before was
+     exhibited against any man since this Union existed. Posterity
+     will scarcely believe it, but so it is, that this combination
+
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page215" name="page215"></a>(p. 215)</span>
+against me has been formed and is now exulting in
+     triumph over me, for the devotion of my life and of all the
+     faculties of my soul to the Union, and to the improvement,
+     physical, moral, and intellectual of my country."
+</p>
+
+<p>Melancholy words these to be written by an old man who had worked so
+hard and been so honest, and whose ambition had been of the kind that
+ennobles him who feels it! Could the curtain of the future have been
+lifted but for a moment what relief would the glimpse have brought to
+his crushed and wearied spirit. But though coming events may cast
+shadows before them, they far less often send bright rays in advance.
+So he now resolved "to go into the deepest retirement and withdraw
+from all connection with public affairs." Yet it was with regret that
+he foretold this fate, and he looked forward with solicitude to the
+effect which such a mode of life, newly entered upon at his age, would
+have upon his mind and character. He hopes rather than dares to
+predict that he will be provided "with useful and profitable
+occupation, engaging so much of his thoughts and feelings that his
+mind may not be left to corrode itself."</p>
+
+<p>His return to Quincy held out the less promise of comfort, because the
+old chasm between him and the Federalist gentlemen of Boston had been
+
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page216" name="page216"></a>(p. 216)</span>
+lately reopened. Certain malicious newspaper paragraphs, born
+of the mischievous spirit of the wretched Giles, had recently set
+afloat some stories designed seriously to injure Mr. Adams. These
+were, substantially, that in 1808-9 he had been convinced that some
+among the leaders of the Federalist party in New England were
+entertaining a project for separation from the Union, that he had
+feared that this event would be promoted by the embargo, that he
+foresaw that the seceding portion would inevitably be compelled into
+some sort of alliance with Great Britain, that he suspected
+negotiations to this end to have been already set on foot, that he
+thereupon gave privately some more or less distinct intimations of
+these notions of his to sundry prominent Republicans, and even to
+President Jefferson. These tales, much distorted from the truth and
+exaggerated as usual, led to the publication of an open letter, in
+November, 1828, addressed by thirteen Federalists of note in
+Massachusetts to John Quincy Adams, demanding names and specifications
+and the production of evidence. Mr. Adams replied briefly, with
+dignity, and, considering the circumstances, with good temper, stating
+fairly the substantial import of what he had really said, declaring
+that he had never mentioned names, and refusing, for good reasons
+given, either to do
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page217" name="page217"></a>(p. 217)</span>
+so now or to publish the grounds of such
+opinions as he had entertained. It was sufficiently clear that he had
+said nothing secretly which he had reason to regret; and that if he
+sought to shun the discussion opened by his adversaries, he was
+influenced by wise forbearance, and not at all by any fear of the
+consequences to himself. A dispassionate observer could have seen that
+behind this moderate, rather deprecatory letter there was an abundant
+reserve of controversial material held for the moment in check. But
+his adversaries were not dispassionate; on the contrary they were
+greatly excited and were honestly convinced of the perfect goodness of
+their cause. They were men of the highest character in public and
+private life, deservedly of the best repute in the community, of
+unimpeachable integrity in motives and dealings, influential and
+respected, men whom it was impossible in New England to treat with
+neglect or indifference. For this reason it was only the harder to
+remain silent beneath their published reproach when a refutation was
+possible. Hating Mr. Adams with an animosity not diminished by the
+lapse of years since his defection from their party, strong in a
+consciousness of their own standing before their fellow citizens, the
+thirteen notables responded with much acrimony to Mr. Adams's
+unsatisfactory letter. Thus
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page218" name="page218"></a>(p. 218)</span>
+persistently challenged and
+assailed, at a time when his recent crushing political defeat made an
+attack upon him seem a little ungenerous, Mr. Adams at last went into
+the fight in earnest. He had the good fortune to be thoroughly right,
+and also to have sufficient evidence to prove and justify at least as
+much as he had ever said. All this evidence he brought together in a
+vindicatory pamphlet, which, however, by the time he had completed it
+he decided not to publish. But fortunately he did not destroy it, and
+his grandson, in the exercise of a wise discretion, has lately given
+it to the world. His foes never knew how deeply they were indebted to
+the self-restraint which induced him to keep this formidable missive
+harmless in his desk. Full of deep feeling, yet free from ebullitions
+of temper, clear in statement, concise in style, conclusive in facts,
+unanswerable in argument, unrelentingly severe in dealing with
+opponents, it is as fine a specimen of political controversy as exists
+in the language. Its historical value cannot be exaggerated, but apart
+from this as a mere literary production it is admirable. Happy were
+the thirteen that they one and all went down to their graves
+complaisantly thinking that they had had the last word in the quarrel,
+little suspecting how great was their obligation to Mr. Adams
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page219" name="page219"></a>(p. 219)</span>
+for having granted them that privilege. One would think that they
+might have writhed beneath their moss-grown headstones on the day when
+his last word at length found public utterance, albeit that the
+controversy had then become one of the dusty tales of
+history.<a id="footnotetag8" name="footnotetag8"></a><a href="#footnote8">[8]</a></p>
+
+<p>But this task of writing a demolishing pamphlet against the prominent
+gentlemen of the neighborhood to which he was about to return for his
+declining years could hardly have been a grateful task. The passage
+from political disaster to social enmities could not but be painful;
+and Mr. Adams was probably never more unhappy than at this period of
+his life. The reward which virtue was tendering to him seemed unmixed
+bitterness.</p>
+
+<p class="p2"> </p>
+
+<p>Thus at the age of sixty-two years, Mr. Adams found himself that
+melancholy product of the American governmental system&mdash;an
+ex-President. At
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page220" name="page220"></a>(p. 220)</span>
+this stage it would seem that the fruit
+ought to drop from the bough, no further process of development being
+reasonably probable for it. Yet Mr. Adams had by no means reached this
+measure of ripeness; he still enjoyed abundant vigor of mind and body,
+and to lapse into dignified decrepitude was not agreeable, indeed was
+hardly possible for him. The prospect gave him profound anxiety; he
+dreaded idleness, apathy, and decay with a keen terror which perhaps
+constituted a sufficient guaranty against them. Yet what could he do?
+It would be absurd for him now to furbish up the rusty weapons of the
+law and enter again upon the tedious labor of collecting a clientage.
+His property was barely sufficient to enable him to live respectably,
+even according to the simple standard of the time, and could open to
+him no occupation in the way of gratifying unremunerative tastes. In
+March, 1828, he had been advised to use five thousand dollars in a way
+to promote his reėlection. He refused at once, upon principle; but
+further set forth "candidly, the state of his affairs:"&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "All my real estate in Quincy and Boston is mortgaged for the
+     payment of my debts; the income of my whole private estate is
+     less than $6,000 a year, and I am paying at least two thousand of
+     that for interest on my debt. Finally, upon going out of office
+     in
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page221" name="page221"></a>(p. 221)</span>
+one year from this time, destitute of all means of
+     acquiring property, it will only be by the sacrifice of that
+     which I now possess that I shall be able to support my family."
+</p>
+
+<p>At first he plunged desperately into the Latin classics. He had a
+strong taste for such reading, and he made a firm resolve to compel
+this taste now to stand him in good stead in his hour of need. He
+courageously demanded solace from a pursuit which had yielded him
+pleasure enough in hours of relaxation, but which was altogether
+inadequate to fill the huge vacuum now suddenly created in his time
+and thoughts. There is much pathos in this spectacle of the old man
+setting himself with ever so feeble a weapon, yet with stern
+determination, to conquer the cruelty of circumstances. But he knew,
+of course, that the Roman authors could only help him for a time, by
+way of distraction, in carrying him through a transition period. He
+soon set more cheerfully at work upon a memoir of his father, and had
+also plans for writing a history of the United States. Literature had
+always possessed strong charms for him, and he had cultivated it after
+his usual studious and conscientious fashion. But his style was too
+often prolix, sententious, and turgid&mdash;faults which marked nearly all
+the writing done in this country in those days. The world
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page222" name="page222"></a>(p. 222)</span>
+has probably not lost much by reason of the non-completion of the
+contemplated volumes. He could have made no other contribution to the
+history of the country at all approaching in value or interest to the
+Diary, of which a most important part was still to be written. For a
+brief time just now this loses its historic character, but makes up
+for the loss by depicting admirably some traits in the mental
+constitution of the diarist. Tales of enchantment, he says, pleased
+his boyhood, but "the humors of Falstaff hardly affected me at all.
+Bardolph and Pistol and Nym were personages quite unintelligible to
+me; and the lesson of Sir Hugh Evans to the boy Williams was quite too
+serious an affair." In truth, no man can ever have been more utterly
+void of a sense of humor or an appreciation of wit than was Mr. Adams.
+Not a single instance of an approach to either is to be found
+throughout the twelve volumes of his Diary. Not even in the simple
+form of the "good story" could he find pleasure, and subtler
+delicacies were wasted on his well-regulated mind as dainty French
+dishes would be on the wholesome palate of a day-laborer. The books
+which bore the stamp of well-established approval, the acknowledged
+classics of the English, Latin, and French languages he read with a
+mingled sense of duty and of pleasure, and evidently
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page223" name="page223"></a>(p. 223)</span> with
+cultivated appreciation, though whether he would have made an original
+discovery of their merits may be doubted. Occasionally he failed to
+admire even those volumes which deserved admiration, and then with
+characteristic honesty he admitted the fact. He tried Paradise Lost
+ten times before he could get through with it, and was nearly thirty
+years old when he first succeeded in reading it to the end. Thereafter
+he became very fond of it, but plainly by an acquired taste. He tried
+smoking and Milton, he says, at the same time, in the hope of
+discovering the "recondite charm" in them which so pleased his father.
+He was more easily successful with the tobacco than with the poetry.
+Many another has had the like experience, but the confession is not
+always so frankly forthcoming.</p>
+
+<p>Fate, however, had in store for Mr. Adams labors to which he was
+better suited than those of literature, and tasks to be performed
+which the nation could ill afford to exchange for an apotheosis of our
+second President, or even for a respectable but probably not very
+readable history. The most brilliant and glorious years of his career
+were yet to be lived. He was to earn in his old age a noble fame and
+distinction far transcending any achievement of his youth and middle
+age, and was to attain the highest pinnacle
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page224" name="page224"></a>(p. 224)</span>
+of his fame
+after he had left the greatest office of the Government, and during a
+period for which presumably nothing better had been allotted than that
+he should tranquilly await the summons of death. It is a striking
+circumstance that the fullness of greatness for one who had been
+Senator, Minister to England, Secretary of State, and President,
+remained to be won in the comparatively humble position of a
+Representative in Congress.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<h3>CHAPTER III
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page225" name="page225"></a>(p. 225)</span></h3>
+
+<h4>IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES</h4>
+
+
+<p>In September, 1830, Mr. Adams notes in his Diary a suggestion made to
+him that he might if he wished be elected to the national House of
+Representatives from the Plymouth district. The gentleman who threw
+out this tentative proposition remarked that in his opinion the
+acceptance of this position by an ex-President "instead of degrading
+the individual would elevate the representative character." Mr. Adams
+replied, that he "had in that respect no scruple whatever. No person
+could be degraded by serving the people as a Representative in
+Congress. Nor in my opinion would an ex-President of the United States
+be degraded by serving as a selectman of his town, if elected thereto
+by the people." A few weeks later his election was accomplished by a
+flattering vote, the poll showing for him 1817 votes out of 2565, with
+only 373 for the next candidate. He continued thenceforth to represent
+this district until his death, a period of about sixteen years. During
+this time he was occasionally suggested as
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page226" name="page226"></a>(p. 226)</span>
+a candidate for
+the governorship of the State, but was always reluctant to stand. The
+feeling between the Freemasons and the anti-Masons ran very high for
+several years, and once he was prevailed upon to allow his name to be
+used by the latter party. The result was that there was no election by
+the people; and as he had been very loath to enter the contest in the
+beginning, he insisted upon withdrawing from before the legislature.
+We have now therefore only to pursue his career in the lower house of
+Congress.</p>
+
+<p>Unfortunately, but of obvious necessity, it is possible to touch only
+upon the more salient points of this which was really by far the most
+striking and distinguished portion of his life. To do more than this
+would involve an explanation of the politics of the country and the
+measures before Congress much more elaborate than would be possible in
+this volume. It will be necessary, therefore, to confine ourselves to
+drawing a picture of him in his character as the great combatant of
+Southern slavery. In the waging of this mighty conflict we shall see
+both his mind and his character developing in strength even in these
+years of his old age, and his traits standing forth in bolder relief
+than ever before. In his place on the floor of the House of
+Representatives he was destined to appear a more impressive figure
+than in any of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page227" name="page227"></a>(p. 227)</span>
+the higher positions which he had previously
+filled. There he was to do his greatest work and to win a peculiar and
+distinctive glory which takes him out of the general throng even of
+famous statesmen, and entitles his name to be remembered with an
+especial reverence. Adequately to sketch his achievements, and so to
+do his memory the honor which it deserves, would require a pen as
+eloquent as has been wielded by any writer of our language. I can only
+attempt a brief and insufficient narrative.</p>
+
+<p class="p2"> </p>
+
+<p>In his conscientious way he was faithful and industrious to a rare
+degree. He was never absent and seldom late; he bore unflinchingly the
+burden of severe committee work, and shirked no toil on the plea of
+age or infirmity. He attended closely to all the business of the
+House; carefully formed his opinions on every question; never failed
+to vote except for cause; and always had a sufficient reason
+independent of party allegiance to sustain his vote. Living in the age
+of oratory, he earned the name of "the old man eloquent." Yet he was
+not an orator in the sense in which Webster, Clay, and Calhoun were
+orators. He was not a rhetorician; he had neither grace of manner nor
+a fine presence, neither an imposing delivery, nor even pleasing
+tones. On the contrary, he was exceptionally lacking
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page228" name="page228"></a>(p. 228)</span> in all
+these qualities. He was short, rotund, and bald; about the time when
+he entered Congress, complaints become frequent in his Diary of weak
+and inflamed eyes, and soon these organs became so rheumy that the
+water would trickle down his cheeks; a shaking of the hand grew upon
+him to such an extent that in time he had to use artificial assistance
+to steady it for writing; his voice was high, shrill, liable to break,
+piercing enough to make itself heard, but not agreeable. This hardly
+seems the picture of an orator; nor was it to any charm of elocution
+that he owed his influence, but rather to the fact that men soon
+learned that what he said was always well worth hearing. When he
+entered Congress he had been for much more than a third of a century
+zealously gathering knowledge in public affairs, and during his career
+in that body every year swelled the already vast accumulation.
+Moreover, listeners were always sure to get a bold and an honest
+utterance and often pretty keen words from him, and he never spoke to
+an inattentive audience or to a thin house. Whether pleased or
+incensed by what he said, the Representatives at least always listened
+to it. He was by nature a hard fighter, and by the circumstances of
+his course in Congress this quality was stimulated to such a degree
+that parliamentary history does not show his
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page229" name="page229"></a>(p. 229)</span>
+equal as a
+gladiator. His power of invective was extraordinary, and he was
+untiring and merciless in his use of it. Theoretically he disapproved
+of sarcasm, but practically he could not refrain from it. Men winced
+and cowered before his milder attacks, became sometimes dumb,
+sometimes furious with mad rage before his fiercer assaults. Such
+struggles evidently gave him pleasure, and there was scarce a back in
+Congress that did not at one time or another feel the score of his
+cutting lash; though it was the Southerners and the Northern allies of
+Southerners whom chiefly he singled out for torture. He was irritable
+and quick to wrath; he himself constantly speaks of the infirmity of
+his temper, and in his many conflicts his principal concern was to
+keep it in control. His enemies often referred to it and twitted him
+with it. Of alliances he was careless, and friendships he had almost
+none. But in the creation of enmities he was terribly successful. Not
+so much at first, but increasingly as years went on, a state of
+ceaseless, vigilant hostility became his normal condition. From the
+time when he fairly entered upon the long struggle against slavery, he
+enjoyed few peaceful days in the House. But he seemed to thrive upon
+the warfare, and to be never so well pleased as when he was bandying
+hot words with slave-holders and the Northern
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page230" name="page230"></a>(p. 230)</span>
+supporters of
+slave-holders. When the air of the House was thick with crimination
+and abuse he seemed to suck in fresh vigor and spirit from the
+hate-laden atmosphere. When invective fell around him in showers, he
+screamed back his retaliation with untiring rapidity and marvellous
+dexterity of aim. No odds could appall him. With his back set firm
+against a solid moral principle, it was his joy to strike out at a
+multitude of foes. They lost their heads as well as their tempers, but
+in the extremest moments of excitement and anger Mr. Adams's brain
+seemed to work with machine-like coolness and accuracy. With flushed
+face, streaming eyes, animated gesticulation, and cracking voice, he
+always retained perfect mastery of all his intellectual faculties. He
+thus became a terrible antagonist, whom all feared, yet fearing could
+not refrain from attacking, so bitterly and incessantly did he choose
+to exert his wonderful power of exasperation. Few men could throw an
+opponent into wild blind fury with such speed and certainty as he
+could; and he does not conceal the malicious gratification which such
+feats brought to him. A leader of such fighting capacity, so
+courageous, with such a magazine of experience and information, and
+with a character so irreproachable, could have won brilliant victories
+in public life at the head of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page231" name="page231"></a>(p. 231)</span>
+even a small band of devoted
+followers. But Mr. Adams never had and apparently never wanted
+followers. Other prominent public men were brought not only into
+collision but into comparison with their contemporaries. But Mr.
+Adams's individuality was so strong that he can be compared with no
+one. It was not an individuality of genius nor to any remarkable
+extent of mental qualities; but rather an individuality of character.
+To this fact is probably to be attributed his peculiar solitariness.
+Men touch each other for purposes of attachment through their
+characters much more than through their minds. But few men, even in
+agreeing with Mr. Adams, felt themselves in sympathy with him.
+Occasionally conscience, or invincible logic, or even policy and
+self-interest, might compel one or another politician to stand beside
+him in debate or in voting; but no current of fellow feeling ever
+passed between such temporary comrades and him. It was the cold
+connection of duty or of business. The first instinct of nearly every
+one was opposition towards him; coalition might be forced by
+circumstances but never came by volition. For the purpose of winning
+immediate successes this was of course a most unfortunate condition of
+relationships. Yet it had some compensations: it left such influence
+as Mr. Adams could exert by steadfastness and
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page232" name="page232"></a>(p. 232)</span>
+argument
+entirely unweakened by suspicion of hidden motives or personal ends.
+He had the weight and enjoyed the respect which a sincerity beyond
+distrust must always command in the long run. Of this we shall see
+some striking instances.</p>
+
+<p>One important limitation, however, belongs to this statement of
+solitariness. It was confined to his position in Congress. Outside of
+the city of Washington great numbers of the people, especially in New
+England, lent him a hearty support and regarded him with friendship
+and admiration. These men had strong convictions and deep feelings,
+and their adherence counted for much. Moreover, their numbers steadily
+increased, and Mr. Adams saw that he was the leader in a cause which
+engaged the sound sense and the best feeling of the intelligent people
+of the country, and which was steadily gaining ground. Without such
+encouragement it is doubtful whether even his persistence would have
+held out through so long and extreme a trial. The sense of human
+fellowship was needful to him; he could go without it in Congress, but
+he could not have gone without it altogether.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams took his seat in the House as a member of the twenty-second
+Congress in December, 1831. He had been elected by the National
+Republican, afterward better known as the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page233" name="page233"></a>(p. 233)</span>
+Whig party, but
+one of his first acts was to declare that he would be bound by no
+partisan connection, but would in every matter act independently. This
+course he regarded as a "duty imposed upon him by his peculiar
+position," in that he "had spent the greatest portion of his life in
+the service of the whole nation and had been honored with their
+highest trust." Many persons had predicted that he would find himself
+subjected to embarrassments and perhaps to humiliations by reason of
+his apparent descent in the scale of political dignities. He notes,
+however, that he encountered no annoyance on this score, but on the
+contrary he was rather treated with an especial respect. He was made
+chairman of the Committee on Manufactures, a laborious as well as an
+important and honorable position at all times, and especially so at
+this juncture when the rebellious mutterings of South Carolina against
+the protective tariff were already to be heard rolling and swelling
+like portentous thunder from the fiery Southern regions. He would have
+preferred to exchange this post for a place upon the Committee on
+Foreign Affairs, for whose business he felt more fitted. But he was
+told that in the impending crisis his ability, authority, and prestige
+were all likely to be needed in the place allotted to him to aid in
+the salvation of the country.</p>
+
+<p>The
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page234" name="page234"></a>(p. 234)</span>
+nullification chapter of our history cannot here be
+entered upon at length, and Mr. Adams's connection with it must be
+very shortly stated. At the first meeting of his committee he remarks:
+"A reduction of the duties upon many of the articles in the tariff was
+understood by all to be the object to be effected;" and a little later
+he said that he should be disposed to give such aid as he could to any
+plan for this reduction which the Treasury Department should devise.
+"He should certainly not consent to sacrifice the manufacturing
+interest," he said, "but something of concession would be due from
+that interest to appease the discontents of the South." He was in a
+reasonable frame of mind; but unfortunately other people were rapidly
+ceasing to be reasonable. When Jackson's message of December 4, 1832,
+was promulgated, showing a disposition to do for South Carolina pretty
+much all that she demanded, Mr. Adams was bitterly indignant. The
+message, he said, "recommends a total change in the policy of the
+Union with reference to the Bank, manufactures, internal improvement,
+and the public lands. It goes to dissolve the Union into its original
+elements, and is in substance a complete surrender to the nullifiers
+of South Carolina." When, somewhat later on, the President lost his
+temper and flamed out
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page235" name="page235"></a>(p. 235)</span>
+in his famous proclamation to meet the
+nullification ordinance, he spoke in tones more pleasing to Mr. Adams.
+But the ultimate compromise which disposed of the temporary dissension
+without permanently settling the fundamental question of the
+constitutional right of nullification was extremely distasteful to
+him. He was utterly opposed to the concessions which were made while
+South Carolina still remained contumacious. He was for compelling her
+to retire altogether from her rebellious position and to repeal her
+unconstitutional enactments wholly and unconditionally, before one jot
+should be abated from the obnoxious duties. When the bill for the
+modification of the tariff was under debate, he moved to strike out
+all but the enacting clause, and supported his motion in a long
+speech, insisting that no tariff ought to pass until it was known
+"whether there was any measure by which a State could defeat the laws
+of the Union." In a minority report from his own committee he strongly
+censured the policy of the Administration. He was for meeting,
+fighting out, and determining at this crisis the whole doctrine of
+state rights and secession. "One particle of compromise," he said,
+with what truth events have since shown clearly enough, would
+"directly lead to the final and irretrievable dissolution of the
+Union." In
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page236" name="page236"></a>(p. 236)</span>
+his usual strong and thorough-going fashion he
+was for persisting in the vigorous and spirited measures, the mere
+brief declaration of which, though so quickly receded from, won for
+Jackson a measure of credit greater than he deserved. Jackson was
+thrown into a great rage by the threats of South Carolina, and replied
+to them with the same prompt wrath with which he had sometimes
+resented insults from individuals. But in his cool inner mind he was
+in sympathy with the demands which that State preferred, and though
+undoubtedly he would have fought her, had the dispute been forced to
+that pass, yet he was quite willing to make concessions, which were in
+fact in consonance with his own views as well as with hers, in order
+to avoid that sad conclusion. He was satisfied to have the instant
+emergency pass over in a manner rendered superficially creditable to
+himself by his outburst of temper, under cover of which he sacrificed
+the substantial matter of principle without a qualm. He shook his fist
+and shouted defiance in the face of the nullifiers, while Mr. Clay
+smuggled a comfortable concession into their pockets. Jackson,
+notwithstanding his belligerent attitude, did all he could to help
+Clay and was well pleased with the result. Mr. Adams was not. He
+watched the disingenuous game with disgust. It is certain that if he
+had still
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page237" name="page237"></a>(p. 237)</span>
+been in the White House, the matter would have had
+a very different ending, bloodier, it may be, and more painful, but
+much more conclusive.</p>
+
+<p>For the most part Mr. Adams found himself in opposition to President
+Jackson's Administration. This was not attributable to any sense of
+personal hostility towards a successful rival, but to an inevitable
+antipathy towards the measures, methods, and ways adopted by the
+General so unfortunately transferred to civil life. Few intelligent
+persons, and none having the statesman habit of mind, befriended the
+reckless, violent, eminently unstatesmanlike President. His ultimate
+weakness in the nullification matter, his opposition to internal
+improvements, his policy of sacrificing the public lands to individual
+speculators, his warfare against the Bank of the United States
+conducted by methods the most unjustifiable, the transaction of the
+removal of the deposits so disreputable and injurious in all its
+details, the importation of Mrs. Eaton's visiting-list into the
+politics and government of the country, the dismissal of the oldest
+and best public servants as a part of the nefarious system of using
+public offices as rewards for political aid and personal adherence,
+the formation from base ingredients of the ignoble "Kitchen
+Cabinet,"&mdash;all these doings, together with much more
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page238" name="page238"></a>(p. 238)</span>
+of the
+like sort, constituted a career which could only seem blundering,
+undignified, and dishonorable in the eyes of a man like Mr. Adams,
+who regarded statesmanship with the reverence due to the noblest of
+human callings.</p>
+
+<p>Right as Mr. Adams was generally in his opposition to Jackson, yet
+once he deserves credit for the contrary course. This was in the
+matter of our relations with France. The treaty of 1831 secured to
+this country an indemnity of $5,000,000, which, however, it had never
+been possible to collect. This procrastination raised Jackson's ever
+ready ire, and casting to the winds any further dunning, he resolved
+either to have the money or to fight for it. He sent a message to
+Congress, recommending that if France should not promptly settle the
+account, letters of marque and reprisal against her commerce should be
+issued. He ordered Edward Livingston, minister at Paris, to demand his
+passports and cross over to London. These eminently proper and
+ultimately effectual measures alarmed the large party of the timid;
+and the General found himself in danger of extensive desertions even
+on the part of his usual supporters. But as once before in a season of
+his dire extremity his courage and vigor had brought the potent aid of
+Mr. Adams to his side, so now again he came under a heavy debt of
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page239" name="page239"></a>(p. 239)</span>
+gratitude to the same champion. Mr. Adams stood by him with
+generous gallantry, and by a telling speech in the House probably
+saved him from serious humiliation and even disaster. The President's
+style of dealing had roused Mr. Adams's spirit, and he spoke with a
+fire and vehemence which accomplished the unusual feat of changing the
+predisposed minds of men too familiar with speech-making to be often
+much influenced by it in the practical matter of voting. He thought at
+the time that the success of this speech, brilliant as it appeared,
+was not unlikely to result in his political ruin. Jackson would
+befriend and reward his thorough-going partisans at any cost to his
+own conscience or the public welfare; but the exceptional aid,
+tendered not from a sense of personal fealty to himself, but simply
+from the motive of aiding the right cause happening in the especial
+instance to have been espoused by him, never won from him any token of
+regard. In November, 1837, Mr. Adams, speaking of his personal
+relations with the President, said:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "Though I had served him more than any other living man ever did,
+     and though I supported his Administration at the hazard of my own
+     political destruction, and effected for him at a moment when his
+     own friends were deserting him what no other member of Congress
+     ever accomplished for him&mdash;an unanimous
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page240" name="page240"></a>(p. 240)</span>
+vote of the
+     House of Representatives to support him in his quarrel with
+     France; though I supported him in other very critical periods of
+     his Administration, my return from him was insult, indignity, and
+     slander."
+</p>
+
+<p>Antipathy had at last become the definitive condition of these two
+men&mdash;antipathy both political and personal. At one time a singular
+effort to reconcile them&mdash;probably though not certainly undertaken
+with the knowledge of Jackson&mdash;was made by Richard M. Johnson. This
+occurred shortly before the inauguration of the war conducted by the
+President against the Bank of the United States; and judging by the
+rest of Jackson's behavior at this period, there was probably at least
+as much of calculation in his motives, if in fact he was cognizant of
+Johnson's approaches, as there was of any real desire to reėstablish
+the bygone relation of honorable friendship. To the advances thus made
+Mr. Adams replied a little coldly, not quite repellently, that
+Jackson, having been responsible for the suspension of personal
+intercourse, must now be undisguisedly the active party in renewing
+it. At the same time he professed himself "willing to receive in a
+spirit of conciliation any advance which in that spirit General
+Jackson might make." But nothing came of this intrinsically hopeless
+attempt. On the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page241" name="page241"></a>(p. 241)</span>
+contrary the two drew rapidly and more
+widely apart, and entertained concerning each other opinions which
+grew steadily more unfavorable, and upon Adams's part more
+contemptuous, as time went on.</p>
+
+<p>Fifteen months later General Jackson made his visit to Boston, and it
+was proposed that Harvard College should confer upon him the degree of
+Doctor of Laws. The absurdity of the act, considered simply in itself,
+was admitted by all. But the argument in its favor was based upon the
+established usage of the College as towards all other Presidents, so
+that its omission in this case might seem a personal slight. Mr.
+Adams, being at the time a member of the Board of Overseers, strongly
+opposed the proposition, but of course in vain. All that he could do
+was, for his own individual part, to refuse to be present at the
+conferring of the degree, giving as the minor reason for his absence,
+that he could hold no friendly intercourse with the President, but for
+the major reason that "independent of that, as myself an affectionate
+child of our Alma Mater, I would not be present to witness her
+disgrace in conferring her highest literary honors upon a barbarian
+who could not write a sentence of grammar and hardly could spell his
+own name." "A Doctorate of Laws," he said, "for which an apology was
+necessary, was
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page242" name="page242"></a>(p. 242)</span>
+a cheap honor and ... a sycophantic
+compliment." After the deed was done, he used to amuse himself by
+speaking of "Doctor Andrew Jackson." This same eastern tour of
+Jackson's called forth many other expressions of bitter sarcasm from
+Adams. The President was ill and unable to carry out the programme of
+entertainment and exhibition prepared for him: whereupon Mr. Adams
+remarks:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "I believe much of his debility is politic.... He is one of our
+     tribe of great men who turn disease to commodity, like John
+     Randolph, who for forty years was always dying. Jackson, ever
+     since he became a mark of public attention, has been doing the
+     same thing.... He is now alternately giving out his chronic
+     diarrh&oelig;a and making Warren bleed him for a pleurisy, and
+     posting to Cambridge for a doctorate of laws; mounting the
+     monument of Bunker's Hill to hear a fulsome address and receive
+     two cannon balls from Edward Everett," etc. "Four fifths of his
+     sickness is trickery, and the other fifth mere fatigue."
+</p>
+
+<p>This sounds, it must be confessed, a trifle rancorous; but Adams had
+great excuse for nourishing rancor towards Jackson.</p>
+
+<p>It is time, however, to return to the House of Representatives. It was
+not by bearing his share in the ordinary work of that body, important
+or exciting as that might at one time or another happen to be, that
+Mr. Adams was to win
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page243" name="page243"></a>(p. 243)</span>
+in Congress that reputation which has
+been already described as far overshadowing all his previous career. A
+special task and a peculiar mission were before him. It was a part of
+his destiny to become the champion of the anti-slavery cause in the
+national legislature. Almost the first thing which he did after he had
+taken his seat in Congress was to present "fifteen petitions signed
+numerously by citizens of Pennsylvania, praying for the abolition of
+slavery and the slave-trade in the District of Columbia." He simply
+moved their reference to the Committee on the District of Columbia,
+declaring that he should not support that part of the petition which
+prayed for abolition in the District. The time had not yet come when
+the South felt much anxiety at such manifestations, and these first
+stones were dropped into the pool without stirring a ripple on the
+surface. For about four years more we hear little in the Diary
+concerning slavery. It was not until 1835, when the annexation of
+Texas began to be mooted, that the North fairly took the alarm, and
+the irrepressible conflict began to develop. Then at once we find Mr.
+Adams at the front. That he had always cherished an abhorrence of
+slavery and a bitter antipathy to slave-holders as a class is
+sufficiently indicated by many chance remarks scattered through his
+Diary from
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page244" name="page244"></a>(p. 244)</span>
+early years. Now that a great question, vitally
+affecting the slave power, divided the country into parties and
+inaugurated the struggle which never again slept until it was settled
+forever by the result of the civil war, Mr. Adams at once assumed the
+function of leader. His position should be clearly understood; for in
+the vast labor which lay before the abolition party different tasks
+fell to different men. Mr. Adams assumed to be neither an agitator nor
+a reformer; by necessity of character, training, fitness, and official
+position, he was a legislator and statesman. The task which accident
+or destiny allotted to him was neither to preach among the people a
+crusade against slavery, nor to devise and keep in action the thousand
+resources which busy men throughout the country were constantly
+multiplying for the purpose of spreading and increasing a popular
+hostility towards the great "institution." Every great cause has need
+of its fanatics, its vanguard to keep far in advance of what is for
+the time reasonable and possible; it has not less need of the wiser
+and cooler heads to discipline and control the great mass which is set
+in motion by the reckless forerunners, to see to the accomplishment of
+that which the present circumstances and development of the movement
+allow to be accomplished. It fell to Mr. Adams to direct
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page245" name="page245"></a>(p. 245)</span> the
+assault against the outworks which were then vulnerable, and to see
+that the force then possessed by the movement was put to such uses as
+would insure definite results instead of being wasted in endeavors
+which as yet were impossible of achievement. Drawing his duty from his
+situation and surroundings, he left to others, to younger men and more
+rhetorical natures, outside the walls of Congress, the business of
+firing the people and stirring popular opinion and sympathy. He was
+set to do that portion of the work of abolition which was to be done
+in Congress, to encounter the mighty efforts which were made to stifle
+the great humanitarian cry in the halls of the national legislature.
+This was quite as much as one man was equal to; in fact, it is certain
+that no one then in public life except Mr. Adams could have done it
+effectually. So obvious is this that one cannot help wondering what
+would have befallen the cause, had he not been just where he was to
+forward it in just the way that he did. It is only another among the
+many instances of the need surely finding the man. His qualifications
+were unique; his ability, his knowledge, his prestige and authority,
+his high personal character, his persistence and courage, his
+combativeness stimulated by an acrimonious temper but checked by a
+sound judgment, his merciless
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page246" name="page246"></a>(p. 246)</span>
+power of invective, his
+independence and carelessness of applause or vilification, friendship
+or enmity, constituted him an opponent fully equal to the enormous
+odds which the slave-holding interest arrayed against him. A like
+moral and mental fitness was to be found in no one else. Numbers could
+not overawe him, nor loneliness dispirit him. He was probably the most
+formidable fighter in debate of whom parliamentary records preserve
+the memory. The hostility which he encountered beggars description;
+the English language was deficient in adequate words of virulence and
+contempt to express the feelings which were entertained towards him.
+At home he had not the countenance of that class in society to which
+he naturally belonged. A second time he found the chief part of the
+gentlemen of Boston and its vicinity, the leading lawyers, the rich
+merchants, the successful manufacturers, not only opposed to him, but
+entertaining towards him sentiments of personal dislike and even
+vindictiveness. This stratum of the community, having a natural
+distaste for disquieting agitation and influenced by class
+feeling,&mdash;the gentlemen of the North sympathizing with the
+"aristocracy" of the South,&mdash;could not make common cause with
+anti-slavery people. Fortunately, however, Mr. Adams was returned by a
+country district where the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page247" name="page247"></a>(p. 247)</span>
+old Puritan instincts were still
+strong. The intelligence and free spirit of New England were at his
+back, and were fairly represented by him; in spite of high-bred
+disfavor they carried him gallantly through the long struggle. The
+people of the Plymouth district sent him back to the House every two
+years from the time of his first election to the year of his death,
+and the disgust of the gentlemen of Boston was after all of trifling
+consequence to him and of no serious influence upon the course of
+history. The old New England instinct was in him as it was in the mass
+of the people; that instinct made him the real exponent of New England
+thought, belief, and feeling, and that same instinct made the great
+body of voters stand by him with unswerving constancy. When his fellow
+Representatives, almost to a man, deserted him, he was sustained by
+many a token of sympathy and admiration coming from among the people
+at large. Time and the history of the United States have been his
+potent vindicators. The conservative, conscienceless respectability of
+wealth was, as is usually the case with it in the annals of the
+Anglo-Saxon race, quite in the wrong and predestined to well-merited
+defeat. It adds to the honor due to Mr. Adams that his sense of right
+was true enough, and that his vision was clear enough, to lead him out
+of that strong thraldom which
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page248" name="page248"></a>(p. 248)</span>
+class feelings, traditions,
+and comradeship are wont to exercise.</p>
+
+<p>But it is time to resume the narrative and to let Mr. Adams's acts&mdash;of
+which after all it is possible to give only the briefest sketch,
+selecting a few of the more striking incidents&mdash;tell the tale of his
+Congressional life.</p>
+
+<p>On February 14, 1835, Mr. Adams again presented two petitions for the
+abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia, but without giving
+rise to much excitement. The fusillade was, however, getting too thick
+and fast to be endured longer with indifference by the impatient
+Southerners. At the next session of Congress they concluded to try to
+stop it, and their ingenious scheme was to make Congress shot-proof,
+so to speak, against such missiles. On January 4, 1836, Mr. Adams
+presented an abolition petition couched in the usual form, and moved
+that it be laid on the table, as others like it had lately been. But
+in a moment Mr. Glascock, of Georgia, moved that the petition be not
+received. Debate sprang up on a point of order, and two days later,
+before the question of reception was determined, a resolution was
+offered by Mr. Jarvis, of Maine, declaring that the House would not
+entertain any petitions for the abolition of slavery in the District
+of Columbia. This resolution was supported on the ground
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page249" name="page249"></a>(p. 249)</span>
+that Congress had no constitutional power in the premises. Some days
+later, January 18, 1836, before any final action had been reached upon
+this proposition, Mr. Adams presented some more abolition petitions,
+one of them signed by "one hundred and forty-eight ladies, citizens of
+the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; for, I said, I had not yet brought
+myself to doubt whether females were citizens." The usual motion not
+to receive was made, and then a new device was resorted to in the
+shape of a motion that the motion not to receive be laid on the table.</p>
+
+<p>On February 8, 1836, this novel scheme for shutting off petitions
+against slavery immediately upon their presentation was referred to a
+select committee of which Mr. Pinckney was chairman. On May 18 this
+committee reported in substance: 1. That Congress had no power to
+interfere with slavery in any State; 2. That Congress ought not to
+interfere with slavery in the District of Columbia; 3. That whereas
+the agitation of the subject was disquieting and objectionable, "all
+petitions, memorials, resolutions or papers, relating in any way or to
+any extent whatsoever to the subject of slavery or the abolition of
+slavery, shall, without being either printed or referred, be laid upon
+the table, and that no further action whatever shall be
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page250" name="page250"></a>(p. 250)</span> had
+thereon." When it came to taking a vote upon this report a division of
+the question was called for, and the yeas and nays were ordered. The
+first resolution was then read, whereupon Mr. Adams at once rose and
+pledged himself, if the House would allow him five minutes' time, to
+prove it to be false. But cries of "order" resounded; he was compelled
+to take his seat and the resolution was adopted by 182 to 9. Upon the
+second resolution he asked to be excused from voting, and his name was
+passed in the call. The third resolution with its preamble was then
+read, and Mr. Adams, so soon as his name was called, rose and said: "I
+hold the resolution to be a direct violation of the Constitution of
+the United States, the rules of this House, and the rights of my
+constituents." He was interrupted by shrieks of "order" resounding on
+every side; but he only spoke the louder and obstinately finished his
+sentence before resuming his seat. The resolution was of course agreed
+to, the vote standing 117 to 68. Such was the beginning of the famous
+"gag" which became and long remained&mdash;afterward in a worse shape&mdash;a
+standing rule of the House. Regularly in each new Congress when the
+adoption of rules came up, Mr. Adams moved to rescind the "gag;" but
+for many years his motions continued to be voted down,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page251" name="page251"></a>(p. 251)</span> as a
+matter of course. Its imposition was clearly a mistake on the part of
+the slave-holding party; free debate would almost surely have hurt
+them less than this interference with the freedom of petition. They
+had assumed an untenable position. Henceforth, as the persistent
+advocate of the right of petition, Mr. Adams had a support among the
+people at large vastly greater than he could have enjoyed as the
+opponent of slavery. As his adversaries had shaped the issue he was
+predestined to victory in a free country.</p>
+
+<p>A similar scene was enacted on December 21 and 22, 1837. A "gag" or
+"speech-smothering" resolution being then again before the House, Mr.
+Adams, when his name was called in the taking of the vote, cried out
+"amidst a perfect war-whoop of 'order:' 'I hold the resolution to be a
+violation of the Constitution, of the right of petition of my
+constituents and of the people of the United States, and of my right
+to freedom of speech as a member of this House.'" Afterward, in
+reading over the names of members who had voted, the clerk omitted
+that of Mr. Adams, this utterance of his not having constituted a
+vote. Mr. Adams called attention to the omission. The clerk, by
+direction of the Speaker, thereupon called his name. His only reply
+was by a motion that his answer as already made
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page252" name="page252"></a>(p. 252)</span>
+should be
+entered on the Journal. The Speaker said that this motion was not in
+order. Mr. Adams, resolute to get upon the record, requested that his
+motion with the Speaker's decision that it was not in order might be
+entered on the Journal. The next day, finding that this entry had not
+been made in proper shape, he brought up the matter again. One of his
+opponents made a false step, and Mr. Adams "bantered him" upon it
+until the other was provoked into saying that, "if the question ever
+came to the issue of war, the Southern people would march into New
+England and conquer it." Mr. Adams replied that no doubt they would if
+they could; that he entered his resolution upon the Journal because he
+was resolved that his opponent's "name should go down to posterity
+damned to everlasting fame." No one ever gained much in a war of words
+with this ever-ready and merciless tongue.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Adams, having soon become known to all the nation as the
+indomitable presenter of anti-slavery petitions, quickly found that
+great numbers of people were ready to keep him busy in this trying
+task. For a long while it was almost as much as he could accomplish to
+receive, sort, schedule, and present the infinite number of petitions
+and memorials which came to him praying for the abolition of slavery
+and of the slave-trade
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page253" name="page253"></a>(p. 253)</span>
+in the District of Columbia, and
+opposing the annexation of Texas. It was an occupation not altogether
+devoid even of physical danger, and calling for an amount of moral
+courage greater than it is now easy to appreciate. It is the incipient
+stage of such a conflict that tests the mettle of the little band of
+innovators. When it grows into a great party question much less
+courage is demanded. The mere presentation of an odious petition may
+seem in itself to be a simple task; but to find himself in a constant
+state of antagonism to a powerful, active, and vindictive majority in
+a debating body, constituted of such material as then made up the
+House of Representatives, wore hardly even upon the iron temper and
+inflexible disposition of Mr. Adams. "The most insignificant error of
+conduct in me at this time," he writes in April, 1837, "would be my
+irredeemable ruin in this world; and both the ruling political parties
+are watching with intense anxiety for some overt act by me to set the
+whole pack of their hireling presses upon me." But amid the host of
+foes, and aware that he could count upon the aid of scarcely a single
+hearty and daring friend, he labored only the more earnestly. The
+severe pressure against him begat only the more severe counter
+pressure upon his part.</p>
+
+<p>Besides
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page254" name="page254"></a>(p. 254)</span>
+these natural and legitimate difficulties, Mr. Adams
+was further in the embarrassing position of one who has to fear as
+much from the imprudence of allies as from open hostility of
+antagonists, and he was often compelled to guard against a peculiar
+risk coming from his very coadjutors in the great cause. The
+extremists who had cast aside all regard for what was practicable, and
+who utterly scorned to consider the feasibility or the consequences of
+measures which seemed to them to be correct as abstract propositions
+of morality, were constantly urging him to action which would only
+have destroyed him forever in political life, would have stripped him
+of his influence, exiled him from that position in Congress where he
+could render the most efficient service that was in him, and left him
+naked of all usefulness and utterly helpless to continue that
+essential portion of the labor which could be conducted by no one
+else. "The abolitionists generally," he said, "are constantly urging
+me to indiscreet movements, which would ruin me, and weaken and not
+strengthen their cause." His family, on the other hand, sought to
+restrain him from all connection with these dangerous partisans.
+"Between these adverse impulses," he writes, "my mind is agitated
+almost to distraction.... I walk on the edge of a precipice almost
+every step
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page255" name="page255"></a>(p. 255)</span>
+that I take." In the midst of all this anxiety,
+however, he was fortunately supported by the strong commendation of
+his constituents which they once loyally declared by formal and
+unanimous votes in a convention summoned for the express purpose of
+manifesting their support. His feelings appear by an entry in his
+Diary in October, 1837:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "I have gone [he said] as far upon this article, the abolition of
+     slavery, as the public opinion of the free portion of the Union
+     will bear, and so far that scarcely a slave-holding member of the
+     House dares to vote with me upon any question. I have as yet been
+     thoroughly sustained by my own State, but one step further and I
+     hazard my own standing and influence there, my own final
+     overthrow, and the cause of liberty itself for an indefinite
+     time, certainly for more than my remnant of life. Were there in
+     the House one member capable of taking the lead in this cause of
+     universal emancipation, which is moving onward in the world and
+     in this country, I would withdraw from the contest which will
+     rage with increasing fury as it draws to its crisis, but for the
+     management of which my age, infirmities, and approaching end
+     totally disqualify me. There is no such man in the House."
+</p>
+
+<p>September 15, 1837, he says: "I have been for some time occupied day
+and night, when at home, in assorting and recording the petitions and
+
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page256" name="page256"></a>(p. 256)</span>
+remonstrances against the annexation of Texas, and other
+anti-slavery petitions, which flow upon me in torrents." The next day
+he presented the singular petition of one Sherlock S. Gregory, who had
+conceived the eccentric notion of asking Congress to declare him "an
+alien or stranger in the land so long as slavery exists and the wrongs
+of the Indians are unrequited and unrepented of." September 28 he
+presented a batch of his usual petitions, and also asked leave to
+offer a resolution calling for a report concerning the coasting trade
+in slaves. "There was what Napoleon would have called a superb NO!
+returned to my request from the servile side of the House." The next
+day he presented fifty-one more like documents, and notes having
+previously presented one hundred and fifty more.</p>
+
+<p>In December, 1837, still at this same work, he made a hard but
+fruitless effort to have the Texan remonstrances and petitions sent to
+a select committee instead of to that on foreign affairs which was
+constituted in the Southern interest. On December 29 he "presented
+several bundles of abolition and anti-slavery petitions," and said
+that, having declared his opinion that the gag-rule was
+unconstitutional, null, and void, he should "submit to it only as to
+physical force." January 3, 1838, he presented "about
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page257" name="page257"></a>(p. 257)</span> a
+hundred petitions, memorials, and remonstrances,&mdash;all laid on the
+table." January 15 he presented fifty more. January 28 he received
+thirty-one petitions, and spent that day and the next in assorting and
+filing these and others which he previously had, amounting in all to
+one hundred and twenty. February 14, in the same year, was a field-day
+in the petition campaign: he presented then no less than three hundred
+and fifty petitions, all but three or four of which bore more or less
+directly upon the slavery question. Among these petitions was one</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "praying that Congress would take measures to protect citizens
+     from the North going to the South from danger to their lives.
+     When the motion to lay that on the table was made, I said that,
+     'In another part of the Capitol it had been threatened that if a
+     Northern abolitionist should go to North Carolina, and utter a
+     principle of the Declaration of Independence'&mdash;Here a loud cry of
+     'order! order!' burst forth, in which the Speaker yelled the
+     loudest. I waited till it subsided, and then resumed, 'that if
+     they could catch him they would hang him!' I said this so as to
+     be distinctly heard throughout the hall, the renewed deafening
+     shout of 'order! order!' notwithstanding. The Speaker then said,
+     'The gentleman from Massachusetts will take his seat;' which I
+     did and immediately rose again and presented another petition. He
+     did not dare tell me that I could not proceed
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page258" name="page258"></a>(p. 258)</span>
+without
+     permission of the House, and I proceeded. The threat to hang
+     Northern abolitionists was uttered by Preston of the Senate
+     within the last fortnight."
+</p>
+
+<p>On March 12, of the same year, he presented ninety-six petitions,
+nearly all of an anti-slavery character, one of them for "expunging
+the Declaration of Independence from the Journals."</p>
+
+<p>On December 14, 1838, Mr. Wise, of Virginia, objected to the reception
+of certain anti-slavery petitions. The Speaker ruled his objection out
+of order, and from this ruling Wise appealed. The question on the
+appeal was taken by yeas and nays. When Mr. Adams's name was called,
+he relates:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "I rose and said, 'Mr. Speaker, considering all the resolutions
+     introduced by the gentleman from New Hampshire as'&mdash;The Speaker
+     roared out, 'The gentleman from Massachusetts must answer Aye or
+     No, and nothing else. Order!' With a reinforced voice&mdash;'I refuse
+     to answer, because I consider all the proceedings of the House as
+     unconstitutional'&mdash;While in a firm and swelling voice I
+     pronounced distinctly these words, the Speaker and about two
+     thirds of the House cried, 'order! order! order!' till it became
+     a perfect yell. I paused a moment for it to cease and then said,
+     'a direct violation of the Constitution of the United States.'
+     While speaking these words
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page259" name="page259"></a>(p. 259)</span>
+with loud, distinct, and
+     slow articulation, the bawl of 'order! order!' resounded again
+     from two thirds of the House. The Speaker, with agonizing lungs,
+     screamed, 'I call upon the House to support me in the execution
+     of my duty!' I then coolly resumed my seat. Waddy Thompson, of
+     South Carolina, advancing into one of the aisles with a sarcastic
+     smile and silvery tone of voice, said, 'What aid from the House
+     would the Speaker desire?' The Speaker snarled back, 'The
+     gentleman from South Carolina is out of order!' and a peal of
+     laughter burst forth from all sides of the House."
+</p>
+
+<p>So that little skirmish ended, much more cheerfully than was often the
+case.</p>
+
+<p>December 20, 1838, he presented fifty anti-slavery petitions, among
+which were three praying for the recognition of the Republic of Hayti.
+Petitions of this latter kind he strenuously insisted should be
+referred to a select committee, or else to the Committee on Foreign
+Affairs, accompanied in the latter case with explicit instructions
+that a report thereon should be brought in. He audaciously stated that
+he asked for these instructions because so many petitions of a like
+tenor had been sent to the Foreign Affairs Committee, and had found it
+a limbo from which they never again emerged, and the chairman had said
+that this would continue to be the case. The chairman, sitting two
+rows behind
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page260" name="page260"></a>(p. 260)</span>
+Mr. Adams, said, "that insinuation should not be
+made against a gentleman!" "I shall make," retorted Mr. Adams, "what
+insinuation I please. This is not an insinuation, but a direct,
+positive assertion."</p>
+
+<p>January 7, 1839, he cheerfully records that he presented ninety-five
+petitions, bearing "directly or indirectly upon the slavery topics,"
+and some of them very exasperating in their language. March 30, 1840,
+he handed in no less than five hundred and eleven petitions, many of
+which were not receivable under the "gag" rule adopted on January 28
+of that year, which had actually gone the length of refusing so much
+as a reception to abolition petitions. April 13, 1840, he presented a
+petition for the repeal of the laws in the District of Columbia, which
+authorized the whipping of women. Besides this he had a multitude of
+others, and he only got through the presentation of them "just as the
+morning hour expired." On January 21, 1841, he found much amusement in
+puzzling his Southern adversaries by presenting some petitions in
+which, besides the usual anti-slavery prayers, there was a prayer to
+refuse to admit to the Union any new State whose constitution should
+tolerate slavery. The Speaker said that only the latter prayer could
+be <i>received</i> under the "gag" rule. Connor, of North
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page261" name="page261"></a>(p. 261)</span>
+Carolina, moved to lay on the table so much of the petition as could
+be received. Mr. Adams tauntingly suggested that in order to do this
+it would be necessary to mutilate the document by cutting it into two
+pieces; whereat there was great wrath and confusion, "the House got
+into a snarl, the Speaker knew not what to do." The Southerners raved
+and fumed for a while, and finally resorted to their usual expedient,
+and dropped altogether a matter which so sorely burned their fingers.</p>
+
+<p>A fact, very striking in view of the subsequent course of events,
+concerning Mr. Adams's relation with the slavery question, seems
+hitherto to have escaped the attention of those who have dealt with
+his career. It may as well find a place here as elsewhere in a
+narrative which it is difficult to make strictly chronological.
+Apparently he was the first to declare the doctrine, that the
+abolition of slavery could be lawfully accomplished by the exercise of
+the war powers of the Government. The earliest expression of this
+principle is found in a speech made by him in May, 1836, concerning
+the distribution of rations to fugitives from Indian hostilities in
+Alabama and Georgia. He then said:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "From the instant that your slave-holding States become the
+     theatre of war, civil, servile, or foreign, from
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page262" name="page262"></a>(p. 262)</span> that
+     instant the war powers of the Constitution extend to interference
+     with the institution of slavery in every way in which it can be
+     interfered with, from a claim of indemnity for slaves taken or
+     destroyed, to a cession of the State burdened with slavery to a
+     foreign power."
+</p>
+
+<p>In June, 1841, he made a speech of which no report exists, but the
+contents of which may be in part learned from the replies and
+references to it which are on record. Therein he appears to have
+declared that slavery could be abolished in the exercise of the
+treaty-making power, having reference doubtless to a treaty concluding
+a war.</p>
+
+<p>These views were of course mere abstract expressions of opinion as to
+the constitutionality of measures the real occurrence of which was
+anticipated by nobody. But, as the first suggestions of a doctrine in
+itself most obnoxious to the Southern theory and fundamentally
+destructive of the great Southern "institution" under perfectly
+possible circumstances, this enunciation by Mr. Adams gave rise to
+much indignation. Instead of allowing the imperfectly formulated
+principle to lose its danger in oblivion, the Southerners assailed it
+with vehemence. They taunted Mr. Adams with the opinion, as if merely
+to say that he held it was to damn him to everlasting infamy. The only
+result was that they
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page263" name="page263"></a>(p. 263)</span>
+induced him to consider the matter more
+fully, and to express his belief more deliberately. In January, 1842,
+Mr. Wise attacked him upon this ground, and a month later Marshall
+followed in the same strain. These assaults were perhaps the direct
+incentive to what was said soon after by Mr. Adams, on April 14, 1842,
+in a speech concerning war with England and with Mexico, of which
+there was then some talk. Giddings, among other resolutions, had
+introduced one to the effect that the slave States had the exclusive
+right to be consulted on the subject of slavery. Mr. Adams said that
+he could not give his assent to this. One of the laws of war, he said,
+is</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "that when a country is invaded, and two hostile armies are set
+     in martial array, the commanders of both armies have power to
+     emancipate all the slaves in the invaded territory."
+</p>
+
+<p>He cited some precedents from South American history, and continued:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "Whether the war be servile, civil, or foreign, I lay this down
+     as the law of nations. I say that the military authority takes
+     for the time the place of all municipal institutions, slavery
+     among the rest. Under that state of things, so far from its being
+     true that the States where slavery exists have the exclusive
+     management of the subject, not only the President of the United
+     States but the commander of the army has power
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page264" name="page264"></a>(p. 264)</span> to order
+     the universal emancipation of the slaves."
+</p>
+
+<p>This declaration of constitutional doctrine was made with much
+positiveness and emphasis. There for many years the matter rested. The
+principle had been clearly asserted by Mr. Adams, angrily repudiated
+by the South, and in the absence of the occasion of war there was
+nothing more to be done in the matter. But when the exigency at last
+came, and the government of the United States was brought face to face
+with by far the gravest constitutional problem presented by the great
+rebellion, then no other solution presented itself save that which had
+been suggested twenty years earlier in the days of peace by Mr. Adams.
+It was in pursuance of the doctrine to which he thus gave the first
+utterance that slavery was forever abolished in the United States.
+Extracts from the last-quoted speech long stood as the motto of the
+"Liberator;" and at the time of the Emancipation Proclamation Mr.
+Adams was regarded as the chief and sufficient authority for an act so
+momentous in its effect, so infinitely useful in a matter of national
+extremity. But it was evidently a theory which had taken strong hold
+upon him. Besides the foregoing speeches there is an explicit
+statement of it in a letter which he wrote from Washington April 4,
+1836, to Hon.
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page265" name="page265"></a>(p. 265)</span>
+Solomon Lincoln, of Hingham, a friend and
+constituent. After touching upon other topics he says:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "The new pretensions of the slave representation in Congress of a
+     right to refuse to receive petitions, and that Congress have no
+     constitutional power to abolish slavery or the slave-trade in the
+     District of Columbia, forced upon me so much of the discussion as
+     I did take upon me, but in which you are well aware I did not and
+     could not speak a tenth part of my mind. I did not, for example,
+     start the question whether by the law of God and of nature man
+     can hold <i>property</i>, <span class="smcap">HEREDITARY</span>
+property, in man. I did not start
+     the question whether in the event of a servile insurrection and
+     war, Congress would not have complete unlimited control over the
+     whole subject of slavery, even to the emancipation of all the
+     slaves in the State where such insurrection should break out, and
+     for the suppression of which the freemen of Plymouth and Norfolk
+     counties, Massachusetts, should be called by Acts of Congress to
+     pour out their treasures and to shed their blood. Had I spoken my
+     mind on these two points, the sturdiest of the abolitionists
+     would have disavowed the sentiments of their champion."
+</p>
+
+<p>The projected annexation of Texas, which became a battle-ground
+whereon the tide of conflict swayed so long and so fiercely to and
+fro, profoundly stirred Mr. Adams's indignation. It is, he said, "a
+question of far deeper root
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page266" name="page266"></a>(p. 266)</span>
+and more overshadowing branches
+than any or all others that now agitate this country.... I had opened
+it by my speech ... on the 25th May, 1836&mdash;by far the most noted
+speech that I ever made." He based his opposition to the annexation
+upon constitutional objections, and on September 18, 1837, offered a
+resolution that "the power of annexing the people of any independent
+State to this Union is a power not delegated by the Constitution of
+the United States to their Congress or to any department of their
+government, but reserved to the people." The Speaker refused to
+receive the motion, or even allow it to be read, on the ground that it
+was not in order. Mr. Adams repeated substantially the same motion in
+June, 1838, then adding "that any attempt by act of Congress or by
+treaty to annex the Republic of Texas to this Union would be an
+usurpation of power which it would be the right and the duty of the
+free people of the Union to resist and annul." The story of his
+opposition to this measure is, however, so interwoven with his general
+antagonism to slavery, that there is little occasion for treating them
+separately.<a id="footnotetag9" name="footnotetag9"></a><a href="#footnote9">[9]</a></p>
+
+<p>People
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page267" name="page267"></a>(p. 267)</span>
+sometimes took advantage of his avowed principles
+concerning freedom of petition to put him in positions which they
+thought would embarrass him or render him ridiculous. Not much
+success, however, attended these foolish efforts of shallow wits. It
+was not easy to disconcert him or to take him at disadvantage. July
+28, 1841, he presented a paper of this character coming from sundry
+Virginians and praying that all the free colored population should be
+sold or expelled from the country. He simply stated as he handed in
+the sheet that nothing
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page268" name="page268"></a>(p. 268)</span>
+could be more abhorrent to him than
+this prayer, and that his respect for the right of petition was his
+only motive for presenting this. It was suspended under the "gag"
+rule, and its promoters, unless very easily amused, must have been
+sadly disappointed with the fate and effect of their joke. On March 5,
+1838, he received from Rocky Mount in Virginia a letter and petition
+praying that the House would arraign at its bar and forever expel John
+Quincy Adams. He presented both documents, with a resolution asking
+that they be referred to a committee for investigation and report. His
+enemies in the House saw that he was sure to have the best of the
+sport if the matter should be pursued, and succeeded in laying it on
+the table. Waddy Thompson thoughtfully improved the opportunity to
+mention to Mr. Adams that he also had received a petition, "numerously
+signed," praying for Mr. Adams's expulsion, but had never presented
+it. In the following May Mr. Adams presented another petition of like
+tenor. Dromgoole said that he supposed it was a "quiz," and that he
+would move to lay it on the table, "unless the gentleman from
+Massachusetts wished to give it another direction." Mr. Adams said
+that "the gentleman from Massachusetts cared very little about it,"
+and it found the limbo of the "table."</p>
+
+<p>To
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page269" name="page269"></a>(p. 269)</span>
+this same period belongs the memorable tale of Mr. Adams's
+attempt to present a petition from slaves. On February 6, 1837, he
+brought in some two hundred abolition petitions. He closed with one
+against the slave-trade in the District of Columbia purporting to be
+signed by "nine ladies of Fredericksburg, Virginia," whom he declined
+to name because, as he said, in the present disposition of the
+country, "he did not know what might happen to them if he did name
+them." Indeed, he added, he was not sure that the petition was
+genuine; he had said, when he began to present his petitions, that
+some among them were so peculiar that he was in doubt as to their
+genuineness, and this fell within the description. Apparently he had
+concluded and was about to take his seat, when he quickly caught up
+another sheet, and said that he held in his hand a paper concerning
+which he should wish to have the decision of the Speaker before
+presenting it. It purported to be a petition from twenty-two slaves,
+and he would like to know whether it came within the rule of the House
+concerning petitions relating to slavery. The Speaker, in manifest
+confusion, said that he could not answer the question until he knew
+the contents of the document. Mr. Adams, remarking that "it was one of
+those petitions which
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page270" name="page270"></a>(p. 270)</span>
+had occurred to his mind as not being
+what it purported to be," proposed to send it up to the Chair for
+inspection. Objection was made to this, and the Speaker said that the
+circumstances were so extraordinary that he would take the sense of
+the House. That body, at first inattentive, now became interested, and
+no sooner did a knowledge of what was going on spread among those
+present than great excitement prevailed. Members were hastily brought
+in from the lobbies; many tried to speak, and from parts of the hall
+cries of "Expel him! Expel him!" were heard. For a brief interval no
+one of the enraged Southerners was equal to the unforeseen emergency.
+Mr. Haynes moved the rejection of the petition. Mr. Lewis deprecated
+this motion, being of opinion that the House must inflict punishment
+on the gentleman from Massachusetts. Mr. Haynes thereupon withdrew a
+motion which was so obviously inadequate to the vindictive gravity of
+the occasion. Mr. Grantland stood ready to second a motion to punish
+Mr. Adams, and Mr. Lewis said that if punishment should not be meted
+out it would "be better for the representatives from the slave-holding
+States to go home at once." Mr. Alford said that so soon as the
+petition should be presented he would move that it should "be taken
+from the House
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page271" name="page271"></a>(p. 271)</span>
+and burned." At last Mr. Thompson got a
+resolution into shape as follows:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "That the Hon. John Quincy Adams, by the attempt just made by him
+     to introduce a petition purporting on its face to be from slaves,
+     has been guilty of a gross disrespect to this House, and that he
+     be instantly brought to the bar to receive the severe censure of
+     the Speaker."
+</p>
+
+<p>In supporting this resolution he said that Mr. Adams's action was in
+gross and wilful violation of the rules of the House and an insult to
+its members. He even threatened criminal proceedings before the grand
+jury of the District of Columbia, saying that if that body had the
+"proper intelligence and spirit" people might "yet see an incendiary
+brought to condign punishment." Mr. Haynes, not satisfied with Mr.
+Thompson's resolution, proposed a substitute to the effect that Mr.
+Adams had "rendered himself justly liable to the severest censure of
+this House and is censured accordingly." Then there ensued a little
+more excited speech-making and another resolution, that Mr. Adams,</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "by his attempt to introduce into this House a petition from
+     slaves for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia,
+     has committed an outrage on the feelings of the people of a large
+     portion of this Union;
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page272" name="page272"></a>(p. 272)</span>
+a flagrant contempt on the
+     dignity of this House; and, by extending to slaves a privilege
+     only belonging to freemen, directly incites the slave population
+     to insurrection; and that the said member be forthwith called to
+     the bar of the House and be censured by the Speaker."
+</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Lewis remained of opinion that it might be best for the Southern
+members to go home,&mdash;a proposition which afterwards drew forth a
+flaming speech from Mr. Alford, who, far from inclining to go home,
+was ready to stay "until this fair city is a field of Waterloo and
+this beautiful Potomac a river of blood." Mr. Patton, of Virginia, was
+the first to speak a few words to bring members to their senses,
+pertinently asking whether Mr. Adams had "attempted to offer" this
+petition, and whether it did indeed pray for the abolition of slavery.
+It might be well, he suggested, for his friends to be sure of their
+facts before going further. Then at last Mr. Adams, who had not at all
+lost his head in the general hurly-burly, rose and said, that amid
+these numerous resolutions charging him with "high crimes and
+misdemeanors" and calling him to the bar of the House to answer for
+the same, he had thought it proper to remain silent until the House
+should take some action; that he did not suppose that, if he should be
+brought to the bar of the House,
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page273" name="page273"></a>(p. 273)</span>
+he should be "struck mute
+by the previous question" before he should have been given an
+opportunity to "say a word or two" in his own defence. As to the
+facts: "I did not present the petition," he said, "and I appeal to the
+Speaker to say that I did not.... I intended to take the decision of
+the Speaker before I went one step towards presenting or offering to
+present that petition." The contents of the petition, should the House
+ever choose to read it, he continued, would render necessary some
+amendments at least in the last resolution, since the prayer was that
+slavery should <i>not</i> be abolished!" The gentleman from Alabama may
+perchance find, that the object of this petition is precisely what he
+desires to accomplish; and that these slaves who have sent this paper
+to me are his auxiliaries instead of being his opponents."</p>
+
+<p>These remarks caused some discomfiture among the Southern members, who
+were glad to have time for deliberation given them by a maundering
+speech from Mr. Mann, of New York, who talked about "the deplorable
+spectacle shown off every petition day by the honorable member from
+Massachusetts in presenting the abolition petitions of his infatuated
+friends and constituents," charged Mr. Adams with running counter to
+the sense of the whole country
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page274" name="page274"></a>(p. 274)</span>
+with a "violence paralleled
+only by the revolutionary madness of desperation," and twitted him
+with his political friendlessness, with his age, and with the
+insinuation of waning faculties and judgment. This little phial having
+been emptied, Mr. Thompson arose and angrily assailed Mr. Adams for
+contemptuously trifling with the House, which charge he based upon the
+entirely unproved assumption that the petition was not a genuine
+document. He concluded by presenting new resolutions better adapted to
+the recent development of the case:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="quote">
+<p> "1. That the Hon. John Quincy Adams, by an effort to present a
+     petition from slaves, has committed a gross contempt of this
+     House.</p>
+
+<p> "2. That the member from Massachusetts above-named, by creating
+     the impression and leaving the House under such impression, that
+     the said petition was for the abolition of slavery, when he knew
+     that it was not, has trifled with the House.</p>
+
+<p> "3. That the Hon. John Quincy Adams receive the censure of the
+     House for his conduct referred to in the preceding resolutions."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Mr. Pinckney said that the avowal by Mr. Adams that he had in his
+possession the petition of slaves was an admission of communication
+with slaves, and so was evidence of collusion with them; and that Mr.
+Adams had thus
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page275" name="page275"></a>(p. 275)</span>
+rendered himself indictable for aiding and
+abetting insurrection. A <i>fortiori</i>, then, was he not amenable to the
+censure of the House? Mr. Haynes, of Georgia, forgetting that the
+petition had not been presented, announced his intention of moving
+that it should be rejected subject only to a permission for its
+withdrawal; another member suggested that, if the petition should be
+disposed of by burning, it would be well to commit to the same
+combustion the gentleman who presented it.</p>
+
+<p>On the next day some more resolutions were ready, prepared by
+Dromgoole, who in his sober hours was regarded as the best
+parliamentarian in the Southern party. These were, that Mr. Adams</p>
+
+<div class="quote">
+<p>"by stating in his place that he had in his possession a paper
+     purporting to be a petition from slaves, and inquiring if it came
+     within the meaning of a resolution heretofore adopted (as
+     preliminary to its presentation), has given color to the idea
+     that slaves have the right of petition and of his readiness to be
+     their organ; and that for the same he deserves the censure of the
+     House.</p>
+
+<p>"That the aforesaid John Quincy Adams receive a censure from the
+     Speaker in the presence of the House of Representatives."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Mr. Alford, in advocating these resolutions, talked about "this awful
+crisis of our beloved country."
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page276" name="page276"></a>(p. 276)</span>
+Mr. Robertson, though
+opposing the resolutions, took pains "strongly to condemn ... the
+conduct of the gentleman from Massachusetts." Mr. Adams's colleague,
+Mr. Lincoln, spoke in his behalf, so also did Mr. Evans, of Maine; and
+Caleb Cushing made a powerful speech upon his side. Otherwise than
+this Mr. Adams was left to carry on the contest single-handed against
+the numerous array of assailants, all incensed and many fairly savage.
+Yet it is a striking proof of the dread in which even the united body
+of hot-blooded Southerners stood of this hard fighter from the North,
+that as the debate was drawing to a close, after they had all said
+their say and just before his opportunity came for making his
+elaborate speech of defence, they suddenly and opportunely became
+ready to content themselves with a mild resolution, which condemned
+generally the presentation of petitions from slaves, and, for the
+disposal of this particular case, recited that Mr. Adams had "solemnly
+disclaimed all design of doing anything disrespectful to the House,"
+and had "avowed his intention not to offer to present" to the House
+the petition of this kind held by him; that "therefore all further
+proceedings in regard to his conduct do now cease." A sneaking effort
+by Mr. Vanderpoel to close Mr. Adams's mouth by
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page277" name="page277"></a>(p. 277)</span>
+moving the
+previous question involved too much cowardice to be carried; and so on
+February 9 the sorely bated man was at last able to begin his final
+speech. He conducted his defence with singular spirit and ability, but
+at too great length to admit of even a sketch of what he said. He
+claimed the right of petition for slaves, and established it so far as
+argument can establish anything. He alleged that all he had done was
+to ask a question of the Speaker, and if he was to be censured for so
+doing, then how much more, he asked, was the Speaker deserving of
+censure who had even put the same question to the House, and given as
+his reason for so doing that it was not only of novel but of difficult
+import! He repudiated the idea that any member of the House could be
+held by a grand jury to respond for words spoken in debate, and
+recommended the gentlemen who had indulged in such preposterous
+threats "to study a little the first principles of civil liberty,"
+excoriating them until they actually arose and tried to explain away
+their own language. He cast infinite ridicule upon the unhappy
+expression of Dromgoole, "giving color to an idea." Referring to the
+difficulty which he encountered by reason of the variety and disorder
+of the resolutions and charges against him with which "gentlemen from
+the South had
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page278" name="page278"></a>(p. 278)</span>
+pounced down upon him like so many eagles upon
+a dove,"&mdash;there was an exquisite sarcasm in the simile!&mdash;he said:
+"When I take up one idea, before I can give color to the idea, it has
+already changed its form and presents itself for consideration under
+other colors.... What defence can be made against this new crime of
+giving color to ideas?" As for trifling with the House by presenting a
+petition which in the course of debate had become pretty well known
+and acknowledged to be a hoax designed to lead Mr. Adams into a
+position of embarrassment and danger, he disclaimed any such motive,
+reminding members that he had given warning, when beginning to present
+his petitions, that he was suspicious that some among them might not
+be genuine.<a id="footnotetag10" name="footnotetag10"></a><a href="#footnote10">[10]</a>
+But while denying all intention of trifling with the
+
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page279" name="page279"></a>(p. 279)</span>
+House, he rejected the mercy extended to him in the last of
+the long series of resolutions before that body. "I disclaim not," he
+said, "any particle of what I have done, not a single word of what I
+have said do I unsay; nay, I am ready to do and to say the same
+to-morrow." He had no notion of aiding in making a loophole through
+which his blundering enemies might escape, even though he himself
+should be accorded the privilege of crawling through it with them. At
+times during his speech "there was great agitation in the House," but
+when he closed no one seemed ambitious to reply. His enemies had
+learned anew a lesson, often taught to them before and often to be
+impressed upon them again, that it was perilous to come to close
+quarters with Mr. Adams. They gave up all idea of censuring him, and
+were content to apply a very mild emollient to their own smarting
+wounds in the shape of a resolution, to the effect that slaves did not
+possess the right of petition secured by the Constitution to the
+people of the United States.</p>
+
+<p>In the winter of 1842-43 the questions arising out of the affair of
+the Creole rendered the position then held by Mr. Adams at the head of
+the House Committee on Foreign Affairs exceedingly distasteful to the
+slave-holders. On January
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page280" name="page280"></a>(p. 280)</span>
+21, 1842, a somewhat singular
+manifestation of this feeling was made when Mr. Adams himself
+presented a petition from Georgia praying for his removal from this
+Chairmanship. Upon this he requested to be heard in his own behalf.
+The Southern party, not sanguine of any advantage from debating the
+matter, tried to lay it on the table. The petition was alleged by
+Habersham, of Georgia, to be undoubtedly another hoax. But Mr. Adams,
+loath to lose a good opportunity, still claimed to be heard on the
+charges made against him by the "infamous slave-holders." Mr. Smith,
+of Virginia, said that the House had lately given Mr. Adams leave to
+defend himself against the charge of monomania, and asked whether he
+was doing so. Some members cried "Yes! Yes!"; others shouted "No! he
+is establishing the fact." The wrangling was at last brought to an end
+by the Speaker's declaration, that the petition must lie over for the
+present. But the scene had been only the prelude to one much longer,
+fiercer, and more exciting. No sooner was the document thus
+temporarily disposed of than Mr. Adams rose and presented the petition
+of forty-five citizens of Haverhill, Massachusetts, praying the House
+"immediately to adopt measures peaceably to dissolve the union of
+these States," for the alleged cause of the incompatibility
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page281" name="page281"></a>(p. 281)</span>
+between free and slave-holding communities. He moved "its reference to
+a select committee, with instructions to report an answer to the
+petitioners showing the reasons why the prayer of it ought not to be
+granted."</p>
+
+<p>In a moment the House was aflame with excitement. The numerous members
+who hated Mr. Adams thought that at last he was experiencing the
+divinely sent madness which foreruns destruction. Those who sought his
+political annihilation felt that the appointed and glorious hour of
+extinction had come; those who had writhed beneath the castigation of
+his invective exulted in the near revenge. While one said that the
+petition should never have been brought within the walls of the House,
+and another wished to burn it in the presence of the members, Mr.
+Gilmer, of Virginia, offered a resolution, that in presenting the
+petition Mr. Adams "had justly incurred the censure of the House."
+Some objection was made to this resolution as not being in order; but
+Mr. Adams said that he hoped that it would be received and debated and
+that an opportunity would be given him to speak in his own defence;
+"especially as the gentleman from Virginia had thought proper to play
+second fiddle to his
+colleague<a id="footnotetag11" name="footnotetag11"></a><a href="#footnote11">[11]</a>
+from Accomac." Mr. Gilmer retorted
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page282" name="page282"></a>(p. 282)</span>
+that he "played second fiddle to no man. He was no fiddler,
+but was endeavoring to prevent the music of him who,</p>
+
+<p class="poem">
+  'In the space of one revolving moon,<br>
+  Was statesman, poet, fiddler, and buffoon.'"
+</p>
+
+<p>The resolution was then laid on the table. The House rose, and Mr.
+Adams went home and noted in his Diary, "evening in meditation," for
+which indeed he had abundant cause. On the following day Thomas F.
+Marshall, of Kentucky, offered a substitute for Gilmer's resolution.
+This new fulmination had been prepared in a caucus of forty members of
+the slave-holding party, and was long and carefully framed. Its
+preamble recited, in substance, that a petition to dissolve the Union,
+proposing to Congress to destroy that which the several members had
+solemnly and officially sworn to support, was a "high breach of
+privilege, a contempt offered to this House, a direct proposition to
+the Legislature and each member of it to commit perjury, and involving
+necessarily in its execution and its consequences the destruction of
+our country and the crime of high treason:" wherefore it was to be
+resolved that Mr. Adams, in presenting a petition for dissolution, had
+"offered the deepest indignity to the House" and "an insult to the
+people;" that if "this outrage" should be "permitted to pass unrebuked
+and unpunished" he
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page283" name="page283"></a>(p. 283)</span>
+would have "disgraced his country ... in
+the eyes of the whole world;" that for this insult and this "wound at
+the Constitution and existence of his country, the peace, the security
+and liberty of the people of these States" he "might well be held to
+merit expulsion from the national councils;" and that "the House deem
+it an act of grace and mercy when they only inflict upon him their
+severest censure;" that so much they must do "for the maintenance of
+their own purity and dignity; for the rest they turned him over to his
+own conscience and the indignation of all true American citizens."</p>
+
+<p>These resolutions were then advocated by Mr. Marshall at great length
+and with extreme bitterness. Mr. Adams replied shortly, stating that
+he should wish to make his full defence at a later stage of the
+debate. Mr. Wise followed in a personal and acrimonious harangue; Mr.
+Everett<a id="footnotetag12" name="footnotetag12"></a><a href="#footnote12">[12]</a>
+gave some little assistance to Mr. Adams, and the House
+again adjourned. The following day Wise continued his speech, very
+elaborately. When he closed, Mr. Adams, who had "determined not to
+interrupt him till he had discharged his full cargo of filthy
+invective," rose to "make a preliminary point." He questioned the
+right of the House to entertain Marshall's resolutions since the
+preamble assumed him
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page284" name="page284"></a>(p. 284)</span>
+to be guilty of the crimes of
+subornation of perjury and treason, and the resolutions themselves
+censured him as if he had been found guilty; whereas in fact he had
+not been tried upon these charges and of course had not been
+convicted. If he was to be brought to trial upon them he asserted his
+right to have the proceedings conducted before a jury of his peers,
+and that the House was not a tribunal having this authority. But if he
+was to be tried for contempt, for which alone he could lawfully be
+tried by the House, still there were an hundred members sitting on its
+benches who were morally disqualified to judge him, who could not give
+him an impartial trial, because they were prejudiced and the question
+was one "on which their personal, pecuniary, and most sordid interests
+were at stake." Such considerations, he said, ought to prevent many
+gentlemen from voting, as Mr. Wise had avowed that they would prevent
+him. Here Wise interrupted to disavow that he was influenced by any
+such reasons, but rather, he said, by the "personal loathing, dread,
+and contempt I feel for the man." Mr. Adams, continuing after this
+pleasant interjection, admitted that he was in the power of the
+majority, who might try him against law and condemn him against right
+if they would.</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "If
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page285" name="page285"></a>(p. 285)</span>
+they say they will try me, they must try me. If they
+     say they will punish me, they must punish me. But if they say
+     that in peace and mercy they will spare me expulsion, I disdain
+     and cast away their mercy; and I ask them if they will come to
+     such a trial and expel me. I defy them. I have constituents to go
+     to who will have something to say if this House expels me. Nor
+     will it be long before the gentlemen will see me here again."
+</p>
+
+<p>Such was the fierce temper and indomitable courage of this inflexible
+old man! He flung contempt in the face of those who had him wholly in
+their power, and in the same breath in which he acknowledged that
+power he dared them to use it. He charged Wise with the guilt of
+innocent blood, in connection with certain transactions in a duel, and
+exasperated that gentleman into crying out that the "charge made by
+the gentleman from Massachusetts was as base and black a lie as the
+traitor was base and black who uttered it." When he was asked by the
+Speaker to put his point of order in writing,&mdash;his own request to the
+like effect in another case having been refused shortly before,&mdash;he
+tauntingly congratulated that gentleman "upon his discovery of the
+expediency of having points of order reduced to writing&mdash;a favor which
+he had repeatedly denied to me." When Mr. Wise was speaking, "I
+interrupted him occasionally," says
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page286" name="page286"></a>(p. 286)</span>
+Mr. Adams, "sometimes to
+provoke him into absurdity." As usual he was left to fight out his
+desperate battle substantially single-handed. Only Mr. Everett
+occasionally helped him a very little; while one or two others who
+spoke against the resolutions were careful to explain that they felt
+no personal good will towards Mr. Adams. But he faced the odds
+courageously. It was no new thing for him to be pitted alone against a
+"solid South." Outside the walls of the House he had some sympathy and
+some assistance tendered him by individuals, among others by Rufus
+Choate then in the Senate, and by his own colleagues from
+Massachusetts. This support aided and cheered him somewhat, but could
+not prevent substantially the whole burden of the labor and brunt of
+the contest from bearing upon him alone. Among the external
+manifestations of feeling, those of hostility were naturally largely
+in the ascendant. The newspapers of Washington&mdash;the "Globe" and the
+"National Intelligencer"&mdash;which reported the debates, daily filled
+their columns with all the abuse and invective which was poured forth
+against him, while they gave the most meagre statements, or none at
+all, of what he said in his own defence. Among other amenities he
+received from North Carolina an anonymous letter threatening him with
+assassination, having
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page287" name="page287"></a>(p. 287)</span>
+also an engraved portrait of him with
+the mark of a rifle-ball in the forehead, and the motto "to stop the
+music of John Quincy Adams," etc., etc. This missive he read and
+displayed in the House, but it was received with profound indifference
+by men who would not have greatly objected to the execution of the
+barbarous threat.</p>
+
+<p>The prolonged struggle cost him deep anxiety and sleepless nights,
+which in the declining years of a laborious life told hardly upon his
+aged frame. But against all odds of numbers and under all
+disadvantages of circumstances the past repeated itself, and Mr. Adams
+alone won a victory over all the cohorts of the South. Several
+attempts had been made during the debate to lay the whole subject on
+the table. Mr. Adams said that he would consent to this simply because
+his defence would be a very long affair, and he did not wish to have
+the time of the House consumed and the business of the nation brought
+to a stand solely for the consideration of his personal affairs. These
+propositions failing, he began his speech and soon was making such
+headway that even his adversaries were constrained to see that the
+opportunity which they had conceived to be within their grasp was
+eluding them, as had so often happened before. Accordingly on February
+7 the motion
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page288" name="page288"></a>(p. 288)</span>
+to "lay the whole subject on the table forever"
+was renewed and carried by one hundred and six votes to ninety-three.
+The House then took up the original petition and refused to receive it
+by one hundred and sixty-six to forty. No sooner was this consummation
+reached than the irrepressible champion rose to his feet and proceeded
+with his budget of anti-slavery petitions, of which he "presented
+nearly two hundred, till the House adjourned."</p>
+
+<p>Within a very short time there came further and convincing proof that
+Mr. Adams was victor. On February 26 he writes: "D. D. Barnard told me
+he had received a petition from his District, signed by a small number
+of very respectable persons, praying for a dissolution of the Union.
+He said he did not know what to do with it. I dined with him." By
+March 14 this dinner bore fruit. Mr. Barnard had made up his mind
+"what to do with it." He presented it, with a motion that it be
+referred to a select committee with instructions to report adversely
+to its prayer. The well-schooled House now took the presentation
+without a ripple of excitement, and was content with simply voting not
+to receive the petition.</p>
+
+<p>In the midst of the toil and anxiety imposed upon Mr. Adams by this
+effort to censure and disgrace him, the scheme, already referred to,
+for
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page289" name="page289"></a>(p. 289)</span>
+displacing him from the chairmanship of the Committee on
+Foreign Affairs had been actively prosecuted. He was notified that the
+Southern members had formed a cabal for removing him and putting Caleb
+Cushing in his place. The plan was, however, temporarily checked, and
+so soon as Mr. Adams had triumphed in the House the four Southern
+members of the committee sent to the House a paper begging to be
+excused from further services on the committee, "because from recent
+occurrences it was doubtful whether the House would remove the
+chairman, and they were unwilling to serve with one in whom they had
+no confidence." The fugitives were granted, "by a shout of
+acclamation," the excuse which they sought for so welcome a reason,
+and the same was also done for a fifth member. Three more of the same
+party, nominated to fill these vacancies, likewise asked to be
+excused, and were so. Their letters preferring this request were "so
+insulting personally" to Mr. Adams as to constitute "gross breaches of
+privilege." "The Speaker would have refused to receive or present them
+had they referred to any other man in the House." They were published,
+but Mr. Adams, after some hesitation, determined not to give them the
+importance which would result from any public notice in the House upon
+his part. He could afford to keep silence, and judged wisely in doing
+so.</p>
+
+<p>Amid
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page290" name="page290"></a>(p. 290)</span>
+all the animosity and rancor entertained towards Mr.
+Adams, there yet lurked a degree of respect for his courage, honesty,
+and ability which showed itself upon occasion, doubtless not a little
+to the surprise of the members themselves who were hardly conscious
+that they entertained such sentiments until startled into a
+manifestation of them. An eminent instance of this is to be found in
+the story of the troubled days preceding the organization of the
+twenty-sixth Congress. On December 2, 1839, the members elect of that
+body came together in Washington, with the knowledge that the seats of
+five gentlemen from New Jersey, who brought with them the regular
+gubernatorial certificate of their election, would be contested by
+five other claimants. According to custom Garland, clerk of the last
+House, called the assemblage to order and began the roll-call. When he
+came to New Jersey he called the name of one member from that State,
+and then said that there were five other seats which were contested,
+and that not feeling authorized to decide the dispute he would pass
+over the names of the New Jersey members and proceed with the roll
+till the House should be formed, when the question could be decided.
+Plausible as appeared this abstention from an exercise of authority in
+so grave a dispute, it was
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page291" name="page291"></a>(p. 291)</span>
+nevertheless really an assumption
+and not a deprecation of power, and as such was altogether
+unjustifiable. The clerk's sole business was to call the names of
+those persons who presented the usual formal credentials; he had no
+right to take cognizance that the seats of any such persons might be
+the subject of a contest, which could properly be instituted,
+conducted, and determined only before and by the House itself when
+organized. But his course was not innocent of a purpose. So evenly was
+the House divided that the admission or exclusion of these five
+members in the first instance would determine the political complexion
+of the body. The members holding the certificates were Whigs; if the
+clerk could keep them out until the organization of the House should
+be completed, then the Democrats would control that organization,
+would elect their Speaker, and through him would make up the
+committees.</p>
+
+<p>Naturally enough this arrogation of power by the clerk, the motives
+and consequences of which were abundantly obvious, raised a terrible
+storm. The debate continued till four o'clock in the afternoon, when a
+motion was made to adjourn. The clerk said that he could put no
+question, not even of adjournment, till the House should be formed.
+But there was a general cry to adjourn, and the clerk declared the
+House adjourned.
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page292" name="page292"></a>(p. 292)</span>
+Mr. Adams went home and wrote in his Diary
+that the clerk's "two decisions form together an insurmountable
+objection to the transaction of any business, and an impossibility of
+organizing the House.... The most curious part of the case is, that
+his own election as clerk depends upon the exclusion of the New Jersey
+members." The next day was consumed in a fierce debate as to whether
+the clerk should be allowed to read an explanatory statement. Again
+the clerk refused to put the question of adjournment, but, "upon
+inspection," declared an adjournment. Some called out "a count! a
+count!" while most rushed out of the hall, and Wise cried loudly, "Now
+we are a mob!" The next day there was more violent debating, but no
+progress towards a decision. Various party leaders offered
+resolutions, none of which accomplished anything. The condition was
+ridiculous, disgraceful, and not without serious possibilities of
+danger. Neither did any light of encouragement break in any quarter.
+In the crisis there seemed, by sudden consent of all, to be a turning
+towards Mr. Adams. Prominent men of both parties came to him and
+begged him to interfere. He was reluctant to plunge into the
+embroilment; but the great urgency and the abundant assurances of
+support placed little less than actual compulsion upon him.</p>
+
+<a id="img006" name="img006"></a>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/img006.jpg" width="400" height="527"
+alt="Henry A. Wise" title="">
+</div>
+<a id="img006b" name="img006b"></a>
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/img006b.jpg" width="400" height="71"
+alt="Henry A. Wise" title="">
+</div>
+
+<p>Accordingly
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page293" name="page293"></a>(p. 293)</span>
+on December 5 he rose to address the House. He
+was greeted as a <i>Deus ex machina</i>. Not speaking to the clerk, but
+turning directly to the assembled members, he began: "Fellow citizens!
+Members elect of the twenty-sixth Congress!" He could not resist the
+temptation of administering a brief but severe and righteous
+castigation to Garland; and then, ignoring that functionary
+altogether, proceeded to beg the House to <i>organize itself</i>. To this
+end he said that he would offer a resolution "ordering the clerk to
+call the members from New Jersey possessing the credentials from the
+Governor of that State." There had been already no lack of
+resolutions, but the difficulty lay in the clerk's obstinate refusal
+to put the question upon them. So now the puzzled cry went up: "How
+shall the question be put?" "I intend to put the question myself,"
+said the dauntless old man, wholly equal to the emergency. A tumult of
+applause resounded upon all sides. Rhett, of South Carolina, sprang up
+and offered a resolution, that Williams, of North Carolina, the oldest
+member of the House, be appointed chairman of the meeting; but upon
+objection by Williams, he substituted the name of Mr. Adams, and put
+the question. He was "answered by an almost universal shout in the
+affirmative." Whereupon Rhett and Williams conducted
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page294" name="page294"></a>(p. 294)</span>
+the old
+man to the chair. It was a proud moment. Wise, of Virginia, afterward
+said, addressing a complimentary speech to Mr. Adams, "and if, when
+you shall be gathered to your fathers, I were asked to select the
+words which in my judgment are calculated to give at once the best
+character of the man, I would inscribe upon your tomb this sentence,
+'I will put the question myself!'" Doubtless Wise and a good many more
+would have been glad enough to put almost any epitaph on a tombstone
+for Mr.
+Adams.<a id="footnotetag13" name="footnotetag13"></a><a href="#footnote13">[13]</a>
+It must, however, be acknowledged that the
+impetuous Southerners behaved very handsomely by their arch foe on
+this occasion, and were for once as chivalrous in fact as they always
+were in profession.</p>
+
+<p>Smooth water had by no means been reached when Mr. Adams was placed at
+the helm; on the contrary, the buffeting became only the more severe
+when the members were no longer restrained by a lurking dread of grave
+disaster if not of utter shipwreck. Between two bitterly incensed and
+evenly divided parties engaged in a struggle for an important prize,
+Mr. Adams, having no strictly lawful authority pertaining to
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page295" name="page295"></a>(p. 295)</span>
+his singular and anomalous position, was hard taxed to perform his
+functions. It is impossible to follow the intricate and acrimonious
+quarrels of the eleven days which succeeded until on December 16, upon
+the eleventh ballot, R. M. T. Hunter, of Virginia, was elected Speaker,
+and Mr. Adams was relieved from the most arduous duty imposed upon him
+during his life. In the course of the debates there had been "much
+vituperation and much equally unacceptable compliment" lavished upon
+him. After the organization of the House, there was some talk of
+moving a vote of thanks, but he entreated that it should not be done.
+"In the rancorous and bitter temper of the Administration party,
+exasperated by their disappointment in losing their Speaker, the
+resolution of thanks," he said, "would have been lost if it had been
+offered." However this might have been, history has determined this
+occurrence to have been one of the most brilliant episodes in a life
+which had many distinctions.</p>
+
+<p>A few incidents indicative of respect must have been welcome enough in
+the solitary fight-laden career of Mr. Adams. He needed some
+occasional encouragement to keep him from sinking into despondency;
+for though he was of so unyielding and belligerent a disposition, of
+such ungracious demeanor, so uncompromising with
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page296" name="page296"></a>(p. 296)</span>
+friend and
+foe, yet he was a man of deep and strong feelings, and in a way even
+very sensitive though a proud reserve kept the secret of this quality
+so close that few suspected it. His Diary during his Congressional
+life shows a man doing his duty sternly rather than cheerfully,
+treading resolutely a painful path, having the reward which attends
+upon a clear conscience, but neither light-hearted nor often even
+happy. Especially he was frequently disappointed at the returns which
+he received from others, and considered himself "ill-treated by every
+public man whom circumstances had brought into competition with him;"
+they had returned his "acts of kindness and services" with "gross
+injustice." The reflection did not induce him to deflect his course in
+the least, but it was made with much bitterness of spirit. Toward the
+close of 1835 he writes:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "Among the dark spots in human nature which in the course of my
+     life I have observed, the devices of rivals to ruin me have been
+     sorry pictures of the heart of man.... H. G. Otis, Theophilus
+     Parsons, Timothy Pickering, James A. Bayard, Henry Clay, Jonathan
+     Russell, William H. Crawford, John C. Calhoun, Andrew Jackson,
+     Daniel Webster, and John Davis, W. B. Giles, and John Randolph,
+     have used up their faculties in base and dirty tricks to thwart
+     my progress in life and destroy my character."
+</p>
+
+
+<p>Truly
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page297" name="page297"></a>(p. 297)</span>
+a long and exhaustive list of enmities! One can but
+suspect that a man of so many quarrels must have been quarrelsome.
+Certain it is, however, that in nearly every difference which Mr.
+Adams had in his life a question of right and wrong, of moral or
+political principle, had presented itself to him. His intention was
+always good, though his manner was so habitually irritating. He
+himself says that to nearly all these men&mdash;Russell alone specifically
+excepted&mdash;he had "returned good for evil," that he had "never wronged
+any one of them," and had even "neglected too much his self-defence
+against them." In October, 1833, he said: "I subject myself to so much
+toil and so much enmity, with so very little apparent fruit, that I
+sometimes ask myself whether I do not mistake my own motives. The best
+actions of my life make me nothing but enemies." In February, 1841, he
+made a powerful speech in castigation of Henry A. Wise, who had been
+upholding in Southern fashion slavery, duelling, and nullification. He
+received afterward some messages of praise and sympathy, but noted
+with pain that his colleagues thought it one of his "eccentric, wild,
+extravagant freaks of passion;" and with a pathetic sense of
+loneliness he adds: "All around me is cold and discouraging and my own
+feelings are wound up to a pitch that
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page298" name="page298"></a>(p. 298)</span>
+my reason can scarcely
+endure." A few days later he had the pleasure of hearing one of the
+members say, in a speech, that there was an opinion among many that
+Mr. Adams was insane and did not know what he said. While a fight was
+going on such incidents only fired his blood, but afterwards the
+reminiscence affected his spirits cruelly.</p>
+
+<p>In August, 1840, he writes that he has been twelve years submitting in
+silence to the "foulest and basest aspersions," to which it would have
+been waste of time to make reply, since the public ear had not been
+open to him. "Is the time arriving," he asks, "for me to speak? or
+must I go down to the grave and leave posterity to do justice to my
+father and to me?"</p>
+
+<p>He has had at least the advantage of saying his say to posterity in a
+very effective and convincing shape in that Diary, which so
+discomfited and enraged General Jackson. There is plain enough
+speaking in its pages, which were a safety valve whereby much wrath
+escaped. Mr. Adams had the faculty of forcible expression when he
+chose to employ it, as may be seen from a few specimen sentences. On
+March 28, 1840, he remarks that Atherton "this day emitted half an
+hour of his rotten breath against" a pending bill. Atherton was
+infamous as the mover of the "gag" resolution, and Mr. Adams abhorred
+
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page299" name="page299"></a>(p. 299)</span>
+him accordingly. Duncan, of Cincinnati, mentioned as
+"delivering a dose of balderdash," is described as "the prime bully of
+the Kinderhook Democracy," without "perception of any moral
+distinction between truth and falsehood, ... a thorough-going
+hack-demagogue, coarse, vulgar, and impudent, with a vein of low humor
+exactly suited to the rabble of a popular city and equally so to the
+taste of the present House of Representatives." Other similar bits of
+that pessimism and belief in the deterioration of the times, so common
+in old men, occasionally appear. In August, 1835, he thinks that "the
+signs of the times are portentous. All the tendencies of legislation
+are to the removal of restrictions from the vicious and the guilty,
+and to the exercise of all the powers of government, legislative,
+judicial, and executive, by lawless assemblages of individuals."
+December 27, 1838, he looks upon the Senate and the House, "the cream
+of the land, the culled darlings of fifteen millions," and observes
+that "the remarkable phenomenon that they present is the level of
+intellect and of morals upon which they stand; and this universal
+mediocrity is the basis upon which the liberties of this nation
+repose." In July, 1840, he thinks that</p>
+
+<p class="quote">
+     "parties are falling into profligate factions. I have seen this
+     before; but the worst symptom now is the
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page300" name="page300"></a>(p. 300)</span>
+change in the
+     manners of the people. The continuance of the present
+     Administration ... will open wide all the flood-gates of
+     corruption. Will a change produce reform? Pause and ponder!
+     Slavery, the Indians, the public lands, the collection and
+     disbursement of public money, the tariff, and foreign
+     affairs:&mdash;what is to become of them?"
+</p>
+
+<p>On January 29, 1841, Henry A. Wise uttered "a motley compound of
+eloquence and folly, of braggart impudence and childish vanity, of
+self-laudation and Virginian narrow-mindedness." After him Hubbard, of
+Alabama, "began grunting against the tariff." Three days later Black,
+of Georgia, "poured forth his black bile" for an hour and a half. The
+next week we find Clifford, of Maine, "muddily bothering his trickster
+invention" to get over a rule of the House, and "snapping like a
+mackerel at a red rag" at the suggestion of a way to do so. In July,
+1841, we again hear of Atherton as a "cross-grained numskull ...
+snarling against the loan bill." With such peppery passages in great
+abundance the Diary is thickly and piquantly besprinkled. They are not
+always pleasant, perhaps not even always amusing, but they display the
+marked element of censoriousness in Mr. Adams's character, which it is
+necessary to appreciate in order to understand some parts of his
+career.</p>
+
+<p>If
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page301" name="page301"></a>(p. 301)</span>
+Mr. Adams never had the cheerful support of popularity, so
+neither did he often have the encouragement of success. He said that
+he was paying in his declining years for the good luck which had
+attended the earlier portion of his life. On December 14, 1833, he
+calculates that he has three fourths of the people of Massachusetts
+against him, and by estranging the anti-Masons he is about to become
+obnoxious to the whole. "My public life will terminate by the
+alienation from me of all mankind.... It is the experience of all ages
+that the people grow weary of old men. I cannot flatter myself that I
+shall escape the common law of our nature." Yet he acknowledges that
+he is unable to "abstract himself from the great questions which
+agitate the country." Soon after he again writes in the same vein: "To
+be forsaken by all mankind seems to be the destiny that awaits my last
+days." August 6, 1835, he gives as his reason for not accepting an
+invitation to deliver a discourse, that "instead of having any
+beneficial influence upon the public mind, it would be turned as an
+instrument of obloquy against myself." So it had been, as he
+enumerates, with his exertions against Freemasonry, his labors for
+internal improvement, for the manufacturing interest, for domestic
+industry, for free labor, for the disinterested
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page302" name="page302"></a>(p. 302)</span>
+aid then
+lately brought by him to Jackson in the dispute with France; "so it
+will be to the end of my political life."</p>
+
+<p>When to unpopularity and reiterated disappointment we add the physical
+ills of old age, it no longer surprises us to find Mr. Adams at times
+harsh and bitter beyond the excuse of the occasion. That he was a man
+of strong physique and of extraordinary powers of endurance, often
+surpassing those of young and vigorous men, is evident. For example,
+one day in March, 1840, he notes incidentally: "I walked home and
+found my family at dinner. From my breakfast yesterday morning until
+one this afternoon, twenty-eight hours, I had fasted." Many a time he
+showed like, if not quite equal vigor. But he had been a hard worker
+all his life, and testing the powers of one's constitution does not
+tend to their preservation; he was by no means free from the woes of
+the flesh or from the depression which comes with years and the dread
+of decrepitude. Already as early as October 7, 1833, he fears that his
+health is "irretrievable;" he gets but five hours a night of
+"disturbed unquiet sleep&mdash;full of tossings." February 17, 1834, his
+"voice was so hoarse and feeble that it broke repeatedly, and he could
+scarcely articulate. It is gone forever," he very mistakenly but
+despondingly adds, "and it is in
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page303" name="page303"></a>(p. 303)</span>
+vain for me to contend
+against the decay of time and nature." His enemies found little truth
+in this foreboding for many sessions thereafter. Only a year after he
+had performed his feat of fasting for twenty-eight hours of business,
+he received a letter from a stranger advising him to retire. He admits
+that perhaps he ought to do so, but says that more than sixty years of
+public life have made activity necessary to him; it is the "weakness
+of his nature" which he has "intellect enough left to perceive but not
+energy to control," so that "the world will retire from me before I
+shall retire from the world."</p>
+
+<p>The brief sketch which can be given in a volume of this size of so
+long and so busy a life does not suffice even to indicate all its many
+industries. The anti-slavery labors of Mr. Adams during his
+Congressional career were alone an abundant occupation for a man in
+the prime of life; but to these he added a wonderful list of other
+toils and interests. He was not only an incessant student in history,
+politics, and literature, but he also constantly invaded the domain of
+science. He was Chairman of the Congressional Committee on the
+Smithsonian bequest, and for several years he gave much time and
+attention to it, striving to give the fund a direction in favor of
+science; he
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page304" name="page304"></a>(p. 304)</span>
+hoped to make it subservient to a plan which he
+had long cherished for the building of a noble national observatory.
+He had much committee work; he received many visitors; he secured
+hours of leisure for his favorite pursuit of composing poetry; he
+delivered an enormous number of addresses and speeches upon all sorts
+of occasions; he conducted an extensive correspondence; he was a very
+devout man, regularly going to church and reading three chapters in
+his Bible every day; and he kept up faithfully his colossal Diary. For
+several months in the midst of Congressional duties he devoted great
+labor, thought, and anxiety to the famous cause of the slaves of the
+Amistad, in which he was induced to act as counsel before the Supreme
+Court. Such were the labors of his declining age. To men of ordinary
+calibre the multiplicity of his acquirements and achievements is
+confounding and incredible. He worked his brain and his body as
+unsparingly as if they had been machines insensible to the pleasure or
+necessity of rest. Surprisingly did they submit to his exacting
+treatment, lasting in good order and condition far beyond what was
+then the average of life and vigorous faculties among his
+contemporaries engaged in public affairs.</p>
+
+<p>In August, 1842, while he was still tarrying in
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page305" name="page305"></a>(p. 305)</span> the
+unwholesome heats of Washington, he had some symptoms which he thought
+premonitory, and he speaks of the next session of Congress as probably
+the last which he should ever attend. March 25, 1844, he gives a
+painful sketch of himself. Physical disability, he says, must soon put
+a stop to his Diary. That morning he had risen "at four, and with
+smarting, bloodshot eyes and shivering hand, still sat down and wrote
+to fill up the chasm of the closing days of last week." If his
+remaining days were to be few he was at least resolved to make them
+long for purposes of unremitted labor.</p>
+
+<p>But he had one great joy and distinguished triumph still in store for
+him. From the time when the "gag" rule had been first established, Mr.
+Adams had kept up an unbroken series of attacks upon it at all times
+and by all means. At the beginning of the several sessions, when the
+rules were established by the House, he always moved to strike out
+this one. Year after year his motion was voted down, but year after
+year he renewed it with invincible perseverance. The majorities
+against him began to dwindle till they became almost imperceptible; in
+1842 it was a majority of four; in 1843, of three; in 1844 the
+struggle was protracted for weeks, and Mr. Adams all but carried the
+day. It was evident that victory was not
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page306" name="page306"></a>(p. 306)</span>
+far off, and a kind
+fate had destined him to live not only to see but himself to win it.
+On December 3, 1844, he made his usual motion and called for the yeas
+and nays; a motion was made to lay his motion on the table, and upon
+that also the question was taken by yeas and nays&mdash;eighty-one yeas,
+one hundred and four nays, and his motion was <i>not</i> laid on the table.
+The question was then put upon it, and it was carried by the handsome
+vote of one hundred and eight to eighty. In that moment the "gag" rule
+became a thing of the past, and Mr. Adams had conquered in his last
+fight. "Blessed, forever blessed, be the name of God!" he writes in
+recording the event. A week afterwards some anti-slavery petitions
+were received and actually referred to the Committee on the District
+of Columbia. This glorious consummation having been achieved, this
+advanced stage in the long conflict having been reached, Mr. Adams
+could not hope for life to see another goal passed. His work was
+nearly done; he had grown aged, and had worn himself out faithfully
+toiling in the struggle which must hereafter be fought through its
+coming phases and to its final success by others, younger men than he,
+though none of them certainly having over him any other militant
+advantage save only the accident of youth.</p>
+
+<p>His
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page307" name="page307"></a>(p. 307)</span>
+mental powers were not less than at any time in the past
+when, on November 19, 1846, he was struck by paralysis in the street
+in Boston. He recovered from the attack, however, sufficiently to
+resume his duties in Washington some three months later. His
+reappearance in the House was marked by a pleasing incident: all the
+members rose together; business was for the moment suspended; his old
+accustomed seat was at once surrendered to him by the gentleman to
+whom it had fallen in the allotment, and he was formally conducted to
+it by two members. After this, though punctual in attendance, he only
+once took part in debate. On February 21, 1848, he appeared in his
+seat as usual. At half past one in the afternoon the Speaker was
+rising to put a question, when he was suddenly interrupted by cries of
+"Stop! Stop!&mdash;Mr. Adams!" Some gentlemen near Mr. Adams had thought
+that he was striving to rise to address the Speaker, when in an
+instant he fell over insensible. The members thronged around him in
+great confusion. The House hastily adjourned. He was placed on a sofa
+and removed first to the hall of the rotunda and then to the Speaker's
+room. Medical men were in attendance but could be of no service in the
+presence of death. The stern old fighter lay dying almost on the very
+field of so many battles and in the very
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page308" name="page308"></a>(p. 308)</span>
+tracks in which he
+had so often stood erect and unconquerable, taking and dealing so many
+mighty blows. Late in the afternoon some inarticulate mutterings were
+construed into the words, "Thank the officers of the House." Soon
+again he said intelligibly, "This is the last of earth! I am content!"
+It was his extreme utterance. He lay thereafter unconscious till the
+evening of the 23d, when he passed quietly away.</p>
+
+<p>He lies buried "under the portal of the church at Quincy" beside his
+wife, who survived him four years, his father and his mother. The
+memorial tablet inside the church bears upon it the words "Alteri
+Sęculo,"&mdash;surely never more justly or appropriately applied to any man
+than to John Quincy Adams, hardly abused and cruelly misappreciated in
+his own day but whom subsequent generations already begin to honor as
+one of the greatest of American statesmen, not only preėminent in
+ability and acquirements, but even more to be honored for profound,
+immutable honesty of purpose and broad, noble humanity of aims.</p>
+
+
+
+
+
+<h2>INDEX
+<span class="pagenum"><a id="page311" name="page311"></a>(p. 311)</span></h2>
+
+<div class="index">
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Abolitionists</span>, their part in anti-slavery movement,
+<a href="#page244">244</a>,
+<a href="#page245">245</a>;<br>
+  urge Adams to extreme actions,
+<a href="#page254">254</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Adams</span>, Abigail, shows battle of Bunker Hill to her son,
+<a href="#page002">2</a>;<br>
+  life near Boston during siege,
+<a href="#page002">2</a>,
+<a href="#page003">3</a>;<br>
+  letter of J. Q. Adams to, on keeping journal,
+<a href="#page005">5</a>;<br>
+  warns him against asking office from his father as President,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>;<br>
+  his spirited reply,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Adams</span>, C. F., on beginning of Adams's diary,
+<a href="#page006">6</a>;<br>
+  on Adams's statement of Monroe doctrine,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Adams</span>, John, influence of his career in Revolution upon his son,
+<a href="#page002">2</a>;<br>
+  leaves family near Boston while attending Continental Congress,
+<a href="#page002">2</a>,
+<a href="#page003">3</a>;<br>
+  letter of his son to, on reading,
+<a href="#page003">3</a>;<br>
+  first mission to France,
+<a href="#page004">4</a>;<br>
+  second one,
+<a href="#page004">4</a>;<br>
+  advises his son to keep a diary and copies of letters,
+<a href="#page005">5</a>;<br>
+  makes treaty of peace,
+<a href="#page013">13</a>;<br>
+  appointed Minister to England,
+<a href="#page014">14</a>;<br>
+  elected President,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>;<br>
+  at Washington's suggestion, appoints J. Q. Adams Minister to Prussia,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>;<br>
+  recalls him,
+<a href="#page025">25</a>;<br>
+  his rage at defeat by Jefferson,
+<a href="#page025">25</a>,
+<a href="#page026">26</a>;<br>
+  disrupts Federalist party by French mission,
+<a href="#page026">26</a>;<br>
+  his rivalry with and hatred for Hamilton,
+<a href="#page026">26</a>,
+<a href="#page027">27</a>;<br>
+  charges defeat to Hamilton,
+<a href="#page027">27</a>;<br>
+  qualified sympathy of J. Q. Adams with,
+<a href="#page027">27</a>,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+  his enemies and adherents in Massachusetts,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+  his unpopularity hampers J. Q. Adams in Senate,
+<a href="#page031">31</a>,
+<a href="#page034">34</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Adams</span>, John Quincy, birth,
+<a href="#page001">1</a>;<br>
+  ancestry,
+<a href="#page001">1</a>;<br>
+  named for his great-grandfather,
+<a href="#page001">1</a>;<br>
+  describes incident connected with his naming,
+<a href="#page001">1</a>,
+<a href="#page002">2</a>;<br>
+  early involved in outbreak of Revolution,
+<a href="#page002">2</a>;<br>
+  life near Boston during the siege,
+<a href="#page002">2</a>,
+<a href="#page003">3</a>;<br>
+  scanty schooling,
+<a href="#page003">3</a>;<br>
+  describes his reading in letter to John Adams,
+<a href="#page003">3</a>,
+<a href="#page004">4</a>;<br>
+  accompanies his father to France in 1778,
+<a href="#page004">4</a>;<br>
+  and again to Spain,
+<a href="#page004">4</a>,
+<a href="#page005">5</a>;<br>
+  tells his mother of intention to keep diary while abroad,
+<a href="#page005">5</a>,
+<a href="#page006">6</a>;<br>
+  begins it in 1779, its subsequent success,
+<a href="#page006">6</a>;<br>
+  its revelation of his character,
+<a href="#page007">7</a>,
+<a href="#page010">10</a>;<br>
+  unchangeableness of his traits,
+<a href="#page007">7</a>,
+<a href="#page008">8</a>;<br>
+  describes contemporaries bitterly in diary,
+<a href="#page009">9</a>,
+<a href="#page010">10</a>;<br>
+  shows his own high character,
+<a href="#page010">10</a>;<br>
+  also his disagreeable traits,
+<a href="#page011">11</a>,
+<a href="#page012">12</a>;<br>
+  difficulty of condensing his career,
+<a href="#page012">12</a>;<br>
+  his schooling in Europe,
+<a href="#page013">13</a>;<br>
+  at fourteen acts as private secretary to Dana on mission to Russia,
+<a href="#page013">13</a>;<br>
+  assists father in peace negotiations,
+<a href="#page013">13</a>;<br>
+  his early gravity, maturity, and coolness,
+<a href="#page014">14</a>,
+<a href="#page015">15</a>;<br>
+  decides not to accompany father to England, but return home,
+<a href="#page015">15</a>;<br>
+  gives his reason for decision,
+<a href="#page015">15</a>,
+<a href="#page016">16</a>;<br>
+  studies at Harvard,
+<a href="#page017">17</a>;<br>
+  studies law with Parsons at Newburyport,
+<a href="#page017">17</a>;<br>
+  begins practice in Boston in 1790,
+<a href="#page017">17</a>;<br>
+  writes Publicola papers against Paine's "Rights of Man,"
+<a href="#page018">18</a>;<br>
+  writes in papers against Genet,
+<a href="#page018">18</a>;<br>
+  his restlessness and ambition,
+<a href="#page019">19</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index5"><i>Foreign Minister</i></span>. Appointed Minister to the Hague,
+<a href="#page019">19</a>;<br>
+    his voyage,
+<a href="#page019">19</a>;<br>
+    in Holland at time of its capture by French,
+<a href="#page020">20</a>;<br>
+    cordially received by French,
+<a href="#page020">20</a>;<br>
+    his skill in avoiding entanglement,
+<a href="#page020">20</a>;<br>
+    persuaded by Washington to remain, although without occupation,
+<a href="#page021">21</a>;<br>
+    prevented from participating in Jay's negotiations over the treaty,
+<a href="#page021">21</a>;<br>
+    has dealings with Grenville,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>;<br>
+    marriage with Miss Johnson,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>;<br>
+    transferred to Portugal,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>;<br>
+    question as to propriety of remaining minister after his father's election,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>;<br>
+    persuaded by Washington to remain,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>;<br>
+    appointed minister to Prussia,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>;<br>
+    ratifies treaty of commerce,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>;<br>
+    travels in Europe,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>;<br>
+    recalled by his father,
+<a href="#page025">25</a>;<br>
+    resumes practice of law,
+<a href="#page025">25</a>;<br>
+    not involved in Federalist quarrels,
+<a href="#page027">27</a>,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+    removed by Jefferson from commissionership in bankruptcy,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+    elected to State Senate,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+    irritates Federalists by proposing to allow Democrats a place in council,
+<a href="#page029">29</a>;<br>
+    his entire independence,
+<a href="#page029">29</a>,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>;<br>
+    elected to United States Senate over Pickering,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index5"><i>United States Senator</i></span>. His journey to Washington,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>,
+<a href="#page031">31</a>;<br>
+    unfriendly greeting from his father's enemies,
+<a href="#page031">31</a>;<br>
+    isolation in the Senate,
+<a href="#page032">32</a>,
+<a href="#page033">33</a>;<br>
+    unfriendly relations with Pickering,
+<a href="#page032">32</a>;<br>
+    refuses to yield to unpopularity,
+<a href="#page033">33</a>,
+<a href="#page034">34</a>;<br>
+    estranges Federalists by his absence of partisanship,
+<a href="#page034">34</a>,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>;<br>
+    votes in favor of Louisiana purchase, although calling it unconstitutional,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>;<br>
+    condemned by New England,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>;<br>
+    votes for acquittal of Chase,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>;<br>
+    realizes that he is conquering respect,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>,
+<a href="#page037">37</a>;<br>
+    introduces resolutions condemning British seizures of neutrals,
+<a href="#page038">38</a>,
+<a href="#page039">39</a>;<br>
+    and requesting President to insist on reparation,
+<a href="#page039">39</a>;<br>
+    his measure carried by Democrats,
+<a href="#page039">39</a>;<br>
+    comments on Orders in Council and Napoleon's decrees,
+<a href="#page042">42</a>,
+<a href="#page046">46</a>;<br>
+    refuses to follow New England Federalists in advocating submission,
+<a href="#page047">47</a>,
+<a href="#page048">48</a>;<br>
+    disgusted at Jefferson's peace policy,
+<a href="#page048">48</a>;<br>
+    but supports Non-importation Act,
+<a href="#page049">49</a>;<br>
+    believes in hostile purpose of England,
+<a href="#page049">49</a>,
+<a href="#page050">50</a>;<br>
+    urges Boston Federalists to promise support to government during Chesapeake affair,
+<a href="#page051">51</a>;<br>
+    attends Democratic and Federalist meetings to this effect,
+<a href="#page051">51</a>,
+<a href="#page052">52</a>;<br>
+    read out of party by Federalists,
+<a href="#page052">52</a>;<br>
+    votes for and supports embargo,
+<a href="#page053">53</a>;<br>
+    execrated in New England,
+<a href="#page053">53</a>;<br>
+    his patriotic conduct,
+<a href="#page053">53-55</a>;<br>
+    his opinion of embargo,
+<a href="#page055">55</a>;<br>
+    regrets its too long continuance,
+<a href="#page055">55</a>,
+<a href="#page056">56</a>;<br>
+    advocates in vain military and naval preparations,
+<a href="#page056">56</a>;<br>
+    refused reėlection by Massachusetts legislature,
+<a href="#page056">56</a>,
+<a href="#page057">57</a>;<br>
+    resigns before expiration of term,
+<a href="#page057">57</a>;<br>
+    harshly criticised then and since for leaving Federalists,
+<a href="#page057">57</a>,
+<a href="#page058">58</a>;<br>
+    propriety and justice of his action,
+<a href="#page058">58</a>,
+<a href="#page059">59</a>;<br>
+    led to do so by his American feeling,
+<a href="#page061">61</a>,
+<a href="#page062">62</a>;<br>
+    absurdity of charge of office-seeking,
+<a href="#page063">63</a>;<br>
+    disproved by his whole character and career,
+<a href="#page063">63</a>,
+<a href="#page064">64</a>;<br>
+    his courage tested by necessity of abandoning friends,
+<a href="#page064">64</a>;<br>
+    repels advances from Giles,
+<a href="#page065">65</a>;<br>
+    statement of his feelings in his diary,
+<a href="#page065">65</a>,
+<a href="#page066">66</a>;<br>
+    refuses election to Congress from Democrats,
+<a href="#page066">66</a>;<br>
+    sums up barrenness of his career in Senate,
+<a href="#page066">66-68</a>;<br>
+    approached by Madison in 1805 with suggestion of foreign mission,
+<a href="#page068">68</a>;<br>
+    his cool reply,
+<a href="#page069">69</a>;<br>
+    nominated Minister to Russia by Madison,
+<a href="#page069">69</a>;<br>
+    appointment refused, then confirmed,
+<a href="#page069">69</a>,
+<a href="#page070">70</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index5"><i>Minister to Russia</i></span>. Peace of Ghent. His voyage,
+<a href="#page070">70</a>;<br>
+    his life at St. Petersburg,
+<a href="#page070">70</a>,
+<a href="#page071">71</a>;<br>
+    his success as foreign representative,
+<a href="#page071">71</a>,
+<a href="#page072">72</a>;<br>
+    disgusted by snobbery of American travelers,
+<a href="#page072">72</a>;<br>
+    declines to take part in squabbles for precedence,
+<a href="#page072">72</a>,
+<a href="#page073">73</a>;<br>
+    hampered by meagre salary,
+<a href="#page073">73</a>;<br>
+    describes Russia during Napoleonic wars,
+<a href="#page074">74</a>;<br>
+    nominated to act as peace commissioner with England,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+    describes negotiations in his diary,
+<a href="#page077">77</a>;<br>
+    suggests refusing to meet British commissioners at their lodgings,
+<a href="#page077">77</a>;<br>
+    remarks on arrogance of British,
+<a href="#page081">81</a>;<br>
+    vents irritation upon colleagues,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>,
+<a href="#page083">83</a>;<br>
+    begins drafting communications, but abandons duty to Gallatin,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>;<br>
+    nettled at criticisms of colleagues on his drafts,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>,
+<a href="#page083">83</a>;<br>
+    quarrels with all but Gallatin,
+<a href="#page084">84</a>;<br>
+    incompatible with Clay,
+<a href="#page084">84</a>;<br>
+    urges strong counter-claims,
+<a href="#page085">85</a>;<br>
+    thinks negotiations certain to fail,
+<a href="#page086">86</a>;<br>
+    obliged to work for peace as defeated party,
+<a href="#page086">86</a>,
+<a href="#page087">87</a>;<br>
+    willing to return to status quo,
+<a href="#page087">87</a>;<br>
+    disagrees with Clay over fisheries and Mississippi navigation,
+<a href="#page088">88</a>;<br>
+    determined to insist on fisheries,
+<a href="#page089">89</a>,
+<a href="#page090">90</a>,
+<a href="#page092">92</a>;<br>
+    suspects British intend to prevent peace,
+<a href="#page090">90</a>;<br>
+    controverts Goulburn,
+<a href="#page091">91</a>;<br>
+    signs treaty,
+<a href="#page093">93</a>;<br>
+    at Paris during Napoleon's "hundred days,"
+<a href="#page098">98</a>;<br>
+    appointed Minister to England,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>;<br>
+    with Clay and Gallatin, makes treaty of commerce with England,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>;<br>
+    his slight duties as minister,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>;<br>
+    bored by English dinners,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>,
+<a href="#page100">100</a>;<br>
+    sensitive to small income,
+<a href="#page100">100</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index5"><i>Secretary of State</i></span>. Appointed,
+<a href="#page100">100</a>;<br>
+    describes dullness of Washington in diary,
+<a href="#page102">102</a>;<br>
+    as host,
+<a href="#page103">103</a>;<br>
+    his habits of life,
+<a href="#page104">104</a>;<br>
+    prominent candidate for succession to Monroe,
+<a href="#page105">105</a>;<br>
+    intrigued against by Crawford,
+<a href="#page106">106</a>;<br>
+    and by Clay and Calhoun,
+<a href="#page106">106</a>,
+<a href="#page107">107</a>;<br>
+    expects Spanish colonies to gain independence,
+<a href="#page109">109</a>;<br>
+    but maintains cautious public attitude,
+<a href="#page109">109</a>;<br>
+    describes Spanish ambassador,
+<a href="#page111">111</a>;<br>
+    negotiates concerning boundaries of Louisiana,
+<a href="#page111">111</a>,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>;<br>
+    his position,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>;<br>
+    fears opposition from Clay and Crawford,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>;<br>
+    urged by Monroe not to claim too much,
+<a href="#page113">113</a>;<br>
+    rejects English mediation,
+<a href="#page114">114</a>;<br>
+    uses French Minister as go-between,
+<a href="#page114">114</a>;<br>
+    succeeds in reaching a conclusion,
+<a href="#page114">114</a>,
+<a href="#page115">115</a>;<br>
+    a triumph for his diplomacy,
+<a href="#page115">115</a>;<br>
+    chagrined at discovery of Spanish land grants,
+<a href="#page116">116</a>,
+<a href="#page117">117</a>;<br>
+    and at refusal of Spanish government to ratify treaty,
+<a href="#page118">118</a>;<br>
+    urges the seizure of disputed territory,
+<a href="#page118">118</a>;<br>
+    at first indifferent to Missouri question,
+<a href="#page119">119</a>;<br>
+    soon appreciates the slavery issue,
+<a href="#page119">119</a>;<br>
+    predicts an attempt to dissolve the Union,
+<a href="#page119">119</a>,
+<a href="#page120">120</a>;<br>
+    sharp comments on slavery, slaveholders, and Northern weakness,
+<a href="#page120">120</a>;<br>
+    notes Calhoun's threat of alliance of slave States with England,
+<a href="#page121">121</a>;<br>
+    thinks abolition impossible without disunion,
+<a href="#page121">121</a>,
+<a href="#page122">122</a>;<br>
+    maintains power of Congress over slavery in Territories,
+<a href="#page122">122</a>;<br>
+    realizes that failure of treaty damages his chance for presidency,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>;<br>
+    refuses to reopen question with new Spanish envoy,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>;<br>
+    forces ratification of treaty with annulment of land grants,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>;<br>
+    his satisfaction with outcome of negotiations,
+<a href="#page125">125</a>,
+<a href="#page126">126</a>;<br>
+    prepares report on weights and measures,
+<a href="#page126">126</a>;<br>
+    its thoroughness,
+<a href="#page127">127</a>;<br>
+    his pride of country without boastfulness in negotiations,
+<a href="#page127">127</a>,
+<a href="#page128">128</a>;<br>
+    declines to consider what European courts may think,
+<a href="#page128">128</a>,
+<a href="#page129">129</a>;<br>
+    considers it destiny of United States to occupy North America,
+<a href="#page129">129</a>;<br>
+    considers annexation of Cuba probable,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>;<br>
+    always willing to encroach within America,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>;<br>
+    tells Russia American continents are no longer open for colonies,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>;<br>
+    fears possibility of European attack on Spain's colonies,
+<a href="#page132">132</a>;<br>
+    willing to go to war against such an attack,
+<a href="#page133">133</a>;<br>
+    but, in default of any, advocates non-interference,
+<a href="#page133">133</a>,
+<a href="#page134">134</a>;<br>
+    refuses to interfere in European politics,
+<a href="#page134">134</a>;<br>
+    unwilling to enter league to suppress slave trade,
+<a href="#page135">135</a>;<br>
+    the real author of Monroe doctrine,
+<a href="#page136">136</a>;<br>
+    dealings with Stratford Canning,
+<a href="#page136">136</a>;<br>
+    his reasons for refusing to join international league to put down slave trade,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>,
+<a href="#page139">139</a>;<br>
+    discusses with him the Astoria question,
+<a href="#page140">140-148</a>;<br>
+    insists on Canning's making communications on question in writing,
+<a href="#page141">141</a>;<br>
+    stormy interviews with him,
+<a href="#page142">142-147</a>;<br>
+    refuses to discuss remarks uttered in debate in Congress,
+<a href="#page142">142</a>,
+<a href="#page145">145</a>;<br>
+    angry breach of Canning with,
+<a href="#page147">147</a>,
+<a href="#page148">148</a>;<br>
+    success of his treatment of Canning,
+<a href="#page148">148</a>;<br>
+    description in his diary of presidential intrigues,
+<a href="#page150">150</a> ff.;<br>
+    his censorious frankness,
+<a href="#page150">150</a>;<br>
+    his judgments of men not to be followed too closely,
+<a href="#page151">151</a>;<br>
+    accuses Clay of selfishness in opposition to Florida treaty, and
+in urging recognition of Spanish colonies,
+<a href="#page151">151</a>,
+<a href="#page152">152</a>;<br>
+    compares him to John Randolph,
+<a href="#page153">153</a>;<br>
+    later becomes on better terms,
+<a href="#page154">154</a>;<br>
+    his deep contempt for Crawford,
+<a href="#page154">154</a>;<br>
+    gradually suspects him of malicious practices,
+<a href="#page154">154</a>,
+<a href="#page155">155</a>;<br>
+    and of sacrificing everything to his ambition,
+<a href="#page155">155</a>,
+<a href="#page156">156</a>;<br>
+    sustained by Calhoun in this estimate,
+<a href="#page157">157</a>;<br>
+    supports Jackson in Cabinet,
+<a href="#page158">158</a>,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+    strains his conscience to uphold Jackson's actions,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>,
+<a href="#page161">161</a>;<br>
+    defends him against Canning,
+<a href="#page162">162</a>;<br>
+    gives a ball in his honor,
+<a href="#page162">162</a>;<br>
+    wishes to offer him position of Minister to Mexico,
+<a href="#page163">163</a>;<br>
+    favors Jackson for Vice-President,
+<a href="#page163">163</a>;<br>
+    determines to do nothing in his own behalf as candidate,
+<a href="#page164">164</a>;<br>
+    no trace of any self-seeking in his diary,
+<a href="#page164">164</a>,
+<a href="#page165">165</a>;<br>
+    holds aloof at all stages,
+<a href="#page165">165</a>;<br>
+    manages to be polite to all,
+<a href="#page166">166</a>;<br>
+    yet prepares to be keenly hurt at failure,
+<a href="#page166">166</a>;<br>
+    considers election a test of his career,
+<a href="#page167">167</a>;<br>
+    and of his personal character in the eyes of the people,
+<a href="#page167">167</a>;<br>
+    picture of his anxiety in his diary,
+<a href="#page168">168</a>;<br>
+    receives second largest number of electoral votes,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>;<br>
+    preferred by Clay to Jackson,
+<a href="#page171">171</a>;<br>
+    elected by the House of Representatives,
+<a href="#page173">173</a>;<br>
+    dissatisfied with the result,
+<a href="#page174">174</a>;<br>
+    would have preferred a new election if possible,
+<a href="#page174">174</a>;<br>
+    congratulated by Jackson at his inauguration,
+<a href="#page175">175</a>;<br>
+    wishes office as a token of popular approval,
+<a href="#page175">175</a>;<br>
+    realizes that this election does not signify that,
+<a href="#page176">176</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index5"><i>President</i></span>. Freedom from political indebtedness,
+<a href="#page177">177</a>;<br>
+    his cabinet,
+<a href="#page177">177</a>;<br>
+    asks Rufus King to accept English mission,
+<a href="#page177">177</a>,
+<a href="#page178">178</a>;<br>
+    renominates officials,
+<a href="#page178">178</a>;<br>
+    refuses to consider any rotation in office,
+<a href="#page179">179</a>;<br>
+    refuses to punish officials for opposing his election,
+<a href="#page179">179</a>,
+<a href="#page180">180</a>;<br>
+    charged with bargaining for Clay's support,
+<a href="#page181">181-183</a>;<br>
+    unable to disprove it,
+<a href="#page183">183</a>;<br>
+    story spread by Jackson,
+<a href="#page184">184</a>;<br>
+    after disproof of story, continues to be accused by Jackson,
+<a href="#page187">187</a>;<br>
+    meets strong opposition in Congress,
+<a href="#page188">188</a>;<br>
+    notes combination of Southern members against him,
+<a href="#page189">189</a>;<br>
+    sends message concerning Panama Congress,
+<a href="#page189">189</a>;<br>
+    accused in Senate and House of having transcended his powers,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+    aided by Webster,
+<a href="#page190">190</a>;<br>
+    reasons for Southern opposition to,
+<a href="#page191">191</a>;<br>
+    confronted by a hostile majority in both Houses,
+<a href="#page192">192</a>;<br>
+    lack of events in his administration,
+<a href="#page193">193</a>;<br>
+    advocates internal improvements,
+<a href="#page194">194</a>;<br>
+    declines to make a show before people,
+<a href="#page194">194</a>;<br>
+    his digging at opening of Chesapeake and Ohio Canal,
+<a href="#page194">194</a>,
+<a href="#page195">195</a>;<br>
+    formation of personal opposition to his reėlection by Jackson,
+<a href="#page195">195</a>,
+<a href="#page196">196</a>;<br>
+    his only chance of success to secure a personal following,
+<a href="#page197">197</a>;<br>
+    refuses to remove officials for political reasons,
+<a href="#page198">198</a>;<br>
+    fails to induce any one except independent men to desire his reėlection,
+<a href="#page199">199</a>;<br>
+    his position as representative of good government not understood,
+<a href="#page200">200</a>;<br>
+    refuses to modify utterances on internal improvements, to appease Virginia,
+<a href="#page201">201</a>;<br>
+    refuses to "soothe" South Carolina,
+<a href="#page201">201</a>;<br>
+    alienates people by personal stiffness and Puritanism,
+<a href="#page202">202</a>,
+<a href="#page203">203</a>;<br>
+    fails to secure personal friends,
+<a href="#page203">203</a>;<br>
+    friendly relations with Cabinet,
+<a href="#page204">204</a>,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>;<br>
+    nominates Barbour Minister to England,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>;<br>
+    fills vacancy with P. B. Porter at Cabinet's suggestion,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>;<br>
+    refuses to remove McLean for double-dealing,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>;<br>
+    his laboriousness,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>;<br>
+    daily exercise,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>,
+<a href="#page207">207</a>;<br>
+    threatened with assassination,
+<a href="#page207">207</a>,
+<a href="#page208">208</a>;<br>
+    stoicism under slanders,
+<a href="#page208">208</a>;<br>
+    refuses to deny accusation of being a Mason,
+<a href="#page209">209</a>;<br>
+    accused of trying to buy support of Webster,
+<a href="#page209">209</a>;<br>
+    other slanders,
+<a href="#page209">209</a>;<br>
+    shows his wrath in his diary,
+<a href="#page210">210</a>;<br>
+    hatred of Randolph,
+<a href="#page210">210</a>,
+<a href="#page211">211</a>;<br>
+    of Giles,
+<a href="#page211">211</a>;<br>
+    defeated in election of 1828,
+<a href="#page212">212</a>;<br>
+    feels disgraced,
+<a href="#page213">213</a>,
+<a href="#page214">214</a>;<br>
+    significance of his retirement,
+<a href="#page213">213</a>;<br>
+    the last statesman in presidency,
+<a href="#page213">213</a>;<br>
+    his depression,
+<a href="#page214">214</a>,
+<a href="#page215">215</a>;<br>
+    looks forward gloomily to retirement,
+<a href="#page215">215</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index5"><i>In Retirement</i></span>. Returns to Quincy,
+<a href="#page216">216</a>;<br>
+    followed by slanders of Giles,
+<a href="#page216">216</a>;<br>
+    declines to enter into controversy with Federalists
+over disunion movement of 1808,
+<a href="#page216">216</a>,
+<a href="#page217">217</a>;<br>
+    attacked by the Federalists for his refusal,
+<a href="#page217">217</a>,
+<a href="#page218">218</a>;<br>
+    prepares a crushing reply which he does not publish,
+<a href="#page218">218</a>;<br>
+    dreads idleness,
+<a href="#page220">220</a>;<br>
+    unable to resume law practice,
+<a href="#page220">220</a>;<br>
+    his slight property,
+<a href="#page221">221</a>;<br>
+    reads Latin classics,
+<a href="#page221">221</a>;<br>
+    plans biographical and historical work,
+<a href="#page221">221</a>;<br>
+    writes in diary concerning his reading,
+<a href="#page222">222</a>;<br>
+    does not appreciate humor,
+<a href="#page222">222</a>;<br>
+    has difficulty in reading Paradise Lost,
+<a href="#page223">223</a>;<br>
+    learns to like Milton and tobacco,
+<a href="#page223">223</a>;<br>
+    asked if willing to be elected to Congress,
+<a href="#page225">225</a>;<br>
+    replies that he is ready to accept the office,
+<a href="#page225">225</a>;<br>
+    elected in 1830,
+<a href="#page225">225</a>;<br>
+    as candidate for governor, withdraws name in case of choice by legislature,
+<a href="#page226">226</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index5"><i>Member of House of Representatives</i></span>.
+    His principal task the struggle with Southern slaveholders,
+<a href="#page226">226</a>;<br>
+    gains greater honor in this way than hitherto,
+<a href="#page226">226</a>,
+<a href="#page227">227</a>;<br>
+    his diligence and independent action in the House,
+<a href="#page227">227</a>;<br>
+    called "old man eloquent,"
+<a href="#page227">227</a>;<br>
+    not in reality a pleasing or impressive speaker,
+<a href="#page227">227</a>,
+<a href="#page228">228</a>;<br>
+    but effective and well-informed,
+<a href="#page228">228</a>;<br>
+    his excessive pugnacity,
+<a href="#page229">229</a>;<br>
+    his enemies,
+<a href="#page229">229</a>,
+<a href="#page230">230</a>;<br>
+    success as debater,
+<a href="#page230">230</a>;<br>
+    absence of friends or followers,
+<a href="#page231">231</a>;<br>
+    supported by people in New England,
+<a href="#page232">232</a>;<br>
+    declares intention to be independent,
+<a href="#page233">233</a>;<br>
+    greeted with respect,
+<a href="#page233">233</a>;<br>
+    on Committee on Manufactures,
+<a href="#page233">233</a>;<br>
+    willing to reduce duties to please South,
+<a href="#page234">234</a>;<br>
+    condemns apparent surrender of Jackson to South Carolina,
+<a href="#page234">234</a>;<br>
+    pleased with Jackson's nullification proclamation,
+<a href="#page235">235</a>;<br>
+    wishes to coerce South Carolina before making concessions,
+<a href="#page235">235</a>;<br>
+    insists on a decision of question of nullification,
+<a href="#page235">235</a>;<br>
+    dissatisfied with Jackson's failure to push matters,
+<a href="#page236">236</a>;<br>
+    in opposition to Jackson,
+<a href="#page237">237</a>,
+<a href="#page238">238</a>;<br>
+    supports proposal of Jackson to take determined attitude toward France,
+<a href="#page239">239</a>;<br>
+    wins no gratitude from Jackson,
+<a href="#page240">240</a>;<br>
+    receives attempt at reconciliation coolly,
+<a href="#page240">240</a>;<br>
+    opposes granting of Doctorate of Laws to Jackson by Harvard,
+<a href="#page241">241</a>,
+<a href="#page242">242</a>;<br>
+    considers Jackson's illness a sham,
+<a href="#page242">242</a>;<br>
+    presents abolition petitions from beginning of term,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>;<br>
+    does not favor abolition in District of Columbia,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>;<br>
+    always disliked slavery and slaveholders,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>;<br>
+    not an agitator or reformer,
+<a href="#page244">244</a>;<br>
+    his qualifications to oppose slave power in Congress,
+<a href="#page245">245</a>,
+<a href="#page246">246</a>;<br>
+    hostility in Congress and coldness in Boston,
+<a href="#page246">246</a>;<br>
+    his support in his district,
+<a href="#page247">247</a>;<br>
+    and among people of North,
+<a href="#page247">247</a>;<br>
+    continues to present petitions,
+<a href="#page248">248</a>;<br>
+    presents one signed by women,
+<a href="#page249">249</a>;<br>
+    opposes assertion that Congress has no power
+to interfere with slavery in a State,
+<a href="#page250">250</a>;<br>
+    opposes gag rule,
+<a href="#page250">250</a>;<br>
+    advocates right of petition,
+<a href="#page251">251</a>;<br>
+    tries to get his protest entered on journal,
+<a href="#page251">251</a>,
+<a href="#page252">252</a>;<br>
+    savage reply to an assailant,
+<a href="#page252">252</a>;<br>
+    receives and presents floods of petitions,
+<a href="#page252">252</a>,
+<a href="#page253">253</a>;<br>
+    single-handed in task,
+<a href="#page253">253</a>;<br>
+    urged to rash movements by abolitionists,
+<a href="#page254">254</a>;<br>
+    his conduct approved by constituents,
+<a href="#page255">255</a>;<br>
+    resolves to continue, although alone,
+<a href="#page255">255</a>;<br>
+    description in his diary of presentation of petitions,
+<a href="#page255">255-261</a>;<br>
+    continues to protest against "gag" rule as unconstitutional,
+<a href="#page256">256</a>;<br>
+    scores Preston for threatening to hang abolitionists,
+<a href="#page257">257</a>,
+<a href="#page258">258</a>;<br>
+    defies the House and says his say,
+<a href="#page258">258</a>,
+<a href="#page259">259</a>;<br>
+    wishes petitions referred to a select committee,
+<a href="#page259">259</a>;<br>
+    passage at arms with chairman of Foreign Affairs Committee,
+<a href="#page259">259</a>,
+<a href="#page260">260</a>;<br>
+    taunts Connor with folly of "gag" rule,
+<a href="#page261">261</a>;<br>
+    holds that Congress, under war power, may abolish slavery,
+<a href="#page261">261-263</a>;<br>
+    attacked by Southerners,
+<a href="#page262">262</a>,
+<a href="#page263">263</a>;<br>
+    cites precedents,
+<a href="#page263">263</a>;<br>
+    his theory followed by Lincoln,
+<a href="#page264">264</a>;<br>
+    refers to the theory in letter,
+<a href="#page265">265</a>;<br>
+    opposes annexation of Texas,
+<a href="#page265">265</a>,
+<a href="#page266">266</a>;<br>
+    his reasons,
+<a href="#page266">266</a> n.;<br>
+    presents absurd petitions,
+<a href="#page266">266</a>;<br>
+    presents petitions asking for his own expulsion,
+<a href="#page268">268</a>;<br>
+    allows matter to drop,
+<a href="#page268">268</a>;<br>
+    presents petition from slaves and asks opinion of speaker,
+<a href="#page269">269</a>;<br>
+    fury of slaveholders against,
+<a href="#page270">270</a>;<br>
+    resolutions of censure against,
+<a href="#page271">271</a>;<br>
+    disconcerts opponents by his cool reply,
+<a href="#page272">272</a>,
+<a href="#page273">273</a>;<br>
+    but receives new attacks and resolutions of censure,
+<a href="#page274">274</a>,
+<a href="#page275">275</a>;<br>
+    defended by a few New Englanders,
+<a href="#page276">276</a>;<br>
+    reluctance of Southerners to allow him to reply,
+<a href="#page276">276</a>;<br>
+    his speech,
+<a href="#page277">277-279</a>;<br>
+    sarcasms upon his enemies,
+<a href="#page277">277</a>,
+<a href="#page278">278</a>;<br>
+    presents petition asking for his own removal from chairmanship
+of Committee on Foreign Affairs,
+<a href="#page280">280</a>;<br>
+    prevented from defending himself,
+<a href="#page280">280</a>;<br>
+    presents petition for dissolution of Union while disapproving it,
+<a href="#page280">280</a>,
+<a href="#page281">281</a>;<br>
+    resolutions of censure against,
+<a href="#page281">281</a>,
+<a href="#page282">282</a>;<br>
+    attacked by Marshall and Wise,
+<a href="#page283">283</a>;<br>
+    objects to injustice of preamble,
+<a href="#page284">284</a>;<br>
+    defies his enemies and scorns mercy,
+<a href="#page285">285</a>;<br>
+    bitter remarks on his opponents,
+<a href="#page285">285</a>;<br>
+    helped by Everett,
+<a href="#page286">286</a>;<br>
+    slight outside sympathy for,
+<a href="#page286">286</a>;<br>
+    abused in newspapers,
+<a href="#page286">286</a>;<br>
+    threatened with assassination,
+<a href="#page286">286</a>,
+<a href="#page287">287</a>;<br>
+    willing to have matter laid on table,
+<a href="#page287">287</a>;<br>
+    his triumph in the affair,
+<a href="#page288">288</a>;<br>
+    attempt to drive him from Foreign Affairs Committee,
+<a href="#page289">289</a>;<br>
+    refusal of Southerners to serve with,
+<a href="#page289">289</a>;<br>
+    refuses to notice them,
+<a href="#page289">289</a>;<br>
+    retains respect of House for his honesty,
+<a href="#page290">290</a>;<br>
+    appealed to, to help organize House in 1839,
+<a href="#page292">292</a>;<br>
+    his bold and successful action,
+<a href="#page293">293-295</a>;<br>
+    praised by Wise,
+<a href="#page294">294</a>;<br>
+    succeeds in presiding eleven days until organization,
+<a href="#page294">294</a>,
+<a href="#page295">295</a>;<br>
+    deprecates a resolution of thanks,
+<a href="#page295">295</a>;<br>
+    his occasional despondency and loneliness,
+<a href="#page295">295</a>,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>;<br>
+    describes his enemies,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>;<br>
+    tries to act justly to all of them,
+<a href="#page297">297</a>;<br>
+    castigates Wise for dueling,
+<a href="#page297">297</a>;<br>
+    called insane,
+<a href="#page297">297</a>,
+<a href="#page298">298</a>;<br>
+    his bitter language on opponents in the Diary,
+<a href="#page298">298-300</a>;<br>
+    low opinion of Congress,
+<a href="#page299">299</a>;<br>
+    on partisanship,
+<a href="#page299">299</a>,
+<a href="#page300">300</a>;<br>
+    describes his unpopularity,
+<a href="#page301">301</a>;<br>
+    describes all his acts as turned to his discredit,
+<a href="#page301">301</a>;<br>
+    his ill-health,
+<a href="#page302">302</a>,
+<a href="#page303">303</a>,
+<a href="#page305">305</a>;<br>
+    chairman of committee on Smithsonian bequest,
+<a href="#page303">303</a>;<br>
+    his religious and social activity,
+<a href="#page304">304</a>;<br>
+    in Amistad case,
+<a href="#page304">304</a>;<br>
+    continues attack upon gag rule,
+<a href="#page305">305</a>;<br>
+    his final victory and exultation,
+<a href="#page306">306</a>;<br>
+    struck by paralysis,
+<a href="#page307">307</a>;<br>
+    greeted on return to House,
+<a href="#page307">307</a>;<br>
+    his death in Capitol,
+<a href="#page307">307</a>,
+<a href="#page308">308</a>;<br>
+    estimate of character and services,
+<a href="#page308">308</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index5"><i>Characteristics</i></span>. General view,
+<a href="#page010">10-12</a>,
+<a href="#page308">308</a>;<br>
+    ambition,
+<a href="#page016">16</a>,
+<a href="#page019">19</a>,
+<a href="#page025">25</a>,
+<a href="#page164">164-167</a>;<br>
+    censoriousness,
+<a href="#page009">9</a>,
+<a href="#page012">12</a>,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>,
+<a href="#page150">150</a>,
+<a href="#page242">242</a>;<br>
+    conscientiousness,
+<a href="#page066">66</a>,
+<a href="#page200">200</a>,
+<a href="#page277">277</a>,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>;<br>
+    coldness,
+<a href="#page011">11</a>,
+<a href="#page034">34</a>,
+<a href="#page037">37</a>,
+<a href="#page165">165</a>,
+<a href="#page230">230</a>,
+<a href="#page240">240</a>;<br>
+    courage,
+<a href="#page010">10</a>,
+<a href="#page015">15</a>,
+<a href="#page033">33</a>,
+<a href="#page054">54</a>,
+<a href="#page058">58</a>,
+<a href="#page064">64</a>,
+<a href="#page113">113</a>,
+<a href="#page208">208</a>,
+<a href="#page252">252</a>,
+<a href="#page253">253</a>,
+<a href="#page293">293</a>;<br>
+    dignity,
+<a href="#page071">71</a>,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>,
+<a href="#page127">127</a>,
+<a href="#page213">213</a>,
+<a href="#page216">216</a>;<br>
+    diplomatic ability,
+<a href="#page020">20</a>,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>,
+<a href="#page072">72</a>,
+<a href="#page114">114</a>,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>,
+<a href="#page137">137-148</a>;<br>
+    exercise, love of,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>,
+<a href="#page207">207</a>;<br>
+    honor,
+<a href="#page010">10</a>,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>,
+<a href="#page058">58</a>,
+<a href="#page063">63</a>,
+<a href="#page166">166</a>;<br>
+    ill-health,
+<a href="#page302">302</a>,
+<a href="#page305">305</a>;<br>
+    independence,
+<a href="#page010">10</a>,
+<a href="#page016">16</a>,
+<a href="#page029">29</a>,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>,
+<a href="#page048">48</a>,
+<a href="#page059">59</a>,
+<a href="#page127">127</a>,
+<a href="#page133">133</a>,
+<a href="#page246">246</a>;<br>
+    industry,
+<a href="#page008">8</a>,
+<a href="#page011">11</a>,
+<a href="#page126">126</a>,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>,
+<a href="#page227">227</a>;<br>
+    invective,
+<a href="#page012">12</a>,
+<a href="#page229">229</a>,
+<a href="#page230">230</a>,
+<a href="#page246">246</a>,
+<a href="#page252">252</a>,
+<a href="#page277">277-279</a>,
+<a href="#page281">281</a>,
+<a href="#page283">283-285</a>,
+<a href="#page298">298-300</a>;<br>
+    irritability,
+<a href="#page083">83</a>,
+<a href="#page154">154</a>,
+<a href="#page210">210</a>,
+<a href="#page211">211</a>,
+<a href="#page302">302</a>;<br>
+    knowledge of politics,
+<a href="#page011">11</a>,
+<a href="#page091">91</a>,
+<a href="#page228">228</a>,
+<a href="#page245">245</a>;<br>
+    legal ability,
+<a href="#page018">18</a>;<br>
+    literary interests,
+<a href="#page221">221-223</a>;<br>
+    melancholy,
+<a href="#page214">214</a>;<br>
+    observation, power of,
+<a href="#page074">74</a>,
+<a href="#page077">77</a>,
+<a href="#page111">111</a>;<br>
+    oratorical ability,
+<a href="#page227">227</a>,
+<a href="#page228">228</a>;<br>
+    patriotism,
+<a href="#page062">62</a>,
+<a href="#page127">127</a>,
+<a href="#page148">148</a>;<br>
+    persistence,
+<a href="#page011">11</a>,
+<a href="#page025">25</a>,
+<a href="#page034">34</a>,
+<a href="#page114">114</a>,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>,
+<a href="#page143">143</a>,
+<a href="#page245">245</a>;<br>
+    personal appearance,
+<a href="#page228">228</a>;<br>
+    pessimism,
+<a href="#page019">19</a>,
+<a href="#page033">33</a>,
+<a href="#page067">67</a>,
+<a href="#page153">153</a>,
+<a href="#page272">272</a>,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>,
+<a href="#page299">299</a>;<br>
+    precocity,
+<a href="#page017">17</a>;<br>
+    pride,
+<a href="#page166">166</a>,
+<a href="#page167">167</a>,
+<a href="#page201">201</a>;<br>
+    prolixity,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>,
+<a href="#page277">277</a>;<br>
+    pugnacity,
+<a href="#page049">49</a>,
+<a href="#page050">50</a>,
+<a href="#page052">52</a>,
+<a href="#page081">81</a>,
+<a href="#page133">133</a>,
+<a href="#page141">141</a>,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>,
+<a href="#page228">228-236</a>,
+<a href="#page245">245</a>,
+<a href="#page246">246</a>,
+<a href="#page285">285</a>;<br>
+    Puritanism,
+<a href="#page007">7</a>,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>,
+<a href="#page066">66</a>,
+<a href="#page150">150</a>,
+<a href="#page164">164</a>,
+<a href="#page202">202</a>;<br>
+    religious views,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>,
+<a href="#page207">207</a>,
+<a href="#page304">304</a>;<br>
+    sensitiveness,
+<a href="#page033">33</a>,
+<a href="#page083">83</a>,
+<a href="#page208">208</a>,
+<a href="#page298">298</a>;<br>
+    sobriety,
+<a href="#page008">8</a>,
+<a href="#page014">14</a>,
+<a href="#page118">118</a>;<br>
+    social habits,
+<a href="#page103">103</a>,
+<a href="#page202">202</a>,
+<a href="#page203">203</a>;<br>
+    suspiciousness,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>,
+<a href="#page151">151</a>,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>;<br>
+    unpopularity,
+<a href="#page195">195</a>,
+<a href="#page202">202-204</a>,
+<a href="#page231">231</a>,
+<a href="#page246">246</a>,
+<a href="#page253">253</a>,
+<a href="#page295">295</a>,
+<a href="#page301">301</a>,
+<a href="#page307">307</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index5"><i>Political Opinions</i></span>. Appointments to office,
+<a href="#page178">178-180</a>,
+<a href="#page197">197-200</a>,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>;<br>
+    cabinet relations with,
+<a href="#page204">204</a>,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>;<br>
+    candidate, attitude of,
+<a href="#page164">164-167</a>,
+<a href="#page197">197-206</a>;<br>
+    Chase, impeachment of,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>;<br>
+    Chesapeake affair,
+<a href="#page051">51</a>;<br>
+    Congress, powers over slavery,
+<a href="#page122">122</a>,
+<a href="#page250">250</a>,
+<a href="#page261">261-265</a>;<br>
+    court etiquette,
+<a href="#page073">73</a>;<br>
+    Cuba, annexation of,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>;<br>
+    disunion,
+<a href="#page119">119</a>,
+<a href="#page122">122</a>,
+<a href="#page281">281</a>;<br>
+    election of 1824,
+<a href="#page174">174-176</a>;<br>
+    emancipation,
+<a href="#page121">121</a>;<br>
+    embargo,
+<a href="#page053">53</a>,
+<a href="#page056">56</a>;<br>
+    England,
+<a href="#page047">47</a>,
+<a href="#page050">50</a>,
+<a href="#page051">51</a>,
+<a href="#page090">90</a>,
+<a href="#page145">145</a>,
+<a href="#page148">148</a>;<br>
+    English society,
+<a href="#page100">100</a>;<br>
+    Federalist party,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>,
+<a href="#page048">48</a>,
+<a href="#page050">50</a>,
+<a href="#page057">57</a>,
+<a href="#page061">61</a>;<br>
+    fisheries,
+<a href="#page088">88</a>,
+<a href="#page090">90</a>;<br>
+    Florida,
+<a href="#page115">115</a>,
+<a href="#page118">118</a>,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>;<br>
+    France, policy towards,
+<a href="#page239">239</a>;<br>
+    "gag" rule,
+<a href="#page250">250</a>,
+<a href="#page251">251</a>,
+<a href="#page256">256</a>,
+<a href="#page257">257</a>,
+<a href="#page305">305</a>,
+<a href="#page306">306</a>;<br>
+    Genet,
+<a href="#page118">118</a>;<br>
+    gunboat scheme,
+<a href="#page048">48</a>;<br>
+    internal improvements,
+<a href="#page194">194</a>,
+<a href="#page201">201</a>;<br>
+    Jackson's administration,
+<a href="#page237">237</a>;<br>
+    Jackson's Florida career,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>,
+<a href="#page163">163</a>;<br>
+    Louisiana,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>;<br>
+    Louisiana boundary,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>,
+<a href="#page115">115</a>;<br>
+    manifest destiny,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+    Mississippi navigation,
+<a href="#page088">88</a>,
+<a href="#page089">89</a>;<br>
+    Missouri Compromise,
+<a href="#page121">121</a>;<br>
+    Monroe doctrine,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>,
+<a href="#page134">134-136</a>;<br>
+    non-importation,
+<a href="#page040">40</a>,
+<a href="#page049">49</a>,
+<a href="#page055">55</a>;<br>
+    nullification,
+<a href="#page234">234</a>,
+<a href="#page235">235</a>;<br>
+    Oregon,
+<a href="#page140">140-143</a>;<br>
+    Panama Congress,
+<a href="#page189">189</a>;<br>
+    party fidelity,
+<a href="#page029">29</a>,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>,
+<a href="#page054">54</a>,
+<a href="#page059">59</a>,
+<a href="#page062">62</a>,
+<a href="#page233">233</a>;<br>
+    Republican party,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>,
+<a href="#page065">65</a>;<br>
+    right of search,
+<a href="#page038">38</a>,
+<a href="#page139">139</a>;<br>
+    slaveholders,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>,
+<a href="#page257">257</a>,
+<a href="#page260">260</a>;<br>
+    slavery,
+<a href="#page120">120</a>,
+<a href="#page121">121</a>,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>,
+<a href="#page255">255</a>,
+<a href="#page304">304</a>;<br>
+    slave trade,
+<a href="#page135">135</a>,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>;<br>
+    Smithsonian bequest,
+<a href="#page303">303</a>;<br>
+    Spanish-American republics,
+<a href="#page109">109</a>,
+<a href="#page131">131-133</a>;<br>
+    Texas, annexation of,
+<a href="#page265">265</a>,
+<a href="#page266">266</a>;<br>
+    treaty of Ghent,
+<a href="#page077">77-98</a>;<br>
+    weights and measures,
+<a href="#page126">126</a>,
+<a href="#page127">127</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Adams</span>, Dr. William, on English peace commission,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  suggests abandonment by United States of its
+citizens in proposed Indian Territory,
+<a href="#page079">79</a>;<br>
+  irritated at proposal that English restore possession of
+Moose Island pending arbitration,
+<a href="#page091">91</a>;<br>
+  negotiates treaty of commerce,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Alexander</span>, Emperor of Russia, desires to exchange ministers with
+United States,
+<a href="#page069">69</a>;<br>
+  his courtesy to Adams,
+<a href="#page070">70</a>,
+<a href="#page071">71</a>;<br>
+  anecdote of Adams's conversation with,
+<a href="#page073">73</a>;<br>
+  attempts to mediate between England and United States,
+<a href="#page074">74</a>,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>;<br>
+  discussions with Castlereagh,
+<a href="#page093">93</a>;<br>
+  slander concerning relations with Adams,
+<a href="#page209">209</a>,
+<a href="#page210">210</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Alford</span>, Julius C., wishes to burn Adams's petition from slaves,
+<a href="#page270">270</a>;<br>
+  threatens war,
+<a href="#page272">272</a>,
+<a href="#page275">275</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Ambrister</span>. See Arbuthnot.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Amistad</span> case, share of Adams in,
+<a href="#page304">304</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Anti-Mason</span> movement, used by Jacksonians against Adams,
+<a href="#page208">208</a>,
+<a href="#page209">209</a>;<br>
+  connection of Adams within Massachusetts,
+<a href="#page226">226</a>,
+<a href="#page301">301</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Arbuthnot</span> and Ambrister, hanged by Jackson,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+  execution of, defended by Adams,
+<a href="#page162">162</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Atherton</span>, Charles G., bitter remarks of Adams on,
+<a href="#page298">298</a>,
+<a href="#page300">300</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Austria</span>, rejects England's plan for suppression of slave trade,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Bagot, Sir Charles</span>, question of his opinion on Oregon
+question, discussed by Canning and Adams,
+<a href="#page142">142</a>,
+<a href="#page143">143</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Bank</span>, Jackson's attack on,
+<a href="#page240">240</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Barbour</span>, James, appointed Secretary of War,
+<a href="#page177">177</a>;<br>
+  desires mission to England,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Barings</span>, give Adams his commission,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Barnard</span>, D. D., by Adams's advice, presents petition for dissolution of Union,
+<a href="#page288">288</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Barrou</span>, James, commands Chesapeake when attacked by Leopard,
+<a href="#page045">45</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Bayard</span>, James A., appointed peace commissioner,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  resents proposal to meet at lodgings of English commissioners,
+<a href="#page077">77</a>;<br>
+  criticises Adams's drafts of documents,
+<a href="#page083">83</a>;<br>
+  enrages Goulburn,
+<a href="#page091">91</a>;<br>
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Benton</span>, T. H., on unfavorable beginning to Adams's administration,
+<a href="#page188">188</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Berkeley</span>, Admiral G. C., commands Leopard, and is
+promoted for attacking Chesapeake,
+<a href="#page046">46</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Berlin</span> decree,
+<a href="#page041">41</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Beverly</span>, Carter, reports that Jackson has proof of Clay and Adams bargain,
+<a href="#page184">184</a>;<br>
+  upheld by Jackson,
+<a href="#page185">185</a>;<br>
+  apologizes to Clay,
+<a href="#page187">187</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Black</span>, Edward J., of Georgia, comment of Adams on,
+<a href="#page300">300</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Bonaparte</span>, Napoleon, issues Berlin and Milan decrees,
+<a href="#page041">41</a>,
+<a href="#page042">42</a>;<br>
+  seen during "hundred days" by Adams,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Brown</span>, James, votes against Spanish treaty through Clay's influence,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Buchanan</span>, James, refuses to substantiate Jackson's story of
+corrupt offer from Clay in election of 1824,
+<a href="#page186">186</a>,
+<a href="#page187">187</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Burr</span>, Aaron, compared by Adams to Van Buren,
+<a href="#page193">193</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Cabinet</span>, relations of Adams to,
+<a href="#page204">204</a>,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>;<br>
+  treachery of McLean,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Calhoun</span>, J. C., candidate for succession to Monroe,
+<a href="#page106">106</a>;<br>
+  on Southern alliance with England in case of dissolution of Union,
+<a href="#page121">121</a>;<br>
+  candidacy damaged by Southern origin,
+<a href="#page149">149</a>;<br>
+  his opinion of Crawford,
+<a href="#page156">156</a>;<br>
+  displeased at Jackson's disregard of instructions,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+  elected Vice-President,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>;<br>
+  irritation of Adams at his failure to suppress Randolph,
+<a href="#page211">211</a>;<br>
+  reėlected Vice-President,
+<a href="#page212">212</a>;<br>
+  accused by Adams of plotting to injure him,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Canada</span>, desire of Adams for annexation of,
+<a href="#page085">85</a>,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Canning</span>, George, seeks acquaintance with Adams,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Canning</span>, Stratford, urges American submission to mixed tribunals
+to suppress slave trade,
+<a href="#page135">135</a>;<br>
+  his arrogance met by Adams,
+<a href="#page136">136</a>,
+<a href="#page137">137</a>;<br>
+  discusses with Adams the suppression of slave trade,
+<a href="#page137">137-139</a>;<br>
+  on Adams's superior years,
+<a href="#page139">139</a>;<br>
+  high words with Adams over question of an American
+settlement at mouth of Columbia,
+<a href="#page140">140-147</a>;<br>
+  loses temper at request to put objections in writing,
+<a href="#page141">141</a>;<br>
+  and at persistence of Adams in repeating words of previous English minister,
+<a href="#page142">142</a>,
+<a href="#page143">143</a>;<br>
+  his offer to forget subject declined by Adams,
+<a href="#page144">144</a>;<br>
+  complains of Adams's language,
+<a href="#page145">145</a>,
+<a href="#page146">146</a>;<br>
+  resents reference to Jackson's recall,
+<a href="#page146">146</a>,
+<a href="#page147">147</a>;<br>
+  his anger shown later,
+<a href="#page147">147</a>;<br>
+  this does not affect relations between countries,
+<a href="#page148">148</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Castlereagh</span>, Lord, unwilling at first to conclude peace,
+<a href="#page093">93</a>;<br>
+  influenced by attitude of Prussia and Russia, advises concessions,
+<a href="#page094">94</a>;<br>
+  dealings with Adams,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>;<br>
+  described by Adams,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Cavalla</span>, &mdash;&mdash;, imprisoned by Jackson,
+<a href="#page159">159</a>,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+  seizure defended by Adams,
+<a href="#page162">162</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Chase</span>, Judge Samuel, his acquittal voted for by J. Q. Adams,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Chesapeake</span> attacked by Leopard,
+<a href="#page045">45</a>;<br>
+  effect upon Adams and Federalists,
+<a href="#page050">50</a>,
+<a href="#page051">51</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Chesapeake</span> and Ohio Canal, incident of Adams's opening of,
+<a href="#page195">195</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Choate</span>, Rufus, sympathizes with Adams when attacked by resolutions of censure,
+<a href="#page286">286</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Civil</span> service, appointments to, under Adams,
+<a href="#page178">178-180</a>,
+<a href="#page196">196</a>,
+<a href="#page198">198</a>,
+<a href="#page199">199</a>,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>,
+<a href="#page209">209</a>;<br>
+  under Jackson,
+<a href="#page198">198</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Clay</span>, Henry, on peace commission,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  his irascibility,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>,
+<a href="#page084">84</a>;<br>
+  criticises Adams's figurative style in documents,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>;<br>
+  irritates Adams,
+<a href="#page084">84</a>;<br>
+  his conviviality,
+<a href="#page084">84</a>;<br>
+  thinks English will recede,
+<a href="#page085">85</a>;<br>
+  then thinks English will refuse to accept <i>status ante bellum</i>,
+<a href="#page087">87</a>;<br>
+  willing to sacrifice fisheries to prevent English Mississippi navigation,
+<a href="#page088">88</a>,
+<a href="#page089">89</a>;<br>
+  thinks fisheries of little value,
+<a href="#page089">89</a>;<br>
+  willing to meet English with defiance,
+<a href="#page090">90</a>;<br>
+  threatens not to sign treaty,
+<a href="#page090">90</a>,
+<a href="#page092">92</a>;<br>
+  abandoned by colleagues on point of impressment,
+<a href="#page092">92</a>;<br>
+  negotiates treaty of commerce,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>;<br>
+  his gambling habits,
+<a href="#page103">103</a>;<br>
+  jealous of Adams's appointment as Secretary of State,
+<a href="#page106">106</a>;<br>
+  leads opposition to administration,
+<a href="#page108">108</a>;<br>
+  wishes to recognize independence of Spanish colonies,
+<a href="#page109">109</a>;<br>
+  threatens to oppose treaty accepting Sabine as Louisiana boundary,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>;<br>
+  opposes treaty with Spain,
+<a href="#page116">116</a>;<br>
+  fails to prevent ratification,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>;<br>
+  ambitious for presidency,
+<a href="#page149">149</a>;<br>
+  low motives for opposition to administration as signed by Adams,
+<a href="#page151">151</a>;<br>
+  his honesty in advocating recognition of South American republics,
+<a href="#page152">152</a>;<br>
+  compared by Adams to Randolph,
+<a href="#page153">153</a>;<br>
+  becomes reconciled with Adams before election,
+<a href="#page154">154</a>;<br>
+  denounces Jackson,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+  vote for, in 1824,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>;<br>
+  able to decide choice of President by influence in Congress,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>;<br>
+  at first prefers Crawford,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>,
+<a href="#page170">170</a>;<br>
+  charged with having offered to support either Jackson or Adams,
+<a href="#page170">170</a>;<br>
+  his preference for Adams over Jackson,
+<a href="#page171">171</a>;<br>
+  appointed Secretary of State,
+<a href="#page177">177</a>;<br>
+  urges removal of Sterret for proposing an insult to Adams,
+<a href="#page179">179</a>;<br>
+  calls author of bargain slander a liar,
+<a href="#page181">181</a>;<br>
+  charge against, repeated by Tennessee legislature,
+<a href="#page183">183</a>;<br>
+  duel with Randolph,
+<a href="#page183">183</a>;<br>
+  challenges Jackson to produce evidence,
+<a href="#page185">185</a>;<br>
+  exonerated by Buchanan,
+<a href="#page187">187</a>;<br>
+  and by Kremer and Beverly,
+<a href="#page187">187</a>;<br>
+  actually receives advances from Jackson's friends,
+<a href="#page187">187</a>,
+<a href="#page188">188</a>;<br>
+  opposition to his nomination as Secretary of State,
+<a href="#page188">188</a>;<br>
+  abused by Randolph,
+<a href="#page211">211</a>;<br>
+  engineers compromise with South Carolina,
+<a href="#page236">236</a>;<br>
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Clifford</span>, Nathan, of Maine, contemptuously described by Adams,
+<a href="#page300">300</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Clinton</span>, De Witt, his candidacy for President in 1824,
+<a href="#page149">149</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Congress</span>, in election of 1824,
+<a href="#page165">165</a>,
+<a href="#page169">169-172</a>;<br>
+  influence of Clay in,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>;<br>
+  elects Adams President,
+<a href="#page172">172</a>,
+<a href="#page173">173</a>;<br>
+  investigates bargain story,
+<a href="#page181">181</a>;<br>
+  opposition in, to Adams, from the beginning,
+<a href="#page188">188</a>;<br>
+  attacks Adams's intention to send delegates to Panama Congress,
+<a href="#page190">190</a>;<br>
+  opposes Adams throughout administration,
+<a href="#page192">192</a>;<br>
+  resolutions denying its power to interfere with slavery debated in House,
+<a href="#page249">249</a>,
+<a href="#page250">250</a>;<br>
+  position of Adams with regard to its power to abolish slavery in the States,
+<a href="#page250">250</a>,
+<a href="#page261">261-265</a>;<br>
+  its degeneracy lamented by Adams,
+<a href="#page299">299</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Connor</span>, John C., taunted by Adams in Congress,
+<a href="#page261">261</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Constitution</span> of United States, in relation to Louisiana purchase,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>;<br>
+  prohibits submission of United States to mixed foreign tribunals
+     for suppressing slave trade,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>;<br>
+  in connection with election of 1824,
+<a href="#page172">172</a>;<br>
+  held by Adams to forbid "gag" rule,
+<a href="#page250">250</a>,
+<a href="#page256">256</a>,
+<a href="#page258">258</a>;<br>
+  held by Adams to justify abolition of slavery under war power,
+<a href="#page261">261-265</a>;<br>
+  in relation to Texas annexation,
+<a href="#page266">266</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Crawford</span>, W. H., his ambitions for the presidency,
+<a href="#page105">105</a>,
+<a href="#page106">106</a>,
+<a href="#page148">148</a>;<br>
+  intrigues against Adams,
+<a href="#page106">106</a>,
+<a href="#page154">154</a>;<br>
+  his action described by Adams,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>,
+<a href="#page113">113</a>;<br>
+  advises moderate policy to remove foreign prejudices against United States,
+<a href="#page128">128</a>;<br>
+  contempt of Adams for,
+<a href="#page154">154</a>;<br>
+  accused by Adams of all kinds of falsity and ambition,
+<a href="#page155">155</a>,
+<a href="#page156">156</a>,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>;<br>
+  his real character,
+<a href="#page156">156</a>,
+<a href="#page157">157</a>;<br>
+  Calhoun's opinion of,
+<a href="#page156">156</a>;<br>
+  described by Mills,
+<a href="#page157">157</a>;<br>
+  a party politician,
+<a href="#page158">158</a>;<br>
+  eager to ruin Jackson,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+  vote for, in 1824,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>;<br>
+  his illness causes abandonment by Clay.
+<a href="#page170">170</a>;<br>
+  receives four votes in House of Representatives,
+<a href="#page173">173</a>;<br>
+  fills custom-houses with supporters,
+<a href="#page180">180</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Creeks</span>, treaty with, discussed in Senate,
+<a href="#page033">33</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Creole</span> affair,
+<a href="#page279">279</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Cuba</span>, its annexation expected by Adams,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Cushing</span>, Caleb, defends Adams against resolutions of censure,
+<a href="#page276">276</a>;<br>
+  movement to put him in Adams's place on Committee on Foreign Affairs,
+<a href="#page289">289</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Dana, Francis</span>, takes Adams as private secretary to Russia,
+<a href="#page013">13</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Davis</span>, John, accused by Adams of trying to injure him,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Deas</span>, Mr., exchanges ratifications of Jay treaty,
+<a href="#page021">21</a>;<br>
+  disliked by English cabinet,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Democratic</span> party, organized as opposition to Adams,
+<a href="#page192">192</a>;<br>
+  managed by Van Buren,
+<a href="#page192">192</a>,
+<a href="#page193">193</a>,
+<a href="#page195">195</a>;<br>
+  not based on principle, but on personal feeling,
+<a href="#page196">196</a>;<br>
+  its attacks upon Adams,
+<a href="#page208">208-210</a>;<br>
+  its methods condemned by Adams,
+<a href="#page237">237</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Diary</span>, suggested by John Adams,
+<a href="#page005">5</a>;<br>
+  begun,
+<a href="#page006">6</a>;<br>
+  its nature and content,
+<a href="#page007">7</a>,
+<a href="#page008">8</a>;<br>
+  its bitterness,
+<a href="#page009">9</a>,
+<a href="#page010">10</a>;<br>
+  picture of the author,
+<a href="#page010">10</a>,
+<a href="#page011">11</a>;<br>
+  quotations from, in Boston,
+<a href="#page019">19</a>;<br>
+  during career in Senate,
+<a href="#page032">32</a>,
+<a href="#page034">34</a>;<br>
+  on damaging party,
+<a href="#page066">66</a>;<br>
+  during peace negotiations,
+<a href="#page077">77</a>,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>,
+<a href="#page083">83</a>,
+<a href="#page089">89</a>,
+<a href="#page090">90</a>;<br>
+  during election of 1824,
+<a href="#page150">150</a>,
+<a href="#page151">151</a>,
+<a href="#page164">164</a>,
+<a href="#page168">168</a>;<br>
+  in election of 1828,
+<a href="#page201">201</a>,
+<a href="#page210">210</a>,
+<a href="#page211">211</a>;<br>
+  during anti-slavery career,
+<a href="#page255">255</a>,
+<a href="#page292">292</a>,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>,
+<a href="#page298">298-300</a>;<br>
+  in last years,
+<a href="#page301">301-303</a>,
+<a href="#page305">305</a>,
+<a href="#page306">306</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Diplomatic</span> history, mission of Dana to Russia,
+<a href="#page013">13</a>;<br>
+  mission of Adams to Holland,
+<a href="#page019">19-21</a>;<br>
+  to Prussia,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>;<br>
+  Rose's mission to United States,
+<a href="#page045">45</a>,
+<a href="#page046">46</a>;<br>
+  mission of Adams to Russia,
+<a href="#page070">70-74</a>;<br>
+  offer of Russia to mediate in war of 1812,
+<a href="#page074">74</a>,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>;<br>
+  refusal by England,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>;<br>
+  peace negotiations,
+<a href="#page076">76-98</a> (see treaty of Ghent);<br>
+  commercial negotiations with England,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>;<br>
+  mission of Adams to England,
+<a href="#page098">98-100</a>;<br>
+  negotiations of Adams with Spain,
+<a href="#page110">110-118</a>,
+<a href="#page123">123-125</a>;<br>
+  question of Sabine River boundary,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>,
+<a href="#page116">116</a>;<br>
+  final agreement, details of treaty, acquisition of Florida,
+<a href="#page115">115</a>;<br>
+  and Western outlet to Pacific,
+<a href="#page115">115</a>;<br>
+  dispute over Spanish land grants,
+<a href="#page116">116</a>,
+<a href="#page117">117</a>;<br>
+  rejection of treaty by Spain,
+<a href="#page117">117</a>;<br>
+  renewed mission of Vivźs,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>;<br>
+  ratification of treaty,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>;<br>
+  independent attitude of United States under Adams,
+<a href="#page127">127</a>,
+<a href="#page128">128</a>;<br>
+  Monroe doctrine,
+<a href="#page129">129-136</a>;<br>
+  dealings with Russia over Alaska,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>;<br>
+  proposal of Portugal for an alliance,
+<a href="#page133">133</a>;<br>
+  dealings of Adams with Greek revolt,
+<a href="#page134">134</a>;<br>
+  dealings of Adams with Stratford Canning over slave trade,
+<a href="#page135">135</a>,
+<a href="#page137">137</a>;<br>
+  high words over Columbia River settlement,
+<a href="#page140">140-147</a>;<br>
+  refusal of Adams to explain words uttered in Congress,
+<a href="#page142">142</a>,
+<a href="#page145">145-147</a>;<br>
+  commercial treaties in Adams's administration,
+<a href="#page194">194</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">"Doughfaces,"</span> attacks of Adams upon,
+<a href="#page120">120</a>,
+<a href="#page229">229</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Dromgoole</span>, George C., remark on petition to expel Adams,
+<a href="#page268">268</a>;<br>
+  introduces resolutions of censure on Adams,
+<a href="#page275">275</a>;<br>
+  ridiculed by Adams,
+<a href="#page277">277</a>,
+<a href="#page278">278</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Duncan</span>, Alexander, bitterly described by Adams,
+<a href="#page299">299</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5">Eaton, Senator J. H.</span>, leads Canning to suspect American plan to colonize Oregon,
+<a href="#page140">140</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Eaton</span>, Mrs., her influence in Jackson's administration,
+<a href="#page237">237</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Election</span> of 1824, candidates,
+<a href="#page148">148</a>,
+<a href="#page149">149</a>;<br>
+  Adams's opinion of them,
+<a href="#page151">151-163</a>;<br>
+  choice simply between persons, not principles,
+<a href="#page163">163</a>;<br>
+  Adams refuses to canvass for himself,
+<a href="#page164">164</a>,
+<a href="#page165">165</a>;<br>
+  electoral college votes for four candidates,
+<a href="#page168">168</a>,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>;<br>
+  influence of Clay in House proves decisive factor,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>,
+<a href="#page170">170</a>;<br>
+  Crawford discarded,
+<a href="#page170">170</a>;<br>
+  the Clay-Adams bargain story started,
+<a href="#page170">170</a>;<br>
+  claims of Jackson men,
+<a href="#page171">171</a>;<br>
+  difficulty of discovering popular vote,
+<a href="#page172">172</a>,
+<a href="#page173">173</a>;<br>
+  choice of Adams,
+<a href="#page173">173</a>,
+<a href="#page174">174</a>;<br>
+  subsequent history of bargain story,
+<a href="#page180">180-188</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Election</span> of 1828, question of principle veiled by personality of candidates,
+<a href="#page196">196</a>,
+<a href="#page197">197</a>,
+<a href="#page200">200</a>;<br>
+  choice of Jackson,
+<a href="#page212">212</a>;<br>
+  its significance,
+<a href="#page213">213</a>,
+<a href="#page214">214</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Embargo</span>, proposed by Jefferson,
+<a href="#page052">52</a>;<br>
+  supported by Adams,
+<a href="#page053">53</a>;<br>
+  opposed by Federalists,
+<a href="#page053">53</a>;<br>
+  preferred by Adams to submission,
+<a href="#page054">54</a>,
+<a href="#page055">55</a>;<br>
+  its effects,
+<a href="#page055">55</a>;<br>
+  its repeal urged by Adams,
+<a href="#page055">55</a>,
+<a href="#page056">56</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">England</span>, ratifies Jay treaty,
+<a href="#page021">21</a>;<br>
+  tries to induce Adams to negotiate instead of Deas,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>;<br>
+  its commercial policy toward United States,
+<a href="#page037">37</a>,
+<a href="#page038">38</a>;<br>
+  its right of search protested against by Adams,
+<a href="#page039">39</a>;<br>
+  Non-importation Act adopted against,
+<a href="#page040">40</a>;<br>
+  proclaims blockade,
+<a href="#page041">41</a>;<br>
+  issues Orders in Council,
+<a href="#page041">41</a>,
+<a href="#page042">42</a>;<br>
+  its policy of impressment,
+<a href="#page043">43</a>,
+<a href="#page044">44</a>;<br>
+  refuses compensation for Chesapeake affair and promotes Berkeley,
+<a href="#page045">45</a>;<br>
+  its policy understood by Adams,
+<a href="#page049">49</a>,
+<a href="#page050">50</a>;<br>
+  embargo against,
+<a href="#page051">51-55</a>;<br>
+  refuses Russia's offer to mediate in war of 1812,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>;<br>
+  wins victories,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  willing to treat directly,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  appoints commissioners,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  demands great concessions,
+<a href="#page078">78</a>,
+<a href="#page079">79</a>;<br>
+  ready, if necessary, to continue war,
+<a href="#page086">86</a>;<br>
+  alters policy and concludes treaty,
+<a href="#page093">93</a>,
+<a href="#page094">94</a>;<br>
+  dissatisfied with treaty,
+<a href="#page097">97</a>;<br>
+  commercial treaty with,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>;<br>
+  mission of Adams to,
+<a href="#page098">98-100</a>;<br>
+  social life of Adams in,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>,
+<a href="#page100">100</a>;<br>
+  its offer to mediate between United States and Spain rejected,
+<a href="#page114">114</a>;<br>
+  hopes no violent action will be taken against Spain,
+<a href="#page118">118</a>;<br>
+  endeavors to induce United States to join in suppressing slave trade,
+<a href="#page135">135</a>,
+<a href="#page137">137</a>;<br>
+  its sincerity suspected by Adams,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>;<br>
+  its claim to right of search causes refusal of request,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>,
+<a href="#page139">139</a>;<br>
+  its claims to Oregon discussed by Canning and Adams,
+<a href="#page140">140</a>,
+<a href="#page142">142</a>,
+<a href="#page143">143</a>,
+<a href="#page145">145</a>;<br>
+  Adams's opinion of its territorial claims,
+<a href="#page145">145</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Era</span> of good feeling,
+<a href="#page104">104</a>;<br>
+  characterized by personal rivalries,
+<a href="#page105">105</a>;<br>
+  question of presidential succession,
+<a href="#page105">105</a>,
+<a href="#page106">106</a>;<br>
+  intrigues,
+<a href="#page106">106</a>,
+<a href="#page107">107</a>,
+<a href="#page148">148</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Evans</span>, George, defends Adams from resolutions of censure,
+<a href="#page270">270</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Everett</span>, Edward, his address to Jackson condemned as fulsome by Adams,
+<a href="#page242">242</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Everett</span>, Horace, defends Adams against resolutions of censure,
+<a href="#page283">283</a>,
+<a href="#page286">286</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Everett</span>, Mr., told by Adams of determination to do nothing to secure election,
+<a href="#page164">164</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Federalist</span> party, defeated by Jefferson,
+<a href="#page025">25</a>,
+<a href="#page026">26</a>;<br>
+  dissensions in, between John Adams and Hamilton,
+<a href="#page026">26</a>,
+<a href="#page027">27</a>;<br>
+  J. Q. Adams a member of,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+  elects Adams to State Senate,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+  irritated by his independence,
+<a href="#page029">29</a>;<br>
+  elects him United States senator,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>;<br>
+  antipathy of, in Senate, toward son of John Adams,
+<a href="#page031">31</a>;<br>
+  opposes Louisiana purchase,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>;<br>
+  condemns Adams for favoring Louisiana,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>;<br>
+  supports English policy,
+<a href="#page038">38</a>;<br>
+  angered against Jefferson for not submitting to English aggression,
+<a href="#page039">39</a>,
+<a href="#page040">40</a>,
+<a href="#page053">53</a>;<br>
+  opposes Non-importation Act,
+<a href="#page040">40</a>;<br>
+  urged by Adams to resent Chesapeake affair,
+<a href="#page051">51</a>;<br>
+  does so, but condemns Adams for participating in Republican meeting,
+<a href="#page052">52</a>;<br>
+  its outburst of fury at Adams for supporting embargo,
+<a href="#page053">53</a>,
+<a href="#page054">54</a>;<br>
+  refuses to reėlect him,
+<a href="#page057">57</a>;<br>
+  discussion of its part in United States history,
+<a href="#page059">59-62</a>;<br>
+  its success in organization,
+<a href="#page059">59</a>,
+<a href="#page060">60</a>;<br>
+  supported by Adams as long as it remains sound,
+<a href="#page061">61</a>;<br>
+  takes false position after 1807,
+<a href="#page062">62</a>;<br>
+  disappears,
+<a href="#page104">104</a>,
+<a href="#page105">105</a>;<br>
+  thirteen members demand evidence of Adams's statement
+concerning plans for disunion,
+<a href="#page216">216</a>;<br>
+  their rejoinder to his reply,
+<a href="#page217">217</a>,
+<a href="#page218">218</a>;<br>
+  proved to have planned disunion by Adams's unpublished pamphlet,
+<a href="#page218">218</a>,
+<a href="#page219">219</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Fisheries</span>, intention of English to ignore, in treaty of Ghent,
+<a href="#page080">80</a>,
+<a href="#page088">88</a>;<br>
+  disputes over, between Adams and Clay,
+<a href="#page088">88-90</a>;<br>
+  finally omitted from treaty,
+<a href="#page092">92</a>,
+<a href="#page094">94</a>;<br>
+  later negotiations over,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Florida</span>, question of its acquisition,
+<a href="#page110">110</a>,
+<a href="#page111">111</a>;<br>
+  acquired by treaty,
+<a href="#page115">115</a>;<br>
+  its seizure advocated by Adams against Monroe,
+<a href="#page118">118</a>,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>;<br>
+  treaty concerning, opposed by Clay,
+<a href="#page151">151</a>;<br>
+  illegal actions of Jackson in,
+<a href="#page159">159</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Foreign</span> Affairs, Committee on, petition for Adams's removal from,
+<a href="#page280">280</a>;<br>
+  refusal of Southern members to serve on, with Adams,
+<a href="#page289">289</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">France</span>, conquers Holland,
+<a href="#page020">20</a>;<br>
+  attitude of John Adams toward,
+<a href="#page026">26</a>;<br>
+  replies to English blockade by Berlin and Milan decrees,
+<a href="#page041">41</a>,
+<a href="#page042">42</a>;<br>
+  unable to damage American shipping as much as England,
+<a href="#page046">46</a>,
+<a href="#page047">47</a>;<br>
+  war with Russia,
+<a href="#page074">74</a>;<br>
+  hopes no violent action will be taken against Spain,
+<a href="#page118">118</a>;<br>
+  rejects England's plan for suppression of slave trade,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>;<br>
+  its slowness in paying debt causes Jackson to break off diplomatic relations,
+<a href="#page238">238</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Franklin</span>, Benjamin, negotiates treaty of peace,
+<a href="#page013">13</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">"Gag"</span> rule, adopted over Adams's protest,
+<a href="#page250">250</a>,
+<a href="#page251">251</a>;<br>
+  effort of Adams to get his protest on journal,
+<a href="#page251">251</a>,
+<a href="#page252">252</a>;<br>
+  further protests of Adams against,
+<a href="#page256">256</a>,
+<a href="#page258">258</a>,
+<a href="#page305">305</a>;<br>
+  difficulties in enforcing,
+<a href="#page260">260</a>;<br>
+  dwindling majorities for,
+<a href="#page305">305</a>;<br>
+  repealed on Adams's motion,
+<a href="#page306">306</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Gallatin</span>, Albert, appointed peace commissioner,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>;<br>
+  his appointment rejected by Senate,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>;<br>
+  reappointed,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  moderates resentment of colleagues at English pretensions,
+<a href="#page077">77</a>,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>;<br>
+  acts as peacemaker in conference,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>;<br>
+  supplants Adams in drafting documents,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>;<br>
+  on good terms with Adams,
+<a href="#page084">84</a>;<br>
+  negotiates treaty of commerce,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Gambier</span>, Lord, on English peace commission,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  laments Adams's intention to return to St. Petersburg,
+<a href="#page086">86</a>;<br>
+  interposes to calm a quarrel,
+<a href="#page091">91</a>;<br>
+  negotiates treaty of commerce,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Garland</span>, Hugh A., attempts to secure organization of House of
+Representatives without taking in contested seats,
+<a href="#page290">290</a>;<br>
+  intends to give House to Democrats,
+<a href="#page291">291</a>;<br>
+  refuses to put any question until House is organized,
+<a href="#page291">291</a>,
+<a href="#page292">292</a>;<br>
+  prevents organization,
+<a href="#page292">292</a>;<br>
+  pushed aside by Adams,
+<a href="#page293">293</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Garrison</span>, William Lloyd, adopts Adams's theory of power of Congress over slavery,
+<a href="#page264">264</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Genet</span>, E. C., his course attacked by Adams in papers,
+<a href="#page018">18</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Gerry</span>, Elbridge, notifies John Adams of appointment as Minister to England,
+<a href="#page014">14</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Giddings</span>, Joshua R., his position on power of Congress over slavery not indorsed by Adams,
+<a href="#page263">263</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Giles</span>, W. B., attempts to win Adams to support Jefferson,
+<a href="#page065">65</a>;<br>
+  abuses Adams,
+<a href="#page211">211</a>,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>;<br>
+  his memory preserved solely by his slanders,
+<a href="#page212">212</a>;<br>
+  circulates slanders in New England against Adams,
+<a href="#page216">216</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Gilmer</span>, Thomas W., offers resolution of censure on Adams for presenting
+petition to dissolve the Union,
+<a href="#page281">281</a>;<br>
+  denies Adams's charge of imitating Wise,
+<a href="#page281">281</a>,
+<a href="#page282">282</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Glascock</span>, Thomas, moves that anti-slavery petition be not received,
+<a href="#page248">248</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Goulburn</span>, Henry, on English peace commission,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  thinks war must continue,
+<a href="#page086">86</a>;<br>
+  loses temper with Bayard and Adams,
+<a href="#page091">91</a>;<br>
+  negotiates treaty of commerce,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Grantland</span>, Seaton, wishes to punish Adams for presenting petition
+from slaves,
+<a href="#page270">270</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Greece</span>, revolt of, refusal of Adams to commit United States to interference,
+<a href="#page134">134</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Gregory</span>, Sherlock S., his eccentric anti-slavery petition,
+<a href="#page256">256</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Grenville</span>, Lord, dealings of Adams with, in 1795,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Gunboat</span> scheme, despised by Adams,
+<a href="#page048">48</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Habersham, Richard W.</span>, alleges petition for removal of Adams to be a hoax,
+<a href="#page280">280</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Hamilton</span>, Alexander, real leader of Federalist party during John
+Adams's administration,
+<a href="#page027">27</a>;<br>
+  his feud with Adams,
+<a href="#page027">27</a>;<br>
+  his influence in Massachusetts,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Harvard</span> College, studies of John Quincy Adams in,
+<a href="#page017">17</a>;<br>
+  its proposal to confer degree upon Jackson opposed by Adams,
+<a href="#page241">241</a>;<br>
+  confers the degree,
+<a href="#page241">241</a>,
+<a href="#page242">242</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Haynes</span>, Charles E., moves rejection of Adams's petition from slaves,
+<a href="#page270">270</a>,
+<a href="#page275">275</a>;<br>
+  moves to make censure of Adams severe,
+<a href="#page271">271</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Hayti</span>, its possible representation at Panama Congress causes South
+to advocate refusal to send delegates,
+<a href="#page191">191</a>;<br>
+  petitions for recognition of,
+<a href="#page259">259</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Holland</span>, mission of Adams to,
+<a href="#page020">20</a>;<br>
+  conquered by France,
+<a href="#page020">20</a>;<br>
+  made into "Batavian Republic,"
+<a href="#page020">20</a>;<br>
+  agrees to suppress slave trade,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Holy</span> Alliance, fear of its attempting to reconquer Spanish colonies,
+<a href="#page132">132</a>,
+<a href="#page134">134</a>,
+<a href="#page136">136</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">House</span> of Representatives, Adams's career in,
+<a href="#page225">225-308</a>;<br>
+  election of Adams to,
+<a href="#page225">225</a>;<br>
+  his labors in committee and other work of,
+<a href="#page227">227</a>;<br>
+  solitariness of Adams in,
+<a href="#page231">231</a>;<br>
+  his position in, with regard to tariff of 1833,
+<a href="#page235">235</a>;<br>
+  debate in, over Jackson's policy to France,
+<a href="#page239">239</a>;<br>
+  anti-slavery petitions presented in, at first without remark,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>,
+<a href="#page248">248</a>;<br>
+  debates plans to prevent their reception,
+<a href="#page248">248-250</a>;<br>
+  adopts "gag" rule against Adams's protest,
+<a href="#page251">251</a>;<br>
+  attempts of Adams to infringe its rule,
+<a href="#page257">257</a>,
+<a href="#page258">258</a>;<br>
+  debates power to abolish slavery,
+<a href="#page262">262</a>;<br>
+  debates proposed censure of Adams for presenting a petition from slaves,
+<a href="#page269">269-279</a>;<br>
+  resolves that slaves do not possess right of petition,
+<a href="#page279">279</a>;<br>
+  Adams's speech in reply,
+<a href="#page277">277-279</a>;<br>
+  attempts to censure Adams for presenting petition for dissolution of Union,
+<a href="#page280">280-288</a>;<br>
+  lays subject on table,
+<a href="#page288">288</a>;<br>
+  does not resent a second disunion petition,
+<a href="#page288">288</a>;<br>
+  refusal of Garland to organize according to custom, in 1839,
+<a href="#page290">290-292</a>;<br>
+  appeals to Adams,
+<a href="#page292">292</a>;<br>
+organized by his leadership,
+<a href="#page293">293-295</a>;<br>
+  pays compliment to Adams on his return after illness,
+<a href="#page307">307</a>;<br>
+  death of Adams in,
+<a href="#page307">307</a>,
+<a href="#page308">308</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Hubbard</span>, David, comment of Adams on,
+<a href="#page300">300</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Hunter</span>, R. M. T., elected Speaker of House,
+<a href="#page295">295</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Impressment</span>, description of its exercise by England and effects upon United States,
+<a href="#page043">43-45</a>;<br>
+  difficulty of reclaiming impressed Americans,
+<a href="#page044">44</a>,
+<a href="#page045">45</a>;<br>
+  the Chesapeake affair,
+<a href="#page045">45</a>,
+<a href="#page046">46</a>;<br>
+  not mentioned in treaty of Ghent,
+<a href="#page092">92</a>,
+<a href="#page095">95</a>;<br>
+  later negotiations over,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Indians</span>, propositions concerning, in peace negotiations,
+<a href="#page078">78</a>;<br>
+  dissensions over, between American commissioners,
+<a href="#page090">90</a>;<br>
+  article concerning,
+<a href="#page094">94</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Internal</span> improvements, Adams's advocacy of,
+<a href="#page194">194</a>,
+<a href="#page201">201</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Jackson, Andrew</span>, his view of Adams's office-seeking,
+<a href="#page063">63</a>;<br>
+  wins battle of New Orleans,
+<a href="#page096">96</a>,
+<a href="#page097">97</a>;<br>
+  his outrages in Spanish territory,
+<a href="#page110">110</a>;<br>
+  enrages Spain,
+<a href="#page111">111</a>;<br>
+  approves Adams's Spanish treaty, later condemns it,
+<a href="#page125">125</a>;<br>
+  becomes candidate for presidency in 1824,
+<a href="#page149">149</a>;<br>
+  his Indian wars in Florida,
+<a href="#page158">158</a>,
+<a href="#page159">159</a>;<br>
+  hangs Arbuthnot and Ambrister,
+<a href="#page159">159</a>;<br>
+  captures Pensacola,
+<a href="#page159">159</a>;<br>
+  difficulty of praising or blaming him,
+<a href="#page159">159</a>,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+  condemned by President and Cabinet,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+  and by Clay,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>;<br>
+  defended by Adams,
+<a href="#page160">160-162</a>;<br>
+  ball in his honor given by Adams,
+<a href="#page162">162</a>;<br>
+  supported for Minister to Mexico and for Vice-President by Adams.
+<a href="#page163">163</a>;<br>
+  on good terms with Adams up to election,
+<a href="#page163">163</a>;<br>
+  receives largest electoral vote in 1824,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>;<br>
+  said to have refused offer of Clay to bargain for support,
+<a href="#page170">170</a>;<br>
+  impossibility of Clay's supporting him,
+<a href="#page171">171</a>;<br>
+  popular argument for his choice,
+<a href="#page171">171</a>,
+<a href="#page172">172</a>;<br>
+  absurdity of claim of popular will in favor of,
+<a href="#page172">172</a>,
+<a href="#page173">173</a>;<br>
+  vote for, in House of Representatives,
+<a href="#page174">174</a>;<br>
+  enraged at defeat,
+<a href="#page174">174</a>;<br>
+  yet greets Adams at inauguration,
+<a href="#page175">175</a>;<br>
+  nominated for President by Tennessee legislature,
+<a href="#page181">181</a>;<br>
+  spreads tale of Clay and Adams's bargain,
+<a href="#page184">184</a>;<br>
+  declares he has proof,
+<a href="#page184">184</a>,
+<a href="#page185">185</a>;<br>
+  tells story of offer from Clay,
+<a href="#page185">185</a>;<br>
+  calls upon Buchanan for testimony,
+<a href="#page186">186</a>;<br>
+  his statements disavowed by Buchanan,
+<a href="#page186">186</a>,
+<a href="#page187">187</a>;<br>
+  continues to repeat story,
+<a href="#page187">187</a>;<br>
+  his candidacy for 1828 purely on personal grounds,
+<a href="#page195">195-197</a>,
+<a href="#page200">200</a>;<br>
+  advantages all on his side,
+<a href="#page197">197</a>;<br>
+  originator of spoils system,
+<a href="#page198">198</a>;<br>
+  his position as advocate of unsound government not understood in 1828,
+<a href="#page200">200</a>;<br>
+  secretly aided by McLean,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>;<br>
+  rewards him by a judgeship,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>;<br>
+  elected President in 1828,
+<a href="#page212">212</a>;<br>
+  begins a new era,
+<a href="#page213">213</a>,
+<a href="#page214">214</a>;<br>
+  his message of 1832 condemned by Adams,
+<a href="#page234">234</a>;<br>
+  his proclamation against nullification upheld by Adams,
+<a href="#page235">235</a>;<br>
+  ultimately yields to South Carolina,
+<a href="#page236">236</a>;<br>
+  his administration condemned by Adams,
+<a href="#page237">237</a>;<br>
+  its character,
+<a href="#page237">237</a>;<br>
+  recommends vigorous action against France,
+<a href="#page238">238</a>;<br>
+  supported by Adams in House,
+<a href="#page239">239</a>;<br>
+  continues to hate Adams,
+<a href="#page239">239</a>,
+<a href="#page240">240</a>;<br>
+  futile attempt of Johnson to reconcile him with Adams,
+<a href="#page240">240</a>,
+<a href="#page241">241</a>;<br>
+  granted degree of Doctor of Laws by Harvard,
+<a href="#page241">241</a>,
+<a href="#page242">242</a>;<br>
+  suspected by Adams of feigning illness for effect,
+<a href="#page242">242</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Jackson</span>, F. J., his recall referred to in conversation between Canning and Adams,
+<a href="#page146">146</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Jarvis</span>, Leonard, introduces resolution that House will not entertain abolition petitions,
+<a href="#page248">248</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Jay</span> treaty, ratified,
+<a href="#page021">21</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Jefferson</span>, Thomas, negotiates treaties of commerce,
+<a href="#page013">13</a>;<br>
+  republishes Paine's "Rights of Man,"
+<a href="#page018">18</a>;<br>
+  his inauguration avoided by John Adams,
+<a href="#page026">26</a>;<br>
+  removes J. Q. Adams from position of commissioner in bankruptcy,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+  attempts to explain apparent malice,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+  Adams's view of his attacks on Pickering and Chase,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>;<br>
+  approves Non-importation Act,
+<a href="#page040">40</a>;<br>
+  inefficient in war-time,
+<a href="#page048">48</a>,
+<a href="#page054">54</a>;<br>
+  advocates embargo,
+<a href="#page054">54</a>;<br>
+  not reconciled with J. Q. Adams in spite of latter's support,
+<a href="#page065">65</a>;<br>
+  unconciliatory reply of Adams to, when offered a mission,
+<a href="#page069">69</a>;<br>
+  his desire to make Louisiana a State opposed by Adams,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>;<br>
+  begins political use of offices to secure reėlection,
+<a href="#page198">198</a>;<br>
+  said to have been warned by Adams of Federalist disunion plots,
+<a href="#page216">216</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Johnson</span>, Joshua, father-in-law of Adams,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Johnson</span>, Louisa Catherine, marries Adams,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>;<br>
+  in Washington society,
+<a href="#page103">103</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Johnson</span>, Richard M., led by Clay to oppose Spanish treaty,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>;<br>
+  endeavors to reconcile Adams and Jackson,
+<a href="#page240">240</a>;<br>
+  his probable motives,
+<a href="#page240">240</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Johnson</span>, Thomas, Governor, connected by marriage with Adams,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">King, Rufus</span>, description of Adams's offer of English mission to,
+<a href="#page177">177</a>,
+<a href="#page178">178</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Kremer</span>, George, originates bargain slander against Clay and Adams,
+<a href="#page171">171</a>,
+<a href="#page180">180</a>;<br>
+  refuses to testify before House Committee,
+<a href="#page181">181</a>;<br>
+  writes a retraction and apology,
+<a href="#page187">187</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Leopard</span>. See Chesapeake.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Lewis</span>, Dixon H., urges punishing Adams for offering petition from slaves,
+<a href="#page270">270</a>;<br>
+  wishes Southern members to go home,
+<a href="#page272">272</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Lincoln</span>, Solomon, letter of Adams to, on power of Congress over slavery,
+<a href="#page265">265</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Lincoln</span>, Levi, defends Adams against resolution of censure,
+<a href="#page276">276</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Liverpool</span>, Lord, his anxiety to conclude peace,
+<a href="#page093">93</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Livingston</span>, Edward, ordered by Jackson to demand passports from France,
+<a href="#page238">238</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Lloyd</span>, James, Jr., chosen Senator in Adams's place,
+<a href="#page057">57</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Louisiana</span>, acquisition opposed by Federalist party,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>;<br>
+  supported by Adams, although, in his eyes, unconstitutional,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>;<br>
+  negotiations with Spain concerning its boundary,
+<a href="#page110">110</a>,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>,
+<a href="#page114">114-116</a>;<br>
+  proposed boundary at Sabine opposed by Clay,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>,
+<a href="#page116">116</a>;<br>
+  boundaries agreed upon in treaty,
+<a href="#page115">115</a>;<br>
+  dispute over Spanish land grants in,
+<a href="#page116">116</a>,
+<a href="#page117">117</a>,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>;<br>
+  the boundary later attacked, but, at the time of treaty, approved,
+<a href="#page125">125</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Lowell</span>, John, justifies action of Leopard in attacking Chesapeake,
+<a href="#page050">50</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">McLean, J. T.</span>, professes devotion to Adams and aids Jackson,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>;<br>
+  rewarded by Jackson with a judgeship,
+<a href="#page206">206</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Madison</span>, James, as Secretary of State, favors giving Adams a foreign mission,
+<a href="#page068">68</a>;<br>
+  as President, appoints him Minister to Russia,
+<a href="#page069">69</a>,
+<a href="#page070">70</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Manifest</span> destiny, upheld by Adams,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Mann</span>, Abijah, Jr., of New York, attacks Adams in Congress,
+<a href="#page273">273</a>,
+<a href="#page274">274</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">"Marcellus"</span> papers,
+<a href="#page018">18</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Manufactures</span>, Committee on, Adams a member of,
+<a href="#page233">233</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Marshall</span>, Thomas F., attacks Adams for advocating power of Congress over slavery,
+<a href="#page263">263</a>;<br>
+  offers resolution of censure on Adams for presenting disunion petition,
+<a href="#page282">282</a>,
+<a href="#page283">283</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Markley</span>, Philip S., mentioned by Buchanan in Clay-Adams bargain story,
+<a href="#page186">186</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Mason</span>, S. T., killed in a duel,
+<a href="#page103">103</a>,
+<a href="#page104">104</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Massachusetts</span>, upper classes in, belong to Federalist party,
+<a href="#page028">28</a>;<br>
+  legislature of, sends Adams to United States Senate,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>;<br>
+  refuses to reėlect him,
+<a href="#page056">56</a>,
+<a href="#page057">57</a>;<br>
+  condemns embargo,
+<a href="#page057">57</a>;<br>
+  lasting bitterness in, against Adams, for his change of party,
+<a href="#page058">58</a>,
+<a href="#page216">216-218</a>;<br>
+  anti-Mason movement in,
+<a href="#page226">226</a>,
+<a href="#page301">301</a>;<br>
+  educated society in, disapproves of Adams's anti-slavery position,
+<a href="#page246">246</a>;<br>
+  farmers support him,
+<a href="#page247">247</a>,
+<a href="#page255">255</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Milan</span> decree issued,
+<a href="#page042">42</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Mills</span>, E. H., describes Washington city,
+<a href="#page101">101</a>;<br>
+  describes Mr. and Mrs. Adams,
+<a href="#page103">103</a>;<br>
+  describes Crawford,
+<a href="#page157">157</a>;<br>
+  describes Adams's ball in honor of Jackson,
+<a href="#page162">162</a>;<br>
+  on reasons for Adams's personal unpopularity,
+<a href="#page203">203</a> n.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Milton</span>, Adams's opinion of,
+<a href="#page223">223</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Mississippi</span> navigation, demand of English for, in treaty of Ghent,
+<a href="#page080">80</a>,
+<a href="#page088">88</a>;<br>
+  disputes over, between Clay and Adams,
+<a href="#page088">88</a>;<br>
+  finally omitted from treaty,
+<a href="#page092">92</a>,
+<a href="#page094">94</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Missouri</span>, admission of,
+<a href="#page119">119</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Monroe</span>, James, appoints Adams Secretary of State,
+<a href="#page100">100</a>;<br>
+  social life of,
+<a href="#page102">102</a>;<br>
+  character of his administration,
+<a href="#page104">104</a>,
+<a href="#page133">133</a>;<br>
+  enmity of Clay toward,
+<a href="#page106">106</a>;<br>
+  anxious for treaty with Spain, dreads Adams's obstinacy,
+<a href="#page113">113</a>;<br>
+  refuses to seize Florida,
+<a href="#page118">118</a>;<br>
+  his connection with "Monroe doctrine,"
+<a href="#page129">129</a>,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>;<br>
+  anticipated by Adams,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>;<br>
+  not the originator of modern idea of non-interference,
+<a href="#page136">136</a>;<br>
+  alarmed at Jackson's conduct in Florida,
+<a href="#page160">160</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Monroe</span> doctrine, enlarged by modern interpretation,
+<a href="#page129">129</a>;<br>
+  outlined by Adams in reply to Russia,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>;<br>
+  stated by Monroe,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>;<br>
+  its principles followed out by Adams,
+<a href="#page132">132-148</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Morgan</span>, William, his alleged assassination by Masons,
+<a href="#page208">208</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Neutrality Act</span>, passed to prevent privateering against Spain,
+<a href="#page108">108</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Neuville</span>, Hyde de, social doings of, in Washington,
+<a href="#page102">102</a>,
+<a href="#page103">103</a>;<br>
+  aids Adams in Spanish treaty,
+<a href="#page114">114</a>;<br>
+  remark of Adams to, on Onis's policy,
+<a href="#page117">117</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">New</span> England, policy of merchants of, in advocating submission to England,
+<a href="#page047">47</a>,
+<a href="#page048">48</a>;<br>
+  condemns embargo,
+<a href="#page052">52</a>;<br>
+  supports Adams for President in 1824,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>;<br>
+  applauds his anti-slavery course,
+<a href="#page232">232</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">New</span> Jersey, disputed election in, prevents organization
+of House of Representatives,
+<a href="#page290">290-292</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">New</span> Orleans, battle of,
+<a href="#page096">96</a>;<br>
+  celebrations over,
+<a href="#page096">96</a>,
+<a href="#page097">97</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">New</span> York, supports Adams in 1824, 169;<br>
+  chooses electors by legislature,
+<a href="#page173">173</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Niles's</span> "Weekly Register," celebrates battle of New Orleans,
+<a href="#page096">96</a>,
+<a href="#page097">97</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Non-importation</span>, act for, passed,
+<a href="#page040">40</a>;<br>
+  opposed by Federalists, supported by Adams,
+<a href="#page040">40</a>,
+<a href="#page049">49</a>;<br>
+  its substitution for embargo urged by Adams,
+<a href="#page056">56</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Nullification</span>, opinion of Adams on,
+<a href="#page235">235</a>,
+<a href="#page236">236</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Observatory</span>, National, desire of Adams to found,
+<a href="#page304">304</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Onis</span>, Don, Spanish Minister, his character described by Adams,
+<a href="#page111">111</a>;<br>
+  complains to Adams of folly of home government,
+<a href="#page111">111</a>,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>;<br>
+  expostulations of De Neuville with,
+<a href="#page114">114</a>;<br>
+  forced to yield to Adams's terms,
+<a href="#page114">114</a>,
+<a href="#page115">115</a>;<br>
+  tries to evade explanation of royal land grants,
+<a href="#page116">116</a>,
+<a href="#page117">117</a>;<br>
+  angered at Jackson's doings,
+<a href="#page161">161</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Orders</span> in Council,
+<a href="#page041">41</a>,
+<a href="#page042">42</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Oregon</span> question, debated between Adams and Canning,
+<a href="#page140">140-145</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Otis</span>, Harrison Gray, accused by Adams of trying to injure him,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Paine, Thomas</span>, his "Rights of Man" attacked by Adams,
+<a href="#page018">18</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Panama</span> Congress, recommendation of Adams to send commissioners to,
+<a href="#page189">189</a>;<br>
+  question debated in Congress,
+<a href="#page189">189</a>,
+<a href="#page190">190</a>;<br>
+  reasons why South objected,
+<a href="#page191">191</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Parsons</span>, Theophilus, studies of J. Q. Adams in his law office,
+<a href="#page017">17</a>;<br>
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Patton</span>, John Mercer, urges Southern members to be cautious in matter
+of censuring Adams,
+<a href="#page272">272</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Petitions</span>, anti-slavery, presented in House by Adams,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>,
+<a href="#page248">248</a>,
+<a href="#page249">249</a>,
+<a href="#page252">252</a>,
+<a href="#page256">256-258</a>,
+<a href="#page260">260</a>,
+<a href="#page288">288</a>;<br>
+  others presented,
+<a href="#page267">267</a>,
+<a href="#page269">269</a>;<br>
+  for dissolution of Union,
+<a href="#page281">281</a>,
+<a href="#page288">288</a> (see "Gag" rule).<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Pichegru</span>, Charles, French General, conquers Netherlands,
+<a href="#page020">20</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Pickering</span>, Timothy, defeated by J. Q. Adams for Senator,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>;<br>
+  his relations with Adams in Senate,
+<a href="#page032">32</a>;<br>
+  votes against Adams's appointment as Minister to Russia,
+<a href="#page069">69</a>,
+<a href="#page070">70</a>;<br>
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Pickering</span>, John, Adams's view of his impeachment,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Pinckney</span>, Thomas, Minister to England,
+<a href="#page022">22</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Pinckney</span>, Henry Laurens, reports on powers of Congress with regard to slavery,
+<a href="#page249">249</a>;<br>
+  attacks Adams for presenting petition from slaves,
+<a href="#page274">274</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Plumer</span>, William, supports Adams in Senate,
+<a href="#page068">68</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Porter</span>, Peter B., appointed Secretary of War at desire of Cabinet,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Portugal</span>, proposed mission of Adams to,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>;<br>
+  proposes an alliance with United States,
+<a href="#page133">133</a>,
+<a href="#page134">134</a>;<br>
+  agrees to suppress slave trade,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Preston</span>, William C., threatens to hang abolitionists,
+<a href="#page258">258</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Privateers</span> in Monroe's administration,
+<a href="#page108">108</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Prussia</span>, mission of Adams to,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>;<br>
+  treaty of commerce with,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>;<br>
+  rejects English plan for suppression of slave trade,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">"Publicola"</span> papers,
+<a href="#page018">18</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Puritan</span> traits in Adams,
+<a href="#page007">7</a>,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>;<br>
+  in Adams's constituents,
+<a href="#page247">247</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Quincy, John</span>, great-grandfather of Adams, anecdote as to how
+Adams was named after him,
+<a href="#page001">1</a>,
+<a href="#page002">2</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Quincy</span>, Josiah, refusal of Adams to run against for Congress,
+<a href="#page066">66</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Randolph, John</span>, his enmity compared by Adams to that of Clay,
+<a href="#page153">153</a>;<br>
+  teller in election of 1824,
+<a href="#page173">173</a>;<br>
+  on "Blifil and Black George,"
+<a href="#page183">183</a>;<br>
+  duel with Clay,
+<a href="#page183">183</a>;<br>
+  hatred of Adams for,
+<a href="#page210">210</a>,
+<a href="#page211">211</a>;<br>
+  his abuse of Adams,
+<a href="#page211">211</a>,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Republican</span> party, elects Jefferson,
+<a href="#page025">25</a>;<br>
+  fair-minded proposal of Adams concerning its representation on
+council in Massachusetts,
+<a href="#page029">29</a>;<br>
+  thought by Adams to be planning attack on judiciary,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>;<br>
+  favors France,
+<a href="#page038">38</a>;<br>
+  anticipates Federalists of Boston in condemning Chesapeake affair,
+<a href="#page051">51</a>;<br>
+  endeavors to win over Adams,
+<a href="#page065">65</a>,
+<a href="#page068">68</a>;<br>
+  wishes to send him to Congress,
+<a href="#page066">66</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Rhett</span>, Robert Barnwell, offers resolution that Williams be chairman, substitutes
+name of Adams,
+<a href="#page293">293</a>;<br>
+  conducts him to chair,
+<a href="#page293">293</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Robertson</span>, John, opposes resolutions of censure, but condemns Adams,
+<a href="#page276">276</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Romanzoff</span>, Count, his friendliness with Adams,
+<a href="#page071">71</a>;<br>
+  suggests Russian mediation in war of 1812,
+<a href="#page074">74</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Rose</span>, G. H., his fruitless mission to America after Chesapeake affair,
+<a href="#page045">45</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Rush</span>, Dr. Benjamin, approaches Adams on subject of foreign mission,
+<a href="#page068">68</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Rush</span>, Richard, appointed Secretary of Treasury,
+<a href="#page177">177</a>;<br>
+  wishes appointment as minister to England,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Russell</span>, Jonathan, on peace commission,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  criticises Adams's drafts of documents,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>;<br>
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>;<br>
+  attitude of Adams toward,
+<a href="#page297">297</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Russia</span>, mission of Dana to,
+<a href="#page013">13</a>;<br>
+  mission of Adams to,
+<a href="#page070">70-74</a>;<br>
+  life in,
+<a href="#page071">71</a>,
+<a href="#page073">73</a>,
+<a href="#page074">74</a>;<br>
+  its friendship for United States,
+<a href="#page072">72</a>;<br>
+  war with France,
+<a href="#page074">74</a>;<br>
+  offers to mediate between England and United States,
+<a href="#page074">74</a>;<br>
+  its offer declined,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>;<br>
+  dispute with, over Alaska,
+<a href="#page130">130</a>;<br>
+  statement of Adams to, on Monroe doctrine,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>;<br>
+  rejects English plan for suppression of slave trade,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Sectionalism</span>, in Louisiana purchase,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>;<br>
+  in connection with embargo,
+<a href="#page052">52</a>,
+<a href="#page053">53</a>;<br>
+  in connection with Missouri question,
+<a href="#page122">122</a>,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>;<br>
+  appears in parties during Adams's administration,
+<a href="#page188">188</a>,
+<a href="#page189">189</a>;<br>
+  growth of, during debate over Texas annexation,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Senate</span> of the United States, election of Adams to,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>;<br>
+  unpopularity of Adams in,
+<a href="#page031">31-33</a>;<br>
+  rejects all his proposals,
+<a href="#page031">31</a>,
+<a href="#page032">32</a>;<br>
+  debates acquisition of Louisiana,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>;<br>
+  impeaches Chase,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>;<br>
+  increased influence of Adams in,
+<a href="#page036">36</a>,
+<a href="#page037">37</a>;<br>
+  adopts Adams's resolutions demanding indemnity for British seizures,
+<a href="#page039">39</a>;<br>
+  his career in, reviewed by Adams,
+<a href="#page066">66-68</a>;<br>
+  refuses, then accepts, Adams's nomination as Minister to Russia,
+<a href="#page069">69</a>,
+<a href="#page070">70</a>;<br>
+  rejects Gallatin's nomination as peace commissioner,
+<a href="#page075">75</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Seward</span>, W. H., on John Adams's recall of J. Q. Adams before end of term,
+<a href="#page025">25</a>;<br>
+  on Adams's dissatisfaction with election of 1824,
+<a href="#page174">174</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Shakespeare</span>, Adams's opinion of,
+<a href="#page222">222</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Slaveholders</span> in Congress, their hatred of Adams,
+<a href="#page229">229</a>,
+<a href="#page246">246</a>;<br>
+  attacked by Adams,
+<a href="#page258">258</a>,
+<a href="#page259">259</a>;<br>
+  outwitted by Adams,
+<a href="#page261">261</a>,
+<a href="#page273">273</a>;<br>
+  condemn Adams for arguing possibility of abolition under war power,
+<a href="#page262">262</a>,
+<a href="#page264">264</a>;<br>
+  enraged at Adams's having a petition from slaves,
+<a href="#page269">269</a>,
+<a href="#page270">270</a>;<br>
+  move to censure him,
+<a href="#page271">271</a>;<br>
+  discomfited by discovery of nature of petition,
+<a href="#page273">273</a>;<br>
+  renew attempt to censure,
+<a href="#page274">274</a>,
+<a href="#page275">275</a>;<br>
+  abandon it,
+<a href="#page276">276</a>,
+<a href="#page279">279</a>;<br>
+  bitterly attacked by Adams in his defense,
+<a href="#page277">277-279</a>;<br>
+  try to censure Adams for presenting disunion petition,
+<a href="#page281">281-283</a>;<br>
+  defied by Adams,
+<a href="#page283">283-285</a>;<br>
+  threaten Adams with assassination,
+<a href="#page286">286</a>,
+<a href="#page287">287</a>;<br>
+  abandon attempt,
+<a href="#page287">287</a>,
+<a href="#page288">288</a>;<br>
+  refuse to serve on committee with Adams,
+<a href="#page289">289</a>;<br>
+  respect his courage,
+<a href="#page290">290</a>;<br>
+  applaud his energy in carrying out organization of House,
+<a href="#page293">293</a>,
+<a href="#page294">294</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Slavery</span>, strengthened by Louisiana purchase,
+<a href="#page035">35</a>;<br>
+  made a political issue by Missouri question,
+<a href="#page119">119</a>;<br>
+  opinions of Adams concerning,
+<a href="#page119">119-121</a>;<br>
+  extension of, opposed by Adams,
+<a href="#page121">121</a>;<br>
+  formation of a party devoted to,
+<a href="#page188">188-192</a>;<br>
+  attack upon, hastened by Texas question,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>;<br>
+  Adams's part in war against,
+<a href="#page244">244-248</a>;<br>
+  right of Congress to abolish, under war power,
+<a href="#page250">250</a>,
+<a href="#page261">261-265</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Slaves</span>, English seizures of, during war of 1812, negotiations concerning,
+<a href="#page099">99</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Slave</span> trade, refusal of Adams to submit United States to mixed tribunals
+for its repression,
+<a href="#page135">135-137</a>;<br>
+  English proposal for combined effort,
+<a href="#page137">137</a>,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Smith</span>, William, accuses Adams of monomania,
+<a href="#page280">280</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Smithsonian</span> bequest, connection of Adams with,
+<a href="#page303">303</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">South</span>, the, Calhoun its leader in 1824,
+<a href="#page149">149</a>;<br>
+  does not support Adams for President,
+<a href="#page169">169</a>,
+<a href="#page188">188</a>;<br>
+  begins to form a new slavery party in Adams's administration,
+<a href="#page188">188</a>,
+<a href="#page189">189</a>;<br>
+  opposes Panama Congress because of Hayti's share in it,
+<a href="#page191">191</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Southard</span>, Samuel L., reappointed Secretary of Navy,
+<a href="#page177">177</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">South</span> Carolina, refusal of Adams to placate, in 1828,
+<a href="#page201">201</a>;<br>
+  protests against tariff,
+<a href="#page233">233</a>;<br>
+  its punishment for nullification desired by Adams,
+<a href="#page234">234-237</a>;<br>
+  Jackson's vacillation toward, condemned by Adams,
+<a href="#page234">234-236</a>;<br>
+  gains its point from Clay,
+<a href="#page236">236</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Spain</span>, danger of war with, in Monroe's administration,
+<a href="#page108">108</a>;<br>
+  question of revolted colonies,
+<a href="#page108">108</a>,
+<a href="#page109">109</a>;<br>
+  disputes over Louisiana boundary and Florida,
+<a href="#page109">109</a>,
+<a href="#page110">110</a>;<br>
+  sends Onis to negotiate,
+<a href="#page111">111</a>;<br>
+  its policy hampers Onis,
+<a href="#page111">111</a>,
+<a href="#page112">112</a>;<br>
+  negotiations,
+<a href="#page113">113-116</a>;<br>
+  repudiates Onis's treaty,
+<a href="#page117">117</a>;<br>
+  accepts original treaty,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>;<br>
+  agrees to suppress slave trade,
+<a href="#page138">138</a>;<br>
+  angered at Jackson's excesses in Florida,
+<a href="#page161">161</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Spanish-American</span> republics, wish aid from United States,
+<a href="#page108">108</a>;<br>
+  frowned down by European countries,
+<a href="#page108">108</a>;<br>
+  sympathy for, in United States,
+<a href="#page108">108</a>,
+<a href="#page109">109</a>;<br>
+  recognition urged by Clay,
+<a href="#page109">109</a>,
+<a href="#page152">152</a>;<br>
+  recognized gradually,
+<a href="#page132">132</a>;<br>
+  danger of attempt to reconquer by Holy Alliance,
+<a href="#page132">132</a>,
+<a href="#page133">133</a>;<br>
+  protected by Monroe doctrine,
+<a href="#page131">131-134</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Sterret</span>, &mdash;&mdash;, his removal urged by Clay for planning
+an insult to Adams,
+<a href="#page179">179</a>;<br>
+  not removed by Adams,
+<a href="#page180">180</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Tariff</span>, Adams's views upon,
+<a href="#page234">234</a>;<br>
+  compromise tariff of 1833, considered by Adams a surrender,
+<a href="#page235">235</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Tennessee</span>, renominates Jackson for President,
+<a href="#page181">181</a>;<br>
+  repeats bargain story,
+<a href="#page183">183</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Texas</span>, proposal to annex, arouses Northern opposition to slavery,
+<a href="#page243">243</a>;<br>
+  indignation of Adams at,
+<a href="#page265">265</a>,
+<a href="#page266">266</a>;<br>
+  held by Adams to be unconstitutional,
+<a href="#page266">266</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Thaxter</span>, &mdash;&mdash;, teacher of Adams,
+<a href="#page003">3</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Thompson</span>, Waddy, sarcastic remark of,
+<a href="#page259">259</a>;<br>
+  neglects to present petition for Adams's expulsion,
+<a href="#page268">268</a>;<br>
+  introduces resolution of censure upon Adams,
+<a href="#page271">271</a>;<br>
+  threatens Adams with criminal proceedings,
+<a href="#page271">271</a>;<br>
+  presents new resolutions,
+<a href="#page274">274</a>;<br>
+  scored by Adams,
+<a href="#page277">277</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Tompkins</span>, Daniel D., candidate for President in 1824,
+<a href="#page149">149</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Times</span>, London, condemns treaty of Ghent,
+<a href="#page097">97</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Tracy</span>, Uriah, supports Adams in Senate,
+<a href="#page068">68</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Treaty</span> of Ghent, meeting of commissioners,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>;<br>
+  irritation during negotiations,
+<a href="#page077">77</a>;<br>
+  preliminary conflict as to place of meeting,
+<a href="#page077">77</a>,
+<a href="#page078">78</a>;<br>
+  large demands of England for cession of territory and other advantages,
+<a href="#page078">78</a>,
+<a href="#page079">79</a>;<br>
+  discussion over proposed belt of neutral Indian territory,
+<a href="#page079">79</a>;<br>
+  and of demand for Mississippi navigation,
+<a href="#page080">80</a>;<br>
+  complaints by Americans of manners of English,
+<a href="#page080">80-82</a>;<br>
+  bickerings among Americans,
+<a href="#page081">81-84</a>;<br>
+  difficulties in drafting documents,
+<a href="#page082">82</a>,
+<a href="#page083">83</a>;<br>
+  social intercourse between commissioners,
+<a href="#page085">85</a>,
+<a href="#page092">92</a>;<br>
+  expected failure of negotiations,
+<a href="#page086">86</a>;<br>
+  <i>status ante bellum</i> proposed by Adams,
+<a href="#page087">87</a>;<br>
+  sanctioned by United States,
+<a href="#page087">87</a>;<br>
+  dissensions among commissioners over Mississippi navigation and fisheries,
+<a href="#page088">88-90</a>;<br>
+  over Moose Island,
+<a href="#page091">91</a>;<br>
+  English offer to omit fisheries and Mississippi,
+<a href="#page092">92</a>;<br>
+  abandonment of impressment article by Americans,
+<a href="#page092">92</a>;<br>
+  peculiarities of negotiation,
+<a href="#page093">93</a>;<br>
+  alteration of English policy,
+<a href="#page093">93</a>;<br>
+  terms of treaty,
+<a href="#page094">94</a>;<br>
+  a success for Americans,
+<a href="#page095">95</a>,
+<a href="#page096">96</a>;<br>
+  rejoicings over, in America,
+<a href="#page096">96</a>;<br>
+  condemned in England,
+<a href="#page097">97</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Trimble</span>, Cary A., of Ohio, opposes Spanish treaty,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Tuyl</span>, Baron, discussion of Adams with, concerning Alaska,
+<a href="#page131">131</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">Van Buren, Martin</span>, becomes manager of Jackson's followers,
+<a href="#page192">192</a>;<br>
+  compared by Adams to Burr,
+<a href="#page193">193</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Vanderpoel</span>, Aaron, tries to prevent Adams from replying to resolutions of censure
+by previous question,
+<a href="#page270">270</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Virginia</span>, refusal of Adams to placate, in election of 1828,
+<a href="#page201">201</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Vivźs</span>, General, supplants Onis,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>;<br>
+  Adams's stubborn attitude toward,
+<a href="#page123">123</a>,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>;<br>
+  forced to yield,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Von Holst</span>, H. C., calls Adams last of the statesmen to be President,
+<a href="#page213">213</a>.<br>
+</p>
+
+<p class="p2">
+<span class="index-5 smcap">War of 1812</span>, a defeat for United States,
+<a href="#page076">76</a>,
+<a href="#page086">86</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">War</span> power of Congress, held by Adams to justify emancipation of slaves,
+<a href="#page261">261-265</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Washington</span>, George, appoints Adams Minister to Holland,
+<a href="#page019">19</a>;<br>
+  urges him to remain in diplomacy,
+<a href="#page021">21</a>;<br>
+  transfers him to Portugal,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>;<br>
+  urges John Adams not to hesitate to promote him,
+<a href="#page023">23</a>,
+<a href="#page024">24</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Washington</span> city, absence of church in,
+<a href="#page030">30</a>;<br>
+  described in 1815,
+<a href="#page101">101</a>,
+<a href="#page102">102</a>;<br>
+  society in,
+<a href="#page102">102</a>,
+<a href="#page103">103</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Webster</span>, Daniel, describes intriguing in presidential election of 1824,
+<a href="#page165">165</a>;<br>
+  teller in election of 1824,
+<a href="#page173">173</a>;<br>
+  supports Adams in matter of Panama Congress,
+<a href="#page190">190</a>;<br>
+  desires appointment as Minister to England,
+<a href="#page205">205</a>;<br>
+  Adams said to have bargained for his support,
+<a href="#page209">209</a>;<br>
+  accused by Adams of plotting to injure him,
+<a href="#page296">296</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Webster</span>, Ezekiel, ascribes Adams's defeat to unpopularity of his manners,
+<a href="#page204">204</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Weights</span> and measures, report of Adams upon,
+<a href="#page126">126</a>,
+<a href="#page127">127</a>;<br>
+  its character and ability,
+<a href="#page126">126</a>,
+<a href="#page127">127</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Wellesley</span>, Marquis of, on superiority of American diplomacy in treaty of Ghent,
+<a href="#page096">96</a>,
+<a href="#page098">98</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Whig</span> party, begins in defense of Adams's administration,
+<a href="#page193">193</a>;<br>
+  lacks personal interest in him,
+<a href="#page199">199</a>;<br>
+  chilled by Adams's manner,
+<a href="#page202">202-204</a>;<br>
+  Adams a member of,
+<a href="#page232">232</a>,
+<a href="#page233">233</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Williams</span>, Joseph L., of Tennessee, opposes Spanish treaty,
+<a href="#page124">124</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Williams</span>, Lewis, proposes Adams for chairman of House,
+<a href="#page293">293</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Wise</span>, Henry A., objects to reception of anti-slavery petitions,
+<a href="#page258">258</a>;<br>
+  attacks Adams for holding that Congress may interfere with slavery in the States,
+<a href="#page263">263</a>;<br>
+  again attacks him,
+<a href="#page283">283</a>;<br>
+  expresses his loathing,
+<a href="#page284">284</a>;<br>
+  taunted with murder by Adams, his bitter reply,
+<a href="#page285">285</a>;<br>
+  compliments Adams on organizing House,
+<a href="#page294">294</a>;<br>
+  later, when reprimanded for fighting, insults Adams,
+<a href="#page294">294</a>;<br>
+  castigated by Adams for dueling and Southern views,
+<a href="#page297">297</a>,
+<a href="#page300">300</a>.<br>
+
+<span class="index-5">Wirt</span>, William, reappointed Attorney-General,
+<a href="#page177">177</a>.<br>
+</p>
+</div>
+
+<h6>The Riverside Press</h6>
+
+<h6>CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A.<br>
+ELECTROTYPED AND PRINTED BY<br>
+H. O. HOUGHTON AND CO.</h6>
+
+
+<p><a id="footnote1" name="footnote1"></a>
+<b>Footnote 1:</b> Mr. John Lowell.<a href="#footnotetag1">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote2" name="footnote2"></a>
+<b>Footnote 2:</b> An interesting sketch of his household and its expenses
+is to be found in ii. Diary, 193.<a href="#footnotetag2">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote3" name="footnote3"></a>
+<b>Footnote 3:</b> Then Mr. Bagot.<a href="#footnotetag3">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote4" name="footnote4"></a>
+<b>Footnote 4:</b> For a deliberate estimate of Clay's character see Mr.
+Adams's Diary, v. 325.<a href="#footnotetag4">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote5" name="footnote5"></a>
+<b>Footnote 5:</b> Senator Mills says of this grand ball: "Eight large rooms
+were open and literally filled to overflowing. There must have been at
+least a thousand people there; and so far as Mr. Adams was concerned
+it certainly evinced a great deal of taste, elegance, and good
+sense.... Many stayed till twelve and one.... It is the universal
+opinion that nothing has ever equalled this party here either in
+brilliancy of preparation or elegance of the
+company."<a href="#footnotetag5">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote6" name="footnote6"></a>
+<b>Footnote 6:</b> April 8, 1826.<a href="#footnotetag6">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote7" name="footnote7"></a>
+<b>Footnote 7:</b> Mr. Mills, in writing of Mr. Adams's inauguration,
+expressed well what many felt. "This same President of ours is a man
+that I can never court nor be on very familiar terms with. There is a
+cold, repulsive atmosphere about him that is too chilling for my
+respiration, and I shall certainly keep at a distance from its
+influence. I wish him God-speed in his Administration, and am heartily
+disposed to lend him my feeble aid whenever he may need it in a
+correct course; but he cannot expect me to become his warm and devoted
+partisan." A like sentiment was expressed also much more vigorously by
+Ezekiel Webster to Daniel Webster, in a letter of February 15, 1829.
+The writer there attributes the defeat of Mr. Adams to personal
+dislike to him. People, he said, "always supported his cause from a
+cold sense of duty," and "we soon satisfy ourselves that we have
+discharged our duty to the cause of any man when we do not entertain
+for him one personal kind feeling, nor cannot unless we disembowel
+ourselves like a trussed turkey of all that is human nature within
+us." With a candidate "of popular character, like Mr. Clay," the
+result would have been different. "The measures of his [Adams's]
+Administration were just and wise and every honest man should have
+supported them, but many honest men did not for the reason I have
+mentioned."&mdash;<i>Webster's Private Correspondence</i>, vol. i.
+p. 469.<a href="#footnotetag7">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote8" name="footnote8"></a>
+<b>Footnote 8:</b> It is with great reluctance that these comments are made,
+since some persons may think that they come with ill grace from one
+whose grandfather was one of the thirteen and was supposed to have
+drafted one or both of their letters. But in spite of the prejudice
+naturally growing out of this fact, a thorough study of the whole
+subject has convinced me that Mr. Adams was unquestionably and
+completely right, and I have no escape from saying so. His adversaries
+had the excuse of honesty in political error&mdash;an excuse which the
+greatest and wisest men must often fall back upon in times of hot
+party warfare.<a href="#footnotetag8">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote9" name="footnote9"></a>
+<b>Footnote 9:</b> In an address to his constituents in September, 1842, Mr.
+Adams spoke of his course concerning Texas. Having mentioned Mr. Van
+Buren's reply, declining the formal proposition made in 1837 by the
+Republic of Texas for annexation to the United States, he continued:
+"But the slave-breeding passion for the annexation was not to be so
+disconcerted. At the ensuing session of Congress numerous petitions
+and memorials for and against the annexation were presented to the
+House, ... and were referred to the Committee of Foreign Affairs, who,
+without ever taking them into consideration, towards the close of the
+session asked to be discharged from the consideration of them all. It
+was on this report that the debate arose, in which I disclosed the
+whole system of duplicity and perfidy towards Mexico, which had marked
+the Jackson Administration from its commencement to its close. It
+silenced the clamors for the annexation of Texas to this Union for
+three years till the catastrophe of the Van Buren Administration. The
+people of the free States were lulled into the belief that the whole
+project was abandoned, and that they should hear no more of
+slave-trade cravings for the annexation of Texas. Had Harrison lived
+they would have heard no more of them to this day, but no sooner was
+John Tyler installed in the President's House than nullification and
+Texas and war with Mexico rose again upon the surface, with eye
+steadily fixed upon the Polar Star of Southern slave-dealing supremacy
+in the government of the Union."<a href="#footnotetag9">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote10" name="footnote10"></a>
+<b>Footnote 10:</b> Mr. Adams afterward said: "I believed the petition
+signed by female names to be genuine.... I had suspicions that the
+other, purporting to be from slaves, came really from the hand of a
+master who had prevailed on his slaves to sign it, that they might
+have the appearance of imploring the members from the North to cease
+offering petitions for their emancipation, which could have no other
+tendency than to aggravate their servitude, and of being so impatient
+under the operation of petitions in their favor as to pray that the
+Northern members who should persist in presenting them should be
+expelled." It was a part of the prayer of the petition that Mr. Adams
+should be expelled if he should continue to present abolition
+petitions.<a href="#footnotetag10">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote11" name="footnote11"></a>
+<b>Footnote 11:</b> Henry A. Wise.<a href="#footnotetag11">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote12" name="footnote12"></a>
+<b>Footnote 12:</b> Horace Everett, of Vermont.<a href="#footnotetag12">(back)</a></p>
+
+<p><a id="footnote13" name="footnote13"></a>
+<b>Footnote 13:</b> Not quite two years later, pending a motion to reprimand
+Mr. Wise for fighting with a member on the floor of the House, that
+gentleman took pains insultingly to say, "that there was but one man
+in the House whose judgment he was unwilling to abide by," and that
+man was Mr. Adams.<a href="#footnotetag13">(back)</a></p>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<pre>
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of John Quincy Adams, by John. T. Morse
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN QUINCY ADAMS ***
+
+***** This file should be named 20183-h.htm or 20183-h.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        http://www.gutenberg.org/2/0/1/8/20183/
+
+Produced by Christine P. Travers and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
+produced from images generously made available by The
+Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+http://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+http://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at http://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit http://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations.
+To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     http://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
+
+
+</pre>
+
+</body>
+</html>
diff --git a/20183-h/images/img001.jpg b/20183-h/images/img001.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d4466fe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/images/img001.jpg
diff --git a/20183-h/images/img002.jpg b/20183-h/images/img002.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..957a1de
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/images/img002.jpg
diff --git a/20183-h/images/img003.jpg b/20183-h/images/img003.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2b21fd1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/images/img003.jpg
diff --git a/20183-h/images/img004.jpg b/20183-h/images/img004.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..abdd05e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/images/img004.jpg
diff --git a/20183-h/images/img004b.jpg b/20183-h/images/img004b.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..68f60ec
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/images/img004b.jpg
diff --git a/20183-h/images/img005.jpg b/20183-h/images/img005.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..21c461a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/images/img005.jpg
diff --git a/20183-h/images/img005b.jpg b/20183-h/images/img005b.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..26f1f5b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/images/img005b.jpg
diff --git a/20183-h/images/img006.jpg b/20183-h/images/img006.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6c72c3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/images/img006.jpg
diff --git a/20183-h/images/img006b.jpg b/20183-h/images/img006b.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..47c7a3b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183-h/images/img006b.jpg
diff --git a/20183.txt b/20183.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..456698d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,8762 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of John Quincy Adams, by John. T. Morse
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: John Quincy Adams
+       American Statesmen Series
+
+Author: John. T. Morse
+
+Release Date: December 26, 2006 [EBook #20183]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN QUINCY ADAMS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Christine P. Travers and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
+produced from images generously made available by The
+Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+[Transcriber's note: Obvious printer's errors have been corrected.
+The original spelling has been retained.
+Missing page numbers correspond to blank pages.
+Page numbers for illustration have been changed in the index to match
+the content of this file.]
+
+
+[Illustration: John Quincy Adams]
+
+
+
+
+                              American Statesmen
+
+                           STANDARD LIBRARY EDITION
+
+
+[Illustration: The Home of John Quincy Adams]
+
+
+                            HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN & CO.
+
+
+
+
+                              American Statesmen
+
+
+                              JOHN QUINCY ADAMS
+
+
+                                      BY
+
+
+                              JOHN T. MORSE, JR.
+
+
+
+
+                              BOSTON AND NEW YORK
+                         HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY
+                         The Riverside Press, Cambridge
+
+
+
+
+                           Copyright, 1882 and 1898,
+                             By JOHN T. MORSE, JR.
+
+                                Copyright, 1898,
+                           By HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN & CO.
+
+                            _All rights reserved._
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE                                                              (p. v)
+
+
+Nearly sixteen years have elapsed since this book was written. In that
+time sundry inaccuracies have been called to my attention, and have
+been corrected, and it may be fairly hoped that after the lapse of so
+long a period all errors in matters of fact have been eliminated. I am
+not aware that any fresh material has been made public, or that any
+new views have been presented which would properly lead to alterations
+in the substance of what is herein said. If I were now writing the
+book for the first time, I should do what so many of the later
+contributors to the series have very wisely and advantageously done: I
+should demand more space. But this was the first volume published, and
+at a time when the enterprise was still an experiment insistence upon
+such a point, especially on the part of the editor, would have been
+unreasonable. Thus it happens that, though Mr. Adams was appointed
+minister resident at the Hague in 1794, and thereafter continued in
+public life, almost without interruption, until his death in        (p. vi)
+February, 1848, the narrative of his career is compressed within
+little more than three hundred pages. The proper function of a work
+upon this scale is to draw a picture of the man.
+
+With the picture which I have drawn of Mr. Adams, I still remain
+moderately contented--by which remark I mean nothing more egotistical
+than that I believe it to be a correct picture, and done with whatever
+measure of skill I may happen to possess in portraiture. I should like
+to change it only in one particular, viz.: by infusing throughout the
+volume somewhat more of admiration. Adams has never received the
+praise which was his due, and probably he never will receive it. In
+order that justice should be done him by the public, his biographer
+ought to speak somewhat better of him than his real deserts would
+require. He presents one of those cases where exaggeration is the
+servant of truth; for this moderate excess of appreciation would only
+offset that discount from an accurate estimate which his personal
+unpopularity always has caused, and probably always will cause, to be
+made. He was a good instance of the rule that the world will for the
+most part treat the individual as the individual treats the world.
+Adams was censorious, not to say uncharitable in the extreme,      (p. vii)
+always in an attitude of antagonism, always unsparing and denunciatory.
+The measure which he meted has been by others in their turn meted to
+him. This habit of ungracious criticism was his great fault; perhaps
+it was almost his only very serious fault; it cost him dear in his
+life, and has continued to cost his memory dear since his death.
+Sometimes we are not sorry to see men get the punishments which they
+have brought on themselves; yet we ought to be sorry for Mr. Adams.
+After all, his fault-finding was in part the result of his respect for
+virtue and his hatred of all that was ignoble and unworthy. If he
+despised a low standard, at least he held his own standard high, and
+himself lived by the rules by which he measured others. Men with
+vastly greater defects have been much more kindly served both by
+contemporaries and by posterity. There can be no question that Adams
+deserved all the esteem which ought to be accorded to the highest
+moral qualities, to very high, if a little short of the highest,
+intellectual endowment, and to immense acquirements. His political
+integrity was of a grade rarely seen; and, in unison with his
+extraordinary courage and independence, it seemed to the average
+politician actually irritating and offensive. He was in the same
+difficulty in which Aristides the Just found himself. But neither (p. viii)
+assaults nor political solitude daunted or discouraged him. His career
+in the House of Representatives is a tale which has not a rival in
+congressional history. I regret that it could not be told here at
+greater length. Stubbornly fighting for freedom of speech and against
+the slaveholders, fierce and unwearied in old age, falling literally
+out of the midst of the conflict into his grave, Mr. Adams, during the
+closing years of his life, is one of the most striking figures of
+modern times. I beg the reader of this volume to put into its pages
+more warmth of praise than he will find therein, and so do a more
+correct justice to an honest statesman and a gallant friend of the
+oppressed. Doing this, he will improve my book in the particular
+wherein I think that it chiefly needs improvement.
+                                                  JOHN T. MORSE, JR.
+  July, 1898.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+                                               Page
+  Youth and Diplomacy                             1
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+  Secretary of State and President              101
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+  In the House of Representatives               225
+
+Index                                           309
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+John Quincy Adams                            Frontispiece
+
+     From the original painting by John Singleton
+     Copley, in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
+
+     Autograph from the Chamberlain collection,
+     Boston Public Library.
+
+     The vignette of Mr. Adams's home in Quincy
+     is from a photograph.
+                                                     Page
+William H. Crawford                                   107
+
+     From the painting by Henry Ulke, in the
+     Treasury Department at Washington.
+
+     Autograph from the Chamberlain collection,
+     Boston Public Library.
+
+Stratford Canning                                     149
+
+     After a drawing (1853) by George Richmond.
+     Autograph from "Life of Stratford Canning."
+
+Henry A. Wise                                         291
+
+     From a photograph by Brady, in the Library
+     of the State Department at Washington.
+
+     Autograph from the Chamberlain collection,
+     Boston Public Library.
+
+
+
+
+JOHN QUINCY ADAMS                                                  (p. 001)
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+YOUTH AND DIPLOMACY
+
+
+On July 11, 1767, in the North Parish of Braintree, since set off as
+the town of Quincy, in Massachusetts, was born John Quincy Adams. Two
+streams of as good blood as flowed in the colony mingled in the veins
+of the infant. If heredity counts for anything he began life with an
+excellent chance of becoming famous--_non sine dis animosus infans_.
+He was called after his great-grandfather on the mother's side, John
+Quincy, a man of local note who had borne in his day a distinguished
+part in provincial affairs. Such a naming was a simple and natural
+occurrence enough, but Mr. Adams afterward moralized upon it in his
+characteristic way:--
+
+     "The incident which gave rise to this circumstance is not without
+     its moral to my heart. He was dying when I was baptized; and his
+     daughter, my grandmother, present at my birth, requested that I
+     might receive his name. The fact, recorded by my father at    (p. 002)
+     the time, has connected with that portion of my name a charm
+     of mingled sensibility and devotion. It was filial tenderness
+     that gave the name. It was the name of one passing from earth to
+     immortality. These have been among the strongest links of my
+     attachment to the name of Quincy, and have been to me through
+     life a perpetual admonition to do nothing unworthy of it."
+
+Fate, which had made such good preparation for him before his birth, was
+not less kind in arranging the circumstances of his early training and
+development. His father was deeply engaged in the patriot cause, and
+the first matters borne in upon his opening intelligence concerned the
+public discontent and resistance to tyranny. He was but seven years
+old when he clambered with his mother to the top of one of the high
+hills in the neighborhood of his home to listen to the sounds of conflict
+upon Bunker's Hill, and to watch the flaming ruin of Charlestown.
+Profound was the impression made upon him by the spectacle, and it was
+intensified by many an hour spent afterward upon the same spot during
+the siege and bombardment of Boston. Then John Adams went as a
+delegate to the Continental Congress at Philadelphia, and his wife and
+children were left for twelve months, as John Quincy Adams says,--it
+is to be hoped with a little exaggeration of the barbarity of      (p. 003)
+British troops toward women and babes,--"liable every hour of the day
+and of the night to be butchered in cold blood, or taken and carried
+into Boston as hostages, by any foraging or marauding detachment."
+Later, when the British had evacuated Boston, the boy, barely nine
+years old, became "post-rider" between the city and the farm, a
+distance of eleven miles each way, in order to bring all the latest
+news to his mother.
+
+Not much regular schooling was to be got amid such surroundings of
+times and events, but the lad had a natural aptitude or affinity for
+knowledge which stood him in better stead than could any dame of a
+village school. The following letter to his father is worth
+preserving:--
+
+                                   BRAINTREE, _June the 2d, 1777_.
+
+     DEAR SIR,--I love to receive letters very well, much better than
+     I love to write them. I make but a poor figure at composition, my
+     head is much too fickle, my thoughts are running after birds'
+     eggs, play and trifles till I get vexed with myself. I have but
+     just entered the 3d volume of Smollett, tho' I had designed to
+     have got it half through by this time. I have determined this
+     week to be more diligent, as Mr. Thaxter will be absent at Court
+     and I Cannot pursue my other Studies. I have Set myself a Stent
+     and determine to read the 3d volume Half out. If I can but    (p. 004)
+     keep my resolution I will write again at the end of the week
+     and give a better account of myself. I wish, Sir, you would give
+     me some instructions with regard to my time, and advise me how to
+     proportion my Studies and my Play, in writing, and I will keep
+     them by me and endeavor to follow them. I am, dear Sir, with a
+     present determination of growing better. Yours.
+
+     P.S. Sir, if you will be so good as to favor me with a Blank
+     book, I will transcribe the most remarkable occurrences I met
+     with in my reading, which will serve to fix them upon my mind.
+
+Not long after the writing of this model epistle, the simple village
+life was interrupted by an unexpected change. John Adams was sent on a
+diplomatic journey to Paris, and on February 13, 1778, embarked in the
+frigate Boston. John Quincy Adams, then eleven years old, accompanied
+his father and thus made his first acquaintance with the foreign lands
+where so many of his coming years were to be passed. This initial
+visit, however, was brief; and he was hardly well established at
+school when events caused his father to start for home. Unfortunately
+this return trip was a needless loss of time, since within three
+months of their setting foot upon American shores the two travellers
+were again on their stormy way back across the Atlantic in a leaky
+ship, which had to land them at the nearest port in Spain. One     (p. 005)
+more quotation must be given from a letter written just after the
+first arrival in France:--
+
+                                   PASSY, _September the 27th, 1778_.
+
+     HONORED MAMMA,--My Pappa enjoins it upon me to keep a Journal, or
+     a Diary of the Events that happen to me, and of objects that I
+     see, and of Characters that I converse with from day to day; and
+     altho' I am Convinced of the utility, importance and necessity of
+     this Exercise, yet I have not patience and perseverance enough to
+     do it so Constantly as I ought. My Pappa, who takes a great deal
+     of pains to put me in the right way, has also advised me to
+     Preserve Copies of all my letters, and has given me a Convenient
+     Blank Book for this end; and altho' I shall have the
+     mortification a few years hence to read a great deal of my
+     Childish nonsense, yet I shall have the Pleasure and advantage of
+     Remarking the several steps by which I shall have advanced in
+     taste, judgment and knowledge. A Journal Book and a letter Book
+     of a Lad of Eleven years old Can not be expected to Contain much
+     of Science, Literature, arts, wisdom, or wit, yet it may serve to
+     perpetuate many observations that I may make, and may hereafter
+     help me to recollect both persons and things that would other
+     ways escape my memory.
+
+He continues with resolutions "to be more thoughtful and industrious
+for the future," and reflects with pleasure upon the prospect that
+his scheme "will be a sure means of improvement to myself, and     (p. 006)
+enable me to be more entertaining to you." What gratification must
+this letter from one who was quite justified in signing himself her
+"dutiful and affectionate son" have brought to the Puritan bosom of
+the good mother at home! If the plan for the diary was not pursued
+during the first short flitting abroad, it can hardly be laid at the
+door of the "lad of eleven years" as a serious fault. He did in fact
+begin it when setting out on the aforementioned second trip to Europe,
+calling it
+
+                         A JOURNAL BY J. Q. A.,
+
+                       _From America to Spain._
+
+                               Vol. I.
+
+                  Begun Friday, 12 of November, 1779.
+
+The spark of life in the great undertaking flickered in a somewhat
+feeble and irregular way for many years thereafter, but apparently
+gained strength by degrees until in 1795, as Mr. C. F. Adams tells us,
+"what may be denominated the diary proper begins," a very vigorous
+work in more senses than one. Continued with astonishing persistency
+and faithfulness until within a few days of the writer's death, the
+latest entry is of the 4th of January, 1848. Mr. Adams achieved many
+successes during his life as the result of conscious effort, but   (p. 007)
+the greatest success of all he achieved altogether unconsciously. He
+left a portrait of himself more full, correct, vivid, and picturesque
+than has ever been bequeathed to posterity by any other personage of
+the past ages. Any mistakes which may be made in estimating his mental
+or moral attributes must be charged to the dulness or prejudice of the
+judge, who could certainly not ask for better or more abundant
+evidence. Few of us know our most intimate friends better than any of
+us may know Mr. Adams, if we will but take the trouble. Even the brief
+extracts already given from his correspondence show us the boy; it
+only concerns us to get them into the proper light for seeing them
+accurately. If a lad of seven, nine, or eleven years of age should
+write such solemn little effusions amid the surroundings and
+influences of the present day, he would probably be set down justly
+enough as either an offensive young prig or a prematurely developed
+hypocrite. But the precocious Adams had only a little of the prig and
+nothing of the hypocrite in his nature. Being the outcome of many
+generations of simple, devout, intelligent Puritan ancestors, living
+in a community which loved virtue and sought knowledge, all inherited
+and all present influences combined to make him, as it may be put  (p. 008)
+in a single word, sensible. He had inevitably a mental boyhood and
+youth, but morally he was never either a child or a lad; all his
+leading traits of character were as strongly marked when he was seven
+as when he was seventy, and at an age when most young people simply
+win love or cause annoyance, he was preferring wisdom to mischief, and
+actually in his earliest years was attracting a certain respect.
+
+These few but bold and striking touches which paint the boy are
+changed for an infinitely more elaborate and complex presentation from
+the time when the Diary begins. Even as abridged in the printing, this
+immense work ranks among the half-dozen longest diaries to be found in
+any library, and it is unquestionably by far the most valuable.
+Henceforth we are to travel along its broad route to the end; we shall
+see in it both the great and the small among public men halting onward
+in a way very different from that in which they march along the
+stately pages of the historian, and we shall find many side-lights, by
+no means colorless, thrown upon the persons and events of the
+procession. The persistence, fulness, and faithfulness with which it
+was kept throughout so busy a life are marvellous, but are also highly
+characteristic of the most persevering and industrious of men.     (p. 009)
+That it has been preserved is cause not only for thankfulness but
+for some surprise also. For if its contents had been known, it is
+certain that all the public men of nearly two generations who figure
+in it would have combined into one vast and irresistible conspiracy to
+obtain and destroy it. There was always a superfluity of gall in the
+diarist's ink. Sooner or later every man of any note in the United
+States was mentioned in his pages, and there is scarcely one of them,
+who, if he could have read what was said of him, would not have
+preferred the ignominy of omission. As one turns the leaves he feels
+as though he were walking through a graveyard of slaughtered
+reputations wherein not many headstones show a few words of measured
+commendation. It is only the greatness and goodness of Mr. Adams
+himself which relieve the universal atmosphere of sadness far more
+depressing than the melancholy which pervades the novels of George
+Eliot. The reader who wishes to retain any comfortable degree of
+belief in his fellow men will turn to the wall all the portraits in
+the gallery except only the inimitable one of the writer himself. For
+it would be altogether too discouraging to think that so wide an
+experience of men as Mr. Adams enjoyed through his long, varied, and
+active life must lead to such an unpleasant array of human faces   (p. 010)
+as those which are scattered along these twelve big octavos.
+Fortunately at present we have to do with only one of these
+likenesses, and that one we are able to admire while knowing also that
+it is beyond question accurate. One after another every trait of Mr.
+Adams comes out; we shall see that he was a man of a very high and
+noble character veined with some very notable and disagreeable
+blemishes; his aspirations were honorable, even the lowest of them
+being more than simply respectable; he had an avowed ambition, but it
+was of that pure kind which led him to render true and distinguished
+services to his countrymen; he was not only a zealous patriot, but a
+profound believer in the sound and practicable tenets of the liberal
+political creed of the United States; he had one of the most honest
+and independent natures that was ever given to man; personal integrity
+of course goes without saying, but he had the rarer gift of an
+elevated and rigid political honesty such as has been unfrequently
+seen in any age or any nation; in times of severe trial this quality
+was even cruelly tested, but we shall never see it fail; he was as
+courageous as if he had been a fanatic; indeed, for a long part of his
+life to maintain a single-handed fight in support of a despised or
+unpopular opinion seemed his natural function and almost exclusive
+calling; he was thoroughly conscientious and never knowingly did   (p. 011)
+wrong, nor even sought to persuade himself that wrong was right;
+well read in literature and of wide and varied information in nearly
+all matters of knowledge, he was more especially remarkable for his
+acquirements in the domain of politics, where indeed they were vast
+and ever growing; he had a clear and generally a cool head, and was
+nearly always able to do full justice to himself and to his cause; he
+had an indomitable will, unconquerable persistence, and infinite
+laboriousness. Such were the qualities which made him a great
+statesman; but unfortunately we must behold a hardly less striking
+reverse to the picture, in the faults and shortcomings which made him
+so unpopular in his lifetime that posterity is only just beginning to
+forget the prejudices of his contemporaries and to render concerning
+him the judgment which he deserves. Never did a man of pure life and
+just purposes have fewer friends or more enemies than John Quincy
+Adams. His nature, said to have been very affectionate in his family
+relations, was in its aspect outside of that small circle singularly
+cold and repellent. If he could ever have gathered even a small
+personal following his character and abilities would have insured him
+a brilliant and prolonged success; but, for a man of his calibre   (p. 012)
+and influence, we shall see him as one of the most lonely and desolate
+of the great men of history; instinct led the public men of his time
+to range themselves against him rather than with him, and we shall
+find them fighting beside him only when irresistibly compelled to do
+so by policy or strong convictions. As he had little sympathy with
+those with whom he was brought in contact, so he was very uncharitable
+in his judgment of them; and thus having really a low opinion of so
+many of them he could indulge his vindictive rancor without stint; his
+invective, always powerful, will sometimes startle us by its venom,
+and we shall be pained to see him apt to make enemies for a good cause
+by making them for himself.
+
+This has been, perhaps, too long a lingering upon the threshold. But
+Mr. Adams's career in public life stretched over so long a period that
+to write a full historical memoir of him within the limited space of
+this volume is impossible. All that can be attempted is to present a
+sketch of the man with a few of his more prominent surroundings
+against a very meagre and insufficient background of the history of
+the times. So it may be permissible to begin with a general outline of
+his figure, to be filled in, shaded, and colored as we proceed. At
+best our task is much more difficult of satisfactory achievement   (p. 013)
+than an historical biography of the customary elaborate order.
+
+During his second visit to Europe, our mature youngster--if the word
+may be used of Mr. Adams even in his earliest years--began to see a
+good deal of the world and to mingle in very distinguished society.
+For a brief period he got a little schooling, first at Paris, next at
+Amsterdam, and then at Leyden; altogether the amount was
+insignificant, since he was not quite fourteen years old when he
+actually found himself engaged in a diplomatic career. Francis Dana,
+afterward Chief Justice of Massachusetts, was then accredited as an
+envoy to Russia from the United States, and he took Mr. Adams with him
+as his private secretary. Not much came of the mission, but it was a
+valuable experience for a lad of his years. Upon his return he spent
+six months in travel and then he rejoined his father in Paris, where
+that gentleman was engaged with Franklin and John Jay in negotiating
+the final treaty of peace between the revolted colonies and the mother
+country. The boy "was at once enlisted in the service as an additional
+secretary, and gave his help to the preparation of the papers
+necessary to the completion of that instrument which dispersed all
+possible doubt of the Independence of his Country."
+
+On April 26, 1785, arrived the packet-ship Le Courier de L'Orient, (p. 014)
+bringing a letter from Mr. Gerry containing news of the appointment of
+John Adams as Minister to St. James's. This unforeseen occurrence made
+it necessary for the younger Adams to determine his own career, which
+apparently he was left to do for himself. He was indeed a singular
+young man, not unworthy of such confidence! The glimpses which we get
+of him during this stay abroad show him as the associate upon terms of
+equality with grown men of marked ability and exercising important
+functions. He preferred diplomacy to dissipation, statesmen to
+mistresses, and in the midst of all the temptations of the gayest
+capital in the world, the chariness with which he sprinkled his wild
+oats amid the alluring gardens chiefly devoted to the culture of those
+cereals might well have brought a blush to the cheeks of some among
+his elders, at least if the tongue of slander wags not with gross
+untruth concerning the colleagues of John Adams. But he was not in
+Europe to amuse himself, though at an age when amusement is natural
+and a tinge of sinfulness is so often pardoned; he was there with the
+definite and persistent purpose of steady improvement and acquisition.
+At his age most young men play the cards which a kind fortune puts
+into their hands, with the reckless intent only of immediate gain, (p. 015)
+but from the earliest moment when he began the game of life Adams
+coolly and wisely husbanded every card which came into his hand, with
+a steady view to probable future contingencies, and with the resolve
+to win in the long run. So now the resolution which he took in the
+present question illustrated the clearness of his mind and the
+strength of his character. To go with his father to England would be
+to enjoy a life precisely fitted to his natural and acquired tastes,
+to mingle with the men who were making history, to be cognizant of the
+weightiest of public affairs, to profit by all that the grandest city
+in the world had to show. It was easy to be not only allured by the
+prospect but also to be deceived by its apparent advantages. Adams,
+however, had the sense and courage to turn his back on it, and to go
+home to the meagre shores and small society of New England, there to
+become a boy again, to enter Harvard College, and come under all its
+at that time rigid and petty regulations. It almost seems a mistake,
+but it was not. Already he was too ripe and too wise to blunder. He
+himself gives us his characteristic and sufficient reasons:--
+
+     "Were I now to go with my father probably my immediate
+     satisfaction might be greater than it will be in returning    (p. 016)
+     to America. After having been travelling for these seven years
+     almost and all over Europe, and having been in the world and among
+     company for three; to return to spend one or two years in the
+     pale of a college, subjected to all the rules which I have so long
+     been freed from; and afterwards not expect (however good an opinion
+     I may have of myself) to bring myself into notice under three or
+     four years more, if ever! It is really a prospect somewhat
+     discouraging for a youth of my ambition, (for I have ambition
+     though I hope its object is laudable). But still
+
+                    'Oh! how wretched
+          Is that poor man, that hangs on Princes' favors,'
+
+     or on those of any body else. I am determined that so long as I
+     shall be able to get my own living in an honorable manner, I will
+     depend upon no one. My father has been so much taken up all his
+     lifetime with the interests of the public, that his own fortune
+     has suffered by it: so that his children will have to provide for
+     themselves, which I shall never be able to do if I loiter away my
+     precious time in Europe and shun going home until I am forced to
+     it. With an ordinary share of common sense, which I hope I enjoy,
+     at least in America I can live _independent_ and _free_; and
+     rather than live otherwise I would wish to die before the time
+     when I shall be left at my own discretion. I have before me a
+     striking example of the distressing and humiliating situation a
+     person is reduced to by adopting a different line of conduct, and
+     I am determined not to fall into the same error."
+
+It is needless to comment upon such spirit and sense, or upon      (p. 017)
+such just appreciation of what was feasible, wise, and right for him,
+as a New Englander whose surroundings and prospects were widely
+different from those of the society about him. He must have been
+strongly imbued by nature with the instincts of his birthplace to
+have formed, after a seven years' absence at his impressible age, so
+correct a judgment of the necessities and possibilities of his own
+career in relationship to the people and ideas of his own country.
+
+Home accordingly he came, and by assiduity prepared himself in a very
+short time to enter the junior class at Harvard College, whence he was
+graduated in high standing in 1787. From there he went to Newburyport,
+then a thriving and active seaport enriched by the noble trade of
+privateering in addition to more regular maritime business, and entered
+as a law student the office of Theophilus Parsons, afterwards the
+Chief Justice of Massachusetts. On July 15, 1790, being twenty-three
+years old, he was admitted to practice. Immediately afterward he
+established himself in Boston, where for a time he felt strangely
+solitary. Clients of course did not besiege his doors in the first
+year, and he appears to have waited rather stubbornly than cheerfully
+for more active days. These came in good time, and during the      (p. 018)
+second, third, and fourth years, his business grew apace to encouraging
+dimensions.
+
+He was, however, doing other work than that of the law, and much more
+important in its bearing upon his future career. He could not keep his
+thoughts, nor indeed his hands, from public affairs. When, in 1791,
+Thomas Paine produced the "Rights of Man," Thomas Jefferson acting as
+midwife to usher the bantling before the people of the United States,
+Adams's indignation was fired, and he published anonymously a series
+of refuting papers over the signature of Publicola. These attracted
+much attention, not only at home but also abroad, and were by many
+attributed to John Adams. Two years later, during the excitement
+aroused by the reception and subsequent outrageous behavior here of
+the French minister, Genet, Mr. Adams again published in the Boston
+"Centinel" some papers over the signature of Marcellus, discussing
+with much ability the then new and perplexing question of the
+neutrality which should be observed by this country in European wars.
+These were followed by more, over the signature of Columbus, and
+afterward by still more in the name of Barnevelt, all strongly
+reprobating the course of the crazy-headed foreigner. The writer was
+not permitted to remain long unknown. It is not certain, but it    (p. 019)
+is highly probable, that to these articles was due the nomination
+which Mr. Adams received shortly afterward from President Washington,
+as Minister Resident at the Hague. This nomination was sent in to the
+Senate, May 29, 1794, and was unanimously confirmed on the following
+day. It may be imagined that the change from the moderate practice of
+his Boston law office to a European court, of which he so well knew
+the charms, was not distasteful to him. There are passages in his
+Diary which indicate that he had been chafing with irrepressible
+impatience "in that state of useless and disgraceful insignificancy,"
+to which, as it seemed to him, he was relegated, so that at the age of
+twenty-five, when "many of the characters who were born for the
+benefit of their fellow creatures, have rendered themselves conspicuous
+among their contemporaries, ... I still find myself as obscure, as
+unknown to the world, as the most indolent or the most stupid of human
+beings." Entertaining such a restless ambition, he of course accepted
+the proffered office, though not without some expression of unexplained
+doubt. October 31, 1794, found him at the Hague, after a voyage of
+considerable peril in a leaky ship, commanded by a blundering captain.
+He was a young diplomat, indeed; it was on his twenty-seventh      (p. 020)
+birthday that he received his commission.
+
+The minister made his advent upon a tumultuous scene. All Europe was
+getting under arms in the long and desperate struggle with France.
+Scarcely had he presented his credentials to the Stadtholder ere that
+dignitary was obliged to flee before the conquering standards of the
+French. Pichegru marched into the capital city of the Low Countries,
+hung out the tri-color, and established the "Batavian Republic" as the
+ally of France. The diplomatic representatives of most of the European
+powers forthwith left, and Mr. Adams was strongly moved to do the same,
+though for reasons different from those which actuated his compeers.
+He was not, like them, placed in an unpleasant position by the new
+condition of affairs, but on the contrary he was very cordially
+treated by the French and their Dutch partisans, and was obliged to
+fall back upon his native prudence to resist their compromising
+overtures and dangerous friendship. Without giving offence he yet kept
+clear of entanglements, and showed a degree of wisdom and skill which
+many older and more experienced Americans failed to evince, either
+abroad or at home, during these exciting years. But he appeared to be
+left without occupation in the altered condition of affairs, and   (p. 021)
+therefore was considering the propriety of returning, when advices
+from home induced him to stay. Washington especially wrote that he
+must not think of retiring, and prophesied that he would soon be
+"found at the head of the diplomatic corps, be the government
+administered by whomsoever the people may choose." He remained,
+therefore, at the Hague, a shrewd and close observer of the exciting
+events occurring around him, industriously pursuing an extensive
+course of study and reading, making useful acquaintances, acquiring
+familiarity with foreign languages, with the usages of diplomacy and
+the habits of distinguished society. He had little public business to
+transact, it is true; but at least his time was well spent for his own
+improvement.
+
+An episode in his life at the Hague was his visit to England, where he
+was directed to exchange ratifications of the treaty lately negotiated
+by Mr. Jay. But a series of vexatious delays, apparently maliciously
+contrived, detained him so long that upon his arrival he found this
+specific task already accomplished by Mr. Deas. He was probably not
+disappointed that his name thus escaped connection with engagements so
+odious to a large part of the nation. He had, however, some further
+business of an informal character to transact with Lord Grenville, (p. 022)
+and in endeavoring to conduct it found himself rather awkwardly placed.
+He was not minister to the Court of St. James, having been only
+vaguely authorized to discuss certain arrangements in a tentative way,
+without the power to enter into any definitive agreement. But the
+English Cabinet strongly disliking Mr. Deas, who in the absence of Mr.
+Pinckney represented for the time the United States, and much
+preferring to negotiate with Mr. Adams, sought by many indirect and
+artful subterfuges to thrust upon him the character of a regularly
+accredited minister. He had much ado to avoid, without offence, the
+assumption of functions to which he had no title, but which were with
+designing courtesy forced upon him. His cool and moderate temper,
+however, carried him successfully through the whole business, alike in
+its social and its diplomatic aspect.
+
+Another negotiation, of a private nature also, he brought to a
+successful issue during these few months in London. He made the
+acquaintance of Miss Louisa Catherine Johnson, daughter of Joshua
+Johnson, then American Consul at London, and niece of that Governor
+Johnson, of Maryland, who had signed the Declaration of Independence
+and was afterwards placed on the bench of the Supreme Court of     (p. 023)
+the United States. To this lady he became engaged; and returning
+not long afterward he was married to her on July 26, 1797. It was a
+thoroughly happy and, for him, a life-long union.
+
+President Washington, toward the close of his second term, transferred
+Mr. Adams to the Court of Portugal. But before his departure thither
+his destination was changed. Some degree of embarrassment was felt
+about this time concerning his further continuance in public office,
+by reason of his father's accession to the Presidency. He wrote to his
+mother a manly and spirited letter, rebuking her for carelessly
+dropping an expression indicative of a fear that he might look for
+some favor at his father's hands. He could neither solicit nor expect
+anything, he justly said, and he was pained that his mother should not
+know him better than to entertain any apprehension of his feeling
+otherwise. It was a perplexing position in which the two were placed.
+It would be a great hardship to cut short the son's career because of
+the success of the father, yet the reproach of nepotism could not be
+lightly encountered, even with the backing of clear consciences.
+Washington came kindly to the aid of his doubting successor, and in a
+letter highly complimentary to Mr. John Quincy Adams strongly urged
+that well-merited promotion ought not to be kept from him,         (p. 024)
+foretelling for him a distinguished future in the diplomatic service.
+These representations prevailed; and the President's only action as
+concerned his son consisted in changing his destination from Portugal
+to Prussia, both missions being at that time of the same grade, though
+that to Prussia was then established for the first time by the making
+and confirming of this nomination.
+
+To Berlin, accordingly, Mr. Adams proceeded in November, 1797, and had
+the somewhat cruel experience of being "questioned at the gates by a
+dapper lieutenant, who did not know, until one of his private soldiers
+explained to him, who the United States of America were." Overcoming
+this unusual obstacle to a ministerial advent, and succeeding, after
+many months, in getting through all the introductory formalities, he
+found not much more to be done at Berlin than there had been at the
+Hague. But such useful work as was open to him he accomplished in the
+shape of a treaty of amity and commerce between Prussia and the United
+States. This having been duly ratified by both the powers, his further
+stay seemed so useless that he wrote home suggesting his readiness to
+return; and while awaiting a reply he travelled through some portions
+of Europe which he had not before seen. His recall was one of the  (p. 025)
+last acts of his father's administration, made, says Mr. Seward,
+"that Mr. Jefferson might have no embarrassment in that direction,"
+but quite as probably dictated by a vindictive desire to show how wide
+was the gulf of animosity which had opened between the family of the
+disappointed ex-President and his triumphant rival.
+
+Mr. Adams, immediately upon his arrival at home, prepared to return to
+the practice of his profession. It was not altogether an agreeable
+transition from an embassy at the courts of Europe to a law office in
+Boston, with the necessity of furbishing up long disused knowledge,
+and a second time patiently awaiting the influx of clients. But he
+faced it with his stubborn temper and practical sense. The slender
+promise which he was able to discern in the political outlook could
+not fail to disappoint him, since his native predilections were
+unquestionably and strongly in favor of a public career. During his
+absence party animosities had been developing rapidly. The first great
+party victory since the organization of the government had just been
+won, after a very bitter struggle, by the Republicans or Democrats, as
+they were then indifferently called, whose exuberant delight found its
+full counterpart in the angry despondency of the Federalists. That
+irascible old gentleman, the elder Adams, having experienced a     (p. 026)
+very Waterloo defeat in the contest for the Presidency, had ridden
+away from the capital, actually in a wild rage, on the night of the 3d
+of March, 1801, to avoid the humiliating pageant of Mr. Jefferson's
+inauguration. Yet far more fierce than this natural party warfare was
+the internal dissension which rent the Federal party in twain. Those
+cracks upon the surface and subterraneous rumblings, which the
+experienced observer could for some time have noted, had opened with
+terrible uproar into a gaping chasm, when John Adams, still in the
+Presidency, suddenly announced his determination to send a mission to
+France at a crisis when nearly all his party were looking for war.
+Perhaps this step was, as his admirers claim, an act of pure and
+disinterested statesmanship. Certainly its result was fortunate for
+the country at large. But for John Adams it was ruinous. At the moment
+when he made the bold move, he doubtless expected to be followed by
+his party. Extreme was his disappointment and boundless his wrath,
+when he found that he had at his back only a fraction, not improbably
+less than half, of that party. He learned with infinite chagrin that
+he had only a divided empire with a private individual; that it was
+not safe for him, the President of the United States, to originate
+any important measure without first consulting a lawyer quietly    (p. 027)
+engaged in the practice of his profession in New York; that, in short,
+at least a moiety, in which were to be found the most intelligent
+members, of the great Federal party, when in search of guidance,
+turned their faces toward Alexander Hamilton rather than toward John
+Adams. These Hamiltonians by no means relished the French mission, so
+that from this time forth a schism of intense bitterness kept the
+Federal party asunder, and John Adams hated Alexander Hamilton with a
+vigor not surpassed in the annals of human antipathies. His rage was
+not assuaged by the conduct of this dreaded foe in the presidential
+campaign; and the defeated candidate always preferred to charge his
+failure to Hamilton's machinations rather than to the real will of the
+people. This, however, was unfair; it was perfectly obvious that a
+majority of the nation had embraced Jeffersonian tenets, and that
+Federalism was moribund.
+
+To this condition of affairs John Quincy Adams returned. Fortunately
+he had been compelled to bear no part in the embroilments of the past,
+and his sagacity must have led him, while listening with filial
+sympathy to the interpretations placed upon events by his incensed
+parent, yet to make liberal allowance for the distorting effects   (p. 028)
+of the old gentleman's rage. Still it was in the main only natural for
+him to regard himself as a Federalist of the Adams faction. His
+proclivities had always been with that party. In Massachusetts the
+educated and well-to-do classes were almost unanimously of that way of
+thinking. The select coterie of gentlemen in the State, who in those
+times bore an active and influential part in politics, were nearly all
+Hamiltonians, but the adherents of President Adams were numerically
+strong. Nor was the younger Adams himself long left without his
+private grievance against Mr. Jefferson, who promptly used the
+authority vested in him by a new statute to remove Mr. Adams from the
+position of commissioner in bankruptcy, to which, at the time of his
+resuming business, he had been appointed by the judge of the district
+court. Long afterward Jefferson sought to escape the odium of this
+apparently malicious and, for those days, unusual action, by a very
+Jeffersonian explanation, tolerably satisfactory to those persons who
+believed it.
+
+On April 5, 1802, Mr. Adams was chosen by the Federalists of Boston to
+represent them in the State Senate. The office was at that time still
+sought by men of the best ability and position, and though it was
+hardly a step upward on the political ladder for one who had
+represented the nation in foreign parts for eight years, yet       (p. 029)
+Mr. Adams was well content to accept it. At least it reopened the door
+of political life, and moreover one of his steadfast maxims was never
+to refuse any function which the people sought to impose upon him. It
+is worth noting, for its bearing upon controversies soon to be
+encountered in this narrative, that forty-eight hours had not elapsed
+after Mr. Adams had taken his seat before he ventured upon a display
+of independence which caused much irritation to his Federalist
+associates. He had the hardihood to propose that the Federalist
+majority in the legislature should permit the Republican minority to
+enjoy a proportional representation in the council. "It was the first
+act of my legislative life," he wrote many years afterward, "and it
+marked the principle by which my whole public life has been governed
+from that day to this. My proposal was unsuccessful, and perhaps it
+forfeited whatever confidence might have been otherwise bestowed upon
+me as a party follower." Indeed, all his life long Mr. Adams was never
+submissive to the party whip, but voted upon every question precisely
+according to his opinion of its merits, without the slightest regard
+to the political company in which for the time being he might find
+himself. A compeer of his in the United States Senate once said    (p. 030)
+of him, that he regarded every public measure which came up as he
+would a proposition in Euclid, abstracted from any party considerations.
+These frequent derelictions of his were at first forgiven with a
+magnanimity really very creditable, so long as it lasted, especially
+to the Hamiltonians in the Federal party; and so liberal was this
+forbearance that when in February, 1803, the legislature had to elect
+a Senator to the United States Senate, he was chosen upon the fourth
+ballot by 86 votes out of 171. This was the more gratifying to him and
+the more handsome on the part of the anti-Adams men in the party,
+because the place was eagerly sought by Timothy Pickering, an old man
+who had strong claims growing out of an almost life-long and very
+efficient service in their ranks, and who was moreover a most stanch
+adherent of General Hamilton.
+
+So in October, 1803, we find Mr. Adams on his way to Washington, the
+raw and unattractive village which then constituted the national
+capital, wherein there was not, as the pious New Englander instantly
+noted, a church of any denomination; but those who were religiously
+disposed were obliged to attend services "usually performed on Sundays
+at the Treasury Office and at the Capitol." With what anticipations
+Mr. Adams's mind was filled during his journey to this embryotic   (p. 031)
+city his Diary does not tell; but if they were in any degree cheerful
+or sanguine they were destined to cruel disappointment. He was now
+probably to appreciate for the first time the fierce vigor of the
+hostility which his father had excited. In Massachusetts social
+connections and friendships probably mitigated the open display of
+rancor to which in Washington full sway was given. It was not only the
+Republican majority who showed feelings which in them were at least
+fair if they were strong, but the Federal minority were maliciously
+pleased to find in the son of the ill-starred John Adams a victim on
+whom to vent that spleen and abuse which were so provokingly
+ineffective against the solid working majority of their opponents in
+Congress. The Republicans trampled upon the Federalists, and the
+Federalists trampled on John Quincy Adams. He spoke seldom, and
+certainly did not weary the Senators, yet whenever he rose to his feet
+he was sure of a cold, too often almost an insulting, reception. By no
+chance or possibility could anything which he said or suggested please
+his prejudiced auditors. The worst augury for any measure was his
+support; any motion which he made was sure to be voted down, though
+not unfrequently substantially the same matter being afterward moved
+by somebody else would be readily carried. That cordiality,        (p. 032)
+assistance, and sense of fellowship which Senators from the same State
+customarily expect and obtain from each other could not be enjoyed by
+him. For shortly after his arrival in Washington, Mr. Pickering had
+been chosen to fill a vacancy in the other Massachusetts senatorship,
+and appeared upon the scene as a most unwelcome colleague. For a time,
+indeed, an outward semblance of political comradeship was maintained
+between them, but it would have been folly for an Adams to put faith
+in a Pickering, and perhaps _vice versa_. This position of his, as the
+unpopular member of an unpopular minority, could not be misunderstood,
+and many allusions to it occur in his Diary. One day he notes a motion
+rejected; another day, that he has "nothing to do but to make
+fruitless opposition;" he constantly recites that he has voted with a
+small minority, and at least once he himself composed the whole of
+that minority; soon after his arrival he says that an amendment
+proposed by him "will certainly not pass; and, indeed, I have already
+seen enough to ascertain that no amendments of my proposing will
+obtain in the Senate as now filled;" again, "I presented my three
+resolutions, which raised a storm as violent as I expected;" and on
+the same day he writes, "I have no doubt of incurring much censure
+and obloquy for this measure;" a day or two later he speaks of     (p. 033)
+certain persons "who hate me rather more than they love any
+principle;" when he expressed an opinion in favor of ratifying a
+treaty with the Creeks, he remarks quite philosophically, that he
+believes it "surprised almost every member of the Senate, and
+dissatisfied almost all;" when he wanted a committee raised he did not
+move it himself, but suggested the idea to another Senator, for "I
+knew that if I moved it a spirit of jealousy would immediately be
+raised against doing anything." Writing once of some resolutions which
+he intended to propose, he says that they are "another feather against
+a whirlwind. A desperate and fearful cause in which I have embarked,
+but I must pursue it or feel myself either a coward or a traitor."
+Another time we find a committee, of which he was a member, making its
+report when he had not even been notified of its meeting.
+
+It would be idle to suppose that any man could be sufficiently callous
+not to feel keenly such treatment. Mr. Adams was far from callous and
+he felt it deeply. But he was not crushed or discouraged by it, as
+weaker spirits would have been, nor betrayed into any acts of foolish
+anger which must have recoiled upon himself. In him warm feelings were
+found in singular combination with a cool head. An unyielding      (p. 034)
+temper and an obstinate courage, an invincible confidence in his own
+judgment, and a stern conscientiousness carried him through these
+earlier years of severe trial as they had afterwards to carry him
+through many more. "The qualities of mind most peculiarly called for,"
+he reflects in the Diary, "are firmness, perseverance, patience,
+coolness, and forbearance. The prospect is not promising; yet the part
+to act may be as honorably performed as if success could attend it."
+He understood the situation perfectly and met it with a better skill
+than that of the veteran politician. By a long and tedious but sure
+process he forced his way to steadily increasing influence, and by the
+close of his fourth year we find him taking a part in the business of
+the Senate which may be fairly called prominent and important. He was
+conquering success.
+
+But if Mr. Adams's unpopularity was partly due to the fact that he was
+the son of his father, it was also largely attributable not only to
+his unconciliatory manners but to more substantial habits of mind and
+character. It is probably impossible for any public man, really
+independent in his political action, to lead a very comfortable life
+amid the struggles of party. Under the disadvantages involved in this
+habit Mr. Adams labored to a remarkable degree. Since parties      (p. 035)
+were first organized in this Republic no American statesman has ever
+approached him in persistent freedom of thought, speech, and action.
+He was regarded as a Federalist, but his Federalism was subject to
+many modifications; the members of that party never were sure of his
+adherence, and felt bound to him by no very strong ties of political
+fellowship. Towards the close of his senatorial term he recorded, in
+reminiscence, that he had more often voted with the administration
+than with the opposition.
+
+The first matter of importance concerning which he was obliged to act
+was the acquisition of Louisiana and its admission as a state of the
+Union. The Federalists were bitterly opposed to this measure,
+regarding it as an undue strengthening of the South and of the slavery
+influence, to the destruction of the fair balance of power between the
+two great sections of the country. It was not then the moral aspect of
+the slavery element which stirred the northern temper, but only the
+antagonism of interests between the commercial cities of the North and
+the agricultural communities of the South. In the discussions and
+votes which took place in this business Mr. Adams was in favor of the
+purchase, but denied with much emphasis the constitutionality of the
+process by which the purchased territory was brought into the      (p. 036)
+fellowship of States. This imperfect allegiance to the party gave more
+offence than satisfaction, and he found himself soundly berated in
+leading Federalist newspapers in New England, and angrily threatened
+with expulsion from the party. But in the famous impeachment of Judge
+Chase, which aroused very strong feelings, Mr. Adams was fortunately
+able to vote for acquittal. He regarded this measure, as well as the
+impeachment of Judge Pickering at the preceding session, as parts of
+an elaborate scheme on the part of the President for degrading the
+national judiciary and rendering it subservient to the legislative
+branch of the government. So many, however, even of Mr. Jefferson's
+stanch adherents revolted against his requisitions on this occasion,
+and he himself so far lost heart before the final vote was taken, that
+several Republicans voted with the Federalists, and Mr. Adams could
+hardly claim much credit with his party for standing by them in this
+emergency.
+
+It takes a long while for such a man to secure respect, and great
+ability for him ever to achieve influence. In time, however, Mr. Adams
+saw gratifying indications that he was acquiring both, and in
+February, 1806, we find him writing:--
+
+     "This is the third session I have sat in Congress. I came in  (p. 037)
+     as a member of a very small minority, and during the two former
+     sessions almost uniformly avoided to take a lead; any other course
+     would have been dishonest or ridiculous. On the very few and
+     unimportant objects which I did undertake, I met at first with
+     universal opposition. The last session my influence rose a little,
+     at the present it has hitherto been apparently rising."
+
+He was so far a cool and clear-headed judge, even in his own case,
+that this encouraging estimate may be accepted as correct upon his
+sole authority without other evidence. But the fair prospect was
+overcast almost in its dawning, and a period of supreme trial and of
+apparently irretrievable ruin was at hand.
+
+Topics were coming forward for discussion concerning which no American
+could be indifferent, and no man of Mr. Adams's spirit could be silent.
+The policy of Great Britain towards this country, and the manner in
+which it was to be met, stirred profound feelings and opened such
+fierce dissensions as it is now difficult to appreciate. For a brief
+time Mr. Adams was to be a prominent actor before the people. It is
+fortunately needless to repeat, as it must ever be painful to remember,
+the familiar and too humiliating tale of the part which France and
+England were permitted for so many years to play in our national
+politics, when our parties were not divided upon American          (p. 038)
+questions, but wholly by their sympathies with one or other of these
+contending European powers. Under Washington the English party had,
+with infinite difficulty, been able to prevent their adversaries from
+fairly enlisting the United States as active partisans of France, in
+spite of the fact that most insulting treatment was received from that
+country. Under John Adams the same so-called British faction had been
+baulked in their hope of precipitating a war with the French. Now in
+Mr. Jefferson's second administration, the French party having won the
+ascendant, the new phase of the same long struggle presented the
+question, whether or not we should be drawn into a war with Great
+Britain. Grave as must have been the disasters of such a war in 1806,
+grave as they were when the war actually came six years later, yet it
+is impossible to recall the provocations which were inflicted upon us
+without almost regretting that prudence was not cast to the winds and
+any woes encountered in preference to unresisting submission to such
+insolent outrages. Our gorge rises at the narration three quarters of
+a century after the acts were done.
+
+Mr. Adams took his position early and boldly. In February, 1806, he
+introduced into the Senate certain resolutions strongly condemnatory
+of the right, claimed and vigorously exercised by the British,     (p. 039)
+of seizing neutral vessels employed in conducting with the enemies of
+Great Britain any trade which had been customarily prohibited by that
+enemy in time of peace. This doctrine was designed to shut out
+American merchants from certain privileges in trading with French
+colonies, which had been accorded only since France had become
+involved in war with Great Britain. The principle was utterly illegal
+and extremely injurious. Mr. Adams, in his first resolution,
+stigmatized it "as an unprovoked aggression upon the property of the
+citizens of these United States, a violation of their neutral rights,
+and an encroachment upon their national independence." By his second
+resolution, the President was requested to demand and insist upon the
+restoration of property seized under this pretext, and upon
+indemnification for property already confiscated. By a rare good
+fortune, Mr. Adams had the pleasure of seeing his propositions
+carried, only slightly modified by the omission of the words "to
+insist." But they were carried, of course, by Republican votes, and
+they by no means advanced their mover in the favor of the Federalist
+party. Strange as it may seem, that party, of which many of the
+foremost supporters were engaged in the very commerce which Great
+Britain aimed to suppress and destroy, seemed not to be so much    (p. 040)
+incensed against her as against their own government. The theory
+of the party was, substantially, that England had been driven into
+these measures by the friendly tone of our government towards France,
+and by her own stringent and overruling necessities. The cure was not
+to be sought in resistance, not even in indignation and remonstrance
+addressed to that power, but rather in cementing an alliance with her,
+and even, if need should be, in taking active part in her holy cause.
+The feeling seemed to be that we merited the chastisement because we
+had not allied ourselves with the chastiser. These singular notions of
+the Federalists, however, were by no means the notions of Mr. John
+Quincy Adams, as we shall soon see.
+
+On April 18, 1806, the Non-importation Act received the approval of
+the President. It was the first measure indicative of resentment or
+retaliation which was taken by our government. When it was upon its
+passage it encountered the vigorous resistance of the Federalists, but
+received the support of Mr. Adams. On May 16, 1806, the British
+government made another long stride in the course of lawless oppression
+of neutrals, which phrase, as commerce then was, signified little else
+than Americans. A proclamation was issued declaring the whole      (p. 041)
+coast of the European continent, from Brest to the mouth of the Elbe,
+to be under blockade. In fact, of course, the coast was not blockaded,
+and the proclamation was a falsehood, an unjustifiable effort to make
+words do the work of war-ships. The doctrine which it was thus
+endeavored to establish had never been admitted into international
+law, has ever since been repudiated by universal consent of all nations,
+and is intrinsically preposterous. The British, however, designed to
+make it effective, and set to work in earnest to confiscate all
+vessels and cargoes captured on their way from any neutral nation to
+any port within the proscribed district. On November 21, next following,
+Napoleon retaliated by the Berlin decree, so called, declaring the
+entire British Isles to be under blockade, and forbidding any vessel
+which had been in any English port after publication of his decree to
+enter any port in the dominions under his control. In January, 1807,
+England made the next move by an order, likewise in contravention of
+international law, forbidding to neutrals all commerce between ports
+of the enemies of Great Britain. On November 11, 1807, the famous
+British Order in Council was issued, declaring neutral vessels and
+cargoes bound to any port or colony of any country with which      (p. 042)
+England was then at war, and which was closed to English ships, to be
+liable to capture and confiscation. A few days later, November 25,
+1807, another Order established a rate of duties to be paid in England
+upon all neutral merchandise which should be permitted to be carried
+in neutral bottoms to countries at war with that power. December 17,
+1807, Napoleon retorted by the Milan decree, which declared
+denationalized and subject to capture and condemnation every vessel,
+to whatsoever nation belonging, which should have submitted to search
+by an English ship, or should be on a voyage to England, or should
+have paid any tax to the English government. All these regulations,
+though purporting to be aimed at neutrals generally, in fact bore
+almost exclusively upon the United States, who alone were undertaking
+to conduct any neutral commerce worthy of mention. As Mr. Adams
+afterwards remarked, the effect of these illegal proclamations and
+unjustifiable novel doctrines "placed the commerce and shipping of the
+United States, with regard to all Europe and European colonies (Sweden
+alone excepted), in nearly the same state as it would have been, if,
+on that same 11th of November, England and France had both declared
+war against the United States." The merchants of this country might as
+well have burned their ships as have submitted to these decrees.   (p. 043)
+
+All this while the impressment of American seamen by British ships of
+war was being vigorously prosecuted. This is one of those outrages so
+long ago laid away among the mouldering tombs in the historical
+graveyard that few persons now appreciate its enormity, or the extent
+to which it was carried. Those who will be at the pains to ascertain
+the truth in the matter will feel that the bloodiest, most costly, and
+most disastrous war would have been better than tame endurance of
+treatment so brutal and unjustifiable that it finds no parallel even
+in the long and dark list of wrongs which Great Britain has been wont
+to inflict upon all the weaker or the uncivilized peoples with whom
+she has been brought or has gratuitously forced herself into unwelcome
+contact. It was not an occasional act of high-handed arrogance that
+was done; there were not only a few unfortunate victims, of whom a
+large proportion might be of unascertained nationality. It was an
+organized system worked upon a very large scale. Every American seaman
+felt it necessary to have a certificate of citizenship, accompanied by
+a description of his features and of all the marks upon his person, as
+Mr. Adams said, "like the advertisement for a runaway negro slave."
+Nor was even this protection by any means sure to be always        (p. 044)
+efficient. The number of undoubted American citizens who were seized
+rose in a few years actually to many thousands. They were often taken
+without so much as a false pretence to right; but with the acknowledgment
+that they were Americans, they were seized upon the plea of a necessity
+for their services in the British ship. Some American vessels were
+left so denuded of seamen that they were lost at sea for want of hands
+to man them; the destruction of lives as well as property,
+unquestionably thus caused, was immense. When after the lapse of a
+long time and of infinite negotiation the American citizenship of some
+individual was clearly shown, still the chances of his return were
+small; some false and ignoble subterfuge was resorted to; he was not
+to be found; the name did not occur on the rolls of the navy; he had
+died, or been discharged, or had deserted, or had been shot. The more
+illegal the act committed by any British officer the more sure he was
+of reward, till it seemed that the impressment of American citizens
+was an even surer road to promotion than valor in an engagement with
+the enemy. Such were the substantial wrongs inflicted by Great
+Britain; nor were any pains taken to cloak their character; on the
+contrary, they were done with more than British insolence and
+offensiveness, and were accompanied with insults which alone       (p. 045)
+constituted sufficient provocation to war. To all this, for a long
+time, nothing but empty and utterly futile protests were opposed by
+this country. The affair of the Chesapeake, indeed, threatened for a
+brief moment to bring things to a crisis. That vessel, an American
+frigate, commanded by Commodore Barron, sailed on June 22, 1807, from
+Hampton Roads. The Leopard, a British fifty-gun ship, followed her,
+and before she was out of sight of land, hailed her and demanded the
+delivery of four men, of whom three at least were surely native
+Americans. Barron refused the demand, though his ship was wholly
+unprepared for action. Thereupon the Englishman opened his broadsides,
+killed three men and wounded sixteen, boarded the Chesapeake and took
+off the four sailors. They were carried to Halifax and tried by
+court-martial for desertion: one of them was hanged; one died in
+confinement, and five years elapsed before the other two were returned
+to the Chesapeake in Boston harbor. This wound was sufficiently deep
+to arouse a real spirit of resentment and revenge, and England went so
+far as to dispatch Mr. Rose to this country upon a pretended mission
+of peace, though the fraudulent character of his errand was sufficiently
+indicated by the fact that within a few hours after his departure the
+first of the above named Orders in Council was issued but had not  (p. 046)
+been communicated to him. As Mr. Adams indignantly said, "the same
+penful of ink which signed his instructions might have been used also
+to sign these illegal orders." Admiral Berkeley, the commander of the
+Leopard, received the punishment which he might justly have expected
+if precedent was to count for anything in the naval service of Great
+Britain,--he was promoted.
+
+It is hardly worth while to endeavor to measure the comparative
+wrongfulness of the conduct of England and of France. The behavior of
+each was utterly unjustifiable; though England by committing the first
+extreme breach of international law gave to France the excuse of
+retaliation. There was, however, vast difference in the practical
+effect of the British and French decrees. The former wrought serious
+injury, falling little short of total destruction, to American
+shipping and commerce; the latter were only in a much less degree
+hurtful. The immense naval power of England and the channels in which
+our trade naturally flowed combined to make her destructive capacity
+as towards us very great. It was the outrages inflicted by her which
+brought the merchants of the United States face to face with ruin;
+they suffered not very greatly at the hands of Napoleon. Neither could
+the villainous process of impressment be conducted by Frenchmen.   (p. 047)
+France gave us cause for war, but England seemed resolved to drive us
+into it.
+
+As British aggressions grew steadily and rapidly more intolerable, Mr.
+Adams found himself straining farther and farther away from those
+Federalist moorings at which, it must be confessed, he had long swung
+very precariously. The constituency which he represented was indeed in
+a quandary so embarrassing as hardly to be capable of maintaining any
+consistent policy. The New England of that day was a trading
+community, of which the industry and capital were almost exclusively
+centred in ship-owning and commerce. The merchants, almost to a man,
+had long been the most Anglican of Federalists in their political
+sympathies. Now they found themselves suffering utterly ruinous
+treatment at the hands of those whom they had loved overmuch. They
+were being ruthlessly destroyed by their friends, to whom they had
+been, so to speak, almost disloyally loyal. They saw their business
+annihilated, their property seized, and yet could not give utterance
+to resentment, or counsel resistance, without such a humiliating
+devouring of all their own principles and sentiments as they could by
+no possibility bring themselves to endure. There was but one road open
+to them, and that was the ignoble one of casting themselves wholly (p. 048)
+into the arms of England, of rewarding her blows with caresses, of
+submitting to be fairly scourged into a servile alliance with her. It
+is not surprising that the independent temper of Mr. Adams revolted at
+the position which his party seemed not reluctant to assume at this
+juncture. Yet not very much better seemed for a time the policy of the
+administration. Jefferson was far from being a man for troubled
+seasons, which called for high spirit and executive energy. His
+flotillas of gunboats and like idle and silly fantasies only excited
+Mr. Adams's disgust. In fact, there was upon all sides a strong dread
+of a war with England, not always openly expressed, but now perfectly
+visible, arising with some from regard for that country, in others
+prompted by fear of her power. Alone among public men Mr. Adams, while
+earnestly hoping to escape war, was not willing to seek that escape by
+unlimited weakness and unbounded submission to lawless injury.
+
+On November 17, 1807, Mr. Adams, who never in his life allowed fear to
+become a motive, wrote, with obvious contempt and indignation: "I
+observe among the members great embarrassment, alarm, anxiety, and
+confusion of mind, but no preparation for any measure of vigor, and an
+obvious strong disposition to yield all that Great Britain may     (p. 049)
+require, to preserve peace, under a thin external show of dignity and
+bravery." This tame and vacillating spirit roused his ire, and as it
+was chiefly manifested by his own party it alienated him from them
+farther than ever. Yet his wrath was so far held in reasonable check
+by his discretion that he would still have liked to avoid the perilous
+conclusion of arms, and though his impulse was to fight, yet he could
+not but recognize that the sensible course was to be content, for the
+time at least, with a manifestation of resentment, and the most vigorous
+acts short of war which the government could be induced to undertake.
+On this sentiment were based his introduction of the aforementioned
+resolutions, his willingness to support the administration, and his
+vote for the Non-importation Act in spite of a dislike for it as a
+very imperfectly satisfactory measure. But it was not alone his
+naturally independent temper which led him thus to feel so differently
+from other members of his party. In Europe he had had opportunities of
+forming a judgment more accurate than was possible for most Americans
+concerning the sentiments and policy of England towards this country.
+Not only had he been present at the negotiations resulting in the
+treaty of peace, but he had also afterwards been for several months
+engaged in the personal discussion of commercial questions with    (p. 050)
+the British minister of foreign affairs. From all that he had thus
+seen and heard he had reached the conviction, unquestionably correct,
+that the British were not only resolved to adopt a selfish course
+towards the United States, which might have been expected, but that
+they were consistently pursuing the further distinct design of crippling
+and destroying American commerce, to the utmost degree which their own
+extensive trade and great naval authority and power rendered possible.
+So long as he held this firm belief, it was inevitable that he should
+be at issue with the Federalists in all matters concerning our policy
+towards Great Britain. The ill-will naturally engendered in him by
+this conviction was increased to profound indignation when illiberal
+measures were succeeded by insults, by substantial wrongs in direct
+contravention of law, and by acts properly to be described as of real
+hostility. For Mr. Adams was by nature not only independent, but
+resentful and combative. When, soon after the attack of the Leopard
+upon the Chesapeake, he heard the transaction "openly justified at
+noon-day," by a prominent Federalist,[1] "in a public insurance office
+upon the exchange at Boston," his temper rose. "This," he afterward
+wrote, "this was the cause ... which alienated me from that day    (p. 051)
+and forever from the councils of the Federal party." When the news
+of that outrage reached Boston, Mr. Adams was there, and desired that
+the leading Federalists in the city should at once "take the lead in
+promoting a strong and clear expression of the sentiments of the
+people, and in an open and free-hearted manner, setting aside all
+party feelings, declare their determination at that crisis to support
+the government of their country." But unfortunately these gentlemen
+were by no means prepared for any such action, and foolishly left it
+for the friends of the administration to give the first utterance to a
+feeling which it is hard to excuse any American for not entertaining
+beneath such provocation. It was the Jeffersonians, accordingly, who
+convened "an informal meeting of the citizens of Boston and the
+neighboring towns," at which Mr. Adams was present, and by which he
+was put upon a committee to draw and report resolutions. These
+resolutions pledged a cheerful cooeperation "in any measures, however
+serious," which the government might deem necessary and a support of
+the same with "lives and fortunes." The Federalists, learning too late
+that their backwardness at this crisis was a blunder, caused a town
+meeting to be called at Faneuil Hall a few days later. This also   (p. 052)
+Mr. Adams attended, and again was put on the committee to draft
+resolutions, which were only a little less strong than those of the
+earlier assemblage. But though many of the Federalists thus tardily
+and reluctantly fell in with the popular sentiment, they were for the
+most part heartily incensed against Mr. Adams. They threatened him
+that he should "have his head taken off for apostasy," and gave him to
+understand that he "should no longer be considered as having any
+communion with the party." If he had not already quite left them, they
+now turned him out from their community. But such abusive treatment
+was ill adapted to influence a man of his temper. Martyrdom, which in
+time he came to relish, had not now any terrors for him; and he would
+have lost as many heads as ever grew on Hydra, ere he would have
+yielded on a point of principle.
+
+                   [Footnote 1: Mr. John Lowell.]
+
+His spirit was soon to be demonstrated. Congress was convened in extra
+session on October 26, 1807. The administration brought forward the
+bill establishing an embargo. The measure may now be pronounced a
+blunder, and its proposal created a howl of rage and anguish from the
+commercial states, who saw in it only their utter ruin. Already a
+strong sectional feeling had been developed between the planters   (p. 053)
+of the South and the merchants of the North and East, and the latter
+now united in the cry that their quarter was to be ruined by the
+ignorant policy of this Virginian President. Terrible then was their
+wrath, when they actually saw a Massachusetts Senator boldly give his
+vote for what they deemed the most odious and wicked bill which had
+ever been presented in the halls of Congress. Nay, more, they learned
+with horror that Mr. Adams had even been a member of the committee
+which reported the bill, and that he had joined in the report.
+Henceforth the Federal party was to be like a hive of enraged hornets
+about the devoted renegade. No abuse which they could heap upon him
+seemed nearly adequate to the occasion. They despised him; they
+loathed him; they said and believed that he was false, selfish,
+designing, a traitor, an apostate, that he had run away from a failing
+cause, that he had sold himself. The language of contumely was
+exhausted in vain efforts to describe his baseness. Not even yet has
+the echo of the hard names which he was called quite died away in the
+land; and there are still families in New England with whom his
+dishonest tergiversation remains a traditional belief.
+
+Never was any man more unjustly aspersed. It is impossible to view all
+the evidence dispassionately without not only acquitting Mr.       (p. 054)
+Adams but greatly admiring his courage, his constancy, his independence.
+Whether the embargo was a wise and efficient or a futile and useless
+measure has little to do with the question of his conduct. The emergency
+called for strong action. The Federalists suggested only a temporizing
+submission, or that we should avert the terrible wrath of England by
+crawling beneath her lashes into political and commercial servitude.
+Mr. Jefferson thought the embargo would do, that it would aid him in
+his negotiations with England sufficiently to enable him to bring her
+to terms; he had before thought the same of the Non-importation Act.
+Mr. Adams felt, properly enough, concerning both these schemes, that
+they were insufficient and in many respects objectionable; but that to
+give the administration hearty support in the most vigorous measures
+which it was willing to undertake, was better than to aid an opposition
+utterly nerveless and servile and altogether devoid of so much as the
+desire for efficient action. It was no time to stay with the party of
+weakness; it was right to strengthen rather than to hamper a man so
+pacific and spiritless as Mr. Jefferson; to show a readiness to
+forward even his imperfect expedients; to display a united and
+indignant, if not quite a hostile front to Great Britain, rather   (p. 055)
+than to exhibit a tame and friendly feeling towards her. It was for
+these reasons, which had already controlled his action concerning the
+non-importation bill, that Mr. Adams joined in reporting the embargo
+bill and voted for it. He never pretended that he himself had any
+especial fancy for either of these measures, or that he regarded them
+as the best that could be devised under the circumstances. On the
+contrary, he hoped that the passage of the embargo would allow of the
+repeal of its predecessor. That he expected some good from it, and
+that it did some little good, cannot be denied. It did save a great
+deal of American property, both shipping and merchandise, from seizure
+and condemnation; and if it cut off the income it at least saved much
+of the principal of our merchants. If only the bill had been promptly
+repealed so soon as this protective purpose had been achieved, without
+awaiting further and altogether impossible benefits to accrue from it
+as an offensive measure, it might perhaps have left a better memory
+behind it. Unfortunately no one can deny that it was continued much
+too long. Mr. Adams saw this error and dreaded the consequences. After
+he had left Congress and had gone back to private life, he exerted all
+the influence which he had with the Republican members of Congress to
+secure its repeal and the substitution of the Non-intercourse      (p. 056)
+Act, an exchange which was in time accomplished, though much too tardily.
+Nay, much more than this, Mr. Adams stands forth almost alone as the
+advocate of threatening if not of actually belligerent measures. He
+expressed his belief that "our internal resources [were] competent to
+the establishment and maintenance of a naval force, public and
+private, if not fully adequate to the protection and defence of our
+commerce, at least sufficient to induce a retreat from hostilities,
+and to deter from a renewal of them by either of the warring parties;"
+and he insisted that "a system to that effect might be formed,
+ultimately far more economical, and certainly more energetic," than
+the embargo. But his "resolution met no encouragement." He found that
+it was the embargo or nothing, and he thought the embargo was a little
+better than nothing, as probably it was.
+
+All the arguments which Mr. Adams advanced were far from satisfying
+his constituents in those days of wild political excitement, and they
+quickly found the means of intimating their unappeasable displeasure
+in a way certainly not open to misapprehension. Mr. Adams's term of
+service in the Senate was to expire on March 3, 1809. On June 2 and 3,
+1808, anticipating by many months the customary time for filling   (p. 057)
+the coming vacancy, the legislature of Massachusetts proceeded to
+choose James Lloyd, junior, his successor. The votes were, in the
+Senate 21 for Mr. Lloyd, 17 for Mr. Adams; in the House 248 for Mr.
+Lloyd, and 213 for Mr. Adams. A more insulting method of administering
+a rebuke could not have been devised. At the same time, in further
+expression of disapprobation, resolutions strongly condemnatory of the
+embargo were passed. Mr. Adams was not the man to stay where he was
+not wanted, and on June 8 he sent in his letter of resignation. On the
+next day Mr. Lloyd was chosen to serve for the balance of his term.
+
+Thus John Quincy Adams changed sides. The son of John Adams lost the
+senatorship for persistently supporting the administration of Thomas
+Jefferson. It was indeed a singular spectacle! In 1803 he had been
+sent to the Senate of the United States by Federalists as a Federalist;
+in 1808 he had abjured them and they had repudiated him; in 1809, as
+we are soon to see, he received a foreign appointment from the
+Republican President Madison, and was confirmed by a Republican
+Senate. Many of Mr. Adams's acts, many of his traits, have been
+harshly criticised, but for no act that he ever did or ever was
+charged with doing has he been so harshly assailed as for this     (p. 058)
+journey from one camp to the other. The gentlemen of wealth, position,
+and influence in Eastern Massachusetts, almost to a man, turned
+against him with virulence; many of their descendants still cherish
+the ancestral prejudice; and it may yet be a long while before the
+last mutterings of this deep-rooted antipathy die away. But that they
+will die away in time cannot be doubted. Praise will succeed to blame.
+Truth must prevail in a case where such abundant evidence is
+accessible; and the truth is that Mr. Adams's conduct was not ignoble,
+mean, and traitorous, but honorable, courageous, and disinterested.
+Those who singled him out for assault, though deaf to his arguments,
+might even then have reflected that within a few years a large
+proportion of the whole nation had changed in their opinions as he had
+now at last changed in his, so that the party which under Washington
+hardly had an existence and under John Adams was not, until the last
+moment, seriously feared, now showed an enormous majority throughout
+the whole country. Even in Massachusetts, the intrenched camp of the
+Federalists, one half of the population were now Republicans. But that
+change of political sentiment which in the individual voter is often
+admired as evidence of independent thought is stigmatized in       (p. 059)
+those more prominent in politics as tergiversation and apostasy.
+
+It may be admitted that there are sound reasons for holding party
+leaders to a more rigid allegiance to party policy than is expected of
+the rank and file; yet certainly, at those periods when substantially
+new measures and new doctrines come to the front, the old party names
+lose whatever sacredness may at other times be in them, and the
+political fellowships of the past may properly be reformed. Novel
+problems cannot always find old comrades still united in opinions.
+Precisely such was the case with John Quincy Adams and the Federalists.
+The earlier Federalist creed related to one set of issues, the later
+Federalist creed to quite another set; the earlier creed was sound and
+deserving of support; the later creed was not so. It is easy to see,
+as one looks backward upon history, that every great and successful
+party has its mission, that it wins its success through the substantial
+righteousness of that mission, and that it owes its downfall to
+assuming an erroneous attitude towards some subsequent matter which
+becomes in turn of predominating importance. Sometimes, though rarely,
+a party remains on the right side through two or even more successive
+issues of profound consequence to the nation. The Federalist mission
+was to establish the Constitution of the United States as a        (p. 060)
+vigorous, efficient, and practical system of government, to prove its
+soundness, safety, and efficacy, and to defend it from the undermining
+assaults of those who distrusted it and would have reduced it to
+imbecility. Supplementary and cognate to this was the further task of
+giving the young nation and the new system a chance to get fairly
+started in life before being subjected to the strain of war and
+European entanglements. To this end it was necessary to hold in check
+the Jeffersonian or French party, who sought to embroil us in a
+foreign quarrel. These two functions of the Federalist party were
+quite in accord; they involved the organizing and domestic instinct
+against the disorganizing and meddlesome; the strengthening against
+the enfeebling process; practical thinking against fanciful theories.
+Fortunately the able men had been generally of the sound persuasion,
+and by powerful exertions had carried the day and accomplished their
+allotted tasks so thoroughly that all subsequent generations of
+Americans have been reaping the benefit of their labors. But by the
+time that John Adams had concluded his administration the great
+Federalist work had been sufficiently done. Those who still believe
+that there is an overruling Providence in the affairs of men and
+nations may well point to the history of this period in support    (p. 061)
+of their theory. Republicanism was not able to triumph till Federalism
+had fulfilled all its proper duty and was on the point of going wrong.
+
+During this earlier period John Quincy Adams had been a Federalist by
+conviction as well as by education. Nor was there any obvious reason
+for him to change his political faith with the change of party
+success, brought about as that was before its necessity was apparent
+but by the sure and inscrutable wisdom so marvellously enclosed in the
+great popular instinct. It was not patent, when Mr. Jefferson
+succeeded Mr. Adams, that Federalism was soon to become an unsound
+political creed--unsound, not because it had been defeated, but
+because it had done its work, and in the new emergency was destined to
+blunder. During Mr. Jefferson's first administration no questions of
+novel import arose. But they were not far distant, and soon were
+presented by the British aggressions. A grave crisis was created by
+this system of organized destruction of property and wholesale
+stealing of citizens, now suddenly practised with such terrible
+energy. What was to be done? What had the two great parties to advise
+concerning the policy of the country in this hour of peril?
+Unfortunately for the Federalists old predilections were allowed   (p. 062)
+now to govern their present action. Excusably Anglican in the bygone
+days of Genet's mission, they now remained still Anglican, when to be
+Anglican was to be emphatically un-American. As one reads the history
+of 1807 and 1808 it is impossible not to feel almost a sense of
+personal gratitude to John Quincy Adams that he dared to step out from
+his meek-spirited party and do all that circumstances rendered
+possible to promote resistance to insults and wrongs intolerable. In
+truth, he was always a man of high temper, and eminently a patriotic
+citizen of the United States. Unlike too many even of the best among
+his countrymen in those early years of the Republic, he had no foreign
+sympathies whatsoever; he was neither French nor English, but wholly,
+exclusively, and warmly American. He had no second love; the United
+States filled his public heart and monopolized his political
+affections. When he was abroad he established neither affiliations nor
+antipathies, and when he was at home he drifted with no party whose
+course was governed by foreign magnets. It needs only that this
+characteristic should be fully understood in order that his conduct in
+1808 should be not alone vindicated but greatly admired.
+
+At that time it was said, and it has been since repeated, that he  (p. 063)
+was allured by the loaves and fishes which the Republicans could
+distribute, while the Federalists could cast to him only meagre and
+uncertain crusts. Circumstances gave to the accusation such a
+superficial plausibility that it was believed by many honest men under
+the influence of political prejudice. But such a charge, alleged
+concerning a single act in a long public career, is to be scanned with
+suspicion. Disproof by demonstration is impossible; but it is fair to
+seek for the character of the act in a study of the character of the
+actor, as illustrated by the rest of his career. Thus seeking we shall
+see that, if any traits can be surely predicated of any man,
+independence, courage, and honesty may be predicated of Mr. Adams. His
+long public life had many periods of trial, yet this is the sole
+occasion when it is so much as possible seriously to question the
+purity of his motives--for the story of his intrigue with Mr. Clay to
+secure the Presidency was never really believed by any one except
+General Jackson, and the beliefs of General Jackson are of little
+consequence. From the earliest to the latest day of his public life,
+he was never a party man. He is entitled to the justification to be
+derived from this life-long habit, when, in 1807-8, he voted against
+the wishes of those who had hoped to hold him in the bonds of      (p. 064)
+partisan alliance. In point of fact, so far from these acts being a
+yielding to selfish and calculating temptation, they called for great
+courage and strength of mind; instead of being tergiversation, they
+were a triumph in a severe ordeal. Mr. Adams was not so dull as to
+underrate, nor so void of good feeling as to be careless of, the storm
+of obloquy which he had to encounter, not only in such shape as is
+customary in like instances of a change of sides in politics, but, in
+his present case, of a peculiarly painful kind. He was to seem
+unfaithful, not only to a party, but to the bitter feud of a father
+whom he dearly loved and greatly respected; he was to be reviled by
+the neighbors and friends who constituted his natural social circle in
+Boston; he was to alienate himself from the rich, the cultivated, the
+influential gentlemen of his neighborhood, his comrades, who would
+almost universally condemn his conduct. He was to lose his position as
+Senator, and probably to destroy all hopes of further political
+success so far as it depended upon the good will of the people of his
+own State. In this he was at least giving up a certainty in exchange
+for what even his enemies must admit to have been only an expectation.
+
+But in fact it is now evident that there was not upon his part even an
+expectation. At the first signs of the views which he was likely   (p. 065)
+to hold, that contemptible but influential Republican, Giles, of
+Virginia, also one or two others of the same party, sought to approach
+him with insinuating suggestions. But Mr. Adams met these advances in
+a manner frigid and repellent even beyond his wont, and far from
+seeking to conciliate these emissaries, and to make a bargain, or even
+establish a tacit understanding for his own benefit, he held them far
+aloof, and simply stated that he wished and expected nothing from the
+administration. His mind was made up, his opinion was formed; no bribe
+was needed to secure his vote. Not thus do men sell themselves in
+politics. The Republicans were fairly notified that he was going to do
+just as he chose; and Mr. Jefferson, the arch-enemy of all Adamses,
+had no occasion to forego his feud to win this recruit from that
+family.
+
+Mr. Adams's Diary shows unmistakably that he was acting rigidly upon
+principle, that he believed himself to be injuring or even destroying
+his political prospects, and that in so doing he taxed his moral
+courage severely. The whole tone of the Diary, apart from those few
+distinct statements which hostile critics might view with distrust, is
+despondent, often bitter, but defiant and stubborn. If in later life
+he ever anticipated the possible publication of these private      (p. 066)
+pages, yet he could hardly have done so at this early day. Among
+certain general reflections at the close of the year 1808, he writes:
+"On most of the great national questions now under discussion, my
+sense of duty leads me to support the Administration, and I find
+myself, of course, in opposition to the Federalists in general. But I
+have no communication with the President, other than that in the
+regular order of business in the Senate. In this state of things my
+situation calls in a peculiar manner for prudence; my political
+prospects are declining, and, as my term of service draws near its
+close, I am constantly approaching to the certainty of being restored
+to the situation of a private citizen. For this event, however, I hope
+to have my mind sufficiently prepared."
+
+In July, 1808, the Republicans of the Congressional District wished to
+send him to the House of Representatives, but to the gentleman who
+waited upon him with this proposal he returned a decided negative.
+Other considerations apart, he would not interfere with the reelection
+of his friend, Mr. Quincy.
+
+Certain remarks, written when his senatorial term was far advanced,
+when he had lost the confidence of the Federalists without obtaining
+that of the Republicans, may be of interest at this point. He wrote,
+October 30, 1807: "I employed the whole evening in looking over    (p. 067)
+the Journal of the Senate, since I have been one of its members. Of
+the very little business which I have commenced during the four
+sessions, at least three fourths has failed, with circumstances of
+peculiar mortification. The very few instances in which I have
+succeeded, have been always after an opposition of great obstinacy,
+often ludicrously contrasting with the insignificance of the object in
+pursuit. More than one instance has occurred where the same thing
+which I have assiduously labored in vain to effect has been afterwards
+accomplished by others, without the least resistance; more than once,
+where the pleasure of disappointing me has seemed to be the prominent
+principle of decision. Of the preparatory business, matured in
+committees, I have had a share, gradually increasing through the four
+sessions, but always as a subordinate member. The merely laborious
+duties have been readily assigned to me, and as readily undertaken and
+discharged. My success has been more frequent in opposition than in
+carrying any proposition of my own, and I hope I have been
+instrumental in arresting many unadvised purposes and projects. Though
+as to the general policy of the country I have been uniformly in a
+small, and constantly deceasing minority; my opinions and votes have
+been much oftener in unison with the Administration than with      (p. 068)
+their opponents; I have met with at least as much opposition from
+my party friends as from their adversaries,--I believe more. I know
+not that I have made any personal enemies now in Senate, nor can I
+flatter myself with having acquired any personal friends. There have
+been hitherto two, Mr. Tracey and Mr. Plumer, upon whom I could rely,
+but it has pleased Providence to remove one by death, and the changes
+of political party have removed the other." This is a striking
+paragraph, certainly not written by a man in a very cheerful or
+sanguine frame of mind, not by one who congratulates himself on having
+skilfully taken the initial steps in a brilliant political career;
+but, it is fair to say, by one who has at least tried to do his duty,
+and who has not knowingly permitted himself to be warped either by
+passion, prejudice, party alliances, or selfish considerations.
+
+As early as November, 1805, Mr. Adams, being still what may be
+described as an independent Federalist, was approached by Dr. Rush
+with tentative suggestions concerning a foreign mission. Mr. Madison,
+then Secretary of State, and even President Jefferson were apparently
+not disinclined to give him such employment, provided he would be
+willing to accept it at their hands. Mr. Adams simply replied,     (p. 069)
+that he would not refuse a nomination merely because it came from Mr.
+Jefferson, though there was no office in the President's gift for
+which he had any wish. Perhaps because of the unconciliatory coolness
+of this response, or perhaps for some better reason, the nomination
+did not follow at that time. No sooner, however, had Mr. Madison
+fairly taken the oath of office as President than he bethought him of
+Mr. Adams, now no longer a Federalist, but, concerning the present
+issues, of the Republican persuasion. On March 6, 1809, Mr. Adams was
+notified by the President personally of the intention to nominate him
+as Minister Plenipotentiary to Russia. It was a new mission, the first
+minister ever nominated to Russia having been only a short time before
+rejected by the Senate. But the Emperor had often expressed his wish
+to exchange ministers, and Mr. Madison was anxious to comply with the
+courteous request. Mr. Adams's name was accordingly at once sent to
+the Senate. But on the following day, March 7, that body resolved that
+"it is inexpedient at this time to appoint a minister from the United
+States to the Court of Russia." The vote was seventeen to fifteen, and
+among the seventeen was Mr. Adams's old colleague, Timothy Pickering,
+who probably never in his life cast a vote which gave him so much  (p. 070)
+pleasure. Mr. Madison, however, did not readily desist from his
+purpose, and a few months later, June 26, he sent a message to the
+Senate, stating that the considerations previously leading him to
+nominate a minister to Russia had since been strengthened, and again
+naming Mr. Adams for the post. This time the nomination was confirmed
+with readiness, by a vote of nineteen to seven, Mr. Pickering, of
+course, being one of the still hostile minority.
+
+At noon on August 5, 1809, records Mr. Adams, "I left my house at the
+corner of Boylston and Nassau streets, in Boston," again to make the
+tedious and uncomfortable voyage across the Atlantic. A miserable and
+a dangerous time he had of it ere, on October 23, he reached St.
+Petersburg. Concerning the four years and a half which he is now to
+spend in Russia very little need be said. His active duties were of
+the simplest character, amounting to little more than rendering
+occasional assistance to American shipmasters suffering beneath the
+severities so often illegally inflicted by the contesting powers of
+Europe. But apart from the slender practical service to be done, the
+period must have been interesting and agreeable for him personally,
+for he was received and treated throughout his stay by the Emperor
+and his courtiers with distinguished kindness. The Emperor, who    (p. 071)
+often met him walking, used to stop and chat with him, while Count
+Romanzoff, the minister of foreign affairs, was cordial beyond the
+ordinary civility of diplomacy. The Diary records a series of court
+presentations, balls, fetes, dinners, diplomatic and other, launches,
+displays of fireworks, birthday festivities, parades, baptisms, plays,
+state funerals, illuminations, and Te Deums for victories; in short,
+every species of social gayety and public pageant. At all these Mr.
+Adams was always a bidden and apparently a welcome guest. It must be
+admitted, even by his detractors, that he was an admirable
+representative of the United States abroad. Having already seen much
+of the distinguished society of European courts, but retaining a
+republican simplicity, which was wholly genuine and a natural part of
+his character and therefore was never affected or offensive in its
+manifestations, he really represented the best element in the politics
+and society of the United States. Winning respect for himself he won
+it also for the country which he represented. Thus he was able to
+render an indirect but essential service in cementing the kindly
+feeling which the Russian Empire entertained for the American Republic.
+Russia could then do us little good and almost no harm, yet the    (p. 072)
+friendship of a great European power had a certain moral value in
+those days of our national infancy. That friendship, so cordially
+offered, Mr. Adams was fortunately well fitted to conciliate, showing
+in his foreign callings a tact which did not mark him in other public
+relations. He was perhaps less liked by his travelling fellow
+countrymen than by the Russians. The paltry ambition of a certain
+class of Americans for introduction to high society disgusted him
+greatly, and he was not found an efficient ally by these would-be
+comrades of the Russian aristocracy. "The ambition of young Americans
+to crowd themselves upon European courts and into the company of
+nobility is a very ridiculous and not a very proud feature of their
+character," he wrote; "there is nothing, in my estimate of things,
+meaner than courting society where, if admitted, it is only to be
+despised." He himself happily combined extensive acquirements,
+excellent ability, diplomatic and courtly experience, and natural
+independence of character without ill-bred self-assertion, and never
+failed to create a good impression in the many circles into which his
+foreign career introduced him.
+
+The ambassadors and ministers from European powers at St. Petersburg
+were constantly wrangling about precedence and like petty matters of
+court etiquette. "In all these controversies," writes Mr. Adams,   (p. 073)
+"I have endeavored to consider it as an affair in which I, as an
+_American_ minister, had no concern; and that my only principle is to
+dispute upon precedence with nobody." A good-natured contempt for
+European follies may be read between the lines of this remark; wherein
+it may be said that the Monroe Doctrine is applied to court etiquette.
+
+He always made it a point to live within the meagre income which the
+United States allowed him, but seems to have suffered no diminution of
+consideration for this reason. One morning, walking on the Fontanka,
+he met the Emperor, who said: "Mons. Adams, il y a cent ans que je ne
+vous ai vu;" and then continuing the conversation, "asked me whether I
+intended to take a house in the country this summer. I said, No....
+'And why so?' said he. I was hesitating upon an answer when he
+relieved me from embarrassment by saying, 'Peut-etre sont-ce des
+considerations de finance?' As he said it with perfect good humor and
+with a smile, I replied in the same manner: 'Mais Sire, elles y sont
+pour une bonne part.'"[2]
+
+                   [Footnote 2: An interesting sketch of his household
+                   and its expenses is to be found in ii. Diary, 193.]
+
+The volume of the journal which records this residence in St. Petersburg
+is very interesting as a picture of Russian life and manners in high
+society. Few travellers write anything nearly so vivid, so         (p. 074)
+thorough, or so trustworthy as these entries. Moreover, during the
+whole period of his stay the great wars of Napoleon were constantly
+increasing the astonishment of mankind, and created intense excitement
+at the Court of Russia. These feelings waxed stronger as it grew daily
+more likely that the Emperor would have to take his turn also as a
+party defendant in the great conflict. Then at last came the fact of
+war, the invasion of Russia, the burning of Moscow, the disastrous
+retreat of the invaders ending in ignominious flight, the advance of
+the allies, finally the capture of Paris. All this while Mr. Adams at
+St. Petersburg witnessed first the alarm and then the exultation of
+the court and the people as the rumors now of defeat, anon of victory,
+were brought by the couriers at tantalizing intervals; and he saw the
+rejoicings and illuminations which rendered the Russian capital so
+brilliant and glorious during the last portion of his residence. It
+was an experience well worth having, and which is pleasantly depicted
+in the Diary.
+
+In September, 1812, Count Romanzoff suggested to Mr. Adams the
+readiness of the Emperor to act as mediator in bringing about peace
+between the United States and England. The suggestion was promptly
+acted upon, but with no directly fortunate results. The American   (p. 075)
+government acceded at once to the proposition, and at the risk of an
+impolitic display of readiness dispatched Messrs. Gallatin and Bayard
+to act as Commissioners jointly with Mr. Adams in the negotiations.
+These gentlemen, however, arrived in St. Petersburg only to find
+themselves in a very awkward position. Their official character might
+not properly be considered as attaching unless England should accept
+the offer of mediation. But England had refused, in the first
+instance, to do this, and she now again reiterated her refusal without
+regard for the manifestation of willingness on the part of the United
+States. Further, Mr. Gallatin's nomination was rejected by the Senate
+after his departure, on the ground that his retention of the post of
+Secretary of the Treasury was incompatible, under the Constitution,
+with this diplomatic function. So the United States appeared in a very
+annoying attitude, her Commissioners were uncomfortable and somewhat
+humiliated; Russia felt a certain measure of vexation at the brusque
+and positive rejection of her friendly proposition on the part of
+Great Britain; and that country alone came out of the affair with any
+self-satisfaction.
+
+But by the time when all hopes of peace through the friendly offices
+of Russia were at an end, that stage of the conflict had been      (p. 076)
+reached at which both parties were quite ready to desist. The United
+States, though triumphing in some brilliant naval victories, had been
+having a sorry experience on land, where, as the Russian minister
+remarked, "England did as she pleased." A large portion of the people
+were extremely dissatisfied, and it was impossible to ignore that the
+outlook did not promise better fortunes in the future than had been
+encountered in the past. On the other hand, England had nothing
+substantial to expect from a continuance of the struggle, except heavy
+additional expenditure which it was not then the fashion to compel the
+worsted party to recoup. She accordingly intimated her readiness to
+send Commissioners to Goettingen, for which place Ghent was afterwards
+substituted, to meet American Commissioners and settle terms of
+pacification. The United States renewed the powers of Messrs. Adams,
+Bayard, and Gallatin, a new Secretary of the Treasury having in the
+meantime been appointed, and added Jonathan Russell, then Minister to
+Sweden, and Henry Clay. England deputed Lord Gambier, an admiral, Dr.
+Adams, a publicist, and Mr. Goulburn, a member of Parliament and Under
+Secretary of State. These eight gentlemen accordingly met in Ghent on
+August 7, 1814.
+
+It was upwards of four months before an agreement was reached.     (p. 077)
+During this period Mr. Adams kept his Diary with much more even than
+his wonted faithfulness, and it undoubtedly presents the most vivid
+picture in existence of the labors of treaty-making diplomatists. The
+eight were certainly an odd assemblage of peacemakers. The ill-blood
+and wranglings between the opposing Commissions were bad enough, yet
+hardly equalled the intestine dissensions between the American
+Commissioners themselves. That the spirit of peace should ever have
+emanated from such an universal embroilment is almost sufficiently
+surprising to be regarded as a miracle. At the very beginning, or even
+before fairly beginning, the British party roused the jealous ire of
+the Americans by proposing that they all should meet, for exchanging
+their full powers, at the lodgings of the Englishmen. The Americans
+took fire at this "offensive pretension to superiority" which was "the
+usage from Ambassadors to Ministers of an inferior order." Mr. Adams
+cited Martens, and Mr. Bayard read a case from Ward's "Law of Nations."
+Mr. Adams suggested sending a pointed reply, agreeing to meet the
+British Commissioners "at any place other than their own lodgings;"
+but Mr. Gallatin, whose valuable function was destined to be the
+keeping of the peace among his fractious colleagues, as well as    (p. 078)
+betwixt them and the Englishmen, substituted the milder phrase, "at
+any place which may be mutually agreed upon." The first meeting
+accordingly took place at the Hotel des Pays Bas, where it was
+arranged that the subsequent conferences should be held alternately at
+the quarters of the two Commissions. Then followed expressions,
+conventional and proper but wholly untrue, of mutual sentiments of
+esteem and good will.
+
+No sooner did the gentlemen begin to get seriously at the work before
+them than the most discouraging prospects were developed. The British
+first presented their demands, as follows: 1. That the United States
+should conclude a peace with the Indian allies of Great Britain, and
+that a species of neutral belt of Indian territory should be
+established between the dominions of the United States and Great
+Britain, so that these dominions should be nowhere conterminous, upon
+which belt or barrier neither power should be permitted to encroach
+even by purchase, and the boundaries of which should be settled in
+this treaty. 2. That the United States should keep no naval force upon
+the Great Lakes, and should neither maintain their existing forts nor
+build new ones upon their northern frontier; it was even required that
+the boundary line should run along the southern shore of the       (p. 079)
+lakes; while no corresponding restriction was imposed upon Great
+Britain, because she was stated to have no projects of conquest as
+against her neighbor. 3. That a piece of the province of Maine should
+be ceded, in order to give the English a road from Halifax to Quebec.
+4. That the stipulation of the treaty of 1783, conferring on English
+subjects the right of navigating the Mississippi, should be now
+formally renewed.
+
+The Americans were astounded; it seemed to them hardly worth while to
+have come so far to listen to such propositions. Concerning the
+proposed Indian pacification they had not even any powers, the United
+States being already busied in negotiating a treaty with the tribes as
+independent powers. The establishment of the neutral Indian belt was
+manifestly contrary to the established policy and obvious destiny of
+the nation. Neither was the answer agreeable, which was returned by
+Dr. Adams to the inquiry as to what was to be done with those citizens
+of the United States who had already settled in those parts of
+Michigan, Illinois, and Ohio, included within the territory which it
+was now proposed to make inalienably Indian. He said that these
+people, amounting perhaps to one hundred thousand, "must shift for
+themselves." The one-sided disarmament upon the lakes and along the
+frontier was, by the understanding of all nations, such an         (p. 080)
+humiliation as is inflicted only on a crushed adversary. No return was
+offered for the road between Halifax and Quebec; nor for the right of
+navigating the Mississippi. The treaty of peace of 1783, made in
+ignorance of the topography of the unexplored northern country, had
+established an impossible boundary line running from the Lake of the
+Woods westward along the forty-ninth parallel to the Mississippi; and
+as appurtenant to the British territory, thus supposed to touch the
+river, a right of navigation upon it was given. It had since been
+discovered that a line on that parallel would never touch the
+Mississippi. The same treaty had also secured for the United States
+certain rights concerning the Northeastern fisheries. The English now
+insisted upon a re-affirmance of the privilege given to them, without
+a re-affirmance of the privilege given to the United States; ignoring
+the fact that the recent acquisition of Louisiana, making the
+Mississippi wholly American, materially altered the propriety of a
+British right of navigation upon it.
+
+Apart from the intolerable character of these demands, the personal
+bearing of the English Commissioners did not tend to mitigate the
+chagrin of the Americans. The formal civilities had counted with the
+American Commissioners for more than they were worth, and had      (p. 081)
+induced them, in preparing a long dispatch to the home government,
+to insert "a paragraph complimentary to the personal deportment" of
+the British. But before they sent off the document they revised it and
+struck out these pleasant phrases. Not many days after the first
+conference Mr. Adams notes that the tone of the English Commissioners
+was even "more peremptory, and their language more overbearing, than
+at the former conferences." A little farther on he remarks that "the
+British note is overbearing and insulting in its tone, like the two
+former ones." Again he says:--
+
+     "The tone of all the British notes is arrogant, overbearing, and
+     offensive. The tone of ours is neither so bold nor so spirited as
+     I think it should be. It is too much on the defensive, and too
+     excessive in the caution to say nothing irritating. I have seldom
+     been able to prevail upon my colleagues to insert anything in the
+     style of retort upon the harsh and reproachful matter which we
+     receive."
+
+Many little passages-at-arms in the conferences are recited which
+amply bear out these remarks as regards both parties. Perhaps,
+however, it should be admitted that the Americans made up for the
+self-restraint which they practised in conference by the disagreements
+and bickerings in which they indulged when consulting among        (p. 082)
+themselves. Mr. Gallatin's serene temper and cool head were hardly
+taxed to keep the peace among his excited colleagues. Mr. Adams and
+Mr. Clay were especially prone to suspicions and to outbursts of
+anger. Mr. Adams often and candidly admits as much of himself,
+apparently not without good reason. At first the onerous task of
+drafting the numerous documents which the Commission had to present
+devolved upon him, a labor for which he was well fitted in all
+respects save, perhaps, a tendency to prolixity. He did not, however,
+succeed in satisfying his comrades, and the criticisms to which they
+subjected his composition galled his self-esteem severely, so much so
+that erelong he altogether relinquished this function, which was
+thereafter performed chiefly by Mr. Gallatin. As early as August 21,
+Mr. Adams says, not without evident bitterness, that though they all
+were agreed on the general view of the subject, yet in his "exposition
+of it, one objects to the form, another to the substance, of almost
+every paragraph." Mr. Gallatin would strike out everything possibly
+offensive to the Englishmen; Mr. Clay would draw his pen through every
+figurative expression; Mr. Russell, not content with agreeing to all
+the objections of both the others, would further amend the construction
+of every sentence; and finally Mr. Bayard would insist upon        (p. 083)
+writing all over again in his own language. All this nettled Mr. Adams
+exceedingly. On September 24 he again writes that it was agreed to
+adopt an article which he had drawn, "though with objections to almost
+every word" which he had used. "This," he says, "is a severity with
+which I alone am treated in our discussions by all my colleagues.
+Almost everything written by any of the rest is rejected, or agreed to
+with very little criticism, verbal or substantial. But every line that
+I write passes a gauntlet of objections by every one of my colleagues,
+which finally issues, for the most part, in the rejection of it all."
+He reflects, with a somewhat forced air of self-discipline, that this
+must indicate some faultiness in his composition which he must try to
+correct; but in fact it is sufficiently evident that he was seldom
+persuaded that his papers were improved. Amid all this we see in the
+Diary many exhibitions of vexation. One day he acknowledges, "I cannot
+always restrain the irritability of my temper;" another day he
+informed his colleagues, "with too much warmth, that they might be
+assured I was as determined as they were;" again he reflects, "I, too,
+must not forget to keep a constant guard upon my temper, for the time
+is evidently approaching when it will be wanted." Mr. Gallatin alone
+seems not to have exasperated him; Mr. Clay and he were constantly (p. 084)
+in discussion, and often pretty hotly. Instead of coming nearer
+together, as time went on, these two fell farther apart. What Mr. Clay
+thought of Mr. Adams may probably be inferred from what we know that
+Mr. Adams thought of Mr. Clay. "Mr. Clay is losing his temper, and
+growing peevish and fractious," he writes on October 31; and constantly
+he repeats the like complaint. The truth is, that the precise New
+Englander and the impetuous Westerner were kept asunder not only by
+local interests but by habits and modes of thought utterly dissimilar.
+Some amusing glimpses of their private life illustrate this
+difference. Mr. Adams worked hard and diligently, allowing himself
+little leisure for pleasure; but Mr. Clay, without actually neglecting
+his duties, yet managed to find ample time for enjoyment. More than
+once Mr. Adams notes that, as he rose about five o'clock in the
+morning to light his own fire and begin the labors of the day by
+candle-light, he heard the parties breaking up and leaving Mr. Clay's
+rooms across the entry, where they had been playing cards all night
+long. In these little touches one sees the distinctive characters of
+the men well portrayed.
+
+The very extravagance of the British demands at least saved the    (p. 085)
+Americans from perplexity. Mr. Clay, indeed, cherished an "inconceivable
+idea" that the Englishmen would "finish by receding from the ground
+they had taken;" but meantime there could be no difference of opinion
+concerning the impossibility of meeting them upon that ground. Mr.
+Adams, never lacking in courage, actually wished to argue with them
+that it would be for the interests of Great Britain not less than of
+the United States if Canada should be ceded to the latter power.
+Unfortunately his colleagues would not support him in this audacious
+policy, the humor of which is delicious. It would have been infinitely
+droll to see how the British Commissioners would have hailed such a
+proposition, by way of appropriate termination of a conflict in which
+the forces of their nation had captured and ransacked the capital city
+of the Americans!
+
+On August 21 the Englishmen invited the Americans to dinner on the
+following Saturday. "The chance is," wrote Mr. Adams, "that before
+that time the whole negotiation will be at an end." The banquet,
+however, did come off, and a few more succeeded it; feasts not marked
+by any great geniality or warmth, except perhaps occasionally warmth
+of discussion. So sure were the Americans that they were about to
+break off the negotiations that Mr. Adams began to consider by     (p. 086)
+what route he should return to St. Petersburg; and they declined to
+renew the tenure of their quarters for more than a few days longer.
+Like alarms were of frequent occurrence, even almost to the very day
+of agreement. On September 15, at a dinner given by the American
+Commissioners, Lord Gambier asked Mr. Adams whether he would return
+immediately to St. Petersburg. "Yes," replied Mr. Adams, "that is, if
+you send us away." His lordship "replied with assurances how deeply he
+lamented it, and with a hope that we should one day be friends again."
+On the same occasion Mr. Goulburn said that probably the last note of
+the Americans would "terminate the business," and that they "must
+fight it out." Fighting it out was a much less painful prospect for
+Great Britain just at that juncture than for the United States, as the
+Americans realized with profound anxiety. "We so fondly cling to the
+vain hope of peace, that every new proof of its impossibility operates
+upon us as a disappointment," wrote Mr. Adams. No amount of pride
+could altogether conceal the fact that the American Commissioners
+represented the worsted party, and though they never openly said so
+even among themselves, yet indirectly they were obliged to recognize
+the truth. On November 10 we find Mr. Adams proposing to make      (p. 087)
+concessions not permitted by their instructions, because, as he said:--
+
+     "I felt so sure that [the home government] would now gladly take
+     the state before the war as the general basis of the peace, that
+     I was prepared to take on me the responsibility of trespassing
+     upon their instructions thus far. Not only so, but I would at
+     this moment cheerfully give my life for a peace on this basis. If
+     peace was possible, it would be on no other. I had indeed no hope
+     that the proposal would be accepted."
+
+Mr. Clay thought that the British would laugh at this: "They would say,
+Ay, ay! pretty fellows you, to think of getting out of the war as well
+as you got into it." This was not consoling for the representatives of
+that side which had declared war for the purpose of curing grievances
+and vindicating alleged rights. But that Mr. Adams correctly read the
+wishes of the government was proved within a very few days by the
+receipt of express authority from home "to conclude the peace on the
+basis of the _status ante bellum_." Three days afterwards, on November
+27, three and a half months after the vexatious haggling had been
+begun, we encounter in the Diary the first real gleam of hope of a
+successful termination: "All the difficulties to the conclusion of a
+peace appear to be now so nearly removed, that my colleagues all   (p. 088)
+consider it as certain. I myself think it probable."
+
+There were, however, some three weeks more of negotiation to be gone
+through before the consummation was actually achieved, and the ill
+blood seemed to increase as the end was approached. The differences
+between the American Commissioners waxed especially serious concerning
+the fisheries and the navigation of the Mississippi. Mr. Adams
+insisted that if the treaty of peace had been so far abrogated by the
+war as to render necessary a re-affirmance of the British right of
+navigating the Mississippi, then a re-affirmance of the American
+rights in the Northeastern fisheries was equally necessary. This the
+English Commissioners denied. Mr. Adams said it was only an exchange
+of privileges presumably equivalent. Mr. Clay, however, was firmly
+resolved to prevent all stipulations admitting such a right of
+navigation, and the better to do so he was quite willing to let the
+fisheries go. The navigation privilege he considered "much too
+important to be conceded for the mere liberty of drying fish upon a
+desert," as he was pleased to describe a right for which the United
+States has often been ready to go to war and may yet some time do so.
+"Mr. Clay lost his temper," writes Mr. Adams a day or two later,   (p. 089)
+"as he generally does whenever this right of the British to navigate
+the Mississippi is discussed. He was utterly averse to admitting it as
+an equivalent for a stipulation securing the contested part of the
+fisheries. He said the more he heard of this [the right of fishing],
+the more convinced he was that it was of little or no value. He should
+be glad to get it if he could, but he was sure the British would not
+ultimately grant it. That the navigation of the Mississippi, on the
+other hand, was an object of immense importance, and he could see no
+sort of reason for granting it as an equivalent for the fisheries."
+Thus spoke the representative of the West. The New Englander--the son
+of the man whose exertions had been chiefly instrumental in originally
+obtaining the grant of the Northeastern fishery privileges--naturally
+went to the other extreme. He thought "the British right of navigating
+the Mississippi to be as nothing, considered as a grant from us. It
+was secured to them by the peace of 1783, they had enjoyed it at the
+commencement of the war, it had never been injurious in the slightest
+degree to our own people, and it appeared to [him] that the British
+claim to it was just and equitable." Further he "believed the right to
+this navigation to be a very useless thing to the British.... But
+their national pride and honor were interested in it; the          (p. 090)
+government could not make a peace which would abandon it." The
+fisheries, however, Mr. Adams regarded as one of the most inestimable
+and inalienable of American rights. It is evident that the United
+States could ill have spared either Mr. Adams or Mr. Clay from the
+negotiation, and the joinder of the two, however fraught with
+discomfort to themselves, well served substantial American interests.
+
+Mr. Adams thought the British perfidious, and suspected them of not
+entertaining any honest intention of concluding a peace. On December
+12, after an exceedingly quarrelsome conference, he records his belief
+that the British have "insidiously kept open" two points, "for the
+sake of finally breaking off the negotiations and making all their
+other concessions proofs of their extreme moderation, to put upon us
+the blame of the rupture."
+
+On December 11 we find Mr. Clay ready "for a war three years longer,"
+and anxious "to begin to play at _brag_" with the Englishmen. His
+colleagues, more complaisant or having less confidence in their own
+skill in that game, found it difficult to placate him; he "stalked to
+and fro across the chamber, repeating five or six times, 'I will never
+sign a treaty upon the _status ante bellum_ with the Indian article.
+So help me God!'" The next day there was an angry controversy      (p. 091)
+with the Englishmen. The British troops had taken and held Moose
+Island in Passamaquoddy Bay, the rightful ownership of which was in
+dispute. The title was to be settled by arbitrators. But the question,
+whether the British should restore possession of the island pending
+the arbitration, aroused bitter discussion. "Mr. Goulburn and Dr.
+Adams (the Englishman) immediately took fire, and Goulburn lost all
+control of his temper. He has always in such cases," says the Diary,
+"a sort of convulsive agitation about him, and the tone in which he
+speaks is more insulting than the language which he uses." Mr. Bayard
+referred to the case of the Falkland Islands. "'Why' (in a transport
+of rage), said Goulburn, 'in that case we sent a fleet and troops and
+drove the fellows off; and that is what we ought to have done in this
+case.'" Mr. J. Q. Adams, whose extensive and accurate information more
+than once annoyed his adversaries, stated that, as he remembered it,
+"the Spaniards in that case had driven the British off,"--and Lord
+Gambier helped his blundering colleague out of the difficulty by
+suggesting a new subject, much as the defeated heroes of the Iliad
+used to find happy refuge from death in a god-sent cloud of dust. It
+is amusing to read that in the midst of such scenes as these the   (p. 092)
+show of courtesy was still maintained; and on December 13 the
+Americans "all dined with the British Plenipotentiaries," though "the
+party was more than usually dull, stiff, and reserved." It was
+certainly forcing the spirit of good fellowship. The next day Mr. Clay
+notified his colleagues that they were going "to make a damned bad
+treaty, and he did not know whether he would sign it or not;" and Mr.
+Adams also said that he saw that the rest had made up their minds "at
+last to yield the fishery point," in which case he also could not sign
+the treaty. On the following day, however, the Americans were
+surprised by receiving a note from the British Commissioners, wherein
+they made the substantial concession of omitting from the treaty all
+reference to the fisheries and the navigation of the Mississippi. But
+Mr. Clay, on reading the note, "manifested some chagrin," and "still
+talked of breaking off the negotiation," even asking Mr. Adams to join
+him in so doing, which request, however, Mr. Adams very reasonably
+refused. Mr. Clay had also been anxious to stand out for a distinct
+abandonment of the alleged right of impressment; but upon this point
+he found none of his colleagues ready to back him, and he was compelled
+perforce to yield. Agreement was therefore now substantially       (p. 093)
+reached; a few minor matters were settled, and on December 24, 1814,
+the treaty was signed by all the eight negotiators.
+
+It was an astonishing as well as a happy result. Never, probably, in
+the history of diplomacy has concord been produced from such discordant
+elements as had been brought together in Ghent. Dissension seemed to
+have become the mother of amity; and antipathies were mere
+preliminaries to a good understanding; in diplomacy as in marriage it
+had worked well to begin with a little aversion. But, in truth, this
+consummation was largely due to what had been going on in the English
+Cabinet. At the outset Lord Castlereagh had been very unwilling to
+conclude peace, and his disposition had found expression in the
+original intolerable terms prepared by the British Commissioners. But
+Lord Liverpool had been equally solicitous on the other side, and was
+said even to have tendered his resignation to the Prince Regent, if an
+accommodation should not be effected. His endeavors were fortunately
+aided by events in Europe. Pending the negotiations Lord Castlereagh
+went on a diplomatic errand to Vienna, and there fell into such
+threatening discussions with the Emperor of Russia and the King of
+Prussia, that he thought it prudent to have done with the American (p. 094)
+war, and wrote home pacific advices. Hence, at last, came such
+concessions as satisfied the Americans.
+
+The treaty established "a firm and universal peace between his
+Britannic Majesty and the United States." Each party was to restore
+all captured territory, except that the islands of which the title was
+in dispute were to remain in the occupation of the party holding them
+at the time of ratification until that title should be settled by
+commissioners; provision was made also for the determination of all
+the open questions of boundary by sundry boards of commissioners; each
+party was to make peace with the Indian allies of the other. Such
+were, in substance, the only points touched upon by this document. Of
+the many subjects mooted between the negotiators scarcely any had
+survived the fierce contests which had been waged concerning them. The
+whole matter of the navigation of the Mississippi, access to that
+river, and a road through American territory, had been dropped by the
+British; while the Americans had been well content to say nothing of
+the Northeastern fisheries, which they regarded as still their own.
+The disarmament on the lakes and along the Canadian border, and the
+neutralization of a strip of Indian territory, were yielded by the (p. 095)
+English. The Americans were content to have nothing said about
+impressment; nor was any one of the many illegal rights exercised by
+England formally abandoned. The Americans satisfied themselves with
+the reflection that circumstances had rendered these points now only
+matters of abstract principle, since the pacification of Europe had
+removed all opportunities and temptations for England to persist in
+her previous objectionable courses. For the future it was hardly to be
+feared that she would again undertake to pursue a policy against which
+it was evident that the United States were willing to conduct a
+serious war. There was, however, no provision for indemnification.
+
+Upon a fair consideration, it must be admitted that though the treaty
+was silent upon all the points which the United States had made war
+for the purpose of enforcing, yet the country had every reason to be
+gratified with the result of the negotiation. The five Commissioners
+had done themselves ample credit. They had succeeded in agreeing with
+each other; they had avoided any fracture of a negotiation which, up
+to the very end, seemed almost daily on the verge of being broken off
+in anger; they had managed really to lose nothing, in spite of the
+fact that their side had had decidedly the worst of the struggle.  (p. 096)
+They had negotiated much more successfully than the armies of their
+countrymen had fought. The Marquis of Wellesley said, in the House of
+Lords, that "in his opinion the American Commissioners had shown a
+most astonishing superiority over the British during the whole of the
+correspondence." One cannot help wishing that the battle of New Orleans
+had taken place a little earlier, or that the negotiation had fallen a
+little later, so that news of that brilliant event could have reached
+the ears of the insolent Englishmen at Ghent, who had for three months
+been enjoying the malicious pleasure of lending to the Americans
+English newspapers containing accounts of American misfortunes. But
+that fortunate battle was not fought until a few days after the eight
+Commissioners had signed their compact. It is an interesting
+illustration of the slowness of communication which our forefathers
+had to endure, that the treaty crossed the Atlantic in a sailing ship
+in time to travel through much of the country simultaneously with the
+report of this farewell victory. Two such good pieces of news coming
+together set the people wild with delight. Even on the dry pages of
+Niles's "Weekly Register" occurs the triumphant paragraph: "Who would
+not be an American? Long live the Republic! All hail! last asylum  (p. 097)
+of oppressed humanity! Peace is signed in the arms of victory!" It was
+natural that most of the ecstasy should be manifested concerning the
+military triumph, and that the mass of the people should find more
+pleasure in glorifying General Jackson than in exalting the Commissioners.
+The value of their work, however, was well proved by the voice of
+Great Britain. In the London "Times" of December 30 appeared a most
+angry tirade against the treaty, with bitter sneers at those who
+called the peace an "honorable" one. England, it was said, "had
+attempted to force her principles on America, and had failed." Foreign
+powers would say that the English "had retired from the combat with
+the stripes yet bleeding on their backs,--with the recent defeats at
+Plattsburgh and on Lake Champlain unavenged." The most gloomy
+prognostications of further wars with America when her naval power
+should have waxed much greater were indulged. The loss of prestige in
+Europe, "the probable loss of our trans-Atlantic provinces," were
+among the results to be anticipated from this treaty into which the
+English Commissioners had been beguiled by the Americans. These latter
+were reviled with an abuse which was really the highest compliment. The
+family name of Mr. Adams gained no small access of distinction in  (p. 098)
+England from this business.
+
+After the conclusion of the treaty Mr. Adams went to Paris, and
+remained there until the middle of May, 1815, thus having the good
+fortune to witness the return of Napoleon and a great part of the
+events of the famous "hundred days." On May 26 he arrived in London,
+where there awaited him, in the hands of the Barings, his commission
+as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Great Britain.
+His first duty was, in connection with Mr. Clay and Mr. Gallatin, to
+negotiate a treaty of commerce, in which business he again met the
+same three British Commissioners by whom the negotiations at Ghent had
+been conducted, of whose abilities the government appeared to
+entertain a better opinion than the Marquis of Wellesley had
+expressed. This negotiation had been brought so far towards conclusion
+by his colleagues before his own arrival that Mr. Adams had little to
+do in assisting them to complete it. This little having been done,
+they departed and left him as Minister at the Court of St. James. Thus
+he fulfilled Washington's prophecy, by reaching the highest rank in
+the American diplomatic service.
+
+Of his stay in Great Britain little need be said. He had few duties of
+importance to perform. The fisheries, the right of impressment,    (p. 099)
+and the taking away and selling of slaves by British naval officers
+during the late war, formed the subjects of many interviews between
+him and Lord Castlereagh, without, however, any definite results being
+reached. But he succeeded in obtaining, towards the close of his stay,
+some slight remission of the severe restrictions placed by England
+upon our trade with her West Indian colonies. His relations with a
+cabinet in which the principles of Castlereagh and Canning
+predominated could hardly be cordial, yet he seems to have been
+treated with perfect civility. Indeed, he was not a man whom it was
+easy even for an Englishman to insult. He remarks of Castlereagh,
+after one of his first interviews with that nobleman: "His deportment
+is sufficiently graceful, and his person is handsome. His manner was
+cold, but not absolutely repulsive." Before he left he had the
+pleasure of having Mr. Canning specially seek acquaintance with him.
+He met, of course, many distinguished and many agreeable persons
+during his residence, and partook of many festivities, especially of
+numerous civic banquets at which toasts were formally given in the
+dullest English fashion and he was obliged to display his capacity for
+"table-cloth oratory," as he called it, more than was agreeable to
+him. He was greatly bored by these solemn and pompous feedings.    (p. 100)
+Partly in order to escape them he took a house at Ealing, and lived
+there during the greater part of his stay in England. "One of the
+strongest reasons for my remaining out of town," he writes, "is to
+escape the frequency of invitations at late hours, which consume so
+much precious time, and with the perpetually mortifying consciousness
+of inability to return the civility in the same manner." The
+republican simplicity, not to say poverty, forced upon American
+representatives abroad, was a very different matter in the censorious
+and unfriendly society of London from what it had been at the kindly
+disposed Court of St. Petersburg. The relationship between the mother
+country and the quondam colonies, especially at that juncture, was
+such as to render social life intolerably trying to an under-paid
+American minister.
+
+Mr. Adams remained in England until June 15, 1817, when he sailed from
+Cowes, closing forever his long and honorable diplomatic career, and
+bidding his last farewell to Europe. He returned home to take the post
+of Secretary of State in the cabinet of James Monroe, then lately
+inaugurated as President of the United States.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II                                                         (p. 101)
+
+SECRETARY OF STATE AND PRESIDENT
+
+
+From the capitals of Russia and Great Britain to the capital of the
+United States was a striking change. Washington, in its early struggle
+for existence, was so unattractive a spot, that foreigners must have
+been at a loss to discover the principle which had governed the
+selection. It combined all the ugliness with all the discomfort of an
+unprosperous frontier settlement on an ill-chosen site. What must
+European diplomats have thought of a capital city where snakes two
+feet long invaded gentlemen's drawing-rooms, and a carriage, bringing
+home the guests from a ball, could be upset by the impenetrable depth
+of quagmire at the very door of a foreign minister's residence. A
+description of the city given by Mr. Mills, a Representative from
+Massachusetts, in 1815, is pathetic in its unutterable horror:--
+
+     "It is impossible [he writes] for me to describe to you my
+     feelings on entering this miserable desert, this scene of
+     desolation and horror.... My anticipations were almost        (p. 102)
+     infinitely short of the reality, and I can truly say that the
+     first appearance of this seat of the national government has
+     produced in me nothing but absolute loathing and disgust."
+
+If the place wore such a dreadful aspect to the simple denizen of a
+New England country town, what must it have seemed to those who were
+familiar with London and Paris? To them the social life must have been
+scarcely less dreary than the rest of the surroundings. Accordingly,
+with this change of scene, the Diary, so long a record of festivities
+sometimes dull and formal, but generally collecting interesting and
+distinguished persons, ceases almost wholly to refer to topics of
+society. Yet, of course, even the foul streets could not prevent
+people from occasionally meeting together. There were simple
+tea-drinkings, stupid weekly dinners at the President's, infrequent
+receptions by Mrs. Monroe, card-parties and conversation-parties,
+which at the British minister's were very "elegant," and at the French
+minister's were more gay. Mons. de Neuville, at his dinners, used to
+puzzle and astound the plain-living Yankees by serving dishes of
+"turkeys without bones, and puddings in the form of fowls, fresh cod
+disguised like a salad, and celery like oysters;" further, he
+scandalized some and demoralized others by having dancing on       (p. 103)
+Saturday evenings, which the New England ladies had been "educated to
+consider as holy time." Mr. and Mrs. Adams used to give weekly parties
+on Tuesday evenings, and apparently many persons stood not a little in
+awe of these entertainments and of the givers of them, by reason of
+their superior familiarity with the manners and customs of the best
+society of Europe. Mrs. Adams was, "on the whole, a very pleasant and
+agreeable woman; but the Secretary [had] no talent to entertain a
+mixed company, either by conversation or manners;" thus writes this
+same Mr. Mills, whose sentiments towards Mr. Adams were those of
+respect rather than of personal liking. The favorite dissipation then
+consisted in card-playing, and the stakes were too often out of all
+just proportion to the assets of the gamesters. At one time Mr. Clay
+was reputed to have lost $8,000, an amount so considerable for him as
+to weigh upon his mind to the manifest detriment of his public
+functions. But sometimes the gentlemen resident in the capital met for
+purposes less innocent than Saturday evening cotillons, or even than
+extravagant betting at the card-table, and stirred the dulness of
+society by a duel. Mr. Adams tells of one affair of this sort, fought
+between ex-Senator Mason, of Virginia, and his cousin, wherein the
+weapons used were muskets, and the distance was only six paces.    (p. 104)
+Mason was killed; his cousin was wounded, and only by a lucky
+accident escaped with his life. Mr. Adams had little time and less
+taste for either the amusements or the dangers thus offered to him; he
+preferred to go to bed in good season, to get up often long before
+daybreak, and to labor assiduously the livelong day. His favorite
+exercise was swimming in the Potomac, where he accomplished feats
+which would have been extraordinary for a young and athletic man.
+
+The most important, perplexing, and time-consuming duties then called
+for by the condition of public affairs happened to fall within Mr.
+Adams's department. Monroe's administration has been christened the
+"era of good feeling;" and, so far as political divisions among the
+people at large were concerned, this description is correct enough.
+There were no great questions of public policy dividing the nation.
+There could hardly be said to be two political parties. With the close
+of the war the malcontent Federalists had lost the only substantial
+principle upon which they had been able vigorously to oppose the
+administration, and as a natural consequence the party rapidly shrank
+to insignificant proportions, and became of hardly more importance
+than were the Jacobites in England after their last hopes had      (p. 105)
+been quenched by the failure of the Rebellion of '45. The Federalist
+faith, like Jacobitism, lingered in a few neighborhoods, and was
+maintained by a few old families, who managed to associate it with a
+sense of their own pride and dignity; but as an effective opposition
+or influential party organization it was effete, and no successor was
+rising out of its ruins. In a broad way, therefore, there was
+political harmony to a very remarkable degree.
+
+But among individuals there was by no means a prevailing good feeling.
+Not held together by the pressure exerted by the antagonism of a
+strong hostile force, the prominent men of the Cabinet and in Congress
+were busily employed in promoting their own individual interests.
+Having no great issues with which to identify themselves, and upon
+which they could openly and honorably contend for the approval of the
+nation, their only means for securing their respective private ends
+lay in secretly overreaching and supplanting each other. Infinite
+skill was exerted by each to inveigle his rival into an unpopular
+position or a compromising light. By a series of precedents Mr. Adams,
+as Secretary of State, appeared most prominent as a candidate for the
+succession to the Presidency. But Mr. Crawford, in the Treasury
+Department, had been very near obtaining the nomination instead    (p. 106)
+of Monroe, and he was firmly resolved to secure it so soon as Mr.
+Monroe's eight years should have elapsed. He, therefore, finding much
+leisure left upon his hands by the not very exacting business of his
+office, devoted his ingenuity to devising schemes for injuring the
+prestige of Mr. Adams. Mr. Clay also had been greatly disappointed
+that he had not been summoned to be Secretary of State, and so made
+heir apparent. His personal enmity was naturally towards Mr. Monroe;
+his political enmity necessarily also included Mr. Adams, whose
+appointment he had privately sought to prevent. He therefore at once
+set himself assiduously to oppose and thwart the administration, and
+to make it unsuccessful and unpopular. That Clay was in the main and
+upon all weighty questions an honest statesman and a real patriot must
+be admitted, but just at this period no national crisis called his
+nobler qualities into action, and his course was largely influenced by
+selfish considerations. It was not long before Mr. Calhoun also
+entered the lists, though in a manner less discreditable to himself,
+personally, than were the resources of Crawford and Clay. The daily
+narrations and comments of Mr. Adams display and explain in a manner
+highly instructive, if not altogether agreeable, the ambitions     (p. 107)
+and the manoeuvres, the hollow alliances and unworthy intrigues, not
+only of these three, but also of many other estimable gentlemen then
+in political life. The difference between those days and our own seems
+not so great as the _laudatores temporis acti_ are wont to proclaim
+it. The elaborate machinery which has since been constructed was then
+unknown; rivals relied chiefly upon their own astuteness and the aid
+of a few personal friends and adherents for carrying on contests and
+attaining ends which are now sought by vastly more complex methods.
+What the stage-coach of that period was to the railroads of to-day, or
+what the hand-loom was to our great cotton mills, such also was the
+political intriguing of cabinet ministers, senators, and
+representatives to our present party machinery. But the temper was no
+better, honor was no keener, the sense of public duty was little more
+disinterested then than now. One finds no serious traces of vulgar
+financial dishonesty recorded in these pages, in which Mr. Adams has
+handed down the political life of the second and third decades of our
+century with a photographic accuracy. But one does not see a much
+higher level of faithfulness to ideal standards in political life than
+now exists.
+
+[Illustration: Wm. H. Crawford.]
+
+As has been said, it so happened that in Mr. Monroe's              (p. 108)
+administration the heaviest burden of labor and responsibility rested
+upon Mr. Adams; the most important and most perplexing questions fell
+within his department. Domestic breaches had been healed, but foreign
+breaches gaped with threatening jaws. War with Spain seemed imminent.
+Her South American colonies were then waging their contest for
+independence, and naturally looked to the late successful rebels of
+the northern continent for acts of neighborly sympathy and good
+fellowship. Their efforts to obtain official recognition and the
+exchange of ministers with the United States were eager and persistent.
+Privateers fitted out at Baltimore gave the State Department scarcely
+less cause for anxiety than the shipbuilders of Liverpool gave to the
+English Cabinet in 1863-64. These perplexities, as is well known,
+caused the passage of the first "Neutrality Act," which first
+formulated and has since served to establish the principle of
+international obligation in such matters, and has been the basis of
+all subsequent legislation upon the subject not only in this country
+but also in Great Britain.
+
+The European powers, impelled by a natural distaste for rebellion by
+colonists, and also believing that Spain would in time prevail over
+the insurgents, turned a deaf ear to South American agents. But in the
+United States it was different. Here it was anticipated that the   (p. 109)
+revolted communities were destined to win; Mr. Adams records this as
+his own opinion; besides which there was also a natural sympathy felt
+by our people in such a conflict in their own quarter of the globe.
+Nevertheless, in many anxious cabinet discussions, the President and
+the Secretary of State established the policy of reserve and caution.
+Rebels against an established government are like plaintiffs in
+litigation; the burden of proof is upon them, and the neutral nations
+who are a sort of quasi-jurors must not commit themselves to a
+decision prematurely. The grave and inevitable difficulties besetting
+the administration in this matter were seriously enhanced by the
+conduct of Mr. Clay. Seeking nothing so eagerly as an opportunity to
+harass the government, he could have found none more to his taste than
+this question of South American recognition. His enthusiastic and
+rhetorical temperament rejoiced in such a topic for his luxuriant
+oratory, and he lauded freedom and abused the administration with a
+force of expression far from gratifying to the responsible heads of
+government in their troublesome task.
+
+Apart from these matters the United States had direct disputes of a
+threatening character pending with Spain concerning the boundaries of
+Louisiana. Naturally enough boundary lines in the half explored    (p. 110)
+wilderness of this vast continent were not then marked with that
+indisputable accuracy which many generations and much bloodshed had
+achieved in Europe; and of all uncertain boundaries that of Louisiana
+was the most so. Area enough to make two or three States, more or
+less, might or might not be included therein. Such doubts had proved a
+ready source of quarrel, which could hardly be assuaged by General
+Jackson marching about in unquestionable Spanish territory, seizing
+towns and hanging people after his lawless, ignorant, energetic
+fashion. Mr. Adams's chief labor, therefore, was by no means of a
+promising character, being nothing less difficult than to conclude a
+treaty between enraged Spain and the rapacious United States, where
+there was so much wrong and so much right on both sides, and such a
+wide obscure realm of doubt between the two that an amicable agreement
+might well seem not only beyond expectation but beyond hope.
+
+Many and various also were the incidental obstacles in Mr. Adams's
+way. Not the least lay in the ability of Don Onis, the Spanish
+Minister, an ambassador well selected for his important task and whom
+the American thus described:--
+
+     "Cold, calculating, wily, always commanding his own temper,   (p. 111)
+     proud because he is a Spaniard, but supple and cunning,
+     accommodating the tone of his pretensions precisely to the degree
+     of endurance of his opponent, bold and overbearing to the utmost
+     extent to which it is tolerated, careless of what he asserts or
+     how grossly it is proved to be unfounded, his morality appears to
+     be that of the Jesuits as exposed by Pascal. He is laborious,
+     vigilant, and ever attentive to his duties; a man of business and
+     of the world."
+
+Fortunately this so dangerous negotiator was hardly less anxious than
+Mr. Adams to conclude a treaty. Yet he, too, had his grave difficulties
+to encounter. Spanish arrogance had not declined with the decline of
+Spanish strength, and the concessions demanded from that ancient
+monarchy by the upstart republic seemed at once exasperating and
+humiliating. The career of Jackson in Florida, while it exposed the
+weakness of Spain, also sorely wounded her pride. Nor could the
+grandees, three thousand miles away, form so accurate an opinion of
+the true condition and prospects of affairs as could Don Onis upon
+this side of the water. One day, begging Mr. Adams to meet him upon a
+question of boundary, "he insisted much upon the infinite pains he had
+taken to prevail upon his government to come to terms of accommodation,"
+and pathetically declared that "the King's Council was composed    (p. 112)
+of such ignorant and stupid _nigauds_, grandees of Spain, and priests,"
+that Mr. Adams "could have no conception of their obstinacy and
+imbecility."
+
+Other difficulties in Mr. Adams's way were such as ought not to have
+been encountered. The only substantial concession which he was willing
+to make was in accepting the Sabine instead of the Rio del Norte as
+the southwestern boundary of Louisiana. But no sooner did rumors of
+this possible yielding get abroad than he was notified that Mr. Clay
+"would take ground against" any treaty embodying it. From Mr. Crawford
+a more dangerous and insidious policy was to be feared. Presumably he
+would be well pleased either to see Mr. Adams fail altogether in the
+negotiation, or to see him conclude a treaty which would be in some
+essential feature odious to the people.
+
+     "That all his conduct [wrote Mr. Adams] is governed by his views
+     to the Presidency, as the ultimate successor to Mr. Monroe, and
+     that his hopes depend upon a result unfavorable to the success or
+     at least to the popularity of the Administration, is perfectly
+     clear.... His talent is intrigue. And as it is in the foreign
+     affairs that the success or failure of the Administration will be
+     most conspicuous, and as their success would promote the
+     reputation and influence, and their failure would lead to     (p. 113)
+     the disgrace of the Secretary of State, Crawford's personal
+     views centre in the ill-success of the Administration in its
+     foreign relations; and, perhaps unconscious of his own motives,
+     he will always be impelled to throw obstacles in its way, and to
+     bring upon the Department of State especially any feeling of
+     public dissatisfaction that he can, ... and although himself a
+     member of the Administration, he perceives every day more clearly
+     that his only prospect of success hereafter depends upon the
+     failure of the Administration by measures of which he must take
+     care to make known his disapprobation."
+
+President Monroe was profoundly anxious for the consummation of the
+treaty, and though for a time he was in perfect accord with Mr. Adams,
+yet as the Spanish minister gradually drew nearer and nearer to a full
+compliance with the American demands, Monroe began to fear that the
+Secretary would carry his unyielding habit too far, and by insistence
+upon extreme points which might well enough be given up, would allow
+the country to drift into war.
+
+Fortunately, as it turned out, Mr. Adams was not afraid to take the
+whole responsibility of success or failure upon his own shoulders,
+showing indeed a high and admirable courage and constancy amid such
+grave perplexities, in which it seemed that all his future political
+fortunes were involved. He caused the proffered mediation of       (p. 114)
+Great Britain to be rejected. He availed himself of no aid save only
+the services of Mons. de Neuville, the French minister, who took a
+warm interest in the negotiation, expostulated and argued constantly
+with Don Onis and sometimes with Mr. Adams, served as a channel of
+communication and carried messages, propositions, and denials, which
+could better come filtered through a neutral go-between than pass
+direct from principal to principal. In fact, Mr. Adams needed no other
+kind of aid except just this which was so readily furnished by the
+civil and obliging Frenchman. As if he had been a mathematician
+solving a problem in dynamics, he seemed to have measured the precise
+line to which the severe pressure of Spanish difficulties would compel
+Don Onis to advance. This line he drew sharply, and taking his stand
+upon it in the beginning he made no important alterations in it to the
+end. Day by day the Spaniard would reluctantly approach toward him at
+one point or another, solemnly protesting that he could not make
+another move, by argument and entreaty urging, almost imploring, Mr.
+Adams in turn to advance and meet him. But Mr. Adams stood rigidly
+still, sometimes not a little vexed by the other's lingering manoeuvres,
+and actually once saying to the courtly Spaniard that he "was so   (p. 115)
+wearied out with the discussion that it had become nauseous;" and,
+again, that he "really could discuss no longer, and had given it up in
+despair." Yet all the while he was never wholly free from anxiety
+concerning the accuracy of his calculations as to how soon the Don
+might on his side also come to a final stand. Many a tedious and
+alarming pause there was, but after each halt progress was in time
+renewed. At last the consummation was reached, and except in the
+aforementioned matter of the Sabine boundary no concession even in
+details had been made by Mr. Adams. The United States was to receive
+Florida, and in return only agreed to settle the disputed claims of
+certain of her citizens against Spain to an amount not to exceed five
+million dollars; while the claims of Spanish subjects against the
+United States were wholly expunged. The western boundary was so
+established as to secure for this country the much-coveted outlet to
+the shores of the "South Sea," as the Pacific Ocean was called, south
+of the Columbia River; the line also was run along the southern banks
+of the Red and Arkansas rivers, leaving all the islands to the United
+States and precluding Spain from the right of navigation. Mr. Adams
+had achieved a great triumph.
+
+On February 22, 1819, the two negotiators signed and sealed the    (p. 116)
+counterparts of the treaty. Mr. Adams notes that it is "perhaps
+the most important day of my life," and justly called it "a great
+epoch in our history." Yet on the next day the "Washington City
+Gazette" came out with a strong condemnation of the Sabine concession,
+and expressed the hope that the Senate would not agree to it. "This
+paragraph," said Mr. Adams, "comes directly or indirectly from Mr.
+Clay." But the paragraph did no harm, for on the following day the
+treaty was confirmed by an unanimous vote of the Senate.
+
+It was not long, however, before the pleasure justly derivable from
+the completion of this great labor was cruelly dashed. It appeared
+that certain enormous grants of land, made by the Spanish king to
+three of his nobles, and which were supposed to be annulled by the
+treaty, so that the territory covered by them would become the public
+property of the United States, bore date earlier than had been
+understood, and for this reason would, by the terms of the treaty, be
+left in full force. This was a serious matter, and such steps as were
+still possible to set it right were promptly taken. Mr. Adams appealed
+to Don Onis to state in writing that he himself had understood that
+these grants were to be annulled, and that such had been the intention
+of the treaty. The Spaniard replied in a shape imperfectly         (p. 117)
+satisfactory. He shuffled, evaded, and laid himself open to suspicion
+of unfair dealing, though the charge could not be regarded as fully
+proved against him. Mr. Adams, while blaming himself for carelessness
+in not having more closely examined original documents, yet felt
+"scarce a doubt" that Onis "did intend by artifice to cover the grants
+while we were under the undoubting impression they were annulled;" and
+he said to M. de Neuville, concerning this dark transaction, that "it
+was not the ingenious device of a public minister, but '_une fourberie
+de Scapin_.'" Before long the rumor got abroad in the public prints in
+the natural shape of a "malignant distortion," and Mr. Adams was
+compelled to see with chagrin his supposed brilliant success
+threatening to turn actually to his grave discredit by reason of this
+unfortunate oversight.
+
+What might have been the result had the treaty been ratified by Spain
+can only be surmised. But it so befell--happily enough for the United
+States and for Mr. Adams, as it afterwards turned out--that the
+Spanish government refused to ratify. The news was, however, that they
+would forthwith dispatch a new minister to explain this refusal and to
+renew negotiations.
+
+For his own private part Mr. Adams strove to endure this buffet    (p. 118)
+of unkindly fortune with that unflinching and stubborn temper,
+slightly dashed with bitterness, which stood him in good stead in many
+a political trial during his hard-fighting career. But in his official
+capacity he had also to consider and advise what it behooved the
+administration to do under the circumstances. The feeling was
+widespread that the United States ought to possess Florida, and that
+Spain had paltered with us long enough. More than once in cabinet
+meetings during the negotiation the Secretary of State, who was always
+prone to strong measures, had expressed a wish for an act of Congress
+authorizing the Executive to take forcible possession of Florida and
+of Galveston in the event of Spain refusing to satisfy the reasonable
+demands made upon her. Now, stimulated by indignant feeling, his
+prepossession in favor of vigorous action was greatly strengthened,
+and his counsel was that the United States should prepare at once to
+take and hold the disputed territory, and indeed some undisputed
+Spanish territory also. But Mr. Monroe and the rest of the Cabinet
+preferred a milder course; and France and Great Britain ventured to
+express to this country a hope that no violent action would be
+precipitately taken. So the matter lay by for a while, awaiting the
+coming of the promised envoy from Spain.
+
+At this time the great question of the admission of Missouri into  (p. 119)
+the Union of States began to agitate Congress and the nation. Mr.
+Adams, deeply absorbed in the perplexing affairs of his department,
+into which this domestic problem did not enter, was at first careless
+of it. His ideas concerning the matter, he wrote, were a "chaos;" but
+it was a "chaos" into which his interest in public questions soon
+compelled him to bring order. In so doing he for the first time fairly
+exposes his intense repulsion for slavery, his full appreciation of
+the irrepressible character of the conflict between the slave and the
+free populations, and the sure tendency of that conflict to a
+dissolution of the Union. Few men at that day read the future so
+clearly. While dissolution was generally regarded as a threat not
+really intended to be carried out, and compromises were supposed to be
+amply sufficient to control the successive emergencies, the underlying
+moral force of the anti-slavery movement acting against the
+encroaching necessities of the slave-holding communities constituted
+an element and involved possibilities which Mr. Adams, from his
+position of observation outside the immediate controversy, noted with
+foreseeing accuracy. He discerned in passing events the "title-page to
+a great tragic volume;" and he predicted that the more or less distant
+but sure end must be an attempt to dissolve the Union. His own     (p. 120)
+position was distinctly defined from the outset, and his strong
+feelings were vigorously expressed. He beheld with profound regret the
+superiority of the slave-holding party in ability; he remarked sadly
+how greatly they excelled in debating power their lukewarm opponents;
+he was filled with indignation against the Northern men of Southern
+principles. "Slavery," he wrote, "is the great and foul stain upon the
+North American Union, and it is a contemplation worthy of the most
+exalted soul whether its total abolition is or is not practicable." "A
+life devoted to" the emancipation problem "would be nobly spent or
+sacrificed." He talks with much acerbity of expression about the
+"slave-drivers," and the "flagrant image of human inconsistency"
+presented by men who had "the Declaration of Independence on their
+lips and the merciless scourge of slavery in their hands." "Never," he
+says, "since human sentiments and human conduct were influenced by
+human speech was there a theme for eloquence like the free side of
+this question.... Oh, if but one man could arise with a genius capable
+of comprehending, and an utterance capable of communicating those
+eternal truths that belong to this question, to lay bare in all its
+nakedness that outrage upon the goodness of God, human slavery;    (p. 121)
+now is the time and this is the occasion, upon which such a man would
+perform the duties of an angel upon earth." Before the Abolitionists
+had begun to preach their great crusade this was strong and ardent
+language for a statesman's pen. Nor were these exceptional passages;
+there is much more of the same sort at least equally forcible. Mr.
+Adams notes an interesting remark made to him by Calhoun at this time.
+The great Southern chief, less prescient than Mr. Adams, declared that
+he did not think that the slavery question "would produce a
+dissolution of the Union; but if it should, the South would be from
+necessity compelled to form an alliance offensive and defensive with
+Great Britain."
+
+Concerning a suggestion that civil war might be preferable to the
+extension of slavery beyond the Mississippi, Adams said: "This is a
+question between the rights of human nature and the Constitution of
+the United States"--a form of stating the case which leaves no doubt
+concerning his ideas of the intrinsic right and wrong in the matter.
+His own notion was that slavery could not be got rid of within the
+Union, but that the only method would be dissolution, after which he
+trusted that the course of events would in time surely lead to
+reorganization upon the basis of universal freedom for all. He     (p. 122)
+was not a disunionist in any sense, yet it is evident that his strong
+tendency and inclination were to regard emancipation as a weight in
+the scales heavier than union, if it should ever come to the point of
+an option between the two.
+
+Strangely enough the notion of a forcible retention of the slave
+States within the Union does not seem to have been at this time a
+substantial element of consideration. Mr. Adams acknowledged that
+there was no way at once of preserving the Union and escaping from the
+present emergency save through the door of compromise. He maintained
+strenuously the power of Congress to prohibit slavery in the
+Territories, and denied that either Congress or a state government
+could establish slavery as a new institution in any State in which it
+was not already existing and recognized by law.
+
+This agitation of the slavery question made itself felt in a way
+personally interesting to Mr. Adams, by the influence it was exerting
+upon men's feelings concerning the still pending and dubious treaty
+with Spain. The South became anxious to lay hands upon the Floridas
+and upon as far-reaching an area as possible in the direction of
+Mexico, in order to carve it up into more slave States; the North, on
+the other hand, no longer cared very eagerly for an extension of the
+Union upon its southern side. Sectional interests were getting to  (p. 123)
+be more considered than national. Mr. Adams could not but recognize
+that in the great race for the Presidency, in which he could hardly
+help being a competitor, the chief advantage which he seemed to have
+won when the Senate unanimously ratified the Spanish treaty, had
+almost wholly vanished since that treaty had been repudiated by Spain
+and was now no longer desired by a large proportion of his own
+countrymen.
+
+Matters stood thus when the new Spanish envoy, Vives, arrived. Other
+elements, which there is not space to enumerate here, besides those
+referred to, now entering newly into the state of affairs, further
+reduced the improbability of agreement almost to hopelessness. Mr.
+Adams, despairing of any other solution than a forcible seizure of
+Florida, to which he had long been far from averse, now visibly
+relaxed his efforts to meet the Spanish negotiator. Perhaps no other
+course could have been more effectual in securing success than this
+obvious indifference to it. In the prevalent condition of public
+feeling and of his own sentiments Mr. Adams easily assumed towards
+General Vives a decisive bluntness, not altogether consonant to the
+habits of diplomacy, and manifested an unchangeable stubbornness which
+left no room for discussion. His position was simply that Spain might
+make such a treaty as the United States demanded, or might take    (p. 124)
+the consequences of her refusal. His dogged will wore out the
+Spaniard's pride, and after a fruitless delay the King and Cortes
+ratified the treaty in its original shape, with the important addition
+of an explicit annulment of the land grants. It was again sent in to
+the Senate, and in spite of the "continued, systematic, and laborious
+effort" of "Mr. Clay and his partisans to make it unpopular," it was
+ratified by a handsome majority, there being against it "only four
+votes--Brown, of Louisiana, who married a sister of Clay's wife;
+Richard M. Johnson, of Kentucky, against his own better judgment, from
+mere political subserviency to Clay; Williams, of Tennessee, from
+party impulses connected with hatred of General Jackson; and Trimble,
+of Ohio, from some maggot of the brain." Two years had elapsed since
+the former ratification, and no little patience had been required to
+await so long the final achievement of a success so ardently longed
+for, once apparently gained, and anon so cruelly thwarted. But the
+triumph was rather enhanced than diminished by all this difficulty and
+delay. A long and checkered history, wherein appeared infinite labor,
+many a severe trial of temper and hard test of moral courage, bitter
+disappointment, ignoble artifices of opponents, ungenerous         (p. 125)
+opposition growing out of unworthy personal motives at home, was now
+at last closed by a chapter which appeared only the more gratifying by
+contrast with what had gone before. Mr. Adams recorded, with less of
+exultation than might have been pardonable, the utter discomfiture of
+"all the calculators of my downfall by the Spanish negotiation," and
+reflected cheerfully that he had been left with "credit rather augmented
+than impaired by the result,"--credit not in excess of his deserts.
+Many years afterwards, in changed circumstances, an outcry was raised
+against the agreement which was arrived at concerning the southwestern
+boundary of Louisiana. Most unjustly it was declared that Mr. Adams
+had sacrificed a portion of the territory of the United States. But
+political motives were too plainly to be discerned in these tardy
+criticisms; and though General Jackson saw fit, for personal reasons,
+to animadvert severely upon the clause establishing this boundary
+line, yet there was abundant evidence to show not only that he, like
+almost everybody else, had been greatly pleased with it at the time,
+but even that he had then upon consultation expressed a deliberate and
+special approval.
+
+The same day, February 22, 1821, closed, says Mr. Adams, "two of the
+most memorable transactions of my life." That he should speak thus (p. 126)
+of the exchange of ratifications of the Spanish treaty is natural; but
+the other so "memorable transaction" may not appear of equal magnitude.
+It was the sending in to Congress of his report upon weights and
+measures. This was one of those vast labors, involving tenfold more
+toil than all the negotiations with Onis and Vives, but bringing no
+proportionate fame, however well it might be performed. The subject
+was one which had "occupied for the last sixty years many of the
+ablest men in Europe, and to which all the power and all the
+philosophical and mathematical learning and ingenuity of France and of
+Great Britain" had during that period been incessantly directed. It
+was fairly enough described as a "fearful and oppressive task." Upon
+its dry and uncongenial difficulties Mr. Adams had been employed with
+his wonted industry for upwards of four years; he now spoke of the
+result modestly as "a hurried and imperfect work." But others, who
+have had to deal with the subject, have found this report a solid and
+magnificent monument of research and reflection, which has not even
+yet been superseded by later treatises. Mr. Adams was honest in labor
+as in everything, and was never careless at points where inaccuracy or
+lack of thoroughness might be expected to escape detection.        (p. 127)
+Hence his success in a task upon which it is difficult to imagine other
+statesmen of that day--Clay, Webster, or Calhoun, for example--so much
+as making an effort. The topic is not one concerning which readers
+would tolerate much lingering. Suffice it then to say that the
+document illustrated the ability and the character of the man, and so
+with this brief mention to dismiss in a paragraph an achievement
+which, had it been accomplished in any more showy department, would
+alone have rendered Mr. Adams famous.
+
+It is highly gratifying now to look back upon the high spirit and
+independent temper uniformly displayed by Mr. Adams abroad and at home
+in all dealings with foreign powers. Never in any instance did he
+display the least tinge of that rodomontade and boastful extravagance
+which have given an underbred air to so many of our diplomats, and
+which inevitably cause the basis for such self-laudation to appear of
+dubious sufficiency. But he had the happy gift of a native pride which
+enabled him to support in the most effective manner the dignity of the
+people for whom he spoke. For example, in treaties between the United
+States and European powers the latter were for a time wont to name
+themselves first throughout the instruments, contrary to the custom of
+alternation practised in treaties between themselves. With some    (p. 128)
+difficulty, partly interposed, it must be confessed, by his own
+American coadjutors, Mr. Adams succeeded in putting a stop to this
+usage. It was a matter of insignificant detail, in one point of view;
+but in diplomacy insignificant details often symbolize important
+facts, and there is no question that this habit had been construed as
+a tacit but intentional arrogance of superiority on the part of the
+Europeans.
+
+For a long period after the birth of the country there was a strong
+tendency, not yet so eradicated as to be altogether undiscoverable, on
+the part of American statesmen to keep one eye turned covertly askance
+upon the trans-Atlantic courts, and to consider, not without a certain
+anxious deference, what appearance the new United States might be
+presenting to the critical eyes of foreign countries and diplomats.
+Mr. Adams was never guilty of such indirect admissions of an inferiority
+which apparently he never felt. In the matter of the acquisition of
+Florida, Crawford suggested that England and France regarded the
+people of the United States as ambitious and encroaching; wherefore he
+advised a moderate policy in order to remove this impression. Mr.
+Adams on the other side declared that he was not in favor of our
+giving ourselves any concern whatever about the opinions of any    (p. 129)
+foreign power. "If the world do not hold us for Romans," he said,
+"they will take us for Jews, and of the two vices I would rather be
+charged with that which has greatness mingled in its composition." His
+views were broad and grand. He was quite ready to have the world
+become "familiarized with the idea of considering our proper dominion
+to be the continent of North America." This extension he declared to
+be a "law of nature." To suppose that Spain and England could, through
+the long lapse of time, retain their possessions on this side of the
+Atlantic seemed to him a "physical, moral, and political absurdity."
+
+The doctrine which has been christened with the name of President
+Monroe seems likely to win for him the permanent glory of having
+originated the wise policy which that familiar phrase now signifies.
+It might, however, be shown that by right of true paternity the
+bantling should have borne a different patronymic. Not only is the
+"Monroe Doctrine," as that phrase is customarily construed in our day,
+much more comprehensive than the simple theory first expressed by
+Monroe and now included in the modern doctrine as a part in the whole,
+but a principle more fully identical with the imperial one of to-day
+had been conceived and shaped by Mr. Adams before the delivery of  (p. 130)
+Monroe's famous message. As has just been remarked, he looked forward
+to the possession of the whole North American continent by the United
+States as a sure destiny, and for his own part, whenever opportunity
+offered, he was never backward to promote this glorious ultimate
+consummation. He was in favor of the acquisition of Louisiana, whatever
+fault he might find with the scheme of Mr. Jefferson for making it a
+state; he was ready in 1815 to ask the British plenipotentiaries to
+cede Canada simply as a matter of common sense and mutual convenience,
+and as the comfortable result of a war in which the United States had
+been worsted; he never labored harder than in negotiating for the
+Floridas, and in pushing our western boundaries to the Pacific; in
+April, 1823, he wrote to the American minister at Madrid the significant
+remark: "It is scarcely possible to resist the conviction that the
+annexation of Cuba to our Federal Republic will be indispensable to
+the continuance and integrity of the Union." Encroachments never
+seemed distasteful to him, and he was always forward to stretch a
+point in order to advocate or defend a seizure of disputed North
+American territory, as in the cases of Amelia Island, Pensacola, and
+Galveston. When discussion arose with Russia concerning her        (p. 131)
+possessions on the northwest coast of this continent, Mr. Adams
+audaciously told the Russian minister, Baron Tuyl, July 17, 1823,
+"that we should contest the rights of Russia to _any_ territorial
+establishment on this continent, and that we should assume distinctly
+the principle that the American continents are no longer subjects for
+any new European colonial establishments." "This," says Mr. Charles
+Francis Adams in a footnote to the passage in the Diary, "is the first
+hint of the policy so well known afterwards as the Monroe Doctrine."
+Nearly five months later, referring to the same matter in his message
+to Congress, December 2, 1823, President Monroe said: "The occasion
+has been judged proper for asserting, as a principle in which the
+rights and interests of the United States are involved, that the
+American continents, by the free and independent condition which they
+have assumed and maintain, are henceforth not to be considered as
+subjects for future colonization by any European powers."
+
+It will be observed that both Mr. Adams and President Monroe used the
+phrase "continents," including thereby South as well as North America.
+A momentous question was imminent, which fortunately never called for
+a determination by action, but which in this latter part of 1823
+threatened to do so at any moment. Cautious and moderate as the    (p. 132)
+United States had been, under Mr. Adams's guidance, in recognizing
+the freedom and autonomy of the South American states, yet in time the
+recognition was made of one after another, and the emancipation of
+South America had come, while Mr. Adams was yet Secretary, to be
+regarded as an established fact. But now, in 1823-24, came mutterings
+from across the Atlantic indicating a strong probability that the
+members of the Holy Alliance would interfere in behalf of monarchical
+and anti-revolutionary principles, and would assist in the resubjugation
+of the successful insurgents. That each one of the powers who should
+contribute to this huge crusade would expect and receive territorial
+reward could not be doubted. Mr. Adams, in unison with most of his
+countrymen, contemplated with profound distrust and repulsion the
+possibility of such an European inroad. Stimulated by the prospect of
+so unwelcome neighbors, he prepared some dispatches, "drawn to
+correspond exactly" with the sentiments of Mr. Monroe's message, in
+which he appears to have taken a very high and defiant position. These
+documents, coming before the Cabinet for consideration, caused some
+flutter among his associates. In the possible event of the Holy
+Alliance actually intermeddling in South American affairs, it was  (p. 133)
+said, the principles enunciated by the Secretary of State would
+involve this country in war with a very formidable confederation. Mr.
+Adams acknowledged this, but courageously declared that in such a
+crisis he felt quite ready to take even this spirited stand. His
+audacious spirit went far in advance of the cautious temper of the
+Monroe administration; possibly it went too far in advance of the
+dictates of a wise prudence, though fortunately the course of events
+never brought this question to trial; and it is at least gratifying to
+contemplate such a manifestation of daring temper.
+
+But though so bold and independent, Mr. Adams was not habitually
+reckless nor prone to excite animosity by needless arrogance in action
+or extravagance in principle. In any less perilous extremity than was
+presented by this menaced intrusion of combined Europe he followed
+rigidly the wise rule of non-interference. For many years before this
+stage was reached he had been holding in difficult check the
+enthusiasts who, under the lead of Mr. Clay, would have embroiled us
+with Spain and Portugal. Once he was made the recipient of a very
+amusing proposition from the Portuguese minister, that the United
+States and Portugal, as "the two great powers of the western hemisphere,"
+should concert together a grand American system. The drollery pf   (p. 134)
+this notion was of a kind that Mr. Adams could appreciate, though
+to most manifestations of humor he was utterly impervious. But after
+giving vent to some contemptuous merriment he adds, with a just and
+serious pride: "As to an American system, we have it; we constitute
+the whole of it; there is no community of interests or of principles
+between North and South America." This sound doctrine was put forth in
+1820; and it was only modified in the manner that we have seen during
+a brief period in 1823, in face of the alarming vision not only of
+Spain and Portugal restored to authority, but of Russia in possession
+of California and more, France in possession of Mexico, and perhaps
+Great Britain becoming mistress of Cuba.
+
+So far as European affairs were concerned, Mr. Adams always and
+consistently refused to become entangled in them, even in the slightest
+and most indirect manner. When the cause of Greek liberty aroused the
+usual throng of noisy advocates for active interference, he contented
+himself with expressions of cordial sympathy, accompanied by perfectly
+distinct and explicit statements that under no circumstances could any
+aid in the way of money or auxiliary forces be expected from this
+country. Neutrals we were and would remain in any and all          (p. 135)
+European quarrels. When Stratford Canning urged, with the uttermost
+measure of persistence of which even he was capable, that for the
+suppression of the slave trade some such arrangement might be made as
+that of mixed tribunals for the trial of slave-trading vessels, and
+alleged that divers European powers were uniting for this purpose, Mr.
+Adams suggested, as an insuperable obstacle, "the general extra-European
+policy of the United States--a policy which they had always pursued as
+best suited to their own interests, and best adapted to harmonize with
+those of Europe. This policy had also been that of Europe, which had
+never considered the United States as belonging to her system.... It
+was best for both parties that they should continue to do so." In any
+European combinations, said Mr. Adams, in which the United States
+should become a member, she must soon become an important power, and
+must always be, in many respects, an uncongenial one. It was best that
+she should keep wholly out of European politics, even of such leagues
+as one for the suppression of the slave trade. He added, that he did
+not wish his language to be construed as importing "an unsocial and
+sulky spirit on the part of the United States;" for no such temper
+existed; it had simply been the policy of Europe to consider       (p. 136)
+this country as standing aloof from all European federations, and in
+this treatment "we had acquiesced, because it fell in with our own
+policy."
+
+In a word, Mr. Adams, by his language and actions, established and
+developed precisely that doctrine which has since been adopted by this
+country under the doubly incorrect name of the "Monroe Doctrine,"--a
+name doubly incorrect, because even the real "Monroe Doctrine" was not
+an original idea of Mr. Monroe, and because the doctrine which now
+goes by that name is not identical with the doctrine which Monroe did
+once declare. Mr. Adams's principle was simply that the United States
+would take no part whatsoever in foreign politics, not even in those
+of South America, save in the extreme event, eliminated from among
+things possible in this generation, of such an interference as was
+contemplated by the Holy Alliance; and that, on the other hand, she
+would permit no European power to gain any new foothold upon this
+continent. Time and experience have not enabled us to improve upon the
+principles which Mr. Adams worked out for us.
+
+Mr. Adams had some pretty stormy times with Mr. Stratford Canning--the
+same gentleman who in his later life is familiar to the readers of (p. 137)
+Kinglake's "History of the Crimean War" as Lord Stratford de
+Redclyffe, or Eltchi. That minister's overbearing and dictatorial
+deportment was afterwards not out of place when he was representing
+the protecting power of Great Britain in the court of the "sick man."
+But when he began to display his arrogance in the face of Mr. Adams he
+found that he was bearding one who was at least his equal in pride and
+temper. The naive surprise which he manifested on making this
+discovery is very amusing, and the accounts of the interviews between
+the two are among the most pleasing episodes in the history of our
+foreign relations. Nor are they less interesting as a sort of
+confidential peep at the asperities of diplomacy. It appears that
+besides the composed and formal dignity of phrase which alone the
+public knows in published state papers and official correspondence,
+there is also an official language of wrath and retort not at all
+artificial or stilted, but quite homelike and human in its sound.
+
+One subject much discussed between Mr. Adams and Mr. Canning related
+to the English propositions for joint efforts to suppress the slave
+trade. Great Britain had engaged with much vigor and certainly with an
+admirable humanity in this cause. Her scheme was that each power
+should keep armed cruisers on the coast of Africa, that the        (p. 138)
+war-ships of either nation might search the merchant vessels of the
+other, and that mixed courts of joint commissioners should try all
+cases of capture. This plan had been urged upon the several European
+nations, but with imperfect success. Portugal, Spain, and the
+Netherlands had assented to it; Russia, France, Austria, and Prussia
+had rejected it. Mr. Adams's notion was that the ministry were, in
+their secret hearts, rather lukewarm in the business, but that they
+were so pressed by "the party of the saints in Parliament" that they
+were obliged to make a parade of zeal. Whether this suspicion was
+correct or not, it is certain that Mr. Stratford Canning was very
+persistent in the presentation of his demands, and could not be
+persuaded to take No for an answer. Had it been possible to give any
+more favorable reply no one in the United States in that day would
+have been better pleased than Mr. Adams to do so. But the obstacles
+were insuperable. Besides the undesirability of departing from the
+"extra-European policy," the mixed courts would have been
+unconstitutional, and could not have been established even by act of
+Congress, while the claims advanced by Great Britain to search our
+ships for English-born seamen in time of war utterly precluded the
+possibility of admitting any rights of search whatsoever upon her  (p. 139)
+part, even in time of peace, for any purpose or in any shape. In vain
+did the Englishman reiterate his appeal. Mr. Adams as often explained
+that the insistence of England upon her outrageous claim had rendered
+the United States so sensitive upon the entire subject of search that
+no description of right of that kind could ever be tolerated. "All
+concession of principle," he said, "tended to encourage encroachment,
+and if naval officers were once habituated to search the vessels of
+other nations in time of peace for one thing, they would be still more
+encouraged to practise it for another thing in time of war." The only
+way for Great Britain to achieve her purpose would be "to bind herself
+by an article, as strong and explicit as language can make it, never
+again in time of war to take a man from an American vessel." This of
+course was an inadmissible proposition, and so Mr. Stratford Canning's
+incessant urgency produced no substantial results. This discussion,
+however, was generally harmonious. Once only, in its earlier stages,
+Mr. Adams notes a remark of Mr. Canning, repeated for the second time,
+and not altogether gratifying. He said, writes Mr. Adams, "that he
+should always receive any observations that I may make to him with a
+just deference to my advance of years--over him. This is one of    (p. 140)
+those equivocal compliments which, according to Sterne, a Frenchman
+always returns with a bow."
+
+It was when they got upon the matter of the American settlement at the
+mouth of the Columbia River, that the two struck fire. Possession of
+this disputed spot had been taken by the Americans, but was broken up
+by the British during the war of 1812. After the declaration of peace
+upon the _status ante bellum_, a British government vessel had been
+dispatched upon the special errand of making formal return of the port
+to the Americans. In January, 1821, certain remarks made in debate in
+the House of Representatives, followed soon afterward by publication
+in the "National Intelligencer" of a paper signed by Senator Eaton,
+led Mr. Canning to think that the Government entertained the design of
+establishing a substantial settlement at the mouth of the river. On
+January 26 he called upon Mr. Adams and inquired the intentions of the
+Administration in regard to this. Mr. Adams replied that an increase
+of the present settlement was not improbable. Thereupon Mr. Canning
+dropping the air of "easy familiarity" which had previously marked the
+intercourse between the two, and "assuming a tone more peremptory"
+than Mr. Adams "was disposed to endure," expressed his great       (p. 141)
+surprise. Mr. Adams "with a corresponding change of tone" expressed
+equal surprise, "both at the form and substance of his address." Mr.
+Canning said that "he conceived such a settlement would be a direct
+violation of the article of the Convention of 20th October, 1818." Mr.
+Adams took down a volume, read the article, and said, "Now, sir, if
+you have any charge to make against the American Government for a
+violation of this article, you will please to make the communication
+in writing." Mr. Canning retorted, with great vehemence:--
+
+     "'And do you suppose, sir, that I am to be dictated to as to the
+     manner in which I may think proper to communicate with the
+     American Government?' I answered, 'No, sir. We know very well
+     what are the privileges of foreign ministers, and mean to respect
+     them. But you will give us leave to determine what communications
+     we will receive, and how we will receive them; and you may be
+     assured we are as little disposed to submit to dictation as to
+     exercise it.' He then, in a louder and more passionate tone of
+     voice, said: 'And am I to understand that I am to be refused
+     henceforth any conference with you upon the subject of my
+     mission?' 'Not at all, sir,' said I, 'my request is, that if you
+     have anything further to say to me _upon this subject_, you would
+     say it in writing. And my motive is to avoid what, both from the
+     nature of the subject and from the manner in which you        (p. 142)
+     have thought proper to open it, I foresee will tend only to
+     mutual irritation, and not to an amicable arrangement.' With some
+     abatement of tone, but in the same peremptory manner, he said,
+     'Am I to understand that you refuse any further conference with
+     me on this subject?' I said, 'No. But you will understand that I
+     am not pleased either with the grounds upon which you have sought
+     this conference, nor with the questions which you have seen fit
+     to put to me.'"
+
+Mr. Adams then proceeded to expose the impropriety of a foreign
+minister demanding from the Administration an explanation of words
+uttered in debate in Congress, and also said that he supposed that the
+British had no claim to the territory in question. Mr. Canning
+rejoined, and referred to the sending out of the American ship of war
+Ontario, in 1817, without any notice to the British minister[3] at
+Washington,--
+
+     "speaking in a very emphatic manner and as if there had been an
+     intended secret expedition ... which had been detected only by
+     the vigilance and penetration of the British minister. I
+     answered, 'Why, Mr. Bagot did say something to me about it; but I
+     certainly did not think him serious, and we had a good-humored
+     laughing conversation on the occasion.' Canning, with great
+     vehemence: 'You may rely upon it, sir, that it was no laughing
+     matter to him; for I have seen his report to his government and
+     know what his feelings concerning it were.' I replied,        (p. 143)
+     'This is the first intimation I have ever received that Mr. Bagot
+     took the slightest offence at what then passed between us, ...
+     and you will give me leave to say that when he left this
+     country'--Here I was going to add that the last words he said to
+     me were words of thanks for the invariable urbanity and
+     liberality of my conduct and the personal kindness which he had
+     uniformly received from me. But I could not finish the sentence.
+     Mr. Canning, in a paroxysm of extreme irritation, broke out: 'I
+     stop you there. I will not endure a misrepresentation of what I
+     say. I never said that Mr. Bagot took offence at anything that
+     had passed between him and you; and nothing that I said imported
+     any such thing.' Then ... added in the same passionate manner: 'I
+     am treated like a school-boy.' I then resumed: 'Mr. Canning, I
+     have a distinct recollection of the substance of the short
+     conversation between Mr. Bagot and me at that time; and it was
+     this'--'No doubt, sir,' said Canning, interrupting me again, 'no
+     doubt, sir, Mr. Bagot answered you like a man of good breeding
+     and good humor.'"
+
+                   [Footnote 3: Then Mr. Bagot.]
+
+Mr. Adams began again and succeeded in making, without further
+interruption, a careful recital of his talk with Mr. Bagot. While he
+was speaking Mr. Canning grew cooler, and expressed some surprise at
+what he heard. But in a few moments the conversation again became warm
+and personal. Mr. Adams remarked that heretofore he had thrown off (p. 144)
+some of the "cautious reserve" which might have been "strictly
+regular" between them, and that
+
+     "'so long as his (Canning's) professions had been supported by
+     his conduct'--Here Mr. Canning again stopped me by repeating with
+     great vehemence, 'My conduct! I am responsible for my conduct
+     only to my government!'"
+
+Mr. Adams replied, substantially, that he could respect the rights of
+Mr. Canning and maintain his own, and that he thought the best mode of
+treating this topic in future would be by writing. Mr. Canning then
+expressed himself as
+
+     "'willing to forget all that had now passed.' I told him that I
+     neither asked nor promised him to forget.... He asked again if he
+     was to understand me as refusing to confer with him further on
+     the subject. I said, 'No.' 'Would I appoint a time for that
+     purpose?' I said, 'Now, if he pleased.... But as he appeared to
+     be under some excitement, perhaps he might prefer some other
+     time, in which case I would readily receive him to-morrow at one
+     o'clock;' upon which he rose and took leave, saying he would come
+     at that time."
+
+The next day, accordingly, this genial pair again encountered. Mr.
+Adams noted at first in Mr. Canning's manner "an effort at coolness,
+but no appearance of cheerfulness or good humor. I saw there was   (p. 145)
+no relaxation of the tone he had yesterday assumed, and felt that
+none would on my part be suitable." They went over quietly enough some
+of the ground traversed the day before, Mr. Adams again explaining the
+impropriety of Mr. Canning questioning him concerning remarks made in
+debate in Congress. It was, he said, as if Mr. Rush, hearing in the
+House of Commons something said about sending troops to the Shetland
+Islands, should proceed to question Lord Castlereagh about it.
+
+     "'Have you,' said Mr. Canning, 'any claim to the Shetland
+     Islands?' 'Have you any _claim_,' said I, 'to the mouth of
+     Columbia River?' 'Why, do you not _know_,' replied he, 'that we
+     have a claim?' 'I do not _know_,' said I, 'what you claim nor
+     what you do not claim. You claim India; you claim Africa; you
+     claim'--'Perhaps,' said he, 'a piece of the moon.' 'No,' said I,
+     'I have not heard that you claim exclusively any part of the
+     moon; but there is not a spot on _this_ habitable globe that I
+     could affirm you do not claim!'"
+
+The conversation continued with alternations of lull and storm, Mr.
+Canning at times becoming warm and incensed and interrupting Mr.
+Adams, who retorted with a dogged asperity which must have been
+extremely irritating. Mr. Adams said that he did "not expect to be (p. 146)
+plied with captious questions" to obtain indirectly that which
+had been directly denied. Mr. Canning, "exceedingly irritated,"
+complained of the word "captious." Mr. Adams retaliated by reciting
+offensive language used by Mr. Canning, who in turn replied that he
+had been speaking only in self-defence. Mr. Canning found occasion to
+make again his peculiarly rasping remark that he should always strive
+to show towards Mr. Adams the deference due to his "more advanced
+years." After another very uncomfortable passage, Mr. Adams said that
+the behavior of Mr. Canning in making the observations of members of
+Congress a basis of official interrogations was a pretension the more
+necessary to be resisted because this
+
+     "'was not the first time it had been raised by a British minister
+     here.' He asked, with great emotion, who that minister was. I
+     answered, 'Mr. Jackson.' 'And you got rid of him!' said Mr.
+     Canning, in a tone of violent passion--'and you got rid of
+     him!--and you got rid of him!' This repetition of the same words,
+     always in the same tone, was with pauses of a few seconds between
+     each of them, as if for a reply. I said: 'Sir, my reference to
+     the pretension of Mr. Jackson was not'--Here Mr. Canning
+     interrupted me by saying: 'If you think that by reference to Mr.
+     Jackson I am to be intimidated from the performance of my     (p. 147)
+     duty you will find yourself greatly mistaken.' 'I had not,
+     sir,' said I, 'the most distant intention of intimidating you
+     from the performance of your duty; nor was it with the intention
+     of alluding to any subsequent occurrences of his mission;
+     but'--Mr. Canning interrupted me again by saying, still in a tone
+     of high exasperation,--'Let me tell you, sir, that your reference
+     to the case of Mr. Jackson is _exceedingly offensive_.' 'I do not
+     know,' said I, 'whether I shall be able to finish what I intended
+     to say, under such continual interruptions.'"
+
+Mr. Canning thereupon intimated by a bow his willingness to listen,
+and Mr. Adams reiterated what in a more fragmentary way he had already
+said. Mr. Canning then made a formal speech, mentioning his desire "to
+cultivate harmony and smooth down all remnants of asperity between the
+two countries," again gracefully referred to the deference which he
+should at all times pay to Mr. Adams's age, and closed by declaring,
+with a significant emphasis, that he would "never forget the respect
+due from him _to the American Government_." Mr. Adams bowed in silence
+and the stormy interview ended. A day or two afterward the disputants
+met by accident, and Mr. Canning showed such signs of resentment that
+there passed between them a "bare salutation."
+
+In the condition of our relations with Great Britain at the time   (p. 148)
+of these interviews any needless ill-feeling was strongly to be
+deprecated. But Mr. Adams's temperament was such that he always saw
+the greater chance of success in strong and spirited conduct; nor
+could he endure that the dignity of the Republic, any more than its
+safety, should take detriment in his hands. Moreover he understood
+Englishmen better perhaps than they have ever been understood by any
+other of the public men of the United States, and he handled and
+subdued them with a temper and skill highly agreeable to contemplate.
+The President supported him fully throughout the matter, and the
+discomfiture and wrath of Mr. Canning never became even indirectly a
+cause of regret to the country.
+
+As the years allotted to Monroe passed on, the manoeuvring among the
+candidates for the succession to the Presidency grew in activity.
+There were several possible presidents in the field, and during the
+"era of good feeling" many an aspiring politician had his brief period
+of mild expectancy followed in most cases only too surely by a hopeless
+relegation to obscurity. There were, however, four whose anticipations
+rested upon a substantial basis. William H. Crawford, Secretary of the
+Treasury, had been the rival of Monroe for nomination by the
+Congressional caucus, and had then developed sufficient strength   (p. 149)
+to make him justly sanguine that he might stand next to Monroe in the
+succession as he apparently did in the esteem of their common party.
+Mr. Clay, Speaker of the House of Representatives, had such
+expectations as might fairly grow out of his brilliant reputation,
+powerful influence in Congress, and great personal popularity. Mr.
+Adams was pointed out not only by his deserts but also by his position
+in the Cabinet, it having been the custom heretofore to promote the
+Secretary of State to the Presidency. It was not until the time of
+election was near at hand that the strength of General Jackson,
+founded of course upon the effect of his military prestige upon the
+masses of the people, began to appear to the other competitors a
+formidable element in the great rivalry. For a while Mr. Calhoun might
+have been regarded as a fifth, since he had already become the great
+chief of the South; but this cause of his strength was likewise his
+weakness, since it was felt that the North was fairly entitled to
+present the next candidate. The others, who at one time and another
+had aspirations, like De Witt Clinton and Tompkins, were never really
+formidable, and may be disregarded as insignificant threads in the
+complex political snarl which must be unravelled.
+
+[Illustration: Stratford Canning]
+
+As a study of the dark side of political society during this       (p. 150)
+period Mr. Adams's Diary is profoundly interesting. He writes with a
+charming absence of reserve. If he thinks there is rascality at work,
+he sets down the names of the knaves and expounds their various
+villainies of act and motive with delightfully outspoken frankness.
+All his life he was somewhat prone, it must be confessed, to
+depreciate the moral characters of others, and to suspect unworthy
+designs in the methods or ends of those who crossed his path. It was
+the not unnatural result of his own rigid resolve to be honest.
+Refraining with the stern conscientiousness, which was in the
+composition of his Puritan blood, from every act, whether in public or
+in private life, which seemed to him in the least degree tinged with
+immorality, he found a sort of compensation for the restraints and
+discomforts of his own austerity in judging severely the less
+punctilious world around him. Whatever other faults he had, it is
+unquestionable that his uprightness was as consistent and unvarying as
+can be reached by human nature. Yet his temptations were made the
+greater and the more cruel by the beliefs constantly borne in upon him
+that his rivals did not accept for their own governance in the contest
+the same rules by which he was pledged to himself to abide. Jealousy
+enhanced suspicion, and suspicion in turn pricked jealousy. It is  (p. 151)
+necessary, therefore, to be somewhat upon our guard in accepting
+his estimates of men and acts at this period; though the broad general
+impression to be gathered from his treatment of his rivals, even in
+these confidential pages, is favorable at least to his justice of
+disposition and honesty of intention.
+
+At the outset Mr. Clay excited Mr. Adams's most lively resentment. The
+policy which seemed most promising to that gentleman lay in antagonism
+to the Administration, whereas, in the absence of substantial party
+issues, there seemed, at least to members of that Administration, to
+be no proper grounds for such antagonism. When, therefore, Mr. Clay
+found or devised such grounds, the President and his Cabinet, vexed
+and harassed by the opposition of so influential a man, not
+unnaturally attributed his tactics to selfish and, in a political
+sense, corrupt motives. Thus Mr. Adams stigmatized his opposition to
+the Florida treaty as prompted by no just objection to its
+stipulations, but by a malicious wish to bring discredit upon the
+negotiator. Probably the charge was true, and Mr. Clay's honesty in
+opposing an admirable treaty can only be vindicated at the expense of
+his understanding,--an explanation certainly not to be accepted. But
+when Mr. Adams attributed to the same motive of embarrassing the   (p. 152)
+Administration Mr. Clay's energetic endeavors to force a recognition
+of the insurgent states of South America, he exaggerated the inimical
+element in his rival's motives. It was the business of the President
+and Cabinet, and preeminently of the Secretary of State, to see to it
+that the country should not move too fast in this very nice and
+perilous matter of recognizing the independence of rebels. Mr. Adams
+was the responsible minister, and had to hold the reins; Mr. Clay,
+outside the official vehicle, cracked the lash probably a little more
+loudly than he would have done had he been on the coach-box. It may be
+assumed that in advocating his various motions looking to the
+appointment of ministers to the new states and to other acts of
+recognition, he felt his eloquence rather fired than dampened by the
+thought of how much trouble he was making for Mr. Adams; but that he
+was at the same time espousing the cause to which he sincerely wished
+well is probably true. His ardent temper was stirred by this struggle
+for independence, and his rhetorical nature could not resist the
+opportunities for fervid and brilliant oratory presented by this
+struggle for freedom against mediaeval despotism. Real convictions were
+sometimes diluted with rodomontade, and a true feeling was to some
+extent stimulated by the desire to embarrass a rival.
+
+Entire freedom from prejudice would have been too much to expect   (p. 153)
+from Mr. Adams; but his criticisms of Clay are seldom marked by
+any serious accusations or really bitter explosions of ill-temper.
+Early in his term of office he writes that Mr. Clay has "already
+mounted his South American great horse," and that his "project is that
+in which John Randolph failed, to control or overthrow the Executive
+by swaying the House of Representatives." Again he says that "Clay is
+as rancorously benevolent as John Randolph." The sting of these
+remarks lay rather in the comparison with Randolph than in their
+direct allegations. In January, 1819, Adams notes that Clay has
+"redoubled his rancor against me," and gives himself "free swing to
+assault me ... both in his public speeches and by secret machinations,
+without scruple or delicacy." The diarist gloomily adds, that "all
+public business in Congress now connects itself with intrigues, and
+there is great danger that the whole Government will degenerate into a
+struggle of cabals." He was rather inclined to such pessimistic
+vaticinations; but it must be confessed that he spoke with too much
+reason on this occasion. In the absence of a sufficient supply of
+important public questions to absorb the energies of the men in public
+life, the petty game of personal politics was playing with unusual
+zeal. As time went on, however, and the South American questions   (p. 154)
+were removed from the arena, Adams's ill-feeling towards Clay became
+greatly mitigated. Clay's assaults and opposition also gradually
+dwindled away; go-betweens carried to and fro disclaimers, made by the
+principals, of personal ill-will towards each other; and before the
+time of election was actually imminent something as near the _entente
+cordiale_ was established as could be reasonably expected to exist
+between competitors very unlike both in moral and mental
+constitution.[4]
+
+                   [Footnote 4: For a deliberate estimate of Clay's
+                   character see Mr. Adams's Diary, v. 325.]
+
+Mr. Adams's unbounded indignation and profound contempt were reserved
+for Mr. Crawford, partly, it may be suspected by the cynically minded,
+because Crawford for a long time seemed to be by far the most
+formidable rival, but partly also because Crawford was in fact unable
+to resist the temptation to use ignoble means for attaining an end
+which he coveted too keenly for his own honor. It was only by degrees
+that Adams began to suspect the underhand methods and malicious
+practices of Crawford; but as conviction was gradually brought home to
+him his native tendency towards suspicion was enhanced to an extreme
+degree. He then came to recognize in Crawford a wholly selfish     (p. 155)
+and scheming politician, who had the baseness to retain his seat in
+Mr. Monroe's Cabinet with the secret persistent object of giving the
+most fatal advice in his power. From that time forth he saw in every
+suggestion made by the Secretary of the Treasury only an insidious
+intent to lead the Administration, and especially the Department of
+State, into difficulty, failure, and disrepute. He notes, evidently
+with perfect belief, that for this purpose Crawford was even covertly
+busy with the Spanish ambassador to prevent an accommodation of our
+differences with Spain. "Oh, the windings of the human heart!" he
+exclaims; "possibly Crawford is not himself conscious of his real
+motives for this conduct." Even the slender measure of charity
+involved in this last sentence rapidly evaporated from the poisoned
+atmosphere of his mind. He mentions that Crawford has killed a man in
+a duel; that he leaves unanswered a pamphlet "supported by documents"
+exhibiting him "in the most odious light, as sacrificing every
+principle to his ambition." Because Calhoun would not support him for
+the Presidency, Crawford stimulated a series of attacks upon the War
+Department. He was the "instigator and animating spirit of the whole
+movement both in Congress and at Richmond against Jackson and the
+Administration." He was "a worm preying upon the vitals of the     (p. 156)
+Administration in its own body." He "solemnly deposed in a court
+of justice that which is not true," for the purpose of bringing
+discredit upon the testimony given by Mr. Adams in the same cause. But
+Mr. Adams says of this that he cannot bring himself to believe that
+Crawford has been guilty of wilful falsehood, though convicted of
+inaccuracy by his own words; for "ambition debauches memory itself." A
+little later he would have been less merciful. In some vexatious and
+difficult commercial negotiations which Mr. Adams was conducting with
+France, Crawford is "afraid of [the result] being too favorable."
+
+To form a just opinion of the man thus unpleasantly sketched is
+difficult. For nearly eight years Mr. Adams was brought into close and
+constant relations with him, and as a result formed a very low opinion
+of his character and by no means a high estimate of his abilities.
+Even after making a liberal allowance for the prejudice naturally
+supervening from their rivalry there is left a residuum of condemnation
+abundantly sufficient to ruin a more vigorous reputation than Crawford
+has left behind him. Apparently Mr. Calhoun, though a fellow
+Southerner, thought no better of the ambitious Georgian than did Mr.
+Adams, to whom one day he remarked that Crawford was "a very       (p. 157)
+singular instance of a man of such character rising to the eminence he
+now occupies; that there has not been in the history of the Union
+another man with abilities so ordinary, with services so slender, and
+so thoroughly corrupt, who had contrived to make himself a candidate
+for the Presidency." Nor was this a solitary expression of the
+feelings of the distinguished South Carolinian.
+
+Mr. E. H. Mills, Senator from Massachusetts, and a dispassionate
+observer, speaks of Crawford with scant favor as "coarse, rough,
+uneducated, of a pretty strong mind, a great intriguer, and determined
+to make himself President." He adds: "Adams, Jackson, and Calhoun all
+think well of each other, and are united at least in one thing,--to
+wit, a most thorough dread and abhorrence of Crawford."
+
+Yet Crawford was for many years not only never without eager
+expectations of his own, which narrowly missed realization and might
+not have missed it had not his health broken down a few months too
+soon, but he had a large following, strong friends, and an extensive
+influence. But if he really had great ability he had not the good
+fortune of an opportunity to show it; and he lives in history rather
+as a man from whom much was expected than as a man who achieved    (p. 158)
+much. One faculty, however, not of the best, but serviceable, he had
+in a rare degree: he thoroughly understood all the artifices of
+politics; he knew how to interest and organize partisans, to obtain
+newspaper support, and generally to extend and direct his following
+after that fashion which soon afterward began to be fully developed by
+the younger school of our public men. He was the _avant courier_ of a
+bad system, of which the first crude manifestations were received with
+well-merited disrelish by the worthier among his contemporaries.
+
+It is the more easy to believe that Adams's distrust of Crawford was a
+sincere conviction, when we consider his behavior towards another
+dangerous rival, General Jackson. In view of the new phase which the
+relationship between these two men was soon to take on, Adams's hearty
+championship of Jackson for several years prior to 1825 deserves
+mention. The Secretary stood gallantly by the General at a crisis in
+Jackson's life when he greatly needed such strong official backing,
+and in an hour of extreme need Adams alone in the Cabinet of Monroe
+lent an assistance which Jackson afterwards too readily forgot. Seldom
+has a government been brought by the undue zeal of its servants into a
+quandary more perplexing than that into which the reckless military
+hero brought the Administration of President Monroe. Turned loose  (p. 159)
+in the regions of Florida, checked only by an uncertain and disputed
+boundary line running through half-explored forests, confronted by a
+hated foe whose strength he could well afford to despise, General
+Jackson, in a war properly waged only against Indians, ran a wild and
+lawless, but very vigorous and effective, career in Spanish
+possessions. He hung a couple of British subjects with as scant trial
+and meagre shrift as if he had been a mediaeval free-lance; he marched
+upon Spanish towns and peremptorily forced the blue-blooded commanders
+to capitulate in the most humiliating manner; afterwards, when the
+Spanish territory had become American, in his civil capacity as
+Governor, he flung the Spanish Commissioner into jail. He treated
+instructions, laws, and established usages as teasing cobwebs which
+any spirited public servant was in duty bound to break; then he
+quietly stated his willingness to let the country take the benefit of
+his irregular proceedings and make him the scapegoat or martyr if such
+should be needed. How to treat this too successful chieftain was no
+simple problem. He had done what he ought not to have done, yet
+everybody in the country was heartily glad that he had done it. He
+ought not to have hung Arbuthnot and Ambrister, nor to have seized (p. 160)
+Pensacola, nor later on to have imprisoned Callava; yet the general
+efficiency of his procedure fully accorded with the secret disposition
+of the country. It was, however, not easy to establish the propriety
+of his trenchant doings upon any acknowledged principles of law, and
+during the long period through which these disturbing feats extended,
+Jackson was left in painful solitude by those who felt obliged to
+judge his actions by rule rather than by sympathy. The President was
+concerned lest his Administration should be brought into indefensible
+embarrassment; Calhoun was personally displeased because the
+instructions issued from his department had been exceeded; Crawford
+eagerly sought to make the most of such admirable opportunities for
+destroying the prestige of one who might grow into a dangerous rival;
+Clay, who hated a military hero, indulged in a series of fierce
+denunciations in the House of Representatives; Mr. Adams alone stood
+gallantly by the man who had dared to take vigorous measures upon his
+own sole responsibility. His career touched a kindred chord in Adams's
+own independent and courageous character, and perhaps for the only
+time in his life the Secretary of State became almost sophistical in
+the arguments by which he endeavored to sustain the impetuous warrior
+against an adverse Cabinet. The authority given to Jackson to      (p. 161)
+cross the Spanish frontier in pursuit of the Indian enemy was
+justified as being only defensive warfare; then "all the rest," argued
+Adams, "even to the order for taking the Fort of Barrancas by storm,
+was incidental, deriving its character from the object, which was not
+hostility to Spain, but the termination of the Indian war." Through
+long and anxious sessions Adams stood fast in opposing "the unanimous
+opinions" of the President, Crawford, Calhoun, and Wirt. Their policy
+seemed to him a little ignoble and wholly blundering, because, he
+said, "it is weakness and a confession of weakness. The disclaimer of
+power in the Executive is of dangerous example and of evil
+consequences. There is injustice to the officer in disavowing him,
+when in principle he is strictly justifiable." This behavior upon Mr.
+Adams's part was the more generous and disinterested because the
+earlier among these doings of Jackson incensed Don Onis extremely and
+were near bringing about the entire disruption of that important
+negotiation with Spain upon which Mr. Adams had so much at stake. But
+few civilians have had a stronger dash of the fighting element than
+had Mr. Adams, and this impelled him irresistibly to stand shoulder to
+shoulder with Jackson in such an emergency, regardless of possible
+consequences to himself. He preferred to insist that the hanging   (p. 162)
+of Arbuthnot and Ambrister was according to the laws of war and to
+maintain that position in the teeth of Stratford Canning rather than
+to disavow it and render apology and reparation. So three years later
+when Jackson was again in trouble by reason of his arrest of Callava,
+he still found a stanch advocate in Adams, who, having made an argument
+for the defence which would have done credit to a subtle-minded
+barrister, concluded by adopting the sentiment of Hume concerning the
+execution of Don Pantaleon de Sa by Oliver Cromwell,--if the laws of
+nations had been violated, "it was by a signal act of justice
+deserving universal approbation." Later still, on January 8, 1824,
+being the anniversary of the victory of New Orleans, as if to make a
+conspicuous declaration of his opinions in favor of Jackson, Mr. Adams
+gave a great ball in his honor, "at which about one thousand persons
+attended."[5]
+
+                   [Footnote 5: Senator Mills says of this grand ball:
+                   "Eight large rooms were open and literally filled
+                   to overflowing. There must have been at least a
+                   thousand people there; and so far as Mr. Adams was
+                   concerned it certainly evinced a great deal of
+                   taste, elegance, and good sense.... Many stayed
+                   till twelve and one.... It is the universal opinion
+                   that nothing has ever equalled this party here
+                   either in brilliancy of preparation or elegance of
+                   the company."]
+
+He was in favor of offering to the General the position of         (p. 163)
+minister to Mexico; and before Jackson had developed into a rival of
+himself for the Presidency, he exerted himself to secure the
+Vice-Presidency for him. Thus by argument and by influence in the
+Cabinet, in many a private interview, and in the world of society,
+also by wise counsel when occasion offered, Mr. Adams for many years
+made himself the noteworthy and indeed the only powerful friend of
+General Jackson. Nor up to the last moment, and when Jackson had
+become his most dangerous competitor, is there any derogatory passage
+concerning him in the Diary.
+
+As the period of election drew nigh, interest in it absorbed
+everything else; indeed during the last year of Monroe's
+Administration public affairs were so quiescent and the public
+business so seldom transcended the simplest routine, that there was
+little else than the next Presidency to be thought or talked of. The
+rivalship for this, as has been said, was based not upon conflicting
+theories concerning public affairs, but solely upon individual
+preference for one or another of four men no one of whom at that
+moment represented any great principle in antagonism to any of the
+others. Under no circumstances could the temptation to petty intrigue
+and malicious tale-bearing be greater than when votes were         (p. 164)
+to be gained or lost solely by personal predilection. In such a
+contest Adams was severely handicapped as against the showy prestige
+of the victorious soldier, the popularity of the brilliant orator, and
+the artfulness of the most dexterous political manager then in public
+life. Long prior to this stage Adams had established his rule of
+conduct in the campaign. So early as March, 1818, he was asked one day
+by Mr. Everett whether he was "determined to do nothing with a view to
+promote his future election to the Presidency as the successor of Mr.
+Monroe," and he had replied that he "should do absolutely nothing." To
+this resolution he sturdily adhered. Not a breach of it was ever
+brought home to him, or indeed--save in one instance soon to be
+noticed--seriously charged against him. There is not in the Diary the
+faintest trace of any act which might be so much as questionable or
+susceptible of defence only by casuistry. That he should have
+perpetuated evidence of any flagrant misdoing certainly could not be
+expected; but in a record kept with the fulness and frankness of this
+Diary we should read between the lines and detect as it were in its
+general flavor any taint of disingenuousness or concealment; we should
+discern moral unwholesomeness in its atmosphere. A thoughtless
+sentence would slip from the pen, a sophistical argument would be  (p. 165)
+formulated for self-comfort, some acquaintance, interview, or
+arrangement would slide upon some unguarded page indicative of
+undisclosed matters. But there is absolutely nothing of this sort.
+There is no tinge of bad color; all is clear as crystal. Not an
+editor, nor a member of Congress, nor a local politician, not even a
+private individual, was intimidated or conciliated. On the contrary it
+often happened that those who made advances, at least sometimes
+stimulated by honest friendship, got rebuffs instead of encouragement.
+Even after the contest was known to have been transferred to the House
+of Representatives, when Washington was actually buzzing with the
+ceaseless whisperings of many secret conclaves, when the air was thick
+with rumors of what this one had said and that one had done, when, as
+Webster said, there were those who pretended to foretell how a
+representative would vote from the way in which he put on his hat,
+when of course stories of intrigue and corruption poisoned the honest
+breeze, and when the streets seemed traversed only by the busy tread
+of the go-betweens, the influential friends, the wire-pullers of the
+various contestants,--still amid all this noisy excitement and extreme
+temptation Mr. Adams held himself almost wholly aloof, wrapped in the
+cloak of his rigid integrity. His proud honesty was only not quite (p. 166)
+repellent; he sometimes allowed himself to answer questions
+courteously, and for a brief period held in check his strong natural
+propensity to give offence and make enemies. This was the uttermost
+length that he could go towards political corruption. He became for a
+few weeks tolerably civil of speech, which after all was much for him
+to do and doubtless cost him no insignificant effort. Since the days
+of Washington he alone presents the singular spectacle of a candidate
+for the Presidency deliberately taking the position, and in a long
+campaign really never flinching from it: "that, if the people wish me
+to be President I shall not refuse the office; but I ask nothing from
+any man or from any body of men."
+
+Yet though he declined to be a courtier of popular favor he did not
+conceal from himself or from others the chagrin which he would feel if
+there should be a manifestation of popular disfavor. Before the
+popular election he stated that if it should go against him he should
+construe it as the verdict of the people that they were dissatisfied
+with his services as a public man, and he should then retire to
+private life, no longer expecting or accepting public functions. He
+did not regard politics as a struggle in which, if he should now   (p. 167)
+be beaten in one encounter, he would return to another in the hope
+of better success in time. His notion was that the people had had
+ample opportunity during his incumbency in appointive offices to
+measure his ability and understand his character, and that the action
+of the people in electing or not electing him to the Presidency would
+be an indication that they were satisfied or dissatisfied with him. In
+the latter event he had nothing more to seek. Politics did not
+constitute a profession or career in which he felt entitled to persist
+in seeking personal success as he might in the law or in business.
+Neither did the circumstances of the time place him in the position of
+an advocate of any great principle which he might feel it his duty to
+represent and to fight for against any number of reverses. No such
+element was present at this time in national affairs. He construed the
+question before the people simply as concerning their opinion of him.
+He was much too proud to solicit and much too honest to scheme for a
+favorable expression. It was a singular and a lofty attitude even if a
+trifle egotistical and not altogether unimpeachable by argument. It
+could not diminish but rather it intensified his interest in a contest
+which he chose to regard not simply as a struggle for a glittering (p. 168)
+prize but as a judgment upon the services which he had been for a
+lifetime rendering to his countrymen.
+
+How profoundly his whole nature was moved by the position in which he
+stood is evident, often almost painfully, in the Diary. Any attempt to
+conceal his feeling would be idle, and he makes no such attempt. He
+repeats all the rumors which come to his ears; he tells the stories
+about Crawford's illness; he records his own temptations; he tries
+hard to nerve himself to bear defeat philosophically by constantly
+predicting it; indeed, he photographs his whole existence for many
+weeks; and however eagerly any person may aspire to the Presidency of
+the United States there is little in the picture to make one long for
+the preliminary position of candidate for that honor. It is too much
+like the stake and the flames through which the martyr passed to
+eternal beatitude, with the difference as against the candidate that
+he has by no means the martyr's certainty of reward.
+
+In those days of slow communication it was not until December, 1824,
+that it became everywhere known that there had been no election of a
+president by the people. When the Electoral College met the result of
+their ballots was as follows:--
+
+  General Jackson led with   99 votes.                             (p. 169)
+  Adams followed with        84   "
+  Crawford had               41   "
+  Clay had                   37   "
+                            ---
+  Total                     261 votes.
+
+Mr. Calhoun was elected Vice-President by the handsome number of 182
+votes.
+
+This condition of the election had been quite generally anticipated;
+yet Mr. Adams's friends were not without some feeling of
+disappointment. They had expected for him a fair support at the South,
+whereas he in fact received seventy-seven out of his eighty-four votes
+from New York and New England; Maryland gave him three, Louisiana gave
+him two, Delaware and Illinois gave him one each.
+
+When the electoral body was known to be reduced within the narrow
+limits of the House of Representatives, intrigue was rather stimulated
+than diminished by the definiteness which became possible for it. Mr.
+Clay, who could not come before the House, found himself transmuted
+from a candidate to a President-maker; for it was admitted by all that
+his great personal influence in Congress would almost undoubtedly
+confer success upon the aspirant whom he should favor. Apparently his
+predilections were at least possibly in favor of Crawford; but     (p. 170)
+Crawford's health had been for many months very bad; he had had a
+severe paralytic stroke, and when acting as Secretary of the Treasury
+he had been unable to sign his name, so that a stamp or die had been
+used; his speech was scarcely intelligible; and when Mr. Clay visited
+him in the retirement in which his friends now kept him, the fact
+could not be concealed that he was for the time at least a wreck. Mr.
+Clay therefore had to decide for himself, his followers, and the
+country whether Mr. Adams or General Jackson should be the next
+President of the United States. A cruel attempt was made in this
+crisis either to destroy his influence by blackening his character, or
+to intimidate him, through fear of losing his reputation for
+integrity, into voting for Jackson. An anonymous letter charged that
+the friends of Clay had hinted that, "like the Swiss, they would fight
+for those who pay best;" that they had offered to elect Jackson if he
+would agree to make Clay Secretary of State, and that upon his
+indignant refusal to make such a bargain the same proposition had been
+made to Mr. Adams, who was found less scrupulous and had promptly
+formed the "unholy coalition." This wretched publication, made a few
+days before the election in the House, was traced to a dull-witted
+Pennsylvania Representative by the name of Kremer, who had         (p. 171)
+obviously been used as a tool by cleverer men. It met, however, the
+fate which seems happily always to attend such ignoble devices, and
+failed utterly of any more important effect than the utter
+annihilation of Kremer. In truth, General Jackson's fate had been
+sealed from the instant when it had fallen into Mr. Clay's hands. Clay
+had long since expressed his unfavorable opinion of the "military
+hero," in terms too decisive to admit of explanation or retraction.
+Without much real liking for Adams, Clay at least disliked him much
+less than he did Jackson, and certainly his honest judgment favored
+the civilian far more than the disorderly soldier whose lawless career
+in Florida had been the topic of some of the great orator's fiercest
+invective. The arguments founded on personal fitness were strongly
+upon the side of Adams, and other arguments advanced by the Jacksonians
+could hardly deceive Clay. They insisted that their candidate was the
+choice of the people so far as a superiority of preference had been
+indicated, and that therefore he ought to be also the choice of the
+House of Representatives. It would be against the spirit of the
+Constitution and a thwarting of the popular will, they said, to prefer
+either of his competitors. The fallacy of this reasoning, if reasoning
+it could be called, was glaring. If the spirit of the Constitution (p. 172)
+required the House of Representatives not to _elect_ from three
+candidates before it, but only to induct an individual into the
+Presidency by a process which was in form voting but in fact only a
+simple certification that he had received the highest number of
+electoral votes, it would have been a plain and easy matter for the
+letter of the Constitution to have expressed this spirit, or indeed to
+have done away altogether with this machinery of a sham election. The
+Jackson men had only to state their argument in order to expose its
+hollowness; for they said substantially that the Constitution
+established an election without an option; that the electors were to
+vote for a person predestined by an earlier occurrence to receive
+their ballots. But besides their unsoundness in argument, their
+statistical position was far from being what they undertook to
+represent it. The popular vote had been so light that it really looked
+as though the people had cared very little which candidate should
+succeed; and to talk about a manifestation of the _popular will_ was
+absurd, for the only real manifestation had been of popular
+indifference. For example, in 1823 Massachusetts had cast upwards of
+66,000 votes in the state election, whereas in this national election
+she cast only a trifle more than 37,000. Virginia distributed      (p. 173)
+a total of less than 15,000 among all four candidates. Pluralities did
+not signify much in such a condition of sentiment as was indicated by
+these figures. Moreover, in six States, viz., Vermont, New York,
+Delaware, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, the electors were chosen
+by the legislatures, not by the people; so that there was no correct
+way of counting them at all in a discussion of pluralities. Guesses
+and approximations favored Adams, and to an important degree; for
+these six States gave to Adams thirty-six votes, to Jackson nineteen,
+to Crawford six, to Clay four. In New York, Jackson had hardly an
+appreciable following. Moreover, in other States many thousands of
+votes which had been "cast for no candidate in particular, but in
+opposition to the caucus ticket generally," were reckoned as if they
+had been cast for Jackson or against Adams, as suited the especial
+case. Undoubtedly Jackson did have a plurality, but undoubtedly it
+fell very far short of the imposing figure, nearly 48,000, which his
+supporters had the audacity to name.
+
+The election took place in the House on February 9, 1825. Daniel
+Webster and John Randolph were tellers, and they reported that there
+were "for John Quincy Adams, of Massachusetts, thirteen votes; for
+Andrew Jackson, of Tennessee, seven votes; for William H. Crawford,
+of Georgia, four votes." Thereupon the speaker announced Mr. Adams (p. 174)
+to have been elected President of the United States.
+
+This end of an unusually exciting contest thus left Mr. Adams in
+possession of the field, Mr. Crawford the victim of an irretrievable
+defeat, Mr. Clay still hopeful and aspiring for a future which had
+only disappointment in store for him, General Jackson enraged and
+revengeful. Not even Mr. Adams was fully satisfied. When the committee
+waited upon him to inform him of the election, he referred in his
+reply to the peculiar state of things and said, "could my refusal to
+accept the trust thus delegated to me give an opportunity to the
+people to form and to express with a nearer approach to unanimity the
+object of their preference, I should not hesitate to decline the
+acceptance of this eminent charge and to submit the decision of this
+momentous question again to their decision." That this singular and
+striking statement was made in good faith is highly probable. William
+H. Seward says that it was "unquestionably uttered with great
+sincerity of heart." The test of action of course could not be
+applied, since the resignation of Mr. Adams would only have made Mr.
+Calhoun President, and could not have been so arranged as to bring
+about a new election. Otherwise the course of his argument would   (p. 175)
+have been clear; the fact that such action involved an enormous
+sacrifice would have been to his mind strong evidence that it was a
+duty; and the temptation to perform a duty, always strong with him,
+became ungovernable if the duty was exceptionally disagreeable. Under
+the circumstances, however, the only logical conclusion lay in the
+inauguration, which took place in the customary simple fashion on
+March 4, 1825. Mr. Adams, we are told, was dressed in a black suit, of
+which all the materials were wholly of American manufacture. Prominent
+among those who after the ceremony hastened to greet him and to shake
+hands with him appeared General Jackson. It was the last time that any
+friendly courtesy is recorded as having passed between the two.
+
+Many men eminent in public affairs have had their best years embittered
+by their failure to secure the glittering prize of the Presidency. Mr.
+Adams is perhaps the only person to whom the gaining of that proud
+distinction has been in some measure a cause of chagrin. This strange
+sentiment, which he undoubtedly felt, was due to the fact that what he
+had wished was not the office in and for itself, but the office as a
+symbol or token of the popular approval. He had held important and
+responsible public positions during substantially his whole active (p. 176)
+life; he was nearly sixty years old, and, as he said, he now for the
+first time had an opportunity to find out in what esteem the people of
+the country held him. What he wished was that the people should now
+express their decided satisfaction with him. This he hardly could be
+said to have obtained; though to be the choice of a plurality in the
+nation and then to be selected by so intelligent a body of
+constituents as the Representatives of the United States involved a
+peculiar sanction, yet nothing else could fully take the place of that
+national indorsement which he had coveted. When men publicly profess
+modest depreciation of their successes they are seldom believed; but
+in his private Diary Mr. Adams wrote, on December 31, 1825:--
+
+     "The year has been the most momentous of those that have passed
+     over my head, inasmuch as it has witnessed my elevation at the
+     age of fifty-eight to the Chief Magistracy of my country, to the
+     summit of laudable or at least blameless worldly ambition; not
+     however in a manner satisfactory to pride or to just desire; not
+     by the unequivocal suffrages of a majority of the people; with
+     perhaps two thirds of the whole people adverse to the actual
+     result."
+
+No President since Washington had ever come into office so entirely
+free from any manner of personal obligations or partisan           (p. 177)
+entanglements, express or implied, as did Mr. Adams. Throughout the
+campaign he had not himself, or by any agent, held out any manner of
+tacit inducement to any person whomsoever, contingent upon his
+election. He entered upon the Presidency under no indebtedness. He at
+once nominated his Cabinet as follows: Henry Clay, Secretary of State;
+Richard Rush, Secretary of the Treasury; James Barbour, Secretary of
+War; Samuel L. Southard, Secretary of the Navy; William Wirt,
+Attorney-General. The last two were renominations of the incumbents
+under Monroe. The entire absence of chicanery or the use of influence
+in the distribution of offices is well illustrated by the following
+incident: On the afternoon following the day of inauguration President
+Adams called upon Rufus King, whose term of service as Senator from
+New York had just expired, and who was preparing to leave Washington
+on the next day. In the course of a conversation concerning the
+nominations which had been sent to the Senate that forenoon the
+President said that he had nominated no minister to the English court,
+and
+
+     "asked Mr. King if he would accept that mission. His first and
+     immediate impulse was to decline it. He said that his
+     determination to retire from the public service had been      (p. 178)
+     made up, and that this proposal was utterly unexpected to
+     him. Of this I was aware; but I urged upon him a variety of
+     considerations to induce his acceptance of it.... I dwelt with
+     earnestness upon all these motives, and apparently not without
+     effect. He admitted the force of them, and finally promised fully
+     to consider of the proposal before giving me a definite answer."
+
+The result was an acceptance by Mr. King, his nomination by the
+President, and confirmation by the Senate. He was an old Federalist,
+to whom Mr. Adams owed no favors. With such directness and simplicity
+were the affairs of the Republic conducted. It is a quaint and
+pleasing scene from the period of our forefathers: the President,
+without discussion of "claims" to a distinguished and favorite post,
+actually selects for it a member of a hostile political organization,
+an old man retiring from public life; then quietly walks over to his
+house, surprises him with the offer, and finding him reluctant
+urgently presses upon him arguments to induce his acceptance. But the
+whole business of office-seeking and office-distributing, now so
+overshadowing, had no place under Mr. Adams. On March 5 he sent in
+several nominations which were nearly all of previous incumbents.
+"Efforts had been made," he writes, "by some of the senators to obtain
+different nominations, and to introduce a principle of change or   (p. 179)
+rotation in office at the expiration of these commissions, which would
+make the Government a perpetual and unintermitting scramble for
+office. A more pernicious expedient could scarcely have been
+devised.... I determined to renominate every person against whom there
+was no complaint which would have warranted his removal." A notable
+instance was that of Sterret, naval officer at New Orleans, "a noisy
+and clamorous reviler of the Administration," and lately busy in a
+project for insulting a Louisiana Representative who had voted for Mr.
+Adams. Secretary Clay was urgent for the removal of this man,
+plausibly saying that in the cases of persons holding office at the
+pleasure of the Administration the proper course was to avoid on the
+one hand political persecution, and on the other any appearance of
+pusillanimity. Mr. Adams replied that if Sterret had been actually
+engaged in insulting a representative for the honest and independent
+discharge of duty, he would make the removal at once. But the design
+had not been consummated, and an _intention_ never carried into effect
+would scarcely justify removal.
+
+     "Besides [he added], should I remove this man for this cause it
+     must be upon some fixed principle, which would apply to others as
+     well as to him. And where was it possible to draw the line?   (p. 180)
+     Of the custom-house officers throughout the Union, four fifths
+     in all probability were opposed to my election. Crawford,
+     Secretary of the Treasury, had distributed these positions among
+     his own supporters. I had been urged very earnestly and from
+     various quarters to sweep away my opponents and provide with
+     their places for my friends. I can justify the refusal to adopt
+     this policy only by the steadiness and consistency of my adhesion
+     to my own. If I depart from this in one instance I shall be
+     called upon by my friends to do the same in many. An invidious
+     and inquisitorial scrutiny into the personal dispositions of
+     public officers will creep through the whole Union, and the most
+     selfish and sordid passions will be kindled into activity to
+     distort the conduct and misrepresent the feelings of men whose
+     places may become the prize of slander upon them."
+
+Mr. Clay was silenced, and Sterret retained his position, constituting
+thereafter only a somewhat striking instance among many to show that
+nothing was to be lost by political opposition to Mr. Adams.
+
+It was a cruel and discouraging fatality which brought about that a
+man so suicidally upright in the matter of patronage should find that
+the bitterest abuse which was heaped upon him was founded in an
+allegation of corruption of precisely this nature. When before the
+election the ignoble George Kremer anonymously charged that        (p. 181)
+Mr. Clay had sold his friends in the House of Representatives to Mr.
+Adams, "as the planter does his negroes or the farmer his team and
+horses;" when Mr. Clay promptly published the unknown writer as "a
+base and infamous calumniator, a dastard and a liar;" when next
+Kremer, being unmasked, avowed that he would make good his charges,
+but immediately afterward actually refused to appear or testify before
+a Committee of the House instructed to investigate the matter, it was
+supposed by all reasonable observers that the outrageous accusation
+Was forever laid at rest. But this was by no means the case. The
+author of the slander had been personally discredited; but the slander
+itself had not been destroyed. So shrewdly had its devisers who saw
+future usefulness in it managed the matter, that while Kremer slunk
+away into obscurity, the story which he had told remained an assertion
+denied, but not disproved, still open to be believed by suspicious or
+willing friends. With Adams President and Clay Secretary of State and
+General Jackson nominated, as he quickly was by the Tennessee
+Legislature, as a candidate for the next Presidential term, the
+accusation was too plausible and too tempting to be allowed to fall
+forever into dusty death; rather it was speedily exhumed from its
+shallow burial and galvanized into new life. The partisans of      (p. 182)
+General Jackson sent it to and fro throughout the land. No denial,
+no argument, could kill it. It began to gain that sort of half belief
+which is certain to result from constant repetition; since many minds
+are so constituted that truth may be actually, as it were,
+manufactured for them by ceaseless iteration of statement, the many
+hearings gaining the character of evidence.
+
+It is long since all students of American history, no matter what are
+their prejudices, or in whose interest their researches are
+prosecuted, have branded this accusation as devoid of even the most
+shadowy basis of probability, and it now gains no more credit than
+would a story that Adams, Clay, and Jackson had conspired together to
+get Crawford out of their way by assassination, and that his paralysis
+was the result of the drugs and potions administered in performance of
+this foul plot. But for a while the rumor stalked abroad among the
+people, and many conspicuously bowed down before it because it served
+their purpose, and too many others also, it must be confessed, did
+likewise because they were deceived and really believed it. Even the
+legislature of Tennessee were not ashamed to give formal countenance
+to a calumny in support of which not a particle of evidence had ever
+been adduced. In a preamble to certain resolutions passed by this  (p. 183)
+body upon this subject in 1827, it was recited that: "Mr. Adams
+desired the office of President; he went into the combination without
+it, and came out with it. Mr. Clay desired that of Secretary of State;
+he went into the combination without it, and came out with it." No
+other charge could have wounded Mr. Adams so keenly; yet no course was
+open to him for refuting the slander. Mr. Clay, beside himself with a
+just rage, was better able to fight after the fashion of the day--if
+indeed he could only find somebody to fight. This he did at last in
+the person of John Randolph, of Roanoke, who adverted in one of his
+rambling and vituperative harangues to "the coalition of Blifil and
+Black George--the combination unheard of till then of the Puritan and
+the black-leg." This language led naturally enough to a challenge from
+Mr. Clay. The parties met[6] and exchanged shots without result. The
+pistols were a second time loaded; Clay fired; Randolph fired into the
+air, walked up to Clay and without a word gave him his hand, which
+Clay had as it were perforce to take. There was no injury done save to
+the skirts of Randolph's long flannel coat which were pierced by one
+of the bullets.
+
+                   [Footnote 6: April 8, 1826.]
+
+By way of revenge a duel may be effective if the wrong man does    (p. 184)
+not happen to get shot; but as evidence for intelligent men a bloodier
+ending than this would have been inconclusive. It so happened,
+however, that Jackson, altogether contrary to his own purpose, brought
+conclusive aid to President Adams and Secretary Clay. Whether the
+General ever had any real faith in the charge can only be surmised.
+Not improbably he did, for his mental workings were so peculiar in
+their violence and prejudice that apparently he always sincerely
+believed all persons who crossed his path to be knaves and villains of
+the blackest dye. But certain it is that whether he credited the tale
+or not he soon began to devote himself with all his wonted vigor and
+pertinacity to its wide dissemination. Whether in so doing he was
+stupidly believing a lie, or intentionally spreading a known slander,
+is a problem upon which his friends and biographers have exhausted
+much ingenuity without reaching any certain result. But sure it is
+that early in the year 1827 he was so far carried beyond the bounds of
+prudence as to declare before many persons that he had proof of the
+corrupt bargain. The assertion was promptly sent to the newspapers by
+a Mr. Carter Beverly, one of those who heard it made in the presence
+of several guests at the Hermitage. The name of Mr. Beverly, at first
+concealed, soon became known, and he was of course compelled to    (p. 185)
+vouch in his principal. General Jackson never deserted his adherents,
+whether their difficulties were noble or ignoble. He came gallantly to
+the aid of Mr. Beverly, and in a letter of June 6 declared that early
+in January, 1825, he had been visited by a "member of Congress of high
+respectability," who had told him of "a great intrigue going on" of
+which he ought to be informed. This gentleman had then proceeded to
+explain that Mr. Clay's friends were afraid that if General Jackson
+should be elected President, "Mr. Adams would be continued Secretary
+of State (innuendo, there would be no room for Kentucky); that if I
+would say, or permit any of my confidential friends to say, that in
+case I were elected President, Mr. Adams should not be continued
+Secretary of State, by a complete union of Mr. Clay and his friends
+they would put an end to the Presidential contest in one hour. And he
+was of opinion it was right to fight such intriguers with their own
+weapons." This scarcely disguised suggestion of bargain and corruption
+the General said that he repudiated indignantly. Clay at once publicly
+challenged Jackson to produce some evidence--to name the "respectable"
+member of Congress who appeared in the very unrespectable light of (p. 186)
+advising a candidate for the Presidency to emulate the alleged
+baseness of his opponents. Jackson thereupon uncovered James Buchanan,
+of Pennsylvania. Mr. Buchanan was a friend of the General, and to what
+point it may have been expected or hoped that his allegiance would
+carry him in support of his chief in this dire hour of extremity is
+matter only of inference. Fortunately, however, his fealty does not
+appear to have led him any great distance from the truth. He yielded
+to the prevailing desire to pass along the responsibility to some one
+else so far as to try to bring in a Mr. Markley, who, however, never
+became more than a dumb figure in the drama in which Buchanan was
+obliged to remain as the last important character. With obvious
+reluctance this gentleman then wrote that if General Jackson had
+placed any such construction as the foregoing upon an interview which
+had occurred between them, and which he recited at length, then the
+General had totally misconstrued--as was evident enough--what he, Mr.
+Buchanan, had said. Indeed, that Jackson could have supposed him to
+entertain the sentiments imputed to him made Mr. Buchanan, as he said,
+"exceedingly unhappy." In other words, there was no foundation
+whatsoever for the charge thus traced back to an originator who denied
+having originated it and said that it was all a mistake. General   (p. 187)
+Jackson was left to be defended from the accusation of deliberate
+falsehood only by the charitable suggestion that he had been unable to
+understand a perfectly simple conversation. Apparently Mr. Adams and
+Mr. Clay ought now to be abundantly satisfied, since not only were
+they amply vindicated, but their chief vilifier seemed to have been
+pierced by the point which he had sharpened for them. They had yet,
+however, to learn what vitality there is in falsehood.
+
+General Jackson and his friends had alone played any active part in
+this matter. Of these friends Mr. Kremer had written a letter of
+retraction and apology which he was with difficulty prevented from
+publishing; Mr. Buchanan had denied all that he had been summoned to
+prove; a few years later Mr. Beverly wrote and sent to Mr. Clay a
+contrite letter of regret. General Jackson alone remained for the rest
+of his life unsilenced, obstinately reiterating a charge disproved by
+his own witnesses. But worse than all this, accumulations of evidence
+long and laboriously sought in many quarters have established a
+tolerably strong probability that advances of precisely the character
+alleged against Mr. Adams's friends were made to Mr. Clay by the most
+intimate personal associates of General Jackson. The discussion    (p. 188)
+of this unpleasant suspicion would not, however, be an excusable
+episode in this short volume. The reader who is curious to pursue the
+matter further will find all the documentary evidence collected in its
+original shape in the first volume of Colton's "Life of Clay,"
+accompanied by an argument needlessly elaborate and surcharged with
+feeling yet in the main sufficiently fair and exhaustive.
+
+Mr. Benton says that "no President could have commenced his administration
+under more unfavorable auspices, or with less expectation of a popular
+career," than did Mr. Adams. From the first a strong minority in the
+House of Representatives was hostile to him, and the next election
+made this a majority. The first indication of the shape which the
+opposition was to take became visible in the vote in the Senate upon
+confirming Mr. Clay as Secretary of State. There were fourteen nays
+against twenty-seven yeas, and an inspection of the list showed that
+the South was beginning to consolidate more closely than heretofore as
+a sectional force in politics. The formation of a Southern party
+distinctly organized in the interests of slavery, already apparent in
+the unanimity of the Southern Electoral Colleges against Mr. Adams,
+thus received further illustration; and the skilled eye of the     (p. 189)
+President noted "the rallying of the South and of Southern interests
+and prejudices to the men of the South." It is possible now to see
+plainly that Mr. Adams was really the first leader in the long crusade
+against slavery; it was in opposition to him that the South became a
+political unit; and a true instinct taught him the trend of Southern
+politics long before the Northern statesmen apprehended it, perhaps
+before even any Southern statesman had distinctly formulated it. This
+new development in the politics of the country soon received further
+illustration. The first message which Mr. Adams had occasion to send
+to Congress gave another opportunity to his ill-wishers. Therein he
+stated that the invitation which had been extended to the United
+States to be represented at the Congress of Panama had been accepted,
+and that he should commission ministers to attend the meeting. Neither
+in matter nor in manner did this proposition contain any just element
+of offence. It was customary for the Executive to initiate new
+missions simply by the nomination of envoys to fill them; and in such
+case the Senate, if it did not think the suggested mission desirable,
+could simply decline to confirm the nomination upon that ground. An
+example of this has been already seen in the two nominations of Mr.
+Adams himself to the Court of Russia in the Presidency of Mr.      (p. 190)
+Madison. But now vehement assaults were made upon the President,
+alike in the Senate and in the House, on the utterly absurd ground
+that he had transcended his powers. Incredible, too, as it may seem at
+this day it was actually maintained that there was no occasion
+whatsoever for the United States to desire representation at such a
+gathering. Prolonged and bitter was the opposition which the
+Administration was compelled to encounter in a measure to which there
+so obviously ought to have been instant assent if considered solely
+upon its intrinsic merits, but upon which nevertheless the discussion
+actually overshadowed all other questions which arose during the
+session. The President had the good fortune to find the powerful aid
+of Mr. Webster enlisted in his behalf, and ultimately he prevailed;
+but it was of ill augury at this early date to see that personal
+hostility was so widespread and so rancorous that it could make such a
+prolonged and desperate resistance with only the faintest pretext of
+right as a basis for its action. Yet a great and fundamental cause of
+the feeling manifested lay hidden away beneath the surface in the
+instinctive antipathy of the slaveholders to Mr. Adams and all his
+thoughts, his ways, and his doings. For into this question of      (p. 191)
+countenancing the Panama Congress, slavery and "the South" entered and
+imported into a portion of the opposition a certain element of
+reasonableness and propriety in a political sense. When we see the
+Southern statesmen banded against President Adams in these debates, as
+we know the future which was hidden from them, it almost makes us
+believe that their vindictiveness was justified by an instinctive
+forecasting of his character and his mission in life, and that without
+knowing it they already felt the influence of the acts which he was
+yet to do against them. For the South, without present dread of an
+abolition movement, yet hated this Panama Congress with a contemptuous
+loathing not alone because the South American states had freed all
+slaves within their limits, but because there was actually a fair
+chance that Hayti would be admitted to representation at the sessions
+as a sovereign state. That the President of the United States should
+propose to send white citizens of that country to sit cheek by jowl on
+terms of official equality with the revolted blacks of Hayti fired the
+Southern heart with rage inexpressible. The proposition was a further
+infusion of cement to aid in the Southern consolidation so rapidly
+going forward, and was substantially the beginning of the sense of
+personal alienation henceforth to grow steadily more bitter on     (p. 192)
+the part of the slaveholders towards Mr. Adams. Without designing
+it he had struck the first blow in a fight which was to absorb his
+energies for the rest of his life.
+
+Such evil forebodings as might too easily be drawn from the course of
+this debate were soon and amply fulfilled. The opposition increased
+rapidly until when Congress came together in December, 1827, it had
+attained overshadowing proportions. Not only was a member of that
+party elected Speaker of the House of Representatives, but a decided
+majority of both Houses of Congress was arrayed against the
+Administration--"a state of things which had never before occurred
+under the Government of the United States." All the committees too
+were composed of four opposition and only three Administration
+members. With more exciting issues this relationship of the executive
+and legislative departments might have resulted in dangerous collisions;
+but in this season of political quietude it only made the position of
+the President extremely uncomfortable. Mr. Van Buren soon became
+recognized as the formidable leader and organizer of the Jackson
+forces. His capacity as a political strategist was so far in advance
+of that of any other man of those times that it might have secured
+success even had he been encountered by tactics similar to his     (p. 193)
+own. But since on the contrary he had only to meet straightforward
+simplicity, it was soon apparent that he would have everything his own
+way. It was disciplined troops against the militia of honest merchants
+and farmers; and the result was not to be doubted. Mr. Adams and his
+friends were fond of comparing Van Buren with Aaron Burr, though
+predicting that he would be too shrewd to repeat Burr's blunders. From
+the beginning they declined to meet with his own weapons a man whom
+they so contemned. It was about this time that a new nomenclature of
+parties was introduced into our politics. The administrationists
+called themselves National Republicans, a name which in a few years
+was changed for that of Whigs, while the opposition or Jacksonians
+were known as Democrats, a title which has been ever since retained by
+the same party.
+
+The story of Mr. Adams's Administration will detain the historian, and
+even the biographer, only a very short time. Not an event occurred
+during those four years which appears of any especial moment. Our
+foreign relations were all pacific; and no grave crisis or great issue
+was developed in domestic affairs. It was a period of tranquillity, in
+which the nation advanced rapidly in prosperity. For many years dulness
+had reigned in business, but returning activity was encouraged by  (p. 194)
+the policy of the new Government, and upon all sides various
+industries became active and thriving. So far as the rule of Mr. Adams
+was marked by any distinguishing characteristic, it was by a care for
+the material welfare of the people. More commercial treaties were
+negotiated during his Administration than in the thirty-six years
+preceding his inauguration. He was a strenuous advocate of internal
+improvements, and happily the condition of the national finances
+enabled the Government to embark in enterprises of this kind. He
+suggested many more than were undertaken, but not perhaps more than it
+would have been quite possible to carry out. He was always chary of
+making a show of himself before the people for the sake of gaining
+popularity. When invited to attend the annual exhibition of the
+Maryland Agricultural Society, shortly after his inauguration, he
+declined, and wrote in his Diary: "To gratify this wish I must give
+four days of my time, no trifle of expense, and set a precedent for
+being claimed as an article of exhibition at all the cattle-shows
+throughout the Union." Other gatherings would prefer equally
+reasonable demands, in responding to which "some duty must be
+neglected." But the opening of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal was an
+event sufficiently momentous and national in its character to      (p. 195)
+justify the President's attendance. He was requested in the presence
+of a great concourse of people to dig the first shovelful of earth and
+to make a brief address. The speech-making was easy; but when the
+digging was to be done he encountered some unexpected obstacle and the
+soil did not yield to his repeated efforts. Not to be defeated,
+however, he stripped off his coat, went to work in earnest with the
+spade and raised the earth successfully. Naturally such readiness was
+hailed with loud applause and pleased the great crowd who saw it. But
+in Mr. Adams's career it was an exceptional occurrence that enabled
+him to conciliate a momentary popularity; it was seldom that he
+enjoyed or used an opportunity of gaining the cheap admiration or
+shallow friendship of the multitude.
+
+At least one moral to be drawn from the story of Mr. Adams's
+Presidency perhaps deserves rather to be called an _immoral_, and
+certainly furnishes unwelcome support to those persons who believe
+that conscientiousness is out of place in politics. It has been said
+that no sooner was General Jackson fairly defeated than he was again
+before the people as a candidate for the next election. An opposition
+to the new Administration was in process of formation actually before
+there had been time for that Administration to declare, much less  (p. 196)
+to carry out, any policy or even any measure. The opposition was
+therefore not one of principle; it was not dislike of anything done or
+to be done; it did not pretend to have a purpose of saving the people
+from blunders or of offering them greater advantages. It was simply an
+opposition, or more properly an hostility, to the President and his
+Cabinet, and was conducted by persons who wished in as short a time as
+possible themselves to control and fill those positions. The sole
+ground upon which these opponents stood was, that they would rather
+have General Jackson at the head of affairs than Mr. Adams. The issue
+was purely personal; it was so when the opposition first developed,
+and it remained so until that opposition triumphed.
+
+Under no circumstances can it be more excusable for an elective
+magistrate to seek personal good will towards himself than when his
+rival seeks to supplant him simply on the basis of enjoying a greater
+measure of such good will. Had any important question of policy been
+dividing the people, it would have been easy for a man of less moral
+courage and independence than belonged to Mr. Adams to select the side
+which he thought right, and to await the outcome at least with
+constancy. But the only real question raised was this: will Mr. Adams
+or General Jackson--two individuals representing as yet no         (p. 197)
+antagonistic policies--be preferred by the greater number of voters in
+1829? If, however, there was no great apparent issue open between
+these two men, at least there was a very wide difference between their
+characters, a point of some consequence in a wholly personal
+competition. It is easy enough now to see how this gaping difference
+displayed itself from the beginning, and how the advantage for winning
+was throughout wholly on the side of Jackson. The course to be pursued
+by Mr. Adams in order to insure victory was obvious enough; being
+simply to secure the largest following and most efficient support
+possible. The arts by which these objects were to be attained were not
+obscure nor beyond his power. If he wished a second term, as beyond
+question he did, two methods were of certain utility. He should make
+the support of his Administration a source of profit to the
+supporters; and he should conciliate good will by every means that
+offered. To the former end what more efficient means could be devised
+than a body of office-holders owing their positions to his appointment
+and likely to have the same term of office as himself? His neglect to
+create such a corps of stanch supporters cannot be explained on the
+ground that so plain a scheme of perpetuating power had not then   (p. 198)
+been devised in the Republic. Mr. Jefferson had practised it, to an
+extent which now seems moderate, but which had been sufficiently
+extensive to deprive any successor of the honor of novelty in originating
+it. The times were ripe for it, and the nation would not have revolted
+at it, as was made apparent when General Jackson, succeeding Mr.
+Adams, at once carried out the system with a thoroughness that has
+never been surpassed, and with a success in achieving results so great
+that almost no politician has since failed to have recourse to the
+same practice. Suggestions and temptations, neither of which were
+wanting, were however alike thrown away upon Mr. Adams. Friendship or
+hostility to the President were the only two matters which were sure
+to have no effect whatsoever upon the fate of an incumbent or an
+aspirant. Scarcely any removals were made during his Administration,
+and every one of the few was based solely upon a proved unfitness of
+the official. As a consequence very few new appointments were made,
+and in every instance the appointee was, or was believed to be, the
+fittest man without regard to his political bias. This entire
+elimination of the question of party allegiance from every department
+of the public service was not a specious protestation, but an
+undeniable fact at which friends grumbled bitterly, and upon which (p. 199)
+foes counted often with an ungenerous but always with an implicit
+reliance. It was well known, for example, that in the Customs
+Department there were many more avowed opponents than supporters of
+the Administration. What was to be thought, the latter angrily asked,
+of a president who refused to make any distinction between the sheep
+and the goats? But while Mr. Adams, unmoved by argument, anger, or
+entreaty, thus alienated many and discouraged all, every one was made
+acquainted with the antipodal principles of his rival. The consequence
+was inevitable; many abandoned Adams from sheer irritation; multitudes
+became cool and indifferent concerning him; the great number of those
+whose political faith was so weak as to be at the ready command of
+their own interests, or the interests of a friend or relative, yielded
+to a pressure against which no counteracting force was employed. In a
+word, no one who had not a strong and independent personal conviction
+in behalf of Mr. Adams found the slightest inducement to belong to his
+party. It did not require much political sagacity to see that in quiet
+times, with no great issue visibly at stake, a following thus composed
+could not include a majority of the nation. It is true that in fact
+there was opening an issue as great as has ever been presented to the
+American people,--an issue between government conducted with a     (p. 200)
+sole view to efficiency and honesty and government conducted very
+largely, if not exclusively, with a view to individual and party
+ascendency. The new system afterward inaugurated by General Jackson,
+directly opposite to that of Mr. Adams and presenting a contrast to it
+as wide as is to be found in history, makes this fact glaringly plain
+to us. But during the years of Mr. Adams's Administration it was dimly
+perceived only by a few. Only one side of the shield had then been
+shown. The people did not appreciate that Adams and Jackson were
+representatives of two conflicting principles of administration which
+went to the very basis of our system of government. Had the issue been
+as apparent and as well understood then as it is now, in retrospect,
+the decision of the nation might have been different. But
+unfortunately the voters only beheld two individuals pitted against
+each other for the popular suffrage, of whom one, a brilliant soldier,
+would stand by and reward his friends, and the other, an uninteresting
+civilian, ignored all distinction between friend and foe.
+
+It was not alone in the refusal to use patronage that Mr. Adams's
+rigid conscientiousness showed itself. He was equally obstinate in
+declining ever to stretch a point however slightly in order to     (p. 201)
+win the favor of any body of the people whether large or small. He
+was warned that his extensive schemes for internal improvement would
+alienate especially the important State of Virginia. He could not of
+course be expected to change his policy out of respect to Virginian
+prejudices; but he was advised to mitigate his expression of that
+policy, and to some extent it was open to him to do so. But he would
+not; his utterances went the full length of his opinions, and he
+persistently urged upon Congress many plans which he approved, but
+which he could not have the faintest hopes of seeing adopted. The
+consequence was that he displeased Virginia. He notes the fact in the
+Diary in the tone of one who endures persecution for righteousness'
+sake, and who means to be very stubborn in his righteousness. Again it
+was suggested to him to embody in one of his messages "something
+soothing for South Carolina." But there stood upon the statute books
+of South Carolina an unconstitutional law which had greatly
+embarrassed the national government, and which that rebellious little
+State with characteristic contumaciousness would not repeal. Under
+such circumstances, said Mr. Adams, I have no "soothing" words for
+South Carolina.
+
+It was not alone by what he did and by what he would not do that   (p. 202)
+Mr. Adams toiled to insure the election of General Jackson far more
+sedulously and efficiently than did the General himself or any of his
+partisans. In most cases it was probably the manner quite as much as
+the act which made Mr. Adams unpopular. In his anxiety to be upright
+he was undoubtedly prone to be needlessly disagreeable. His
+uncompromising temper put on an ungracious aspect. His conscientiousness
+wore the appearance of offensiveness. The Puritanism in his character
+was strongly tinged with that old New England notion that whatever is
+disagreeable is probably right, and that a painful refusal would lose
+half its merit in being expressed courteously; that a right action
+should never be done in a pleasing way; not only that no pill should
+be sugar-coated, but that the bitterest ingredient should be placed on
+the outside. In repudiating attractive vices the Puritans had rejected
+also those amenities which might have decently concealed or even
+mildly decorated the forbidding angularities of a naked Virtue which
+certainly did not imitate the form of any goddess who had ever before
+attracted followers. Mr. Adams was a complete and thorough Puritan,
+wonderfully little modified by times and circumstances. The ordinary
+arts of propitiation would have appeared to him only a feeble and
+diluted form of dishonesty; while suavity and graciousness of      (p. 203)
+demeanor would have seemed as unbecoming to this rigid official as
+love-making or wine-bibbing seem to a strait-laced parson. It was
+inevitable, therefore, that he should never avert by his words any
+ill-will naturally caused by his acts; that he should never soothe
+disappointment, or attract calculating selfishness. He was an adept in
+alienation, a novice in conciliation. His magnetism was negative. He
+made few friends; and had no interested following whatsoever. No one
+was enthusiastic on his behalf; no band worked for him with the ardor
+of personal devotion. His party was composed of those who had
+sufficient intelligence to appreciate his integrity and sufficient
+honesty to admire it. These persons respected him, and when election
+day came they would vote for him; but they did not canvass zealously
+in his behalf, nor do such service for him as a very different kind of
+feeling induced the Jackson men to do for their candidate.[7] The
+fervid laborers in politics left Mr. Adams alone in his chilling   (p. 204)
+respectability, and went over to a camp where all scruples were
+consumed in the glowing heat of a campaign conducted upon the single
+and simple principle of securing victory.
+
+                   [Footnote 7: Mr. Mills, in writing of Mr. Adams's
+                   inauguration, expressed well what many felt. "This
+                   same President of ours is a man that I can never
+                   court nor be on very familiar terms with. There is
+                   a cold, repulsive atmosphere about him that is too
+                   chilling for my respiration, and I shall certainly
+                   keep at a distance from its influence. I wish him
+                   God-speed in his Administration, and am heartily
+                   disposed to lend him my feeble aid whenever he may
+                   need it in a correct course; but he cannot expect
+                   me to become his warm and devoted partisan." A like
+                   sentiment was expressed also much more vigorously
+                   by Ezekiel Webster to Daniel Webster, in a letter
+                   of February 15, 1829. The writer there attributes
+                   the defeat of Mr. Adams to personal dislike to him.
+                   People, he said, "always supported his cause from a
+                   cold sense of duty," and "we soon satisfy ourselves
+                   that we have discharged our duty to the cause of
+                   any man when we do not entertain for him one
+                   personal kind feeling, nor cannot unless we
+                   disembowel ourselves like a trussed turkey of all
+                   that is human nature within us." With a candidate
+                   "of popular character, like Mr. Clay," the result
+                   would have been different. "The measures of his
+                   [Adams's] Administration were just and wise and
+                   every honest man should have supported them, but
+                   many honest men did not for the reason I have
+                   mentioned."--_Webster's Private Correspondence_,
+                   vol. i. p. 469.]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Mr. Adams's relations with the members of his Cabinet were friendly
+throughout his term. Men of their character and ability, brought into
+daily contact with him, could not fail to appreciate and admire the
+purity of his motives and the patriotism of his conduct; nor was he
+wanting in a measure of consideration and deference towards them
+perhaps somewhat greater than might have been expected from him,
+sometimes even carried to the point of yielding his opinion in     (p. 205)
+matters of consequence. It was his wish that the unity of the body
+should remain unbroken during his four years of office, and the wish
+was very nearly realized. Unfortunately, however, in his last year it
+became necessary for him to fill the mission to England, and Governor
+Barbour was extremely anxious for the place. It was already apparent
+that the coming election was likely to result in the succession of
+Jackson, and Mr. Adams notes that Barbour's extreme desire to receive
+the appointment was due to his wish to find a good harbor ere the
+approaching storm should burst. The remark was made without anger, in
+the tone of a man who had seen enough of the world not to expect too
+much from any of his fellow men; and the appointment was made,
+somewhat to the chagrin of Webster and Rush, either one of whom would
+have gladly accepted it. The vacancy thus caused, the only one which
+arose during his term, was filled by General Peter B. Porter, a
+gentleman whom Mr. Adams selected not as his own choice, but out of
+respect to the wishes of the Cabinet, and in order to "terminate the
+Administration in harmony with itself." The only seriously unpleasant
+occurrence was the treachery of Postmaster-General McLean, who saw fit
+to profess extreme devotion to Mr. Adams while secretly aiding General
+Jackson. His perfidy was not undetected, and great pressure was    (p. 206)
+brought to bear on the President to remove him. Mr. Adams, however,
+refused to do so, and McLean had the satisfaction of stepping from his
+post under Mr. Adams into a judgeship conferred by General Jackson,
+having shown his impartiality and judicial turn of mind, it is to be
+supposed, by declaring his warm allegiance to each master in turn.
+
+The picture of President Adams's daily life is striking in its
+simplicity and its laboriousness. This chief magistrate of a great
+nation was wont to rise before daybreak, often at four or five o'clock
+even in winter, not unfrequently to build and light his own fire, and
+to work hard for hours when most persons in busy life were still
+comfortably slumbering. The forenoon and afternoon he devoted to
+public affairs, and often he complains that the unbroken stream of
+visitors gives him little opportunity for hard or continuous labor.
+Such work he was compelled to do chiefly in the evening; and he did
+not always make up for early hours of rising by a correspondingly
+early bedtime; though sometimes in the summer we find him going to bed
+between eight and nine o'clock, an hour which probably few Presidents
+have kept since then. He strove to care for his health by daily
+exercise. In the morning he swam in the Potomac, often for a long  (p. 207)
+time; and more than once he encountered no small risk in this
+pastime. During the latter part of his Presidential term he tried
+riding on horseback. At times when the weather compelled him to walk,
+and business was pressing, he used to get his daily modicum of fresh
+air before the sun was up. A life of this kind with more of hardship
+than of relaxation in it was ill fitted to sustain in robust health a
+man sixty years of age, and it is not surprising that Mr. Adams often
+complained of feeling ill, dejected, and weary. Yet he never spared
+himself, nor apparently thought his habits too severe, and actually
+toward the close of his term he spoke of his trying daily routine as
+constituting a very agreeable life. He usually began the day by
+reading "two or three chapters in the Bible with Scott's and Hewlett's
+Commentaries," being always a profoundly religious man of the
+old-fashioned school then prevalent in New England.
+
+It could hardly have added to the meagre comforts of such a life to be
+threatened with assassination. Yet this danger was thrust upon Mr.
+Adams's attention upon one occasion at least under circumstances which
+gave to it a very serious aspect. The tranquillity with which he went
+through the affair showed that his physical courage was as imperturbable
+as his moral. The risk was protracted throughout a considerable    (p. 208)
+period, but he never let it disturb the even tenor of his daily
+behavior or warp his actions in the slightest degree, save only that
+when he was twice or thrice brought face to face with the intending
+assassin he treated the fellow with somewhat more curt brusqueness
+than was his wont. But when the danger was over he bore his would-be
+murderer no malice, and long afterward actually did him a kindly
+service.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Few men in public life have been subjected to trials of temper so
+severe as vexed Mr. Adams during his Presidential term. To play an
+intensely exciting game strictly in accordance with rigid moral rules
+of the player's own arbitrary enforcement, and which are utterly
+repudiated by a less scrupulous antagonist, can hardly tend to promote
+contentment and amiability. Neither are slanders and falsehoods
+mollifying applications to a statesman inspired with an upright and
+noble ambition. Mr. Adams bore such assaults, ranging from the charge
+of having corruptly bought the Presidency down to that of being a
+Freemason with such grim stoicism as he could command. The
+disappearance and probable assassination of Morgan at this time led to
+a strong feeling throughout the country against Freemasonry, and   (p. 209)
+the Jackson men at once proclaimed abroad that Adams was one of the
+brotherhood, and offered, if he should deny it, to produce the records
+of the lodge to which he belonged. The allegation was false; he was
+not a Mason, and his friends urged him to say so publicly; but he
+replied bitterly that his denial would probably at once be met by a
+complete set of forged records of a fictitious lodge, and the people
+would not know whom to believe. Next he was said to have bargained for
+the support of Daniel Webster, by promising to distribute offices to
+Federalists. This accusation was a cruel perversion of his very
+virtues; for its only foundation lay in the fact that in the
+venturesome but honorable attempt to be President of a nation rather
+than of a party, he had in some instances given offices to old
+Federalists, certainly with no hope or possibility of reconciling to
+himself the almost useless wreck of that now powerless and shrunken
+party, one of whose liveliest traditions was hatred of him. Stories
+were even set afloat that some of his accounts, since he had been in
+the public service, were incorrect. But the most extraordinary and
+ridiculous tale of all was that during his residence in Russia he had
+prostituted a beautiful American girl, whom he then had in his
+service, in order "to seduce the passions of the Emperor Alexander (p. 210)
+and sway him to political purposes."
+
+These and other like provocations were not only discouraging but very
+irritating, and Mr. Adams was not of that careless disposition which
+is little affected by unjust accusation. On the contrary he was
+greatly incensed by such treatment, and though he made the most stern
+and persistent effort to endure an inevitable trial with a patience
+born of philosophy, since indifference was not at his command, yet he
+could not refrain from the expression of his sentiments in his secret
+communings. Occasionally he allowed his wrath to explode with harmless
+violence between the covers of the Diary, and doubtless he found
+relief while he discharged his fierce diatribes on these private
+sheets. His vituperative power was great, and some specimens of it may
+not come amiss in a sketch of the man. The senators who did not call
+upon him he regarded as of "rancorous spirit." He spoke of the
+falsehoods and misrepresentations which "the skunks of party slander
+... have been ... squirting round the House of Representatives, thence
+to issue and perfume the atmosphere of the Union." His most intense
+hatred and vehement denunciation were reserved for John Randolph, whom
+he thought an abomination too odious and despicable to be described
+in words, "the image and superscription of a great man stamped     (p. 211)
+upon base metal." "The besotted violence" of Randolph, he said, has
+deprived him of "all right to personal civility from me;" and
+certainly this excommunication from courtesy was made complete and
+effective. He speaks again of the same victim as a "frequenter of gin
+lane and beer alley." He indignantly charges that Calhoun, as Speaker,
+permitted Randolph "in speeches of ten hours long to drink himself
+drunk with bottled porter, and in raving balderdash of the meridian of
+Wapping to revile the absent and the present, the living and the
+dead." This, he says, was "tolerated by Calhoun, because Randolph's
+ribaldry was all pointed against the Administration, especially
+against Mr. Clay and me." Again he writes of Randolph: "The rancor of
+this man's soul against me is that which sustains his life: the agony
+of [his] envy and hatred of me, and the hope of effecting my downfall,
+are [his] chief remaining sources of vitality. The issue of the
+Presidential election will kill [him] by the gratification of [his]
+revenge." So it was also with W. B. Giles, of Virginia. But Giles's
+abuse was easier to bear since it had been poured in torrents upon
+every reputable man, from Washington downwards, who had been prominent
+in public affairs since the adoption of the Constitution, so that  (p. 212)
+Giles's memory is now preserved from oblivion solely by the connection
+which he established with the great and honorable statesmen of the
+Republic by a course of ceaseless attacks upon them. Some of the
+foregoing expressions of Mr. Adams may be open to objection on the
+score of good taste; but the provocation was extreme; public retaliation
+he would not practise, and wrath must sometimes burst forth in
+language which was not so unusual in that day as it is at present. It
+is an unquestionable fact, of which the credit to Mr. Adams can hardly
+be exaggerated, that he never in any single instance found an excuse
+for an unworthy act on his own part in the fact that competitors or
+adversaries were resorting to such expedients.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The election of 1828 gave 178 votes for Jackson and only 83 for Adams.
+Calhoun was continued as Vice-President by 171 votes, showing plainly
+enough that even yet there were not two political parties, in any
+customary or proper sense of the phrase. The victory of Jackson had
+been foreseen by every one. What had been so generally anticipated
+could not take Mr. Adams by surprise; yet it was idle for him to seek
+to conceal his disappointment that an Administration which he      (p. 213)
+had conducted with his best ability and with thorough conscientiousness
+should not have seemed to the people worthy of continuance for another
+term. Little suspecting what the future had in store for him, he felt
+that his public career had culminated and probably had closed forever,
+and that if it had not closed exactly in disgrace, yet at least it
+could not be regarded as ending gloriously or even satisfactorily. But
+he summoned all his philosophy and fortitude to his aid; he fell back
+upon his clear conscience and comported himself with dignity, showing
+all reasonable courtesy to his successor and only perhaps seeming a
+little deficient in filial piety in presenting so striking a contrast
+to the shameful conduct of his father in a like crucial hour. His
+retirement brought to a close a list of Presidents who deserved to be
+called statesmen in the highest sense of that term, honorable men,
+pure patriots, and, with perhaps one exception, all of the first order
+of ability in public affairs. It is necessary to come far down towards
+this day before a worthy successor of those great men is met with in
+the list. Dr. Von Holst, by far the ablest writer who has yet dealt
+with American history, says: "In the person of Adams the last
+statesman who was to occupy it for a long time left the White House."
+General Jackson, the candidate of the populace and the             (p. 214)
+representative hero of the ignorant masses, instituted a new system of
+administering the Government in which personal interests became the
+most important element, and that organization and strategy were
+developed which have since become known and infamous under the name of
+the "political machine."
+
+While Mr. Adams bore his defeat like a philosopher, he felt secretly
+very depressed and unhappy by reason of it. He speaks of it as leaving
+his "character and reputation a wreck," and says that the "sun of his
+political life sets in the deepest gloom." On January 1, 1829, he
+writes: "The year begins in gloom. My wife had a sleepless and painful
+night. The dawn was overcast, and as I began to write my shaded lamp
+went out, self-extinguished. It was only for lack of oil, and the
+notice of so trivial an incident may serve but to mark the present
+temper of my mind." It is painful to behold a man of his vigor,
+activity, and courage thus prostrated. Again he writes:--
+
+     "Three days more and I shall be restored to private life, and
+     left to an old age of retirement though certainly not of repose.
+     I go into it with a combination of parties and public men against
+     my character and reputation, such as I believe never before was
+     exhibited against any man since this Union existed. Posterity
+     will scarcely believe it, but so it is, that this combination
+     against me has been formed and is now exulting in triumph     (p. 215)
+     over me, for the devotion of my life and of all the faculties
+     of my soul to the Union, and to the improvement, physical, moral,
+     and intellectual of my country."
+
+Melancholy words these to be written by an old man who had worked so
+hard and been so honest, and whose ambition had been of the kind that
+ennobles him who feels it! Could the curtain of the future have been
+lifted but for a moment what relief would the glimpse have brought to
+his crushed and wearied spirit. But though coming events may cast
+shadows before them, they far less often send bright rays in advance.
+So he now resolved "to go into the deepest retirement and withdraw
+from all connection with public affairs." Yet it was with regret that
+he foretold this fate, and he looked forward with solicitude to the
+effect which such a mode of life, newly entered upon at his age, would
+have upon his mind and character. He hopes rather than dares to
+predict that he will be provided "with useful and profitable
+occupation, engaging so much of his thoughts and feelings that his
+mind may not be left to corrode itself."
+
+His return to Quincy held out the less promise of comfort, because the
+old chasm between him and the Federalist gentlemen of Boston had been
+lately reopened. Certain malicious newspaper paragraphs, born of   (p. 216)
+the mischievous spirit of the wretched Giles, had recently set afloat
+some stories designed seriously to injure Mr. Adams. These were,
+substantially, that in 1808-9 he had been convinced that some among
+the leaders of the Federalist party in New England were entertaining a
+project for separation from the Union, that he had feared that this
+event would be promoted by the embargo, that he foresaw that the
+seceding portion would inevitably be compelled into some sort of
+alliance with Great Britain, that he suspected negotiations to this
+end to have been already set on foot, that he thereupon gave privately
+some more or less distinct intimations of these notions of his to
+sundry prominent Republicans, and even to President Jefferson. These
+tales, much distorted from the truth and exaggerated as usual, led to
+the publication of an open letter, in November, 1828, addressed by
+thirteen Federalists of note in Massachusetts to John Quincy Adams,
+demanding names and specifications and the production of evidence. Mr.
+Adams replied briefly, with dignity, and, considering the
+circumstances, with good temper, stating fairly the substantial import
+of what he had really said, declaring that he had never mentioned
+names, and refusing, for good reasons given, either to do so now   (p. 217)
+or to publish the grounds of such opinions as he had entertained.
+It was sufficiently clear that he had said nothing secretly which he
+had reason to regret; and that if he sought to shun the discussion
+opened by his adversaries, he was influenced by wise forbearance, and
+not at all by any fear of the consequences to himself. A dispassionate
+observer could have seen that behind this moderate, rather deprecatory
+letter there was an abundant reserve of controversial material held
+for the moment in check. But his adversaries were not dispassionate;
+on the contrary they were greatly excited and were honestly convinced
+of the perfect goodness of their cause. They were men of the highest
+character in public and private life, deservedly of the best repute in
+the community, of unimpeachable integrity in motives and dealings,
+influential and respected, men whom it was impossible in New England
+to treat with neglect or indifference. For this reason it was only the
+harder to remain silent beneath their published reproach when a
+refutation was possible. Hating Mr. Adams with an animosity not
+diminished by the lapse of years since his defection from their party,
+strong in a consciousness of their own standing before their fellow
+citizens, the thirteen notables responded with much acrimony to Mr.
+Adams's unsatisfactory letter. Thus persistently challenged and    (p. 218)
+assailed, at a time when his recent crushing political defeat made
+an attack upon him seem a little ungenerous, Mr. Adams at last went
+into the fight in earnest. He had the good fortune to be thoroughly
+right, and also to have sufficient evidence to prove and justify at
+least as much as he had ever said. All this evidence he brought
+together in a vindicatory pamphlet, which, however, by the time he had
+completed it he decided not to publish. But fortunately he did not
+destroy it, and his grandson, in the exercise of a wise discretion,
+has lately given it to the world. His foes never knew how deeply they
+were indebted to the self-restraint which induced him to keep this
+formidable missive harmless in his desk. Full of deep feeling, yet
+free from ebullitions of temper, clear in statement, concise in style,
+conclusive in facts, unanswerable in argument, unrelentingly severe in
+dealing with opponents, it is as fine a specimen of political
+controversy as exists in the language. Its historical value cannot be
+exaggerated, but apart from this as a mere literary production it is
+admirable. Happy were the thirteen that they one and all went down to
+their graves complaisantly thinking that they had had the last word in
+the quarrel, little suspecting how great was their obligation to Mr.
+Adams for having granted them that privilege. One would think      (p. 219)
+that they might have writhed beneath their moss-grown headstones
+on the day when his last word at length found public utterance, albeit
+that the controversy had then become one of the dusty tales of
+history.[8]
+
+                   [Footnote 8: It is with great reluctance that these
+                   comments are made, since some persons may think
+                   that they come with ill grace from one whose
+                   grandfather was one of the thirteen and was
+                   supposed to have drafted one or both of their
+                   letters. But in spite of the prejudice naturally
+                   growing out of this fact, a thorough study of the
+                   whole subject has convinced me that Mr. Adams was
+                   unquestionably and completely right, and I have no
+                   escape from saying so. His adversaries had the
+                   excuse of honesty in political error--an excuse
+                   which the greatest and wisest men must often fall
+                   back upon in times of hot party warfare.]
+
+But this task of writing a demolishing pamphlet against the prominent
+gentlemen of the neighborhood to which he was about to return for his
+declining years could hardly have been a grateful task. The passage
+from political disaster to social enmities could not but be painful;
+and Mr. Adams was probably never more unhappy than at this period of
+his life. The reward which virtue was tendering to him seemed unmixed
+bitterness.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Thus at the age of sixty-two years, Mr. Adams found himself that
+melancholy product of the American governmental system--an ex-President.
+At this stage it would seem that the fruit ought to drop from the  (p. 220)
+bough, no further process of development being reasonably probable
+for it. Yet Mr. Adams had by no means reached this measure of
+ripeness; he still enjoyed abundant vigor of mind and body, and to
+lapse into dignified decrepitude was not agreeable, indeed was hardly
+possible for him. The prospect gave him profound anxiety; he dreaded
+idleness, apathy, and decay with a keen terror which perhaps
+constituted a sufficient guaranty against them. Yet what could he do?
+It would be absurd for him now to furbish up the rusty weapons of the
+law and enter again upon the tedious labor of collecting a clientage.
+His property was barely sufficient to enable him to live respectably,
+even according to the simple standard of the time, and could open to
+him no occupation in the way of gratifying unremunerative tastes. In
+March, 1828, he had been advised to use five thousand dollars in a way
+to promote his reelection. He refused at once, upon principle; but
+further set forth "candidly, the state of his affairs:"--
+
+     "All my real estate in Quincy and Boston is mortgaged for the
+     payment of my debts; the income of my whole private estate is
+     less than $6,000 a year, and I am paying at least two thousand of
+     that for interest on my debt. Finally, upon going out of office
+     in one year from this time, destitute of all means of         (p. 221)
+     acquiring property, it will only be by the sacrifice of that
+     which I now possess that I shall be able to support my family."
+
+At first he plunged desperately into the Latin classics. He had a
+strong taste for such reading, and he made a firm resolve to compel
+this taste now to stand him in good stead in his hour of need. He
+courageously demanded solace from a pursuit which had yielded him
+pleasure enough in hours of relaxation, but which was altogether
+inadequate to fill the huge vacuum now suddenly created in his time
+and thoughts. There is much pathos in this spectacle of the old man
+setting himself with ever so feeble a weapon, yet with stern
+determination, to conquer the cruelty of circumstances. But he knew,
+of course, that the Roman authors could only help him for a time, by
+way of distraction, in carrying him through a transition period. He
+soon set more cheerfully at work upon a memoir of his father, and had
+also plans for writing a history of the United States. Literature had
+always possessed strong charms for him, and he had cultivated it after
+his usual studious and conscientious fashion. But his style was too
+often prolix, sententious, and turgid--faults which marked nearly all
+the writing done in this country in those days. The world has      (p. 222)
+probably not lost much by reason of the non-completion of the
+contemplated volumes. He could have made no other contribution to the
+history of the country at all approaching in value or interest to the
+Diary, of which a most important part was still to be written. For a
+brief time just now this loses its historic character, but makes up
+for the loss by depicting admirably some traits in the mental
+constitution of the diarist. Tales of enchantment, he says, pleased
+his boyhood, but "the humors of Falstaff hardly affected me at all.
+Bardolph and Pistol and Nym were personages quite unintelligible to
+me; and the lesson of Sir Hugh Evans to the boy Williams was quite too
+serious an affair." In truth, no man can ever have been more utterly
+void of a sense of humor or an appreciation of wit than was Mr. Adams.
+Not a single instance of an approach to either is to be found
+throughout the twelve volumes of his Diary. Not even in the simple
+form of the "good story" could he find pleasure, and subtler delicacies
+were wasted on his well-regulated mind as dainty French dishes would
+be on the wholesome palate of a day-laborer. The books which bore the
+stamp of well-established approval, the acknowledged classics of the
+English, Latin, and French languages he read with a mingled sense of
+duty and of pleasure, and evidently with cultivated appreciation,  (p. 223)
+though whether he would have made an original discovery of their
+merits may be doubted. Occasionally he failed to admire even those
+volumes which deserved admiration, and then with characteristic
+honesty he admitted the fact. He tried Paradise Lost ten times before
+he could get through with it, and was nearly thirty years old when he
+first succeeded in reading it to the end. Thereafter he became very
+fond of it, but plainly by an acquired taste. He tried smoking and
+Milton, he says, at the same time, in the hope of discovering the
+"recondite charm" in them which so pleased his father. He was more
+easily successful with the tobacco than with the poetry. Many another
+has had the like experience, but the confession is not always so
+frankly forthcoming.
+
+Fate, however, had in store for Mr. Adams labors to which he was
+better suited than those of literature, and tasks to be performed
+which the nation could ill afford to exchange for an apotheosis of our
+second President, or even for a respectable but probably not very
+readable history. The most brilliant and glorious years of his career
+were yet to be lived. He was to earn in his old age a noble fame and
+distinction far transcending any achievement of his youth and middle
+age, and was to attain the highest pinnacle of his fame after he   (p. 224)
+had left the greatest office of the Government, and during a period
+for which presumably nothing better had been allotted than that he
+should tranquilly await the summons of death. It is a striking
+circumstance that the fullness of greatness for one who had been
+Senator, Minister to England, Secretary of State, and President,
+remained to be won in the comparatively humble position of a
+Representative in Congress.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III                                                        (p. 225)
+
+IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
+
+
+In September, 1830, Mr. Adams notes in his Diary a suggestion made to
+him that he might if he wished be elected to the national House of
+Representatives from the Plymouth district. The gentleman who threw
+out this tentative proposition remarked that in his opinion the
+acceptance of this position by an ex-President "instead of degrading
+the individual would elevate the representative character." Mr. Adams
+replied, that he "had in that respect no scruple whatever. No person
+could be degraded by serving the people as a Representative in
+Congress. Nor in my opinion would an ex-President of the United States
+be degraded by serving as a selectman of his town, if elected thereto
+by the people." A few weeks later his election was accomplished by a
+flattering vote, the poll showing for him 1817 votes out of 2565, with
+only 373 for the next candidate. He continued thenceforth to represent
+this district until his death, a period of about sixteen years. During
+this time he was occasionally suggested as a candidate for the     (p. 226)
+governorship of the State, but was always reluctant to stand. The
+feeling between the Freemasons and the anti-Masons ran very high for
+several years, and once he was prevailed upon to allow his name to be
+used by the latter party. The result was that there was no election by
+the people; and as he had been very loath to enter the contest in the
+beginning, he insisted upon withdrawing from before the legislature.
+We have now therefore only to pursue his career in the lower house of
+Congress.
+
+Unfortunately, but of obvious necessity, it is possible to touch only
+upon the more salient points of this which was really by far the most
+striking and distinguished portion of his life. To do more than this
+would involve an explanation of the politics of the country and the
+measures before Congress much more elaborate than would be possible in
+this volume. It will be necessary, therefore, to confine ourselves to
+drawing a picture of him in his character as the great combatant of
+Southern slavery. In the waging of this mighty conflict we shall see
+both his mind and his character developing in strength even in these
+years of his old age, and his traits standing forth in bolder relief
+than ever before. In his place on the floor of the House of
+Representatives he was destined to appear a more impressive figure
+than in any of the higher positions which he had previously        (p. 227)
+filled. There he was to do his greatest work and to win a peculiar and
+distinctive glory which takes him out of the general throng even of
+famous statesmen, and entitles his name to be remembered with an
+especial reverence. Adequately to sketch his achievements, and so to
+do his memory the honor which it deserves, would require a pen as
+eloquent as has been wielded by any writer of our language. I can only
+attempt a brief and insufficient narrative.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+In his conscientious way he was faithful and industrious to a rare
+degree. He was never absent and seldom late; he bore unflinchingly the
+burden of severe committee work, and shirked no toil on the plea of
+age or infirmity. He attended closely to all the business of the
+House; carefully formed his opinions on every question; never failed
+to vote except for cause; and always had a sufficient reason
+independent of party allegiance to sustain his vote. Living in the age
+of oratory, he earned the name of "the old man eloquent." Yet he was
+not an orator in the sense in which Webster, Clay, and Calhoun were
+orators. He was not a rhetorician; he had neither grace of manner nor
+a fine presence, neither an imposing delivery, nor even pleasing
+tones. On the contrary, he was exceptionally lacking in all these  (p. 228)
+qualities. He was short, rotund, and bald; about the time when he
+entered Congress, complaints become frequent in his Diary of weak and
+inflamed eyes, and soon these organs became so rheumy that the water
+would trickle down his cheeks; a shaking of the hand grew upon him to
+such an extent that in time he had to use artificial assistance to
+steady it for writing; his voice was high, shrill, liable to break,
+piercing enough to make itself heard, but not agreeable. This hardly
+seems the picture of an orator; nor was it to any charm of elocution
+that he owed his influence, but rather to the fact that men soon
+learned that what he said was always well worth hearing. When he
+entered Congress he had been for much more than a third of a century
+zealously gathering knowledge in public affairs, and during his career
+in that body every year swelled the already vast accumulation.
+Moreover, listeners were always sure to get a bold and an honest
+utterance and often pretty keen words from him, and he never spoke to
+an inattentive audience or to a thin house. Whether pleased or
+incensed by what he said, the Representatives at least always listened
+to it. He was by nature a hard fighter, and by the circumstances of
+his course in Congress this quality was stimulated to such a degree
+that parliamentary history does not show his equal as a gladiator. (p. 229)
+His power of invective was extraordinary, and he was untiring and
+merciless in his use of it. Theoretically he disapproved of sarcasm,
+but practically he could not refrain from it. Men winced and cowered
+before his milder attacks, became sometimes dumb, sometimes furious
+with mad rage before his fiercer assaults. Such struggles evidently
+gave him pleasure, and there was scarce a back in Congress that did
+not at one time or another feel the score of his cutting lash; though
+it was the Southerners and the Northern allies of Southerners whom
+chiefly he singled out for torture. He was irritable and quick to
+wrath; he himself constantly speaks of the infirmity of his temper,
+and in his many conflicts his principal concern was to keep it in
+control. His enemies often referred to it and twitted him with it. Of
+alliances he was careless, and friendships he had almost none. But in
+the creation of enmities he was terribly successful. Not so much at
+first, but increasingly as years went on, a state of ceaseless,
+vigilant hostility became his normal condition. From the time when he
+fairly entered upon the long struggle against slavery, he enjoyed few
+peaceful days in the House. But he seemed to thrive upon the warfare,
+and to be never so well pleased as when he was bandying hot words with
+slave-holders and the Northern supporters of slave-holders. When   (p. 230)
+the air of the House was thick with crimination and abuse he seemed to
+suck in fresh vigor and spirit from the hate-laden atmosphere. When
+invective fell around him in showers, he screamed back his retaliation
+with untiring rapidity and marvellous dexterity of aim. No odds could
+appall him. With his back set firm against a solid moral principle, it
+was his joy to strike out at a multitude of foes. They lost their heads
+as well as their tempers, but in the extremest moments of excitement
+and anger Mr. Adams's brain seemed to work with machine-like coolness
+and accuracy. With flushed face, streaming eyes, animated gesticulation,
+and cracking voice, he always retained perfect mastery of all his
+intellectual faculties. He thus became a terrible antagonist, whom all
+feared, yet fearing could not refrain from attacking, so bitterly and
+incessantly did he choose to exert his wonderful power of
+exasperation. Few men could throw an opponent into wild blind fury
+with such speed and certainty as he could; and he does not conceal the
+malicious gratification which such feats brought to him. A leader of
+such fighting capacity, so courageous, with such a magazine of
+experience and information, and with a character so irreproachable,
+could have won brilliant victories in public life at the head of   (p. 231)
+even a small band of devoted followers. But Mr. Adams never had and
+apparently never wanted followers. Other prominent public men were
+brought not only into collision but into comparison with their
+contemporaries. But Mr. Adams's individuality was so strong that he
+can be compared with no one. It was not an individuality of genius nor
+to any remarkable extent of mental qualities; but rather an
+individuality of character. To this fact is probably to be attributed
+his peculiar solitariness. Men touch each other for purposes of
+attachment through their characters much more than through their
+minds. But few men, even in agreeing with Mr. Adams, felt themselves
+in sympathy with him. Occasionally conscience, or invincible logic, or
+even policy and self-interest, might compel one or another politician
+to stand beside him in debate or in voting; but no current of fellow
+feeling ever passed between such temporary comrades and him. It was
+the cold connection of duty or of business. The first instinct of
+nearly every one was opposition towards him; coalition might be forced
+by circumstances but never came by volition. For the purpose of
+winning immediate successes this was of course a most unfortunate
+condition of relationships. Yet it had some compensations: it left
+such influence as Mr. Adams could exert by steadfastness and       (p. 232)
+argument entirely unweakened by suspicion of hidden motives or
+personal ends. He had the weight and enjoyed the respect which a
+sincerity beyond distrust must always command in the long run. Of this
+we shall see some striking instances.
+
+One important limitation, however, belongs to this statement of
+solitariness. It was confined to his position in Congress. Outside of
+the city of Washington great numbers of the people, especially in New
+England, lent him a hearty support and regarded him with friendship
+and admiration. These men had strong convictions and deep feelings,
+and their adherence counted for much. Moreover, their numbers steadily
+increased, and Mr. Adams saw that he was the leader in a cause which
+engaged the sound sense and the best feeling of the intelligent people
+of the country, and which was steadily gaining ground. Without such
+encouragement it is doubtful whether even his persistence would have
+held out through so long and extreme a trial. The sense of human
+fellowship was needful to him; he could go without it in Congress, but
+he could not have gone without it altogether.
+
+Mr. Adams took his seat in the House as a member of the twenty-second
+Congress in December, 1831. He had been elected by the National
+Republican, afterward better known as the Whig party, but one of   (p. 233)
+his first acts was to declare that he would be bound by no partisan
+connection, but would in every matter act independently. This course
+he regarded as a "duty imposed upon him by his peculiar position," in
+that he "had spent the greatest portion of his life in the service of
+the whole nation and had been honored with their highest trust." Many
+persons had predicted that he would find himself subjected to
+embarrassments and perhaps to humiliations by reason of his apparent
+descent in the scale of political dignities. He notes, however, that
+he encountered no annoyance on this score, but on the contrary he was
+rather treated with an especial respect. He was made chairman of the
+Committee on Manufactures, a laborious as well as an important and
+honorable position at all times, and especially so at this juncture
+when the rebellious mutterings of South Carolina against the
+protective tariff were already to be heard rolling and swelling like
+portentous thunder from the fiery Southern regions. He would have
+preferred to exchange this post for a place upon the Committee on
+Foreign Affairs, for whose business he felt more fitted. But he was
+told that in the impending crisis his ability, authority, and prestige
+were all likely to be needed in the place allotted to him to aid in
+the salvation of the country.
+
+The nullification chapter of our history cannot here be entered    (p. 234)
+upon at length, and Mr. Adams's connection with it must be very
+shortly stated. At the first meeting of his committee he remarks: "A
+reduction of the duties upon many of the articles in the tariff was
+understood by all to be the object to be effected;" and a little later
+he said that he should be disposed to give such aid as he could to any
+plan for this reduction which the Treasury Department should devise.
+"He should certainly not consent to sacrifice the manufacturing
+interest," he said, "but something of concession would be due from
+that interest to appease the discontents of the South." He was in a
+reasonable frame of mind; but unfortunately other people were rapidly
+ceasing to be reasonable. When Jackson's message of December 4, 1832,
+was promulgated, showing a disposition to do for South Carolina pretty
+much all that she demanded, Mr. Adams was bitterly indignant. The
+message, he said, "recommends a total change in the policy of the
+Union with reference to the Bank, manufactures, internal improvement,
+and the public lands. It goes to dissolve the Union into its original
+elements, and is in substance a complete surrender to the nullifiers
+of South Carolina." When, somewhat later on, the President lost his
+temper and flamed out in his famous proclamation to meet the       (p. 235)
+nullification ordinance, he spoke in tones more pleasing to Mr. Adams.
+But the ultimate compromise which disposed of the temporary dissension
+without permanently settling the fundamental question of the
+constitutional right of nullification was extremely distasteful to
+him. He was utterly opposed to the concessions which were made while
+South Carolina still remained contumacious. He was for compelling her
+to retire altogether from her rebellious position and to repeal her
+unconstitutional enactments wholly and unconditionally, before one jot
+should be abated from the obnoxious duties. When the bill for the
+modification of the tariff was under debate, he moved to strike out
+all but the enacting clause, and supported his motion in a long
+speech, insisting that no tariff ought to pass until it was known
+"whether there was any measure by which a State could defeat the laws
+of the Union." In a minority report from his own committee he strongly
+censured the policy of the Administration. He was for meeting,
+fighting out, and determining at this crisis the whole doctrine of
+state rights and secession. "One particle of compromise," he said,
+with what truth events have since shown clearly enough, would
+"directly lead to the final and irretrievable dissolution of the
+Union." In his usual strong and thorough-going fashion he was for  (p. 236)
+persisting in the vigorous and spirited measures, the mere brief
+declaration of which, though so quickly receded from, won for Jackson
+a measure of credit greater than he deserved. Jackson was thrown into
+a great rage by the threats of South Carolina, and replied to them
+with the same prompt wrath with which he had sometimes resented
+insults from individuals. But in his cool inner mind he was in
+sympathy with the demands which that State preferred, and though
+undoubtedly he would have fought her, had the dispute been forced to
+that pass, yet he was quite willing to make concessions, which were in
+fact in consonance with his own views as well as with hers, in order
+to avoid that sad conclusion. He was satisfied to have the instant
+emergency pass over in a manner rendered superficially creditable to
+himself by his outburst of temper, under cover of which he sacrificed
+the substantial matter of principle without a qualm. He shook his fist
+and shouted defiance in the face of the nullifiers, while Mr. Clay
+smuggled a comfortable concession into their pockets. Jackson,
+notwithstanding his belligerent attitude, did all he could to help
+Clay and was well pleased with the result. Mr. Adams was not. He
+watched the disingenuous game with disgust. It is certain that if he
+had still been in the White House, the matter would have had a     (p. 237)
+very different ending, bloodier, it may be, and more painful, but
+much more conclusive.
+
+For the most part Mr. Adams found himself in opposition to President
+Jackson's Administration. This was not attributable to any sense of
+personal hostility towards a successful rival, but to an inevitable
+antipathy towards the measures, methods, and ways adopted by the
+General so unfortunately transferred to civil life. Few intelligent
+persons, and none having the statesman habit of mind, befriended the
+reckless, violent, eminently unstatesmanlike President. His ultimate
+weakness in the nullification matter, his opposition to internal
+improvements, his policy of sacrificing the public lands to individual
+speculators, his warfare against the Bank of the United States
+conducted by methods the most unjustifiable, the transaction of the
+removal of the deposits so disreputable and injurious in all its
+details, the importation of Mrs. Eaton's visiting-list into the
+politics and government of the country, the dismissal of the oldest
+and best public servants as a part of the nefarious system of using
+public offices as rewards for political aid and personal adherence,
+the formation from base ingredients of the ignoble "Kitchen
+Cabinet,"--all these doings, together with much more of the like   (p. 238)
+sort, constituted a career which could only seem blundering,
+undignified, and dishonorable in the eyes of a man like Mr. Adams, who
+regarded statesmanship with the reverence due to the noblest of human
+callings.
+
+Right as Mr. Adams was generally in his opposition to Jackson, yet
+once he deserves credit for the contrary course. This was in the
+matter of our relations with France. The treaty of 1831 secured to
+this country an indemnity of $5,000,000, which, however, it had never
+been possible to collect. This procrastination raised Jackson's ever
+ready ire, and casting to the winds any further dunning, he resolved
+either to have the money or to fight for it. He sent a message to
+Congress, recommending that if France should not promptly settle the
+account, letters of marque and reprisal against her commerce should be
+issued. He ordered Edward Livingston, minister at Paris, to demand his
+passports and cross over to London. These eminently proper and
+ultimately effectual measures alarmed the large party of the timid;
+and the General found himself in danger of extensive desertions even
+on the part of his usual supporters. But as once before in a season of
+his dire extremity his courage and vigor had brought the potent aid of
+Mr. Adams to his side, so now again he came under a heavy debt of  (p. 239)
+gratitude to the same champion. Mr. Adams stood by him with generous
+gallantry, and by a telling speech in the House probably saved him
+from serious humiliation and even disaster. The President's style of
+dealing had roused Mr. Adams's spirit, and he spoke with a fire and
+vehemence which accomplished the unusual feat of changing the
+predisposed minds of men too familiar with speech-making to be often
+much influenced by it in the practical matter of voting. He thought at
+the time that the success of this speech, brilliant as it appeared,
+was not unlikely to result in his political ruin. Jackson would
+befriend and reward his thorough-going partisans at any cost to his
+own conscience or the public welfare; but the exceptional aid,
+tendered not from a sense of personal fealty to himself, but simply
+from the motive of aiding the right cause happening in the especial
+instance to have been espoused by him, never won from him any token of
+regard. In November, 1837, Mr. Adams, speaking of his personal
+relations with the President, said:--
+
+     "Though I had served him more than any other living man ever did,
+     and though I supported his Administration at the hazard of my own
+     political destruction, and effected for him at a moment when his
+     own friends were deserting him what no other member of Congress
+     ever accomplished for him--an unanimous vote of the House of  (p. 240)
+     Representatives to support him in his quarrel with France; though
+     I supported him in other very critical periods of his Administration,
+     my return from him was insult, indignity, and slander."
+
+Antipathy had at last become the definitive condition of these two
+men--antipathy both political and personal. At one time a singular
+effort to reconcile them--probably though not certainly undertaken
+with the knowledge of Jackson--was made by Richard M. Johnson. This
+occurred shortly before the inauguration of the war conducted by the
+President against the Bank of the United States; and judging by the
+rest of Jackson's behavior at this period, there was probably at least
+as much of calculation in his motives, if in fact he was cognizant of
+Johnson's approaches, as there was of any real desire to reestablish
+the bygone relation of honorable friendship. To the advances thus made
+Mr. Adams replied a little coldly, not quite repellently, that Jackson,
+having been responsible for the suspension of personal intercourse,
+must now be undisguisedly the active party in renewing it. At the same
+time he professed himself "willing to receive in a spirit of
+conciliation any advance which in that spirit General Jackson might
+make." But nothing came of this intrinsically hopeless attempt. On
+the contrary the two drew rapidly and more widely apart, and       (p. 241)
+entertained concerning each other opinions which grew steadily more
+unfavorable, and upon Adams's part more contemptuous, as time went on.
+
+Fifteen months later General Jackson made his visit to Boston, and it
+was proposed that Harvard College should confer upon him the degree of
+Doctor of Laws. The absurdity of the act, considered simply in itself,
+was admitted by all. But the argument in its favor was based upon the
+established usage of the College as towards all other Presidents, so
+that its omission in this case might seem a personal slight. Mr. Adams,
+being at the time a member of the Board of Overseers, strongly opposed
+the proposition, but of course in vain. All that he could do was, for
+his own individual part, to refuse to be present at the conferring of
+the degree, giving as the minor reason for his absence, that he could
+hold no friendly intercourse with the President, but for the major
+reason that "independent of that, as myself an affectionate child of
+our Alma Mater, I would not be present to witness her disgrace in
+conferring her highest literary honors upon a barbarian who could not
+write a sentence of grammar and hardly could spell his own name." "A
+Doctorate of Laws," he said, "for which an apology was necessary, was
+a cheap honor and ... a sycophantic compliment." After the deed    (p. 242)
+was done, he used to amuse himself by speaking of "Doctor Andrew
+Jackson." This same eastern tour of Jackson's called forth many other
+expressions of bitter sarcasm from Adams. The President was ill and
+unable to carry out the programme of entertainment and exhibition
+prepared for him: whereupon Mr. Adams remarks:--
+
+     "I believe much of his debility is politic.... He is one of our
+     tribe of great men who turn disease to commodity, like John
+     Randolph, who for forty years was always dying. Jackson, ever
+     since he became a mark of public attention, has been doing the
+     same thing.... He is now alternately giving out his chronic
+     diarrhoea and making Warren bleed him for a pleurisy, and
+     posting to Cambridge for a doctorate of laws; mounting the
+     monument of Bunker's Hill to hear a fulsome address and receive
+     two cannon balls from Edward Everett," etc. "Four fifths of his
+     sickness is trickery, and the other fifth mere fatigue."
+
+This sounds, it must be confessed, a trifle rancorous; but Adams had
+great excuse for nourishing rancor towards Jackson.
+
+It is time, however, to return to the House of Representatives. It was
+not by bearing his share in the ordinary work of that body, important
+or exciting as that might at one time or another happen to be, that
+Mr. Adams was to win in Congress that reputation which has been    (p. 243)
+already described as far overshadowing all his previous career. A
+special task and a peculiar mission were before him. It was a part of
+his destiny to become the champion of the anti-slavery cause in the
+national legislature. Almost the first thing which he did after he had
+taken his seat in Congress was to present "fifteen petitions signed
+numerously by citizens of Pennsylvania, praying for the abolition of
+slavery and the slave-trade in the District of Columbia." He simply
+moved their reference to the Committee on the District of Columbia,
+declaring that he should not support that part of the petition which
+prayed for abolition in the District. The time had not yet come when
+the South felt much anxiety at such manifestations, and these first
+stones were dropped into the pool without stirring a ripple on the
+surface. For about four years more we hear little in the Diary
+concerning slavery. It was not until 1835, when the annexation of
+Texas began to be mooted, that the North fairly took the alarm, and
+the irrepressible conflict began to develop. Then at once we find Mr.
+Adams at the front. That he had always cherished an abhorrence of
+slavery and a bitter antipathy to slave-holders as a class is
+sufficiently indicated by many chance remarks scattered through his
+Diary from early years. Now that a great question, vitally         (p. 244)
+affecting the slave power, divided the country into parties and
+inaugurated the struggle which never again slept until it was settled
+forever by the result of the civil war, Mr. Adams at once assumed the
+function of leader. His position should be clearly understood; for in
+the vast labor which lay before the abolition party different tasks
+fell to different men. Mr. Adams assumed to be neither an agitator nor
+a reformer; by necessity of character, training, fitness, and official
+position, he was a legislator and statesman. The task which accident
+or destiny allotted to him was neither to preach among the people a
+crusade against slavery, nor to devise and keep in action the thousand
+resources which busy men throughout the country were constantly
+multiplying for the purpose of spreading and increasing a popular
+hostility towards the great "institution." Every great cause has need
+of its fanatics, its vanguard to keep far in advance of what is for
+the time reasonable and possible; it has not less need of the wiser
+and cooler heads to discipline and control the great mass which is set
+in motion by the reckless forerunners, to see to the accomplishment of
+that which the present circumstances and development of the movement
+allow to be accomplished. It fell to Mr. Adams to direct the       (p. 245)
+assault against the outworks which were then vulnerable, and to see
+that the force then possessed by the movement was put to such uses as
+would insure definite results instead of being wasted in endeavors
+which as yet were impossible of achievement. Drawing his duty from his
+situation and surroundings, he left to others, to younger men and more
+rhetorical natures, outside the walls of Congress, the business of
+firing the people and stirring popular opinion and sympathy. He was
+set to do that portion of the work of abolition which was to be done
+in Congress, to encounter the mighty efforts which were made to stifle
+the great humanitarian cry in the halls of the national legislature.
+This was quite as much as one man was equal to; in fact, it is certain
+that no one then in public life except Mr. Adams could have done it
+effectually. So obvious is this that one cannot help wondering what
+would have befallen the cause, had he not been just where he was to
+forward it in just the way that he did. It is only another among the
+many instances of the need surely finding the man. His qualifications
+were unique; his ability, his knowledge, his prestige and authority,
+his high personal character, his persistence and courage, his
+combativeness stimulated by an acrimonious temper but checked by a
+sound judgment, his merciless power of invective, his independence (p. 246)
+and carelessness of applause or vilification, friendship or enmity,
+constituted him an opponent fully equal to the enormous odds which the
+slave-holding interest arrayed against him. A like moral and mental
+fitness was to be found in no one else. Numbers could not overawe him,
+nor loneliness dispirit him. He was probably the most formidable
+fighter in debate of whom parliamentary records preserve the memory.
+The hostility which he encountered beggars description; the English
+language was deficient in adequate words of virulence and contempt to
+express the feelings which were entertained towards him. At home he
+had not the countenance of that class in society to which he naturally
+belonged. A second time he found the chief part of the gentlemen of
+Boston and its vicinity, the leading lawyers, the rich merchants, the
+successful manufacturers, not only opposed to him, but entertaining
+towards him sentiments of personal dislike and even vindictiveness.
+This stratum of the community, having a natural distaste for disquieting
+agitation and influenced by class feeling,--the gentlemen of the North
+sympathizing with the "aristocracy" of the South,--could not make
+common cause with anti-slavery people. Fortunately, however, Mr. Adams
+was returned by a country district where the old Puritan instincts (p. 247)
+were still strong. The intelligence and free spirit of New England
+were at his back, and were fairly represented by him; in spite of
+high-bred disfavor they carried him gallantly through the long
+struggle. The people of the Plymouth district sent him back to the
+House every two years from the time of his first election to the year
+of his death, and the disgust of the gentlemen of Boston was after all
+of trifling consequence to him and of no serious influence upon the
+course of history. The old New England instinct was in him as it was
+in the mass of the people; that instinct made him the real exponent of
+New England thought, belief, and feeling, and that same instinct made
+the great body of voters stand by him with unswerving constancy. When
+his fellow Representatives, almost to a man, deserted him, he was
+sustained by many a token of sympathy and admiration coming from among
+the people at large. Time and the history of the United States have
+been his potent vindicators. The conservative, conscienceless
+respectability of wealth was, as is usually the case with it in the
+annals of the Anglo-Saxon race, quite in the wrong and predestined to
+well-merited defeat. It adds to the honor due to Mr. Adams that his
+sense of right was true enough, and that his vision was clear enough,
+to lead him out of that strong thraldom which class feelings,      (p. 248)
+traditions, and comradeship are wont to exercise.
+
+But it is time to resume the narrative and to let Mr. Adams's acts--of
+which after all it is possible to give only the briefest sketch,
+selecting a few of the more striking incidents--tell the tale of his
+Congressional life.
+
+On February 14, 1835, Mr. Adams again presented two petitions for the
+abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia, but without giving
+rise to much excitement. The fusillade was, however, getting too thick
+and fast to be endured longer with indifference by the impatient
+Southerners. At the next session of Congress they concluded to try to
+stop it, and their ingenious scheme was to make Congress shot-proof,
+so to speak, against such missiles. On January 4, 1836, Mr. Adams
+presented an abolition petition couched in the usual form, and moved
+that it be laid on the table, as others like it had lately been. But
+in a moment Mr. Glascock, of Georgia, moved that the petition be not
+received. Debate sprang up on a point of order, and two days later,
+before the question of reception was determined, a resolution was
+offered by Mr. Jarvis, of Maine, declaring that the House would not
+entertain any petitions for the abolition of slavery in the District
+of Columbia. This resolution was supported on the ground that      (p. 249)
+Congress had no constitutional power in the premises. Some days
+later, January 18, 1836, before any final action had been reached upon
+this proposition, Mr. Adams presented some more abolition petitions,
+one of them signed by "one hundred and forty-eight ladies, citizens of
+the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; for, I said, I had not yet brought
+myself to doubt whether females were citizens." The usual motion not
+to receive was made, and then a new device was resorted to in the
+shape of a motion that the motion not to receive be laid on the table.
+
+On February 8, 1836, this novel scheme for shutting off petitions
+against slavery immediately upon their presentation was referred to a
+select committee of which Mr. Pinckney was chairman. On May 18 this
+committee reported in substance: 1. That Congress had no power to
+interfere with slavery in any State; 2. That Congress ought not to
+interfere with slavery in the District of Columbia; 3. That whereas
+the agitation of the subject was disquieting and objectionable, "all
+petitions, memorials, resolutions or papers, relating in any way or to
+any extent whatsoever to the subject of slavery or the abolition of
+slavery, shall, without being either printed or referred, be laid upon
+the table, and that no further action whatever shall be had        (p. 250)
+thereon." When it came to taking a vote upon this report a division of
+the question was called for, and the yeas and nays were ordered. The
+first resolution was then read, whereupon Mr. Adams at once rose and
+pledged himself, if the House would allow him five minutes' time, to
+prove it to be false. But cries of "order" resounded; he was compelled
+to take his seat and the resolution was adopted by 182 to 9. Upon the
+second resolution he asked to be excused from voting, and his name was
+passed in the call. The third resolution with its preamble was then
+read, and Mr. Adams, so soon as his name was called, rose and said: "I
+hold the resolution to be a direct violation of the Constitution of
+the United States, the rules of this House, and the rights of my
+constituents." He was interrupted by shrieks of "order" resounding on
+every side; but he only spoke the louder and obstinately finished his
+sentence before resuming his seat. The resolution was of course agreed
+to, the vote standing 117 to 68. Such was the beginning of the famous
+"gag" which became and long remained--afterward in a worse shape--a
+standing rule of the House. Regularly in each new Congress when the
+adoption of rules came up, Mr. Adams moved to rescind the "gag;" but
+for many years his motions continued to be voted down, as a        (p. 251)
+matter of course. Its imposition was clearly a mistake on the part of
+the slave-holding party; free debate would almost surely have hurt
+them less than this interference with the freedom of petition. They
+had assumed an untenable position. Henceforth, as the persistent
+advocate of the right of petition, Mr. Adams had a support among the
+people at large vastly greater than he could have enjoyed as the
+opponent of slavery. As his adversaries had shaped the issue he was
+predestined to victory in a free country.
+
+A similar scene was enacted on December 21 and 22, 1837. A "gag" or
+"speech-smothering" resolution being then again before the House, Mr.
+Adams, when his name was called in the taking of the vote, cried out
+"amidst a perfect war-whoop of 'order:' 'I hold the resolution to be a
+violation of the Constitution, of the right of petition of my
+constituents and of the people of the United States, and of my right
+to freedom of speech as a member of this House.'" Afterward, in
+reading over the names of members who had voted, the clerk omitted
+that of Mr. Adams, this utterance of his not having constituted a
+vote. Mr. Adams called attention to the omission. The clerk, by
+direction of the Speaker, thereupon called his name. His only reply
+was by a motion that his answer as already made should be entered  (p. 252)
+on the Journal. The Speaker said that this motion was not in order.
+Mr. Adams, resolute to get upon the record, requested that his motion
+with the Speaker's decision that it was not in order might be entered
+on the Journal. The next day, finding that this entry had not been
+made in proper shape, he brought up the matter again. One of his
+opponents made a false step, and Mr. Adams "bantered him" upon it
+until the other was provoked into saying that, "if the question ever
+came to the issue of war, the Southern people would march into New
+England and conquer it." Mr. Adams replied that no doubt they would if
+they could; that he entered his resolution upon the Journal because he
+was resolved that his opponent's "name should go down to posterity
+damned to everlasting fame." No one ever gained much in a war of words
+with this ever-ready and merciless tongue.
+
+Mr. Adams, having soon become known to all the nation as the
+indomitable presenter of anti-slavery petitions, quickly found that
+great numbers of people were ready to keep him busy in this trying
+task. For a long while it was almost as much as he could accomplish to
+receive, sort, schedule, and present the infinite number of petitions
+and memorials which came to him praying for the abolition of slavery
+and of the slave-trade in the District of Columbia, and opposing   (p. 253)
+the annexation of Texas. It was an occupation not altogether devoid
+even of physical danger, and calling for an amount of moral courage
+greater than it is now easy to appreciate. It is the incipient stage
+of such a conflict that tests the mettle of the little band of
+innovators. When it grows into a great party question much less
+courage is demanded. The mere presentation of an odious petition may
+seem in itself to be a simple task; but to find himself in a constant
+state of antagonism to a powerful, active, and vindictive majority in
+a debating body, constituted of such material as then made up the
+House of Representatives, wore hardly even upon the iron temper and
+inflexible disposition of Mr. Adams. "The most insignificant error of
+conduct in me at this time," he writes in April, 1837, "would be my
+irredeemable ruin in this world; and both the ruling political parties
+are watching with intense anxiety for some overt act by me to set the
+whole pack of their hireling presses upon me." But amid the host of
+foes, and aware that he could count upon the aid of scarcely a single
+hearty and daring friend, he labored only the more earnestly. The
+severe pressure against him begat only the more severe counter
+pressure upon his part.
+
+Besides these natural and legitimate difficulties, Mr. Adams was   (p. 254)
+further in the embarrassing position of one who has to fear as much
+from the imprudence of allies as from open hostility of antagonists,
+and he was often compelled to guard against a peculiar risk coming
+from his very coadjutors in the great cause. The extremists who had
+cast aside all regard for what was practicable, and who utterly
+scorned to consider the feasibility or the consequences of measures
+which seemed to them to be correct as abstract propositions of
+morality, were constantly urging him to action which would only have
+destroyed him forever in political life, would have stripped him of
+his influence, exiled him from that position in Congress where he
+could render the most efficient service that was in him, and left him
+naked of all usefulness and utterly helpless to continue that
+essential portion of the labor which could be conducted by no one
+else. "The abolitionists generally," he said, "are constantly urging
+me to indiscreet movements, which would ruin me, and weaken and not
+strengthen their cause." His family, on the other hand, sought to
+restrain him from all connection with these dangerous partisans.
+"Between these adverse impulses," he writes, "my mind is agitated
+almost to distraction.... I walk on the edge of a precipice almost
+every step that I take." In the midst of all this anxiety,         (p. 255)
+however, he was fortunately supported by the strong commendation of
+his constituents which they once loyally declared by formal and
+unanimous votes in a convention summoned for the express purpose of
+manifesting their support. His feelings appear by an entry in his
+Diary in October, 1837:--
+
+     "I have gone [he said] as far upon this article, the abolition of
+     slavery, as the public opinion of the free portion of the Union
+     will bear, and so far that scarcely a slave-holding member of the
+     House dares to vote with me upon any question. I have as yet been
+     thoroughly sustained by my own State, but one step further and I
+     hazard my own standing and influence there, my own final
+     overthrow, and the cause of liberty itself for an indefinite
+     time, certainly for more than my remnant of life. Were there in
+     the House one member capable of taking the lead in this cause of
+     universal emancipation, which is moving onward in the world and
+     in this country, I would withdraw from the contest which will
+     rage with increasing fury as it draws to its crisis, but for the
+     management of which my age, infirmities, and approaching end
+     totally disqualify me. There is no such man in the House."
+
+September 15, 1837, he says: "I have been for some time occupied day
+and night, when at home, in assorting and recording the petitions and
+remonstrances against the annexation of Texas, and other           (p. 256)
+anti-slavery petitions, which flow upon me in torrents." The next day
+he presented the singular petition of one Sherlock S. Gregory, who had
+conceived the eccentric notion of asking Congress to declare him "an
+alien or stranger in the land so long as slavery exists and the wrongs
+of the Indians are unrequited and unrepented of." September 28 he
+presented a batch of his usual petitions, and also asked leave to
+offer a resolution calling for a report concerning the coasting trade
+in slaves. "There was what Napoleon would have called a superb NO!
+returned to my request from the servile side of the House." The next
+day he presented fifty-one more like documents, and notes having
+previously presented one hundred and fifty more.
+
+In December, 1837, still at this same work, he made a hard but
+fruitless effort to have the Texan remonstrances and petitions sent to
+a select committee instead of to that on foreign affairs which was
+constituted in the Southern interest. On December 29 he "presented
+several bundles of abolition and anti-slavery petitions," and said
+that, having declared his opinion that the gag-rule was unconstitutional,
+null, and void, he should "submit to it only as to physical force."
+January 3, 1838, he presented "about a hundred petitions,          (p. 257)
+memorials, and remonstrances,--all laid on the table." January 15 he
+presented fifty more. January 28 he received thirty-one petitions, and
+spent that day and the next in assorting and filing these and others
+which he previously had, amounting in all to one hundred and twenty.
+February 14, in the same year, was a field-day in the petition campaign:
+he presented then no less than three hundred and fifty petitions, all
+but three or four of which bore more or less directly upon the slavery
+question. Among these petitions was one
+
+     "praying that Congress would take measures to protect citizens
+     from the North going to the South from danger to their lives.
+     When the motion to lay that on the table was made, I said that,
+     'In another part of the Capitol it had been threatened that if a
+     Northern abolitionist should go to North Carolina, and utter a
+     principle of the Declaration of Independence'--Here a loud cry of
+     'order! order!' burst forth, in which the Speaker yelled the
+     loudest. I waited till it subsided, and then resumed, 'that if
+     they could catch him they would hang him!' I said this so as to
+     be distinctly heard throughout the hall, the renewed deafening
+     shout of 'order! order!' notwithstanding. The Speaker then said,
+     'The gentleman from Massachusetts will take his seat;' which I
+     did and immediately rose again and presented another petition. He
+     did not dare tell me that I could not proceed without         (p. 258)
+     permission of the House, and I proceeded. The threat to hang
+     Northern abolitionists was uttered by Preston of the Senate
+     within the last fortnight."
+
+On March 12, of the same year, he presented ninety-six petitions,
+nearly all of an anti-slavery character, one of them for "expunging
+the Declaration of Independence from the Journals."
+
+On December 14, 1838, Mr. Wise, of Virginia, objected to the reception
+of certain anti-slavery petitions. The Speaker ruled his objection out
+of order, and from this ruling Wise appealed. The question on the
+appeal was taken by yeas and nays. When Mr. Adams's name was called,
+he relates:--
+
+     "I rose and said, 'Mr. Speaker, considering all the resolutions
+     introduced by the gentleman from New Hampshire as'--The Speaker
+     roared out, 'The gentleman from Massachusetts must answer Aye or
+     No, and nothing else. Order!' With a reinforced voice--'I refuse
+     to answer, because I consider all the proceedings of the House as
+     unconstitutional'--While in a firm and swelling voice I pronounced
+     distinctly these words, the Speaker and about two thirds of the
+     House cried, 'order! order! order!' till it became a perfect
+     yell. I paused a moment for it to cease and then said, 'a direct
+     violation of the Constitution of the United States.' While
+     speaking these words with loud, distinct, and slow            (p. 259)
+     articulation, the bawl of 'order! order!' resounded again from
+     two thirds of the House. The Speaker, with agonizing lungs,
+     screamed, 'I call upon the House to support me in the execution
+     of my duty!' I then coolly resumed my seat. Waddy Thompson, of
+     South Carolina, advancing into one of the aisles with a sarcastic
+     smile and silvery tone of voice, said, 'What aid from the House
+     would the Speaker desire?' The Speaker snarled back, 'The
+     gentleman from South Carolina is out of order!' and a peal of
+     laughter burst forth from all sides of the House."
+
+So that little skirmish ended, much more cheerfully than was often the
+case.
+
+December 20, 1838, he presented fifty anti-slavery petitions, among
+which were three praying for the recognition of the Republic of Hayti.
+Petitions of this latter kind he strenuously insisted should be
+referred to a select committee, or else to the Committee on Foreign
+Affairs, accompanied in the latter case with explicit instructions
+that a report thereon should be brought in. He audaciously stated that
+he asked for these instructions because so many petitions of a like
+tenor had been sent to the Foreign Affairs Committee, and had found it
+a limbo from which they never again emerged, and the chairman had said
+that this would continue to be the case. The chairman, sitting two
+rows behind Mr. Adams, said, "that insinuation should not be       (p. 260)
+made against a gentleman!" "I shall make," retorted Mr. Adams, "what
+insinuation I please. This is not an insinuation, but a direct,
+positive assertion."
+
+January 7, 1839, he cheerfully records that he presented ninety-five
+petitions, bearing "directly or indirectly upon the slavery topics,"
+and some of them very exasperating in their language. March 30, 1840,
+he handed in no less than five hundred and eleven petitions, many of
+which were not receivable under the "gag" rule adopted on January 28
+of that year, which had actually gone the length of refusing so much
+as a reception to abolition petitions. April 13, 1840, he presented a
+petition for the repeal of the laws in the District of Columbia, which
+authorized the whipping of women. Besides this he had a multitude of
+others, and he only got through the presentation of them "just as the
+morning hour expired." On January 21, 1841, he found much amusement in
+puzzling his Southern adversaries by presenting some petitions in
+which, besides the usual anti-slavery prayers, there was a prayer to
+refuse to admit to the Union any new State whose constitution should
+tolerate slavery. The Speaker said that only the latter prayer could
+be _received_ under the "gag" rule. Connor, of North Carolina,     (p. 261)
+moved to lay on the table so much of the petition as could be
+received. Mr. Adams tauntingly suggested that in order to do this it
+would be necessary to mutilate the document by cutting it into two
+pieces; whereat there was great wrath and confusion, "the House got
+into a snarl, the Speaker knew not what to do." The Southerners raved
+and fumed for a while, and finally resorted to their usual expedient,
+and dropped altogether a matter which so sorely burned their fingers.
+
+A fact, very striking in view of the subsequent course of events,
+concerning Mr. Adams's relation with the slavery question, seems
+hitherto to have escaped the attention of those who have dealt with
+his career. It may as well find a place here as elsewhere in a
+narrative which it is difficult to make strictly chronological.
+Apparently he was the first to declare the doctrine, that the
+abolition of slavery could be lawfully accomplished by the exercise of
+the war powers of the Government. The earliest expression of this
+principle is found in a speech made by him in May, 1836, concerning
+the distribution of rations to fugitives from Indian hostilities in
+Alabama and Georgia. He then said:--
+
+     "From the instant that your slave-holding States become the
+     theatre of war, civil, servile, or foreign, from that instant (p. 262)
+     the war powers of the Constitution extend to interference with
+     the institution of slavery in every way in which it can be
+     interfered with, from a claim of indemnity for slaves taken or
+     destroyed, to a cession of the State burdened with slavery to a
+     foreign power."
+
+In June, 1841, he made a speech of which no report exists, but the
+contents of which may be in part learned from the replies and
+references to it which are on record. Therein he appears to have
+declared that slavery could be abolished in the exercise of the
+treaty-making power, having reference doubtless to a treaty concluding
+a war.
+
+These views were of course mere abstract expressions of opinion as to
+the constitutionality of measures the real occurrence of which was
+anticipated by nobody. But, as the first suggestions of a doctrine in
+itself most obnoxious to the Southern theory and fundamentally
+destructive of the great Southern "institution" under perfectly
+possible circumstances, this enunciation by Mr. Adams gave rise to
+much indignation. Instead of allowing the imperfectly formulated
+principle to lose its danger in oblivion, the Southerners assailed it
+with vehemence. They taunted Mr. Adams with the opinion, as if merely
+to say that he held it was to damn him to everlasting infamy. The only
+result was that they induced him to consider the matter more       (p. 263)
+fully, and to express his belief more deliberately. In January, 1842,
+Mr. Wise attacked him upon this ground, and a month later Marshall
+followed in the same strain. These assaults were perhaps the direct
+incentive to what was said soon after by Mr. Adams, on April 14, 1842,
+in a speech concerning war with England and with Mexico, of which
+there was then some talk. Giddings, among other resolutions, had
+introduced one to the effect that the slave States had the exclusive
+right to be consulted on the subject of slavery. Mr. Adams said that
+he could not give his assent to this. One of the laws of war, he said,
+is
+
+     "that when a country is invaded, and two hostile armies are set
+     in martial array, the commanders of both armies have power to
+     emancipate all the slaves in the invaded territory."
+
+He cited some precedents from South American history, and continued:--
+
+     "Whether the war be servile, civil, or foreign, I lay this down
+     as the law of nations. I say that the military authority takes
+     for the time the place of all municipal institutions, slavery
+     among the rest. Under that state of things, so far from its being
+     true that the States where slavery exists have the exclusive
+     management of the subject, not only the President of the United
+     States but the commander of the army has power to order       (p. 264)
+     the universal emancipation of the slaves."
+
+This declaration of constitutional doctrine was made with much
+positiveness and emphasis. There for many years the matter rested. The
+principle had been clearly asserted by Mr. Adams, angrily repudiated
+by the South, and in the absence of the occasion of war there was
+nothing more to be done in the matter. But when the exigency at last
+came, and the government of the United States was brought face to face
+with by far the gravest constitutional problem presented by the great
+rebellion, then no other solution presented itself save that which had
+been suggested twenty years earlier in the days of peace by Mr. Adams.
+It was in pursuance of the doctrine to which he thus gave the first
+utterance that slavery was forever abolished in the United States.
+Extracts from the last-quoted speech long stood as the motto of the
+"Liberator;" and at the time of the Emancipation Proclamation Mr.
+Adams was regarded as the chief and sufficient authority for an act so
+momentous in its effect, so infinitely useful in a matter of national
+extremity. But it was evidently a theory which had taken strong hold
+upon him. Besides the foregoing speeches there is an explicit
+statement of it in a letter which he wrote from Washington April 4,
+1836, to Hon. Solomon Lincoln, of Hingham, a friend and            (p. 265)
+constituent. After touching upon other topics he says:--
+
+     "The new pretensions of the slave representation in Congress of a
+     right to refuse to receive petitions, and that Congress have no
+     constitutional power to abolish slavery or the slave-trade in the
+     District of Columbia, forced upon me so much of the discussion as
+     I did take upon me, but in which you are well aware I did not and
+     could not speak a tenth part of my mind. I did not, for example,
+     start the question whether by the law of God and of nature man
+     can hold _property_, HEREDITARY property, in man. I did not start
+     the question whether in the event of a servile insurrection and
+     war, Congress would not have complete unlimited control over the
+     whole subject of slavery, even to the emancipation of all the
+     slaves in the State where such insurrection should break out, and
+     for the suppression of which the freemen of Plymouth and Norfolk
+     counties, Massachusetts, should be called by Acts of Congress to
+     pour out their treasures and to shed their blood. Had I spoken my
+     mind on these two points, the sturdiest of the abolitionists
+     would have disavowed the sentiments of their champion."
+
+The projected annexation of Texas, which became a battle-ground
+whereon the tide of conflict swayed so long and so fiercely to and
+fro, profoundly stirred Mr. Adams's indignation. It is, he said, "a
+question of far deeper root and more overshadowing branches than   (p. 266)
+any or all others that now agitate this country.... I had opened it by
+my speech ... on the 25th May, 1836--by far the most noted speech that
+I ever made." He based his opposition to the annexation upon
+constitutional objections, and on September 18, 1837, offered a
+resolution that "the power of annexing the people of any independent
+State to this Union is a power not delegated by the Constitution of
+the United States to their Congress or to any department of their
+government, but reserved to the people." The Speaker refused to
+receive the motion, or even allow it to be read, on the ground that it
+was not in order. Mr. Adams repeated substantially the same motion in
+June, 1838, then adding "that any attempt by act of Congress or by
+treaty to annex the Republic of Texas to this Union would be an
+usurpation of power which it would be the right and the duty of the
+free people of the Union to resist and annul." The story of his
+opposition to this measure is, however, so interwoven with his general
+antagonism to slavery, that there is little occasion for treating them
+separately.[9]
+
+                   [Footnote 9: In an address to his constituents in
+                   September, 1842, Mr. Adams spoke of his course
+                   concerning Texas. Having mentioned Mr. Van Buren's
+                   reply, declining the formal proposition made in
+                   1837 by the Republic of Texas for annexation to the
+                   United States, he continued: "But the
+                   slave-breeding passion for the annexation was not
+                   to be so disconcerted. At the ensuing session of
+                   Congress numerous petitions and memorials for and
+                   against the annexation were presented to the House,
+                   ... and were referred to the Committee of Foreign
+                   Affairs, who, without ever taking them into
+                   consideration, towards the close of the session
+                   asked to be discharged from the consideration of
+                   them all. It was on this report that the debate
+                   arose, in which I disclosed the whole system of
+                   duplicity and perfidy towards Mexico, which had
+                   marked the Jackson Administration from its
+                   commencement to its close. It silenced the clamors
+                   for the annexation of Texas to this Union for three
+                   years till the catastrophe of the Van Buren
+                   Administration. The people of the free States were
+                   lulled into the belief that the whole project was
+                   abandoned, and that they should hear no more of
+                   slave-trade cravings for the annexation of Texas.
+                   Had Harrison lived they would have heard no more of
+                   them to this day, but no sooner was John Tyler
+                   installed in the President's House than
+                   nullification and Texas and war with Mexico rose
+                   again upon the surface, with eye steadily fixed
+                   upon the Polar Star of Southern slave-dealing
+                   supremacy in the government of the Union."]
+
+People sometimes took advantage of his avowed principles           (p. 267)
+concerning freedom of petition to put him in positions which they
+thought would embarrass him or render him ridiculous. Not much
+success, however, attended these foolish efforts of shallow wits. It
+was not easy to disconcert him or to take him at disadvantage. July
+28, 1841, he presented a paper of this character coming from sundry
+Virginians and praying that all the free colored population should be
+sold or expelled from the country. He simply stated as he handed in
+the sheet that nothing could be more abhorrent to him than this    (p. 268)
+prayer, and that his respect for the right of petition was his
+only motive for presenting this. It was suspended under the "gag"
+rule, and its promoters, unless very easily amused, must have been
+sadly disappointed with the fate and effect of their joke. On March 5,
+1838, he received from Rocky Mount in Virginia a letter and petition
+praying that the House would arraign at its bar and forever expel John
+Quincy Adams. He presented both documents, with a resolution asking
+that they be referred to a committee for investigation and report. His
+enemies in the House saw that he was sure to have the best of the
+sport if the matter should be pursued, and succeeded in laying it on
+the table. Waddy Thompson thoughtfully improved the opportunity to
+mention to Mr. Adams that he also had received a petition, "numerously
+signed," praying for Mr. Adams's expulsion, but had never presented
+it. In the following May Mr. Adams presented another petition of like
+tenor. Dromgoole said that he supposed it was a "quiz," and that he
+would move to lay it on the table, "unless the gentleman from
+Massachusetts wished to give it another direction." Mr. Adams said
+that "the gentleman from Massachusetts cared very little about it,"
+and it found the limbo of the "table."
+
+To this same period belongs the memorable tale of Mr. Adams's      (p. 269)
+attempt to present a petition from slaves. On February 6, 1837, he
+brought in some two hundred abolition petitions. He closed with one
+against the slave-trade in the District of Columbia purporting to be
+signed by "nine ladies of Fredericksburg, Virginia," whom he declined
+to name because, as he said, in the present disposition of the
+country, "he did not know what might happen to them if he did name
+them." Indeed, he added, he was not sure that the petition was
+genuine; he had said, when he began to present his petitions, that
+some among them were so peculiar that he was in doubt as to their
+genuineness, and this fell within the description. Apparently he had
+concluded and was about to take his seat, when he quickly caught up
+another sheet, and said that he held in his hand a paper concerning
+which he should wish to have the decision of the Speaker before
+presenting it. It purported to be a petition from twenty-two slaves,
+and he would like to know whether it came within the rule of the House
+concerning petitions relating to slavery. The Speaker, in manifest
+confusion, said that he could not answer the question until he knew
+the contents of the document. Mr. Adams, remarking that "it was one of
+those petitions which had occurred to his mind as not being what   (p. 270)
+it purported to be," proposed to send it up to the Chair for
+inspection. Objection was made to this, and the Speaker said that the
+circumstances were so extraordinary that he would take the sense of
+the House. That body, at first inattentive, now became interested, and
+no sooner did a knowledge of what was going on spread among those
+present than great excitement prevailed. Members were hastily brought
+in from the lobbies; many tried to speak, and from parts of the hall
+cries of "Expel him! Expel him!" were heard. For a brief interval no
+one of the enraged Southerners was equal to the unforeseen emergency.
+Mr. Haynes moved the rejection of the petition. Mr. Lewis deprecated
+this motion, being of opinion that the House must inflict punishment
+on the gentleman from Massachusetts. Mr. Haynes thereupon withdrew a
+motion which was so obviously inadequate to the vindictive gravity of
+the occasion. Mr. Grantland stood ready to second a motion to punish
+Mr. Adams, and Mr. Lewis said that if punishment should not be meted
+out it would "be better for the representatives from the slave-holding
+States to go home at once." Mr. Alford said that so soon as the
+petition should be presented he would move that it should "be taken
+from the House and burned." At last Mr. Thompson got a resolution  (p. 271)
+into shape as follows:--
+
+     "That the Hon. John Quincy Adams, by the attempt just made by him
+     to introduce a petition purporting on its face to be from slaves,
+     has been guilty of a gross disrespect to this House, and that he
+     be instantly brought to the bar to receive the severe censure of
+     the Speaker."
+
+In supporting this resolution he said that Mr. Adams's action was in
+gross and wilful violation of the rules of the House and an insult to
+its members. He even threatened criminal proceedings before the grand
+jury of the District of Columbia, saying that if that body had the
+"proper intelligence and spirit" people might "yet see an incendiary
+brought to condign punishment." Mr. Haynes, not satisfied with Mr.
+Thompson's resolution, proposed a substitute to the effect that Mr.
+Adams had "rendered himself justly liable to the severest censure of
+this House and is censured accordingly." Then there ensued a little
+more excited speech-making and another resolution, that Mr. Adams,
+
+     "by his attempt to introduce into this House a petition from
+     slaves for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia,
+     has committed an outrage on the feelings of the people of a large
+     portion of this Union; a flagrant contempt on the dignity     (p. 272)
+     of this House; and, by extending to slaves a privilege only
+     belonging to freemen, directly incites the slave population
+     to insurrection; and that the said member be forthwith called to
+     the bar of the House and be censured by the Speaker."
+
+Mr. Lewis remained of opinion that it might be best for the Southern
+members to go home,--a proposition which afterwards drew forth a
+flaming speech from Mr. Alford, who, far from inclining to go home,
+was ready to stay "until this fair city is a field of Waterloo and
+this beautiful Potomac a river of blood." Mr. Patton, of Virginia, was
+the first to speak a few words to bring members to their senses,
+pertinently asking whether Mr. Adams had "attempted to offer" this
+petition, and whether it did indeed pray for the abolition of slavery.
+It might be well, he suggested, for his friends to be sure of their
+facts before going further. Then at last Mr. Adams, who had not at all
+lost his head in the general hurly-burly, rose and said, that amid
+these numerous resolutions charging him with "high crimes and
+misdemeanors" and calling him to the bar of the House to answer for
+the same, he had thought it proper to remain silent until the House
+should take some action; that he did not suppose that, if he should be
+brought to the bar of the House, he should be "struck mute by the  (p. 273)
+previous question" before he should have been given an opportunity to
+"say a word or two" in his own defence. As to the facts: "I did not
+present the petition," he said, "and I appeal to the Speaker to say
+that I did not.... I intended to take the decision of the Speaker
+before I went one step towards presenting or offering to present that
+petition." The contents of the petition, should the House ever choose
+to read it, he continued, would render necessary some amendments at
+least in the last resolution, since the prayer was that slavery should
+_not_ be abolished!" The gentleman from Alabama may perchance find,
+that the object of this petition is precisely what he desires to
+accomplish; and that these slaves who have sent this paper to me are
+his auxiliaries instead of being his opponents."
+
+These remarks caused some discomfiture among the Southern members, who
+were glad to have time for deliberation given them by a maundering
+speech from Mr. Mann, of New York, who talked about "the deplorable
+spectacle shown off every petition day by the honorable member from
+Massachusetts in presenting the abolition petitions of his infatuated
+friends and constituents," charged Mr. Adams with running counter to
+the sense of the whole country with a "violence paralleled only    (p. 274)
+by the revolutionary madness of desperation," and twitted him with his
+political friendlessness, with his age, and with the insinuation of
+waning faculties and judgment. This little phial having been emptied,
+Mr. Thompson arose and angrily assailed Mr. Adams for contemptuously
+trifling with the House, which charge he based upon the entirely
+unproved assumption that the petition was not a genuine document. He
+concluded by presenting new resolutions better adapted to the recent
+development of the case:--
+
+     "1. That the Hon. John Quincy Adams, by an effort to present a
+     petition from slaves, has committed a gross contempt of this
+     House.
+
+     "2. That the member from Massachusetts above-named, by creating
+     the impression and leaving the House under such impression, that
+     the said petition was for the abolition of slavery, when he knew
+     that it was not, has trifled with the House.
+
+     "3. That the Hon. John Quincy Adams receive the censure of the
+     House for his conduct referred to in the preceding resolutions."
+
+Mr. Pinckney said that the avowal by Mr. Adams that he had in his
+possession the petition of slaves was an admission of communication
+with slaves, and so was evidence of collusion with them; and that Mr.
+Adams had thus rendered himself indictable for aiding and abetting (p. 275)
+insurrection. A _fortiori_, then, was he not amenable to the censure
+of the House? Mr. Haynes, of Georgia, forgetting that the petition had
+not been presented, announced his intention of moving that it should
+be rejected subject only to a permission for its withdrawal; another
+member suggested that, if the petition should be disposed of by
+burning, it would be well to commit to the same combustion the
+gentleman who presented it.
+
+On the next day some more resolutions were ready, prepared by
+Dromgoole, who in his sober hours was regarded as the best
+parliamentarian in the Southern party. These were, that Mr. Adams
+
+     "by stating in his place that he had in his possession a paper
+     purporting to be a petition from slaves, and inquiring if it came
+     within the meaning of a resolution heretofore adopted (as
+     preliminary to its presentation), has given color to the idea
+     that slaves have the right of petition and of his readiness to be
+     their organ; and that for the same he deserves the censure of the
+     House.
+
+     "That the aforesaid John Quincy Adams receive a censure from the
+     Speaker in the presence of the House of Representatives."
+
+Mr. Alford, in advocating these resolutions, talked about "this awful
+crisis of our beloved country." Mr. Robertson, though opposing     (p. 276)
+the resolutions, took pains "strongly to condemn ... the conduct of
+the gentleman from Massachusetts." Mr. Adams's colleague, Mr. Lincoln,
+spoke in his behalf, so also did Mr. Evans, of Maine; and Caleb
+Cushing made a powerful speech upon his side. Otherwise than this Mr.
+Adams was left to carry on the contest single-handed against the
+numerous array of assailants, all incensed and many fairly savage. Yet
+it is a striking proof of the dread in which even the united body of
+hot-blooded Southerners stood of this hard fighter from the North,
+that as the debate was drawing to a close, after they had all said
+their say and just before his opportunity came for making his
+elaborate speech of defence, they suddenly and opportunely became
+ready to content themselves with a mild resolution, which condemned
+generally the presentation of petitions from slaves, and, for the
+disposal of this particular case, recited that Mr. Adams had "solemnly
+disclaimed all design of doing anything disrespectful to the House,"
+and had "avowed his intention not to offer to present" to the House
+the petition of this kind held by him; that "therefore all further
+proceedings in regard to his conduct do now cease." A sneaking effort
+by Mr. Vanderpoel to close Mr. Adams's mouth by moving the         (p. 277)
+previous question involved too much cowardice to be carried; and so on
+February 9 the sorely bated man was at last able to begin his final
+speech. He conducted his defence with singular spirit and ability, but
+at too great length to admit of even a sketch of what he said. He
+claimed the right of petition for slaves, and established it so far as
+argument can establish anything. He alleged that all he had done was
+to ask a question of the Speaker, and if he was to be censured for so
+doing, then how much more, he asked, was the Speaker deserving of
+censure who had even put the same question to the House, and given as
+his reason for so doing that it was not only of novel but of difficult
+import! He repudiated the idea that any member of the House could be
+held by a grand jury to respond for words spoken in debate, and
+recommended the gentlemen who had indulged in such preposterous
+threats "to study a little the first principles of civil liberty,"
+excoriating them until they actually arose and tried to explain away
+their own language. He cast infinite ridicule upon the unhappy
+expression of Dromgoole, "giving color to an idea." Referring to the
+difficulty which he encountered by reason of the variety and disorder
+of the resolutions and charges against him with which "gentlemen from
+the South had pounced down upon him like so many eagles upon a     (p. 278)
+dove,"--there was an exquisite sarcasm in the simile!--he said:
+"When I take up one idea, before I can give color to the idea, it has
+already changed its form and presents itself for consideration under
+other colors.... What defence can be made against this new crime of
+giving color to ideas?" As for trifling with the House by presenting a
+petition which in the course of debate had become pretty well known
+and acknowledged to be a hoax designed to lead Mr. Adams into a
+position of embarrassment and danger, he disclaimed any such motive,
+reminding members that he had given warning, when beginning to present
+his petitions, that he was suspicious that some among them might not
+be genuine.[10] But while denying all intention of trifling with the
+House, he rejected the mercy extended to him in the last of the    (p. 279)
+long series of resolutions before that body. "I disclaim not," he
+said, "any particle of what I have done, not a single word of what I
+have said do I unsay; nay, I am ready to do and to say the same
+to-morrow." He had no notion of aiding in making a loophole through
+which his blundering enemies might escape, even though he himself
+should be accorded the privilege of crawling through it with them. At
+times during his speech "there was great agitation in the House," but
+when he closed no one seemed ambitious to reply. His enemies had
+learned anew a lesson, often taught to them before and often to be
+impressed upon them again, that it was perilous to come to close
+quarters with Mr. Adams. They gave up all idea of censuring him, and
+were content to apply a very mild emollient to their own smarting
+wounds in the shape of a resolution, to the effect that slaves did not
+possess the right of petition secured by the Constitution to the
+people of the United States.
+
+                   [Footnote 10: Mr. Adams afterward said: "I believed
+                   the petition signed by female names to be
+                   genuine.... I had suspicions that the other,
+                   purporting to be from slaves, came really from the
+                   hand of a master who had prevailed on his slaves to
+                   sign it, that they might have the appearance of
+                   imploring the members from the North to cease
+                   offering petitions for their emancipation, which
+                   could have no other tendency than to aggravate
+                   their servitude, and of being so impatient under
+                   the operation of petitions in their favor as to
+                   pray that the Northern members who should persist
+                   in presenting them should be expelled." It was a
+                   part of the prayer of the petition that Mr. Adams
+                   should be expelled if he should continue to present
+                   abolition petitions.]
+
+In the winter of 1842-43 the questions arising out of the affair of
+the Creole rendered the position then held by Mr. Adams at the head of
+the House Committee on Foreign Affairs exceedingly distasteful to the
+slave-holders. On January 21, 1842, a somewhat singular            (p. 280)
+manifestation of this feeling was made when Mr. Adams himself
+presented a petition from Georgia praying for his removal from this
+Chairmanship. Upon this he requested to be heard in his own behalf.
+The Southern party, not sanguine of any advantage from debating the
+matter, tried to lay it on the table. The petition was alleged by
+Habersham, of Georgia, to be undoubtedly another hoax. But Mr. Adams,
+loath to lose a good opportunity, still claimed to be heard on the
+charges made against him by the "infamous slave-holders." Mr. Smith,
+of Virginia, said that the House had lately given Mr. Adams leave to
+defend himself against the charge of monomania, and asked whether he
+was doing so. Some members cried "Yes! Yes!"; others shouted "No! he
+is establishing the fact." The wrangling was at last brought to an end
+by the Speaker's declaration, that the petition must lie over for the
+present. But the scene had been only the prelude to one much longer,
+fiercer, and more exciting. No sooner was the document thus
+temporarily disposed of than Mr. Adams rose and presented the petition
+of forty-five citizens of Haverhill, Massachusetts, praying the House
+"immediately to adopt measures peaceably to dissolve the union of
+these States," for the alleged cause of the incompatibility        (p. 281)
+between free and slave-holding communities. He moved "its reference to
+a select committee, with instructions to report an answer to the
+petitioners showing the reasons why the prayer of it ought not to be
+granted."
+
+In a moment the House was aflame with excitement. The numerous members
+who hated Mr. Adams thought that at last he was experiencing the
+divinely sent madness which foreruns destruction. Those who sought his
+political annihilation felt that the appointed and glorious hour of
+extinction had come; those who had writhed beneath the castigation of
+his invective exulted in the near revenge. While one said that the
+petition should never have been brought within the walls of the House,
+and another wished to burn it in the presence of the members, Mr.
+Gilmer, of Virginia, offered a resolution, that in presenting the
+petition Mr. Adams "had justly incurred the censure of the House."
+Some objection was made to this resolution as not being in order; but
+Mr. Adams said that he hoped that it would be received and debated and
+that an opportunity would be given him to speak in his own defence;
+"especially as the gentleman from Virginia had thought proper to play
+second fiddle to his colleague[11] from Accomac." Mr. Gilmer retorted
+that he "played second fiddle to no man. He was no fiddler, but    (p. 282)
+was endeavoring to prevent the music of him who,
+
+  'In the space of one revolving moon,
+  Was statesman, poet, fiddler, and buffoon.'"
+
+The resolution was then laid on the table. The House rose, and Mr.
+Adams went home and noted in his Diary, "evening in meditation," for
+which indeed he had abundant cause. On the following day Thomas F.
+Marshall, of Kentucky, offered a substitute for Gilmer's resolution.
+This new fulmination had been prepared in a caucus of forty members of
+the slave-holding party, and was long and carefully framed. Its
+preamble recited, in substance, that a petition to dissolve the Union,
+proposing to Congress to destroy that which the several members had
+solemnly and officially sworn to support, was a "high breach of
+privilege, a contempt offered to this House, a direct proposition to
+the Legislature and each member of it to commit perjury, and involving
+necessarily in its execution and its consequences the destruction of
+our country and the crime of high treason:" wherefore it was to be
+resolved that Mr. Adams, in presenting a petition for dissolution, had
+"offered the deepest indignity to the House" and "an insult to the
+people;" that if "this outrage" should be "permitted to pass unrebuked
+and unpunished" he would have "disgraced his country ... in the    (p. 283)
+eyes of the whole world;" that for this insult and this "wound at
+the Constitution and existence of his country, the peace, the security
+and liberty of the people of these States" he "might well be held to
+merit expulsion from the national councils;" and that "the House deem
+it an act of grace and mercy when they only inflict upon him their
+severest censure;" that so much they must do "for the maintenance of
+their own purity and dignity; for the rest they turned him over to his
+own conscience and the indignation of all true American citizens."
+
+                   [Footnote 11: Henry A. Wise.]
+
+These resolutions were then advocated by Mr. Marshall at great length
+and with extreme bitterness. Mr. Adams replied shortly, stating that
+he should wish to make his full defence at a later stage of the
+debate. Mr. Wise followed in a personal and acrimonious harangue; Mr.
+Everett[12] gave some little assistance to Mr. Adams, and the House
+again adjourned. The following day Wise continued his speech, very
+elaborately. When he closed, Mr. Adams, who had "determined not to
+interrupt him till he had discharged his full cargo of filthy invective,"
+rose to "make a preliminary point." He questioned the right of the
+House to entertain Marshall's resolutions since the preamble assumed
+him to be guilty of the crimes of subornation of perjury and       (p. 284)
+treason, and the resolutions themselves censured him as if he had been
+found guilty; whereas in fact he had not been tried upon these charges
+and of course had not been convicted. If he was to be brought to trial
+upon them he asserted his right to have the proceedings conducted
+before a jury of his peers, and that the House was not a tribunal
+having this authority. But if he was to be tried for contempt, for
+which alone he could lawfully be tried by the House, still there were
+an hundred members sitting on its benches who were morally
+disqualified to judge him, who could not give him an impartial trial,
+because they were prejudiced and the question was one "on which their
+personal, pecuniary, and most sordid interests were at stake." Such
+considerations, he said, ought to prevent many gentlemen from voting,
+as Mr. Wise had avowed that they would prevent him. Here Wise
+interrupted to disavow that he was influenced by any such reasons, but
+rather, he said, by the "personal loathing, dread, and contempt I feel
+for the man." Mr. Adams, continuing after this pleasant interjection,
+admitted that he was in the power of the majority, who might try him
+against law and condemn him against right if they would.
+
+                   [Footnote 12: Horace Everett, of Vermont.]
+
+     "If they say they will try me, they must try me. If they      (p. 285)
+     say they will punish me, they must punish me. But if they say
+     that in peace and mercy they will spare me expulsion, I disdain
+     and cast away their mercy; and I ask them if they will come to
+     such a trial and expel me. I defy them. I have constituents to go
+     to who will have something to say if this House expels me. Nor
+     will it be long before the gentlemen will see me here again."
+
+Such was the fierce temper and indomitable courage of this inflexible
+old man! He flung contempt in the face of those who had him wholly in
+their power, and in the same breath in which he acknowledged that
+power he dared them to use it. He charged Wise with the guilt of
+innocent blood, in connection with certain transactions in a duel, and
+exasperated that gentleman into crying out that the "charge made by
+the gentleman from Massachusetts was as base and black a lie as the
+traitor was base and black who uttered it." When he was asked by the
+Speaker to put his point of order in writing,--his own request to the
+like effect in another case having been refused shortly before,--he
+tauntingly congratulated that gentleman "upon his discovery of the
+expediency of having points of order reduced to writing--a favor which
+he had repeatedly denied to me." When Mr. Wise was speaking, "I
+interrupted him occasionally," says Mr. Adams, "sometimes to       (p. 286)
+provoke him into absurdity." As usual he was left to fight out his
+desperate battle substantially single-handed. Only Mr. Everett
+occasionally helped him a very little; while one or two others who
+spoke against the resolutions were careful to explain that they felt
+no personal good will towards Mr. Adams. But he faced the odds
+courageously. It was no new thing for him to be pitted alone against a
+"solid South." Outside the walls of the House he had some sympathy and
+some assistance tendered him by individuals, among others by Rufus
+Choate then in the Senate, and by his own colleagues from
+Massachusetts. This support aided and cheered him somewhat, but could
+not prevent substantially the whole burden of the labor and brunt of
+the contest from bearing upon him alone. Among the external
+manifestations of feeling, those of hostility were naturally largely
+in the ascendant. The newspapers of Washington--the "Globe" and the
+"National Intelligencer"--which reported the debates, daily filled
+their columns with all the abuse and invective which was poured forth
+against him, while they gave the most meagre statements, or none at
+all, of what he said in his own defence. Among other amenities he
+received from North Carolina an anonymous letter threatening him with
+assassination, having also an engraved portrait of him with the    (p. 287)
+mark of a rifle-ball in the forehead, and the motto "to stop the
+music of John Quincy Adams," etc., etc. This missive he read and
+displayed in the House, but it was received with profound indifference
+by men who would not have greatly objected to the execution of the
+barbarous threat.
+
+The prolonged struggle cost him deep anxiety and sleepless nights,
+which in the declining years of a laborious life told hardly upon his
+aged frame. But against all odds of numbers and under all
+disadvantages of circumstances the past repeated itself, and Mr. Adams
+alone won a victory over all the cohorts of the South. Several
+attempts had been made during the debate to lay the whole subject on
+the table. Mr. Adams said that he would consent to this simply because
+his defence would be a very long affair, and he did not wish to have
+the time of the House consumed and the business of the nation brought
+to a stand solely for the consideration of his personal affairs. These
+propositions failing, he began his speech and soon was making such
+headway that even his adversaries were constrained to see that the
+opportunity which they had conceived to be within their grasp was
+eluding them, as had so often happened before. Accordingly on February
+7 the motion to "lay the whole subject on the table forever" was   (p. 288)
+renewed and carried by one hundred and six votes to ninety-three.
+The House then took up the original petition and refused to receive it
+by one hundred and sixty-six to forty. No sooner was this consummation
+reached than the irrepressible champion rose to his feet and proceeded
+with his budget of anti-slavery petitions, of which he "presented
+nearly two hundred, till the House adjourned."
+
+Within a very short time there came further and convincing proof that
+Mr. Adams was victor. On February 26 he writes: "D. D. Barnard told me
+he had received a petition from his District, signed by a small number
+of very respectable persons, praying for a dissolution of the Union.
+He said he did not know what to do with it. I dined with him." By
+March 14 this dinner bore fruit. Mr. Barnard had made up his mind
+"what to do with it." He presented it, with a motion that it be
+referred to a select committee with instructions to report adversely
+to its prayer. The well-schooled House now took the presentation
+without a ripple of excitement, and was content with simply voting not
+to receive the petition.
+
+In the midst of the toil and anxiety imposed upon Mr. Adams by this
+effort to censure and disgrace him, the scheme, already referred to,
+for displacing him from the chairmanship of the Committee on       (p. 289)
+Foreign Affairs had been actively prosecuted. He was notified that the
+Southern members had formed a cabal for removing him and putting Caleb
+Cushing in his place. The plan was, however, temporarily checked, and
+so soon as Mr. Adams had triumphed in the House the four Southern
+members of the committee sent to the House a paper begging to be
+excused from further services on the committee, "because from recent
+occurrences it was doubtful whether the House would remove the
+chairman, and they were unwilling to serve with one in whom they had
+no confidence." The fugitives were granted, "by a shout of
+acclamation," the excuse which they sought for so welcome a reason,
+and the same was also done for a fifth member. Three more of the same
+party, nominated to fill these vacancies, likewise asked to be
+excused, and were so. Their letters preferring this request were "so
+insulting personally" to Mr. Adams as to constitute "gross breaches of
+privilege." "The Speaker would have refused to receive or present them
+had they referred to any other man in the House." They were published,
+but Mr. Adams, after some hesitation, determined not to give them the
+importance which would result from any public notice in the House upon
+his part. He could afford to keep silence, and judged wisely in doing
+so.
+
+Amid all the animosity and rancor entertained towards Mr. Adams,   (p. 290)
+there yet lurked a degree of respect for his courage, honesty, and
+ability which showed itself upon occasion, doubtless not a little to
+the surprise of the members themselves who were hardly conscious that
+they entertained such sentiments until startled into a manifestation
+of them. An eminent instance of this is to be found in the story of
+the troubled days preceding the organization of the twenty-sixth
+Congress. On December 2, 1839, the members elect of that body came
+together in Washington, with the knowledge that the seats of five
+gentlemen from New Jersey, who brought with them the regular
+gubernatorial certificate of their election, would be contested by
+five other claimants. According to custom Garland, clerk of the last
+House, called the assemblage to order and began the roll-call. When he
+came to New Jersey he called the name of one member from that State,
+and then said that there were five other seats which were contested,
+and that not feeling authorized to decide the dispute he would pass
+over the names of the New Jersey members and proceed with the roll
+till the House should be formed, when the question could be decided.
+Plausible as appeared this abstention from an exercise of authority in
+so grave a dispute, it was nevertheless really an assumption and   (p. 291)
+not a deprecation of power, and as such was altogether unjustifiable.
+The clerk's sole business was to call the names of those persons who
+presented the usual formal credentials; he had no right to take
+cognizance that the seats of any such persons might be the subject of
+a contest, which could properly be instituted, conducted, and
+determined only before and by the House itself when organized. But his
+course was not innocent of a purpose. So evenly was the House divided
+that the admission or exclusion of these five members in the first
+instance would determine the political complexion of the body. The
+members holding the certificates were Whigs; if the clerk could keep
+them out until the organization of the House should be completed, then
+the Democrats would control that organization, would elect their
+Speaker, and through him would make up the committees.
+
+[Illustration: Henry A. Wise]
+
+Naturally enough this arrogation of power by the clerk, the motives
+and consequences of which were abundantly obvious, raised a terrible
+storm. The debate continued till four o'clock in the afternoon, when a
+motion was made to adjourn. The clerk said that he could put no
+question, not even of adjournment, till the House should be formed.
+But there was a general cry to adjourn, and the clerk declared the
+House adjourned. Mr. Adams went home and wrote in his Diary that   (p. 292)
+the clerk's "two decisions form together an insurmountable objection
+to the transaction of any business, and an impossibility of organizing
+the House.... The most curious part of the case is, that his own
+election as clerk depends upon the exclusion of the New Jersey
+members." The next day was consumed in a fierce debate as to whether
+the clerk should be allowed to read an explanatory statement. Again
+the clerk refused to put the question of adjournment, but, "upon
+inspection," declared an adjournment. Some called out "a count! a
+count!" while most rushed out of the hall, and Wise cried loudly, "Now
+we are a mob!" The next day there was more violent debating, but no
+progress towards a decision. Various party leaders offered
+resolutions, none of which accomplished anything. The condition was
+ridiculous, disgraceful, and not without serious possibilities of
+danger. Neither did any light of encouragement break in any quarter.
+In the crisis there seemed, by sudden consent of all, to be a turning
+towards Mr. Adams. Prominent men of both parties came to him and
+begged him to interfere. He was reluctant to plunge into the
+embroilment; but the great urgency and the abundant assurances of
+support placed little less than actual compulsion upon him.
+Accordingly on December 5 he rose to address the House. He was     (p. 293)
+greeted as a _Deus ex machina_. Not speaking to the clerk, but turning
+directly to the assembled members, he began: "Fellow citizens! Members
+elect of the twenty-sixth Congress!" He could not resist the temptation
+of administering a brief but severe and righteous castigation to
+Garland; and then, ignoring that functionary altogether, proceeded to
+beg the House to _organize itself_. To this end he said that he would
+offer a resolution "ordering the clerk to call the members from New
+Jersey possessing the credentials from the Governor of that State."
+There had been already no lack of resolutions, but the difficulty lay
+in the clerk's obstinate refusal to put the question upon them. So now
+the puzzled cry went up: "How shall the question be put?" "I intend to
+put the question myself," said the dauntless old man, wholly equal to
+the emergency. A tumult of applause resounded upon all sides. Rhett,
+of South Carolina, sprang up and offered a resolution, that Williams,
+of North Carolina, the oldest member of the House, be appointed
+chairman of the meeting; but upon objection by Williams, he
+substituted the name of Mr. Adams, and put the question. He was
+"answered by an almost universal shout in the affirmative." Whereupon
+Rhett and Williams conducted the old man to the chair. It was a    (p. 294)
+proud moment. Wise, of Virginia, afterward said, addressing a
+complimentary speech to Mr. Adams, "and if, when you shall be gathered
+to your fathers, I were asked to select the words which in my judgment
+are calculated to give at once the best character of the man, I would
+inscribe upon your tomb this sentence, 'I will put the question
+myself!'" Doubtless Wise and a good many more would have been glad
+enough to put almost any epitaph on a tombstone for Mr. Adams.[13] It
+must, however, be acknowledged that the impetuous Southerners behaved
+very handsomely by their arch foe on this occasion, and were for once
+as chivalrous in fact as they always were in profession.
+
+                   [Footnote 13: Not quite two years later, pending a
+                   motion to reprimand Mr. Wise for fighting with a
+                   member on the floor of the House, that gentleman
+                   took pains insultingly to say, "that there was but
+                   one man in the House whose judgment he was
+                   unwilling to abide by," and that man was Mr.
+                   Adams.]
+
+Smooth water had by no means been reached when Mr. Adams was placed at
+the helm; on the contrary, the buffeting became only the more severe
+when the members were no longer restrained by a lurking dread of grave
+disaster if not of utter shipwreck. Between two bitterly incensed and
+evenly divided parties engaged in a struggle for an important prize,
+Mr. Adams, having no strictly lawful authority pertaining to       (p. 295)
+his singular and anomalous position, was hard taxed to perform his
+functions. It is impossible to follow the intricate and acrimonious
+quarrels of the eleven days which succeeded until on December 16, upon
+the eleventh ballot, R. M. T. Hunter, of Virginia, was elected Speaker,
+and Mr. Adams was relieved from the most arduous duty imposed upon him
+during his life. In the course of the debates there had been "much
+vituperation and much equally unacceptable compliment" lavished upon
+him. After the organization of the House, there was some talk of
+moving a vote of thanks, but he entreated that it should not be done.
+"In the rancorous and bitter temper of the Administration party,
+exasperated by their disappointment in losing their Speaker, the
+resolution of thanks," he said, "would have been lost if it had been
+offered." However this might have been, history has determined this
+occurrence to have been one of the most brilliant episodes in a life
+which had many distinctions.
+
+A few incidents indicative of respect must have been welcome enough in
+the solitary fight-laden career of Mr. Adams. He needed some
+occasional encouragement to keep him from sinking into despondency;
+for though he was of so unyielding and belligerent a disposition, of
+such ungracious demeanor, so uncompromising with friend and foe,   (p. 296)
+yet he was a man of deep and strong feelings, and in a way even
+very sensitive though a proud reserve kept the secret of this quality
+so close that few suspected it. His Diary during his Congressional
+life shows a man doing his duty sternly rather than cheerfully,
+treading resolutely a painful path, having the reward which attends
+upon a clear conscience, but neither light-hearted nor often even
+happy. Especially he was frequently disappointed at the returns which
+he received from others, and considered himself "ill-treated by every
+public man whom circumstances had brought into competition with him;"
+they had returned his "acts of kindness and services" with "gross
+injustice." The reflection did not induce him to deflect his course in
+the least, but it was made with much bitterness of spirit. Toward the
+close of 1835 he writes:--
+
+     "Among the dark spots in human nature which in the course of my
+     life I have observed, the devices of rivals to ruin me have been
+     sorry pictures of the heart of man.... H. G. Otis, Theophilus
+     Parsons, Timothy Pickering, James A. Bayard, Henry Clay, Jonathan
+     Russell, William H. Crawford, John C. Calhoun, Andrew Jackson,
+     Daniel Webster, and John Davis, W. B. Giles, and John Randolph,
+     have used up their faculties in base and dirty tricks to thwart
+     my progress in life and destroy my character."
+
+
+Truly a long and exhaustive list of enmities! One can but suspect  (p. 297)
+that a man of so many quarrels must have been quarrelsome. Certain it
+is, however, that in nearly every difference which Mr. Adams had in
+his life a question of right and wrong, of moral or political
+principle, had presented itself to him. His intention was always good,
+though his manner was so habitually irritating. He himself says that
+to nearly all these men--Russell alone specifically excepted--he had
+"returned good for evil," that he had "never wronged any one of them,"
+and had even "neglected too much his self-defence against them." In
+October, 1833, he said: "I subject myself to so much toil and so much
+enmity, with so very little apparent fruit, that I sometimes ask
+myself whether I do not mistake my own motives. The best actions of my
+life make me nothing but enemies." In February, 1841, he made a
+powerful speech in castigation of Henry A. Wise, who had been
+upholding in Southern fashion slavery, duelling, and nullification. He
+received afterward some messages of praise and sympathy, but noted
+with pain that his colleagues thought it one of his "eccentric, wild,
+extravagant freaks of passion;" and with a pathetic sense of
+loneliness he adds: "All around me is cold and discouraging and my own
+feelings are wound up to a pitch that my reason can scarcely       (p. 298)
+endure." A few days later he had the pleasure of hearing one of the
+members say, in a speech, that there was an opinion among many that
+Mr. Adams was insane and did not know what he said. While a fight was
+going on such incidents only fired his blood, but afterwards the
+reminiscence affected his spirits cruelly.
+
+In August, 1840, he writes that he has been twelve years submitting in
+silence to the "foulest and basest aspersions," to which it would have
+been waste of time to make reply, since the public ear had not been
+open to him. "Is the time arriving," he asks, "for me to speak? or
+must I go down to the grave and leave posterity to do justice to my
+father and to me?"
+
+He has had at least the advantage of saying his say to posterity in a
+very effective and convincing shape in that Diary, which so discomfited
+and enraged General Jackson. There is plain enough speaking in its
+pages, which were a safety valve whereby much wrath escaped. Mr. Adams
+had the faculty of forcible expression when he chose to employ it, as
+may be seen from a few specimen sentences. On March 28, 1840, he
+remarks that Atherton "this day emitted half an hour of his rotten
+breath against" a pending bill. Atherton was infamous as the mover of
+the "gag" resolution, and Mr. Adams abhorred him accordingly.      (p. 299)
+Duncan, of Cincinnati, mentioned as "delivering a dose of balderdash,"
+is described as "the prime bully of the Kinderhook Democracy," without
+"perception of any moral distinction between truth and falsehood, ...
+a thorough-going hack-demagogue, coarse, vulgar, and impudent, with a
+vein of low humor exactly suited to the rabble of a popular city and
+equally so to the taste of the present House of Representatives."
+Other similar bits of that pessimism and belief in the deterioration
+of the times, so common in old men, occasionally appear. In August,
+1835, he thinks that "the signs of the times are portentous. All the
+tendencies of legislation are to the removal of restrictions from the
+vicious and the guilty, and to the exercise of all the powers of
+government, legislative, judicial, and executive, by lawless
+assemblages of individuals." December 27, 1838, he looks upon the
+Senate and the House, "the cream of the land, the culled darlings of
+fifteen millions," and observes that "the remarkable phenomenon that
+they present is the level of intellect and of morals upon which they
+stand; and this universal mediocrity is the basis upon which the
+liberties of this nation repose." In July, 1840, he thinks that
+
+     "parties are falling into profligate factions. I have seen this
+     before; but the worst symptom now is the change in the        (p. 300)
+     manners of the people. The continuance of the present Administration
+     ... will open wide all the flood-gates of corruption. Will a change
+     produce reform? Pause and ponder! Slavery, the Indians, the public
+     lands, the collection and disbursement of public money, the tariff,
+     and foreign affairs:--what is to become of them?"
+
+On January 29, 1841, Henry A. Wise uttered "a motley compound of
+eloquence and folly, of braggart impudence and childish vanity, of
+self-laudation and Virginian narrow-mindedness." After him Hubbard, of
+Alabama, "began grunting against the tariff." Three days later Black,
+of Georgia, "poured forth his black bile" for an hour and a half. The
+next week we find Clifford, of Maine, "muddily bothering his trickster
+invention" to get over a rule of the House, and "snapping like a
+mackerel at a red rag" at the suggestion of a way to do so. In July,
+1841, we again hear of Atherton as a "cross-grained numskull ...
+snarling against the loan bill." With such peppery passages in great
+abundance the Diary is thickly and piquantly besprinkled. They are not
+always pleasant, perhaps not even always amusing, but they display the
+marked element of censoriousness in Mr. Adams's character, which it is
+necessary to appreciate in order to understand some parts of his
+career.
+
+If Mr. Adams never had the cheerful support of popularity, so      (p. 301)
+neither did he often have the encouragement of success. He said that
+he was paying in his declining years for the good luck which had
+attended the earlier portion of his life. On December 14, 1833, he
+calculates that he has three fourths of the people of Massachusetts
+against him, and by estranging the anti-Masons he is about to become
+obnoxious to the whole. "My public life will terminate by the
+alienation from me of all mankind.... It is the experience of all ages
+that the people grow weary of old men. I cannot flatter myself that I
+shall escape the common law of our nature." Yet he acknowledges that
+he is unable to "abstract himself from the great questions which
+agitate the country." Soon after he again writes in the same vein: "To
+be forsaken by all mankind seems to be the destiny that awaits my last
+days." August 6, 1835, he gives as his reason for not accepting an
+invitation to deliver a discourse, that "instead of having any
+beneficial influence upon the public mind, it would be turned as an
+instrument of obloquy against myself." So it had been, as he enumerates,
+with his exertions against Freemasonry, his labors for internal
+improvement, for the manufacturing interest, for domestic industry,
+for free labor, for the disinterested aid then lately brought      (p. 302)
+by him to Jackson in the dispute with France; "so it will be to the
+end of my political life."
+
+When to unpopularity and reiterated disappointment we add the physical
+ills of old age, it no longer surprises us to find Mr. Adams at times
+harsh and bitter beyond the excuse of the occasion. That he was a man
+of strong physique and of extraordinary powers of endurance, often
+surpassing those of young and vigorous men, is evident. For example,
+one day in March, 1840, he notes incidentally: "I walked home and
+found my family at dinner. From my breakfast yesterday morning until
+one this afternoon, twenty-eight hours, I had fasted." Many a time he
+showed like, if not quite equal vigor. But he had been a hard worker
+all his life, and testing the powers of one's constitution does not
+tend to their preservation; he was by no means free from the woes of
+the flesh or from the depression which comes with years and the dread
+of decrepitude. Already as early as October 7, 1833, he fears that his
+health is "irretrievable;" he gets but five hours a night of
+"disturbed unquiet sleep--full of tossings." February 17, 1834, his
+"voice was so hoarse and feeble that it broke repeatedly, and he could
+scarcely articulate. It is gone forever," he very mistakenly but
+despondingly adds, "and it is in vain for me to contend against    (p. 303)
+the decay of time and nature." His enemies found little truth in this
+foreboding for many sessions thereafter. Only a year after he had
+performed his feat of fasting for twenty-eight hours of business, he
+received a letter from a stranger advising him to retire. He admits
+that perhaps he ought to do so, but says that more than sixty years of
+public life have made activity necessary to him; it is the "weakness
+of his nature" which he has "intellect enough left to perceive but not
+energy to control," so that "the world will retire from me before I
+shall retire from the world."
+
+The brief sketch which can be given in a volume of this size of so
+long and so busy a life does not suffice even to indicate all its many
+industries. The anti-slavery labors of Mr. Adams during his Congressional
+career were alone an abundant occupation for a man in the prime of
+life; but to these he added a wonderful list of other toils and
+interests. He was not only an incessant student in history, politics,
+and literature, but he also constantly invaded the domain of science.
+He was Chairman of the Congressional Committee on the Smithsonian
+bequest, and for several years he gave much time and attention to it,
+striving to give the fund a direction in favor of science; he      (p. 304)
+hoped to make it subservient to a plan which he had long cherished for
+the building of a noble national observatory. He had much committee
+work; he received many visitors; he secured hours of leisure for his
+favorite pursuit of composing poetry; he delivered an enormous number
+of addresses and speeches upon all sorts of occasions; he conducted an
+extensive correspondence; he was a very devout man, regularly going to
+church and reading three chapters in his Bible every day; and he kept
+up faithfully his colossal Diary. For several months in the midst of
+Congressional duties he devoted great labor, thought, and anxiety to
+the famous cause of the slaves of the Amistad, in which he was induced
+to act as counsel before the Supreme Court. Such were the labors of
+his declining age. To men of ordinary calibre the multiplicity of his
+acquirements and achievements is confounding and incredible. He worked
+his brain and his body as unsparingly as if they had been machines
+insensible to the pleasure or necessity of rest. Surprisingly did they
+submit to his exacting treatment, lasting in good order and condition
+far beyond what was then the average of life and vigorous faculties
+among his contemporaries engaged in public affairs.
+
+In August, 1842, while he was still tarrying in the unwholesome    (p. 305)
+heats of Washington, he had some symptoms which he thought premonitory,
+and he speaks of the next session of Congress as probably the last
+which he should ever attend. March 25, 1844, he gives a painful sketch
+of himself. Physical disability, he says, must soon put a stop to his
+Diary. That morning he had risen "at four, and with smarting,
+bloodshot eyes and shivering hand, still sat down and wrote to fill up
+the chasm of the closing days of last week." If his remaining days
+were to be few he was at least resolved to make them long for purposes
+of unremitted labor.
+
+But he had one great joy and distinguished triumph still in store for
+him. From the time when the "gag" rule had been first established, Mr.
+Adams had kept up an unbroken series of attacks upon it at all times
+and by all means. At the beginning of the several sessions, when the
+rules were established by the House, he always moved to strike out
+this one. Year after year his motion was voted down, but year after
+year he renewed it with invincible perseverance. The majorities
+against him began to dwindle till they became almost imperceptible; in
+1842 it was a majority of four; in 1843, of three; in 1844 the
+struggle was protracted for weeks, and Mr. Adams all but carried the
+day. It was evident that victory was not far off, and a kind fate  (p. 306)
+had destined him to live not only to see but himself to win it.
+On December 3, 1844, he made his usual motion and called for the yeas
+and nays; a motion was made to lay his motion on the table, and upon
+that also the question was taken by yeas and nays--eighty-one yeas,
+one hundred and four nays, and his motion was _not_ laid on the table.
+The question was then put upon it, and it was carried by the handsome
+vote of one hundred and eight to eighty. In that moment the "gag" rule
+became a thing of the past, and Mr. Adams had conquered in his last
+fight. "Blessed, forever blessed, be the name of God!" he writes in
+recording the event. A week afterwards some anti-slavery petitions
+were received and actually referred to the Committee on the District
+of Columbia. This glorious consummation having been achieved, this
+advanced stage in the long conflict having been reached, Mr. Adams
+could not hope for life to see another goal passed. His work was
+nearly done; he had grown aged, and had worn himself out faithfully
+toiling in the struggle which must hereafter be fought through its
+coming phases and to its final success by others, younger men than he,
+though none of them certainly having over him any other militant
+advantage save only the accident of youth.
+
+His mental powers were not less than at any time in the past when, (p. 307)
+on November 19, 1846, he was struck by paralysis in the street
+in Boston. He recovered from the attack, however, sufficiently to
+resume his duties in Washington some three months later. His
+reappearance in the House was marked by a pleasing incident: all the
+members rose together; business was for the moment suspended; his old
+accustomed seat was at once surrendered to him by the gentleman to
+whom it had fallen in the allotment, and he was formally conducted to
+it by two members. After this, though punctual in attendance, he only
+once took part in debate. On February 21, 1848, he appeared in his
+seat as usual. At half past one in the afternoon the Speaker was
+rising to put a question, when he was suddenly interrupted by cries of
+"Stop! Stop!--Mr. Adams!" Some gentlemen near Mr. Adams had thought
+that he was striving to rise to address the Speaker, when in an
+instant he fell over insensible. The members thronged around him in
+great confusion. The House hastily adjourned. He was placed on a sofa
+and removed first to the hall of the rotunda and then to the Speaker's
+room. Medical men were in attendance but could be of no service in the
+presence of death. The stern old fighter lay dying almost on the very
+field of so many battles and in the very tracks in which he had    (p. 308)
+so often stood erect and unconquerable, taking and dealing so many
+mighty blows. Late in the afternoon some inarticulate mutterings were
+construed into the words, "Thank the officers of the House." Soon
+again he said intelligibly, "This is the last of earth! I am content!"
+It was his extreme utterance. He lay thereafter unconscious till the
+evening of the 23d, when he passed quietly away.
+
+He lies buried "under the portal of the church at Quincy" beside his
+wife, who survived him four years, his father and his mother. The
+memorial tablet inside the church bears upon it the words "Alteri
+Saeculo,"--surely never more justly or appropriately applied to any man
+than to John Quincy Adams, hardly abused and cruelly misappreciated in
+his own day but whom subsequent generations already begin to honor as
+one of the greatest of American statesmen, not only preeminent in
+ability and acquirements, but even more to be honored for profound,
+immutable honesty of purpose and broad, noble humanity of aims.
+
+
+
+
+INDEX                                                              (p. 311)
+
+
+ABOLITIONISTS, their part in anti-slavery movement, 244, 245;
+  urge Adams to extreme actions, 254.
+
+Adams, Abigail, shows battle of Bunker Hill to her son, 2;
+  life near Boston during siege, 2, 3;
+  letter of J. Q. Adams to, on keeping journal, 5;
+  warns him against asking office from his father as President, 23;
+  his spirited reply, 23.
+
+Adams, C. F., on beginning of Adams's diary, 6;
+  on Adams's statement of Monroe doctrine, 131.
+
+Adams, John, influence of his career in Revolution upon his son, 2;
+  leaves family near Boston while attending Continental Congress, 2, 3;
+  letter of his son to, on reading, 3;
+  first mission to France, 4;
+  second one, 4;
+  advises his son to keep a diary and copies of letters, 5;
+  makes treaty of peace, 13;
+  appointed Minister to England, 14;
+  elected President, 23;
+  at Washington's suggestion, appoints J. Q. Adams Minister to Prussia, 24;
+  recalls him, 25;
+  his rage at defeat by Jefferson, 25, 26;
+  disrupts Federalist party by French mission, 26;
+  his rivalry with and hatred for Hamilton, 26, 27;
+  charges defeat to Hamilton, 27;
+  qualified sympathy of J. Q. Adams with, 27, 28;
+  his enemies and adherents in Massachusetts, 28;
+  his unpopularity hampers J. Q. Adams in Senate, 31, 34.
+
+Adams, John Quincy, birth, 1;
+  ancestry, 1;
+  named for his great-grandfather, 1;
+  describes incident connected with his naming, 1, 2;
+  early involved in outbreak of Revolution, 2;
+  life near Boston during the siege, 2, 3;
+  scanty schooling, 3;
+  describes his reading in letter to John Adams, 3, 4;
+  accompanies his father to France in 1778, 4;
+  and again to Spain, 4, 5;
+  tells his mother of intention to keep diary while abroad, 5, 6;
+  begins it in 1779, its subsequent success, 6;
+  its revelation of his character, 7, 10;
+  unchangeableness of his traits, 7, 8;
+  describes contemporaries bitterly in diary, 9, 10;
+  shows his own high character, 10;
+  also his disagreeable traits, 11, 12;
+  difficulty of condensing his career, 12;
+  his schooling in Europe, 13;
+  at fourteen acts as private secretary to Dana on mission to Russia, 13;
+  assists father in peace negotiations, 13;
+  his early gravity, maturity, and coolness, 14, 15;
+  decides not to accompany father to England, but return home, 15;
+  gives his reason for decision, 15, 16;
+  studies at Harvard, 17;
+  studies law with Parsons at Newburyport, 17;
+  begins practice in Boston in 1790, 17;
+  writes Publicola papers against Paine's "Rights of Man," 18;
+  writes in papers against Genet, 18;
+  his restlessness and ambition, 19.
+
+  _Foreign Minister._ Appointed Minister to the Hague, 19;
+    his voyage, 19;
+    in Holland at time of its capture by French, 20;
+    cordially received by French, 20;
+    his skill in avoiding entanglement, 20;
+    persuaded by Washington to remain, although without occupation, 21;
+    prevented from participating in Jay's negotiations over the treaty, 21;
+    has dealings with Grenville, 22;
+    marriage with Miss Johnson, 22, 23;
+    transferred to Portugal, 23;
+    question as to propriety of remaining minister after his father's
+      election, 23;
+    persuaded by Washington to remain, 23, 24;
+    appointed minister to Prussia, 24;
+    ratifies treaty of commerce, 24;
+    travels in Europe, 24;
+    recalled by his father, 25;
+    resumes practice of law, 25;
+    not involved in Federalist quarrels, 27, 28;
+    removed by Jefferson from commissionership in bankruptcy, 28;
+    elected to State Senate, 28;
+    irritates Federalists by proposing to allow Democrats a place in
+      council, 29;
+    his entire independence, 29, 30;
+    elected to United States Senate over Pickering, 30.
+
+  _United States Senator._ His journey to Washington, 30, 31;
+    unfriendly greeting from his father's enemies, 31;
+    isolation in the Senate, 32, 33;
+    unfriendly relations with Pickering, 32;
+    refuses to yield to unpopularity, 33, 34;
+    estranges Federalists by his absence of partisanship, 34, 35;
+    votes in favor of Louisiana purchase, although calling it
+      unconstitutional, 35, 36;
+    condemned by New England, 36;
+    votes for acquittal of Chase, 36;
+    realizes that he is conquering respect, 36, 37;
+    introduces resolutions condemning British seizures of neutrals, 38, 39;
+    and requesting President to insist on reparation, 39;
+    his measure carried by Democrats, 39;
+    comments on Orders in Council and Napoleon's decrees, 42, 46;
+    refuses to follow New England Federalists in advocating
+      submission, 47, 48;
+    disgusted at Jefferson's peace policy, 48;
+    but supports Non-importation Act, 49;
+    believes in hostile purpose of England, 49, 50;
+    urges Boston Federalists to promise support to government during
+      Chesapeake affair, 51;
+    attends Democratic and Federalist meetings to this effect, 51, 52;
+    read out of party by Federalists, 52;
+    votes for and supports embargo, 53;
+    execrated in New England, 53;
+    his patriotic conduct, 53-55;
+    his opinion of embargo, 55;
+    regrets its too long continuance, 55, 56;
+    advocates in vain military and naval preparations, 56;
+    refused reelection by Massachusetts legislature, 56, 57;
+    resigns before expiration of term, 57;
+    harshly criticised then and since for leaving Federalists, 57, 58;
+    propriety and justice of his action, 58, 59;
+    led to do so by his American feeling, 61, 62;
+    absurdity of charge of office-seeking, 63;
+    disproved by his whole character and career, 63, 64;
+    his courage tested by necessity of abandoning friends, 64;
+    repels advances from Giles, 65;
+    statement of his feelings in his diary, 65, 66;
+    refuses election to Congress from Democrats, 66;
+    sums up barrenness of his career in Senate, 66-68;
+    approached by Madison in 1805 with suggestion of foreign mission, 68;
+    his cool reply, 69;
+    nominated Minister to Russia by Madison, 69;
+    appointment refused, then confirmed, 69, 70.
+
+  _Minister to Russia._ Peace of Ghent. His voyage, 70;
+    his life at St. Petersburg, 70, 71;
+    his success as foreign representative, 71, 72;
+    disgusted by snobbery of American travelers, 72;
+    declines to take part in squabbles for precedence, 72, 73;
+    hampered by meagre salary, 73;
+    describes Russia during Napoleonic wars, 74;
+    nominated to act as peace commissioner with England, 75, 76;
+    describes negotiations in his diary, 77;
+    suggests refusing to meet British commissioners at their lodgings, 77;
+    remarks on arrogance of British, 81;
+    vents irritation upon colleagues, 82, 83;
+    begins drafting communications, but abandons duty to Gallatin, 82;
+    nettled at criticisms of colleagues on his drafts, 82, 83;
+    quarrels with all but Gallatin, 84;
+    incompatible with Clay, 84;
+    urges strong counter-claims, 85;
+    thinks negotiations certain to fail, 86;
+    obliged to work for peace as defeated party, 86, 87;
+    willing to return to status quo, 87;
+    disagrees with Clay over fisheries and Mississippi navigation, 88;
+    determined to insist on fisheries, 89, 90, 92;
+    suspects British intend to prevent peace, 90;
+    controverts Goulburn, 91;
+    signs treaty, 93;
+    at Paris during Napoleon's "hundred days," 98;
+    appointed Minister to England, 98;
+    with Clay and Gallatin, makes treaty of commerce with England, 98;
+    his slight duties as minister, 98, 99;
+    bored by English dinners, 99, 100;
+    sensitive to small income, 100.
+
+  _Secretary of State._ Appointed, 100;
+    describes dullness of Washington in diary, 102;
+    as host, 103;
+    his habits of life, 104;
+    prominent candidate for succession to Monroe, 105;
+    intrigued against by Crawford, 106;
+    and by Clay and Calhoun, 106, 107;
+    expects Spanish colonies to gain independence, 109;
+    but maintains cautious public attitude, 109;
+    describes Spanish ambassador, 111;
+    negotiates concerning boundaries of Louisiana, 111, 112;
+    his position, 112;
+    fears opposition from Clay and Crawford, 112;
+    urged by Monroe not to claim too much, 113;
+    rejects English mediation, 114;
+    uses French Minister as go-between, 114;
+    succeeds in reaching a conclusion, 114, 115;
+    a triumph for his diplomacy, 115;
+    chagrined at discovery of Spanish land grants, 116, 117;
+    and at refusal of Spanish government to ratify treaty, 118;
+    urges the seizure of disputed territory, 118;
+    at first indifferent to Missouri question, 119;
+    soon appreciates the slavery issue, 119;
+    predicts an attempt to dissolve the Union, 119, 120;
+    sharp comments on slavery, slaveholders, and Northern weakness, 120;
+    notes Calhoun's threat of alliance of slave States with England, 121;
+    thinks abolition impossible without disunion, 121, 122;
+    maintains power of Congress over slavery in Territories, 122;
+    realizes that failure of treaty damages his chance for presidency, 123;
+    refuses to reopen question with new Spanish envoy, 123;
+    forces ratification of treaty with annulment of land grants, 124;
+    his satisfaction with outcome of negotiations, 125, 126;
+    prepares report on weights and measures, 126;
+    its thoroughness, 127;
+    his pride of country without boastfulness in negotiations, 127, 128;
+    declines to consider what European courts may think, 128, 129;
+    considers it destiny of United States to occupy North America, 129;
+    considers annexation of Cuba probable, 130;
+    always willing to encroach within America, 130, 131;
+    tells Russia American continents are no longer open for colonies, 131;
+    fears possibility of European attack on Spain's colonies, 132;
+    willing to go to war against such an attack, 133;
+    but, in default of any, advocates non-interference, 133, 134;
+    refuses to interfere in European politics, 134;
+    unwilling to enter league to suppress slave trade, 135;
+    the real author of Monroe doctrine, 136;
+    dealings with Stratford Canning, 136;
+    his reasons for refusing to join international league to put down
+      slave trade, 138, 139;
+    discusses with him the Astoria question, 140-148;
+    insists on Canning's making communications on question in writing, 141;
+    stormy interviews with him, 142-147;
+    refuses to discuss remarks uttered in debate in Congress, 142, 145;
+    angry breach of Canning with, 147, 148;
+    success of his treatment of Canning, 148;
+    description in his diary of presidential intrigues, 150 ff.;
+    his censorious frankness, 150;
+    his judgments of men not to be followed too closely, 151;
+    accuses Clay of selfishness in opposition to Florida treaty, and in
+      urging recognition of Spanish colonies, 151, 152;
+    compares him to John Randolph, 153;
+    later becomes on better terms, 154;
+    his deep contempt for Crawford, 154;
+    gradually suspects him of malicious practices, 154, 155;
+    and of sacrificing everything to his ambition, 155, 156;
+    sustained by Calhoun in this estimate, 157;
+    supports Jackson in Cabinet, 158, 160;
+    strains his conscience to uphold Jackson's actions, 160, 161;
+    defends him against Canning, 162;
+    gives a ball in his honor, 162;
+    wishes to offer him position of Minister to Mexico, 163;
+    favors Jackson for Vice-President, 163;
+    determines to do nothing in his own behalf as candidate, 164;
+    no trace of any self-seeking in his diary, 164, 165;
+    holds aloof at all stages, 165;
+    manages to be polite to all, 166;
+    yet prepares to be keenly hurt at failure, 166;
+    considers election a test of his career, 167;
+    and of his personal character in the eyes of the people, 167;
+    picture of his anxiety in his diary, 168;
+    receives second largest number of electoral votes, 169;
+    preferred by Clay to Jackson, 171;
+    elected by the House of Representatives, 173;
+    dissatisfied with the result, 174;
+    would have preferred a new election if possible, 174;
+    congratulated by Jackson at his inauguration, 175;
+    wishes office as a token of popular approval, 175;
+    realizes that this election does not signify that, 176.
+
+  _President._ Freedom from political indebtedness, 177;
+    his cabinet, 177;
+    asks Rufus King to accept English mission, 177, 178;
+    renominates officials, 178;
+    refuses to consider any rotation in office, 179;
+    refuses to punish officials for opposing his election, 179, 180;
+    charged with bargaining for Clay's support, 181-183;
+    unable to disprove it, 183;
+    story spread by Jackson, 184;
+    after disproof of story, continues to be accused by Jackson, 187;
+    meets strong opposition in Congress, 188;
+    notes combination of Southern members against him, 189;
+    sends message concerning Panama Congress, 189;
+    accused in Senate and House of having transcended his powers, 160;
+    aided by Webster, 190;
+    reasons for Southern opposition to, 191;
+    confronted by a hostile majority in both Houses, 192;
+    lack of events in his administration, 193;
+    advocates internal improvements, 194;
+    declines to make a show before people, 194;
+    his digging at opening of Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, 194, 195;
+    formation of personal opposition to his reelection by Jackson,
+      195, 196;
+    his only chance of success to secure a personal following, 197;
+    refuses to remove officials for political reasons, 198;
+    fails to induce any one except independent men to desire his
+      reelection, 199;
+    his position as representative of good government not understood, 200;
+    refuses to modify utterances on internal improvements, to appease
+      Virginia, 201;
+    refuses to "soothe" South Carolina, 201;
+    alienates people by personal stiffness and Puritanism, 202, 203;
+    fails to secure personal friends, 203;
+    friendly relations with Cabinet, 204, 205;
+    nominates Barbour Minister to England, 205;
+    fills vacancy with P. B. Porter at Cabinet's suggestion, 205;
+    refuses to remove McLean for double-dealing, 206;
+    his laboriousness, 206;
+    daily exercise, 206, 207;
+    threatened with assassination, 207, 208;
+    stoicism under slanders, 208;
+    refuses to deny accusation of being a Mason, 209;
+    accused of trying to buy support of Webster, 209;
+    other slanders, 209;
+    shows his wrath in his diary, 210;
+    hatred of Randolph, 210, 211;
+    of Giles, 211;
+    defeated in election of 1828, 212;
+    feels disgraced, 213, 214;
+    significance of his retirement, 213;
+    the last statesman in presidency, 213;
+    his depression, 214, 215;
+    looks forward gloomily to retirement, 215.
+
+  _In Retirement._ Returns to Quincy, 216;
+    followed by slanders of Giles, 216;
+    declines to enter into controversy with Federalists over disunion
+      movement of 1808, 216, 217;
+    attacked by the Federalists for his refusal, 217, 218;
+    prepares a crushing reply which he does not publish, 218;
+    dreads idleness, 220;
+    unable to resume law practice, 220;
+    his slight property, 221;
+    reads Latin classics, 221;
+    plans biographical and historical work, 221;
+    writes in diary concerning his reading, 222;
+    does not appreciate humor, 222;
+    has difficulty in reading Paradise Lost, 223;
+    learns to like Milton and tobacco, 223;
+    asked if willing to be elected to Congress, 225;
+    replies that he is ready to accept the office, 225;
+    elected in 1830, 225;
+    as candidate for governor, withdraws name in case of choice by
+      legislature, 226.
+
+  _Member of House of Representatives._
+    His principal task the struggle with Southern slaveholders, 226;
+    gains greater honor in this way than hitherto, 226, 227;
+    his diligence and independent action in the House, 227;
+    called "old man eloquent," 227;
+    not in reality a pleasing or impressive speaker, 227, 228;
+    but effective and well-informed, 228;
+    his excessive pugnacity, 229;
+    his enemies, 229, 230;
+    success as debater, 230;
+    absence of friends or followers, 231;
+    supported by people in New England, 232;
+    declares intention to be independent, 233;
+    greeted with respect, 233;
+    on Committee on Manufactures, 233;
+    willing to reduce duties to please South, 234;
+    condemns apparent surrender of Jackson to South Carolina, 234;
+    pleased with Jackson's nullification proclamation, 235;
+    wishes to coerce South Carolina before making concessions, 235;
+    insists on a decision of question of nullification, 235;
+    dissatisfied with Jackson's failure to push matters, 236;
+    in opposition to Jackson, 237, 238;
+    supports proposal of Jackson to take determined attitude toward
+      France, 239;
+    wins no gratitude from Jackson, 240;
+    receives attempt at reconciliation coolly, 240;
+    opposes granting of Doctorate of Laws to Jackson by Harvard, 241, 242;
+    considers Jackson's illness a sham, 242;
+    presents abolition petitions from beginning of term, 243;
+    does not favor abolition in District of Columbia, 243;
+    always disliked slavery and slaveholders, 243;
+    not an agitator or reformer, 244;
+    his qualifications to oppose slave power in Congress, 245, 246;
+    hostility in Congress and coldness in Boston, 246;
+    his support in his district, 247;
+    and among people of North, 247;
+    continues to present petitions, 248;
+    presents one signed by women, 249;
+    opposes assertion that Congress has no power to interfere with
+      slavery in a State, 250;
+    opposes gag rule, 250;
+    advocates right of petition, 251;
+    tries to get his protest entered on journal, 251, 252;
+    savage reply to an assailant, 252;
+    receives and presents floods of petitions, 252, 253;
+    single-handed in task, 253;
+    urged to rash movements by abolitionists, 254;
+    his conduct approved by constituents, 255;
+    resolves to continue, although alone, 255;
+    description in his diary of presentation of petitions, 255-261;
+    continues to protest against "gag" rule as unconstitutional, 256;
+    scores Preston for threatening to hang abolitionists, 257, 258;
+    defies the House and says his say, 258, 259;
+    wishes petitions referred to a select committee, 259;
+    passage at arms with chairman of Foreign Affairs Committee, 259, 260;
+    taunts Connor with folly of "gag" rule, 261;
+    holds that Congress, under war power, may abolish slavery, 261-263;
+    attacked by Southerners, 262, 263;
+    cites precedents, 263;
+    his theory followed by Lincoln, 264;
+    refers to the theory in letter, 265;
+    opposes annexation of Texas, 265, 266;
+    his reasons, 266 n.;
+    presents absurd petitions, 266;
+    presents petitions asking for his own expulsion, 268;
+    allows matter to drop, 268;
+    presents petition from slaves and asks opinion of speaker, 269;
+    fury of slaveholders against, 270;
+    resolutions of censure against, 271;
+    disconcerts opponents by his cool reply, 272, 273;
+    but receives new attacks and resolutions of censure, 274, 275;
+    defended by a few New Englanders, 276;
+    reluctance of Southerners to allow him to reply, 276;
+    his speech, 277-279;
+    sarcasms upon his enemies, 277, 278;
+    presents petition asking for his own removal from chairmanship of
+      Committee on Foreign Affairs, 280;
+    prevented from defending himself, 280;
+    presents petition for dissolution of Union while disapproving it,
+      280, 281;
+    resolutions of censure against, 281, 282;
+    attacked by Marshall and Wise, 283;
+    objects to injustice of preamble, 284;
+    defies his enemies and scorns mercy, 285;
+    bitter remarks on his opponents, 285;
+    helped by Everett, 286;
+    slight outside sympathy for, 286;
+    abused in newspapers, 286;
+    threatened with assassination, 286, 287;
+    willing to have matter laid on table, 287;
+    his triumph in the affair, 288;
+    attempt to drive him from Foreign Affairs Committee, 289;
+    refusal of Southerners to serve with, 289;
+    refuses to notice them, 289;
+    retains respect of House for his honesty, 290;
+    appealed to, to help organize House in 1839, 292;
+    his bold and successful action, 293-295;
+    praised by Wise, 294;
+    succeeds in presiding eleven days until organization, 294, 295;
+    deprecates a resolution of thanks, 295;
+    his occasional despondency and loneliness, 295, 296;
+    describes his enemies, 296;
+    tries to act justly to all of them, 297;
+    castigates Wise for dueling, 297;
+    called insane, 297, 298;
+    his bitter language on opponents in the Diary, 298-300;
+    low opinion of Congress, 299;
+    on partisanship, 299, 300;
+    describes his unpopularity, 301;
+    describes all his acts as turned to his discredit, 301;
+    his ill-health, 302, 303, 305;
+    chairman of committee on Smithsonian bequest, 303;
+    his religious and social activity, 304;
+    in Amistad case, 304;
+    continues attack upon gag rule, 305;
+    his final victory and exultation, 306;
+    struck by paralysis, 307;
+    greeted on return to House, 307;
+    his death in Capitol, 307, 308;
+    estimate of character and services, 308.
+
+  _Characteristics._ General view, 10-12, 308;
+    ambition, 16, 19, 25, 164-167;
+    censoriousness, 9, 12, 112, 150, 242;
+    conscientiousness, 66, 200, 277, 296;
+    coldness, 11, 34, 37, 165, 230, 240;
+    courage, 10, 15, 33, 54, 58, 64, 113, 208, 252, 253, 293;
+    dignity, 71, 99, 127, 213, 216;
+    diplomatic ability, 20, 22, 72, 114, 123, 137-148;
+    exercise, love of, 206, 207;
+    honor, 10, 22, 58, 63, 166;
+    ill-health, 302, 305;
+    independence, 10, 16, 29, 30, 48, 59, 127, 133, 246;
+    industry, 8, 11, 126, 206, 227;
+    invective, 12, 229, 230, 246, 252, 277-279, 281, 283-285, 298-300;
+    irritability, 83, 154, 210, 211, 302;
+    knowledge of politics, 11, 91, 228, 245;
+    legal ability, 18;
+    literary interests, 221-223;
+    melancholy, 214;
+    observation, power of, 74, 77, 111;
+    oratorical ability, 227, 228;
+    patriotism, 62, 127, 148;
+    persistence, 11, 25, 34, 114, 123, 143, 245;
+    personal appearance, 228;
+    pessimism, 19, 33, 67, 153, 272, 296, 299;
+    precocity, 17;
+    pride, 166, 167, 201;
+    prolixity, 82, 277;
+    pugnacity, 49, 50, 52, 81, 133, 141, 160, 228-236, 245, 246, 285;
+    Puritanism, 7, 30, 66, 150, 164, 202;
+    religious views, 30, 207, 304;
+    sensitiveness, 33, 83, 208, 298;
+    sobriety, 8, 14, 118;
+    social habits, 103, 202, 203;
+    suspiciousness, 82, 112, 138, 151, 296;
+    unpopularity, 195, 202-204, 231, 246, 253, 295, 301, 307.
+
+  _Political Opinions._ Appointments to office, 178-180, 197-200, 206;
+    cabinet relations with, 204, 205;
+    candidate, attitude of, 164-167, 197-206;
+    Chase, impeachment of, 36;
+    Chesapeake affair, 51;
+    Congress, powers over slavery, 122, 250, 261-265;
+    court etiquette, 73;
+    Cuba, annexation of, 130;
+    disunion, 119, 122, 281;
+    election of 1824, 174-176;
+    emancipation, 121;
+    embargo, 53, 56;
+    England, 47, 50, 51, 90, 145, 148;
+    English society, 100;
+    Federalist party, 28, 48, 50, 57, 61;
+    fisheries, 88, 90;
+    Florida, 115, 118, 123, 130;
+    France, policy towards, 239;
+    "gag" rule, 250, 251, 256, 257, 305, 306;
+    Genet, 118;
+    gunboat scheme, 48;
+    internal improvements, 194, 201;
+    Jackson's administration, 237;
+    Jackson's Florida career, 160, 163;
+    Louisiana, 35, 130;
+    Louisiana boundary, 112, 115;
+    manifest destiny, 130, 160;
+    Mississippi navigation, 88, 89;
+    Missouri Compromise, 121;
+    Monroe doctrine, 130, 131, 134-136;
+    non-importation, 40, 49, 55;
+    nullification, 234, 235;
+    Oregon, 140-143;
+    Panama Congress, 189;
+    party fidelity, 29, 30, 54, 59, 62, 233;
+    Republican party, 36, 65;
+    right of search, 38, 139;
+    slaveholders, 243, 257, 260;
+    slavery, 120, 121, 243, 255, 304;
+    slave trade, 135, 138;
+    Smithsonian bequest, 303;
+    Spanish-American republics, 109, 131-133;
+    Texas, annexation of, 265, 266;
+    treaty of Ghent, 77-98;
+    weights and measures, 126, 127.
+
+Adams, Dr. William, on English peace commission, 76;
+  suggests abandonment by United States of its citizens in proposed
+    Indian Territory, 79;
+  irritated at proposal that English restore possession of Moose Island
+    pending arbitration, 91;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98.
+
+Alexander, Emperor of Russia, desires to exchange ministers with United
+    States, 69;
+  his courtesy to Adams, 70, 71;
+  anecdote of Adams's conversation with, 73;
+  attempts to mediate between England and United States, 74, 75;
+  discussions with Castlereagh, 93;
+  slander concerning relations with Adams, 209, 210.
+
+Alford, Julius C., wishes to burn Adams's petition from slaves, 270;
+  threatens war, 272, 275.
+
+Ambrister. See Arbuthnot.
+
+Amistad case, share of Adams in, 304.
+
+Anti-Mason movement, used by Jacksonians against Adams, 208, 209;
+  connection of Adams within Massachusetts, 226, 301.
+
+Arbuthnot and Ambrister, hanged by Jackson, 160;
+  execution of, defended by Adams, 162.
+
+Atherton, Charles G., bitter remarks of Adams on, 298, 300.
+
+Austria, rejects England's plan for suppression of slave trade, 138.
+
+
+Bagot, Sir Charles, question of his opinion on Oregon question, discussed
+  by Canning and Adams, 142, 143.
+
+Bank, Jackson's attack on, 240.
+
+Barbour, James, appointed Secretary of War, 177;
+  desires mission to England, 205.
+
+Barings, give Adams his commission, 98.
+
+Barnard, D. D., by Adams's advice, presents petition for dissolution of
+  Union, 288.
+
+Barrou, James, commands Chesapeake when attacked by Leopard, 45.
+
+Bayard, James A., appointed peace commissioner, 75, 76;
+  resents proposal to meet at lodgings of English commissioners, 77;
+  criticises Adams's drafts of documents, 83;
+  enrages Goulburn, 91;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Benton, T. H., on unfavorable beginning to Adams's administration, 188.
+
+Berkeley, Admiral G. C., commands Leopard, and is promoted for attacking
+  Chesapeake, 46.
+
+Berlin decree, 41.
+
+Beverly, Carter, reports that Jackson has proof of Clay and Adams
+    bargain, 184;
+  upheld by Jackson, 185;
+  apologizes to Clay, 187.
+
+Black, Edward J., of Georgia, comment of Adams on, 300.
+
+Bonaparte, Napoleon, issues Berlin and Milan decrees, 41, 42;
+  seen during "hundred days" by Adams, 98.
+
+Brown, James, votes against Spanish treaty through Clay's influence, 124.
+
+Buchanan, James, refuses to substantiate Jackson's story of corrupt offer
+  from Clay in election of 1824, 186, 187.
+
+Burr, Aaron, compared by Adams to Van Buren, 193.
+
+
+Cabinet, relations of Adams to, 204, 205;
+  treachery of McLean, 205, 206.
+
+Calhoun, J. C., candidate for succession to Monroe, 106;
+  on Southern alliance with England in case of dissolution of Union, 121;
+  candidacy damaged by Southern origin, 149;
+  his opinion of Crawford, 156;
+  displeased at Jackson's disregard of instructions, 160;
+  elected Vice-President, 169;
+  irritation of Adams at his failure to suppress Randolph, 211;
+  reelected Vice-President, 212;
+  accused by Adams of plotting to injure him, 296.
+
+Canada, desire of Adams for annexation of, 85, 130.
+
+Canning, George, seeks acquaintance with Adams, 99.
+
+Canning, Stratford, urges American submission to mixed tribunals to
+    suppress slave trade, 135;
+  his arrogance met by Adams, 136, 137;
+  discusses with Adams the suppression of slave trade, 137-139;
+  on Adams's superior years, 139;
+  high words with Adams over question of an American settlement at mouth
+    of Columbia, 140-147;
+  loses temper at request to put objections in writing, 141;
+  and at persistence of Adams in repeating words of previous English
+    minister, 142, 143;
+  his offer to forget subject declined by Adams, 144;
+  complains of Adams's language, 145, 146;
+  resents reference to Jackson's recall, 146, 147;
+  his anger shown later, 147;
+  this does not affect relations between countries, 148.
+
+Castlereagh, Lord, unwilling at first to conclude peace, 93;
+  influenced by attitude of Prussia and Russia, advises concessions, 94;
+  dealings with Adams, 99;
+  described by Adams, 99.
+
+Cavalla, ----, imprisoned by Jackson, 159, 160;
+  seizure defended by Adams, 162.
+
+Chase, Judge Samuel, his acquittal voted for by J. Q. Adams, 36.
+
+Chesapeake attacked by Leopard, 45;
+  effect upon Adams and Federalists, 50, 51.
+
+Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, incident of Adams's opening of, 195.
+
+Choate, Rufus, sympathizes with Adams when attacked by resolutions of
+  censure, 286.
+
+Civil service, appointments to, under Adams, 178-180, 196, 198, 199,
+    206, 209;
+  under Jackson, 198.
+
+Clay, Henry, on peace commission, 76;
+  his irascibility, 82, 84;
+  criticises Adams's figurative style in documents, 82;
+  irritates Adams, 84;
+  his conviviality, 84;
+  thinks English will recede, 85;
+  then thinks English will refuse to accept _status ante bellum_, 87;
+  willing to sacrifice fisheries to prevent English Mississippi
+    navigation, 88, 89;
+  thinks fisheries of little value, 89;
+  willing to meet English with defiance, 90;
+  threatens not to sign treaty, 90, 92;
+  abandoned by colleagues on point of impressment, 92;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98;
+  his gambling habits, 103;
+  jealous of Adams's appointment as Secretary of State, 106;
+  leads opposition to administration, 108;
+  wishes to recognize independence of Spanish colonies, 109;
+  threatens to oppose treaty accepting Sabine as Louisiana boundary, 112;
+  opposes treaty with Spain, 116;
+  fails to prevent ratification, 124;
+  ambitious for presidency, 149;
+  low motives for opposition to administration as signed by Adams, 151;
+  his honesty in advocating recognition of South American republics, 152;
+  compared by Adams to Randolph, 153;
+  becomes reconciled with Adams before election, 154;
+  denounces Jackson, 160;
+  vote for, in 1824, 169;
+  able to decide choice of President by influence in Congress, 169;
+  at first prefers Crawford, 169, 170;
+  charged with having offered to support either Jackson or Adams, 170;
+  his preference for Adams over Jackson, 171;
+  appointed Secretary of State, 177;
+  urges removal of Sterret for proposing an insult to Adams, 179;
+  calls author of bargain slander a liar, 181;
+  charge against, repeated by Tennessee legislature, 183;
+  duel with Randolph, 183;
+  challenges Jackson to produce evidence, 185;
+  exonerated by Buchanan, 187;
+  and by Kremer and Beverly, 187;
+  actually receives advances from Jackson's friends, 187, 188;
+  opposition to his nomination as Secretary of State, 188;
+  abused by Randolph, 211;
+  engineers compromise with South Carolina, 236;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Clifford, Nathan, of Maine, contemptuously described by Adams, 300.
+
+Clinton, De Witt, his candidacy for President in 1824, 149.
+
+Congress, in election of 1824, 165, 169-172;
+  influence of Clay in, 169;
+  elects Adams President, 172, 173;
+  investigates bargain story, 181;
+  opposition in, to Adams, from the beginning, 188;
+  attacks Adams's intention to send delegates to Panama Congress, 190;
+  opposes Adams throughout administration, 192;
+  resolutions denying its power to interfere with slavery debated in
+    House, 249, 250;
+  position of Adams with regard to its power to abolish slavery in the
+    States, 250, 261-265;
+  its degeneracy lamented by Adams, 299.
+
+Connor, John C., taunted by Adams in Congress, 261.
+
+Constitution of United States, in relation to Louisiana purchase, 35;
+  prohibits submission of United States to mixed foreign tribunals
+    for suppressing slave trade, 138;
+  in connection with election of 1824, 172;
+  held by Adams to forbid "gag" rule, 250, 256, 258;
+  held by Adams to justify abolition of slavery under war power, 261-265;
+  in relation to Texas annexation, 266.
+
+Crawford, W. H., his ambitions for the presidency, 105, 106, 148;
+  intrigues against Adams, 106, 154;
+  his action described by Adams, 112, 113;
+  advises moderate policy to remove foreign prejudices against United
+    States, 128;
+  contempt of Adams for, 154;
+  accused by Adams of all kinds of falsity and ambition, 155, 156, 296;
+  his real character, 156, 157;
+  Calhoun's opinion of, 156;
+  described by Mills, 157;
+  a party politician, 158;
+  eager to ruin Jackson, 160;
+  vote for, in 1824, 169;
+  his illness causes abandonment by Clay. 170;
+  receives four votes in House of Representatives, 173;
+  fills custom-houses with supporters, 180.
+
+Creeks, treaty with, discussed in Senate, 33.
+
+Creole affair, 279.
+
+Cuba, its annexation expected by Adams, 130.
+
+Cushing, Caleb, defends Adams against resolutions of censure, 276;
+  movement to put him in Adams's place on Committee on Foreign Affairs,
+    289.
+
+
+Dana, Francis, takes Adams as private secretary to Russia, 13.
+
+Davis, John, accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Deas, Mr., exchanges ratifications of Jay treaty, 21;
+  disliked by English cabinet, 22.
+
+Democratic party, organized as opposition to Adams, 192;
+  managed by Van Buren, 192, 193, 195;
+  not based on principle, but on personal feeling, 196;
+  its attacks upon Adams, 208-210;
+  its methods condemned by Adams, 237.
+
+Diary, suggested by John Adams, 5;
+  begun, 6;
+  its nature and content, 7, 8;
+  its bitterness, 9, 10;
+  picture of the author, 10, 11;
+  quotations from, in Boston, 19;
+  during career in Senate, 32, 34;
+  on damaging party, 66;
+  during peace negotiations, 77, 82, 83, 89, 90;
+  during election of 1824, 150, 151, 164, 168;
+  in election of 1828, 201, 210, 211;
+  during anti-slavery career, 255, 292, 296, 298-300;
+  in last years, 301-303, 305, 306.
+
+Diplomatic history, mission of Dana to Russia, 13;
+  mission of Adams to Holland, 19-21;
+  to Prussia, 24;
+  Rose's mission to United States, 45, 46;
+  mission of Adams to Russia, 70-74;
+  offer of Russia to mediate in war of 1812, 74, 75;
+  refusal by England, 75;
+  peace negotiations, 76-98 (see treaty of Ghent);
+  commercial negotiations with England, 98;
+  mission of Adams to England, 98-100;
+  negotiations of Adams with Spain, 110-118, 123-125;
+  question of Sabine River boundary, 112, 116;
+  final agreement, details of treaty, acquisition of Florida, 115;
+  and Western outlet to Pacific, 115;
+  dispute over Spanish land grants, 116, 117;
+  rejection of treaty by Spain, 117;
+  renewed mission of Vives, 123;
+  ratification of treaty, 124;
+  independent attitude of United States under Adams, 127, 128;
+  Monroe doctrine, 129-136;
+  dealings with Russia over Alaska, 130, 131;
+  proposal of Portugal for an alliance, 133;
+  dealings of Adams with Greek revolt, 134;
+  dealings of Adams with Stratford Canning over slave trade, 135, 137;
+  high words over Columbia River settlement, 140-147;
+  refusal of Adams to explain words uttered in Congress, 142, 145-147;
+  commercial treaties in Adams's administration, 194.
+
+"Doughfaces," attacks of Adams upon, 120, 229.
+
+Dromgoole, George C., remark on petition to expel Adams, 268;
+  introduces resolutions of censure on Adams, 275;
+  ridiculed by Adams, 277, 278.
+
+Duncan, Alexander, bitterly described by Adams, 299.
+
+
+Eaton, Senator J. H., leads Canning to suspect American plan to colonize
+    Oregon, 140.
+
+Eaton, Mrs., her influence in Jackson's administration, 237.
+
+Election of 1824, candidates, 148, 149;
+  Adams's opinion of them, 151-163;
+  choice simply between persons, not principles, 163;
+  Adams refuses to canvass for himself, 164, 165;
+  electoral college votes for four candidates, 168, 169;
+  influence of Clay in House proves decisive factor, 169, 170;
+  Crawford discarded, 170;
+  the Clay-Adams bargain story started, 170;
+  claims of Jackson men, 171;
+  difficulty of discovering popular vote, 172, 173;
+  choice of Adams, 173, 174;
+  subsequent history of bargain story, 180-188.
+
+Election of 1828, question of principle veiled by personality of
+    candidates, 196, 197, 200;
+  choice of Jackson, 212;
+  its significance, 213, 214.
+
+Embargo, proposed by Jefferson, 52;
+  supported by Adams, 53;
+  opposed by Federalists, 53;
+  preferred by Adams to submission, 54, 55;
+  its effects, 55;
+  its repeal urged by Adams, 55, 56.
+
+England, ratifies Jay treaty, 21;
+  tries to induce Adams to negotiate instead of Deas, 22;
+  its commercial policy toward United States, 37, 38;
+  its right of search protested against by Adams, 39;
+  Non-importation Act adopted against, 40;
+  proclaims blockade, 41;
+  issues Orders in Council, 41, 42;
+  its policy of impressment, 43, 44;
+  refuses compensation for Chesapeake affair and promotes Berkeley, 45;
+  its policy understood by Adams, 49, 50;
+  embargo against, 51-55;
+  refuses Russia's offer to mediate in war of 1812, 75;
+  wins victories, 76;
+  willing to treat directly, 76;
+  appoints commissioners, 76;
+  demands great concessions, 78, 79;
+  ready, if necessary, to continue war, 86;
+  alters policy and concludes treaty, 93, 94;
+  dissatisfied with treaty, 97;
+  commercial treaty with, 98;
+  mission of Adams to, 98-100;
+  social life of Adams in, 99, 100;
+  its offer to mediate between United States and Spain rejected, 114;
+  hopes no violent action will be taken against Spain, 118;
+  endeavors to induce United States to join in suppressing slave
+    trade, 135, 137;
+  its sincerity suspected by Adams, 138;
+  its claim to right of search causes refusal of request, 138, 139;
+  its claims to Oregon discussed by Canning and Adams, 140, 142, 143, 145;
+  Adams's opinion of its territorial claims, 145.
+
+Era of good feeling, 104;
+  characterized by personal rivalries, 105;
+  question of presidential succession, 105, 106;
+  intrigues, 106, 107, 148.
+
+Evans, George, defends Adams from resolutions of censure, 270.
+
+Everett, Edward, his address to Jackson condemned as fulsome by Adams, 242.
+
+Everett, Horace, defends Adams against resolutions of censure, 283, 286.
+
+Everett, Mr., told by Adams of determination to do nothing to secure
+    election, 164.
+
+
+Federalist party, defeated by Jefferson, 25, 26;
+  dissensions in, between John Adams and Hamilton, 26, 27;
+  J. Q. Adams a member of, 28;
+  elects Adams to State Senate, 28;
+  irritated by his independence, 29;
+  elects him United States senator, 30;
+  antipathy of, in Senate, toward son of John Adams, 31;
+  opposes Louisiana purchase, 35;
+  condemns Adams for favoring Louisiana, 36;
+  supports English policy, 38;
+  angered against Jefferson for not submitting to English aggression,
+    39, 40, 53;
+  opposes Non-importation Act, 40;
+  urged by Adams to resent Chesapeake affair, 51;
+  does so, but condemns Adams for participating in Republican meeting, 52;
+  its outburst of fury at Adams for supporting embargo, 53, 54;
+  refuses to reelect him, 57;
+  discussion of its part in United States history, 59-62;
+  its success in organization, 59, 60;
+  supported by Adams as long as it remains sound, 61;
+  takes false position after 1807, 62;
+  disappears, 104, 105;
+  thirteen members demand evidence of Adams's statement concerning plans
+    for disunion, 216;
+  their rejoinder to his reply, 217, 218;
+  proved to have planned disunion by Adams's unpublished pamphlet, 218,
+    219.
+
+Fisheries, intention of English to ignore, in treaty of Ghent, 80, 88;
+  disputes over, between Adams and Clay, 88-90;
+  finally omitted from treaty, 92, 94;
+  later negotiations over, 99.
+
+Florida, question of its acquisition, 110, 111;
+  acquired by treaty, 115;
+  its seizure advocated by Adams against Monroe, 118, 123;
+  treaty concerning, opposed by Clay, 151;
+  illegal actions of Jackson in, 159.
+
+Foreign Affairs, Committee on, petition for Adams's removal from, 280;
+  refusal of Southern members to serve on, with Adams, 289.
+
+France, conquers Holland, 20;
+  attitude of John Adams toward, 26;
+  replies to English blockade by Berlin and Milan decrees, 41, 42;
+  unable to damage American shipping as much as England, 46, 47;
+  war with Russia, 74;
+  hopes no violent action will be taken against Spain, 118;
+  rejects England's plan for suppression of slave trade, 138;
+  its slowness in paying debt causes Jackson to break off diplomatic
+    relations, 238.
+
+Franklin, Benjamin, negotiates treaty of peace, 13.
+
+
+"Gag" rule, adopted over Adams's protest, 250, 251;
+  effort of Adams to get his protest on journal, 251, 252;
+  further protests of Adams against, 256, 258, 305;
+  difficulties in enforcing, 260;
+  dwindling majorities for, 305;
+  repealed on Adams's motion, 306.
+
+Gallatin, Albert, appointed peace commissioner, 75;
+  his appointment rejected by Senate, 75;
+  reappointed, 76;
+  moderates resentment of colleagues at English pretensions, 77, 82;
+  acts as peacemaker in conference, 82;
+  supplants Adams in drafting documents, 82;
+  on good terms with Adams, 84;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98.
+
+Gambier, Lord, on English peace commission, 76;
+  laments Adams's intention to return to St. Petersburg, 86;
+  interposes to calm a quarrel, 91;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98.
+
+Garland, Hugh A., attempts to secure organization of House of
+    Representatives without taking in contested seats, 290;
+  intends to give House to Democrats, 291;
+  refuses to put any question until House is organized, 291, 292;
+  prevents organization, 292;
+  pushed aside by Adams, 293.
+
+Garrison, William Lloyd, adopts Adams's theory of power of Congress over
+    slavery, 264.
+
+Genet, E. C., his course attacked by Adams in papers, 18.
+
+Gerry, Elbridge, notifies John Adams of appointment as Minister to
+    England, 14.
+
+Giddings, Joshua R., his position on power of Congress over slavery not
+    indorsed by Adams, 263.
+
+Giles, W. B., attempts to win Adams to support Jefferson, 65;
+  abuses Adams, 211, 296;
+  his memory preserved solely by his slanders, 212;
+  circulates slanders in New England against Adams, 216.
+
+Gilmer, Thomas W., offers resolution of censure on Adams for presenting
+    petition to dissolve the Union, 281;
+  denies Adams's charge of imitating Wise, 281, 282.
+
+Glascock, Thomas, moves that anti-slavery petition be not received, 248.
+
+Goulburn, Henry, on English peace commission, 76;
+  thinks war must continue, 86;
+  loses temper with Bayard and Adams, 91;
+  negotiates treaty of commerce, 98.
+
+Grantland, Seaton, wishes to punish Adams for presenting petition from
+    slaves, 270.
+
+Greece, revolt of, refusal of Adams to commit United States to
+    interference, 134.
+
+Gregory, Sherlock S., his eccentric anti-slavery petition, 256.
+
+Grenville, Lord, dealings of Adams with, in 1795, 22.
+
+Gunboat scheme, despised by Adams, 48.
+
+
+Habersham, Richard W., alleges petition for removal of Adams to be a
+    hoax, 280.
+
+Hamilton, Alexander, real leader of Federalist party during John Adams's
+    administration, 27;
+  his feud with Adams, 27;
+  his influence in Massachusetts, 28, 30.
+
+Harvard College, studies of John Quincy Adams in, 17;
+  its proposal to confer degree upon Jackson opposed by Adams, 241;
+  confers the degree, 241, 242.
+
+Haynes, Charles E., moves rejection of Adams's petition from slaves,
+    270, 275;
+  moves to make censure of Adams severe, 271.
+
+Hayti, its possible representation at Panama Congress causes South to
+    advocate refusal to send delegates, 191;
+  petitions for recognition of, 259.
+
+Holland, mission of Adams to, 20;
+  conquered by France, 20;
+  made into "Batavian Republic," 20;
+  agrees to suppress slave trade, 138.
+
+Holy Alliance, fear of its attempting to reconquer Spanish colonies,
+    132, 134, 136.
+
+House of Representatives, Adams's career in, 225-308;
+  election of Adams to, 225;
+  his labors in committee and other work of, 227;
+  solitariness of Adams in, 231;
+  his position in, with regard to tariff of 1833, 235;
+  debate in, over Jackson's policy to France, 239;
+  anti-slavery petitions presented in, at first without remark, 243, 248;
+  debates plans to prevent their reception, 248-250;
+  adopts "gag" rule against Adams's protest, 251;
+  attempts of Adams to infringe its rule, 257, 258;
+  debates power to abolish slavery, 262;
+  debates proposed censure of Adams for presenting a petition from
+    slaves, 269-279;
+  resolves that slaves do not possess right of petition, 279;
+  Adams's speech in reply, 277-279;
+  attempts to censure Adams for presenting petition for dissolution of
+    Union, 280-288;
+  lays subject on table, 288;
+  does not resent a second disunion petition, 288;
+  refusal of Garland to organize according to custom, in 1839, 290-292;
+  appeals to Adams, 292; organized by his leadership, 293-295;
+  pays compliment to Adams on his return after illness, 307;
+  death of Adams in, 307, 308.
+
+Hubbard, David, comment of Adams on, 300.
+
+Hunter, R. M. T., elected Speaker of House, 295.
+
+
+Impressment, description of its exercise by England and effects upon
+    United States, 43-45;
+  difficulty of reclaiming impressed Americans, 44, 45;
+  the Chesapeake affair, 45, 46;
+  not mentioned in treaty of Ghent, 92, 95;
+  later negotiations over, 99.
+
+Indians, propositions concerning, in peace negotiations, 78;
+  dissensions over, between American commissioners, 90;
+  article concerning, 94.
+
+Internal improvements, Adams's advocacy of, 194, 201.
+
+
+Jackson, Andrew, his view of Adams's office-seeking, 63;
+  wins battle of New Orleans, 96, 97;
+  his outrages in Spanish territory, 110;
+  enrages Spain, 111;
+  approves Adams's Spanish treaty, later condemns it, 125;
+  becomes candidate for presidency in 1824, 149;
+  his Indian wars in Florida, 158, 159;
+  hangs Arbuthnot and Ambrister, 159;
+  captures Pensacola, 159;
+  difficulty of praising or blaming him, 159, 160;
+  condemned by President and Cabinet, 160;
+  and by Clay, 160;
+  defended by Adams, 160-162;
+  ball in his honor given by Adams, 162;
+  supported for Minister to Mexico and for Vice-President by Adams. 163;
+  on good terms with Adams up to election, 163;
+  receives largest electoral vote in 1824, 169;
+  said to have refused offer of Clay to bargain for support, 170;
+  impossibility of Clay's supporting him, 171;
+  popular argument for his choice, 171, 172;
+  absurdity of claim of popular will in favor of, 172, 173;
+  vote for, in House of Representatives, 174;
+  enraged at defeat, 174;
+  yet greets Adams at inauguration, 175;
+  nominated for President by Tennessee legislature, 181;
+  spreads tale of Clay and Adams's bargain, 184;
+  declares he has proof, 184, 185;
+  tells story of offer from Clay, 185;
+  calls upon Buchanan for testimony, 186;
+  his statements disavowed by Buchanan, 186, 187;
+  continues to repeat story, 187;
+  his candidacy for 1828 purely on personal grounds, 195-197, 200;
+  advantages all on his side, 197;
+  originator of spoils system, 198;
+  his position as advocate of unsound government not understood in 1828,
+    200;
+  secretly aided by McLean, 205, 206;
+  rewards him by a judgeship, 206;
+  elected President in 1828, 212;
+  begins a new era, 213, 214;
+  his message of 1832 condemned by Adams, 234;
+  his proclamation against nullification upheld by Adams, 235;
+  ultimately yields to South Carolina, 236;
+  his administration condemned by Adams, 237;
+  its character, 237;
+  recommends vigorous action against France, 238;
+  supported by Adams in House, 239;
+  continues to hate Adams, 239, 240;
+  futile attempt of Johnson to reconcile him with Adams, 240, 241;
+  granted degree of Doctor of Laws by Harvard, 241, 242;
+  suspected by Adams of feigning illness for effect, 242.
+
+Jackson, F. J., his recall referred to in conversation between Canning
+    and Adams, 146.
+
+Jarvis, Leonard, introduces resolution that House will not entertain
+    abolition petitions, 248.
+
+Jay treaty, ratified, 21.
+
+Jefferson, Thomas, negotiates treaties of commerce, 13;
+  republishes Paine's "Rights of Man," 18;
+  his inauguration avoided by John Adams, 26;
+  removes J. Q. Adams from position of commissioner in bankruptcy, 28;
+  attempts to explain apparent malice, 28;
+  Adams's view of his attacks on Pickering and Chase, 36;
+  approves Non-importation Act, 40;
+  inefficient in war-time, 48, 54;
+  advocates embargo, 54;
+  not reconciled with J. Q. Adams in spite of latter's support, 65;
+  unconciliatory reply of Adams to, when offered a mission, 69;
+  his desire to make Louisiana a State opposed by Adams, 130;
+  begins political use of offices to secure reelection, 198;
+  said to have been warned by Adams of Federalist disunion plots, 216.
+
+Johnson, Joshua, father-in-law of Adams, 22.
+
+Johnson, Louisa Catherine, marries Adams, 22, 23;
+  in Washington society, 103.
+
+Johnson, Richard M., led by Clay to oppose Spanish treaty, 124;
+  endeavors to reconcile Adams and Jackson, 240;
+  his probable motives, 240.
+
+Johnson, Thomas, Governor, connected by marriage with Adams, 22.
+
+
+King, Rufus, description of Adams's offer of English mission to, 177, 178.
+
+Kremer, George, originates bargain slander against Clay and Adams,
+    171, 180;
+  refuses to testify before House Committee, 181;
+  writes a retraction and apology, 187.
+
+
+Leopard. See Chesapeake.
+
+Lewis, Dixon H., urges punishing Adams for offering petition from
+    slaves, 270;
+  wishes Southern members to go home, 272.
+
+Lincoln, Solomon, letter of Adams to, on power of Congress over
+    slavery, 265.
+
+Lincoln, Levi, defends Adams against resolution of censure, 276.
+
+Liverpool, Lord, his anxiety to conclude peace, 93.
+
+Livingston, Edward, ordered by Jackson to demand passports from
+    France, 238.
+
+Lloyd, James, Jr., chosen Senator in Adams's place, 57.
+
+Louisiana, acquisition opposed by Federalist party, 35;
+  supported by Adams, although, in his eyes, unconstitutional, 35;
+  negotiations with Spain concerning its boundary, 110, 112, 114-116;
+  proposed boundary at Sabine opposed by Clay, 112, 116;
+  boundaries agreed upon in treaty, 115;
+  dispute over Spanish land grants in, 116, 117, 124;
+  the boundary later attacked, but, at the time of treaty, approved, 125.
+
+Lowell, John, justifies action of Leopard in attacking Chesapeake, 50.
+
+
+McLean, J. T., professes devotion to Adams and aids Jackson, 205, 206;
+  rewarded by Jackson with a judgeship, 206.
+
+Madison, James, as Secretary of State, favors giving Adams a foreign
+    mission, 68;
+  as President, appoints him Minister to Russia, 69, 70.
+
+Manifest destiny, upheld by Adams, 130.
+
+Mann, Abijah, Jr., of New York, attacks Adams in Congress, 273, 274.
+
+"Marcellus" papers, 18.
+
+Manufactures, Committee on, Adams a member of, 233.
+
+Marshall, Thomas F., attacks Adams for advocating power of Congress
+    over slavery, 263;
+  offers resolution of censure on Adams for presenting disunion
+    petition, 282, 283.
+
+Markley, Philip S., mentioned by Buchanan in Clay-Adams bargain story, 186.
+
+Mason, S. T., killed in a duel, 103, 104.
+
+Massachusetts, upper classes in, belong to Federalist party, 28;
+  legislature of, sends Adams to United States Senate, 30;
+  refuses to reelect him, 56, 57;
+  condemns embargo, 57;
+  lasting bitterness in, against Adams, for his change of party,
+    58, 216-218;
+  anti-Mason movement in, 226, 301;
+  educated society in, disapproves of Adams's anti-slavery position, 246;
+  farmers support him, 247, 255.
+
+Milan decree issued, 42.
+
+Mills, E. H., describes Washington city, 101;
+  describes Mr. and Mrs. Adams, 103;
+  describes Crawford, 157;
+  describes Adams's ball in honor of Jackson, 162;
+  on reasons for Adams's personal unpopularity, 203 n.
+
+Milton, Adams's opinion of, 223.
+
+Mississippi navigation, demand of English for, in treaty of Ghent, 80, 88;
+  disputes over, between Clay and Adams, 88;
+  finally omitted from treaty, 92, 94.
+
+Missouri, admission of, 119.
+
+Monroe, James, appoints Adams Secretary of State, 100;
+  social life of, 102;
+  character of his administration, 104, 133;
+  enmity of Clay toward, 106;
+  anxious for treaty with Spain, dreads Adams's obstinacy, 113;
+  refuses to seize Florida, 118;
+  his connection with "Monroe doctrine," 129, 131;
+  anticipated by Adams, 131;
+  not the originator of modern idea of non-interference, 136;
+  alarmed at Jackson's conduct in Florida, 160.
+
+Monroe doctrine, enlarged by modern interpretation, 129;
+  outlined by Adams in reply to Russia, 131;
+  stated by Monroe, 131;
+  its principles followed out by Adams, 132-148.
+
+Morgan, William, his alleged assassination by Masons, 208.
+
+
+Neutrality Act, passed to prevent privateering against Spain, 108.
+
+Neuville, Hyde de, social doings of, in Washington, 102, 103;
+  aids Adams in Spanish treaty, 114;
+  remark of Adams to, on Onis's policy, 117.
+
+New England, policy of merchants of, in advocating submission to
+    England, 47, 48;
+  condemns embargo, 52;
+  supports Adams for President in 1824, 169;
+  applauds his anti-slavery course, 232.
+
+New Jersey, disputed election in, prevents organization of House of
+    Representatives, 290-292.
+
+New Orleans, battle of, 96;
+  celebrations over, 96, 97.
+
+New York, supports Adams in 1824, 169;
+  chooses electors by legislature, 173.
+
+Niles's "Weekly Register," celebrates battle of New Orleans, 96, 97.
+
+Non-importation, act for, passed, 40;
+  opposed by Federalists, supported by Adams, 40, 49;
+  its substitution for embargo urged by Adams, 56.
+
+Nullification, opinion of Adams on, 235, 236.
+
+
+Observatory, National, desire of Adams to found, 304.
+
+Onis, Don, Spanish Minister, his character described by Adams, 111;
+  complains to Adams of folly of home government, 111, 112;
+  expostulations of De Neuville with, 114;
+  forced to yield to Adams's terms, 114, 115;
+  tries to evade explanation of royal land grants, 116, 117;
+  angered at Jackson's doings, 161.
+
+Orders in Council, 41, 42.
+
+Oregon question, debated between Adams and Canning, 140-145.
+
+Otis, Harrison Gray, accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+
+Paine, Thomas, his "Rights of Man" attacked by Adams, 18.
+
+Panama Congress, recommendation of Adams to send commissioners to, 189;
+  question debated in Congress, 189, 190;
+  reasons why South objected, 191.
+
+Parsons, Theophilus, studies of J. Q. Adams in his law office, 17;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Patton, John Mercer, urges Southern members to be cautious in matter of
+    censuring Adams, 272.
+
+Petitions, anti-slavery, presented in House by Adams, 243, 248, 249,
+    252, 256-258, 260, 288;
+  others presented, 267, 269;
+  for dissolution of Union, 281, 288 (see "Gag" rule).
+
+Pichegru, Charles, French General, conquers Netherlands, 20.
+
+Pickering, Timothy, defeated by J. Q. Adams for Senator, 30;
+  his relations with Adams in Senate, 32;
+  votes against Adams's appointment as Minister to Russia, 69, 70;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296.
+
+Pickering, John, Adams's view of his impeachment, 36.
+
+Pinckney, Thomas, Minister to England, 22.
+
+Pinckney, Henry Laurens, reports on powers of Congress with regard to
+    slavery, 249;
+  attacks Adams for presenting petition from slaves, 274.
+
+Plumer, William, supports Adams in Senate, 68.
+
+Porter, Peter B., appointed Secretary of War at desire of Cabinet, 205.
+
+Portugal, proposed mission of Adams to, 23, 24;
+  proposes an alliance with United States, 133, 134;
+  agrees to suppress slave trade, 138.
+
+Preston, William C., threatens to hang abolitionists, 258.
+
+Privateers in Monroe's administration, 108.
+
+Prussia, mission of Adams to, 24;
+  treaty of commerce with, 24;
+  rejects English plan for suppression of slave trade, 138.
+
+"Publicola" papers, 18.
+
+Puritan traits in Adams, 7, 30;
+  in Adams's constituents, 247.
+
+
+Quincy, John, great-grandfather of Adams, anecdote as to how Adams was
+    named after him, 1, 2.
+
+Quincy, Josiah, refusal of Adams to run against for Congress, 66.
+
+
+Randolph, John, his enmity compared by Adams to that of Clay, 153;
+  teller in election of 1824, 173;
+  on "Blifil and Black George," 183;
+  duel with Clay, 183;
+  hatred of Adams for, 210, 211;
+  his abuse of Adams, 211, 296.
+
+Republican party, elects Jefferson, 25;
+  fair-minded proposal of Adams concerning its representation on council
+    in Massachusetts, 29;
+  thought by Adams to be planning attack on judiciary, 36;
+  favors France, 38;
+  anticipates Federalists of Boston in condemning Chesapeake affair, 51;
+  endeavors to win over Adams, 65, 68;
+  wishes to send him to Congress, 66.
+
+Rhett, Robert Barnwell, offers resolution that Williams be chairman,
+    substitutes name of Adams, 293;
+  conducts him to chair, 293.
+
+Robertson, John, opposes resolutions of censure, but condemns Adams, 276.
+
+Romanzoff, Count, his friendliness with Adams, 71;
+  suggests Russian mediation in war of 1812, 74.
+
+Rose, G. H., his fruitless mission to America after Chesapeake affair, 45.
+
+Rush, Dr. Benjamin, approaches Adams on subject of foreign mission, 68.
+
+Rush, Richard, appointed Secretary of Treasury, 177;
+  wishes appointment as minister to England, 205.
+
+Russell, Jonathan, on peace commission, 76;
+  criticises Adams's drafts of documents, 82;
+  accused by Adams of trying to injure him, 296;
+  attitude of Adams toward, 297.
+
+Russia, mission of Dana to, 13;
+  mission of Adams to, 70-74;
+  life in, 71, 73, 74;
+  its friendship for United States, 72;
+  war with France, 74;
+  offers to mediate between England and United States, 74;
+  its offer declined, 75;
+  dispute with, over Alaska, 130;
+  statement of Adams to, on Monroe doctrine, 131;
+  rejects English plan for suppression of slave trade, 138.
+
+
+Sectionalism, in Louisiana purchase, 35;
+  in connection with embargo, 52, 53;
+  in connection with Missouri question, 122, 123;
+  appears in parties during Adams's administration, 188, 189;
+  growth of, during debate over Texas annexation, 243.
+
+Senate of the United States, election of Adams to, 30;
+  unpopularity of Adams in, 31-33;
+  rejects all his proposals, 31, 32;
+  debates acquisition of Louisiana, 35;
+  impeaches Chase, 36;
+  increased influence of Adams in, 36, 37;
+  adopts Adams's resolutions demanding indemnity for British seizures, 39;
+  his career in, reviewed by Adams, 66-68;
+  refuses, then accepts, Adams's nomination as Minister to Russia, 69, 70;
+  rejects Gallatin's nomination as peace commissioner, 75.
+
+Seward, W. H., on John Adams's recall of J. Q. Adams before end of
+  term, 25;
+  on Adams's dissatisfaction with election of 1824, 174.
+
+Shakespeare, Adams's opinion of, 222.
+
+Slaveholders in Congress, their hatred of Adams, 229, 246;
+  attacked by Adams, 258, 259;
+  outwitted by Adams, 261, 273;
+  condemn Adams for arguing possibility of abolition under war power,
+    262, 264;
+  enraged at Adams's having a petition from slaves, 269, 270;
+  move to censure him, 271;
+  discomfited by discovery of nature of petition, 273;
+  renew attempt to censure, 274, 275;
+  abandon it, 276, 279;
+  bitterly attacked by Adams in his defense, 277-279;
+  try to censure Adams for presenting disunion petition, 281-283;
+  defied by Adams, 283-285;
+  threaten Adams with assassination, 286, 287;
+  abandon attempt, 287, 288;
+  refuse to serve on committee with Adams, 289;
+  respect his courage, 290;
+  applaud his energy in carrying out organization of House, 293, 294.
+
+Slavery, strengthened by Louisiana purchase, 35;
+  made a political issue by Missouri question, 119;
+  opinions of Adams concerning, 119-121;
+  extension of, opposed by Adams, 121;
+  formation of a party devoted to, 188-192;
+  attack upon, hastened by Texas question, 243;
+  Adams's part in war against, 244-248;
+  right of Congress to abolish, under war power, 250, 261-265.
+
+Slaves, English seizures of, during war of 1812, negotiations
+    concerning, 99.
+
+Slave trade, refusal of Adams to submit United States to mixed tribunals
+    for its repression, 135-137;
+  English proposal for combined effort, 137, 138.
+
+Smith, William, accuses Adams of monomania, 280.
+
+Smithsonian bequest, connection of Adams with, 303.
+
+South, the, Calhoun its leader in 1824, 149;
+  does not support Adams for President, 169, 188;
+  begins to form a new slavery party in Adams's administration, 188, 189;
+  opposes Panama Congress because of Hayti's share in it, 191.
+
+Southard, Samuel L., reappointed Secretary of Navy, 177.
+
+South Carolina, refusal of Adams to placate, in 1828, 201;
+  protests against tariff, 233;
+  its punishment for nullification desired by Adams, 234-237;
+  Jackson's vacillation toward, condemned by Adams, 234-236;
+  gains its point from Clay, 236.
+
+Spain, danger of war with, in Monroe's administration, 108;
+  question of revolted colonies, 108, 109;
+  disputes over Louisiana boundary and Florida, 109, 110;
+  sends Onis to negotiate, 111;
+  its policy hampers Onis, 111, 112;
+  negotiations, 113-116;
+  repudiates Onis's treaty, 117;
+  accepts original treaty, 124;
+  agrees to suppress slave trade, 138;
+  angered at Jackson's excesses in Florida, 161.
+
+Spanish-American republics, wish aid from United States, 108;
+  frowned down by European countries, 108;
+  sympathy for, in United States, 108, 109;
+  recognition urged by Clay, 109, 152;
+  recognized gradually, 132;
+  danger of attempt to reconquer by Holy Alliance, 132, 133;
+  protected by Monroe doctrine, 131-134.
+
+Sterret, ----, his removal urged by Clay for planning an insult to
+    Adams, 179;
+  not removed by Adams, 180.
+
+
+Tariff, Adams's views upon, 234;
+  compromise tariff of 1833, considered by Adams a surrender, 235.
+
+Tennessee, renominates Jackson for President, 181;
+  repeats bargain story, 183.
+
+Texas, proposal to annex, arouses Northern opposition to slavery, 243;
+  indignation of Adams at, 265, 266;
+  held by Adams to be unconstitutional, 266.
+
+Thaxter, ----, teacher of Adams, 3.
+
+Thompson, Waddy, sarcastic remark of, 259;
+  neglects to present petition for Adams's expulsion, 268;
+  introduces resolution of censure upon Adams, 271;
+  threatens Adams with criminal proceedings, 271;
+  presents new resolutions, 274;
+  scored by Adams, 277.
+
+Tompkins, Daniel D., candidate for President in 1824, 149.
+
+Times, London, condemns treaty of Ghent, 97.
+
+Tracy, Uriah, supports Adams in Senate, 68.
+
+Treaty of Ghent, meeting of commissioners, 76;
+  irritation during negotiations, 77;
+  preliminary conflict as to place of meeting, 77, 78;
+  large demands of England for cession of territory and other
+    advantages, 78, 79;
+  discussion over proposed belt of neutral Indian territory, 79;
+  and of demand for Mississippi navigation, 80;
+  complaints by Americans of manners of English, 80-82;
+  bickerings among Americans, 81-84;
+  difficulties in drafting documents, 82, 83;
+  social intercourse between commissioners, 85, 92;
+  expected failure of negotiations, 86;
+  _status ante bellum_ proposed by Adams, 87;
+  sanctioned by United States, 87;
+  dissensions among commissioners over Mississippi navigation and
+    fisheries, 88-90;
+  over Moose Island, 91;
+  English offer to omit fisheries and Mississippi, 92;
+  abandonment of impressment article by Americans, 92;
+  peculiarities of negotiation, 93;
+  alteration of English policy, 93;
+  terms of treaty, 94;
+  a success for Americans, 95, 96;
+  rejoicings over, in America, 96;
+  condemned in England, 97.
+
+Trimble, Cary A., of Ohio, opposes Spanish treaty, 124.
+
+Tuyl, Baron, discussion of Adams with, concerning Alaska, 131.
+
+
+Van Buren, Martin, becomes manager of Jackson's followers, 192;
+  compared by Adams to Burr, 193.
+
+Vanderpoel, Aaron, tries to prevent Adams from replying to resolutions
+    of censure by previous question, 270.
+
+Virginia, refusal of Adams to placate, in election of 1828, 201.
+
+Vives, General, supplants Onis, 123;
+  Adams's stubborn attitude toward, 123, 124;
+  forced to yield, 124.
+
+Von Holst, H. C., calls Adams last of the statesmen to be President, 213.
+
+
+War of 1812, a defeat for United States, 76, 86.
+
+War power of Congress, held by Adams to justify emancipation of
+    slaves, 261-265.
+
+Washington, George, appoints Adams Minister to Holland, 19;
+  urges him to remain in diplomacy, 21;
+  transfers him to Portugal, 23;
+  urges John Adams not to hesitate to promote him, 23, 24.
+
+Washington city, absence of church in, 30;
+  described in 1815, 101, 102;
+  society in, 102, 103.
+
+Webster, Daniel, describes intriguing in presidential election of 1824,
+    165;
+  teller in election of 1824, 173;
+  supports Adams in matter of Panama Congress, 190;
+  desires appointment as Minister to England, 205;
+  Adams said to have bargained for his support, 209;
+  accused by Adams of plotting to injure him, 296.
+
+Webster, Ezekiel, ascribes Adams's defeat to unpopularity of his manners,
+    204.
+
+Weights and measures, report of Adams upon, 126, 127;
+  its character and ability, 126, 127.
+
+Wellesley, Marquis of, on superiority of American diplomacy in treaty of
+    Ghent, 96, 98.
+
+Whig party, begins in defense of Adams's administration, 193;
+  lacks personal interest in him, 199;
+  chilled by Adams's manner, 202-204;
+  Adams a member of, 232, 233.
+
+Williams, Joseph L., of Tennessee, opposes Spanish treaty, 124.
+
+Williams, Lewis, proposes Adams for chairman of House, 293.
+
+Wise, Henry A., objects to reception of anti-slavery petitions, 258;
+  attacks Adams for holding that Congress may interfere with slavery
+    in the States, 263;
+  again attacks him, 283;
+  expresses his loathing, 284;
+  taunted with murder by Adams, his bitter reply, 285;
+  compliments Adams on organizing House, 294;
+  later, when reprimanded for fighting, insults Adams, 294;
+  castigated by Adams for dueling and Southern views, 297, 300.
+
+Wirt, William, reappointed Attorney-General, 177.
+
+
+
+
+The Riverside Press
+
+CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A.
+ELECTROTYPED AND PRINTED BY
+H. O. HOUGHTON AND CO.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of John Quincy Adams, by John. T. Morse
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN QUINCY ADAMS ***
+
+***** This file should be named 20183.txt or 20183.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        http://www.gutenberg.org/2/0/1/8/20183/
+
+Produced by Christine P. Travers and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
+produced from images generously made available by The
+Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+http://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+http://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at http://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit http://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations.
+To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     http://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
diff --git a/20183.zip b/20183.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c675f73
--- /dev/null
+++ b/20183.zip
diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6312041
--- /dev/null
+++ b/LICENSE.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements,
+metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be
+in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES.
+
+Procedures for determining public domain status are described in
+the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org.
+
+No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in
+jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize
+this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright
+status under the laws that apply to them.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..180a395
--- /dev/null
+++ b/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #20183 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/20183)