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diff --git a/43331-8.txt b/43331-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 3ce7a09..0000000 --- a/43331-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,17599 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Domestic Life of Thomas Jefferson -Compiled From Family Letters and Reminiscences, by Sarah N. Randolph - -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/license - - -Title: The Domestic Life of Thomas Jefferson Compiled From Family Letters and Reminiscences - -Author: Sarah N. Randolph - -Release Date: July 27, 2013 [EBook #43331] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DOMESTIC LIFE OF T. JEFFERSON *** - - - - -Produced by David Edwards, Julia Neufeld and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - -[Illustration: THOMAS JEFFERSON. - -_From Portrait by Gilbert Stuart._] - -[Illustration: MONTICELLO:--THE WESTERN FRONT.] - - - - - THE DOMESTIC LIFE - OF - THOMAS JEFFERSON. - - COMPILED FROM - FAMILY LETTERS AND REMINISCENCES, - BY HIS GREAT-GRANDDAUGHTER, - SARAH N. RANDOLPH. - - [Illustration: Jefferson's seal] - - NEW YORK: - HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS, - FRANKLIN SQUARE. - 1871. - - - - - Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1871, by - - HARPER & BROTHERS, - - In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -I do not in this volume write of Jefferson either as of the great -man or as of the statesman. My object is only to give a faithful -picture of him as he was in private life--to show that he was, as -I have been taught to think of him by those who knew and loved him -best, a beautiful domestic character. With this view I have collected -the reminiscences of him which have been written by his daughter and -grandchildren. From his correspondence, published and unpublished, -I have culled his family letters, and here reproduce them as being -the most faithful witnesses of the warmth of his affections, the -elevation of his character, and the scrupulous fidelity with which he -discharged the duties of every relation in life. - -I am well aware that the tale of Jefferson's life, both public and -private, has been well told by the most faithful of biographers in -"Randall's Life of Jefferson," and that much of what is contained in -these pages will be found in that admirable work, which, from the -author's zealous devotion to truth, and his indefatigable industry -in collecting his materials, must ever stand chief among the most -valuable contributions to American history. I propose, however, to -give a sketch of Jefferson's private life in a briefer form than it -can be found in either the thirteen volumes of the two editions of -his published correspondence, or in the three stout octavo volumes of -his Life by Randall. To give a bird's-eye view of his whole career, -and to preserve unbroken the thread of this narrative, I quote freely -from his Memoir, and from such of his letters as cast any light upon -the subject, filling up the blanks with my own pen. - -Jefferson's executor having a few months ago recovered from the -United States Government his family letters and private papers, which -had been exempted from the sale of his public manuscripts, I am -enabled to give in these pages many interesting letters never before -published. - -No man's private character has been more foully assailed than -Jefferson's, and none so wantonly exposed to the public gaze, nor -more fully vindicated. I shall be more than rewarded for my labors -should I succeed in imparting to my readers a tithe of that esteem -and veneration which I have been taught to feel for him by the person -with whom he was most intimate during life--the grandson who, as a -boy, played upon his knee, and, as a man, was, as he himself spoke of -him, "the staff" of his old age. - -The portrait of Jefferson is from a painting by Gilbert Stuart, in -the possession of his family, and by them considered as the best -likeness of him. The portrait of his daughter, Martha Jefferson -Randolph, is from a painting by Sully. The view of Monticello -represents the home of Jefferson as it existed during his lifetime, -and not as it now is--a ruin. - - THE AUTHOR. - JUNE, 1871. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - CHAPTER I. - - Jefferson's Birthplace.--Sketch of his early Life.--Character - of his Parents.--His Grandfather, Isham Randolph.--Peter - Jefferson's Friendship for William Randolph.--Randolph dies, - and leaves his young Son to the Guardianship of Jefferson.-- - His faithful Discharge of the Trust.--Thomas Jefferson's - earliest Recollections.--His Father's Hospitality.--First - Acquaintance with Indians.--Life of the early Settlers of - Virginia: its Ease and Leisure.--Expense of Thomas Jefferson's - early Education.--Death of his Father.--Perils of his - Situation.--Letter to his Guardian.--Goes to William and - Mary College.--Extract from his Memoir.--Sketch of - Fauquier.--Of Wythe Page 17 - - - CHAPTER II. - - Intense Application as a Student.--Habits of Study kept up - during his Vacations.--First Preparations made for Building - at Monticello.--Letters to his College Friend, John Page.-- - Anecdote of Benjamin Harrison.--Jefferson's Devotion to his - eldest Sister.--He witnesses the Debate on the Stamp - Act.--First Meeting with Patrick Henry.--His Opinion of - him.--His superior Education.--Always a Student.--Wide Range - of Information.--Anecdote.--Death of his eldest Sister.--His - Grief.--Buries himself in his Books.--Finishes his Course of - Law Studies.--Begins to practise.--Collection of Vocabularies - of Indian Languages.--House at Shadwell burnt.--Loss of his - Library.--Marriage.--Anecdote of his Courtship.--Wife's - Beauty.--Bright Prospects.--Friendship for Dabney Carr.--His - Talents.--His Death.--Jefferson buries him at Monticello.--His - Epitaph 31 - - - CHAPTER III. - - Happy Life at Monticello.--Jefferson's fine Horsemanship.--Birth - of his oldest Child.--Goes to Congress.--Death of his Mother.-- - Kindness to British Prisoners.--Their Gratitude.--His Devotion to - Music.--Letter to General de Riedesel.--Is made Governor of - Virginia.--Tarleton pursues Lafayette.--Reaches Charlottesville.-- - The British at Monticello.--Cornwallis's Destruction of Property - at Elk Hill.--Jefferson retires at the End of his Second Term as - Governor.--Mrs. Jefferson's delicate Health.--Jefferson meets with - an Accident.--Writes his Notes on Virginia.--The Marquis de - Chastellux visits Monticello.--His Description of it.--Letter of - Congratulation from Jefferson to Washington.--Mrs. Jefferson's - Illness and Death.--Her Daughter's Description of the Scene.-- - Jefferson's Grief 48 - - - CHAPTER IV. - - Visit to Chesterfield County.--Is appointed Plenipotentiary to - Europe.--Letter to the Marquis de Chastellux.--Goes North with - his Daughter.--Leaves her in Philadelphia, and goes to - Congress.--Letters to his Daughter.--Sails for Europe.--His - Daughter's Description of the Voyage.--His Establishment and - Life in Paris.--Succeeds Franklin as Minister there.--Anecdotes - of Franklin.--Extracts from Mrs. Adams's Letters.--Note from - Jefferson to Mrs. Smith 67 - - - CHAPTER V. - - Jefferson's first Impressions of Europe.--Letter to Mrs. - Trist.--To Baron De Geismer.--He visits England.--Letter to - his Daughter.--To his Sister.--Extract from his Journal kept - when in England.--Letter to John Page.--Presents a Bust of - Lafayette to chief Functionaries of Paris.--Breaks his - Wrist.--Letter to Mrs. Trist.--Mr. and Mrs. Cosway.-- - Correspondence with Mrs. Cosway.--Letter to Colonel - Carrington.--To Mr. Madison.--To Mrs. Bingham.--Her Reply 79 - - - CHAPTER VI. - - Death of Count de Vergennes.--Jefferson is ordered to Aix by - his Surgeon.--Death of his youngest Child.--Anxiety to have - his Daughter Mary with him.--Her Reluctance to leave - Virginia.--Her Letters to and from her Father.--Jefferson's - Letters to Mrs. and Mr. Eppes.--To Lafayette.--To the Countess - de Tesse.--To Lafayette.--Correspondence with his Daughter - Martha 101 - - - CHAPTER VII. - - Increased Anxiety about his youngest Daughter.--Her Aunt's - Letter.--She arrives in England.--Mrs. Adams receives her.-- - Letter to Mrs. Eppes.--To Madame de Corny.--To J. Bannister.-- - To his Sister.--Letter to Mr. Jay.--To Madame de Brehan.--To - Madame de Corny.--Weariness of Public Life.--Goes to - Amsterdam.--Letter to Mr. Jay.--To Mr. Izard.--To Mrs. Marks.-- - To Mr. Marks.--To Randolph Jefferson.--To Mrs. Eppes 124 - - - CHAPTER VIII. - - Jefferson asks for leave of Absence.--Character of the Prince - of Wales.--Letters to Madame de Brehan.--Fondness for Natural - History.--Anecdote told by Webster.--Jefferson's Opinion of - Chemistry.--Letter to Professor Willard.--Martha Jefferson.--She - wishes to enter a Convent.--Her Father takes her Home.--He is - impatient to return to Virginia.--Letter to Washington.--To Mrs. - Eppes.--Receives leave of Absence.--Farewell to France.-- - Jefferson as an Ambassador.--He leaves Paris.--His Daughter's - Account of the Voyage, and Arrival at Home.--His Reception by - his Slaves 139 - - - CHAPTER IX. - - Letters on the French Revolution 154 - - - CHAPTER X. - - Washington nominates Jefferson as Secretary of State.-- - Jefferson's Regret.--Devotion of Southern Statesmen to Country - Life.--Letter to Washington.--Jefferson accepts the - Appointment.--Marriage of his Daughter.--He leaves for New - York.--Last Interview with Franklin.--Letters to Son-in-law.-- - Letters of Adieu to Friends in Paris.--Family Letters. 169 - - - CHAPTER XI. - - Jefferson goes with the President to Rhode Island.--Visits - Monticello.--Letter to Mrs. Eppes.--Goes to Philadelphia.-- - Family Letters.--Letter to Washington.--Goes to Monticello.-- - Letters to his Daughter.--His Ana.--Letters to his Daughter.-- - To General Washington.--To Lafayette.--To his Daughter 189 - - - CHAPTER XII. - - Anonymous Attacks on Jefferson.--Washington's Letter to him.-- - His Reply.--Letter to Edmund Randolph.--Returns to - Philadelphia.--Washington urges him to remain in his - Cabinet.--Letters to his Daughter.--To his Son-in-law.--To - his Brother-in-law.--Sends his Resignation to the President.-- - Fever in Philadelphia.--Weariness of Public Life.--Letters - to his Daughters.--To Mrs. Church.--To his Daughter.--Visits - Monticello.--Returns to Philadelphia.--Letter to Madison.--To - Mrs. Church.--To his Daughters.--Interview with Genet.--Letter - to Washington.--His Reply.--Jefferson returns to Monticello.-- - State of his Affairs, and Extent of his Possessions.--Letter to - Washington.--To Mr. Adams.--Washington attempts to get - Jefferson back in his Cabinet.--Letter to Edmund Randolph, - declining.--Pleasures of his Life at Monticello.--Letter to - Madison.--To Giles.--To Rutledge.--To young Lafayette 213 - - - CHAPTER XIII. - - Description of Monticello and Jefferson by the Duc de la - Rochefoucauld-Liancourt.--Nominated Vice-President.--Letter - to Madison.--To Adams.--Preference for the Office of - Vice-President.--Sets out for Philadelphia.--Reception - there.--Returns to Monticello.--Letters to his Daughter.--Goes - to Philadelphia.--Letter to Rutledge.--Family Letters.--To - Miss Church.--To Mrs. Church 235 - - - CHAPTER XIV. - - Jefferson goes to Philadelphia.--Letters to his Daughters.-- - Returns to Monticello.--Letters to his Daughter.--Goes back - to Philadelphia.--Family Letters.--Letters to Mrs. and Miss - Church.--Bonaparte.--Letters to his Daughters.--Is nominated - as President.--Seat of Government moved to Washington.--Spends - the Summer at Monticello.--Letters to his Daughter.--Jefferson - denounced by the New England Pulpit.--Letter to Uriah Gregory.-- - Goes to Washington 254 - - - CHAPTER XV. - - Results of Presidential Election.--Letter to his Daughter.-- - Balloting for President.--Letter to his Daughter.--Is - inaugurated.--Returns to Monticelllo.--Letters to his - Daughter.--Goes back to Washington.--Inaugurates the Custom - of sending a written Message to Congress.--Abolishes Levees.-- - Letter to Story.--To Dickinson.--Letter from Mrs. Cosway.-- - Family Letters.--Makes a short Visit to Monticello.-- - Jefferson's Sixtieth Year 271 - - - CHAPTER XVI. - - Returns to Washington.--Letters to his Daughters.--Meets with - a Stranger in his daily Ride.--Letters to his Daughter.--To - his young Grandson.--To his Daughter, Mrs. Randolph.--Last - Letters to his Daughter, Mrs. Eppes.--Her Illness.--Letter to - Mr. Eppes.--Goes to Monticello.--Death of Mrs. Eppes.--Account - of it by a Niece.--Her Reminiscences of Mary Jefferson Eppes.-- - Letter to Page.--To Tyler.--From Mrs. Adams.--Mr. Jefferson's - Reply.--Midnight Judges.--Letters to his Son-in-law 288 - - - CHAPTER XVII. - - Renominated as President.--Letter to Mazzei.--Slanders against - Jefferson.--Sad Visit to Monticello.--Second Inauguration.-- - Receives the Bust of the Emperor of Russia.--Letters to and - from the Emperor.--To Diodati.--To Dickinson.--To his - Son-in-law.--Devotion to his Grandchildren.--Letter to - Monroe.--To his Grandchildren.--His Temper when roused.--Letter - to Charles Thompson.--To Dr. Logan.--Anxious to avoid a Public - Reception on his Return home.--Letter to Dupont de Nemours.-- - Inauguration of Madison.--Harmony in Jefferson's Cabinet.--Letter - to Humboldt.--Farewell Address from the Legislature of - Virginia.--His Reply.--Reply to an Address of Welcome from - the Citizens of Albemarle.--Letter to Madison.--Anecdote of - Jefferson.--Dr. Stuart says he is quarelling with the Almighty 310 - - - CHAPTER XVIII. - - His final Return home.--Wreck of his Fortunes.--Letter to Mr. - Eppes.--To his Grand-daughter, Mrs. Bankhead.--To - Kosciusko.--Description of the Interior of the House at - Monticello.--Of the View from Monticello.--Jefferson's - Grandson's Description of his Manners and Appearance.-- - Anecdotes.--His Habits.--Letter to Governor Langdon.--To - Governor Tyler.--Life at Monticello.--Jefferson's Studies - and Occupations.--Sketch of Jefferson by a Grand-daughter.-- - Reminiscences of him by another Grand-daughter 329 - - - CHAPTER XIX. - - Letter to his Grand-daughter, Mrs. Bankhead.--To Dr. Rush.-- - To Duane.--Anxiety to reopen Correspondence with John Adams.-- - Letter to Benjamin Rush.--Old Letter from Mrs. Adams.--Letter - from Benjamin Rush.--Letter from John Adams.--The - Reconciliation.--Character of Washington.--Devotion to - him.--Letter to Say.--State of Health.--Labors of - Correspondence.--Cheerfulness of his Disposition.--Baron - Grimour.--Catherine of Russia.--Ledyard.--Letter to Mrs. - Trist.--To John Adams.--Gives Charge of his Affairs to his - Grandson.--Letter to his Grandson, Francis Eppes.--Description - of Monticello by Lieutenant Hall.--Letter to Mrs. Adams.--Her - Death.--Beautiful Letter to Mr. Adams.--Letter to Dr. Utley.-- - Correspondence with Mrs. Cosway.--Tidings from Old French - Friends 349 - - - CHAPTER XX. - - Letters to John Adams.--Number of Letters written and - received.--To John Adams.--Breaks his Arm.--Letter to Judge - Johnson.--To Lafayette.--The University of Virginia.--Anxiety - to have Southern Young Men educated at the South.--Letters on - the Subject.--Lafayette's Visit to America.--His Meeting with - Jefferson.--Daniel Webster's Visit to Monticello, and - Description of Mr. Jefferson 378 - - - CHAPTER XXI. - - Pecuniary Embarrassments.--Letter from a Grand-daughter.--Dr. - Dunglison's Memoranda.--Sells his Library.--Depressed - Condition of the Money Market.--Disastrous Consequences to - Jefferson.--His Grandson's Devotion and Efforts to relieve - him.--Mental Sufferings of Mr. Jefferson.--Plan of Lottery to - sell his Property.--Hesitation of Virginia Legislature to grant - his Request.--Sad Letter to Madison.--Correspondence with - Cabell.--Extract from a Letter to his Grandson, to Cabell.-- - Beautiful Letter to his Grandson.--Distress at the Death of his - Grand-daughter.--Dr. Dunglison's Memoranda.--Meeting in - Richmond.--In Nelson County.--New York, Philadelphia, and - Baltimore come to his Relief.--His Gratitude.--Unconscious - that at his Death Sales of his Property would fail to pay his - Debts.--Deficit made up by his Grandson.--His Daughter left - penniless.--Generosity of Louisiana and South Carolina 397 - - - CHAPTER XXII. - - Letter to Namesake.--To John Adams.--Declining Health.--Dr. - Dunglison's Memoranda.--Tenderness to his Family.--Accounts - of his Death by Dr. Dunglison and Colonel Randolph.--Farewell - to his Daughter.--Directions for a Tombstone.--It is erected - by his Grandson.--Shameful Desecration of Tombstones at - Monticello 419 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS. - - - PAGE - - THOMAS JEFFERSON (From Portrait by Stuart) } _In Front._ - MONTICELLO (The Western View) } - JEFFERSON'S SEAL _Title-Page._ - JEFFERSON'S COAT OF ARMS _On Cover._ - JEFFERSON'S MARRIAGE LICENSE-BOND (Fac-simile) 42 - PART OF DRAFT OF DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE (Fac-simile) 52 - MARTHA JEFFERSON RANDOLPH (From Portrait by Sully) 65 - JEFFERSON'S HORSE-CHAIR (Still preserved at Monticello) 289 - MONTICELLO (Plan of the First Floor) 334 - THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA (In 1850) 386 - JEFFERSON'S GRAVE (Near Monticello) 432 - - - - -THE - -DOMESTIC LIFE OF JEFFERSON. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - - Jefferson's Birthplace.--Sketch of his early Life.--Character - of his Parents.--His Grandfather, Isham Randolph.--Peter - Jefferson's Friendship for William Randolph.--Randolph dies, - and leaves his young Son to the Guardianship of Jefferson.--His - faithful Discharge of the Trust.--Thomas Jefferson's earliest - Recollections.--His Father's Hospitality.--First Acquaintance - with Indians.--Life of the early Settlers of Virginia: its Ease - and Leisure.--Expense of Thomas Jefferson's early Education.-- - Death of his Father.--Perils of his Situation.--Letter to his - Guardian.--Goes to William and Mary College.--Extract from his - Memoir.--Sketch of Fauquier.--Of Wythe. - - -On a long, gently sloping hill five miles east of Charlottesville, -Virginia, the traveller, passing along the county road of Albemarle, -has pointed out to him the spot where Thomas Jefferson was born, -April 13th, 1743. A few aged locust-trees are still left to mark the -place, and two or three sycamores stretch out their long majestic -arms over the greensward beneath, once the scene of young Jefferson's -boyish games, but now a silent pasture, where cattle and sheep -browse, undisturbed by the proximity of any dwelling. The trees are -all that are left of an avenue planted by him on his twenty-first -birthday, and, as such, are objects of peculiar interest to those who -love to dwell upon the associations of the past. - -The situation is one well suited for a family mansion--offering from -its site a landscape view rarely surpassed. To the south are seen -the picturesque valley and banks of the Rivanna, with an extensive, -peaceful-looking horizon view, lying like a sleeping beauty, in the -east; while long rolling hills, occasionally rising into mountain -ranges until at last they are all lost in the gracefully-sweeping -profile of the Blue Ridge, stretch westward, and the thickly-wooded -Southwest Mountains, with the highly-cultivated fields and valleys -intervening, close the scene on the north, and present landscapes -whose exquisite enchantment must ever charm the beholder. - -A brief sketch of Jefferson's family and early life is given in the -following quotation from his Memoir, written by himself: - - _January 6, 1821._--At the age of 77, I begin to make some - memoranda, and state some recollections of dates and facts - concerning myself, for my own more ready reference, and for the - information of my family. - - The tradition in my father's family was, that their ancestor - came to this country from Wales, and from near the mountain of - Snowden, the highest in Great Britain. I noted once a case from - Wales in the law reports, where a person of our name was either - plaintiff or defendant; and one of the same name was Secretary - to the Virginia Company. These are the only instances in which I - have met with the name in that country. I have found it in our - early records; but the first particular information I have of - any ancestor was of my grandfather, who lived at the place in - Chesterfield called Osborne's, and owned the lands afterwards - the glebe of the parish. He had three sons: Thomas, who died - young; Field, who settled on the waters of the Roanoke, and - left numerous descendants; and Peter, my father, who settled on - the lands I still own, called Shadwell, adjoining my present - residence. He was born February 29th, 1708, and intermarried - 1739 with Jane Randolph, of the age of 19, daughter of Isham - Randolph, one of the seven sons of that name and family settled - at Dungeness, in Goochland. They trace their pedigree far back - in England and Scotland, to which let every one ascribe the - faith and merit he chooses. - - My father's education had been quite neglected; but being of a - strong mind, sound judgment, and eager after information, he - read much, and improved himself; insomuch that he was chosen, - with Joshua Fry, Professor of Mathematics in William and - Mary College, to run the boundary-line between Virginia and - North Carolina, which had been begun by Colonel Byrd, and was - afterwards employed with the same Mr. Fry to make the first map - of Virginia which had ever been made, that of Captain Smith - being merely a conjectural sketch. They possessed excellent - materials for so much of the country as is below the Blue Ridge, - little being then known beyond that ridge. He was the third or - fourth settler, about the year 1737, of the part of the country - in which I live. He died August 17th, 1757, leaving my mother - a widow, who lived till 1776, with six daughters and two sons, - myself the elder. - - To my younger brother he left his estate on James River, called - Snowden, after the supposed birthplace of the family; to myself, - the lands on which I was born and live. He placed me at the - English school at five years of age, and at the Latin at nine, - where I continued until his death. My teacher, Mr. Douglas, a - clergyman from Scotland, with the rudiments of the Latin and - Greek languages, taught me the French; and on the death of - my father I went to the Rev. Mr. Maury, a correct classical - scholar, with whom I continued two years. - -The talents of great men are frequently said to be derived from the -mother. If they are inheritable, Jefferson was entitled to them on -both the paternal and maternal side. His father was a man of most -extraordinary vigor, both of mind and body. His son never wearied of -dwelling with all the pride of filial devotion and admiration on the -noble traits of his character. To the regular duties of his vocation -as a land-surveyor (which, it will be remembered, was the profession -of Washington also) were added those of county surveyor, colonel of -the militia, and member of the House of Burgesses. - -Family tradition has preserved several incidents of the survey of the -boundary-line between Virginia and North Carolina, which prove him to -have been a man of remarkable powers of endurance, untiring energy, -and indomitable courage. The perils and toils of running that line -across the Blue Ridge were almost incredible, and were not surpassed -by those encountered by Colonel Byrd and his party in forcing the -same line through the forests and marshes of the Dismal Swamp in the -year 1728. On this expedition Colonel Jefferson and his companions -had often to defend themselves against the attacks of wild beasts -during the day, and at night found but a broken rest, sleeping--as -they were obliged to do for safety--in trees. At length their supply -of provisions began to run low, and his comrades, overcome by hunger -and exhaustion, fell fainting beside him. Amid all these hardships -and difficulties, Jefferson's courage did not once flag, but living -upon raw flesh, or whatever could be found to sustain life, he -pressed on and persevered until his task was accomplished. - -So great was his physical strength, that when standing between two -hogsheads of tobacco lying on their sides, he could raise or "head" -them both up at once. Perhaps it was because he himself rejoiced in -such gigantic strength that it was his frequent remark that "it is -the strong in body who are both the strong and free in mind." This, -too, made him careful to have his young son early instructed in -all the manly sports and exercises of his day; so that while still -a school-boy he was a good rider, a good swimmer, and an ardent -sportsman, spending hours and days wandering in pursuit of game along -the sides of the beautiful Southwest Mountains--thus strengthening -his body and his health, which must otherwise have given way under -the intense application to study to which he soon afterwards devoted -himself. - -The Jeffersons were among the earliest immigrants to the colony, -and we find the name in the list of the twenty-two members who -composed the Assembly that met in Jamestown in the year 1619--the -first legislative body that was ever convened in America.[1] Colonel -Jefferson's father-in-law, Isham Randolph, of Dungeness, was a man of -considerable eminence in the colony, whose name associated itself in -his day with all that was good and wise. In the year 1717 he married, -in London, Jane Rogers. Possessing the polished and courteous -manners of a gentleman of the colonial days, with a well-cultivated -intellect, and a heart in which every thing that is noble and true -was instinctive, he charmed and endeared himself to all who were -thrown into his society. He devoted much time to the study of -science; and we find the following mention of him in a quaint letter -from Peter Collinson, of London, to Bartram, the naturalist, then on -the eve of visiting Virginia to study her flora: - - When thee proceeds home, I know no person who will make thee - more welcome than Isham Randolph. He lives thirty or forty - miles above the falls of James River, in Goochland, above the - other settlements. Now, I take his house to be a very suitable - place to make a settlement at, for to take several days' - excursions all round, and to return to his house at night.... - One thing I must desire of thee, and do insist that thee must - oblige me therein: that thou make up that drugget clothes, to - go to Virginia in, and not appear to disgrace thyself or me; - for though I should not esteem thee the less to come to me in - what dress thou wilt, yet these Virginians are a very gentle, - well-dressed people, and look, perhaps, more at a man's outside - than his inside. For these and other reasons, pray go very - clean, neat, and handsomely-dressed to Virginia. Never mind thy - clothes; I will send thee more another year. - - [1] The Jeffersons first emigrated to Virginia in 1612. - -In reply to Bartram's account of the kind welcome which he received -from Isham Randolph, he writes: "As for my friend Isham, who I am -also personally known to, I did not doubt his civility to thee. I -only wish I had been there and shared it with thee." Again, after -Randolph's death, he writes to Bartram that "the good man is gone to -his long home, and, I doubt not, is happy." - -Such was Jefferson's maternal grandfather. His mother, from whom he -inherited his cheerful and hopeful temper and disposition, was a -woman of a clear and strong understanding, and, in every respect, -worthy of the love of such a man as Peter Jefferson. - -Isham Randolph's nephew, Colonel William Randolph, of Tuckahoe, was -Peter Jefferson's most intimate friend. A pleasing incident preserved -in the family records proves how warm and generous their friendship -was. Two or three days before Jefferson took out a patent for a -thousand acres of land on the Rivanna River, Randolph had taken out -one for twenty-four hundred acres adjoining. Jefferson, not finding a -good site for a house on his land, his friend sold him four hundred -acres of his tract, the price paid for these four hundred acres -being, as the deed still in the possession of the family proves, -"Henry Weatherbourne's biggest bowl of arrack punch." - -Colonel Jefferson called his estate "Shadwell," after the parish -in England where his wife was born, while Randolph's was named -"Edgehill," in honor of the field on which the Cavaliers and -Roundheads first crossed swords. By an intermarriage between their -grandchildren, these two estates passed into the possession of -descendants common to them both, in whose hands they have been -preserved down to the present day. - -On the four hundred acres thus added by Jefferson to his original -patent, he erected a plain weather-boarded house, to which he took -his young bride immediately after his marriage, and where they -remained until the death of Colonel William Randolph, of Tuckahoe, in -1745. - -It was the dying request of Colonel Randolph, that his friend -Peter Jefferson should undertake the management of his estates and -the guardianship of his young son, Thomas Mann Randolph. Being -unable to fulfill this request while living at Shadwell, Colonel -Jefferson removed his family to Tuckahoe, and remained there seven -years, sacredly guarding, like a Knight of the Round Table, the -solemn charge intrusted to him, without any other reward than the -satisfaction of fully keeping the promise made to his dying friend. -That he refused to receive any other compensation for his services -as guardian is not only proved by the frequent assertion of his son -in after years, but by his accounts as executor, which have ever -remained unchallenged.[2] - - [2] In spite of these facts, however, some of Randolph's - descendants, with more arrogance than gratitude, speak of Colonel - Jefferson as being a paid agent of their ancestor. - -Thomas Jefferson was not more than two years old when his father -moved to Tuckahoe, yet he often declared that his earliest -recollection in life was of being, on that occasion, handed up to a -servant on horseback, by whom he was carried on a pillow for a long -distance. He also remembered that later, when five years old, he -one day became impatient for his school to be out, and, going out, -knelt behind the house, and there repeated the Lord's Prayer, hoping -thereby to hurry up the desired hour. - -Colonel Jefferson's house at Shadwell was near the public highway, -and in those days of primitive hospitality was the stopping-place for -all passers-by, and, in the true spirit of Old Virginia hospitality, -was thrown open to every guest. Here, too, the great Indian Chiefs -stopped, on their journeys to and from the colonial capital, and -it was thus that young Jefferson first became acquainted with and -interested in them and their people. More than half a century later -we find him writing to John Adams: - - I know much of the great Ontasseté, the warrior and orator of - the Cherokees; he was always the guest of my father on his - journeys to and from Williamsburg. I was in his camp when he - made his great farewell oration to his people, the evening - before his departure for England. The moon was in full splendor, - and to her he seemed to address himself in his prayers for his - own safety on the voyage, and that of his people during his - absence; his sounding voice, distinct articulation, animated - action, and the solemn silence of his people at their several - fires, filled me with awe and veneration. - -The lives led by our forefathers were certainly filled with ease -and leisure. One of Thomas Jefferson's grandsons asked him, on one -occasion, how the men of his father's day spent their time. He -smiled, and, in reply, said, "My father had a devoted friend, to -whose house he would go, dine, spend the night, dine with him again -on the second day, and return to Shadwell in the evening. His friend, -in the course of a day or two, returned the visit, and spent the same -length of time at his house. This occurred once every week; and thus, -you see, they were together four days out of the seven." - -This is, perhaps, a fair picture of the ease and leisure of the life -of an old Virginian, and to the causes which produced this style of -life was due, also, the great hospitality for which Virginians have -ever been so renowned. The process of farming was then so simple -that the labor and cultivation of an estate were easily and most -profitably carried on by an overseer and the slaves, the master only -riding occasionally over his plantation to see that his general -orders were executed. - -In the school of such a life, however, were reared and developed the -characters of the men who rose to such eminence in the struggles of -the Revolution, and who, as giants in intellect and virtue, must -ever be a prominent group among the great historical characters of -the world. Their devotion to the chase, to horsemanship, and to all -the manly sports of the day, and the perils and adventures to be -encountered in a new country, developed their physical strength, -and inspired them with that bold and dashing spirit which still -characterizes their descendants, while the leisure of their lives -gave them time to devote to study and reflection. - -The city of Williamsburg, being the capital of the colony and the -residence of the governor, was the seat of intelligence, refinement, -and elegance, and offered every advantage for social intercourse. -There it was that those graceful manners were formed which made -men belonging to the old colonial school so celebrated for the -cordial ease and courtesy of their address. As there were no large -towns in the colony, the inducements and temptations offered for -the accumulation of wealth were few, while the abundance of the -good things of the earth found on his own plantation rendered the -Virginian lavish in his expenditures, and hence his unbounded -hospitality. Of this we have ample proof in the accounts which have -been handed down to us of their mode of life. Thomas Mann Randolph, -of Tuckahoe, it is said, consumed annually a thousand barrels of -corn at his family stable; while the princely abode of Colonel Byrd, -of Westover, with its offices, covered a space of two acres. The -prices of corn were what seem to us now fabulously low. The old -chroniclers tell us that one year the price rose to the enormous sum -of thirty-three cents a bushel, and that year was ever after known as -the "ten-shilling year"--ten shillings being the price per barrel. - -In looking over Colonel Peter Jefferson's account-books, one can not -refrain from smiling to see the small amount paid for his young son's -school education. To the Rev. William Douglas he paid sixteen pounds -sterling per annum for his board and tuition, and Mr. Maury received -for the same twenty pounds. Colonel Jefferson's eagerness for -information was inherited to an extraordinary degree by his son, who -early evinced that thirst for knowledge which he preserved to the day -of his death. He made rapid progress in his studies, and soon became -a proficient in mathematics and the classics. In after years he used -often to say, that had he to decide between the pleasure derived from -the classical education which his father had given him and the estate -he had left him, he would decide in favor of the former. - -Jefferson's father died, as we have seen, when he was only fourteen -years old. The perils and wants of his situation, deprived as he was -so early in life of the guidance and influence of such a father, -were very touchingly described by him years afterwards, in a letter -written to his eldest grandson,[3] when the latter was sent from -home to school for the first time. He writes: - - When I recollect that at fourteen years of age the whole - care and direction of myself was thrown on myself entirely, - without a relative or friend qualified to advise or guide me, - and recollect the various sorts of bad company with which I - associated from time to time, I am astonished that I did not - turn off with some of them, and become as worthless to society - as they were. I had the good-fortune to become acquainted very - early with some characters of very high standing, and to feel - the incessant wish that I could ever become what they were. - Under temptations and difficulties, I would ask myself--What - would Dr. Small, Mr. Wythe, Peyton Randolph, do in this - situation? What course in it will insure me their approbation? I - am certain that this mode of deciding on my conduct tended more - to correctness than any reasoning powers I possessed. Knowing - the even and dignified lives they pursued, I could never doubt - for a moment which of two courses would be in character for - them; whereas, seeking the same object through a process of - moral reasoning, and with the jaundiced eye of youth, I should - often have erred. From the circumstances of my position, I was - often thrown into the society of horse-racers, card-players, - fox-hunters, scientific and professional men, and of dignified - men; and many a time have I asked myself, in the enthusiastic - moment of the death of a fox, the victory of a favorite horse, - the issue of a question eloquently argued at the bar, or in - the great council of the nation, Well, which of these kinds - of reputation should I prefer--that of a horse-jockey, a - fox-hunter, an orator, or the honest advocate of my country's - rights? Be assured, my dear Jefferson, that these little returns - into ourselves, this self-catechising habit, is not trifling nor - useless, but leads to the prudent selection and steady pursuit - of what is right. - - [3] Thomas Jefferson Randolph. - -After leaving Mr. Maury's school, we find him writing the following -letter to a gentleman who was at the time his guardian. It was -written when he was seventeen years old, and is the earliest -production which we have from his pen: - - Shadwell, January 14th, 1760. - - Sir--I was at Colo. Peter Randolph's about a fortnight ago, and - my Schooling falling into Discourse, he said he thought it - would be to my Advantage to go to the College, and was desirous - I should go, as indeed I am myself for several Reasons. In the - first place as long as I stay at the Mountain, the loss of one - fourth of my Time is inevitable, by Company's coming here and - detaining me from School. And likewise my Absence will in a - great measure, put a Stop to so much Company, and by that Means - lessen the Expenses of the Estate in House-keeping. And on the - other Hand by going to the College, I shall get a more universal - Acquaintance, which may hereafter be serviceable to me; and I - suppose I can pursue my Studies in the Greek and Latin as well - there as here, and likewise learn something of the Mathematics. - I shall be glad of your opinion, and remain, Sir, your most - humble servant, - - THOMAS JEFFERSON JR: - - To Mr. John Hervey, at Bellemont. - -We find no traces, in the above school-boy's letter, of the graceful -pen which afterwards won for its author so high a rank among the -letter-writers of his own, or, indeed, of any day. - -It was decided that he should go to William and Mary College, and -thither he accordingly went, in the year 1760. We again quote from -his Memoir, to give a glance at this period of his life: - - It was my great good-fortune, and what, perhaps, fixed the - destinies of my life, that Dr. William Small, of Scotland, - was the Professor of Mathematics, a man profound in most - of the useful branches of science, with a happy talent of - communication, correct and gentlemanly manners, and an enlarged - and liberal mind. He, most happily for me, became soon attached - to me, and made me his daily companion, when not engaged in the - school; and from his conversation I got my first views of the - expansion of science, and of the system of things in which we - are placed. Fortunately, the philosophical chair became vacant - soon after my arrival at college, and he was appointed to fill - it _per interim_; and he was the first who ever gave, in that - college, regular lectures in Ethics, Rhetoric, and Belles - Lettres. He returned to Europe in 1762, having previously filled - up the measure of his goodness to me, by procuring for me, - from his most intimate friend, George Wythe, a reception as a - student of law under his direction, and introduced me to the - acquaintance and familiar table of Governor Fauquier, the ablest - man who had ever filled that office. With him and at his table, - Dr. Small and Mr. Wythe, his _amici omnium horarum_, and myself - formed a _partie quarrée_, and to the habitual conversations on - these occasions I owed much instruction. Mr. Wythe continued - to be my faithful and beloved mentor in youth, and my most - affectionate friend through life. - -There must indeed have been some very great charm and attraction -about the young student of seventeen, to have won for him the -friendship and esteem of such a profound scholar as Small, and a seat -at the family table of the elegant and accomplished Fauquier. - -We have just quoted Jefferson's finely-drawn character of Small, and -give now the following brilliant but sad picture, as drawn by the -Virginia historian, Burke, of the able and generous Fauquier, and of -the vices which he introduced into the colony: - - With some allowance, he was every thing that could have been - wished for by Virginia under a royal government. Generous, - liberal, elegant in his manners and acquirements; his example - left an impression of taste, refinement and erudition on the - character of the colony, which eminently contributed to its - present high reputation in the arts. It is stated, on evidence - sufficiently authentic, that on the return of Anson from his - circumnavigation of the earth, he accidentally fell in with - Fauquier, from whom, in a single night's play, he won at cards - the whole of his patrimony; that afterwards, being captivated by - the striking graces of this gentleman's person and conversation, - he procured for him the government of Virginia. Unreclaimed by - the former subversion of his fortune, he introduced the same - fatal propensity to gaming into Virginia; and the example of - so many virtues and accomplishments, alloyed but by a single - vice, was but too successful in extending the influence of - this pernicious and ruinous practice. He found among the - people of his new government a character compounded of the - same elements as his own; and he found little difficulty in - rendering fashionable a practice which had, before his arrival, - already prevailed to an alarming extent. During the recess of - the courts of judicature and of the assemblies, he visited the - most distinguished landholders of the colonies, and the rage of - playing deep, reckless of time, health or money, spread like a - contagion among a class proverbial for their hospitality, their - politeness and fondness for expense. In every thing besides, - Fauquier was the ornament and the delight of Virginia. - -Happy it was for young Jefferson, that "the example of so many -virtues and accomplishments" in this brave gentleman failed to give -any attraction, for him at least, to the vice which was such a blot -on Fauquier's fine character. Jefferson never knew one card from -another, and never allowed the game to be played in his own house. - -Turning from the picture of the gifted but dissipated royal Governor, -it is a relief to glance at the character given by Jefferson of the -equally gifted but pure and virtuous George Wythe. We can not refrain -from giving the conclusion of his sketch of Wythe, completing, as it -does, the picture of the "_partie quarrée_" which so often met at the -Governor's hospitable board: - - No man ever left behind him a character more venerated than - George Wythe. His virtue was of the purest tint; his integrity - inflexible, and his justice exact; of warm patriotism, and, - devoted as he was to liberty, and the natural and equal rights - of man, he might truly be called the Cato of his country, - without the avarice of the Roman; for a more disinterested - man never lived. Temperance and regularity in all his habits - gave him general good health, and his unaffected modesty and - suavity of manners endeared him to every one. He was of easy - elocution; his language chaste, methodical in the arrangement - of his matter, learned and logical in the use of it, and of - great urbanity in debate; not quick of apprehension, but, with a - little time, profound in penetration and sound in conclusion. In - his philosophy he was firm; and neither troubling, nor, perhaps, - trusting, any one with his religious creed, he left the world - to the conclusion that that religion must be good which could - produce a life of such exemplary virtue. His stature was of the - middle size, well formed and proportioned, and the features - of his face were manly, comely, and engaging. Such was George - Wythe, the honor of his own and the model of future times. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - - Intense Application as a Student.--Habits of Study kept up - during his Vacations.--First Preparations made for Building - at Monticello.--Letters to his College Friend, John Page.-- - Anecdote of Benjamin Harrison.--Jefferson's Devotion to his - eldest Sister.--He witnesses the Debate on the Stamp Act.--First - Meeting with Patrick Henry.--His Opinion of him.--His superior - Education.--Always a Student.--Wide Range of Information.-- - Anecdote.--Death of his eldest Sister.--His Grief.--Buries - himself in his Books.--Finishes his Course of Law Studies.-- - Begins to practise.--Collection of Vocabularies of Indian - Languages.--House at Shadwell burnt.--Loss of his Library.-- - Marriage.--Anecdote of his Courtship.--Wife's Beauty.--Bright - Prospects.--Friendship for Dabney Carr.--His Talents.--His - Death.--Jefferson buries him at Monticello.--His Epitaph. - - -Great as were the charms and delights of the society into which -Jefferson was thrown in Williamsburg, they had not the power to draw -him off from his studies. On the contrary, he seemed to find from -his intercourse with such men as Wythe and Small, fresh incentives -to diligence in his literary pursuits; and these, together with his -natural taste for study, made his application to it so intense, that -had he possessed a less vigorous and robust constitution, his health -must have given way. He studied fifteen hours a day. During the most -closely occupied days of his college life it was his habit to study -until two o'clock at night, and rise at dawn; the day he spent in -close application--the only recreation being a run at twilight to a -certain stone which stood at a point a mile beyond the limits of the -town. His habits of study were kept up during his vacations, which -were spent at Shadwell; and though he did not cut himself off from -the pleasures of social intercourse with his friends and family, yet -he still devoted nearly three-fourths of his time to his books. He -rose in the morning as soon as the hands of a clock placed on the -mantle-piece in his chamber could be distinguished in the gray light -of early dawn. After sunset he crossed the Rivanna in a little -canoe, which was kept exclusively for his own use, and walked up to -the summit of his loved Monticello, where he was having the apex of -the mountain levelled down, preparatory to building. - -The following extracts from letters written to his friends while he -was a college-boy, give a fair picture of the sprightliness of his -nature and his enjoyment of society. - -To John Page--a friend to whom he was devotedly attached all through -life--he writes, Dec. 25, 1762: - - You can not conceive the satisfaction it would give me to have - a letter from you. Write me very circumstantially every thing - which happened at the wedding. Was she[4] there? because - if she was, I ought to have been at the devil for not being - there too. If there is any news stirring in town or country, - such as deaths, courtships, or marriages, in the circle of my - acquaintance, let me know it. Remember me affectionately to - all the young ladies of my acquaintance, particularly the Miss - Burwells, and Miss Potters; and tell them that though that heavy - earthly part of me, my body, be absent, the better half of me, - my soul, is ever with them, and that my best wishes shall ever - attend them. Tell Miss Alice Corbin that I verily believe the - rats knew I was to win a pair of garters from her, or they - never would have been so cruel as to carry mine away. This - very consideration makes me so sure of the bet, that I shall - ask every body I see from that part of the world, what pretty - gentleman is making his addresses to her. I would fain ask the - favor of Miss Becca Burwell to give me another watch-paper of - her own cutting, which I should esteem much more, though it were - a plain round one, than the nicest in the world cut by other - hands; however, I am afraid she would think this presumption, - after my suffering the other to get spoiled. - - [4] His lady-love, doubtless--Rebecca Burwell. - -A few weeks later, he writes to Page, from Shadwell: - - To tell you the plain truth, I have not a syllable to write to - you about. For I do not conceive that any thing can happen in my - world which you would give a curse to know, or I either. All - things here appear to me to trudge on in one and the same round: - we rise in the morning that we may eat breakfast, dinner, and - supper; and go to bed again that we may get up the next morning - and do the same; so that you never saw two peas more alike - than our yesterday and to-day. Under these circumstances, what - would you have me say? Would you that I should write nothing - but truth? I tell you, I know nothing that is true. Or would - you rather that I should write you a pack of lies? Why, unless - they are more ingenious than I am able to invent, they would - furnish you with little amusement. What can I do, then? Nothing - but ask you the news in your world. How have you done since I - saw you? How did Nancy look at you when you danced with her at - Southall's? Have you any glimmering of hope? How does R. B. do? - Had I better stay here and do nothing, or go down and do less? - or, in other words, had I better stay here while I am here, or - go down that I may have the pleasure of sailing up the river - again in a full-rigged flat? Inclination tells me to go, receive - my sentence, and be no longer in suspense; but reason says, If - you go, and your attempt proves unsuccessful, you will be ten - times more wretched than ever.... I have some thoughts of going - to Petersburg if the actors go there in May. If I do, I do not - know but I may keep on to Williamsburg, as the birth-night will - be near. I hear that Ben Harrison [5] has been to Wilton: let me - know his success. - - [5] This Ben Harrison afterwards married Miss Randolph, of - Wilton, and was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. He - was fond of the good things of this life, and was a high liver. - Mr. Madison used to tell, with great glee, the following good - story about him: While a member of the first Congress, which - met in Philadelphia, he was on one occasion joined by a friend - as he left the congressional hall. Wishing to ask his friend - to join him in a bumper, he took him to a certain place where - supplies were furnished to the members of Congress, and called - for two glasses of brandy-and-water. The man in charge replied - that liquors were not included in the supplies furnished to - Congressmen. - - "Why," asked Harrison, "what is it, then, that I see the New - England members come here and drink?" - - "Molasses and water, which they have charged as _stationery_," - was the reply. - - "Very well," said Harrison, "give me the brandy-and-water, and - charge it as _fuel_." - -In his literary pursuits and plans for the future, Jefferson found -a most congenial and sympathizing companion, as well as a loving -friend, in his highly-gifted young sister, Jane Jefferson. Three -years his senior, and a woman of extraordinary vigor of mind, we -can well imagine with what pride and pleasure she must have watched -the early development and growth of her young brother's genius and -learning. When five years old, he had read all the books contained in -his father's little library, and we have already found him sought out -by the royal Governor, and chosen as one of his favorite companions, -when but a college-boy. Like himself, his sister was devoted to -music, and they spent many hours together cultivating their taste and -talent for it. Both were particularly fond of sacred music, and she -often gratified her young brother by singing for him hymns. - -We have seen, from his letters to his friend Page, that, while a -student in Williamsburg, Jefferson fell in love with Miss Rebecca -Burwell--one of the beauties of her day. He was indulging fond dreams -of success in winning the young lady's heart and hand, when his -courtship was suddenly cut short by her, to him, unexpected marriage -to another. - -In the following year, 1765, there took place in the House of -Burgesses the great debate on the Stamp Act, in which Patrick -Henry electrified his hearers by his bold and sublime flights of -oratory. In the lobby of the House was seen the tall, thin figure of -Jefferson, bending eagerly forward to witness the stirring scene--his -face paled from the effects of hard study, and his eyes flashing -with the fire of latent genius, and all the enthusiasm of youthful -and devoted patriotism. In allusion to this scene, he writes in his -Memoir: - - When the famous resolutions of 1765 against the Stamp Act were - proposed, I was yet a student of law in Williamsburg. I attended - the debate, however, at the door of the lobby of the House of - Burgesses, and heard the splendid display of Mr. Henry's talents - as a popular orator. They were indeed great; such as I have - never heard from any other man. He appeared to me to speak as - Homer wrote. - -It was when on his way to Williamsburg to enter William and Mary -College, that Jefferson first met Henry. They spent a fortnight -together on that occasion, at the house of Mr. Dandridge, in Hanover, -and there began the acquaintance and friendship between them which -lasted through life. While not considering Henry a man of education -or a well-read lawyer, Jefferson often spoke with enthusiasm to his -friends and family of the wonders and beauties of his eloquence, and -also of his great influence and signal services in bringing about -unanimity among the parties which were found in the colony at the -commencement of the troubles with the mother-country. He frequently -expressed admiration for his intrepid spirit and inflexible courage. -Two years before his death we find him speaking of Henry thus: - - Wirt says he read Plutarch's Lives once a year. I don't believe - he ever read two volumes of them. On his visits to court, he - used always to put up with me. On one occasion of the breaking - up in November, to meet again in the spring, as he was departing - in the morning, he looked among my books, and observed, "Mr. - Jefferson, I will take two volumes of Hume's Essays, and try to - read them this winter." On his return, he brought them, saying - he had not been able to get half way into one of them. - - His great delight was to put on his hunting-shirt, collect - a parcel of overseers and such-like people, and spend weeks - together hunting in the "piny woods," camping at night and - cracking jokes round a light-wood fire. - - It was to him that we were indebted for the unanimity that - prevailed among us. He would address the assemblages of the - people at which he was present in such strains of native - eloquence as Homer wrote in. I never heard any thing that - deserved to be called by the same name with what flowed - from him; and where he got that torrent of language from is - inconceivable. I have frequently shut my eyes while he spoke, - and, when he was done, asked myself what he had said, without - being able to recollect a word of it. He was no logician. He was - truly a great man, however--one of enlarged views. - -Mr. Jefferson furnished anecdotes, facts, and documents for Wirt's -Life of Henry, and Mr. Wirt submitted his manuscript to him for -criticism and review, which he gave, and also suggested alterations -that were made. We find, from his letters to Mr. Wirt, that when the -latter flagged and hesitated as to the completion and publication of -his work, it was Jefferson who urged him on. In writing of Henry's -supposed inattention to ancient charters, we find him expressing -himself thus: "He drew all natural rights from a purer source--the -feelings of his own breast."[6] - - [6] Kennedy's "Life of Wirt," vol. i., p. 367. - -In connection with this subject, we can not refrain from quoting from -Wirt the following fine description of Henry in the great debate on -the Stamp Act: - - It was in the midst of this magnificent debate, while he (Henry) - was descanting on the tyranny of the obnoxious act, that he - exclaimed, in a voice of thunder, and with the look of a god, - "Cæsar had his Brutus, Charles the First his Cromwell, and - George the Third--" ("Treason!" cried the Speaker. "Treason! - treason!" echoed from every part of the House. It was one of - those trying moments which are so decisive of character. Henry - faltered not an instant; but rising to a loftier altitude, and - fixing on the Speaker an eye of the most determined fire, he - finished his sentence with the firmest emphasis)--"may profit by - their example. If this be treason, make the most of it."[7] - - [7] Wirt's Life of Henry. - -When we think of the wonderful powers of this great man, whose -heaven-born eloquence so stirred the hearts of men, how touching -the meekness with which, at the close of an eventful and honorable -career, he thus writes of himself: "Without any classical education, -without patrimony, without what is called the influence of family -connection, and without solicitation, I have attained the highest -offices of my country. I have often contemplated it as a rare and -extraordinary instance, and pathetically exclaimed, 'Not unto me, not -unto me, O Lord, but unto thy name be the praise!'"[8] - - [8] Ibid. - -Jefferson continued to prosecute his studies at William and Mary, and -we have in the following incident a pleasing proof of his generosity: - -While at college, he was one year quite extravagant in his dress, and -in his outlay in horses. At the end of the year he sent his account -to his guardian; and thinking that he had spent more of the income -from his father's estate than was his share, he proposed that the -amount of his expenses should be deducted from his portion of the -property. His guardian, however, replied good-naturedly, "No, no; if -you have sowed your wild oats in this manner, Tom, the estate can -well afford to pay your expenses." - -When Jefferson left college, he had laid the broad and solid -foundations of that fine education which in learning placed him head -and shoulders above his contemporaries. A fine mathematician, he was -also a finished Greek, Latin, French, Spanish, and Italian scholar. -He carried with him to Congress in the year 1775 a reputation for -great literary acquirements. John Adams, in his diary for that year, -thus speaks of him: "Duane says that Jefferson is the greatest -rubber-off of dust that he has met with; that he has learned French, -Italian, and Spanish, and wants to learn German." - -His school and college education was considered by him as only the -vestibule to that palace of learning which is reached by "no royal -road." He once told a grandson that from the time when, as a boy, he -had turned off wearied from play and first found pleasure in books, -he had never sat down in idleness. And when we consider the vast -fund of learning and wide range of information possessed by him, and -which in his advanced years won for him the appellation of a "walking -encyclopædia," we can well understand how this must have been the -case. His thirst for knowledge was insatiable, and he seized eagerly -all means of obtaining it. It was his habit, in his intercourse with -all classes of men--the mechanic as well as the man of science--to -turn the conversation upon that subject with which the man was best -acquainted, whether it was the construction of a wheel or the -anatomy of an extinct species of animals; and after having drawn -from him all the information which he possessed, on returning home -or retiring to his private apartments, it was all set down by him in -writing--thus arranging it methodically and fixing it in his mind. - -An anecdote which has been often told of him will give the reader an -idea of the varied extent of his knowledge. On one occasion, while -travelling, he stopped at a country inn. A stranger, who did not -know who he was, entered into conversation with this plainly-dressed -and unassuming traveller. He introduced one subject after another -into the conversation, and found him perfectly acquainted with each. -Filled with wonder, he seized the first opportunity to inquire of the -landlord who his guest was, saying that, when he spoke of the law, he -thought he was a lawyer; then turning the conversation on medicine, -felt sure he was a physician; but having touched on theology, he -became convinced that he was a clergyman. "Oh," replied the landlord, -"why I thought you knew the Squire." The stranger was then astonished -to hear that the traveller whom he had found so affable and simple in -his manners was Jefferson. - -The family circle at Shadwell consisted of six sisters, two brothers, -and their mother. Of the sisters, two married early, and left the -home of their youth--Mary as the wife of Thomas Bolling, and Martha -as that of the generous and highly-gifted young Dabney Carr, the -brilliant promise of whose youth was so soon to be cut short by his -untimely death. - -In the fall of the year 1765, the whole family was thrown -into mourning, and the deepest distress, by the death of Jane -Jefferson--so long the pride and ornament of her house. She died in -the twenty-eighth year of her age. The eldest of her family, and a -woman who, from the noble qualities of her head and heart, had ever -commanded their love and admiration, her death was a great blow to -them all, but was felt by none so keenly as by Jefferson himself. The -loss of such a sister to such a brother was irreparable; his grief -for her was deep and constant; and there are, perhaps, few incidents -in the domestic details of history more beautiful than his devotion -to her during her life, and the tenderness of the love with which -he cherished her memory to the last days of his long and eventful -career. He frequently spoke of her to his grandchildren, and even in -his extreme old age said that often in church some sacred air which -her sweet voice had made familiar to him in youth recalled to him -sweet visions of this sister whom he had loved so well and buried so -young. - -Among his manuscripts we find the following touching epitaph which he -wrote for her: - - "Ah, Joanna, puellarum optima, - Ah, ævi virentis flore prærepta, - Sit tibi terra lævis; - Longe, longeque valeto!" - -After the death of his sister Jane, Jefferson had no congenial -intellectual companion left in the family at Shadwell; his other -sisters being all much younger than himself, except one, who was -rather deficient in intellect. It is curious to remark the unequal -distribution of talent in this family--each gifted member seeming to -have been made so at the expense of one of the others. - -In the severe affliction caused by the death of his sister, Jefferson -sought consolation in renewed devotion to his books. After a five -years' course of law studies, he was, as we have seen from his -Memoir, introduced to its practice, at the bar of the General Court -of Virginia, in the year 1767, by his "beloved friend and mentor," -George Wythe. Of the extent of his practice during the eight years -that it lasted, we have ample proof in his account-books. These show -that during that time, in the General Court alone, he was engaged -in nine hundred and forty-eight cases, and that he was employed -as counsel by the first men in the colonies, and even in the -mother-country. - -An idea of the impression made by him as an advocate in the -court-room is given in the following anecdote, which we have from -his eldest grandson, Mr. Jefferson Randolph. Anxious to learn how his -grandfather had stood as a pleader, Mr. Randolph once asked an old -man of good sense who in his youth had often heard Jefferson deliver -arguments in court, how he ranked as a speaker, "Well," said the old -gentleman, in reply, "it is hard to tell, because he always took -the right side." Few speakers, we imagine, would desire a greater -compliment than that which the old man unconsciously paid in his -reply. - -The works which Jefferson has left behind him as his share in the -revision of the laws of the State, place his erudition as a lawyer -beyond question, while to no man does Virginia owe more for the -preservation of her ancient records than to him. In this last work -he was indefatigable. The manuscripts and materials for the early -history of the State had been partially destroyed and scattered -by the burning of State buildings and the ravages of war. These -Jefferson, as far as it was possible, collected and restored, and it -is to him that we owe their preservation at the present day. - -While in the different public offices which he held during his life, -Jefferson availed himself of every opportunity to get information -concerning the language of the Indians of North America, and to -this end he made a collection of the vocabularies of all the Indian -languages, intending, in the leisure of his retirement from public -life, to analyze them, and see if he could trace in them any likeness -to other languages. When he left Washington, after vacating the -presidential chair, these valuable papers were packed in a trunk and -sent, with the rest of his baggage, around by Richmond, whence they -were to be sent up the James and Rivanna Rivers to Monticello. Two -negro boatmen who had charge of them, and who, in the simplicity -of their ignorance, took it for granted that the ex-President was -returning from office with untold wealth, being deceived by the -weight of the trunk, broke into it, thinking that it contained gold. -On discovering their mistake, the papers were scattered to the wind; -and thus were lost literary treasures which might have been a rich -feast to many a philologist. - -[Illustration: Marriage Licene-Bond (Fac-simile)] - -In the year 1770 the house at Shadwell was destroyed by fire, and -Jefferson then moved to Monticello, where his preparations for -a residence were sufficiently advanced to enable him to make it -his permanent abode. He was from home when the fire took place at -Shadwell, and the first inquiry he made of the negro who carried him -the news was after his books. "Oh, my young master," he replied, -carelessly, "they were all burnt; but, ah! we saved your fiddle." - -In 1772 Jefferson married Martha Skelton, the widow of Bathurst -Skelton, and the daughter of John Wayles, of whom he speaks thus in -his Memoir - - Mr. Wayles was a lawyer of much practice, to which he was - introduced more by his industry, punctuality, and practical - readiness, than by eminence in the science of his profession. - He was a most agreeable companion, full of pleasantry and - humor, and welcomed in every society. He acquired a handsome - fortune, and died in May, 1773, leaving three daughters. The - portion which came on that event to Mrs. Jefferson, after the - debts were paid, which were very considerable, was about equal - to my own patrimony, and consequently doubled the ease of our - circumstances. - -The marriage took place at "The Forest," in Charles City County. -The bride having been left a widow when very young, was only -twenty-three when she married a second time.[9] She is described as -having been very beautiful. A little above middle height, with a -lithe and exquisitely formed figure, she was a model of graceful and -queenlike carriage. Nature, so lavish with her charms for her, to -great personal attractions, added a mind of no ordinary calibre. She -was well educated for her day, and a constant reader; she inherited -from her father his method and industry, as the accounts, kept in -her clear handwriting, and still in the hands of her descendants, -testify. Her well-cultivated talent for music served to enhance -her charms not a little in the eyes of such a musical devotee as -Jefferson. - - [9] The license-bond for the marriage, demanded by the laws of - Virginia, of which a fac-simile is given on the opposite page, - written by Jefferson's own hand, is signed by him and by Francis - Eppes, whose son afterwards married Jefferson's daughter. It - will be noticed that the word "spinster" is erased, and "widow" - inserted in another hand-writing. - -So young and so beautiful, she was already surrounded by suitors -when Jefferson entered the lists and bore off the prize. A pleasant -anecdote about two of his rivals has been preserved in the tradition -of his family. While laboring under the impression that the lady's -mind was still undecided as to which of her suitors should be the -accepted lover, they met accidentally in the hall of her father's -house. They were on the eve of entering the drawing-room, when the -sound of music caught their ear; the accompanying voices of Jefferson -and his lady-love were soon recognized, and the two disconcerted -lovers, after exchanging a glance, picked up their hats and left. - -The New-year and wedding festivities being over, the happy bridal -couple left for Monticello. Their adventures on this journey of more -than a hundred miles, made in the dead of the winter, and their -arrival at Monticello, were, years afterwards, related as follows, by -their eldest daughter, Mrs. Randolph,[10] who heard the tale from her -father's lips: - - They left The Forest after a fall of snow, light then, but - increasing in depth as they advanced up the country. They were - finally obliged to quit the carriage and proceed on horseback. - Having stopped for a short time at Blenheim, where an overseer - only resided, they left it at sunset to pursue their way through - a mountain track rather than a road, in which the snow lay - from eighteen inches to two feet deep, having eight miles to - go before reaching Monticello. They arrived late at night, the - fires all out and the servants retired to their own houses for - the night. The horrible dreariness of such a house at the end - of such a journey I have often heard both relate. - - [10] The manuscript from which I take this account, and from - which I shall quote frequently in the following pages, was - written by Mrs. Randolph at the request of Mr. Tucker, who - desired to have her written reminiscences of her father when he - wrote his life. - -Too happy in each other's love, however, to be long troubled by the -"dreariness" of a cold and dark house, and having found a bottle -of wine "on a shelf behind some books," the young couple refreshed -themselves with its contents, and startled the silence of the night -with song and merry laughter. - -Possessing a fine estate and being blessed with a beautiful and -accomplished wife, Jefferson seemed fairly launched upon the great -ocean of life with every prospect of a prosperous and happy voyage. -We find from his account-books that his income was a handsome one -for that day, being three thousand dollars from his practice and two -thousand from his farms. This, as we have seen, was increased by the -receipt of his wife's fortune at her father's death. - -Of the many friends by whom he was surrounded in his college days -Dabney Carr was his favorite; his friendship for him was strengthened -by the ties of family connection, on his becoming his brother-in-law -as the husband of his sister Martha. As boys, they had loved each -other; and when studying together it was their habit to go with their -books to the well-wooded sides of Monticello, and there pursue their -studies beneath the shade of a favorite oak. So much attached did -the two friends become to this tree, that it became the subject of a -mutual promise, that the one who survived should see that the body of -the other was buried at its foot. When young Carr's untimely death -occurred Jefferson was away from home, and on his return he found -that he had been buried at Shadwell. Being mindful of his promise, -he had the body disinterred, and removing it, placed it beneath that -tree whose branches now bend over such illustrious dead--for this was -the origin of the grave-yard at Monticello. - -It is not only as Jefferson's friend that Dabney Carr lives in -history. The brilliancy of the reputation which he won in his -short career, has placed his name among the men who stood first for -talent and patriotism in the early days of the Revolution. Jefferson -himself, in describing his first appearance in the Virginia House of -Burgesses, pays a warm and handsome tribute to his friend. He says: - - I well remember the pleasure expressed in the countenance and - conversation of the members generally on this débût of Mr. Carr, - and the hopes they conceived as well from the talents as the - patriotism it manifested.... His character was of a high order. - A spotless integrity, sound judgment, handsome imagination, - enriched by education and reading, quick and clear in his - conceptions, of correct and ready elocution, impressing every - hearer with the sincerity of the heart from which it flowed. - His firmness was inflexible in whatever he thought was right; - but when no moral principle stood in the way, never had man - more of the milk of human kindness, of indulgence, of softness, - of pleasantry of conversation and conduct. The number of his - friends and the warmth of their affection, were proofs of his - worth, and of their estimate of it. - -We have again from Jefferson's pen a charming picture of the domestic -character of Carr, in a letter to his friend John Page, written in -1770: - - He (Carr) speaks, thinks, and dreams of nothing but his young - son. This friend of ours, Page, in a very small house, with a - table, half a dozen chairs, and one or two servants, is the - happiest man in the universe. Every incident in life he so takes - as to render it a source of pleasure. With as much benevolence - as the heart of man will hold, but with an utter neglect of - the costly apparatus of life, he exhibits to the world a new - phenomenon in life--the Samian sage in the tub of the cynic. - -The death of this highly-gifted young Virginian, whose early life -was so full of promise, took place on the 16th of May, 1773, in -the thirtieth year of his age. His wife, a woman of vigorous -understanding and earnest warmth of heart, was passionately devoted -to him, and his death fell like a blight on her young life. She -found in her brother a loving protector for herself and a fatherly -affection and guidance for her six children--three sons and three -daughters--who were received into his family as his adopted children. -Among Jefferson's papers there was found, after his death, the -following, written on a sheet of note-paper: - -INSCRIPTION ON MY FRIEND D. CARR'S TOMB. - - Lamented shade, whom every gift of heaven - Profusely blest; a temper winning mild; - Nor pity softer, nor was truth more bright. - Constant in doing well, he neither sought - Nor shunned applause. No bashful merit sighed - Near him neglected: sympathizing he - Wiped off the tear from Sorrow's clouded eye - With kindly hand, and taught her heart to smile. - - MALLET'S _Excursion_. - -Send for a plate of copper to be nailed on the tree at the foot of -his grave, with this inscription: - - Still shall thy grave with rising flowers be dressed - And the green turf lie lightly on thy breast; - There shall the morn her earliest tears bestow, - There the first roses of the year shall blow, - While angels with their silver wings o'ershade - The ground now sacred by thy reliques made. - -On the upper part of the stone inscribe as follows: - - Here lie the remains of - DABNEY CARR, - Son of John and Jane Carr, of Louisa County, - Who was born ----, 1744. - Intermarried with Martha Jefferson, daughter of Peter - and Jane Jefferson, 1765; - And died at Charlottesville, May 16, 1773, - Leaving six small children. - To his Virtue, Good Sense, Learning, and Friendship - this stone is dedicated by Thomas Jefferson, who, of all men living, - loved him most. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - - Happy Life at Monticello.--Jefferson's fine Horsemanship.--Birth - of his oldest Child.--Goes to Congress.--Death of his Mother.-- - Kindness to British Prisoners.--Their Gratitude.--His - Devotion to Music.--Letter to General De Riedesel.--Is made - Governor of Virginia.--Tarleton pursues Lafayette.--Reaches - Charlottesville.--The British at Monticello.--Cornwallis's - Destruction of Property at Elk Hill.--Jefferson retires at the - End of his Second Term as Governor.--Mrs. Jefferson's delicate - Health.--Jefferson meets with an Accident.--Writes his Notes on - Virginia.--The Marquis De Chastellux visits Monticello.--His - Description of it.--Letter of Congratulation from Jefferson to - Washington.--Mrs. Jefferson's Illness and Death.--Her Daughter's - Description of the Scene.-- Jefferson's Grief. - - -Following the course which I have laid down for myself, I shall give -but a passing notice of the political events of Jefferson's life, -and only dwell on such incidents as may throw out in bold relief the -beauties and charms of his domestic character. Except when called -from home by duties imposed upon him by his country, the even tenor -of his happy life at Monticello remained unbroken. He prosecuted -his studies with that same ardent thirst for knowledge which he had -evinced when a young student in Williamsburg, mastering every subject -that he took up. - -Much time and expense were devoted by him to ornamenting and -improving his house and grounds. A great lover of nature, he found -his favorite recreations in out-of-door enjoyments, and it was his -habit to the day of his death, no matter what his occupation, nor -what office he held, to spend the hours between one and three in the -afternoon on horseback. Noted for his bold and graceful horsemanship, -he kept as riding-horses only those of the best blood of the old -Virginia stock. In the days of his youth he was very exacting of -his groom in having his horses always beautifully kept; and it is -said that it was his habit, when his riding-horse was brought up for -him to mount, to brush his white cambric handkerchief across the -animal's shoulders and send it back to the stable if any dust was -left on the handkerchief. - -The garden-book lying before me shows the interest which he took in -all gardening and farming operations. This book, in which he began -to make entries as early as the year 1766, and which he continued to -keep all through life, except when from home, has every thing jotted -down in it, from the date of the earliest peach-blossom to the day -when his wheat was ready for the sickle. His personal, household, -and farm accounts were kept with the precision of the most rigid -accountant, and he was a rare instance of a man of enlarged views -and wide range of thought, being fond of details. The price of his -horses, the fee paid to a ferryman, his little gifts to servants, -his charities--whether great or small--from the penny dropped into -the church-box to the handsome donation given for the erection of a -church--all found a place in his account-book. - -In 1772 his eldest child, Martha, was born; his second daughter, Jane -Randolph, died in the fall of 1775, when eighteen months old. He was -most unfortunate in his children--out of six that he had, only two, -Martha and Mary, surviving the period of infancy. - -In the year 1775 Jefferson went to Philadelphia as a member of the -first Congress.[11] In the year 1776 he made the following entry in -his little pocket account-book: "_March 31._ My mother died about -eight o'clock this morning, in the 57th year of her age." Thus she -did not live to see the great day with whose glory her son's name is -indissolubly connected.[12] - - [11] A gentleman who had been a frequent visitor at Monticello - during Mr. Jefferson's life gave Mr. Randall (Jefferson's - biographer) the following amusing incident concerning this - venerated body and Declaration of Independence: "While the - question of Independence was before Congress, it had its meetings - near a livery-stable. The members wore short breeches and silk - stockings, and, with handkerchief in hand, they were diligently - employed in lashing the flies from their legs. So very vexatious - was this annoyance, and to so great an impatience did it arouse - the sufferers, that it hastened, if it did not aid, in inducing - them to promptly affix their signatures to the great document - which gave birth to an empire republic. "This anecdote I had from - Mr. Jefferson at Monticello, who seemed to enjoy it very much, as - well as to give great credit to the influence of the flies. He - told it with much glee, and seemed to retain a vivid recollection - of an attack, from which the only relief was signing the paper - and flying from the scene." - - [12] On the opposite page is given a fac-simile of a portion - of the original draft of the Declaration of Independence; the - greater portion of this paragraph was omitted in the document as - finally adopted. The interlineations in this portion are in the - handwriting of John Adams. - -The British prisoners who were surrendered by Burgoyne at the battle -of Saratoga were sent to Virginia and quartered in Albemarle, a -few miles from Monticello. They had not, however, been settled -there many months, before the Governor (Patrick Henry) was urged -to have them moved to some other part of the country, on the plea -that the provisions consumed by them were more necessary for our -own forces. The Governor and Council were on the eve of issuing the -order for their removal, when an earnest entreaty addressed to them -by Jefferson put a stop to all proceedings on the subject. In this -address and petition he says, in speaking of the prisoners, - - Their health is also of importance. I would not endeavor to - show that their lives are valuable to us, because it would - suppose a possibility that humanity was kicked out of doors in - America, and interest only attended to.... But is an enemy so - execrable, that, though in captivity, his wishes and comforts - are to be disregarded and even crossed? I think not. It is for - the benefit of mankind to mitigate the horrors of war as much - as possible. The practice, therefore, of modern nations, of - treating captive enemies with politeness and generosity, is not - only delightful in contemplation, but really interesting to all - the world--friends, foes, and neutrals. - -This successful effort in their behalf called forth the most earnest -expressions of gratitude from the British and German officers -among the prisoners. The Baron De Riedesel, their commander, was -comfortably fixed in a house not far from Monticello, and he and -the baroness received every attention from Jefferson. Indeed, these -attentions were extended to young officers of the lowest rank. The -hospitalities of her house were gracefully and cordially tendered to -these unfortunate strangers by Mrs. Jefferson, and her husband threw -open to them his library, whence they got books to while away the -tedium of their captivity. The baroness, a warm-hearted, intelligent -woman, from her immense stature, and her habit of riding on horseback -_en cavalier_, was long remembered as a kind of wonder by the good -and simple-hearted people of Albermarle. The intercourse between her -household and that at Monticello was that of neighbors. - -[Illustration: Part of Draft of Declaration of Independence -(Fac-simile)] - -When Phillips, a British officer whom Jefferson characterized as "the -proudest man of the proudest nation on earth," wrote his thanks to -him for his generous kindness, we find Jefferson replying as follows: - - The great cause which divides our countries is not to be decided - by individual animosities. The harmony of private societies - can not weaken national efforts. To contribute by neighborly - intercourse and attention to make others happy, is the shortest - and surest way of being happy ourselves. As these sentiments - seem to have directed your conduct, we should be as unwise as - illiberal, were we not to preserve the same temper of mind. - -He also had some pleasant intercourse and correspondence with young -De Ungar, an accomplished officer, who seems to have had many -literary and scientific tastes congenial with Jefferson's. He thus -winds up a letter to this young officer: - - When the course of human events shall have removed you to - distant scenes of action, where laurels not moistened with the - blood of my country may be gathered, I shall urge my sincere - prayers for your obtaining every honor and preferment which may - gladden the heart of a soldier. On the other hand, should your - fondness for philosophy resume its merited ascendency, is it - impossible to hope that this unexplored country may tempt your - residence, by holding out materials wherewith to build a fame, - founded on the happiness and not the calamities of human nature? - Be this as it may--a philosopher or a soldier--I wish you - personally many felicities. - -The following extract from a letter, written in 1778 to a friend in -Europe, shows Jefferson's extreme fondness of music: - - If there is a gratification which I envy any people in this - world, it is, to your country, its music. This is the favorite - passion of my soul, and fortune has cast my lot in a country - where it is in a state of deplorable barbarism. From the line - of life in which we conjecture you to be, I have for some time - lost the hope of seeing you here. Should the event prove so, I - shall ask your assistance in procuring a substitute, who may be - a proficient in singing, etc., on the harpsichord. I should be - contented to receive such an one two or three years hence, when - it is hoped he may come more safely, and find here a greater - plenty of those useful things which commerce alone can furnish. - The bounds of an American fortune will not admit the indulgence - of a domestic band of musicians, yet I have thought that a - passion for music might be reconciled with that economy which we - are obliged to observe. - -From his correspondence for the year 1780 I take the following -pleasantly written letter to General De Riedesel. I have elsewhere -alluded to the pleasant intercourse between his family and -Jefferson's, when he was a prisoner on parole in the neighborhood of -Monticello. - - _To General De Riedesel._ - - Richmond, May 3d, 1780. - - Sir--Your several favors of December 4th, February 10th, and - March 30th, are come duly to hand. I sincerely condole with - Madame De Riedesel on the birth of a _daughter_,[13] but - receive great pleasure from the information of her recovery, - as every circumstance of felicity to her, yourself or family, - is interesting to us. The little attentions you are pleased - to magnify so much, never deserved a mention or thought. My - mortification was, that the peculiar situation in which we - were, put it out of our power to render your stay here more - comfortable. I am sorry to learn that the negotiations for - the exchange of prisoners have proved abortive, as well from - a desire to see the necessary distresses of war alleviated in - every possible instance, as I am sensible how far yourself and - family are interested in it. Against this, however, is to be - weighed the possibility that we may again have a pleasure we - should otherwise, perhaps, never have had--that of seeing you - again. Be this as it may, opposed as we happen to be in our - sentiments of duty and honor, and anxious for contrary events, I - shall, nevertheless, sincerely rejoice in every circumstance of - happiness or safety which may attend you personally; and when a - termination of the present contest shall put it into my power to - declare to you more unreservedly how sincere are the sentiments - of esteem and respect (wherein Mrs. Jefferson joins me) which I - entertain for Madame De Riedesel and yourself, and with which I - am, sir, your most obedient and most humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - [13] Jefferson himself had no son. - -Jefferson was made Governor of Virginia in 1779; and when Tarleton, -in 1781, reached Charlottesville, after his famous pursuit of "the -boy" Lafayette, who slipped through his fingers, it was expected that -Monticello, as the residence of the Governor, would be pillaged. The -conduct of the British was far different. - -Jefferson, on being informed that the enemy were close at hand, put -Mrs. Jefferson and her children in a carriage and sent them to a -neighbor's, where they would be out of harm's way. Having sent his -horse to the blacksmith's to be shod, he ordered him to be taken to a -certain point of the road between Monticello and Carter's Mountain, -while he remained quietly at home collecting his most valuable -papers. Two hours after the departure of his family, a gentleman -rode up and told him that the British were on the mountain. He then -left the house and walked over to Carter's Mountain, whence he had -a full view of Charlottesville. He viewed the town through a small -telescope which he took with him, and seeing no "red-coats," thought -their coming was a false alarm, and turned with the intention of -going back to the house. He had not gone far, however, when he found -his light sword-cane had dropped from its sheath. He retraced his -steps, found the weapon, and, on turning around again, saw that -Charlottesville was "alive with British." He then mounted his horse -and followed his family. - -Captain McLeod commanded the party of British soldiers who were sent -to Monticello to seize the Governor, and he went with "strict orders -from Tarleton to allow nothing in the house to be injured." When he -found that the bird had flown, he called for a servant of the house, -asked which were Mr. Jefferson's private apartments, and, being shown -the door which led to them, he turned the key in the lock and ordered -that every thing in the house should be untouched. - -Unprepared for this generous conduct on the part of the British, -two faithful slaves, Martin and Cæsar, were busy concealing their -master's plate under a floor, a few feet from the ground, when the -red-coats made their appearance on the lawn at Monticello. A plank -had been removed, and Cæsar, having slipped down through the cavity, -stood below to receive the plate as it was handed down by Martin. -The last piece had been handed down when the soldiers came in sight. -There was not a moment to lose, and Martin, thinking only of his -master's plate and not of Cæsar's comfort, clapped the plank down on -top of the poor fellow, and there he remained in the dark and without -food for three days and three nights. Martin himself on this occasion -gave a much more striking proof of fidelity. A brutal soldier placed -a pistol to his breast and threatened to fire unless he disclosed his -master's retreat. "Fire away then!" was the slave's ready and defiant -reply. - -The handsome conduct of the British at Monticello afforded a striking -contrast to that of their forces under the command of Cornwallis, -who visited Elk Hill--Jefferson's James River estate. The commanding -general, Cornwallis, had his head-quarters for ten days at the house -on the estate. This house, though not often occupied by Jefferson -and his family, was furnished, and contained a library. The following -is the owner's account of the manner in which the estate was laid -waste: - - I had time to remove most of the effects out of the house, He - destroyed all my growing crops of corn and tobacco; he burned - all my barns containing the same articles of the last year, - having first taken what corn he wanted; he used, as was to be - expected, all my stock of cattle, sheep, and hogs, for the - sustenance of his army, and carried off all the horses capable - of service; of those too young for service he cut the throats; - and he burned all the fences on the plantation, so as to render - it an absolute waste. He carried off, also, about thirty slaves. - Had this been to give them freedom he would have done right, but - it was to consign them to inevitable death from the small-pox - and putrid fever then raging in his camp. This I knew afterwards - to be the fate of twenty-seven of them. I never had news of the - remaining three, but suppose they shared the same fate. When I - say that Lord Cornwallis did all this, I do not mean that he - carried about the torch in his own hands, but that it was all - done under his eye--the situation of the house in which he was - commanding a view of every part of the plantation, so that he - must have seen every fire.[14] - - [14] Jefferson to Dr. Gordon. - -Again he writes: - - History will never relate the horrors committed by the British - army in the Southern States of America. They raged in Virginia - six months only, from the middle of April to the middle of - October, 1781, when they were all taken prisoners; and I give - you a faithful specimen of their transactions for ten days of - that time, and on one spot only.[15] - - [15] Ibid. - -At the end of the second year of his term Jefferson resigned his -commission as Governor. The state of Mrs. Jefferson's health was at -this time a source of great anxiety to him, and he promised her, when -he left public life on this occasion, that he would never again leave -her to accept any office or take part in political life. Saddened -by the deaths of her children, and with a constitution weakened by -disease, her condition was truly alarming, and wrung the heart of -her devoted husband as he watched her failing day by day. He himself -met with an accident about this time--a fall from his horse--which, -though not attended with serious consequences, kept him, for two or -three weeks, more closely confined in the house than it was his habit -to be. - -It was during this confinement that he wrote the principal part of -his "Notes on Virginia." He had been in the habit of committing to -writing any information about the State which he thought would be -of use to him in any station, public or private; and receiving a -letter from M. De Marbois, the French ambassador, asking for certain -statistical accounts of the State of Virginia, he embodied the -substance of the information he had so acquired and sent it to him in -the form of the "Notes on Virginia." - -A charming picture of Monticello and its inmates at that day is found -in "Travels in North America, by the Marquis De Chastellux." This -accomplished French nobleman visited Jefferson in the spring of 1782. -After describing his approach to the foot of the southwest range of -mountains, he says: - - On the summit of one of them we discovered the house of Mr. - Jefferson, which stands pre-eminent in these retirements; it - was himself who built it, and preferred this situation; for - although he possessed considerable property in the neighborhood, - there was nothing to prevent him from fixing his residence - wherever he thought proper. But it was a debt Nature owed to a - philosopher, and a man of taste, that in his own possessions he - should find a spot where he might best study and enjoy her. He - calls his house _Monticello_ (in Italian, Little Mountain), a - very modest title, for it is situated upon a very lofty one, but - which announces the owner's attachment to the language of Italy; - and, above all, to the fine arts, of which that country was the - cradle, and is still the asylum. As I had no further occasion - for a guide, I separated from the Irishman; and after ascending - by a tolerably commodious road for more than half an hour we - arrived at Monticello. This house, of which Mr. Jefferson was - the architect, and often one of the workmen, is rather elegant, - and in the Italian taste, though not without fault; it consists - of one large square pavilion, the entrance of which is by two - porticoes, ornamented with pillars. The ground-floor consists - of a very large lofty saloon, which is to be decorated entirely - in the antique style; above it is a library of the same form; - two small wings, with only a ground-floor and attic story, are - joined to this pavilion, and communicate with the kitchen, - offices, etc., which will form a kind of basement story, over - which runs a terrace. - - My object in this short description is only to show the - difference between this and the other houses of the country; - for we may safely aver that Mr. Jefferson is the first American - who has consulted the fine arts to know how he should shelter - himself from the weather. - - But it is on himself alone I ought to bestow my time. Let me - describe to you a man, not yet forty, tall and with a mild - and pleasing countenance, but whose mind and understanding - are ample substitutes for every exterior grace. An American, - who, without ever having quitted his own country, is at once a - musician, skilled in drawing, a geometrician, an astronomer, - a natural philosopher, legislator, and statesman. A Senator - of America, who sat for two years in that body which brought - about the Revolution; and which is never mentioned without - respect, though unhappily not without regret, a Governor of - Virginia, who filled this difficult station during the invasions - of Arnold, of Phillips, and of Cornwallis; a philosopher, in - voluntary retirement from the world and public business because - he loves the world, in as much only as he can flatter himself - with being useful to mankind, and the minds of his countrymen - are not yet in a condition either to bear the light or suffer - contradiction. A mild and amiable wife, charming children, of - whose education he himself takes charge, a house to embellish, - great provisions to improve, and the arts and sciences to - cultivate; these are what remain to Mr. Jefferson, after having - played a principal character on the theatre of the New World, - and which he preferred to the honorable commission of Minister - Plenipotentiary in Europe. - - The visit which I made him was not unexpected, for he had - long since invited me to come and pass a few days with him in - the centre of the mountains; notwithstanding which, I found - his appearance serious--nay even cold, but before I had been - two hours with him, we were as intimate as if we had passed - our whole lives together; walking, books, but above all, a - conversation always varied and interesting, always supported - by the sweet satisfaction experienced by two persons, who, in - communicating their sentiments and opinions, are invariably in - unison, and who understand each other at the first hint, made - four days pass away like so many minutes. - - This conformity of opinions and sentiments on which I insist - because it constitutes my own eulogium (and self-love must - somewhere show itself), this conformity, I say, was so perfect, - that not only our taste was similar, but our predilections - also; those partialities which cold methodical minds ridicule - as enthusiastic, while sensible and animated ones cherish and - adopt the glorious appellation. I recollect with pleasure that - as we were conversing over a bowl of punch, after Mrs. Jefferson - had retired, our conversation turned on the poems of Ossian. It - was a spark of electricity which passed rapidly from one to the - other; we recollected the passages in those sublime poems which - particularly struck us, and entertained my fellow-travellers, - who fortunately knew English well, and were qualified to judge - of their merits, though they had never read the poems. In our - enthusiasm the book was sent for, and placed near the bowl, - where, by their mutual aid, the night far advanced imperceptibly - upon us. - - Sometimes natural philosophy, at others politics or the arts, - were the topics of our conversation, for no object had escaped - Mr. Jefferson; and it seemed as if from his youth he had placed - his mind, as he has done his house, on an elevated situation, - from which he might contemplate the universe.[16] - - [16] Chastellux's Travels in America, pp. 40-46. - -Mr. Jefferson--continues the Marquis--amused himself by raising a -score of these animals (deer) in his park; they are become very -familiar, which happens to all the animals of America; for they are -in general much easier to tame than those of Europe. He amuses -himself by feeding them with Indian corn, of which they are very -fond, and which they eat out of his hand. I followed him one evening -into a deep valley, where they are accustomed to assemble towards the -close of the day, and saw them walk, run, and bound; but the more I -examined their paces, the less I was inclined to annex them to any -particular species in Europe. Mr. Jefferson being no sportsman, and -not having crossed the seas, could have no decided opinion on this -part of natural history; but he has not neglected the other branches. - -I saw with pleasure that he had applied himself particularly to -meteorological observation, which, in fact, of all the branches of -philosophy, is the most proper for Americans to cultivate, from the -extent of their country and the variety of their situation, which -gives them in this point a great advantage over us, who, in other -respects, have so many over them. Mr. Jefferson has made with Mr. -Madison, a well-informed professor of mathematics, some correspondent -observations on the reigning winds at Williamsburg and Monticello.[17] - - [17] Vol. ii., p. 48. - -But--says the Marquis--I perceive my journal is something like -the conversation I had with Mr. Jefferson; I pass from one object -to another, and forget myself as I write, as it happened not -unfrequently in his society. I must now quit the friend of nature, -but not Nature herself, who expects me, in all her splendor, at -the end of my journey; I mean the famous Bridge of Rocks, which -unites two mountains, the most curious object I ever beheld, as its -construction is the most difficult of solution. Mr. Jefferson would -most willingly have conducted me thither, although this wonder is -upward of eighty miles from him, and he had often seen it, but his -wife being expected every moment to lie in, and himself being as good -a husband as he is an excellent philosopher and virtuous citizen, he -only acted as my guide for about sixteen miles, to the passage of -the little river Mechum, when we parted, and, I presume to flatter -myself, with mutual regret."[18] - - [18] Vol. ii., p. 55. - -The following warm letter of congratulation to General Washington -shows the affection felt for him by Jefferson: - - _To General Washington._ - - Monticello, October 28th, 1781. - - Sir--I hope it will not be unacceptable to your Excellency to - receive the congratulations of a private individual on your - return to your native country, and, above all things, on the - important success which has attended it.[19] Great as this has - been, however, it can scarcely add to the affection with which - we have looked up to you. And if, in the minds of any, the - motives of gratitude to our good allies were not sufficiently - apparent, the part they have borne in this action must amply - convince them. Notwithstanding the state of perpetual solicitude - to which I am unfortunately reduced,[20] - -I should certainly have done myself the honor of paying my respects -to you personally; but I apprehend that these visits, which are meant -by us as marks of our attachment to you, must interfere with the -regulations of a camp, and be particularly inconvenient to one whose -time is too precious to be wasted in ceremony. - - [19] At Yorktown. - - [20] On account of Mrs. Jefferson's health. - -I beg you to believe me among the sincerest of those who subscribe -themselves your Excellency's most obedient and most humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The delicate condition of Mrs. Jefferson's health, alluded to in the -preceding letter, continued to be such as to excite the alarm of her -friends, and their worst apprehensions were soon realized. After -the birth of her sixth child she sank so rapidly that it was plain -there was no hope of her recovery. During her illness Jefferson was -untiring in his attentions to her, and the devotion he showed her was -constant and touching. The following account of the closing scenes of -this domestic tragedy I take from Mrs. Randolph's manuscript: - - During my mother's life he (Jefferson) bestowed much time - and attention on our education--our cousins, the Carrs, - and myself--and after her death, during the first month of - desolation which followed, I was his constant companion while we - remained at Monticello.... - - As a nurse no female ever had more tenderness nor anxiety. - He nursed my poor mother in turn with aunt Carr and her own - sister--sitting up with her and administering her medicines and - drink to the last. For four months that she lingered he was - never out of calling; when not at her bedside, he was writing in - a small room which opened immediately at the head of her bed. - A moment before the closing scene, he was led from the room in - a state of insensibility by his sister, Mrs. Carr, who, with - great difficulty, got him into the library, where he fainted, - and remained so long insensible that they feared he never would - revive. The scene that followed I did not witness, but the - violence of his emotion, when, almost by stealth, I entered his - room by night, to this day I dare not describe to myself. He - kept his room three weeks, and I was never a moment from his - side. He walked almost incessantly night and day, only lying - down occasionally, when nature was completely exhausted, on a - pallet that had been brought in during his long fainting-fit. - My aunts remained constantly with him for some weeks--I do not - remember how many. When at last he left his room, he rode out, - and from that time he was incessantly on horseback, rambling - about the mountain, in the least frequented roads, and just as - often through the woods. In those melancholy rambles I was his - constant companion--a solitary witness to many a burst of grief, - the remembrance of which has consecrated particular scenes of - that lost home[21] beyond the power of time to obliterate. - - [21] Mrs. Randolph wrote this after Monticello had been sold and - passed into the hands of strangers. - -Mrs. Jefferson left three children, Martha, Mary, and Lucy -Elizabeth--the last an infant. As far as it was possible, their -father, by his watchful care and tender love, supplied the place of -the mother they had lost. The account of her death just given gives -a vivid description of his grief, and so alarming was the state -of insensibility into which he fell, that his sister, Mrs. Carr, -called to his sister-in-law, who was still bending over her sister's -lifeless body, "to leave the dead and come and take care of the -living." - -Years afterwards he wrote the following epitaph for his wife's tomb: - - To the Memory of - - MARTHA JEFFERSON, - - Daughter of John Wayles; - - Born October 19th, 1748, O. S.; - - Intermarried with - - THOMAS JEFFERSON - - January 1st, 1772; - - Torn from him by Death - - September 6th, 1782: - - This Monument of his Love is inscribed. - - * * * * * - - If in the melancholy shades below, - The flames of friends and lovers cease to glow, - Yet mine shall sacred last; mine undecayed - Burn on through death and animate my shade.[22] - - [22] These four lines Mr. Jefferson left in the Greek in the - original epitaph. - -[Illustration: MARTHA JEFFERSON RANDOLPH. - -_From Portrait by Sully._] - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - - Visit to Chesterfield County.--Is appointed Plenipotentiary - to Europe.--Letter to the Marquis de Chastellux.--Goes North - with his Daughter.--Leaves her in Philadelphia, and goes to - Congress.--Letters to his Daughter.--Sails for Europe.--His - Daughter's Description of the Voyage.--His Establishment and - Life in Paris.--Succeeds Franklin as Minister there.--Anecdotes - of Franklin.--Extracts from Mrs. Adams's Letters.--Note from - Jefferson to Mrs. Smith. - - -A short time after Mrs. Jefferson's death, Jefferson went with -his children to Ampthill, in Chesterfield County, the residence -of Colonel Archibald Cary. This gentleman had kindly offered his -house to him, that he might there have his children inoculated -for the small-pox. While engaged as their chief nurse on this -occasion, he received notice of his appointment by Congress as -Plenipotentiary to Europe, to be associated with Dr. Franklin and -Mr. Adams in negotiating peace. Twice before the same appointment -had been declined by him, as he had promised his wife never again to -enter public life while she lived. Mr. Madison, in alluding to his -appointment by Congress, says: - - The reappointment of Mr. Jefferson as Minister Plenipotentiary - for negotiating peace, was agreed to unanimously, and without a - single adverse remark. The act took place in consequence of its - being suggested that the death of Mrs. Jefferson had probably - changed the sentiments of Mr. Jefferson with regard to public - life.[23] - - [23] Madison Papers. - -Jefferson himself, in speaking of this appointment, says in his -Memoir: - - I had, two months before that, lost the cherished companion of - my life, in whose affections, unabated on both sides, I had - lived the last ten years in unchequered happiness. With the - public interests the state of my mind concurred in recommending - the change of scene proposed; and I accepted the appointment. - -Writing to the Marquis de Chastellux, he says: - - Ampthill, November 26th, 1782. - - Dear Sir--I received your friendly letters of ---- and June - 30th, but the latter not till the 17th of October. It found me a - little emerging from the stupor of mind which had rendered me as - dead to the world as was she whose loss occasioned it.... Before - that event my scheme of life had been determined. I had folded - myself in the arms of retirement, and rested all prospects of - future happiness on domestic and literary objects. A single - event wiped away all my plans, and left me a blank which I had - not the spirits to fill up. In this state of mind an appointment - from Congress found me, requiring me to cross the Atlantic. - -Having accepted the appointment, Mr. Jefferson left his two youngest -children with their maternal aunt, Mrs. Eppes, of Eppington, and -went North with his daughter Martha, then in her eleventh year. Some -delay in his departure for Europe was occasioned by news received -from Europe by Congress. During the uncertainty as to the time of -his departure he placed the little Martha at school in Philadelphia, -under the charge of an excellent and kind lady, Mrs. Hopkinson. From -this time we find him writing regularly to his daughters during every -separation from them, and it is in the letters written on those -occasions that are portrayed most vividly the love and tenderness -of the father, and the fine traits of character of the man. That -the reader may see what these were, I shall give a number of these -letters, and, as far as possible, in their chronological order. - -The original of the first of the following letters is now in the -possession of the Queen of England. Mr. Aaron Vail, when Chargé -d'Affaires of the United States at the Court of St. James, being -requested by Princess Victoria to procure her an autograph of -Jefferson, applied to a member of Mr. Jefferson's family, who sent -him this letter for the princess. Mr. Jefferson was at this time -again a member of Congress, which was then holding its sessions in -Annapolis. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson._ - - Annapolis, Nov. 28th, 1783. - - My dear Patsy--After four days' journey, I arrived here without - any accident, and in as good health as when I left Philadelphia. - The conviction that you would be more improved in the situation - I have placed you than if still with me, has solaced me on my - parting with you, which my love for you has rendered a difficult - thing. The acquirements which I hope you will make under the - tutors I have provided for you will render you more worthy of - my love; and if they can not increase it, they will prevent - its diminution. Consider the good lady who has taken you under - her roof, who has undertaken to see that you perform all your - exercises, and to admonish you in all those wanderings from what - is right or what is clever, to which your inexperience would - expose you: consider her, I say, as your mother, as the only - person to whom, since the loss with which Heaven has pleased to - afflict you, you can now look up; and that her displeasure or - disapprobation, on any occasion, will be an immense misfortune, - which should you be so unhappy as to incur by any unguarded - act, think no concession too much to regain her good-will. With - respect to the distribution of your time, the following is what - I should approve: - - From 8 to 10, practice music. - - From 10 to 1, dance one day and draw another. - - From 1 to 2, draw on the day you dance, and write a letter next - day. - - From 3 to 4, read French. - - From 4 to 5, exercise yourself in music. - - From 5 till bed-time, read English, write, etc. - - Communicate this plan to Mrs. Hopkinson, and if she approves of - it, pursue it. As long as Mrs. Trist remains in Philadelphia, - cultivate her affection. She has been a valuable friend to you, - and her good sense and good heart make her valued by all who - know her, and by nobody on earth more than me. I expect you - will write me by every post. Inform me what books you read, - what tunes you learn, and inclose me your best copy of every - lesson in drawing. Write also one letter a week either to your - Aunt Eppes, your Aunt Skipwith, your Aunt Carr, or the little - lady[24] from whom I now inclose a letter, and always put the - letter you so write under cover to me. Take care that you never - spell a word wrong. Always before you write a word, consider - how it is spelt, and, if you do not remember it, turn to a - dictionary. It produces great praise to a lady to spell well. I - have placed my happiness on seeing you good and accomplished; - and no distress which this world can now bring on me would equal - that of your disappointing my hopes. If you love me, then strive - to be good under every situation and to all living creatures, - and to acquire those accomplishments which I have put in your - power, and which will go far towards ensuring you the warmest - love of your affectionate father, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - P.S.--Keep my letters and read them at times, that you may - always have present in your mind those things which will endear - you to me. - - [24] Her little sister, Mary Jefferson. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson._--[_Extract._][25] - - [25] We find the key to this and the letter following it in the - following paragraph of a letter from Mrs. Trist to Mr. Jefferson: - "Patsy is very hearty; she now and then gives us a call. She - seems happy, much more so than I expected. When you write, give - her a charge about her dress, which will be a hint to Mrs. H. to - be particular with her. De Simitière complains that his pupil - is rather inattentive. You can be particular to these matters - when you write, but don't let her know you heard any complaints. - I fancy the old lady is preparing for the other world, for she - conceits the earthquake we had the other night is only a prelude - to something dreadful that will happen." - - Annapolis, Dec. 11th, 1783. - - I hope you will have good sense enough to disregard those - foolish predictions that the world is to be at an end soon. - The Almighty has never made known to any body at what time he - created it; nor will he tell any body when he will put an end - to it, if he ever means to do it. As to preparations for that - event, the best way is for you always to be prepared for it. The - only way to be so is, never to say or do a bad thing. If ever - you are about to say any thing amiss, or to do any thing wrong, - consider beforehand you will feel something within you which - will tell you it is wrong, and ought not to be said or done. - This is your conscience, and be sure and obey it. Our Maker has - given us all this faithful internal monitor, and if you always - obey it you will always be prepared for the end of the world; or - for a much more certain event, which is death. This must happen - to all; it puts an end to the world as to us; and the way to be - ready for it is never to do a wrong act. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson._--[_Extract._] - - Annapolis, Dec. 22d, 1783. - - I omitted in that letter to advise you on the subject of dress, - which I know you are a little apt to neglect. I do not wish you - to be gaily clothed at this time of life, but that your wear - should be fine of its kind. But above all things and at all - times let your clothes be neat, whole, and properly put on. Do - not fancy you must wear them till the dirt is visible to the - eye. You will be the last one who is sensible of this. Some - ladies think they may, under the privileges of the _déshabillé_, - be loose and negligent of their dress in the morning. But be - you, from the moment you rise till you go to bed, as cleanly - and properly dressed as at the hours of dinner or tea. A lady - who has been seen as a sloven or a slut in the morning, will - never efface the impression she has made, with all the dress - and pageantry she can afterwards involve herself in. Nothing is - so disgusting to our sex as a want of cleanliness and delicacy - in yours. I hope, therefore, the moment you rise from bed, your - first work will be to dress yourself in such style, as that you - may be seen by any gentleman without his being able to discover - a pin amiss, or any other circumstance of neatness wanting. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson._ - - Annapolis, Jan. 15th, 1783. - - My dear Martha--I am anxious to know what books you read, what - tunes you play, and to receive specimens of your drawing. With - respect to your meeting M. Simitière[26] at Mr. Rittenhouse's, - nothing could give me more pleasure than your being much with - that worthy family, wherein you will see the best examples of - rational life, and learn to esteem and copy them. But I should - be very tender of intruding you on the family; as it might, - perhaps, be not always convenient for you to be there at your - hours of attending M. Simitière. I can only say, then, that - if it has been desired by Mr. and Mrs. Rittenhouse, in such a - manner as that Mrs. Hopkinson shall be satisfied that they will - not think it inconvenient, I would have you thankfully accept - it; and conduct yourself with so much attention to the family - as that they may never feel themselves incommoded by it. I hope - Mrs. Hopkinson will be so good as to act for you in this matter - with that delicacy and prudence of which she is so capable. I - have much at heart your learning to draw, and should be uneasy - at your losing this opportunity, which probably is your last. - - [26] M. Simitière was a Frenchman, from whom, as his letters - show, Mr. Jefferson was anxious for his daughter to take drawing - lessons. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson._--[_Extract._] - - Annapolis, February 18th, 1784. - - I am sorry M. Simitière can not attend you, because it is - probable you will never have another opportunity of learning - to draw, and it is a pretty and pleasing accomplishment. With - respect to the payment of the guinea, I would wish him to - receive it; because if there is to be a doubt between him and me - which of us acts rightly, I would wish to remove it clearly off - my own shoulders. You must thank Mrs. Hopkinson for me for the - trouble she gave herself in this matter; from which she will be - relieved by paying M. Simitière his demand. - -In the spring of this year (1784) Mr. Jefferson received definite -orders from Congress to go to Europe as Minister Plenipotentiary, and -act in conjunction with Dr. Franklin and Mr. Adams in negotiating -treaties of commerce with foreign nations. He accordingly sailed -in July, taking with him his young daughter Martha. The following -description of his voyage, establishment in Paris and life there, is -from her pen. The other two children, Mary and Lucy Elizabeth, were -left with their good aunt, Mrs. Eppes. Mrs. Randolph says, in her -manuscript: - - He sailed from Boston in a ship of Colonel Tracy's (the Ceres, - Capt. St. Barbe); the passengers--only six in number--of whom - Colonel Tracy himself was one, were to a certain degree select, - being chosen from many applying. The voyage was as pleasant as - fine weather, a fine ship, good company, and an excellent table - could make it. From land to land they were only nineteen days, - of which they were becalmed three on the Banks of Newfoundland, - which were spent in cod-fishing. The epicures of the cabin - feasted on fresh tongues and sounds, leaving the rest of the - fish for the sailors, of which much was thrown overboard for - want of salt to preserve it. We were landed at Portsmouth, where - he was detained a week by the illness of his little travelling - companion, suffering from the effects of the voyage. Nothing - worthy of note occurred on the voyage or journey to Paris. - - On his first arrival in Paris he occupied rooms in the Hôtel - d'Orléans, _Rue des Petits Augustins_, until a house could - be got ready for him. His first house was in the Cul-de-sac - Têtebout, near the Boulevards. At the end of the year he removed - to a house belonging to M. le Comte de L'Avongeac, at the - corner of the Grande Route des Champs Elysées and the Rue Neuve - de Berry, where he continued as long as he remained in Paris. - Colonel Humphreys, the secretary of legation, and Mr. Short, his - private secretary, both lived with him. The house was a very - elegant one even for Paris, with an extensive garden, court, and - outbuildings, in the handsomest style. - - He also had rooms in the Carthusian Monastery on Mount Calvary; - the boarders, of whom I think there were forty, carried their - own servants, and took their breakfasts in their own rooms. They - assembled to dinner only. They had the privilege of walking in - the gardens, but as it was a hermitage, it was against the rules - of the house for any voices to be heard outside of their own - rooms, hence the most profound silence. The author of Anacharsis - was a boarder at the time, and many others who had reasons for - a temporary retirement from the world. Whenever he had a press - of business, he was in the habit of taking his papers and going - to the hermitage, where he spent sometimes a week or more till - he had finished his work. The hermits visited him occasionally - in Paris, and the Superior made him a present of an ivory broom - that was turned by one of the brothers. - - His habits of study in Paris were pretty much what they were - elsewhere. He was always a very early riser and the whole - morning was spent in business, generally writing till one - o'clock, with the exception of a short respite afforded by the - breakfast-table, at which he frequently lingered, conversing - willingly at such times. At one o'clock he always rode or walked - as far as seven miles into the country. Returning from one of - these rambles, he was on one occasion joined by some friend, and - being earnestly engaged in conversation he fell and broke his - wrist. He said nothing at the moment, but holding the suffering - limb with the other hand, he continued the conversation until he - arrived near to his own house, when, informing his companion of - the accident, he left him to send for the surgeon. The fracture - was a complicated one and probably much swollen before the - arrival of the surgeon; but it was not set, and remained ever - after weak and stiff. While disabled by this accident he was in - the habit of writing with his left hand, in which he soon became - tolerably expert--the writing being well-formed but stiff. A few - years before his death another fall deprived him in like manner - of the use of his left hand, which rendered him very helpless in - his hands, particularly for writing, which latterly became very - slow and painful to him.... He kept me with him till I was sent - to a convent in Paris, where his visits to me were daily for the - first month or two, till in fact I recovered my spirits. - -Nothing could have been more congenial or delightful to him than the -society in which Jefferson moved in Paris. At the head of an elegant -establishment, as an American and the friend of Lafayette, his house -was the favorite resort of all the accomplished and gallant young -French officers who had enthusiastically taken up arms in defense of -the great cause of liberty in the New World; while as a philosopher -and the author of the "Notes on Virginia," his society was sought for -and enjoyed by the most distinguished savants and men of science, -who thronged from all parts of Europe to the great French capital. -Nor were the ease and grace of his address, the charms of his -eloquent conversation, and the varied extent of his learning, lost -upon the witty and handsome women who were found at the court of -the amiable young Louis the Sixteenth and of his queen, the lovely -Marie Antoinette--so sadly pre-eminent for beauty and misfortune. His -social intercourse with them, and the pleasant friendships formed for -many, we discover in his gracefully-written letters to them. - -Mr. and Mrs. John Adams were in Paris with Jefferson, and Mrs. Adams -pays a graceful tribute to his talents and worth in her letters home, -and in one of them speaks of him as being one of the "choice ones of -the earth." His intercourse with his two colleagues, Dr. Franklin -and Mr. Adams, was of the most delightful character, and by both he -was sincerely loved and esteemed. The friendship then formed between -Mr. Adams and himself withstood, in after years, all the storms and -bitterness of political life, at a time when, perhaps, party feeling -and prejudice ran higher than ever before. - -When Franklin returned home, loaded with all the honors and love that -the admiration of the French people could lavish on him, Jefferson -was appointed to take his place as Minister from the United States at -the Court of St. Germains. "You replace Dr. Franklin," said Count de -Vergennes, the French Premier, to him--"I _succeed_ him; no one could -replace him," was Jefferson's ready reply. Perhaps no greater proof -of Jefferson's popularity in Paris could be given, than the fact that -he so soon became a favorite in that learned and polished society in -which the great Franklin had been the lion of the day. I quote from -Jefferson's writings the following anecdotes of Franklin, which the -reader will not find out of place here: - - When Dr. Franklin went to France on his revolutionary mission, - his eminence as a philosopher, his venerable appearance, and the - cause on which he was sent, rendered him extremely popular--for - all ranks and conditions of men there entered warmly into the - American interest. He was, therefore, feasted and invited to - all the court parties. At these he sometimes met the old Duchess - of Bourbon, who being a chess-player of about his force, they - very generally played together. Happening once to put her king - into prise, the Doctor took it. "Ah," says she, "we do not take - kings so." "We do in America," said the Doctor. - - At one of these parties the Emperor Joseph II., then at Paris - _incog._ under the title of Count Falkenstein, was overlooking - the game in silence, while the company was engaged in animated - conversations on the American question. "How happens it, M. - le Comte," said the Duchess, "that while we all feel so much - interest in the cause of the Americans, you say nothing for - them?" "I am a king by trade," said he. - - The Doctor told me at Paris the following anecdote of the Abbé - Raynal: He had a party to dine with him one day at Passy, of - whom one half were Americans, the other half French, and among - the last was the Abbé. During the dinner he got on his favorite - theory of the degeneracy of animals and even of man in America, - and urged it with his usual eloquence. The Doctor, at length - noticing the accidental stature and position of his guests at - table, "Come," says he, "M. l'Abbé, let us try this question - by the fact before us. We are here, one half Americans and one - half French, and it happens that the Americans have placed - themselves on one side of the table, and our French friends are - on the other. Let both parties rise, and we will see on which - side nature has degenerated." It happened that his American - guests were Carmichael, Harmer, Humphreys, and others of the - finest stature and form; while those of the other side were - remarkably diminutive, and the Abbé himself, particularly, was a - mere shrimp. He parried the appeal, however, by a complimentary - admission of exceptions, among which the Doctor himself was a - conspicuous one. - -The following interesting quotations from Mrs. Adams's letters, in -which she alludes to Mr. Jefferson, will be found interesting here. -To her sister she writes: - - There is now a court mourning, and every foreign minister, - with his family, must go into mourning for a Prince of eight - years old, whose father is an ally to the King of France. This - mourning is ordered by the Court, and is to be worn eleven days - only. Poor Mr. Jefferson had to hie away for a tailor to get a - whole black silk suit made up in two days; and at the end of - eleven days, should another death happen, he will be obliged to - have a new suit of mourning of cloth, because that is the season - when silk must be left off. - -To her niece Mrs. Adams writes: - - Well, my dear niece, I have returned from Mr. Jefferson's. - When I got there I found a pretty large company. It consisted - of the Marquis and Madame de Lafayette; the Count and Countess - de ----; a French Count who had been a general in America, but - whose name I forget; Commodore Jones; Mr. Jarvis, an American - gentleman lately arrived (the same who married Amelia B----), - who says there is so strong a likeness between your cousin and - his lady, that he is obliged to be upon his guard lest he should - think himself at home, and commit some mistake--he appears a - very sensible, agreeable gentleman; a Mr. Bowdoin, an American - also; I ask the Chevalier de la Luzerne's pardon--I had like - to have forgotten him; Mr. Williams, of course, as he always - dines with Mr. Jefferson; and Mr. Short--though one of Mr. - Jefferson's family, as he has been absent some time I name him. - He took a resolution that he would go into a French family at - St. Germain, and acquire the language; and this is the only way - for a foreigner to obtain it. I have often wished that I could - not hear a word of English spoken. I think I have mentioned Mr. - Short before, in some of my letters; he is about the stature - of Mr. Tudor; a better figure, but much like him in looks and - manners; consequently a favorite of mine. - - They have some customs very curious here. When company are - invited to dine, if twenty gentlemen meet, they seldom or never - sit down, but are standing or walking from one part of the room - to the other, with their swords on, and their _chapeau de bras_, - which is a very small silk hat, always worn under the arm. These - they lay aside while they dine, but reassume them immediately - after. I wonder how the fashion of standing crept in among a - nation who really deserve the appellation of polite; for in - winter it shuts out all the fire from the ladies; I know I have - suffered from it many times. - - At dinner, the ladies and gentlemen are mixed, and you converse - with him who sits next you, rarely speaking to two persons - across the table, unless to ask if they will be served with - any thing from your side. Conversation is never general as - with us; for, when the company quit the table, they fall into - _tête-à-tête_ of two and two, when the conversation is in a - low voice, and a stranger unacquainted with the customs of the - country, would think that every body had private business to - transact. - -Mrs. Adams writes to her sister: - - We see as much company in a formal way as our revenues will - admit; and Mr. Jefferson, with one or two Americans, visits us - in the social, friendly way. I shall really regret to leave - Mr. Jefferson; he is one of the choice ones of the earth. On - Thursday, I dine with him at his house. On Sunday he is to dine - here. On Monday we all dine with the Marquis. - -The intimate and friendly relations which existed between Mr. -Jefferson and Mrs. Adams's family is seen from the following playful -note from him to her daughter, Mrs. Smith: - - Mr. Jefferson has the honor to present his compliments to Mrs. - Smith and to send her the two pair of corsets she desired. He - wishes they may be suitable, as Mrs. Smith omitted to send her - measure. Times are altered since Mademoiselle de Sanson had the - honor of knowing her; should they be too small, however, she - will be so good as to lay them by a while. There are ebbs as - well as flows in this world. When the mountain refused to come - to Mahomet, he went to the mountain. Mr. Jefferson wishes Mrs. - Smith a happy new-year, and abundance of happier ones still - to follow it. He begs leave to assure her of his esteem and - respect, and that he shall always be happy to be rendered useful - to her by being charged with her Commands. - - Paris, Jan. 15, 1787. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - - Jefferson's first Impressions of Europe.--Letter to Mrs. - Trist.--To Baron De Geismer.--He visits England.--Letter to his - Daughter.--To his Sister.--Extract from his Journal kept when - in England.--Letter to John Page.--Presents a Bust of Lafayette - to chief Functionaries of Paris.--Breaks his Wrist.-- Letter - to Mrs. Trist.--Mr. and Mrs. Cosway.--Correspondence with Mrs. - Cosway.--Letter to Colonel Carrington.--To Mr. Madison.--To Mrs. - Bingham.--Her Reply. - - -Jefferson's first impressions of Europe and of the French are found -in the following extracts from his letters written to America at that -time: - - -_Extract from a Letter to Mrs. Trist._ - - Paris, August 18th, 1785. - - I am much pleased with the people of this country. The - roughnesses of the human mind are so thoroughly rubbed off - with them, that it seems as if one might glide through a - whole life among them without a jostle. Perhaps, too, their - manners may be the best calculated for happiness to a people - in their situation, but I am convinced they fall far short of - effecting a happiness so temperate, so uniform, and so lasting - as is generally enjoyed with us. The domestic bonds here are - absolutely done away, and where can their compensation be - found? Perhaps they may catch some moments of transport above - the level of the ordinary tranquil joy we experience, but they - are separated by long intervals, during which all the passions - are at sea without a rudder or a compass. Yet, fallacious as - the pursuits of happiness are, they seem, on the whole, to - furnish the most effectual abstraction from the contemplation - of the hardness of their government. Indeed, it is difficult - to conceive how so good a people, with so good a king, so - well-disposed rulers in general, so genial a climate, so - fertile a soil, should be rendered so ineffectual for producing - human happiness by one single curse--that of a bad form of - government. But it is a fact in spite of the mildness of their - governors, the people are ground to powder by the vices of - the form of government. Of twenty millions of people supposed - to be in France, I am of opinion there are nineteen millions - more wretched, more accursed, in every circumstance of human - existence, than the most conspicuously wretched individual - of the whole United States. I beg your pardon for getting - into politics. I will add only one sentiment more of that - character--that is, nourish peace with their persons, but war - against their manners. Every step we take towards the adoption - of their manners is a step to perfect misery. - -In a fit of homesickness, he writes to the Baron de Geismer, Sept. 6: - - -_To Baron de Geismer._ - - I am now of an age which does not easily accommodate itself to - new modes of living and new manners; and I am savage enough to - prefer the woods, the wilds and independence of Monticello, - to all the brilliant pleasures of this gay capital. I shall, - therefore, rejoin myself to my native country with new - attachments and exaggerated esteem for its advantages; for - though there is less wealth there, there is more freedom, more - ease, and less misery. I should like it better, however, if it - could tempt you once more to visit it; but that is not to be - expected. Be this as it may, and whether fortune means to allow - or deny me the pleasure of ever seeing you again, be assured - that the worth which gave birth to my attachment, and which - still animates it, will continue to keep it up while we both - live, and that it is with sincerity I subscribe myself, etc., - etc. - -Early in the month of March of the following year (1786) Mr. -Jefferson went for a short while to England. Before leaving, he wrote -a letter of adieu to his daughter Martha, then at school in a convent -in Paris. The following is an extract from this letter: - - -_To Martha Jefferson._--[_Extract._] - - Paris, March 6th, 1786. - - I need not tell you what pleasure it gives me to see you - improve in every thing useful and agreeable. The more you learn - the more I love you; and I rest the happiness of my life on - seeing you beloved by all the world, which you will be sure - to be, if to a good heart you join those accomplishments so - peculiarly pleasing in your sex. Adieu, my dear child; lose no - moment in improving your head, nor any opportunity of exercising - your heart in benevolence. - -The following letter to his sister proves him to have been as devoted -and thoughtful a brother as father: - - -_To Ann S. Jefferson._ - - London, April 22d, 1786. - - My dear Nancy--Being called here for a short time, and finding - that I could get some articles on terms here of which I thought - you might be in want, I have purchased them for you. They are - two pieces of linen, three gowns, and some ribbon. They are done - up in paper, sealed, and packed in a trunk, in which I have - put some other things for Colonel Nicholas Lewis. They will of - course go to him, and he will contrive them to you. I heard - from Patsy a few days ago; she was well. I left her in France, - as my stay here was to be short. I hope my dear Polly is on - her way to me. I desired you always to apply to Mr. Lewis for - what you should want; but should you at any time wish any thing - particular from France, write to me and I will send it to you. - Doctor Currie can always forward your letters. Pray remember - me to my sisters Carr and Bolling, to Mr. Bolling and their - families, and be assured of the sincerity with which I am, my - dear Nancy, your affectionate brother, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -While in England, Jefferson visited many places of interest there, -and kept a short journal, of which we give the heading, and from -which we make one quotation: - - -_Extract from Journal._ - -A TOUR TO SOME OF THE GARDENS OF ENGLAND. - -_Memorandums made on a Tour to some of the Gardens in England, -described by Whately in his Book on Gardening._ - - While his descriptions, in point of style, are models of perfect - elegance and classical correctness, they are as remarkable for - their exactness. I always walked over the gardens with his book - in my hand, examined with attention the particular spots which - he described, found them so justly characterized by him as to be - easily recognized, and saw with wonder that his fine imagination - had never been able to seduce him from the truth. My inquiries - were directed chiefly to such practical things as might enable - me to estimate the expense of making and maintaining a garden - in that style. My journey was in the months of March and April, - 1786.... - - _Blenheim._--Twenty-five hundred acres, of which two hundred - is garden, one hundred and fifty water, twelve kitchen-garden, - and the rest park. Two hundred people employed to keep it in - order, and to make alterations and additions. About fifty of - these employed in pleasure-grounds. The turf is mowed once in - ten days. In summer, about two thousand fallow-deer in the park, - and two or three thousand sheep. The palace of Henry II. was - remaining till taken down by Sarah, widow of the first Duke of - Marlborough. It was on a round spot levelled by art, near what - is now water, and but a little above it. The island was a part - of the high-road leading to the palace. Rosamond's Bower was - near where now is a little grove, about two hundred yards from - the palace. The well is near where the bower was. The water here - is very beautiful and very grand. The cascade from the lake - is a fine one; except this the garden has no great beauties. - It is not laid out in fine lawns and woods, but the trees are - scattered thinly over the ground, and every here and there small - thickets of shrubs, in oval raised beds, cultivated, and flowers - among the shrubs. The gravelled walks are broad; art appears - too much. There are but a few seats in it, and nothing of - architecture more dignified. There is no one striking position - in it. There has been great addition to the length of the river - since Whately wrote. - -In a letter written, after his return to Paris, to his old friend, -John Page, of Virginia, Mr. Jefferson speaks thus of England: - - -_To John Page._ - - I returned but three or four days ago from a two months' trip - to England. I traversed that country much, and must own both - town and country fell short of my expectations. Comparing it - with this, I have found a much greater proportion of barrens, a - soil, in other parts, not naturally so good as this, not better - cultivated, but better manured, and therefore more productive. - This proceeds from the practice of long leases there, and short - ones here. The laboring people are poorer here than in England. - They pay about one half of their produce in rent, the English - in general about one third. The gardening in that country is - the article in which it excels all the earth. I mean their - pleasure-gardening. This, indeed, went far beyond my ideas. The - city of London, though handsomer than Paris, is not so handsome - as Philadelphia. Their architecture is in the most wretched - style I ever saw, not meaning to except America, where it is - bad, nor even Virginia, where it is worse than any other part - of America which I have seen. The mechanical arts in London are - carried to a wonderful perfection. - -His faithful little pocket account-book informs us that he paid, -"for seeing house where Shakspeare was born, 1_s._; seeing his tomb, -1_s._; entertainment, 4_s._ 2_d._; servants, 2_s._" - -In the fall of this year Jefferson, on behalf of the State of -Virginia, presented to the city authorities of Paris a bust of his -distinguished friend, the Marquis de Lafayette, which was inaugurated -with all due form and ceremony and placed in the Hôtel de Ville. A -few months later he wrote the following letter: - - -_To Mrs. Trist._ - - Dear Madam--I have duly received your friendly letter of - July 24, and received it with great pleasure, as I do all - those you do me the favor to write me. If I have been long in - acknowledging the receipt, the last cause to which it should - be ascribed would be want of inclination. Unable to converse - with my friends in person, I am happy when I do it in black - and white. The true cause of the delay has been an unlucky - dislocation of my wrist, which has disabled me from writing - three months. I only begin to write a little now, but with - pain. I wish, while in Virginia, your curiosity had led you - on to James River. At Richmond you would have seen your old - friends, Mr. and Mrs. Randolph, and a little farther you would - have become acquainted with my friend, Mrs. Eppes, whom you - would have found among the most amiable women on earth. I doubt - whether you would ever have got away from her. This trip would - have made you better acquainted too with my lazy and hospitable - countrymen, and you would have found that their character has - some good traits mixed with some feeble ones. I often wish - myself among them, as I am here burning the candle of life - without present pleasure or future object. A dozen or twenty - years ago this scene would have amused me; but I am past the - age for changing habits. I take all the fault on myself, as - it is impossible to be among a people who wish more to make - one happy--a people of the very best character it is possible - for one to have. We have no idea in America of the real French - character; with some true samples we have had many false ones.... - - Living from day to day, without a plan for four-and-twenty hours - to come, I form no catalogue of impossible events. Laid up in - port for life, as I thought myself at one time, I am thrown out - to sea, and an unknown one to me. By so slender a thread do all - our plans of life hang! My hand denies itself farther, every - letter admonishing me, by a pain, that it is time to finish, but - my heart would go on in expressing to you all its friendship. - The happiest moments it knows are those in which it is pouring - forth its affections to a few esteemed characters. I will pray - you to write to me often. I wish to know that you enjoy health - and that you are happy. Present me in the most friendly terms to - your mother and brother, and be assured of the sincerity of the - esteem with which I am, dear madam, your affectionate friend and - humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -Among the many pleasant friendships formed by Jefferson in Paris, -there was none that he prized more than that of Mr. and Mrs. Cosway. -Both were artists; but the husband was an Englishman, while the -wife was born under the more genial skies of Italy. Possessing all -that grace and beauty which seem to be the unfailing birthright of -an Italian, she united to a bright and well-cultivated intellect -great charms of manner and sweetness of disposition. Her Southern -warmth of manner, and the brilliancy of her wit and conversation, -were fascinations which few could resist, and which made her one of -the queens of Parisian society. In Jefferson she found a congenial -friend, and held his worth, his genius, and his learning in the -highest estimation. When her husband and herself left Paris, she -opened a correspondence with him, and it was at the beginning of this -correspondence that he addressed to her that beautiful and gracefully -written letter, called the "Dialogue between the Head and Heart," -which is found in both editions of his published correspondence. Mrs. -Cosway's own letters are sprightly and entertaining. I have lying -before me the originals of some that she wrote to Jefferson, from -which I give the following extracts, only reminding the reader that -they are written in a language which to her was foreign, though the -Italian idiom adds grace and freshness to the sweet simplicity of -these letters. Many of them are without date. - - -_Mrs. Cosway to Thomas Jefferson._ - - Paris, ----, 1786. - - You don't always judge by appearances, or it would be much to - my disadvantage this day, without deserving it; it has been the - day of contradiction. I meant to have seen you twice, and I have - appeared a monster for not having sent to know how you were the - whole day.[27] I have been more uneasy than I can express. This - morning my husband killed my project I had proposed to him, by - burying himself among pictures and forgetting the hours. Though - we were near your house, coming to see you, we were obliged - to come back, the time being much past that we were to be at - St. Cloud, to dine with the Duchess of Kingston. Nothing was - to hinder us from coming in the evening, but, alas! my good - intentions proved only a disturbance to your neighbors, and just - late enough to break the rest of all your servants, and perhaps - yourself. I came home with the disappointment of not having - been able to make my apologies _in propria persona_. I hope you - feel my distress instead of accusing me; the one I deserve, - the other not. We will come to see you to-morrow morning, if - nothing happens to prevent it. Oh! I wish you were well enough - to come to us to-morrow to dinner, and stay the evening. I - won't tell you what I shall have; temptations now are cruel - for your situation. I only mention my wishes. If the executing - them should be possible, your merit will be greater, as my - satisfaction the more flattered. I would serve you and help you - at dinner, and divert your pain after with good music. Sincerely - your friend, - - MARIA COSWAY. - - [27] Mr. Jefferson, the reader will remember, was at this time - suffering with his broken wrist. - - -_Mrs. Cosway to Thomas Jefferson._ - - I am very sorry indeed, and blame myself for having been the - cause of your pains in the wrist. Why would you go, and why was - I not more friendly to you, and less so to myself by preventing - your giving me the pleasure of your company? You repeatedly said - it would do you no harm. I felt interested and did not insist. - We shall go, I believe, this morning. Nothing seems ready, but - Mr. Cosway seems more disposed than I have seen him all this - time. I shall write to you from England; it is impossible to - be wanting to a person who has been so excessively obliging. I - don't attempt to make compliments--there can be none for you, - but I beg you will think us sensible to your kindness, and that - it will be with exquisite pleasure I shall remember the charming - days we have passed together, and shall long for next spring. - - You will make me very happy if you would send a line to the - _poste restante_ at Antwerp, that I may know how you are. - Believe me, dear sir, your most obliged, affectionate servant, - - MARIA COSWAY. - -The letter from Mr. Jefferson to Mrs. Cosway containing the -"Dialogue between the Head and Heart," though too long to be -given here in full, is too beautiful to be omitted altogether. I -accordingly give the following extracts: - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Mrs. Cosway._ - - Paris, October 12, 1786. - - My dear Madam--Having performed the last sad office of handing - you into your carriage at the Pavillon de St. Denis, and seen - the wheels get actually in motion, I turned on my heel and - walked, more dead than alive, to the opposite door, where my - own was awaiting me. M. Danguerville was missing. He was sought - for, found, and dragged down stairs. We were crammed into the - carriage like recruits for the Bastile, and not having soul - enough to give orders to the coachman, he presumed Paris our - destination, and drove off. After a considerable interval, - silence was broken, with a "_Je suis vraiment affligé du depart - de ces bons gens_." This was a signal for a mutual confession of - distress. He began immediately to talk of Mr. and Mrs. Cosway, - of their goodness, their talents, their amiability; and though - we spoke of nothing else, we seemed hardly to have entered into - the matter, when the coachman announced the Rue St. Denis, - and that we were opposite M. Danguerville's. He insisted on - descending there and traversing a short passage to his lodgings. - I was carried home. Seated by my fireside, solitary and sad, the - following dialogue took place between my Head and my Heart. - - _Head._ Well, friend, you seem to be in a pretty trim. - - _Heart._ I am, indeed, the most wretched of all earthly beings. - Overwhelmed with grief, every fibre of my frame distended beyond - its natural powers to bear, I would willingly meet whatever - catastrophe should leave me no more to feel, or to fear.... - - _Head._ It would have been happy for you if my diagrams and - crotchets had gotten you to sleep on that day, as you are - pleased to say they eternally do.... While I was occupied with - these objects, you were dilating with your new acquaintances, - and contriving how to prevent a separation from them. Every soul - of you had an engagement for the day. Yet all these were to be - sacrificed, that you might dine together. Lying messages were to - be dispatched into every quarter of the city, with apologies for - your breach of engagement. You, particularly, had the effrontery - to send word to the Duchess Danville, that on the moment we were - setting out to dine with her, dispatches came to hand which - required immediate attention. You wanted me to invent a more - ingenious excuse, but I knew you were getting into a scrape, - and I would have nothing to do with it. Well; after dinner to - St. Cloud, from St. Cloud to Ruggieri's, from Ruggieri's to - Krumfoltz; and if the day had been as long as a Lapland summer - day, you would still have contrived means among you to have - filled it. - - _Heart._ Oh! my dear friend, how you have revived me, by - recalling to my mind the transactions of that day! How well - I remember them all, and that when I came home at night, and - looked back to the morning, it seemed to have been a month - agone. Go on, then, like a kind comforter, and paint to me the - day we went to St. Germains. How beautiful was every object! - the Pont de Renilly, the hills along the Seine, the rainbows of - the machine of Marly, the terras of St. Germains, the chateaux, - the gardens, the statues of Marly, the pavilion of Lucienne. - Recollect, too, Madrid, Bagatelle, the King's Garden, the - Dessert. How grand the idea excited by the remains of such a - column. The spiral staircase, too, was beautiful.... - - _Heart._ God only knows what is to happen. I see nothing - impossible in that proposition:[28] and I see things wonderfully - contrived sometimes, to make us happy. Where could they find - such objects as in America for the exercise of their enchanting - art? especially the lady, who paints landscapes so inimitably. - She wants only subjects worthy of immortality to render her - pencil immortal. The Falling Spring, the Cascade of Niagara, - the Passage of the Potomac through the Blue Mountains, the - Natural Bridge; it is worth a voyage across the Atlantic to see - these objects; much more to paint, and make them, and thereby - ourselves, known to all ages. And our own dear Monticello--where - has Nature spread so rich a mantle under the eye?--mountains, - forests, rocks, rivers. With what majesty do we ride above the - storms! How sublime to look down into the workhouse of Nature, - to see her clouds, hail, snow, rain, thunder, all fabricated - at our feet! and the glorious sun, when rising as if out of - a distant water, just gilding the tops of the mountains, and - giving life to all nature! I hope in God no circumstance may - ever make either seek an asylum from grief!... Deeply practiced - in the school of affliction, the human heart knows no joy which - I have not lost, no sorrow of which I have not drunk! Fortune - can present no grief of unknown form to me! Who, then, can so - softly bind up the wound of another as he who has felt the same - wound himself?... - - [28] That is, Mr. and Mrs. Cosway to visit America. - -I thought this a favorable proposition whereon to rest the issue of -the dialogue. So I put an end to it by calling for my night-cap. -Methinks I hear you wish to Heaven I had called a little sooner, and -so spared you the ennui of such a sermon.... We have had incessant -rains since your departure. These make me fear for your health, as -well as that you had an uncomfortable journey. The same cause has -prevented me from being able to give you an account of your friends -here. This voyage to Fontainebleau will probably send the Count de -Moustier and the Marquis de Brehan to America. Danguerville promised -to visit me but has not done it yet. De la Tude comes sometimes to -take family soup with me, and entertains me with anecdotes of his -five-and-thirty years' imprisonment. How fertile is the mind of man, -which can make the Bastile and dungeon of Vincennes yield interesting -anecdotes! You know this was for making four verses on Madame De -Pompadour. But I think you told me you did not know the verses. They -were these: - - "Sans ésprit, sans sentiment, - Sans être belle, ni neuve, - En France on peut avoir le premier amant: - Pompadour en est l'épreuve." - -I have read the memoir of his three escapes. As to myself, my health -is good, except my wrist, which mends slowly, and my mind, which -mends not at all, but broods constantly over your departure. The -lateness of the season obliges me to decline my journey into the -South of France. Present me in the most friendly terms to Mr. Cosway, -and receive me into your own recollection with a partiality and -warmth, proportioned not to my own poor merit, but to the sentiments -of sincere affection and esteem, with which I have the honor to be, -my dear Madam, your most obedient, humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following letter, written in a sprightly and artless style, will -be found more than usually interesting, from the allusion in it to -Sheridan's great speech in the trial of Warren Hastings--that scene -of which Macaulay's enchanted pen has left so brilliant a picture. A -few awkward expressions in this charming letter remind us that its -author wrote in a foreign language. - - -_Mrs. Cosway to Thomas Jefferson._ - - London, February 15th, 1788. - - I have the pleasure of receiving two letters from you, and - though very short I must content myself, and lament much - the reason that deprived me of their usual length. I must - confess that the beginning of your correspondence has made me - an _enfant-gâtée_. I shall never learn to be reasonable in - my expectations, and shall feel disappointed whenever your - letters are not as long as the first was; thus you are the - occasion of a continual reproaching disposition in me. It is a - disagreeable one, and it will tease you into a hatred towards - me, notwithstanding the partiality you have had for me till now, - for nothing disobliges more than a dissatisfied mind, and that - my fault is occasioned by yourself you will be the most distant - to allow. I trust your friendship would wish to see me perfect - and mine to be so, but defects are, or are not, most conspicuous - according to the feelings which we have for the objects which - possess them.... - - I feel at present an inclination to make you an endless letter, - but have not yet determined what subject to begin with. Shall I - continue this reproaching style, quote all the whats and whys - out of Jeremiah's Lamentations, and then present you with some - outlines of Job for consolation? Of all torments, temptations, - and wearinesses, the female has always been the principal and - most powerful, and this is to be felt by you at present from my - pen. Are you to be painted in future ages, sitting solitary and - sad on the beautiful Monticello, tormented by the shadow of a - woman, who will present you a deformed rod, broken and twisted, - instead of the emblematical instrument belonging to the Muses, - held by Genius, inspired by Wit; and with which all that is - beautiful and happy can be described so as to entertain a mind - capable of the highest enjoyments?... - - I have written this _in memoria_ of the many pages of scrawls - addressed to you by one whose good intentions repay you for your - beautiful allegories with such long, insipid chit-chat.[29]... - Allegories, however, are always far-fetched, and I don't like to - follow the subject, though I might find something which would - explain my ideas. - - [29] An allusion to the "Dialogue between the Head and Heart." - -Suppose I turn to the debates of Parliament? Were I a good -politician, I could entertain you much. What do you think of a -famous speech Sheridan has made, which lasted four hours, which has -astonished every body, and which has been the subject of conversation -and admiration of the whole town? Nothing has been talked of for -many days but this speech. The whole House applauded him at the -moment, each member complimented him when they rose, and Pitt made -him the highest encomiums. Only poor Mr. Hastings suffered for the -power of his eloquence, though nothing can be decided yet. Mr. H. -was with Mr. Cosway at the very moment the trial was going on; he -seemed perfectly easy--talking on a variety of subjects with great -tranquillity and cheerfulness. The second day he was the same, but -on the third seemed very much affected and agitated. All his friends -give him the greatest character of humanity, generosity, and feeling; -amiable in his manner, he seems, in short, totally different from the -disposition of cruelty they accuse him of. Turning from parliamentary -discussions, it is time to tell you that I have been reading with -great pleasure your descriptions of America;[30] it is written -by _you_, but Nature represents all the scenes to me in reality, -therefore do not take any thing to yourself; I must refer to your -name to make it the more valuable to me, but _she_ is your rival--you -her usurper. Oh! how I wish myself in those delightful places! those -enchanted grottoes! those magnificent mountains, rivers, etc., etc., -etc.! Why am I not a man, that I might set out immediately, satisfy -my curiosity, and indulge my sight with wonders? - - [30] Meaning, doubtless, his "Notes on Virginia." - -I go to very few parties. I have a dislike for them, and I have grown -so excessively indolent that I do not go out for months together. All -the morning I paint whatever presents itself most pleasing to me. -Sometimes I have beautiful objects to paint from, and add historical -characters to make them more interesting. Female and infantine -beauty is the most perfect to see. Sometimes I indulge in those -melancholy subjects in which History often represents herself--the -horrid, the grand, the sublime, the sentimental, or the pathetic. I -attempt, I exercise in them all, and end by being witness of my own -disappointment and incapacity for executing the Poet, the Historian, -or the conceptions of my own imagination. Thus the mornings are spent -regretting they are not longer, to have more time to attempt again -in search of better success, or thinking they have been too long, as -they have afforded me many moments of uneasiness and anxiety, and a -testimony of my not being able to do any thing. - -I devote my evenings to music, and then I am much visited by the -first Professors, who come to play, often every evening, something -new, and are all perfect in their kind. To complete the pleasure, a -small society of agreeable friends frequently come to see me, and -in this manner you see that I am more attached to my home than to -going in search of amusement out, where there are nothing but crowded -assemblies, uncomfortable heat, and not the least pleasure in meeting -any body, not being able to enjoy any conversation. The Operas are -very bad, tho' Zubenelli and Madame Mosa are the first singers; the -dancers, too, are very bad; all this I say from report, as I have not -been yet. Pray tell me something about Madame De Polignac; they make -a great deal about it here; we hardly hear any thing else, and the -stories are so different from one another that it is impossible to -guess the real one. She is expected in England. - -I send this letter by a gentleman whom I think you will like. He -is a Spaniard. I am partial to that nation, as I know several who -are very agreeable. He is going to Paris as Secretary of Embassy at -that Court. He has travelled much, and talks well. If I should be -happy enough to come again in the summer to Paris, I hope we shall -pass many agreeable days. I am in a million fears about it; Mr. -Cosway still keeps to his intentions, but how many chances from our -inclinations to the gratification of our wishes. Poor D'Ancarville -has been very ill. I received a long letter from him appointing -himself my _correspondent_ at Paris. I know a gentleman who causes my -faith to be weak on this occasion, for _he_ flattered me with hopes -that I have seen fail; nevertheless I have accepted this offer, and -shall see if I find a second disappointment. - -Is it not time to finish my letter? Perhaps I might go on, but I must -send this to the gentleman who is to take it. - -I hope you are quite well by this time, and that your hand will tell -me so by a line. I must be reasonable, but give me leave to remind -you how much pleasure you will give by remembering sometimes with -friendship one who will be as sensible and grateful of it as is, -yours sincerely, - - MARIA COSWAY. - -In a letter to Colonel Edward Carrington, written early in January, -1787, Jefferson thus notices the meeting of the Notables: - - -_To Colonel Carrington._ - - In my letter to Mr. Jay I have mentioned the meeting of the - Notables, appointed for the 29th instant. It is now put off to - the 7th or 8th of next month. This event, which will hardly - excite any attention in America, is deemed here the most - important one which has taken place in their civil line during - the present century. Some promise their country great things - from it, some nothing. Our friend De Lafayette was placed on the - list originally. Afterwards his name disappeared; but finally - was reinstated. This shows that his character here is not - considered as an indifferent one; and that it excites agitation. - His education in our school has drawn on him a very jealous eye - from a court whose principles are the most absolute despotism. - But I hope he has nearly passed his crisis. The King, who is a - good man, is favorably disposed towards him; and he is supported - by powerful family connections, and by the public good-will. He - is the youngest man of the Notables, except one whose office - placed him on the list. - -In a letter written to Madison a few days later, he gives a few -sketches of character which we quote, only reminding the reader of -Jefferson's great intimacy with Madison, to whom he consequently -wrote more freely of men and measures than to any one else. - - -_To James Madison._ - - Paris, January 30th, 1787. - - As you have now returned to Congress, it will become of - importance that you should form a just estimate of certain - public characters, on which, therefore, I will give you such - notes as my knowledge of them has furnished me with. You will - compare them with the materials you are otherwise possessed of, - and decide on a view of the whole. - - You know the opinion I formerly entertained of my friend Mr. - Adams.... A seven months' intimacy with him here, and as many - weeks in London, have given me opportunities of studying him - closely. He is vain, irritable, and a bad calculator of the - force and probable effect of the motives which govern men. This - is all the ill which can possibly be said of him. He is as - disinterested as the Being who made him; he is profound in his - views and accurate in his judgment, except where knowledge of - the world is necessary to form a judgment. He is so amiable, - that I pronounce you will love him if ever you become acquainted - with him. He would be, as he was, a great man in Congress.... - - The Marquis de Lafayette is a most valuable auxiliary to me. His - zeal is unbounded, and his weight with those in power great. His - education having been merely military, commerce was an unknown - field to him. But, his good sense enabling him to comprehend - perfectly whatever is explained to him, his agency has been - very efficacious. He has a great deal of sound genius, is well - remarked by the king, and is rising in popularity. He has - nothing against him but a suspicion of republican principles. I - think he will one day be of the ministry. His foible is a canine - appetite for popularity and fame; but he will get over this. - The Count de Vergennes is ill. The possibility of his recovery - renders it dangerous for us to express a doubt of it; but he is - in danger. He is a great minister in European affairs, but has - very imperfect ideas of our institutions, and no confidence in - them. His devotion to the principles of pure despotism renders - him unaffectionate to our governments. But his fear of England - makes him value us as a make-weight. He is cool, reserved - in political conversations, but free and familiar on other - subjects, and a very attentive, agreeable person to do business - with. It is impossible to have a clearer, better organized head; - but age has chilled his heart. - - Nothing should be spared on our part to attach this country to - us. It is the only one on which we can rely for support under - every event. Its inhabitants love us more, I think, than they - do any other nation on earth. This is very much the effect of - the good dispositions with which the French officers returned. - In a former letter I mentioned to you the dislocation of my - wrist. I can make not the least use of it except for the single - article of writing, though it is going on five months since the - accident happened. I have great anxieties lest I should never - recover any considerable use of it. I shall, by the advice of - my surgeons, set out in a fortnight for the waters of Aix, in - Provence. I chose these out of several they proposed to me, - because if they fail to be effectual, my journey will not be - useless altogether. It will give me an opportunity of examining - the canal of Languedoc, and of acquiring knowledge of that - species of navigation, which may be useful hereafter.... I shall - be absent between two and three months, unless any thing happens - to recall me here sooner; which may always be effected in ten - days, in whatever part of my route I may be. - - In speaking of characters, I omitted those of Rayneval and - Hennin, the two eyes of the Count de Vergennes. The former is - the most important character, because possessing the most of - the confidence of the Count. He is rather cunning than wise, - his views of things being neither great nor liberal. He governs - himself by principles which he has learned by rote, and is fit - only for the details of execution. His heart is susceptible of - little passions, but not of good ones. He is brother-in-law to - M. Gerard, from whom he received disadvantageous impressions of - us which can not be effaced. He has much duplicity. Hennin is - a philosopher, sincere, friendly, liberal, learned, beloved by - every body; the other by nobody. I think it a great misfortune - that the United States are in the department of the former. As - particulars of this kind may be useful to you in your present - situation, I may hereafter continue the chapter. I know it will - be safely lodged in your discretion. I send you by Colonel - Franks your pocket-telescope, walking-stick, and chemical-box. - The two former could not be combined together. The latter could - not be had in the form you referred to. Having a great desire - to have a portable copying-machine, and being satisfied, from - some experiments, that the principle of the large machine might - be applied in a small one, I planned one when in England, and - had it made. It answers perfectly. I have since set a workman - to making them here, and they are in such demand that he has - his hands full. Being assured that you will be pleased to have - one, when you shall have tried its convenience, I send you one - by Colonel Franks. The machine costs ninety-six livres, the - appendages twenty-four livres, and I send you paper and ink for - twelve livres; in all one hundred and thirty-two livres. There - is a printed paper of directions; but you must expect to make - many essays before you succeed perfectly. A soft brush like a - shaving-brush is more convenient than the sponge. You can get - as much paper and ink as you please from London. The paper - costs a guinea a ream. I am, dear sir, with sincere esteem and - affection, your most humble and obedient servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following charmingly written letter to one of his lady friends -gives a spirited picture of the life of a Parisian belle: - -_To Mrs. Bingham._ - - Paris, February 7th, 1787. - - I know, Madam, that the twelvemonth is not yet expired; but - it will be, nearly, before this will have the honor of being - put into your hands. You are then engaged to tell me, truly - and honestly, whether you do not find the tranquil pleasures - of America preferable to the empty bustle of Paris. For to - what does the bustle tend? At eleven o'clock it is day, - _chez madame_. The curtains are drawn. Propped on bolsters - and pillows, and her head scratched into a little order, the - bulletins of the sick are read, and the billets of the well. She - writes to some of her acquaintances, and receives the visits - of others. If the morning is not very thronged, she is able to - get out and hobble around the cage of the Palais Royal; but - she must hobble quickly, for the coiffeur's turn is come; and - a tremendous turn it is! Happy if he does not make her arrive - when dinner is half over! The torpitude of digestion a little - passed, she flutters for half an hour through the streets, - by way of paying visits, and then to the spectacles. These - finished, another half-hour is devoted to dodging in and out - of the doors of her very sincere friends, and away to supper. - After supper, cards; and after cards, bed--to rise at noon the - next day, and to tread, like a mill-horse, the same trodden - circle over again. Thus the days of life are consumed, one by - one, without an object beyond the present moment; ever flying - from the ennui of that, yet carrying it with us; eternally in - pursuit of happiness, which keeps eternally before us. If death - or bankruptcy happen to trip us out of the circle, it is matter - for the buzz of the evening, and is completely forgotten by the - next morning. In America, on the other hand, the society of - your husband, the fond cares for the children, the arrangements - of the house, the improvements of the grounds, fill every - moment with a useful and healthy activity. Every exertion is - encouraging, because to present amusement it joins the promise - of some future good. The intervals of leisure are filled by - the society of real friends, whose affections are not thinned - to cobweb, by being spread over a thousand objects. This is - the picture, in the light it is presented to my mind; now let - me have it in yours. If we do not concur this year, we shall - the next; or if not then, in a year or two more. You see I am - determined not to suppose myself mistaken. - - To let you see that Paris is not changed in its pursuits since - it was honored with your presence, I send you its monthly - history. But this relating only to the embellishments of their - persons, I must add, that those of the city go on well also. A - new bridge, for example, is begun at the Place Louis Quinze; the - old ones are clearing of the rubbish which encumbered them in - the form of houses; new hospitals erecting; magnificent walls of - inclosure, and custom-houses at their entrances, etc., etc. I - know of no interesting change among those whom you have honored - with your acquaintance, unless Monsieur de Saint James was of - that number. His bankruptcy, and taking asylum in the Bastile, - have furnished matter of astonishment. His garden at the Pont - de Neuilly, where, on seventeen acres of ground, he had laid - out fifty thousand louis, will probably sell for somewhat less - money. The workmen of Paris are making rapid strides towards - English perfection. Would you believe that, in the course of the - last two years, they have learned even to surpass their London - rivals in some articles? Commission me to have you a phaeton - made, and if it is not as much handsomer than a London one as - that is than a fiacre, send it back to me. Shall I fill the - box with caps, bonnets, etc.?--not of my own choosing, but--I - was going to say--of Mademoiselle Bertin's, forgetting for the - moment that she too is bankrupt. They shall be chosen, then, - by whom you please; or, if you are altogether nonplused by her - eclipse, we will call an Assemblée des Notables, to help you out - of the difficulty, as is now the fashion. In short, honor me - with your commands of any kind, and they shall be faithfully - executed. The packets now established from Havre to New York - furnish good opportunities of sending whatever you wish. - - I shall end where I began, like a Paris day, reminding you of - your engagement to write me a letter of respectable length, - an engagement the more precious to me, as it has furnished me - the occasion, after presenting my respects to Mr. Bingham, of - assuring you of the sincerity of those sentiments of esteem and - respect with which I have the honor to be, dear Madam, your most - obedient and most humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_Mrs. Bingham to Thomas Jefferson._ - - June 1st, 1787. - - I am too much flattered by the honor of your letter from Paris - not to acknowledge it by the earliest opportunity, and to assure - you that I am very sensible of your attentions. The candor with - which you express your sentiments merits a sincere declaration - of mine. I agree with you that many of the fashionable pursuits - of the Parisian ladies are rather frivolous, and become - uninteresting to a reflective mind; but the picture you have - exhibited is rather overcharged; you have thrown a strong - light upon all that is ridiculous in their characters, and you - have buried their good qualities in the shade. It shall be my - task to bring them forward, or at least to attempt it. The - state of society in different countries requires corresponding - manners and qualifications. Those of the French women are by - no means calculated for the meridian of America, neither are - they adapted to render the sex so amiable or agreeable in the - English acceptation of those words. But you must confess that - they are more accomplished, and understand the intercourse of - society better, than in any other country. We are irresistibly - pleased with them, because they possess the happy art of making - us pleased with ourselves. Their education is of a higher cast, - and by great cultivation they procure a happy variety of genius, - which forms their conversation to please either the fop or the - philosopher. - - In what other country can be found a Marquise de Coigny, who, - young and handsome, takes a lead in all the fashionable - dissipations of life, and at more serious moments collects at - her house an assembly of the literati, whom she charms with her - knowledge and her _bel esprit_. The women of France interfere - with the politics of the country, and often give a decided turn - to the fate of empires. Either by the gentle arts of persuasion, - or the commanding force of superior attractions and address, - they have obtained that rank and consideration in society which - the sex are entitled to, and which they in vain contend for in - other countries. We are therefore bound in gratitude to admire - and revere them for asserting our privileges, as much as the - friends of the liberties of mankind reverence the successful - struggles of the American patriots. - - The agreeable resources of Paris must certainly please and - instruct every class of characters. The arts of elegance are - there considered as essential, and are carried to a state of - perfection, and there the friend of art is continually gratified - by the admiration for works of taste. I have the pleasure of - knowing you too well to doubt of your subscribing to this - opinion. With respect to my native country, I assure you that - I am fervently attached to it, as well as to my friends and - connections in it; there, perhaps, there is more sincerity in - professions, and a stronger desire of rendering real services, - and when the mouth expresses the heart speaks. - - I am sensible that I shall tire you to death with the length of - this letter, and had almost forgotten that you are in Paris, - and that every instant of your time is valuable, and might be - much better employed than I can possibly do it. However, I shall - reserve a further examination of this subject to the period when - I can have the happiness of meeting you, when we will again - resume it. I feel myself under many obligations for your kind - present of _les modes de Paris_. They have furnished our ladies - with many hints for the decoration of their persons, and I have - informed them to whom they are indebted. I shall benefit by your - obliging offer of service, whenever I shall have occasion for - a fresh importation of fashions; at present I am well stocked, - having lately received a variety of articles from Paris. - - Be so kind as to remember me with affection to Miss Jefferson. - Tell her she is the envy of all the young ladies in America, - and that I should wish nothing so much as to place my little - girl under her inspection and protection, should she not leave - Paris before I revisit it. I shall hope for the pleasure of - hearing from you, and if you accompany another book of fashions - with any new operas or comedies you will infinitely oblige me. - It is quite time I bade you adieu; but remember this first of - June I am constant to my former opinion, nor can I believe that - any length of time will change it. I am determined to have some - merit in your eyes, if not for taste and judgment, at least for - consistency. Allow me to say, my dear sir, that I am sincerely - and respectfully yours, - - A. BINGHAM. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - - Death of Count de Vergennes.--Jefferson is ordered to Aix by - his Surgeon.--Death of his youngest Child.--Anxiety to have his - Daughter Mary with him.--Her Reluctance to leave Virginia.-- Her - Letters to and from her Father.--Jefferson's Letters to Mrs. - and Mr. Eppes.--To Lafayette.--To the Countess de Tesse.-- To - Lafayette.--Correspondence with his Daughter Martha. - - -In a letter written to Mr. Jay on the 23d of February, 1787, Mr. -Jefferson says: - - The event of the Count de Vergennes's death, of which I had - the honor to inform you in a letter of the 4th instant, the - appointment of the Count Montmorin, and the propriety of my - attending at his first audience, which will be on the 27th, have - retarded the journey I proposed a few days. - -The journey above mentioned was a trip to Aix, whither he was ordered -by his surgeon, in order to try the effect of its mineral-waters on -his dislocated wrist. In the letters which he wrote to his daughter -Martha, while absent on this occasion, he alludes frequently to his -youngest daughter, Mary, or Polly, as she was sometimes called. As I -have before mentioned, she and her younger sister, Lucy, were left -by their father in Virginia, with their kind uncle and aunt, Mr. and -Mrs. Eppes. Lucy died in the fall of the year 1784, and her death was -announced to her father in a letter from Mr. Eppes, who writes: - - I am sorry to inform you that my fears about the welfare of our - children, which I mentioned in my last, were too well founded. - Yours, as well as our dear little Lucy, have fallen sacrifices - to the most horrible of all disorders, the whooping-cough. They - both suffered as much pain, indeed more than ever I saw two - of their ages experience. We were happy in having had every - experience this country afforded; however, they were beyond the - reach of medicine.[31] - - [31] With the tender sensibility of a mother, Mrs. Eppes - announced this event to Jefferson in the following touching - letter: - - Eppington, October 13th, 1784. - - Dear Sir--It is impossible to paint the anguish of my heart on - this melancholy occasion. A most unfortunate whooping-cough has - deprived you and us of two sweet Lucys within a week. Ours was - the first that fell a sacrifice. She was thrown into violent - convulsions, lingered out a week, and then died. Your dear angel - was confined a week to her bed, her sufferings were great, though - nothing like a fit; she retained her senses perfectly, called me - a few minutes before she died and asked distinctly for water. - Dear Polly has had it most violently, though always kept about, - and is now quite recovered.... Life is scarcely supportable - under such severe afflictions. Be so good as to remember me - most affectionately to my dear Patsy, and beg she will excuse - my not writing till the gloomy scene is a little forgotten. I - sincerely hope you are both partaking of every thing that can in - the smallest degree entertain and make you happy. Our warmest - affections attend you both. - - Your sincere friend, E. EPPES. - -The death of this child was felt keenly by Jefferson. After -getting established in Paris, he became impatient to have his -little daughter Mary with him. She did not join him, however, -until the year 1787, her uncle and aunt being loath to part with -her, and no good opportunity occurring for getting her across -the Atlantic. The child herself could not bear the thought of -being torn from the kind uncle and aunt, whom she had learned to -love so devotedly, to go to a strange land. I have lying before -me a package of her letters to her father, whose sweet, childish -prattle must be excuse enough for their appearing here, trivial -though they seem. The first was written for her by her aunt. The -others are in the huge, grotesque-looking letters of a child just -beginning to write. The following was written before her father -had left Philadelphia: - - - _Mary Jefferson to Thomas Jefferson._ - - EPPINGTON, APRIL 11TH, 1784. - - My dear Papa--I want to know what day you are going to come and - see me, and if you will bring sister Patsy and my baby with you. - I was mighty glad of my sashes, and gave Cousin Bolling one. I - can almost read. - - Your affectionate daughter, - - POLLY JEFFERSON. - -It is touching to see how gently her father tries to reconcile her, -in the following letter, to her separation from her good uncle and -aunt, and how he attempts to lure her to France with the promise that -she shall have in Paris "as many dolls and playthings" as she wants. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Mary Jefferson._ - - Paris, Sept. 20th, 1785. - - My dear Polly--I have not received a letter from you since - I came to France. If you knew how much I love you and what - pleasure the receipt of your letters gave me at Philadelphia, - you would have written to me, or at least have told your aunt - what to write, and her goodness would have induced her to take - the trouble of writing it. I wish so much to see you, that I - have desired your uncle and aunt to send you to me. I know, my - dear Polly, how sorry you will be, and ought to be, to leave - them and your cousins; but your sister and myself can not live - without you, and after a while we will carry you back again to - see your friends in Virginia. In the mean time you shall be - taught here to play on the harpsichord, to draw, to dance, to - read and talk French, and such other things as will make you - more worthy of the love of your friends; but above all things, - by our care and love of you, we will teach you to love us - more than you will do if you stay so far from us. I have had - no opportunity since Colonel Le Maire went, to send you any - thing; but when you come here you shall have as many dolls and - playthings as you want for yourself, or to send to your cousins - whenever you shall have opportunities. I hope you are a very - good girl, that you love your uncle and aunt very much, and are - very thankful to them for all their goodness to you; that you - never suffer yourself to be angry with any body, that you give - your playthings to those who want them, that you do whatever any - body desires of you that is right, that you never tell stories, - never beg for any thing, mind your books and your work when - your aunt tells you, never play but when she permits you, nor - go where she forbids you; remember, too, as a constant charge, - not to go out without your bonnet, because it will make you very - ugly, and then we shall not love you so much. If you always - practice these lessons we shall continue to love you as we do - now, and it is impossible to love you any more. We shall hope to - have you with us next summer, to find you a very good girl, and - to assure you of the truth of our affection for you. Adieu, my - dear child. Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_Mary Jefferson to Thomas Jefferson._ - - Dear Papa--I long to see you, and hope that you and sister Patsy - are well; give my love to her and tell her that I long to see - her, and hope that you and she will come very soon to see us. I - hope that you will send me a doll. I am very sorry that you have - sent for me. I don't want to go to France, I had rather stay - with Aunt Eppes. Aunt Carr, Aunt Nancy and Cousin Polly Carr are - here. Your most happy and dutiful daughter, - - POLLY JEFFERSON. - - Dear Papa--I should be very happy to see you, but I can not go - to France, and hope that you and sister Patsy are well. Your - affectionate daughter. Adieu. - - MARY JEFFERSON. - - Dear Papa--I want to see you and sister Patsy, but you must come - to Uncle Eppes's house. - - POLLY JEFFERSON. - -Mr. Jefferson's anxieties about his little daughter crossing the -ocean, and his impatience to fold her once more in his arms, are -vividly portrayed in the following letter: - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Mrs. Eppes._ - - Paris, Sept. 22d, 1785. - - Dear Madam--The Mr. Fitzhughs having staid here longer than they - expected, I have (since writing my letter of Aug. 30, to Mr. - Eppes) received one from Dr. Currie, of August 5, by which I - have the happiness to learn you are all well, and my Poll also. - Every information of this kind is like gaining another step, and - seems to say we "have got so far safe." Would to God the great - step was taken and taken safely; I mean that which is to place - her on this side of the Atlantic. No event of your life has put - it into your power to conceive how I feel when I reflect that - such a child, and so dear to me, is to cross the ocean, is to - be exposed to all the sufferings and risks, great and small, to - which a situation on board a ship exposes every one. I drop my - pen at the thought--but she must come. My affections would leave - me balanced between the desire to have her with me, and the fear - of exposing her; but my reason tells me the dangers are not - great, and the advantages to her will be considerable. - - I send by Mr. Fitzhugh some garden and flower seed and bulbs; - the latter, I know, will fall in your department. I wish the - opportunity had admitted the sending more, as well as some - things for the children; but Mr. Fitzhugh being to pass a long - road both here and in America, I could not ask it of him. Pray - write to me, and write me long letters. Currie has sent me one - worth a great deal for the details of small news it contains. I - mention this as an example for you. You always know facts enough - which would be interesting to me to fill sheets of paper. I pray - you, then, to give yourself up to that kind of inspiration, and - to scribble on as long as you recollect any thing unmentioned, - without regarding whether your lines are straight or your - letters even. Remember me affectionately to Mr. Skipwith, and - to the little ones of both houses; kiss dear Polly for me, and - encourage her for the journey. Accept assurances of unchangeable - affection from, dear Madam, your sincere friend and servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In the letter to Mr. Eppes of August 30th, which Mr. Jefferson -alludes to in the preceding, he writes: - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Mr. Eppes._ - - I must now repeat my wish to have Polly sent to me next summer. - This, however, must depend on the circumstance of a good vessel - sailing from Virginia in the months of April, May, June, or - July. I would not have her set out sooner or later on account - of the equinoxes. The vessel should have performed one voyage - at least, but not be more than four or five years old. We do - not attend to this circumstance till we have been to sea, but - there the consequence of it is felt. I think it would be found - that all the vessels which are lost are either on their first - voyage or after they are five years old; at least there are - few exceptions to this. With respect to the person to whose - care she should be trusted, I must leave it to yourself and - Mrs. Eppes altogether. Some good lady passing from America to - France, or even England, would be most eligible; but a careful - gentleman who would be so kind as to superintend her would do. - In this case some woman who has had the small-pox must attend - her. A careful negro woman, as Isabel, for instance, if she - has had the small-pox, would suffice under the patronage of a - gentleman. The woman need not come farther than Havre, l'Orient, - Nantes, or whatever port she should land at, because I could - go there for the child myself, and the person could return to - Virginia directly. My anxieties on this subject could induce me - to endless details, but your discretion and that of Mrs. Eppes - saves me the necessity. I will only add that I would rather live - a year longer without her than have her trusted to any but a - good ship and a summer passage. Patsy is well. She speaks French - as easily as English; while Humphries, Short, and myself are - scarcely better at it than when we landed.... - - I look with impatience to the moment when I may rejoin you. - There is nothing to tempt me to stay here. Present me with the - most cordial affection to Mrs. Eppes, the children, and the - family at Hors-du-monde. I commit to Mrs. Eppes my kisses for - dear Poll, who hangs on my mind night and day. - -Had he been the mother instead of the father of the little girl who -was to cross the Atlantic, he could not have shown more anxiety about -her welfare and safety on the passage. In a letter of Jan. 7th, 1786, -to Mr. Eppes, he writes: - - I wrote you last on the 11th of December, by the way of - London. That conveyance being uncertain, I write the present - chiefly to repeat a prayer I urged in that, that you would - confide my daughter only to a French or English vessel having - a Mediterranean _pass_. This attention, though of little - consequence in matters of merchandise, is of weight in the mind - of a parent which sees even possibilities of capture beyond - the reach of any estimate. If a peace be concluded with the - Algerines in the mean time, you shall be among the first to hear - it from myself. I pray you to believe it from nobody else, as - far as respects the conveyance of my daughter to me. - -A few weeks later he writes: - - I know that Mrs. Eppes's goodness will make her feel a - separation from an infant who has experienced so much of her - tenderness. My unlimited confidence in her has been the greatest - solace possible under my own separation from Polly. Mrs. Eppes's - good sense will suggest to her many considerations which render - it of importance to the future happiness of the child that she - should neither forget nor be forgotten by her sister and myself. - -In concluding the same letter, he says: - - How much should I prize one hour of your fireside, where I might - indulge that glow of affection which the recollection of Mrs. - Eppes and her little ones excites in me, and give you personal - assurances of the sincere esteem with which I am, dear Sir, your - affectionate friend and servant. - -In a letter written to Mr. Eppes a year later, he says, "My dear -Poll, I hope, is on the way to me. I endeavor not to think of her -till I hear she is landed." His reasons for insisting upon his little -daughter being sent to him are found in the following letter: - - -_To Mrs. Eppes._ - - Paris, Dec. 14th, 1786. - - Dear Madam--I perceive, indeed, that our friends are kinder than - we have sometimes supposed them, and that their letters do not - come to hand. I am happy that yours of July 30th has not shared - the common fate. I received it about a week ago, together with - one from Mr. Eppes announcing to me that my dear Polly will come - to me the ensuing summer. Though I am distressed when I think of - this voyage, yet I know it is necessary for her happiness. She - is better with you, my dear Madam, than she could be anywhere - else in the world, except with those whom nature has allied - still more closely to her. It would be unfortunate through life, - both to her and us, were those affections to be loosened which - ought to bind us together, and which should be the principal - source of our future happiness. Yet this would be too probably - the effect of absence at her age. This is the only circumstance - which has induced me to press her joining us.... I am obliged to - cease writing. An unfortunate dislocation of my right wrist has - disabled me from writing three months. I have as yet no use of - it, except that I can write a little, but slowly and in great - pain. I shall set out in a few days to the South of France, to - try the effect of some mineral-waters there. Assure Mr. and Mrs. - Skipwith of my warm affections. Kiss the little ones for me. - I suppose Polly not to be with you. Be assured yourself of my - sincere love and esteem. - - Yours affectionately, - TH. JEFFERSON. - -On the eve of his departure for the South of France, we find him -writing the following letter to his devoted friend, Lafayette. In the -advice which he gives of keeping England for a model, we see, on his -part, an apprehension of the dangers ahead in the proceedings of the -Assemblée des Notables. - - -_To Lafayette._ - - Paris, February 28th, 1787. - - Dear Sir--I am just now in the moment of my departure. Monsieur - de Montmorin having given us audience at Paris yesterday, I - missed the opportunity of seeing you once more. I am extremely - pleased with his modesty, the simplicity of his manners, and - his dispositions towards us. I promise myself a great deal of - satisfaction in doing business with him. I hope he will not give - ear to any unfriendly suggestions. I flatter myself I shall hear - from you sometimes. Send your letters to my hotel, as usual, - and they will be forwarded to me. I wish you success in your - meeting. I should form better hopes of it, if it were divided - into two Houses instead of seven. Keeping the good model of your - neighboring country before your eyes, you may get on, step by - step, towards a good constitution. Though that model is not - perfect, yet, as it would unite more suffrages than any new one - which could be proposed, it is better to make that the object. - If every advance is to be purchased by filling the royal coffers - with gold, it will be gold well employed. The King, who means so - well, should be encouraged to repeat these Assemblies. You see - how we republicans are apt to preach when we get on politics. - Adieu, my dear friend. - - Yours affectionately, - TH. JEFFERSON. - -While on this tour though the southern part of France, Jefferson -wrote some of his most charming letters to his daughter and his -friends; among the latter the two most agreeable were to Lafayette -and the Comtesse de Tesse, which we now give: - - -_To the Comtesse de Tesse._[32] - - [32] This lady was an aunt of Madame Lafayette, and an intimate - friend of Jefferson's. - - Nismes, March 20th, 1787. - - Here I am, Madam, gazing whole hours at the Maison Quarrée, like - a lover at his mistress. The stocking-weavers and silk-spinners - around it consider me as a hypochondriac Englishman, about to - write with a pistol the last chapter of his history. This is the - second time I have been in love since I left Paris. The first - was with a Diana at the Château de Laye-Epinaye in Beaujolais, - a delicious morsel of sculpture, by M. A. Slodtz. This, you - will say, was in rule, to fall in love with a female beauty; - but with a house! It is out of all precedent. No, Madam, it is - not without a precedent in my own history. While in Paris, I - was violently smitten with the Hôtel de Salm, and used to go - to the Tuileries almost daily to look at it. The _loueuse des - chaises_--inattentive to my passion--never had the complaisance - to place a chair there, so that sitting on the parapet, and - twisting my neck around to see the object of my admiration, I - generally left it with a _torti-colli_. - - From Lyons to Nismes I have been nourished with the remains - of Roman grandeur. They have always brought you to my mind, - because I know your affection for whatever is Roman and noble. - At Vienne I thought of you. But I am glad you were not there; - for you would have seen me more angry than, I hope, you will - ever see me. The Prætorian palace, as it is called--comparable, - for its fine proportions, to the Maison Quarrée--defaced by - the barbarians who have converted it to its present purpose, - its beautiful, fluted Corinthian columns cut out, in part, to - make space for Gothic windows, and hewed down, in the residue, - to the plane of the building, was enough, you must admit, to - disturb my composure. At Orange, too, I thought of you. I was - sure you had seen with pleasure the sublime triumphal arch of - Marius at the entrance of the city. I went then to the Arenæ. - Would you believe, Madam, that in this eighteenth century, in - France, under the reign of Louis XVI., they are at this moment - pulling down the circular wall of this superb remain, to pave a - road? And that, too, from a hill which is itself an entire mass - of stone, just as fit, and more accessible! A former intendant, - a Monsieur de Basville, has rendered his memory dear to the - traveller and amateur, by the pains he took to preserve and - restore these monuments of antiquity. The present one (I do - not know who he is) is demolishing the object, to make a good - road to it. I thought of you again, and I was then in great - good-humor, at the Pont du Gard, a sublime antiquity and well - preserved. But most of all here, where Roman taste, genius, and - magnificence excite ideas analogous to yours at every step. I - could no longer oppose the inclination to avail myself of your - permission to write to you, a permission given with too much - complaisance by you, and used by me with too much indiscretion. - Madame de Tott did me the same honor. But, she being only the - descendant of some of those puny heroes who boiled their own - kettles before the walls of Troy, I shall write to her from a - Grecian, rather than a Roman canton; when I shall find myself, - for example, among her Phocian relations at Marseilles. - - Loving as you do, Madam, the precious remains of antiquity, - loving architecture, gardening, a warm sun and a clear sky, I - wonder you have never thought of moving Chaville to Nismes. - This, as you know, has not always been deemed impracticable; - and therefore, the next time a _Sur-intendant des bâtiments - du roi_, after the example of M. Colbert, sends persons to - Nismes to move the Maison Quarrée to Paris, that they may not - come empty-handed, desire them to bring Chaville with them, to - replace it. Apropos of Paris. I have now been three weeks from - there, without knowing any thing of what has passed. I suppose - I shall meet it all at Aix, where I have directed my letters to - be lodged _poste restante_. My journey has given me leisure to - reflect on the Assemblée des Notables. Under a good and a young - king, as the present, I think good may be made of it. I would - have the deputies, then, by all means, so conduct themselves as - to encourage him to repeat the calls of this Assembly. Their - first step should be to get themselves divided into two Chambers - instead of seven--the Noblesse and the Commons separately. The - second, to persuade the King, instead of choosing the deputies - of the Commons himself, to summon those chosen by the people for - the provincial administrations. The third, as the Noblesse is - too numerous to be all of the Assemblée, to obtain permission - for that body to choose its own deputies. Two Houses, so - elected, would contain a mass of wisdom which would make the - people happy and the King great--would place him in history - where no other act could possibly place him. They would thus put - themselves in the track of the best guide they can follow; they - would soon overtake it, become its guide in turn, and lead to - the wholesome modifications wanting in that model, and necessary - to constitute a rational government. Should they attempt more - than the established habits of the people are ripe for, they may - lose all, and retard indefinitely the ultimate object of their - aim. These, Madam, are my opinions; but I wish to know yours, - which, I am sure will be better. - - From a correspondent at Nismes you will not expect news. Were - I to attempt to give you news, I should tell you stories one - thousand years old. I should detail to you the intrigues of the - courts of the Cæsars--how they affect us here, the oppressions - of their prætors, prefects, etc. I am immersed in antiquities - from morning to night. For me the city of Rome is actually - existing in all the splendor of its empire. I am filled with - alarms for the event of the irruptions daily making on us by - the Goths, Visigoths, Ostrogoths, and Vandals, lest they should - reconquer us to our original barbarism. If I am sometimes - induced to look forward to the eighteenth century, it is - only when recalled to it by the recollection of your goodness - and friendship, and by those sentiments of sincere esteem and - respect, with which I have the honor to be, Madam, your most - obedient and most humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Lafayette._ - - Nice, April 11th, 1787. - - Your head, my dear friend, is full of Notable things; and being - better employed, therefore, I do not expect letters from you. I - am constantly roving about to see what I have never seen before, - and shall never see again. In the great cities, I go to see what - travellers think alone worthy of being seen; but I make a job of - it, and generally gulp it all down in a day. On the other hand, - I am never satiated with rambling through the fields and farms, - examining the culture and cultivators with a degree of curiosity - which makes some take me to be a fool, and others to be much - wiser than I am. I have been pleased to find among the people - a less degree of physical misery than I had expected. They are - generally well clothed, and have a plenty of food, not animal, - indeed, but vegetable, which is as wholesome.... - - From the first olive-fields of Pierrelatte to the orangeries of - Hières has been continued rapture to me. I have often wished for - you. I think you have not made this journey. It is a pleasure - you have to come, and an improvement to be added to the many you - have already made. It will be a great comfort to you to know, - from your own inspection, the condition of all the provinces - of your own country, and it will be interesting to them, at - some future day, to be known to you. This is, perhaps, the only - moment of your life in which you can acquire that knowledge. And - to do it most effectually, you must be absolutely incognito, you - must ferret the people out of their hovels, as I have done, look - into their kettles, eat their bread, loll on their beds under - pretense of resting yourself, but in fact to find if they are - soft. You will feel a sublime pleasure in the course of this - investigation, and a sublimer one hereafter, when you shall be - able to apply your knowledge to the softening of their beds, or - the throwing a morsel of meat into their kettle of vegetables. - - You will not wonder at the subjects of my letter; they are the - only ones which have been presented to my mind for some time - past, and the waters must always be what are the fountains - from which they flow. According to this, indeed, I should - have intermingled, from beginning to end, warm expressions of - friendship to you. But, according to the ideas of our country, - we do not permit ourselves to speak even truths, when they have - the air of flattery. I content myself, therefore, with saying - once more for all, that I love you, your wife and children. Tell - them so, and adieu. Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following correspondence between Jefferson and his daughter -Martha will be found unusually interesting. Her letters were -written from the convent of Panthemont, in Paris, where she was at -school. She was at the time fifteen years old, and the artlessness, -intelligence, and warm affection with which she writes to her father -render her letters inexpressibly charming. - - -_Martha Jefferson to Thomas Jefferson._ - - Being disappointed in my expectation of receiving a letter from - my dear papa, I have resolved to break so painful a silence by - giving you an example that I hope you will follow, particularly - as you know how much pleasure your letters give me. I hope your - wrist is better, and I am inclined to think that your voyage is - rather for your pleasure than your health; however, I hope it - will answer both purposes. I will now tell you how I go on with - my masters. I have begun a beautiful tune with Balbastre, done a - very pretty landscape with Pariseau--a little man playing on the - violin--and begun another beautiful landscape. I go on slowly - with my _Tite Live_,[33] it being in such ancient Italian that I - can not read without my master, and very little with him even. - As for the dancing-master, I intend to leave him off as soon - as my month is finished. Tell me if you are still determined - that I shall dine at the abbess's table. If you are, I shall - at the end of my quarter. The King's speech and that of the - Eveque de Narbonne have been copied all over the convent. As for - Monsieur, he rose up to speak, but sat down again without daring - to open his lips. I know no news, but suppose Mr. Short will - write you enough for him and me too. Madame Thaubeneu desires - her compliments to you. Adieu, my dear papa. I am afraid you - will not be able to read my scrawl, but I have not the time of - copying it over again; and therefore I must beg your indulgence, - and assure you of the tender affection of yours, - - M. JEFFERSON. - - Pray write often, and long letters. - Panthemont, February 8th, 1787. - - [33] Livy. - - -_Martha Jefferson to Thomas Jefferson._ - - My dear Papa--Though the knowledge of your health gave me the - greatest pleasure, yet I own I was not a little disappointed in - not receiving a letter from you. However, I console myself with - the thought of having one very soon, as you promised to write to - me every week. Until now you have not kept your word the least - in the world, but I hope you will make up for your silence by - writing me a fine, long letter by the first opportunity. _Titus - Livius_ puts me out of my wits. I can not read a word by myself, - and I read of it very seldom with my master; however, I hope I - shall soon be able to take it up again. All my other masters - go on much the same--perhaps better. Every body here is very - well, particularly Madame L'Abbesse, who has visited almost a - quarter of the new building--a thing that she has not done for - two or three years before now. I have not heard any thing of - my harpsichord, and I am afraid it will not come before your - arrival. They make every day some new history on the Assemblée - des Notables. I will not tell you any, for fear of taking a trip - to the Bastile for my pains, which I am by no means disposed to - do at this moment. I go on pretty well with Thucydides, and hope - I shall very soon finish it. I expect Mr. Short every instant - for my letter, therefore I must leave you. Adieu, my dear papa; - be assured you are never a moment absent from my thoughts, and - believe me to be, your most affectionate child, - - M. JEFFERSON. - - March 25th, 1787. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson._ - - Aix en Provence, March 28th, 1787. - - I was happy, my dear Patsy, to receive, on my arrival here, - your letter, informing me of your good health and occupation. - I have not written to you sooner because I have been almost - constantly on the road. My journey hitherto has been a very - pleasing one. It was undertaken with the hope that the - mineral-waters of this place might restore strength to my wrist. - Other considerations also concurred--instruction, amusement, - and abstraction from business, of which I had too much at - Paris. I am glad to learn that you are employed in things new - and good, in your music and drawing. You know what have been my - fears for some time past--that you do not employ yourself so - closely as I could wish. You have promised me a more assiduous - attention, and I have great confidence in what you promise. - It is your future happiness which interests me, and nothing - can contribute more to it (moral rectitude always excepted) - than the contracting a habit of industry and activity. Of all - the cankers of human happiness none corrodes with so silent, - yet so baneful an influence, as indolence. Body and mind both - unemployed, our being becomes a burthen, and every object about - us loathsome, even the dearest. Idleness begets ennui, ennui the - hypochondriac, and that a diseased body. No laborious person - was ever yet hysterical. Exercise and application produce order - in our affairs, health of body and cheerfulness of mind, and - these make us precious to our friends. It is while we are young - that the habit of industry is formed. If not then, it never is - afterwards. The fortune of our lives, therefore, depends on - employing well the short period of youth. If at any moment, my - dear, you catch yourself in idleness, start from it as you would - from the precipice of a gulf. You are not, however, to consider - yourself as unemployed while taking exercise. That is necessary - for your health, and health is the first of all objects. For - this reason, if you leave your dancing-master for the summer, - you must increase your other exercise. - - I do not like your saying that you are unable to read the - ancient print of your Livy but with the aid of your master. We - are always equal to what we undertake with resolution. A little - degree of this will enable you to decipher your Livy. If you - always lean on your master, you will never be able to proceed - without him. It is a part of the American character to consider - nothing as desperate; to surmount every difficulty by resolution - and contrivance. In Europe there are shops for every want; its - inhabitants, therefore, have no idea that their wants can be - supplied otherwise. Remote from all other aid, we are obliged to - invent and to execute; to find means within ourselves, and not - to lean on others. Consider, therefore, the conquering your Livy - as an exercise in the habit of surmounting difficulties; a habit - which will be necessary to you in the country where you are to - live, and without which you will be thought a very helpless - animal, and less esteemed. Music, drawing, books, invention, and - exercise, will be so many resources to you against ennui. But - there are others which, to this object, add that of utility. - These are the needle and domestic economy. The latter you can - not learn here, but the former you may. In the country life of - America there are many moments when a woman can have recourse - to nothing but her needle for employment. In a dull company, - and in dull weather, for instance, it is ill-manners to read, - it is ill-manners to leave them; no card-playing there among - genteel people--that is abandoned to blackguards. The needle is - then a valuable resource. Besides, without knowing how to use it - herself, how can the mistress of a family direct the work of her - servants? - - You ask me to write you long letters. I will do it, my dear, on - condition you will read them from time to time, and practice - what they inculcate. Their precepts will be dictated by - experience, by a perfect knowledge of the situation in which - you will be placed, and by the fondest love for you. This it - is which makes me wish to see you more qualified than common. - My expectations from you are high, yet not higher than you may - attain. Industry and resolution are all that are wanting. Nobody - in this world can make me so happy, or so miserable, as you. - Retirement from public life will ere long become necessary for - me. To your sister and yourself I look to render the evening - of my life serene and contented. Its morning has been clouded - by loss after loss, till I have nothing left but you. I do - not doubt either your affections or dispositions. But great - exertions are necessary, and you have little time left to - make them. Be industrious, then, my dear child. Think nothing - insurmountable by resolution and application, and you will be - all that I wish you to be. - - You ask if it is my desire that you should dine at the Abbess's - table? It is. Propose it as such to Madame de Frauleinheim, - with my respectful compliments, and thanks for her care of you. - Continue to love me with all the warmth with which you are - beloved by, my dear Patsy, - - Yours affectionately, - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_Martha Jefferson to Thomas Jefferson._ - - My dear Papa--I am very glad that the beginning of your voyage - has been so pleasing, and I hope that the rest will not be less - so, as it is a great consolation for me, being deprived of the - pleasure of seeing you, to know at least that you are happy. I - hope your resolution of returning in the end of April is always - the same. I do not doubt but what Mr. Short has written you - word that my sister sets off with Fulwar Skipwith in the month - of May, and she will be here in July. Then, indeed, shall I - be the happiest of mortals; united to what I have the dearest - in the world, nothing more will be requisite to render my - happiness complete. I am not so industrious as you or I would - wish, but I hope that in taking pains I very soon shall be. I - have already begun to study more. I have not heard any news of - my harpsichord; it will be really very disagreeable if it is - not here before your arrival. I am learning a very pretty thing - now, but it is very hard. I have drawn several little flowers, - all alone, that the master even has not seen; indeed, he advised - me to draw as much alone as possible, for that is of more use - than all I could do with him. I shall take up my Livy, as you - desire it. I shall begin it again, as I have lost the thread - of the history. As for the hysterics, you may be quiet on that - head, as I am not lazy enough to fear them. Mrs. Barett has - wanted me out, but Mr. Short told her that you had forgotten - to tell Madame L'Abbesse to let me go out with her. There was - a gentleman, a few days ago, that killed himself because he - thought that his wife did not love him. They had been married - ten years. I believe that if every husband in Paris was to do - as much, there would be nothing but widows left. I shall speak - to Madame Thaubeneu about dining at the Abbess's table. As for - needlework, the only kind that I could learn here would be - embroidery, indeed netting also; but I could not do much of - those in America, because of the impossibility of having proper - silks; however, they will not be totally useless. You say your - expectations for me are high, yet not higher than I can attain. - Then be assured, my dear papa, that you shall be satisfied in - that, as well as in any thing else that lies in my power; for - what I hold most precious is your satisfaction, indeed I should - be miserable without it. You wrote me a long letter, as I asked - you; however, it would have been much more so without so wide - a margin. Adieu, my dear papa. Be assured of the tenderest - affection of your loving daughter, - - M. JEFFERSON. - - Pray answer me very soon--a long letter, without a margin. - I will try to follow the advice they contain with the most - scrupulous exactitude. - - Panthemont, April 9th, 1787. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson._ - - Toulon, April 7th, 1787. - - My dear Patsy--I received yesterday, at Marseilles, your letter - of March 25th, and I received it with pleasure, because it - announced to me that you were well. Experience learns us to be - always anxious about the health of those whom we love. I have - not been able to write to you as often as I expected, because I - am generally on the road, and when I stop anywhere I am occupied - in seeing what is to be seen. It will be some time now, perhaps - three weeks, before I shall be able to write you again. But this - need not slacken your writing to me, because you have leisure, - and your letters come regularly to me. I have received letters - which inform me that our dear Polly will certainly come to us - this summer. By the time I return it will be time to expect - her. When she arrives she will become a precious charge on - your hands. The difference of your age, and your common loss - of a mother, will put that office on you. Teach her above - all things to be good, because without that we can neither be - valued by others nor set any value on ourselves. Teach her to - be always true; no vice is so mean as the want of truth, and at - the same time so useless. Teach her never to be angry; anger - only serves to torment ourselves, to divert others, and alienate - their esteem. And teach her industry, and application to useful - pursuits. I will venture to assure you that, if you inculcate - this in her mind, you will make her a happy being in herself, a - most inestimable friend to you, and precious to all the world. - In teaching her these dispositions of mind, you will be more - fixed in them yourself, and render yourself dear to all your - acquaintances. Practice them, then, my dear, without ceasing. If - ever you find yourself in difficulty, and doubt how to extricate - yourself, do what is right, and you will find it the easiest - way of getting out of the difficulty. Do it for the additional - incitement of increasing the happiness of him who loves you - infinitely, and who is, my dear Patsy, yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_Martha Jefferson to Thomas Jefferson._ - - My dear Papa--I was very sorry to see, by your letter to Mr. - Short, that your return would be put off. However, I hope not - much, as you must be here for the arrival of my sister. I wish I - was myself all that you tell me to make her; however, I will try - to be as near like it as I can. I have another landscape since - I wrote to you last, and have begun another piece of music. I - have not been able to do more, having been confined some time - to my bed with a violent headache and a pain in my side, which - afterwards blistered up and made me suffer a great deal, but I - am now much better. I have seen a physician who had just drawn - two of my companions out of a most dreadful situation, which - gave me a great deal of trust in him. But the most disagreeable - thing is, that I have been obliged to discontinue all my - masters, and am able now to take only some of them that are the - least fatiguing. However, I hope to take them all very soon. - Madame L'Abbesse has just had a _fluxion de poitrine_, and has - been at the last extremity, but now is better. The _pays bas_ - have revolted against the Emperor, who is gone to Prussia to - join with the Empress and the Venetians to war against the - Turks. The plague is in Spain. A Virginia ship coming to Spain - met with a corsair of the same strength. They fought, and the - battle lasted an hour and a quarter. The Americans gained and - boarded the corsair, where they found chains that had been - prepared for them. They took them, and made use of them for the - Algerians themselves. They returned to Virginia, from whence - they are to go back to Algiers to change the prisoners, to - which, if the Algerians will not consent, the poor creatures - will be sold as slaves. Good God! have we not enough? I wish - with all my soul that the poor negroes were all freed.... A - coach-and-six, well shut up, was seen to go to the Bastile, - and the Baron de Breteuil went two hours before to prepare an - apartment. They suppose it to be Madame de Polignac and her - sister; however, no one knows. The King asked M. D'Harcourt how - much a year was necessary for the Dauphin. M. D'Harcourt having - looked over the accounts, told him two millions; upon which the - King could not help expressing his astonishment, because each of - his daughters cost him more; so Madame de Polignac had pocketed - the rest. Mr. Smith is at Paris. That is all the news I know; - they told me a great deal more, but I have forgotten it. Adieu, - my dear papa, and believe me to be for life your most tender and - affectionate child, - - M. JEFFERSON. - - Paris, May 3d, 1787. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson._ - - Marseilles, May 5th, 1787. - - My dear Patsy--I got back to Aix the day before yesterday, - and found there your letter of the 9th of April--from which I - presume you to be well, though you do not say so. In order to - exercise your geography, I will give you a detail of my journey. - You must therefore take your map and trace out the following - places: Dijon, Lyons, Pont St. Esprit, Nismes, Arles, St. - Remis, Aix, Marseilles, Toulon, Hières, Fréjus, Antibes, Nice, - Col de Tende, Coni, Turin, Vercelli, Milan, Pavia, Tortona, - Novi, Genoa, by sea to Albenga, by land to Monaco, Nice, - Antibes, Fréjus, Brignolles, Aix, and Marseilles. The day after - to-morrow, I set out hence for Aix, Avignon, Pont du Gard, - Nismes, Montpellier, Narbonne, along the Canal of Languedoc - to Toulouse, Bordeaux, Rochefort, Rochelle, Nantes, L'Orient, - Nantes, Tours, Orléans, and Paris--where I shall arrive about - the middle of June, after having travelled something upwards of - a thousand leagues. - - From Genoa to Aix was very fatiguing--the first two days having - been at sea, and mortally sick--two more clambering the cliffs - of the Apennines, sometimes on foot, sometimes on a mule, - according as the path was more or less difficult--and two others - travelling through the night as well as day without sleep. I - am not yet rested, and shall therefore shortly give you rest - by closing my letter, after mentioning that I have received a - letter from your sister, which, though a year old, gave me great - pleasure. I inclose it for your perusal, as I think it will be - pleasing for you also. But take care of it, and return it to me - when I shall get back to Paris, for, trifling as it seems, it is - precious to me. - - When I left Paris, I wrote to London to desire that your - harpsichord might be sent during the months of April and May, - so that I am in hopes it will arrive a little before I shall, - and give me an opportunity of judging whether you have got the - better of that want of industry which I began to fear would be - the rock on which you would split. Determine never to be idle. - No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who - never loses any. It is wonderful how much may be done if we are - always doing. And that you may be always doing good, my dear, is - the ardent prayer of, yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON - - -_Martha Jefferson to Thomas Jefferson._ - - My dear Papa--I was very glad to see by your letter that you - were on your return, and I hope that I shall very soon have the - pleasure of seeing you. My sister's letter gave me a great deal - of happiness. I wish she would write to me; but as I shall enjoy - her presence very soon, it will make up for a neglect that I own - gives me the greatest pain. I still remember enough of geography - to know where the places marked in your letter are. I intend to - copy over my extracts and learn them by heart. I have learnt - several new pieces on the harpsichord, drawn five landscapes and - three flowers, and hope to have done something more by the time - you come. I go on pretty well with my history, and as for _Tite - Live_ I have begun it three or four times, and go on so slowly - with it that I believe I never shall finish it. It was in vain - that I took courage; it serves to little good in the execution - of a thing almost impossible. I read a little of it with my - master who tells me almost all the words, and, in fine, it - makes me lose my time. I begin to have really great difficulty - to write English; I wish I had some pretty letters to form my - style. Pray tell me if it is certain that my sister comes in the - month of July, because if it is, Madame De Taubenheim will keep - a bed for her. My harpsichord is not come yet. Madame L'Abbesse - is better, but she still keeps her bed. Madame De Taubenheim - sends her compliments to you. Pray how does your arm go? I am - very well now. Adieu, my dear papa; as I do not know any news, I - must finish in assuring you of the sincerest affection of your - loving child, - - M. JEFFERSON. - - Paris, May 27th, 1787. - - -_Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson._ - - May 21st, 1787. - - I write you, my dear Patsy, from the canal of Languedoc, on - which I am at present sailing, as I have been for a week past, - cloudless skies above, limpid waters below, and on each hand, - a row of nightingales in full chorus. This delightful bird had - given me a rich treat before, at the fountain of Vaucluse. - After visiting the tomb of Laura at Avignon, I went to see this - fountain--a noble one of itself, and rendered famous forever - by the songs of Petrarch, who lived near it. I arrived there - somewhat fatigued, and sat down by the fountain to repose - myself. It gushes, of the size of a river, from a secluded - valley of the mountain, the ruins of Petrarch's château being - perched on a rock two hundred feet perpendicular above. To add - to the enchantment of the scene, every tree and bush was filled - with nightingales in full song. I think you told me that you had - not yet noticed this bird. As you have trees in the garden of - the convent, there might be nightingales in them, and this is - the season of their song. Endeavor, my dear, to make yourself - acquainted with the music of this bird, that when you return - to your own country you may be able to estimate its merit in - comparison with that of the mocking-bird. The latter has the - advantage of singing through a great part of the year, whereas - the nightingale sings but about five or six weeks in the spring, - and a still shorter term, and with a more feeble voice, in the - fall. - - I expect to be at Paris about the middle of next month. By - that time we may begin to expect our dear Polly. It will be a - circumstance of inexpressible comfort to me to have you both - with me once more. The object most interesting to me for the - residue of my life, will be to see you both developing daily - those principles of virtue and goodness which will make you - valuable to others and happy in yourselves, and acquiring those - talents and that degree of science which will guard you at all - times against ennui, the most dangerous poison of life. A mind - always employed is always happy. This is the true secret, the - grand recipe, for felicity. The idle are the only wretched. In a - world which furnishes so many employments which are useful, so - many which are amusing, it is our own fault if we ever know what - ennui is, or if we are ever driven to the miserable resource of - gaming, which corrupts our dispositions, and teaches us a habit - of hostility against all mankind. We are now entering the port - of Toulouse, where I quit my bark, and of course must conclude - my letter. Be good and be industrious, and you will be what - I shall most love in the world. Adieu, my dear child. Yours - affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following is an extract from a letter to his daughter, dated -Nantes, June 1st, 1787: - - I forgot, in my last letter, to desire you to learn all your - old tunes over again perfectly, that I may hear them on your - harpsichord, on its arrival. I have no news of it, however, - since I left Paris, though I presume it will arrive immediately, - as I have ordered. Learn some slow movements of simple melody - for the Celestini stop, as it suits such only. I am just setting - out for L'Orient, and shall have the happiness of seeing you at - Paris about the 12th or 15th of this month, and assuring you in - person of the sincere love of, yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - - Increased Anxiety about his youngest Daughter.--Her Aunt's - Letter.--She arrives in England.--Mrs. Adams receives - her.-- Letter to Mrs. Eppes.--To Madame de Corny.--To J. - Bannister.-- To his Sister.--Letter to Mr. Jay.--To Madame de - Brehan.--To Madame de Corny.--Weariness of Public Life.--Goes - to Amsterdam.-- Letter to Mr. Jay.--To Mr. Izard.--To Mrs. - Marks.--To Mr. Marks.--To Randolph Jefferson.--To Mrs. Eppes. - - -While Mr. Jefferson was eagerly expecting the arrival of his little -daughter from Virginia, the child herself was still clinging to the -hope that her father might change his plans for her and agree to her -remaining with her Aunt Eppes, from whom she obstinately refused to -be separated. Towards the close of the month of March, 1787, we find -this kind lady writing to Mr. Jefferson as follows: - - -_Mrs. Eppes to Jefferson._ - - I never was more anxious to hear from you than at present, in - hopes of your countermanding your orders with regard to dear - Polly. We have made use of every stratagem to prevail on her - to consent to visit you without effect. She is more averse to - it than I could have supposed; either of my children would - with pleasure take her place for the number of good things she - is promised. However, Mr. Eppes has two or three different - prospects of conveying her, to your satisfaction, I hope, if we - do not bear from you. - -On the eve of the child's departure her anxious aunt again writes: - - This will, I hope, be handed you by my dear Polly, who I most - ardently wish may reach you in the health she is in at present. - I shall be truly wretched till I hear of her being safely landed - with you. The children will spend a day or two on board the ship - with her, which I hope will reconcile her to it. For God's sake - give us the earliest intelligence of her arrival. - -As mentioned in the above extract, her young cousins went on board -the ship with the little Mary, and were her playmates there until she -had become somewhat at home and acquainted with those around her. -Then, while the child was one day asleep, they were all taken away, -and before she awoke the vessel had cut loose from her moorings, and -was fairly launched on the tedious voyage before her. - -The bark bearing this precious little charge, and the object of -so many hopes and prayers on both sides of the Atlantic, made a -prosperous voyage, and landed the young child safely in England. -There, at her father's request, she was received by Mrs. Adams, who -treated her with the tenderness of a mother, until he could arrange -to get her across the Channel. Some of his French friends, who were -at the time in England, were to have taken her to Paris, but his -impatience to see her could not brook the delay of their return, and -he sent a servant--Petit, his steward--for her. In the mean time -he announced her safe arrival to her friends in Virginia in the -following letter: - - -_To Francis Eppes._ - - Paris, July 2d, 1787. - - Dear Sir--The present is merely to inform you of the safe - arrival of Polly in London, in good health. I have this moment - dispatched a servant for her. Mr. Ammonit did not come, but - she was in the best hands possible, those of Captain Ramsay. - Mrs. Adams writes me she was so much attached to him that her - separation from him was a terrible operation. She has now to - go through the same with Mrs. Adams. I hope that in ten days - she will join those from whom she is no more to be separated. - As this is to pass through post-offices, I send it merely to - relieve the anxieties which Mrs. Eppes and yourself are so good - as to feel on her account, reserving myself to answer both your - favors by the next packet. I am, with very sincere esteem, dear - Sir, your affectionate friend and servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The loneliness of the little girl's situation on her arrival in a -strange land, among strangers, her distress at having parted with her -good aunt, Mrs. Eppes, her gratitude to Mrs. Adams for her kindness, -her singular beauty, and the sweetness of her disposition, are -touchingly and vividly described by Mrs. Adams in a letter to her -sister. She writes: - - -_From Mrs. Adams._ - - I have had with me for a fortnight a little daughter of Mr. - Jefferson's, who arrived here, with a young negro girl, her - servant, from Virginia. Mr. Jefferson wrote me some months ago - that he expected them, and desired me to receive them. I did - so, and was amply repaid for my trouble. A finer child of her - age I never saw.[34] So mature an understanding, so womanly a - behavior, and so much sensibility united, are rarely to be met - with. I grew so fond of her, and she was so much attached to - me, that, when Mr. Jefferson sent for her, they were obliged - to force the little creature away. She is but eight years old. - She would sit, sometimes, and describe to me the parting with - her aunt, who brought her up, the obligation she was under to - her, and the love she had for her little cousins, till the tears - would stream down her cheeks; and how I had been her friend, and - she loved me. Her papa would break her heart by making her go - again. She clung round me so that I could not help shedding a - tear at parting with her. She was the favorite of every one in - the house. I regret that such fine spirits must be spent in the - walls of a convent. She is a beautiful girl too. - - [34] She was in her ninth year. - -The following letter written by Mr. Jefferson to Mrs. Eppes describes -the arrival of his little one in Paris, and her visits to the convent. - - -_To Mrs. Eppes._ - - Paris, July 28th, 1787. - - Dear Madam--Your favors of March 31st and May 7th have been duly - received; the last by Polly, whose arrival has given us great - joy. Her disposition to attach herself to those who are kind - to her had occasioned successive distresses on parting with - Captain Ramsay first, and afterwards with Mrs. Adams. She had - a very fine passage, without a storm, and was perfectly taken - care of by Captain Ramsay. He offered to come to Paris with her, - but this was unnecessary. I sent a trusty servant to London - to attend her here. A parent may be permitted to speak of his - own child when it involves an act of justice to another. The - attentions which your goodness has induced you to pay her prove - themselves by the fruits of them. Her reading, her writing, her - manners in general, show what everlasting obligations we are - all under to you. As far as her affections can be a requital, - she renders you the debt, for it is impossible for a child to - prove a more sincere affection to an absent person than she does - to you. She will surely not be the least happy among us when - the day shall come in which we may be all reunited. She is now - established in the convent, perfectly happy. Her sister came - and staid a week with her, leading her from time to time to the - convent, until she became familiarized to it. This soon took - place, as she became a universal favorite with the young ladies - and the mistresses. She writes you a long letter, giving an - account of her voyage and journey here. She neither knew us, nor - should we have known her had we met with her unexpectedly. Patsy - enjoys good health, and will write to you. She has grown much - the last year or two, and will be very tall. She retains all her - anxiety to get back to her country and her friends, particularly - yourself. Her dispositions give me perfect satisfaction, and - her progress is well; she will need, however, your instruction - to render her useful in her own country. Of domestic economy - she can learn nothing here, yet she must learn it somewhere, - as being of more solid value than any thing else. I answer - Jack's[35] letter by this occasion. I wish he would give me - often occasion to do it; though at this distance I can be of no - use to him, yet I am willing to show my disposition to be useful - to him, as I shall be forever bound to be to every one connected - with yourself and Mr. Eppes, had no other connection rendered - the obligation dear to my heart. I shall present my affections - to Mr. and Mrs. Skipwith in a letter to the former. Kiss the - children for me, and be assured of the unchangeable esteem and - respect of, dear Madam, your affectionate friend and servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - [35] Mrs. Eppes's son, and little Polly's future husband. - -When little Mary Jefferson first went to Paris, instead of "Polly," -she was called by the French _Mademoiselle Polie_. In a short time, -however, she was called Marie, and on her return to America, the -Virginian pronunciation of that French name soon ran into Maria, -by which name, strange to say, she was ever after called, even by -her father and sister; and Maria, instead of Mary, is the name now -inscribed on the marble slab which rests upon her grave. - -The following is a letter written a short while after his return to -Paris, to one of his lady friends, then on a visit to England: - -_To Madame de Corny._ - - Paris, Jane 30th, 1787. - - On my return to Paris it was among my first attentions to go to - the Rue Chaussée d'Antin, No. 17, and inquire after my friends - whom I had left there. I was told they were in England. And how - do you like England, Madam? I know your taste for the works - of art gives you a little disposition to Anglomania. Their - mechanics certainly exceed all others in some lines. But be just - to your own nation. They have not patience, it is true, to sit - rubbing a piece of steel from morning to night, as a lethargic - Englishman will do, full-charged with porter. But do not their - benevolence, their amiability, their cheerfulness, when compared - with the growling temper and manners of the people among whom - you are, compensate their want of patience? I am in hopes that - when the splendor of their shops, which is all that is worth - seeing in London, shall have lost the charm of novelty, you will - turn a wishful eye to the good people of Paris, and find that - you can not be so happy with any others. The Bois de Boulogne - invites you earnestly to come and survey its beautiful verdure, - to retire to its umbrage from the heats of the season. I was - through it to-day, as I am every day. Every tree charged me - with this invitation to you. Passing by La Muette, it wished for - you as a mistress. You want a country-house. This is for sale; - and in the Bois de Boulogne, which I have always insisted to be - most worthy of your preference. Come, then, and buy it. If I had - had confidence in your speedy return, I should have embarrassed - you in earnest with my little daughter. But an impatience to - have her with me, after her separation from her friends, added - to a respect for your ease, has induced me to send a servant for - her. - - I tell you no news, because you have correspondents infinitely - more _au fait_ of the details of Paris than I am. And I offer - you no services, because I hope you will come as soon as the - letter could which should command them. Be assured, however, - that nobody is more disposed to render them, nor entertains for - you a more sincere and respectful attachment, than him who, - after charging you with his compliments to Monsieur de Corny, - has the honor of offering you the homage of those sentiments of - distinguished esteem and regard, with which he is, dear Madam, - your most obedient and most humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In a letter to J. Bannister, Jr., he thus speaks of the ill-fated -traveller Ledyard, and of the pleasures of his own recent tour -through the southern part of France: - -_To J. Bannister._ - - I had a letter from Ledyard lately, dated at St. Petersburg. - He had but two shirts, and yet, more shirts than shillings. - Still he was determined to obtain the palm of being the first - circumambulator of the earth. He says that, having no money, - they kick him from place to place, and thus he expects to be - kicked around the globe. Are you become a great walker? You know - I preach up that kind of exercise. Shall I send you a conte-pas? - It will cost you a dozen louis, but be a great stimulus to - walking, as it will record your steps. I finished my tour a week - or ten days ago. I went as far as Turin, Milan, Genoa; and never - passed three months and a half more delightfully. I returned - through the Canal of Languedoc, by Bourdeaux, Nantes, L'Orient, - and Rennes; then returned to Nantes and came up the Loire to - Orléans. I was alone through the whole, and think one travels - more usefully when alone, because he reflects more. - - -_To Mrs. Bolling._ - - Paris, July 23d, 1787. - - Dear Sister--I received with real pleasure your letter of May - 3d, informing me of your health and of that of your family. Be - assured it is, and ever has been, the most interesting thing to - me. Letters of business claiming their rights before those of - affection, we often write seldomest to those whom we love most. - The distance to which I am removed has given a new value to all - I valued before in my own country, and the day of my return - to it will be the happiest I expect to see in this life. When - it will come is not yet decided, as far as depends on myself. - My dear Polly is safely arrived here, and in good health. She - had got so attached to Captain Ramsay that they were obliged - to decoy her from him. She staid three weeks in London with - Mrs. Adams, and had got up such an attachment to her, that she - refused to come with the person I sent for her. After some days - she was prevailed on to come. She did not know either her sister - or myself, but soon renewed her acquaintance and attachment. She - is now in the same convent with her sister, and will come to see - me once or twice a week. It is a house of education altogether, - the best in France, and at which the best masters attend. There - are in it as many Protestants as Catholics, and not a word is - ever spoken to them on the subject of religion. Patsy enjoys - good health, and longs much to return to her friends. We shall - doubtless find much change when we do get back; many of our - older friends withdrawn from the stage, and our younger ones - grown out of our knowledge. I suppose you are now fixed for life - at Chestnut Grove. I take a part of the misfortune to myself, as - it will prevent my seeing you as often as would be practicable - at Lickinghole. It is still a greater loss to my sister Carr. - We must look to Jack for indemnification, as I think it was - the plan that he should live at Lickinghole. I suppose he is - now become the father of a family, and that we may hail you as - grandmother. As we approach that term it becomes less fearful. - You mention Mr. Bolling's being unwell, so as not to write to - me. He has just been sick enough all his life to prevent his - writing to any body. My prayer is, therefore, only that he may - never be any worse; were he to be so, nobody would feel it - more sensibly than myself, as nobody has a more sincere esteem - for him than myself. I find as I grow older, that I love those - most whom I loved first. Present me to him in the most friendly - terms; to Jack also, and my other nephews and nieces of your - fireside, and be assured of the sincere love with which I am, - dear sister, your affectionate brother, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In the autumn of this year (1787) the Count de Moustier was sent by -the Court of St. Germains as minister plenipotentiary to the United -States. In a letter to Mr. Jay, Jefferson recommends the Count and -his sister-in-law, Madame de Brehan, to the kind attentions of Mr. -Jay and his family in the following terms: - -_To John Jay._ - - The connection of your offices will necessarily connect you in - acquaintance; but I beg leave to present him to you on account - of his personal as well as his public character. You will - find him open, communicative, candid, simple in his manners, - and a declared enemy to ostentation and luxury. He goes with - a resolution to add no aliment to it by his example, unless - he finds that the dispositions of our countrymen require it - indispensably. Permit me, at the same time, to solicit your - friendly notice, and through you, that also of Mrs. Jay, to - Madame la Marquise de Brehan, sister-in-law to Monsieur de - Moustier. She accompanies him, in hopes that a change of - climate may assist her feeble health, and also that she may - procure a more valuable education for her son, and safer from - seduction, in America than in France. I think it impossible to - find a better woman, more amiable, more modest, more simple in - her manners, dress, and way of thinking. She will deserve the - friendship of Mrs. Jay, and the way to obtain hers is to receive - her and treat her without the shadow of etiquette. - -On the eve of her departure for America, Jefferson wrote the -following graceful note of adieu: - -_To Madame de Brehan._ - - Paris, October 9th, 1787. - - Persuaded, Madam, that visits at this moment must be - troublesome, I beg you to accept my adieus in this form. Be - assured that no one mingles with them more regret at separating - from you. I will ask your permission to inquire of you by - letter sometimes how our country agrees with your health and - your expectations, and will hope to hear it from yourself. The - imitation of European manners, which you will find in our towns, - will, I fear, be little pleasing. I beseech you to practice - still your own, which will furnish them a model of what is - perfect. Should you be singular, it will be by excellence, and - after a while you will see the effect of your example. - - Heaven bless you, Madam, and guard you under all - circumstances--give you smooth waters, gentle breezes, and clear - skies, hushing all its elements into peace, and leading with its - own hand the favored bark, till it shall have safely landed its - precious charge on the shores of our new world. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following pleasant letter is to another of his lady friends: - -_To Madame de Corny._ - - Paris, October 18th, 1787. - - I now have the honor, Madam, to send you the Memoir of M. de - Calonnes. Do not injure yourself by hurrying its perusal. Only - when you shall have read it at your leisure, be so good as to - send it back, that it may be returned to the Duke of Dorset. You - will read it with pleasure. It has carried comfort to my heart, - because it must do the same to the King and the nation. Though - it does not prove M. de Calonnes to be more innocent than his - predecessors, it shows him not to have been that exaggerated - scoundrel which the calculations and the clamors of the public - have supposed. It shows that the public treasures have not been - so inconceivably squandered as the Parliaments of Grenoble, - Toulouse, etc., had affirmed. In fine, it shows him less - wicked, and France less badly governed, than I had feared. In - examining my little collection of books, to see what it could - furnish you on the subject of Poland, I find a small piece which - may serve as a supplement to the history I had sent you. It - contains a mixture of history and politics, which I think you - will like. - - How do you do this morning? I have feared you exerted and - exposed yourself too much yesterday. I ask you the question, - though I shall not await its answer. The sky is clearing, and I - shall away to my hermitage. God bless you, my dear Madam, now - and always. Adieu. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In a letter written to Mr. Donald in the year 1788, his weariness of -public life shows itself in the following lines: - -_To Mr. Donald._ - - Your letter has kindled all the fond recollections of ancient - times--recollections much dearer to me than any thing I have - known since. There are minds which can be pleased with honors - and preferments; but I see nothing in them but envy and enmity. - It is only necessary to possess them to know how little they - contribute to happiness, or rather how hostile they are to it. - No attachments soothe the mind so much as those contracted in - early life; nor do I recollect any societies which have given - me more pleasure than those of which you have partaken with me. - I had rather be shut up in a very modest cottage with my books, - my family, and a few old friends, dining on simple bacon, and - letting the world roll on as it liked, than to occupy the most - splendid post that any human power can give. I shall be glad to - hear from you often. Give me the small news as well as the great. - -Early in March, Mr. Jefferson was called by business to meet Mr. -Adams in Amsterdam. After an absence of some weeks he returned to -Paris. About this time we find him very delicately writing to Mr. Jay -on the subject of an outfit, which, it seems, Congress had not at -that time allowed to its ministers abroad, and the want of which was -painfully felt by them. - - -_To John Jay._ - - It is the usage here (and I suppose at all courts), that a - minister resident shall establish his house in the first - instant. If this is to be done out of his salary, he will be - a twelvemonth, at least, without a copper to live on. It is - the universal practice, therefore, of all nations to allow the - outfit as a separate article from the salary. I have inquired - here into the usual amount of it. I find that sometimes the - sovereign pays the actual cost. This is particularly the case - of the Sardinian ambassador now coming here, who is to provide - a service of plate and every article of furniture and other - matters of first expense, to be paid for by his court. In other - instances, they give a service of plate, and a fixed sum for - all other articles, which fixed sum is in no case lower than a - year's salary. - - I desire no service of plate, having no ambition for splendor. - My furniture, carriage, and apparel are all plain; yet they - have cost me more than a year's salary. I suppose that in every - country and every condition of life, a year's expense would be - found a moderate measure for the furniture of a man's house. - It is not more certain to me that the sun will rise to-morrow, - than that our Government must allow the outfit, on their future - appointment of foreign ministers; and it would be hard on me so - to stand between the discontinuance of a former rule and the - institution of a future one as to have the benefit of neither. - -In writing to Mr. Izard, who wrote to make some inquiries about a -school for his son in France, he makes the following remarks about -the education of boys: - -_To Mr. Izard._ - - I have never thought a boy should undertake abstruse or - difficult sciences, such as mathematics in general, till fifteen - years of age at soonest. Before that time they are best employed - in learning the languages, which is merely a matter of memory. - The languages are badly taught here. If you propose he should - learn the Latin, perhaps you will prefer the having him taught - it in America, and, of course, to retain him there two or three - years more. - -One of the most beautiful traits in Jefferson's character was the -tenderness of his love for a sister--Ann Scott Jefferson--who -was deficient in intellect, and who, on that account, was more -particularly the object of his brotherly love and attentions. The two -following letters addressed to her husband and herself on the event -of their marriage, while handsome and graceful letters in themselves, -are more interesting and greater proofs of the goodness of his heart -and the sincere warmth of his affections, from the simple character -and nature of those to whom they were addressed. - -_To Mrs. Anna Scott Marks._ - - Paris, July 12th, 1788. - - My dear Sister--My last letters from Virginia inform me of your - marriage with Mr. Hastings Marks. I sincerely wish you joy and - happiness in the new state into which you have entered. Though - Mr. Marks was long my neighbor, eternal occupations in business - prevented my having a particular acquaintance with him, as it - prevented me from knowing more of my other neighbors, as I would - have wished to have done. I saw enough, however, of Mr. Marks - to form a very good opinion of him, and to believe that he will - endeavor to render you happy. I am sure you will not be wanting - on your part. You have seen enough of the different conditions - of life to know that it is neither wealth nor splendor, but - tranquillity and occupation, which give happiness. This truth I - can confirm to you from longer observation and a greater scope - of experience. I should wish to know where Mr. Marks proposes - to settle and what line of life he will follow. In every - situation I should wish to render him and you every service in - my power, as you may be assured I shall ever feel myself warmly - interested in your happiness, and preserve for you that sincere - love I have always borne you. My daughters remember you with - equal affection, and will, one of these days, tender it to you - in person. They join me in wishing you all earthly felicity, - and a continuance of your love to them. Accept assurances of - the sincere attachment with which I am, my dear sister, your - affectionate brother, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Hastings Marks._ - - Paris, July 12th, 1788. - - Dear Sir--My letters from Virginia informing me of your - intermarriage with my sister, I take the earliest opportunity - of presenting you my sincere congratulations on that occasion. - Though the occupations in which I was engaged prevented my - forming with you that particular acquaintance which our - neighborhood might have admitted, it did not prevent my - entertaining a due sense of your merit. I am particularly - pleased that Mr. Lewis has taken the precise measures which - I had intended to recommend to him in order to put you into - immediate possession of my sister's fortune in my hands. I - should be happy to know where you mean to settle and what - occupation you propose to follow--whether any other than that - of a farmer, as I shall ever feel myself interested in your - success, and wish to promote it by any means in my power, should - any fall in my way. The happiness of a sister whom I very - tenderly love being committed to your hands, I can not but offer - prayers to Heaven for your prosperity and mutual satisfaction. A - thorough knowledge of her merit and good dispositions encourages - me to hope you will both find your happiness in this union, and - this hope is encouraged by my knowledge of yourself. I beg you - to be assured of the sentiments of sincere esteem and regard - with which I shall be on all occasions, dear Sir, your friend - and servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following is to his only brother: - -_To Randolph Jefferson._ - - Paris, January 11th, 1789. - - Dear Brother--The occurrences of this part of the globe are - of a nature to interest you so little that I have never made - them the subject of a letter to you. Another discouragement has - been the distance and time a letter would be on its way. I have - not the less continued to entertain for you the same sincere - affection, the same wishes for your health and that of your - family, and almost an envy of your quiet and retirement. The - very short period of my life which I have passed unconnected - with public business suffices to convince me it is the happiest - of all situations, and that no society is so precious as that - of one's own family. I hope to have the pleasure of seeing you - for a while the next summer. I have asked of Congress a leave - of absence for six months, and if I obtain it in time I expect - to sail from hence in April, and to return in the fall. This - will enable me to pass two months at Monticello, during which I - hope I shall see you and my sister there. You will there meet - an old acquaintance, very small when you knew her, but now of - good stature.[36] Polly you hardly remember, and she scarcely - recollects you. Both will be happy to see you and my sister, and - to be once more placed among their friends they well remember - in Virginia.... Nothing in this country can make amends for - what one loses by quitting their own. I suppose you are by this - time the father of a numerous family, and that my namesake is - big enough to begin the thraldom of education. Remember me - affectionately to my sister, joining my daughters therein, who - present their affectionate duty to you also; and accept yourself - assurances of the sincere attachment and esteem of, dear brother, - - Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - [36] Martha Jefferson. - -Six months before writing the above he wrote the following: - -_To Mrs. Eppes._ - - Paris, July 12th, 1788. - - Dear Madam--Your kind favor of January 6th has come duly to - hand. These marks of your remembrance are always dear to me, and - recall to my mind the happiest portion of my life. It is among - my greatest pleasures to receive news of your welfare and that - of your family. You improve in your trade, I see, and I heartily - congratulate you on the double blessings of which Heaven has - just begun to open her stores to you. Polly is infinitely - flattered to find a namesake in one of them. She promises in - return to teach them both French. This she begins to speak - easily enough, and to read as well as English. She will begin - Spanish in a few days, and has lately begun the harpsichord and - drawing. She and her sister will be with me to-morrow, and if - she has any tolerable scrap of her pencil ready I will inclose - it herein for your diversion. I will propose to her, at the same - time, to write to you. I know she will undertake it at once, as - she has done a dozen times. She gets all the apparatus, places - herself very formally with pen in hand, and it is not till after - all this and rummaging her head thoroughly that she calls out, - "Indeed, papa, I do not know what to say; you must help me," - and, as I obstinately refuse this, her good resolutions have - always proved abortive, and her letters ended before they were - begun. Her face kindles with love whenever she hears your name, - and I assure you Patsy is not behind her in this. She remembers - you with warm affection, recollects that she was bequeathed to - you, and looks to you as her best future guide and guardian. - She will have to learn from you things which she can not learn - here, and which after all are among the most valuable parts - of education for an American. Nor is the moment so distant as - you imagine; on this I will enter into explanations in my next - letter. I will only engage, from her dispositions, that you will - always find in her the most passive compliance. You say nothing - to us of Betsy, whom we all remember too well not to remember - her affectionately. Jack, too, has failed to write to me since - his first letter. I should be much pleased if he would himself - give me the details of his occupations and progress. I would - write to Mrs. Skipwith,[37] but I could only repeat to her what - I say to you, that we love you both sincerely, and pass one - day in every week together, and talk of nothing but Eppington, - Hors-du-monde, and Monticello, and were we to pass the whole - seven, the theme would still be the same. God bless you both, - Madam, your husbands, your children, and every thing near and - dear to you, and be assured of the constant affection of your - sincere friend and humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - [37] His sister-in-law, Mrs. Eppes's sister. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - - Jefferson asks for leave of Absence.--Character of the Prince - of Wales.--Letters to Madame de Brehan.--Fondness for Natural - History.--Anecdote told by Webster.--Jefferson's Opinion of - Chemistry.--Letter to Professor Willard.--Martha Jefferson.-- - She wishes to enter a Convent.--Her Father takes her Home.--He - is impatient to return to Virginia.--Letter to Washington.--To - Mrs. Eppes.--Receives leave of Absence.--Farewell to France.-- - Jefferson as an Ambassador.--He leaves Paris.--His Daughter's - Account of the Voyage, and Arrival at Home.--His Reception by - his Slaves. - - -In November, 1788, Mr. Jefferson wrote to Mr. Jay to petition -Congress for a leave of absence of five or six months. He earnestly -desired this leave, that he might return to America to look after his -own private affairs, which sadly needed his personal attention, and -that he might carry his daughters back to Virginia and leave them -with their relations there, as he thought they were now at an age -when they should be associating with those among whom they were to -live. - -During the months which elapsed before he received leave to return -home, his correspondence with his friends in America continued to be -interesting. In a letter written to Mr. Jay early in January, 1789, -we find the following sketch of a character then notorious in Europe: - -_To John Jay._ - - As the character of the Prince of Wales is becoming interesting, - I have endeavored to learn what it truly is. This is less - difficult in his case than it is in other persons of his rank, - because he has taken no pains to hide himself from the world. - The information I most rely on is from a person here, with whom - I am intimate, who divides his time between Paris and London--an - Englishman by birth, of truth, sagacity, and science. He is of - a circle, when in London, which has had good opportunities - of knowing the Prince; but he has also, himself, had special - occasions of verifying their information by his own personal - observations. He happened, when last in London, to be invited to - a dinner of three persons. The Prince came by chance, and made - the fourth. He ate half a leg of mutton; did not taste of small - dishes, because small; drank Champagne and Burgundy as small - beer during dinner, and Bourdeaux after dinner, as the rest of - the company. Upon the whole, he ate as much as the other three, - and drank about two bottles of wine without seeming to feel it. - - My informant sat next him, and being until then unknown to the - Prince personally (though not by character), and lately from - France, the Prince confined his conversation to him almost - entirely. Observing to the Prince that he spoke French without - the slightest foreign accent, the Prince told him that, when - very young, his father had put only French servants about him, - and that it was to that circumstance he owed his pronunciation. - He led him from this to give an account of his education, the - total of which was the learning a little Latin. He has not a - single element of mathematics, of natural or moral philosophy, - or of any other science on earth, nor has the society he has - kept been such as to supply the void of education. It has been - that of the lowest, the most illiterate and profligate persons - of the kingdom, without choice of rank or mind, and with whom - the subjects of conversation are only horses, drinking-matches, - bawdy-houses, and in terms the most vulgar. The young nobility - who begin by associating with him soon leave him disgusted by - the insupportable profligacy of his society; and Mr. Fox, who - has been supposed his favorite, and not over-nice in the choice - of company, would never keep his company habitually. In fact, - he never associated with a man of sense. He has not a single - idea of justice, morality, religion, or of the rights of men, - or any anxiety for the opinion of the world. He carries that - indifference for fame so far, that he probably would not be hurt - if he were to lose his throne, provided he could be assured of - having always meat, horses, and women. In the article of women, - nevertheless, he has become more correct since his connection - with Mrs. Fitzherbert, who is an honest and worthy woman; he is - even less crapulous than he was. - - He had a fine person, but it is becoming coarse. He possesses - good native common sense, is affable, polite, and very - good-humored--saying to my informant, on another occasion, - "Your friend such a one dined with me yesterday, and I made him - damned drunk;" he replied, "I am sorry for it. I had heard that - your royal highness had left off drinking." The Prince laughed, - tapped him on the shoulder very good-naturedly, without saying a - word, or ever after showing any displeasure. - - The Duke of York, who was for some time cried up as the prodigy - of the family, is as profligate and of less understanding. To - these particular traits, from a man of sense and truth, it would - be superfluous to add the general terms of praise or blame in - which he is spoken of by other persons, in whose impartiality - and penetration I have less confidence. A sample is better than - a description. For the peace of Europe, it is best that the King - should give such gleamings of recovery as would prevent the - Regent or his ministry from thinking themselves firm, and yet - that he should not recover. - -The following letters were written by Jefferson to his friend -Madame de Brehan, who was still in America. The first is a note -of introduction given to one of his lady friends, and the second -contains an interesting account of the severity of the winter of -1788-'89 and of the sufferings of the poor in Paris. - -_To Madame de Brehan._ - - Paris, Feb. 15th, 1789. - - It is an office of great pleasure to me, my dear Madam, to bring - good people together. I therefore present to you Mrs. Church, - who makes a short visit to her native country. I will not tell - you her amiable qualities, but leave you the pleasure of seeing - them yourself. You will see many _au premier abord_, and you - would see more every day of your lives, were every day of your - lives to bring you together. In truth, I envy you the very gift - I make you, and would willingly, if I could, take myself the - moments of her society which I am procuring you. I need not pray - you to load her with civilities. Both her character and yours - will insure this. I will thank you for them in person, however, - very soon after you shall receive this. Adieu, ma chère Madame. - Agreez toutes les hommages de respect et d'attachement avec - lesquelles j'ai l'honneur d'être, Madame, votre très humble et - très obeissant serviteur, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Madame de Brehan._ - - Paris, March 14th, 1789. - - Dear Madam--I had the honor of writing to you on the 15th of - February, soon after which I had that of receiving your favor of - December the 29th. I have a thousand questions to ask you about - your journey to the Indian treaty, how you like their persons, - their manners, their costumes, _cuisine_, etc. But this I must - defer until I can do it personally in New York, where I hope to - see you for a moment in the summer, and to take your commands - for France. I have little to communicate to you from this place. - It is deserted; every body being gone into the country to choose - or be chosen deputies to the States General. I hope to see that - great meeting before my departure. It is to be on the 27th of - next month. A great political revolution will take place in your - country, and that without bloodshed. A king, with two hundred - thousand men at his orders, is disarmed by the force of public - opinion and the want of money. Among the economies becoming - necessary, perhaps one may be the Opera. They say it has cost - the public treasury a hundred thousand crowns in the last year. - A new theatre is established since your departure--that of the - Opera Buffons, where Italian operas are given, and good music. - Paris is every day enlarging and beautifying. I do not count - among its beauties, however, the wall with which they have - inclosed us. They have made some amends for this by making - fine Boulevards within and without the walls. These are in - considerable forwardness, and will afford beautiful rides around - the city of between fifteen and twenty miles in circuit. We have - had such a winter, Madame, as makes me shiver yet whenever I - think of it. All communications, almost, were cut off. Dinners - and suppers were suppressed, and the money laid out in feeding - and warming the poor, whose labors were suspended by the rigors - of the season. Loaded carriages passed the Seine on the ice, and - it was covered with thousands of people from morning to night, - skating and sliding. Such sights were never seen before, and - they continued two months. We have nothing new and excellent - in your charming art of painting. In fact, I do not feel an - interest in any pencil but that of David. But I must not hazard - details on a subject wherein I am so ignorant and you are such - a connoisseur. Adieu, my dear Madam; permit me always the honor - of esteeming and being esteemed by you, and of tendering you the - homage of that respectful attachment, with which I am and shall - ever be, dear Madam, your most obedient, humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -Jefferson's devotion to the study of Natural History is well -known, and the accuracy of his knowledge in it is most strikingly -illustrated in the following anecdote, which we quote from his -biography by Randall: - - An amusing anecdote is preserved of the subject of his - correspondence with the celebrated Buffon. The story used to be - so well told by Daniel Webster--who probably heard it from the - lips of the New Hampshire party to it--that we will give it in - his words, as we find it recorded by an intelligent writer, and - one evidently very familiar with Mr. Webster, in an article in - Harper's Magazine, entitled "Social Hours of Daniel Webster:" - - "Mr. Webster, in the course of his remarks, narrated a story - of Jefferson's overcoming Buffon on a question of Natural - History. It was a dispute in relation to the moose--the - moose-deer, as it is called in New Hampshire--and in one of - the circles of _beaux-esprits_ in Paris. Mr. Jefferson - contended for certain characteristics in the formation of the - animal which Buffon stoutly denied. Whereupon Mr. Jefferson, - without giving any one notice of his intention, wrote from - Paris to General John Sullivan, then residing in Durham, New - Hampshire, to procure and send him the whole frame of a moose. - The General was no little astonished at a request he deemed so - extraordinary; but, well acquainted with Mr. Jefferson, he knew - he must have sufficient motive for it; so he made a - hunting-party of his neighbors, and took the field. They - captured a moose of unusual proportions, stripped it to the - bone, and sent the skeleton to Mr. Jefferson, at a cost of - fifty pounds sterling. On its arrival Mr. Jefferson invited - Buffon and some other _savants_ to a supper at his house, and - exhibited his dear-bought specimen. Buffon immediately - acknowledged his error, and expressed his great admiration for - Mr. Jefferson's energetic determination to establish the truth. - 'I should have consulted you, Monsieur,' he said, with usual - French civility, 'before publishing my book on Natural History, - and then I should have been sure of my facts.'" - -This has the advantage of most such anecdotes of eminent men, of -being accurate nearly to the letter, as far as it goes. The box of -President Sullivan (he was President of New Hampshire), containing -the bones, horns, and skin of a moose, and horns of the caribou elk, -deer, spiked horned buck, etc., reached Mr. Jefferson on the 2d of -October. They were the next day forwarded to Buffon--who, however, -proved to be out of town. On his return, he took advantage of a -supper at Jefferson's, to make the handsome admissions mentioned by -Mr. Webster.[38] - - [38] See Randall's Life of Jefferson, vol. i., p. 490. - -In a letter written early in the summer of the year 1788 to the -Rev. Mr. Madison, of William and Mary College, we find Jefferson -again right and Buffon wrong on a scientific subject. The student of -chemistry will smile at Buffon's opinion, while he can not but admire -Jefferson's wonderful foresight in predicting the discoveries to be -made in that science, even though he should have erred in his opinion -of Lavoisier's chemical nomenclature. We quote the following from the -above-mentioned letter: - - -_To Rev. Mr. Madison._ - - Speaking one day with Monsieur de Buffon on the present ardor - of chemical inquiry, he affected to consider chemistry but as - cookery, and to place the toils of the laboratory on a footing - with those of the kitchen. I think it, on the contrary, among - the most useful of sciences, and big with future discoveries for - the utility and safety of the human race. It is yet, indeed, a - mere embryon. Its principles are contested; experiments seem - contradictory, their subjects are so minute as to escape our - senses; and their results too fallacious to satisfy the mind. - It is probably an age too soon to propose the establishment of - a system. The attempts, therefore, of Lavoisier to reform the - chemical nomenclature is premature. One single experiment may - destroy the whole filiation of his terms, and his string of - sulphates, sulphites, and sulphures may have served no other end - than to have retarded the progress of the science, by a jargon, - from the confusion of which time will be requisite to extricate - us. Accordingly, it is not likely to be admitted generally. - -The letter of which we now give the conclusion shows how closely -and how minutely Jefferson watched and studied the improvements and -progress made in the arts and sciences during his stay in Europe. -This letter--to be found in both editions of his correspondence--was -written in the spring of the year 1789, and addressed to Doctor -Willard, professor in the University of Harvard, which University -had just conferred on Jefferson a diploma as Doctor of Laws. After -mentioning and criticising all the late publications bearing on the -different branches of science and letters, he makes the following -eloquent conclusion: - - -_To Dr. Willard._ - - What a field have we at our doors to signalize ourselves in! The - Botany of America is far from being exhausted, its mineralogy - is untouched, and its Natural History or Zoology totally - mistaken and misrepresented. As far as I have seen, there is - not one single species of terrestrial birds common to Europe - and America, and I question if there be a single species of - quadrupeds. (Domestic animals are to be excepted.) It is for - such institutions as that over which you preside so worthily, - Sir, to do justice to our country, its productions, and its - genius. It is the work to which the young men you are forming - should lay their hands. We have spent the prime of our lives - in procuring them the precious blessing of liberty. Let them - spend theirs in showing that it is the great parent of _science_ - and of virtue, and that a nation will be great in both always - in proportion as it is free. Nobody wishes more warmly for - the success of your good exhortations on this subject than he - who has the honor to be, with sentiments of great esteem and - respect, Sir, your most obedient humble servant, etc. - -Mr. Jefferson, as I have elsewhere noticed, placed his daughters at -school in a convent, and they were there educated during his stay -in Paris. His daughter Martha was now in her sixteenth year. She -had not failed to take advantage of the fine opportunities of being -an accomplished and well-informed woman which had been secured to -her by the most thoughtful and devoted of fathers. She was a good -linguist, an accomplished musician, and well read for her years; -and we doubt whether any of her Virginian or even American female -contemporaries could boast so thorough an education as could the -modest, yet highly-gifted, Martha Jefferson. The gentle and loving -kindness lavished on her by the inmates of the convent won for them -her warmest affection, while the sweet amiability of her disposition, -the charming simplicity of her manner, and the unusual powers of her -mind endeared her to them. Thus her school-days flowed peacefully -and gently by. But while their father had so carefully secured for -his daughters a good mental and moral training by the situation in -which he had placed them, he had overlooked the danger of their -becoming too fond of it. He was startled, therefore, by receiving -a note from Martha requesting permission to enter the convent and -spend the rest of her days in the discharge of the duties of a -religious life. He acted on this occasion with his usual tact. He did -not reply to the note, but after a day or two drove to the Abbaye, -had a private interview with the Abbess, and then asked for his -daughters. He received them with more than usual affectionate warmth -of manner, and, without making the least allusion to Martha's note -or its contents, told his daughters that he had called to take them -from school, and accordingly he drove back home accompanied by them. -Martha was soon introduced into society at the brilliant court of -Louis the Sixteenth, and soon forgot her girlish desire to enter a -convent. No word in allusion to the subject ever passed between the -father and daughter, and it was not referred to by either of them -until years afterwards, when she spoke of it to her children. - -Getting more and more impatient for leave to return home for a few -months, we find Jefferson writing to Washington, in the spring of -1789, as follows: - - -_To George Washington._ - - In a letter of November 19th to Mr. Jay, I asked a leave of - absence to carry my children back to their own country, and to - settle various matters of a private nature, which were left - unsettled, because I had no idea of being absent so long. I - expected that letter would have been received in time to be - acted upon by the Government then existing. I know now that it - would arrive when there was no Congress, and consequently that - it must have awaited your arrival in New York. I hope you found - the request not an unreasonable one. I am excessively anxious - to receive the permission without delay, that I may be able to - get back before the winter sets in. Nothing can be so dreadful - to me as to be shivering at sea for two or three months in a - winter passage. Besides, there has never been a moment at which - the presence of a minister here could be so well dispensed with, - from certainty of no war this summer, and that the Government - will be so totally absorbed in domestic arrangements as to - attend to nothing exterior. - -In the same letter we find him congratulating Washington on his -election as President, and seizing that occasion to pay a graceful -tribute to him of praise and admiration, and also of affection. He -says: - - Though we have not heard of the actual opening of the new - Congress, and consequently have not official information of your - election as President of the United States, yet, as there never - could be a doubt entertained of it, permit me to express here my - felicitations, not to yourself, but to my country. Nobody who - has tried both public and private life can doubt but that you - were much happier on the banks of the Potomac than you will be - at New York. But there was nobody so well qualified as yourself - to put our new machine into a regular course of action--nobody, - the authority of whose name could have so effectually crushed - opposition at home and produced respect abroad. I am sensible - of the immensity of the sacrifice on your part. Your measure - of fame was full to the brim; and therefore you have nothing - to gain. But there are cases wherein it is a duty to risk all - against nothing, and I believe this was exactly the case. We - may presume, too, according to every rule of probability, that, - after doing a great deal of good, you will be found to have lost - nothing but private repose. - -How anxiously Jefferson awaited the arrival of his leave of -absence will be seen from the letter below, written by him to his -sister-in-law: - - -_To Mrs. Eppes._ - - Paris, Dec. 15th, 1788. - - Dear Madam--In my last, of July 12th, I told you that in my next - I would enter into explanations about the time my daughters - would have the happiness to see you. Their future welfare - requires that this should be no longer postponed. It would have - taken place a year sooner, but that I wished Polly to perfect - herself in her French. I have asked leave of absence of Congress - for five or six months of the next year, and if I obtain it in - time I shall endeavor to sail about the middle of April. As my - time must be passed principally at Monticello during the two - months I destine for Virginia, I shall hope that you will come - and encamp there with us a while. He who feedeth the sparrow - must feed us also. Feasting we shall not expect, but this will - not be our object. The society of our friends will sweeten all. - Patsy has just recovered from an indisposition of some days. - Polly has the same; it is a slight but continual fever, not - sufficient, however, to confine her to her bed. This prevents - me from being able to tell you that they are absolutely well. - I inclose a letter which Polly wrote a month ago to her aunt - Skipwith, and her sickness will apologize for her not writing - to you or her cousins; she makes it up in love to you all, and - Patsy equally, but this she will tell you herself, as she is - writing to you. I hope you will find her an estimable friend as - well as a dutiful niece. She inherits stature from her father, - and that, you know, is inheriting no trifle. Polly grows fast. - I should write to Mrs. Skipwith also, but that I rely on your - friendship to repeat to her the assurance of my affection for - her and Mr. Skipwith. We look forward with impatience to the - moment when we may be all reunited, though but for a little - time. Kiss your dear children for us, the little and the big, - and tender them my warmest affections, accepting yourself - assurances of the sincere esteem and attachment, with which I - am, my dear Madam, your affectionate and humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The long-expected leave of absence came at last, and was received by -Jefferson during the last days of August (1789). October being deemed -the best month in which to be at sea, he postponed his voyage until -that time. He left Paris on the 26th of September, as he thought, -to be absent only a few months, but, as the event proved, never -to return again. We find in his Memoir the following affectionate -farewell to the kind people and the fair land of France: - - I can not leave this great and good country without expressing - my sense of its pre-eminence of character among the nations of - the earth. A more benevolent people I have never known, nor - greater warmth and devotedness in their select friendships. - Their kindness and accommodation to strangers is unparalleled, - and the hospitality of Paris is beyond any thing I had conceived - to be practicable in a large city. Their eminence, too, in - science, the communicative dispositions of their scientific men, - the politeness of their general manners, the ease and vivacity - of their conversation, give a charm to their society to be found - nowhere else. In a comparison of this with other countries, we - have the proof of primacy which was given to Themistocles after - the battle of Salamis. Every general voted to himself the first - reward of valor, and the second to Themistocles. So, ask the - travelled inhabitant of any nation, on what country on earth - would you rather live?--Certainly in my own, where are all my - friends, my relations, and the earliest and sweetest affections - and recollections of my life. Which would be your second choice? - France. - -Of Jefferson's discharge of his duties as minister at the Court of -St. Germains, Mr. Webster spoke thus: - - Mr. Jefferson's discharge of his diplomatic duties was marked - by great ability, diligence, and patriotism; and while he - resided at Paris, in one of the most interesting periods, his - character for intelligence, his love of knowledge and of the - society of learned men, distinguished him in the highest circles - of the French capital. No court in Europe had at that time a - representative in Paris commanding or enjoying higher regard, - for political knowledge or for general attainments, than the - minister of this then infant republic. - -So, too, the Edinburgh Review, though no admirer of Jefferson's -political creed, says of his ambassadorial career: - - His watchfulness on every subject which might bear on the most - favorable arrangement of their new commercial treaties, his - perseverance in seeking to negotiate a general alliance against - Algiers, the skill and knowledge with which he argued the - different questions of national interest that arose during his - residence, will not suffer even in comparison with Franklin's - diplomatic talents. Every thing he sees seems to suggest to - him the question whether it can be made useful in America. - Could we compare a twelvemonth's letters from our ambassadors' - bags at Paris, Florence, or elsewhere, we should see whether - our enormous diplomatic salaries are any thing else than very - successful measures for securing our business being ill and idly - done. - -Jefferson, as I have just mentioned, left Paris the last of -September. The account given below, of his journey home and reception -there, is from the narrative of Martha Jefferson, before quoted: - - In returning, he was detained ten days at Havre de Grace, and, - after crossing the Channel, ten more at Cowes, in the Isle of - Wight, which were spent in visiting different parts of the - island, when the weather permitted: among others, Carisbrook - Castle, remarkable for the confinement of Charles the First, - and also for a well of uncommon depth. We sailed on the 23d of - October, 1789, in company with upwards of thirty vessels who - had collected there and been detained, as we were, by contrary - winds. Colonel Trumbull, who chartered the ship for my father - in London, applied to Mr. Pitt to give orders to prevent his - baggage from being searched on his arrival, informing Mr. Pitt - at the same time that the application was made without his - knowledge. The orders to such an effect were accordingly issued, - I presume, as he was spared the usual vexation of such a search. - The voyage was quick and not unpleasant. When we arrived on the - coast there was so thick a mist as to render it impossible to - see a pilot, had any of them been out. After beating about three - days, the captain, a bold as well as an experienced seaman, - determined to run in at a venture, without having seen the - Capes. The ship came near running upon what was conjectured to - be the Middle Ground, when anchor was cast at ten o'clock P.M. - The wind rose, and the vessel drifted down, dragging her anchor, - one or more miles. But she had got within the Capes, while a - number which had been less bold were blown off the coast, some - of them lost, and all kept out three or four weeks longer. We - had to beat up against a strong head-wind, which carried away - our topsails; and we were very near being run down by a brig - coming out of port, which, having the wind in her favor, was - almost upon us before we could get out of the way. We escaped, - however, with only the loss of a part of our rigging. My father - had been so anxious about his public accounts, that he would - not trust them to go until he went with them. We arrived at - Norfolk in the forenoon, and in two hours after landing, before - an article of our baggage was brought ashore, the vessel took - fire, and seemed on the point of being reduced to a mere hull. - They were in the act of scuttling her, when some abatement in - the flames was discovered, and she was finally saved. So great - had been the activity of her crew, and of those belonging to - other ships in the harbor who came to their aid, that every - thing in her was saved. Our trunks, and perhaps also the papers, - had been put in our state-rooms, and the doors incidentally - closed by the captain. They were so close that the flames did - not penetrate; but the powder in a musket in one of them was - silently consumed, and the thickness of the travelling-trunks - alone saved their contents from the excessive heat. I understood - at the time that the state-rooms alone, of all the internal - partitions, escaped burning. Norfolk had not recovered from - the effects of the war, and we should have found it difficult - to obtain rooms but for the politeness of the gentlemen at the - hotel (Lindsay's), who were kind enough to give up their own - rooms for our accommodation. - - There were no stages in those days. We were indebted to the - kindness of our friends for horses; and visiting all on the - way homeward, and spending more or less time with them all in - turn, we reached Monticello on the 23d of December. The negroes - discovered the approach of the carriage as soon as it reached - Shadwell,[39] and such a scene I never witnessed in my life. - They collected in crowds around it, and almost drew it up the - mountain by hand. The shouting, etc., had been sufficiently - obstreperous before, but the moment it arrived at the top it - reached the climax. When the door of the carriage was opened, - they received him in their arms and bore him to the house, - crowding around and kissing his hands and feet--some blubbering - and crying--others laughing. It seemed impossible to satisfy - their anxiety to touch and kiss the very earth which bore him. - These were the first ebullitions of joy for his return, after a - long absence, which they would of course feel; but perhaps it is - not out of place here to add that they were at all times very - devoted in their attachment to him. - - [39] Shadwell is four miles distant from Monticello. - -A letter written by Mr. Jefferson to his overseer had been the means -of the negroes getting information of their master's return home -some days before he arrived. They were wild with joy, and requested -to have holiday on the day on which he was expected to reach -home. Their request was, of course, granted, and they accordingly -assembled at Monticello from Mr. Jefferson's different farms. The -old and the young came--women and children--and, growing impatient, -they sauntered down the mountain-side and down the road until they -met the carriage-and-four at Shadwell, when the welkin rang with -their shouts of welcome. Martha Jefferson speaks of their "almost" -drawing the carriage by hand up the mountain: her memory in this -instance may have failed her, for I have had it from the lips of old -family servants who were present as children on the occasion, that -the horses were actually "unhitched," and the vehicle drawn by the -strong black arms up to the foot of the lawn in front of the door at -Monticello. The appearance of the young ladies, before whom they fell -back and left the way clear for them to reach the house, filled them -with admiration. They had left them when scarcely more than children -in the arms, and now returned--Martha a tall and stately-looking girl -of seventeen years, and the little Maria, now in her eleventh year, -more beautiful and, if possible, more lovable than when, two years -before, her beauty and her loveliness had warmed into enthusiasm the -reserved but kind-hearted Mrs. Adams. - -The father and his two daughters were then at last once more -domiciled within the walls of their loved Monticello. How grateful -it would have been for him never again to have been called away from -home to occupy a public post, the following extract from a letter -written by him before leaving Paris will show. He writes to Madison: - - You ask me if I would accept any appointment on that side - of the water? You know the circumstances which led me from - retirement, step by step, and from one nomination to another, up - to the present. My object is to return to the same retirement. - Whenever, therefore, I quit the present, it will not be to - engage in any other office, and most especially any one which - would require a constant residence from home. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -Letters on the French Revolution. - - -I have thought it best to throw into one chapter the extracts from -Mr. Jefferson's Letters and Memoir which relate to the scenes that -he witnessed at the beginning of the Revolution. These are so -interesting as almost to make us regret, with himself, that he should -have been recalled from France at that most fearfully interesting -period of her history. What pictures his pen would have preserved to -us of scenes, of many of which he would have been an eye-witness, and -how the student of history would revel in his dispatches home, which, -like those he has left us, must have abounded in interesting details -and sketches of character! - -In giving these extracts, I shall merely indicate the date of the -letters, and the persons to whom they were addressed: - - -_To John Jay, February 23d, 1787._ - - The Assemblée des Notables being an event in the history of this - country which excites notice, I have supposed it would not be - disagreeable to you to learn its immediate objects, though no - way connected with our interests. The Assembly met yesterday; - the King, in a short but affectionate speech, informed them of - his wish to consult with them on the plans he had digested, and - on the general good of his people, and his desire to imitate - the head of his family, Henry IV., whose memory is so dear - to the nation. The Garde des Sceaux then spoke about twenty - minutes, chiefly in compliment to the orders present. The - Comptroller-general, in a speech of about an hour, opened the - budjet, and enlarged on the several subjects which will be under - their deliberation. - - -_To James Madison, June 20th, 1787._ - - The King loves business, economy, order, and justice, and wishes - sincerely the good of his people; but he is irascible, rude, - very limited in his understanding, and religious bordering - on bigotry. He has no mistress, loves his queen, and is too - much governed by her. She is capricious, like her brother, - and governed by him; devoted to pleasure and expense, and not - remarkable for any other vices or virtues. Unhappily, the King - shows a propensity for the pleasures of the table. That for - drink has increased lately, or, at least, it has become more - known. - - -_To John Jay, August 7th, 1787._ - - The Parliament were received yesterday very harshly by the - King. He obliged them to register the two edicts for the impôt, - territorial, and stamp-tax. When speaking in my letter of the - reiterated orders and refusals to register, which passed between - the King and Parliament, I omitted to insert the King's answer - to a deputation of Parliament, which attended him at Versailles. - It may serve to show the spirit which exists between them. It - was in these words, and these only: "Je vous ferai savoir mes - intentions. Allez-vous-en. Qu'on ferme la porte!" - - -_To John Adams, August 30th, 1787._ - - It is urged principally against the King, that his revenue - is one hundred and thirty millions more than that of his - predecessor was, and yet he demands one hundred and twenty - millions further.... In the mean time, all tongues in Paris - (and in France, as it is said) have been let loose, and never - was a license of speaking against the Government exercised in - London more freely or more universally. Caricatures, placards, - bons-mots, have been indulged in by all ranks of people, and - I know of no well-attested instance of a single punishment. - For some time mobs of ten, twenty, and thirty thousand people - collected daily, surrounded the Parliament-house, huzzaed the - members, even entered the doors and examined into their conduct, - took the horses out of the carriages of those who did well, and - drew them home. The Government thought it prudent to prevent - these, drew some regiments into the neighborhood, multiplied - the guards, had the streets constantly patrolled by strong - parties, suspended privileged places, forbade all clubs, etc. - The mobs have ceased: perhaps this may be partly owing to the - absence of Parliament. The Count d'Artois, sent to hold a bed - of justice in the Cour des Aides, was hissed and hooted without - reserve by the populace; the carriage of Madame de (I forget - the name), in the Queen's livery, was stopped by the populace, - under the belief that it was Madame de Polignac, whom they would - have insulted; the Queen going to the theatre at Versailles with - Madame de Polignac, was received with a general hiss. The King, - long in the habit of drowning his cares in wine, plunges deeper - and deeper. The Queen cries, but sins on. The Count d'Artois - is detested, and Monsieur the general favorite. The Archbishop - of Toulouse is made minister principal--a virtuous, patriotic, - and able character. The Marechal de Castries retired yesterday, - notwithstanding strong solicitations to remain in office. The - Marechal de Segur retired at the same time, prompted to it by - the court. - - -_To John Jay, October 8th, 1787._ - - There has long been a division in the Council here on the - question of war and peace. Monsieur de Montmorin and Monsieur - de Breteuil have been constantly for war. They are supported in - this by the Queen. The King goes for nothing. He hunts one-half - the day, is drunk the other, and signs whatever he is bid. The - Archbishop of Toulouse desires peace. Though brought in by the - Queen, he is opposed to her in this capital object, which would - produce an alliance with her brother. Whether the Archbishop - will yield or not, I know not. But an intrigue is already begun - for ousting him from his place, and it is rather probable it - will succeed. He is a good and patriotic minister for peace, and - very capable in the department of finance. At least, he is so in - theory. I have heard his talents for execution censured. - - -_To John Jay, November 3d, 1787._ - - It may not be uninstructive to give you the origin and nature - of his (the Archbishop of Toulouse) influence with the Queen. - When the Duke de Choiseul proposed the marriage of the Dauphin - with this lady, he thought it proper to send a person to Vienna - to perfect her in the language. He asked his friend, the - Archbishop of Toulouse, to recommend to him a proper person. He - recommended a certain Abbé. The Abbé, from his first arrival at - Vienna, either tutored by his patron or prompted by gratitude, - impressed on the Queen's mind the exalted talents and merit of - the Archbishop, and continually represented him as the only - man fit to be placed at the helm of affairs. On his return to - Paris, being retained near the person of the Queen, he kept - him constantly in her view. The Archbishop was named of the - Assemblée des Notables, had occasion enough there to prove - his talents, and Count de Vergennes, his great enemy, dying - opportunely, the Queen got him into place. - -Writing to Mr. Jay on September 3d, 1788, Mr. Jefferson, after -alluding to the public bankruptcy and the moneyless condition of the -treasury, goes on to say: - - -_To John Jay, September 3d, 1788._ - - The Archbishop was hereupon removed, with Monsieur Lambert, - the Comptroller-general; and M. Necker was called in as - Director-general of the finance. To soften the Archbishop's - dismission, a cardinal's hat is asked for him from Rome, and - his nephew promised the succession to the Archbishopric of - Sens. The public joy on this change of administration was very - great indeed. The people of Paris were amusing themselves with - trying and burning the Archbishop in effigy, and rejoicing in - the appointment of M. Necker. The commanding officer of the - City Guards undertook to forbid this, and, not being obeyed, he - charged the mob with fixed bayonets, killed two or three, and - wounded many. This stopped their rejoicings for that day; but, - enraged at being thus obstructed in amusements wherein they had - committed no disorder whatever, they collected in great numbers - the next day, attacked the Guards in various places, burnt ten - or twelve guard-houses, killed two or three of the guards, and - had about six or eight of their own number killed. The city was - hereupon put under martial law, and after a while the tumult - subsided, and peace was restored. - - -_To George Washington, December 21st, 1788._ - - In my opinion, a kind of influence which none of their plans - of reform take into account, will elude them all--I mean the - influence of women in the Government. The manners of the - nation allow them to visit, alone, all persons in office, to - solicit the affairs of the husband, family, or friends, and - their solicitations bid defiance to laws and regulations. This - obstacle may seem less to those who, like our countrymen, are - in the precious habit of considering right as a barrier against - all solicitation. Nor can such an one, without the evidence of - his own eyes, believe in the desperate state to which things are - reduced in this country, from the omnipotence of an influence - which, fortunately for the happiness of the sex itself, does not - endeavor to extend itself, in our country, beyond the domestic - line. - - -_To Colonel Humphreys, March 18th, 1789._ - - The change in this country, since you left it, is such as you - can form no idea of. The frivolities of conversation have given - way entirely to politics. Men, women, and children talk nothing - else; and all, you know, talk a great deal. The press groans - with daily productions which, in point of boldness, make an - Englishman stare, who hitherto has thought himself the boldest - of men. A complete revolution in this Government has, within the - space of two years (for it began with the Notables of 1787), - been effected merely by the force of public opinion, aided, - indeed, by the want of money, which the dissipations of the - court had brought on. And this revolution has not cost a single - life, unless we charge to it a little riot lately in Bretagne, - which began about the price of bread, became afterwards - political, and ended in the loss of four or five lives. The - Assembly of the States General begins the 27th of April. The - representation of the people will be perfect; but they will - be alloyed by an equal number of the nobility and clergy. The - first great question they will have to decide will be, whether - they shall vote by orders or persons. And I have hopes that the - majority of the nobles are already disposed to join the Tiers - Etat in deciding that the vote shall be by persons. This is the - opinion _à la mode_ at present, and mode has acted a wonderful - part in the present instance. All the handsome young women, - for example, are for the Tiers Etat, and this is an army more - powerful in France than the two hundred thousand men of the King. - - -_To William Carmichael, May 8th, 1789._ - - The States General were opened day before yesterday. Viewing - it as an opera, it was imposing; as a scene of business, the - King's speech was exactly what it should have been, and very - well delivered; not a word of the Chancellor's was heard by any - body, so that, as yet, I have never heard a single guess at - what it was about. M. Necker's was as good as such a number of - details would permit it to be. The picture of their resources - was consoling, and generally plausible. I could have wished him - to have dwelt more on those great constitutional reformations, - which his "Rapport au Roi" had prepared us to expect. But they - observe that these points were proper for the speech of the - Chancellor. - - -_To John Jay, May 9th, 1789._ - - The revolution of this country has advanced thus far without - encountering any thing which deserves to be called a difficulty. - There have been riots in a few instances, in three or four - different places, in which there may have been a dozen or twenty - lives lost. The exact truth is not to be got at. A few days - ago a much more serious riot took place in this city, in which - it became necessary for the troops to engage in regular action - with the mob, and probably about one hundred of the latter were - killed. Accounts vary from twenty to two hundred. They were the - most abandoned banditti of Paris, and never was a riot more - unprovoked and unpitied. They began, under a pretense that a - paper manufacturer had proposed, in an assembly, to reduce their - wages to fifteen sous a day. They rifled his house, destroyed - every thing in his magazines and shops, and were only stopped in - their career of mischief by the carnage above mentioned. Neither - this nor any other of the riots have had a professed connection - with the great national reformation going on. They are such as - have happened every year since I have been here, and as will - continue to be produced by common incidents. - -In the same letter, in speaking of the King, he says: - - Happy that he is an honest, unambitious man, who desires neither - money nor power for himself; and that his most operative - minister, though he has appeared to trim a little, is still, in - the main, a friend to public liberty. - -In a letter to Mr. Jay, June 17, 1789, after alluding to the -continued disagreement between the orders composing the States -General, as to whether they should vote by persons or orders, he says: - - -_To John Jay, June 17th, 1789._ - - The Noblesse adhered to their former resolutions, and even the - minority, well disposed to the Commons, thought they could do - more good in their own chamber, by endeavoring to increase - their numbers and fettering the measures of the majority, than - by joining the Commons. An intrigue was set on foot between - the leaders of the majority in that House, the Queen and - Princes. They persuaded the King to go for some time to Marly; - he went. On the same day the leaders moved, in the Chamber of - Nobles, that they should address the King to declare his own - sentiments on the great question between the orders. It was - intended that this address should be delivered to him at Marly, - where, separated from his ministers, and surrounded by the - Queen and Princes, he might be surprised into a declaration - for the Nobles. The motion was lost, however, by a very great - majority, that Chamber being not yet quite ripe for throwing - themselves into the arms of despotism. Necker and Monmorin, who - had discovered this intrigue, had warned some of the minority to - defeat it, or they could not answer for what would happen.... - The Commons (Tiers Etat) having verified their powers, a motion - was made, the day before yesterday, to declare themselves - constituted, and to proceed to business. I left them at two - o'clock yesterday; the debates not then finished.... - - It is a tremendous cloud, indeed, which hovers over this nation, - and he (Necker) at the helm has neither the courage nor the - skill necessary to weather it. Eloquence in a high degree, - knowledge in matters of account, and order, are distinguishing - traits in his character. Ambition is his first passion, virtue - his second. He has not discovered that sublime truth, that a - bold, unequivocal virtue is the best handmaid even to ambition, - and would carry him farther, in the end, than the temporizing, - wavering policy he pursues. His judgment is not of the first - order, scarcely even of the second; his resolution frail; and, - upon the whole, it is rare to meet an instance of a person so - much below the reputation he has obtained. - - -_To John Jay, June 24th, 1789._ - - My letter of the 17th and 18th instant gave you the progress of - the States General to the 17th, when the Tiers had declared the - illegality of all the existing taxes, and their discontinuance - from the end of their present session. The next day being a jour - de fête, could furnish no indication of the impression that vote - was likely to make on the Government. On the 19th, a Council was - held at Marly, in the afternoon. It was there proposed that the - King should interpose by a declaration of his sentiments in a - _seance royale_. The declaration prepared by M. Necker, while - it censured, in general, the proceedings both of the Nobles and - Commons, announced the King's views, such as substantially to - coincide with the Commons. It was agreed to in Council, as also - that the _seance royale_ should be held on the 22d, and the - meetings till then be suspended. While the Council was engaged - in this deliberation at Marly, the Chamber of the Clergy was in - debate, whether they should accept the invitation of the Tiers - to unite with them in the common chamber. On the first question, - to unite simply and unconditionally, it was decided in the - negative by a very small majority. As it was known, however, - that some members who had voted in the negative would be for the - affirmative, with some modifications, the question was put with - these modifications, and it was determined, by a majority of - eleven members, that their body should join the Tiers. - - These proceedings of the Clergy were unknown to the Council at - Marly, and those of the Council were kept secret from every - body. The next morning (the 20th) the members repaired to - the House, as usual, found the doors shut and guarded, and - a proclamation posted up for holding a _seance royale_ on - the 22d, and a suspension of their meetings till then. They - presumed, in the first moment, that their dissolution was - decided, and repaired to another place, where they proceeded to - business. They there bound themselves to each other by an oath - never to separate of their own accord till they had settled a - Constitution for the nation on a solid basis, and, if separated - by force, that they would reassemble in some other place. It - was intimated to them, however, that day, privately, that the - proceedings of the _seance royale_ would be favorable to them. - The next day they met in a church, and were joined by a majority - of the Clergy. The heads of the aristocracy saw that all was - lost without some violent exertion. The King was still at Marly. - Nobody was permitted to approach him but their friends. He was - assailed by lies in all shapes. He was made to believe that - the Commons were going to absolve the army from their oath of - fidelity to him, and to raise their pay.... They procured a - committee to be held, consisting of the King and his ministers, - to which Monsieur and the Count d'Artois should be admitted. - At this committee the latter attacked M. Necker personally, - arraigned his plans, and proposed one which some of his engines - had put into his hands. M. Necker, whose characteristic is the - want of firmness, was browbeaten and intimidated, and the King - shaken. - - He determined that the two plans should be deliberated on the - next day, and the _seance royale_ put off a day longer. This - encouraged a fiercer attack on M. Necker the next day; his plan - was totally dislocated, and that of the Count d'Artois inserted - into it. Himself and Monsieur de Montmorin offered their - resignation, which was refused; the Count d'Artois saying to M. - Necker, "No, Sir, you must be kept as the hostage; we hold you - responsible for all the ill which shall happen." This change of - plan was immediately whispered without doors. The nobility were - in triumph, the people in consternation. When the King passed, - the next day, through the lane they formed from the Château - to the Hôtel des Etats (about half a mile), there was a dead - silence. He was about an hour in the House delivering his speech - and declaration, copies of which I inclose you. On his coming - out, a feeble cry of "Vive le Roi" was raised by some children, - but the people remained silent and sullen. When the Duke of - Orleans followed, however, their applauses were excessive. This - must have been sensible to the King. He had ordered, in the - close of his speech, that the members should follow him, and - resume their deliberations the next day. The Noblesse followed - him, and so did the Clergy, except about thirty, who, with the - Tiers, remained in the room and entered into deliberation. They - protested against what the King had done, adhered to all their - former proceedings, and resolved the inviolability of their own - persons. An officer came twice to order them out of the room, in - the King's name, but they refused to obey. - - In the afternoon, the people, uneasy, began to assemble in great - numbers in the courts and vicinities of the palace. The Queen - was alarmed, and sent for M. Necker. He was conducted amidst the - shouts and acclamations of the multitude, who filled all the - apartments of the palace. He was a few minutes only with the - Queen, and about three-quarters of an hour with the King. Not a - word has transpired of what passed at these interviews. The King - was just going to ride out. He passed through the crowd to his - carriage, and into it, without being in the least noticed. As - M. Necker followed him, universal acclamations were raised of - "Vive Monsieur Necker, vive le sauveur de la France opprimée." - He was conducted back to his house with the same demonstrations - of affection and anxiety.... These circumstances must wound the - heart of the King, desirous as he is to possess the affections - of his subjects.... - - _June 25th._--Just returned from Versailles, I am enabled to - continue my narration. On the 24th nothing remarkable passed, - except an attack by the mob of Versailles on the Archbishop of - Paris, who had been one of the instigators of the court to the - proceedings of the _seance royale_. They threw mud and stones - at his carriage, broke the windows of it, and he in a fright - promised to join the Tiers. - - -_To John Jay, June 29th, 1789._ - - I have before mentioned to you the ferment into which the - proceedings at the _seance royale_ of the 23d had thrown the - people. The soldiery also were affected by it. It began in the - French Guards, extended to those of every other denomination - (except the Swiss), and even to the bodyguards of the King. They - began to quit their barracks, to assemble in squads, to declare - they would defend the life of the King, but would not cut the - throats of their fellow-citizens. They were treated and caressed - by the people, carried in triumph through the streets, called - themselves the soldiers of the nation, and left no doubt on - which side they would be in case of a rupture. - -In his Memoir Jefferson writes, in allusion to the spirit among the -soldiery above noticed: - - -_Extract from Memoir._ - - The operation of this medicine at Versailles was as sudden - as it was powerful. The alarm there was so complete, that in - the afternoon of the 27th the King wrote, with his own hand, - letters to the Presidents of the Clergy and Nobles, engaging - them immediately to join the Tiers. These two bodies were - debating and hesitating, when notes from the Count d'Artois - decided their compliance. They went in a body, and took their - seats with the Tiers, and thus rendered the union of the orders - in one Chamber complete.... But the quiet of their march was - soon disturbed by information that troops, and particularly the - foreign troops, were advancing on Paris from various quarters. - The King had probably been advised to this, on the pretext of - preserving peace in Paris. But his advisers were believed to - have other things in contemplation. The Marshal de Broglio was - appointed to their command--a high-flying aristocrat, cool, and - capable of every thing. Some of the French Guards were soon - arrested under other pretexts, but really on account of their - dispositions in favor of the national cause. The people of Paris - forced their prison, liberated them, and sent a deputation to - the Assembly to solicit a pardon. The Assembly recommended peace - and order to the people of Paris, the prisoners to the King, - and asked from him the removal of the troops. His answer was - negative and dry, saying they might remove themselves, if they - pleased, to Noyons or Soissons. In the mean time, these troops, - to the number of twenty or thirty thousand, had arrived, and - were posted in and between Paris and Versailles. The bridges - and passes were guarded. At three o'clock in the afternoon of - the 11th of July, the Count de la Luzerne was sent to notify M. - Necker of his dismission, and to enjoin him to retire instantly, - without saying a word of it to any body. He went home, dined, - and proposed to his wife a visit to a friend, but went in fact - to his country-house at St. Ouen, and at midnight set out for - Brussels. This was not known till the next day (the 12th), when - the whole ministry was changed, except Villederril, of the - domestic department, and Barenton, Garde des Sceaux.... - - The news of this change began to be known at Paris about one - or two o'clock. In the afternoon a body of about one hundred - German cavalry were advanced and drawn up in the Place Louis - XV., and about two hundred Swiss posted at a little distance in - their rear. This drew people to the spot, who thus accidentally - found themselves in front of the troops, merely at first as - spectators; but, as their numbers increased, their indignation - rose. They retired a few steps, and posted themselves on and - behind large piles of stones, large and small, collected in - that place for a bridge, which was to be built adjacent to it. - In this position, happening to be in my carriage on a visit, I - passed through the lane they had formed without interruption. - But the moment after I had passed the people attacked the - cavalry with stones. They charged, but the advantageous position - of the people, and the showers of stones, obliged the horses - to retire and quit the field altogether, leaving one of their - number on the ground, and the Swiss in their rear not moving to - their aid. This was the signal for universal insurrection, and - this body of cavalry, to avoid being massacred, retired towards - Versailles. - -After describing the events of the 13th and 14th, and of the -imperfect report of them which reached the King, he says: - - But at night the Duke de Liancourt forced his way into the - King's bed-chamber, and obliged him to hear a full and animated - detail of the disasters of the day in Paris. He went to bed - fearfully impressed. - -After alluding to the demolition of the Bastile, he says: - - The alarm at Versailles increased. The foreign troops were - ordered off instantly. Every minister resigned. The King - confirmed Bailly as Prévôt des Marchands, wrote to M. Necker - to recall him, sent his letter open to the Assembly, to be - forwarded by them, and invited them to go with him to Paris - the next day, to satisfy the city of his dispositions. [Then - comes a list of the Court favorites who fled that night.] The - King came to Paris, leaving the Queen in consternation for his - return. Omitting the less important figures of the procession, - the King's carriage was in the centre; on each side of it, the - Assembly, in two ranks, afoot; at their head the Marquis de - Lafayette, as commander-in-chief, on horseback, and Bourgeois - guards before and behind. About sixty thousand citizens, of - all forms and conditions, armed with the conquests of the - Bastile and Invalides, as far as they would go, the rest with - pistols, swords, pikes, pruning-hooks, scythes, etc., lined all - the streets through which the procession passed, and with the - crowds of the people in the streets, doors, and windows, saluted - them everywhere with the cries of "Vive la nation," but not a - single "Vive le roi" was heard. The King stopped at the Hôtel - de Ville. There M. Bailly presented, and put into his hat, the - popular cockade, and addressed him. The King being unprepared, - and unable to answer, Bailly went to him, gathered some scraps - of sentences, and made out an answer, which he delivered to the - audience as from the King. On their return, the popular cries - were, "Vive le roi et la nation!" He was conducted by a garde - Bourgeoise to his palace at Versailles, and thus concluded such - an "amende honorable" as no sovereign ever made, and no people - ever received. - -After speaking of the precious occasion that was here lost, of -sparing to France the crimes and cruelties through which she -afterwards passed, and of the good disposition of the young King, he -says: - - But he had a queen of absolute sway over his weak mind and timid - virtue, and of a character the reverse of his in all points. - This angel, so gaudily painted in the rhapsodies of Burke, - with some smartness of fancy but no sound sense, was proud, - disdainful of restraint, indignant at all obstacles to her will, - eager in the pursuit of pleasure, and firm enough to hold to - her desires, or perish in their wreck. Her inordinate gambling - and dissipations, with those of the Count d'Artois and others - of her _clique_, had been a sensible item in the exhaustion of - the treasury, which called into action the reforming hand of the - nation; and her opposition to it, her inflexible perverseness, - and dauntless spirit, led herself to the guillotine, drew - the King on with her, and plunged the world into crimes and - calamities which will forever stain the pages of modern history. - I have ever believed that, had there been no queen, there would - have been no revolution. No force would have been provoked - nor exercised. The King would have gone hand in hand with the - wisdom of his sounder counsellors, who, guided by the increased - lights of the age, wished only with the same pace to advance the - principles of their social constitution. The deed which closed - the mortal course of these sovereigns I shall neither approve - nor condemn. I am not prepared to say that the first magistrate - of a nation can not commit treason against his country, or is - unamenable to its punishment; nor yet that, where there is no - written law, no regulated tribunal, there is not a law in our - hearts and a power in our hands, given for righteous employment - in maintaining right and redressing wrong.... - - I should have shut up the Queen in a convent, putting harm out - of her power, and placed the King in his station, investing - him with limited powers, which, I verily believe, he would - have honestly exercised, according to the measure of his - understanding. - -After giving further details, he goes on to say: - - In this uneasy state of things, I received one day a note from - the Marquis de Lafayette, informing me that he should bring a - party of six or eight friends to ask a dinner of me the next - day. I assured him of their welcome. When they arrived they were - Lafayette himself, Duport, Barnave, Alexander la Meth, Blacon, - Mounier, Maubourg, and Dagout. These were leading patriots of - honest but differing opinions, sensible of the necessity of - effecting a coalition by mutual sacrifices, knowing each other, - and not afraid, therefore, to unbosom themselves mutually. This - last was a material principle in the selection. With this view - the Marquis had invited the conference, and had fixed the time - and place inadvertently, as to the embarrassment under which - it might place me. The cloth being removed, and wine set on - the table, after the American manner, the Marquis introduced - the objects of the conference.... The discussions began at - the hour of four, and were continued till ten o'clock in the - evening; during which time I was a silent witness to a coolness - and candor of argument unusual in the conflicts of political - opinion--to a logical reasoning and chaste eloquence disfigured - by no gaudy tinsel of rhetoric or declamation, and truly worthy - of being placed in parallel with the finest dialogues of - antiquity, as handed to us by Xenophon, by Plato, and Cicero.... - - But duties of exculpation were now incumbent on me. I waited on - Count Montmorin the next morning, and explained to him, with - truth and candor, how it had happened that my house had been - made the scene of conferences of such a character. He told me - he already knew every thing which had passed; that, so far from - taking umbrage at the use made of my house on that occasion, he - earnestly wished I would habitually assist at such conferences, - being sure I should be useful in moderating the warmer spirits, - and promoting a wholesome and practicable reformation. - -Nothing of further interest as regards the French Revolution appears -in Jefferson's Memoir. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - - Washington nominates Jefferson as Secretary of State.-- - Jefferson's Regret.--Devotion of Southern Statesmen to - Country Life.--Letter to Washington.--Jefferson accepts - the Appointment.--Marriage of his Daughter.--He leaves - for New York.--Last Interview with Franklin.--Letters to - Son-in-law.--Letters of Adieu to Friends in Paris.--Family - Letters. - - -The calls of his country would not allow Jefferson to withdraw -from public life, and, living in that retirement for which he so -longed, abandon himself to the delights of rural pursuits. On -his way from Norfolk to Monticello he stopped to pay a visit, in -Chesterfield County, to his sister-in-law, Mrs. Eppes. There he -received letters from General Washington telling him that he had -nominated him as Secretary of State, and urging him so earnestly -and so affectionately to accept the appointment as to put a refusal -on his part out of the question. He tells us in his Memoir that he -received the proffered appointment with "real regret;" and we can -not doubt his sincerity. In reading the lives of the Fathers of -the Republic, we can but be struck with their weariness of public -life, and their longings for the calm enjoyment of the sweets of -domestic life in the retirement of their quiet homes. This was -eminently the case with our great men from the South. Being for the -most part large land-owners, their presence being needed on their -estates, and agricultural pursuits seeming to have an indescribable -fascination for them, all engagements grew irksome which prevented -the enjoyment of that manly and independent life which they found -at the head of a Southern plantation. The pomps and splendor of -office had no charms for them, and we find Washington turning with -regret from the banks of the Potomac to go and fill the highest -post in the gift of his countrymen; Jefferson sighing after the -sublime beauties of his distant Monticello, and longing to rejoin -his children and grandchildren there, though winning golden opinions -in the discharge of his duties as Premier; while Henry chafed in -the Congressional halls, and was eager to return to his woods in -Charlotte, though gifted with that wonderful power of speech whose -fiery eloquence could at any moment startle his audience to their -feet. But Jefferson, in this instance, had peculiar reasons for -wishing a reprieve from public duties. His constant devotion to -them had involved his private affairs in sad confusion, and there -was danger of the ample fortune which his professional success and -the skillful management of his property had secured to him being -lost, merely from want of time and opportunity to look after it. He -dreaded, then, to enter upon a public career whose close he could -not foresee; and there is a sad tone of resignation in his letter of -acceptance to General Washington, which seems to show that he felt -he was sacrificing his private repose to his duty to his country; -yet he did not know how entirely he was sacrificing his own for his -country's good. I give the whole letter: - - -_To George Washington._ - - Chesterfield, December 15th, 1789. - - Sir--I have received at this place the honor of your letters of - October 13th and November the 30th, and am truly flattered by - your nomination of me to the very dignified office of Secretary - of State, for which permit me here to return you my very humble - thanks. Could any circumstance induce me to overlook the - disproportion between its duties and my talents, it would be the - encouragement of your choice. But when I contemplate the extent - of that office, embracing as it does the principal mass of - domestic administration, together with the foreign, I can not be - insensible to my inequality to it; and I should enter on it with - gloomy forebodings from the criticisms and censures of a public, - just indeed in their intentions, but sometimes misinformed and - misled, and always too respectable to be neglected. I can not - but foresee the possibility that this may end disagreeably - for me, who, having no motive to public service but the - public satisfaction, would certainly retire the moment that - satisfaction should appear to languish. On the other hand, I - feel a degree of familiarity with the duties of my present - office, as far, at least, as I am capable of understanding its - duties. The ground I have already passed over enables me to see - my way into that which is before me. The change of government, - too, taking place in the country where it is exercised, - seems to open a possibility of procuring from the new rulers - some new advantages in commerce, which may be agreeable to - our countrymen. So that as far as my fears, my hopes, or my - inclination might enter into this question, I confess they would - not lead me to prefer a change. - - But it is not for an individual to choose his post. You are - to marshal us as may be best for the public good; and it is - only in the case of its being indifferent to you, that I would - avail myself of the option you have so kindly offered in your - letter. If you think it better to transfer me to another post, - my inclination must be no obstacle; nor shall it be, if there is - any desire to suppress the office I now hold or to reduce its - grade. In either of these cases, be so good as only to signify - to me by another line your ultimate wish, and I will conform - to it cordially. If it should be to remain at New York, my - chief comfort will be to work under your eye, my only shelter - the authority of your name, and the wisdom of measures to be - dictated by you and implicitly executed by me. Whatever you may - be pleased to decide, I do not see that the matters which have - called me hither will permit me to shorten the stay I originally - asked; that is to say, to set out on my journey northward till - the month of March. As early as possible in that month, I shall - have the honor of paying my respects to you in New York. In the - mean time, I have that of tendering you the homage of those - sentiments of respectful attachment with which I am, Sir, your - most obedient and most humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -After some further correspondence with General Washington on the -subject, Mr. Jefferson finally accepted the appointment of Secretary -of State, though with what reluctance the reader can well judge from -the preceding letter. - -Before setting out for New York, the seat of government, Jefferson -gave away in marriage his eldest daughter, Martha. The wedding took -place at Monticello on the 23d of February (1790), and the fortunate -bridegroom was young Thomas Mann Randolph, of Tuckahoe, the son of -Colonel Thomas Mann Randolph, of Tuckahoe, who had been Colonel Peter -Jefferson's ward. Young Randolph had visited Paris in 1788, and spent -a portion of the summer there after the completion of his education -at the University of Edinburgh, and we may suppose that the first -love-passages which resulted in their marriage took place between the -young people at that time. They were second-cousins, and had known -each other from their earliest childhood. - -The marriage ceremony was performed by the Rev. Mr. Maury of the -Episcopal Church, and two people were rarely ever united in marriage -whose future seemed to promise a happier life. I have elsewhere -noticed the noble qualities both of head and heart which were -possessed by Martha Jefferson. It was the growth and development of -these which years afterwards made John Randolph, of Roanoke--though -he had quarrelled with her father--pronounce her the "noblest woman -in Virginia."[40] Thomas Mann Randolph was intellectually not less -highly gifted. He was a constant student, and for his genius and -acquirements ranked among the first students at the University of -Edinburgh. In that city he received the same attentions and held -the same position in society which his rank, his wealth, and his -brilliant attainments commanded for him at home. The bravest of the -brave, chivalric in his devotion to his friends and in his admiration -and reverence for the gentler sex; tall and graceful in person, -renowned in his day as an athlete and for his splendid horsemanship, -with a head and face of unusual intellectual beauty, bearing a -distinguished name, and possessing an ample fortune, any woman might -have been deemed happy who was led by him to the hymeneal altar. - - [40] It was on the occasion of a dinner-party, when some one - proposing to drink the health of Mrs. Randolph, John Randolph - rose and said, "Yes, gentlemen, let us drink the health of the - noblest woman in Virginia." - -A few days after his daughter's marriage, Mr. Jefferson set out for -New York, going by the way of Richmond. At Alexandria the Mayor and -citizens gave him a public reception. He had intended travelling in -his own carriage, which met him at that point, but a heavy fall of -snow taking place, he sent it around by water, and took a seat in the -stage, having his horses led. In consequence of the bad condition of -the roads, his journey was a tedious one, it taking a fortnight for -him to travel from Richmond to New York. He occasionally left the -stage floundering in the mud, and, mounting one of his led horses, -accomplished parts of his journey on horseback. On the 17th of March -he arrived in Philadelphia, and hearing of the illness of his aged -friend, Dr. Franklin, went at once to visit him, and in his Memoir -speaks thus of his interview with him: - - At Philadelphia I called on the venerable and beloved Franklin. - He was then on the bed of sickness, from which he never rose. - My recent return from a country in which he had left so many - friends, and the perilous convulsions to which they had been - exposed, revived all his anxieties to know what part they had - taken, what had been their course, and what their fate. He went - over all in succession with a rapidity and animation almost too - much for his strength. When all his inquiries were satisfied and - a pause took place, I told him I had learned with pleasure that, - since his return to America, he had been occupied in preparing - for the world the history of his own life. "I can not say much - of that," said he; "but I will give you a sample of what I shall - leave," and he directed his little grandson (William Bache), who - was standing by the bedside, to hand him a paper from the table - to which he pointed. He did so; and the Doctor, putting it into - my hands, desired me to take it and read it at my leisure. It - was about a quire of folio paper, written in a large and running - hand, very like his own. I looked into it slightly, then shut - it, and said I would accept his permission to read it, and would - carefully return it. He said "No, keep it." Not certain of his - meaning, I again looked into it, folded it for my pocket, and - said again, I would certainly return it. "No," said he; "keep - it." I put it into my pocket, and shortly after took leave of - him. - - He died on the 17th of the ensuing month of April; and as I - understood he had bequeathed all his papers to his grandson, - William Temple Franklin, I immediately wrote to Mr. Franklin, - to inform him I possessed this paper, which I should consider - as his property, and would deliver it to his order. He came on - immediately to New York, called on me for it, and I delivered - it to him. As he put it into his pocket, he said, carelessly, - he had either the original, or another copy of it, I do not - recollect which. This last expression struck my attention - forcibly, and for the first time suggested to me the thought - that Dr. Franklin had meant it as a confidential deposit in my - hands, and that I had done wrong in parting from it. - - I have not yet seen the collection of Dr. Franklin's works that - he published, and therefore know not if this is among them. - I have been told it is not. It contained a narrative of the - negotiations between Dr. Franklin and the British Ministry, when - he was endeavoring to prevent the contest of arms that followed. - The negotiation was brought about by the intervention of Lord - Howe and his sister, who, I believe, was called Lady Howe, but I - may misremember her title. - - Lord Howe seems to have been friendly to America, and - exceedingly anxious to prevent a rupture. His intimacy with Dr. - Franklin, and his position with the Ministry, induced him to - undertake a mediation between them, in which his sister seems - to have been associated. They carried from one to the other, - backward and forward, the several propositions and answers which - passed, and seconded with their own intercessions the importance - of mutual sacrifices, to preserve the peace and connection of - the two countries. I remember that Lord North's answers were - dry, unyielding, in the spirit of unconditional submission, - and betrayed an absolute indifference to the occurrence of a - rupture; and he said to the mediators, distinctly, at last, - that "a rebellion was not to be deprecated on the part of Great - Britain; that the confiscations it would produce would provide - for many of their friends." This expression was reported by the - mediators to Dr. Franklin, and indicated so cool and calculated - a purpose in the Ministry as to render compromise impossible, - and the negotiation was discontinued. - - If this is not among the papers published, we ask what has - become of it? I delivered it with my own hands into those of - Temple Franklin. It certainly established views so atrocious in - the British Government, that its suppression would be to them - worth a great price. But could the grandson of Dr. Franklin be - in such a degree an accomplice in the parricide of the memory of - his immortal grandfather? The suspension for more than twenty - years of the general publication, bequeathed and confided to - him, produced for a while hard suspicion against him; and if - at last all are not published, a part of these suspicions may - remain with some. - - I arrived at New York on the 21st of March, where Congress was - in session. - -Jefferson's first letter from New York was to his son-in-law, Mr. -Randolph, and is dated New York, March 28th. He gives him an account -of the journey, which speaks much for the tedium of travelling in -those days. - - -_Jefferson to Thomas Mann Randolph._ - - I arrived here on the 21st instant, after as laborious a journey - of a fortnight from Richmond as I ever went through, resting - only one day at Alexandria and another at Baltimore. I found my - carriage and horses at Alexandria, but a snow of eighteen inches - falling the same night, I saw the impossibility of getting on in - my carriage, so left it there, to be sent to me by water, and - had my horses led on to this place, taking my passage in the - stage, though relieving myself a little sometimes by mounting - my horse. The roads through the whole way were so bad that we - could never go more than three miles an hour, sometimes not more - than two, and in the night not more than one. My first object - was to look out a house in the Broadway, if possible, as being - the centre of my business. Finding none there vacant for the - present, I have taken a small one in Maiden Lane, which may give - me time to look about me. Much business had been put by for my - arrival, so that I found myself all at once involved under an - accumulation of it. When this shall be got through, I will be - able to judge whether the ordinary business of my department - will leave me any leisure. I fear there will be little. - -The reader, I feel sure, will not find out of place here the -following very graceful letters of adieu, written by Jefferson to his -kind friends in France: - - -_To the Marquis de Lafayette._ - - New York, April 2d, 1790. - - Behold me, my dear friend, elected Secretary of State, instead - of returning to the far more agreeable position which placed - me in the daily participation of your friendship. I found the - appointment in the newspapers the day of my arrival in Virginia. - I had, indeed, been asked, while in France, whether I would - accept of any appointment at home, and I had answered that, not - meaning to remain long where I was, I meant it to be the last - office I should ever act in. Unfortunately this letter had not - arrived at the time of fixing the new Government. I expressed - freely to the President my desire to return. He left me free, - but still showing his own desire. This and the concern of - others, more general than I had any right to expect, induced me, - after three months' parleying, to sacrifice my own inclinations. - - I have been here these ten days harnessed in my new gear. - Wherever I am, or ever shall be, I shall be sincere in my - friendship to you and your nation. I think, with others, that - nations are to be governed with regard to their own interests, - but I am convinced that it is their interest, in the long run, - to be grateful, faithful to their engagements, even in the - worst of circumstances, and honorable and generous always. If - I had not known that the Head of our Government was in these - sentiments, and his national and private ethics were the same, - I would never have been where I am. I am sorry to tell you - his health is less firm than it used to be. However, there is - nothing in it to give alarm.... - - Our last news from Paris is of the eighth of January. So far - it seemed that your revolution had got along with a steady - pace--meeting, indeed, occasional difficulties and dangers; - but we are not translated from despotism to liberty on a - feather-bed. I have never feared for the ultimate result, though - I have feared for you personally. Indeed, I hope you will never - see such another 5th or 6th of October. Take care of yourself, - my dear friend, for though I think your nation would in any - event work out her own salvation, I am persuaded, were she - to lose you, it would cost her oceans of blood, and years of - confusion and anarchy. Kiss and bless your dear children for me. - Learn them to be as you are, a cement between our two nations. I - write to Madame de Lafayette, so have only to add assurances of - the respect of your affectionate friend and humble servant. - - -_To Madame de Corny._ - - New York, April 2d, 1790. - - I had the happiness, my dear friend, to arrive in Virginia, - after a voyage of twenty-six days only of the finest autumn - weather it was possible, the wind having never blown harder - than we would have desired it. On my arrival I found my name - announced in the papers as Secretary of State. I made light of - it, supposing I had only to say "No," and there would be an end - of it. It turned out, however, otherwise. For though I was left - free to return to France, if I insisted on it, yet I found it - better in the end to sacrifice my own inclinations to those of - others. - - After holding off, therefore, near three months, I acquiesced. I - did not write you while this question was in suspense, because - I was in constant hope to say to you certainly I should return. - Instead of that, I am now to say certainly the contrary, and - instead of greeting you personally in Paris, I am to write you a - letter of adieu. Accept, then, my dear Madam, my cordial adieu, - and my grateful thanks for all the civilities and kindnesses - I have received from you. They have been greatly more than I - had a right to expect, and they have excited in me a warmth - of esteem which it was imprudent in me to have given way to - for a person whom I was one day to be separated from. Since it - is so, continue towards me those friendly sentiments that I - always flattered myself you entertained; let me hear from you - sometimes, assured that I shall always feel a warm interest in - your happiness. - - Your letter of November 25th afflicts me; but I hope that a - revolution so pregnant with the general happiness of the nation - will not in the end injure the interests of persons who are - so friendly to the general good of mankind as yourself and M. - de Corny. Present to him my most affectionate esteem, and ask - a place in his recollection.... Your affectionate friend and - humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To the Comtesse d'Houdetôt._ - - New York, April 2d, 1790. - - Being called by our Government to assist in the domestic - administration, instead of paying my respects to you in person - as I hoped, I am to write you a letter of adieu. Accept, I - pray you, Madame, my grateful acknowledgments for the manifold - kindnesses by which you added so much to the happiness of my - life in Paris. I have found here a philosophic revolution, - philosophically effected. Yours, though a little more turbulent, - has, I hope, by this time issued in success and peace. Nobody - prays for it more sincerely than I do, and nobody will do more - to cherish a union with a nation dear to us through many ties, - and now more approximated by the change in its Government. - - I found our friend Dr. Franklin in his bed--cheerful and free - from pain, but still in his bed. He took a lively interest in - the details I gave him of your revolution. I observed his face - often flushed in the course of it. He is much emaciated. M. de - Crevecoeur is well, but a little apprehensive that the spirit of - reforming and economizing may reach his office. A good man will - suffer if it does. Permit me, Madame la Comtesse, to present - here my sincere respects to Monsieur le Comte d'Houdetôt and - to Monsieur de Sainte Lambert. The philosophy of the latter - will have been greatly gratified to see a regeneration of the - condition of man in Europe so happily begun in his own country. - Repeating to you, Madame, my sincere sense of your goodness - to me, and my wishes to prove it on every occasion, adding my - sincere prayer that Heaven may bless you with many years of - life and health, I pray you to accept here the homage of those - sentiments of respect and attachment with which I have the honor - to be, Madame la Comtesse, your most obedient and humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -We find the following interesting passage in a letter from Jefferson -to M. Grand, written on the 23d of April: - - The good old Dr. Franklin, so long the ornament of our country, - and I may say of the world, has at length closed his eminent - career. He died on the 17th instant, of an imposthume of his - lungs, which having suppurated and burst, he had not strength to - throw off the matter, and was suffocated by it. His illness from - this imposthume was of sixteen days. Congress wear mourning for - him, by a resolve of their body. - -Nearly a year later we find him writing to the President of the -National Assembly of France as follows: - - I have it in charge from the President of the United States - of America, to communicate to the National Assembly of France - the peculiar sensibility of Congress to the tribute paid to - the memory of Benjamin Franklin by the enlightened and free - representatives of a great nation, in their decree of the 11th - of June, 1790. - - That the loss of such a citizen should be lamented by us - among whom he lived, whom he so long and eminently served, - and who feel their country advanced and honored by his birth, - life, and labors, was to be expected. But it remained for the - National Assembly of France to set the first example of the - representatives of one nation doing homage, by a public act, to - the private citizen of another, and, by withdrawing arbitrary - lines of separation, to reduce into one fraternity the good and - the great, wherever they have lived or died. - -Jefferson's health was not good during the spring of the year 1790, -and although he remained at his post he was incapacitated for -business during the whole of the month of May. He was frequently -prostrated from the effects of severe headaches, which sometimes -lasted for two or three days. His health was not re-established -before July. - -I give now his letters home, which were written to his daughters. -Mrs. Randolph was living at Monticello, and Maria, or "little Poll," -now not quite twelve years old, was at Eppington on a visit to her -good Aunt Eppes. These letters give an admirable picture of Jefferson -as the father, and betray an almost motherly tenderness of love for, -and watchfulness over, his daughters. Martha, though a married woman, -is warned of the difficulties and little cares of her new situation -in life, and receives timely advice as to how to steer clear of them; -while little Maria is urged to prosecute her studies, to be good and -industrious, in terms so full of love as to make his fatherly advice -almost irresistible. The letters show, too, his longing for home, -and how eagerly he craved the small news, as well as the great, of -the loved ones he had left behind in Virginia. I give sometimes an -extract, instead of the whole letter. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._--[_Extract._] - - New York, April 4th, 1790. - - I am anxious to hear from you of your health, your occupations, - where you are, etc. Do not neglect your music. It will be a - companion which will sweeten many hours of life to you. I - assure you mine here is triste enough. Having had yourself and - dear Poll to live with me so long, to exercise my affections - and cheer me in the intervals of business, I feel heavily the - separation from you. It is a circumstance of consolation to know - that you are happier, and to see a prospect of its continuance - in the prudence and even temper of Mr. Randolph and yourself. - Your new condition will call for abundance of little sacrifices. - But they will be greatly overpaid by the measure of affection - they secure to you. The happiness of your life now depends on - the continuing to please a single person. To this all other - objects must be secondary, even your love for me, were it - possible that could ever be an obstacle. But this it never can - be. Neither of you can ever have a more faithful friend than - myself, nor one on whom you can count for more sacrifices. - My own is become a secondary object to the happiness of you - both. Cherish, then, for me, my dear child, the affection of - your husband, and continue to love me as you have done, and to - render my life a blessing by the prospect it may hold up to me - of seeing you happy. Kiss Maria for me if she is with you, and - present me cordially to Mr. Randolph; assuring yourself of the - constant and unchangeable love of yours, affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -His daughter Maria, to whom the following letter is addressed, was at -the time, as I have said, not quite twelve years old. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - New York, April 11th, 1790. - - Where are you, my dear Maria? how are you occupied? Write me a - letter by the first post, and answer me all these questions. - Tell me whether you see the sun rise every day? how many pages - you read every day in Don Quixote? how far you are advanced in - him? whether you repeat a grammar lesson every day; what else - you read? how many hours a day you sew? whether you have an - opportunity of continuing your music? whether you know how to - make a pudding yet, to cut out a beefsteak, to sow spinach? or - to set a hen? Be good, my dear, as I have always found you; - never be angry with any body, nor speak harm of them; try to let - every body's faults be forgotten, as you would wish yours to be; - take more pleasure in giving what is best to another than in - having it yourself, and then all the world will love you, and I - more than all the world. If your sister is with you, kiss her, - and tell her how much I love her also, and present my affections - to Mr. Randolph. Love your aunt and uncle, and be dutiful and - obliging to them for all their kindness to you. What would you - do without them, and with such a vagrant for a father? Say to - both of them a thousand affectionate things for me; and adieu, - my dear Maria. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - New York, April 26th, 1791. - - I write regularly once a week to Mr. Randolph, yourself, or - Polly, in hopes it may induce a letter from one of you every - week also. If each would answer by the first post my letter to - them, I should receive it within the three weeks, so as to keep - a regular correspondence with each.... - - I long to hear how you pass your time. I think both Mr. Randolph - and yourself will suffer with ennui at Richmond. Interesting - occupations are essential to happiness. Indeed the whole art of - being happy consists in the art of finding employment. I know - none so interesting, and which crowd upon us so much as those of - a domestic nature. I look forward, therefore, to your commencing - housekeepers in your own farm, with some anxiety. Till then you - will not know how to fill up your time, and your weariness of - the things around you will assume the form of a weariness of one - another. I hope Mr. Randolph's idea of settling near Monticello - will gain strength, and that no other settlement will, in the - mean time, be fixed on. I wish some expedient may be devised for - settling him at Edgehill. No circumstance ever made me feel so - strongly the thralldom of Mr. Wayles's debt. Were I liberated - from that, I should not fear but that Colonel Randolph and - myself, by making it a joint contribution, could effect the - fixing you there, without interfering with what he otherwise - proposes to give Mr. Randolph. I shall hope, when I return to - Virginia in the fall, that some means may be found of effecting - all our wishes. - - -_From Mary Jefferson._ - - Richmond, April 25th, 1790. - - My dear Papa--I am afraid you will be displeased in knowing - where I am, but I hope you will not, as Mr. Randolph certainly - had some good reason, though I do not know it.[41] I have not - been able to read in Don Quixote every day, as I have been - travelling ever since I saw you last, and the dictionary is too - large to go in the pocket of the chariot, nor have I yet had an - opportunity of continuing my music. I am now reading Robertson's - America. I thank you for the advice you were so good as to give - me, and will try to follow it. Adieu, my dear papa. I am your - affectionate daughter, - - MARIA JEFFERSON. - - [41] Mr. Randolph took her to Richmond. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - New York, May 2d, 1790. - - My dear Maria--I wrote to you three weeks ago, and have not - yet received an answer. I hope, however, that one is on the - way, and that I shall receive it by the first post. I think it - very long to have been absent from Virginia two months, and - not to have received a line from yourself, your sister, or Mr. - Randolph, and I am very uneasy at it. As I write once a week to - one or the other of you in turn, if you would answer my letter - the day, or the day after you receive it, it would always come - to hand before I write the next to you. We had two days of snow - the beginning of last week. Let me know if it snowed where you - are. I send you some prints of a new kind for your amusement. - I send several to enable you to be generous to your friends. - I want much to hear how you employ yourself. Present my best - affections to your uncle, aunt, and cousins, if you are with - them, or to Mr. Randolph and your sister, if with them. Be - assured of my tender love to you, and continue yours to your - affectionate, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_From Mary Jefferson._ - - Eppington, May 23d, 1790. - - Dear Papa--I received your affectionate letter when I was at - Presqu'il, but was not able to answer it before I came here, as - the next day we went to Aunt Bolling's and then came here. I - thank you for the pictures you were so kind as to send me, and - will try that your advice shall not be thrown away. I read in - Don Quixote every day to my aunt, and say my grammar in Spanish - and English, and write, and read in Robertson's America. After - I am done that, I work till dinner, and a little more after. It - did not snow at all last month. My cousin Bolling and myself - made a pudding the other day. My aunt has given us a hen and - chickens. Adieu, my dear papa. Believe me to be your dutiful, - and affectionate daughter, - - MARIA JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - New York, May 23d, 1790. - - My dear Maria--I was glad to receive your letter of April 25th, - because I had been near two months without hearing from any of - you. Your last told me what you were not doing; that you were - not reading Don Quixote, not applying to your music. I hope - your next will tell me what you are doing. Tell your uncle that - the President, after having been so ill as at one time to be - thought dying, is now quite recovered.[42] I have been these - three weeks confined by a periodical headache. It has been the - most moderate I ever had, but it has not yet left me. Present my - best affections to your uncle and aunt. Tell the latter I shall - never have thanks enough for her kindness to you, and that you - will repay her in love and duty. Adieu, my dear Maria. - - Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - [42] In a letter to his daughter, Mrs. Randolph, after mentioning - the President's illness and convalescence, he says, "He continues - mending to-day, and from total despair we are now in good hopes - of him." - - -_To Mrs. Eppes._ - - New York, June 13th, 1790. - - Dear Madam--I have received your favor of May 23, and with great - pleasure, as I do every thing which comes from you. I have had - a long attack of my periodical headache, which was severe for a - few days, and since that has been very moderate. Still, however, - it hangs upon me a little, though for about ten days past I have - been able to resume business. I am sensible of your goodness - and attention to my dear Poll, and really jealous of you; for I - have always found that you disputed with me the first place in - her affections. It would give me infinite pleasure to have her - with me, but there is no good position here, and indeed we are - in too unsettled a state; the House of Representatives voted the - day before yesterday, by a majority of 53 against 6, to remove - to Baltimore; but it is very doubtful whether the Senate will - concur. However, it may, very possibly, end in a removal either - to that place or Philadelphia. In either case, I shall be nearer - home, and in a milder climate, for as yet we have had not more - than five or six summer days. Spring and fall they never have, - as far as I can learn; they have ten months of winter, two of - summer, with some winter days interspersed. Does Mr. Eppes sleep - any better since the 6th of March. Remember me to him in the - most friendly terms, and be assured of the cordial and eternal - affection of yours sincerely, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - New York, June 13th, 1790. - - My dear Maria--I have received your letter of May 23d, which - was in answer to mine of May 2d, but I wrote you also on the - 23d of May, so that you still owe me an answer to that, which I - hope is now on the road. In matters of correspondence as well - as of money, you must never be in debt. I am much pleased with - the account you give me of your occupations, and the making the - pudding is as good an article of them as any. When I come to - Virginia I shall insist on eating a pudding of your own making, - as well as on trying other specimens of your skill. You must - make the most of your time while you are with so good an aunt, - who can learn you every thing. We had not peas nor strawberries - here till the 8th day of this month. On the same day I heard the - first whip-poor-will whistle. Swallows and martins appeared here - on the 21st of April. When did they appear with you? and when - had you peas, strawberries, and whip-poor-wills in Virginia? - Take notice hereafter whether the whip-poor-wills always come - with the strawberries and peas. Send me a copy of the maxims I - gave you, also a list of the books I promised you. I have had a - long touch of my periodical headache, but a very moderate one. - It has not quite left me yet. Adieu, my dear; love your uncle, - aunt, and cousins, and me more than all. - - Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - New York, July 4th, 1790. - - I have written you, my dear Maria, four letters since I have - been here, and I have received from you only two. You owe me - two, then, and the present will make three. This is a kind of - debt I will not give up. You may ask how I will help myself. By - petitioning your aunt, as soon as you receive a letter, to make - you go without your dinner till you have answered it. How goes - on the Spanish? How many chickens have you raised this summer? - Send me a list of the books I have promised you at different - times. Tell me what sort of weather you have had, what sort of - crops are likely to be made, how your uncle and aunt and the - family do, and how you do yourself. I shall see you in September - for a short time. Adieu, my dear Poll. - - Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_From Mary Jefferson._ - - Eppington, July 20th, 1790. - - Dear Papa--I hope you will excuse my not writing to you before, - though I have none for myself. I am very sorry to hear that you - have been sick, but flatter myself that it is over. My aunt - Skipwith has been very sick, but she is better now; we have been - to see her two or three times. You tell me in your last letter - that you will see me in September, but I have received a letter - from my brother that says you will not be here before February; - as his is later than yours, I am afraid you have changed your - mind. The books that you have promised me are Anacharsis and - Gibbon's Roman Empire. If you are coming in September, I hope - you will not forget your promise of buying new jacks for the - piano-forte that is at Monticello. Adieu, my dear papa. - - I am your affectionate daughter, - - MARY JEFFERSON. - - -_From Mary Jefferson._ - - Eppington, ----, 1790. - - Dear Papa--I have just received your last favor, of July - 25th, and am determined to write to you every day till I have - discharged my debt. When we were in Cumberland we went to - church, and heard some singing-masters that sang very well. - They are to come here to learn my sister to sing; and as I - know you have no objection to my learning any thing, I am to - be a scholar, and hope to give you the pleasure of hearing - an anthem. We had peas the 10th of May, and strawberries the - 17th of the same month, though not in that abundance we are - accustomed to, in consequence of a frost this spring. As for the - martins, swallows, and whip-poor-wills, I was so taken up with - my chickens that I never attended to them, and therefore can not - tell you when they came, though I was so unfortunate as to lose - half of them (the chickens), for my cousin Bolling and myself - have raised but thirteen between us. Adieu, my dear papa. - - Believe me to be your affectionate daughter, - - MARIA JEFFERSON. - -The following beautiful letter to Mrs. Randolph was called forth by -the marriage of her father-in-law to a lady of a distinguished name -in Virginia. At the time of his second marriage, Colonel Randolph was -advanced in years, and his bride still in her teens. The marriage -settlement alluded to in the letter secured to her a handsome fortune. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - New York, July 17th, 1790. - - My dear Patsy--I received two days ago yours of July 2d, with - Mr. Randolph's of July 3d. Mine of the 11th to Mr. Randolph - will have informed you that I expect to set out from hence for - Monticello about the 1st of September. As this depends on the - adjournment of Congress, and they begin to be impatient, it is - more probable that I may set out sooner than later. However, my - letters will keep you better informed as the time approaches. - - Col. Randolph's marriage was to be expected. All his amusements - depending on society, he can not live alone. The settlement - spoken of may be liable to objections in point of prudence - and justice. However, I hope it will not be the cause of any - diminution of affection between him and Mr. Randolph, and - yourself. That can not remedy the evil, and may make it a great - deal worse. Besides your interests, which might be injured - by a misunderstanding, be assured that your happiness would - be infinitely affected. It would be a canker-worm corroding - eternally on your minds. Therefore, my dear child, redouble your - assiduities to keep the affections of Col. Randolph and his - lady (if he is to have one), in proportion as the difficulties - increase. He is an excellent, good man, to whose temper nothing - can be objected, but too much facility, too much milk. Avail - yourself of this softness, then, to obtain his attachment. - - If the lady has any thing difficult in her disposition, avoid - what is rough, and attach her good qualities to you. Consider - what are otherwise as a bad stop in your harpsichord, and do not - touch on it, but make yourself happy with the good ones. Every - human being, my dear, must thus be viewed, according to what it - is good for; for none of us, no not one, is perfect; and were we - to love none who had imperfections, this world would be a desert - for our love. All we can do is to make the best of our friends, - love and cherish what is good in them, and keep out of the way - of what is bad; but no more think of rejecting them for it, than - of throwing away a piece of music for a flat passage or two. - Your situation will require peculiar attentions and respects to - both parties. Let no proof be too much for either your patience - or acquiescence. Be you, my dear, the link of love, union, and - peace for the whole family. The world will give you the more - credit for it, in proportion to the difficulty of the task, and - your own happiness will be the greater as you perceive that you - promote that of others. Former acquaintance and equality of age - will render it the easier for you to cultivate and gain the love - of the lady. The mother, too, becomes a very necessary object of - attentions. - - This marriage renders it doubtful with me whether it will be - better to direct our overtures to Col. R. or Mr. H. for a farm - for Mr. Randolph. Mr. H. has a good tract of land on the other - side of Edgehill, and it may not be unadvisable to begin by - buying out a dangerous neighbor. I wish Mr. Randolph could have - him sounded to see if he will sell, and at what price; but - sounded through such a channel as would excite no suspicion that - it comes from Mr. Randolph or myself. Col. Monroe would be a - good and unsuspected hand, as he once thought of buying the same - lands. Adieu, my dear child. Present my warm attachment to Mr. - Randolph. - - Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - - Jefferson goes with the President to Rhode Island.--Visits - Monticello.--Letter to Mrs. Eppes.--Goes to Philadelphia.-- - Family Letters.--Letter to Washington.--Goes to Monticello.-- - Letters to his Daughter.--His Ana.--Letters to his Daughter.-- - To General Washington.--To Lafayette.--To his Daughter. - - -In the month of August (1790) Jefferson went with the President on a -visit to Rhode Island. In his recent tour through New England, the -President had not visited Rhode Island, because that State had not -then adopted the new Constitution; now, however, wishing to recruit a -little after his late illness, he bent his steps thither. On the 1st -of September Jefferson set out for Virginia. He offered Mr. Madison -a seat in his carriage, and the two friends journeyed home together, -stopping at Mount Vernon to pay a visit of two days to the President. -He arrived at Monticello on the 19th, and found his whole family -assembled there to welcome him back after his six months' absence. - -On the eve of his return to the seat of government he wrote a letter -to Mrs. Eppes, from which I give the following extract: - - The solitude she (Mrs. Randolph) will be in induces me to leave - Polly with her this winter. In the spring I shall have her at - Philadelphia, if I can find a good situation for her there. I - would not choose to have her there after fourteen years of age. - As soon as I am fixed in Philadelphia, I shall be in hopes of - receiving Jack. Load him, on his departure, with charges not to - give his heart to any object he will find there. I know no such - useless bauble in a house as a girl of mere city education. She - would finish by fixing him there and ruining him. I will enforce - on him your charges, and all others which shall be for his good. - -After enjoying the society of his children and the sweets of domestic -life for not quite two months, Jefferson reluctantly turned his -back upon home once more, and set out for the seat of government on -the 8th of November. Mr. Madison again took a seat in his carriage -on returning, and they once more stopped at Mount Vernon, where -Washington still lingered, enjoying the repose of home life on the -peaceful banks of the Potomac. - -After having established himself in his new abode in Philadelphia, -Mr. Jefferson began his regular weekly correspondence with his family -in Virginia; and I give the following letters to tell the tale of his -life during his absence from home on this occasion, which continued -from the 8th of November, 1790, to the 12th of September, 1791. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, Dec. 1st, 1790. - - My dear Daughter--In my letter of last week to Mr. Randolph, - I mentioned that I should write every Wednesday to him, - yourself, and Polly alternately; and that my letters arriving - at Monticello the Saturday, and the answer being sent off on - Sunday, I should receive it the day before I should have to - write again to the same person, so as that the correspondence - with each would be exactly kept up. I hope you will do it, on - your part. I delivered the fan and note to your friend Mrs. - Waters (Miss Rittenhouse that was), she being now married to - a Dr. Waters. They live in the house with her father. She - complained of the _petit format_ of your letter, and Mrs. Trist - of no letter. I inclose you the "Magasin des Modes" of July. My - furniture is arrived from Paris; but it will be long before I - can open the packages, as my house will not be ready to receive - them for some weeks. As soon as they are opened, the mattresses, - etc., shall be sent on. News for Mr. Randolph--the letters from - Paris inform that as yet all is safe there. They are emitting - great sums of paper money. They rather believe there will be - no war between Spain and England; but the letters from London - count on a war, and it seems rather probable. A general peace is - established in the north of Europe, except between Russia and - Turkey. It is expected between them also. Wheat here is a French - crown the bushel. - - Kiss dear Poll for me. Remember me to Mr. Randolph. I do not - know yet how the Edgehill negotiation has terminated. Adieu, my - dear. Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, Dec. 7th, 1790. - - My dear Poll--This week I write to you, and if you answer my - letter as soon as you receive it, and send it to Colonel Bell - at Charlottesville, I shall receive it the day before I write - to you again--that will be three weeks hence, and this I shall - expect you to do always, so that by the correspondence of Mr. - Randolph, your sister, and yourself, I may hear from home once a - week. Mr. Randolph's letter from Richmond came to me about five - days ago. How do you all do? Tell me that in your letter; also - what is going forward with you, how you employ yourself, what - weather you have had. We have already had two or three snows - here. The workmen are so slow in finishing the house I have - rented here, that I know not when I shall have it ready, except - one room, which they promise me this week, and which will be my - bed-room, study, dining-room, and parlor. I am not able to give - any later news about peace or war than of October 16th, which - I mentioned in my last to your sister. Wheat has fallen a few - pence, and will, I think, continue to fall, slowly at first, and - rapidly after a while. Adieu, my dear Maria; kiss your sister - for me, and assure Mr. Randolph of my affection. I will not tell - you how much I love you, lest, by rendering you vain, it might - render you less worthy of my love. Encore adieu. - - TH. J. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, Dec. 23d, 1790. - - My dear Daughter--This is a scolding letter for you all. I have - not received a scrip of a pen from home since I left it. I think - it so easy for you to write me one letter every week, which will - be but once in the three weeks for each of you, when I write one - every week, who have not one moment's repose from business, - from the first to the last moment of the week. - - Perhaps you think you have nothing to say to me. It is a great - deal to say you are all well; or that one has a cold, another - a fever, etc.: besides that, there is not a sprig of grass - that shoots uninteresting to me; nor any thing that moves, - from yourself down to Bergère or Grizzle. Write, then, my dear - daughter, punctually on your day, and Mr. Randolph and Polly on - theirs. I suspect you may have news to tell me of yourself of - the most tender interest to me. Why silent, then? - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, Jan. 5th, 1791. - - I did not write to you, my dear Poll, the last week, because I - was really angry at receiving no letter. I have now been near - nine weeks from home, and have never had a scrip of a pen, when - by the regularity of the post I might receive your letters as - frequently and as exactly as if I were at Charlottesville. I - ascribed it at first to indolence, but the affection must be - weak which is so long overruled by that. Adieu. - - TH. J. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, Feb. 9th, 1791. - - My dear Martha--Your two last letters are those which have - given me the greatest pleasure of any I ever received from you. - The one announced that you were become a notable housewife; - the other, a mother. The last is undoubtedly the key-stone of - the arch of matrimonial happiness, as the first is its daily - aliment. Accept my sincere congratulations for yourself and Mr. - Randolph. - - I hope you are getting well; towards which great care of - yourself is necessary; for however advisable it is for those in - health to expose themselves freely, it is not so for the sick. - You will be out in time to begin your garden, and that will - tempt you to be out a great deal, than which nothing will tend - more to give you health and strength. Remember me affectionately - to Mr. Randolph and Polly, as well as to Miss Jenny. Yours - sincerely, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_From Mary Jefferson._ - - Monticello, January 22d, 1791. - - Dear Papa--I received your letter of December the 7th about - a fortnight ago, and would have answered it directly, but my - sister had to answer hers last week and I this. We are all well - at present. Jenny Randolph and myself keep house--she one week, - and I the other. I owe sister thirty-five pages in Don Quixote, - and am now paying them as fast as I can. Last Christmas I gave - sister the "Tales of the Castle," and she made me a present of - the "Observer," a little ivory box, and one of her drawings; and - to Jenny she gave "Paradise Lost," and some other things. Adieu, - dear Papa. I am your affectionate daughter, - - MARIA JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, February 16th, 1791. - - My dear Poll--At length I have received a letter from you. As - the spell is now broken, I hope you will continue to write every - three weeks. Observe, I do not admit the excuse you make of not - writing because your sister had not written the week before; let - each write their own week without regard to what others do, or - do not do. I congratulate you, my dear aunt, on your new title. - I hope you pay a great deal of attention to your niece, and - that you have begun to give her lessons on the harpsichord, in - Spanish, etc. Tell your sister I make her a present of Gregory's - "Comparative View," inclosed herewith, and that she will find - in it a great deal of useful advice for a young mother. I hope - herself and the child are well. Kiss them both for me. Present - me affectionately to Mr. Randolph and Miss Jenny. Mind your - Spanish and your harpsichord well, and think often and always - of, yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - P.S.--Letter inclosed, with the book for your sister. - - -_From Mary Jefferson._ - - Monticello, February 13th, 1791. - - Dear Papa--I am very sorry that my not having written to you - before made you doubt my affection towards you, and hope that - after having read my last letter you were not so displeased as - at first. In my last I said that my sister was very well, but - she was not; she had been sick all day without my knowing any - thing of it, as I staid up stairs the whole day; however, she is - very well now, and the little one also. She is very pretty, has - beautiful deep-blue eyes, and is a very fine child. Adieu, my - dear papa. Believe me to be your affectionate daughter, - - MARIA JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, March 9th, 1791. - - My dear Maria--I am happy at length to have a letter of yours - to answer, for that which you wrote to me February 13th came to - hand February 28th. I hope our correspondence will now be more - regular, that you will be no more lazy, and I no more in the - pouts on that account. On the 27th of February I saw blackbirds - and robin-redbreasts, and on the 7th of this month I heard - frogs for the first time this year. Have you noted the first - appearance of these things at Monticello? I hope you have, and - will continue to note every appearance, animal and vegetable, - which indicates the approach of spring, and will communicate - them to me. By these means we shall be able to compare the - climates of Philadelphia and Monticello. Tell me when you shall - have peas, etc., up; when every thing comes to table; when you - shall have the first chickens hatched; when every kind of tree - blossoms, or puts forth leaves; when each kind of flower blooms. - Kiss your sister and niece for me, and present me affectionately - to Mr. Randolph and Miss Jenny. - - Yours tenderly, my dear Maria, - - TH. J. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, March 24th, 1791. - - My dear Daughter--The badness of the roads retards the post, - so that I have received no letter this week from Monticello. I - shall hope soon to have one from yourself; to know from that - that you are perfectly re-established, that the little Anne is - becoming a big one, that you have received Dr. Gregory's book - and are daily profiting from it. This will hardly reach you - in time to put you on the watch for the annular eclipse of the - sun, which is to happen on Sunday se'nnight, to begin about - sunrise. It will be such a one as is rarely to be seen twice in - one life. I have lately received a letter from Fulwar Skipwith, - who is Consul for us in Martinique and Guadaloupe. He fixed - himself first in the former, but has removed to the latter. Are - any of your acquaintances in either of those islands? If they - are, I wish you would write to them and recommend him to their - acquaintance. He will be a sure medium through which you may - exchange souvenirs with your friends of a more useful kind than - those of the convent. He sent me half a dozen pots of very fine - sweetmeats. Apples and cider are the greatest presents which - can be sent to those islands. I can make those presents for you - whenever you choose to write a letter to accompany them, only - observing the season for apples. They had better deliver their - letters for you to F. S. Skipwith. Things are going on well - in France, the Revolution being past all danger. The National - Assembly being to separate soon, that event will seal the whole - with security. Their islands, but more particularly St. Domingo - and Martinique, are involved in a horrid civil war. Nothing can - be more distressing than the situation of their inhabitants, as - their slaves have been called into action, and are a terrible - engine, absolutely ungovernable. It is worse in Martinique, - which was the reason Mr. Skipwith left it. An army and fleet - from France are expected every hour to quell the disorders. I - suppose you are busily engaged in your garden. I expect full - details on that subject as well as from Poll, that I may judge - what sort of a gardener you make. Present me affectionately to - all around you, and be assured of the tender and unalterable - love of, yours, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_From Mary Jefferson._ - - Monticello, March 6th, 1791. - - According to my dear papa's request I now sit down to write. We - were very uneasy for not having had a letter from you since six - weeks, till yesterday I received yours, which I now answer. The - marble pedestal and a dressing-table are come. Jenny is gone - down with Mrs. Fleming, who came here to see sister when she - was sick. I suppose you have not received the letter in which - Mr. Randolph desires you to name the child. We hope you will - come to see us this summer, therefore you must not disappoint - us, and I expect you want to see my little niece as much as you - do any of us. We are all well, and hope you are so too. Adieu, - dear papa. I am your affectionate daughter, - - MARIA JEFFERSON. - - P.S. My sister says I must tell you the child grows very fast. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, March 31st, 1791. - - My dear Maria--I am happy to have a letter of yours to answer. - That of March 6th came to my hands on the 24th. By-the-by, you - never acknowledged the receipt of my letters, nor tell me on - what day they came to hand. I presume that by this time you have - received the two dressing-tables with marble tops. I give one - of them to your sister, and the other to you: mine is here with - the top broken in two. Mr. Randolph's letter, referring to me - the name of your niece, was very long on the road. I answered it - as soon as I received it, and hope the answer got duly to hand. - Lest it should have been delayed, I repeated last week to your - sister the name of Anne, which I had recommended as belonging to - both families. I wrote you in my last that the frogs had begun - their songs on the 7th; since that the bluebirds saluted us on - the 17th; the weeping-willow began to leaf on the 18th; the - lilac and gooseberry on the 25th; and the golden-willow on the - 26th. I inclose for your sister three kinds of flowering beans, - very beautiful and very rare. She must plant and nourish them - with her own hand this year, in order to save enough seeds for - herself and me. Tell Mr. Randolph I have sold my tobacco for - five dollars per c., and the rise between this and September. - Warehouse and shipping expenses in Virginia, freight and storage - here, come to 2_s._ 9_d._ a hundred, so that it is as if I had - sold it in Richmond for 27_s._ 3_d._ credit till September, or - half per cent. per month discount for the ready money. If he - chooses it, his Bedford tobacco may be included in the sale. - Kiss every body for me. Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, April 17th, 1791. - - My dear Daughter--Since I wrote last to you, which was on the - 24th of March, I have received yours of March 22. I am indeed - sorry to hear of the situation of Walter Gilmer, and shall hope - the letters from Monticello will continue to inform me how he - does. I know how much his parents will suffer, and how much he - merited all their affection. Mrs. Trist has been so kind as to - have your calash made, but either by mistake of the maker or - myself it is not lined with green. I have, therefore, desired - a green lining to be got, which you can put in yourself if you - prefer it. Mrs. Trist has observed that there is a kind of veil - lately introduced here, and much approved. It fastens over the - brim of the hat, and then draws round the neck as close or open - as you please. I desire a couple to be made, to go with the - calash and other things. Mr. Lewis not liking to write letters, - I do not hear from him; but I hope you are readily furnished - with all the supplies and conveniences the estate affords. I - shall not be able to see you till September, by which time the - young grand-daughter will begin to look bold and knowing. I - inclose you a letter to a woman who lives, I believe, on Buck - Island. It is from her sister in Paris, which I would wish you - to send _express_. I hope your garden is flourishing. Present me - affectionately to Mr. Randolph and Polly. - - Yours sincerely, my dear, - TH. JEFFERSON. - -I find among his letters for this month (March) the following -friendly note to Mr. Madison: - - -_Jefferson to Madison._ - - What say you to taking a wade into the country at noon? It will - be pleasant above head at least, and the party will finish - by dining here. Information that Colonel Beckwith is coming - to be an inmate with you, and I presume not a desirable one, - encourages me to make a proposition, which I did not venture as - long as you had your agreeable Congressional society about you; - that is, to come and take a bed and plate with me. I have four - rooms, of which any one is at your service. Three of them are - up two pair of stairs, the other on the ground-floor, and can be - in readiness to receive you in twenty-four hours. Let me entreat - you, my dear Sir, to do it, if it be not disagreeable to you. - To me it will be a relief from a solitude of which I have too - much; and it will lessen your repugnance to be assured it will - not increase my expenses an atom. When I get my library open, - you will often find a convenience in being close at hand to it. - The approaching season will render this situation more agreeable - than Fifth Street, and even in the winter you will not find it - disagreeable. Let me, I beseech you, have a favorable answer to - both propositions. - - March 13th, 1791. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, April 24th, 1791. - - I have received, my dear Maria, your letter of March 26th. - I find I have counted too much on you as a botanical and - zoological correspondent, for I undertook to affirm here that - the fruit was not killed in Virginia, because I had a young - daughter there who was in that kind of correspondence with - me, and who, I was sure, would have mentioned it if it had - been so. However, I shall go on communicating to you whatever - may contribute to a comparative estimate of the two climates, - in hopes it will induce you to do the same to me. Instead of - waiting to send the two veils for your sister and yourself round - with the other things, I inclose them with this letter. Observe - that one of the strings is to be drawn tight round the root of - the crown of the hat, and the veil then falling over the brim of - the hat, is drawn by the lower string as tight or loose as you - please round the neck. When the veil is not chosen to be down, - the lower string is also tied round the root of the crown, so - as to give the appearance of a puffed bandage for the hat. I - send also inclosed the green lining for the calash. J. Eppes is - arrived here. Present my affections to Mr. R., your sister, and - niece. - - Yours with tender love, - TH. JEFFERSON. - - April 5. Apricots in bloom, - Cherry leafing. - " 9. Peach in bloom, - Apple leafing. - " 11. Cherry in blossom. - - -_From Mary Jefferson._ - - Monticello, April 18th, 1791. - - Dear Papa--I received your letter of March 31st the 14th of - this month; as for that of March 9, I received it some time - last month, but I do not remember the day. I have finished Don - Quixote, and as I have not Desoles yet, I shall read Lazarillo - de Tormes. The garden is backward, the inclosure having but - lately been finished. I wish you would be so kind as to send me - seven yards of cloth like the piece I send you. Adieu, my dear - papa. - - I am your affectionate daughter, - MARIA JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._--[_Extract._] - - Philadelphia, May 8th, 1791. - - I thank you for all the small news of your letter, which it - is very grateful for me to receive. I am happy to find you - are on good terms with your neighbors. It is almost the most - important circumstance in life, since nothing is so corroding - as frequently to meet persons with whom one has any difference. - The ill-will of a single neighbor is an immense drawback on the - happiness of life, and therefore their good-will can not be - bought too dear. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, May 8th, 1791. - - My dear Maria--Your letter of April 18th came to hand on the - 30th; that of May 1st I received last night. By the stage which - carries this letter I send you twelve yards of striped nankeen - of the pattern inclosed. It is addressed to the care of Mr. - Brown, merchant in Richmond, and will arrive there with this - letter. There are no stuffs here of the kind you sent. April - 30th the lilac blossomed. May 4th the gelder-rose, dogwood, - redbud, azalea were in blossom. We have still pretty constant - fires here. I shall answer Mr. Randolph's letter a week hence. - It will be the last I shall write to Monticello for some weeks, - because about this day se'nnight I set out to join Mr. Madison - at New York, from whence we shall go up to Albany and Lake - George, then cross over to Bennington, and so through Vermont - to the Connecticut River, down Connecticut River, by Hartford, - to New Haven, then to New York and Philadelphia. Take a map and - trace this route. I expect to be back in Philadelphia about - the middle of June. I am glad you are to learn to ride, but - hope that your horse is very gentle, and that you will never be - venturesome. A lady should never ride a horse which she might - not safely ride without a bridle. I long to be with you all. - Kiss the little one every morning for me, and learn her to run - about before I come. Adieu, my dear. Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following letter from Jefferson to his brother-in-law, Mr. Eppes, -gives us a glimpse of young Jack Eppes, his future son-in-law: - - -_To Francis Eppes._ - - Philadelphia, May 15th, 1791. - - Dear Sir--Jack's letters will have informed you of his arrival - here safe and in health.... Your favors of April 5th and 27th - are received. I had just answered a letter of Mr. Skipwith's on - the subject of the Guineaman, and therefore send you a copy of - that by way of answer to your last. I shall be in Virginia in - October, but can not yet say whether I shall be able to go to - Richmond. - - Jack is now set in to work regularly. He passes from two to four - hours a day at the College, completing his courses of sciences, - and four hours at the law. Besides this, he will write an hour - or two to learn the style of business and acquire a habit of - writing, and will read something in history and government. The - course I propose for him will employ him a couple of years. I - shall not fail to impress upon him a due sense of the advantage - of qualifying himself to get a living independently of other - resources. As yet I discover nothing but a disposition to apply - closely. I set out to-morrow on a journey of a month to Lakes - George, Champlain, etc., and having yet a thousand things to do, - I can only add assurances of the sincere esteem with which I am, - dear sir, your affectionate friend and servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - FRANCIS EPPES, Esq., Eppington. - -In a letter of the same date to Mrs. Eppes, he writes: - - -_To Mrs. Eppes._ - - I received your favor of April 6th by Jack, and my letter of - this date to Mr. Eppes will inform you that he is well under - way. If we can keep him out of love, he will be able to go - straight forward and to make good progress. I receive with real - pleasure your congratulations on my advancement to the venerable - corps of grandfathers, and can assure you with truth that I - expect from it more felicity than any other advancement ever - gave me. I only wish for the hour when I may go and enjoy it - entire. It was my intention to have troubled you with Maria when - I left Virginia in November, satisfied it would be better _for - her_ to be with you; but the solitude of her sister, and the - desire of keeping them united in that affection for each other - which is to be the best future food of their lives, induced me - to leave her at Monticello. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Lake Champlain, May 31st, 1791. - - My dear Martha--I wrote to Maria yesterday while sailing on - Lake George, and the same kind of leisure is afforded me to-day - to write to you. Lake George is, without comparison, the most - beautiful water I ever saw; formed by a contour of mountains - into a basin thirty-five miles long, and from two to four miles - broad, finely interspersed with islands, its water limpid as - crystal, and the mountain sides covered with rich groves of - thuja, silver fir, white pine, aspen, and paper birch down to - the water-edge; here and there precipices of rock to checker - the scene and save it from monotony. An abundance of speckled - trout, salmon trout, bass, and other fish, with which it is - stored, have added, to our other amusements, the sport of - taking them. Lake Champlain, though much larger, is a far less - pleasant water. It is muddy, turbulent, and yields little game. - After penetrating into it about twenty-five miles, we have been - obliged, by a head wind and high sea, to return, having spent a - day and a half in sailing on it. We shall take our route again - through Lake George, pass through Vermont, down Connecticut - River, and through Long Island to New York and Philadelphia. - Our journey has hitherto been prosperous and pleasant, except - as to the weather, which has been as sultry and hot through - the whole as could be found in Carolina or Georgia. I suspect, - indeed, that the heats of Northern climates may be more powerful - than those of Southern ones in proportion as they are shorter. - Perhaps vegetation requires this. There is as much fever and - ague, too, and other bilious complaints on Lake Champlain as on - the swamps of Carolina. Strawberries here are in the blossom, - or just formed. With you, I suppose, the season is over. On - the whole, I find nothing anywhere else, in point of climate, - which Virginia need envy to any part of the world. Here they are - locked up in ice and snow for six months. Spring and autumn, - which make a paradise of our country, are rigorous winter with - them; and a tropical summer breaks on them all at once. When - we consider how much climate contributes to the happiness of - our condition, by the fine sensations it excites, and the - productions it is the parent of, we have reason to value highly - the accident of birth in such a one as that of Virginia. - - From this distance I can have little domestic to write to you - about. I must always repeat how much I love you. Kiss the little - Anne for me. I hope she grows lustily, enjoys good health, and - will make us all, and long, happy as the centre of our common - love. Adieu, my dear. - - Yours affectionately, - TH. JEFFERSON.[43] - - [43] This letter, as a matter of curiosity probably, was written - in a book of the bark of the paper birch, having leaves seven - inches long by four wide. (Note from Randall's Jefferson.) - -The allusion in the following letter to the Duke of Dorset, and -to his niece, the charming Lady Caroline Tufton, deserves a word -of explanation. The Duke was British Minister in France during -Mr. Jefferson's stay there. The two became acquainted and warm -personal friends, and an intimate friendship sprang up between -Martha Jefferson and Lady Caroline. On her return to America, Martha -requested her father to call one of his farms by her friend's name, -which he did, and a fine farm lying at the foot of Monticello bears -at this day the name of Tufton. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._--[_Extract._] - - Philadelphia, June 23d, 1791. - - I wrote to each of you once during my journey, from which I - returned four days ago, having enjoyed through the whole of it - very perfect health. I am in hopes the relaxation it gave me - from business has freed me from the almost constant headache - with which I had been persecuted during the whole winter and - spring. Having been entirely clear of it while travelling, - proves it to have been occasioned by the drudgery of business. - I found here, on my return, your letter of May 23d, with the - pleasing information that you were all in good health. I wish I - could say when I shall be able to join you; but that will depend - on the motions of the President, who is not yet returned to this - place. - - In a letter written to me by young Mr. Franklin, who is in - London, is the following paragraph: "I meet here with many who - ask kindly after you. Among these the Duke of Dorset, who is - very particular in his inquiries. He has mentioned to me that - his niece has wrote once or twice to your daughter since her - return to America; but not receiving an answer, had supposed she - meant to drop her acquaintance, which his niece much regretted. - I ventured to assure him that was not likely, and that possibly - the letters might have miscarried. You will take what notice of - this you may think proper." Fulwar Skipwith is on his return to - the United States. Mrs. Trist and Mrs. Waters often ask after - you. Mr. Lewis being very averse to writing, I must trouble Mr. - Randolph to inquire of him relative to my tobacco, and to inform - me about it. I sold the whole of what was good here. Seventeen - hogsheads only are yet come; and by a letter of May 29, from - Mr. Hylton, there were then but two hogsheads more arrived at - the warehouse. I am uneasy at the delay, because it not only - embarrasses me with guessing at excuses to the purchaser, but is - likely to make me fail in my payments to Hanson, which ought to - be made in Richmond on the 19th of next month. I wish much to - know when the rest may be expected. - - In your last you observed you had not received a letter from - me in five weeks. My letters to you have been of Jan. 20, - Feb. 9, March 2, 24, April 17, May 8, which you will observe - to be pretty regularly once in three weeks. Matters in France - are still going on safely. Mirabeau is dead; also the Duke de - Richelieu; so that the Duke de Fronsac has now succeeded to the - head of the family, though not to the title, these being all - abolished. Present me affectionately to Mr. Randolph and Polly, - and kiss the little one for me. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, June 26th, 1791. - - My dear Maria--I hope you have received the letter I wrote you - from Lake George, and that you have well fixed in your own mind - the geography of that lake, and of the whole of my tour, so as - to be able to give me a good account of it when I shall see you. - On my return here I found your letter of May 29th, giving me - the information it is always so pleasing to me to receive--that - you are all well. Would to God I could be with you to partake - of your felicities, and to tell you in person how much I love - you all, and how necessary it is to my happiness to be with - you. In my letter to your sister, written to her two or three - days ago, I expressed my uneasiness at hearing nothing more of - my tobacco, and asked some inquiries to be made of Mr. Lewis on - the subject. But I received yesterday a letter from Mr. Lewis - with full explanations, and another from Mr. Hylton, informing - me the tobacco was on its way to this place. Therefore desire - your sister to suppress that part of my letter and say nothing - about it. Tell her from me how much I love her. Kiss her and - the little one for me, and present my best affections to Mr. - Randolph, assured of them also yourself, from yours, - - TH. J. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, July 31st, 1791. - - The last letter I have from you, my dear Maria, was of the 29th - of May, which is nine weeks ago. Those which you ought to have - written the 19th of June and 10th of July would have reached - me before this if they had been written. I mentioned in my - letter of the last week to your sister that I had sent off some - stores to Richmond, which I should be glad to have carried to - Monticello in the course of the ensuing month of August. They - are addressed to the care of Mr. Brown. You mentioned formerly - that the two commodes were arrived at Monticello. Were my two - sets of ivory chessmen in the drawers? They have not been found - in any of the packages which came here, and Petit seems quite - sure they were packed up. How goes on the music, both with your - sister and yourself? Adieu, my dear Maria. Kiss and bless all - the family for me. - - Yours affectionately, - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_From Mary Jefferson._ - - Monticello, July 10th, 1791. - - My dear Papa--I have received both your letters, that from Lake - George and of June the 26th. I am very much obliged to you - for them, and think the bark that you wrote on prettier than - paper. Mrs. Monroe and Aunt Bolling are here. My aunt would have - written to you, but she was unwell. She intends to go to the - North Garden. Mr. Monroe is gone to Williamsburg to stay two - or three weeks, and has left his lady here. She is a charming - woman. My sweet Anne grows prettier every day. I thank you for - the pictures and nankeen that you sent me, which I think very - pretty. Adieu, dear papa. - - I am your affectionate daughter, - MARIA JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, August 21st, 1791. - - My dear Maria--Your letter of July 10th is the last news I have - from Monticello. The time of my setting out for that place is - now fixed to some time in the first week of September, so that I - hope to be there between the 10th and 15th. My horse is still in - such a condition as to give little hope of his living: so that - I expect to be under the necessity of buying one when I come to - Virginia, as I informed Mr. Randolph in my last letter to him. I - am in hopes, therefore, he will have fixed his eye on some one - for me, if I should be obliged to buy. In the mean time, as Mr. - Madison comes with me, he has a horse which will help us on to - Virginia. Kiss little Anne for me, and tell her to be putting on - her best looks. My best affections to Mr. Randolph, your sister, - and yourself. Adieu, my dear Maria, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In a letter written to Mrs. Randolph in July he announced the arrival -of his French steward, Petit,[44] who he said accosted him "with the -assurance that he had come pour rester toujours avec moi," he goes -on, as follows: - - The principal small news he brings is that Panthemont is one of - the convents to be kept up for education; that the old Abbess - is living, but Madame de Taubenheim dead; that some of the nuns - have chosen to rejoin the world, others to stay; that there are - no English prisoners there now; Botidorer remains there, etc., - etc. Mr. Short lives in the Hôtel d'Orleans, where I lived when - you first went to Panthemont. - - [44] This servant had made himself invaluable to Mr. Jefferson; - and in a previous letter he wrote to Mrs. Randolph, "I have been - made happy by Petit's determination to come to me. I did not look - out for another, because I still hoped he would come. In fact, he - retired to Champaigne to live with his mother, and after a short - time wrote to Mr. Short 'qu'il mourait d'ennui,' and was willing - to come." - -The following extract from a letter of Jefferson to Washington, -written early in the spring of this year (1791), shows the warmth of -his affection for him, and betrays a touching anxiety for his welfare: - - I shall be happy to hear that no accident has happened to you in - the bad roads you have passed, and that you are better prepared - for those to come by lowering the hang of your carriage, and - exchanging the coachman for two postilions, circumstances which - I confess to you appeared to me essential for your safety; for - which no one on earth more sincerely prays, both from public and - private regard, than he who has the honor to be, with sentiments - of the most profound respect, Sir, your most obedient and most - humble servant. - -Mr. Jefferson left Philadelphia for Virginia on the 2d of September, -and arrived at Monticello on the 12th. He remained there just one -month, leaving for the seat of government on the 12th of October. -His regrets at leaving home were on this occasion lessened by the -pleasure of being accompanied on his return to Philadelphia by his -beautiful young daughter, Maria. His establishment in Philadelphia -was one suitable to his rank and position. He kept five horses, and -besides his French steward, Petit, who presided over the ménage of -his house, he had four or five hired male servants and his daughter's -maid. - -In a letter to Mr. Randolph written on the 25th of October, he writes -thus of his journey: - - The first part of our journey was pleasant, except some - hair-breadth escapes which our new horse occasioned us in going - down hills the first day or two, after which he behaved better, - and came through the journey preserving the fierceness of his - spirit to the last. I believe he will make me a valuable horse. - Mrs. Washington took possession of Maria at Mount Vernon, and - only restored her to me here (Philadelphia). It was fortunate - enough, as we had to travel through five days of north-east - storm, having learned at Mount Vernon that Congress was to - meet on the 24th instead of the 31st, as I had thought. We got - here only on the 22d. The sales at Georgetown were few, but - good. They averaged $2400 the acre. Maria is immersed in new - acquaintances; but particularly happy with Nelly Custis, and - particularly attended to by Mrs. Washington. She will be with - Mrs. Pine a few days hence. - -In a later letter to Mrs. Randolph, he says: - - Maria is fixed at Mrs. Pine's, and perfectly at home. She has - made young friends enough to keep herself in a bustle, and has - been honored with the visits of Mrs. Adams, Mrs. Randolph, Mrs. - Rittenhouse, etc., etc. - -Towards the close of this year Jefferson began to keep his "Ana," or -notes on the passing transactions of the day. - -The tale of his life will be found pleasantly carried on in the -following letters to his daughter: - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, January 15th, 1792. - - My dear Martha--Having no particular subject for a letter, I - find none more soothing to my mind than to indulge itself in - expressions of the love I bear you, and the delight with which I - recall the various scenes through which we have passed together - in our wanderings over the world. These reveries alleviate the - toils and inquietudes of my present situation, and leave me - always impressed with the desire of being at home once more, - and of exchanging labor, envy, and malice for ease, domestic - occupation, and domestic love and society; where I may once more - be happy with you, with Mr. Randolph, and dear little Anne, - with whom even Socrates might ride on a stick without being - ridiculous. Indeed it is with difficulty that my resolution will - bear me through what yet lies between the present day and that - which, on mature consideration of all circumstances respecting - myself and others, my mind has determined to be the proper one - for relinquishing my office. Though not very distant, it is - not near enough for my wishes. The ardor of these, however, - would be abated if I thought that, on coming home, I should - be left alone. On the contrary, I hope that Mr. Randolph will - find a convenience in making only leisurely preparations for a - settlement, and that I shall be able to make you both happier - than you have been at Monticello, and relieve you of désagrémens - to which I have been sensible you were exposed, without the - power in myself to prevent it, but by my own presence. Remember - me affectionately to Mr. Randolph, and be assured of the tender - love of, yours, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, February 26th, 1792. - - My dear Martha--We are in daily expectation of hearing of your - safe return to Monticello, and all in good health. The season - is now coming on when I shall envy you your occupations in the - fields and garden, while I am shut up drudging within four - walls. Maria is well and lazy, therefore does not write. Your - friends, Mrs. Trist and Mrs. Waters, are well also, and often - inquire after you. We have nothing new and interesting from - Europe for Mr. Randolph. He will perceive by the papers that the - English are beaten off the ground by Tippoo Saib. The Leyden - Gazette assures that they were only saved by the unexpected - arrival of the Mahrattas, who were suing to Tippoo Saib for - peace for Lord Cornwallis. My best esteem to Mr. Randolph, and - am, my dear Martha, yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, March 22d, 1792. - - My dear Martha--Yours of February 20th came to me with that - welcome which every thing brings from you. It is a relief to be - withdrawn from the torment of the scenes amidst which we are. - Spectators of the heats and tumults of conflicting parties, we - can not help participating of their feelings. I should envy you - the tranquil occupations of your situation, were it not that I - value your happiness more than my own, but I too shall have my - turn. The ensuing year will be the longest of my life, and the - last of such hateful labors; the next we will sow our cabbages - together. Maria is well. Having changed my day of writing from - Sunday to Thursday or Friday, she will oftener miss writing, as - not being with me at the time. I believe you knew Otchakitz, the - Indian who lived with the Marquis de Lafayette. He came here - lately with some deputies from his nation, and died here of a - pleurisy. I was at his funeral yesterday; he was buried standing - up, according to their manner. I think it will still be a month - before your neighbor, Mrs. Monroe, will leave us. She will - probably do it with more pleasure than heretofore, as I think - she begins to tire of the town and feel a relish for scenes of - more tranquillity. Kiss dear Anne for her aunt, and twice for - her grandpapa. Give my best affections to Mr. Randolph, and - accept yourself all my tenderness. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In the following extract from a letter to General Washington, written -on the 23d of May (1792), Jefferson makes an eloquent appeal to him -to remain for another term at the head of the Government. After -speaking of the evil of a dissolution of the Union, he goes on to -say: - - -_To George Washington._ - - Yet, when we consider the mass which opposed the original - coalescence; when we consider that it lay chiefly in the - Southern quarter; that the Legislature have availed themselves - of no occasion of allaying it, but, on the contrary, whenever - Northern and Southern prejudices have come into conflict, the - latter have been sacrificed and the former soothed; that the - owners of the debt are in the Southern, and the holders of it in - the Northern division; ... who can be sure that these things - may not proselyte the small number that was wanting to place the - majority on the other side? And this is the event at which I - tremble, and to prevent which I consider your continuing at the - head of affairs as of the last importance. The confidence of the - whole Union is centred in you. Your being at the helm will be - more than an answer to every argument which can be used to alarm - and lead the people in any quarter into violence and secession. - North and South will hang together if they have you to hang on; - and if the first correction of a numerous representation should - fail in its effect, your presence will give time for trying - others not inconsistent with the union and peace of the State. - - I am perfectly aware of the oppression under which your present - office lays your mind, and of the ardor with which you pant - for domestic life. But there is, sometimes an eminence of - character on which society have such peculiar claims as to - control the predilections of the individual for a particular - walk of happiness, and restrain him to that alone arising from - the present and future benedictions of mankind. This seems to - be your condition, and the law imposed on you by Providence in - forming your character, and fashioning the events on which it - was to operate; and it is to motives like these, and not to - personal anxieties of mine or others, who have no right to call - on you for sacrifices, that I appeal, and urge a revisal of it, - on the ground of change in the aspect of things.... One or two - sessions will determine the crisis, and I can not but hope that - you can resolve to add more to the many years you have already - sacrificed to the good of mankind. - - The fear of suspicion that any selfish motive of continuance in - office may enter into this solicitation on my part, obliges me - to declare that no such motive exists. It is a thing of mere - indifference to the public whether I retain or relinquish my - purpose of closing my tour with the first periodical renovation - of the Government. I know my own measure too well to suppose - that my services contribute any thing to the public confidence - or the public utility. Multitudes can fill the office in which - you have been pleased to place me, as much to their advantage - and satisfaction. I have, therefore, no motive to consult but - my own inclination, which is bent irresistibly on the tranquil - enjoyment of my family, my farm, and my books. I should repose - among them, it is true, in far greater security if I were to - know that you remained at the watch; and I hope it will be so. - -The following extract is taken from an affectionate letter written by -Jefferson to Lafayette on the 16th of June, in which he congratulates -him on his promotion to the command of the French armies: - - Behold you, then, my dear friend, at the head of a great army - establishing the liberties of your country against a foreign - enemy. May Heaven favor your cause, and make you the channel - through which it may pour its favors. While you are extirpating - the monster aristocracy, and pulling out the teeth and fangs - of its associate monarchy, a contrary tendency is discovered - in some here. A sect has shown itself among us, who declare - they espoused our new Constitution not as a good and sufficient - thing in itself, but only as a step to an English Constitution, - the only thing good and sufficient in itself, in their eye. It - is happy for us that these are preachers without followers, - and that our people are firm and constant in their republican - purity. You will wonder to be told that it is from the eastward - chiefly that these champions for a King, Lords, and Commons come. - -On the 22d of the same month he writes from Philadelphia to Mrs. -Randolph as follows: - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - My dear Martha--Yours of May 27th came to hand on the very day - of my last to you, but after it was gone off. That of June 11th - was received yesterday. Both made us happy in informing us - you were all well. The rebuke to Maria produced the inclosed - letter. The time of my departure for Monticello is not yet - known. I shall, within a week from this time, send off my stores - as usual, that they may arrive before me. So that, should any - wagons be going down from the neighborhood, it would be well to - desire them to call on Mr. Brown in order to take up the stores - should they be arrived. I suspect, by the account you give me of - your garden, that you mean a surprise, as good singers always - preface their performances by complaints of cold, hoarseness, - etc. Maria is still with me. I am endeavoring to find a good - lady to put her with, if possible. If not, I shall send her to - Mrs. Brodeaux, as the last shift. Old Mrs. Hopkinson is living - in town, but does not keep house. I am in hopes you have visited - young Mrs. Lewis, and borne with the old one, so as to keep - on visiting terms. Sacrifices and suppression of feeling in - this way cost much less pain than open separation. The former - are soon over; the latter haunt the peace of every day of - one's life, be that ever so long. Adieu, my dear, with my best - affections to Mr. Randolph. Anne enjoys them without valuing - them. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - - Anonymous Attacks on Jefferson.--Washington's Letter to - him.--His Reply.--Letter to Edmund Randolph.--Returns - to Philadelphia.--Washington urges him to remain in his - Cabinet.-- Letters to his Daughter.--To his Son-in-law.--To - his Brother-in-law.--Sends his Resignation to the President.-- - Fever in Philadelphia.--Weariness of Public Life.--Letters - to his Daughters.--To Mrs. Church.--To his Daughter.--Visits - Monticello.-- Returns to Philadelphia.--Letter to Madison.-- - To Mrs. Church.--To his Daughters.--Interview with Genet.-- - Letter to Washington.--His Reply.--Jefferson returns to - Monticello.--State of his Affairs, and Extent of his - Possessions.--Letter to Washington.--To Mr. Adams.--Washington - attempts to get Jefferson back in his Cabinet.--Letter - to Edmund Randolph, declining.--Pleasures of his Life at - Monticello.--Letter to Madison.--To Giles.--To Rutledge.--To - young Lafayette. - - -In a letter which Jefferson wrote to Edmund Randolph (September 17th, -1792) while on a visit to Monticello, he thus alludes to an anonymous -newspaper attack on himself: - - -_To Edmund Randolph._ - - Every fact alleged under the signature of "An American" as to - myself is false, and can be proved so, and perhaps will be one - day. But for the present lying and scribbling must be free to - those mean enough to deal in them, and in the dark. I should - have been setting out for Philadelphia within a day or two; but - the addition of a grandson and indisposition of my daughter will - probably detain me here a week longer. - -The grandson whose birth is announced in this letter received the -name of his distinguished grandsire, and grew up to bear in after -life the relations and fulfill the duties of a son to him. - -On his way back to Philadelphia, after a stay of some months at -Monticello, Jefferson stopped at Mount Vernon, and was there -earnestly entreated by the President to reconsider his determination -to resign his office as Secretary of State. - -Washington having consented to be elected President for a second -term, was more and more persistent in his efforts to retain Jefferson -in his cabinet, and his wishes, added to the entreaties of his -friends, shook his resolution to retire, and finally succeeded in -making him agree to remain in office at least for a short time -longer. How reluctantly he yielded, and with what sacrifice of his -own feelings and interests, the reader may judge from the following -letter written by him to his daughter before his mind was finally -made up on the subject: - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, January 26th, 1793. - - My dear Martha--I received two days ago yours of the 16th. You - were never more mistaken than in supposing you were too long on - the prattle, etc., of little Anne. I read it with quite as much - pleasure as you write it. I sincerely wish I could hear of her - perfect re-establishment. I have for some time past been under - an agitation of mind which I scarcely ever experienced before, - produced by a check on my purpose of returning home at the close - of this session of Congress. My operations at Monticello had all - been made to bear upon that point of time; my mind was fixed - on it with a fondness which was extreme, the purpose firmly - declared to the President, when I became assailed from all - quarters with a variety of objections. Among these it was urged - that my retiring just when I had been attacked in the public - papers would injure me in the eyes of the public, who would - suppose I either withdrew from investigation, or because I had - not tone of mind sufficient to meet slander. The only reward I - ever wished on my retirement was to carry with me nothing like - a disapprobation of the public. These representations have for - some weeks past shaken a determination which I have thought - the whole world could not have shaken. I have not yet finally - made up my mind on the subject, nor changed my declaration to - the President. But having perfect reliance in the disinterested - friendship of some of those who have counselled and urged it - strongly; believing they can see and judge better a question - between the public and myself than I can, I feel a possibility - that I may be detained here into the summer. A few days will - decide. In the mean time I have permitted my house to be rented - after the middle of March, have sold such of my furniture as - would not suit Monticello, and am packing up the rest and - storing it ready to be shipped off to Richmond as soon as the - season of good sea-weather comes on. A circumstance which weighs - on me next to the weightiest is the trouble which, I foresee, I - shall be constrained to ask Mr. Randolph to undertake. Having - taken from other pursuits a number of hands to execute several - purposes which I had in view this year, I can not abandon those - purposes and lose their labor altogether. I must, therefore, - select the most important and least troublesome of them, the - execution of my canal, and (without embarrassing him with any - details which Clarkson and George are equal to) get him to tell - them always what is to be done and how, and to attend to the - levelling the bottom; but on this I shall write him particularly - if I defer my departure. I have not received the letter which - Mr. Carr wrote me from Richmond, nor any other from him since I - left Monticello. My best affections to him, Mr. Randolph, and - your fireside, and am, with sincere love, my dear Martha, yours, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Thomas Mann Randolph._--[_Extract._] - - Philadelphia, Feb. 3d, 1793. - - In my letter to my daughter, of the last week, I suggested to - her that a possibility had arisen that I might not return home - as early as I had determined. It happened unfortunately that - the attack made on me in the newspapers came out soon after I - began to speak freely and publicly of my purpose to retire this - spring, and, from the modes of publication, the public were - possessed of the former sooner than of the latter; and I find - that as well those who are my friends as those who are not, - putting the two things together as cause and effect, conceived - I was driven from my office either from want of firmness or - perhaps fear of investigation. Desirous that my retirement may - be clouded by no imputations of this kind, I see not only a - possibility, but rather a probability, that I shall postpone - it for some time. Whether for weeks or months, I can not now - say. This must depend in some degree on the will of those who - troubled the waters before. When they suffer them to be calm I - will go into port. My inclinations never before suffered such - violence, and my interests also are materially affected. - -The following extracts from letters to his daughter show the -tenderness of his feelings for his young grandchildren: - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - The last letter received from Mr. Randolph or yourself is of - Oct. 7, which is near seven weeks ago. I ascribe this to your - supposed absence from Monticello, but it makes me uneasy when I - recollect the frail state of your two little ones. I hope some - letter is on the way to me. I have no news for you except the - marriage of your friend, Lady Elizabeth Tufton, to some very - rich person. - - I have this day received yours of the 18th November, and - sincerely sympathize with you on the state of dear Anne, if - that can be called sympathy which proceeds from affection at - first-hand; for my affections had fastened on her for her own - sake, and not merely for yours. Still, however, experience (and - that in your own case) has taught me that an infant is never - desperate. Let me beseech you not to destroy the powers of her - stomach with medicine. Nature alone can re-establish infant - organs; only taking care that her efforts be not thwarted by any - imprudences of diet. I rejoice in the health of your other hope. - -The following will be found of interest: - - -_To Francis Eppes._ - - Philadelphia, Jan. 4th, 1793. - - Dear Sir--The greatest council of Indians which has been or - will be held in our day, is to be at the River Glaise, about - the southwest corner of Lake Erie, early in the spring. Three - commissioners will be appointed to go there on our part. Jack - is desirous of accompanying them; and though I do not know who - they will be, I presume I can get him under their wing.... He - will never have another chance for seeing so great a collection - of Indian (probably 3000) nations from beyond the lakes and the - Mississippi. It is really important that those who come into - public life should know more of these people than we generally - do.... I know no reason against his going, but that Mrs. Eppes - will be thinking of his scalp. However, he may safely trust his - where the commissioners will trust theirs.... - - Your affectionate friend and servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The address to the following letter from Jefferson is lost: - - - Philadelphia, March 18th, 1793. - - Dear Sir--I received your kind favor of the 26th ult., and thank - you for its contents as sincerely as if I could engage in what - they propose. When I first entered on the stage of public life - (now twenty-four years ago), I came to a resolution never to - engage, while in public office, in any kind of enterprise for - the improvement of my fortune, nor to wear any other character - than that of a farmer. I have never departed from it in a single - instance; and I have in multiplied instances found myself happy - in being able to decide and to act as a public servant, clear - of all interest, in the multiform questions that have arisen, - wherein I have seen others embarrassed and biased by having - got themselves in a more interested situation. Thus I have - thought myself richer in contentment than I should have been - with any increase of fortune. Certainly, I should have been much - wealthier had I remained in that private condition which renders - it lawful, and even laudable, to use proper efforts to better - it. However, my public career is now closing, and I will go - through on the principle on which I have hitherto acted. But I - feel myself under obligations to repeat my thanks for this mark - of your attention and friendship. - -After quoting this letter, Jefferson's biographer well says: "If Mr. -Jefferson would have consented to adopt a different rule, the saddest -page in his personal history would not be for us to write." - -On the last day of July, Jefferson, still longing for the quiet of -home-life, wrote to the President, tendering his resignation. After -stating his reasons for so doing, he says: - - -_To George Washington._ - - At the close, therefore, of the ensuing month of September, I - shall beg leave to retire to scenes of greater tranquillity from - those which I am every day more and more convinced that neither - my talents, tone of mind, nor time of life fit me. I have - thought it my duty to mention the matter thus early, that there - may be time for the arrival of a successor from any part of the - Union from which you may think proper to call one. That you may - find one more able to lighten the burthen of your labors, I most - sincerely wish; for no man living more sincerely wishes that - your administration could be rendered as pleasant to yourself as - it is useful and necessary to our country, nor feels for you a - more rational or cordial attachment and respect than, dear Sir, - your most obedient and most humble servant. - -Early in August the President visited Jefferson at his house in the -country, and urged that he would allow him to defer the acceptance -of his resignation until the 1st of January. This Jefferson finally, -though reluctantly, agreed to do. The following extract from a letter -written by him to Madison in June will show how irksome public life -was to him: - - -_To James Madison._ - - If the public, then, has no claim on me, and my friends nothing - to justify, the decision will rest on my own feelings alone. - There has been a time when these were very different from - what they are now; when, perhaps, the esteem of the world - was of higher value in my eye than every thing in it. But - age, experience, and reflection, preserving to that only its - due value, have set a higher on tranquillity. The motion of - my blood no longer keeps time with the tumult of the world. - It leads me to seek for happiness in the lap and love of my - family, in the society of my neighbors and my books, in the - wholesome occupations of my farms and my affairs, in an interest - or affection in every bud that opens, in every breath that - blows around me, in an entire freedom of rest, of motion, - of thought--owing account to myself alone of my hours and - actions. What must be the principle of that calculation which - would balance against these the circumstances of my present - existence--worn down with labors from morning to night, and - day to day; knowing them as fruitless to others as they are - vexatious to myself, committed singly in desperate and eternal - contest against a host who are systematically undermining the - public liberty and prosperity, even the rare hours of relaxation - sacrificed to the society of persons in the same intentions, - of whose hatred I am conscious, even in those moments of - conviviality when the heart wishes most to open itself to the - effusions of friendship and confidence; cut off from my family - and friends, my affairs abandoned to chaos and derangement; in - short, giving every thing I love in exchange for every thing I - hate, and all this without a single gratification in possession - or prospect, in present enjoyment or future wish. Indeed, my - dear friend, duty being out of the question, inclination cuts - off all argument, and so never let there be more between you and - me on this subject. - -To Mr. Morris he wrote, on September the 11th: - - An infectious and mortal fever is broke out in this place. The - deaths under it, the week before last, were about forty; the - last week about fifty; this week they will probably be about two - hundred, and it is increasing. Every one is getting out of the - city who can. Colonel Hamilton is ill of the fever, but is on - the recovery. The President, according to an arrangement of some - time ago, set out for Mount Vernon on yesterday. The Secretary - of War is setting out on a visit to Massachusetts. I shall go - in a few days to Virginia. When we shall reassemble again may, - perhaps, depend on the course of this malady, and on that may - depend the date of my next letter. - -I shall now carry the reader back to the beginning of this year -(1793), and give extracts from Jefferson's letters to his daughter, -Mrs. Randolph, giving them in their chronological order: - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, January 14th, 1793. - - Though his letter informed me of the re-establishment of Anne, - yet I wish to learn that time confirms our hopes. We were - entertained here lately with the ascent of Mr. Blanchard in - a balloon. The security of the thing appeared so great, that - every body is wishing for a balloon to travel in. I wish for - one sincerely, as, instead of ten days, I should be within five - hours of home. - - - Philadelphia, February 24th, 1793. - - Kiss dear Anne, and ask her if she remembers me and will write - to me. Health to the little one, and happiness to you all. - - - Philadelphia, March 10th, 1793. - - When I shall see you I can not say; but my heart and thoughts - are all with you till I do. I have given up my house here, - and taken a small one in the country, on the banks of the - Schuylkill, to serve me while I stay. We are packing all our - superfluous furniture, and shall be sending it by water to - Richmond when the season becomes favorable. My books, too, - except a very few, will be packed and go with the other things; - so that I shall put it out of my own power to return to the - city again to keep house, and it would be impossible to carry - on business in the winter at a country residence. Though this - points out an ultimate term of stay here, yet my mind is looking - to a much shorter one, if the circumstances will permit it which - broke in on my first resolution. Indeed, I have it much at heart - to be at home in time to run up the part of the house, the - latter part of the summer and fall, which I had proposed to do - in the spring. - -The following was written to an old friend: - - -_To Mrs. Church._ - - Philadelphia, June 7th, 1793. - - Dear Madam--Monsieur de Noailles has been so kind as to deliver - me your letter. It fills up the measure of his titles to any - service I can render him. It has served to recall to my mind - remembrances which are very dear to it, and which often furnish - a delicious resort from the dry and oppressive scenes of - business. Never was any mortal more tired of these than I am. I - thought to have been clear of them some months ago, but shall be - detained a little longer, and then I hope to get back to those - scenes for which alone my heart was made. I had understood we - were shortly to have the happiness of seeing you in America. It - is now, I think, the only country of tranquillity, and should be - the asylum of all those who wish to avoid the scenes which have - crushed our friends in Paris. What is become of Madame de Corny? - I have never heard of her since I returned to America. Where - is Mrs. Cosway? I have heard she was become a mother; but is - the new object to absorb all her affections? I think, if you do - not return to America soon, you will be fixed in England by new - family connections; for I am sure my dear Kitty is too handsome - and too good not to be sought, and sought till, for peace' sake, - she must make somebody happy. Her friend Maria writes to her - now, and I greet her with sincere attachment. Accept yourself - assurances of the same from, dear Madam, your affectionate and - humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -I continue his letters to his daughter, Mrs. Randolph. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, June 10th, 1793. - - I sincerely congratulate you on the arrival of the mocking-bird. - Learn all the children to venerate it as a superior being in - the form of a bird, or as a being which will haunt them if - any harm is done to itself or its eggs. I shall hope that the - multiplication of the cedar in the neighborhood, and of trees - and shrubs round the house, will attract more of them; for - they like to be in the neighborhood of our habitations if they - furnish cover. - - Philadelphia, July 7th, 1793. - - My head has been so full of farming since I have found it - necessary to prepare a place for my manager, that I could not - resist the addressing my last weekly letters to Mr. Randolph and - boring him with my plans. Maria writes to you to-day. She is - getting into tolerable health, though not good. She passes two - or three days in the week with me under the trees, for I never - go into the house but at the hour of bed. I never before knew - the full value of trees. My house is entirely embosomed in high - plane-trees, with good grass below; and under them I breakfast, - dine, write, read, and receive my company. What would I not give - that the trees planted nearest round the house at Monticello - were full-grown. - - Philadelphia, July 21st, 1793. - - We had peaches and Indian corn the 12th inst. When do they begin - with you this year? Can you lay up a good stock of seed-peas - for the ensuing summer? We will try this winter to cover our - garden with a heavy coating of manure. When earth is rich it - bids defiance to droughts, yields in abundance, and of the best - quality. I suspect that the insects which have harassed you have - been encouraged by the feebleness of your plants; and that has - been produced by the lean state of the soil. We will attack them - another year with joint efforts. - - Philadelphia, Aug. 4th, 1793. - - I inclose you two of Petit's recipes. The orthography will amuse - you, while the matter may be useful. The last of the two is - really valuable, as the beans preserved in that manner are as - firm, fresh, and green as when gathered. - -The orthography alluded to in this letter was that of the word -pancakes--the French cook spelling it thus: _pannequaiques_. - -On August 18th, Jefferson writes to Mrs. Randolph: - - - Maria and I are scoring off the weeks which separate us from - you. They wear off slowly; but time is sure, though slow.... My - blessings to your little ones; love to you all, and friendly - howd'ye's to my neighbors. Adieu. - -Jefferson visited Monticello in the autumn, and left his daughter -Maria there on his return to Philadelphia, or rather to Germantown, -from which place the following letter was written. The address of -this is lost, but it was probably written to Madison. I give only -extracts: - - Germantown, November 2d, 1793. - - I overtook the President at Baltimore, and we arrived here - yesterday, myself fleeced of seventy odd dollars to get from - Fredericksburg here, the stages running no further than - Baltimore. I mention this to put yourself and Monroe on your - guard. The fever in Philadelphia has so much abated as to have - almost disappeared. The inhabitants are about returning. It has - been determined that the President shall not interfere with the - meeting of Congress.... According to present appearances, this - place can not lodge a single person more. As a great favor, I - have got a bed in the corner of the public room of a tavern; and - must continue till some of the Philadelphians make a vacancy by - removing into the city. Then we must give him from four to six - or eight dollars a week for cuddies without a bed, and sometimes - without a chair or table. There is not a single lodging-house in - the place. Ross and Willing are alive. Hancock is dead. - - -_To James Madison._ - - Germantown, November 17th, 1793. - - Dear Sir--I have got good lodgings for Monroe and yourself--that - is to say, a good room with a fire-place and two beds, in a - pleasant and convenient position, with a quiet family. They - will breakfast you, but you must mess in a tavern; there is a - good one across the street. This is the way in which all must - do, and all, I think, will not be able to get even half beds. - The President will remain here, I believe, till the meeting - of Congress, merely to form a point of union for them before - they can have acquired information and courage. For at present - there does not exist a single subject in the disorder, no new - infection having taken place since the great rains of the 1st of - the month, and those before infected being dead or recovered.... - Accept, both of you, my sincere affection. - -Though bearing a later date than some which follow, we give the -following letter here: - - -_To Mrs. Church._ - - Germantown, Nov. 27th, 1793. - - I have received, my very good friend, your kind letter of - August 19th, with the extract from that of Lafayette, for whom - my heart has been constantly bleeding. The influence of the - United States has been put into action, as far as it could be - either with decency or effect. But I fear that distance and - difference of principle give little hold to General Washington - on the jailers of Lafayette. However, his friends may be assured - that our zeal has not been inactive. Your letter gives me the - first information that our dear friend Madame de Corny has - been, as to her fortune, among the victims of the times. Sad - times, indeed! and much-lamented victim! I know no country - where the remains of a fortune could place her so much at - her ease as this, and where public esteem is so attached to - worth, regardless of wealth; but our manners, and the state - of our society here, are so different from those to which her - habits have been formed, that she would lose more, perhaps, - in that scale. And Madam Cosway in a convent! I knew that to - much goodness of heart she joined enthusiasm and religion; but - I thought that very enthusiasm would have prevented her from - shutting up her adoration of the God of the universe within - the walls of a cloister; that she would rather have sought the - _mountain-top_. How happy should I be that it were _mine_ that - you, she, and Madame de Corny would seek. You say, indeed, that - you are coming to America, but I know that means New York. In - the mean time, I am going to Virginia. I have at length been - able to fix that to the beginning of the new year. I am then - to be liberated from the hated occupations of politics, and - to remain in the bosom of my family, my farm, and my books. I - have my house to build, my fields to farm, and to watch for - the happiness of those who labor for mine. I have one daughter - married to a man of science, sense, virtue, and competence; in - whom indeed I have nothing more to wish. They live with me. If - the other shall be as fortunate, in due process of time I shall - imagine myself as blessed as the most blessed of the patriarchs. - Nothing could then withdraw my thoughts a moment from home but - a recollection of my friends abroad. I often put the question, - whether yourself and Kitty will ever come to see your friends - at Monticello? but it is my affection, and not my experience - of things, which has leave to answer, and I am determined to - believe the answer, because in that belief I find I sleep - sounder, and wake more cheerful. _En attendant_, God bless you. - - Accept the homage of my sincere and constant affection, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following letters and extracts will be found interesting by the -reader: - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Germantown, Nov. 17th, 1793. - - No letter yet from my dear Maria, who is so fond of writing, - so punctual in her correspondence. I enjoin as a penalty that - the next be written in French.... I have not yet been in [to - Philadelphia], not because there is a shadow of danger, but - because I am afoot. Thomas is returned into my service. His - wife and child went into town the day we left them. They then - had the infection of the yellow fever, were taken two or three - days after, and both died. Had we staid those two or three - days longer, they would have been taken at our house. Mrs. - Fullarton left Philadelphia. Mr. and Mrs. Rittenhouse remained - here, but have escaped the fever. Follow closely your music, - reading, sewing, housekeeping, and love me, as I do you, most - affectionately. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - P.S.--Tell Mr. Randolph that Gen. Wayne has had a convoy of - twenty-two wagons of provisions and seventy men cut off in his - rear by the Indians. - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, Dec. 15th, 1793. - - My dear Maria--I should have written to you last Sunday in - turn, but business required my allotting your turn to Mr. - Randolph, and putting off writing to you till this day. I have - now received your and your sister's letters of November 27 and - 28. I agree that Watson shall make the writing-desk for you. - I called the other day on Mrs. Fullarton, and there saw your - friend Sally Cropper. She went up to Trenton the morning after - she left us, and staid there till lately. The maid-servant who - waited on her and you at our house caught the fever, on her - return to town, and died. In my letter of last week, I desired - Mr. Randolph to send horses for me, to be at Fredericksburg on - the 12th of January. Lest that letter should miscarry, I repeat - it here, and wish you to mention it to him. I also informed - him that a person of the name of Eli Alexander would set out - this day from Elktown to take charge of the plantations under - Byrd Rogers, and praying him to have his accommodations at the - place got ready as far as should be necessary before my arrival. - I hope to be with you all by the 15th of January, no more to - leave you. My blessings to your dear sister and little ones; - affections to Mr. Randolph and your friends with you. Adieu, my - dear. Yours tenderly, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._--[_Extract._] - - Philadelphia, Dec. 22d, 1793. - - In my letter of this day fortnight to Mr. Randolph, and that - of this day week to Maria, I mentioned my wish that my horses - might meet me at Fredericksburg on the 12th of January. I now - repeat it, lest those letters should miscarry. The President - made yesterday what I hope will be the last set at me to - continue; but in this I am now immovable by any considerations - whatever. My books and remains of furniture embark to-morrow - for Richmond.... I hope that by the next post I shall be able - to send Mr. Randolph a printed copy of our correspondence with - Mr. Genet and Mr. Hammond, as communicated to Congress. Our - affairs with England and Spain have a turbid appearance. The - letting loose the Algerines on us, which has been contrived by - England, has produced peculiar irritation. I think Congress will - indemnify themselves by high duties on all articles of British - importation. If this should produce war, though not wished for, - it seems not to be feared. - -The well-informed reader is familiar with the controversy alluded to -in the preceding letter, between the United States Government and the -French and English ministers, Messrs. Genet and Hammond. I can not -refrain from giving the following extract from Jefferson's report of -an interview between Mr. Genet and himself: - - He (Genet) asked if they (Congress) were not the Sovereign. - I told him no, they were sovereign in making laws only; the - Executive was sovereign in executing them; and the Judiciary in - construing them when they related to their department. "But," - said he, "at least Congress are bound to see that the treaties - are observed!" I told him no; there were very few cases, indeed, - arising out of treaties, which they could take notice of; that - the President is to see that treaties are observed. "If he - decides against the treaty, to whom is a nation to appeal?" - I told him the Constitution had made the President the last - appeal. He made me a bow, and said that indeed he would not make - me his compliments on such a Constitution, expressed the utmost - astonishment at it, and seemed never before to have had such an - idea. - -The following letter explains itself: - - -_To George Washington._ - - Philadelphia, December 31st, 1793. - - Dear Sir--Having had the honor of communicating to you in - my letter of the last of July my purpose of retiring from - the office of Secretary of State at the end of the month of - September, you were pleased, for particular reasons, to wish - its postponement to the close of the year. That term being now - arrived, and my propensities to retirement becoming daily more - and more irresistible, I now take the liberty of resigning the - office into your hands. Be pleased to accept with it my sincere - thanks for all the indulgences which you have been so good as to - exercise towards me in the discharge of its duties. Conscious - that my need of them has been great, I have still ever found - them greater, without any other claim on my part than a firm - pursuit of what has appeared to me to be right, and a thorough - disdain of all means which were not as open and honorable as - their object was pure. I carry into my retirement a lively sense - of your goodness, and shall continue gratefully to remember - it. With very sincere prayers for your life, health, and - tranquility, I pray you to accept the homage of the great and - constant respect and attachment with which I have the honor to - be, dear Sir, your most obedient and most humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -This called forth from Washington the following handsome and -affectionate letter: - - -_From George Washington._ - - Philadelphia, Jan. 1st, 1794. - - Dear Sir--I yesterday received with sincere regret your - resignation of the office of Secretary of State. Since it has - been impossible to prevail upon you to forego any longer the - indulgence of your desire for private life, the event, however - anxious I am to avert it, must be submitted to. - - But I can not suffer you to leave your station without assuring - you that the opinion which I had formed of your integrity and - talents, and which dictated your original nomination, has - been confirmed by the fullest experience, and that both have - been eminently displayed in the discharge of your duty. Let - a conviction of my most earnest prayers for your happiness - accompany you in your retirement; and while I accept with the - warmest thanks your solicitude for my welfare, I beg you to - believe that I am, dear Sir, etc. - -Perhaps no man ever received a higher compliment for the able -discharge of his official duties than that paid to Jefferson by his -adversaries, who, in opposing his nomination as President, urged -as an objection--"that Nature had made him only for a Secretary of -State." - -Jefferson set out on the 5th of January for his loved home, -Monticello--fondly imagining that he would never again leave the -peaceful shelter of its roof to enter upon the turmoils of public -life, but in reality destined to have only a short respite from them -in the far sweeter enjoyments of domestic life, surrounded by his -children and grandchildren. - -His private affairs were in sad need of his constant presence at -home after such long absences in the public service. He now owned in -his native State over ten thousand acres of land, which for ten long -years had been subject to the bad cultivation, mismanagement, and -ravages of hired overseers. Of these large landed estates, between -five and six thousand acres, comprising the farms of Monticello, -Montalto, Tufton, Shadwell, Lego, Pantops, Pouncey's, and Limestone, -were in the county of Albemarle; while another fine and favorite -estate, called Poplar Forest, lay in Bedford County, and contained -over four thousand acres. Of his land in Albemarle only twelve -hundred acres were in cultivation, and in Bedford eight hundred--the -two together making two thousand acres of arable land. The number -of slaves owned by Jefferson was one hundred and fifty-four--a very -small number in proportion to his landed estate. Some idea may be -formed of the way things were managed on these farms, from the fact -that out of the thirty-four horses on them eight were saddle-horses. -The rest of the stock on them consisted of five mules, two hundred -and forty-nine cattle, three hundred and ninety hogs, and three sheep. - -The few months' continuous stay at home which Jefferson had been -able to make during the past ten years had not been sufficient for -him to set things to rights. How greatly his farms needed a new -system of management may be seen from the following letter to General -Washington, written by him in the spring of 1794. He says: - - -_To George Washington._ - - I find, on a more minute examination of my lands than the short - visits heretofore made to them permitted, that a ten years' - abandonment of them to the ravages of overseers has brought on - them a degree of degradation far beyond what I had expected. - As this obliges me to adopt a milder course of cropping, so - I find that they have enabled me to do it, by having opened - a great deal of lands during my absence. I have therefore - determined on a division of my farms into six fields, to be - put under this rotation: First year, wheat; second, corn, - potatoes, peas; third, rye or wheat, according to circumstances; - fourth and fifth, clover, where the fields will bring it, and - buckwheat-dressings where they will not; sixth, folding and - buckwheat-dressing. But it will take me from three to six years - to get this plan under way. I am not yet satisfied that my - acquisition of overseers from the head of Elk has been a happy - one, or that much will be done this year towards rescuing my - plantations from their wretched condition. Time, patience, and - perseverance must be the remedy; and the maxim of your letter, - "slow and sure," is not less a good one in agriculture than - in politics.... But I cherish tranquillity too much to suffer - political things to enter my mind at all. I do not forget that - I owe you a letter for Mr. Young; but I am waiting to get full - information. With every wish for your health and happiness, and - my most friendly respects to Mrs. Washington, I have the honor - to be, dear Sir, your most obedient and most humble servant. - -Notwithstanding this disordered and disheartening state of his -affairs (due to no fault of his), we still find him luxuriating in -the quiet and repose of private life. On this subject he writes to -Mr. Adams, on April 25th, as follows: - - -_To John Adams._ - - Dear Sir--I am to thank you for the work you were so kind as - to transmit me, as well as the letter covering it, and your - felicitations on my present quiet. The difference of my present - and past situation is such as to leave me nothing to regret - but that my retirement has been postponed four years too long. - The principles on which I calculated the value of life are - entirely in favor of my present course. I return to farming - with an ardor which I scarcely knew in my youth, and which has - got the better entirely of my love of study. Instead of writing - ten or twelve letters a day, which I have been in the habit of - doing as a thing in course, I put off answering my letters now, - farmer-like, till a rainy day, and then find them sometimes - postponed by other necessary occupations.... With wishes of - every degree of happiness to you, both public and private, and - with my best respects to Mrs. Adams, I am your affectionate and - humble servant. - -The land not having been prepared for cultivation during the -preceding fall, Jefferson's farming operations during the summer of -1794 amounted to nothing. Unfortunately, when the next season came -around for the proper preparation to be made for the coming year, -it found him in such a state of health as to prevent his giving -his personal direction to his farms, and thus he was cut off from -any profit from them for another twelvemonth. Just about this time -General Washington made another attempt, through his Secretary of -State, Edmund Randolph, to get Jefferson back into his cabinet. -Though at the time ill, Jefferson at once sent the following reply to -Randolph: - - -_To Edmund Randolph._ - - Monticello, September 7th, 1794. - - Dear Sir--Your favor of August the 28th finds me in bed under - a paroxysm of the rheumatism, which has now kept me for ten - days in constant torment, and presents no hope of abatement. - But the express and the nature of the case requiring immediate - answer, I write you in this situation. No circumstances, my dear - Sir, will ever more tempt me to engage in any thing public. I - thought myself perfectly fixed in this determination when I left - Philadelphia, but every day and hour since has added to its - inflexibility. It is a great pleasure to me to retain the esteem - and approbation of the President, and this forms the only ground - of any reluctance at being unable to comply with every wish of - his. Pray convey these sentiments, and a thousand more to him, - which my situation does not permit me to go into.... - -I find nothing worthy of notice in Jefferson's life during the year -1795. He continued tranquilly and happily enjoying the society of -his children and grandchildren in his beautiful mountain home. Mrs. -Randolph was now the mother of three children. We have seen from -his letters to her how devotedly she was loved by her father. From -the time of her mother's death she had been his constant companion -until her own marriage; Maria Jefferson, now seventeen years old, was -as beautiful and loving as a girl as she had been as a child. The -brilliancy of her beauty is spoken of with enthusiasm by those still -living who remember her. - -In a letter to Mr. Madison written in the spring of this year (1795), -Mr. Jefferson writes thus of himself: - - -_To James Madison._ - - If these general considerations were sufficient to ground a firm - resolution never to permit myself to think of the office, or be - thought of for it, the special ones which have supervened on my - retirement still more insuperably bar the door to it. My health - is entirely broken down within the last eight months; my age - requires that I should place my affairs in a clear state; these - are sound if taken care of, but capable of considerable dangers - if longer neglected; and above all things, the delights I feel - in the society of my family, and in the agricultural pursuits - in which I am so eagerly engaged. The little spice of ambition - which I had in my younger days has long since evaporated, and - I set still less store by a posthumous than present name.... I - long to see you.... May we hope for a visit from you? If we may, - let it be after the middle of May, by which time I hope to be - returned from Bedford. - -In writing on the same day to his friend, Mr. Giles, he says: - - I shall be rendered very happy by the visit you promise me. The - only thing wanting to make me completely so is the more frequent - society of my friends. It is the more wanting, as I am become - more firmly fixed to the glebe. If you visit me as a farmer, - it must be as a con-disciple; for I am but a learner--an eager - one indeed, but yet desperate, being too old now to learn a new - art. However, I am as much delighted and occupied with it as - if I were the greatest adept. I shall talk with you about it - from morning till night, and put you on very short allowance as - to political aliment. Now and then a pious ejaculation for the - French and Dutch republicans, returning with due dispatch to - clover, potatoes, wheat, etc. - -To Edward Rutledge he wrote, on November 30th, 1795: - - I received your favor of October the 12th by your son, who has - been kind enough to visit me here, and from whose visit I have - received all that pleasure which I do from whatever comes from - you, and especially from a subject so deservedly dear to you. He - found me in a retirement I doat on, living like an antediluvian - patriarch among my children and grandchildren, and tilling my - soil. As he had lately come from Philadelphia, Boston, etc., - he was able to give me a great deal of information of what - is passing in the world; and I pestered him with questions, - pretty much as our friends Lynch, Nelson, etc., will us when - we step across the Styx, for they will wish to know what has - been passing above ground since they left us. You hope I have - not abandoned entirely the service of our country. After - five-and-twenty years' continual employment in it, I trust - it will be thought I have fulfilled my tour, like a punctual - soldier, and may claim my discharge. But I am glad of the - sentiment from you, my friend, because it gives a hope you will - practice what you preach, and come forward in aid of the public - vessel. I will not admit your old excuse, that you are in public - service, though at home. The campaigns which are fought in a - man's own house are not to be counted. The present situation of - the President, unable to get the offices filled, really calls - with uncommon obligation on those whom nature has fitted for - them. - -Early in the spring of 1796, in a letter to his friend Giles, he -gives us the following glimpse of his domestic operations: - - We have had a fine winter. Wheat looks well. Corn is scarce and - dear: twenty-two shillings here, thirty shillings in Amherst. - Our blossoms are but just opening. I have begun the demolition - of my house, and hope to get through its re-edification in the - course of the summer. We shall have the eye of a brick-kiln to - poke you into, or an octagon to air you in. - -To another friend he wrote, a few weeks later: - - I begin to feel the effects of age. My health has suddenly - broken down, with symptoms which give me to believe I shall not - have much to encounter of the _tedium vitæ_. - -The reader will read with interest the following kind and -affectionate letter to young Lafayette--son of the Marquis de -Lafayette: - - -_To Lafayette, Junior._ - - Monticello, June 19th, 1796. - - Dear Sir--The inquiries of Congress were the first intimation - which reached my retirement of your being in this country; and - from M. Volney, now with me, I first learned where you are. I - avail myself of the earliest moments of this information to - express to you the satisfaction with which I learn that you are - in a land of safety, where you will meet in every person the - friend of your worthy father and family. Among these, I beg - leave to mingle my own assurances of sincere attachment to him, - and my desire to prove it by every service I can render you. I - know, indeed, that you are already under too good a patronage - to need any other, and that my distance and retirement render - my affections unavailing to you. They exist, nevertheless, in - all their warmth and purity towards your father and every one - embraced by his love; and no one has wished with more anxiety - to see him once more in the bosom of a nation who, knowing - his works and his worth, desire to make him and his family - forever their own. You were, perhaps, too young to remember - me personally when in Paris. But I pray you to remember that, - should any occasion offer wherein I can be useful to you, there - is no one on whose friendship and zeal you may more confidently - count. You will some day, perhaps, take a tour through these - States. Should any thing in this part of them attract your - curiosity, it would be a circumstance of great gratification to - me to receive you here, and to assure you in person of those - sentiments of esteem and attachment, with which I am, dear Sir, - your friend and humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - - Description of Monticello and Jefferson by the Duc de la - Rochefoucauld-Liancourt.--Nominated Vice-President.--Letter - to Madison.--To Adams.--Preference for the Office of - Vice-President.--Sets out for Philadelphia.--Reception - there.--Returns to Monticello.--Letters to his Daughter.--Goes - to Philadelphia.--Letter to Rutledge.--Family Letters.--To Miss - Church.--To Mrs. Church. - - -I have elsewhere given a charming picture of Monticello and its -inmates in 1782, from the pen of an accomplished Frenchman--the -Marquis de Chastellux. A countryman of his--equally as accomplished -and distinguished, the Duc de la Rochefoucauld-Liancourt--has left -us a similar one of a later date. This patriotic French nobleman, -who had been Lieutenant-general of France and President of the -National Assembly, while in exile spent some days at Monticello, in -the month of June, 1796--a month when the mountains of Albemarle are -clothed in all the brilliancy of their summer beauty. The lovely -landscapes around Monticello were well calculated to charm the eye of -a foreigner; and I give the Duc's detailed but agreeable description -of the place, its owner, and its surroundings. There are one or two -trifling mistakes in it as regards geographical names; the rest is -accurate: - - Monticello is situated three miles from Milton, in that chain of - mountains which stretches from James River to the Rappahannock, - twenty-eight miles in front of the Blue Ridge, and in a - direction parallel to those mountains. This chain, which runs - uninterrupted in its small extent, assumes successively the - names of the West, South, and Green Mountains. - - It is in the part known by the name of the South Mountains that - Monticello is situated. The house stands on the summit of the - mountain, and the taste and arts of Europe have been consulted - in the formation of its plan. Mr. Jefferson had commenced its - construction before the American Revolution; since that epocha - his life has been constantly engaged in public affairs, and he - has not been able to complete the execution of the whole extent - of the project which it seems he had at first conceived. That - part of the building which was finished has suffered from the - suspension of the work, and Mr. Jefferson, who two years since - resumed the habits and leisure of private life, is now employed - in repairing the damage occasioned by this interruption, and - still more by his absence; he continues his original plan, and - even improves on it by giving to his buildings more elevation - and extent. He intends that they shall consist only of one - story, crowned with balustrades; and a dome is to be constructed - in the centre of the structure. The apartments will be large and - convenient; the decoration, both outside and inside, simple, - yet regular and elegant. Monticello, according to its first - plan, was infinitely superior to all other houses in America, in - point of taste and convenience; but at that time Mr. Jefferson - had studied taste and the fine arts in books only. His travels - in Europe have supplied him with models; he has appropriated - them to his design; and his new plan, the execution of which - is already much advanced, will be accomplished before the end - of next year, and then his house will certainly deserve to be - ranked with the most pleasant mansions in France and England. - - Mr. Jefferson's house commands one of the most extensive - prospects you can meet with. On the east side, the front of - the building, the eye is not checked by any object, since - the mountain on which the house is seated commands all the - neighboring heights as far as the Chesapeake. The Atlantic - might be seen, were it not for the greatness of the distance, - which renders that prospect impossible. On the right and left - the eye commands the extensive valley that separates the Green, - South, and West Mountains from the Blue Ridge, and has no other - bounds but these high mountains, of which, on a clear day, you - discern the chain on the right upward of a hundred miles, far - beyond James River; and on the left as far as Maryland, on - the other side of the Potomac. Through some intervals formed - by the irregular summits of the Blue Mountains, you discover - the Peaked Ridge, a chain of mountains placed between the - Blue and North Mountains, another more distant ridge. But in - the back part the prospect is soon interrupted by a mountain - more elevated than that on which the house is seated. The - bounds of the view on this point, at so small a distance, form - a pleasant resting-place, as the immensity of prospect it - enjoys is perhaps already too vast. A considerable number of - cultivated fields, houses, and barns, enliven and variegate the - extensive landscape, still more embellished by the beautiful and - diversified forms of mountains, in the whole chain of which not - one resembles another. The aid of fancy is, however, required to - complete the enjoyment of this magnificent view; and she must - picture to us those plains and mountains such as population - and culture will render them in a greater or smaller number of - years. The disproportion existing between the cultivated lands - and those which are still covered with forests as ancient as - the globe, is at present much too great; and even when that - shall have been done away, the eye may perhaps further wish - to discover a broad river, a great mass of water--destitute - of which, the grandest and most extensive prospect is ever - destitute of an embellishment requisite to render it completely - beautiful. - - On this mountain, and in the surrounding valleys on both banks - of the Rivanna, are situated the five thousand acres of land - which Mr. Jefferson possesses in this part of Virginia. Eleven - hundred and twenty only are cultivated. The land, left to the - care of stewards, has suffered as well as the buildings from - the long absence of the master; according to the custom of - the country, it has been exhausted by successive culture. Its - situation on the declivities of hills and mountains renders - a careful cultivation more necessary than is requisite in - lands situated in a flat and even country; the common routine - is more pernicious, and more judgment and mature thought are - required, than in a different soil. This forms at present - the chief employment of Mr. Jefferson. But little accustomed - to agricultural pursuits, he has drawn the principles of - culture either from works which treat on this subject or from - conversation. Knowledge thus acquired often misleads, and - is at all times insufficient in a country where agriculture - is well understood; yet it is preferable to mere practical - knowledge, and a country where a bad practice prevails, and - where it is dangerous to follow the routine, from which it is so - difficult to depart. Above all, much good may be expected, if a - contemplative mind like that of Mr. Jefferson, which takes the - theory for its guide, watches its application with discernment, - and rectifies it according to the peculiar circumstances and - nature of the country, climate, and soil, and conformably to the - experience which he daily acquires.... - - In private life Mr. Jefferson displays a mild, easy, and - obliging temper, though he is somewhat cold and reserved. His - conversation is of the most agreeable kind, and he possesses a - stock of information not inferior to that of any other man. In - Europe he would hold a distinguished rank among men of letters, - and as such he has already appeared there. At present he is - employed with activity and perseverance in the management of - his farms and buildings; and he orders, directs, and pursues - in the minutest details every branch of business relative to - them. I found him in the midst of the harvest, from which the - scorching heat of the sun does not prevent his attendance. His - negroes are nourished, clothed, and treated as well as white - servants could be. As he can not expect any assistance from the - two small neighboring towns, every article is made on his farm: - his negroes are cabinet-makers, carpenters, masons, bricklayers, - smiths, etc. The children he employs in a nail factory, which - yields already a considerable profit. The young and old - negresses spin for the clothing of the rest. He animates them - by rewards and distinctions; in fine, his superior mind directs - the management of his domestic concerns with the same abilities, - activity, and regularity which he evinced in the conduct of - public affairs, and which he is calculated to display in every - situation of life. In the superintendence of his household he is - assisted by his two daughters, Mrs. Randolph and Miss Maria, who - are handsome, modest, and amiable women. They have been educated - in France.... - - Mr. Randolph is proprietor of a considerable plantation, - contiguous to that of Mr. Jefferson's. He constantly spends the - summer with him, and, from the affection he bears him, he seems - to be his son rather than his son-in-law. Miss Maria constantly - resides with her father; but as she is seventeen years old, - and is remarkably handsome, she will, doubtless, soon find that - there are duties which it is still sweeter to perform than those - of a daughter. Mr. Jefferson's philosophic turn of mind, his - love of study, his excellent library, which supplies him with - the means of satisfying it, and his friends, will undoubtedly - help him to endure this loss, which, moreover, is not likely - to become an absolute privation; as the second son-in-law of - Mr. Jefferson may, like Mr. Randolph, reside in the vicinity of - Monticello, and, if he be worthy of Miss Maria, will not be able - to find any company more desirable than that of Mr. Jefferson.... - - Left Monticello on the 29th of June. - -All through this summer Mr. Jefferson was much occupied with the -rebuilding of his house, which he hoped to finish before the winter -set in; but just as the walls were nearly ready to be roofed in, a -stiff freeze arrested, in November, all work on it for the winter. - -General Washington having declared his determination to retire from -public life at the expiration of his second term, new candidates had -to be run for the Presidential chair. The Federalists chose John -Adams as their candidate; while the Republicans, having no thought of -running as theirs any man but Jefferson, placed his name at the head -of their ticket. How little interest Jefferson took in the elections, -so far as his own success was concerned, may be inferred from the -fact that he did not leave home during the whole campaign, and in -that time wrote only one political letter. - -As the constitution then stood, the candidate who received the -highest number of votes was elected President, and the one who -received the next highest--whether he was run for President or -Vice-president--was elected to fill the latter office. The elections -were over, but the result still unknown, when Jefferson wrote, on -December 17th, to Mr. Madison, as follows: - - -_To James Madison._ - - Your favor of the 5th came to hand last night. The first wish - of my heart was that you should have been proposed for the - administration of the Government. On your declining it, I wish - any body rather than myself; and there is nothing I so anxiously - hope, as that my name may come out either second or third. These - would be indifferent to me; as the last would leave me at home - the whole year, and the other two-thirds of it. - -After the result of the elections was no longer doubtful, and it -was known that Adams had been chosen as President and Jefferson -Vice-president, the latter wrote the following feeling and handsome -letter to the former: - - -_To John Adams._ - - Monticello, Dec. 28th, 1796. - - Dear Sir--The public and the public papers have been much - occupied lately in placing us in a point of opposition to each - other. I trust with confidence that less of it has been felt by - ourselves personally. In the retired canton where I am, I learn - little of what is passing; pamphlets I see never; papers but a - few, and the fewer the happier. Our latest intelligence from - Philadelphia at present is of the 16th inst. But though at that - date your election to the first magistracy seems not to have - been known as a fact, yet with me it has never been doubted. I - knew it impossible you should lose a vote north of the Delaware, - and even if that of Pennsylvania should be against you in the - mass, yet that you would get enough south of that to place - your succession out of danger. I have never one single moment - expected a different issue; and though I know I shall not be - believed, yet it is not the less true that I have never wished - it. My neighbors, as my compurgators, could aver that fact, - because they see my occupations and my attachment to them.... - - I leave to others the sublime delight of riding in the storm, - better pleased with sound sleep and a warm berth below, with the - society of neighbors, friends, and fellow-laborers of the earth, - than of spies and sycophants. No one, then, will congratulate - you with purer disinterestedness than myself. The share, indeed, - which I may have had in the late vote I shall still value - highly, as an evidence of the share I have in the esteem of my - fellow-citizens. But still, in this point of view, a few votes - less would be little sensible; the difference in the effect - of a few more would be very sensible and oppressive to me. I - have no ambition to govern men. It is a painful and thankless - office. Since the day, too, on which you signed the treaty of - Paris, our horizon was never so overcast. I devoutly wish you - may be able to shun for us this war, by which our agriculture, - commerce, and credit will be destroyed. If you are, the glory - will be all your own; and that your administration may be filled - with glory and happiness to yourself and advantage to us, is the - sincere wish of one who, though, in the course of our voyage - through life, various little incidents have happened or been - contrived to separate us, retains still for you the solid esteem - of the moments when we were working for our independence, and - sentiments of respect and attachment. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -Of the office of Vice-president, we find Jefferson, in a letter to -Madison written on January 1st, 1797, saying: - - -_To James Madison._ - - It is the only office in the world about which I am unable to - decide in my own mind whether I had rather have it or not have - it. Pride does not enter into the estimate; for I think, with - the Romans, that the general of to-day should be a soldier - to-morrow, if necessary. I can particularly have no feelings - which could revolt at a secondary position to Mr. Adams. I am - his junior in life, was his junior in Congress, his junior in - the diplomatic line, his junior lately in our civil government. - -He always spoke of this office as being of all others the most -desirable, from the fact that it gave the incumbent a high position, -good salary, and ample leisure. To him this last advantage was its -greatest recommendation, and made him accept it with less reluctance -than he would have done any other which his countrymen could have -forced upon him. - -Jefferson set out on the 20th of February for Philadelphia, there to -be installed in his new office. He drove his phaeton and pair as far -as Alexandria, when he sent his servant Jupiter back home with his -horses, while he continued his journey in the stage-coach. He arrived -in Philadelphia on the 2d of March. - -With his usual modesty and dislike of display, he had written in -January to his friend Mr. Tazewell, who was in Congress, begging that -he might be notified of his election by the common channel of the -ordinary post, and not by a deputation of men of position, as had -been the case when the Government was first inaugurated. So, too, -from the same feeling of diffidence he sought to enter the national -capital as a private citizen, and without being the recipient of any -popular demonstrations. It was, however, in vain for him to attempt -to do so. A body of troops were on the look-out for him and signalled -his approach by a discharge of artillery, and, marching before him -into the city, bore a banner aloft on which were inscribed the words: -"Jefferson, the Friend of the People." - -An incident characteristic of Jefferson occurred on the day of the -inauguration. After the oaths of office had been administered, the -President (Mr. Adams) resumed his seat for a moment, then rose and, -bowing to the assembly, left the hall. Jefferson rose to follow, but -seeing General Washington also rise to leave, he at once fell back to -let him pass out first. The General, perceiving this, declined to go -before, and forced the new Vice-president to precede him. The doors -of the hall closed upon them both amid the tumultuous cheering of the -assembly. - -Jefferson set out for home on the 12th of March and arrived there -on the 20th, having performed the last stages of his journey in his -sulky. His two daughters were not at Monticello, being absent on a -long visit to an estate of Colonel Randolph's on James River. A few -days after his return home he wrote to Mrs. Randolph. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._--[_Extract._] - - Monticello, March 27th, '97. - - I arrived in good health at home this day se'nnight. The - mountain had then been in bloom ten days. I find that the - natural productions of the spring are about a fortnight earlier - here than at Fredericksburg; but where art and attention can do - any thing, some one in a large collection of inhabitants, as in - a town, will be before ordinary individuals, whether of town or - country. I have heard of you but once since I left home, and - am impatient to know that you are all well. I have, however, - so much confidence in the dose of health with which Monticello - charges you in summer and autumn, that I count on its carrying - you well through the winter. The difference between the health - enjoyed at Varina and Presqu'isle[45] is merely the effect of - this. Therefore do not ascribe it to Varina and stay there too - long. The bloom of Monticello is chilled by my solitude. It - makes me wish the more that yourself and sister were here to - enjoy it. I value the enjoyments of this life only in proportion - as you participate them with me. All other attachments are - weakening, and I approach the state of mind when nothing will - hold me here but my love for yourself and sister, and the tender - connections you have added to me. I hope you will write to me; - as nothing is so pleasing during your absence as these proofs of - your love. Be assured, my dear daughter, that you possess mine - in its utmost limits. Kiss the dear little ones for me. I wish - we had one of them here. Adieu affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - [45] A former residence of Mr. and Mrs. Randolph. - -Again, on April 9th, he writes: - - - My love to Maria. Tell her I have made a new law; which is, - only to _answer_ letters. It would have been her turn to have - received a letter had she not lost it by not writing. Adieu most - affectionately, both of you. - -An extra session of Congress recalled Jefferson to Philadelphia -during the spring; and the following extract from a letter written -to Edward Rutledge while there gives an animated picture of the -bitterness of party feeling at that time. - - -_To Edward Rutledge._ - - You and I have seen warm debates and high political passions. - But gentlemen of different politics would then speak to each - other, and separate the business of the Senate from that of - society. It is not so now. Men who have been intimate all their - lives, cross the streets to avoid meeting, and turn their heads - another way, lest they should be obliged to touch their hats. - This may do for young men with whom passion is enjoyment, but it - is afflicting to peaceable minds. - -The following charming family letters will be read with pleasure, I -feel sure: - - -_To Mary Jefferson._ - - Philadelphia, May 25th, 1797. - - My dear Maria--I wrote to your sister the last week, since which - I have been very slowly getting the better of my rheumatism, - though very slowly indeed; being only able to walk a little - stronger. I see by the newspapers that Mr. and Mrs. Church and - their family are arrived at New York. I have not heard from - them, and therefore am unable to say any thing about your friend - Kitty, or whether she be still Miss Kitty. The condition of - England is so unsafe that every prudent person who can quit it, - is right in doing so. James is returned to this place, and is - not given up to drink as I had before been informed. He tells - me his next trip will be to Spain. I am afraid his journeys - will end in the moon. I have endeavored to persuade him to stay - where he is, and lay up money. We are not able yet to judge when - Congress will rise. Opinions differ from two to six weeks. A - few days will probably enable us to judge. I am anxious to hear - that Mr. Randolph and the children have got home in good health; - I wish also to hear that your sister and yourself continue in - health; it is a circumstance on which the happiness of my life - depends. I feel the desire of never separating from you grow - daily stronger, for nothing can compensate with me the want of - your society. My warmest affections to you both. Adieu, and - continue to love me as I do you. Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The letter which comes next was written to Mrs. Randolph in reply to -one from her announcing to her father the engagement of his daughter -Maria, to her cousin John Wayles Eppes. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, June 8th, 1797. - - I receive with inexpressible pleasure the information your - letter contained. After your happy establishment, which has - given me an inestimable friend, to whom I can leave the care of - every thing I love, the only anxiety I had remaining was to see - Maria also so associated as to insure her happiness. She could - not have been more so to my wishes if I had had the whole earth - free to have chosen a partner for her. - - I now see our fireside formed into a group, no one member of - which has a fibre in their composition which can ever produce - any jarring or jealousies among us. No irregular passions, - no dangerous bias, which may render problematical the future - fortunes and happiness of our descendants. We are quieted as to - their condition for at least one generation more. - - In order to keep us all together, instead of a present position - in Bedford, as in your case, I think to open and resettle the - plantation of Pantops for them. When I look to the ineffable - pleasure of my family society, I become more and more disgusted - with the jealousies, the hatred, and the rancorous and malignant - passions of this scene, and lament my having ever again been - drawn into public view. Tranquillity is now my object. I have - seen enough of political honors to know that they are but - splendid torments; and however one might be disposed to render - services on which any of their fellow-citizens should set a - value, yet, when as many would depreciate them as a public - calamity, one may well entertain a modest doubt of their real - importance, and feel the impulse of duty to be very weak. The - real difficulty is, that being once delivered into the hands - of others whose feelings are friendly to the individual and - warm to the public cause, how to withdraw from them without - leaving a dissatisfaction in their mind, and an impression of - pusillanimity with the public. - -Maria Jefferson was married on the 13th of October, 1797, to John -Wayles Eppes, who was in every respect worthy of the high opinion -which we have found Jefferson expressing for him in the preceding -letters. His manners were frank and engaging, while his high talents -and fine education placed him among the first men of the country. The -young couple spent the early days of their married life at Eppington, -where the little "Polly," so beautiful and so timid, had received -such motherly care and affection from her good Aunt Eppes when -heart-broken at the death of her own mother. - -I continue Mr. Jefferson's family letters. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Philadelphia, January 7th, '98. - - I acknowledged, my dear Maria, the receipt of yours in a letter - I wrote to Mr. Eppes. It gave me the welcome news that your - sprain was well. But you are not to suppose it entirely so. The - joint will remain weak for a considerable time, and give you - occasional pains much longer. The state of things at ---- is - truly distressing. Mr. ----'s habitual intoxication will destroy - himself, his fortune, and family. Of all calamities this is the - greatest. I wish my sister could bear his misconduct with more - patience. It would lessen his attachment to the bottle, and at - any rate would make her own time more tolerable. When we see - ourselves in a situation which must be endured and gone through, - it is best to make up our minds to it, meet it with firmness, - and accommodate every thing to it in the best way practicable. - This lessens the evil, while fretting and fuming only serves to - increase our own torments. The errors and misfortunes of others - should be a school for our own instruction. Harmony in the - married state is the very first object to be aimed at. Nothing - can preserve affections uninterrupted but a firm resolution - never to differ in will, and a determination in each to consider - the love of the other as of more value than any object whatever - on which a wish had been fixed. How light, in fact, is the - sacrifice of any other wish when weighed against the affections - of one with whom we are to pass our whole life! And though - opposition in a single instance will hardly of itself produce - alienation, yet every one has their pouch into which all these - little oppositions are put; while that is filling the alienation - is insensibly going on, and when filled it is complete. It would - puzzle either to say why; because no one difference of opinion - has been marked enough to produce a serious effect by itself. - But he finds his affections wearied out by a constant stream - of little checks and obstacles. Other sources of discontent, - very common indeed, are the little cross-purposes of husband - and wife, in common conversation, a disposition in either - to criticise and question whatever the other says, a desire - always to demonstrate and make him feel himself in the wrong, - and especially in company. Nothing is so goading. Much better, - therefore, if our companion views a thing in a light different - from what we do, to leave him in quiet possession of his view. - What is the use of rectifying him if the thing be unimportant; - and if important, let it pass for the present, and wait a softer - moment and more conciliatory occasion of revising the subject - together. It is wonderful how many persons are rendered unhappy - by inattention to these little rules of prudence. - - I have been insensibly led, by the particular case you mention, - to sermonize you on the subject generally; however, if it be - the means of saving you from a single heartache, it will have - contributed a great deal to my happiness; but before I finish - the sermon, I must add a word on economy. The unprofitable - condition of Virginia estates in general leaves it now next - to impossible for the holder of one to avoid ruin. And this - condition will continue until some change takes place in the - mode of working them. In the mean time, nothing can save us and - our children from beggary but a determination to get a year - beforehand, and restrain ourselves vigorously this year to the - clear profits of the last. If a debt is once contracted by a - farmer, it is never paid but by a sale. - - The article of dress is perhaps that in which economy is the - least to be recommended. It is so important to each to continue - to please the other, that the happiness of both requires the - most pointed attention to whatever may contribute to it--and - the more as time makes greater inroads on our person. Yet, - generally, we become slovenly in proportion as personal decay - requires the contrary. I have great comfort in believing - that your understanding and dispositions will engage your - attention to these considerations; and that you are connected - with a person and family, who of all within the circle of my - acquaintance are most in the dispositions which will make you - happy. Cultivate their affections, my dear, with assiduity. - Think every sacrifice a gain which shall tend to attach them to - you. My only object in life is to see yourself and your sister, - and those deservedly dear to you, not only happy, but in no - danger of becoming unhappy. - - I have lately received a letter from your friend Kitty Church. - I inclose it to you, and think the affectionate expressions - relative to yourself, and the advance she has made, will require - a letter from you to her. It will be impossible to get a crystal - here to fit your watch without the watch itself. If you should - know of any one coming to Philadelphia, send it to me, and I - will get you a stock of crystals. The river being frozen up, I - shall not be able to send you things till it opens, which will - probably be some time in February. I inclose to Mr. Eppes some - pamphlets. Present me affectionately to all the family, and be - assured of my tenderest love to yourself. Adieu. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, Feb. 8th, '98. - - I ought oftener, my dear Martha, to receive your letters, for - the very great pleasure they give me, and especially when they - express your affections for me; for, though I can not doubt - them, yet they are among those truths which, though not doubted, - we love to hear repeated. Here, too, they serve, like gleams - of light, to cheer a dreary scene; where envy, hatred, malice, - revenge, and all the worst passions of men, are marshalled to - make one another as miserable as possible. I turn from this with - pleasure, to contrast it with your fireside, where the single - evening I passed at it was worth more than ages here. Indeed, I - find myself detaching very fast, perhaps too fast, from every - thing but yourself, your sister, and those who are identified - with you. These form the last hold the world will have on me, - the cords which will be cut only when I am loosened from this - state of being. I am looking forward to the spring with all - the fondness of desire to meet you all once more, and with the - change of season to enjoy also a change of scene and society. - Yet the time of our leaving this is not yet talked of. - - I am much concerned to hear of the state of health of Mr. - Randolph and family, mentioned in your letters of Jan. 22d and - 28th. Surely, my dear, it would be better for you to remove - to Monticello. The south pavilion, the parlor, and study will - accommodate your family; and I should think Mr. Randolph would - find less inconvenience in the riding it would occasion him than - in the loss of his own and his family's health. Let me beseech - you, then, to go there, and to use every thing and every body as - if I were there.... - - All your commissions shall be executed, not forgetting the Game - of the Goose, if we can find out what it is, for there is some - difficulty in that. Kiss all the little ones for me. Present me - affectionately to Mr. Randolph, and my warmest love to yourself. - Adieu. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._--[_Extract._] - - Philadelphia, May 17th, '98. - - Having nothing of business to write on to Mr. Randolph this - week, I with pleasure take up my pen to express all my love to - you, and my wishes once more to find myself in the only scene - where, for me, the sweeter affections of life have any exercise. - But when I shall be with you seems still uncertain. We have been - looking forward from three weeks to three weeks, and always - with disappointment, so that I know not what to expect. I shall - immediately write to Maria, and recommend to Mr. Eppes and her - to go up to Monticello.... - - For you to feel all the happiness of your quiet situation, you - should know the rancorous passions which tear every breast here, - even of the sex which should be a stranger to them. Politics - and party hatreds destroy the happiness of every being here. - They seem, like salamanders, to consider fire as their element. - The children, I am afraid, will have forgotten me. However, - my memory may perhaps be hung on the Game of the Goose which - I am to carry them. Kiss them for me.... And to yourself, my - tenderest love, and adieu. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._--[_Extract._] - - Philadelphia, May 31st, '98. - - Yours of the 12th did not get to hand till the 29th; so it must - have laid by a post somewhere. The receipt of it, by kindling - up all my recollections, increases my impatience to leave this - place, and every thing which can be disgusting, for Monticello - and my dear family, comprising every thing which is pleasurable - to me in this world. It has been proposed in Congress to adjourn - on the 14th of June. I have little expectation of it; but, - whatever be their determination, I am determined myself; and my - letter of next week will probably carry orders for my horses. - Jupiter should, therefore, be in readiness to depart at a - night's warning.... - - I am sorry to hear of Jefferson's indisposition, but glad you do - not physic him. This leaves nature free and unembarrassed in her - own tendencies to repair what is wrong. I hope to hear or find - that he is recovered. Kiss them all for me. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Monticello, July 13th, '98. - - My dear Maria--I arrived here on the 3d instant, expecting to - have found you here, and we have been ever since imagining that - every sound we heard was that of the carriage which was once - more to bring us together. It was not till yesterday I learnt, - by the receipt of Mr. Eppes's letter of June 30th, that you - had been sick, and were only on the recovery at that date. - A preceding letter of his, referred to in that of the 30th, - must have miscarried. We are now infinitely more anxious, not - so much for your arrival here, as your firm establishment in - health, and that you may not be thrown back by your journey. - Much, therefore, my dear, as I wish to see you, I beg you not - to attempt the journey till you are quite strong enough, and - then only by short days' journeys. A relapse will only keep us - the longer asunder, and is much more formidable than a first - attack. Your sister and family are with me. I would have gone - to you instantly on the receipt of Mr. Eppes's letter, had - not that assured me you were well enough to take the bark. It - would also have stopped my workmen here, who can not proceed - an hour without me, and I am anxious to provide a cover which - may enable me to have my family and friends about me. Nurse - yourself, therefore, with all possible care for your own sake, - for mine, and that of all those who love you, and do not attempt - to move sooner or quicker than your health admits. Present me - affectionately to Mr. Eppes, father and son, to Mrs. Eppes and - all the family, and be assured that my impatience to see you can - only be moderated by the stronger desire that your health may be - safely and firmly re-established. Adieu, affectionately. - - TH. J. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Ellen appeared to be feverish the evening you went away; but - visiting her, a little before I went to bed, I found her quite - clear of fever, and was convinced the quickness of pulse which - had alarmed me had proceeded from her having been in uncommon - spirits and constantly running about the house through the day, - and especially in the afternoon. Since that she has had no - symptom of fever, and is otherwise better than when you left - her. The girls, indeed, suppose she had a little fever last - night; but I am sure she had not, as she was well at 8 o'clock - in the evening, and very well in the morning, and they say she - slept soundly through the night. They judged only from her - breathing. Every body else is well, and only wishing to see you. - I am persecuted with questions "When I think you will come?"... - If you set out after dinner, be sure to get off between four and - five. Adieu, my dear. - - Wednesday, Aug. 15th, '98. - -The following letter, without date, was written to the daughter of -his friend Mrs. Church: - - -_To Catherine Church._ - - I received, my dear Catherine, from the hands of your brother, - the letter you have done me the favor to write me. I see in - that letter the excellent disposition which I knew in you in an - earlier period of life. These have led you to mistake, to your - own prejudice, the character of our attentions to you. They - were not favors, but gratifications of our own affections to an - object who had every quality which might endear her to us. Be - assured we have all continued to love you as if still of our - fireside, and to make you the very frequent theme of our family - conversations. Your friend Maria has, as you supposed, changed - her condition; she is now Mrs. Eppes. She and her sister, Mrs. - Randolph, retain all their affection for you, and never fail - in their friendly inquiries after you whenever an opportunity - occurs. During my winter's absence, Maria is with the family - with which she has become allied; but on my return they will - also return to reside with me. My daughter Randolph has hitherto - done the same, but lately has removed with Mr. Randolph to - live and build on a farm of their own, adjoining me; but I - still count on their passing the greater part of their time - at Monticello. Why should we forbid ourselves to believe that - some day or other some circumstance may bring you also to our - little society, and renew the recollections of former scenes - very dear to our memory. Hope is so much more charming than - disappointments and forebodings, that we will not set it down - among impossible things. We will calculate on the circumstance - that you have already crossed the ocean which laid between us, - and that in comparison with that the space which remains is - as nothing. Who knows but you may travel to see our springs - and our curiosities--not, I hope, for your health, but to vary - your summer scenes, and enlarge your knowledge of your own - country. In that case we are on your road, and will endeavor - to relieve the fatigues of it by all the offices of friendship - and hospitality. I thank you for making me acquainted with - your brother. The relations he bears to the best of people are - sufficient vouchers to me of his worth. He must be of your party - when you come to Monticello. Adieu, my dear Catherine. I consign - in a separate letter my respects to your good mother. I have - here, therefore, only to claim your acceptance of the sincere - attachment of yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following gives some glimpses of the French friends of Jefferson: - - -_To Mrs. Church._ - - Dear Madam--Your favor of July 6th was to have found me here, - but I had departed before it arrived. It followed me here, and - of necessity the inquiries after our friend Madame de Corny - were obliged to await Mrs. M.'s arrival at her own house. This - was delayed longer than was expected, so that by the time I - could make the inquiries I was looking again to my return to - Philadelphia. This must apologize for the delay which has taken - place. Mrs. M. tells me that Madame Corny was at one time in - extreme distress, her revenue being in rents, and these paid in - assignats worth nothing. Since their abolition, however, she - receives her rents in cash, and is now entirely at her ease. - She lives in hired lodgings furnished by herself, and every - thing about her as nice as you know she always had. She visited - Mrs. M. freely and familiarly in a family way, but would never - dine when she had company, nor remain if company came. She - speaks seriously sometimes of a purpose to come to America, but - she surely mistakes a wish for a purpose; you and I know her - constitution too well, and her horror of the sea, to believe - she could pass or attempt the Atlantic. Mrs. M. could not give - me her address. In all events, it is a great consolation that - her situation is easy. We have here a Mr. Niemcewitz, a Polish - gentleman who was with us in Paris while Mrs. Cosway was there, - and who was of her society in London last summer. He mentions - the loss of her daughter, the gloom into which that and other - circumstances have thrown her, and that it has taken the form of - religion. Also that she is solely devoted to religious exercises - and the superintendence of a school for Catholic children, which - she has instituted, but she still speaks of her friends with - tenderness. Our letters have been rare, but they have let me - see that her gayety was gone, and her mind entirely fixed on a - world to come. I have received from my young friend Catherine a - letter, which gratifies me much, as it proves that our friendly - impressions have not grown out of her memory.... Be so good as - to present my respects to Mr. C., and accept assurances of the - unalterable attachment of your affectionate friend and servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - - Jefferson goes to Philadelphia.--Letters to his Daughters.-- - Returns to Monticello.--Letters to his Daughter.--Goes back - to Philadelphia.--Family Letters.--Letters to Mrs. and Miss - Church.--Bonaparte.--Letters to his Daughters.--Is nominated - as President.--Seat of Government moved to Washington.--Spends - the Summer at Monticello.--Letters to his Daughter.--Jefferson - denounced by the New England Pulpit.--Letter to Uriah Gregory.-- - Goes to Washington. - - -The third session of the Fifth Congress compelling Mr. Jefferson -to be in Philadelphia again, he left Monticello for that city the -latter part of December, 1798, and arrived there on Christmas-day. -During his stay in the capital he wrote the following charming and -interesting letters to his daughters: - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Philadelphia, Jan. 1st, '99. - - My dear Maria--I left Monticello on the 18th of December, and - arrived here to breakfast on the 25th, having experienced no - accident or inconvenience except a slight cold, which brought - back the inflammation of my eyes, and still continues it, though - so far mended as to give hopes of its going off soon. I took my - place in Senate before a single bill was brought in or other - act of business done, except the Address, which is exactly what - I ought to have nothing to do with; and, indeed, I might have - staid at home a week longer without missing any business for the - last eleven days. The Senate have met only on five, and then - little or nothing to do. However, when I am to write on politics - I shall address my letter to Mr. Eppes. To you I had rather - indulge the effusions of a heart which tenderly loves you, which - builds its happiness on yours, and feels in every other object - but little interest. Without an object here which is not alien - to me, and barren of every delight, I turn to your situation - with pleasure, in the midst of a good family which loves you, - and merits all your love. Go on, my dear, in cultivating the - invaluable possession of their affections. The circle of our - nearest connections is the only one in which a faithful and - lasting affection can be found, one which will adhere to us - under all changes and chances. It is, therefore, the only soil - on which it is worth while to bestow much culture. Of this - truth you will become more convinced every day you advance into - life. I imagine you are by this time about removing to Mont - Blanco. The novelty of setting up housekeeping will, with all - its difficulties, make you very happy for a while. Its delights, - however, pass away in time, and I am in hopes that by the spring - of the year there will be no obstacle to your joining us at - Monticello. I hope I shall, on my return, find such preparation - made as will enable me rapidly to get one room after another - prepared for the accommodation of our friends, and particularly - of any who may be willing to accompany or visit you there. - Present me affectionately to Mrs. and Mr. Eppes, father and son, - and all the family. Remember how pleasing your letters will be - to me, and be assured of my constant and tender love. Adieu, my - ever dear Maria. - - Yours affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following are extracts from two letters to Mrs. Randolph: - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, Jan. 23d, '99. - - The object of this letter, my very dear Martha, is merely to - inform you I am well, and convey to you the expressions of my - love. It will not be new to tell you your letters do not come - as often as I could wish. This deprives me of the gleams of - pleasure wanting to relieve the dreariness of this scene, where - not one single occurrence is calculated to produce pleasing - sensations. I hope you are all well, and that the little ones, - even Ellen, talk of me sometimes.... Kiss all the little ones, - and receive the tender and unmingled effusions of my love to - yourself. Adieu. - - Philadelphia, Feb. 5th, '99. - - Jupiter, with my horses, must be at Fredericksburg on Tuesday - evening, the 5th of March. I shall leave this place on the 1st - or 2d. You will receive this the 14th instant. I am already - light-hearted at the approach of my departure. Kiss my dear - children for me. Inexpressible love to yourself, and the - sincerest affection to Mr. Randolph. Adieu. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Philadelphia, Feb. 7th, '99. - - Your letter, my dear Maria, of January 21st, was received two - days ago. It was, as Ossian says, or would say, like the bright - beams of the moon on the desolate heath. Environed here in - scenes of constant torment, malice, and obloquy, worn down in a - station where no effort to render service can avail any thing, - I feel not that existence is a blessing, but when something - recalls my mind to my family or farm. This was the effect of - your letter; and its affectionate expressions kindled up all - those feelings of love for you and our dear connections which - now constitute the only real happiness of my life. I am now - feeding on the idea of my departure for Monticello, which is - but three weeks distant. The roads will then be so dreadful, - that, as to visit you even by the direct route of Fredericksburg - and Richmond would add one hundred miles to the length of my - journey, I must defer it, in the hope that about the last of - March, or first of April, I may be able to take a trip express - to see you. The roads will then be fine; perhaps your sister may - join in a flying trip, as it can only be for a few days. In the - mean time, let me hear from you. Letters which leave Richmond - after the 21st instant should be directed to me at Monticello. - I suppose you to be now at Mont Blanco, and therefore do not - charge you with the delivery of those sentiments of esteem - which I always feel for the family at Eppington. I write to Mr. - Eppes. Continue always to love me, and be assured that there - is no object on earth so dear to my heart as your health and - happiness, and that my tenderest affections always hang on you. - Adieu, my ever dear Maria. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -Mr. Jefferson left the Seat of Government on the first of March; -and the following letters, written immediately on his arrival at -Monticello, will show how much his affairs at home suffered during -his absence. Indeed he seemed to be able only to get the workmen -fairly under way on his house, when a call to Philadelphia would -again suspend operations on it almost entirely until his return. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._[46] - - [46] At Mont Blanco, a place near Petersburg. - - Monticello, March 8th, '99. - - My dear Maria--I am this moment arrived here, and the post being - about to depart, I sit down to inform you of it. Your sister - came over with me from Belmont, where we left all well. The - family will move over the day after to-morrow. They give up the - house there about a week hence. We want nothing now to fill up - our happiness but to have you and Mr. Eppes here. Scarcely a - stroke has been done towards covering the house since I went - away, so that it has remained open at the north end another - winter. It seems as if I should never get it inhabitable. I - have proposed to your sister a flying trip, when the roads get - fine, to see you. She comes into it with pleasure; but whether I - shall be able to leave this for a few days is a question which - I have not yet seen enough of the state of things to determine. - I think it very doubtful. It is to your return, therefore, that - I look with impatience, and shall expect as soon as Mr. Eppes's - affairs will permit. We are not without hopes he will take a - trip up soon to see about his affairs here, of which I yet know - nothing. I hope you are enjoying good health, and that it will - not be long before we are again united in some way or other. - Continue to love me, my dear, as I do you most tenderly. Present - me affectionately to Mr. Eppes, and be assured of my constant - and warmest love. Adieu, my ever dear Maria. - -Mrs. Eppes reached Monticello at last, and Jefferson was made happy -by having all of his children and grandchildren once more assembled -under his roof, where they spent the summer happily together. -Jefferson returned to Philadelphia the last days of December; and -we find the same weariness of the life he led there, and the same -longing for home, in the following letters, as we have seen in the -preceding. In these we find, however, a stronger spice of politics -than in the former. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Philadelphia, Jan. 17th, 1800. - - My dear Maria--I received at Monticello two letters from you, - and meant to have answered them a little before my departure for - this place; but business so crowded upon me at that moment that - it was not in my power. I left home on the 21st, and arrived - here on the 28th of December, after a pleasant journey of fine - weather and good roads, and without having experienced any - inconvenience. The Senate had not yet entered into business, and - I may say they have not yet entered into it; for we have not - occupation for half an hour a day. Indeed, it is so apparent - that we have nothing to do but to raise money to fill the - deficit of five millions of dollars, that it is proposed we - shall rise about the middle of March; and as the proposition - comes from the Eastern members, who have always been for sitting - permanently, while the Southern are constantly for early - adjournment, I presume we shall rise then. In the mean while, - they are about to renew the bill suspending intercourse with - France, which is in fact a bill to prohibit the exportation of - tobacco, and to reduce the tobacco States to passive obedience - by poverty. - - J. Randolph has entered into debate with great splendor and - approbation. He used an unguarded word in his first speech, - applying the word "ragamuffin" to the common soldiery. He took - it back of his own accord, and very handsomely, the next day, - when he had occasion to reply. Still, in the evening of the - second day, he was jostled, and his coat pulled at the theatre - by two officers of the Navy, who repeated the word "ragamuffin." - His friends present supported him spiritedly, so that nothing - further followed. Conceiving, and, as I think, justly, that - the House of Representatives (not having passed a law on the - subject) could not punish the offenders, he wrote a letter to - the President, who laid it before the House, where it is still - depending. He has conducted himself with great propriety, and I - have no doubt will come out with increase of reputation, being - determined himself to oppose the interposition of the House - when they have no law for it. - - M. du Pont, his wife and family, are arrived at New York, after - a voyage of three months and five days. I suppose after he is - a little recruited from his voyage we shall see him here. His - son is with him, as is also his son-in-law, Bureau Pusy, the - companion and fellow-sufferer of Lafayette. I have a letter from - Lafayette of April; he then expected to sail for America in - July, but I suspect he awaits the effect of the mission of our - ministers. I presume that Madame de Lafayette is to come with - him, and that they mean to settle in America. - - The prospect of returning early to Monticello is to me a most - charming one. I hope the fishery will not prevent your joining - us early in the spring. However, on this subject we can speak - together, as I will endeavor, if possible, to take Mont Blanco - and Eppington in my way. - - A letter from Dr. Carr, of December 27, informed me he had just - left you well. I become daily more anxious to hear from you, and - to know that you continue well, your present state being one - which is most interesting to a parent; and its issue, I hope, - will be such as to give you experience what a parent's anxiety - may be. I employ my leisure moments in repassing often in my - mind our happy domestic society when together at Monticello, and - looking forward to the renewal of it. No other society gives - me now any satisfaction, as no other is founded in sincere - affection. Take care of yourself, my dear Maria, for my sake, - and cherish your affections for me, as my happiness rests - solely on yours, and on that of your sister's and your dear - connections. Present me affectionately to Mr. Eppes, to whom I - inclosed some pamphlets some time ago without any letter; as I - shall write no letters the ensuing year, for political reasons - which I explained to him. Present my affections also to Mrs. and - Mr. Eppes, Senior, and all the family, for whom I feel every - interest that I do for my own. Be assured yourself, my dear, of - my most tender and constant love. Adieu. - - Yours affectionately and forever, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, Jan. 21st, 1800. - - I am made happy by a letter from Mr. Eppes, informing me - that Maria was become a mother, and was well. It was written - the day after the event. These circumstances are balm to the - painful sensations of this place. I look forward with hope to - the moment when we are all to be reunited again. I inclose a - little tale for Anne. To Ellen you must make big promises, - which I know a bit of gingerbread will pay off. Kiss them - all for me. My affectionate salutations to Mr. Randolph, and - tender and increasing love to yourself. Adieu, my dear Martha. - Affectionately yours, etc. - - -_To Mrs. Church._ - - Philadelphia, Jan. 21st, 1800. - - I am honored, my dear Madam, with your letter of the 16th inst., - and made happy by the information of your health. It was matter - of sincere regret on my arrival here to learn that you had left - it but a little before, after passing some time here. I should - have been happy to have renewed to you in person the assurances - of my affectionate regards, to have again enjoyed a society - which brings to me the most pleasant recollections, and to have - past in review together the history of those friends who made - an interesting part of our circle, and for many of whom I have - felt the deepest affliction. My friend Catherine I could have - entertained with details of her living friends, whom you are so - good as to recollect, and for whom I am to return you thankful - acknowledgments. - - I shall forward your letter to my daughter Eppes, who, I am - sure, will make you her own acknowledgments. It will find her - "in the straw;" having lately presented me with the first honors - of a grandfather on her part. Mrs. Randolph has made them cease - to be novelties--she has four children. We shall teach them all - to grow up in esteem for yourself and Catherine. Whether they - or we may have opportunities of testifying it personally must - depend on the chapter of events. I am in the habit of turning - over its next leaf with hope, and though it often fails me, - there is still another and another behind. In the mean time, I - cherish with fondness those affectionate sentiments of esteem - and respect with which I am, my dear Madam, your sincere and - humble servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Catherine Church._ - - Philadelphia, Jan. 22d, 1800. - - I wrote to your mamma yesterday, my dear Catherine, intending - to have written by the same post to yourself. An interruption, - however, put it out of my power. It was the more necessary to - have done it, as I had inadvertently made an acknowledgment - in my letter to her instead of yourself, of yours of the - 16th. I receive with sincere pleasure this evidence of your - recollection, and assure you I reflect with great pleasure on - the scenes which your letter recalls. You are often the subject - of our conversation, not indeed at our fireside, for that is - the season of our dispersion, but in our summer walks when the - family reassembles at Monticello. You are tenderly remembered by - both Mrs. Randolph and Mrs. Eppes, and I have this day notified - Maria that I have promised you a letter from her. She was not - much addicted to letter-writing before; and I fear her new - character of mother may furnish new excuses for her remissness. - Should this, however, be the occasion of my becoming the channel - of your mutual love, it may lessen the zeal with which I press - her pen upon her. But in whatever way I hear from you, be - assured it will always be with that sincere pleasure which is - inspired by the sentiments of esteem and attachment with which - I am, my dear Catherine, your affectionate friend and humble - servant, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In a letter to Mr. Randolph, written early in February, Mr. Jefferson -makes the following remarks about Bonaparte: - - -_To Thomas Mann Randolph._ - - Should it be really true that Bonaparte has usurped the - Government with an intention of making it a free one, whatever - his talents may be for war, we have no proofs that he is skilled - in forming governments friendly to the people. Wherever he has - meddled, we have seen nothing but fragments of the old Roman - governments stuck into materials with which they can form no - cohesion: we see the bigotry of an Italian to the ancient - splendor of his country, but nothing which bespeaks a luminous - view of the organization of rational government. Perhaps, - however, this may end better than we augur; and it certainly - will if his head is equal to true and solid calculations of - glory. - -And again, in a letter of a few days' later date, to Samuel Adams: - - -_To Samuel Adams._ - - I fear our friends on the other side of the water, laboring in - the same cause, have yet a great deal of crime and misery to - wade through. My confidence has been placed in the head, not in - the heart of Bonaparte. I hoped he would calculate truly the - difference between the fame of a Washington and a Cromwell. - Whatever his views may be, he has at least transferred the - destinies of the Republic from the civil to the military arm. - Some will use this as a lesson against the practicability of - republican government. I read it as a lesson against the danger - of standing armies. - -We continue his family letters. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, Feb. 11th, 1800. - - A person here has invented the prettiest improvement in the - forte-piano I have ever seen. It has tempted me to engage one - for Monticello; partly for its excellence and convenience, - partly to assist a very ingenious, modest, and poor young man, - who ought to make a fortune by his invention.... There is really - no business which ought to keep us one fortnight. I am therefore - looking forward with anticipation of the joy of seeing you again - ere long, and tasting true happiness in the midst of my family. - My absence from you teaches me how essential your society is - to my happiness. Politics are such a torment that I would - advise every one I love not to mix with them. I have changed - my circle here according to my wish, abandoning the rich and - declining their dinners and parties, and associating entirely - with the class of science, of whom there is a valuable society - here. Still, my wish is to be in the midst of our own families - at home.... Kiss all the dear little ones for me; do not let - Ellen forget me; and continue to me your love in return for the - constant and tender attachment of yours affectionately. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Philadelphia, Feb. 12th. 1800. - - My dear Maria--Mr. Eppes's letter of January 17th had filled me - with anxiety for your little one, and that of the 25th announced - what I had feared. How deeply I feel it in all its bearings I - shall not say--nor attempt consolation when I know that time - and silence are the only medicines. I shall only observe, as - a source of hope to us all, that you are young, and will not - fail to possess enough of these dear pledges which bind us to - one another and to life itself. I am almost hopeless in writing - to you, from observing that, at the date of Mr. Eppes's letter - of January 25th, three which I had written to him and one to - you had not been received. That to you was January 17th, and - to him December 21, January 22, and one which only covered - some pamphlets. That of December 21st was on the subject of - Powell, and would of course give occasion for an answer. I have - always directed to Petersburg; perhaps Mr. Eppes does not have - inquiries made at the post-office there.... I will inclose this - to the care of Mr. Jefferson.... - - I fully propose, if nothing intervenes to prevent it, to take - Chesterfield in my way home. I am not without hopes you will - be ready to go on with me; but at any rate that you will soon - follow. I know no happiness but when we are all together. You - have, perhaps, heard of the loss of Jupiter. With all his - defects, he leaves a void in my domestic arrangements which - can not be filled. Mr. Eppes's last letter informed me how - much you had suffered from your breasts; but that they had - then suppurated, and the inflammation and consequent fever - abated. I am anxious to hear again from you, and hope the next - letter will announce your re-establishment. It is necessary - for my tranquillity that I should hear from you often; for I - feel inexpressibly whatever affects your health or happiness. - My attachments to the world, and whatever it can offer, are - daily wearing off; but you are one of the links which hold to - my existence, and can only break off with that. You have never, - by a word or deed, given me one moment's uneasiness; on the - contrary, I have felt perpetual gratitude to Heaven for having - given me in you a source of so much pure and unmixed happiness; - go on then, my dear, as you have done, in deserving the love of - every body; you will reap the rich reward of their esteem, and - will find that we are working for ourselves while we do good to - others. - - I had a letter from your sister yesterday. They were all - well. One from Mr. Randolph had before informed me they had - got to Edgehill, and were in the midst of mud, smoke, and the - uncomfortableness of a cold house. Mr. Trist is here alone, and - will return soon. - - Present me affectionately to Mr. Eppes, and tell him when you - can not write he must; as also to the good family at Eppington, - to whom I wish every earthly good. To yourself, my dear Maria, I - can not find expressions for my love. You must measure it by the - feelings of a warm heart. Adieu. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Philadelphia, April 6th, 1800. - - I have at length, my ever dear Maria, received by Mr. Eppes's - letter of March 24 the welcome news of your recovery--welcome, - indeed, to me, who have passed a long season of inexpressible - anxiety for you; and the more so as written accounts can hardly - give one an exact idea of the situation of a sick person. - - I wish I were able to leave this place and join you; but we do - not count on rising till the first or second week of May. I - shall certainly see you as soon after that as possible, at Mont - Blanco or Eppington, at whichever you may be, and shall expect - you to go up with me, according to the promise in Mr. Eppes's - letter. I shall send orders for my horses to be with you, and - wait for me if they arrive before me. I must ask Mr. Eppes to - write me a line immediately by post, to inform me at which place - you will be during the first and second weeks of May, and what - is the nearest point on the road from Richmond where I can - quit the stage and borrow a horse to go on to you. If written - immediately I may receive it here before my departure. - - Mr. Eppes's letter informs me your sister was with you at that - date; but from Mr. Randolph I learn she was to go up this month. - The uncertainty where she was, prevented my writing to her for a - long time. If she is still with you, express to her all my love - and tenderness for her. Your tables have been ready some time, - and will go in a vessel which sails for Richmond this week. They - are packed in a box marked J. W. E., and will be delivered to - Mr. Jefferson, probably about the latter part of this month. - - I write no news for Mr. Eppes, because my letters are so slow - in getting to you that he will see every thing first in the - newspapers. Assure him of my sincere affections, and present the - same to the family of Eppington, if you are together. Cherish - your own health for the sake of so many to whom you are so - dear, and especially for one who loves you with unspeakable - tenderness. Adieu, my dearest Maria. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Philadelphia, April 22d, 1800. - - Mr. Eppes informs me that Maria was so near well that they - expected in a few days to go to Mont Blanco. Your departure - gives me a hope her cure was at length established. A long and - painful case it has been, and not the most so to herself or - those about her; my anxieties have been excessive. I shall go by - Mont Blanco to take her home with me.... - - I long once more to get all together again; and still hope, - notwithstanding your present establishment, you will pass a - great deal of the summer with us. I wish to urge it just so - far as not to break in on your and Mr. Randolph's desires and - convenience. Our scenes here can never be pleasant; but they - have been less stormy, less painful than during the X Y Z - paroxysms. - -During the session of Congress the Republicans nominated as -candidates for the coming Presidential election Mr. Jefferson for -President and Aaron Burr for Vice-President. The opposite party -chose as their nominees, Mr. Adams and Mr. Pinckney. - -The Seat of Government was moved to Washington in June, 1800. We can -well understand how disagreeable the change from the comfortable city -of Philadelphia to a rough, unfinished town must have been. Mrs. -Adams seems to have felt it sensibly, and in the following letter to -her daughter has left us an admirable and amusing picture of it: - - -_From Mrs. Adams._ - - I arrived here on Sunday last, and without meeting with any - accident worth noticing, except losing ourselves when we left - Baltimore, and going eight or nine miles on the Frederick road, - by which means we were obliged to go the other eight through - woods, where we wandered two hours without finding a guide or - the path. Fortunately a straggling black came up with us, and we - engaged him as a guide to extricate us out of our difficulty; - but woods are all you see from Baltimore until you reach the - city, which is only so in name. Here and there is a small cot, - without a glass window, interspersed among the forests, through - which you travel miles without seeing any human being. In the - city there are buildings enough, if they were compact and - finished, to accommodate Congress and those attached to it; but - as they are, and scattered as they are, I see no great comfort - for them. The river which runs up to Alexandria is in full view - of my window, and I see the vessels as they pass and repass. The - house is upon a grand and superb scale, requiring about thirty - servants to attend and keep the apartments in proper order, - and perform the ordinary business of the house and stables; an - establishment very well proportioned to the President's salary! - The lighting the apartments from the kitchen to parlors and - chambers is a tax indeed, and the fires we are obliged to keep - to secure us from daily agues is another very cheering comfort. - To assist us in this great castle, and render less attendance - necessary, bells are wholly wanting, not one single one being - hung through the whole house, and promises are all you can - obtain. This is so great an inconvenience, that I know not what - to do, or how to do. - - The ladies from Georgetown and in the city have many of them - visited me. Yesterday I returned fifteen visits--but such a - place as Georgetown appears--why, our Milton is beautiful. But - no comparisons;--if they will put me up some bells, and let me - have wood enough to keep fires, I design to be pleased. I could - content myself almost anywhere three months; but, surrounded - with forests, can you believe that wood is not to be had, - because people can not be found to cut and cart it? Briesler - entered into a contract with a man to supply him with wood. A - small part, a few cords only, has he been able to get. Most of - that was expended to dry the walls of the house before we came - in, and yesterday the man told him it was impossible for him to - procure it to be cut and carted. He has had recourse to coals; - but we can not get grates made and set. We have, indeed, come - into a new country. - - You must keep all this to yourself, and when asked how I like - it, say that I write you the situation is beautiful, which is - true. The house is made habitable, but there is not a single - apartment finished, and all within side, except the plastering, - has been done since Briesler came. We have not the least fence, - yard, or other conveniences without, and the great unfinished - audience-room I make a drying-room of to hang up the clothes - in. The principal stairs are not up, and will not be this - winter. Six chambers are made comfortable; two are occupied - by the President and Mr. Shaw; two lower rooms, one for a - common parlor, and one for a levee-room. Up stairs there is the - oval-room, which is designed for the drawing-room, and has the - crimson furniture in it. It is a very handsome room now; but - when completed it will be beautiful. - - If the twelve years, in which this place has been considered - as the future Seat of Government, had been improved, as they - would have been if in New England, very many of the present - inconveniences would have been removed. It is a beautiful spot, - capable of every improvement, and the more I view it the more I - am delighted with it.[47] - - [47] Mrs. Adams's letters, vol. ii., p. 239. - -The whole summer of 1800 was spent by Jefferson quietly at home. He -only left Monticello once, and that was to pay a short visit to -Bedford. He was unusually busy on his farms and with his house. He -took no part whatever in the political campaign, and held himself -entirely aloof from it. - -In the following letter we find betrayed all the tender anxieties of -a fond and loving father: - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Monticello, July 4th, 1800. - - My dear Maria--We have heard not a word of you since the moment - you left us. I hope you had a safe and pleasant journey. The - rains which began to fall here the next day gave me uneasiness - lest they should have overtaken you also. Dr. and Mrs. Bache - have been with us till the day before yesterday. Mrs. Monroe is - now in our neighborhood, to continue during the sickly months. - Our forte-piano arrived a day or two after you left us. It has - been exposed to a great deal of rain, but being well covered - was only much untuned. I have given it a poor tuning. It is - the delight of the family, and all pronounce what your choice - will be. Your sister does not hesitate to prefer it to any - harpsichord she ever saw except her own; and it is easy to see - it is only the celestini which retains that preference. It is as - easily tuned as a spinette and will not need it half as often. - Our harvest has been a very fine one. I finish to-day. It is the - heaviest crop of wheat I ever had. - - A murder in our neighborhood is the theme of its present - conversation. George Carter shot Birch, of Charlottesville, in - his own door and on very slight provocation. He died in a few - minutes. The examining court meets to-morrow. - - As your harvest must be over as soon as ours, we hope to see - Mr. Eppes and yourself. All are well here except Ellen, who is - rather drooping than sick; and all are impatient to see you--no - one so much as he whose happiness is wrapped up in yours. My - affections to Mr. Eppes and tenderest love to yourself. Hasten - to us. Adieu. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -During the political campaign of the summer of 1800, Jefferson was -denounced by many divines--who thought it their duty to preach -politics instead of Christian charity--as an atheist and a French -infidel. These attacks were made upon him by half the clergy of -New England, and by a few in other Northern States; in the former -section, however, they were most virulent. The common people of -the country were told that should he be elected their Bibles would -be taken from them. In New York the Reverend Doctor John M. Mason -published a pamphlet attacking Jefferson, which was entitled, "The -voice of Warning to Christians on the ensuing Election." In New -England sermons preached against Jefferson were printed and scattered -through the land; among them one in which a parallel is drawn between -him and the wicked Rehoboam. In another his integrity was impeached. -This last drew from Jefferson the following notice, in a letter -written to Uriah McGregory, of Connecticut, on the 13th of August, -1800: - - -_To Mr. McGregory._ - - From the moment that a portion of my fellow-citizens looked - towards me with a view to one of their highest offices, the - floodgates of calumny have been opened upon me; not where I am - personally known, where their slanders would be instantly judged - and suppressed, from a general sense of their falsehood; but in - the remote parts of the Union, where the means of detection are - not at hand, and the trouble of an inquiry is greater than would - suit the hearers to undertake. I know that I might have filled - the courts of the United States with actions for these slanders, - and have ruined, perhaps, many persons who are not innocent. - But this would be no equivalent to the loss of character. I - leave them, therefore, to the reproof of their own consciences. - If these do not condemn them, there will yet come a day when - the false witness will meet a Judge who has not slept over his - slanders. - - If the reverend Cotton Mather Smith, of Shena, believed this as - firmly as I do, he would surely never have affirmed that I had - obtained my property by fraud and robbery; that in one instance - I had defrauded and robbed a widow and fatherless children of - an estate, to which I was executor, of ten thousand pounds - sterling, by keeping the property, and paying them in money - at the nominal rate, when it was worth no more than forty for - one; and that all this could be proved. Every tittle of it is - fable--there not having existed a single circumstance of my - life to which any part of it can hang. I never was executor but - in two instances, both of which having taken place about the - beginning of the Revolution, which withdrew me immediately from - all private pursuits, I never meddled in either executorship. - In one of the cases only were there a widow and children. She - was my sister. She retained and managed the estate in her own - hands, and no part of it was ever in mine. In the other I was a - co-partner, and only received, on a division, the equal portion - allotted me. To neither of these executorships, therefore, could - Mr. Smith refer. - - Again, my property is all patrimonial, except about seven or - eight hundred pounds' worth of lands, purchased by myself and - paid for, not to widows and orphans, but to the very gentlemen - from whom I purchased. If Mr. Smith, therefore, thinks the - precepts of the Gospel intended for those who preach them as - well as for others, he will doubtless some day feel the duties - of repentance, and of acknowledgment in such forms as to correct - the wrong he has done. Perhaps he will have to wait till the - passions of the moment have passed away. All this is left to his - own conscience. - - These, Sir, are facts well known to every person in this - quarter, which I have committed to paper for your own - satisfaction, and that of those to whom you may choose to - mention them. I only pray that my letter may not go out of - your own hands, lest it should get into the newspapers, a - bear-garden scene into which I have made it a point to enter on - no provocation. - -Jefferson went to Washington the last of November, the length and -tedium of the journey to the new capital being nothing in comparison -to what it had been to the old. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - - Results of Presidential Election.--Letter to his Daughter.-- - Balloting for President.--Letter to his Daughter.--Is - inaugurated.--Returns to Monticello.--Letters to his - Daughter.--Goes back to Washington.--Inaugurates the Custom of - sending a written Message to Congress.--Abolishes Levees.-- - Letter to Story.--To Dickinson.--Letter from Mrs. Cosway.-- - Family Letters.--Makes a short Visit to Monticello. - - -The result of the Presidential Election of 1800 was the success of -the Republican candidates--both Jefferson and Burr receiving the same -number (73) of electoral votes. The chance of any two candidates -receiving a tie vote was a circumstance which had not been provided -for, and though all knew that Jefferson had been run to fill the -office of President, and Burr that of Vice-president, the tie vote -gave the latter a chance--which the Federalists urged him to seize, -and which he did not neglect--to be made President. - -The following letter gives the first sign of the coming storm, which -for a week convulsed the country with excitement, and shook the young -Government to its centre. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes, Bermuda Hundred._ - - Washington, Jan. 4th, 1801. - - Your letter, my dear Maria, of Dec. 28, is just now received, - and shall be immediately answered, as shall all others received - from yourself or Mr. Eppes. This will keep our accounts even, - and show, by the comparative promptness of reply, which is - most anxious to hear from the other. I wrote to Mr. Eppes, - December 23d, but directed it to Petersburg; hereafter it shall - be to City Point. I went yesterday to Mount Vernon, where Mrs. - Washington and Mrs. Lewis asked very kindly after you. Mrs. - Lewis looks thin, and thinks herself not healthy; but it seems - to be more in opinion than any thing else. She has a child of - very uncertain health. - - The election is understood to stand 73, 73, 65, 64. The - Federalists were confident, at first, they could debauch Col. - B. [Burr] from his good faith by offering him their vote to be - President, and have seriously proposed it to him. His conduct - has been honorable and decisive, and greatly embarrasses them. - Time seems to familiarize them more and more to acquiescence, - and to render it daily more probable they will yield to the - known will of the people, and that some one State will join - the eight already decided as to their vote. The victory of the - Republicans in New Jersey, lately obtained by carrying their - whole Congressional members on an election by general ticket, - has had weight on their spirits. - - Should I be destined to remain here, I shall count on meeting - you and Mr. Eppes at Monticello the first week in April, where - I shall not have above three weeks to stay. We shall then be - able to consider how far it will be practicable to prevent this - new destination from shortening the time of our being together, - for be assured that no considerations in this world would - compensate to me a separation from yourself and your sister. - But the distance is so moderate that I should hope a journey - to this place would be scarcely more inconvenient than one to - Monticello. But of this we will talk when we meet there, which - will be to me a joyful moment. Remember me affectionately to Mr. - Eppes, and accept yourself the effusion of my tenderest love. - Adieu, my dearest Maria. - - TH. JEFFERSON - -The balloting for President in the House of Representatives began on -the 11th of February. A snow-storm raged without, while the bitterest -partisan feeling was at work within the Congressional halls. A -member who was too ill to leave his bed was borne on a litter to -the Capitol; his wife accompanied him, and, remaining at his side, -administered his medicines to him. The ballot-boxes were carried to -his couch, so that he did not miss a single ballot. Had he failed to -vote, the Republicans would have lost a vote. The people throughout -the country were kept in a ferment by the wild reports which came to -them of the state of affairs in Washington. The Governor of Virginia -established a line of express riders between Washington and Richmond -during the whole of this eventful week, that he might learn as -speedily as possible the result of each ballot. The best picture of -the exciting scene is found in the following dispatches sent by John -Randolph to his step-father, St. George Tucker, while the balloting -was going on: - - -_Dispatches from John Randolph._[48] - - [48] See Appendix to Tucker's Life of Jefferson. - - Chamber of the House of Representatives, - Wednesday, February 11th, 1801. - - Seven times we have balloted--eight States for J.; six for B.; - two, Maryland and Vermont, divided. Voted to postpone for an - hour the process; now half-past four--resumed--result the same. - The order against adjourning, made with a view to Mr. Nicholson, - who was ill, has not operated. He left his sick-bed, came - through a snow-storm, brought his bed, and has prevented the - vote of Maryland from being given to Burr. Mail closing. Yours - with perfect love and esteem, - - J. R., JR. - - - Thursday Morning, February 12th. - - We have just taken the nineteenth ballot (the balloting - continued through the night). The result has invariably been - eight States for J., six for B., two divided. We continue to - ballot with the interval of an hour. The rule for making the - sittings permanent seems now to be not so agreeable to our - Federal gentlemen. No election will, in my opinion, take place. - By special permission, the mail will remain open until four - o'clock. I will not close my letter till three. If there be a - change, I shall notify it; if not, I shall add no more to the - assurance of my entire affection. - - JOHN RANDOLPH, JR. - - - Chamber of the House of Representatives, - February 14th, 1801. - - After endeavoring to make the question before us depend upon - our physical construction, our opponents have begged for a - dispensation from their own regulation, and without adjourning, - we have postponed (like able casuists) from day to day the - balloting. In half an hour we shall recommence the operation. - The result is marked below. We have balloted thirty-one hours. - Twelve o'clock, Saturday noon, eight for J., six for B., two - divided. Again at one, not yet decided. Same result. Postponed - till Monday, twelve o'clock. - - JOHN RANDOLPH, JR. - -In the midst of these scenes Jefferson wrote the following letter to -Mrs. Eppes, in which we find strangely blended politics and fatherly -love--a longing for retirement and a lurking desire to leave to his -children the honor of his having filled the highest office in his -country's gift: - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes, Bermuda Hundred._ - - Washington, Feb. 15th, 1801. - - Your letter, my dear Maria, of the 2d instant came to hand on - the 8th. I should have answered it immediately, according to - our arrangement, but that I thought by waiting to the 11th I - might possibly be able to communicate something on the subject - of the election. However, after four days of balloting, they - are exactly where they were on the first. There is a strong - expectation in some that they will coalesce to-morrow; but I - know no foundation for it. Whatever event happens, I think I - shall be at Monticello earlier than I formerly mentioned to you. - I think it more likely I may be able to leave this place by the - middle of March. I hope I shall find you at Monticello. The - scene passing here makes me pant to be away from it--to fly from - the circle of cabal, intrigue, and hatred, to one where all is - love and peace. - - Though I never doubted of your affections, my dear, yet the - expressions of them in your letter give me ineffable pleasure. - No, never imagine that there can be a difference with me between - yourself and your sister. You have both such dispositions as - engross my whole love, and each so entirely that there can be no - greater degree of it than each possesses. Whatever absences I - may be led into for a while, I look for happiness to the moment - when we can all be settled together, no more to separate. I feel - no impulse from personal ambition to the office now proposed to - me, but on account of yourself and your sister and those dear - to you. I feel a sincere wish, indeed, to see our Government - brought back to its republican principles, to see that kind - of government firmly fixed to which my whole life has been - devoted. I hope we shall now see it so established, as that when - I retire it may be under full security that we are to continue - free and happy. As soon as the fate of election is over, I will - drop a line to Mr. Eppes. I hope one of you will always write - the moment you receive a letter from me. Continue to love me, my - dear, as you ever have done, and ever have been and will be by - yours, affectionately, - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -I give John Randolph's last dispatch: - - Chamber of the House of Representatives, - - February 17th. - - On the thirty-sixth ballot there appeared this day ten States - for Thomas Jefferson, four (New England) for A. Burr, and two - blank ballots (Delaware and South Carolina). This was the - second time we balloted to-day. The four Burrites of Maryland - put blanks into the box of that State. The vote was therefore - unanimous. Mr. Morris, of Vermont, left his seat, and the result - was therefore Jeffersonian. Adieu. Tuesday, 2 o'clock P.M. - - J. R., JR. - - I need not add that Mr. J. was declared duly elected. - - -In a letter written to his son-in-law, Mr. Randolph, Mr. Jefferson -says: - - -_To Thomas Mann Randolph._ - - A letter from Mr. Eppes informs me that Maria is in a situation - which induces them not to risk a journey to Monticello, so we - shall not have the pleasure of meeting them there. I begin to - hope I may be able to leave this place by the middle of March. - My tenderest love to my ever dear Martha, and kisses to the - little one. Accept yourself sincere and affectionate salutation. - Adieu. - -Mr. Jefferson thought it becoming a Republican that his inauguration -should be as unostentatious and free from display as possible--and -such it was. An English traveller, who was in Washington at the time, -thus describes him: "His dress was of plain cloth, and he rode on -horseback to the Capitol without a single guard or even servant in -his train, dismounted without assistance, and hitched the bridle of -his horse to the palisades." He was accompanied to the Senate Chamber -by a number of his friends, when, before taking the oath of office, -he delivered his Inaugural Address, whose chaste and simple beauty is -so familiar to the student of American History. I can not, however, -refrain from giving here the eloquent close of this admirable State -paper: - - -_Extract from Inaugural Address._ - - I repair, then, fellow-citizens, to the post you have assigned - me. With experience enough in subordinate offices to have seen - the difficulties of this, the greatest of all, I have learned - to expect that it will rarely fall to the lot of imperfect man - to retire from this station with the reputation and favor which - bring him into it. Without pretensions to that high confidence - reposed in our first and great Revolutionary character, whose - pre-eminent services had entitled him to the first place in - his country's love, and destined for him the fairest page in - the volume of faithful history, I ask so much confidence only - as may give firmness and effect to the legal administration - of your affairs. I shall often go wrong through defect of - judgment. When right, I shall often be thought wrong by those - whose positions will not command a view of the whole ground. - I ask your indulgence for my own errors, which will never be - intentional; and your support against the errors of others, who - may condemn what they would not if seen in all its parts. The - approbation implied by your suffrage is a consolation to me for - the past; and my future solicitude will be to retain the good - opinion of those who have bestowed it in advance, to conciliate - that of others by doing them all the good in my power, and to be - instrumental to the happiness and freedom of all. - - Relying, then, on the patronage of your good-will, I advance - with obedience to the work, ready to retire from it whenever you - become sensible how much better choice it is in your power to - make. And may that Infinite Power which rules the destinies of - the universe lead our councils to what is best, and give them a - favorable issue for your peace and prosperity. - -The house at Monticello was still unfinished when Mr. Jefferson -returned there on a visit early in April. A few days before he left -he wrote the following letter to his kinsman, Mr. George Jefferson, -which, in an age when nepotism is so rife, may, from its principles, -seem now rather out of date: - - -_To George Jefferson._ - - Dear Sir--I have to acknowledge the receipt of yours of March - 4th, and to express to you the delight with which I found the - just, disinterested, and honorable point of view in which you - saw the proposition it covered. The resolution you so properly - approved had long been formed in my mind. The public will never - be made to believe that an appointment of a relative is made on - the ground of merit alone, uninfluenced by family views; nor can - they ever see with approbation offices, the disposal of which - they intrust to their Presidents for public purposes, divided - out as family property. Mr. Adams degraded himself infinitely - by his conduct on this subject, as General Washington had done - himself the greatest honor. With two such examples to proceed - by, I should be doubly inexcusable to err. It is true that this - places the relations of the President in a worse situation than - if he were a stranger, but the public good, which can not be - effected if its confidence be lost, requires this sacrifice. - Perhaps, too, it is compensated by sharing in the public esteem. - I could not be satisfied till I assured you of the increased - esteem with which this transaction fills me for you. Accept my - affectionate expressions of it. - -The following letters to Mrs. Eppes will carry on pleasantly the tale -of Mr. Jefferson's private life: - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes, Bermuda Hundred._ - - Monticello, April 11th, 1801. - - My dear Maria--I wrote to Mr. Eppes on the 8th inst. by post, - to inform him I should on the 12th send off a messenger to the - Hundred for the horses he may have bought for me. Davy Bowles - will accordingly set out to-morrow, and will be the bearer - of this. He leaves us all well, and wanting nothing but your - and Mr. Eppes's company to make us completely happy. Let me - know by his return when you expect to be here, that I may - accommodate to that my orders as to executing the interior work - of the different parts of the house. John being at work under - Lilly, Goliath is our gardener, and with his veteran aids will - be directed to make what preparation he can for you. It is - probable I shall come home myself about the last week of July - or first of August, to stay two months during the sickly season - in autumn every year. These terms I shall hope to pass with you - here, and that either in spring or fall you will be able to - pass some time with me in Washington. Had it been possible, I - would have made a tour now, on my return, to see you. But I am - tied to a day for my return to Washington, to assemble our New - Administration and begin our work systematically. I hope, when - you come up, you will make very short stages, drive slow and - safely, which may well be done if you do not permit yourself - to be hurried. Surely, the sooner you come the better. The - servants will be here under your commands, and such supplies as - the house affords. Before that time our bacon will be here from - Bedford. Continue to love me, my dear Maria, as affectionately - as I do you. I have no object so near my heart as yours and your - sister's happiness. Present me affectionately to Mr. Eppes, and - be assured yourself of my unchangeable and tenderest attachment - to you. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The horses alluded to in the above letter were four full-blooded -bays, which the President wished to purchase for the use of his -carriage in Washington. Mr. Eppes succeeded in making the purchase -for him, and his choice was such as to suit even such a connoisseur -in horse-flesh as Jefferson was, to say nothing of his faithful -coachman, Joseph Dougherty, who was never so happy as when seated on -the box behind this spirited and showy team. Their cost was sixteen -hundred dollars. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes, Bermuda Hundred._ - - Washington, June 24th, 1801. - - My dear Maria--According to contract, immediately on the receipt - of Mr. Eppes's letter of the 12th, I wrote him mine of the - 17th; and having this moment received yours of June 18th, I - hasten to reply to that also. I am very anxious you should - hasten your departure for Monticello, but go a snail's pace when - you set out. I shall certainly be with you the last week of July - or first week of August. I have a letter from your sister this - morning. All are well. They have had all their windows, almost, - broken by a hail-storm, and are unable to procure glass, so that - they are living almost out-of-doors. The whole neighborhood - suffered equally. Two sky-lights at Monticello, which had been - left uncovered, were entirely broken up. No other windows there - were broke. I give reason to expect that both yourself and your - sister will come here in the fall. I hope it myself, and our - society here is anxious for it. I promise them that one of you - will hereafter pass the spring here, and the other the fall, - saving your consent to it. All this must be arranged when we - meet. I am here interrupted; so, with my affectionate regards to - the family at Eppington, and Mr. Eppes, and tenderest love to - yourself, I must bid you adieu. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Washington, July 16th, 1801. - - My dear Maria--I received yesterday Mr. Eppes's letter of - the 12th, informing me that you had got safely to Eppington, - and would set out to-morrow at furthest for Monticello. This - letter, therefore, will, I hope, find you there. I now write to - Mr. Craven to furnish you all the supplies of the table which - his farm affords. Mr. Lilly had before received orders to do - the same. Liquors have been forwarded, and have arrived with - some loss. I insist that you command and use every thing as - if I were with you, and shall be very uneasy if you do not. A - supply of groceries has been lying here some time waiting for - a conveyance. It will probably be three weeks from this time - before they can be at Monticello. In the mean time, take what is - wanting from any of the stores with which I deal, on my account. - I have recommended to your sister to send at once for Mrs. - Marks. Remus and my chair, with Phill as usual, can go for her. - I shall join you between the second and seventh--more probably - not till the seventh. Mr. and Mrs. Madison leave this about a - week hence. I am looking forward with great impatience to the - moment when we can all be joined at Monticello, and hope we - shall never again know so long a separation. I recommend to your - sister to go over at once to Monticello, which I hope she will - do. It will be safer for her, and more comfortable for both. - Present me affectionately to Mr. Eppes, and be assured of my - constant and tenderest love. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The Mrs. Marks alluded to in this last letter was Mr. Jefferson's -sister. Her husband lived in Lower Virginia, and, his means being -very limited, he could not afford to send his family from home -during the sickly season. For a period of thirty years Mr. Jefferson -never failed to send his carriage and horses for her, and kept her -for three or four months at Monticello, which after her husband's -death became her permanent home. Mr. Jefferson left in his will -the following touching recommendation of her to his daughter: "I -recommend to my daughter, Martha Randolph, the maintenance and care -of my well-beloved sister, Anne Scott, and trust confidently that -from affection to her, as well as for my sake, she will never let her -want a comfort." It is needless to add that this trust was faithfully -fulfilled, and when Mrs. Randolph had no home save her eldest son's -house, the same roof sheltered Mrs. Marks as well as herself. - -Mr. Jefferson paid his usual visit to Monticello this summer, and was -there surrounded by his children and grandchildren. On his return to -Washington, he wrote the following letters to Mrs. Eppes, in which -the anxiety that he shows about her is what might have been expected -from the tender love of a mother. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes, Monticello._ - - Washington, Oct. 26th, 1801. - - My ever dear Maria--I have heard nothing of you since Mr. - Eppes's letter, dated the day se'nnight after I left home. - The Milton[49] mail will be here to-morrow morning, when I - shall hope to receive something. In the mean time, this letter - must go hence this evening. I trust it will still find you at - Monticello, and that possibly Mr. Eppes may have concluded to - take a journey to Bedford, and still further prolonged your - stay. I am anxious to hear from you, lest you should have - suffered in the same way now as on a former similar occasion. - Should any thing of that kind take place, and the remedy which - succeeded before fail now, I know nobody to whom I would so soon - apply as Mrs. Suddarth. A little experience is worth a great - deal of reading, and she has had great experience and a sound - judgment to observe on it. I shall be glad to hear, at the same - time, that the little boy is well. - - [49] Milton was a thriving little town four miles from Monticello. - -If Mr. Eppes undertakes what I have proposed to him at Pantops and -Poplar Forest the next year, I should think it indispensable that he -should make Monticello his head-quarters. You can be furnished with -all plantation articles for the family from Mr. Craven, who will be -glad to pay his rent in that way. It would be a great satisfaction to -me to find you fixed there in April. Perhaps it might induce me to -take flying trips by stealth, to have the enjoyment of family society -for a few days undisturbed. Nothing can repay me the loss of that -society, the only one founded in affection and bosom confidence. I -have here company enough, part of which is very friendly, part well -enough disposed, part secretly hostile, and a constant succession of -strangers. But this only serves to get rid of life, not to enjoy it; -it is in the love of one's family only that heartfelt happiness is -known. I feel it when we are all together, and, when alone, beyond -what can be imagined. Present me affectionately to Mr. Eppes, Mr. -Randolph, and my dear Martha, and be assured yourself of my tenderest -love. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._--[_Extract._] - - I perceive that it will be merely accidental when I can steal - a moment to write to you; however, that is of no consequence, - my health being always so firm as to leave you without doubt - on that subject. But it is not so with yourself and little - one. I shall not be easy, therefore, if either yourself or Mr. - Eppes do not once a week or fortnight write the three words - "All are well." That you may be so now, and so continue, is the - subject of my perpetual anxiety, as my affections are constantly - brooding over you. Heaven bless you, my dear daughter. - -Congress met on the 7th of December. It had been the custom for the -session to be opened pretty much as the English Parliament is by the -Queen's speech. The President, accompanied by a cavalcade, proceeded -in state to the Capitol, took his seat in the Senate Chamber, and, -the House of Representatives being summoned, read his address. Mr. -Jefferson, on the opening of this session of Congress (1801), swept -away all these inconvenient forms and ceremonies by introducing the -custom of the President sending a written message to Congress. Soon -after his inauguration he did away with levees, and established -only two public days for the reception of company, the first of -January and the Fourth of July, when his doors were thrown open to -the public. He received private calls, whether of courtesy or on -business, at all other times. - -We have preserved to us an amusing anecdote of the effect of his -abolishing levees. Many of the ladies at Washington, indignant at -being cut off from the pleasure of attending them, and thinking -that their discontinuance was an innovation on former customs, -determined to force the President to hold them. Accordingly, on the -usual levee-day they resorted in full force to the White House. The -President was out taking his habitual ride on horseback. On his -return, being told that the public rooms were filled with ladies, he -at once divined their true motives for coming on that day. Without -being at all disconcerted, all booted and spurred, and still covered -with the dust of his ride, he went in to receive his fair guests. -Never had his reception been more graceful or courteous. The ladies, -charmed with the ease and grace of his manners and address, forgot -their indignation with him, and went away feeling that, of the two -parties, they had shown most impoliteness in visiting his house when -not expected. The result of their plot was for a long time a subject -of mirth among them, and they never again attempted to infringe upon -the rules of his household. - -The Reverend Isaac Story having sent him some speculations on the -subject of the transmigration of souls, he sent him, on the 5th of -December, a reply, from which we take the following interesting -extract: - - -_To Rev. Isaac Story._ - - The laws of nature have withheld from us the meaning of physical - knowledge of the country of spirits, and revelation has, for - reasons unknown to us, chosen to leave us in darkness as we - were. When I was young, I was fond of speculations which seemed - to promise some insight into that hidden country; but observing - at length that they left me in the same ignorance in which they - had found me, I have for many years ceased to read or think - concerning them, and have reposed my head on that pillow of - ignorance which a benevolent Creator has made so soft for us, - knowing how much we should be forced to use it. I have thought - it better, by nourishing the good passions and controlling the - bad, to merit an inheritance in a state of being of which I can - know so little, and to trust for the future to Him who has been - so good for the past. - -A week or two later he wrote to John Dickinson: "The approbation of -my ancient friends is, above all things, the most grateful to my -heart. They know for what objects we relinquished the delights of -domestic society, tranquillity, and science, and committed ourselves -to the ocean of revolution, to wear out the only life God has given -us here in scenes the benefits of which will accrue only to those who -follow us." - -Early in the ensuing year he received a letter from his old friend -Mrs. Cosway, who writes: - - -_From Mrs. Cosway._ - - Have we no hopes of ever seeing you in Paris? Would it not be a - rest to you after your laborious situation? I often see the only - friend remaining of our set, Madame de Corny, the same in her - own amiable qualities, but very different in her situation, but - she supports it very well. - - I am come to this place in its best time, for the profusion of - fine things is beyond description, and not possible to conceive. - It is so changed in every respect that you would not think it - the same country or people. Shall this letter be fortunate - enough to get to your hands? Will it be still more fortunate in - procuring me an answer? I leave you to reflect on the happiness - you will afford your ever affectionate and sincere friend. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Washington, Mar. 3d, 1802. - - My very dear Maria--I observed to you some time ago that, during - the session of Congress, I should be able to write to you but - seldom; and so it has turned out. Yours of Jan. 24 I received - in due time, after which Mr. Eppes's letter of Feb. 1 and 2 - confirmed to me the news, always welcome, of yours and Francis's - health. Since this I have no news of you. I see with great - concern that I am not to have the pleasure of meeting you in - Albemarle in the spring. I had entertained the hope Mr. Eppes - and yourself would have passed the summer there, and, being - there, that the two families should have come together on a - visit here. I observe your reluctance at the idea of that visit, - but for your own happiness must advise you to get the better of - it. I think I discover in you a willingness to withdraw from - society more than is prudent. I am convinced our own happiness - requires that we should continue to mix with the world, and to - keep pace with it as it goes; and that every person who retires - from free communication with it is severely punished afterwards - by the state of mind into which he gets, and which can only - be prevented by feeding our sociable principles. I can speak - from experience on this subject. From 1793 to 1797 I remained - closely at home, saw none but those who came there, and at - length became very sensible of the ill effect it had on my own - mind, and of its direct and irresistible tendency to render me - unfit for society and uneasy when necessarily engaged in it. I - felt enough of the effect of withdrawing from the world then - to see that it led to an anti-social and misanthropic state of - mind, which severely punishes him who gives in to it; and it - will be a lesson I never shall forget as to myself. I am certain - you would be pleased with the state of society here, and that - after the first moments you would feel happy in having made the - experiment. I take for granted your sister will come immediately - after my spring visit to Monticello, and I should have thought - it agreeable to both that your first visit should be made - together.... - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -Mr. Jefferson made his spring visit to Monticello, and returned -to Washington before the first of June. The following chatty and -affectionate letters to his daughter, Mrs. Eppes, were written after -this visit home. The frequent and touching expressions of anxiety -about her health found in them show its delicate condition. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._--[_Extract._] - - Washington, July 1st, 1802. - - It will be infinitely joyful to me to be with you there - [Monticello] after the longest separation we have had for - years. I count from one meeting to another as we do between - port and port at sea; and I long for the moment with the same - earnestness. Present me affectionately to Mr. Eppes, and let me - hear from you immediately. Be assured yourself of my tender and - unchangeable affections. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Washington, July 2d, 1802. - - My dear Maria--My letter of yesterday had hardly got out of - my hand when yours of June 21st and Mr. Eppes's of the 25th - were delivered. I learn with extreme concern the state of your - health and that of the child, and am happy to hear you have got - from the Hundred to Eppington, the air of which will aid your - convalescence, and will enable you to delay your journey to - Monticello till you have recovered your strength to make the - journey safe. - - With respect to the measles, they began in Mr. Randolph's - family about the middle of June, and will probably be a month - getting through the family; so you had better, when you go, - pass on direct to Monticello, not calling at Edgehill. I will - immediately write to your sister, and inform her I advised you - to this. I have not heard yet of the disease having got to - Monticello, but the intercourse with Edgehill being hourly, - it can not have failed to have gone there immediately; and as - there are no young children there but Bet's and Sally's, and - the disease is communicable before a person knows they have - it, I have no doubt those children have passed through it. The - children of the plantation, being a mile and a half off, can - easily be guarded against. I will write to Monticello, and - direct that, should the nail-boys or any others have it, they - be removed to the plantation instantly on your arrival. Indeed, - none of them but Bet's sons stay on the mountain; and they will - be doubtless through it. I think, therefore, you may be there in - perfect security. It had gone through the neighborhood chiefly - when I was there in May; so that it has probably disappeared. - You should make inquiry on the road before you go into any - house, as the disease is now universal throughout the State, and - all the States. - - Present my most friendly attachment to Mr. and Mrs. Eppes. Tell - the latter I have had her spectacles these six months, waiting - for a direct conveyance. My best affections to Mr. Eppes, if - with you, and the family, and tender and constant love to - yourself. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - P.S.--I have always forgotten to answer your apologies about - Critta, which were very unnecessary. I am happy she has been - with you and useful to you. At Monticello there could be - nothing for her to do; so that her being with you is exactly as - desirable to me as she can be useful to you. - -On the 16th of July he wrote Mrs. Eppes: - - I leave this on the 24th, and shall be in great hopes of - receiving yourself and Mr. Eppes there (Monticello) immediately. - I received two days ago his letter of the 8th, in which he - gives me a poor account of your health, though he says you are - recruiting. Make very short stages, be off always by daylight, - and have your day's journey over by ten. In this way it is - probable you may find the moderate exercise of the journey - of service to yourself and Francis. Nothing is more frequent - than to see a child re-established by a journey. Present my - sincerest affections to the family at Eppington and to Mr. - Eppes. Tell him the Tory newspapers are all attacking his - publication, and urging it as a proof that Virginia has for - object to change the Constitution of the United States, and to - make it too impotent to curb the larger States. Accept yourself - assurances of my constant and tender love. - -He reached Monticello on the 25th of July, and was there joyfully -welcomed by his children and grandchildren. He was apparently in -robust health; but we find that six months before this period, to his -intimate friend Dr. Rush, he had written: "My health has always been -so uniformly firm, that I have for some years dreaded nothing so much -as the living too long. I think, however, that a flaw has appeared -which insures me against that, without cutting short any of the -period during which I could expect to remain capable of being useful. -It will probably give me as many years as I wish, and without pain or -debility. Should this be the case, my most anxious prayers will have -been fulfilled by Heaven. I have said as much to no mortal breathing, -and my florid health is calculated to keep my friends as well as foes -quiet, as they should be." - -He was at this time in his sixtieth year. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - - Returns to Washington.--Letters to his Daughters.--Meets with a - Stranger in his daily Ride.--Letters to his Daughter.--To his - young Grandson.--To his Daughter, Mrs. Randolph.--Last Letters - to his Daughter, Mrs. Eppes.--Her Illness.--Letter to Mr. - Eppes.--Goes to Monticello.--Death of Mrs. Eppes.--Account of it - by a Niece.--Letter to Page.--To Tyler.--From Mrs. Adams.-- Mr. - Jefferson's Reply.--Midnight Judges.--Letters to his Son-in-law. - - -Jefferson returned to Washington on the 5th of October, and, as will -be seen from the following note, was looking eagerly for the promised -visits of his daughters: - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Washington, Oct. 7th, 1802. - - My dear Maria--I arrived here on the fourth day of my journey - without accident. On the day and next day after my arrival, - I was much indisposed with a general soreness all over, a - ringing in the head, and deafness. It is wearing off slowly, - and was probably produced by travelling very early two mornings - in the fog. I have desired Mr. Jefferson to furnish you with - whatever you may call for, on my account; and I insist on your - calling freely. It never was my intention that a visit for my - gratification should be at your expense. It will be absolutely - necessary for me to send fresh horses to meet you, as no horses, - after the three first days' journey, can encounter the fourth, - which is hilly beyond any thing you have ever seen. I shall - expect to learn from you soon the day of your departure, that I - may make proper arrangements. Present me affectionately to Mr. - Eppes, and accept yourself my tenderest love. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -While President, Jefferson retained his habitual custom of taking -regular daily exercise. He rarely, however, gave his coachman, -Joseph, the pleasure of sitting behind the four fiery bays; always -preferring his saddle-horse--the magnificent Wildair--being the same -which he had ridden to the Capitol and "hitched to the palisades," -on the day of his inauguration. On his journeys to Monticello he -went most frequently in his one-horse chair or the phaeton. He never -failed, as I have elsewhere remarked, no matter what his occupation, -to devote the hours between one and three in the afternoon to -exercise, which was most frequently taken on horseback. Being very -choice in his selection of horses, and a bold and fearless rider, he -never rode any but an animal of the highest mettle and best blood. - -[Illustration: JEFFERSON'S HORSE-CHAIR.] - -We have from the most authentic source the account of an incident -which occurred on one of his rides while President. He was riding -along one of the highways leading into Washington, when he overtook -a man wending his way towards the city. Jefferson, as was his -habit, drew up his horse and touched his hat to the pedestrian. -The man returned the salutation, and began a conversation with the -President--not knowing, of course, who he was. He at once entered -upon the subject of politics--as was the habit of the day--and -began to abuse the President, alluding even to some of the infamous -calumnies against his private life. Jefferson's first impulse was to -say "good-morning" and ride on, but, amused at his own situation, -he asked the man if he knew the President personally? "No," was -the reply, "nor do I wish to." "But do you think it fair," asked -Jefferson, "to repeat such stories about a man, and condemn one whom -you dare not face?" "I will never shrink from meeting Mr. Jefferson -should he ever come in my way," replied the stranger, who was a -country merchant in high standing from Kentucky. "Will you, then, -go to his house to-morrow at -- o'clock and be introduced to him, -if I promise to meet you there at that hour?" asked Jefferson, -eagerly. "Yes, I will," said the man, after a moment's thought. -With a half-suppressed smile, and excusing himself from any further -conversation, the President touched his hat and rode on. - -Hardly had Jefferson disappeared from sight before a suspicion of -the truth, which he soon verified, flashed through the stranger's -mind. He stood fire, however, like a true man, and at the appointed -hour the next day the card of Mr. ----, "Mr. Jefferson's yesterday's -companion," was handed to the President. The next moment he was -announced and entered. His situation was embarrassing, but with a -gentlemanly bearing, though with some confusion, he began, "I have -called, Mr. Jefferson, to apologize for having said to a stranger--" -"Hard things of an imaginary being who is no relation of mine," -said Jefferson, interrupting him, as he gave him his hand, while -his countenance was radiant with a smile of mingled good-nature -and amusement. The Kentuckian once more began his apologies, which -Jefferson good-naturedly laughed off, and, changing the subject, -had soon captivated his guest by launching forth into one of his -most delightful strains of animated conversation, which so charmed -Mr. ----, that the dinner-hour had arrived before he was aware -how swiftly the pleasant hours had flown by. He rose to go, when -Jefferson urged him to stay to dinner. Mr. ---- declined, when -Jefferson repeated the invitation, and, smiling, asked if he was -afraid to meet Mr. ----, a Republican. "Don't mention him," said the -other, "and I will stay." - -It is needless to add that this Kentuckian remained ever afterwards -firmly attached to Jefferson: his whole family became his staunch -supporters, and the gentleman himself, in telling the story, would -wind up with a jesting caution to young men against talking too -freely with strangers. - -The following letters were written to Mrs. Eppes, after her return to -Virginia from a visit to Washington: - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Washington, Jan. 18th, 1803. - - My dear Maria--Yours by John came safely to hand, and informed - me of your ultimate arrival at Edgehill. Mr. Randolph's letter - from Gordon's, received the night before, gave me the first - certain intelligence I had received since your departure. A - rumor had come here of your having been stopped two or three - days at Ball Run, and in a miserable hovel; so that I had passed - ten days in anxious uncertainty about you. Your apologies, - my dear Maria, on the article of expense, are quite without - necessity. You did not here indulge yourselves as much as I - wished, and nothing prevented my supplying your backwardness - but my total ignorance in articles which might suit you. Mr. - Eppes's election [to Congress] will, I am in hopes, secure me - your company next winter, and perhaps you may find it convenient - to accompany your sister in the spring. Mr. Giles's aid, indeed, - in Congress, in support of our Administration, considering his - long knowledge of the affairs of the Union, his talents, and - the high ground on which he stands through the United States, - had rendered his continuance here an object of anxious desire - to those who compose the Administration; but every information - we receive states that prospect to be desperate from his ill - health, and will relieve me from the imputation of being willing - to lose to the public so strong a supporter, for the personal - gratification of having yourself and Mr. Eppes with me. I - inclose you Lemaire's receipts. The orthography will be puzzling - and amusing; but the receipts are valuable. Present my tender - love to your sister, kisses to the young ones, and my affections - to Mr. Randolph and Mr. Eppes, whom I suppose you will see soon. - Be assured of my unceasing and anxious love for yourself. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following playfully-written note was sent to his young grandson: - - -_To Thomas Jefferson Randolph._ - - Washington, Feb. 21st, 1803. - - I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 3d, - my dear Jefferson, and to congratulate you on your writing so - good a hand. By the last post I sent you a French Grammar, - and within three weeks I shall be able to ask you, "Parlez - vous Français, monsieur?" I expect to leave this about the - 9th, if unexpected business should not detain me, and then it - will depend on the weather and the roads how long I shall be - going--probably five days. The roads will be so deep that I can - not flatter myself with catching Ellen in bed. Tell her that - Mrs. Harrison Smith desires her compliments to her. Your mamma - has probably heard of the death of Mrs. Burrows. Mrs. Brent is - not far from it. Present my affections to your papa, mamma, and - the young ones, and be assured of them yourself. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In a letter written to a friend in the winter of this year (1803) he -thus alludes to his health: "I retain myself very perfect health, -having not had twenty hours of fever in forty-two years past. I have -sometimes had a troublesome headache and some slight rheumatic pains; -but, now sixty years old nearly, I have had as little to complain of -in point of health as most people." - -We have in the following letter one of the very few allusions to his -religion which he ever made to any of his family: - - -_To Martha Jefferson Randolph._ - - Washington, April 25th, 1803. - - My dear Martha--A promise made to a friend some years ago, but - executed only lately, has placed my religious creed on paper. - I have thought it just that my family, by possessing this, - should be enabled to estimate the libels published against me - on this, as on every other possible subject. I have written to - Philadelphia for Dr. Priestley's history of the corruptions - of Christianity, which I will send you and recommend to an - attentive perusal, because it establishes the ground-work of my - view of this subject. - - I have not had a line from Monticello or Edgehill since I parted - with you. Peter Carr and Mrs. Carr, who staid with me five or - six days, told me Cornelia had got happily through her measles, - and that Ellen had not taken them. But what has become of - Anne?[50] I thought I had her promise to write once a week, at - least the words "All's well." - - [50] This little grand-daughter was now twelve years old. - -It is now time for you to let me know when you expect to be able to -set out for Washington, and whether your own carriage can bring you -half-way. I think my Chickasaws, if drove moderately, will bring you -well that far. Mr. Lilly knows you will want them, and can add a -fourth. I think that by changing horses half-way you will come with -more comfort. I have no gentleman to send for your escort. Finding -here a beautiful blue cassimere, water-proof, and thinking it will -be particularly _à propos_ for Mr. Randolph as a travelling-coat for -his journey, I have taken enough for that purpose, and will send -it to Mr. Benson, postmaster at Fredericksburg, to be forwarded by -Abrahams, and hope it will be received in time. - -Mr. and Mrs. Madison will set out for Orange about the last day of -the month. They will stay there but a week. I write to Maria to-day; -but supposing her to be at the Hundred, according to what she told me -of her movements, I send my letter there. I wish you to come as early -as possible; because, though the members of the Government remain -here to the last week in July, yet the sickly season commences, in -fact, by the middle of that month, and it would not be safe for you -to keep the children here longer than that, lest any one of them, -being taken sick early, might detain the whole here till the season -of general danger, and perhaps through it. Kiss the children for -me. Present me affectionately to Mr. Randolph, and accept yourself -assurances of my constant and tenderest love. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The following extract from a letter written December 1st, 1804, to -John Randolph by Jefferson, shows how little of a politician the -latter was in his own family, and how careful he was not to try and -influence the political opinions of those connected with him: - - -_To John Randolph._ - - I am aware that in parts of the Union, and even with persons - to whom Mr. Eppes and Mr. Randolph are unknown, and myself - little known, it will be presumed, from their connection, that - what comes from them comes from me. No men on earth are more - independent in their sentiments than they are, nor any one - less disposed than I am to influence the opinions of others. We - rarely speak of politics, or of the proceedings of the House, - but merely historically, and I carefully avoid expressing an - opinion on them in their presence, that we may all be at our - ease. With other members, I have believed that more unreserved - communications would be advantageous to the public. - -I give now Jefferson's letters to Mrs. Eppes, scattered over a period -of several months. They possess unusual interest, from the fact -that they are the last written by this devoted father to his lovely -daughter. Mrs. Eppes being in extremely delicate health, and her -husband having to be in Washington as a member of Congress, she early -in the fall repaired to Edgehill, there to spend the winter with her -sister, Mrs. Randolph--Mr. Randolph also being a member of Congress. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Washington, Nov. 27th, 1803. - - It is rare, my ever dear Maria, during a session of Congress, - that I can get time to write any thing but letters of business, - and this, though a day of rest to others, is not all so to me. - We are all well here, and hope the post of this evening will - bring us information of the health of all at Edgehill, and - particularly that Martha and the new bantling[51] are both well, - and that her example gives you good spirits. When Congress will - rise no mortal can tell--not from the quantity but dilatoriness - of business. - - [51] Mrs. Randolph's sixth child. - -Mr. Lilly having finished the mill, is now, I suppose, engaged in -the road which we have been so long wanting; and that done, the next -job will be the levelling of Pantops. I anxiously long to see under -way the work necessary to fix you there, that we may one day be all -together. Mr. Stewart is now here on his way back to his family, whom -he will probably join Thursday or Friday. Will you tell your sister -that the pair of stockings she sent me by Mr. Randolph are quite -large enough, and also have fur enough in them. I inclose some papers -for Anne; and must continue in debt to Jefferson a letter for a while -longer. Take care of yourself, my dearest Maria, have good spirits, -and know that courage is as essential to triumph in your case as -in that of a soldier. Keep us all, therefore, in heart of being so -yourself. Give my tender affections to your sister, and receive them -for yourself also, with assurances that I live in your love only and -in that of your sister. Adieu, my dear daughter. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes, Edgehill._ - - Washington, Dec. 26th, 1803. - - I now return, my dearest Maria, the paper which you lent me for - Mr. Page, and which he has returned some days since. I have - prevailed on Dr. Priestley to undertake the work, of which this - is only the syllabus or plan. He says he can accomplish it in - the course of a year. But, in truth, his health is so much - impaired, and his body become so feeble, that there is reason to - fear he will not live out even the short term he has asked for - it. - - You may inform Mr. Eppes and Mr. Randolph that no mail arrived - the last night from Natchez. I presume the great rains which - have fallen have rendered some of the water-courses impassable. - On New-year's-day, however, we shall hear of the delivery of New - Orleans[52] to us! Till then the Legislature seem disposed to do - nothing but meet and adjourn. - - [52] The reader will remember that the purchase of Louisiana was - made in Jefferson's administration. - -Mrs. Livingston, formerly the younger Miss Allen, made kind -inquiries after you the other day. She said she was at school with -you at Mrs. Pine's. Not knowing the time destined for your expected -indisposition, I am anxious on your account. You are prepared to -meet it with courage, I hope. Some female friend of your mamma's (I -forget whom) used to say it was no more than a jog of the elbow. The -material thing is to have scientific aid in readiness, that if any -thing uncommon takes place it may be redressed on the spot, and not -be made serious by delay. It is a case which least of all will wait -for doctors to be sent for; therefore with this single precaution -nothing is ever to be feared. I was in hopes to have heard from -Edgehill last night, but I suppose your post has failed. - -I shall expect to see the gentlemen here next Sunday night to take -part in the gala of Monday. Give my tenderest love to your sister, -of whom I have not heard for a fortnight, and my affectionate -salutations to the gentlemen and young ones, and continue to love me -yourself, and be assured of my warmest affections. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes, Edgehill._ - - Washington, Jan. 29th, 1804. - - My dearest Maria--This evening ought to have brought in the - Western mail, but it is not arrived; consequently we hear - nothing from our neighborhood. I rejoice that this is the last - time our Milton mail will be embarrassed with that from New - Orleans, the rapidity of which occasioned our letters often - to be left in the post-office. It now returns to its former - establishment of twice a week, so that we may hear oftener from - you; and, in communicating to us frequently of the state of - things, I hope you will not be sparing, if it be only by saying - that "All is well!" - - I think Congress will rise the second week in March, when we - shall join you; perhaps Mr. Eppes may sooner. On this I presume - he writes you. It would have been the most desirable of all - things could we have got away by this time. However, I hope you - will let us all see that you have within yourself the resource - of a courage not requiring the presence of any body. - - Since proposing to Anne the undertaking to raise bantams, I have - received from Algiers two pair of beautiful fowls, something - larger than our common fowls, with fine aigrettes. They are not - so large nor valuable as the East India fowl, but both kinds, as - well as the bantams, are well worthy of being raised. We must, - therefore, distribute them among us, and raise them clear of - mixture of any kind. All this we will settle together in March, - and soon after we will begin the levelling and establishing - of your hen-house at Pantops. Give my tenderest love to your - sister, to all the young ones kisses, to yourself every thing - affectionate. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes, Edgehill._ - - Washington, Feb. 26th, 1804. - - A thousand joys to you, my dear Maria, on the happy accession - to your family. A letter from our dear Martha by last post gave - me the happy news that your crisis was happily over, and all - well. I had supposed that if you were a little later than your - calculation, and the rising of Congress as early as we expected, - we might have been with you at the moment when it would have - been so encouraging to have had your friends around you. I - rejoice, indeed, that all is so well. - - Congress talk of rising the 12th of March; but they will - probably be some days later. You will doubtless see Mr. Eppes - and Mr. Randolph immediately on the rising of Congress. I shall - hardly be able to get away till some days after them. By that - time I hope you will be able to go with us to Monticello, and - that we shall _all_ be there together for a month; and the - interval between that and the autumnal visit will not be long. - Will you desire your sister to send for Mr. Lilly, and to advise - him what orders to give Goliath for providing those vegetables - which may come into use for the months of April, August, and - September? Deliver her also my affectionate love. I will write - to her the next week. Kiss all the little ones, and be assured - yourself of my tender and unchangeable affection. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The relief of Mr. Jefferson's anxieties concerning his daughter's -health was of but short duration. Shortly after writing the preceding -letter, he received intelligence of her being dangerously ill. It is -touching to see, in his letters, his increasing tenderness for her -as her situation became more critical; and we find him chafing with -impatience at being prevented by official duties from flying at once -to her side on hearing of her illness. - - -_To Mary Jefferson Eppes._ - - Washington, Mar. 3d, 1804. - - The account of your illness, my dearest Maria, was known - to me only this morning. Nothing but the impossibility of - Congress proceeding a single step in my absence presents an - insuperable bar. Mr. Eppes goes off, and I hope will find you in - a convalescent state. Next to the desire that it may be so, is - that of being speedily informed, and of being relieved from the - terrible anxiety in which I shall be till I hear from you. God - bless you, my ever dear daughter, and preserve you safe to the - blessing of us all. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The news of Mrs. Eppes's convalescence revived her father's hopes -about her health, and we find him writing, in the following letter -to Mr. Eppes, about settling him at Pantops (one of his farms a few -miles from Monticello), in the fond anticipation of thus fixing his -daughter near him for life. - - -_To John W. Eppes, Edgehill._ - - Washington, March 15th, 1804. - - Dear Sir--Your letter of the 9th has at length relieved my - spirits; still the debility of Maria will need attention, lest - a recurrence of fever should degenerate into typhus. I should - suppose the system of wine and food as effectual to prevent as - to cure that fever, and think she should use both as freely as - she finds she can bear them--light food and cordial wines. The - sherry at Monticello is old and genuine, and the Pedro Ximenes - much older still, and stomachic. Her palate and stomach will be - the best arbiters between them. - - Congress have deferred their adjournment a week, to wit, to the - 26th; consequently we return a week later. I presume I can be - with you by the first of April. I hope Maria will by that time - be well enough to go over to Monticello with us, and I hope you - will thereafter take up your residence there. The house, its - contents, and appendages and servants, are as freely subjected - to you as to myself, and I hope you will make it your home till - we can get you fixed at Pantops. I do not think Maria should - be ventured below after this date. I will endeavor to forward - to Mr. Benson, postmaster at Fredericksburg, a small parcel of - the oats for you. The only difficulty is to find some gentleman - going on in the stage who will take charge of them by the way. - My tenderest love to Maria and Patsy, and all the young ones. - Affectionate salutations to yourself. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -Jefferson reached Monticello early in April, where his great and -tender heart was to be wrung by the severest affliction which -can befall a parent--the loss of a well-beloved child. Mrs. -Eppes's decline was rapid; and the following line in her father's -handwriting, in his family register, tells its own sad tale: - - "MARY JEFFERSON, _born_ Aug. 1, 1778, 1_h._ 30_m._ A.M. _Died_ - April 17, 1804, between 8 and 9 A.M." - -The following beautiful account of the closing scenes of this -domestic tragedy is from the pen of a niece of Mrs. Eppes, and was -written at the request of Mr. Randall, Jefferson's worthy biographer: - - Boston, 15th January, 1856. - - My dear Mr. Randall--I find an old memorandum made many years - ago, I know not when nor under what circumstances, but by my own - hand, in the fly-leaf of a Bible. It is to this effect: - - "Maria Jefferson was born in 1778, and married, in 1797, - John Wayles Eppes, son of Francis Eppes and Elizabeth - Wayles, second daughter of John Wayles. Maria Jefferson died - April, 1804, leaving two children, Francis, born in 1801, - and Maria, who died an infant." - - I have no recollection of the time when I made this memorandum, - but I have no doubt of its accuracy. - - Mrs. Eppes was never well after the birth of her last child. - She lingered a while, but never recovered. My grandfather was - in Washington, and my aunt passed the winter at Edgehill, where - she was confined. I remember the tender and devoted care of my - mother, how she watched over her sister, and with what anxious - affection she anticipated her every want. I remember, at one - time, that she left her chamber and her own infant, that she - might sleep in my aunt's room, to assist in taking care of her - and her child. I well recollect my poor aunt's pale, faded, - and feeble look. My grandfather, during his Presidency, made - two visits every year to Monticello--a short one in early - spring, and a longer one the latter part of the summer. He - always stopped at Edgehill, where my mother was then living, - to take her and her whole family to Monticello with him. He - came this year as usual, anxious about the health of his - youngest daughter, whose situation, though such as to excite the - apprehensions of her friends, was not deemed one of immediate - danger. She had been delicate, and something of an invalid, if I - remember right, for some years. She was carried to Monticello in - a litter borne by men. The distance was perhaps four miles, and - she bore the removal well. After this, however, she continued, - as before, steadily to decline. She was taken out when the - weather permitted, and carried around the lawn in a carriage, I - think drawn by men, and I remember following the carriage over - the smooth green turf. How long she lived I do not recollect, - but it could have been but a short time. - - One morning I heard that my aunt was dying. I crept softly from - my nursery to her chamber door, and, being alarmed by her short, - hard breathing, ran away again. I have a distinct recollection - of confusion and dismay in the household. I did not see my - mother. By-and-by one of the female servants came running in - where I was, with other persons, to say that Mrs. Eppes was - dead. The day passed I do not know how. Late in the afternoon - I was taken to the death-chamber. The body was covered with a - white cloth, over which had been strewed a profusion of flowers. - A day or two after I followed the coffin to the burying-ground - on the mountain-side, and saw it consigned to the earth, where - it has lain undisturbed for more than fifty years. - - My mother has told me that on the day of her sister's death she - left her father alone for some hours. He then sent for her, and - she found him with the Bible in his hands. He who has been so - often and so harshly accused of unbelief--he, in his hour of - intense affliction, sought and found consolation in the Sacred - Volume. The Comforter was there for his true heart and devout - spirit, even though his faith might not be what the world calls - orthodox. - - There was something very touching in the sight of this once - beautiful and still lovely young woman, fading away just as - the spring was coming on with its buds and blossoms--nature - reviving as she was sinking, and closing her eyes on all that - she loved best in life. She perished, not in autumn with the - flowers, but as they were opening to the sun and air in all the - freshness of spring. I think the weather was fine, for over my - own recollections of these times there is a soft dreamy sort of - haze, such as wraps the earth in warm dewy spring-time. - - You know enough of my aunt's early history to be aware that she - did not accompany her father, as my mother did, when he first - went to France. She joined him, I think, only about two years - before his return, and was placed in the same convent where my - mother received her education. Here she went by the name of - Mademoiselle _Polie_. As a child, she was called Polly by her - friends. It was on her way to Paris that she staid a while in - London with Mrs. Adams, and there is a pleasing mention of her - in that lady's published letters. - - I think the visit (not a very long one) made by my mother and - aunt to their father in Washington must have been in the winter - of 1802-'3. My aunt, I believe, was never there again; but after - her death, about the winter of 1805-'6, my mother, with all her - children, passed some time at the President's house. I remember - that both my father and uncle Eppes were _then_ in Congress, but - can not say whether this was the case in 1802-'3. - - My aunt, Mrs. Eppes, was singularly beautiful. She was - high-principled, just, and generous. Her temper, naturally - mild, became, I think, saddened by ill health in the latter - part of her life. In that respect she differed from my mother, - whose disposition seemed to have the sunshine of heaven in it. - Nothing ever wearied my mother's patience, or exhausted, what - was inexhaustible, her sweetness, her kindness, indulgence, and - self-devotion. She was intellectually somewhat superior to her - sister, who was sensible of the difference, though she was of - too noble a nature for her feelings ever to assume an ignoble - character. There was between the sisters the strongest and - warmest attachment, the most perfect confidence and affection. - - My aunt utterly undervalued and disregarded her own beauty, - remarkable as it was. She was never fond of dress or ornament, - and was always careless of admiration. She was even vexed by - allusions to her beauty, saying that people only praised her for - that because they could not praise her for better things. If - my mother inadvertently exclaimed, half sportively, "Maria, if - I only had your beauty," my aunt would resent it as far as she - could resent any thing said or done by her sister. - - It may be said that the extraordinary value she attached to - talent was mainly founded in her idea that by the possession of - it she would become a more suitable companion for her father. - Both daughters considered his affection as the great good of - their lives, and both loved him with all the devotion of their - most loving hearts. My aunt sometimes mourned over the fear that - her father _must_ prefer her sister's society, and _could_ not - take the same pleasure in hers. This very humility in one so - lovely was a charm the more in her character. She was greatly - loved and esteemed by all her friends. She was on a footing of - the most intimate friendship with my father's sister, Mrs. T. - Eston Randolph, herself a most exemplary and admirable woman, - whose daughter, long years after, married Francis, Mrs. Eppes's - son. - - I know not, my dear Mr. Randall, whether this letter will add - any thing to the knowledge you already possess of this one of - my grandfather's family. Should it not, you must take the will - for the deed, and as I am somewhat wearied by the rapidity with - which I have written, in order to avoid delay, I will bid you - adieu, with my very best wishes for your entire success in your - arduous undertaking. - - Very truly yours - ELLEN W. COOLIDGE. - -How heart-rending the death of this "ever dear daughter" was to -Jefferson, may be judged from the following touching and beautiful -letter, written by him two months after the sad event, in reply to -one of condolence from his old and constant friend, Governor Page: - - -_To Governor Page._ - - Your letter, my dear friend, of the 25th ultimo, is a new proof - of the goodness of your heart, and the part you take in my - loss marks an affectionate concern for the greatness of it. It - is great indeed. Others may lose of their abundance, but I, - of my want, have lost even the half of all I had. My evening - prospects now hang on the slender thread of a single life. - Perhaps I may be destined to see even this last cord of parental - affection broken! The hope with which I had looked forward to - the moment when, resigning public cares to younger hands, I was - to retire to that domestic comfort from which the last great - step is to be taken, is fearfully blighted. - - When you and I look back on the country over which we have - passed, what a field of slaughter does it exhibit! Where are - all the friends who entered it with us, under all the inspiring - energies of health and hope? As if pursued by the havoc of war, - they are strewed by the way, some earlier, some later, and - scarce a few stragglers remain to count the numbers fallen, and - to mark yet, by their own fall, the last footsteps of their - party. Is it a desirable thing to bear up through the heat - of action, to witness the death of all our companions, and - merely be the last victim? I doubt it. We have, however, the - traveller's consolation. Every step shortens the distance we - have to go; the end of our journey is in sight--the bed wherein - we are to rest, and to rise in the midst of the friends we have - lost! "We sorrow not, then, as others who have no hope;" but - look forward to the day which joins us to the great majority. - - But whatever is to be our destiny, wisdom, as well as duty, - dictates that we should acquiesce in the will of Him whose it - is to give and take away, and be contented in the enjoyment of - those who are still permitted to be with us. Of those connected - by blood, the number does not depend on us. But friends we have - if we have merited them. Those of our earliest years stand - nearest in our affections. But in this, too, you and I have been - unlucky. Of our college friends (and they are the dearest) how - few have stood with us in the great political questions which - have agitated our country: and these were of a nature to justify - agitation. I did not believe the Lilliputian fetters of that day - strong enough to have bound so many. - - Will not Mrs. Page, yourself, and family, think it prudent to - seek a healthier region for the months of August and September? - And may we not flatter ourselves that you will cast your eye - on Monticello? We have not many summers to live. While fortune - places us, then, within striking distance, let us avail - ourselves of it, to meet and talk over the tales of other times. - -He also wrote to Judge Tyler: - - I lament to learn that a like misfortune has enabled you to - estimate the afflictions of a father on the loss of a beloved - child. However terrible the possibility of such another - accident, it is still a blessing for you of inestimable value - that you would not even then descend childless to the grave. - Three sons, and hopeful ones too, are a rich treasure. I rejoice - when I hear of young men of virtue and talents, worthy to - receive, and likely to preserve, the splendid inheritance of - self-government which we have acquired and shaped for them. - -Among the many letters of condolence which poured in upon Mr. -Jefferson from all quarters on this sad occasion, was the following -very characteristic one from Mrs. Adams. It shows in the writer a -strange mixture of kind feeling, goodness of heart, and a proud, -unforgiving spirit. - - -_From Mrs. Adams._ - - Quincy, 20th May, 1804. - - Sir--Had you been no other than the private inhabitant of - Monticello, I should, ere this time, have addressed you with - that sympathy which a recent event has awakened in my bosom; but - reasons of various kinds withheld my pen, until the powerful - feelings of my heart burst through the restraint, and called - upon me to shed the tear of sorrow over the departed remains - of your beloved and deserving daughter--an event which I most - sincerely mourn. The attachment which I formed for her when you - committed her to my care upon her arrival in a foreign land, - under circumstances peculiarly interesting, has remained with me - to this hour; and the account of her death, which I read in a - late paper, recalled to my recollection the tender scene of her - separation from me, when, with the strongest sensibility, she - clung around my neck, and wet my bosom with her tears, saying, - "Oh, now I have learned to love you, why will they take me from - you?" - - It has been some time since I conceived that any event in - this life could call forth feelings of mutual sympathy. But I - know how closely entwined around a parent's are those cords - which bind the parental to the filial bosom, and, when snapped - asunder, how agonizing the pangs. I have tasted of the bitter - cup, and bow with reverence and submission before the great - Dispenser of it, without whose permission and overruling - providence not a sparrow falls to the ground. That you may - derive comfort and consolation, in this day of your sorrow and - affliction, from that only source calculated to heal the broken - heart, a firm belief in the being, perfections, and attributes - of God, is the sincere and ardent wish of her who once took - pleasure in subscribing herself your friend. - - ABIGAIL ADAMS.[53] - - [53] The original of this letter is now in the possession of - Jefferson's grandson, Colonel Jefferson Randolph. - -To this letter Mr. Jefferson replied as follows: - - -_To Mrs. Adams._ - - Washington, June 13th, 1804. - - Dear Madam--The affectionate sentiments which you have had the - goodness to express, in your letter of May the 20th, towards - my dear departed daughter have awakened in me sensibilities - natural to the occasion, and recalled your kindnesses to her, - which I shall ever remember with gratitude and friendship. I can - assure you with truth, they had made an indelible impression - on her mind, and that to the last, on our meetings after - long separations, whether I had heard lately of you, and how - you did, were among the earliest of her inquiries. In giving - you this assurance, I perform a sacred duty for her, and, at - the same time, am thankful for the occasion furnished me of - expressing my regret that circumstances should have arisen - which have seemed to draw a line of separation between us. The - friendship with which you honored me has ever been valued and - fully reciprocated; and although events have been passing which - might be trying to some minds, I never believed yours to be of - that kind, nor felt that my own was. Neither my estimate of - your character, nor the esteem founded in that, has ever been - lessened for a single moment, although doubts whether it would - be acceptable may have forbidden manifestations of it. - - Mr. Adams's friendship and mine began at an earlier date. It - accompanied us through long and important scenes. The different - conclusions we had drawn from our political reading and - reflections were not permitted to lessen personal esteem--each - party being conscious they were the result of an honest - conviction in the other. Like differences of opinion among - our fellow-citizens attached them to one or the other of us, - and produced a rivalship in their minds which did not exist - in ours. We never stood in one another's way; but if either - had been withdrawn at any time, his favorers would not have - gone over to the other, but would have sought for some one of - homogeneous opinions. This consideration was sufficient to keep - down all jealousy between us, and to guard our friendship from - any disturbance by sentiments of rivalship; and I can say with - truth, that one act of Mr. Adams's life, and one only, ever gave - me a moment's personal displeasure. I did consider his last - appointments to office as personally unkind. They were from - among my most ardent political enemies, from whom no faithful - co-operation could ever be expected; and laid me under the - embarrassment of acting through men whose views were to defeat - mine, or to encounter the odium of putting others in their - places. It seems but common justice to leave a successor free - to act by instruments of his own choice. If my respect for him - did not permit me to ascribe the whole blame to the influence of - others, it left something for friendship to forgive; and after - brooding over it for some little time, and not always resisting - the expression of it, I forgave it cordially, and returned to - the same state of esteem and respect for him which had so long - subsisted. - - Having come into life a little later than Mr. Adams, his career - has preceded mine, as mine is followed by some other; and it - will probably be closed at the same distance after him which - time originally placed between us. I maintain for him, and shall - carry into private life, an uniform and high measure of respect - and good-will, and for yourself a sincere attachment. - - I have thus, my dear madam, opened myself to you without - reserve, which I have long wished an opportunity of doing; and - without knowing how it will be received, I feel relief from - being unbosomed. And I have now only to entreat your forgiveness - for this transition from a subject of domestic affliction to one - which seems of a different aspect. But though connected with - political events, it has been viewed by me most strongly in its - unfortunate bearings on my private friendships. The injury these - have sustained has been a heavy price for what has never given - me equal pleasure. That you may both be favored with health, - tranquillity, and long life, is the prayer of one who tenders - you the assurance of his highest consideration and esteem. - -Several other letters were exchanged by Jefferson and Mrs. Adams, and -explanations followed, which did not, however, result at the time in -restoring friendly intercourse between them, that not being resumed -until some years later.[54] Mrs. Adams, it seemed, was offended -with him because, in making appointments to fill certain Federal -offices in Boston, her son, who held one of these offices, was not -reappointed. Jefferson did not know, when he made the appointments, -that young Adams held the office, and gave Mrs. Adams an assurance to -that effect in one of the letters alluded to above, but she seems not -to have accepted the explanation. - - [54] See pages 352, 353. - -The history of the midnight judges referred to in Jefferson's first -letter to Mrs. Adams was briefly this: Just at the close of Adams's -Administration a law was hurried through Congress by the Federalists, -increasing the number of United States Courts throughout the States. -At that time twelve o'clock on the night of the 3d of March was -the magical hour when one Administration passed out and the other -came in. The law was passed at such a late hour, that, though the -appointments for the new judgeships created by it had been previously -selected, yet the commissions had not been issued from the Department -of State. Chief-justice Marshall, who was then acting as Secretary -of State, was busily engaged filling out these commissions, that the -offices might be filled with Federal appointments while the outgoing -Administration was still in power. The whole proceeding was known to -Jefferson. He considered the law unconstitutional, and acted in the -premises with his usual boldness and decision. Having chosen Levi -Lincoln as his Attorney General, he gave him his watch, and ordered -him to go at midnight and take possession of the State Department, -and not allow a single paper to be removed from it after that hour. - -Mr. Lincoln accordingly entered Judge Marshall's office at the -appointed time. "I have been ordered by Mr. Jefferson," he said -to the Judge, "to take possession of this office and its papers." -"Why, Mr. Jefferson has not yet qualified," exclaimed the astonished -Chief-justice. "Mr. Jefferson considers himself in the light of -an executor, bound to take charge of the papers of the Government -until he is duly qualified," was the reply. "But it is not yet -twelve o'clock," said Judge Marshall, taking out his watch. Mr. -Lincoln pulled out his, and, showing it to him, said, "This is the -President's watch, and rules the hour." - -Judge Marshall could make no appeal from this, and was forced to -retire, casting a farewell look upon the commissions lying on the -table before him. In after years he used to laugh, and say he had -been allowed to pick up nothing but his hat. He had, however, one or -two of the commissions in his pocket, and the gentlemen who received -them were called thereafter "John Adams's midnight judges." - -In his message to Congress some months later, Jefferson demonstrated -that, so far from requiring an increased number of courts, there was -not work enough for those already existing. - - -_To John W. Eppes._ - - Monticello, August 7th, 1804. - - Dear Sir--Your letters of July 16th and 29th both came to me on - the 2d instant. I receive with great delight the information - of the perfect health of our dear infants, and hope to see - yourself, the family and them, as soon as circumstances admit. - With respect to Melinda, I have too many already to leave here - in idleness when I go away; and at Washington I prefer white - servants, who, when they misbehave, can be exchanged. John - knew he was not to expect her society but when he should be - at Monticello, and then subject to the casualty of her being - here or not. You mention a horse to be had--of a fine bay; and - again, that he is of the color of your horse. I do not well - recollect the shade of yours; but if you think this one would - do with Castor or Fitzpartner, I would take him at the price - you mention, but should be glad to have as much breadth for the - payment as the seller could admit, and at any rate not less than - ninety days. I know no finer horse than yours, but he is much - too fiery to be trusted in a carriage--the only use I have for - him while Arcturus remains. He is also too small. I write this - letter in the hope you will be here before you can receive it, - but on the possibility that the cause which, detained you at - the date of yours may continue. My affectionate salutations and - esteem attend the family at Eppington and yourself. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - P.S.--By your mentioning that Francis will be your constant - companion, I am in hopes I shall have him here with you during - the session of Congress. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - - Renominated as President.--Letter to Mazzei.--Slanders against - Jefferson.--Sad Visit to Monticello.--Second Inauguration.-- - Receives the Bust of the Emperor of Russia.--Letters to and from - the Emperor.--To Diodati.--To Dickinson.--To his Son-in-law.-- - Devotion to his Grandchildren.--Letter to Monroe.--To his - Grandchildren.--His Temper when roused.--Letter to Charles - Thompson.--To Dr. Logan.--Anxious to avoid a Public Reception - on his Return home.--Letter to Dupont de Nemours.--Inauguration - of Madison.--Harmony in Jefferson's Cabinet.--Letter to - Humboldt.--Farewell Address from the Legislature of Virginia.-- - His Reply.--Reply to an Address of Welcome from the Citizens of - Albemarle.--Letter to Madison.--Anecdote of Jefferson. - - -Weary of office, and longing for the tranquillity of private life -amidst the groves of his beautiful home at Monticello, it was the -first wish of Jefferson's heart to retire at the close of his first -Presidential term. His friends, however, urged his continuance in -office for the next four years, and persisted in renominating him as -the Republican candidate in the coming elections. There were other -reasons which induced him to yield his consent besides the entreaties -of his friends. We find these alluded to in the following extract -from a letter written to Mazzei on the 18th of July, 1804: - - I should have retired at the end of the first four years, - but that the immense load of Tory calumnies which have been - manufactured respecting me, and have filled the European - market, have obliged me to appeal once more to my country for - justification. I have no fear but that I shall receive honorable - testimony by their verdict on these calumnies. At the end of - the next four years I shall certainly retire. Age, inclination, - and principle all dictate this. My health, which at one time - threatened an unfavorable turn, is now firm. - -During the summer of 1804 Jefferson made his usual visit to -Monticello, where his quiet enjoyment of home-life was saddened by -the remembrance of the painful scenes through which he had so lately -passed there. - -At the time of his second inauguration, on the 5th of March, 1805, -Jefferson was in his sixty-second year. His inaugural address closed -with the following eloquent words: - - I fear not that any motives of interest may lead me astray; I - am sensible of no passion which could seduce me knowingly from - the path of justice; but the weakness of human nature, and the - limits of my own understanding, will produce errors of judgment - sometimes injurious to your interests. I shall need, therefore, - all the indulgence I have heretofore experienced--the want of - it will certainly not lessen with increasing years. I shall - need, too, the favor of that Being in whose hands we are, who - led our forefathers, as Israel of old, from their native land, - and planted them in a country flowing with all the necessaries - and comforts of life; who has covered our infancy with his - providence, and our riper years with his wisdom and power; and - to whose goodness I ask you to join with me in supplications - that He will so enlighten the minds of your servants, guide - their councils, and prosper their measures, that whatsoever they - do shall result in your good, and shall secure to you the peace, - friendship, and approbation of all nations. - -The next two years of his life possess nothing worthy of special -notice in this volume. The reader will find interesting the following -extract from one of his letters of 1806: - - -_To Mr. Harris._ - - Washington, April 18th, 1806. - - Sir--It is now some time since I received from you, through the - house of Smith & Buchanan, at Baltimore, a bust of the Emperor - Alexander, for which I have to return you my thanks. These are - the more cordial because of the value the bust derives from the - great estimation in which its original is held by the world, - and by none more than by myself. It will constitute one of the - most valued ornaments of the retreat I am preparing for myself - at my native home. Accept, at the same time, my acknowledgments - for the elegant work of Atkinson and Walker on the customs of - the Russians. I had laid down as a law for my conduct while - in office, and hitherto scrupulously observed, to accept of no - present beyond a book, a pamphlet, or other curiosity of minor - value; as well to avoid imputation on my motives of action, - as to shut out a practice susceptible of such abuse. But my - particular esteem for the character of the Emperor places - his image, in my mind, above the scope of law. I receive it, - therefore, and shall cherish it with affection. It nourishes the - contemplation of all the good placed in his power, and of his - disposition to do it. - -A day later he wrote to the Emperor himself: - - -_To the Emperor Alexander._ - - I owe an acknowledgment to your Imperial Majesty for the great - satisfaction I have received from your letter of August the - 20th, 1805, and embrace the opportunity it affords of giving - expression to the sincere respect and veneration I entertain for - your character. It will be among the latest and most soothing - comforts of my life to have seen advanced to the government of - so extensive a portion of the earth, at so early a period of - his life, a sovereign whose ruling passion is the advancement - of the happiness and prosperity of his people; and not of his - own people only, but who can extend his eye and his good-will - to a distant and infant nation, unoffending in its course, - unambitious in its views. - -I have lying before me a letter, written in French, and over a superb -signature, from the Emperor Alexander to Mr. Jefferson. It is dated -"_à St. Petersbourg, ce 7 Novembre, 1804_," and at the close has this -graceful paragraph: - - -_From the Emperor Alexander._ - - Truly grateful for the interest which you have proved to me - that you take in the well-being and prosperity of Russia, I - feel that I can not better express similar feelings towards the - United States, than by hoping they may long preserve at the head - of their administration a chief who is as virtuous as he is - enlightened. - -The bust of the Emperor was placed in the hall at Monticello, facing -one of Napoleon, which stood on the opposite side of the door leading -into the portico. - -Writing to one of his French friends--M. le Comte Diodati--on January -13, 1807, Jefferson says: - - -_To Comte Diodati._ - - At the end of my present term, of which two years are yet to - come, I propose to retire from public life, and to close my - days on my patrimony of Monticello, in the bosom of my family. - I have hitherto enjoyed uniform health; but the weight of - public business begins to be too heavy for me, and I long for - the enjoyments of rural life--among my books, my farms, and - my family. Having performed my _quadragena stipendia_, I am - entitled to my discharge, and should be sorry, indeed, that - others should be sooner sensible than myself when I ought to ask - it. I have, therefore, requested my fellow-citizens to think of - a successor for me, to whom I shall deliver the public concerns - with greater joy than I received them. I have the consolation, - too, of having added nothing to my private fortune during my - public service, and of retiring with hands as clean as they are - empty. - -Wearied with the burden of public life, Jefferson had written his old -friend, John Dickinson, two months earlier: - - -_To John Dickinson._ - - I have tired you, my friend, with a long letter. But your - tedium will end in a few lines more. Mine has yet two years to - endure. I am tired of an office where I can do no more good than - many others who would be glad to be employed in it. To myself, - personally, it brings nothing but unceasing drudgery and daily - loss of friends. - -A letter written to Mr. Eppes in July, 1807, alludes to the death of -little Maria, the youngest child left by his lost daughter. He writes: - - -_To Mr. Eppes._ - - Yours of the 3d is received. At that time, I presume, you - had not got mine of June 19th, asking the favor of you to - procure me a horse. I have lost three since you left this place - [Washington]; however, I can get along with the three I have - remaining, so as to give time for looking up a fourth, suitable - in as many points as can be obtained. My happiness at Monticello - (if I am able to go there) will be lessened by not having - Francis and yourself there; but the circumstance which prevents - it is one of the most painful that ever happened to me in life. - Thus comfort after comfort drops off from us, till nothing is - left but what is proper food for the grave. I trust, however, - we shall have yourself and Francis the ensuing winter, and the - one following that, and we must let the after-time provide for - itself. He will ever be to me one of the dearest objects of life. - -The following letter from Lafayette to Jefferson explains itself: - - -_From the Marquis Lafayette._ - - Auteuil, January 11th, 1808. - - My dear friend--The constant mourning of your heart will be - deepened by the grief I am doomed to impart to it. Who better - than you can sympathize for the loss of a beloved wife? The - angel who for thirty-four years has blessed my life, was to you - an affectionate, grateful friend. Pity me, my dear Jefferson, - and believe me, forever, with all my heart, yours, - - LAFAYETTE. - - M. and Madame de Telli, at whose house we have attended her last - moments, are tolerably well. We now are, my children and myself, - in the Tracy family, and shall return to La Grange as soon as we - can. - -We find in Jefferson's correspondence of this year a letter written -to his friend Dr. Wistar, of Philadelphia, in which he bespeaks his -kind offices for his young grandson, Thomas Jefferson Randolph, -then in his fifteenth year, and whom Mr. Jefferson wished to send -to Philadelphia, that he might there prosecute his studies in -the sciences. The devotion of this grandson and grandfather for -each other was constant and touching. When the former went to -Philadelphia, he left Monticello with his grandfather, and went with -him as far as Washington, where he spent some days. Nothing could -have exceeded his grandfather's kindness and thoughtfulness for -him on this occasion. He looked over, with him, his wardrobe, and -examined the contents of his trunk with as much care as if he had -been his mother, and then, taking out a pencil and paper, made a list -of purchases to be made for him, saying, "You will need such and such -things when you get to Philadelphia." Nor would he let another make -the purchases, but, going out with his grandson, got for him himself -what he thought was suitable for him, though kindly consulting his -taste. I give this incident only as a proof of Jefferson's thoughtful -devotion for his grandchildren and of the perfect confidence which -existed between himself and them. - -In a letter, full of good feeling and good advice, written to -Mr. Monroe in February, 1808, he cautions him against the danger -of politics raising a rivalship between Mr. Madison and himself, -and then, alluding to his own personal feelings, closes thus -affectionately: - - -_To James Monroe._ - - My longings for retirement are so strong, that I with difficulty - encounter the daily drudgeries of my duty. But my wish for - retirement itself is not stronger than that of carrying into - it the affections of all my friends. I have ever viewed Mr. - Madison and yourself as two principal pillars of my happiness. - Were either to be withdrawn, I should consider it as among - the greatest calamities which could assail my future peace - of mind. I have great confidence that the candor and high - understanding of both will guard me against this misfortune, the - bare possibility of which has so far weighed on my mind, that I - could not be easy without unburdening it. Accept my respectful - salutations for yourself and Mrs. Monroe, and be assured of my - constant and sincere friendship. - -The following letters to two of his grandchildren give a pleasant -picture of his attachment to and intimate intercourse with them: - - -_To Cornelia Randolph._[55] - - [55] She was just ten years old. - - Washington, April 3d, '08. - - My dear Cornelia--I have owed you a letter two months, but - have had nothing to write about, till last night I found in a - newspaper the four lines which I now inclose you; and as you are - learning to write, they will be a good lesson to convince you of - the importance of minding your stops in writing. I allow you a - day to find out yourself how to read these lines, so as to make - them true. If you can not do it in that time, you may call in - assistance. At the same time, I will give you four other lines, - which I learnt when I was but a little older than you, and I - still remember. - - "I've seen the sea all in a blaze of fire - I've seen a house high as the moon and higher - I've seen the sun at twelve o'clock at night - I've seen the man who saw this wondrous sight." - - All this is true, whatever you may think of it at first reading. - I mentioned in my letter of last week to Ellen that I was - under an attack of periodical headache. This is the 10th day. - It has been very moderate, and yesterday did not last more - than three hours. Tell your mamma that I fear I shall not get - away as soon as I expected. Congress has spent the last five - days without employing a single hour in the business necessary - to be finished. Kiss her for me, and all the sisterhood.[56] - To Jefferson I give my hand, to your papa my affectionate - salutations. You have always my love. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - P.S.--_April 5._--I have kept my letter open till to-day, and am - able to say now that my headache for the last two days has been - scarcely sensible. - - [56] Mrs. Randolph's five daughters--Anne, Ellen, Cornelia, - Virginia, and Mary. She had at this time only two - sons--Jefferson, her second child, and James Madison. - - -_To Thomas Jefferson Randolph._ - - Washington, Oct. 24th, 1808. - - Dear Jefferson--I inclose you a letter from Ellen, which I - presume, will inform you that all are well at Edgehill. I - received yours without date of either time or place, but - written, I presume, on your arrival at Philadelphia. As the - commencement of your lectures is now approaching, and you will - hear two lectures a day, I would recommend to you to set out - from the beginning with the rule to commit to writing every - evening the substance of the lectures of the day. It will be - attended with many advantages. It will oblige you to attend - closely to what is delivered to recall it to your memory, to - understand, and to digest it in the evening; it will fix it in - your memory, and enable you to refresh it at any future time. It - will be much better to you than even a better digest by another - hand, because it will better recall to your mind the ideas which - you originally entertained and meant to abridge. Then, if once - a week you will, in a letter to me, state a synopsis or summary - view of the heads of the lectures of the preceding week, it will - give me great satisfaction to attend to your progress, and it - will further aid you by obliging you still more to generalize - and to see analytically the fields of science over which you are - travelling. I wish to hear of the commissions I gave you for - Rigden, Voight, and Ronaldson, of the delivery of the letters I - gave you to my friends there, and how you like your situation. - This will give you matter for a long letter, which will give - you as useful an exercise in writing as a pleasing one to me in - reading. - - God bless you, and prosper your pursuits. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - -_To Thomas Jefferson Randolph._ - - Washington, November 24th, 1808. - - My dear Jefferson--.... I have mentioned good-humor as one of - the preservatives of our peace and tranquillity. It is among - the most effectual, and its effect is so well imitated, and - aided, artificially, by politeness, that this also becomes - an acquisition of first-rate value. In truth, politeness is - artificial good-humor; it covers the natural want of it, and - ends by rendering habitual a substitute nearly equivalent to - the real virtue. It is the practice of sacrificing to those - whom we meet in society all the little conveniences and - preferences which will gratify them, and deprive us of nothing - worth a moment's consideration; it is the giving a pleasing - and flattering turn to our expressions, which will conciliate - others, and make them pleased with us as well as themselves. - How cheap a price for the good-will of another! When this is in - return for a rude thing said by another, it brings him to his - senses, it mortifies and corrects him in the most salutary way, - and places him at the feet of your good-nature in the eyes of - the company. But in stating prudential rules for our government - in society, I must not omit the important one of never entering - into dispute or argument with another. I never yet saw an - instance of one of two disputants convincing the other by - argument. I have seen many of their getting warm, becoming rude, - and shooting one another. Conviction is the effect of our own - dispassionate reasoning, either in solitude, or weighing within - ourselves, dispassionately, what we hear from others, standing - uncommitted in argument ourselves. - - It was one of the rules which, above all others, made Doctor - Franklin the most amiable of men in society, never to contradict - any body. If he was urged to announce an opinion, he did it - rather by asking questions, as if for information, or by - suggesting doubts. When I hear another express an opinion which - is not mine, I say to myself, He has a right to his opinion, - as I to mine; why should I question it? His error does me no - injury, and shall I become a Don Quixote, to bring all men by - force of argument to one opinion? If a fact be misstated, it is - probable he is gratified by a belief of it, and I have no right - to deprive him of the gratification. If he wants information, he - will ask it, and then I will give it in measured terms; but if - he still believes his own story, and shows a desire to dispute - the fact with me, I hear him and say nothing. It is his affair, - not mine, if he prefers error. - - There are two classes of disputants most frequently to be met - with among us. The first is of young students, just entered the - threshold of science, with a first view of its outlines, not yet - filled up with the details and modifications which a further - progress would bring to their knowledge. The other consists of - the ill-tempered and rude men in society who have taken up a - passion for politics. (Good-humor and politeness never introduce - into mixed society a question on which they foresee there will - be a difference of opinion.) From both of these classes of - disputants, my dear Jefferson, keep aloof, as you would from - the infected subjects of yellow fever or pestilence. Consider - yourself, when with them, as among the patients of Bedlam, - needing medical more than moral counsel. Be a listener only, - keep within yourself, and endeavor to establish with yourself - the habit of silence, especially in politics. In the fevered - state of our country, no good can ever result from any attempt - to set one of these fiery zealots to rights, either in fact - or principle. They are determined as to the facts they will - believe, and the opinions on which they will act. Get by them, - therefore, as you would by an angry bull; it is not for a man of - sense to dispute the road with such an animal. You will be more - exposed than others to have these animals shaking their horns at - you because of the relation in which you stand with me.... - - My character is not within their power. It is in the hands of - my fellow-citizens at large, and will be consigned to honor or - infamy by the verdict of the republican mass of our country, - according to what themselves will have seen, not what their - enemies and mine shall have said. Never, therefore, consider - these puppies in politics as requiring any notice from you, and - always show that you are not afraid to leave my character to the - umpirage of public opinion. Look steadily to the pursuits which - have carried you to Philadelphia, be very select in the society - you attach yourself to; avoid taverns, drinkers, smokers, - idlers, and dissipated persons generally; for it is with such - that broils and contentions arise; and you will find your path - more easy and tranquil. The limits of my paper warn me that it - is time for me to close, with my affectionate adieu. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - P.S.--Present me affectionately to Mr. Ogilvie; and in doing the - same to Mr. Peale, tell him I am writing with his polygraph, and - shall send him mine the first moment I have leisure enough to - pack it. - - T. J. - - -_To Cornelia Randolph._ - - Washington, Dec. 26th, '08. - - I congratulate you, my dear Cornelia, on having acquired the - valuable art of writing. How delightful to be enabled by it - to converse with an absent friend as if present! To this we - are indebted for all our reading; because it must be written - before we can read it. To this we are indebted for the Iliad, - the Æneid, the Columbiad, Henriad, Dunciad, and now, for the - most glorious poem of all, the Terrapiniad, which I now inclose - you. This sublime poem consigns to everlasting fame the greatest - achievement in war ever known to ancient or modern times: in - the battle of David and Goliath, the disparity between the - combatants was nothing in comparison to our case. I rejoice that - you have learnt to write, for another reason; for as that is - done with a goose-quill, you now know the value of a goose, and - of course you will assist Ellen in taking care of the half-dozen - very fine gray geese which I shall send by Davy. But as to this, - I must refer to your mamma to decide whether they will be safest - at Edgehill or at Monticello till I return home, and to give - orders accordingly. I received letters a few days ago from Mr. - Bankhead and Anne. They are well. I had expected a visit from - Jefferson at Christmas, had there been a sufficient intermission - in his lectures; but I suppose there was not, as he is not come. - Remember me affectionately to your papa and mamma, and kiss - Ellen and all the children for me. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - P.S.--Since writing the above, I have a letter from Mr. Peale - informing me that Jefferson is well, and saying the best things - of him. - -The Mr. Bankhead mentioned in the preceding letter was a gentleman -who had married Mrs. Randolph's eldest daughter, Anne. - -The following letter I give here, though of a later date by nearly -two years than others that follow: - - -_To Cornelia Randolph._ - - Monticello, June 3d, '11. - - My dear Cornelia--I have lately received a copy of Miss - Edgeworth's Moral Tales, which, seeming better suited to your - years than mine, I inclose you the first volume. The other two - shall follow as soon as your mamma has read them. They are to - make a part of your library. I have not looked into them, - preferring to receive their character from you, after you shall - have read them. Your family of silk-worms is reduced to a single - individual. That is now spinning his broach. To encourage - Virginia and Mary to take care of it, I tell them that, as soon - as they can get wedding-gowns from this spinner, they shall be - married. I propose the same to you; that, in order to hasten its - work, you may hasten home; for we all wish much to see you, and - to express in person, rather than by letter, the assurance of - our affectionate love. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - - P.S.--The girls desire me to add a postscript to inform you that - Mrs. Higginbotham has just given them new dolls. - -The precepts inculcating good temper, good humor and amiability, -which we have found Jefferson giving to his grandson in the foregoing -letters were faithfully carried into practice by him. There never -lived a more amiable being than himself; yet, like all men of -powerful minds and strong wills, he was not incapable of being -aroused in anger on occasions of strong provocation. His biographer -mentions two instances of this kind. On one occasion it was with -his favorite coachman, Jupiter. A boy had been ordered to take one -of the carriage-horses to go on an errand. Jupiter refused to allow -his horses to be used for any such purpose. The boy returned to -his master with a message to that effect. Mr. Jefferson, thinking -it a joke of Jupiter's played off on the boy, sent him back with -a repetition of the order. He, however, returned in a short time, -bearing the same refusal from the coachman. "Tell Jupiter to come to -me at once," said Mr. Jefferson, in an excited tone. Jupiter came, -and received the order and a rebuke from his master in tones and with -a look which neither he nor the terrified bystanders ever forgot. - -On another occasion he was crossing a river in a ferryboat, -accompanied by his daughter Martha. The two ferrymen were engaged -in high quarrel when Mr. Jefferson and his daughter came up. They -suppressed their anger for a time and took in the passengers, but -in the middle of the stream it again broke forth with renewed force, -and with every prospect of their resorting to blows. Mr. Jefferson -remonstrated with them; they did not heed him, and the next moment, -with his eyes flashing, he had snatched up an oar, and, in a voice -which rung out above the angry tones of the men, flourished it over -their heads, and cried out "Row for your lives, or I will knock you -both overboard!" And they did row for their lives; nor, I imagine, -did they soon forget the fiery looks and excited appearance of that -tall weird-like-looking figure brandishing the heavy oar over their -offending heads. - -The following extract is taken from a letter written towards the -close of the year 1808 to Doctor Logan: "As the moment of my -retirement approaches, I become more anxious for its arrival, and to -begin at length to pass what yet remains to me of life and health in -the bosom of my family and neighbors, and in communication with my -friends, undisturbed by political concerns or passions." - -Having heard that the good people of Albemarle wished to meet him on -the road, and give him a public reception on his return home, with -his usual dislike of being lionized, he hastened, in a letter to -his son-in-law, Mr. Randolph, to put them off, with many thanks, by -saying "the commencement and termination" of his journey would be too -uncertain for him to fix upon a day that he might be expected. This -letter was written on Feb. 28th, 1809. I give the following extract: - - But it is a sufficient happiness to me to know that my - fellow-citizens of the country generally entertain for me the - kind sentiments which have prompted this proposition, without - giving to so many the trouble of leaving their homes to meet a - single individual. I shall have opportunities of taking them - individually by the hand at our court-house and other public - places, and of exchanging assurances of mutual esteem. Certainly - it is the greatest consolation to me to know that, in returning - to the bosom of my native country, I shall be again in the - midst of their kind affections; and I can say with truth that - my return to them will make me happier than I have been since I - left them. - -Two days before his release from harness he wrote to his friend -Dupont de Nemours: - - -_To Dupont de Nemours._ - - Within a few days I retire to my family, my books, and farms; - and having gained the harbor myself, I shall look on my friends - still buffeting the storm with anxiety indeed, but not with - envy. Never did a prisoner, released from his chains, feel such - relief as I shall on shaking off the shackles of power. Nature - intended me for the tranquil pursuits of science, by rendering - them my supreme delight. But the enormities of the times in - which I have lived have forced me to take a part in resisting - them, and to commit myself on the boisterous ocean of political - passions. I thank God for the opportunity of retiring from - them without censure, and carrying with me the most consoling - proofs of public approbation. I leave every thing in the hands - of men so able to take care of them, that, if we are destined - to meet misfortunes, it will be because no human wisdom could - avert them. Should you return to the United States, perhaps your - curiosity may lead you to visit the hermit of Monticello. He - will receive you with affection and delight; hailing you in the - mean time with his affectionate salutations and assurances of - constant esteem and respect. - -On the day of the inauguration of his successor, Jefferson rode on -horseback to the Capitol, being accompanied only by his grandson, -Jefferson Randolph--then a lad in his seventeenth year. He had -heard that a body of cavalry and infantry were preparing to -escort him to the Capitol, and, still anxious to avoid all kinds -of display, hurried off with his grandson. As they rode along -Pennsylvania Avenue, Mr. Jefferson caught a glimpse of the head of -the column coming down one of the cross-streets. He touched his -hat to the troops, and, spurring up his horse, trotted past them. -He again "hitched his horse to the palisades" around the Capitol, -and, entering the building, there witnessed the transfer of the -administration of the Government from his own hands into those of -the man who, above all others, was the man of his choice for that -office--his long-tried and trusted friend, James Madison. Thus closed -forever his public career. - -The perfect harmony between himself and his cabinet is alluded to in -a letter written nearly two years after his retirement from office. -He writes: - - The third Administration, which was of eight years, presented an - example of harmony in a cabinet of six persons, to which perhaps - history has furnished no parallel. There never arose, during the - whole time, an instance of an unpleasant thought or word between - the members. We sometimes met under differences of opinion, but - scarcely ever failed, by conversing and reasoning, so to modify - each other's ideas as to produce an unanimous result. - -A few days before leaving Washington, he wrote to Baron Humboldt: - - -_To Baron Humboldt._ - - You mention that you had before written other letters to me. - Be assured I have never received a single one, or I should not - have failed to make my acknowledgments of it. Indeed I have not - waited for that, but for the certain information, which I had - not, of the place where you might be. Your letter of May 30th - first gave me that information. You have wisely located yourself - in the focus of the science of Europe. I am held by the cords of - love to my family and country, or I should certainly join you. - Within a few days I shall now bury myself within the groves of - Monticello, and become a mere spectator of the passing events. - Of politics I will say nothing, because I would not implicate - you by addressing to you the republican ideas of America, deemed - horrible heresies by the royalism of Europe. - -At the close of a letter written on the 8th of March to Mr. Short, -he says: "I write this in the midst of packing and preparing for my -departure, of visits of leave, and interruptions of every kind." - -In February the Legislature of Virginia had passed an address of -farewell to him as a public man. This address, penned by William -Wirt, closes thus handsomely: - - In the principles on which you have administered the Government, - we see only the continuation and maturity of the same virtues - and abilities which drew upon you in your youth the resentment - of Dunmore. From the first brilliant and happy moment of your - resistance to foreign tyranny until the present day, we mark - with pleasure and with gratitude the same uniform and consistent - character--the same warm and devoted attachment to liberty and - the Republic--the same Roman love of your country, her rights, - her peace, her honor, her prosperity. How blessed will be the - retirement into which you are about to go! How deservedly - blessed will it be! For you carry with you the richest of all - rewards, the recollection of a life well spent in the service - of your country, and proofs the most decisive of the love, - the gratitude, the veneration of your countrymen. That your - retirement may be as happy as your life has been virtuous and - useful; that our youth may see in the blissful close of your - days an additional inducement to form themselves on your model, - is the devout and earnest prayer of your fellow-citizens who - compose the General Assembly of Virginia. - -In his reply to this address, Jefferson closes as follows: - - In the desire of peace, but in full confidence of safety from - our unity, our position, and our resources, I shall retire into - the bosom of my native State, endeared to me by every tie which - can attach the human heart. The assurances of your approbation, - and that my conduct has given satisfaction to my fellow-citizens - generally, will be an important ingredient in my future - happiness; and that the Supreme Ruler of the universe may have - our country under his special care, will be among the latest of - my prayers. - -The following reply to an address of welcome from the citizens -of Albemarle is one of the most beautiful, graceful, and touching -productions of his pen: - - -_To the Inhabitants of Albemarle County, in Virginia._ - - April 3d, 1809. - - Returning to the scenes of my birth and early life, to the - society of those with whom I was raised, and who have been ever - dear to me, I receive, fellow-citizens and neighbors, with - inexpressible pleasure, the cordial welcome you are so good - as to give me. Long absent on duties which the history of a - wonderful era made incumbent on those called to them, the pomp, - the turmoil, the bustle, and splendor of office have drawn but - deeper sighs for the tranquil and irresponsible occupations of - private life, for the enjoyment of an affectionate intercourse - with you, my neighbors and friends, and the endearments of - family love, which nature has given us all, as the sweetener - of every hour. For these I gladly lay down the distressing - burden of power, and seek, with my fellow-citizens, repose and - safety under the watchful cares, and labors, and perplexities - of younger and abler minds. The anxieties you express to - administer to my happiness, do, of themselves, confer that - happiness; and the measure will be complete, if my endeavors - to fulfill my duties in the several public stations to which - I have been called have obtained for me the approbation of my - country. The part which I have acted on the theatre of public - life has been before them, and to their sentence I submit it; - but the testimony of my native county, of the individuals who - have known me in private life, to my conduct in its various - duties and relations, is the more grateful, as proceeding from - eye-witnesses and observers, from triers of the vicinage. Of - you, then, my neighbors, I may ask, in the face of the world, - "Whose ox have I taken, or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I - oppressed, or of whose hand have I received a bribe to blind - mine eyes therewith?" On your verdict I rest with conscious - security. Your wishes for my happiness are received with just - sensibility, and I offer sincere prayers for your own welfare - and prosperity. - -Jefferson arrived at Monticello on the 15th of March, and two days -later wrote to Madison as follows: - - "I had a very fatiguing journey, having found the roads - excessively bad, although I have seen them worse. The last three - days I found it better to be on horseback, and travelled eight - hours through as disagreeable a snow-storm as I was ever in. - Feeling no inconvenience from the expedition but fatigue, I have - more confidence in my _vis vitæ_ than I had before entertained." - -He was at this time in his sixty-sixth year. - -The following anecdote of Jefferson--which I have on the best -authority--is too characteristic of his feeling for the suffering of -another, his bold and rash spirit of reform, and the bitter feelings -towards him of his political adversaries, to be omitted. - -In going from Washington to Monticello, Jefferson generally left -the city in the afternoon, and spent the first night of his journey -with his friend Mr. William Fitzhugh, of Ravensworth, who lived -nine or ten miles from Washington. It so happened that there lived -near Ravensworth a Doctor Stuart, of Chantilly, who was a bitter -Federalist, and consequently a violent hater of Jefferson, in whom -he could not believe there was any good whatever. He was intimate, -however, with Mr. Fitzhugh, and, being a great politician, generally -found his way over to Ravensworth the morning after Jefferson's -visit, to inquire what news he had brought from the capital. - -On the occasion of one of these visits, while Mr. Fitzhugh and his -distinguished guest were strolling round the beautiful lawn at -Ravensworth enjoying the fresh morning air, a servant ran up to -tell them that a negro man had cut himself severely with an axe. -Mr. Fitzhugh immediately ordered the servant to go for a physician. -Jefferson suggested that the poor negro might bleed to death before -the doctor could arrive, and, saying that he himself had some little -skill and experience in surgery, proposed that they should go and -see what could be done for the poor fellow. Mr. Fitzhugh willingly -acquiesced, and, on their reaching the patient, they found he had a -severe cut in the calf of his leg. Jefferson soon procured a needle -and silk, and in a little while had sewed up the wound and carefully -bandaged the leg. - -As they walked back from the negro's cabin, Jefferson remarked to his -friend that, though the ways of Divine Providence were all wise and -beneficent, yet it had always struck him as being strange that the -thick, fleshy coverings and defenses of the bones in the limbs of -the human frame were placed in their rear, when the danger of their -fracture generally came from the front. The remark struck Fitzhugh as -being an original and philosophical one, and served to increase his -favorable impressions of his friend's sagacity. - -Jefferson had not long departed and resumed his journey, before Dr. -Stuart arrived, and greeted Mr. Fitzhugh with the question of, "What -news did your friend give you, and what new heresy did the fiend -incarnate attempt to instill into your mind?" "Ah! Stuart," Mr. -Fitzhugh began, "you do Jefferson injustice; he is a great man, a -very great man;" and then went on to tell of the accident which had -befallen the negro, Jefferson's skill in dressing the wound, and his -remark afterwards, which had made such an impression upon him. - -"Well," cried Dr. Stuart, raising his hands with horror, "what is the -world coming to! Here this fellow, Jefferson, after turning upside -down every thing on the earth, is now quarrelling with God Almighty -himself!" - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - - His final Return home.--Wreck of his Fortunes.--Letter to Mr. - Eppes.--To his Grand-daughter, Mrs. Bankhead.--To Kosciusko.-- - Description of the Interior of the House at Monticello.--Of the - View from Monticello.--Jefferson's Grandson's Description of - his Manners and Appearance.--Anecdotes.--His Habits.--Letter to - Governor Langdon.--To Governor Tyler.--Life at Monticello, and - Sketch of Jefferson by a Grand-daughter.--Reminiscences of him - by another Grand-daughter. - - -Full of years and full of honors, we behold, then, the veteran -statesman attaining at last the goal of his wishes. Joyfully received -into the arms of his family, Jefferson returned home, fondly hoping -to pass in tranquillity the evening of an eventful and honorable -life surrounded by those he loved best, and from whom he was never -again to be parted except by death. His whole demeanor betokened -the feelings of one who had been relieved of a heavy and wearisome -burden. His family noticed the elasticity of his step while engaged -in his private apartments arranging his books and papers, and not -unfrequently heard him humming a favorite air, or singing snatches -of old songs which had been almost forgotten since the days of his -youth. But, alas! who can control his destiny? Who can foresee the -suffering to be endured? It required but a brief sojourn at home, and -a thorough investigation of his affairs, for Jefferson to see that -his long-continued absence had told fearfully on the value of his -farms; that his long enlistment in the service of his country had -been his pecuniary ruin. The state of his feelings on this subject is -painfully shown in the following extract from a letter written by him -to Kosciusko: - - -_To Thaddeus Kosciusko._ - - Instead of the unalloyed happiness of retiring unembarrassed - and independent to the enjoyment of my estate, which is ample - for my limited views, I have to pass such a length of time in - a thraldom of mind never before known to me. Except for this, - my happiness would have been perfect. That yours may never know - disturbance, and that you may enjoy as many years of life, - health, and ease as yourself shall wish, is the sincere prayer - of your constant and affectionate friend. - -Towards the close of the year 1809 we find him writing to his -son-in-law, Mr. Eppes, then in Washington, as follows: - - -_To John W. Eppes._ - - I should sooner have informed you of Francis's safe arrival - here, but that the trip you meditated to North Carolina rendered - it entirely uncertain where a letter would find you. Nor had - I any expectation you could have been at the first meeting of - Congress, till I saw your name in the papers brought by our last - post. Disappointed in sending this by the return of the post, I - avail myself of General Clarke's journey to Washington for its - conveyance. Francis has enjoyed perfect and constant health, and - is as happy as the day is long. He has had little success as yet - with either his traps or bow and arrows. He is now engaged in a - literary contest with his cousin, Virginia, both having begun - to write together. As soon as he gets to _z_ (being now only at - _h_) he promises you a letter. - -The following to his oldest grandchild shows how completely Jefferson -had thrown off the cares and thoughts of public life and plunged into -the sweets and little enjoyments of a quiet country life. - - -_To Mrs. Anne C. Bankhead._ - - Monticello, Dec. 29th, 1809. - - My dear Anne--Your mamma has given me a letter to inclose to - you, but whether it contains any thing contraband I know not. Of - that the responsibility must be on her; I therefore inclose it. - I suppose she gives you all the small news of the place--such - as the race in writing between Virginia and Francis, that the - wild geese are well after a flight of a mile and a half into - the river, that the plants in the green-house prosper, etc., - etc. _A propos_ of plants, make a thousand acknowledgments to - Mrs. Bankhead for the favor proposed of the Cape jessamine. - It will be cherished with all the possible attentions; and in - return proffer her calycanthuses, pecans, silk-trees, Canada - martagons, or any thing else we have. Mr. Bankhead, I suppose, - is seeking a merry Christmas in all the wit and merriments of - Coke upon Littleton. God send him a good deliverance! Such is - the usual prayer for those standing at the bar. Deliver to - Mary my kisses, and tell her I have a present from one of her - acquaintances, Miss Thomas, for her--the minutest gourd ever - seen, of which I send her a draught in the margin. What is to - become of our flowers? I left them so entirely to yourself, that - I never knew any thing about them, what they are, where they - grow, what is to be done for them. You must really make out a - book of instructions for Ellen, who has fewer cares in her head - than I have. Every thing shall be furnished on my part at her - call. Present my friendly respects to Dr. and Mrs. Bankhead. - My affectionate attachment to Mr. Bankhead and yourself, not - forgetting Mary. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -We find in a letter written by Jefferson to Kosciusko (Feb. 26th, -1810) an interesting account of his habits of daily life. He writes: - - -_To Thaddeus Kosciusko._ - - My mornings are devoted to correspondence. From breakfast to - dinner I am in my shops, my garden, or on horseback among my - farms; from dinner to dark, I give to society and recreation - with my neighbors and friends; and from candle-light to - early bed-time I read. My health is perfect, and my strength - considerably reinforced by the activity of the course I pursue; - perhaps it is as great as usually falls to the lot of near - sixty-seven years of age. I talk of ploughs and harrows, of - seeding and harvesting with my neighbors, and of politics - too, if they choose, with as little reserve as the rest of my - fellow-citizens, and feel, at length, the blessing of being free - to say and do what I please without being responsible for it to - any mortal. A part of my occupation, and by no means the least - pleasing, is the direction of the studies of such young men as - ask it. They place themselves in the neighboring village, and - have the use of my library and counsel, and make a part of my - society. In advising the course of their reading, I endeavor to - keep their attention fixed on the main objects of all science, - the freedom and happiness of man. So that, coming to bear a - share in the councils and government of their country, they will - keep ever in view the sole objects of all legitimate government. - -I now give a description of the interior of the mansion at -Monticello, which was prepared for me by a member of Mr. Jefferson's -family, who lived there for many years: - - The mansion, externally, is of the Doric order of Grecian - architecture, with its heavy cornice and massive balustrades, - its public rooms finished in the Ionic. The front hall of - entrance recedes six feet within the front wall of the building, - covered by a portico the width of the recess, projecting - twenty-five feet, and the height of the house, with stone - pillars and steps. The hall is also the height of the house. - From about midway of this room, passages lead off to either - extremity of the building. The rooms at the extremity of these - passages terminate in octagonal projections, leaving a recess of - three equal sides, into which the passages enter; piazzas the - width of this recess, projecting six feet beyond, their roofs - the height of the house, and resting on brick arches, cover the - recesses. The northern one connects the house with the public - terrace, while the southern is sashed in for a green-house. - To the east of these passages, on each side of the hall, are - lodging-rooms. This front is one-and-a-half stories. The west - front the rooms occupy the whole height, making the house one - story, except the parlor or central room, which is surmounted - by an octagonal story, with a dome or spherical roof. This was - designed for a billiard-room; but, before completion, a law was - passed prohibiting public and private billiard-tables in the - State. It was to have been approached by stairways connected - with a gallery at the inner extremity of the hall, which itself - forms the communication between the lodging-rooms on either side - above. The use designed for the room being prohibited, these - stairways were never erected, leaving in this respect a great - deficiency in the house. - -[Illustration: MONTICELLO:--PLAN OF THE FIRST FLOOR. - - 1. Mr. Madison's room. - 2. Abbé Correa's room. - 3. Turning Buffet. - 4. Niche in tea-room, intended for a statue. - 5. Jefferson's chair and candle-stand. - 6. Mrs. Randolph's harpsichord. - 7. Globes. - 8. Work-bench. - 9. Couch on which Jefferson reclined while studying. - 10. Jefferson's dressing-table and mirror. - 11. A convenient contrivance on which to hang clothes. - 12. Jefferson's chair, with a small book-case near it. - 13. Great clock over the hall-door. - 14. Reclining statue of Ariadne. - 15. Gallery connecting the upper stories of the house. - - PORTRAITS. - - _a._ Americus Vespucius. - _b._ Columbus. - _c._ Locke. - _d._ Bacon. - _e._ Washington. - _f._ Adams. - _g._ Franklin. - _h._ Madison. - - 16. Bust of Napoleon. - 17. Ceracchi's Bust of Jefferson. - 18. Bust of Hamilton. - 19. Bust of Voltaire. - 20. Bust of Turgot. - 21. Bust of Alexander, Emperor of Russia.] - - The parlor projects twenty feet beyond the body of the - house, covered by a portico one story, and surmounted by the - billiard-room. The original plan of the projection was square; - but when the cellar was built up to the floor above, the room - was projected beyond the square by three sides of an octagon, - leaving a place beyond the cellar-wall not excavated, and it - was in this space that the faithful Cæsar and Martin concealed - their master's plate when the British visited Monticello.[57] - The floor of this room is in squares, the squares being ten - inches, of the wild cherry, very hard, susceptible of a high - polish, and the color of mahogany. The border of each square, - four inches wide, is of beech, light-colored, hard, and bearing - a high polish. Its original cost was two hundred dollars. After - nearly seventy years of use and abuse, a half-hour's dusting - and brushing will make it compare favorably with the handsomest - tessellated floor. - - [57] See page 56. - -From the same pen are the following graphic descriptions of the views -seen from Monticello: - - Monticello is five hundred and eighty feet high. It slopes - eastward one-and-a-half miles by a gentle declivity to the - Rivanna River. Half a mile beyond is Shadwell, the birthplace - of Jefferson, a beautiful spot overlooking the river. The - northeastern side of the mountain and slope is precipitous, - having dashed aside the countless floods of the Rivanna through - all the tide of time. - - On the southwest, it is separated from the next mountain of - the range, rising three hundred feet above it, by a road-pass - two hundred and twenty feet below. This obstructs the view - to the southwest. From the southwest to the northeast is a - horizon unbroken, save by one solitary, pyramid-shaped mountain, - its peak under the true meridian, and distant by air-line - forty-seven miles. Northeast the range pointing to the west - terminates two miles off, its lateral spurs descending by gentle - slopes to the Rivanna at your feet, covered with farms and green - wheat-fields. This view of farms extends northeast and east six - or seven miles. You trace the Rivanna by its cultivated valley - as it passes east, apparently through an unbroken forest; an - inclined plane descends from your feet to the ocean two hundred - miles distant. All the western and northwestern slopes being - poor, and the eastern and southeastern fertile, as the former - are presented to the spectator, and are for the most part in - wood, it presents the appearance of unbroken forest, bounded by - an ocean-like horizon. - - Turn now and look from the north to the west. You stand at the - apex of a triangle, the water-shed of the Rivanna, the opposite - side, at the base of the Blue Ridge, forty miles in length; - its perpendicular twenty, descending five hundred feet to the - base of your position, where the Rivanna concentrates its muddy - waters over an artificial cascade, marked by its white line of - foam. - - West and southwest, the space between the Southwest Mountains - and the Blue Ridge is filled by irregular mountains, the nearer - known as the Ragged Mountains. At the northeast base of these, - distant two and three miles, are Charlottesville and the - University of Virginia, forming nuclei connected by a scattered - village. From west to northeast no mountain interposes between - your position and the base of the Blue Ridge, which sinks below - the horizon eighty or one hundred miles distant. Two mountains - only are seen northeast--one ten, the other forty miles off. The - country, ascending from your position, and presenting to you its - fertile slopes, gives the view of one highly cultivated. The - railroad train is traced ten miles. This is the view so much - admired. - - The top of the mountain has been levelled by art. This space - is six hundred by two hundred feet, circular at each end. The - mountain slopes gently on every side from this lawn; one hundred - feet from the eastern end stands the mansion. Its projecting - porticoes, east and west, with the width of the house, occupy - one hundred feet each way. It approaches on either hand within - fifty feet of the brow of the mountain, with which it is - connected by covered ways ten feet wide, whose floors are level - with the cellars, and whose flat roofs, forming promenades, - are nearly level with the first floor of the dwelling. These, - turning at right angles at the brow, and widening to twenty - feet, extend one hundred feet, and terminate in one-story - pavilions twenty feet square, the space beneath these terraces - forming basement offices. From this northern terrace the view - is sublime; and here Jefferson and his company were accustomed - to sit, bare-headed, in the summer until bed-time, having - neither dew nor insects to annoy them. Here, perhaps, has been - assembled more love of liberty, virtue, wisdom, and learning - than on any other private spot in America. - -Jefferson's grandson, Colonel Jefferson Randolph, writes of his -appearance and manners thus: - - His manners were of that polished school of the Colonial - Government, so remarkable in its day--under no circumstances - violating any of those minor conventional observances which - constitute the well-bred gentleman, courteous and considerate to - all persons. On riding out with him when a lad, we met a negro - who bowed to us; he returned his bow; I did not. Turning to me, - he asked, - - "Do you permit a negro to be more of a gentleman than yourself?" - - Mr. Jefferson's hair, when young, was of a reddish cast; sandy - as he advanced in years; his eye, hazel. Dying in his 84th year, - he had not lost a tooth, nor had one defective; his skin thin, - peeling from his face on exposure to the sun, and giving it a - tettered appearance; the superficial veins so weak, as upon the - slightest blow to cause extensive suffusions of blood--in early - life, upon standing to write for any length of time, bursting - beneath the skin; it, however, gave him no inconvenience. His - countenance was mild and benignant, and attractive to strangers. - - While President, returning on horseback from Charlottesville - with company whom he had invited to dinner, and who were, all - but one or two, riding ahead of him, on reaching a stream over - which there was no bridge, a man asked him to take him up behind - him and carry him over. The gentlemen in the rear coming up just - as Mr. Jefferson had put him down and ridden on, asked the man - how it happened that he had permitted the others to pass without - asking them? He replied, - - "From their looks, I did not like to ask them; the old gentleman - looked as if he would do it, and I asked him." - - He was very much surprised to hear that he had ridden behind the - President of the United States. - - Mr. Jefferson's stature was commanding--six feet two-and-a-half - inches in height, well formed, indicating strength, activity, - and robust health; his carriage erect; step firm and elastic, - which he preserved to his death; his temper, naturally strong, - under perfect control; his courage cool and impassive. No one - ever knew him exhibit trepidation. His moral courage of the - highest order--his will firm and inflexible--it was remarked of - him that he never abandoned a plan, a principle, or a friend. - - A bold and fearless rider, you saw at a glance, from his easy - and confident seat, that he was master of his horse, which was - usually the fine blood-horse of Virginia. The only impatience of - temper he ever exhibited was with his horse, which he subdued to - his will by a fearless application of the whip on the slightest - manifestation of restiveness. He retained to the last his - fondness for riding on horseback; he rode within three weeks of - his death, when, from disease, debility, and age, he mounted - with difficulty. He rode with confidence, and never permitted - a servant to accompany him; he was fond of solitary rides and - musing, and said that the presence of a servant annoyed him. - - He held in little esteem the education which made men ignorant - and helpless as to the common necessities of life; and he - exemplified it by an incident which occurred to a young - gentleman returned from Europe, where he had been educated. On - riding out with his companions, the strap of his girth broke at - the hole for the buckle; and they, perceiving it an accident - easily remedied, rode on and left him. A plain man coming up, - and seeing that his horse had made a circular path in the road - in his impatience to get on, asked if he could aid him. - - "Oh, sir," replied the young man, "if you could only assist me - to get it up to the next hole." - - "Suppose you let it out a hole or two on the other side," said - the man. - - His habits were regular and systematic. He was a miser of his - time, rose always at dawn, wrote and read until breakfast, - breakfasted early, and dined from three to four ... ; retired - at nine, and to bed from ten to eleven. He said, in his last - illness, that the sun had not caught him in bed for fifty years. - - He always made his own fire. He drank water but once a day, a - single glass, when he returned from his ride. He ate heartily, - and much vegetable food, preferring French cookery, because it - made the meats more tender. He never drank ardent spirits or - strong wines. Such was his aversion to ardent spirits, that - when, in his last illness, his physician desired him to use - brandy as an astringent, he could not induce him to take it - strong enough. - -In looking over his correspondence, I select the following extracts, -which the reader will find most interesting: - - -_To Governor Langdon, March 5th, 1810._ - - While in Europe, I often amused myself with contemplating the - characters of the then reigning sovereigns of Europe. Louis the - XVI. was a fool, of my own knowledge, and despite of the answers - made for him at his trial. The King of Spain was a fool; and - of Naples, the same. They passed their lives in hunting, and - dispatched two couriers a week one thousand miles to let each - know what game they had killed the preceding days. The King - of Sardinia was a fool. All these were Bourbons. The Queen of - Portugal, a Braganza, was an idiot by nature; and so was the - King of Denmark. Their sons, as regents, exercised the powers - of government. The King of Prussia, successor to the great - Frederick, was a mere hog in body as well as in mind. Gustavus - of Sweden, and Joseph of Austria, were really crazy; and George - of England, you know, was in a strait-waistcoat. There remained, - then, none but old Catherine, who had been too lately picked up - to have lost her common sense. In this state Bonaparte found - Europe; and it was this state of its rulers which lost it with - scarce a struggle. These animals had become without mind and - powerless; and so will every hereditary monarch be after a few - generations. Alexander, the grandson of Catherine, is as yet an - exception. He is able to hold his own. But he is only of the - third generation. His race is not yet worn out. And so endeth - the book of Kings, from all of whom the Lord deliver us, and - have you, my friend, and all such good men and true, in his holy - keeping. - - -_To Governor Tyler, May 26th, 1810._ - - I have long lamented with you the depreciation of law science. - The opinion seems to be that Blackstone is to us what the - Alkoran is to the Mohammedans, that every thing which is - necessary is in him, and what is not in him is not necessary. - I still lend my counsel and books to such young students as - will fix themselves in the neighborhood. Coke's Institutes and - Reports are their first, and Blackstone their last book, after - an intermediate course of two or three years. It is nothing more - than an elegant digest of what they will then have acquired - from the real fountains of the law. Now men are born scholars, - lawyers, doctors; in our day this was confined to poets. - -The following letters, containing such charming pictures of life -at Monticello and of Jefferson's intercourse with his family, were -written to Mr. Randall by one of Mr. Jefferson's grand-daughters: - - My dear Mr. Randall--You seem possessed of so many facts and - such minute details of Mr. Jefferson's family life, that I - know not how I can add to the amount.... When he returned from - Washington, in 1809, I was a child, and of that period I have - childish recollections. He seemed to return to private life with - great satisfaction. At last he was his own master, and could, he - hoped, dispose of his time as he pleased, and indulge his love - of country life. You know how greatly he preferred it to town - life. You recollect, as far back as his "Notes on Virginia," he - says, "Those who labor in the earth are the chosen people of - God." - - With regard to the tastes and wishes which he carried with him - into the country, his love of reading alone would have made - leisure and retirement delightful to him. Books were at all - times his chosen companions, and his acquaintance with many - languages gave him great power of selection. He read Homer, - Virgil, Dante, Corneille, Cervantes, as he read Shakspeare and - Milton. In his youth he had loved poetry, but by the time I was - old enough to observe, he had lost his taste for it, except for - Homer and the great Athenian tragics, which he continued to the - last to enjoy. He went over the works of Æschylus, Sophocles, - and Euripides, not very long before I left him (the year before - his death). Of history he was very fond, and this he studied in - all languages, though always, I think, preferring the ancients. - In fact, he derived more pleasure from his acquaintance with - Greek and Latin than from any other resource of literature, and - I have often heard him express his gratitude to his father for - causing him to receive a classical education. I saw him more - frequently with a volume of the classics in his hand than with - any other book. Still he read new publications as they came - out, never missed the new number of a review, especially of the - Edinburgh, and kept himself acquainted with what was being done, - said, or thought in the world from which he had retired. - - He loved farming and gardening, the fields, the orchards, and - his asparagus-beds. Every day he rode through his plantation - and walked in his garden. In the cultivation of the last he - took great pleasure. Of flowers, too, he was very fond. One of - my early recollections is of the attention which he paid to - his flower-beds. He kept up a correspondence with persons in - the large cities, particularly, I think, in Philadelphia, for - the purpose of receiving supplies of roots and seeds both for - his kitchen and flower garden. I remember well, when he first - returned to Monticello, how immediately he began to prepare - new beds for his flowers. He had these beds laid off on the - lawn, under the windows, and many a time I have run after him - when he went out to direct the work, accompanied by one of his - gardeners, generally Wormley, armed with spade and hoe, while he - himself carried the measuring-line. - - I was too young to aid him, except in a small way, but my - sister, Mrs. Bankhead, then a young and beautiful woman, was - his active and useful assistant. I remember the planting of the - first hyacinths and tulips, and their subsequent growth. The - roots arrived labelled, each one with a fancy name. There was - "Marcus Aurelius" and the "King of the Gold Mine," the "Roman - Empress" and the "Queen of the Amazons," "Psyche," the "God of - Love," etc., etc. Eagerly, and with childish delight, I studied - this brilliant nomenclature, and wondered what strange and - surprisingly beautiful creations I should see arising from the - ground when spring returned; and these precious roots were - committed to the earth under my grandfather's own eye, with his - beautiful grand-daughter Anne standing by his side, and a crowd - of happy young faces, of younger grandchildren, clustering round - to see the progress, and inquire anxiously the name of each - separate deposit. - - Then, when spring returned, how eagerly we watched the first - appearance of the shoots above ground. Each root was marked - with its own name written on a bit of stick by its side; and - what joy it was for one of us to discover the tender green - breaking through the mould, and run to grandpapa to announce - that we really believed Marcus Aurelius was coming up, or the - Queen of the Amazons was above ground! With how much pleasure, - compounded of our pleasure and his own, on the new birth, he - would immediately go out to verify the fact, and praise us for - our diligent watchfulness. - - Then, when the flowers were in bloom, and we were in ecstasies - over the rich purple and crimson, or pure white, or delicate - lilac, or pale yellow of the blossoms, how he would sympathize - with our admiration, or discuss with my mother and elder sister - new groupings and combinations and contrasts. Oh, these were - happy moments for us and for him! - - It was in the morning, immediately after our early breakfast, - that he used to visit his flower-beds and his garden. As the - day, in summer, grew warmer, he retired to his own apartments, - which consisted of a bed-chamber and library opening into each - other. Here he remained until about one o'clock, occupied in - reading, writing, looking over papers, etc. My mother would - sometimes send me with a message to him. A gentle knock, a - call of "Come in," and I would enter, with a mixed feeling of - love and reverence, and some pride in being the bearer of a - communication to one whom I approached with all the affection - of a child, and something of the loyalty of a subject. Our - mother educated all her children to look up to her father, as - she looked up to him herself--literally looked up, as to one - standing on an eminence of greatness and goodness. And it is - no small proof of his real elevation that, as we grew older - and better able to judge for ourselves, we were more and more - confirmed in the opinions we had formed of it. - - About one o'clock my grandfather rode out, and was absent, - perhaps, two hours; when he returned to prepare for his dinner, - which was about half-past three o'clock. He sat some time at - table, and after dinner returned for a while to his room, from - which he emerged before sunset to walk on the terrace or the - lawn, to see his grandchildren run races, or to converse with - his family and friends. The evenings, after candle-light, he - passed with us, till about ten o'clock. He had his own chair - and his own candle a little apart from the rest, where he sat - reading, if there were no guests to require his attention, but - often laying his book on his little round table or his knee, - while he talked with my mother, the elder members of the family, - or any child old enough to make one of the family-party. I - always did, for I was the most active and the most lively of - the young folks, and most wont to thrust myself forward into - notice.... - - - ----, 185-. - - My dear Mr. Randall--With regard to Mr. Jefferson's conduct - and manners in his family, after I was old enough to form - any judgment of it, I can only repeat what I have said - before--and I say it calmly and advisedly, with no spirit of - false enthusiasm or exaggeration--I have never known anywhere, - under any circumstances, so good a domestic character as my - grandfather Jefferson's. I have the testimony of his sisters - and his daughter that he was, in all the relations of private - life, at all times, just what he was when I knew him. My mother - was ten years old when her mother died. Her impression was, - that her father's conduct as a husband had been admirable in - its ensemble, charming in its detail. She distinctly recalled - her mother's passionate attachment to him, and her exalted - opinion of him. On one occasion she heard her blaming him for - some generous acts which had met with an ungrateful return. - "But," she exclaimed, "it was always so with him; he is so good - himself, that he can not understand how bad other people may - be."... - - On one occasion my mother had been punished for some fault, not - harshly nor unjustly, but in a way to make an impression. Some - little time after, her mother being displeased with her for some - trifle, reminded her in a slightly taunting way of this painful - past. She was deeply mortified, her heart swelled, her eyes - filled with tears, she turned away, but she heard her father say - in a kind tone to her mother, "My dear, a fault in so young a - child once punished should be forgotten." My mother told me she - could never forget the warm gush of gratitude that filled her - childish heart at these words, probably not intended for her - ear. These are trifling details, but they show character.... - - My grandfather's manners to us, his grandchildren, were - _delightful_; I can characterize them by no other word. He - talked with us freely, affectionately; never lost an opportunity - of giving a pleasure or a good lesson. He reproved without - wounding us, and commended without making us vain. He took - pains to correct our errors and false ideas, checked the - bold, encouraged the timid, and tried to teach us to reason - soundly and feel rightly. Our smaller follies he treated with - good-humored raillery, our graver ones with kind and serious - admonition. He was watchful over our manners, and called our - attention to every violation of propriety. He did not interfere - with our education, technically so called, except by advising us - what studies to pursue, what books to read, and by questioning - us on the books which we did read. - - I was thrown most into companionship with him. I loved him very - devotedly, and sought every opportunity of being with him. As - a child, I used to follow him about, and draw as near to him - as I could. I remember when I was small enough to sit on his - knee and play with his watch-chain. As a girl, I would join - him in his walks on the terrace, sit with him over the fire - during the winter twilight, or by the open windows in summer. - As child, girl, and woman, I loved and honored him above all - earthly beings. And well I might. From him seemed to flow all - the pleasures of my life. To him I owed all the small blessings - and joyful surprises of my childish and girlish years. His - nature was so eminently sympathetic, that, with those he loved, - he could enter into their feelings, anticipate their wishes, - gratify their tastes, and surround them with an atmosphere of - affection. - - I was fond of riding, and was rising above that childish - simplicity when, provided I was mounted on a horse, I cared - nothing for my equipments, and when an old saddle or broken - bridle were matters of no moment. I was beginning to be - fastidious, but I had never told my wishes. I was standing one - bright day in the portico, when a man rode up to the door with a - beautiful lady's saddle and bridle before him. My heart bounded. - These coveted articles were deposited at my feet. My grandfather - came out of his room to tell me they were mine. - - When about fifteen years old, I began to think of a watch, - but knew the state of my father's finances promised no such - indulgence. One afternoon the letter-bag was brought in. Among - the letters was a small packet addressed to my grandfather. - It had the Philadelphia mark upon it. I looked at it with - indifferent, incurious eye. Three hours after, an elegant lady's - watch, with chain and seals, was in my hand, which trembled - for very joy. My Bible came from him, my Shakspeare, my first - writing-table, my first handsome writing-desk, my first Leghorn - hat, my first silk dress. What, in short, of all my small - treasures did not come from him?... - - My sisters, according to their wants and tastes, were equally - thought of, equally provided for. Our grandfather seemed to read - our hearts, to see our invisible wishes, to be our good genius, - to wave the fairy wand, to brighten our young lives by his - goodness and his gifts. But I have written enough for this time; - and, indeed, what can I say hereafter but to repeat the same - tale of love and kindness.... - - I remain, my dear Mr. Randall, very truly yours, - - ELLEN W. COOLIDGE. - -The following contains the reminiscences of a younger grand-daughter -of Jefferson: - - St. Servan, France, May 26th, 1839. - - Faithful to my promise, dearest ----, I shall spend an hour - every Sunday in writing all my childish recollections of my dear - grandfather which are sufficiently distinct to relate to you. My - memory seems crowded with them, and they have the vividness of - realities; but all are trifles in themselves, such as I might - talk to you by the hour, but when I have taken up my pen, they - seem almost too childish to write down. But these remembrances - are precious to me, because they are of _him_, and because they - restore him to me as he then was, when his cheerfulness and - affection were the warm sun in which his family all basked - and were invigorated. Cheerfulness, love, benevolence, wisdom, - seemed to animate his whole form. His face beamed with them. You - remember how active was his step, how lively, and even playful, - were his manners. - - I can not describe the feelings of veneration, admiration, and - love that existed in my heart towards him. I looked on him as a - being too great and good for my comprehension; and yet I felt no - fear to approach him and be taught by him some of the childish - sports that I delighted in. When he walked in the garden and - would call the children to go with him, we raced after and - before him, and we were made perfectly happy by this permission - to accompany him. Not one of us, in our wildest moods, ever - placed a foot on one of the garden-beds, for that would violate - one of his rules, and yet I never heard him utter a harsh word - to one of us, or speak in a raised tone of voice, or use a - threat. He simply said, "Do," or "Do not." He would gather fruit - for us, seek out the ripest figs, or bring down the cherries - from on high above our heads with a long stick, at the end of - which there was a hook and little net bag.... - - One of our earliest amusements was in running races on the - terrace, or around the lawn. He placed us according to our ages, - giving the youngest and smallest the start of all the others - by some yards, and so on; and then he raised his arm high, - with his white handkerchief in his hand, on which our eager - eyes were fixed, and slowly counted three, at which number he - dropped the handkerchief, and we started off to finish the race - by returning to the starting-place and receiving our reward of - dried fruit--three figs, prunes, or dates to the victor, two to - the second, and one to the lagger who came in last. These were - our summer sports with him. - - I was born the year he was elected President, and, except - one winter that we spent with him in Washington, I never was - with him during that season until after he had retired from - office. During his absences, all the children who could write - corresponded with him. Their letters were duly answered, and - it was a sad mortification to me that I had not learned to - write before his return to live at home, and of course had no - letter from him. Whenever an opportunity occurred, he sent us - books; and he never saw a little story or piece of poetry in - a newspaper, suited to our ages and tastes, that he did not - preserve it and send it to us; and from him we learnt the habit - of making these miscellaneous collections, by pasting in a - little paper book made for the purpose any thing of the sort - that we received from him or got otherwise. - - On winter evenings, when it grew too dark to read, in the half - hour which passed before candles came in, as we all sat round - the fire, he taught us several childish games, and would play - them with us. I remember that "Cross-questions," and "I love my - Love with an A," were two I learned from him; and we would teach - some of ours to him. - - When the candles were brought, all was quiet immediately, for - he took up his book to read; and we would not speak out of a - whisper, lest we should disturb him, and generally we followed - his example and took a book; and I have seen him raise his - eyes from his own book, and look round on the little circle of - readers and smile, and make some remark to mamma about it. When - the snow fell, we would go out, as soon as it stopped, to clear - it off the terraces with shovels, that he might have his usual - walk on them without treading in snow. - - He often made us little presents. I remember his giving us - "Parents' Assistant," and that we drew lots, and that she who - drew the longest straw had the first reading of the book; the - next longest straw entitled the drawer to the second reading; - the shortest to the last reading, and ownership of the book. - - Often he discovered, we knew not how, some cherished object of - our desires, and the first intimation we had of his knowing the - wish was its unexpected gratification. Sister Anne gave a silk - dress to sister Ellen. Cornelia (then eight or ten years old), - going up stairs, involuntarily expressed aloud some feelings - which possessed her bosom on the occasion, by saying, "I never - had a silk dress in my life." The next day a silk dress came - from Charlottesville to Cornelia, and (to make the rest of - us equally happy) also a pair of pretty dresses for Mary and - myself. One day I was passing hastily through the glass door - from the hall to the portico; there was a broken pane which - caught my muslin dress and tore it sadly. Grandpapa was standing - by and saw the disaster. A few days after, he came into mamma's - sitting-room with a bundle in his hand, and said to me, "I have - been mending your dress for you." He had himself selected for me - another beautiful dress. I had for a long time a great desire - to have a guitar. A lady of our neighborhood was going to the - West, and wished to part with her guitar, but she asked so high - a price that I never in my dreams aspired to its possession. - One morning, on going down to breakfast, I saw the guitar. It - had been sent up by Mrs. ---- for us to look at, and grandpapa - told me that if I would promise to learn to play on it I should - have it. I never shall forget my ecstasies. I was but fourteen - years old, and the first wish of my heart was unexpectedly - gratified.... - - VIRGINIA J. TRIST. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - - Letter to his Grand-daughter, Mrs. Bankhead.--To Dr. - Rush.--To Duane.--Anxiety to reopen Correspondence with John - Adams.-- Letter to Benjamin Rush.--Old Letter from Mrs. - Adams.--Letter from Benjamin Rush.--Letter from John Adams.--The - Reconciliation.--Character of Washington.--Devotion to him.-- - Letter to Say.--State of Health.--Labors of Correspondence.-- - Cheerfulness of his Disposition.--Baron Grimour.--Catherine of - Russia.--Ledyard.--Letter to Mrs. Trist.--To John Adams.-- Gives - Charge of his Affairs to his Grandson.--Letter to his Grandson, - Francis Eppes.--Description of Monticello by Lieutenant - Hall.--Letter to Mrs. Adams.--Her Death.--Beautiful Letter to - Mr. Adams.--Letter to Dr. Utley.--Correspondence with Mrs. - Cosway. - - -The extracts from Jefferson's letters which I give in this -chapter the reader will find to be of unusual interest. Among his -family letters I find the following touching note to one of his -grand-daughters. - - -_To Mrs. Anne C. Bankhead._ - - Monticello, May 26th, 1811. - - My dear Anne--I have just received a copy of the Modern - Griselda, which Ellen tells me will not be unacceptable to you; - I therefore inclose it. The heroine presents herself certainly - as a perfect model of ingenious perverseness, and of the art of - making herself and others unhappy. If it can be made of use in - inculcating the virtues and felicities of life, it must be by - the rule of contraries. - - Nothing new has happened in our neighborhood since you left - us; the houses and the trees stand where they did; the flowers - come forth like the belles of the day, have their short reign - of beauty and splendor, and retire, like them, to the more - interesting office of reproducing their like. The Hyacinths and - Tulips are off the stage, the Irises are giving place to the - Belladonnas, as these will to the Tuberoses, etc.; as your mamma - has done to you, my dear Anne, as you will do to the sisters of - little John, and as I shall soon and cheerfully do to you all - in wishing you a long, long good-night. Present me respectfully - to Doctor and Mrs. Bankhead, and accept for Mr. Bankhead and - yourself the assurances of my cordial affections, not forgetting - that Cornelia shares them. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In January, 1811, Dr. Rush, in a friendly letter to Mr. Jefferson, -expressed regret at the suspension of intercourse between Mr. Adams -and himself. Jefferson's letter in reply is one of the most charming -he ever wrote. - - -_To Benjamin Rush._--[_Extract._] - - I receive with sensibility your observations on the - discontinuance of friendly correspondence between Mr. Adams - and myself, and the concern you take in its restoration. - This discontinuance has not proceeded from me, nor from the - want of sincere desire and of effort on my part to renew our - intercourse. You know the perfect coincidence of principle and - of action, in the early part of the Revolution, which produced - a high degree of mutual respect and esteem between Mr. Adams - and myself. Certainly no man was ever truer than he was, in - that day, to those principles of rational republicanism which, - after the necessity of throwing off our monarchy, dictated - all our efforts in the establishment of a new Government. And - although he swerved afterwards towards the principles of the - English Constitution, our friendship did not abate on that - account. While he was Vice-president, and I Secretary of State, - I received a letter from President Washington, then at Mount - Vernon, desiring me to call together the Heads of Department, - and to invite Mr. Adams to join us (which, by-the-by, was the - only instance of that being done), in order to determine on - some measure which required dispatch; and he desired me to act - on it, as decided, without again recurring to him. I invited - them to dine with me, and after dinner, sitting at our wine, - having settled our question, other conversation came on, in - which a collision of opinion arose between Mr. Adams and Colonel - Hamilton on the merits of the British Constitution; Mr. Adams - giving it as his opinion that, if some of its defects and abuses - were corrected, it would be the most perfect constitution of - government ever devised by man. Hamilton, on the contrary, - asserted that, with its existing vices, it was the most - perfect model of government that could be formed, and that - the correction of its vices would render it an impracticable - government. And this, you may be assured, was the real line - of difference between the political principles of these two - gentlemen. - - Another incident took place on the same occasion, which will - further delineate Mr. Hamilton's political principles. The - room being hung around with a collection of the portraits of - remarkable men, among them were those of Bacon, Newton, and - Locke. Hamilton asked me who they were. I told him they were my - trinity of the three greatest men the world had ever produced, - naming them. He paused for some time: "The greatest man," said - he, "that ever lived was Julius Cæsar." Mr. Adams was honest as - a politician, as well as a man; Hamilton honest as a man, but, - as a politician, believing in the necessity of either force or - corruption to govern men. - -Writing to Colonel Duane in the same year, speaking of the state -of the country and differences of opinion, he says: "These, like -differences of face, are a law of our nature, and should be viewed -with the same tolerance. The clouds which have appeared for some -time to be gathering around us have given me anxiety, lest an -enemy, always on the watch, always prompt and firm, and acting -in well-disciplined phalanx, should find an opening to dissipate -hopes, with the loss of which I would wish that of life itself. To -myself, personally, the sufferings would be short. The powers of life -have declined with me more in the last six months than in as many -preceding years. A rheumatic indisposition, under which your letter -found me, has caused this delay in acknowledging its receipt." - -In a letter of December 5th, 1811, to Dr. Benjamin Rush, Jefferson, -after alluding to letters from him, wherein he expresses a desire to -bring about a reconciliation between Mr. Adams and himself, says: - - -_To Benjamin Rush._ - - Two of the Mr. Coles, my neighbors and friends, took a tour to - the northward during the last summer. In Boston they fell into - company with Mr. Adams, and by his invitation passed a day with - him at Braintree. He spoke out to them every thing which came - uppermost, and as it occurred to his mind, without any reserve; - and seemed most disposed to dwell on those things which happened - during his own Administration. He spoke of his _masters_, as he - called his Heads of Departments, as acting above his control, - and often against his opinions. Among many other topics, he - adverted to the unprincipled licentiousness of the press against - myself, adding, "I always loved Jefferson, and still love him." - - This is enough for me. I only needed this knowledge to revive - towards him all the affections of the most cordial moments of - our lives.... I wish, therefore, but for an apposite occasion to - express to Mr. Adams my unchanged affection for him. There is - an awkwardness which hangs over the resuming a correspondence - so long discontinued, unless something could arise which should - call for a letter. Time and chance may perhaps generate such - an occasion, of which I shall not be wanting in promptitude to - avail myself. From this fusion of mutual affections, Mrs. Adams - is, of course, separated. It will only be necessary that I never - name her.[58] In your letters to Mr. Adams you can perhaps - suggest my continued cordiality towards him, and, knowing this, - should an occasion of writing first present itself to him, he - will perhaps avail himself of it, as I certainly will, should - it first occur to me. No ground for jealousy now existing, he - will certainly give fair play to the natural warmth of his - heart. Perhaps I may open the way in some letter to my old - friend Gerry, who, I know, is in habits of the greatest intimacy - with him. I have thus, my friend, laid my heart open to you, - because you were so kind as to take an interest in healing again - Revolutionary affections, which have ceased in expression only, - but not in their existence. God ever bless you, and preserve you - in life and health. - - [58] It should here be shown that the coldness between Jefferson - and Mrs. Adams was but a temporary interruption of a friendship - which lasted for fully forty years, closed only by the death - of Mrs. Adams, in 1818. The following letter from Mrs. Adams, - written in 1786, will evince the friendship which then, and for - years before, existed between her and Jefferson. Hereinbefore, - at page 304 of this volume, will be found a letter of condolence - from Mrs. Adams to Jefferson, upon the death of his daughter, - Maria Jefferson Eppes (1804); and hereafter, at page 368, - Jefferson's last letter to Mrs. Adams, written in 1817; followed - by Jefferson's letter of condolence to John Adams (November, - 1818), upon the death of Mrs. Adams. - - - _From Mrs. Adams._ - - London, Grosvenor Square, Feb. 11th, 1786. - - Col. Humphries talks of leaving us on Monday. It is with regret, - I assure you, Sir, that we part with him. His visit here has - given us an opportunity of becoming more acquainted with his - real worth and merit, and our friendship for him has risen - in proportion to our intimacy. The two American Secretaries - of Legation would do honor to their country placed in more - distinguished stations. Yet these missions abroad, circumscribed - as they are in point of expenses, place the ministers of the - United States in the lowest point of view of any envoy from any - other Court; and in Europe every being is estimated, and every - country valued, in proportion to their show and splendor. In a - private station I have not a wish for expensive living, but, - whatever my fair countrywomen may think, and I hear they envy - my situation, I will most joyfully exchange Europe for America, - and my public for a private life. I am really surfeited with - Europe, and most heartily long for the rural cottage, the purer - and honester manners of my native land, where domestic happiness - reigns unrivalled, and virtue and honor go hand in hand. I - hope one season more will give us an opportunity of making our - escape. At present we are in the situation of Sterne's starling. - - Congress have by the last dispatches informed this Court - that they expect them to appoint a minister. It is said (not - officially) that Mr. Temple is coldly received, that no - Englishman has visited him, and the Americans are not very - social with him. But as Colonel Humphries will be able to give - you every intelligence, there can be no occasion for my adding - any thing further than to acquaint you that I have endeavored to - execute your commission agreeably to your directions. Enclosed - you will find the memorandum. I purchased a small trunk, which - I think you will find useful to you to put the shirts in, - as they will not be liable to get rubbed on the journey. If - the balance should prove in my favor, I will request you to - send me 4 ells of cambric at about 14 livres per ell or 15, a - pair of black lace lappets--these are what the ladies wear at - court--and 12 ells of black lace at 6 or 7 livres per ell. Some - gentleman coming this way will be so kind as to put them in his - pocket, and Mrs. Barclay, I dare say, will take the trouble of - purchasing them for me; for troubling you with such trifling - matters is a little like putting Hercules to the distaff. - - My love to Miss Jefferson, and compliments to Mr. Short. Mrs. - Siddons is acting again upon the stage, and I hope Colonel - Humphries will prevail with you to cross the Channel to see her. - Be assured, dear Sir, that nothing would give more pleasure to - your friends here than a visit from you, and in that number I - claim the honor of subscribing myself, - - A. ADAMS. - - [4 pair of shoes for Miss Adams, by the person who made Mrs. - A.'s, 2 of satin and 2 of spring silk, without straps, and of - the most fashionable colors.] - -To this letter Dr. Rush replied as follows: - - -_From Benjamin Rush._--[_Extract._] - - Philadelphia, Dec. 17th, 1811. - - My dear old Friend--Yours of December 5th came to hand - yesterday. I was charmed with the subject of it. In order to - hasten the object you have suggested, I sat down last evening - and selected such passages from your letter as contained the - kindest expressions of regard for Mr. Adams, and transmitted - them to him. My letter which contained them was concluded, as - nearly as I can recollect, for I kept no copy of it, with the - following words: "Fellow-laborers, in erecting the fabric of - American liberty and independence! fellow-sufferers in the - calumnies and falsehoods of party rage! fellow-heirs of the - gratitude and affection of posterity! and fellow-passengers in - the same stage which must soon convey you both into the presence - of a Judge with whom forgiveness and love of enemies is the only - condition of your acceptance, embrace--embrace each other--bedew - your letter of reconciliation with tears of affection and - joy. Let there be no retrospect of your past differences. - Explanations may be proper between contending lovers, but - they are never so between divided friends. Were I near you, - I would put a pen in your hand, and guide it while it wrote - the following note to Mr. Jefferson: 'My dear old friend and - fellow-laborer in the cause of the liberties and independence - of our common country, I salute you with the most cordial good - wishes for your health and happiness. - - JOHN ADAMS.'" - -Jefferson's hopes were realized by receiving early in the year 1812 a -letter from Mr. Adams. It is pleasing to see with what eagerness he -meets this advance from his old friend. In his reply he says: - - -_To John Adams._ - - A letter from you calls up recollections very dear to my mind. - It carries me back to the times when, beset with difficulties - and dangers, we were fellow-laborers in the same cause, - struggling for what is most valuable to man, his right of - self-government. Laboring always at the same oar, with some wave - ever ahead threatening to overwhelm us, and yet passing harmless - under our bark, we knew not how, we rode through the storm with - heart and hand, and made a happy port.... But whither is senile - garrulity leading me? Into politics, of which I have taken final - leave. I think little of them, and say less. I have given up - newspapers in exchange for Tacitus and Thucydides, for Newton - and Euclid, and I find myself much the happier. Sometimes, - indeed, I look back to former occurrences, in remembrance of our - old friends and fellow-laborers who have fallen before us. Of - the signers of the Declaration of Independence, I see now living - not more than half a dozen on your side of the Potomac, and, on - this side, myself alone. - - You and I have been wonderfully spared, and myself with - remarkable health, and a considerable activity of body and mind. - I am on horseback three or four hours of every day; visit three - or four times a year a possession I have ninety miles distant, - performing the winter journey on horseback. I walk little, - however, a single mile being too much for me; and I live in the - midst of my grandchildren, one of whom has lately promoted me to - be a great-grandfather. I have heard with pleasure that you also - retain good health, and a greater power of exercise in walking - than I do. But I would rather have heard this from yourself, - and that, writing a letter like mine, full of egotisms, and - of details of your health, your habits, occupations, and - enjoyments, I should have the pleasure of knowing that in the - race of life you do not keep, in its physical decline, the same - distance ahead of me which you have done in political honors and - achievements. No circumstances have lessened the interest I feel - in these particulars respecting yourself; none have suspended - for one moment my sincere esteem for you, and I now salute you - with unchanged affection and respect. - -Mr. Adams having had some affliction in his household, Mr. Jefferson, -at the close of a letter written to him in October, 1813, says: - - -_To John Adams._ - - On the subject of the postscript of yours of August the 16th, - and of Mrs. Adams's letter, I am silent. I know the depth of the - affliction it has caused, and can sympathize with it the more - sensibly, inasmuch as there is no degree of affliction, produced - by the loss of those dear to us, which experience has not taught - me to estimate. I have ever found time and silence the only - medicine, and these but assuage, they never can suppress, the - deep-drawn sigh which recollection forever brings up, until - recollection and life are extinguished together. - -In a letter written to Dr. Walter Jones on the 2d of January, 1814, -we have one of the most beautiful descriptions of character to be -found in the English language, and the most heartfelt tribute to -General Washington which has ever flowed from the pen of any man. -Jefferson writes: - - -_Jefferson's Character of Washington._ - - You say that in taking General Washington on your shoulders, to - bear him harmless through the Federal coalition, you encounter - a perilous topic. I do not think so. You have given the genuine - history of the course of his mind through the trying scenes in - which it was engaged, and of the seductions by which it was - deceived, but not depraved. I think I knew General Washington - intimately and thoroughly; and were I called on to delineate his - character, it should be in terms like these: - - His mind was great and powerful without being of the very first - order; his penetration strong, though not so acute as that of - a Newton, Bacon, or Locke; and, as far as he saw, no judgment - was ever sounder. It was slow in operation, being little aided - by invention or imagination, but sure in conclusion. Hence the - common remark of his officers, of the advantage he derived from - councils of war, where, hearing all suggestions, he selected - whatever was best; and certainly no general ever planned his - battles more judiciously. But if deranged during the course of - the action, if any member of his plan was dislocated by sudden - circumstances, he was slow in a readjustment. The consequence - was, that he often failed in the field, and rarely against an - enemy in station, as at Boston and York. He was incapable of - fear, meeting personal danger with the calmest unconcern. - - Perhaps the strongest feature in his character was prudence, - never acting until every circumstance, every consideration, - was maturely weighed; refraining if he saw a doubt, but, - when once decided, going through with his purpose, whatever - obstacles opposed. His integrity was most pure, his justice the - most inflexible I have ever known, no motives of interest or - consanguinity, of friendship or hatred, being able to bias his - decision. He was, indeed, in every sense of the words, a wise, a - good, and a great man. His temper was naturally irritable and - high-toned; but reflection and resolution had obtained a firm - and habitual ascendency over it. If ever, however, it broke its - bonds, he was most tremendous in his wrath. In his expenses he - was honorable, but exact; liberal in contribution to whatever - promised utility; but frowning and unyielding on all visionary - projects, and all unworthy calls on his charity. His heart was - not warm in its affections; but he exactly calculated every - man's value, and gave him a solid esteem proportioned to it. - - His person, you know, was fine, his stature exactly what one - would wish, his deportment easy, erect and noble; the best - horseman of his age, and the most graceful figure that could be - seen on horseback. - - Although in the circle of his friends, where he might be - unreserved with safety, he took a free share in conversation, - his colloquial talents were not above mediocrity, possessing - neither copiousness of ideas nor fluency of words. In public, - when called on for a sudden opinion, he was unready, short, and - embarrassed. Yet he wrote readily, rather diffusely, in an easy - and correct style. This he had acquired by conversation with the - world, for his education was merely reading, writing, and common - arithmetic, to which he added surveying at a later day. His time - was employed in action chiefly, reading little, and that only - in agriculture and English history. His correspondence became - necessarily extensive, and, with journalizing his agricultural - proceedings, occupied most of his leisure hours within-doors. - - On the whole, his character was, in its mass, perfect; in - nothing bad, in few points indifferent; and it may truly be - said, that never did nature and fortune combine more perfectly - to make a man great, and to place him in the same constellation - with whatever worthies have merited from man an everlasting - remembrance. For his was the singular destiny and merit of - leading the armies of his country successfully through an - arduous war, for the establishment of its independence; of - conducting its councils through the birth of a Government new in - its forms and principles, until it had settled down into a quiet - and orderly train; and of scrupulously obeying the laws through - the whole of his career, civil and military, of which the - history of the world furnishes no other example. How, then, can - it be perilous for you to take such a man on your shoulders?... - - He has often declared to me that he considered our new - Constitution as an experiment on the practicability of - republican government, and with what dose of liberty man - could be trusted for his own good; that he was determined the - experiment should have a fair trial, and would lose the last - drop of his blood in support of it.... I do believe that General - Washington had not a firm confidence in the durability of our - Government.... I felt on his death, with my countrymen, that - "Verily a great man hath fallen this day in Israel." - -The following pleasing anecdote in relation to Jefferson's devotion -to Washington is remembered by his family. Long years after he had -retired from public life, some admirer of Jefferson's, who lived -in France, sent a wreath of immortelles to a member of the family -at Monticello, with the request that it might be placed round his -brow on his birthday. Jefferson ordered it to be placed, instead, on -Washington's bust, where it ever afterwards rested. - -On another occasion, while riding after night with a member of his -family, the conversation fell upon Washington. Mr. Jefferson was -warm in his expressions of praise and love for him, and finally, -in a burst of enthusiasm, exclaimed, "Washington's fame will go on -increasing until the brightest constellation in yonder heavens shall -be called by his name!" - -How different was the education in which such men as Washington -and Jefferson were trained from the more modern system, so happily -criticised by the latter, in the following extract from a letter to -John Adams, bearing date July 5, 1814: - - -_To John Adams._ - - But why am I dosing you with these antediluvian topics? Because - I am glad to have some one to whom they are familiar, and - who will not receive them as if dropped from the moon. Our - post-revolutionary youth are born under happier stars than - you and I were. They acquire all learning in their mother's - womb, and bring it into the world readymade. The information of - books is no longer necessary; and all knowledge which is not - innate is in contempt, or neglect at least. Every folly must - run its round; and so, I suppose, must that of self-learning - and self-sufficiency; of rejecting the knowledge acquired in - past ages, and starting on the new ground of intuition. When - sobered by experience, I hope our successors will turn their - attention to the advantages of education--I mean of education on - the broad scale, and not that of the petty _academies_, as they - call themselves, which are starting up in every neighborhood, - and where one or two men, possessing Latin and sometimes Greek, - a knowledge of the globes, and the first six books of Euclid, - imagine and communicate this as the sum of science. They commit - their pupils to the theatre of the world with just taste enough - of learning to be alienated from industrious pursuits, and not - enough to do service in the ranks of science. - -The following to an old friend finds a place here - - -_To Mrs. Trist._ - - Monticello, Dec. 26th, 1814. - - My good Friend--The mail between us passes very slowly. Your - letter of November 17 reached this place on the 14th inst. only. - I think while you were writing it the candle must have burnt - blue, and that a priest or some other conjurer should have been - called in to exorcise your room. To be serious, however, your - view of things is more gloomy than necessary. True, we are at - war--that that war was unsuccessful by land the first year, but - honorable the same year by sea, and equally by sea and land - ever since. Our resources, both of men and money, are abundant, - if wisely called forth and administered. I acknowledge that - experience does not as yet seem to have led our Legislatures - into the best course of either.... - - I think, however, there will be peace. The negotiators at Ghent - are agreed in every thing except as to a rag of Maine, which we - can not yield nor they seriously care about, but it serves them - to hold by until they can hear what the Convention of Hartford - will do. When they shall see, as they will see, that nothing is - done there, they will let go their hold, and we shall have peace - on the _status ante bellum_. You have seen that Vermont and New - Hampshire refuse to join the mutineers, and Connecticut does it - with a "saving of her duty to the Federal Constitution." Do you - believe that Massachusetts, on the good faith and aid of little - Rhode Island, will undertake a war against the rest of the Union - and the half of herself? Certainly never--so much for politics. - - We are all well, little and big, young and old. Mr. and Mrs. - Divers enjoy very so-so health, but keep about. Mr. Randolph had - the command of a select corps during summer; but that has been - discharged some time. We are feeding our horses with our wheat, - and looking at the taxes coming on us as an approaching wave in - a storm; still I think we shall live as long, eat as much, and - drink as much, as if the wave had already glided under our ship. - Somehow or other these things find their way out as they come - in, and so I suppose they will now. God bless you, and give you - health, happiness, and hope, the real comforters of this nether - world. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In a letter to Cæsar A. Rodney, inviting a visit from him, and -written on March 16th, 1815, he says: "You will find me in habitual -good health, great contentedness, enfeebled in body, impaired in -memory, but without decay in my friendships." - -In a letter written to Jean Baptiste Say a few days earlier than -the one just quoted, he speaks thus of the society of the country -around him: "The society is much better than is common in country -situations; perhaps there is not a better _country_ society in the -United States. But do not imagine this a Parisian or an academical -society. It consists of plain, honest, and rational neighbors, some -of them well-informed, and men of reading, all superintending their -farms, hospitable and friendly, and speaking nothing but English. The -manners of every nation are the standard of orthodoxy within itself. -But these standards being arbitrary, reasonable people in all allow -free toleration for the manners, as for the religion, of others." - -We get a glimpse of the state of his health and his daily habits in a -letter written to a friend in the spring of 1816. He writes: - - I retain good health, and am rather feeble to walk much, - but ride with ease, passing two or three hours a day on - horseback,[59] and every three or four months taking, in a - carriage, a journey of ninety miles to a distant possession, - where I pass a good deal of my time. My eyes need the aid of - glasses by night, and, with small print, in the day also. My - hearing is not quite so sensible as it used to be; no tooth - shaking yet, but shivering and shrinking in body from the cold - are now experienced, my thermometer having been as low as 12° - this morning. - - [59] He was at this time in his seventy-third year. - -My greatest oppression is a correspondence afflictingly laborious, -the extent of which I have long been endeavoring to curtail. This -keeps me at the drudgery of the writing-table all the prime hours of -the day, leaving for the gratification of my appetite for reading -only what I can steal from the hours of sleep. Could I reduce this -epistolary corvée within the limits of my friends and affairs, and -give the time redeemed from it to reading and reflection, to history, -ethics, mathematics, my life would be as happy as the infirmities -of age would admit, and I should look on its consummation with the -composure of one "_qui summum nec metuit diem nec optat_." - -The cheerfulness of his bright and happy temper gleams out in the -following extract from a letter written a few months later to John -Adams: - - -_To John Adams._ - - You ask if I would agree to live my seventy, or, rather, - seventy-three, years over again? To which I say, yea. I think, - with you, that it is a good world, on the whole; that it has - been framed on a principle of benevolence, and more pleasure - than pain dealt out to us. There are, indeed (who might say - nay), gloomy and hypochondriac minds, inhabitants of diseased - bodies, disgusted with the present and despairing of the future; - always counting that the worst will happen, because it may - happen. To these I say, how much pain have cost us the evils - which have never happened! My temperament is sanguine. I steer - my bark with Hope in the head, leaving Fear astern. My hopes, - indeed, sometimes fail; but not oftener than the forebodings of - the gloomy. There are, I acknowledge, even in the happiest life, - some terrible convulsions, heavy set-offs against the opposite - page of the account.... - - Did I know Baron Grimm while at Paris? Yes, most intimately. - He was the pleasantest and most conversable member of the - diplomatic corps while I was there; a man of good fancy, - acuteness, irony, cunning, and egoism. No heart, not much of - any science, yet enough of every one to speak its language; his - forte was belles-lettres, painting, and sculpture. In these he - was the oracle of the society, and, as such, was the Empress - Catherine's private correspondent and factor in all things - not diplomatic. It was through him I got her permission for - poor Ledyard to go to Kamtschatka, and cross over thence to - the western coast of America, in order to penetrate across our - continent in the opposite direction to that afterwards adopted - for Lewis and Clarke; which permission she withdrew after he had - got within two hundred miles of Kamtschatka, had him seized, - brought back, and set down in Poland. - - -_To Mrs. Trist._ - - Poplar Forest, April 28th, 1816. - - I am here, my dear Madam, alive and well, and, notwithstanding - the murderous histories of the winter, I have not had an - hour's sickness for a twelvemonth past. I feel myself indebted - to the fable, however, for the friendly concern expressed in - your letter, which I received in good health, by my fireside - at Monticello. These stories will come true one of these - days, and poor printer Davies need only reserve awhile the - chapter of commiserations he had the labor to compose, and - the mortification to recall, after striking off some sheets - announcing to _his_ readers the happy riddance. But, all - joking apart, I am well, and left all well a fortnight ago at - Monticello, to which I shall return in two or three days.... - - Jefferson is gone to Richmond to bring home my new - great-grand-daughter. Your friends, Mr. and Mrs. Divers, are - habitually in poor health; well enough only to receive visits, - but not to return them; and this, I think, is all our small news - which can interest you. - - On the general scale of nations, the greatest wonder is Napoleon - at St. Helena; and yet it is where it would have been well for - the lives and happiness of millions and millions, had he been - deposited there twenty years ago. France would now have had a - free Government, unstained by the enormities she has enabled - him to commit on the rest of the world, and unprostrated by - the vindictive hand, human or divine, now so heavily bearing - upon her. She deserves much punishment, and her successes and - reverses will be a wholesome lesson to the world hereafter; - but she has now had enough, and we may lawfully pray for her - resurrection, and I am confident the day is not distant. No one - who knows that people, and the elasticity of their character, - can believe they will long remain crouched on the earth as - at present. They will rise by acclamation, and woe to their - riders. What havoc are we not yet to see! But these sufferings - of all Europe will not be lost. A sense of the rights of man is - gone forth, and all Europe will ere long have representative - governments, more or less free.... - - We are better employed in establishing universities, colleges, - canals, roads, maps, etc. What do you say to all this? Who - could have believed the Old Dominion would have roused from her - supineness, and taken such a scope at her first flight? My only - fear is that an hour of repentance may come, and nip in the bud - the execution of conceptions so magnanimous. With my friendly - respects to Mr. and Mrs. Gilmer, accept the assurance of my - constant attachment and respect. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In a letter to John Adams, written at the beginning of the next -year (1817), he complains bitterly of the burden of his extensive -correspondence. - - -_To John Adams._ - - Monticello, Jan. 11th, 1817. - - Dear Sir--Forty-three volumes read in one year, and twelve of - them quarto! Dear Sir, how I envy you! Half a dozen octavos in - that space of time are as much as I am allowed. I can read by - candle-light only, and stealing long hours from my rest; nor - would that time be indulged to me, could I by that light see to - write. From sunrise to one or two o'clock, and often from dinner - to dark, I am drudging at the writing-table. All this to answer - letters into which neither interest nor inclination on my part - enters; and often from persons whose names I have never before - heard. Yet, writing civilly, it is hard to refuse them civil - answers. This is the burthen of my life, a very grievous one - indeed, and one which I must get rid of. - - Delaplaine lately requested me to give him a line on the subject - of his book; meaning, as I well knew, to publish it. This I - constantly refuse; but in this instance yielded, that in saying - a word for him I might say two for myself. I expressed in it - freely my sufferings from this source; hoping it would have - the effect of an indirect appeal to the discretion of those, - strangers and others, who, in the most friendly dispositions, - oppress me with their concerns, their pursuits, their projects, - inventions, and speculations, political, moral, religious, - mechanical, mathematical, historical, etc., etc., etc. I hope - the appeal will bring me relief, and that I shall be left to - exercise and enjoy correspondence with the friends I love, and - on subjects which they, or my own inclinations, present. In that - case your letters shall not be so long on my files unanswered, - as sometimes they have been to my great mortification. - -From a letter to his son-in-law, Mr. Eppes, written the previous -year, I take the following extract: - - -_To John W. Eppes._ - - I am indeed an unskillful manager of my farms, and sensible - of this from its effects, I have now committed them to better - hands, of whose care and skill I have satisfactory knowledge, - and to whom I have ceded the entire direction.[60] This is - all that is necessary to make them adequate to all my wants, - and to place me at entire ease. And for whom should I spare - in preference to Francis, on sentiments either of duty or - affection? I consider all my grandchildren as if they were my - children, and want nothing but for them. It is impossible that I - could reconcile it to my feelings, that he alone of them should - be a stranger to my cares and contributions. - - [60] The person here alluded to was his grandson, Thomas - Jefferson Randolph. - -From this extract we learn that Mr. Jefferson had found the cares -of his large estates too great a burden for him to carry in his -advancing years, and gladly handed them over into the hands of the -young grandson, in whose skill and energy he expresses such perfect -confidence. From this time until the day of Jefferson's death, we -shall find this grandson interposing himself, as far as possible, -between his grandfather and his financial troubles, and trying to -shield him, at least during his life, from the financial ruin which -the circumstances of his situation made unavoidable. With his usual -sanguine temper, Jefferson did not appreciate the extent to which his -property was involved. - -In a letter to his young grandson, Francis Eppes, after alluding to -his studies, he says: - - -_To Francis Eppes._ - - But while you endeavor, by a good store of learning, to prepare - yourself to become a useful and distinguished member of your - country, you must remember that this never can be without - uniting merit with your learning. Honesty, disinterestedness, - and good-nature are indispensable to procure the esteem and - confidence of those with whom we live, and on whose esteem our - happiness depends. Never suffer a thought to be harbored in your - mind which you would not avow openly. When tempted to do any - thing in secret, ask yourself if you would do it in public; if - you would not, be sure it is wrong. In little disputes with your - companions, give way rather than insist on trifles, for their - love and the approbation of others will be worth more to you - than the trifle in dispute. Above all things and at all times, - practise yourself in good humor; this, of all human qualities, - is the most amiable and endearing to society. Whenever you - feel a warmth of temper rising, check it at once, and suppress - it, recollecting it would make you unhappy within yourself - and disliked by others. Nothing gives one person so great an - advantage over another under all circumstances. Think of these - things, practise them, and you will be rewarded by the love and - confidence of the world. - -I have given, in the earlier pages of this work, the charming -sketches of Monticello and its owner from the pens of two -distinguished Frenchmen,[61] and, fortunately, the Travels of -Lieutenant Hall, a British officer, enable me to give a similar -sketch from the pen of an Englishman. Their national prejudices -and enthusiasm might be thought to have made the French noblemen -color their pictures too highly when describing Jefferson; but -certainly, if ever he had a critical visitor, a British officer -might be considered to have been one, and in this view the following -pleasantly-written account of Mr. Hall's visit to Monticello in 1816 -will be found particularly interesting: - - -_Lieut. Hall's Visit to Jefferson._[62] - - [61] Pages 58 _et seq._, and 235 _et seq._ - - [62] Travels in Canada and the United States, in 1816 and 1817, - by Lieutenant Francis Hall. - - Having an introduction to Mr. Jefferson (Mr. Hall writes), I - ascended his little mountain on a fine morning, which gave - the situation its due effect. The whole of the sides and base - are covered with forest, through which roads have been cut - circularly, so that the winding may be shortened at pleasure; - the summit is an open lawn, near to the south side of which - the house is built, with its garden just descending the brow; - the saloon, or central hall, is ornamented with several pieces - of antique sculpture, Indian arms, mammoth bones, and other - curiosities collected from various parts of the Union. I found - Mr. Jefferson tall in person, but stooping and lean with old - age, thus exhibiting the fortunate mode of bodily decay which - strips the frame of its most cumbersome parts, leaving it still - strength of muscle and activity of limb. His deportment was - exactly such as the Marquis de Chastellux describes it above - thirty years ago. "At first serious, nay even cold," but in a - very short time relaxing into a most agreeable amenity, with - an unabated flow of conversation on the most interesting topics - discussed in the most gentlemanly and philosophical manner. - - I walked with him round his grounds, to visit his pet trees - and improvements of various kinds. During the walk he pointed - out to my observation a conical mountain, rising singly at the - edge of the southern horizon of the landscape; its distance, - he said, was forty miles, and its dimensions those of the - greater Egyptian pyramid; so that it actually represents the - appearance of the pyramid at the same distance. There is a small - cleft visible on the summit, through which the true meridian - of Monticello exactly passes; its most singular property, - however, is, that on different occasions it looms, or alters - its appearance, becoming sometimes cylindrical, sometimes - square, and sometimes assuming the form of an inverted cone. - Mr. Jefferson had not been able to connect this phenomenon with - any particular season or state of the atmosphere, except that - it most commonly occurred in the forenoon. He observed that it - was not only wholly unaccounted for by the laws of vision, but - that it had not as yet engaged the attention of philosophers so - far as to acquire a name; that of "looming" being, in fact, a - term applied by sailors to appearances of a similar kind at sea. - The Blue Mountains are also observed to loom, though not in so - remarkable a degree.... - - I slept a night at Monticello, and left it in the morning, with - such a feeling as the traveller quits the mouldering remains of - a Grecian temple, or the pilgrim a fountain in the desert. It - would, indeed, argue a great torpor, both of understanding and - heart, to have looked without veneration or interest on the man - who drew up the Declaration of American Independence, who shared - in the councils by which her freedom was established; whom the - unbought voice of his fellow-citizens called to the exercise - of a dignity from which his own moderation impelled him, when - such an example was most salutary, to withdraw; and who, while - he dedicates the evening of his glorious days to the pursuits - of science and literature, shuns none of the humbler duties - of private life; but, having filled a seat higher than that - of kings, succeeds with graceful dignity to that of the good - neighbor, and becomes the friendly adviser, lawyer, physician, - and even gardener of his vicinity. This is the still small - voice of philosophy, deeper and holier than the lightnings and - earthquakes which have preceded it. What monarch would venture - thus to exhibit himself in the nakedness of his humanity? On - what royal brow would the laurel replace the diadem? But they - who are born and educated to be kings are not expected to be - philosophers. This is a just answer, though no great compliment, - either to the governors or the governed. - -Early in 1817 Jefferson wrote the following delightful letter to Mrs. -Adams--the last, I believe, that he ever addressed to her: - - -_To Mrs. Adams._ - - Monticello, Jan. 11th, 1817. - - I owe you, dear Madam, a thousand thanks for the letters - communicated in your favor of December 15th, and now returned. - They give me more information than I possessed before of the - family of Mr. Tracy.[63] But what is infinitely interesting, is - the scene of the exchange of Louis XVIII. for Bonaparte. What - lessons of wisdom Mr. Adams must have read in that short space - of time! More than fall to the lot of others in the course of a - long life. Man, and the man of Paris, under those circumstances, - must have been a subject of profound speculation! It would be a - singular addition to that spectacle to see the same beast in the - cage of St. Helena, like a lion in the tower. That is probably - the closing verse of the chapter of his crimes. But not so with - Louis. He has other vicissitudes to go through. - - [63] One of his French friends, the Comte de Tracy. - -I communicated the letters, according to your permission, to my -grand-daughter, Ellen Randolph, who read them with pleasure and -edification. She is justly sensible of, and flattered by, your kind -notice of her; and additionally so by the favorable recollections -of our Northern visiting friends. If Monticello has any thing which -has merited their remembrance, it gives it a value the more in our -estimation; and could I, in the spirit of your wish, count backward -a score of years, it would not be long before Ellen and myself would -pay our homage personally to Quincy. But those twenty years! Alas! -where are they? With those beyond the flood. Our next meeting must -then be in the country to which they have flown--a country for us -not now very distant. For this journey we shall need neither gold -nor silver in our purse, nor scrip, nor coats, nor staves. Nor is -the provision for it more easy than the preparation has been kind. -Nothing proves more than this, that the Being who presides over the -world is essentially benevolent--stealing from us, one by one, the -faculties of enjoyment, searing our sensibilities, leading us, like -the horse in his mill, round and round the same beaten circle-- - - To see what we have seen, - To taste the tasted, and at each return - Less tasteful; o'er our palates to decant - Another vintage-- - -until, satiated and fatigued with this leaden iteration, we ask our -own _congé_. - -I heard once a very old friend, who had troubled himself with neither -poets nor philosophers, say the same thing in plain prose, that -he was tired of pulling off his shoes and stockings at night, and -putting them on again in the morning. The wish to stay here is thus -gradually extinguished; but not so easily that of returning once in -a while to see how things have gone on. Perhaps, however, one of the -elements of future felicity is to be a constant and unimpassioned -view of what is passing here. If so, this may well supply the wish -of occasional visits. Mercier has given us a vision of the year -2440; but prophecy is one thing, and history another. On the whole, -however, perhaps it is wise and well to be contented with the good -things which the Master of the feast places before us, and to be -thankful for what we have, rather than thoughtful about what we have -not. - -You and I, dear Madam, have already had more than an ordinary portion -of life, and more, too, of health than the general measure. On this -score I owe boundless thankfulness. Your health was some time ago not -so good as it has been, and I perceive in the letters communicated -some complaints still. I hope it is restored; and that life and -health may be continued to you as many years as yourself shall wish, -is the sincere prayer of your affectionate and respectful friend. - -The pleasant intercourse between Mr. Jefferson and Mrs. Adams -terminated only with the death of the latter, which took place in -the fall of the year 1818, and drew from Jefferson the following -beautiful and touching letter to his ancient friend and colleague: - - -_To John Adams._ - - Monticello, November 13th, 1818. - - The public papers, my dear friend, announce the fatal event - of which your letter of October the 20th had given me ominous - foreboding. Tried myself in the school of affliction, by the - loss of every form of connection which can rive the human - heart, I know well, and feel what you have lost, what you - have suffered, are suffering, and have yet to endure. The - same trials have taught me that for ills so immeasurable time - and silence are the only medicine. I will not, therefore, by - useless condolences, open afresh the sluices of your grief, nor, - although mingling sincerely my tears with yours, will I say a - word more where words are vain, but that it is of some comfort - to us both that the term is not very distant at which we are to - deposit in the same cerement our sorrows and suffering bodies, - and to ascend in essence to an ecstatic meeting with the friends - we have loved and lost, and whom we shall still love and never - lose again. God bless you and support you under your heavy - affliction. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In the following letter we have a most interesting and minute account -of Mr. Jefferson's habits and mode of life: - - -_To Doctor Vine Utley._ - - Monticello, March 21st, 1819. - - Sir--Your letter of February the 18th came to hand on the 1st - instant; and the request of the history of my physical habits - would have puzzled me not a little, had it not been for the - model with which you accompanied it of Doctor Rush's answer - to a similar inquiry. I live so much like other people, that - I might refer to ordinary life as the history of my own. Like - my friend the Doctor, I have lived temperately, eating little - animal food, and that not as an aliment so much as a condiment - for the vegetables, which constitute my principal diet. I - double, however, the Doctor's glass-and-a-half of wine, and even - treble it with a friend; but halve its effect by drinking the - weak wines only. The ardent wines I can not drink, nor do I use - ardent spirits in any form. Malt liquors and cider are my table - drinks, and my breakfast, like that also of my friend, is of tea - and coffee. I have been blest with organs of digestion which - accept and concoct without ever murmuring whatever the palate - chooses to consign to them, and I have not yet lost a tooth by - age. - - I was a hard student until I entered on the business of life, - the duties of which leave no idle time to those disposed to - fulfill them; and now, retired, at the age of seventy-six, I am - again a hard student. Indeed, my fondness for reading and study - revolts me from the drudgery of letter-writing; and a stiff - wrist, the consequence of an early dislocation, makes writing - both slow and painful. I am not so regular in my sleep as the - Doctor says he was, devoting to it from five to eight hours, - according as my company or the book I am reading interests me; - and I never go to bed without an hour, or half-hour's reading - of something moral whereon to ruminate in the intervals of - sleep. But whether I retire to bed early or late, I rise with - the sun. I use spectacles at night, but not necessarily in the - day, unless in reading small print. My hearing is distinct in - particular conversation, but confused when several voices cross - each other, which unfits me for the society of the table. - - I have been more fortunate than my friend in the article of - health. So free from catarrhs, that I have not had one (in the - breast, I mean) on an average of eight or ten years through - life. I ascribe this exemption partly to the habit of bathing - my feet in cold water every morning for sixty years past. A - fever of more than twenty-four hours I have not had above two - or three times in my life. A periodical headache has afflicted - me occasionally, once, perhaps, in six or eight years, for two - or three weeks at a time, which seems now to have left me; and, - except on a late occasion of indisposition, I enjoy good health; - too feeble, indeed, to walk much, but riding without fatigue six - or eight miles a day, and sometimes thirty or forty. - - I may end these egotisms, therefore, as I began, by saying that - my life has been so much like that of other people, that I might - say with Horace, to every one, "_Nomine mutato, narratur fabula - de te_." I must not end, however, without due thanks for the - kind sentiments of regard you are so good as to express towards - myself; and with my acknowledgments for these, be pleased to - accept the assurances of my respect and esteem. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -In the following month of the same year we find him receiving a -letter from Mrs. Cosway, who had long been silent. I give the -following quotation from this letter, Jefferson's reply, and other -letters from her, which close their pleasant correspondence. - - -_From Mrs. Cosway._--[_Extract._] - - London, April 7th, 1819. - - My different journeys to the Continent were either caused by - bad health or other particular private melancholy motives; but - on any sudden information of Mr. C.'s bad health, I hastened - home to see him. In my stay on the Continent, I was called to - form establishments of education: one at Lyons, which met with - the most flattering success; and lastly, one in Italy, equally - answering every hoped-for consolation. Oh! how often have I - thought of America, and wished to have exerted myself there! - Who would ever have imagined that I should have taken up this - line! It has afforded me satisfactions unfelt before, after - having been deprived of my own child. What comfortable feelings - in seeing children grow up accomplished, modest, and virtuous - women! They are hardly gone home from the establishment at - fifteen, but are married and become patterns to their sex. - - But am I not breaking the rules of modesty myself, and boasting - too much? In what better manner can I relate this? However, - though seemingly settled at Lodi, I was ever ready to return - home when called. At last, at the first opening of communication - on the cessation of the cruel hostilities which kept us all - asunder, alarmed at the indifferent accounts of Mr. C.'s health, - I hastened home. He is much broken, and has had two paralytic - strokes, the last of which has deprived him of the use of his - right hand and arm. Forgotten by the arts, suspended from the - direction of education (though it is going on vastly well in - my absence), I am now discharging the occupations of a nurse, - happy in the self-gratification of doing my duty with no other - consolation. In your "Dialogue," your Head would tell me, "That - is enough;" your Heart, perhaps, will understand I might wish - for more. God's will be done! - - What a loss to me not having the loved Mrs. Church! and how - grieved I was when told she was no more among the living! I used - to see Madame de Corny in Paris. She still lives, but in bad - health. She is the only one left of the common friends we knew. - Strange changes, over and over again, all over Europe--you only - are proceeding on well. - - Now, my dear Sir, forgive this long letter. May I flatter myself - to hear from you? Give me some accounts of yourself as you used - to do; instead of Challion and Paris, talk to me of Monticello. - - -_To Mrs. Cosway._ - - Monticello, Dec. 27th, 1820. - - "Over the length of silence I draw a curtain," is an expression, - my dear friend, of your cherished letter of April 7, 1819, of - which, it might seem, I have need to avail myself; but not - so really. To seventy-seven heavy years add two of prostrate - health, during which all correspondence has been suspended of - necessity, and you have the true cause of not having heard from - me. My wrist, too, dislocated in Paris while I had the pleasure - of being there with you, is, by the effect of years, now so - stiffened that writing is become a slow and painful operation, - and scarcely ever undertaken but under the goad of imperious - business. But I have never lost sight of your letter, and give - it now the first place among those of my trans-Atlantic friends - which have been lying unacknowledged during the same period of - ill health. - - I rejoice, in the first place, that you are well; for your - silence on that subject encourages me to presume it. And - next, that you have been so usefully and pleasingly occupied - in preparing the minds of others to enjoy the blessings you - yourself have derived from the same source--a cultivated - mind. Of Mr. Cosway I fear to say any thing, such is the - disheartening account of the state of his health given in your - letter; but here or wherever, I am sure he has all the happiness - which an honest life assures. Nor will I say any thing of the - troubles of those among whom you live. I see they are great, and - wish them happily out of them, and especially that you may be - safe and happy, whatever be their issue. - - I will talk about Monticello, then, and my own country, as is - the wish expressed in your letter. My daughter Randolph, whom - you knew in Paris a young girl, is now the mother of eleven - living children, the grandmother of about half a dozen others, - enjoys health and good spirits, and sees the worth of her - husband attested by his being at present Governor of the State - in which we live. Among these I live like a patriarch of old. - Our friend Trumbull is well, and is profitably and honorably - employed by his country in commemorating with his pencil some of - its Revolutionary honors. Of Mrs. Conger I hear nothing, nor, - for a long time, of Madame de Corny. Such is the present state - of our former coterie--dead, diseased, and dispersed. But "tout - ce qui est differé n'est pas perdu," says the French proverb, - and the religion you so sincerely profess tells us we shall meet - again.... - - Mine is the next turn, and I shall meet it with good-will; - for after one's friends are all gone before them, and our - faculties leaving us, too, one by one, why wish to linger in - mere vegetation, as a solitary trunk in a desolate field, from - which all its former companions have disappeared. You have - many good years remaining yet to be happy yourself and to make - those around you happy. May these, my dear friend, be as many - as yourself may wish, and all of them filled with health and - happiness, will be among the last and warmest wishes of an - unchangeable friend. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The original of the following letter, now lying before me, is edged -with black: - - -_From Mrs. Cosway._ - - London, July 15th, 1821. - - My dear and most esteemed Friend--The appearance of this letter - will inform you I have been left a _widow_. Poor Mr. Cosway was - suddenly taken by an apoplectic fit, and, being the third, - proved his last. At the time we had hopes he would enjoy a few - years, for he had never been so well and so happy. Change of air - was rendered necessary for his health. I took a very charming - house, and fitted it up handsomely and comfortably with those - pictures and things which he liked most. - - All my thoughts and actions were for him. He had neglected his - affairs very much, and when I was obliged to take them into my - hands I was astonished. I took every means of ameliorating them, - and had succeeded, at least for his comfort, and my consolation - was his constantly repeating how well and how happy he was. We - had an auction of all his effects, and his house in Stratford - Place, which lasted two months. My fatigue was excessive. The - sale did not produce as much as we expected, but enough to make - him comfortable, and prevent his being embarrassed, as he might - have been had I not lived accordingly. Every body thought he was - very rich, and I was astonished when put into the real knowledge - of his situation. He made his will two years ago, and left me - sole executrix and mistress of every thing. - - After having settled every thing here, and provided for three - cousins of Mr. C.'s, I shall retire from this bustling and - insignificant world to my favorite college at Lodi, as I always - intended, where I can employ myself so happily in doing good. - - I wish Monticello was not so far--I would pay you a visit, were - it ever so much out of my way; but it is impossible. I long to - hear from you. The remembrance of a person I so highly esteem - and venerate affords me the happiest consolations, and your - patriarchal situation delights me--such as I expected from you. - Notwithstanding your indifference for a world of which you make - one of the most distinguished ornaments and members, I wish you - may still enjoy many years, and feel the happiness of a nation - which produces such characters. - - I will write again before I leave this country (at this moment - in so boisterous an occupation, as you must be informed of), - and I will send you my direction. I shall go through Paris and - talk of you with Madame de Corny. Believe me ever your most - affectionate and obliged - - MARIA COSWAY. - - -_From Mrs. Cosway._--[_Extract._] - - Milan, June 18th, 1823. - - I congratulate you on the undertaking you announce me of the - fine building[64] which occupies your taste and knowledge, and - gratifies your heart. The work is worthy of you--you are worthy - of such enjoyment. Nothing, I think, is more useful to mankind - than a good education. I may say I have been very fortunate to - give a spring to it in this country, and see those children I - have had the care of turn out good wives, excellent mothers, - _et bonnes femmes de ménage_, which was not understood in these - countries, and which is the principal object of society, and the - only useful one. - - [64] The University of Virginia. - -I wish I could come and learn from you; were it the farthest part of -Europe nothing would prevent me, but that immense sea makes a great -distance. I hope, however, to hear from you as often as you can favor -me. I am glad you approve my choice of Lodi. It is a pretty place, -and free from the bustle of the world, which is become troublesome. -What a change since you were here! I saw Madame de Corny when at -Paris: she is the same, only a little older. - - -_From Mrs. Cosway._ - - Florence, Sept. 24th, 1824. - - My dear Sir, and good Friend--I am come to visit my native - country, and am much delighted with every thing round it. The - arts have made great progress, and Mr. Cosway's drawings have - been very much admired, which induced me to place in the gallery - a very fine portrait of his. I have found here an opportunity of - sending this letter by Leghorn, which I had not at Milan. - - I wish much to hear from you, and how you go on with your - fine Seminary. I have had my grand saloon painted with the - representation of the four parts of the world, and the most - distinguished objects of them. I am at loss for America, as I - found very few small prints--however, Washington town is marked, - and I have left a hill bare where I would place Monticello and - the Seminary: if you favor me with some description, that I - might have them introduced, you would oblige me much. I am just - setting out for my home. Pray write to me at Lodi, and, if this - reaches you safely, I will write longer by the same way. Believe - me ever, your most obliged and affectionate friend, - - MARIA COSWAY. - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - - Letters to John Adams.--Number of Letters written and - received.-- To John Adams.--Breaks his Arm.--Letter to Judge - Johnson.--To Lafayette.--The University of Virginia.--Anxiety - to have Southern Young Men educated at the South.--Letters - on the Subject.-- Lafayette's Visit to America.--His Meeting - with Jefferson.-- Daniel Webster's Visit to Monticello, and - Description of Mr. Jefferson. - - -In the following letter to Mr. Adams we find Mr. Jefferson not -complaining of, but fully appreciating the rapidity with which old -age and its debilities were advancing on him: - - -_To John Adams._ - - Monticello, June 1st, 1822. - - It is very long, my dear Sir, since I have written to you. My - dislocated wrist is now become so stiff that I write slowly - and with pain, and therefore write as little as I can. Yet it - is due to mutual friendship to ask once in a while how we do. - The papers tell us that General Stark is off at the age of 93. - Charles Thompson still lives at about the same age--cheerful, - slender as a grasshopper, and so much without memory that he - scarcely recognizes the members of his household. An intimate - friend of his called on him not long since; it was difficult to - make him recollect who he was, and, sitting one hour, he told - him the same story four times over. Is this life-- - - "With lab'ring step - To tread our former footsteps?--pace the round - Eternal?--to beat and beat - The beaten track?--to see what we have seen, - To taste the tasted?--o'er our palates to decant - Another vintage?" - - It is at most but the life of a cabbage; surely not worth a - wish. When all our faculties have left, or are leaving us, - one by one--sight, hearing, memory--every avenue of pleasing - sensation is closed, and athumy, debility, and malaise left - in their places--when friends of our youth are all gone, and a - generation is risen around us whom we know not, is death an evil? - - "When one by one our ties are torn, - And friend from friend is snatched forlorn, - When man is left alone to mourn, - Oh! then how sweet it is to die! - When trembling limbs refuse their weight, - And films slow gathering dim the sight, - When clouds obscure the mental light, - 'Tis nature's kindest boon to die!" - - I really think so. I have ever dreaded a doting old age; and - my health has been generally so good, and is now so good, that - I dread it still. The rapid decline of my strength during the - last winter has made me hope sometimes that I see land. During - summer I enjoy its temperature; but I shudder at the approach of - winter, and wish I could sleep through it with the dormouse, and - only wake with him in spring, if ever. They say that Stark could - walk about his room. I am told you walk well and firmly. I can - only reach my garden, and that with sensible fatigue. I ride, - however, daily. But reading is my delight. I should wish never - to put pen to paper; and the more because of the treacherous - practice some people have of publishing one's letters without - leave. Lord Mansfield declared it a breach of trust, and - punishable at law. I think it should be a penitentiary felony; - yet you will have seen that they have drawn me out into the - arena of the newspapers.[65] Although I know it is too late for - me to buckle on the armor of youth, yet my indignation would not - permit me passively to receive the kick of an ass. - - [65] Alluding to a reply which he made to an attack made on him - by one signing himself a "Native Virginian." - -To turn to the news of the day, it seems that the cannibals of Europe -are going to eating one another again. A war between Russia and -Turkey is like the battle of the kite and snake. Whichever destroys -the other leaves a destroyer the less for the world. This pugnacious -humor of mankind seems to be the law of his nature, one of the -obstacles to too great multiplication provided in the mechanism of -the universe. The cocks of the hen-yard kill one another. Bears, -bulls, rams, do the same. And the horse, in his wild state, kills -all the young males, until, worn down with age and war, some vigorous -youth kills him, and takes to himself the harem of females. I hope we -shall prove how much happier for man the Quaker policy is, and that -the life of the feeder is better than that of the fighter; and it is -some consolation that the desolation by these maniacs of one part of -the earth is the means of improving it in other parts. Let the latter -be our office, and let us milk the cow, while the Russian holds her -by the horns, and the Turk by the tail. God bless you, and give you -health, strength, and good spirits, and as much of life as you think -worth having. - -In another letter to Mr. Adams he gives really a pitiable account of -the tax on his strength which letter-writing had become. Mr. Adams -had suggested that he should publish the letter just quoted, by way -of letting the public know how much he suffered from the number of -letters he had to answer. Jefferson, in reply, says: - - -_To John Adams._ - - I do not know how far you may suffer, as I do, under the - persecution of letters, of which every mail brings a fresh - load. They are letters of inquiry, for the most part, always - of good-will, sometimes from friends whom I esteem, but much - oftener from persons whose names are unknown to me, but written - kindly and civilly, and to which, therefore, civility requires - answers. Perhaps the better-known failure of your hand in its - function of writing may shield you in greater degree from this - distress, and so far qualify the misfortune of its disability. - I happened to turn to my letter-list some time ago, and a - curiosity was excited to count those received in a single year. - It was the year before the last. I found the number to be one - thousand two hundred and sixty-seven, many of them requiring - answers of elaborate research, and all to be answered with due - attention and consideration. Take an average of this number - for a week or a day, and I will repeat the question suggested - by other considerations in mine of the 1st. Is this life? At - best it is but the life of a mill-horse, who sees no end to - his circle but in death. To such a life that of a cabbage is - paradise. It occurs, then, that my condition of existence, - truly stated in that letter, if better known, might check the - kind indiscretions which are so heavily depressing the departing - hours of life. Such a relief would, to me, be an ineffable - blessing. - -The reader can form some idea of the extent of this correspondence, -which, in his old age, became such a grievous burden to the veteran -statesman, from the fact that the letters received by him that were -preserved amounted to twenty-six thousand at the time of his death; -while the copies left by him, of those which he himself had written, -numbered sixteen thousand. These were but a small portion of what he -wrote, as he wrote numbers of which he retained no copies. - -Mr. Jefferson's estimate of Napoleon's character is found in the -following interesting extract from a letter written to Mr. Adams, -February 24, 1823: - - -_To John Adams.--Character of Napoleon._ - - I have just finished reading O'Meara's Bonaparte. It places him - in a higher scale of understanding than I had allotted him. I - had thought him the greatest of all military captains, but an - indifferent statesman, and misled by unworthy passions. The - flashes, however, which escaped from him in these conversations - with O'Meara prove a mind of great expansion, although not of - distinct development and reasoning. He seizes results with - rapidity and penetration, but never explains logically the - process of reasoning by which he arrives at them. - - This book, too, makes us forget his atrocities for a moment, - in commiseration of his sufferings. I will not say that the - authorities of the world, charged with the care of their country - and people, had not a right to confine him for life, as a lion - or tiger, on the principle of self-preservation. There was no - safety to nations while he was permitted to roam at large. But - the putting him to death in cold blood, by lingering tortures - of mind, by vexations, insults, and deprivations, was a degree - of inhumanity to which the poisonings and assassinations of - the school of Borgia and den of Marat never attained. The book - proves, also, that nature had denied him the moral sense, the - first excellence of well-organized man. If he could seriously - and repeatedly affirm that he had raised himself to power - without ever having committed a crime, it proved that he wanted - totally the sense of right and wrong. If he could consider - the millions of human lives which he had destroyed, or caused - to be destroyed, the desolations of countries by plunderings, - burnings, and famine, the destitutions of lawful rulers of - the world without the consent of their constituents, to place - his brothers and sisters on their thrones, the cutting up of - established societies of men and jumbling them discordantly - together again at his caprice, the demolition of the fairest - hopes of mankind for the recovery of their rights and - amelioration of their condition, and all the numberless train - of his other enormities--the man, I say, who could consider all - these as no crimes, must have been a moral monster, against whom - every hand should have been lifted to slay him. - - You are so kind as to inquire after my health. The bone of - my arm is well knitted, but my hand and fingers are in a - discouraging condition, kept entirely useless by an oedematous - swelling of slow amendment. God bless you, and continue your - good health of body and mind. - -The broken arm alluded to at the close of this letter was caused -by an accident which Mr. Jefferson met with towards the close of -the year 1822. While descending a flight of steps leading from one -of the terraces at Monticello, a decayed plank gave way and threw -him forward at full length on the ground. To a man in his eightieth -year such a fall might have been fatal, and Jefferson was fortunate -in escaping with a broken arm, though it gave him much pain at -the time, and was a serious inconvenience to him during the few -remaining years of his life. Though debarred from his usual daily -exercise on horseback for a short time after the accident occurred, -he resumed his rides while his arm was yet in a sling. His favorite -riding-horse, Eagle, was brought up to the terrace, whence he mounted -while in this disabled state. Eagle, though a spirited Virginia -full-blood, seemed instinctively to know that his venerable master -was an invalid; for, usually restless and spirited, he on these -occasions stood as quietly as a lamb, and, leaning up towards the -terrace, seemed to wish to aid the crippled octogenarian as he -mounted into the saddle. - -I make the following extracts from a letter full of interest, written -to Judge Johnson, of South Carolina, early in the summer of 1823. He -writes: - - -_To Judge Johnson._ - - What a treasure will be found in General Washington's cabinet, - when it shall pass into the hands of as candid a friend to truth - as he was himself!... - - With respect to his [Washington's] Farewell Address, to the - authorship of which, it seems, there are conflicting claims, - I can state to you some facts. He had determined to decline a - re-election at the end of his first term, and so far determined, - that he had requested Mr. Madison to prepare for him something - valedictory, to be addressed to his constituents on his - retirement. This was done: but he was finally persuaded to - acquiesce in a second election, to which no one more strenuously - pressed him than myself, from a conviction of the importance of - strengthening, by longer habit, the respect necessary for that - office, which the weight of his character only could effect. - When, at the end of this second term, his Valedictory came out, - Mr. Madison recognized in it several passages of his draught; - several others, we were both satisfied, were from the pen of - Hamilton; and others from that of the President himself. These - he probably put into the hands of Hamilton to form into a whole, - and hence it may all appear in Hamilton's handwriting, as if it - were all of his composition.... - - The close of my second sheet warns me that it is time now to - relieve you from this letter of unmerciful length. Indeed, I - wonder how I have accomplished it, with two crippled wrists, - the one scarcely able to move my pen, the other to hold my - paper. But I am hurried sometimes beyond the sense of pain, - when unbosoming myself to friends who harmonize with me in - principle. You and I may differ occasionally in details of - minor consequence, as no two minds, more than two faces, are - the same in every feature. But our general objects are the - same--to preserve the republican forms and principles of our - Constitution, and cleave to the salutary distribution of powers - which that has established. These are the two sheet-anchors - of our Union. If driven from either, we shall be in danger of - foundering. To my prayers for its safety and perpetuity, I - add those for the continuation of your health, happiness, and - usefulness to your country. - -Towards the close of the year 1823 he wrote a long letter to -Lafayette, the following extracts from which show how well he felt -the infirmities of old age advancing upon him: - - -_To the Marquis de Lafayette._--[_Extracts._] - - Monticello, November 4th, 1823. - - My dear Friend--Two dislocated wrists and crippled fingers - have rendered writing so slow and laborious, as to oblige me - to withdraw from nearly all correspondence--not however, from - yours, while I can make a stroke with a pen. We have gone - through too many trying scenes together to forget the sympathies - and affections they nourished.... - - After much sickness, and the accident of a broken and disabled - arm, I am again in tolerable health, but extremely debilitated, - so as to be scarcely able to walk into my garden. The hebetude - of age, too, and extinguishment of interest in the things around - me, are weaning me from them, and dispose me with cheerfulness - to resign them to the existing generation, satisfied that the - daily advance of science will enable them to administer the - commonwealth with increased wisdom. You have still many valuable - years to give to your country, and with my prayers that they may - be years of health and happiness, and especially that they may - see the establishment of the principles of government which you - have cherished through life, accept the assurance of my constant - friendship and respect. - -Early in the following year, in a reply to a request of Isaac -Engelbrecht that he would send him something from his own hand, -he writes: "Knowing nothing more moral, more sublime, more worthy -of your preservation than David's description of the good man, in -his 15th Psalm, I will here transcribe it from Brady and Tate's -version:" he then gives the Psalm in full. - -[Illustration: THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA.] - -In alluding to this year of his life, his biographer says, "Mr. -Jefferson's absorbing topic throughout 1824 was the University." He -had first interested himself in this institution in the year 1817. -The plan originally was only to establish a college, to be called -the "Central College of Virginia;" but in his hands it was enlarged, -and consummated in the erection of the University of Virginia, whose -classic dome and columns are now lit up by the morning rays of the -same sun which shines on the ruin and desolation of his own once -happy home.[66] The architectural plans and form of government and -instruction for this institution afforded congenial occupation for -his declining years, and made it emphatically the child of his old -age. While the buildings were being erected, his visits to them were -daily; and from the northeast corner of the terrace at Monticello he -frequently watched the workmen engaged on them, through a telescope -which is still preserved in the library of the University. - - [66] The accompanying illustration presents the University of - Virginia, as it appeared in 1856. - -His toil and labors for this institution, and the obstacles which he -had to overcome in procuring the necessary funds from the Virginia -Legislature, served to distract his thoughts, in a measure, from -those pecuniary embarrassments which, though resulting from his -protracted services to his country, so imbittered the closing years -of his honored life. None appreciated more highly than himself the -importance of establishing Southern institutions for the instruction -of Southern young men. We find allusions to this subject scattered -through the whole of his correspondence during this period of his -life. - -How entirely he was absorbed in this darling project of his old age, -may be seen from the following extract from a letter written by him -to Mr. Adams, October 12, 1823: - - -_To John Adams._ - - I do not write with the ease which your letter of September 18th - supposes. Crippled wrists and fingers make writing slow and - laborious. But while writing to you, I lose the sense of these - things in the recollection of ancient times, when youth and - health made happiness out of every thing. I forget for a while - the hoary winter of age, when we can think of nothing but how - to keep ourselves warm, and how to get rid of our heavy hours - until the friendly hand of death shall rid us of all at once. - Against this _tedium vitæ_, however, I am fortunately mounted on - a hobby, which, indeed, I should have better managed some thirty - or forty years ago; but whose easy amble is still sufficient to - give exercise and amusement to an octogenary rider. This is the - establishment of a University, on a scale more comprehensive, - and in a country more healthy and central, than our old William - and Mary, which these obstacles have long kept in a state of - languor and inefficiency. - -The following extract from a letter to a friend, inviting him to -Monticello, shows what little interest he took in politics: - - You must be contented with the plain and sober family and - neighborly society, with the assurance that you shall hear no - wrangling about the next President, although the excitement on - that subject will then be at its acme. Numerous have been the - attempts to entangle me in that imbroglio. But at the age of - eighty, I seek quiet, and abjure contention. I read but a single - newspaper, Ritchie's _Enquirer_, the best that is published or - ever has been published in America. - -In one of his letters to J. C. Cabell, written about the appointment -of Professors for the University, we find the following passage, -which sounds strangely now in an age when nepotism is so rife: - - In the course of the trusts I have exercised through life - with powers of appointment, I can say with truth, and with - unspeakable comfort, that I never did appoint a relation to - office, and that merely because I never saw the case in which - some one did not offer, or occur, better qualified; and I - have the most unlimited confidence that in the appointment of - Professors to our nursling institution every individual of my - associates will look with a single eye to the sublimation of its - character, and adopt, as our sacred motto, "_Detur digniori!_" - In this way it will honor us, and bless our country. - -In August, 1824, the people of the United States were, as Jefferson -wrote to a friend, thrown into a "delirium" of joy by the arrival in -New York of Lafayette. He had left their shores forty years before, -loaded with all the honors that an admiring and victorious people -could heap upon a generous and gallant young defender. Filled with -all the enthusiasm inspired by youth, genius, and patriotism, he -had returned to his beloved France with a future full of promise -and hope; and now, after having passed through the storms of two -Revolutions, after having seen his fairest hopes, both for himself -and his country, perish, he came back to America, an impoverished -and decrepit old man. His misfortunes, in the eyes of the Americans, -gave him greater claims on their love and sympathy, and his visit -was really triumphal. Jefferson, in describing his tour through the -country, wrote: "He is making a triumphant progress through the -States, from town to town, with acclamations of welcome, such as no -crowned head ever received." - -In writing to Lafayette to hasten his visit to Monticello, where he -was impatiently expected, Jefferson says: - - -_To Lafayette._ - - What a history have we to run over, from the evening that - yourself, Mousnier, Bernan, and other patriots settled, in my - house in Paris, the outlines of the constitution you wished. And - to trace it through all the disastrous chapters of Robespierre, - Barras, Bonaparte, and the Bourbons! These things, however, - are for our meeting. You mention the return of Miss Wright to - America, accompanied by her sister; but do not say what her stay - is to be, nor what her course. Should it lead her to a visit of - our University, which in its architecture only is as yet an - object, herself and her companion will nowhere find a welcome - more hearty than with Mrs. Randolph, and all the inhabitants of - Monticello. This Athenæum of our country, in embryo, is as yet - but promise; and not in a state to recall the recollections of - Athens. But every thing has its beginning, its growth, and end; - and who knows with what future delicious morsels of philosophy, - and by what future Miss Wright raked from its ruins, the world - may, some day, be gratified and instructed?... But all these - things _à revoir_; in the mean time we are impatient that your - ceremonies at York should be over, and give you to the embraces - of friendship. - -To Monticello, where "the embraces of friendship" awaited him, -Lafayette accordingly went, and the following description of the -touching and beautiful scene witnessed by those who saw the meeting -between these two old friends and veteran patriots has been furnished -me by his grandson, Mr. Jefferson Randolph, who was present on that -memorable occasion: - - -_Lafayette and Jefferson in 1824._ - - The lawn on the eastern side of the house at Monticello contains - not quite an acre. On this spot was the meeting of Jefferson - and Lafayette, on the latter's visit to the United States. The - barouche containing Lafayette stopped at the edge of this lawn. - His escort--one hundred and twenty mounted men--formed on one - side in a semicircle extending from the carriage to the house. - A crowd of about two hundred men, who were drawn together by - curiosity to witness the meeting of these two venerable men, - formed themselves in a semicircle on the opposite side. As - Lafayette descended from the carriage, Jefferson descended the - steps of the portico. The scene which followed was touching. - Jefferson was feeble and tottering with age--Lafayette - permanently lamed and broken in health by his long confinement - in the dungeon of Olmutz. As they approached each other, their - uncertain gait quickened itself into a shuffling run, and - exclaiming, "Ah, Jefferson!" "Ah, Lafayette!" they burst into - tears as they fell into each other's arms. Among the four - hundred men witnessing the scene there was not a dry eye--no - sound save an occasional suppressed sob. The two old men entered - the house as the crowd dispersed in profound silence. - -At a dinner given to Lafayette in Charlottesville, besides the -"Nation's Guest," there were present Jefferson, Madison, and -Monroe. To the toast: "_Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration of -Independence--alike identified with the Cause of Liberty_," Jefferson -responded in a few written remarks, which were read by Mr. Southall. -We find in the following extract from them a graceful and heartfelt -tribute to his well-loved friend: - - I joy, my friends, in your joy, inspired by the visit of this - our ancient and distinguished leader and benefactor. His deeds - in the war of independence you have heard and read. They are - known to you, and embalmed in your memories and in the pages of - faithful history. His deeds in the peace which followed that - war, are perhaps not known to you; but I can attest them. When I - was stationed in his country, for the purpose of cementing its - friendship with ours and of advancing our mutual interests, this - friend of both was my most powerful auxiliary and advocate. He - made our cause his own, as in truth it was that of his native - country also. His influence and connections there were great. - All doors of all departments were open to him at all times; to - me only formally and at appointed times. In truth I only held - the nail, he drove it. Honor him, then, as your benefactor in - peace as well as in war. - -Towards the close of the year 1824 Daniel Webster visited Monticello, -and spent a day or two there. He has left us an account of this -visit, containing a minute description of Jefferson's personal -appearance, style of dress, and habits. After giving extracts from -this account, Mr. Randall, in his Life of Jefferson, says: "These -descriptions appearing to us to lack some of those gradations and -qualifications in expression which are essential to convey accurate -impressions, we sought an opinion on them from one as familiar with -Mr. Jefferson, with his views and modes of expression, as any person -ever was, and received the following reply: - - ----, 1857. - - My dear Mr. Randall--.... First, on the subject of Mr. - Jefferson's personal appearance. Mr. Webster's description - of it did not please me, because, though I will not stop to - quarrel with any of the details, the general impression it was - calculated to produce seemed to me an unfavorable one; that is, - a person who had never seen my grandfather, would, from Mr. - Webster's description, have thought him rather an ill-looking - man, which he certainly never was.... - - It would be, however, very difficult for me to give an accurate - description of the appearance of one whom I so tenderly loved - and deeply venerated. His person and countenance were to me - associated with so many of my best affections, so much of my - highest reverence, that I could not expect other persons to - see them as I did. One thing I will say--that never in my life - did I see his countenance distorted by a single bad passion - or unworthy feeling. I have seen the expression of suffering, - bodily and mental, of grief, pain, sadness, just indignation, - disappointment, disagreeable surprise, and displeasure, but - never of anger, impatience, peevishness, discontent, to say - nothing of worse or more ignoble emotions. To the contrary, it - was impossible to look on his face without being struck with its - benevolent, intelligent, cheerful, and placid expression. It was - at once intellectual, good, kind, and pleasant, while his tall, - spare figure spoke of health, activity, and that _helpfulness_, - that power and will, "never to trouble another for what he could - do himself," which marked his character. - - His dress was simple, and adapted to his ideas of neatness and - comfort. He paid little attention to fashion, wearing whatever - he liked best, and sometimes blending the fashions of several - different periods. He wore long waistcoats, when the mode was - for very short; white cambric stocks fastened behind with a - buckle, when cravats were universal. He adopted the pantaloon - very late in life, because he found it more comfortable and - convenient, and cut off his queue for the same reason. He made - no change except from motives of the same kind, and did nothing - to be in conformity with the fashion of the day. He considered - such independence as the privilege of his age.... - - In like manner, I never heard him speak of Wirt's Life of - Patrick Henry with the amount of severity recorded by Mr. - Webster. My impression is that here too, Mr. Webster, from - a very natural impulse, and without the least intention of - misrepresentation, has put down only those parts of Mr. - Jefferson's remarks which accorded with his own views, and left - out all the extenuations--the "_circonstantes attendantes_," - as the French say. This, of course, would lead to an erroneous - impression. Of Mr. Wirt's book my grandfather did not think very - highly; but the unkind remark, so far as Mr. Wirt was personally - concerned, unaccompanied by any thing to soften its severity, - is, to say the least, very little like Mr. Jefferson. - - ELLEN W. COOLIDGE. - -Of Jefferson's opinion of Henry, Mr. Randall goes on to say: - - His whole correspondence, and his Memoir written at the age of - seventy-seven, exhibit his unbounded admiration of Henry in - certain particulars, and his dislike or severe animadversion in - none. Henry and he came to differ very widely in politics, and - the former literally died leading a gallant political sortie - against the conquering Republicans. On one occasion, at least, - his keen native humor was directed personally against Jefferson. - With his inimitable look and tone, he with great effect declared - that he did not approve of gentlemen's "abjuring their native - victuals."[67] This gave great diversion to Jefferson. He - loved to talk about Henry, to narrate anecdotes of their early - intimacy; to paint his taste for unrestrained nature in every - thing; to describe his _bonhomie_, his humor, his unquestionable - integrity, mixed with a certain waywardness and freakishness; to - give illustrations of his shrewdness, and of his overwhelming - power as an orator. - - [67] The Republicans were accused of being adherents of - France--the _cookery_ of Monticello was French.--_Randall's Note._ - -Mr. Randall's indefatigable industry in ferretting out every account -and record of Jefferson has laid before the public Dr. Dunglison's -interesting and valuable memoranda concerning his intercourse with -Mr. Jefferson and his last illness and death. I make the following -extracts: - - -_Dr. Dunglison's Memoranda._ - - Soon afterwards [the arrival at Charlottesville] the venerable - ex-President presented himself, and welcomed us[68] with that - dignity and kindness for which he was celebrated. He was then - eighty-two years old, with his intellectual powers unshaken by - age, and the physical man so active that he rode to and from - Monticello, and took exercise on foot with all the activity of - one twenty or thirty years younger. He sympathized with us on - the discomforts of our long voyage, and on the disagreeable - journey we must have passed over the Virginia roads; and - depicted to us the great distress he had felt lest we had been - lost at sea--for he had almost given us up, when my letter - arrived with the joyful intelligence that we were safe.... - - [68] The professors of the University, who were all foreigners, - and brought by Mr. Jefferson from Europe, with the exception of - two only. - -The houses [the professors' houses, or "pavilions" of the University] -were much better furnished than we had expected to find them, and -would have been far more commodious had Mr. Jefferson consulted his -excellent and competent daughter, Mrs. Randolph, in regard to the -interior arrangements, instead of planning the architectural exterior -first, and leaving the interior to shift for itself. Closets would -have interfered with the symmetry of the rooms or passages, and hence -there were none in most of the houses; and of the only one which was -furnished with a closet, it was told as an anecdote of Mr. Jefferson, -that, not suspecting it, according to his general arrangements, he -opened the door and walked into it in his way out of the pavilion.... - -Mr. Jefferson was considered to have but little faith in physic; -and has often told me that he would rather trust to the unaided, -or, rather, uninterfered with, efforts of nature than to physicians -in general. "It is not," he was wont to observe, "to physic that I -object so much, as to physicians." Occasionally, too, he would speak -jocularly, especially to the unprofessional, of medical practice, -and on one occasion gave offense, when, most assuredly, if the same -thing had been said to me, no offense would have been taken. In the -presence of Dr. Everett, afterwards Private Secretary to Mr. Monroe, -he remarked that whenever he saw three physicians together, he -looked up to discover whether there was not a turkey-buzzard in the -neighborhood. The annoyance of the doctor, I am told, was manifest. -To me, when it was recounted, it seemed a harmless jest. But whatever -may have been Mr. Jefferson's notions of physic and physicians, it -is but justice to say that he was one of the most attentive and -respectful of patients. He bore suffering inflicted upon him for -remedial purposes with fortitude; and in my visits, showed me, by -memoranda, the regularity with which he had taken the prescribed -remedies at the appointed times.... - -In the summer of 1825, the monotonous life of the college was broken -in upon by the arrival of General Lafayette, to take leave of his -distinguished friend, Mr. Jefferson, preparatory to his return to -France. A dinner was given to him in the rotunda by the professors -and students, at which Mr. Madison and Mr. Monroe were present, but -Mr. Jefferson's indisposition prevented him from attending. "The -meeting at Monticello," says M. Levasseur, the Secretary to General -Lafayette during his journey, in his "_Lafayette in America in 1824 -and 1825_," vol. ii., p. 245, "of three men who, by their successive -elevation to the supreme magistracy of the state, had given to -their country twenty-four years of prosperity and glory, and who -still offered it the example of private virtues, was a sufficiently -strong inducement to make us wish to stay there a longer time; but -indispensable duties recalled General Lafayette to Washington, and -he was obliged to take leave of his friends. I shall not attempt to -depict the sadness which prevailed at this cruel separation, which -had none of the alleviation which is usually felt by youth; for -in this instance the individuals who bade farewell had all passed -through a long career, and the immensity of the ocean would still add -to the difficulties of a reunion." - -M. Levasseur has evidently confounded this banquet with that given -by the inhabitants of Charlottesville, the year preceding, during -the first visit of Lafayette to Mr. Jefferson. At that period there -were neither professors nor students, as the institution was not -opened until six months afterwards. "Every thing," says M. Levasseur -(vol. i., p. 220), "had been prepared at Charlottesville, by the -citizens and students, to give a worthy reception to Lafayette. The -sight of the nation's guest seated at the patriotic banquet, between -Jefferson and Madison, excited in those present an enthusiasm which -expressed itself in enlivening sallies of wit and humor. Mr. Madison, -who had arrived that day at Charlottesville to attend this meeting, -was especially remarkable for the originality of his expressions and -the delicacy of his allusions. Before leaving the table he gave a -toast--'_To Liberty--with Virtue for her Guest, and Gratitude for the -Feast_,' which was received with rapturous applause." - -The same enthusiasm prevailed at the dinner given in the rotunda. One -of the toasts proposed by an officer of the institution, I believe, -was an example of forcing a metaphor to the full extent of its -capability--"_The Apple of our Heart's Eye--Lafayette_." - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - - Pecuniary Embarrassments.--Letter from a Grand-daughter.--Dr. - Dunglison's Memoranda.--Sells his Library.--Depressed Condition - of the Money Market.--Disastrous Consequences to Jefferson.-- - His Grandson's Devotion and Efforts to relieve him.--Mental - Sufferings of Mr. Jefferson.--Plan of Lottery to sell his - Property.--Hesitation of Virginia Legislature to grant his - Request.--Sad Letter to Madison.--Correspondence with Cabell.-- - Extract from a Letter to his Grandson, to Cabell.--Beautiful - Letter to his Grandson.--Distress at the Death of his - Grand-daughter.--Dr. Dunglison's Memoranda.--Meeting in - Richmond.--In Nelson County.--New York, Philadelphia, and - Baltimore come to his Relief.--His Gratitude.--Unconscious - that at his Death Sales of his Property would fail to pay his - Debts.--Deficit made up by his Grandson.--His Daughter left - penniless.--Generosity of Louisiana and South Carolina. - - -I have now to treat of that part of Jefferson's life which his -biographer well calls "the saddest page in his personal history"--I -allude to the pecuniary embarrassments which clouded the evening of -his honored life. These were caused by his long absences from home -when in the service of his country, the crowds of visitors which his -reputation drew to his house, and the fluctuations and depression of -the money market. - -Jefferson inherited from his father nineteen hundred acres of land, -and began the practice of law when he became of age, in 1764. His -practice very soon became extensive, and yielded him an income of -$3000, while from his estates he received about $2000, making a sum -total of $5000. This was a handsome income, as property was then -rated; for the very best highlands in Albemarle were valued at not -more than two dollars per acre, and all other kinds of property bore -a proportionate value. By the beginning of the Revolution, in 1774, -he had increased his landed possessions to five thousand acres of -the best lands around him; all paid for out of his income. This fact -alone proves beyond contradiction how capable he was of managing -his affairs and increasing his fortune, until called from direct -supervision of them by the demands of his country. - -On his marriage in 1772, he received, as his wife's dower, property -which was valued at $40,000, but with a British debt on it of -$13,000. He sold property to pay this debt, and the Virginia -Legislature having passed a resolution to the effect that whoever -would deposit in the State Treasury the amount of their British debt, -the State would protect them, he deposited his in the Treasury. This -resolution was afterwards rescinded, and the money was returned in -Treasury Certificates. The depreciation of these was so great, that -the value of those received by Jefferson was laid out in an overcoat; -so that in after-years, when riding by the farm which he had sold to -procure the $13,000 deposited in the State Treasury, he would smile -and say, "I sold that farm for an overcoat." He sold other property -to pay this debt, and this time was paid in paper money at as great -a depreciation. Thus his impatience of debt cost him his wife's -property. How just and exact he was in the payment of this, may be -seen from the following extracts taken from one of his letters to his -British creditors: - - I am desirous of arranging with you such just and practicable - conditions as will ascertain to you the terms at which you will - receive my part of your debt, and give me the satisfaction of - knowing that you are contented. What the laws of Virginia are, - or may be, will in no wise influence my conduct. Substantial - justice is my object, as decided by reason, and not by authority - or compulsion.... - - Subsequent events have been such, that the State can not, and - ought not, to pay the same nominal sum in gold or silver which - they received in paper; nor is it certain what they will do: - my intention being, and having always been, that, whatever the - State decides, you shall receive my debt fully. I am ready, to - remove all difficulty arising from this deposit, to take back to - myself the demand against the State, and to consider the deposit - as originally made for myself and not for you. - -The Revolution coming on, he was, as we have seen, in public life -almost continuously from 1774 to 1809. He did not visit his largest -estate for nineteen years, and at one time was absent from his home -for seven years. In 1782, he was sent as Minister to France; he -returned at the close of the year 1788, and in March, 1789, entered -Washington's cabinet as Secretary of State. He resigned in February, -1794, and devoted himself for three years to his private affairs. We -have seen with what reluctance he returned to public life when in -1797 he was elected Vice-president. He was inaugurated President in -1801; and not retiring till 1809, was thus, with the exception of -three years, absent from home from 1774 to 1809. - -Of the various offices which Jefferson was called to fill, he -received pecuniary benefit from that of Vice-president alone. As a -member of the Virginia Assembly and of Congress, as well as when -Governor of Virginia, his salaries barely paid the expenses incident -to his official position. As Minister to France his salary did not -cover his expenses; as Secretary of State his expenditures slightly -exceeded his salary, while they greatly surpassed it when he was -President. Yet his biographer tells us that "in none of these -offices was his style of living noticed either for parsimony or -extravagance." The following extracts from a letter written by him -to his commission merchant, a month or two before the expiration of -his Presidential term, show in what a painful embarrassment he found -himself at that time: - - Nothing had been more fixed than my determination to keep my - expenses here within the limits of my salary, and I had great - confidence that I had done so. Having, however, trusted to rough - estimates by my head, and not being sufficiently apprised of - the outstanding accounts, I find, on a review of my affairs - here, as they will stand on the 3d of March, that I shall be - three or four months' salary behind-hand. In ordinary cases this - degree of arrearage would not be serious, but on the scale of - the establishment here it amounts to seven or eight thousand - dollars, which being to come out of my private funds will be - felt by them sensibly. - -After saying that in looking out for recourse to make good this -deficit in the first instance, it is natural for him to turn to the -principal bank of his own State, and asking that his commission -merchant would try and arrange the matter for him with as little -delay as possible, he goes on to say: - - Since I have become sensible of this deficit I have been - under an agony of mortification, and therefore must solicit - as much urgency in the negotiation as the case will admit. My - intervening nights will be almost sleepless, as nothing could - be more distressing to me than to leave debts here unpaid, if - indeed I should be permitted to depart with them unpaid, of - which I am by no means certain. - -When Jefferson resigned as Secretary of State in 1794, he hoped he -had turned his back forever on public life, and proposed to devote -the residue of his days to the restoration of his shattered fortunes. -For a time he refused to listen to any application calling him from -the peaceful enjoyments of his tranquil life at Monticello, but he -was besieged by deputations of the most distinguished men of the -day--old associates of the Revolution, who pressed his country's -claim on him with an earnestness and pertinacity not to be resisted, -and which finally recalled him to public life. - -Jefferson, then, returned in 1809 to estates wasted by the rude -management of the times, with hands, as he himself said, as clean as -they were empty, and with a world-wide reputation which attracted -crowds of company to devour what was left of a private property -wasted by a life-long devotion to his country's demands upon him. -No one could have been more hospitable than he was, and no one ever -gave a more heartfelt or more cordial welcome to friends than he did; -but the visits of those who were led by curiosity to Monticello was -an annoyance which at times was almost painful to one of as retiring -a disposition as he was. These visitors came at all hours and all -seasons, and when unable to catch a glimpse of him in any other -way, they not unfrequently begged to be allowed to sit in the hall, -where, waiting until the dinner-hour arrived, they saw him as he -passed through from his private apartments to his dining-room. On one -occasion a female visitor, who was peering around the house, punched -her parasol through a window-pane to get a better view of him. - -The following letter from one of Mr. Jefferson's grand-daughters, -which I take from Randall's Life of Jefferson, and the extracts which -I also give from Dr. Dunglison's Memoranda, will give the reader a -correct idea of the tax which such an influx of visitors must have -been on an estate already groaning under debt: - - ----, 1856. - - My dear Mr. Randall--.... Mr. Jefferson was not an improvident - man. He had habits of order and economy, was regular in keeping - his accounts, knew the value of money, and was in no way - disposed to waste it. He was simple in his tastes, careful, and - spent very little on himself. 'Tis not true that he threw away - his money in fantastic projects and theoretical experiments. He - was eminently a practical man. He was, during all the years that - I knew him, very liberal, but never extravagant.... - - To return to his visitors: they came of all nations, at all - times, and paid longer or shorter visits. I have known a New - England judge bring a letter of introduction to my grandfather, - and stay three weeks. The learned Abbé Correa, always a welcome - guest, passed some weeks of each year with us during the whole - time of his stay in the country. We had persons from abroad, - from all the States of the Union, from every part of the - State--men, women, and children. In short, almost every day, for - at least eight months of the year, brought its contingent of - guests. People of wealth, fashion, men in office, professional - men, military and civil, lawyers, doctors, Protestant clergymen, - Catholic priests, members of Congress, foreign ministers, - missionaries, Indian agents, tourists, travellers, artists, - strangers, friends. Some came from affection and respect, some - from curiosity, some to give or receive advice or instruction, - some from idleness, some because others set the example, and - very varied, amusing, and agreeable was the society afforded - by this influx of guests. I have listened to very remarkable - conversations carried on round the table, the fireside, or in - the summer drawing-room.... - - There were few eminent men of our country, except, perhaps, some - political adversaries, who did not visit him in his retirement, - to say nothing of distinguished foreigners. Life at Monticello - was on an easy and informal footing. Mr. Jefferson always made - his appearance at an early breakfast, but his mornings were - most commonly devoted to his own occupations, and it was at - dinner, after dinner, and in the evening, that he gave himself - up to the society of his family and his guests. Visitors were - left free to employ themselves as they liked during the morning - hours--to walk, read, or seek companionship with the ladies of - the family and each other. M. Correa passed his time in the - fields and the woods; some gentlemen preferred the library; - others the drawing-room; others the quiet of their own chambers; - or they strolled down the mountain side and under the shade of - the trees. The ladies in like manner consulted their ease and - inclinations, and whiled away the time as best they might. - - ELLEN W. COOLIDGE. - -Dr. Dunglison says in his Memoranda: - - His daughter, Mrs. Randolph, or one of the grand-daughters, - took the head of the table; he himself sat near the other end, - and almost always some visitors were present. The pilgrimage - to Monticello was a favorite one with him who aspired to the - rank of the patriot and the philanthropist; but it was too - often undertaken from idle curiosity, and could not, under such - circumstances, have afforded pleasure to, while it entailed - unrequited expense on, its distinguished proprietor. More than - once, indeed, the annoyance has been the subject of regretful - animadversion. Monticello, like Montpellier, the seat of Mr. - Madison, was some miles distant from any tavern, and hence, - without sufficient consideration, the traveller not only availed - himself of the hospitality of the ex-Presidents, but inflicted - upon them the expenses of his quadrupeds. On one occasion at - Montpellier, where my wife and myself were paying a visit to Mr. - and Mrs. Madison, no fewer than nine horses were entertained - during the night; and in reply to some observation which the - circumstances engendered, Mr. Madison remarked, that while he - was delighted with the society of the owners, he confessed he - had not so much feeling for the horses. - - Sitting one evening in the porch of Monticello, two gigs drove - up, each containing a gentleman and lady. It appeared to me to - be evidently the desire of the party to be invited to stay all - night. One of the gentlemen came up to the porch and saluted - Mr. Jefferson, stating that they claimed the privilege of - American citizens in paying their respects to the President, - and inspecting Monticello. Mr. Jefferson received them with - marked politeness, and told them they were at liberty to look at - every thing around, but as they did not receive an invitation - to spend the night, they left in the dusk and returned to - Charlottesville. Mr. Jefferson, on that occasion, could hardly - avoid an expression of impatience at the repeated though - complimentary intrusions to which he was exposed. - - In Mr. Jefferson's embarrassed circumstances in the evening - of life, the immense influx of visitors could not fail to be - attended with much inconvenience. I had the curiosity to ask - Mrs. Randolph what was the largest number of persons for whom - she had been called upon unexpectedly to prepare accommodations - for the night, and she replied _fifty_! - - In a country like our own there is a curiosity to know - personally those who have been called to fill the highest - office in the Republic, and he who has attained this eminence - must have formed a number of acquaintances who are eager to - visit him in his retirement, so that when his salary as the - first officer of the state ceases, the duties belonging to it - do not cease simultaneously; and I confess I have no sympathy - with the feeling of economy, political or social, which denies - to the ex-President a retiring allowance, which may enable him - to pass the remainder of his days in that useful and dignified - hospitality which seems to be demanded, by the citizens, of one - who has presided over them.... - - At all times dignified, and by no means easy of approach to - all, he was generally communicative to those on whom he could - rely. In his own house he was occasionally free in his speech, - even to imprudence, to those of whom he did not know enough - to be satisfied that an improper use might not be made of his - candor. As an example of this, I recollect a person from Rhode - Island visiting the University, and being introduced to Mr. - Jefferson by one of my colleagues. The person did not impress - me favorably; and when I rode up to Monticello, I found that - no better impression had been made by him on Mr. Jefferson and - Mrs. Randolph. His adhesiveness was such that he had occupied - the valuable time of Mr. Jefferson the whole morning, and - staid to dinner; and during the conversation Mr. Jefferson was - apprehensive that he had said something which might have been - misunderstood and be incorrectly repeated. He therefore asked - me to find the gentleman, if he had not left Charlottesville, - and request him to pay another visit to Monticello. He had - left, however, when I returned, but I never discovered he had - abused the frankness of Mr. Jefferson. Mr. Jefferson took the - occasion of saying to me how cautious his friends ought to be - in regard to the persons they introduced to him. It would have - been singular if, in the numerous visitors, some had not been - found to narrate the private conversations held with such men as - Jefferson and Madison. - -The foregoing statements and extracts present a faithful picture -of the circumstances beyond his control which tended to hopelessly -involve Mr. Jefferson in pecuniary embarrassments. These were -still further aggravated by the outbreak of the war of 1812, whose -disastrous consequences to Virginia farmers are thus graphically and -sadly depicted by him in a letter to Mr. Short: - - These are my views of the war. They embrace a great deal of - sufferance, trying privations, and no benefit but that of - teaching our enemy that he is never to gain by wanton injuries - on us. To me this state of things brings a sacrifice of all - tranquillity and comfort through the residue of life. For - although the debility of age disables me from the services - and sufferings of the field, yet, by the total annihilation - in value of the produce which was to give me subsistence and - independence, I shall be, like Tantalus, up to the shoulders - in water, yet dying with thirst. We can make, indeed, enough - to eat, drink, and clothe ourselves; but nothing for our - salt, iron, groceries, and taxes, which must be paid in money. - For what can we raise for the market? Wheat? we can only give - it to our horses, as we have been doing ever since harvest. - Tobacco? it is not worth the pipe it is smoked in. Some say - whisky; but all mankind must become drunkards to consume it. - But although we feel, we shall not flinch. We must consider - now, as in the Revolutionary war, that although the evils of - resistance are great, those of submission would be greater. We - must meet, therefore, the former as the casualties of tempests - and earthquakes, and, like them, necessarily resulting from the - constitution of the world. - -There was then nothing to be made from farming; but while his -income was thus cut short, his company and his debts continued to -increase. In this emergency something had to be done; and the only -thing which offered itself involved a sacrifice which none but his -own family, who witnessed the struggle it cost him, could ever fully -appreciate--I allude to the sale of his library. - -The British having burnt the Congressional Library at Washington -in 1814, he seized that occasion to write to a friend in -Congress--Samuel H. Smith--and offer his library at whatever price -Congress should decide to be just. His letter making this offer -is manly and business-like, and contains not one word of repining -at the stern necessity which forced him to part with his literary -treasures--the books which in every change in the tide of his -eventful life had ever remained to him as old friends with unchanged -faces, and whose silent companionship had afforded him--next to -the love of his friends--the sweetest and purest joys of life. The -following extract from this letter shows how valuable his collection -of books was: - - You know my collection, its condition and extent. I have been - fifty years making it, and have spared no pains, opportunity, - or expense, to make it what it is. While residing in Paris, - I devoted every afternoon I was disengaged, for a summer or - two, in examining all the principal bookstores, turning over - every book with my own hand, and putting by every thing which - related to America, and, indeed, whatever is rare and valuable - in every science. Besides this, I had standing orders during - the whole time I was in Europe on its principal book-marts, - particularly Amsterdam, Frankfort, Madrid, and London, for - such works relating to America as could not be found in Paris. - So that in that department particularly such a collection was - made as probably can never again be effected, because it is - hardly probable that the same opportunities, the same time, - industry, perseverance, and expense, with some knowledge of - the bibliography of the subject, would again happen to be in - concurrence. During the same period, and after my return to - America, I was led to procure, also, whatever related to the - duties of those in the high concerns of the nation. So that the - collection, which I suppose is of between nine and ten thousand - volumes, while it includes what is chiefly valuable in science - and literature generally, extends more particularly to whatever - belongs to the American Statesman. - -It is sad to think that such a man as Jefferson, whose fortunes had -been ruined by the demands which his country had made on him, should -have been forced, so late in life, to sell such a library to pay -debts which he was in no wise responsible for having incurred. And -yet, though it was known that the purchase of the library would be a -pecuniary relief to him, the bill authorizing it was not passed in -Congress without decided opposition, and the amount finally voted -($23,950) as the price to be paid for the books was probably but -little over half their original cost, though they were all in a -perfect state of preservation. - -The money received for the books proved to be only a temporary -relief. The country had not recovered from the depression of its -agricultural interests when a disastrous financial crisis burst upon -it. A vivid but melancholy picture of this period is found in Colonel -Benton's Thirty Years' View: - - The years of 1819 and 1820 were a period of gloom and agony. No - money, either gold or silver: no paper convertible into specie: - no measure or standard of value left remaining. The local banks - (all but those of New England), after a brief resumption of - specie payments, again sank into a state of suspension. The - bank of the United States, created as a remedy for all those - evils, now at the head of the evil, prostrate and helpless, with - no power left but that of suing its debtors and selling their - property, and purchasing for itself at its own nominal price. No - price for property or produce; no sales but those of the sheriff - and the marshal; no purchasers at the execution-sales but the - creditor, or some hoarder of money; no employment for industry; - no demand for labor; no sale for the product of the farm; no - sound of the hammer, but that of the auctioneer, knocking down - property. Stop laws, property laws, replevin laws, stay laws, - loan-office laws, the intervention of the legislator between the - creditor and the debtor--this was the business of legislation - in three-fourths of the States of the Union--of all south and - west of New England. No medium of exchange but depreciated - paper; no change, even, but little bits of foul paper, marked so - many cents, and signed by some tradesman, barber, or innkeeper; - exchanges deranged to the extent of fifty or one hundred per - cent. Distress the universal cry of the people; relief, the - universal demand, thundered at the door of all legislatures, - State and federal. - -Happy the man who, having his house set in order, was able to -withstand the blasts of this financial tornado. To Jefferson, -with his estates burdened with debt, their produce a drug in the -market, and his house constantly crowded with guests, this crisis -was fatal. At the time he did not feel its practical effects in -their full force, for, as we have seen in a previous chapter, he -had placed, in the year 1816, the management of his affairs in the -hands of his grandson, Thomas Jefferson Randolph. I have elsewhere -alluded to the constant and peculiar devotion of this grandfather -and grandson to each other. When he took charge of his grandfather's -affairs young Randolph threw himself into the breach, and, from that -time until Mr. Jefferson's death, made it the aim of his life as -far as possible to alleviate his financial condition, and to this -end devoted all the energy and ardor of his youth as well as his -own private fortune. I have lying before me an account signed by -Mr. Jefferson a few weeks before his death, which shows that this -grandson had interposed himself between him and his creditors to the -amount of $58,536. Another paper before me, signed by Mr. Jefferson's -commission-merchant, shows that he, the commission-merchant, was -guaranteed by Mr. Randolph against any loss from endorsation, -over-draught, or other responsibility which he had incurred, or might -incur, on his grandfather's account; that these responsibilities -were all met by him, and that nevertheless, by his directions, Mr. -Jefferson's crops were placed in the hands of his commission-merchant -on Mr. Jefferson's account, and were drawn out solely to his order. -When, at the winding up of Mr. Jefferson's estate after his death, -it was found that his debts exceeded the value of his property by -$40,000, this same grandson pledged himself to make good the deficit, -which, by his untiring and unaided efforts, he succeeded in doing in -the course of some years, having in that time paid all that was due -to Jefferson's creditors.[69] - - [69] The bankruptcy of Mr. Jefferson has been attributed, but - erroneously, to the failure of one of his warm personal friends, - for whom he had endorsed heavily. This misfortune simply added to - his embarrassment, and was doubtless the "coup-de-grâce;" but the - same result must have ensued had this complication not occurred. - It is gratifying to know that the friendship previously existing - between the parties was not in the least disturbed, and that the - injury inflicted was subsequently partially repaid by the sale of - land relinquished for the purpose. - -The letters written by Jefferson during the rest of his life betray -much mental suffering, and present a picture most painful to -contemplate; showing, as it does, that however beneficial to the -public his services to his country had been, on himself they were -allowed to entail bankruptcy and ruin. The editor of the Jefferson -and Cabell correspondence, on reaching the letters which cover this -period of Mr. Jefferson's life, puts the following appropriate note: - - The few remaining letters of the series relate not solely to the - great subject of Education, but in some measure to Mr. J.'s - private affairs, which had now become hopelessly embarrassed--a - liability from which no citizen can claim entire exemption under - our peculiar institutions. The reflections to which this gives - rise would be too painful, had not the facts been already given - to the public through other channels. That under such pressure - he should have been able to continue his efforts and counsels - in behalf of the public interests with which he had been - charged,[70] must excite our admiration; and still more when we - observe the dignity with which he bore up under reverses that - would have crushed the spirit of many a younger and stouter man. - - [70] Alluding to his efforts in behalf of the University. - -The following extract from a letter written early in the year 1826 -to his friend Mr. J. C. Cabell, who was then in the Legislature of -Virginia, explains itself: - - My grandson, Thomas J. Randolph, attends the Legislature on a - subject of ultimate importance to my future happiness.... My - application to the Legislature is for permission to dispose of - property for payment in a way[71] which, bringing a fair price - for it, may pay my debts and leave a living for myself in my - old age, and leave something for my family. Their consent is - necessary, it will injure no man, and few sessions pass without - similar exercises of the same power in their discretion. But I - refer you to my grandson for particular explanations. I think it - just myself; and if it should appear so to you, I am sure your - friendship as well as justice will induce you to pay to it the - attention which you may think the case will justify. To me it is - almost a question of life and death. - - [71] By lottery. - -The generous-hearted Cabell in reply writes: - - I assure you I was truly distressed to receive your letter of - the 20th, and to hear the embarrassed state of your affairs. You - may rely on my utmost exertions. Your grandson proposed that the - first conference should be held at the Eagle. I prevailed on - him to remove the scene to Judge Carr's, and to invite all the - Judges of the Court of Appeals. Mr. Coalter and my brother were - unable to attend; but all the court is with you. Mr. Johnson - agreed to draw the bill. I am co-operating as far as lies in my - power. I wish complete justice could be done on this occasion; - but we have to deal with men as they are. Your grandson will - no doubt give you the fullest information. I will occasionally - inform you how matters are progressing. - -Shortly after writing to Mr. Cabell we find him drawing up a paper, -to be shown to his friends in the Legislature, called "Thoughts on -Lotteries," which was written to show that there could be nothing -immoral in the lottery which he desired. The following quotation -shows that his request was not without a precedent: - - In this way the great estate of the late Colonel Byrd (in 1756) - was made competent to pay his debts, which, had the whole been - brought into market at once, would have overdone the demand, - would have sold at half or quarter the value, and sacrificed the - creditors, half or three-fourths of whom would have lost their - debts. This method of selling was formerly very much resorted - to, until it was thought to nourish too much a spirit of hazard. - The Legislature were therefore induced, not to suppress it - altogether, but to take it under their own special regulation. - This they did for the first time by their act of 1769, c. 17, - before which time every person exercised the right freely, and - since which time it is made unlawful but when approved and - authorized by a special act of the Legislature. - -In this same paper he sums up as follows the years spent in the -public service: - - I came of age in 1764, and was soon put into the nomination - of justice of the county in which I live; and at the first - election following I became one of its representatives in - the Legislature. I was thence sent to the old Congress. Then - employed two years with Mr. Pendleton and Mr. Wythe, on the - revisal and reduction to a single code of the whole body of the - British statutes, the acts of our Assembly, and certain parts of - the common law. Then elected Governor. Next, to the Legislature - and Congress again. Sent to Europe as Minister Plenipotentiary. - Appointed Secretary of State to the new Government. Elected - Vice-President, and President. And lastly, a Visitor and Rector - of the University. - - In these different offices, with scarcely any interval between - them, I have been in the public service now sixty-one years; and - during the far greater part of the time in foreign countries - or in other States. Every one knows how inevitably a Virginia - estate goes to ruin when the owner is so far distant as to be - unable to pay attention to it himself; and the more especially - when the line of his employment is of a character to abstract - and alienate his mind entirely from the knowledge necessary to - good and even to saving management. - -Small and trifling as the favor was which Mr. Jefferson asked of the -Virginia Legislature, it cost him much pain and mortification to do -it, as we find from a sad and touching letter to Madison, in which he -unbosoms himself to this long-cherished friend. He writes: - - You will have seen in the newspapers some proceedings in the - Legislature which have cost me much mortification.... Still, - sales at a fair price would leave me competently provided. Had - crops and prices for several years been such as to maintain a - steady competition of substantial bidders at market, all would - have been safe. But the long succession of years of stunted - crops, of reduced prices, the general prostration of the farming - business, under levies for the support of manufactures, etc., - with the calamitous fluctuations of value in our paper medium, - have kept agriculture in a state of abject depression, which - has peopled the Western States by silently breaking up those - on the Atlantic, and glutted the land-market while it drew off - its bidders. In such a state of things property has lost its - character of being a resource for debts. Highland in Bedford, - which, in the days of our plethory, sold readily for from fifty - to one hundred dollars the acre (and such sales were many then), - would not now sell for more than from ten to twenty dollars, - or one-quarter or one-fifth of its former price. Reflecting on - these things, the practice occurred to me of selling on fair - valuation, and by way of lottery, often resorted to before the - Revolution to effect large sales, and still in constant usage in - every State for individual as well as corporation purposes. If - it is permitted in my case, my lands here alone, with the mills, - etc., will pay every thing, and will leave me Monticello and a - farm free. If refused, I must sell every thing here, perhaps - considerably in Bedford, move thither with my family, where - I have not even a log hut to put my head into,[72] and where - ground for burial will depend on the depredations which, under - the form of sales, shall have been committed on my property. - - [72] The house at Poplar Forest had passed out of his possession. - -The question then with me was _utrum horum_. But why afflict you with -these details? Indeed, I can not tell, unless pains are lessened -by communication with a friend. The friendship which has subsisted -between us, now half a century, and the harmony of our political -principles and pursuits, have been sources of constant happiness to -me through that long period. And if I remove beyond the reach of -attentions to the University, or beyond the bourne of life itself, -as I soon must, it is a comfort to leave that institution under your -care, and an assurance that it will not be wanting. It has also been -a great solace to me to believe that you are engaged in vindicating -to posterity the course we have pursued for preserving to them in all -their purity the blessings of self-government, which we had assisted, -too, in acquiring for them. If ever the earth has beheld a system -of administration conducted with a single and steadfast eye to the -general interest and happiness of those committed to it; one which, -protected by truth, can never know reproach, it is that to which our -lives have been devoted. To myself you have been a pillar of support -through life. Take care of me when dead, and be assured that I shall -leave with you my last affections. - -On the 3d of February, 1826, Mr. Cabell wrote to Jefferson: - - Your intended application to the Legislature has excited much - discussion in private circles in Richmond. Your grandson will - doubtless give you a full account of passing occurrences. A - second conference was held at Mr. Baker's last evening, at - which were four of the Judges of the Court of Appeals, and - several members of the Legislature. Finding considerable - opposition in some of your political friends to the lottery, - and feeling mortified myself that the State should stop short - at so limited a measure, I suggested the idea of a loan of - $80,000, free of interest, from the State, during the remainder - of your life. On consultation, our friends decided that it would - be impracticable. At the conference of last evening it was - unanimously decided to bring forward and support the lottery. - I hear there will be considerable opposition, but I hope it is - exaggerated. I do not think that delay would be injurious, as in - every case I have found the first impression the worst. Would to - God that I had the power to raise the mind of the Legislature to - a just conception of its duties on the present occasion. Knowing - so well as I do how much you have done for us, I have some idea - of what we ought to do for you. - -The following extract from a letter written on February 4th by -Jefferson to his grandson portrays vividly and painfully the agonized -state of his mind about his affairs: - - Your letter of the 31st was received yesterday, and gave me a - fine night's rest, which I had not had before since you left - us, as the failure to hear from you by the preceding mail had - filled me with fearful forebodings. I am pleased with the train - you are proceeding in, and particularly with the appointment of - valuers. Under all circumstances I think I may expect a liberal - valuation; an exaggerated one I should negative myself. I would - not be stained with the suspicions of selfishness at this time - of life, and this will protect me from them. I hope the paper I - gave you will justify me in the eyes of all those who have been - consulted. - -This gleam of hope which so cheered up the old man's sinking heart -was soon to be extinguished. His friends found, on feeling the pulse -of the Legislature, that his simple request to be allowed to sell -his property by lottery would meet with violent opposition, if not -absolute defeat, in that body. On his good friend Cabell devolved the -painful duty of communicating this intelligence to him, which he did -with all the feeling and delicacy of his chivalrous nature. - -The shock to Jefferson was great, and we find him, not without some -bitterness, replying: - - I had hoped the length and character of my services might have - prevented the fear in the Legislature of the indulgence asked - being quoted as a precedent in future cases. But I find no fault - with their strict adherence to a rule generally useful, although - relaxable in some cases, under their discretion, of which they - are the proper judges. - -And again, in another letter to Cabell, he concludes sadly: - - Whatever may be the sentence to be pronounced in my particular - case, the efforts of my friends are so visible, the impressions - so profoundly sunk to the bottom of my heart, that they can - never be obliterated. They plant there a consolation which - countervails whatever other indications might seem to import. - The report of the Committee of Finance particularly is balm - to my soul. Thanks to you all, and warm and affectionate - acknowledgments. I count on nothing now. I am taught to know my - standard, and have to meet with no further disappointment. - -Well might such bitterness as this last sentence contained have -been wrung from him, for the Legislature granted leave for the -bill to be brought in by a bare majority of _four_. The noble and -generous-hearted Cabell, on communicating this intelligence to him, -adds: "I blush for my country, and am humiliated to think how we -shall appear on the page of history." - -Perhaps nothing more beautiful or more touching ever flowed from his -pen than the following letter to his grandson; giving, as it does, -such a picture of his affections, his Christian resignation, manly -courage, and willingness to bear up under adversity, for the sake of -doing good to those he loved. - - -_To Thomas J. Randolph._ - - Monticello, February 8th, '26. - - My dear Jefferson--I duly received your affectionate letter - of the 3d, and perceive there are greater doubts than I had - apprehended whether the Legislature will indulge my request to - them. It is a part of my mortification to perceive that I had - so far overvalued myself as to have counted on it with too much - confidence. I see, in the failure of this hope, a deadly blast - of all my peace of mind during my remaining days. You kindly - encourage me to keep up my spirits; but, oppressed with disease, - debility, age, and embarrassed affairs, this is difficult. For - myself I should not regard a prostration of fortune, but I am - overwhelmed at the prospect of the situation in which I may - leave my family. My dear and beloved daughter, the cherished - companion of my early life, and nurse of my age, and her - children, rendered as dear to me as if my own, from having lived - with me from their cradle, left in a comfortless situation, - hold up to me nothing but future gloom; and I should not care - were life to end with the line I am writing, were it not that - in the unhappy state of mind which your father's misfortunes - have brought upon him, I may yet be of some avail to the family. - Their affectionate devotion to me makes a willingness to endure - life a duty, as long as it can be of any use to them. Yourself - particularly, dear Jefferson, I consider as the greatest of - the Godsends which heaven has granted to me. Without you what - could I do under the difficulties now environing me? These have - been produced, in some degree, by my own unskillful management, - and devoting my time to the service of my country, but much - also by the unfortunate fluctuation in the value of our money, - and the long-continued depression of farming business. But - for these last I am confident my debts might be paid, leaving - me Monticello and the Bedford estate; but where there are - no bidders, property, however great, is no resource for the - payment of debts; all may go for little or nothing. Perhaps, - however, even in this case I may have no right to complain, as - these misfortunes have been held back for my last days, when - few remain to me. I duly acknowledge that I have gone through - a long life with fewer circumstances of affliction than are - the lot of most men--uninterrupted health--a competence for - every reasonable want--usefulness to my fellow-citizens--a good - portion of their esteem--no complaint against the world which - has sufficiently honored me, and, above all, a family which has - blessed me by their affections, and never by their conduct - given me a moment's pain--and should this, my last request, be - granted, I may yet close with a cloudless sun a long and serene - day of life. Be assured, my dear Jefferson, that I have a just - sense of the part you have contributed to this, and that I bear - you unmeasured affection. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -What a world of suffering and mental anguish this letter reveals! -Three days after it was written his eldest grandchild, Mrs. Anne -Bankhead, died. In alluding to his distress on this occasion, Dr. -Dunglison says, in his Memoranda: "On the last day of the fatal -illness of his grand-daughter, who had married Mr. Bankhead.... -Mr. Jefferson was present in the adjoining apartment; and when the -announcement was made by me that but little hope remained, that she -was, indeed, past hope, it is impossible to imagine more poignant -distress than was exhibited by him. He shed tears, and abandoned -himself to every evidence of intense grief." - -Mr. Jefferson announced the death of this grand-daughter to her -brother, then in Richmond, in the following touchingly-written note: - - -_To Thomas Jefferson Randolph._ - - Monticello, Feb. 11th, '26. - - Bad news, my dear Jefferson, as to your sister Anne. She expired - about half an hour ago. I have been so ill for several days - that I could not go to see her till this morning, and found - her speechless and insensible. She breathed her last about 11 - o'clock. Heaven seems to be overwhelming us with every form of - misfortune, and I expect your next will give me the _coup de - grâce_. Your own family are all well. Affectionately adieu. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -I now hasten to drop the curtain on this painful period of his life. -The bill for the lottery was still before the Legislature when the -people of Richmond held a meeting and passed resolutions to approve -its being adopted. Finally the Legislature passed the bill, on the -20th of February, by a vote in the Senate of ayes thirteen, nays -four. During the next few months meetings indorsing the action of -the Legislature were held in different parts of the State. We quote -the following preamble to the Resolutions that were passed at a -meeting held in Nelson County, though no action resulted from the -meeting: - - The undersigned citizens of Nelson County, concurring cordially - in the views lately expressed by their fellow-citizens at - the seat of government,[73] and heartily sympathizing in the - sentiments of grateful respect and affectionate regard recently - evinced both there and elsewhere for their countryman, Thomas - Jefferson, can not disguise the sincere satisfaction which they - derive from the prospect of a general co-operation to relieve - this ancient and distinguished patriot. The important services - for which we are indebted to Mr. Jefferson, from the days of - his youth, when he drew upon himself the resentment of Dunmore, - to the present time, when, at the close of a long life, he - is laboring to enlighten the nation which he has contributed - to make free, place him in the highest rank of national - benefactors, and eminently entitle him to the character of the - people's friend. Whether considered as the servant of the State - or of the United States; whether regarded as an advocate or a - statesman; whether as a patriot, a legislator, a philosopher, - or a friend of liberty and republican government, he is the - unquestioned ornament of his country, and unites in himself - every title to our respect, our veneration, and gratitude. His - services are written in the hearts of a grateful people; they - are identified with the fundamental institutions of his country; - they entitle him to "the fairest page of faithful history;" and - will be remembered as long as reason and science are respected - on earth. Profoundly impressed with these sentiments, the - undersigned citizens of Nelson County consider it compatible - with neither the national character nor with the gratitude of - the Republic that this aged patriot should be deprived of his - estate or abridged in his comforts at the close of a long life - so ably spent in the service of his country.[74] - - [73] Alluding to the meeting in Richmond. - - [74] This handsome tribute to Jefferson, concluding with such - a delicate appeal to the gratitude of his countrymen for his - relief, was penned by his friend, J. C. Cabell. - -Fair words these, but barren as the desert air. From his own State -Mr. Jefferson received no aid whatever; but other States came to his -relief in a manner which was both gratifying and efficient. Without -effort, Philip Hone, the Mayor of New York, raised $8500, which he -transmitted to Mr. Jefferson on behalf of the citizens of New York; -from Philadelphia he received $5000, and from Baltimore $3000. These -sums were promptly sent as soon as his embarrassed circumstances -became known. He was much touched by this proof of the affection and -esteem of his countrymen, and feelingly exclaimed: "No cent of this -is wrung from the tax-payer--it is the pure and unsolicited offering -of love." - -Happily, he died unconscious that the sales of his property would -fail to pay his debts, that his beautiful home would pass into the -hands of strangers, and that his "dear and beloved daughter" would -go forth into the world penniless, as its doors were closed upon her -forever.[75] - - [75] On learning the destitute condition in which Mrs. Randolph - was left, the Legislature of South Carolina at once presented her - with $10,000; and Louisiana, following her example, generously - gave the same sum--acts which will ever be gratefully remembered - by the descendants of Martha Jefferson. - -The following quotation from a French writer--one by no means -friendly to Jefferson--forms a fitting conclusion for this sad -chapter of his life. After alluding to the grand outburst of popular -feeling displayed in the funeral orations throughout the country on -the deaths of Adams and Jefferson, he says: - - But the nobler emotions of democracy are of short duration: it - soon forgets its most faithful servants. Six months had not - elapsed when Jefferson's furniture was sold at auction to pay - his debts, when Monticello and Poplar Forest were advertised for - sale at the street corners, and when the daughter of him whom - America had called "the father of democracy" had no longer a - place to rest her head.[76] - - [76] Thomas Jefferson, Étude Historique sur la Démocratie - Américaine; par Cornelis De Witt, p. 380. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - - Letter to Namesake.--To John Adams.--Declining Health.--Dr. - Dunglison's Memoranda.--Tenderness to his Family.--Accounts of - his Death by Dr. Dunglison and Colonel Randolph.--Farewell to - his Daughter.--Directions for a Tombstone.--It is erected by his - Grandson.--Shameful Desecration of Tombstones at Monticello. - - -A friend and admirer of Jefferson's, who had named a son after him, -requested that he would write a letter of advice for his young -namesake. Jefferson accordingly wrote the following beautiful note to -be kept for him until the young child came to years of understanding: - - -_To Thomas Jefferson Smith._ - - This letter will, to you, be as one from the dead. The writer - will be in the grave before you can weigh its counsels. Your - affectionate and excellent father has requested that I would - address to you something which might possibly have a favorable - influence on the course of life you have to run; and I too, - as a namesake, feel an interest in that course. Few words - will be necessary, with good dispositions on your part. Adore - God. Reverence and cherish your parents. Love your neighbor - as yourself, and your country more than yourself. Be just. Be - true. Murmur not at the ways of Providence. So shall the life - into which you have entered, be the portal to one of eternal - and ineffable bliss. And if to the dead it is permitted to care - for the things of this world, every action of your life will be - under my regard. Farewell. - - Monticello, February 21st, 1825. - - - _The Portrait of a Good Man by the most sublime of Poets, for - your Imitation._ - - Lord, who's the happy man that may to thy blest courts repair; - Not stranger-like to visit them, but to inhabit there? - 'Tis he whose every thought and deed by rules of virtue moves; - Whose generous tongue disdains to speak the thing his heart - disproves. - - Who never did a slander forge, his neighbor's fame to wound; - Nor hearken to a false report by malice whispered round. - - Who vice in all its pomp and power, can treat with just neglect; - And piety, though clothed in rags, religiously respect. - - Who to his plighted vows and trust has ever firmly stood; - And though he promise to his loss, he makes his promise good. - - Whose soul in usury disdains his treasure to employ; - Whom no rewards can ever bribe the guiltless to destroy. - - The man who, by this steady course, has happiness insured, - When earth's foundations shake, shall stand by Providence secured. - - - _A Decalogue of Canons for Observation in Practical Life._ - - 1. Never put off till to-morrow what you can do to-day. - 2. Never trouble another for what you can do yourself. - 3. Never spend your money before you have it. - 4. Never buy what you do not want because it is cheap; it will be - dear to you. - 5. Pride costs us more than hunger, thirst, and cold. - 6. We never repent of having eaten too little. - 7. Nothing is troublesome that we do willingly. - 8. How much pain have cost us the evils which have never happened. - 9. Take things always by their smooth handle. - 10. When angry, count ten before you speak; if very angry, - an hundred. - -A little more than a year after the date of this letter we find -Jefferson writing his last letter to John Adams. The playful tone -in which it is written gives no evidence of the suffering from the -disease under which he was laboring at the time. - - -_To John Adams._ - - Monticello, March 25th, 1826. - - Dear Sir--My grandson, Thomas J. Randolph, the bearer of this - letter, being on a visit to Boston, would think he had seen - nothing were he to leave without seeing you. Although I truly - sympathize with you in the trouble these interruptions give, - yet I must ask for him permission to pay to you his personal - respects. Like other young people, he wishes to be able, in the - winter nights of old age, to recount to those around him what he - has heard and learnt of the heroic age preceding his birth, and - which of the Argonauts individually he was in time to have seen. - - It was the lot of our early years to witness nothing but the - dull monotony of a colonial subservience, and of our riper years - to breast the labors and perils of working out of it. Theirs are - the halcyon calms succeeding the storms which our Argosy had so - stoutly weathered. Gratify his ambition, then, by receiving his - best bow, and my solicitude for your health, by enabling him to - bring me a favorable account of it. Mine is but indifferent, but - not so my friendship and respect for you. - - TH. JEFFERSON. - -The leaders of different parties bitterly opposed to each other, and -living at a time when party spirit ran so high, there is something -remarkable, as well as beautiful, in the friendship which existed -between these two distinguished men, and which, surviving all -political differences and rivalry, expired only on the same day which -saw them both breathe their last.[77] - - [77] Without meaning the least irreverence in the world to the - memory of these two great and good men, I can not refrain here - from giving the reader the benefit of a good story, which has the - advantage over most good stories of being strictly true: - - There was living in Albemarle, at the time of Jefferson's - death, an enthusiastic democrat, who, admiring him beyond all - men, thought that, by dying on the 4th of July, he had raised - himself and his party one step higher in the temple of fame. Then - came the news that John Adams had died on the same great day. - Indignant at the bare suggestion of such a thing, he at first - refused to believe it, and, when he could no longer discredit - the news, exclaimed, in a passion, that "it was a damned Yankee - trick." - -In the spring of the year 1826 Jefferson's family became aware that -his health was failing rapidly. Of this he had been conscious himself -for some time previous. Though enfeebled by age and disease, he -turned a deaf ear to Mrs. Randolph's entreaties that he would allow -his faithful servant, Burwell, to accompany him in his daily rides. -He said, if his family insisted, that he would give up his rides -entirely; but that he had "helped himself" from his childhood, and -that the presence of a servant in his daily musings with nature would -be irksome to him. So, until within a very short time of his death, -old Eagle was brought up every day, even when his venerable master -was so weak that he could only get into the saddle by stepping down -from the terrace. - -As he felt the sands of life running low, his love for his family -seemed to increase in tenderness. Mr. Randall says, in his excellent -biography of him, in alluding to this period: - - Mr. Jefferson's deportment to his family was touching. He - evidently made an effort to keep up their spirits. He was as - gentle as a child, but conversed with such vigor and animation - that they would have often cheated themselves with the belief - that months, if not years, of life were in store for him, and - that he himself was in no expectation of speedy death, had they - not witnessed the infant-like debility of his powerful frame, - and had they not occasionally, when they looked suddenly at him, - caught resting on themselves that riveted and intensely-loving - gaze which showed but too plainly that his thoughts were on a - rapidly-approaching parting. And as he folded each in his arms - as they separated for the night, there was a fervor in his kiss - and gaze that declared as audibly as words that he felt the - farewell might prove a final one. - -In speaking of his private life, Dr. Dunglison, in his Memoranda, -says: - - The opportunities I had of witnessing the private life of Mr. - Jefferson were numerous. It was impossible for any one to be - more amiable in his domestic relations; it was delightful to - observe the devoted and respectful attention that was paid him - by all the family. In the neighborhood, too, he was greatly - revered. Perhaps, however, according to the all-wise remark that - no one is a prophet in his own country, he had more personal - detractors there, partly owing to difference in political - sentiments, which are apt to engender so much unworthy acrimony - of feeling; but still more, perhaps, owing to the views which he - was supposed to possess on the subject of religion; yet it was - well known that he did not withhold his aid when a church had - to be established in the neighborhood, and that he subscribed - largely to the Episcopal church erected in Charlottesville. - After his death much sectarian intolerance was exhibited, owing - to the publication of certain of his letters, in which he - animadverted on the Presbyterians more especially; yet there - could not have been a more unfounded assertion than that of - a Philadelphia Episcopal divine that "Mr. Jefferson's memory - was detested in Charlottesville and the vicinity." It is due, - also, to that illustrious individual to say, that, in all my - intercourse with him, I never heard an observation that savored, - in the slightest degree, of impiety. His religious belief - harmonized more closely with that of the Unitarians than of any - other denomination, but it was liberal, and untrammelled by - sectarian feelings and prejudices. It is not easy to find more - sound advice, more appropriately expressed, than in the letter - which he wrote to Thomas Jefferson Smith, dated February 21st, - 1825.[78] - - [78] See page 419. - -It was beautiful, too, to witness the deference that was paid by -Mr. Jefferson and Mr. Madison to each other's opinions. When as -secretary, and as chairman of the faculty, I had to consult one -of them, it was a common interrogatory, What did the other say of -the matter? If possible, Mr. Madison gave indications of a greater -intensity of this feeling, and seemed to think that every thing -emanating from his ancient associate must be correct. In a letter -which Mr. Jefferson wrote to Mr. Madison a few months only before he -died (February 17th, 1826), he thus charmingly expresses himself. -[Here follows the conclusion of a letter to Mr. Madison already -given, beginning at the words "The friendship which has subsisted -between us," etc.] - -Mr. Randall gives us, in his work, the following accounts of his -last hours and death, written by two of those who were present--Dr. -Dunglison and his grandson, Colonel T. J. Randolph. I give Dr. -Dunglison's first: - - In the spring of 1826 the health of Mr. Jefferson became more - impaired; his nutrition fell off; and at the approach of summer - he was troubled with diarrhoea, to which he had been liable for - some years--ever since, as he believed, he had resorted to the - Virginia Springs, especially the White Sulphur, and had freely - used the waters externally for an eruption which did not yield - readily to the ordinary remedies. I had prescribed for this - affection early in June, and he had improved somewhat; but on - the 24th of that month he wrote me the last note I received - from him, begging me to visit him, as he was not so well. - This note was, perhaps, the last he penned. On the same day, - however, he wrote an excellent letter to General Weightman, in - reply to an invitation to celebrate in Washington the fiftieth - anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, which he - declined on the ground of indisposition. This, Professor Tucker - says, was probably his last letter. It had all the striking - characteristics of his vigorous and unfaded intellect. - - The tone of the note I received from him satisfied me of the - propriety of visiting him immediately; and having mentioned - the subject to Mr. Tucker, he proposed to accompany me. I - immediately saw that the affection was making a decided - impression on his bodily powers, and, as Mr. Tucker has properly - remarked in his life of this distinguished individual, was - apprehensive that the attack would prove fatal. Nor did Mr. - Jefferson himself indulge any other opinion. From this time his - strength gradually diminished, and he had to remain in bed.... - - Until the 2d and 3d of July he spoke freely of his approaching - death; made all his arrangements with his grandson, Mr. - Randolph, in regard to his private affairs; and expressed his - anxiety for the prosperity of the University, and his confidence - in the exertion in its behalf of Mr. Madison and the other - Visitors. He repeatedly, too, mentioned his obligation to me - for my attention to him. During the last week of his existence - I remained at Monticello; and one of the last remarks he made - was to me. In the course of the day and night of the 2d of July - he was affected with stupor, with intervals of wakefulness and - consciousness; but on the 3d the stupor became almost permanent. - About seven o'clock of the evening of that day he awoke, and, - seeing me staying at his bedside, exclaimed, "Ah! Doctor, are - you still there?" in a voice, however, that was husky and - indistinct. He then asked, "Is it the Fourth?" to which I - replied, "It soon will be." These were the last words I heard - him utter. - - Until towards the middle of the day--the 4th--he remained in the - same state, or nearly so, wholly unconscious to every thing that - was passing around him. His circulation was gradually, however, - becoming more languid; and for some time prior to dissolution - the pulse at the wrist was imperceptible. About one o'clock he - ceased to exist. - -Jefferson had the utmost confidence in Dr. Dunglison, and, on being -entreated by a Philadelphia friend to send for the celebrated Dr. -Physic, he refused kindly, but firmly, to do so, saying, "I have got -a Dr. Physic of my own--I have entire confidence in Dr. Dunglison." -Nor would he allow any other physician to be called in. - -Ever thoughtful of others, and anxious to the last not to give -trouble, he at first refused to allow even a servant to be with him -at night; and when, at last, he became so weak as to be forced to -yield his consent, he made his attendant, Burwell, bring a pallet -into his room that he might rest during the night. - -"In the parting interview with the female members of his family," -says Mr. Randall, "Mr. Jefferson, besides general admonitions (the -tenor of which corresponds with those contained in his letter to -Thomas Jefferson Smith), addressed to them affectionate words -of encouragement and practical advice adapted to their several -situations. In this he did not pass over a young great-grandchild -(Ellen Bankhead), but exhorted her to diligently persevere in her -studies, for they would help to make life valuable to her. He gently -but audibly murmured: 'Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in -peace.'"[79] - - [79] See Randall's Jefferson, vol. iii., p. 547. - -I now give Colonel Randolph's account of his grandfather's death. -Having revised this for me, he has in one or two instances inserted a -few words which were not in the original. - - Mr. Jefferson had suffered for several years before his death - from a diarrhoea which he concealed from his family, lest it - might give them uneasiness. Not aware of it, I was surprised, in - conversation with him in March, 1826, to hear him, in speaking - of an event likely to occur about midsummer, say doubtingly - that he might live to that time. About the middle of June, - hearing that he had sent for his physician, Dr. Dunglison, of - the University of Virginia, I immediately went to see him.[80] - I found him out in his public rooms. Before leaving the house, - he sent a servant to me to come to his room, whereupon he handed - me a paper, which he desired me to examine, remarking, "Don't - delay; there is no time to be lost." He gradually declined, but - would only have his servants sleeping near him: being disturbed - only at nine, twelve, and four o'clock in the night, he needed - little nursing. Becoming uneasy about him, I entered his room, - unobserved, to pass the night. Coming round inadvertently to - assist him, he chided me, saying, that, being actively employed - all day, I needed repose. On my replying that it was more - agreeable to me to be with him, he acquiesced, and I did not - leave him again. - - [80] Col. Randolph lived on an estate adjoining Monticello. - -A day or two after, at my request, my brother-in-law (Mr. Trist) -was admitted. His servants, ourselves, and the doctor became his -sole nurses. My mother sat with him during the day, but he would -not permit her to sit up at night. His family had to decline for -him numerous tenders of service from kind and affectionate friends -and neighbors, fearing and seeing that it would excite him to -conversation injurious to him in his weak condition. - -He suffered no pain, but gradually sank from debility. His mind -was always clear--it never wandered. He conversed freely, and gave -directions as to his private affairs. His manner was that of a -person going on a necessary journey--evincing neither satisfaction -nor regret. He remarked upon the tendency of his mind to recur back -to the scenes of the Revolution. Many incidents he would relate, in -his usual cheerful manner, insensibly diverting my mind from his -dying condition. He remarked that the curtains of his bed had been -purchased from the first cargo that arrived after the peace of 1782. - -Upon my expressing the opinion, on one occasion, that he was somewhat -better, he turned to me, and said, "Do not imagine for a moment that -I feel the smallest solicitude about the result; I am like an old -watch, with a pinion worn out here, and a wheel there, until it can -go no longer." - -On another occasion, when he was unusually ill, he observed to the -doctor, "A few hours more, doctor, and it will be all over." - -Upon being suddenly aroused from sleep by a noise in the room, -he asked if he had heard the name of Mr. Hatch mentioned--the -minister whose church he attended. On my replying in the negative, -he observed, as he turned over, "I have no objection to see him, -as a kind and good neighbor." The impression made upon my mind at -the moment was, that his religious opinions having been formed upon -mature study and reflection, he had no doubts upon his mind, and -therefore did not desire the attendance of a clergyman: I have never -since doubted of the correctness of the impression then taken. - -His parting interview with the different members of his family was -calm and composed; impressing admonitions upon them, the cardinal -points of which were, to pursue virtue, be true and truthful. My -youngest brother, in his eighth year, seeming not to comprehend the -scene, he turned to me with a smile, and said, "George[81] does not -understand what all this means." - - [81] This was George Wythe Randolph, who became an eminent lawyer - in Virginia, and who, in the late civil war entering warmly in - the defense of the South, was distinguished in both the cabinet - and field in the Confederate service. - -He would speculate upon the person who would succeed him as Rector of -the University of Virginia, and concluded that Mr. Madison would be -appointed. With all the deep pathos of exalted friendship, he spoke -of his purity, his virtue, his wisdom, his learning, and his great -abilities; and then, stretching his head back on his pillow, he said, -with a sigh, "But ah! he could never in his life stand up against -strenuous opposition." The friendship of these great men was of an -extraordinary character. They had been born, lived, and died within -twenty-five miles of each other, and they visited frequently through -their whole lives. At twenty-three years old Mr. Jefferson had been -consulted on Mr. Madison's course of study--he then fifteen. Thus -commenced a friendship as remarkable for its duration as it was for -the fidelity and warmth of its feelings. The admiration of each for -the wisdom, abilities, and purity of the other was unlimited. Their -habit of reliance upon mutual counsel equalled the sincerity of their -affection and the devotion of their esteem. - -In speaking of the calumnies which his enemies had uttered against -his public and private character with such unmitigated and untiring -bitterness, he said that he had not considered them as abusing him; -they had never known _him_. They had created an imaginary being -clothed with odious attributes, to whom they had given his name; and -it was against that creature of their imaginations they had levelled -their anathemas. - -On Monday, the third of July, his slumbers were evidently those of -approaching dissolution; he slept until evening, when, upon awaking, -he seemed to imagine it was morning, and remarked that he had slept -all night without being disturbed. "This is the fourth of July," -he said. He soon sank again into sleep, and on being aroused at -nine to take his medicine, he remarked in a clear distinct voice, -"No, doctor, nothing more." The omission of the dose of laudanum -administered every night during his illness caused his slumbers to be -disturbed and dreamy; he sat up in his sleep and went through all the -forms of writing; spoke of the Committee of Safety, saying it ought -to be warned. - -As twelve o'clock at night approached, we anxiously desired that -his death should be hallowed by the Anniversary of Independence. -At fifteen minutes before twelve we stood noting the minute-hand -of the watch, hoping a few minutes of prolonged life. At four -A.M. he called the servants in attendance with a strong and clear -voice, perfectly conscious of his wants. He did not speak again. -About ten he fixed his eyes intently upon me, indicating some -want, which, most painfully, I could not understand, until his -attached servant, Burwell, observed that his head was not so much -elevated as he usually desired it, for his habit was to lie with -it very much elevated. Upon restoring it to its usual position he -seemed satisfied. About eleven, again fixing his eyes upon me, and -moving his lips, I applied a wet sponge to his mouth, which he -sucked and appeared to relish--this was the last evidence he gave -of consciousness. He ceased to breathe, without a struggle, fifty -minutes past meridian--July 4th, 1826. I closed his eyes with my own -hands. - -He was, at all times during his illness, perfectly assured of his -approaching end, his mind ever clear, and at no moment did he evince -the least solicitude about the result; he was as calm and composed -as when in health. He died a pure and good man. It is for others -to speak of his greatness. He desired that his interment should be -private, without parade, and our wish was to comply with his request, -and no notice of the hour of interment or invitations were issued. -His body was borne privately from his dwelling by his family and -servants, but his neighbors and friends, anxious to pay the last -tribute of respect and affection to one whom they had loved and -honored, waited for it in crowds at the grave. - -Two days before his death, Jefferson told Mrs. Randolph that in a -certain drawer, in an old pocket-book, she would find something -intended for her. On looking in the drawer after his death, she found -the following touching lines, composed by himself: - - -_A Death-bed Adieu from Th. J. to M. R._ - - Life's visions are vanished, its dreams are no more; - Dear friends of my bosom, why bathed in tears? - I go to my fathers, I welcome the shore - Which crowns all my hopes or which buries my cares. - Then farewell, my dear, my lov'd daughter, adieu! - The last pang of life is in parting from you! - Two seraphs await me long shrouded in death; - I will bear them your love on my last parting breath. - -As soon as Mr. Madison was informed of the death of his revered -friend, he wrote the following handsome letter to a gentleman who had -married into Mr. Jefferson's family: - - -_From James Madison._ - - Montpellier, July 6th, 1826. - - Dear Sir--I have just received yours of the 4th. A few lines - from Dr. Dunglison had prepared me for such a communication, - and I never doubted that the last scene of our illustrious - friend would be worthy of the life it closed. Long as this has - been spared to his country and to those who loved him, a few - years more were to have been desired for the sake of both. But - we are more than consoled for the loss by the gain to him, and - by the assurance that he lives and will live in the memory and - gratitude of the wise and good, as a luminary of science, as a - votary of liberty, as a model of patriotism, and as a benefactor - of the human kind. In these characters I have known him, and - not less in the virtues and charms of social life, for a period - of fifty years, during which there was not an interruption or - diminution of mutual confidence and cordial friendship for a - single moment in a single instance. What I feel, therefore, now - need not, I should say can not, be expressed. If there be any - possible way in which I can _usefully_ give evidence of it, do - not fail to afford me the opportunity. I indulge a hope that the - unforeseen event will not be permitted to impair _any_ of the - beneficial measures which were in progress, or in prospect. It - can not be unknown that the anxieties of the deceased were for - others, not for himself. - - Accept, my dear sir, my best wishes for yourself and for all - with whom we sympathize, in which Mrs. Madison most sincerely - joins. - - JAMES MADISON. - -To the same gentleman, Judge Dabney Carr, of the Court of Appeals of -Virginia, wrote: - - The loss of Mr. Jefferson is one over which the whole world will - mourn. He was one of those ornaments and benefactors of the - human race whose death forms an epoch and creates a sensation - throughout the whole circle of civilized man. But that feeling - is nothing to what those feel who are connected with him by - blood,[82] and bound to him by gratitude for a thousand favors. - To me he has been more than a father, and I have ever loved - and revered him with my whole heart.... Taken as a whole, - history presents nothing so grand, so beautiful, so peculiarly - felicitous in all the great points, as the life and character of - Thomas Jefferson. - - [82] Judge Carr was Mr. Jefferson's nephew. - -After Mr. Jefferson's death there were found in a drawer in his room, -among other souvenirs, some little packages containing locks of the -hair of his deceased wife, daughter, and even the infant children -that he had lost. These relics are now lying before me. They are -labelled in his own handwriting. One, marked "_A lock of our first -Lucy's hair, with some of my dear, dear wife's writing_," contains -a few strands of soft, silk-like hair evidently taken from the head -of a very young infant. Another, marked simply "_Lucy_," contains a -beautiful golden curl. - -Among his papers there were found written on the torn back of an old -letter the following directions for his monument and its inscription: - - Could the dead feel any interest in monuments or other - remembrances of them, when, as Anacreon says, - - +Oligê de keisometha - Konis, osteôn lythentôn,+ - - the following would be to my manes the most gratifying: on the - grave a plain die or cube of three feet without any mouldings, - surmounted by an obelisk of six feet height, each of a single - stone; on the faces of the obelisk the following inscription, - and not a word more: - - HERE WAS BURIED - - THOMAS JEFFERSON, - Author of the Declaration of American Independence, - Of the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, - And Father of the University of Virginia; - - because by these, as testimonials that I have lived, I wish - most to be remembered. [It] to be of the coarse stone of which - my columns are made, that no one might be tempted hereafter to - destroy it for the value of the materials. My bust, by Ceracchi, - with the pedestal and truncated column on which it stands, might - be given to the University, if they would place it in the dome - room of the Rotunda. On the die of the obelisk might be engraved: - - _Born_ Apr. 2, 1743, O. S. - _Died_ ---- ---- ----. - -Folded up in the same paper which contained these directions was -a scrap on which was written the dates and inscription for Mrs. -Jefferson's tomb, which I have already given at page 64 of this book. - -Jefferson's efforts to save his monument from mutilation by having -it made of coarse stone have been futile. His grandson, Colonel -Randolph, followed his directions in erecting the monument which is -placed over him. He lies buried between his wife and his daughter, -Mary Eppes: across the head of these three graves lie the remains of -his eldest daughter, Martha Randolph. This group lies in front of a -gap in the high brick wall which surrounds the whole grave-yard, the -gap being filled by a high iron grating, giving a full view of the -group, that there might be no excuse for forcing open the high iron -gates which close the entrance to the grave-yard. But all precautions -have been in vain. The gates have been again and again broken open, -the grave-yard entered, and the tombs desecrated. The edges of the -granite obelisk over Jefferson's grave have been chipped away until -it now stands a misshapen column. Of the slabs placed over the graves -of Mrs. Jefferson and Mrs. Eppes not a vestige remains, while of the -one over Mrs. Randolph only fragments are left. - -[Illustration: GRAVE OF JEFFERSON, A.D. 1850.] - - - * * * * * - -Transcriber's note: - -Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). - -Small capital text has been replaced with all capitals. - -Variations in spelling, punctuation, and hyphenation have been -retained except in obvious cases of typographical error. Unmatched -quotation marks have been ignored. - -The cover for the eBook version of this book was created by the -transcriber and is placed in the public domain. - -Page 431: Text enclosed by plus signs is a transileration of Greek. - - +Oligê de keisometha - Konis, osteôn lythentôn,+ - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Domestic Life of Thomas Jefferson -Compiled From Family Letters and Reminiscences, by Sarah N. Randolph - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DOMESTIC LIFE OF T. 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