LIVES

op

THE SIGNERS

OF THE

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE,

BY REV. CHARLES A GOODRICH.

HARTFORD.

R. G. H. HUNTINGTON.
1841.

Southern District of New- York, ss

BE IT REjVlEMBERED, That on the twenty-fourth day of June, A. D. 1829, in the
fifty-third year of the Independence of the United States of America, Charles A. Goodrich,
of the said District, hath deposited in this office the title of a book, the right whereof he
claims as author, in the words following, to wit : — " Lives of the Signers to 'the Declaration
of Independence. By the Rev. Charles A. Goodrich."

In conformity to the act of Congress of the United States, entitled, " an act for the en
couragement of learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors
and proprietors of sucli copies, during the time therein mentioned." And also to an act,
entitled, "an act, supplementary to ar act, entitled, an act for the encouragement of learn
ing, by securing the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors and proprietors of
euch copies, during the times therein mentioned, and extending the benefits thereof to the
arts of designing, engraving, and etching historical and other prints."

FRED. J. BETTS,
Clerk of the Southern District ofNew-Y<r-<c.

0-c

PREFACE.

THE author has had it in contemplation for several years, to present to the
public a work of the following kind; but, until recently, he has not had lei
sure to complete his design. He was incited to the undertaking, by a belief
that he might render an important service to his countrymen, especially to
the rising generation, by giving them, in a volume of convenient size, some
account of the distinguished band of patriots, who composed the congress
of 1776 ; and to whose energy and wisdom the colonies, at that time, owed
the declaration of their independent political existence. -

No nation can dwell with more just satisfaction upon its annals, than
the American people. The emigrants, who settled the country, were illus
trious men; distinguished for their piety, wisdom, energy, and fortitude.
Not less illustrious were their descendants, who served as the guides and
counsellors of the colonies, or who fought their battles during" the revolu
tionary struggle. No one who admits the intervention of a special provi
dence in the affairs of nations, can hesitate to believe, that the statesmen and
heroes of the revolution were raised up by the God of heaven, for the impor
tant and definite purpose of achieving the independence of America — of
rescuing a people, whose ancestors had been eminently devoted to the duties
of piety, from the thraldom under which they had groaned for years — and ol
presenting to the monarchical governments in the eastern hemisphere, the
example of a government, founded upon principles of civil and religious
liberty.

For the accomplishment of such a purpose, the statesmen and heroes of
the revolution were eminently fitted. They were endowed with minds ol
distinguished power, and exhibited an example of political sagacity, and
of high military prowess, which commanded the admiration of statesmen and
heroes, throughout the world. Their patriotism was of a pure and exalted
character ; their zeal was commensurate with the noble objects which they
had in view ; and amid the toils, and privations, and sufferings, which they
were called to endure, they exhibited a patience and fortitude, rarely equal
led in the history of the world.

Of the revolutionary patriots, none present themselves with more interest
to the rising generation, than those who composed the congress of 1776; and
upon whom devolved the important political duty of severing the tics, which
bound the colonies to the mother country. The lives of this illustrious
band, we here present to our readers. Although the author regrets that his
materials were not more abundant, he indulges the hope, that the subsequent
pages will not be found devoid of interest. Even an unadorned recital of
the virtues, which adorned the subjects of these memoirs ; the piety of some
— the patriotism and constancy and courage of them all — can scarcely fail of
imparting a useful lesson to our readers. The obligations to cherish their
memory, and to follow their example will be felt ; nor can our readers fail
to realize the debt of gratitude w,e owe in common, to that benignant pro
vidence, who fitted these men for the important work which was assigned
them.

All the material facts, recorded in the following pages, the author has
reason to believe are authentic, and entitled to credibility. Most of them
are matters of public record. Some of the sketches will indeed be found to
contain but few incidents ; because, in respect to a portion of the signers,
but few existed ; and, in respect to others, the accurate knowledge of them
has been irrevocably lost. The sources from which he has drawn the materi
als of the volume are too numerous to be particularly mentioned in this place;
yet he would be doing injustice, not to express his special obligations to the
authors of the following works : viz. Fitkiii's Political and Civil History of
the United States, North American Review, Walsh's Appeal, Marshall's Life

4 PREFACE.

of Washington, Botta's History of the Revolution, Allen's Biographical and
Historical Dictionary, Biography of the Signers to the Declaration of Inde
pendence, Thatcher's Medical Biography, Austin's Life of Gerry, Tudor' a
Life of Otis, Witherspoon's Works, Select Eulogies, &c. &c.

While writing1 the following1 biographical notices of the signers to the
declaration, the author has been struck with their longevity, as a body of
men. They were fifty-six in number ; and the average length of their fives
was about sixty-five years. Four of the number attained to the age of
ninety years, and upwards; fourteen exceeded eighty years; and twenty-
three, or one in two and a half, reached three score years and ten. The lon
gevity of the New-England delegation, was still more remarkable. Their
number was fourteen, the average of whose lives was seventy-five years.
Who will affirm that the unusual age to which the signers, as a body, attain
ed, was not a reward bestowed upon them, for their fidelity to their country,
and the trust which they in general reposed in the overruling providence of
God. Who can doubt the kindness of that Providence to the American
people, in thus prolonging the lives of these men, till the principles for which
they had contended, through a long series of years, had been acknowledged,
and a government had been founded upon them ?

Of this venerable body, not a single one survives— They are now no
more. "They are no more, as in 1776, bold and fearless advocates of inde
pendence. They are dead. But how little is there of the great and good
which can die. To their country they yet live, and live for ever. They live,
in all that perpetuates the remembrance of men on earth; in the recorded
proofs of their own great actions, in the offspring of their intellect, in the
deep engraved lines of public gratitude, and in the respect and homage of
mankind. They live in their example; and they live, emphatically, and will
live, in the influence which their lives and efforts, their principles and
opinions, now exercise, and will continue to exercise, on the affairs of men,
not only in our own country, but throughout the civilized world."

"It remains to us to cherish their memory, arid emulate their virtues, by
perpetuating and extending the blessings which they have bequeathed. So
long as we preserve our country, their fame cannot die, for it is reflected
from the surface of every thing that is beautiful and valuable in our land.
We cannot recur too often, nor dwell too long, upon the lives and characters
of such men; for our own will take something of their form and impression
from those on which they rest. If we inhale the moral atmosphere in which
they moved, we must feel its purifying and invigorating influence. If we
raise our thoug'hts to their elevation, our minds will be expanded and en
nobled, in beholding the immeasurable distance beneath and around us.
1 Can we breathe thcTpure mountain air, and not be refreshed ; can we walk
abroad amidst the beautiful and the grand of the works of creation, and feel
no kiaoiiiig of devotion 1' •

CONTENTS.

Introduction, ........... 7

MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

John Hancock, --------- 71

Samuel Adams, ---- ....... 81

John Adams, ........... 92

Robert Treat Paine, ....... - - 112

Elbridge Gerry, .......... 120

NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

Josiah Bartlett, ........... 131

William Whipple, .......... 139

Matthew Thornton, .......... 143

RHODE ISLAND DELEGATION.

Stephen Hopkins, ...-..----149

William Ellery, ....... - - - 153

CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

Rog~er Sherman, ......... I5g

Samuel Hunting-ton, ........ -169

William Williams, .......... 174

Oliver Wolcott, .......... 179

NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

William Floyd, ......... 1S3

Philip Livingston -------- igy

Francis Lewis, .......... 193

Lewis Morris, --------... 197

Henry Misner, (See note, page 183.)

NEW- JERSEY DELEGATION.

Richard Stockton, .......... 204

John Witherspoon, - - - - - ..... 211

Francis Hopkinson, .......... 222

John Hart, - . ......... 225

Abraham Clark, ...... 230

PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

Robert Morris, ........ - 233

Benjamin Rush, ....... . 244

6 CONTENTS.

Benjamin Franklin, »-*.•«..... 2£f

John Morton, 282

George Clymer, - ... ...... 234

Jameg Smith, -----..._.. 291

George Taylor, ------_..._ 296

James Wilson. ------....- 300

George Ross, 399

DELAWARE DELEGATION.

Cscsar Rodney, --..... .. 313

Georg-e Read, -- -..320

Thomas M'Kean, ----._..„. 32 J

MARYLAND DELEGATION.

Samuel Chase, ----._.__.. 333

William Paca, 345

Thomas Stone, ---_______. 351

Charles Carroll, -... 357

VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

George Wythe, 364

Richard Henry Lee, 372

Thomas Jefferson, --..._.--- 380

Benjamin Harrison, ---_..-.-. 405

Thomas Nelson, jun. - - - - - - - - - - 410

Francis Lightfoot Lee, ......... 410

Carter Braxton, 419

NORTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

William Hooper, 422

Joseph Hewes, -._-_------ 427

John Penn, 433

SOUTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

Edward Rutledg-e, ...-436

Thomas Heyward, 440

Thomas Lynch, 443

Arthur Middleton, 447

GEORGL4. DELEGATION.

Button Gwinnett, ... .... - 457

LymanHall, 455

Georg-e Walton, .... ...... 459

SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF WASHINGTON. ----- 4G1

INTRODUCTION.

EBMMARY OP EVENTS WHICH LED TO THE DECLARATION OF
INDEPENDENCE.

THE venerated emigrants who first planted America, ana
most of their distinguished successors who laid the founda
tion of our civil liberty, have found a resting place in the
peaceful grave. But the virtues which adorned both these
generations ; their patience in days of suffering; the courage
and patriotic zeal with which they asserted their rights ; and
the wisdom they displayed in laying the foundations of our
government ; will be held in lasting remembrance.

It has, indeed, been said, that the settlement of America,
and the history of her revolution, are becoming "a trite
theme." The remark is not founded in truth. Too well
does the present generation appreciate the excellence of
those men, who guided the destinies of our country in days
of bitter trial ; too well does it estimate the glorious events,
which have exalted these United States to their present ele
vation, ever to be weary of the pages which shall record the
virtues of the one, and the interesting character of the other.

The minuter portions of our history, and the humbler
men who have acted a part therein, must, perhaps, pass into
oblivion. But the more important transactions, and the more
distinguished characters, instead of being lost to the remem
brance and affections of posterity, will be the more regarded
and admired the farther " we roll down the tide of time.**
Indeed, " an event of real magnitude in human history," a«
a recent literary journal has well observed, " is never seen,
in all its grandeur and importance, till some time after its oc
currence has elapsed. In proportion as the memory of small

8 INTRODUCTION.

men, and small things, is lost, that of the truly great becomes
more bright. The contemporary aspect of things is often
confused and indistinct. The eye, which is placed too near
the canvass, beholds, too distinctly, the separate touches of
the pencil, and is perplexed with a cloud of seemingly dis
cordant tints. It is only at a distance, that they melt into a
harmonious, living picture."

Nor does .t detract from the honour of the eminent person
ages, who were conspicuous in the transactions of our ear
lier history, that they foresaw not all the glorious consequences
of their actions. Not one of our pilgrim fathers, it may be
safely conjectured, had a distinct anticipation of the future
progress of our country. Neither Smith, Newport, nor
Gosnold, who lee! the emigrants of the south ; nor Carver,
Brewster, Bradford, or Standish, who conducted those of
the north ; looked forward to results like those which are
witnessed by the present generation. But is the glory of
their enterprise thereby diminished ? By no means ; it shines
with an intenser light. They foresaw nothing with certainty,
but hardships and sacrifices. These, they deliberately and
manfully encountered. They went forward unassured, that
even common prosperity would attend their enterprise
They breasted themselves to every shock ; as did the vessel
which bore them, to the waves of the ocean.

Or, to take an example which has a more direct reference
to the work before us ; it may be fairly conjectured, that not
a member of the illustrious assembly that declared the Inde
pendence of America, had any adequate conception of the
great events which were disclosed in the next half century.
But, will this detract from their merit in the estimation of
posterity? again we say, it will enhance that merit. In the
great national crisis of 1775, the minds of the leading men were
wrought up to the highest pitch of fervour. They glowed
with the loftiest enthusiasm. The future was, indeed, in
distinct ; but it was full of all that was momentous. What
the particular consummation would be, they could not foresee.
But conscious of their own magnanimous designs, and in a
humble reliance on divine providence, they pledged to each

INTRODUCTION. 9

other, their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honour,
either to die in the assertion of their unalienable rights, or
to establish American liberty upon a solid foundation. The
merit of these men, and of all who contributed to the happy
condition of our republic, should be measured, by the gran
deur of the actual consequences of their enterprise, although
the precise extent of those consequences could not then have
been foreseen.*

In a work, whose professed object is, to speak of men
who lived and flourished in the days of our revolutionary
struggle, we have little to do with the motives which indu
ced the first settlers of our country to seek an asylum in what
was then an unexplored wilderness. Nor is this the place to
record the thousand sufferings which they endured, before
the era of their landing ; or their numberless sorrows and
deprivations, while establishing themselves in the rude land
of their adoption. The heroic and Christian virtues of our
fathers will occupy a conspicuous page in history, while the
world shall stand.

Nor does it belong to our design, to enter minutely into
the early history of the colonies, interesting as that history
is. An outline, only, will be necessary, to understand the
causes of that memorable event in the history of our coun
try — The Declaration of American Independence — and to
introduce to our more particular notice, the eminent rnen
who proclaimed that independence to the world.

The year 1607 is the era of the first settlement of the En
glish in America. During the interval between this date,
and the year 1732, thirteen colonies were established ; Vir
ginia being the first, and Georgia the last. The others were
Massachusetts, Connecticut, New-Hampshire, Rhode Island,
New-York, New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland,
and the two Carolinas.

In the settlement of these colonies, three forms of govern
ment were established. These were severally denominated,
charter, proprietary, and royal governments. This differ

* North American Review.

B

10 INTRODUCTION.

ence arose from the different circumstances which attendee
the settlement of different colonies, and the diversified views
of the early emigrants. The charter governments were con
fined to New-England. The proprietary governments were
those of Maryland, Pennsylvania, the Carolinas, and the Jer-
sies. The twro former remained such, until the American re
volution ; the two latter became royal governments long be
fore that period. In the charter governments, the people en
joyed the privileges and powers of self government; in the
proprietary governments these privileges and powers were ves t-
ed in the proprietor, but he was required to have the advice,
assent, and approbation of the greater part of the freemen, or
their deputies ; in the royal governments, the governor and
council were appointed by the crown, and the people elect
ed representatives to serve in the colonial legislatures.*

Under these respective forms of government, the colonists
might have enjoyed peace, and a good share of liberty, had
human nature been of a different character. But all the co
lonies were soon more or less involved in troubles of vari
ous kinds, arising, in part, from the indefinite tenor of the
charter and proprietary grants ; but more than all, from the
early jealousy which prevailed in the mother country with
respect to the colonies, and the fixed determination of the
crown to keep them in humble subjection to its authority.

The colonies, with the exception of Georgia, had all been
established, and had attained to considerable strength, with
out even the slightest aid from the parent country. What
ever was expended in the acquisition of territory from the
Indians, proceeded from the private resources of the Euro
pean adventurers. Neither the crown, nor the parliament
of England, made any compensation to the original masters
of the soil; nor did they in any way contribute to those im
provements which so soon bore testimony to the industry and
intelligence of the planters. The settlement of the province
of Massachusetts Bay alone cost 200,000/. ; — an enormous
sum at that period. Lord Baltimore expended; 40,0007^ i'oi

« Pitkin.

INTRODUCTION. 11

his contingent, in the establishment of his colony in Mary-
iand. On that of Virginia, immense wealth was lavished ;
and we are told by Trumbull, that the first ^.planters of Con
necticut consumed great estates in purchasing lands from the
Indians, and making their settlements in that province, in ad
dition to large sums previously expended in the procuring of
their patents, and of the rights of pre-emption.*

It is conceded by historians of every party, that from the
earliest settlements in America, to the period of the revolu
tion, the parent country, so far as her own unsettled state
would permit, pursued towards those settlements a course
of direct oppression. Without the enterprise to establish co
lonies herself, she was ready, in the very dawn of their exist
ence, to claim them as her legitimate possessions, and to pre
scribe, in almost every minute particular, the policy they
should pursue. Her jealousies, coeval with the foundation
of the colonies, increased with every succeeding year ; and
led to a course of arbitrary exactions, and lordly oppressions,
which resulted in the rupture of those ties that bound the
colonies to the parent country.

No sooner did the colonies, emerging from the feebleness
and poverty of their incipient state, begin to direct their at
tention to commerce and manufactures, than they were sub
jected by the parent country to many vexatious regulations,
which seemed to indicate, that with regard to those subjects,
they were expected to follow that line of policy, which she
in her wisdom should mark out for them. At every indica
tion of colonial prosperity, the complaints of the commercial
and the manufacturing interests in Great Britain were loud
and clamourous, and repeated demands were made upon the
British government, to correct the growing evil, and to keep
the colonies in due subjection. "The colonists," said the
complainants, "are beginning to carry on trade; — they will
soon be our formidable rivals : they are already setting up
manufactures ; — they will soon set up for independence.'

To the increase of this feverisn excitement in the parent

* Walsh

INTRODUCTION.

country, the English writers of those days contributed not a
little. As early as 1670, in a work, entitled, " Discourse on
Trade," published by Sir Josiah Child, is the following Ian
guage, which expresses the prevailing opinion of the day :
" New England is the most prejudicial plantation to this king
dom" — "of all the American plantations, his majesty has
none so apt for the building of shipping, as New-England,
nor any comparably so qualified for the breeding of seamen,
not only by reason of the natural industry of that people,
but principally by reason of their cod and mackerel fishe
ries ; and, in my poor opinion, there is nothing more prejudi
cial, and in prospect, more dangerous to any mother kingdom,
than the increase of shipping in her colonies, plantations, and
provinces.'''1

By another writer of still more influence and celebrity,
Dr. Davenant, the idea of colonial dependence, at which Sir
Josiah Child had hinted, was broadly asserted. ** Colonies,"
he writes, "are a strength to their mother country, while they
are under good discipline ; while they are strictly made to
observe the fundamental laws of the original country ; and
while they are kept dependant on it. But, otherwise, they
are worse than members lopped from the body politic ; be
ing, indeed, like offensive arms wrested from a nation, to be
turned against it, as occasion shall serve."

To the colonists, however, the subject presented itself in
a very different light. They had spontaneously planted them
selves on these shores, which were then desolate. They had
asked no assistance from the government of Great Britain ;
nor had they drawn from her exchequer a single pound, du
ring all the feebleness and imbecility of their infancy. And
now, when they were beginning to emerge from a state of
poverty and depression, which for years they had sustained
without complaint, they very naturally supposed that they
had a right to provide for their own interests.

It was not easy for them to see by what principle their re
moval to America should deprive them of the rights of En
glishmen. It was difficult for them to comprehend the justice
of restrictions so materially different from those at "home;"

INTRODUCTION. 13

or why they might not equally with their elder brethren iii
England, seek the best markets for their products, and, like
them, manufacture such articles as were within their power,
and essential to their comfort.

But the selfish politicians of England, and her still more
selfish merchants and manufacturers, thought not so. A dif
ferent doctrine was accordingly advanced, and a different
policy pursued. Acts were, therefore, early passed, restrict
ing the trade with the plantations, as well as with other parts
of the world, to English-built ships, belonging to the subjects
of England, or to her plantations. Not contented with thus
confining the colonial export trade to the parent country,
parliament, in 1663, limited the import trade in the same
manner.

These acts, indeed, left free the trade and intercourse be
tween the colonies. But even this privilege remained to them
only a short period. In 1672, certain colonial products, trans
ported from one colony to another, were subjected to duties.
White sugars were to pay five shillings, and brown sugars
jne shilling and sixpence, per hundred ; tobacco and indigo
Dne penny, and cotton wool a half-penny, per pound.

The colonists deemed these acts highly injurious to their
interest. They were deprived of the privilege of seeking
the best market for their products, and of receiving, in ex
change, the articles they wanted, without being charged the
additional expense of a circuitous route through England.
The acts themselves were considered by some as a violation
of their charter rights ; and in Massachusetts, they were, for
a long time, totally disregarded.

The other colonies viewed them in the same light. Virgi
nia presented a petition for their repeal ; Rhode Island de
clared them unconstitutional, and contrary to their charter.
The Carolinas, also, declared them not less grievous and
illegal.

The disregard of these enactments on the part of the co
lonies — a disregard which sprung from a firm conviction of
their illegal and oppressive character — occasioned loud an. I
clamorous complaints in England. The revenue, it was urged

2

14 INTRODUCTION.

would be injured ; and the dependance of the colonies on
the parent country would, in time, be totally destroy
ed. A stronger language was, therefore, held towards the
colonies, and stronger measures adopted, to enforce the
existing acts of navigation. The captains of his majesty's
frigates were instructed to seize, and bring in, offenders who
avoided making entries in England. The naval officers were
required to give bonds for the faithful performance of their
duties ; the custom house officers in America were clothed
with extraordinary powers ; and the governors, for neglect
of watchfulness on these points, were not only to be removed
from office, and rendered incapable of the government of any
colony, but also to forfeit one thousand pounds.

A similar sensibility prevailed, on the subject of manufac
tures. For many years after their settlement, the colonists
were too much occupied in subduing their lands to engage in
manufactures. When, at length, they turned their attention
to them, the varieties were few, and of a coarse and imper
fect texture. But even these were viewed with a jealous eye.
In 1699, commenced a systematic course of restrictions on
colonial manufactures, by an enactment of parliament, " that
no wool, yarn, or woollen manufactures of their American
plantations, should be shipped there, or even laden, in order
to be transported thence to any place whatever."

Other acts followed, in subsequent years, having for their
object the suppression of manufactures in America, and the
continued dependance of the colonies on the parent country.
In 1719, the house of commons declared, "that the erecting
of manufactories in the colonies, tended to lessen their de
pendance upon Great Britain." In 1731, the board of trade
reported to the house of commons, " that there are more
trades carried on, and manufactures set up, in the provinces
on the continent of America, to the northward of Virginia,
prejudicial to the trade and manufactures of Great Britain,
particularly in New-England, than in any other of the Bri
tish colonies;" and hence they suggested, " whether it
might not be expedient," in order to keep the colonies pro
perly dependant upon the parent country, and to render her

INTRODUCTION. 15

manufactures of service to Great Britain, " to give those co-
ionies some encouragement."

From the London company of hatters loud complaints
were made to parliament, and suitable restrictions demanded,
upon the exportation of hats, which being manufactured in
New-England, were exported to Spain, Portugal, and the
British West India islands, to the serious injury of their
trade. In consequence of these representations, the expor
tation of hats from the colonies to foreign countries, and
from one plantation to another, was prohibited ; and even
restraints, to a certain extent, were imposed on their manu
facture. In 1732 it was enacted, that hats should neither be
shipped, nor even laden upon a horse, cart, or other carriage,
with a view to transportation to any other colony, or to any
place whatever. Nay, no hatter should employ more than
two apprentices at once, nor make hats, unless he had served
as an apprentice to the trade seven years ; and, finally, that
no black or negro should be allowed to work at the business
at all.

The complaints and the claims of the manufacturers of
iron were of an equally selfish character. The colonists
might reduce the iron ore into pigs — they might convert it
Into bars — it might be furnished them duty free ; but they must
have the profit of manufacturing it, beyond this incipient
stage. Similar success awaited the representations and peti
tions of the manufacturers of iron. In the year 1750, par
liament allowed the importation of pig and bar iron from
the colonies, into London, duty free ; but prohibited the
erection or continuance of any mill, or other engine, for
slitting or rolling iron, or any plating forge to work with
a tilt-hammer, or any furnace for making steel, in the colo
nies, under the penalty of two hundred pounds. Moreover,
every such mill, engine, or plating forge, was declared a com
mon nuisance ; and the governors of the colonies, on the
information of two witnesses, on oath, were directed to cause
the same to be abated within thirty days, or to forfeit the
sum of five hundred pounds.

But if the colonists had just reason to complain on account

16 INTRODUCTION.

of the above restrictions and prohibitions, — as being ex
tremely oppressive in themselves, and a plain violation of
their rights ; — some of them were equally misused with re
spect to their charters.

The charter governments, it has already been observed,
were confined to the colonies of New-England. These
charters had been granted by the crown in different years ; and,
under them, were exercised the powers of civil government.

Great difference of opinion early existed between the
crown and the colonists, as to the nature, extent, and obliga
tions of these instruments. By the crown, they were viewed
as constituting petty corporations, similar to those established
in England, which might be annulled or revoked at pleasure.
To the colonists, on the other hand, they appeared as sacred
and solemn compacts between themselves and the king;
which could not be altered, either by the king or parliament,
without a forfeiture on the part of the colonists. The only
limitation to the legislative power conferred by these char
ters, was, that the laws made under their authority should
not be repugnant to^hose of England.

Among the colonists, there prevailed no disposition to
transcend the powers, or abuse the privileges, which had
been granted them. They, indeed, regarded the charters as
irrevocable, so long as they suitably acknowledged their own
allegiance to the crown, and confined themselves to the
rights with Avhich they were invested. But, at length, the
king seems to have repented of these extensive grants of
political power ; and measures were adopted again to attach
the government of the charter colonies to the royal prero
gative.

Accordingly, writs were issued against the several New-
England colonies, at different times, requiring them to sur
render these instruments into the royal hands. To this
measure the strongest repugnance every where prevailed.
It was like a surrender of life. It was a blow aimed at their
dearest rights — an annihilation of that peace and liberty,
which had been secured to them by the most solemn and in
violable compact.

INTRODUCTION.

With views and sentiments like these, the colonists suppli
cated the royal permission, " to remain as they were." They
reminded his majesty of the sacred nature of their charters ;
they appealed to the laws which they had passed, — to the in
stitutions they had founded, — to the regulations they had
adopted, — in the spirit of which, there was not to be seen any
departure from the powers with which they were invested.
And they therefore humbly claimed the privilege of exerci
sing these powers, with an assurance of their unalterable alle
giance to the English crown.

In an address to his majesty, from the colony of Massachusetts,
styled, " the humble supplication of the general court of the
Massachusetts colony in New-England," the following lan
guage was adopted — language as honourable to the colonists,
as the sentiments are tender and affecting. " Let our govern
ment live, our patent live, our magistrates live, our laws and
liberties live, our religious enjoyments live, so shall we all
yet have further cause to say from our hearts, let the king- live
forever ; — and the blessings of those ready to perish shall
come upon your majesty ; having delivered the poor that
cried, and such as had none to help them."

The king, however, would listen to no arguments, and
would admit of no appeal. A strong jealousy had taken
possession of his breast, and had as firmly seated itself in the
hearts of his ministry. The tree, planted by the colonists,,
fostered by their care, and watered by their tears, was taking
too deep root, and spreading forth its branches too broadly.
Its fall was determined upon, and too successfully was the
axe applied.

The charters being in effect set aside ; those of Rhode Is
land and Connecticut being considered as surrendered, and
that of Massachusetts having been violently wrested from
her; the king, at that time James II., appointed Sir Edmund
Andros governor-general of New-England. In December,
1686, he arrived in Boston, and published his commission.

The administration lof Andros effected no inconsiderable
change in the condition of New-England. For sixty years
the people had lived happily, under constitutions and laws of
C *

18 INTRODUCTION.

their own adoption. Amidst the trials and sufferings which
had fallen to their lot, while settling and subduing a wilder
ness, the privilege of self-government was one of their chief
consolations. But now, deprived of this privilege, and sub
jected to the arbitrary laws, and cruel rapacity of Anclros, a
deep gloom spread over the whole territory of New-England.

" One of his first despotic acts," says a late interesting
writer,* " was to place the press under censorship. Magis
trates alone were permitted to solemnize marriages, and no
marriages were allowed, until bonds, with sureties, were
given to the governor, to be forfeited, if any lawful impediment
should afterwards appear. No man could remove from the
country without the consent of the governor.

" Fees of office, particularly in matters of probate, were
exorbitant ; — towns were not permitted to hold meetings but
once a year, and then for the sole purpose of electing offi
cers ; — all former grants of lands were considered invalid,
either because they were rendered void by the destruction of
the charters under which they were made, or were destitute
of the formality of a seal. The people were, therefore,
obliged to take out new patents for their lands and houses,
and to pay enormous patent fees, or suffer them to be grant
ed to others, and they themselves ejected from their hard
earned possessions.

"In addition to this, taxes were imposed at the will of the
governor-general and a few of his council ; nor had the poor
New-Englanders even the privilege of complaining, and claim
ing the rights of Englishmen, without being liable to fine and
imprisonment. These taxes the governor and council, by
their act, assessed upon the several towns, and directed each
town to appoint a commissioner, who, with the select men,
was ordered to assess the same on the individual inhabitants.
The citizens of the old town of Ipswich, at a meeting called
for the purpose of carrying this act into effect, declared, that,
"considering the said act doth infringe their liberty, as free
born English subjects of his majesty, by interfering with the

* Pitkin.

INTRODUCTION. 19

statute laws of the land, by which it is enacted, that no taxes
should be levied upon the subjects, without the consent of an
assembly chosen by the freemen for assessing the same ; they
do, therefore, vote, they are not willing to choose a commis
sioner for such an end, without such privilege ; and, moreo
ver, consent not that the select men do proceed to lay any
such rate, until it be appointed by a general assembly, con
curring with the governor and council."

" The minister of the town, John Wise, together with John
Appleton, John Andrews, Robert Kinsman, William Good-
hue, and Thomas French, were active in procuring this patrio
tic resolution ; and for this, they were immediately brought
before the governor and council at Boston ; and soon after
tried before the star chamber judges, Dudley, Stoughton,
Usher, and Randolph, and a packed jury. In his examination
before the council, Mr. Wise, claiming the privilege of an
English subject, was told by one of the judges, ' he had no
more privilege left him, than not to be sold for a slave.1

" Wise was imprisoned by the governor general ; and the
judges refused him the privilege of the writ of habeas
corpus.

" On their trial, they defended themselves under magna
charta, and the statutes, which solemnly secured to every
British subject his property and estate. The judges, how
ever, told them, ' they must not think the laws of England
followed them to the ends of the earth, or wherever they
went;' and they were in a most arbitrary manner con
demned.

" Mr. Wise was suspended from his ministerial functions,
fined 50Z., and compelled to give a bond of 1000Z. for his
good behaviour ; and the others were also subjected to fines,
and obliged to give bonds of a similar nature."

Such is an outline of the despotic acts, during the odious
administration of Andros. To these the people of New-
England were obliged to submit, without the prospect of any
alleviation of their condition.

Relief, however, was near at hand. At this important
crisis in the affairs of the colonies, an event transpired which

5SO INTRODUCTION.

relieved them in a measure from the perplexities in which
they were involved, and from the oppressions under which
they groaned. The bigotted James II., by his acts of des
potism, had become justly odious to all the subjects of his
realm. So great was the excitement of public indignation,
that the king was compelled to flee, in disgrace, from the
kingdom; and his son-in-law, William, Prince of Orange,
was invited to assume the crown.

The news of this event (1689) spread unusual joy through
out the colonies. In the height of their animation, the in
habitants of Boston seized Sir Edmund Andros, with fifty of
his associates, and put them in close confinement, until he
was ordered back to Great Britain. Connecticut and Rhode
Island immediately resumed their charters, and re-established
their former government. Massachusetts soon after obtained
a new charter, which, however, failed to secure to the colony
many rights, which they had enjoyed under the provisions
of the former one ; but which was finally accepted by a
majority of the general court. Each of the colonies con
tinued to exercise its government till the year 1775. In
Rhode Island, the ancient charter is the only constitution at
the present time ; and in Connecticut, the charter was con
tinued until the year 1818, when a new constitution was
adopted by the people.

The grateful relief experienced by the colonies on the
accession of William, was, however, of temporary continu
ance. Through other channels, trouble and distress were to
be conveyed to them. From the above year (1689) to the
peace of Paris 1763, the colonies, from New-Hampshire to
Georgia, were engaged in almost unremitting hostilities with
the aborigines on their borders. .Their whole western fron
tier was a scene of havoc and desolation. During this long
series of years, they were obliged to bear the " unworthy as
persion," as Dummer justly entitles it, of exciting these Indian
wars ; and of acquiring the dominion of the Indian territory
by fraud, as well as by force.

To these trials were added others, which proceeded from
the parent country. Disputes were frequently arising, as

INTRODUCTION. 21

heretofore, between the crown and the colonies, respecting
the powers conferred by the charters. Claims were set up,
by the king and council, to the right of receiving and hear
ing appeals from the colonial courts, in private suits ; and,
at length, a serious and protracted controversy arose in those
colonies, whose governors were appointed by royal autho
rity, from a requisition of the king that a fixed and per
manent salary should be provided for the representatives of
the crown. This was a favourite project of the king, as it
carried the show of authority on the part of the royal go
vernment, and of dependence on the part of the colonies ;
and it was an object of no less importance to the governors
themselves, the most of whom were sent to America to
repair fortunes which had been ruined by extravagance at
home.

The disputes on this subject, in the province of Massa
chusetts, lasted thirty years. The assembly of that colony
were ready to make grants for the support of their governors,
from year to year, as they had been accustomed to do, under
their charter government ; but no menaces could induce them
to establish a permanent salary. At length, satisfied that the
house would never yield, the crown allowed their governors
to ratify temporary grants.

Another grievance which the colonies suffered during this
period, and of which they had reason loudly to complain,
was the conduct of the parent country, in transporting to
America those persons, who for their crimes had forfeited
their liberty and lives in Great Britain. Various acts of par
liament authorized this measure ; and hence the country was
becoming the asylum of the worst of felons. The conduct of
the parent country, in thus sending the pestilential inmates of
her prisons to the colonies, met with their strong and univer
sal abhorrence ; nor was this abhorrence lessened by the rea
sons assigned, beyond the waters, for the practice, viz.
" thatin many of his majesty's colonies and plantations, there
was a great want oi servants, who, by their labour and indus
try, might be the means of improving, and making the said
colonies more useful to his majesty /"

' '

23 INTRODUCTION.

" Very surprising," remarks an independent, and even elo
quent writer of those times, "very surprising that thieves,
burglars, pick-pockets, and cut-purses, and a horde of the
most flagitious banditti upon earth, should be sent as agreea
ble companions to us ! That the supreme legislature did intend
a transportation to America as a punishment, I verily be
lieve ; but so great is the mistake, that confident I am. they
are thereby on the contrary highly rewarded. For what can
be more agreeable to a penurious wretch, driven through ne
cessity to seek a livelihood by the breaking of houses and
robbing upon the king's highway, than to be saved from the
halter, redeemed from the stench of a gaol, and transported,
without expense to himself, into a country, where, being un
known, no man can reproach him for his crimes ; W7here la
bour is high, a little of which will maintain him ; arid wrhere all
his expenses will be moderate and low. There is scarce a thiei
in England that would not rather be transported than hanged."

" But the acts," continues the same writer, " are intended for
the better peopling of the colonies. And will thieves and
murderers conduce to^ that end? what advantage can we reap
from a colony of unrestrainable renegadoes ? will they exalt
the glory of the crown ? or rather will not the dignity of the
most illustrious monarch in the world be sullied by a province
of subjects so lawless, detestable, and ignorant ? can agricul
ture be promoted, when the wild boar of the forest breaks
down our hedges, and pulls up our vines ? will trade flourish,
or manufactures be encouraged, where property is made the
spoil of such, who are too idle to work, and wicked enough
to murder and steal ? — How injurious does it seem to fret
one part of the dominions from the plagues of mankind, and
cast them upon another ! We want people, 'tis true ; but not
villains, ready at any time, encouraged by impunity, and ha
bituated, upon the slightest occasion, to cut a man's throat for
a small part of his property."

To this catalogue of grievances, not imaginary, but real ;
not transient, but long continued ; not local, but mostly uni
versal ; — many others might be added, did our limits permit.

But under all these oppressions, amidst obstinate and va-

INTRODUCTION. 23

nous efforts of the crown, to extend the royal prerogative,
and to keep the colonies in humble dependence, they retained,
in general, a warm affection for the parent country. They re
garded the sovereign as a father, and themselves as children.
They acknowledged their obligations of obedience to him, in
all things which were lawful, and consistent with their natural
and unalienable rights ; and they appealed to him in various
disputes, which arose about colonial rights, limits, and juris
diction.

It was a characteristic trait in the colonists to provide for
their own defence. They had been taught to do this by the
neglect of the parent country, from the very days of their in
fancy — even before the problem was solved, whether the
country should longer continue the domain of pagan dark
ness, or the empire of cultivated mind. They might, indeed
justly have claimed the assistance and protection of the land
of their birth, but seldom did they urge their rights. On the
contrary, their treasuries were often emptied, and the blood
of their yeomanry shed, in furnishing assistance to the parent
country. In her contests, and her wars, they engaged with all
the enthusiasm of her native sons ; and persevered with aH
the bravery of soldiers trained to the art of war.

The testimony to be adduced in support of these statements,
is more ample than we have space to devote to it. " When
ever," said a conspicuous member of parliament, some years
after the peace of 1763, "whenever Great Britain has de
clared war, the colonies have taken their part : They were
engaged in King William's wars, and Queen Anne's wars,
even in their infancy. They conquered Arcadia, in the last
century, for us ; and we then gave it up. Again, in Queen
Anne's war, they conquered Nova Scotia, which from that
time has belonged to Great Britain. They have been engaged
in more than one expedition to Canada, ever foremost to par
take of honour and danger with the mother country.

" Well, sir, what have we done for them ? Have we coiv-
quered the country for them, from the Indians ? Have we
cleared it? Have we drained it ? Have we made it habita
ble ? What have we done for them ? I believe precisely

24 INTRODUCTION.

nothing at all, but just keeping watch and ward over their
trade, that they should receive nothing- but fr om ourselves, at
our own price.

" I will not positively say, that we have spent nothing ;
though I don't recollect any such article upon our journals ;
I mean any national expense in setting them out as colonists.
The royal military government of Nova Scotia cost, indeed,
not a little sum; above 500,000/. for its plantations and its
first years. Had your other colonies cost any thing similar,
either in their outset or support, there would be something to
say on that side ; but instead of that, they have been left to
themselves, for one hundred, or one hundred and fifty years,
upon the fortune and capital of private adventurers, to en
counter every difficulty and danger. What towns have we
built for them ? What forests have we cleared ? What country
have we conquered for them from the Indians ? Name the
officers — name the troops — the expeditions — their dates. —
Where are they to be found? Not on the journals of this
kingdom. They are no where to be found.

" In all the wars, which have been common to us and them,
they have taken their full share. But in all ttueir own dangers,
in the difficulties belonging separately to their situation, in
all the Indian wars, which did not immediately concern us,
we left them to themselves, to struggle their way through.
For the whim of a minister, you can bestow half a million to
build a town, and to plant a royal colony of Nova Scotia ; a
greater sum than you have bestowed upon every other colony
together.

" And, notwithstanding all these, which are the real facts,
now that they have struggled through their difficulties, and
begin to hold up their heads, and to shew an empire, which
promises to be foremost in the world, we claim them, and
theirs, as implicitly belonging to us, without any conside
ration of their own rights. We charge them with ingrati*
tude, without the least regard to truth, just as if this kingdom
had for a century and a half attended to no other subject ; as
if all our revenue, all our power, all our thought, had been
bestowed upon them, and all our national debt had been con-

INTRODUCTION. 25

t» acted in the Indian wars of America ; totally forgetting the
subordination in commerce and manufactures in which we
have bound them, and for which, at least, we owe them help
towards their protection.

" Look at the preamble of the act of navigation, and every
other American act, and see if the interest of this country is
not the avowed object. If they make a hat, or a piece of
steel, an act of parliament calls it a nuisance ; a tilting ham
mer, a steel furnace, must be abated in America, as a nui
sance. Sir, I speak from facts. I call your books of statutes
and journals to witness."

Of an equally high and honourable character, is the testi
mony of Pounal, one of the royal governors in America. " I
profess," said he, in 1765, " an affection for the colonies, be
cause, having lived amongst those people in a private as well
as in a public character, I know them ; I know that in their
private, social relations, there is not a more friendly, and in
their political ones, a more zealously loyal people, in all his
majesty's dominions. When fairly and openly dealt with,
there is not a people who have a truer sense of the necessary
powers of government. They would sacrifice their dearest
interests for the honour and prosperity of their mother coun
try. I have a right to say this, because experience has given
me a practical knowledge, and this impression of them.

" The duty of a colony is affection for the mother country.
Here I may affirm, that in whatever form and temper this
affection can lie in the human breast, in that form, by the
deepest and most permanent affection, it ever did lie in the
breast of the American people. They have no other idea of
this country, than as their home ; they have no other word
by which to express it ; and till of late, it has constantly been
expressed by the name of home. That powerful affection,
the love of our native country, which operates in every breast,
operates in this people towards England, which they consider
as their native country ; nor is this a mere passive impres
sion, a mere opinion in speculation — it has been wrought up
in them to a vigilant and active zeal for the service of this
country."

D 2

#0 INTRODUCTION.

This affection for the parent country, and devotedness tn
her interests ; this promptness to assist her, though unassisted
by her themselves ; this liberality in emptying their treasuries,
and shedding their blood, were felt and cherished by the colo
nies, before, and for years after, the peace of 1763. They
continued to be thus cherished, and thus manifested, until
exactions and oppressions " left not a hook to hang a doubt
on," that they must either passively submit to the arbitrary
impositions of a jealous and rapacious parent, or rise in
defence of those rights, which had been given to them by the
God of nature, in common with his other children.

The peace of 1763, while it secured to Great Britain all the
country east of the Mississippi, and annihilated the French
power in America, restored peace to the colonies, and put an
end to the calamities of a French and Indian war, by which
they had been harrassed for nearly a century. The joy con
sequent upon an event so auspicious, was universal and sincere.
But that joy was soon to be diminished by the agitation of the
question, in England, as to the taxation of the colonies.

The project of laying internal taxes upon the American
provinces, and drawing a revenue from them, had been sug
gested to the ministry, during the administrations of Sir Ro
bert Walpole and Mr. Pitt. But to these wise and sagacious
statesmen it appeared to be a measure of doubtful right, and
of still more doubtful policy. " I will leave the taxation of
the Americans," said Walpole, " for some of my successors,
who may have more courage than I have, and are less friendly
to commerce than I am."

After the termination of the French war, the consideration
of the subject was renewed, and that moment seized as a fa
vourable one, to commence the operation of the system.
During the war, a heavy debt had been incurred by Great
Britain, for the benefit and protection, as it was said, of the
American colonies. It was, therefore, no more than an act
of justice, that they should assist in the payment of that debt.

In the winter of 1764, Lord Grenville, who had recently
been elevated to the premiership, announced to the agents of
the colonies, then in England, his intention of drawing a re-

INTRODUCTION. 27

•

venue from them, and that, for this purpose, he should propose,
in the ensuing session of parliament, a duty on stamps.

This intention of the minister being communicated to the
colonies, the whole country immediately caught the alarm.
Not only among private citizens, but also among public and
corporate bodies, the same feeling of indignation prevailed ;
the same opinion of the injustice and unconstitutional charac
ter of the proposed measure was expressed, and the same dis
position to resist it exhibited.

The house of representatives, in Massachusetts, in the fol
lowing June, declared, " That the sole right of giving and
granting the money of the people of that province, was
vested in them, or their representatives ; and that the imposi
tion of duties and taxes by the parliament of Great Britain,
upon a people not represented in the house of commons, is
absolutely irreconcilable with their rights. That no man can
justly take the property of another, without his consent; upon
which original principles, the power of making laws for levy
ing taxes, one of the main pillars of the Dtitish constitution, is
evidently founded."

Petitions, from several of the colonies, were immediately
prepared, and forwarded to their agents in England, to be
presented at the approaching meeting of parliament, when
the contemplated measure was to be brought forward. The
language of these petitions, though respectful, was in accord
ance with the spirit which pervaded the country. They
acknowledged the right of parliament to regulate trade, but
would not for a moment admit the existence of a right in the
mother country, to impose duties for the purpose of a revenue.
They did not claim this exemption as a privilege ; they
founded it on a basis more honourable and solid ; it was chal
lenged as their indefeasible right.

The above petitions reached England in season, and were
offered to the acceptance and consideration of parliament :
Bi^t no intreaties of the agents, c<puld induce that body even to
receive them ; on the twofold ground, that the petitioners ques
tioned the right of parliament to pass the contemplated bill ;
and, moreover, it was an ancient standing rule of the house.

38 INTRODUCTION.

" that no petition should be received against a money bill.1'
In the house of commons, the bill passed, by the large ma
jority of 250 to 50. In the house of lords, the vote was nearly
unanimous ; and on the 22d of March, (1765,) it received the
royal sanction.

By the act thus passed, duties were imposed not only on
most of the written instruments used in judicial and com
mercial proceedings ; but also upon those which were neces
sary in the ordinary transactions of the colonies. Deeds, in
dentures, pamphlets, newspapers, advertisements, almanacs,
and even degrees conferred by seminaries of learning, were
among the enumerated articles on which a tax was laid.

The discussions on the above bill, before its final passage,
were unusually animated. The principle involved in it was
felt to be important, both by its friends and opposers ; and
the measure was seen to be pregnant with consequences of the
most serious nature. "It may be doubted," says an historian,*
" whether, upon any other occasion, either in times past or
present, there has be^n displayed more vigour or acuteness of
intellect, more love of country, or of party spirit, or greater
splendour of eloquence, than in these debates. fNor was the
shock of opinion less violent without the walls of Westmin
ster. All Europe, it may be said, and especially the commer
cial countries, were attentive to the decision of this important
question."

The principal supporters of the bill were Lord Grenville
and Charles Townshend. Unfortunately for the colonies, Mr.
Pitt, their constant friend, was absent ; being confined to his
bed by sickness. The principal opposers, were Gen. Conway,
Alderman Beckford, Col. Barre,Mr. Jackson, and Sir William
Meredith. The two first of these opposed the measure on
the ground that parliament had no right to tax the colonies ;
the others contended that it was not expedient.

In the conclusion of one of his speeches on the bill, Mr.
Townshend exclaimed: "And now, will these Americans,
planted by our care, nourished up by our indulgence, until they

* Botta.

INTRODUCTION. 29

are grown to a degree of strength and importance, and protected
by our arms, will they grudge to contribute their mite to re
lieve us from the heavy burden we lie under ?"

The honourable member had no sooner taken his seat, than
Col. Barre rose, and replied : " They planted by your care.
No, your oppression planted them in America. They fled
from your tyranny, to a then uncultivated and inhospitable
country, where they were exposed to almost all the hardships,
to which human nature is liable, and among others, to the
cruelties of a savage foe; the most subtle, and I will take upon
me to say, the most formidable, of any people upon the face of
God's earth ; and yet actuated by principles of true English
liberty, they met all hardships with pleasure, compared with
those they suffered in their own country, from the hands of
those who should have been their friends.

" They nourished by your indulgence ! They grew by your
neglect of them. As soon as you began to take care of them,
that care was exercised in sending persons to rule them in one
department and another, who were deputies of deputies to
some members of this house, sent to prey upon them ; men,
whose behaviour, on many occasions, has caused the blood of
those sons of liberty to recoil within them ; men promoted to
the highest seats of justice, some, to my knowledge, were glad
by going to a foreign country, to escape being brought to a
bar of justice in their own.

" They protected by your arms ! They have nobly taken
up arms in your defence ; have exerted their valour, amidst their
constant and laborious industry, for the defence of a country
whose frontier was drenched in blood, while its interior parts
yielded all its little savings to your emolument.

"And believe me, that same spirit of freedom which actuated
that people at first, will accompany them still. But prudence
forbids me to explain myself further.

" God knows, I do not, at this time, speak from party heat.
However superior to me, in general knowledge and experi
ence, the respectable body of this house may be, yet I claim
to know more of America than most of you, having seen and
been conversant in that country. The people, I believe, are as

3*

30 INTRODUCTION.

truly loyal as any subjects the king has ; but a people jealous
of their liberties, and who will vindicate them, if ever they
should be violated — but the subject is too delicate — I will say
no more."

For this unpremeditated appeal, pronounced with an energy
and an eloquence fitted to the high occasion, the house
was not prepared. For some minutes, the members remained
motionless, as if petrified by surprise. But the opposition at
length rallied. Their pride could not allow of retreat. The
measure was again urged, the question was taken, and the bill
adopted.

No act of the British government could have been more im
politic ; and none ever excited, in the colonies, a more uni
versal alarm. It gave birth to feelings, which could never be
suppressed, and aroused those intestine commotions in Ame
rica, which, after kindling a civil war, and involving all Europe
in its calamities, terminated in the total disjunction from the
British empire, of one of its fairest portions.

After the arrival of the news that the stamp act had been
adopted in parliament, the first public body that met was
the assembly of Virginia. Towards the close of the session,
about the last of May, the following resolutions were in
troduced into the house of burgesses, by Patrick Henry ; a
lawyer, at that time a young man, but highly distinguished
for the strength of his intellect, and the power of his elo
quence.

" Resolved, that the first adventurers and settlers of this his
majesty's colony and dominions of Virginia, brought with
them, and transmitted to their posterity, and all others his
majesty's subjects, since inhabiting in this his majesty's co
lony, all the privileges and immunities that have at any time
been held, enjoyed, and possessed, by the people of Great
Britain.

" Resolved, that by the two royal charters granted by King
James I. the colonists aforesaid are declared entitled to all
privileges of faithful, liege, and natural born subjects, to all
intents and purposes, as if they had been abiding and born
within the realms of England.

INTRODUCTION. 31

" Resolved, that his majesty's most liege people of this his
most ancient colony, have enjoyed the right of being thus
governed by their own authority, in the article of taxes and
internal police, and that the same have never been forfeited,
nor any other way yielded up, but have been constantly re
cognised by the king and people of Great Britain.

" Resolved, therefore, that the general assembly of this co
lony, together with his majesty, or his substitute, have, in their
representative capacity, the only exclusive right and power to
lay taxes and impositions upon the inhabitants of the colony ;
and that any attempt to vest such a power in any person or
persons whatever, other than the general assembly afore
said, is illegal, unconstitutional, and unjust ; and has a
manifest tendency to destroy British as well as American free
dom."

The debate on these resolutions was animated, and even vio
lent. Nothing like them had ever transpired in America.
They evinced a settled purpose of resistance ; and conveyed
to the ministry of Great Britain a lesson, which had they read
with unprejudiced minds, might have saved them the fruitless
struggle of a seven years war. There were those, in the house
of burgesses, who strongly opposed the resolutions ; but the
bold and powerful eloquence of Henry bore them down, and
carried the resolutions through. In the heat of debate, be
boldly asserted, that the king had acted the part of a tyrant;
and alluding to the fate of other tyrants, he exclaimed, " Caesar
had his Brutus, Charles I. his Cromwell, and George III." —
here pausing a moment, till the cry of " treason, treason,"
resounding from several parts of the house, had ended — he
added — " may profit by their example ; if this be treason, make
the most o-f it."

The above resolutions had no sooner passed, than they found
their way into the papers of the day, and were circulated widely
and rapidly through the colonies. They were received with
enthusiasm ; and served to raise still higher the indignant
feelings which pervaded the country.

Before these resolutions had reached Massachusetts, the
house of representatives of that colony had declared the ex-

O» INTRODUCTION.

pediency of a congress, composed of commissioners from the
several colonies, " to consult together on the present cir
cumstances of the colonies ; — the acts of parliament laying
duties and taxes upon them ; and to consider of a general
and humble address to his majesty and the parliament for
relief."

The measure thus proposed by Massachusetts, on being
communicated to the several colonies, was received with
cordial approbation by most of them ; and on the 7th of Oc
tober, 1765, commissioners from the colonies of Massachu
setts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New-York, New-Jersey,
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and South Carolina, metat
New-York, on the important and responsible business assign
ed them.

This congress, the first that was ever held in America,
published, as the result of their deliberation, a declaration of
the rights and grievances of the colonists ; and agreed upon a
memorial to the house of lords, and a petition to the king and
commons.

In their declaration, they acknowledged their allegiance to
his majesty, and their willingness to render clue honour to the
"ightfu? authority of parliament ; but they claimed that they
had interests, rights, and liberties, as the natural born sub
jects of his majesty, and that, as they could not be represent
ed in parliament, that body had no right to impose taxes
upon them without their consent. They declared the stamp
act, and other acts of parliament, " to have a manifest tenden
cy to subvert the rights and liberties of the colonists."

The address and petition, agreed to by this congress, were
at this time signed by the commissioners from six colonies
only. But their proceedings were warmly approved in every
quarter of the country ; and at a subsequent date, received the
sanction of the assemblies, not only of South Carolina, Con
necticut, and New- York, but of those colonies which had not
been represented in the congress.

While the highest assemblies were thus bearing their official
and solemn testimony against the oppressive and unconstitu
tional acts of the British parliament; the people, in every sec

INTRODUCTION. 33

tion of the country, and especially in the principal towns, were
manifesting their abhorrence of those measures, in a different,
but not less decisive way.

On the morning of the 14th of August, two effigies were dis
covered hanging on the branch of an old elm, near the south
entrance of Boston. One of these represented a stamp office;
the other, a jack boot, out of which rose a horned head, which
appeared to be looking round.

The singularity of this spectacle soon attracted the notice
of great numbers; and before evening, the collection amounted
to a multitude. The images were then taken down, placed upon
a bier, and carried in procession with imposing solemnity.
At a distance, in the rear, thefnultitude followed, shouting —
" liberty and prosperity forever — no stamps !" Arriving in
front of a house, owned by one Oliver, which was supposed to
be a stamp office, they levelled it to the ground; and proceed
ing to his place of residence, they beheaded his effigy, and
broke in the windows of his house. Oliver himself effected a
timely escape ; but his fences, the furniture of his house, and
its dependencies, were destroyed. It was midnight before the
multitude dispersed.

In the morning of the next day, the people re-assembled,
and were proceeding to a repetition of their excesses ;
but upon hearing that Oliver had sent his resignation to
England, they desisted, and repairing to the front of his house,
they gave three cheers, and quietly returned to their homes.

A volume would scarcely suffice, to give a full recital of all
the commotions which were excited by the stamp act, in the
single province of Massachusetts. But these disorders were
far from being confined to such circumscribed limits. A spi
rit of resistance pervaded the country. The very atmosphere
seemed pregnant with revolt. Even sobriety was found off
her guard, in the tumultuous crowd ; and old age felt some
thing of the impulses of younger days.

On the first day of November, the stamp act was to go into
operation. As it drew near, the feelings of the colonists
became more and more intense ; less popular noise and cla
mour were, perhaps, to be heard; but a deep and settled hos
E

34 INTRODUCTION.

tility to the act had taken possession of every breast. On the
5th of October, the ships which brought the stamps appeared in
sight of Philadelphia, near Gloucester Point : The vessels in the
harbour immediately hoisted their colours half mast high ; the
bells on the churches were muffled ; and during the rest of the
day were tolled, in token of a profound and general mourning.

On the 10th of September, the stamps, designed for Boston,
arrived at that place. By order of the governor, they were
conveyed to the castle, where they could be defended by the
artillery, should occasion require. At length, the 1st of No
vember arrived. The day in many places was ushered in
with marks of funeral ceremony. Business was suspended,
and shops and stores were closed. But at this time, not N
single sheet of all the bales of stamps, which had been sent
from England, could have been found in the colonies of New-
England, of New-York, New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland,
and the two Carolinas. They had either been committed to
the flames, had been reshipped to England, or were safely
guarded by the opposition, into whose hands they had fallen,
A general suspension, or rather a total cessation, of all business,
which required stamped paper, was the consequence. The
printers of newspapers only, observes an historian, continued
their occupation ; alleging for excuse, that if they had done
otherwise, the people would have given them such an admo
nition, as they little coveted. None would receive the gazettes
coming from Canada, as they were printed on stamped paper.
The courts of justice were shut; even marriages were no longer
celebrated ; and, in a word, an absolute stagnation in all the
relations of social life was established.*

The mother country could not long remain in ignorance of
the spirit which prevailed, and the disturbances which had
been excited in the colonies, by the oppressive acts of parlia
ment; and the stamp act in particular. The minds of all classes
in that country were deeply affected ; but as different interests
swayed, different opinions were entertained and expressed.

The merchants, anticipating a loss on the credit given to the

* Botta.

INTRODUCTION. 35

Americans, were disposed to censure the extraordinary course
of parliament. The manufacturers were not less loud in their
complaint, since, as the orders for their wares were discon
tinued, ruin stared them in the face. A deep despondency
pervaded the minds of some ; a lofty indignation took posses
sion of others. By one class, the colonies were extravagantly
extolled ; by another, they were as pointedly condemned.
By some, they were praised for their manly independence and
bold decision ; by others, they were accused of ingratitude,
turbulence, and rebellion.

Fortunately for the interests both of the colonies and of
Great Britain, about this time, a change took place in the ad
ministration of England, by which several of the friends of
America came into power. The Marquis of Rockingham,
one of the wealthiest noblemen of the kingdom, and highly
esteemed for the endowments of his mind, and the sincerity of
his character, was appointed first lord of the treasury, in the
room of Lord Grenville; Mr. Dowdeswell was made Chancel
lor of the Exchequer ; Lord Winchester took the place of the
Duke of Bedford, as president of the council ; and the Seals
were given to the young Duke of Grafton and General Con-
way, who so nobly defended the cause of the Americans, on the
motion in parliament to tax them.

During the session of the parliament of 1766, the subject of
the late disturbances in the colonies was brought forward, by
the new administration, and the expediency of repealing the
odious enactments was strongly urged. Petitions, from various
quarters, were presented, to the same effect. Many of the
merchants and manufacturers of the kingdom were deeply affect
ed by the new regulations concerning America. An immense
quantity of British manufactures were perishing in the ware
houses ; while artisans and seamen were deprived of employ
ment and support.

To the repeal of the stamp act, its original advocates were
strongly opposed, and they marshalled all their strength to
prevent it. In the first rank stood George Grenville, the late
prime minister. In the debate on the subject of repeal, among
other things, he said, "much against their will, the ministers

36 INTRODUCTION.

have laid before this house, the disturbances and audacious
enormities of the Americans ; for they began in July, and now
we are in the middle of January ; lately they were only oc
currences; they are now grown to disturbances, tumults, and
riots. I doubt they border on open rebellion; and if the doc
trine I have heard this day, be confirmed,! fear they will lose
that name, to take that of. revolution." — "When I proposed
to tax America, I asked the house, if any gentleman would
object to the right 1 I repeatedly asked it; and no man
would attempt to deny it. And tell me, when the Americans
were emancipated? When they want the protection of this
kingdom, they are always very ready to nsk it. This protection
has always been granted them, in the fullest manner; and now
they refuse to contribute their mite towards the public expen
ses. For let not gentlemen deceive themselves, with regard
to the rigour of the tax ; it would not suffice even for the ne
cessary expenses of the troops stationed in America : but a
pepper-corn in acknowledgment of the right is of more value,
than millions without. Yet, notwithstanding the slightness
of the tax, and the urgency of our situation, the Americans
grow sullen, and instead of concurring in assisting to meet
expenses arising from themselves, they renounce your autho
rity, insult your officers, and break out, I might almost say,
into open rebellion.

" There was a time when they would not have proceeded
thus ; but they are now supported by the artifice of these
young gentlemen ; inflammatory petitions are handed about
against us, and in their favour. Even within this house, in
this sanctuary of the laws, sedition has found its defenders.
Resistance to the laws is applauded ; obstinacy encoura
ged ; disobedience extolled; rebellion pronounced a virtue."

In reply to Grenville, William Pitt, now venerable for his
age, and still more venerable for the important services which
he had rendered his country, rose and said : " I know not
whether I ought most to rejoice, that the infirmities which have
been wasting, for so long a time, a body, already bowed by the
weight of years, of late suspending their ordinary violence,
should have allowed me, this day, to behold these walls, and

INTRODUCTION. 37

to discuss, in the presence rf this august assembly, a subject
of such high importance, and which so nearly concerns the
safety of our country ; or to grieve at the rigour of destiny,
in contemplating this country, which, within a few years had
arrived at such a pinnacle of splendour and majesty, and be
come formidable to the universe from the immensity of its
power, now wasted by an intestine evil, a prey to civil discords,
and madly hastening to the brink of the abyss, into which
the united force of the most powerful nations of Europe
struggled in vain to plunge it. Would to heaven, that my
health had permitted my attendance here, when it was first
proposed to tax America ! If my feeble voice should not
have been able to avert the torrent of calamities, which has
fallen upon us, and the tempest which threatens us, at
least my testimony would have attested, that I had no part in
them.

" It is now an act that has passed ; I would speak with
decency of every act of this house, but I must beg the indul
gence of the house to speak of it with freedom. There is an
idea in some, that the Americans are virtually represented in
this house ; but I would fain know by what province, county,
city, or borough, they are represented here ? No doubt by
some province, county, city, or borough, never seen or known
by them, or their -ancestors, and which they never will see or
know.

" The commons of America, represented in their several
assemblies, have ever been in possession of the exercise of
this, their constitutional right, of giving and granting their
own money. They would have been slaves if they had not
enjoyed it.

" I come not here, armed at all points with law cases, and
acts of parliament, with the statute book doubled down in dog's
ears, as my valiant adversary has done. But I know, at least,
if we are to take example from ancient facts, that, even under
the most arbitrary reigns, parliaments were ashamed of taxing
a people without their consent, and allowed them representa
tives ; and in our own times, even those who send no mem
bers to parliament, are all at least inhabitants of Great Bri-

4

38 INTRODUCTION.

tain Many have it in their option to be actually represented-
They have connexions with those that elect, and they have
influence over them. Would to heaven that all were better
represented than they are ! It is the vice of our constitu
tion ; perhaps the day will arrive, and I rejoice in the hope,
when the mode of representation, this essential part of our
organization, and principal safeguard of our liberty, will be
carried to that perfection which every good Englishman must
desire.

" I hear it said that America is obstinate, America is almost
in open rebellion. I rejoice that America has resisted. Three
millions of people, so dead to all the feelings of liberty as
voluntarily to submit to be'slaves, would have been fit instru
ments to make slaves of ourselves. The honourable member
has said also, for he is fluent in words of bitterness, that Ame
rica is ungrateful : he boasts of his bounties towards her ;
but are not these bounties intended, finally, for the benefit of
this kingdom ? And how is it true, that America is ungrate
ful ? Does she not voluntarily hold a good correspondence
with us ? The profits to Great Britain, from her commerce
with the colonies, are two millions a year. This is the fund
that carried you triumphantly through the last war. The es
tates that were rented at two thousand pounds a year, seventy
years ago, are at three thousand at present. You owe this to
America. This is the price she pays for your protection. I
omit the increase of population in the colonies ; the migration
of new inhabitants from every part of Europe ; and the ulte
rior progress of American commerce, should it be regulated
by judicious laws. And shall we hear a miserable financier
come with a boast that he can fetch a pepper-corn into the
exchequer to the loss of millions to the nation ? The gentle
man complains that he has been misrepresented in the public
prints. I can only say, it is a misfortune common to all that
fill high stations, and take a leading part in public affairs.
He says, also, that when he first asserted the right of parlia
ment to tax America, he was not contradicted. I know not
how. it is, but there is a modesty in this house, which does not
choose to contradict a minister. If gentlemen do not get the

INTRODUCTION. 39

better of this modesty, perhaps the collective body may begin
to abate of its respect for the representative. A great dea.
has been said without doors, and more than is discreet, of the
power, of the strength of America. But, in a good cause, or.
a sound bottom, the force of this country can crush America
to atoms ; but on the ground of this tax, when it is wished to
prosecute an evident injustice, I am one who will lift my hands
and my voice against it.

" In such a cause, your success would be deplorable, and
victory hazardous. America, if she fell, would fall like the
strong man. She would embrace the pillars of the state, and
pull down the constitution along with her. Is this your boasted
peace ? — not to sheath the sword in its scabbard, but to sheath
it in the bowels of your countrymen ? Will you quarrel with
yourselves, now the whole house of Bourbon is against you ?
While France disturbs your fisheries in Newfoundland, em
barrasses your slave trade with Africa, and withholds from
your subjects in Canada their property, stipulated by treaty ?
While the ransom for the Manillas is denied by Spain, and its
gallant conqueror traduced into a mean plunderer ? The
Americans have not acted in all things with prudence ana
temper. They have been wronged. They have been driven
to madness by injustice. Will you punish them for the mad
ness you have occasioned ? Rather let prudence and benig
nity come first from the strongest side. Excuse their errors;
learn to honour their virtues. Upon the whole, I will beg
leave to tell the house what is really my opinion. I consider
it most consistent with our dignity, most useful to our liberty,
and in every respect the safest for this kingdom, that the
stamp act be repealed, absolutely, totally, and immediately
At the same time, let the sovereign authority of this country
over the colonies be asserted in as strong terms as can be.
devised, and oe made to extend to every point of legislation
whatsoever ; that we may bind their trade, confine their ma
nufactures, and exercise every power whatsoever, except that
of taking their money out of their pockets without their con
sent."

The impression made by this speech of Mr. Pitt, pro-

40 INTRODUCTION.

nounced, as it tvas, with a firm and solemn tone, was deep and
effectual. Much resentment was, indeed, manifested by all
on account of the excesses committed by the Americans ; but
conviction had settled on the minds of a majority of parlia
ment, that at least a partial retrocession on their part was ne
cessary. Accordingly, on the putting of the question, Februa
ry 22d, the repeal of the stamp act was carried in the house
by a majority of 265 to 167. The vote in the house of peers
was 155 to 61. On the 19th of March, the act of repeal re
ceived the royal assent.

Thus was put at rest, for a time, a question which had
deeply agitated not only the colonies of America, but England
itself; and had excited much attention throughout continental
Europe. But it is more than probable, that even at this time
the repealing act would not have passed, had it not been ac
companied by a declaratory act, that the parliament had the
right to make laws and statutes to bind the colonies in all
cases whatsoever.

The joy produced throughout England at this result, was
greater than could have been anticipated, and no demonstra
tions were omitted which could testify the public sense of the
^indness of the king, and the wisdom of the parliament. The
flags of the ships were spread in token of felicitation ; a
general illumination of the city of London was made ; salutes
were fired ; and bonfires kindled in every quarter.

But it \vas in America that a still higher joy prevailed, and
still greater demonstrations of that joy were made. In the
house of representatives in Massachusetts, a vote of gratitude
to the king, and of thanks to Mr. Pitt, the Duke of Grafton,
and others, was passed. By the house of burgesses in Virgi
nia, it wras resolved to erect a statue in honour of the king,
and an obelisk in honour of all those, whether of the house
of peers or of commons, who had distinguished themselves
in favour of the rights of the colonies.

In the midst of this joy, the declaratory act, above men
tioned, appears to have been little regarded. The extent and
inadmissible character of its principles for a time remained
unscrutinised. It was considered as appended to the act of

INTRODUCTION. 41

repeal, to soften the prejudices of the opposition, and to save
national honour from the imputation of being too greatly tar
nished. But, in reality, it was designed as the recognition of
a principle which the British politicians were unwilling to
relinquish, and which they might in time have occasion to
apply.

It is not, moreover, to be concealed, that universal and sin
cere as was the joy of the Americans, consequent on the re
peal of the stamp act ; the same cordiality was n^ver felt by
the colonies, as before the late disturbances. A strong dis
gust — a deep resentment, had fixed itself in the hearts of
many ; and a secret wish began to be felt, that the yoke were
entirely removed. Perhaps, even at this early day, the hope
was indulged, that the time would arrive, when this wish
would become a reality.

In July, 1766, the administration of the Marquis of Rock-
ingham was dissolved, and a new one formed, under the direc
tion of Mr. Pitt. Unfortunately it was composed of men of
different political principles, and attached to different parties.
The Duke of Grafton was placed at the head of the treasury;
Lord Shelburne was joined with General Conway as one of the
secretaries of state ; Charles Tovvnshend was made chancel
lor of the exchequer, Camden, lord chancellor, Pitt, now crea
ted Earl of Chatham, had the privy seal, and Lord North and
George Cooke were joint pay-masters.

If the prejudices of many in the colonies were not yet
done away, much more was this the fact with the ex-minister
Grenville, and his adherents in England. Disappointed as
to the popularity of his administration, and remembering as
one cause of it, his measures against America, he was ready
to call into view, on every occasion, her obstinacy and ingra
titude, and to enter anew upon efforts to tax the colonies.

To him, therefore, is attributed the plan which, under the
last formed administration, was brought forward in the par
liament of 1767, to impose taxes upon the colonies. The
articles enumerated in the bill, upon which duties were laid,
were glass, paper, paste board, white and red lead, painters
colours, and tea.

F 4*

42 INTRODUCTION.

Mr. Pitt, during the discussion of this bill, was confined by
indisposition, and hence, unable to raise his voice against it.
Without much opposition, it passed both houses, and on the
29th of June, received the royal assent. At the same time
were passed two other acts ; — the one establishing a new
board of custom-house officers in America; and the other re
straining the legislature of the province of New- York from
passing any act whatever, until they should furnish the king's
troops with several required articles.

These three acts reached America at the same time, and
again excited universal alarm. The first and second were
particularly odious. The new duties, it was perceived, were
only a new mode of drawing money from the colonies, and
the same strong opposition to the measure was exhibited,
which had prevailed against the stamp act. Several of the
colonies, through their colonial assemblies, expressed their
just abhorrence of these enactments, and their determination
never to submit to them.

Soon after the establishment of the new board of custom
house officers, at Boston, under the above act, a fit occasion
presented itself, for an expression of the public indignation.
This was the arrival at that port, in May, 1668, of the sloop
Liberty, belonging to Mr. Hancock, and laden with wines from
Madeira.

During the night, the most of her cargo was unladen, and
put into stores ; on the following day the sloop was entered
at the custom house, with a few pipes only. A discovery
being made of these facts, by the custom-house officers, the
vessel was seized, and by their order removed along side of
the Romney, a ship of war, then in the harbour.

The conduct of the custom-house officers in this transac
tion roused the indignant feelings of the Bostonians, who un
warrantably attacked the houses of the officers, and even
assaulted their persons. No prosecutions, however, could be
sustained, from the excited state of public feeling.

Finding themselves no longer safe in the town, the officers
prudently sought protection on board the Romney, and sub
sequently retired to Castle Williams.

INTRODUCTION. 43

The public excitement was soon after increased, by the ar
rival in the harbour of two regiments of troops, under the
command of Colonel Dalrymple. These were designed to
assist the civil magistrates in the preservation of peace, and
the custom-house officers in the execution of their functions.
Both these regiments were encamped within the town — the
one on the commons, the other in the market hall and state
house.

This measure of the governor, under order of the British
ministry, was eminently fitted to rouse the public indignation
to the highest pitch. To be thus watched, as if in a state of
open rebellion — to see their common a place of encampment
— and their halls of justice, with the chambers of their as
sembly, thronged with armed soldiers, was more than the in
habitants were willing to endure. Frequent quarrels and
collisions occurred between the citizens and soldiers, which
every day threatened to terminate in bloodshed.

During the session of parliament in 1770, the Duke of
Grafton, first lord of the treasury, resigned, and was succeeded
in that office by the afterwards celebrated Lord North. In
March, this latter gentleman introduced a bill abolishing
the duties imposed by the act of 1767, on all the articles
except tea. This partial suspension of the duties served to
soften the feelings of the Americans in a degree ; but the
exception in relation to tea, it was quite apparent, was de
signed as a salvo to the national honour, and as an evidence
which the British ministry were unwilling'to relinquish, of the
right of parliament to tax the colonies.

The above relaxation in respect to certain duties was, how
ever, unaccompanied by any other indications of a more kindly
feeling towards the colonies. The troops were still continued
in Boston, and the acts of trade enforced with singular strict
ness. At length, on the evening of the 5th of March, 1770, in
a quarrel between a party of soldiers and citizens, eleven of
the, latter were killed or wounded, by a guard, under command
of a Captain Preston.

The news of this rencontre was spread in every direction
over the city — the bells were rung, the alarm of "fire" was

44 INTRODUCTION.

given, the drums were beat, and the citizens every where
called to arms. Thousands soon assembled, and demanded
the removal of the troops from the town. With the assu
rance that the affair should be settled to their satisfaction in the
morning, they were induced to retire. When the morning came,
however, Hutchinson, the lieutenant governor, for a long
time refused to order the removal of the troops, and was only
driven to this measure, by evidence too strong to be doubted,
that his own personal safety depended upon it.

The men who were killed, were regarded as martyrs in the
cause of liberty ; and at their interment no mark of public
sympathy or appropriate funeral ceremony was omitted. The
anniversary of this tragical event, which was called " the
Boston massacre," was long observed with great solemnity,
and gave occasion to warm and patriotic addresses, well
adapted to excite a revolutionary spirit.

Captain Preston and his guard were arraigned before a
judicial tribunal; but for the honour of the colony they were
all acquitted, except two, who were found guilty of man
slaughter. For this acquittal, the prisoners, as well as the
colony, were indebted to the independent zeal and powerful
eloquence of John Adams and Josiah Quincy, Jun. than whom
none were warmer friends to the colony, or had acted a more
conspicuous part against the imperious demands of the British
ministry. Odious to the community as the prisoners were,
these honest and intrepid champions appeared in their
defence, and proved to the world, that while Americans
could resist the usurpations of a tyrannical ministry, they
could also stand forth, when justice required, for the pro
tection and defence of their irresponsible servants.

Allusion has been made to the requirement of his British
majesty, in former years, that the colonies should provide for
the support of the royal governors by a permanent salary, and
their refusal to yield to the royal wishes. In the year 1772, it
was officially announced to the assembly of Massachusetts,
that provision had been made for the payment of their gover
nor's salary by tiie crown, independent of any grant from
them. The former dispute on this subject had given birth to

INTRODUCTION, 45

many angry feelings ; but language can scarcely describe the
excitement occasioned by the renewal of the subject, and the
application of the revenue of the colony to the above purpose,
independent of the assembly. The house of representatives
immediately declared the appropriation an infraction of their
charter — a dangerous innovation, and the preliminary to a
despotic administration of government.

While this dispute was going forward in Massachusetts, a
bold opposition to the measures of the British ministry ap
peared (June, 1772) in the colony of Rhode Island. A British
armed schooner, called the Gaspee, had been stationed in that
colony to assist the board of customs in the execution of the
revenue and trade laws. Desirous of displaying his authority,
and of humbling the pride of the colonists, the captain obliged
the masters of packets, navigating the bay, to lower their
colours on passing the schooner ; and, in case of refusal,
would chase them, and fire upon them. To a requirement so
humiliating, a master of one of the Providence packets refused
to submit, and was chased by the schooner, which venturing
too far inland, ran aground.

Intelligence of her situation was immediately communicated
to the inhabitants of Providence ; and several who were
characterized for a love of daring enterprise, repaired to the
spot. Under cover of night, they took the vessel by
force, and burnt her to the water's edge. Such a bold opposi
tion to the laws, was not suffered to pass unnoticed. But
although commissioners were appointed to investigate the
affair, and a reward of 500/. was offered for a discovery of the
offenders, all efforts to detect them were futile.

The opposition to the royal provision for the salary of the<
governor, which we noticed in a preceding paragraph, was
not confined to the assembly of Massachusetts. Numerous
meetings were called in the various towns of the provinces, in
relation, as well to this particular measure, as to other oppres
sive acts of the British parliament.

In these meetings, the town of Boston took the lead. A
committee was appointed to address the several towns in the
colony, and to urge upon them the importance of an unani-

46 INTRODUCTION.

mous expression of their feelings with regard to the conduct
of the British ministry. " We have abundant reason to appre
hend," said this committee, in their address, " that a plan of
despotism has been concerted, and is hastening to a comple
tion; the late measures of the administration have a direct
tendency to deprive us of every thing valuable as men, as
Christians, and as subjects, entitled to the rights of native
Britons." — "We are not afraid of poverty," said they, in con
clusion, — " but we disdain slavery. Let us consider, we are
struggling for our best birth rights and inheritance ; which,
being infringed, renders all our blessings precarious in their
enjoyment, and trifling in their value."

The proceedings of the assembly, and of the towns in Mas
sachusetts, were communicated to the house of burgesses in
Virginia, in March of 1773. Similar sentiments prevailed in
that ancient and patriotic colony. It was apparent to that body,
and began to be a prevailing opinion throughout the coun
try, that to remain much longer in that particular state, was
impossible. The future was indeed indistinct. But the wild
confusion of the elements gave indications of an approaching
storm. A portentous cloud hung over the country. It was
the part of wisdom, at least, to think of preparation, and to
ascertain in what attitude things stood in different sections of
the country, together with the support the directing officers
might expect, should the threatening tempest actually burst.

With these views, no doubt, the house of burgesses in Vir
ginia, on the 12th of March, 1773, passed the following reso
lutions :

" Be it resolved, that a standing committee of correspon-
.dence and inquiry be appointed, to consist of eleven persons,
to wit : the honourable Peyton Randolph, Esquire, Robert
Carter Nicholas, Richard Bland, Richard Henry Lee, Benja
min Harrison, Edmund Pendleton, Patrick Henry, Dudley
Diggs, Dabney Carr, Archibald Gary, and Thomas Jeffeison,
Esquires, any six of whom to be a committee, whose business
it shall be to obtain the most early and authentic intelligence
of such acts and resolutions of the British parliament, or pro
ceedings of administration, as may relate to, or affect the British

INTRODUCTION. 47

colonies ; and to keep up and maintain a correspondence and
communication with our sister colonies, respecting these im
portant considerations, and the result of their proceedings from
time to time to lay before the house."

Upon the recommendation of Virginia, similar committees
of correspondence and inquiry were appointed by the differ
ent colonial assemblies ; and a confidential interchange of
opinions was thus kept up between the colonies. Great unity
of sentiment was the consequence; and the value of the
measure was fully developed, in the struggle which afterwards
ensued between the colonies and the parent country.

By a series of direct oppressions, and through the resident
officers of the crown, the hostility of the people of Massachu
setts had become a settled principle ; and about this time, it
received additional strength, from the discovery and publication
of certain letters, addressed to a member of parliament, in the
years 1768 and 1769, by Mr. Hutchinson the governor, and
Mr. Oliver the chief justice of the province.

The existence o-f these letters was communicated to Dr.
Franklin, who at that time resided in England, by a gentleman
of his acquaintance, with the assurance that they contained
statements calculated to prejudice the ministry and parlia
ment against the people of Massachusetts, and to widen the
breach between the two countries ; and that they moreover
recommended the employment offeree to reduce the colonies
to order and obedience.

The letters were, at length, shown by this gentleman to Dr.
Franklin, who obtained copies of them to be sent to America,
only upon the express condition, that they should be confi
dentially shown to a few, and should not be again copied.

On their arrival in America, they were confidentially shown
to the " few ;" but it was scarcely possible that they should not
be made the subject of conversation. By some means, the
existence of such letters became known, beyond the original
intention; and so intense was the curiosity excited by the
subject, that on the 2d of June, 1773, some of them were com
municated by Samuel Adams to the assembly of Massachusetts,

48 INTRODUCTION.

then sitting with closed doors, under the restriction that they
should not be copied or published.

Notwithstanding the above restrictions, the contents of the
letters were so extraordinary and so fully evidential of a design
to subvert the constitution of the province by the introduc
tion of arbitrary power, that the house, upon further delibera
tion, directed the whole to be published. They were induced
to this course, by the fact, that several copies had got into
circulation, from which it might be inferred, that the consent
of the original owner had been obtained for that purpose.

The letters contained exaggerated statements and delibe
rate misrepresentations of occurrences in the colony, and
recommended an alteration of the charter of Massachusetts,
together with the institution of an order of patricians. They
even hinted at the expediency of " taking off some of the
original incendiaries.''1

The governor, unable to deny his own signature, presented
the poor excuse that they were " confidential letters," and
were written without any such object as was ascribed to them.
But now, " proof was heaped upon the shoulders of demon
stration," that Hutchinson, Oliver, and their adherents, had
attempted to alienate the affections of the king and ministry
from the colonies. The house of representatives, in an address
to the king, broadly asserted this fact ; and solicited, though
in vain, that Hutchinson and Oliver might be removed from
their places forever.

During these transactions in America, a plan was devising
by the British ministry, to introduce tea into the colonies.
The duty on this article, as already noticed, had been re
tained, for the purpose of maintaining the supremacy of par
liament, and its right to impose taxes. Little of the article,
however, had been imported into the country from Great
Britain ; the people having firmly resolved not to submit to
the payment of the duty. In consequence of a strict adhe
rence to this resolution, the teas of the East India Company
had accumulated in their warehouses ; and legislative aid
became necessary to relieve them of their embarrassments.

INTRODUCTION. 49

In 1773, the minister introduced a bill into parliament,
allowing the company to export their teas to America, with a
drawback of all the duties paid in England. By this regula
tion, tea would in fact become cheaper in America than in
Great Britain, and it was expected that this consideration
would induce the Americans to pay the small duty upon it.

On the passage of this bill, the company made a shipment of
large quantities of tea to Charleston, Philadelphia, New-York,
and Boston. Before its arrival, the resolution had been formed
by the inhabitants of those places, that, if possible, it should
not even be landed. That cargo destined for Charleston was,
indeed, landed and stored ; but was not permitted to be offer
ed for sale. The vessels which brought tea to Philadelphia
and New- York, were compelled to return to England with
their cargoes, without even having made an entry at the cus
tom-house.

It was designed by the leading patriots of Boston to make
a similar disposition of the cargoes which were expected at
that place ; but on its arrival, the consignees were found to be
the relations, or friends, of the governor, and they could not
be induced to resign their trust. Several town meetings were
held on the subject, and spirited resolutions passed, that no
considerations would induce the inhabitants to permit the
landing of the tea. Orders were at the same time given to the
captains to obtain clearances at the custom-house, without the
usual entries ; .but this the collector pertinaciously refused.

It was in this state of things, that the citizens of Boston
again assembled, to determine what measures to adopt. Du
ring the discussions had on the posture of affairs, and while
a captain of a vessel was gone to wait upon the governor, for
the last time, to request a passport, Josiah Quincy, Jun. rose, and
addressed the assembly in the following eloquent style : " It is
not the spirit that vapours within these walls, that must stand
us in stead. The exertions of this day will call forth events,
which will make a very different spirit necessary for our sal
vation. Look to the end. Whoever supposes, that shouts
and hosannas will terminate the trials of the day, entertains a
cnildish fancy. We must be grossly ignorant of the impor-
G 5

50 INTRODUCTION.

tance and value of the prize, for which we contend ; we must
be equally ignorant of the powers of those who have com
bined against us ; we must be blind to that malice, inveteracy
and insatiable revenge, which actuate our enemies, public and
private, abroad and in our bosoms, to hope we shall end this
controversy without the sharpest, sharpest conflicts ; to flatter
ourselves, that popular resolves, popular harangues, popular
acclamations, and popular vapour, will vanquish our fears.
Let us consider the issue. Let us look to the end. Let us
weigh and consider, before we advance to those measures which
must bring on the most trying- and terrible struggle this
country ever saw."

The captain of the vessel at length returned, to say that
the governor refused the requested passport. The meeting
was immediately dissolved. A secret plan had been formed
to mingle the tea with the waters of the ocean. Three dif
ferent parties soon after sallied out, in the costume of Mo
hawk Indians, and precipitately made their way to the wharves.

At the same time, the citizens were seen in crowds direct
ing their course to the same place, to become spectators of a
scene, as novel as the enterprise was bold. Without noise,
without the tumult usual on similar occasions, the tea was
taken from the vessel, by the conspirators, and expeditiously
offered as an oblation " to the watery God."

Nothing could exceed the surprise of the British ministry,
on learning the issue of their plan to introduce tea into the
colonies. Their indignation was particularly severe against the
inhabitants of Boston, for their " violent and outrageous con
duct." In the following March, 1774, the whole affair was
presented to parliament by Lord North, and a determination
was formed to punish both the citizens of Boston, and the in
habitants of the colony.

Accordingly, abill was soon introduced into the house of com
mons, usually called the " Boston port bill" which prohibited
the landing or shipping of any goods at that port, after the
first of June following. By a second act, which followed, the
charter of the colony was so altered, as to make the appoint
ment of the council, justices, judges, sheriffs, and even jurors,

INTRODUCTION. 51

Dependent upon the king or his agent ; and restraining all
town meetings, except the annual meeting, without leave of
the governor in writing, with a statement of the special busi
ness of the meeting. To these enactments a third was added,
authorising the governor, with the advice of the council, to
send any person for trial to any other colony, or to Great
Britain, who should be informed against, or indicted for any
act done in violation of the laws 01 the revenue.

On the arrival of the Boston port bill, which was brought
over by a new governor, General Gage, the citizens of Bos
ton, in an assembly which was convened to consider the sub
ject, declared, " that the impolicy, injustice, inhumanity, and
cruelty of the act, exceeded all their powers of expression ;
and, therefore," said they, " we leave it to the consciences of
others, and appeal to God and the world." — At the same time
they adopted the following resolution : " That if the other
colonies come into a joint resolution to stop all importations
from, and exportations to Great Britain, and every part of the
West Indies, till the act be repealed, the same would prove
the salvation of North America and her liberties."

Copies of these proceedings were immediately circulated
through the colonies. A universal sympathy for the inhabi
tants of Boston was expressed. In Virginia, this sympathy
was manifested by the house of burgesses, in the observance
of the 1st of June, the day the port of Boston was to be
shut, as a " day of fasting, humiliation, and prayer."

Arrangements having been made for the meeting of the
second continental congress, on the 5th of September, 1774,
that body assembled at Philadelphia. All the colonies were
represented, except Georgia. Peyton Randolph, a delegate
from Virginia, was elected president, and Charles Thompson,
a citizen of Philadelphia, was chosen secretary.

The attention of this celebrated congress was at an early
date turned towards the province of Massachusetts, and the
city of Boston ; and the following resolutions were adopted,
expressive of the sympathy they felt for that colony, in its dis
tress, and the high sense which the congress entertained of
the wisdom and fortitude which the colony exhibited. " Tins

52 INTRODUCTION.

assembly deeply feels the sufferings of their countrymen in the
Massachusetts Bay, under the operation of the late unjust,
cruel, and oppressive acts of the British parliament ; at the
same time, they most thoroughly approve the wisdom and for
titude with which opposition to these wicked ministerial
measures has hitherto been conducted ; and they earnestly
recommend to their brethren a perseverance in the same firm
and temperate conduct, trusting that the effect of the united
efforts of North America, in their behalf, will carry such con
viction to the British nation, of the unwise, unjust, and ruinous
policy of the present administration, as quickly to introduce
better men and wiser measures."

Congress further addressed a letter to General Gage, ear
nestly praying him to put a stop to the hostile preparations
which he had commenced, especially the fortifications around
Boston, as the surest means of maintaining public tranquillity
in that quarter, and preventing the horrors of a civil war.
At the same time, they urged upon the citizens of that town all
the forbearance within their power; that they should " conduct
themselves peaceably towards his excellency, General Gage,
and his majesty's troops stationed in Boston, as far as could
possibly be consistent with the immediate safety and security
of the town."

Congress next proceeded to publish a declaration of rights.
These rights were set forth in the following articles:

" 1. That they are entitled to life, liberty, and property ;
and they have never ceded to any foreign power whatever, a
right to dispose of either, without their consent.

" 2. That our ancestors, who first settled these colonies,
were, at the time of their emigration from their mother coun
try, entitled to all the rights, liberties, and immunities of free
and natural born subjects within the realm of England.

" 3. That by such emigration, they by no means forfeited,
surrendered, or lost any of those rights, but that they were,
and their descendants now are, entitled to the exercise and
enjoyment of such of them, as their local and other circum
stances enable them to exercise and enjoy.

«* 4. That the foundation of English liberty, and of all free

INTRODUCTION. 53

governments, is a right in the people to participate in their
legislative council ; and as the English colonists are not re
presented, and, from their local and other circumstances, can
not properly be represented in the British parliament, t ey
are entitled to as free and exclusive power of legislation, in
their several provincial legislatures, where their right of rep
resentation can alone be preserved, in all cases of taxation
and internal policy, subject only to the negative of their sove
reign, in such a manner as has been heretofore used and ac
customed. But from the necessity of the case, and a regard
to the mutualinterest of both countries, we cheerfully consent
to the operation of such acts of the British parliament as are
bona fide restrained to the regulation of our external com
merce, for the purpose of securing the commercial advanta
ges of the whole empire to the mother country, and the com
mercial benefits of its respective members; excluding every
idea of taxation, internal or external, for raising a revenue, on
the subjects in America, without their consent.

" 5. That the respective colonies are entitled to the com
mon law of England, and more especially, to the great and
inestimable privilege of being tried by their peers of the
vicinity, according to the course of that law.

"6. That they are entitled to the benefit of such of the
English statutes as existed at the time of their colonization ;
and which they have by experience respectfully found to be
applicable to their several local and other circumstances.

" 7. That these his majesty's colonies, are likewise entitled
to all the immunities and privileges, granted and confirmed
to them by royal charters, or secured by their several codes
of provincial laws.

" 8. That they have a right peaceably to assemble, con
sider of their grievances, and petition the king ; and all prose
cutions, prohibitory proclamations, and commitments for the
same, are illegal.

" 9. That the keeping a standing army in these colonies in
times of peace, without the consent of the legislature of that
colony, in which such an army is kept, is against law.

" 10. It is indispensably necessary to good government,
5*

INTRODUCTION.

rendered essential by the English constitution, that the con
stituent branches of the legislature be independent of each
other ; that, therefore, the exercise of legislative power, in
several colonies, by a council appointed during pleasure by
the crown, is unconstitutional, dangerous, and destructive to
the freedom of American legislation."

In relation to the above particulars, they expressed them
selves in the following language :

" All and each of which, the aforesaid deputies, in behalf of
themselves and their constituents, do claim, demand, and in
sist on, as their indubitable rights and liberties, which cannot
be legally taken from them, altered, or abridged, by any powei
whatever, without their consent by their representatives in
their several provincial legislatures."

It was also deemed of importance to adopt measures to stop
commercial intercourse with Great Britain. An agreement
was, therefore, entered into, to suspend all importation of
merchandise from Great Britain and its dependencies, from
the 1st of December, 1774 ; and, unless the wrongs of which
the Americans complained should be redressed, to suspend
in like manner all exportation from the 10th of September,
1775, with the single exception of rice.

At the same time it was urged upon the colonies to adopt
a system of rigid economy ; to encourage industry, and to
promote agriculture, arts, and manufactures, and especially
the manufacture of wool.

Having attended to these important concerns, congress
closed their session on the 26th of October, after adopting
addresses to the people of Great Britain, to the king, and to
the French inhabitants of Canada.

The congress which then terminated its session, has justly
been celebrated from that time to the present, and its celebrity
will continue while wisdom finds admirers, and patriotism is
regarded with veneration. The tone and temper of their various
resolutions, the style of their addresses, and the composition
of the several public papers, contributed, in every particular,
to excite the admiration of the world. Born and educatea
in the wilds of a new world, unpractised in the arts of polity,

INTRODUCTION. 55

most of them unexperienced in the arduous duties of legisla
tion, differing in religion, manners, customs, and habits, as they
did in their views of the nature of their connexion with Great
Britain : — that such an assembly, so constituted, should dis
play so much wisdom, sagacity, foresight, and knowledge of
the world; such skill in argument; such force of reasoning ;
such, firmness and soundness of judgment; so profound an ac
quaintance with the rights of men; such genuine patriotism;
and, above all, such unexampled union of opinion, was indeed
a political phenomenon to which history has -furnished no
parallel.* Both at home and abroad, they were spoken of in
terms of the highest admiration. Abroad, the Earl of Chat
ham, in one of his brilliant speeches, remarked of them : —
" History, my lords, has been my favourite study, and in the
celebrated writings of antiquity have I often admired the
patriotism of Greece and Rome; but, my lords, I must declare
and avow, that in the master tales of the world, I know not
the people, or the senate, who, in such a complication of diffi
cult circumstances, can stand in preference to the delegates
of America assembled in general congress at Philadelphia."
At home, they were celebrated by a native and popular bard,f
in an equally elevated strain:

" Now meet the fathers of this western clime ;

Nor names more noble graced the rolls of fame,

When Spartan firmness braved the wrecks of time,

Or Rome's bold virtues fann'd the heroic flame.

Not deeper thought the immortal sage inspired,

On Solon's lips when Grecian senates hung1 ;
Nor manlier eloquence the bosom fired,

When genius thundered from the Athenian tongue."

While this congress were in session, nearly all the colonies
had taken measures to call provincial assemblies, for the pur
pose of better securing their ancient rights of government.
In Massachusetts, the people had determined to hold a pro
vincial congress on the 15th of October, which induced Gene
ral Gage, with a view to prevent the intended meeting, to

* Allen. t M'Fing-al.

56 INTRODUCTION.

convoke the general court of the province at Salem, on the
5th. of the same month. Before the arrival of this'latter day,
however, he issued his proclamation, forbidding that assembly.
The members, nevertheless, convened on the appointed day,
and adjourned to Concord, where, after electing John Han
cock for their president, they further adjourned to meet at
Cambridge, on the 17th instant. At the latter place, they
proceeded to exercise the powers of government, and to take
the necessary measures for placing the province in a state of
defence. They appointed a committee of safety, and a com
mittee of supplies. One fourth of the militia were ordered to
be enlisted as minute men, to be frequently drilled, and held
in readiness for service at a minute's warning.

In other colonies also, before the close of the year, the
note of preparation was heard. The horizon every day be
came more lowering ; and as its darkness thickened, the
activity and vigilance of the colonists increased.

The British parliament met on the 29th of November.
The moderation evinced by the congress at Philadelphia had
encouraged the mass of the American people to hope, that
on the meeting of that body, conciliatory measures would be
adopted, so as to restore peace and harmony between the two
countries. Similar sentiments were entertained by the
friends of America, in England. They saw nothing in the
proceedings of the American congress, in their resolutions,
manifestoes, or addresses, to which an Englishman, proud of
his birthright, could justly object. It now remained with the
British government to adopt a plan of reconciliation, or to
lose the affections of the colonies forever.

The tone of his majesty's speech, on the opening of the
session, was unexpectedly lofty, and gave little encourage
ment to the hopes of reconciliation. After alluding to the
spirit of disobedience which was abroad in his American
colonies, and to the daring resistance to law which charac
terized the people of Massachusetts, he informed parliament
of his firm determination to resist every attempt to impair the
supreme authority of parliament, throughout the dominions
of the crown.

INTRODUCTION. 57

To the mind of Lord Chatham, no object, at this time,
seemed more important, than the restoration of peace between
the two countries. The period had arrived, when a reconci
liation must take place, if ever such an event could be effected.
Hence, on the assembling of parliament, after the usual recess,
January 20th, 1775, when the minister had laid the papers
relating to America before the house, Lord Chatham rose, and
moved, " that an humble address be presented to his majesty,
to direct the removal of his majesty's troops from Boston, in
order to open the way towards a settlement of the dangerous
troubles in America."

" My lords," says Chatham, " these papers from America,
now laid by the administration for the first time before your
lordships, have been, to my knowledge, five or six weeks in
the pocket of the minister. And notwithstanding the fate of
this kingdom hangs upon the event of this great controversy,
we are but this moment called to a consideration of this im
portant subject.

" My lords, I do not wish to look into one of these papers.
I know their contents, well enough, already. I know, that
there is not a member in this house, but is acquainted with
their purport, also. There ought, therefore, to be no delay
in entering upon this matter. We ought to proceed to it im
mediately. We ought to seize the first moment to open the
door of reconciliation. The Americans will never be in a
temper or state to be reconciled — they ought not to be — till
the troops are withdrawn. The troops are a perpetual irrita
tion to those people ; they are a bar to all confidence, and all
cordial reconcilement.

" The way," he said, " must be immediately opened for
reconciliation. It will soon be too late. I know not who
advised the present measures ; I know not who advises to
a perseverance and enforcement of them ; but this I will say,
that whoever advises them, ought to answer for it at his
utmost peril. I know that no one will avow that he advised,
or that he was the author of these measures ; every one shrinks
from the charge. But somebody has advised his majesty to
these measures, and if he continues to hear such evil coun-
H

58 INTRODUCTION.

sellors, his majesty will be undone. His majesty may, indeed,
wear his crown, but the American jewel out of it, it will not
be worth the wearing. What more shall I say ? I must
not say, the king is betrayed ; but this I will say, the nation
is ruined. What foundation have we for our claims over
America ? What is our right to persist in such cruel and
vindictive measures, against that loyal, respectable people ?

" My lords, deeply impressed with the importance of
taking some healing measures, at this most alarming, dis
tracted state of our affairs, though bowed down with a cruel
disease, I have crawled to this house, to give you my best
counsel and experience : and my advice is, to beseech his
majesty to withdraw his troops. This is the best I can think
of. It will convince America, that you mean to try her cause,
in the spirit, and by the laws of freedom and fair inquiry, and
not by codes of blood. How can she now trust you, with
the bayonet at her breast ? She has all the reason in the
world, now, to believe you mean her death or bondage.
Thus entered on the threshold of this business, I will knock
at your gates for justice, without ceasing, unless inveterate
infirmities stay my hand. My lords, I pledge myself never
to leave this business. I will pursue it to the end in every
shape. I will never fail of my attendance on it, at every step
and period of this great matter, unless nailed down to my
bed by the severity of disease. My lords, there is no time
to be lost ; every moment is big with dangers. Nay, while
I am now speaking, the decisive blow may be struck, and
millions involved in the consequences. The very first drop
of blood will make a wound, that will not easily be skmned
over. Years, perhaps ages, will not heal it : it will be im-
medicabile vulnus : a wound of that rancorous, malignant,
corroding, festering nature, that in all probability, it will
mortify the whole body. Let us then, my lords, set to this
business in earnest ! not take it up by bits and scraps, as
formerly, just as exigencies pressed, without any regard to
general relations, connexions, and dependencies. I would
not, by any thing I have said, my lords, be thought to encou
rage America to proceed beyond the right line. I reprobate

INTRODUCTION. 59

all acts of violence by her mobility. But when her inherent
constitutional rights are invaded, those rights she has an equita
ble claim to enjoy by the fundamental laws of the English con
stitution, and which are engrafted thereon by the unalterable
laws of nature ; then I own myself an American, and feeling my
self such, shall to the verge of my life vindicate those rights
against all men, who strive to trample upon, or oppose them."

This motion of Lord Chatham, offered not less from a re
gard to the welfare of England, than from a conviction of her
impolitic and cruel oppression of the colonists,— and sup
ported by all the eloquence of which that distinguished ora
tor was master, was, nevertheless, rejected by a large majori
ty. Although thus defeated, he was still determined, if pos
sible, to save his country from the evils which his prophetic
glance saw in certain prospect, unless they should be timely
averted. Hence, shortly afterwards, he introduced into par
liament his conciliatory bill. While this bill maintained the
dependence of the colonies upon the imperial crown, and the
right of parliament to make laws to bind them in all cases,
touching the general interests of the British empire, it declared
that that body had no right to tax the colonies without their
consent.

To such a proposition the ministry were not prepared to
listen. They were determined to admit no bill, which had
for its object the relinquishment of any of their favourite doc
trines, or which, by implication, should impeach the wisdom
or justice of the course they had pursued. Nay, they had
now formed their plan, and were prepared to announce it.
Coercion was to be their motto, until, in the spirit of sub
mission, America should lay herself down at their feet.

In accordance with the above declaration, a bill was soon
after passed by the parliament, restricting the trade of the
colonies of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New-Hampshire, and
Rhode Island, to Great Britain, Ireland, and the West Indies,
and prohibiting their carrying on any fisheries on the banks of
Newfoundland, and other places for a limited time. The
same restrictions were soon after extended to all the colo
nies, represented in the congress at Philadelphia, with the

60 INTRODUCTION.

exception of New- York and North Carolina. By these re
strictions, it was thought to starve the colonies into obedi
ence and submission, from a mistaken apprehension that
the people were dependent upon the fisheries for their sup
port.

It was a general understanding among the colonists, that
hostilities should not be commenced by them. It was, indeed,
apparent, that the day of blood was not far distant, but that
blood was to be first shed by the hands of the English. In
the mean time, they were not inactive in the work of prepa
ration. The munitions of war were collected and stored al
different points, as necessity and safety seemed to require.
Among the places of deposite in Massachusetts, were Wor
cester and Concord, and thither considerable stores of arms
and provisions had been conveyed.

In the mean time, the vigilance of General Gage was not
abated. Excited by the loyalists, who had persuaded him
that he would find no resistance from the cowardice of the
patriots, he resolved to send a few companies to Concord,
in a secret manner, to seize the military stores deposited
there ; and either to transport them to Boston, or to destroy
them. Accordingly, on the evening of the 18th of April, 1775,
a detachment moved from Boston for this purpose, and the
next day occurred the memorable battle of Lexington, in
which the British were the aggressors, by first firing on the
militia collected at that place.

The details of this opening scene of the revolutionary war
are too well known, to require a recital in this place. Re
pulsed, harassed, and fatigued, the British, with no inconsi
derable loss, returned to Boston, after having accomplished
their object.

The provincial congress of Massachusetts was, at this time,
in session at Watertown, ten miles distant from Boston. They
immediately resolved that a levy of thirteen thousand men
should be made. At the same time, the treasurer was directed
to borrow 100,0007. for the use of the province ; and they de
clared the citizens were absolved from all obligations of obe
dience to Governor Gage.i As the news of the battle of

INTRODUCTION. 61

Lexington spread round the country, a universal ardour in
flamed the minds of the inhabitants ; and shortly after, were
assembled, in the neighbourhood of Boston, thirty thousand
men, ready, should occasion require, to do justice to them
selves and their country.

In this critical state of public affairs, congress again assem
bled at Philadelphia, on the 10th of May. An official account
of the late aggressions of his majesty's troops in Massachu
setts, was soon after laid before them ; upon which it M7as
unanimously resolved to place the colonies in a state of de
fence. To the colony of New-York, which had solicited the
advice and direction of congress, in anticipation of the speedy
arrival of foreign troops, they recommended a course of action
entirely on the defensive. They were, however, advised to
remove all military stores, and to provide a place of re
treat for their women and children ; to hold themselves in
readiness for the protection of the city; and, in the event of
hostilities, to meet the enemy with promptness and decision.

To some of the members of congress, it appeared desirable
to make yet another attempt at reconciliation with the British
government. Justice, indeed, required no such advance; and
by many the measure was considered only as a work of supe
rerogation. They were willing, however, while raising the
sword with one hand, to extend the olive branch with the
other ; and, though driven to the necessity of forcibly vindi
cating their rights, they were still disposed to secure them,
if possible, by a firm remonstrance. Yielding, therefore, to
the pacific wishes of several members, they prepared an ad
dress to the king, by way of solemn appeal, and a second ad
dress to the people of Great Britain.

Towards the king, they yet used the language of loyalty
and affection ; and assured him, notwithstanding the injuries
they had sustained, and the grievous oppressions under which
they were suffering, they still wished for peace ; and if re
dressed in respect to their wrongs, and secured in the just
rights of subjects, they would manifest towards him all the
affection and devotion which a sovereign could require.

In their address to the inhabitants of Great Britain, after

6

O* INTRODUCTION.

recapitulating former injuries, and stating more recent acts of
hostility, they ask : " Can the descendants of Britain tamely
submit to this? No, we never will ; while we revere the me
mory of our gallant and virtuous ancestors, we never can sur
render those glorious privileges for which they fought, bled,
and conquered. Admit that your fleets and armies can destroy
our towns, and ravage our coasts : these are inconsiderable
objects, things of no moment, to men whose bosoms glow
with the ardour of liberty. We can retire beyond the reach
of your navy, and, without any sensible diminution of the
necessaries of life, enjoy a luxury which, from that period, you
will want — the luxury of being free." They again repel the
charge of aiming at independence :

" Our enemies," say they, " charge us with sedition. In
what does it consist ? In our refusal to submit to unwarrant
able acts of injustice and cruelty? If so, show us a period in
your history in which you have not been equally seditious.

"We are accused of aiming at independence ; but how is
this accusation supported ? By the allegations of your minis
ters, not by our actions. Abused, insulted, and contemned,
what steps have we pursued to obtain redress ? We have
carried our dutiful petitions to the throne. We have applied
to your justice for relief. We have retrenched our luxury,
and withheld our trade.

" The advantages of our commerce were designed as a com
pensation for your protection : when you ceased to protect,
for what were we to compensate ?

" What has been the success of our endeavours ? The cle
mency of our sovereign is unhappily diverted ; our petitions
are treated with indignity ; our prayers answered by insults.
Our application to you remains unnoticed, and leaves us the
melancholy apprehension of your wanting either the will, or
the power, to assist us."

After reminding them, that the loss of liberty in America
would only be a prelude to its loss in Great Britain, they con
clude : " A cloud hangs over your head and ours ; ere this
reaches you, it may probably burst upon us ; let us then, (be
fore the remembrance of former kindness is obliterated,) once

INTRODUCTION. 63

more repeat these appellations, which are ever grateful to our
ears ; let us entreat heaven to avert our ruin, and the destruc
tion that threatens our friends, brethren, and countrymen, on
the other side of the Atlantic."

Having thus done all which the most scrupulous conscience
could demand, congress proceeded to adopt measures to place
the country in a proper attitude of defence, by organizing an
army, and appointing the necessary military officers. On the
15th of June, George Washington, by the united voice of
congress, was appointed commander-in-chief of the army
then raised, or to be raised, for the defence of American li
berty.

Washington was, at that time, a member of congress, and
in a measure prepared to decide on the important question of
acceptance. On the day following, he appeared in the house,
and, standing in his place, said, that he thanked congress for
the honour they had conferred upon him ; but that he felt
great distress, from a consciousness that his abilities and mi
litary experience were not equal to the extensive and impor
tant tiust; "however, as the congress desire it, I will enter
upon the momentous duty, and exert every power I possess
in their service, and for the support of the glorious cause. I
beg they will accept my most cordial thanks for this distin
guished testimony of their approbation.

" But lest some unlucky event should happen, unfavourable
to my reputation, I beg it may be remembered by every gen
tleman in the room, that I this day declare, with the utmost
sincerity, I do not think myself equal to the command I am
honoured with.

" As to pay, sir, I beg leave to assure the congress, that as
no pecuniary consideration could have tempted me to accept
this arduous employment, at the expense of my domestic ease
and happiness, I do not wish to make any profit from it; I will
keep an exact account of my expenses. These, I doubt not,
they will discharge, and that is all I desire."

During the winter of 1776, the subject of a DECLARATION
OF INDEPENDENCE, occupied the attention of many men in
all parts of the country. The ablest pens also were employed

64 INTRODUCTION.

on this momentous subject. The propriety and necessity of
the measure was enforced in the numerous gazettes, and in
pamphlets. Among the latter, Common Sense, from the
popular pen of Thomas Paine, produced a wonderful effect
in the different colonies in favour of independence. Influen
tial individuals urged it as a step absolutely necessary to pre
serve the rights and liberties of America, and effectually
secure her happiness and prosperity.

In the ensuing spring, several of the colonies, by means of
their assemblies, expressed their sentiments in favour of in
dependence, and instructed their delegates in the general con
gress to propose to that respectable body, to declare the
united colonies free and independent states.

On the seventh of June, Richard Henry Lee, one of the
delegates from Virginia, brought the great question of indepen
dence before the house, by submitting the following resolu
tion : " That these united colonies are, and of right ought to
be, free and independent states ; that they are absolved from
all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political con
nexion between them and the state of Great Britain is, and
ought to be, totally dissolved."

This resolution was postponed until the next day, when it
was debated in committee of the whole. On the 10th, it was
adopted by a bare majority of the colonies. To give time for
greater unanimity, the resolution was postponed in the house,
until the first of July. In the mean time, a committee, consist
ing of Mr. Jefferson, John Adams, Dr. Franklin, Mr. Sher
man, and R. R. Livingston, was appointed to prepare a
declaration of independence. The committee thus appointed,
selected Mr. Adams and Mr. Jefferson, as a sub-committee.
The draft made by Mr. Jefferson, was the one reported to
congress. It was discussed on the second, and third, and
fourth days of the month, in committee of the whole ; and on
the last of those days, being reported from that committee, it
received the final approbation and sanction of congress. It
was ordered at the same time, that copies be sent to the seve
ral states, and that it be proclaimed at the head of the army.
The declaration thus published, did not bear the names of the

INTRODUCTION. 65

members, for as yet it had not been signed by them. It was
authenticated, like other papers of the congress, by the signa
tures of the president and secretary. On the 19th of July,
as appears by the secret journal, congress " Resolved, That
the declaration, passed on the fourth, be fairly engrossed on
parchment, with the title and style of * The unanimous decla
ration of the thirteen United States of America ;' and that the
same, when engrossed, be signed by every member of con
gress." And on the second day of August following, the
declaration being engrossed and compared at the table, was
signed by the members.

The declaration thus adopted, and which gave birth to a
new empire, was as follows :

" WHEN, in the course of human events, it becomes ne
cessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which
have connected them with another, and to assume, among
the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to
which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them,
a decent respect to the opinions of mankind, requires that
they should declare the causes which impel them to the
separation.

" We hold these truths to be self-evident : — that all men
are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator
with certain unalienable rights ; that among these are life,
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these
rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their
just powers from the consent of the governed ; that when
ever any form of government becomes destructive of these
ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and
to institute a new government, laying its foundation on such
principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to
them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happi
ness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate, that governments long
established should not be changed for light and transient
causes ; and accordingly all experience hath shown, that
mankind are more disposed to suffer while evils are suffera-
I 6*

66 INTRODUCTION.

l)le, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which
they are accustomed. But when along train of abuses and
usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a
design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their
right, it is their duty, to throw oiF such government, and to
provide new guards for their future security. Such has
been the patient sufferance of these colonies ; and such is
now the necessity which constrains them to alter their
former systems of government. The history of the present
king of Great Britain, is a history of repeated injuries and
usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of
an absolute tyranny over these states. To prove this, let
facts be submitted to a candid world.

" He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome
and necessary for the public good.

"He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate
and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation,
till his assent should be obtained ; and when so suspended,
he has utterly neglected to attend to them. He has refused
to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts
of people, unless those people would relinquish the right oi
representation in the legislature — a right inestimable to them,
and formidable to tyrants only.

" He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual,
uncomfortable, and distant from the repository of their pub
lic records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into com
pliance with his measures.

" He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for
opposing, with manly firmness, his invasions on the rights of
the people.

" He has refused, for a long time after such dissolutions, to
cause others to be elected ; whereby the legislative powers,
incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at
large, for their exercise, the state remaining, in the mean
time, exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without,
and convulsions within.

INTRODUCTION. 67

" He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these
states, for that purpose obstructing the laws for naturaliza
tion of foreigners ; refusing to pass others to encourage their
migration hither, and raising the conditions of new appropria
tions of lands.

" He has obstructed the administration of justice, by re
fusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers.

" He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the
tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their
salaries.

" He has erected a multitude of new offices ; and sent
hither swarms of officers, to harass our people, and eat out
their substance.

" He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing ar
mies, without the consent of our legislatures.

" He has affected to render the military independent of,
and superior to, the civil power.

" He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdic
tion foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by
our laws ; giving his assent to their acts of pretended legis
lation :

" For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us :

" For protecting them, by a mock trial, from punishment
for any murders which they should commit on the inhabi
tants of these states :

" For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world :

" For imposing taxes on us without our consent :

" For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of trial
by jury :

" For transporting us beyond seas to be tried for pretend
ed offences :

" For abolishing the free system of English laws in a
neighbouring province, establishing therein an arbitrary go
vernment, and enlarging its boundaries, so as to render it at
once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same
absolute rule into these colonies :

68 INTRODUCTION.

"For taking away our charters, abolishing our most
valuable laws, and altering, fundamentally, the forms of our
governments :

"For suspending our own legislatures, and declaring
themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases
whatsoever.

" He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out
of his protection, and waging war against us.

" He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt
our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

" He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign
mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation, and
tyranny, already begun, with circumstances of cruelty and
perfidy, scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and
totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.

" He has constrained our fellow-citizens, taken captive on
the high seas, to bear arms against their country, to become
the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall
themselves by their hands.

" He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and
has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers
the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare
is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes, and con
ditions.

" In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned
for redress in the most humble terms : our repeated petitions
have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince,
whose character is thus marked by every act which may
define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

" Nor have we been wanting in attentions to our British
brethren. We have warned them, from time to time,
of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable
jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the cir
cumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We
have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and
we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred

INTRODUCTION. 69

to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably inter
rupt our connexions and correspondence. They too have
been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We
must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity which denounces
our separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of man
kind — enemies in war, in peace friends.

" We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of
America, in general congress assembled, appealing to the
Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our inten
tions, do, in the name and by the authority of the good peo
ple of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that
these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and
independent states ; that they are absoVed from all alle
giance to the British crown, and that all political connexion
between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to
be, totally dissolved ; and that, as free and independent
states, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace,
contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other
acts and things, which independent states may of right do.
And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance
on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge
to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred
tionour."

THE

MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

JOHN HANCOCK,
SAMUEL ADAMS,
JOHN ADAMS,
ROBERT TREAT PAINE,
ELBRIDGE GERRY.

JOHN HANCOCK.

THE events leading to the declaration of independence,
which have been rapidly passed in review, in the preceding
pages, have brought us to the more particular notice of those
distinguished men, who signed their names to that instrument,
and thus identified themselves with the glory of this Ameri
can republic.

If the world has seldom witnessed a train of events of a
more novel and interesting character, than those which led
to the declaration of American independence, it has, perhaps,
never seen a body of men, placed in a more difficult and res
ponsible situation, than were the signers of that instrument.
And certainly, the world has never witnessed a more brilliant
exhibition of political wisdom, or a brighter example of firm
ness and courage.

The first instant the American colonies gave promise of
future importance and respectability, the jealousy of Great Bri
tain was excited, and the counsels of her statesmen were em
ployed to keep them in humble subjection. This was the object,
when royalty grasped at their charters ; when restrictions

72 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

were laid upon their commerce and manufactures ; when, by
taxation, their resources were attempted to be withdrawn, and
the doctrine inculcated, that it was rebellion for them to think
and act for themselves.

It was fortunate for the Americans, that they understood
their own rights, and had the courage to assert them. But
even at the time of the declaration of independence, just as
was the cause of the colonies, it was doubtful how the contest
would terminate. The chance of eventual success was against
them. Less than three millions of people constituted their
population, and these were scattered over a widely ex
tended territory. They were divided into colonies, which
nad no political character, and no other bond of union than
common sufferings, common danger, and common necessities.
They had no veteran army, no navy, no arsenals filled with
the munitions of war, and no fortifications on their extended
coast. They had no overflowing treasuries ; but in the out
set, were to depend upon loans, taxation, and voluntary con
tributions.

Thus circumstanced, could success in such a contest be rea
sonably anticipated ? Could they hope to compete with the
parent country, whose strength was consolidated by the lapse
of centuries, and to whose wealth and power so many mil
lions contributed ? That country directed, in a great measure,
the destinies of Europe : her influence extended to every
quarter of the world. Her armies were trained to the art of
war ; her navy rode in triumph on every sea ; her statesmen
were subtle and sagacious ; her generals skilful and practised.
And more than all, her pride was aroused by the fact, that all
Europe was an interested spectator of the scene, and was
urging her forward to vindicate the policy she had adopted,
and the principles which she had advanced.

But what will not union and firmness, valour and patriotism,
accomplish? What will not faith accomplish? The colonies
were, indeed, aware of the crisis at which they had arrived.
They saw the precipice upon which they stood. National
existence was at stake. Life, and liberty, and peace, were at
hazard ; not only those of the generation which then existed,

JOHN HANCOCK. 73

but of the unnumbered millions which were yet to be born.
To heaven they could, with pious confidence, make their
solemn appeal. They trusted in the arm of HIM, who had
planted their fathers in this distant land, and besought HIM to
ijuide the men, who in his providence were called to preside
over their public councils.

It was fortunate for them, and equally fortunate for the
cause of rational liberty, that the delegates to the congress of
1776, were adequate to the great work which devolved upon
them. They were not popular favourites, brought into notice
during a season of tumult and violence ; nor men chosen in
times of tranquillity, when nothing is to be apprehended from
a mistaken selection. " But they were men to whom others
might cling in times of peril, and look up to in the revolu
tion of empires ; men whose countenances in marble, as on
canvass, may be dwelt upon by after ages, as the history of
the times." They were legislators and senators by birth,
raised up by heaven for the accomplishment of a special and
important object ; to rescue a people -groaning under oppres
sion ; and with the aid of their illustrious compeers, destined
to establish rational liberty on a new basis, in an American
republic.

They, too, well knew the responsibility of their station,
and the fate which awaited themselves, if not their country,
should their experiment fail. They came, therefore, to the
question of a declaration of independence, like men who
had counted the cost ; prepared to rejoice, without any
unholy triumph, should God smile upon the transaction ;
prepared also, if defeat should follow, to lead in the way to
martyrdom.

A signature to the declaration of independence, without
reference to general views, was, to each individual, a personal
consideration of the most momentous import. It would be
regarded in England as treason, and expose any man to the
halter or the block. The only signature, which exhibits in
dications of a trembling hand, is that of Stephen Hopkins, vvhc
had been afflicted with the palsy. In this work of treason,
John Hancock led the way, as president of the congress, and by

x r

76 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

warrantable. But the transaction contributed greatly to bring
him into notice, and to increase his popularity.

This, and several similar occurrences, served as a pretext to
the governor to introduce into Boston, not long after, several
regiments of British troops ; a measure which was fitted more
than all others to irritate the inhabitants. Frequent colli
sions, as might be expected, soon happened between the sol
diers and the citizens, the former of whom were insolent, and
the latter independent. These contentions not long after
broke out into acts of violence. An unhappy instance of this
violence occurred on the evening of the 5th of March, 1770,
at which time, a small party of British soldiers was assailed
by several of the citizens, with balls of snow, and other
weapons. The citizens were fired upon by order of the com
manding officer : a few were killed, and several others were
wounded.

Although the provocation, in this instance, was given by
the citizens, the whole town was simultaneously aroused to
seek redress. At the instigation of Samuel Adams, and Mr.
Hancock, an assembly of the citizens was convened the fol
lowing day, and these two gentlemen, with some others, were
appointed a committee to demand of the governor the re
moval of the troops. Of this committee, Mr. Hancock was
the chairman.

A few days after the above affray, which is usually termed
" the Boston massacre," the bodies of the slain \Vere buried
with suitable demonstrations of public grief. In commemo
ration of the event, Mr. Hancock was appointed to deliver an
address. After speaking of his attachment to a righteous
government, and of his enmity to tyranny, he proceeded in
the following animated strain: "The town of Boston, ever
faithful to the British crown, has been invested by a British
fleet; the troops of George the third have crossed the Atlantic,
not to engage an enemy, but to assist a band of traitors in
trampling on the rights and liberties of his most loyal subjects;
those rights and liberties, which, as a father, he ought ever to
regard, and as a king, he is bound in honour to defend from
violation, even at the risk of his own life.

JOHN HANCOCK. 77

" These troops, upon their first arrival, took possession of
our senate house, pointed their cannon against the judgment
hall, and even continued them there, whilst the supreme court
of the province was actually sitting to decide upon the lives
and fortunes of the king's subjects. Our streets nightly re
sounded with the noise of their riot and debauchery ; our
peaceful citizens were hourly exposed to shameful insults, and
often felt the effects of their violence and outrage. But this
was not all; as though they thought it not enough to violate
our civil rights, they endeavoured to deprive usof the enjoy
ment of our religious privileges ; to vitiate our morals, and
thereby render us deserving of destruction. Hence the rude
din of arms, which broke in upon your solemn devotions in
your temples, on that day hallowed by heaven, and set apart
by God himself for his peculiar worship. Hence, impious oaths
and blasphemies, so often tortured your unaccustomed ear
Hence, all the arts which idleness and luxury could invent,
were used to betray our youth of one sex into extravagance
and effeminacy, and of the other to infamy and ruin ; and have
they not succeeded but too well ? Has not a reverence for
religion sensibly decayed? Have not our infants almost learn
ed to lisp curses, before they knew their horrid import ? Have
not our youth forgotten they were Americans, and regardless
of the admonitions of the wise and aged, copied, with a servile
imitation, the frivolity and vices of their tyrants? And must I
be compelled to acknowledge, that even the noblest, fair
est part of all creation, have not entirely escaped their cruel
snares ? — or why have I seen an honest father clothed with
shame; why a virtuous mother drowned in tears?

" But I forbear, and come reluctantly to the transactions of
that dismal night, when in such quick succession we felt the
extremes of grief, astonishment, and rage ; when heaven in
anger, for a dreadful moment suffered hell to take the reins;
when satan, with his chosen band, opened the sluices of New-
England's blood, and sacrilegiously polluted our land with the
dead bodies of her guiltless sons.

"Let this sad tale of death never be told, without a tear;
let not the heaving bosom cease to burn with a manly indigna

7*

78 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

tion at the relation of it, through the long tracks of future
time ; let every parent tell the shameful story to his listening
children, till tears of pity glisten in .their eyes, or boiling pas
sion shakes their tender frames.

" Dark and designing knaves, murderers, parricides ! How
dare you tread upon the earth, which has drunk the blood of
slaughtered innocence shed by your hands? How dare you
breathe that air, which wafted to the ear of heaven the groans
of those who fell a sacrifice to your accursed ambition ? — But
if the labouring earth doth not expand her jaws; if the air you
breathe is not commissioned to be the minister of death; yet,
hear it, and tremble ! The eye of heaven penetrates the dark
est chambers of the soul; and you, though screened from
human observation, must be arraigned, must lift your hands,
red with the blood of those whose death you have procured, at
the tremendous bar of God.

"But I gladly quit this theme of death — I would not dwell
too long upon the horrid effects, which have already followed,
from quartering regular troops in this town ; let our misfor
tunes instruct posterity to guard against these evils. Stand
ing armies are sometimes, (I would by no means say general
ly, much less universally,) composed of persons who have
rendered themselves unfit to live in civil society ; who are
equally indifferent to the glory of a George, or a Louis; who
for the addition of one penny a day to their wages, would de-
gert from the Christian cross, and fight under the crescent of
the Turkish sultan ; from such men as these what has not a
state to fear ? With such as these, usurping Caesar passed the
Rubicon ; with such as these he humbled mighty Rome, and
forced the mistress of the world to own a master in a traitor.
These are the men whom sceptred robbers now employ to
frustrate the designs of God, and render vain the bounties
which his gracious hand pours indiscriminately upon his
creatures."

Previously to this address, doubts had been entertained by
some, as to the perfect patriotism of Mr. Hancock. It was
said that the governor of the province had, either by studied
civilities, or by direct overtures, endeavoured to attach him to

JOHN HANCOCK. 79

the royal cause. For a time insinuations of this derogatory
character were circulated abroad, highly detrimental to his
fame. The manners and habits of Mr. Hancock had, not a
little, contributed to countenance the malicious imputations
His fortune was princely. His mansion displayed the mag
nificence of a courtier, rather than the simplicity of a repub
lican. Gold and silver embroidery adorned his garments,
and on public occasions, his carriage and horses, and servant*
in livery, emulated the splendour of the English nobility
The eye of envy saw not this magnificence with indifference ,
nor was it strange that reports unfriendly to his patriotic in
tegrity should have been circulated abroad ; especially as from
his wealth and fashionable intercourse, he had more con
nexion with the governor and his party than many others.

The sentiments, however, expressed by Hancock in the
above address, were so explicit and so patriotic, as to convince
the most incredulous ; and a renovation of his popularity was
the consequence.

Hancock, from this time, became as odious to the royal go
vernor and his adherents, as he was dear to the republican party.
It now became an object of some importance to the royal go
vernor, to get possession of the persons of Mr. Hancock and
Samuel Adams ; and this is said to have been intended in the
expedition to Concord, which led to the memorable battle of
Lexington, the opening scene of the revolutionary war. Not
withstanding the secrecy with which that expedition was plan
ned, these patriots, who were at the time members of the pro
vincial congress at Concord, fortunately made their escape;
but it was only at the moment the British troops entered the
house where they lodged. Following this battle, Governor
Gage issued his proclamation, offering a general pardon to all
who should manifest a proper penitence for their opposition to
the royal authority, excepting the above two gentlemen, whose
guilt placed them beyond the reach of the royal clemency.

In October, 1774, Hancock was unanimously elected to the
presidential chair of the provincial congress of Massachusetts.
The following year, the still higher honour of the presidency
of the continental congress was conferred upon him. In this

SO MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

body, were men of superior geniusl and of still greater expe-
rieiT-e than Hancock. There were Franklin, and Jefferson,
and Dickinson, and many others, men of pre-eminent abilities
and superior political sagacity; but the recent proclamation
of Governor Gage, proscribing Hancock and Adams, had
given those gentlemen great popularity, and presented a suffi
cient reason to the continental congress, to express their re
spect for them, by the election of the former to the presiden
tial chair.

In this distinguished station Hancock continued till October,
1777 ; at which time, in consequence of infirm health, induced
by an unremitted application to business, he resigned his
office, and, with a popularity seldom enjoyed by any indivi
dual, retired to his native province.

Of the convention, which, about this time, was appointed to
frame a constitution for the state of Massachusetts, Hancock
was a member. Under this constitution, in 1780, he was the
first governor of the commonwealth, to which office he was
annually elected, until the year 1785, when he resigned.
After an interval of two years, he was re-elected to the same
office, in which he was continued to the time of his death,
which took place on the 8th of October, 1793, and in the 55th
year of his age.

Of the character of Mr. Hancock, the limits which we have
prescribed to ourselves, will permit us to say but little more.
It was an honourable trait in that character, that while he pos
sessed a superfluity of wealth, to the unrestrained enjoyment
of which he came at an unguarded period of life, he avoided
excessive indulgence and dissipation. His habits, through
life, were uniformly on the side of virtue. In his disposition
and manners, he was kind and courteous. He claimed no
superiority from his advantages, and manifested no arrogance
on account of his wealth.

His enemies accused him of an excessive fondness for
popularity ; to which fondness, envy and malice were not
backward in ascribing his liberality on various occasions.
Whatever may have been the justice of such an imputation,
many examples of the generosity of his character are record-

JOman Jt f-tibrow Sf

*

SAMUEL ADAMS. 81

ed. Hundreds of families, it is said, in times of distress, were
daily fed from his munificence. In promoting the liberties of
his country, no one, perhaps, actually expended more wealth,
or was wiling to make greater sacrifices. An instance of his
public spirit, in 1775, is recorded, much to his praise.

At that time, the American army was besieging Boston, to
expel the British, who held possession of the town. To ac
complish this object, the entire destruction of the city was
proposed by the American officers. By the execution of such
a plan, the whole fortune of Mr. Hancock would have been
sacrificed. Yet he immediately acceded to the measure, de
claring his readiness to surrender his all, whenever the liber
ties of his country should require it.

It is not less honourable to the character of Mr. Hancock,
that while wealth and independence powerfully tempted him to
a life of indolence, he devoted himself for many years, almost
without intermission, to the most laborious service of his
country. Malevolence, during some periods of his public life,
aspersed his character, and imputed to him motives of con
duct to which he was a stranger. Full justice was done to
his memory at his death, in the expressions of grief and affec
tion which were offered over his remains, by the multitudes
who thronged his house while his body lay in state, and who
followed his remains to the grave.

SAMUEL ADAMS.

AMONG those who signed the declaration of independence,

ad were conspicuous in the revolution, there existed, of

Bourse, a great diversity of intellectual endowments ; nor

did all render to their country, in those perilous days, the

same important services. Like the luminaries of heaven,

each contributed his portion of influence; but, like them, they

differed, as star differeth from star in glory. But in the con-

L

82 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

stellation of great men, which adorned that era, few shone
with more brilliancy, or exercised a more powerful influence,
than Samuel Adams.

This gentleman was born at Quincy,in Massachusetts, Sep
tember 22d, 1722, in the neighbourhood afterwards rendered
memorable as the birth place of Hancock, and as the resi
dence of the distinguished family which has given two pre
sidents to the United States. His descent was from a re
spectable family, which emigrated to America with the first
settlers of the land.

In the year 1736, he became a member of Harvard
University, where he was distinguished for an uncommon
attention to all his collegiate exercises, and for his classical
and scientific attainments. On taking the degree of master,
in 1743, he proposed the following question, " Whether
it be lawful to resist the supreme magistrate, if the com
monwealth cannot be otherwise preserved ?" He main
tained the affirmative ; and in this collegiate exercise fur
nished no dubious evidence of his attachment to the liberties of
the people.

On leaving the university, he began the study ot law, for
which profession his father designed him ; but at the solicita
tion of his mother, this pursuit was relinquished, and he be
came a clerk in the counting house of Thomas Gushing, at
that time a distinguished merchant. But his genius was not
adapted to mercantile pursuits ; and in a short time after
commencing business for himself, partly owing to the failure
in business of a friend, and partly to injudicious management,
he lost the entire capital which had been given him by his
father.

The genius of Adams was naturally bent on politics. It
was with him an all engrossing subject. From his earliest
youth, he had felt its inspiration. It occupied his thoughts,
enlivened his conversation, and employed his pen. In re
spect to his private business, this was an unfortunate trait of
character ; but most fortunate for his country, since he thus
acquired an extensive knowledge of those principles of ra
tional liberty, which he afterwards asserted with so much

SAMUEL ADAMS. 83

energy, in opposition to the arbitrary conduct of the British
government."

In 1763 it was announced, that the British ministry had it
in view to " tax the colonies, for the purpose of raising a
revenue, which was to be placed at the disposal of the
crown." This news filled the colonies with alarm. In Mas
sachusetts, a committee was appointed by the people of Bos
ton to express the public sentiment in relation to this con
templated measure, for the guidance of the representatives to
the general court. The instructions of this committee were
drawn by Mr. Adams. They formed, in truth, a powerful
remonstrance against the injustice of the contemplated system
of taxation ; and they merit the more particular notice, as they
were the rirst recorded public document, which denied the
right of taxation to the British parliament. They also con
tained the first suggestion of the propriety of that mutual un
derstanding and correspondence among the colonies, which
laid the foundation of their future confederacy. In these in
structions, after alluding to the evils which had resulted from
the acts of the British parliament, relating to trade, Mr.
Adams observes : — " If our trade may be taxed, why not our
lands ? Why not the produce of our lands, and every thing
we possess, or us*e ? This we conceive annihilates our char
ter rights to govern and tax ourselves. It strikes at our Bri
tish privileges, which, as we have never forfeited, we hold in
common with our fellow subjects, who are natives of Britain.
If taxes are laid upon us in any shape, without our having a
legal representation, where they are laid, we are reduced from
the character of free subjects, to the state of tributary slaves.
We, therefore, earnestly recommend it to you, to use your
utmost endeavours to obtain from the general court, all neces
sary advice and instruction to our agent, at this most critical
juncture." " We also desire you to use your endeavours, that
the other colonies, having the same interests and rights
with us, may add their weight to' that of this province;
that by united application of all wh© are agreed, all may
obtain redress !"

The deep interest which Mr. Adorns felt and manifested for

S4 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

the righis of the colonies, soon brought him into favour with
the patriotic party. He became a leader in their popular as
semblies, and was bold in denouncing the unjust acts of the
British ministry.

In 1765 he was elected a representative to the general court
of Massachusetts, from the town of Boston. From this pe
riod, during the whole revolutionary struggle, he was the
bold, persevering, and efficient supporter of the rights of his
oppressed country. As a member of the court, he soon be
came conspicuous, and was honoured with the office of clerk
to that body. In the legislature, he was characterized for
the same activity and boldness which he had manifested in
the town. He was appointed upon almost every committee,
assisted in drawing nearly every report, and exercised a large
share of influence, in almost every meeting, which had for its
object the counteraction of the unjust plans of the administra
tion.

But it was not in his legislative capacity alone, that Mr.
Adams exhibited his hostility to the British government, and
his regard for rational freedom. Several able essays on these
subjects were published by him ; and he was the author of
several plans for opposing, more successfully, the unjust de
signs of the mother country. He has the honour of having
suggested the first congress at New-York, which prepared the
way for a Continental Congress, ten years after ; and at length
for the union and confederacy of the colonies.

The injudicious management of his private affairs, already
alluded to, rendered Mr. Adams poor. When this was known
in England, the partisans of the ministry proposed to bribe
him, by the gift of some lucrative office. A suggestion of
this kind was accordingly made to Governor Hutchinson, to
which he replied in a manner highly complimentary to the
integrity of Mr. Adams. " Such is the obstinacy and inflex
ible disposition of the man, that he never can be conciliated
by any office or gift whatever." The offer, however, it is
reported, was actually made to Mr. Adams, but neither the
allurements of fortune or power could for a moment tempt

SAMUEL ADAMS. 85

him to abandon the cause of truth, or to hazard the liberties
of the people.

He was indeed poor ; but he could be tempted neither by
British gold, nor by the honours or profits of any office with
in the gift of the royal governor. Such patriotism has not
been common in the world ; but in America it was to be
found in many a b^som, during the revolutionary struggle.
The knowledge of facts like this, greatly diminishes the won
der, which has sometimes been expressed, that America
should have successfully contended with Great Britain. Her
physical strength was comparatively weak ; but the moral
courage of her statesmen, and her soldiers, was to her instead
of numbers, of wealth, and fortifications.

Allusion has been made, both in our introduction, and in
our notice of Hancock, to the Boston massacre, in 1770, an
event which will long remain memorable in the annals of the
revolution, not only as it was the first instance of bloodshed
between the British and the Americans, but as it conduced to
increase the irritation, and to widen the breach between the
two countries.

Our limits forbid a more particular account of this tragical
affair ; and it is again alluded to only for the purpose of bring
ing more distinctly into view, the intrepid and decisive con
duct of Samuel Adams on that occasion.

On the morning following this night of bloodshed, a meet
ing of the citizens of Boston was called. Mingled emotions
of horror and indignation pervaded the assembly. Samuel
Adams first arose to address the listening multitude. Few
men could harangue a popular assembly with greater energy,
or exercise a more absolute control over their passions and
affections. On that occasion, a Demosthenes, or a Clpitham,
could scarcely have addressed the assembled multitude with a
more impressive eloquence, or have represented in a more
just and emphatic manner, the fearful crisis to which the
affairs of the colonies were fast tending. A committee was
unanimously chosen to wait upon Governor Hutchinson, with
a request that the troops might be immediately removed from
the town. To the request of this committee, the governor,

8

86 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

with his usual prevarication, replied, that the troops were not
subject to his order. Mr. Adams, who was one of this com
mittee, strongly represented to the governor the clanger of
retaining the troops longer in the capital. His indignation
was aroused, and in a tone of lofty independence, he declared,
that the removal of the troops would alone satisfy his insulted
and indignant townsmen; it was, therefore, at the governor's
peril, that they were continued in the town, and that he alone
must be answerable for the fatal consequences, which it re
quired no gift of prophecy to predict must ensue.

It was now dark. The meeting of the citizens was still
undissolved. The greatest anxiety pervaded the assembly
and scarcely were they restrained from going in a body to
the governor, to learn his determination. Aware of the criti
cal posture of affairs, aware of the personal hazard which he
encountered by refusing a compliance, the governor at length
gave his consent to the removal of the troops, and stipulated
that the necessary preparations should commence on the fol
lowing morning. Thus, through the decisive and spirited con
duct of Samuel Adams, and a few other kindred spirits, the
obstinacy of a royal governor was subdued, and further hos
tilities were for a still longer time suspended.

The popularity and influence of Mr. Adams were rapidly
increasing, and the importance of his being detached from the
popular party became every day more manifest. "We have
already noticed the suggestion to Governor Hutchinson to
effect this, by the gift of some lucrative office. Other offers
of a similar kind, it is reported, were made to him, at different
times, by the royal authorities, but with the same ill success.
About the year 1773, Governor Gage renewed the experiment.
At that time Colonel Fenton was requested to wait upon Mr.
Adams, with the assurance of Governor Gage, that any benefits
would be conferred upon him which he should demand, on the
condition of his ceasing to oppose the measures of the royal
government. At the same time, it was not obscurely hinted,
that such a measure was necessary, on personal considera
tions. He had incurred the royal displeasure, and already,
such had been his conduct, that it was in the power of the

SAMUEL ADAMS. 87

governor to send him to England for trial, on a charge of trea
son. It was suggested that a change in his political conduct,
might save him from this disgrace, and even from a severer
fate ; and might elevate him, moreover, from his circumstan
ces of indigence, to the enjoyment of affluence.

To this proposal, Mr. Adams listened with attention; but as
Col. Fen ton concluded his communication, with all the spirit
of a man of honour, with all the integrity of the most incor-
rupted and incorruptible patriotism, he replied ; " Go tell
Governor Gage, that my peace has long since been made with
the King of kings, and that it is the advice of Samuel Adams
to him, no longer to insult the feelings of an already exaspe
rated people"

The independence and sterling integrity of Mr. Adams,
might well have secured to him the respect, and even confi
dence of Governor Gage ; but with far different feelings did
he regard the noble conduct of this high minded patriot.
Under the irritation excited by the failure of a favourite plan,
Governor Gage issued a proclamation, which comprehended
the following language: " I do hereby," he said, " in his ma
jesty's name, offer and promise his most gracious pardon to
all persons, who shall forthwith lay down their arms, and re
turn to the duties of peaceable subjects: excepting only ft*om
the benefits of such pardon, SAMUEL ADAMS, and JOHN HAN
COCK, whose offences are of too flagitious a nature to admit of
any other consideration but that of condign punishment."

Thus these independent men were singled out as the
objects of peculiar vengeance, and even their lives endanger
ed, for honourably resisting a temptation, to which, had they
yielded, they would have merited the reproach of their coun
trymen, and the scorn of the world.

Mr. Adams was a member of the first continental congress,
which assembled in Philadelphia on the 5th of September,
1774 ; and continued a member of that body until the year
1781. During this period, no delegate acted a more con
spicuous or manly part. No one exhibited a more indefati
gable zeal, or a firmer tone of character. He early saw that
the contest would probably not be decided without bloodshed.

88 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

He was himself prepared for every extremity, and was will
ing that such measures should be adopted, as should lead to
an early issue of the controversy. He was accordingly
among the warmest advocates for the declaration of American
independence. In his view, the die was cast, and a further
friendly connexion with the parent country was impossible.
'* I am perfectly satisfied,"' said he, in a letter written from
Philadelphia, to a friend in Massachusetts, in April, 177C,
*' of the necessity of a public and explicit declaration of inde
pendence. I cannot conceive what good reason can be assign
ed against it. Will it widen the breach? This would be a
strange question, after we have raised armies, and fought bat
tles with the British troops; set up an American navy ; permit
ted the inhabitants of these colonies to fit out armed vessels,
to capture the ships, &c. belonging to any of the inhabitants of
Great Britain ; declaring them the enemies of the United
Colonies ; and torn into shivers their acts of trade, by allc vvmg
commerce, subject to regulations to be made by ourselves, with
the people of all countries, except such as are subject t) the
British king. It cannot surely, after all this, be imagined
that we consider ourselves, or mean to be considered by
others, in any other state, than that of independence."

The independence of America was at length declared, and
gave a new political character, and an immediate dignity to
the cause of the colonies. But notwithstanding this measure
might itself bear the aspect of victory, a formidable contest
yet awaited the Americans. The year following the declara
tion of independence, the situation of the colonies was ex
tremely gloomy. The stoutest hearts trembled within them,
and even doubts were expressed, whethei the measures which
had been adopted, particularly the declaration of indepen
dence, were not precipitate. The neighbourhood of Phila
delphia became the seat of war; congress, now reduced ttt
only twenty-eight members, had resolved to remove theii
session to Lancaster. At this critical period, Mr. Adams
accidentally fell in company with several other members, by
whom the subject of the state of the country was freely ant)
confidentially discussed. Gloomy forebodings seemed to

SAMUEL ADAMS. 99

pervade their minds, and the greatest anxiety was expressed
as to the issue of the contest.

To this conversation, Mr. Adams listened with silent atten
tion. At length he expressed his surprise, that such despond
ing feelings should have settled upon their hearts, and such
desponding language should be even confidentially uttered by
their lips. To this it was answered, " The chance is despe
rate." "Indeed, indeed, it is desperate," said Mr. Adams, "if
this be our language. If we wear long faces, others will do so
too ; if we despair, let us not expect that others will hope ; or
that they will persevere in a contest, from which their leaders
shrink. But let not such feelings, let not such language, be
ours." Thus, while the hearts of others were ready to faint,
Samuel Adams maintained his usual firmness. His unshaken
courage, and his calm reliance upon the aid and protection ot
heaven, contributed in an eminent degree to inspire his coun
trymen with a confidence of their final success. A higher
encomium could not have been bestowed on any member of
the continental congress, than is expressed in relation to Mr.
Adams by Mr. Galloway, in his historical and political reflec
tions on the rise and progress of the American rebellion,
published in Great Britain, 1789. " He eats little," says the
author, " drinks little, sleeps little, thinks much, and is most
indefatigable in the pursuit of his object. It was this man, who
by his superior application, managed at once the factions in
congress at Philadelphia, and the factions of New-England."

In 1781, Mr. Adams retired from congress ; but it was to
receive from his native state, additional proofs of her high
estimation of his services, and of the confidence which she
reposed in his talents and integrity He had already been an
active member of the convention that formed her constitu
tion ; and after it went into effect, he was placed in the se
nate of the state, and for several years presided over that
body. In 1789, he was elected lieutenant governor, and held
that office till 1794; when, upon the death of Hancock, he
was chosen governor, and was annually re-elected till 1797,
when he retired from public life. This retirement, however,
M 8*

00 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

he did not long enjoy, as his death occurred on October &;,
1803, at the advanced age of 82.

From the foregoing sketches of Mr. Adams, it will not be
difficult for the reader to form a tolerably correct opinion of
his character and disposition. In his person, he is said to
have been only of the middle size, but his countenance indi
cated a noble genius within, and a more than ordinary inflexi
bility of character and purpose. Great sincerity and simpli
city marked his manners and deportment. In his conversa
tion, he was at once interesting and instructive ; and those
who shared his friendship had seldom any reason to doubt his
affection and constancy. His writings were voluminous, but
unfortunately, as they generally related to the temporary
politics of the day, most of them are lost. Those which re
main furnish abundant proof of his superiority as a writer, of
the soundness of his political creed, and of the piety and sin
cerity of his character. As an orator, he was eminently fit
ted for the stormy times in which he lived. His elocutiois
was concise and impressive, partaking more of the logical
than the figurative, and rather calculated to enlighten the un
derstanding, than to excite the feelings. Yet no man could
address himself more powerfully to the passions, than he did,
on certain occasions. As a statesman, his views were bioad
and enlightened ; what his judgment had once matured, he
pursued with inflexible firmness, and patriotic ardour. While
others desponded, lie was full of hope ; where others hesita
ted, he was resolute ; where others were supine, he was eager
for action. His circumstances of indigence led him to habits
of simplicity and frugality ; but beyond this, he was natural
ly averse to parade and ostentation.

" Mr. Adams was a Christian. His mind was early imbued
with piety, as well as cultivated by science. He early ap
proached the table of the Lord Jesus, and the purity of his
life witnessed the sincerity of his profession. On the chris-
lian sabbath, he constantly went to the temple, and the
morning and evening devotions in his family proved, that his
religion attended him in his seasons of retirement from the

SAMUEL ADAMS. 91

world. The last production of his pen was in favour of
Christian truth. He died in the faith of the gospel."

In his opposition to British tyranny, no man was more
conscientious; he detested royalty, and despised the ostenta
tion and contemptible servility of the royal agents ; his pa
triotism was of a pure and lofty character. For his country
he laboured both by night and by day, with a zeal which was
scarcely interrupted, and with an energy that knew no fatigue.
Although enthusiastic, he was still prudent. He would per
suade, petition, and remonstrate, where these would accom
plish his object; but when these failed, he was ready to
resist even unto blood, and would sooner have sacrificed his
life than yielded with dishonour. " Had he lived in any
country or epoch," says his biographer, " when abuses of
power were to be resisted, he would have been one of the re
formers. He would have suffered excommunication, rather
than have bowed to papal infallibility, or paid tribute to St.
Peter ; he would have gone to the stake, rather than sub
mit to the prelatic ordinances of Laud ; he would have
mounted the scaffold, sooner than pay a shilling of illegal ship-
money ; he would have fled to a desert, rather than endure
the profligate tyranny of a Stuart ; he was proscribed, and
would sooner have been condemned as a traitor, than assent
to an illegal tax, if it had been only a sixpenny stamp or an
insignificant duty on tea ; and there appeared to be no species
of corruption by which this inflexibility could have been des
troyed."

In the delegation of political power, he may be said to have
been too cautious, since our constitutions, as he would have
modelled them, would not have had sufficient inherent force
for their own preservation. One of his colleagues thus ho
nourably described him : " Samuel Adams would have the
state of Massachusetts govern the union ; the town of Boston
govern Massachusetts; and that he should govern the town
of Boston, and then the whole would not be intentionally ill
governed."

With some apparent austerity, there was nothing of the
spirit of gloom or arrogance about him. In his demeanour,

92 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

he combined mildness with firmness, and dignity vvith con
descension. If sometimes an advocate for measures which
might be thought too strong, it was, perhaps, because his
comprehension extended beyond ordinary minds, and he had
more energy to effect his purposes, than attaches to common
men. In addition to these qualities, he manifested an uncom
mon indifference to pecuniary considerations ; he was poor
while he lived, and had not the death of an only son re
lieved his latter day poverty, Samuel Adams, notwith
standing his virtues, his patriotism, his unwearied zeal, and his
acknowledged usefulness, while he lived, would have had to
claim a burial at the hand of charity, or at the public expense.

JOHN ADAMS.

JOHN ADAMS was born at Quincy, then part of the ancient
town of Braintree, on the 19th day of October, old style,
1735. He was a descendant of the Puritans, his ancestors
having early emigrated from England, and settled in Massa
chusetts. Discovering early a strong love of reading and of
knowledge, proper care was taken by his father to preside
for his education. His youthful studies were prosecuted in
Braintree, under Mr. Marsh, a gentleman whose fortune it
was to instruct several children, who in manhood were des
tined to act a conspicuous part in the scenes of the revolution.

He became a member of Harvard College, 1751, and was
graduated in course in 1755 : with what degree of reputa
tion he left the university is not now precisely known; we only
know that he was distinguished in a class of which the
Reverend Dr. Hemmenway was a member, who bore
honourable testimony to the openness and decision of his
character, and to the strength and activity of l.is mind.

Having chosen the law for his profession, he commenced
and prosecuted its studies under the direction of Samuel
Putnam, a barrister of eminence at Worcester. By him he
was introduced to the celebrated Jeremy Gridley, then attor-

JOHN ADAMS. 93

ney general of the province of Massachusetts Bay. At the
first interview they became friends; Gridley at unce proposed
Mr. Adams for admission to the bar of Suffolk, and took him
into special favour. Soon after his admission, Mr. Grid-
ley led his young friend into a private chamber with an air
of secrecy, and, pointing to a book case, said, " Sir, there is
the secret of my eminence, and of which you may avail
yourself as you please." It was a pretty good collection of
treatises of the civil law. In this place Mr. Adams spent his
days and nights, until he had made himself master of the
principles of the code.

From early life, the bent of his mind was towards politics, a
propensity which the state of the times, if it did not create,
doubtless very much strengthened. While a resident at
Worcester, he wrote a letter of which the following is an ex
tract. The letter was dated October 12th, 1755. " Soon
after the reformation, a few people came over into this new.
world for conscience sake : perhaps this apparently trivial
incident may transfer the great seat of empire into America.
It looks likely to me ; for, if we can remove the turbulent
Gallicks, our people, according to the exactest computations,
will in another century become more numerous than England
itself. Should this be the case, since we have, I may say, all
the naval stores of the nation in our hands, it will be easy to
obtain a mastery of the seas ; and the united force of all
Europe will not be able to subdue us. The only way to keep
us from setting up for ourselves is to disunite us.

" Be not surprised that I am turned politician. This whole
town is immersed in politics. The interests of nations and
all the dira of war make the subject of every conversation.
I sit and hear, and after having been led through a maze of
sage observations, I sometimes retire, and lay things together,
and form some reflections pleasing to myself. The produce
of one of these reveries you have read."

This prognostication of independence, and of so vast an
increase of numbers, and of naval force, as might defy all
Europe, is remarkable, especially as coming from so young a
man, and so early in the history of the country. It is more

94 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

remarkable that its author should have lived to see fulfilled
to the letter, what would have seemed to others at the time,
but the extravagance of youthful fancy. His early political
feelings were thus strongly American, and from this ardent
attachment to his native soil he never departed.

In 1758 he was admitted to the bar, and commenced busi
ness in Braintree. He is understood to have made his first
considerable effort, or to have obtained his most signal suc
cess, at Plymouth, in a jury trial, and a criminal cause. In
1765, Mr. Adams laid before the public his " Essay on the
Canon and Feudal Law," a work distinguished for its power
and eloquence. The object of this work was to show, that
our New-England ancestors, in consenting to exile them
selves from their native land, were actuated mainly by the
desire of delivering themselves from the power of the
hierarchy, and from the monarchical, aristocratical, and
political system of the other continent ; and to make this
truth bear with effect on the politics of the times. Its tone
is uncommonly bold and animated for that period. He calls
on the people not only to defend, but to study and understand
their rights and privileges; and urges earnestly the necessity
of diffusing general knowledge.

In conclusion, he exclaims, " let the pulpit resound with
the doctrines and sentiments of religious liberty. Let us
hear the danger'of thraldom to our consciences, from igno
ranee, extreme poverty and dependence, in short, from civil
arid politicil slavery. Let us see delineated before ust the
true map of man — let us hear the dignity of his nature, and
the noble rank he holds among the works of God ! that con
senting to slavery is a sacrilegious breach of trust, as offen
sive in the sight of God, as it is derogatory from our own
honour, or interest, or happiness ; and that God Almighty has
promulgated from heaven, liberty, peace, and good will to
man.

" Let the bar proclaim the laws, the rights, the generous
plan of power delivered down from remote antiquity ; inform
the world of the mighty struggles and numberless sacrifices
made bv our ancestors in the defence of freedom. Let it be

JOHN ADAMS. 95

known that British liberties are not the grants of princes or
parliaments, but original rights, conditions of original con
tracts, coequal with prerogative, and coeval with govern
ment. That many of our rights are inherent and essential,
agreed on as maxims and established as preliminaries even
before a parliament existed. Let them search for the foun
dation of British laws and government in the frame of human
nature, in the constitution of the intellectual and moral world.
There let us see that truth, liberty, justice, and benevolence,
are its everlasting basis ; and if these could be removed, the
superstructure is overthrown of course.

" Let the colleges join their harmony in the same delight
ful concert. Let every declamation turn upon the beauty of
liberty and virtue, and the deformity, turpitude, and malignity
of slavery and vice. Let the public disputations become re
searches into the grounds, nature, and ends of government,
and the means of preserving the good and demolishing the
evil. Let the dialogues and all the exercises become the in
struments of impressing on the tender mind, and of spreading
and distributing far and wide the ideas of right, and the sen
sations of freedom."

In 1766, Mr. Adams removed his residence to Boston, still
continuing his attendance on the neighbouring circuits, and
not unfrequently called to remote parts of the province.

In 1770 occurred, as has already been noticed, the "Boston
massacre." Mr. Adams was solicited by the British officers
and soldiers to undertake their defence, on the indictment
found against them, for their share in that tragical scene.
This was a severe test of his professional firmness. He was
well aware of the popular indignation against these priso
ners, and he was at that time a representative of Boston ia
the general court, an office which depended entirely upon
popular favour. But he knew that it was due to his profes
sion, and to himself, to undertake their defence, and to hazard
the consequences. " The trial was well managed. The cap-
feain was severed in his trial from the soldiers, who were tried
first, and their defence rested in part upon the orders, real or
supposed, given by the officer to his men to fire. This was

96 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

in a good measure successful. On the trial of Capt. Preston,
no such order to fire could be proved. The result was, as it
should have been, an acquittal. It was a glorious tiling that
the counsel and jury had nerve sufficient to breast the torrent
of public feeling. It showed Britain that she had not a mere
mob to deal with, but resolute and determined men, who could
restrain themselves. Such men are dangerous to arbitrary
power."

The event proved, that as he judged well for his own re
putation, so he judged well for the interest and permanent
fame of his country. The same year he was elected one of
the representatives in the general assembly, .an honour to
which the people would not have called him, had he lost their
confidence and affection.

In the year 1773, and 1774, he was chosen a counsellor by
the members of the general court ; but was rejected by Go
vernor Hutchinson, in the former of these years, and by Go
vernor Gage, in the latter.

In this latter year, he was appointed a member of the con
tinental congress, from Massachusetts. " This appointment
was made at Salem, where the general court had been con
vened by Governor Gage, in the last hour of the existence of
a house of representatives, under the provincial charter
While engaged in this important business, the governor
having been informed of what was passing, sent his secretary
with a message, dissolving the general court. The secretary
finding the door lo'ked, directed the messenger to go in, and
inform the speaker that the secretary was at the door, with a
message from the governor. The messenger returned, and
informed the secretary that the orders of the house were, that
the doors should be kept fast ; whereupon the secretary
soon after read a proclamation, dissolving the general court,
upon the stairs. Thus terminated, forever, the actual exer
cise of the political power of England in or over Massa
chusetts."

On the meeting of congress in Philadelphia, 1774, Mr.
Adams appeared and took his seat. To talents of the highest
order, and the most commanding eloquence, he added an

JOHN ADAMS. 97

honest devotion to the cause of his country, and a firmness
of character, for which he was distinguished through life.
Prior to that period he had, upon all occasions, stood forth
openly in defence of the rights of his country, and in opposi
tion to the injustice and encroachments of Great Britain. He
boldly opposed them by his advice, his actions, and his elo
quence ; and, with other worthies, succeeded in spreading
among the people a proper alarm for their liberties. Mr,
Adams was placed upon the first and most important com
mittees. During the first year, addresses were prepared to
the king, to the people of England, of Ireland, Canada, and
Jamaica. The name of Mr. Adams is found upon almost all
those important committees. His firmness and eloquence in
debate, soon gave him a standing among the highest in that
august body.

The proceedings of this congress have already passed in
review. Among the members, a variety of opinions seem to
have prevailed, as to the probable issue of the contest, in
which the country was engaged. On this subject, Mr.
Adams, a few years before his death, expressed himself, in
a letter to a friend, as follows : " When congress had finished
their husiness, as they thought, in the autumn of 1774, I had
with Mr. Henry, before we took leave of each other, some
familiar conversation, in which I expressed a full conviction
that our resolves, declaration of rights, enumeration of
wrongs, petitions, remonstrances, and addresses, associa
tions, and non-importation agreements, however they might
be viewed in America, and however necessary to cement the
union of the colonies, would be but waste water in England.
Mr. Henry said, they might make some impression among
the people of England, but agreed with me, that they would
be totally lost upon the government. I had but just received
a short and hasty letter, written to rne by Major Joseph
Hawley, of Northampton, containing a few broken hints, as
he called them, of what he thought was proper to be done,
and concluding with these words, * after all, we must fight.'
This letter I read to Mr. Henry, who listened with great at
tention, and as soon as I had pronounced the words, ' after
N 9

98 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

all, we must fight,' he raised his head, and, with an energy
and vehemence that I can never forget, broke out with, ' 1
am of that man's mind.' I put the letter into his hand, and
when he had read it he returned it to me, with an equally
solemn asseveration, that he agreed entirely in opinion with
the writer.

" The other delegates from Virginia returned to their state
in full confidence that all our grievances would be redressed.
The last words that Mr. Richard Henry Lee said to me, when
we parted, were, ' we shall infallibly carry all our points.
You will be completely relieved ; all the offensive acts will
be repealed ; the army and fleet will be recalled, and Britain
will give up her foolish project.'

" Washington only was in doubt. He never spoke in pub
lic. In private, he joined with those who advocated a non-
exportation, as well as a non-importation agreement. With
both, he thought we should prevail ; without either, he
thought It doubtful. Henry was clear in one opinion,
Richard Henry Lee in an opposite opinion, and Washington
doubted between the two."

On the 15th day of June, the continental congress appointed
General Washington commander in chief of the American
armies. To Mr. Adams is ascribed the honour of having
suggested and advocated the choice of this illustrious man.
When first suggested by Mr. Adams, to a few of his confi
dential friends in Congress, the proposition was received
with a marked disapprobation. Washington, at this time,
was almost a stranger to them ; and, besides, to elevate a
man who had never held a higher military rank than that of
colonel, over officers of the highest grade in the militia, and
those, too, already in the field, appeared not oniy irregular,
but likely to produce much dissatisfaction among them, and
the people at large. To Mr. Adams, however, the greatest
advantage appeared likely to result from the choice of Wash
ington, whose character and peculiar fitness for the station lie
well understood. Samuel Adams, his distinguished colleague,
coincided with him in these views, and through their instru
mentality this felicitous choice was effected. When a ma-

JOHN ADAMS. 99

jority in congress had been secured, Mr. Adams introduced
the subject of appointing a commander in chief of the armies,
and having sketched the qualifications which should be found
in the man to be elevated to so responsible a station, he con
cluded by nominating George Washington, of Virginia, to the
office.

To Washington, himself, nothing could have been more un
expected. Until that moment he was ignorant of the intended
nomination. The proposal was seconded by Samuel Adams,
and the following day it received the unanimous approbation
of congress.

When Mr. Adams was first made a member of the conti
nental congress, it was hinted that he, at that time., inclined to
a separation of the colonies from England, and the establish
ment of an independent government. On his way to Phila
delphia, he was warned, by several advisers, not to introduce
a subject of so delicate a character, until the affairs of the
country should wear a different aspect. Whether Mr.
Adams needed this admonition or not, will not, in this place,
be determined. But in 1776, the affairs of the colonies, it
could no longer be questioned, demanded at least the candid
discussion of the subject. On the 6th of May, of that year,
Mr. Adams offered, in committee of the whole, a resolution
that the colonies should form governments independent of
the crown. On the 10th of May, this resolution was adopted,
in the following shape : " That it be recommended to all the
colonies, which had not already established governments
suited to the exigencies of their case, to adopt such govern
ments as would, in the opinion of the representatives of the
people, best conduce to the happiness and safety of their con
stituents in particular, and Americans in general."

" This significant vote was soon followed by the direct
proposition, which RICHARD HENRY LEE had the honour to
submit to congress, by resolution, on the 7th day of June.
The published journal does not expressly state it, but there is
no doubt that this resolution was in the same words, when
originally submitted by Mr. Lee, as when finally passed.
Having been discussed on Saturday the 8th, and Monday the

UK) MASSACHUSETTS DKI.KU AT1O.N.

10th of Juno, this resolution was, on the lasl mentioned day,
postponed lor further consideration to the first day of July r
nnil ut the same time it was voted, that a committee be appoint-
ed to prepare a DECLARATION, to the effect of the resolution.
Tliis eommittee was elected by ballot on the following day,
and consisted of THOMAS JEFFERSON, JOHN ADAMS, BKNJAMIN

1 i: \\KLIN, HOUKR SllKUMAN, and RoiJKKT H. LlMNUSTON."

It is usual when committees are elected by ballot, that their
members are arranged in order, according to the number of
votes which each has received. Mr. JctU^on, then' tore.
probably received the highest, and Mr. Adams the next
highest number of votes. The difference is said to have
been but a single vote.

Mr. Jetferson and Mr. Adams, standing thus at the head of
the eommittee, were requested by the other members, to act
as a sub-committee to prepare the draft; and Mr. Jelfersou
drew up the paper. The original draft, as brought by him
from his study, and submitted to the other members of the
committee, with interlineations in the hand writing of Dr.
Franklin, and others in that of Mr. Adams, was in Mr. Jeffer
son's possession at the time of his death. The merit of this
paper is Mr. Jefferson's. Some changes were made in it, on
the suggestion of other members of the eommittee, and others
by Congress, while it was under discussion. But none of
them altered the tone, the frame, the arrangement, or the ge
neral character of the instrument. As a composition, the
declaration is Mr. Jefferson's. It is the production of his
mind, and the high honour of it belongs to him clearly and
absolutely.

" While Mr. Jefferson was the author of the declaration
itself, Mr. Adams was its great supporter on the tloor of Con
gress. This was the unequivocal testimony of Mr. Jefferson.
* John Adams,' said he, on one occasion, 'was our Colossus
on the tloor; not graceful, not elegant, not always fluent in
his public addresses, he yet came out with a power, both of
thought and of expression, that moved us from our seats;1'
ami at another time, he said, * John Adams was the pillar of
its support on the tloor of Congress ; its ablest advocate ami

JOHN ADAMS. 101

defender against the multifarious assaults, which were made
against it.' "

On the second day of July, the resolution of independence
was adopted, and on the fourth, the declaration itself was
unanimously agreed to. Language can scarcely describe the
transport of Mr. Adams at this time. He has best described
them himself, in a letter written the day following, to his wife.
"Yesterday," says he, "the greatest question was derided
that was ever debated in America; and greater, perhaps,
never was or will be decided among men. A resolution was
passed, without one dissenting colony, ' That these United
States are, and of right ought to be, free and independent
states.' The day is passed. The 4th of July, 1776, will be a
memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to
believe it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the
great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as
the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to Almighty
God. It ought to be solemnized with pomp, shows, games,
sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end
of the continent to the other, from this time forward, forever.
You will think me transported with enthusiasm, but I am not.
I am well aware of the toil, and blood, and treasure, that it
will cost to maintain this declaration, and support and defend
these states ; yet through all the gloom, I can see the rays of
light and glory. I can see that the end is worth more than
all the means ; and that posterity will triumph, although you
and I may rue, which I hope we shall not."

About the time of the declaration of independence, occurred
the disastrous battle of Flatbush on Long Island. The
victory thus gained by the British, was considered by Lord
Howe as a favourable moment for proposing to congress an
accommodation ; and for this purpose, he requested an inter
view with some of the members. In the deliberations of con
gress, Mr. Adams opposed this proposal, on the ground that
no accommodation could thus be effected.

A committee, however, was appointed to wait on Lord
Howe, consisting of himself, Dr. Franklin, and Mr. Rutledge.
On being apprised of their intended interview, Lord Ilowrp

9*

102 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

sent one of his principal officers as a hostage, but the com
missioners taking him with them, fearlessly repaired to the
British camp. On their arrival, they were conducted through
an army of twenty thousand men, drawn up for the purpose
of show and impression. But the display was lost on the
commissioners, who studiously avoided all signs of wonder or
anxiety. As had been predicted by Mr. Adams, the interview
terminated without any beneficial result. On being introdu
ced, Lord Howe informed them that he could not treat with
them as a committee of congress, but only as private gentle
men of influence in the colonies; to which Mr. Adams repli
ed, " You may view me in any light you please, sir, except
that of a British subject."

During the remainder of the year 1776, and all 1777, Mr.
Adams was deeply engaged in the affairs of congress. He
served as a member of ninety different committees, and was
chairman of twenty-five committees. From his multiform
and severe labours he was relieved in December of the latter
year, by the appointment of commissioner to France, in the
place of Silas Deane.

In February, 1778, he embarked for that country on board
of the frigate Boston. On his arrival in France, he found that
Dr. Franklin, and Arthur Lee, who had been appointed com
missioners the preceding year, and were then in France, had
already concluded a treaty with the French government.
Little business, therefore, of a public nature was left him to
do. In the summer of 1779, lie returned to America.

About the time of his arrival, the people of Massachusetts
were adopting measures for calling a convention to form a
new state constitution. Of this convention he was elected a
member, and was also a member of the committee appointed
by the convention to report a plan for their consideration. A
plan which he drew up was accepted, and was made the basis
of the constitution of that state.

In the August following, in consequence of an informal
suggestion from the court of St. James, he received the ap
pointment of minister plenipotentiary for negotiating a treaty
of peace, and a treaty of commerce, with Great Britain. A

JOHN ADAMS. 103

salary of twenty-five hundred pounds sterling was voted him.
In the month of October, he embarked on board the French
ship La Sensible, and after a tedious voyage was landed at
Ferrol, in Spain, whence he proceeded to Paris, where he
arrived in the month of February. He there communicated
with Dr. Franklin, who was at that time envoy of the United
States at the court of France, and with the Count de Ver-
gennes, the French prime minister. But the British govern
ment, it was found, were not disposed to peace, and the day
seemed far distant when any negotiation could l?e opened
with a hope of success. Mr. Adams, however, was so use
ful in various ways, that towards the close of the year, con
gress honoured him by a vote of thanks, " for his industrious
attention to the interest and honour of these United States
abroad."

In June, 1780, congress being informed that Mr. Laurens,
who had been appointed to negotiate a loan in Holland for
the United States, had been taken prisoner by the English,
forwarded a commission to Mr. Adams to proceed to Hol
land, for the above purpose. To. this, soon after, was added
the new appointment of commissioner to conclude a treaty
of amity and commerce with the States General of Holland;
and, at the same time, authority was given him to pledge
the faith of the United States to the " armed neutrality"
proposed by the Russian government.

Mr. Adams repaired with promptitude to Holland, and
engaged with great zeal in the business of his commission.
From this station he was suddenly summoned by the Count
de Vergennes, to consult, at Paris, with regard to a project
for a general peace, suggested by the courts of Vienna and
St. Petersburg}!.

This M as one of the most anxious periods in the eventful
life of Mr. Adams. France was, indeed, ready to fulfil her
guaranty of independence to the United States ; but it was
the politic aim of the Count de Vergennes, to secure impor
tant advantages for his own country, in the settlement of
American difficulties. Hence, no effort was spared to make
Mr. Adams, in this important matter, the subordinate agent

104 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

of the French cabinet. He, on the other hand, regarded
solely the interests of the United States, and the instructions
of congress ; and his obstinate independence, unshaken by
the alternate threats and blandishments of the court of Ver
sailles, occasioned an effort by the Count de Vergennes to
obtain, through the French minister in Philadelphia, such a
modification of the instructions to Mr. Adams, as should
subject him to the direction of the French cabinet.

The effect of this artful and strenuous measure was, a de
termination on the part of congress, that Mr. Adams should
hold the most confidential intercourse with the French minis
ters ; and should "undertake nothing in the negotiation of
a peace, or truce, without their knowledge and concurrence."

Under these humiliating restrictions, the independent and
decisive spirit of Mr. Adams was severely tried. The impe
rial mediators proposed an armistice, but without any with
drawal of troops from America. Mr. Adams firmly opposed
this stipulation ; and the negotiation proceeded no farther at
that time.

It was, obviously, the policy of the French minister, not
to facilitate the peace between Great Britain and the United
States, without previously securing to France a large share in
the fisheries ; and at the same time so establishing the wes
tern boundary, as to sacrifice the interests of the United
States to those of Spain.

Finding all attempts at negotiation unavailing, Mr. Adams
returned to Holland.

Meantime, the apprehensions of congress being much
excited by the insinuations of the French minister in Phila
delphia, they added to the commission for forming a treaty
with Great Britain, Dr. Franklin, then plenipotentiary at
Paris ; Mr. Jay, the minister at Madrid ; Mr. Henry Laurens,
who had recently been appointed special minister to France ;
and Mr. Jefferson. The whole were instructed to govern
themselves by the advice and opinion of the ministers of the
king of France. This unaccountable and dishonourable
concession, in effect, made the Count dc Vergennes minister
plenipotentiary for the United States.

JOHN ADAMS. 105

But the indefatigable exertions of Mr. Adams in Holland,
had a most important bearing upon the proposed negotiations.
By a laborious and striking exhibition of the situation and
resources of the United States, he succeeded in so far in
fluencing public opinion, as to obtain a loan of eight millions
of guilders, on reasonable terms. This loan, effected in the
autumn of 1782, was soon followed by a treaty of amity and
commerce with Holland, recognizing the United States as
independent and sovereign states.

The disposition towards peace, on the part of the English
ministry, was wonderfully quickened by the favourable ne
gotiation of this loan. During Lord Shelburne's administra
tion, the independence of the states was unconditionally ac
knowledged, and the first effectual steps were taken to put
an end to the war.

During the negotiations that followed, the disposition of
France again evinced itself, to cut off the United States from
a share of the fisheries, and to transfer a portion of the
American territory to Spain. The American commissioners,
therefore, were not a little embarrassed by their instructions
from congress, to govern themselves by the opinion and
advice of the French minister. But, as Mr. Adams had, on a
former occasion, found it necessary to depart from instruc
tions of a similar import ; the other commissioners now
joined with him, in the determination to secure the best
interests of their country, regardless of the interference of
the French minister, and of the inconsiderate restrictions im
posed on them by congress.

Accordingly, provisional articles were signed by them, on
the 30th of November, 1782 ; and this measure was follow
ed by an advantageous definitive treaty in September, 1783.

Mr. Adams spent a part of the year 1784 in Holland, but
returned eventually to Paris, on being placed at the head of
a commission, with Dr. Franklin and Mr. Jefferson as coad
jutors, to negotiate several commercial treaties with different
foreign nations.

Near the commencement of the year 1785, congress re
solved to send a minister plenipotentiary to represent the
O

106 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

United States at the court of St. James. To this responsible
station, rendered peculiarly delicate by the fact that the
United States had so recently and reluctantly been acknow
ledged as an independent nation, Mr. Adams was appointed.
It was doubtful in what manner and with what spirit an
American minister would be received by the British govern
ment. On leaving America, Mr. Jay, the then secretary of
state, among other instructions, used the following language
" The manner of your reception at that court, and its temper,
views, and dispositions respecting American objects, are mat
ters concerning which particular information might be no
less useful than interesting. Your letters will, I am persuaded,
remove all suspense on those points."

In accordance with this direction, Mr. Adams subsequently
forwarded to Mr. Jay the following interesting account of his
presentation to the king.

" During my interview with the marquis of Carmarthen,
he told me it was customary for every foreign minister, at
his first presentation to the king, to make his majesty some
compliments conformable to the spirit of his credentials; and
when Sir Clement Cottrel Dormer, the master of ceremonies,
came to inform me that he should accompany me to the secre
tary of state, and to court, he said, that every foreign minister
whom he had attended to the queen, had always made an
harangue to her majesty, and he understood, though he had not
been present, that they always harangued the king. On Tues
day evening, the Baron de Lynden (Dutch ambassador) called
upon me, and said he came from the Baron de Nolkin, (Swedish
envoy,) and had been conversing upon the singular situation
I was in, and they agreed in opinion that it was indispensable
that I should make a speech, and that it should be as com
plimentary as possible. All this was parallel to the advice
lately given by the Count de Vergennes to Mr. Jefferson. So
that finding it was a custom established at both these great
courts, that this court and the foreign ministers expected it,
I thought I could not avoid it, although my first thought and
inclination had been to deliver my credentials silently and
retire. At one, on Wednesday the first of June, the master

JOHN ADAMS. 107

if ceremonies called at my house, and went with me to the
secretary of state's office, in Cleveland Row, where the mar
quis of Carmarthen received me, and introduced1!^ to Mr.
Frazier, his under secretary, who had been, as his lordship
said, uninterruptedly in that office through all the changes in
administration for thirty years, having first been appointed
by the earl of Holderness. After a short conversation upon
the subject of importing my effects from Holland and France,
free of duty, which Mr. Frazier himself introduced, Lord
Carmarthen invited me to go with him in his coach to court.
When we arrived in the antichamber, the ceil-de-bceuf of
St. James's, the master of the ceremonies met me, and at
tended me, while the secretary of state went to take the
commands of the king. While I stood in this place, where
it seems all ministers stand on such occasions, always at
tended by the master of ceremonies, the room very full of
courtiers, as well as the next room, which is the king's bed
chamber, you may well suppose, that I was the focus of all
eyes.

" I was relieved, however, from the embarrassment of it by
the Swedish and Dutch ministers, who came to me and enter
tained me in a very agreeable conversation during the whole
time. Some other gentlemen whom I had seen before came
to make their compliments too, until the marquis of Carmar
then returned, and desired me to go with him to his majesty :
I went with his lordship through the levee room into the
king's closet; the door was shut, and I was left with his
majesty and the secretary of state alone. I made the three
reverences, one at the door, another about half way, and the
third before the presence, according to the usage established
at this and all the northern courts of Europe, and then ad
dressed myself to his majesty in the following words:

" ' Sir, the United States have appointed me their minister
plenipotentiary to your majesty, and have directed me to de
liver to your majesty this letter, which contains the evidence
of it. It is in obedience to their express commands, that 1 have
the honour to assure your majesty of their unanimous disposi
tion and desire to cultivate the most friendly and liberal in-

108 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

tercourse between your majesty's subjects and their citizens,
and of their best wishes for your majesty's health and happi
ness, and for that of your royal family.

" The appointment of a minister from the United States
to your majesty's court, will form an epoch in the history of
England and America. I think myself more fortunate than all
my fellow citizens, in having the distinguished honour to be
the first to stand in your majesty's royal presence in a diplo
matic character ; and I shall esteem myself the happiest of
men, if I can be instrumental in recommending my country
more and more to your majesty's royal benevolence, and of
restoring an entire esteem, confidence, and affection, or in
better words, 'the old good nature, and the old good humour,'
between people who, though separated by an ocean, and un
der different governments, have the same language, a similar
religion, and kindred blood. I beg your majesty's permission
to add, that although I have sometimes before been entrusted
by my country, it was never, in my whole life, in a manner so
agreeable to myself.'

" The king listened to every word I said, writh dignity, it
is true, but with an apparent emotion. Whether it was the
nature of the interview, or whether it was my visible agita
tion, for I felt more than I did or could express, that touched
him, I cannot say, but he was much affected, and answered me
with more tremor than I had spoken with, and said :

" ' Sir, the circumstances of this audience are so extraor
dinary, the language you have now held is so extremely pro
per, and the feelings you have discovered so justly adapted
to the occasion, that I must say, that I not only receive with
pleasure the assurances of the friendly disposition of the peo
ple of the United States, but that I am very glad the choice
has fallen upon you to be their minister. I wish you, sir, to
believe, and that it may be understood in America, that I
have done nothing in the late contest but what I thought my
self indispensably bound to do, by the duty which I owed to
my people. I will be very frank with you. I was the last
to conform to the separation ; but the separation having been
made, and having become inevitable, I have always said, as I

JOHN ADAMS. 109

say now, that I would be the first to meet the friendship of
the United States, as an independent power. The moment
I see such sentiments and language as yours prevail, and a
disposition to give this country the preference, that moment
I shall say, let the circumstances of language, religion, and
blood, have their natural and full effect.'

" I dare not say that these were the king's precise words,
and it is even possible that I may have, in some particular,
mistaken his meaning ; for although his pronunciation is as
distinct as I ever heard, he hesitated sometimes between his
periods, and between the members of the same period. He
was, indeed, much affected, and I was not less so ; and, there
fore, I cannot be certain that I was so attentive, heard so
clearly, and understood so perfectly, as to be confident of all
his words or sense ; this I do say, that the foregoing is his
majesty's meaning, as I then understood it, and his own
words, as nearly as I can recollect."

The year following, 1788, Mr. Adams requested permis
sion to resign his office, which, being granted, after an ab
sence of between eight and nine years, he returned to his
native country. The new government was, at that time, about
going into operation. In the autumn of 1788, he was elected
vice president of the United States, a situation which he filled,
with reputation for eight years.

On the retirement of General Washington from the presi
dency, in 1796, Mr. Adams was a candidate for that elevated
station. At this time, two parties had been formed in the
United States. At the head of one stood Mr. Hamilton and
Mr. Adams, and at the head of the other stood Mr. Jefferson.
After a close contest between these two parties, Mr. Adams
was elected president, having received seventy-one of the
electoral votes, and Mr. Jefferson sixty-eight. In March,
1797, these gentlemen entered upon their respective offices
of president and vice president of the United States.

Of the administration of Mr. Adams we shall not, in this
place, give a detailed account. Many circumstances con
spired to render it unpopular. An unhappy dispute with
France had arisen a little previously to his inauguration. In

10

110 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

the management of this dispute, which had reference to ag
gressions by France upon American rights and commerce,
the popularity of Mr. Adams was in no small degree affected,
although the measures which he recommended for upholding
the national character, were more moderate than congress,
and a respectable portion of the people, thought the exigen
cies of the case required. Other circumstances, also, con
spired to diminish his popularity. Restraints were imposed
upon the press, and authority vested in the president to or
der aliens to depart out of the United States, when he should
judge the peace and safety of the country required. To these
measures, acts were added for raising a standing army, and
imposing a direct tax and internal duties. These, and other
causes, combined to weaken the strength of the party to
whom he owed his elevation, and to prevent his re-election.
He was succeeded by Mr. Jefferson, in 1801.

On retiring from the presidency he removed to his former
residence at Quincy, where, in quiet, he spent the remainder
of his days. In 1820, he voted as elector of president and
vice president ; and, in the same year, at the advanced age
of 85, he was a member of the convention of Massachusetts,
assembled to revise the constitution of that commonwealth.

Mr. Adams retained the faculties of his mind, in remarka
ble perfection, to the end of his long life. His unabated love
of reading and contemplation, added to an interesting circle
of friendship and affection, were sources of felicity in de
clining years, which seldom fall to the lot of any one.

" But," to use the language of a distinguished eulogist,*
" he had other enjoyments. He saw around him that pros
perity and general happiness, which had been the object of
his public cares and labours. No man ever beheld more
clearly, and for a longer time, the great and beneficial effects
of the services rendered by himself to his country. That
liberty, which he so early defended, that independence, of
which he was so able an advocate and supporter, he saw, we
trust, firmly and securely established. The population of

* Webster.

JOHN ADAMS. Ill

the country thickened around him faster, and extended wider,
than his own sanguine predictions had anticipated ; and the
wealth, respectability, and power of the nation, sprang up to
a magnitude, which it is quite impossible he could have ex
pected to witness, in his day. He lived, also, to behold those
principles of civil freedom, which had been developed, es
tablished, and practically applied in America, attract atten
tion, command respect, and awaken imitation, in other re
gions of the globe ; and well might, and well did he ex
claim, ' Where will the consequences of the American revo
lution end !'

" If any thing yet remains to fill this cup of happiness, let
it be added, that he lived to see a great and intelligent people
bestow the highest honour in their gift, where he had be
stowed his own kindest parental affections, and lodged his
fondest hopes.

" At length the day approached when this eminent patriot
was to be summoned to another world ; and, as if to render
that day forever memorable in the annals of American histo
ry, it was the day on which the illustrious Jefferson was
himself, also, to terminate his distinguished earthly career.
That day was the fiftieth anniversary of the declaration of
independence.

" Until within a few days previous, Mr. Adams had ex
hibited no indications of a rapid decline. The morning of the
fourth of July, 1826, he was unable to rise from his bed.
Neither to himself, or his friends, however, was his dissolution
supposed to be so near. He was asked to suggest a toast,
appropriate to the celebration of the day. His mind seemed
to glance back to the hour in which, fifty years before, he had
voted for the declaration of independence, and with the
spirit with which he then raised his hand, he now exclaimed,
4 Independence forever.' At four o'clock in the afternoon
he expired. Mr. Jefferson had departed a few hours before
him."

We close this imperfect sketch of the life of this distinguished
man in the language of one* who, from the relation in which

* President Adams's Message.

112 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

he stood to the subject of this memoir, must have felt, more
than any other individual, the impressiveness of the event.
" They, (Mr. Adams and Mr. Jefferson,) departed cheered
by the benediction of their country, to whom they left the
inheritance of their fame, and the memory of their bright
example. If we turn our thoughts to the condition of their
country, in the contrast of the first and last day of that half
century, how resplendent and sublime is the transition from
gloom to glory ! Then, glancing through the same lapse of
lime, in the condition of the individuals, we see the first day
marked with the fulness and vigour of youth, in the pledge
of their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honour, to the
cause of freedom and of mankind. And on the last, extended
on the bed of death, with but sense and sensibility left to
breathe a last aspiration to heaven of blessing upon their
country ; may we not humbly hope, that to them, too, it was
a pledge of transition from gloom to glory; and that while
their mortal vestments were sinking into the clod of the val
ley, their emancipated spirits were ascending to the bosom of
their God !"

ROBERT TREAT PAINE.

ROBERT TREAT PAINE was a native of Boston, where he
was born, in the year 1731. His parents were pious and
respectable. His father was for some years the settled pas
tor of a church in Weymouth, in the vicinity of Boston. His
health failing him, however, he removed with his family to
the latter place ; where he entered into mercantile pursuits.
His mother was the grand-daughter of Governor Treat of
Connecticut.

At the early age of fourteen, he became a member of Har
vard College; but of his collegiate course, little has been re
corded. On leaving the university, he was engaged for some

ROBERT TREAT PAINE. 113

time in a public school. As the fortune of his father had,
from various circumstances, become much reduced, the sup
port of his parents, with some other relations, seemed to de
volve upon himself. In the acquisition of more ample means
for their maintenance, he made a voyage to Europe. It
was an honourable trait in his character, thus in the morn
ing of life to exhibit such filial affection ; a kindness of
disposition, which he continued to manifest during his father's
life.

Previously to his commencing the study of law, he devoted
some time to the subject of theology, which tended to en
large his views of Christianity, and to confirm his belief of its
truth. In 1755, he served as chaplain to the troops of the
province at the northward, and afterwards preached a few
times in other places.

At length he directed his attention to the study of law, du
ring which period, having no pecuniary assistance, he was
obliged to resort again to the keeping of a school for his sup
port. By most persons such a course would be deemed a
serious evil ; but experience has shown, that those who are
obliged to depend upon their own energies for the means ot
education, generally enter upon their profession, if not with
higher attainments, with more courage to encounter the diffi
culties with which almost every one meets, and they are
more likely to attain to a high elevation, than those whose re
sources are abundant.

On being qualified for the practice of law, Mr. Paine esta
blished himself at Taunton, in the county of Bristol, where
he resided for many years. We necessarily pass over seve
ral years of his life, during which we meet no occurrences ot
sufficient importance to merit a notice in these pages. It may
be remarked, however, that at an early period, he took a
deep interest in the various disputes which arose between the
colonies and the British government. He was a delegate from
Taunton, to a convention called by leading men of Boston,
in 1768, in consequence of the abrupt dissolution of the gene
ral court by Governor Bernard. This convention the go-
reroor attempted to break up, but it continued in session several
P 10*

114 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

days, and adopted many spirited resolutions, desig^* «, to
awaken in the people a greater attention to their rights, and
to show to the ministry of England, that if those rights were
violated, the provincial assembly would act independently of
the governor.

Mr. Paine was engaged in the celebrated trial of Captain
Preston, and his men, for the part they acted in the well
known " Boston massacre" of 1770. On this occasion, in the
absence of the attorney general, he conducted the prosecution
on the part of the crown. Although only a fragment of his
address to the jury, at this time, has been preserved, it ap
pears that he managed the cause with the highest reputation
to himself, both in regard to his honour as a faithful advo
cate, and at the same time as a friend to the just rights ol
those against whom he acted as council.

From this time, Mr. Paine appeared still more conspicuous
ly as the friend of liberty, in opposition to the tyrannical and
oppressive measures of the British administration. In 1773,
he was elected a representative to the general assembly, from
the town of Taunton. It was now becoming a period of
great alarm in the colonies. Men of principle and talent
were selected to guard the ancient rights of the colonies, and
to point to those measures which, in the approaching crisis,
it was proper to pursue. It was a high honour, therefore, for
any one to be elected a representative of the people. The
rights, the liberties, *ad even the lives of their constitu
ents were placed in their hands ; it was of the utmost im
portance that they should be men of sagacity, patriotism, and
principle. Such, fortunately for the colonies, were the men
who represented them in their provincial assemblies, and in
the continental congress.

Of this latter body, Mr. Paine was elected a member in
1774. A general account of the proceedings of this as
sembly has already been given. At that time a separation
from the parent country was not generally contemplated,
although to more discerning minds, such an event appear
ed not improbable, and that at no distant day. The con
gress of 1774, were appointed mainlv to deliberate and de-

ROBERT TREAT PAINE. 115

termine upon the measures proper to be pursued, to secure
the enjoyment and exercise of rights guaranteed to the colo
nies by their charters, and for the restitution of union and
harmony between the two cou^ries, which was still desired
by all. Accordingly they proceeded no farther at that time,
than to address the people of America, petition the king,
state their grievances, assert their rights, and recommend the
suspension of importations from Great Britain into the co
lonies.

The assembling of such a body, and for objects of so ques
tionable a character, was a bold step ; and bold must have
been the men, who could thus openly appear on the side of the
colonies, in opposition to the British ministry, and the royal
power. In concluding their session, in October of the same
year, they presented a solemn appeal to the world, stating
that innovation was not their object, but only the preserva
tion and maintenance of the rights which, as subjects of Great
Britain, had been granted to them by their ancient charters.
"Had we been permitted," say they, " to enjoy in quiet the
inheritance left us by our fathers, we should, at this time, have
been peaceably, cheerfully, and usefully employed in recom
mending ourselves, by every testimony of devotion to his
majesty, and of veneration to the state from which we derive
our origin. Though now exposed to unexpected and unna
tural scenes of distress, by a contention with that nation, in
whose general guidance, on all important occasions, we have
hitherto with filial reverence constantly trusted, and there
fore can derive no instruction, in our present unhappy and
perplexing circumstances, from any former experience ; yet
we doubt not, the purity of our intentions, and the integrity of
our conduct, will justify us at that great tribunal, before which
all mankind must submit to judgment. We ask but for
peace, liberty, and safety. We wish not a diminution of the
royal prerogatives ; nor do we solicit the grant of any new
right in our favour."

To the continental congress, which met at Philadelphia
in May, 1775, Mr. Paine was again a delegate from Massa
chusetts. At that time, the colonies were greatly in want of

116 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

gunpowder. The manufacture of salt petre, one of its con
stituents, was but imperfectly understood. Congress appoint
ed a committee, of which Mr. Paine was chairman, to intro
duce the manufacture of it. ,., In this particular, he rendered
essential service to his country, by making extensive inquiries
into the subject, and by inducing persons in various parts of
the provinces to engage in the manufacture of the article.
The following is among the letters which he wrote on this
subject, which, while it shows his indefatigable attention to
the subject, will convey to the present generation some idea
of the multiform duties of the patriots of the revolution. Mr.
Paine also rendered himself highly useful, as a member of a
committee for the encouragement of the manufacture of
cannon, and other implements of war.

Philadelphia, June Wth, 1775.
My very dear Sir,

I cannot express to you the surprise and uneasiness 1
received on hearing the congress express respecting the want
of gunpowder ; it was always a matter that lay heavy on
my mind ; but the observation I made of your attention to it,
and your alertness and perseverance in everything you under
take, and your repeatedly expressing it as your opinion that we
had probably enough for this summer's campaign, made me quite
easy. I rely upon it that measures are taken in your parts of
the continent to supply this defect. The design of your ex
press will be zealously attended to, I think. I have seen one
of the powder mills here, where they make excellent powder,
but have worked up all the nitre ; one of our members is
concerned in a powder mill at New-York, and has a man at
work making nitre. I have taken pains to inquire into the
method. Dr. Franklin has seen salt-petre works at Hanover and
Paris ; and it strikes me to be as unnecessary, after a certain
time, to send abroad for gunpowder, as for bread ; provided
people will make use of common understanding and industry;
but for the present we must import from abroad. Major
Foster told me, at Hartford, he suspected he had some land
that would yield nitre ; pray converse with him about it. Dr

ROBERT TREAT PAINE. 117

Franklin's account is much the same as is mentioned in one
of the first of the American magazines ; the sweeping of the
streets, and rubbish of old buildings, are made into mortar, and
built into walls, exposed to the air, and once in about two
months scraped and lixiviated, and evaporated ; when I can
describe the method more minutely, I will write you ; mean
while, give me leave to condole with you the loss of Colonel
Lee. Pray remember me to Colonel Orne, and all other our
worthy friends. Pray take care of your important health,
that you may be able to stand stiff as a pillar in our new go
vernment.

I must now subscribe, with great respect and affection,
Your humble servant,

R. T. PAINE.

Of the congress of 1776, Mr. Paine was also a member ;
and to the declaration of independence, which that body pub
lished to the world, he gave his vote, and affixed his name.
In the December following, the situation of congress became
justly alarming. The British army were, at this time, ma
king rapid advances through New- Jersey, towards Philadel
phia. The troops of Washington, amounting to scarcely one
third of the British force, it was thought would not be able to
resist their progress, or prevent their taking possession of
Philadelphia. During the alarm excited by an approaching
foe, congress adjourned to Baltimore. Of the state of con
gress, at this time, the following letter of Mr. Paine gives an
interesting account.

"Our public affairs have been exceedingly agitated since I
wrote you last. The loss of fort Washington made way for
that of fort Lee ; and the dissolution of our army happening
at the same time, threw us into a most disagreeable situation.
The interception of an express gave the enemy full assurance
of what they must have had some knowledge of before, the state
of our army ; and they took the advantage of it. In two days
after the possession of fort Lee, on the 20th of November,
where we lost much baggage, and the chief of our battering can
non, they marched to the Hackensack, and thence to Newark,

118 MASSACHUSETTS .DELEGATION.

driving General Washington before them, with his 3000 men;
thence to Elizabethtown. General Washington supposed,
from the best information he could get, that they were 10,000
strong ; marching with a large body of horse in front, and a
very large train of artillery. We began to be apprehensive
they were intended for Philadelphia ; and congress sat all
Sunday in determining proper measures on the occasion. I
cannot describe to you the situation of this city. The pros
pect was really alarming. Monday, 9th ; yesterday, General
Washington crossed the Delaware, and the enemy arrived at
Trenton on this side, thirty miles from this place ; close
quarters for Congress ! It obliges us to move ; we have re
solved to go to Baltimore."

For the years 1777 and 1778, Mr. Paine was a member of
congress, during the intervals of whose sessions, he filled
several important offices in the state of Massachusetts. In
1780, he was called to take a part in the deliberations of the
convention, which met for the purpose of forming a constitu
tion for the commonwealth. Of the committee which framed
that excellent instrument, he was a conspicuous member.
Under the government organized according to this constitu
tion, he was appointed attorney general, an office which he
continued to hold until 1790, when he was transferred to a
seat on the bench of the supreme judicial court. In this situa
tion he remained till the year 1804, at which time he had at
tained to the advanced age of 73 years. As a lawyer, Mr.
Paine ranked high among his professional brethren. His
legal attainments were extensive. In the discharge of his
duties as attorney general, he had the reputation of unneces
sary severity; but fidelity in that station generally provokes
the censure of the lawless and licentious. Towards the aban
doned and incorrigible he was indeed severe, and was willing
that the law in all its penalties should be visited upon them.
But where crime was followed by repentance, he .could be
moved to tenderness; and while, in the discharge of his offi
cial duty, he took care that the law should not fall into dis
respect through his inefficiency, he at the same time was ever

ROBERT TREAT PAINE. 119

ready to recommend such as might deserve it to executive
clemency.

The important duties of a judge, he discharged with ho
nour and great impartiality for the space of fourteen years.
During the latter part of this time, he was affected with a
deafness, which, in a measure, impaired his usefulness on the
bench. Few men have rendered more important services to
the literary and religious institutions of a country, than did
Judge Paine. He gave them all the support and influence
of his office, by urging upon grand jurors the faithful exe
cution of the laws, the support of schools, and the preserva
tion of a strict morality.

The death of Judge Paine occurred on the eleventh of
May, 1814, having attained to the age of 84 years. Until
near the close of life, the vigour of his mental faculties con
tinued unimpaired. In quickness of apprehension, liveliness
of imagination, and general intelligence, he had few supe
riors. His memory was of the most retentive character, and
he was highly distinguished for a sprightly and agreeable
turn in conversation. A witty severity sometimes excited
the temporary disquietude of a friend ; but if he was some
times inclined to indulge in pleasant raillery, he was willing
to be the subject of it in his turn.

As a scholar, he ranked high among literary men, and
was distinguished for his patronage of all the useful institu
tions of the country. He was a founder of the American
Academy established in Massachusetts in 1780, and active in
its service until his death. The honorary degree of doctoi
of laws was conferred upon him by Harvard University.

Judge Paine was a firm believer in the divine origin of the
Christian religion. He gave full credence to the scriptures,
as a revelation from God, designed to instruct mankind in a
knowledge of their duty, and to guide them in the way to
eternal happiness.

120 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

ELBRIDGE GERRY.

ELBRIDGE GERRY was born at Marblehead, in the state of
Massachusetts, on the seventeenth day of July, 1744. His fa
ther was a native of Newton, of respectable parentage and con
nexions. He emigrated to America in 1730, soon after which,
he established himself as a merchant in Marblehead, where he
continued to reside until his death, in 1774. He was much
esteemed and respected, as a man of judgment and discretion.

Of the early habits or manners of young Elbridge, little
is known. He became a member of Harvard College be
fore he had completed his fourteenth year ; and of course
was too young at the university to acquire any decided cha
racter.

Mr. Gerry was originally destined to the profession of
medicine, to which his own inclination strongly attached him.
But soon after leaving college, he engaged in commercial
affairs, under the direction of his father, and for some years
followed the routine of mercantile business in his native
town. Great success attended his commercial enterprise ;
and within a few years, he found himself in the enjoyment
of a competent fortune.

It is natural to suppose that the superior education of Mr.
Gerry, added to the respectable character he sustained, as a
man of probity and judgment, gave him influence over the
people among whom he resided. In May, 1772, the people
of Marblehead manifested their respect and confidence by
sending him a representative to the general court of the
province of Massachusetts. In May of the following year,
Mr. Gerry was re-elected to the same office. During
the session of the general court that year, Mr. Samuel
Adams introduced his celebrated motion for the appointment
of a standing committee of correspondence and inquiry.

In accordance with this motion, committees of correspon
dence were appointed throughout the province, by means of
which intelligence was freely circulated abroad, and a spirit
of patriotism was infused through all parts of the country.

ELBRIDGE GERRY. 121

Though one of the youngest members, Mr. Gerry was ap
pointed by the house of representatives, a member of this
committee ; in all the proceedings of which, he took an active
and prominent part.

In the month of June, the celebrated letters of Governor
Hutchinson to persons in England, were laid before the
house by Mr. Adams. The object of these letters, as noticed
in a preceding page, was to encourage the British adminis
tration in maintaining their arbitrary measures. In the de
bates which ensued on the disclosure of these letters, Mr.
Gerry distinguished himself, and was indefatigably engaged
through the year, in forwarding the resolute measures, which
combined to overthrow the royal government of the pro
vince. He was also particularly active iu the scenes which
marked the year 1774. He united in the opposition to the
importation of tea, and to the Boston port bill ; and heartily
concurred in the establishment of a system of non-intercourse
with the parent country.

In the month of August, Governor Gage issued his pre
cepts to the several towns, to choose representatives to meet
at Salem, the first week in October. Before the arrival of
that day, the governor had countermanded their meeting.
Notwithstanding this prohibition, delegates assembled at
Salem on the seventh of October. There having formed
themselves into a provincial congress, they adjourned to
Concord, and proceeded to business. Of this congress Mr.
Gerry was an active and efficient member.

On the organization of the assembly, a committee was ap
pointed to consider the state of the province. Fourteen of
the most distinguished members of the congress, among
whom was Mr. Gerry, composed this committee. They pub
lished a bold and energetic appeal, which, in the form of an
address to Governor Gage, was calculated to justify the
authority they had assumed, to awaken their constituents to a
sense of the dangers they feared, and the injuries they had
sustained.

They next appointed a committee of safety, and adopted
measures to obtain a supply of arms and ammunition ; of
Q 11

122 . MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

which the province was lamentably deficient. They re-or
ganized the militia, appointed general officers, and took such
other measures as the approaching crisis seemed to render
necessary.

In February, 1775, a new provincial congress, of which Mr.
Gerry was a member, assembled in Cambridge. This con
gress, like the former one, published an appeal to the people,
designed to excite and regulate that patriotic spirit, which
the emergency required. A general apprehension prevailed,
that a pacific termination of the existing troubles was not to
be expected. They avowed their abhorrence of actual hos
tilities, but still maintained their right to arm in defence of
their country, and to prepare themselves to resist with the
sword.

In the spring of 1775, the prospect of open war every day
increased. A strong apprehension prevailed, that an attempt
would be made by the royal governor to destroy such military
stores as had been collected, particularly at Concord and
Worcester. The committee of safety, in their solicitude on
this subject, stationed a watch at each of these places, to
give an alarm to the surrounding country should such an at
tempt be made.

A short period only elapsed, before the apprehensions of
the people proved not to be without foundation. The expe
dition to Concord, and the bloody scenes which occurred
both there and at Lexington, ushered in the long expected
contest. " Among the objects of this expedition," observes
Mr. Austin, in his life of Mr. Gerry, " one was to seize the
persons of some of the influential members of Congress,
and to hold them as hostages for the moderation of their
colleagues, or send them to England for trial as traitors, and
thus strike dismay and terror into the minds of their asso
ciates and friends.

" A committee of congress, among whom were Mr. Gerry,
Colonel Orne, and Colonel Hancock, had been in session on
the day preceding the march of the troops, in the village of
Menotomy, then part of the township of Cambridge, on the
road to Lexington. The latter gentleman, after the session

ELBRIUGE GERRY. 123

was over, had gone to Lexington. Mr. Gerry and Mr. Orne
remained at the village, the other members of the committee
had dispersed.

" Some officers of the royal army had been sent out in
advance, who passed through the villages just before dusk,
in the afternoon of the 18th of April, and although the ap
pearance of similar detachments was not uncommon, these
so far attracted the attention of Mr. Gerry, that he despatched
an express to Colonel Hancock, who, \vith Samuel Adams,
was at Lexington. The messenger passed the officers, by
taking a by-path, and delivered his letter. The idea of per
sonal danger does not seem to have made any strong impres
sion on either of these gentlemen. Mr. Hancock's answer
to Mr. Gerry bears marks of the haste with which it was
written, while it discovers that habitual politeness on the
part of the writer, which neither haste or danger could impair.

Lexington, April 18th, 1775.
Dear Sir,

I am much obliged for your notice. It is said the officers
arc gone to Concord, and I will send word thither. I am
full with you, that we ought to be serious, and I hope your
decision will be effectual. I intend doing myself the plea
sure of being with you to-morrow. My respects to the
committee.

I am your real friend,

JOHN HANCOCK.

Mr. Gerry and Colonel Orne retired to rest, without ta
king the least precaution against personal exposure, and they
remained quietly in their beds, until the British advance
were within view of the dwelling house. It was a fine moon-
Hght night, and they quietly marked the glittering of its
beams, on the polished arms of the soldiers, as the troops
moved with the silence and regularity of accomplished discip
line. The front passed on. When the centre were opposite
to the house, occupied by the committee, an officer and file
of men were detached by signal, and marched towards it. It

134 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

was not until this moment they entertained any apprehension
of danger. While the officer was posting his files, the gen
tlemen found means, by their better knowledge of the premi
ses, to escape^ half dressed as they were, into an adjoining
cornfield, where they remained concealed for more than an
hour, until the troops were withdrawn. Every apartment of
the house was searched ' for the members of the rebel con
gress ;' even the beds in which they had lain were examined.
But their property, and among other things, a valuable watch
of Mr. Gerry's, which was under his pillow, was not dis
turbed."

A few days after the skirmishes at Lexington and Concord,
the provincial congress re-assembled. It was now apparent
that the controversy must be decided by force of arms. At
this time, it was found that almost every article of a military
kind was yet to be procured. The province possessed no
magazines of arms, and had little ammunition. No contracts
for provision or clothing had yet been made. To meet these
exigencies, a committee, at the head of which was Mr.
Gerry, was immediately appointed, and clothed with the
proper power. The article most needed was that of gun
powder, to procure which, Mr. Gerry was specially commis
sioned by the committee. In the discharge of this duty, he
wrote many letters to gentlemen in different parts of the
country, from whom he received others in reply. One of
these will be found in the life of Robert Treat Paine, in a
preceding page. Mr. Gerry did more : in many cases he
hesitated not to advance his own funds, where immediate
payment was required. In the progress of the war, the evi
dence of these payments was lost, or mislaid, and their final
settlement was attended with heavy pecuniary loss.

On the 17th day of June, was fought the celebrated battle
of Bunker Hill. The provincial congress was at that time in
session, at Watertown. Before the battle, Dr. Joseph Warren,
president of the congress, who was the companion and room
mate of Mr. Gerry, communicated to the latter his intention
of mingling in the expected contest. The night preceding
the doctor's departure for Bunker Hill, he lodged, it is said,

ELBRIDGE GERRY. 125

in the same bed with Mr. Gerry. In the morning, in reply
to the admonitions of his friend, as he was about to leave
him, he uttered the well known words, " Dulce et decorum
cstj pro patria raorz."*

Mr. Gerry, on that day, attended the provincial congress.
His brave friend, as is well known, followed where his duty
called him, to the memorable " heights of Bunker," where
he fell fighting for the cause of liberty and his country.

At an early period in 1775, Mr. Gerry submitted a propo
sal in the provincial congress of Massachusetts, for a law to
encourage the fitting out of armed vessels, and to provide for
the adjudication of prizes. This was a step of no small im
portance. To grant letters of marque and of reprisal, is the
prerogative of the sovereign. For a colony to authorise
such an act, was rebellious, if not treasonable. The proposal
was sustained, though not without opposition. Mr. Gerry
was chairman of the committee appointed to prepare the act
to authorise privateering, and to establish admiralty courts.
Governor Sullivan was another member of it; and on these
two gentlemen devolved the task of drawing the act, which
they executed in a small room under the belfry of the Water-
town meeting house, in which the provincial congress was
holding its session. This law, John Adams pronounced
one of the most important measures of the Revolution.
Under the sanction of it, the Massachusetts cruizers captured
many of the enemy's vessels, the cargoes of which furnished
various articles of necessity to the colonies.

Of the court of admiralty, established in pursuance of the
law proposed by Mr. Gerry, that gentleman himself was ap
pointed a judge, for the counties of Suffolk, Middlesex, and
Essex. This honour, however, he declined, from a determi
nation to devote himself to more active duties.

To such duties, he was not long after called, by the suffra
ges of his fellow citizens, who elected him a delegate from
Massachusetts to the continental congress, in which body he
took his seat, on the 9th of February, 1776. For this
distinguished station he was eminently fitted ; and of this

* It is sweet and glorious to lay down life for one's country.

ii*

126 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

body he continued a member with few intervals, until Sep
tember, 1785. Our limits preclude a minute notice of the
various duties which he there discharged. On various occa
sions he was appointed to serve on committees, whose busi
ness required great labour, and whose results involved the
highest interests of the country. He assisted in arranging
the plan of a general hospital, and of introducing a better
discipline into the army; and regulating the commissary's
departments. In several instances, he was appointed, with
others, to visit the army, to examine the state of the money
and finances of the country, and to expedite the settlement
of public accounts. In the exercise of his various official
functions, no man exhibited more fidelity, or a more unweari
ed zeal. He sustained the character of an active and resolute
statesman, and retired from the councils of the confederacy,
with all the honours which patriotism, integrity, and talents,
could acquire in the service of the state. Before leaving
New- York, he married a respectable lady, who had been
educated in Europe, with whom he now returned to Massa
chusetts, and fixed his residence at Cambridge, a few miles
from Boston.

From the quiet of retirement, Mr. Gerry was again sum
moned in 1787, by his native state, as one of its representa
tives to a convention, called for the " sole and express pur
pose of revising the articles of confederation, and reporting
to congress, and to the several legislatures, such alterations
and provisions as shall render the federal constitution ade
quate to the exigencies of government, and the preservation
of the union."

On the meeting of this convention, little difference of
opinion prevailed, as to the great principles which should
form the basis of the constitution ; but on reducing these
principles to a system, perfect harmony did exist. To Mr.
Gerry, as well as others, there appeared strong objections to
the constitution, and he declined affixing his signature to the
instrument. These objections he immediately set forth, in a
letter addressed to his constituents, in which he observes :

"My principal objections to the plan are, that there is no

ELBRIDGE GERRY, 12?

adequate provision for a representation of the people; that
they have no security for the right of election ; that some oi
the powers of the legislature are ambiguous, and others in
definite and dangerous ; that the executive is blended with,
and will have an undue influence over, the legislature ; that
the judicial department will be oppressive; that treaties of
the highest importance may be formed by the president, with
the advice of two thirds of a quorum of the senate; and that
the system is without the security of a bill of rights. These
are objections which are not local, but apply equally to all
the states.

" As the convention was called for ' the sole and express
purpose of revising the articles of confederation, and report-
in or to congress and to the several legislatures, such altera-

O & —

tions and provisions as shall render the federal constitution
adequate to the exigencies of government, and the preserva
tion of the union,' I did not conceive that these powers ex
tended to the formation of the plan proposed ; but the con
vention being of a different opinion, I acquiesced in it ; being
fully convinced, that to preserve the union, an efficient go
vernment was indispensably necessary ; and that it would be
difficult to make proper amendments to the articles of con
federation."

" The constitution proposed has few, if any, federal fea
tures, but is rather a system of national government ; never
theless, in many respects, I think it has great merit, and, by
proper amendments, may be adapted to 'the exigencies of go
ternment,' and the preservation of liberty."

When the constitution was submitted to the state conven
tion of Massachusetts, of three hundred and sixty members,
of which that body consisted, a majority of nineteen only
\vere in favour of its ratification. Although so many coin
cided with Mr. Gerry in his views of the constitution, he was
highly censured by its advocates, who, under the excitement
of party feelings, imputed to him motives by which he, pro
bably, was not actuated.

Under the new constitution, Mr. Gerry was chosen by the
inhabitants of the district in which he resided, as their repre-

128 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

sentative to congress. In this station he served his consti
tuents for four years ; and, although he had formerly opposed
the adoption of the constitution, he now cheerfully united in
carrying it into effect, since it had received the sanction ot
his country. Indeed, he took occasion, on the floor of con
gress, not long after taking his seat in that body, to declare,
" that the federal constitution having become the supreme
law of the land, he conceived the salvation of the country
depended on its being carried into effect."

At the expiration of the above period, although again pro
posed as a delegate to congress, he declined a re-election, and
again retired to his family at Cambridge.

On the fourth of March, 1797, Mr. Adams, who had pre
viously been elected to succeed General Washington in the
presidency, entered upon that office. France had already
commenced her aggressions on the rights and commerce of
the United State$, and General Pinckney had been dispatch
ed to that country, to adjust existing differences.

Immediately upon succeeding to the presidency, Mr
Adams received intelligence that the French republic had
announced to General Pinckney its determination " not to
receive another minister from the United States, until after
the redress of grievances."

In this state of things, the president convened congress by
proclamation, on the fifteenth of June. Although keenly
sensible of the indignity offered to the country by the French
government, Mr. Adams, in his speech to congress, informed
that body, " that as he believed neither the honour, nor the
interests of the United States, absolutely forbade the repeti
tion of advances for securing peace and friendship with
France, he should institute a fresh attempt at negociation."

Upon his recommendation, therefore, three envoys extra
ordinary, Mr. Gerry, General Pinckney, and Mr. Marshall,
were dispatched to carry into effect the pacific dispositions of
the United States. On their arrival at Paris, the French di
rectory, under various pretexts, delayed to acknowledge
them in their official capacity. In the mean time, the toolg
of that government addressed them, demanding, in explicit

ELBRIDGE CLRRY. 129

terms, a large sum of money, as the condition of any ncgo-
ciation. This being refused, an attempt was next made to
excite their fears for themselves, and their country. In the
spring of 1798, two of the envoys, Messrs. Pinckney and
Marshall, were ordered to quit the territories of France, while
Mr. Gerry was invited to remain, and resume the negociation
which had been suspended.

Although Mr. Gerry accepted the invitation to remain, yet
lie uniformly and resolutely refused to resume the negocia
tion. His object in remaining in France was to prevent an
immediate rupture with that country, which, it was appre
hended, would result from his departure. Although he was
censured, at the time, for the course he took, his continuance
seems to have resulted in the good of his country. " He
finally saved the peace of the nation," said the late President
Adams, " for he alone discovered and furnished the evidence
that X. Y. and Z. were em'ployed by Talleyrand ; and he
alone brought home the direct, formal, and official assurances
upon which the subsequent commission proceeded, and peace
was made."

On his return to America, in October, 1798, Mr. Gerry
was solicited, by the republican party in Massachusetts, to
become their candidate for the office of governor. At that
period, much excitement prevailed on the subject of politics,
throughout the country. Although at first unsuccessful, his
party, in 1805, for the first time, obtained the governor of
their choice.

In the following year, Mr. Gerry retired. But in 1810, he
was again chosen chief magistrate of that commonwealth, in
which office he was continued for the two following years.
In 1812, he was recommended to the people of the United
States, by the republican members of congress, to fill the of
fice of vice president. To a letter addressed to him, by a
committee announcing his nomination, he replied, " The
question respecting the acceptance, or non-acceptance of
this proposition, involved many considerations of great
weight, in my mind ; as they related to the nation, to this
state, and to my domestic concerns. But it is neither expe-
R

130 MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION.

dient or necessary to state the points, since one was para
mount to the rest, that ' in a republic, the service of each
citizen is due to the state, even in profound peace, and much
more so when the nation stands on the threshold of war.'
I have the honour frankly to acknowledge this distinguished
testimony of confidence, on the part of my congressional
friends and fellow citizens, gratefully to accept their proffer,
and freely to assure them of every exertion in my power, for
meriting in office, the approbation of themselves and of the
public."

The nomination of Mr. Gerry, thus made, was followed by
his election, and on the fourth of March, 1813, he was inau
gurated vice president of the United States. Providence,
however, had not destined him to the long enjoyment of the
dignified station which he now held. While attending to his
duties, at Washington, he was suddenly summoned from the
scene of his earthly labours. A beautiful monument, erected
at the national expense, covers his remains, and records the
date and circumstances of his death.

THE TOMB OF

ELBRIDGE GERRY,

Vice President of the United States,
Who died suddenly, in this city, on his way to the

as President of the Senate,
November 23d, 1814.
. Aged 70.

THE

ffEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

JOSIAH BARTLETT,
WILLIAM WHIFFLE,
MATTHEW THORNTON.

JOSIAH BARTLETT.

JOSIAH BARTLETT, the first of the New-Hampshire delega
tion who signed the declaration of independence, was born
in Amesbury, Massachusetts, in 1729. He was the fourth
son of Stephen Bartlett, whose ancestors came from England
during the seventeenth century, and settled at Beverly.

The early education of young Bartlett appears to have been
respectable, although he had not the advantages of a col
legiate course. At the age of sixteen he began the study of
medicine, for which he had a competent knowledge of the
Greek and Latin languages.

On finishing his preliminary studies, which were superin
tended by Dr. Ordway, of Amesbury, and to which he devoted
himself with indefatigable zeal for five years, he commenced
the practice of his profession at Kingston, in the year 1750.

Two years from the above date, he was attacked by a fever,
which for a time seriously threatened his life. From an inju
dicious application of medicines, and too close a confinement
to his chamber, life appeared to be rapidly ebbing, and all
hopes of his recovery were relinquished. In this situation,
one evening, he strongly solicited his attendants to give him
some cider. At first they were strongly reluctant to comply
with his wishes, under a just apprehension, that serious and

132 NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

even fatal consequences might ensue. The patient, however,
would not be pacified, until his request was granted At
length they complied with his request, and of the cider thus
given him, he continued to drink at intervals during the night.
The effect of it proved highly beneficial. It mitigated the
febrile symptoms, a copious perspiration ensued, and from
this time he began to recover.

This experiment, if it may be called an experiment, was
treasured up in the mind of Dr. Bartlett, and seems to have led
him to abandon the rules of arbitrary system, for the more
just principles of nature and experience. He became a skil
ful and distinguished practitioner. To him is ascribed the
first application of Peruvian bark in cases of canker, which
before, was considered an inflammatory, instead of a putrid
disease, and as such had been unsuccessfully treated.

This disease, which was called the throat distemper, first
appeared at Kingston, in the spring of 1735. The first per
son afflicted with it, was said to have contracted the disease
from a hog, which he skinned and opened, and which had
died of a distemper of the throat. The disease which was
supposed thus to have originated, soon after spread abroad
through the town, and to children under ten years of age it
proved exceedingly fatal. Like the plague, it swept its vic
tims to ths grave, almost without warning, and some are said
to have expired while sitting at play handling their toys. At
this time, medical skill was baffled ; every method of treat
ment pursued, proved ineffectual. It ceased its ravages only
where victims were no longer to be found.

In the year 1754, Kingston was again visited with this ma
lignant disease. Doctor Bartlett was at this time a physician
of the town. At first he treated it as an inflammatory disease ;
but at length, satisfied that this was not its character, he ad
ministered Peruvian bark to a child of his own who was
afflicted with the disease, and with entire success. From this
time the use of it became general, as a remedy in diseases of
the same type.

A man of the distinguished powers of Doctor Bartlett, and
of his decision and integrity, was not likely long to remain

JOSIAH BARTLETT. 133

unnoticed, in times which tried men's souls. The public at
tention was soon directed to him, as a gentleman in whom
confidence might be reposed, and whose duties, whatever they
might be, would be discharged with promptness and fidelity.

In the year 1765, Doctor Bartlett was elected to the legis
lature of the province of New-Hampshire, from the town of
Kingston. In his legislative capacity, he soon found occa
sion to oppose the mercenary views of the royal governor.
He would not become subservient to the will of a man whose
object, next to the display of his own authority, was the sub
jection of the people to the authority of the British adminis
tration.

The controversy between Great Britain and her colonies,
was now beginning to assume a serious aspect. At this time,
John Wentworth was the royal governor, a man of no ordi
nary sagacity. Aware'of the importance of attaching the dis
tinguished men of the colony to the royal cause, among other
magistrates, he appointed Dr. Bartlett to the office of justice
of the peace, fhis was indeed an inconsiderable honour :
but as an evidence of the governor's respect for his talents
and influence, was a point of some importance. Executive
patronage, however, was not a bait by which such a man as
Dr. Bartlett would be seduced. He accepted the appoint
ment, but was as firm in his opposition to the royal governor
as he had been before.

The opposition which was now abroad in America against
the British government, and which continued to gather
strength until the year 1774, had made equal progress in
the province of New-Hampshire. At this time, a committee
of correspondence, agreeably to the recommendation and ex
ample of other colonies, was appointed by the house of repre
sentatives. For this act, the governor immediately dissolved
the assembly. But the committee of correspondence soon
after re-assembled the representatives, by whom circulars
were addressed to the several towns, to send delegates
to a convention, to be held at Exeter, for the purpose of se
lecting deputies to the continental congress, which was to
meet at Philadelphia in the ensuing September.

134 NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

In this convention, Dr. Bartlett, and John Pickering, a law
yer, of Portsmouth, were appointed delegates to congress.
The former of these having a little previously lost his house
by fire, was under the necessity of declining the honour. The
latter gentleman wishing also to be excused, other gentlemen
were elected in their stead.

Dr. Bartlett, however, retained his seat in the house of rep
resentatives of the province. Here, as in other colonies, the
collisions between the royal governor and the people con
tinued to increase. The former was more arbitrary in his
proceedings ; the latter better understood their rights, and
were more independent. The conspicuous part which Dr.
Bartlett took on the patriotic side, the firmness with which he
Desisted the royal exactions, rendered him highly obnoxious
to the governor, by whom he was deprived of his commission
as justice of the peace, and laconically dismissed from his
command in the militia.

From this time, the political difficulties in New-Hampshire
greatly increased. At length, Governor Wentworth found it
necessary for his personal safety to retire on board the
Favey man of war, then lying in the harbour of Portsmouth.
From this he went to Boston, and thence to the Isle of Shoals,
where he issued his proclamation, adjourning the assembly
till the following April. This act, however, terminated the
royal government in the province of New-Hampshire. A
provincial congress, of which Matthew Thornton was presi
dent, was soon called, by which a temporary government was
organized, and an oath of allegiance was framed, which every
individual was obliged to take. Thus, after subsisting for a
period of ninety years, the British government was forever
annihilated in New-Hampshire.

In September, 1775, Dr. Bartlett, who had been elected to
the continental congress, took his seat in that body. In this
new situation, he acted with his accustomed energy, and ren
dered important services to his country. At this time, con
gress met at nine in the morning, and continued its session
until four o'clock in the afternoon. The state of the country
required this incessant application of the members. But

JOSIAH BARTLETT. 135

anxiety and fatigue they could endure without repining. The
lives and fortunes of themselves and families, and fellow
citizens, were in jeopardy. Liberty, too, was in jeopardy.
Like faithful sentinels, therefore, they sustained with cheer
fulness their laborious task ; and, when occasion required,
could dispense with the repose of nights. In this unwearied
devotion to business, Dr. Bartlett largely participated ; in
consequence of which, his health and spirits were for a time
considerably affected.

In a second election, in the early part of the year 1776,
Dr. Bartlett was again chosen a delegate to the continental
congress. He was present on the memorable occasion of
taking the vote on the question of a declaration of indepen
dence. On putting the question, it was agreed to begin with
the northernmost colony. Dr. Bartlett, therefore, had the
honour of being called upon for an expression of his opinion,
and of first giving his vote in favour of the resolution.

On the evacuation of Philadelphia, by the British, in 1778,
congress, which had for some time held its sessions at York-
town, adjourned to meet at the former place, within three
days, that is, on the second day of July. The delegates now
left Yorktown, and in different companies proceeded to the
place of adjournment. Dr. Bartlett, however, was attended
only by a single servant. They were under the necessity of
passing through a forest of considerable extent ; it was re
ported to be the lurking place of a band of robbers, by whom
several persons had been waylaid, and plundered of their
effects. On arriving at an inn, at the entrance of the wood,
Dr. Bartlett was informed of the existence of this band of
desperadoes, and cautioned against proceeding, until other
travellers should arrive. While the doctor lingered for the
purpose of refreshing himself and horses, the landlord, to
corroborate the statement which he had made, and to heighten
still more the apprehension of the travellers, related the fol
lowing anecdote. " A paymaster of the army, with a large
quantity of paper money, designed for General Washington,
had attempted the passage of the wood, a few weeks before.
On arriving at the skirts of the wood, he was apprised of

136 NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

his danger, but as it was necessary for him to proceed, he
laid aside his military garb, purchased a worn out horse, and
a saddle and bridle, and a farmer's saddlebags of correspond
ing appearance : in the latter, he deposited his money, and
with a careless manner proceeded on his way. At some dis
tance from the skirt of the wood, he was met by two of the
gang, who demanded his money. Others were skulking at
no great distance in the wood, and waiting the issue of the
interview. To the demand for money, he replied, that he
had a small sum, which they were at liberty to take, if they
believed they had a better right to it than himself and fa
mily. Taking from his pocket a few small pieces of money,
he offered them to them; at the same time, in the style and
simplicity of a quaker, he spoke to them of the duties of reli
gion. Deceived by the air of honesty which he assumed,
they suffered him to pass, without further molestation, the
one observing to the other, that so poor a quaker was not
worth the robbing. Without any further interruption, the
poor quaker reached the other side of the wood, and at length
delivered the contents of his saddlebags to General Wash
ington."

During the relation of this anecdote, several other members
of congress arrived, when, having prepared their arms, they
proceeded on their journey, and in safety passed over the in
fested territory.

On the evacuation of Philadelphia, it was obvious from the
condition of the city, that an enemy had been there. In a
letter to a friend, Dr. Bartlett describes the alterations and
ravages which had been made. " Congress," he says, " was
obliged to hold its sessions in the college hall, the state house
having been left by the enemy in a condition which could
scarcely be described. Many of the finest houses were con
verted into stables; parlour floors cut through, and the dung
shovelled through into the cellars. Through the country,
north of the city, for many miles, the hand of desolation had
marked its way. Houses had been consumed, fences carried
off, gardens and orchards destroyed. Even the great roads

JOSIAH BARTLETT. 137

were scarcely to be discovered, amidst the confusion and de-
eolation which prevailed."

In August, 1778, a new election took place in New-Hamp
shire, when Dr. Bartlett was again chosen a delegate to con
gress ; he continued, however, at Philadelphia, but an incon
siderable part of the session, his domestic concerns requiring
his attention. During the remainder of his life, he resided in
New-Hampshire, filling up the measure of his usefulness in a
zealous devotion to the interests of the state.

In the early part of the year 1779, in a letter to one of the
delegates in congress, Dr. Bartlett gives a' deplorable account
of the difficulties and sufferings of the people in New-Hamp
shire. The money of the country had become much depre
ciated, and provisions were scarce and high. Indian corn
was sold at ten dollars a bushel. Other things were in the
same proportion. The soldiers of the army could scarcely
subsist on their pay and the officers, at times, found it diffi
cult to keep them together.

During the same year, Dr. Bartlett was appointed chief
justice of the court of common pleas. In 1782, he became
an associate justice of the supreme court, and in 1788, he
was advanced to the head of the bench. In the course of
this latter year, the present constitution was presented to the
several states, for their consideration. Of the convention in
New-Hampshire, which adopted it, Dr. Bartlett was a member,
and by his zeal was accessory to its ratification. In 1789,
he was elected a senator to congress ; but the infirmities of
age induced him to decline the office. In 1793, he was elect
ed first governor of the state, which office he filled, with his
accustomed fidelity, until the infirm state of his health obliged
him to resign the chief magistracy, and to retire wholly from
public business. In January, 1794, he expressed his deter
mination to close his public career in the following letter to
the legislature :

" Gentlemen of the Legislature — After having served the
public for a number of years, to the best of my abilities, in
the various offices to which I have had the honour to be ap
pointed, I think it proper, before your adjournment, to signify
S 12*

138 NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

to you, and through you to my fellow citizens at large, that 1
now find myself so far advanced in age, that it will be expe
dient for me, at the close of the session, to retire from the
cares and fatigues of public business, to the repose of a pri
vate life, with a grateful sense of the repeated marks of trust
and confidence that my fellow citizens have reposed in me,
and with my best wishes for the future peace and prosperity
of the state."

The repose of a private life, however, which must have be
come eminently desirable to a man whose life had been past
in the toils and troubles of the revolution, was destined to
be of short duration. This eminent man, and distinguished
patriot, closed his earthly career on the nineteenth day of
May, 1795, in the sixty-sixth year of his age.

To the sketches of the life of this distinguished man, little
need be added, respecting his character. His patriotism was
of a singularly elevated character, and the sacrifices which he
made for the good of his country were such as few men are
willing to make. He possessed a quick and penetrating mind,
and, at the same time, he was distinguished for a sound and
accurate judgment. A scrupulous justice marked his dealings
with all men, and he exhibited great fidelity in his engage
ments. Of his religious views we are unable to speak with
confidence, although there is some reason to believe that his
principles were less strict, than pertained to the puritans of
the day. He rose to office, and was recommended to the
confidence of his fellow citizens, not less by the general pro
bity of his character, than the force of his genius. Unlike
many others, he had no family, or party connexions, to raise
him to influence in society ; but standing on his own merits,
he passed through a succession of offices which he sustained
with uncommon honour to himself, and the duties of which he
discharged not only to the satisfaction of his fellow citizens,
but with the highest benefit to his country.

WILLIAM WHIPPLE. 139

WILLIAM WHIPPLE.

WILLIAM WHIPPLE was the eldest son of William Whipple,
and was born at Kittery, Maine, in the year 1730. His lather
was a native of Ipswich, and was bred a maltster; but for seve
ral years after his removal to Kittery, he followed the sea. His
mother was the daughter of Robert Cutts, a distinguished ship
builder, who established himself at Kittery, where he became
wealthy, and at his death left a handsome fortune to his
daughter.

The education of young Whipple was limited to a public
school, in his native town. It was respectable, but did not
embrace that variety and extent of learning, which is general
ly obtained at some higher seminary.

On leaving school, he entered on board a merchant vessel,
and for several years devoted himself to commercial business,
on the sea. His voyages were chiefly confined to the West-
Indies, and proving successful, he acquired a considerable
fortune.

In 1759, he relinquished a seafaring life, and commenced
business with a brother at Portsmouth, where they continued
in trade, until within a few years of the revolution.

Mr. Whipple early entered with spirit into the controversy
between Great Britain and the colonies, and being distin
guished for the general probity of his character, as well as
for the force of his genius, was frequently elected by his
townsmen to offices of trust and responsibility. In the pro
vincial congress, which met at Exeter, January, 1775, for the
purpose of electing delegates to the continental congress in
Philadelphia, he represented the town of Portsmouth. He
also represented that town in the provincial congress, which
was assembled at Exeter the following May, and by that body
was appointed one of the provincial committee of safety. In
1776 he was appointed a delegate to the general congress, of
which body he continued a member until the middle of Sep
tember, 1799.

In this important situation, he was distinguished fo7 great

140 NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

activity, and by his perseverance and application commended
himself to the respect of the national assembly, and to his
constituents at home. He was particularly active as one of
the superintendants of the commissary's and quartermaster's
departments, in which he was successful in correcting many
abuses, and in giving to those establishments a proper cor
rectness and efficiency.

" The memorable day which gave birth to the declaration
of independence afforded, in the case of William Whipple,"
as a writer observes, " a striking example of the uncertainty
of human affairs, and the triumphs of perseverance. The
cabin boy, who thirty years before had looked forward to a
command of a vessel as the consummation of all his hopes and
wishes, now stood amidst the congress of 1776, and looked
around upon a conclave of patriots, such as the world had never
witnessed. He whose ambition once centered in inscrib
ing his name as commander upon a crew-list, now affixed his
signature to a document, which has embalmed it for posterity."

In the year 1777, while Mr. Whipple was a member of
congress, the appointment of brigadier general was bestowed
upon him, and the celebrated John Stark, by the assembly of
New-Hampshire. Great alarm at this time prevailed in New-
Hampshire, in consequence of the evacuation of Ticonderoga
by the Americans, its consequent possession by the British,
and the progress of General Burgoyne, with a large force,
toward the state. The militia of New-Hampshire were ex-
peditiously organised into two brigades, the command of
which was given to the above two generals. The intrepid
conduct of General Stark, in the ever memorable defence of
Bennington, must be only alluded to in tin's place. The advan
tage thus gained, laid the foundation of the still more signal vic
tory which was obtained in the October following by General
Gates, over the distinguished Burgoyne and his veteran sol
diers, at Saratoga ; since it was here proved to the militia,
that the Hessians and Indians, so much dreaded by them,
were not invincible. The career of conquest which had before
animated the troops of Burgoyne was checked. For the first
time, General Burgoyne was sensible of the danger of his

WILLIAM WHIFFLE. 141

situation. He had regarded the men of New-Hampshire, and
the Green Mountains, with contempt. But the battle of
Bcnriington taught him both to fear and respect them. In a
letter addressed about this time to Lord Germaine, he re
marks : " The New-Hampshire Grants, till of late but little
known, hang like a cloud on my left."

The ill bodings of Burgoyne were realised too soon, for
his own reputation. The militia from the neighbouring states
hastened to reinforce the army of General Gates, which was
now looking forward to an engagement with that of General
Burgoyne. This engagement soon after took place, as al
ready noticed, at Saratoga, and ended in the surrender of the
royal army to the American troops. In this desperate battle,
General Whipple commanded the troops of New-Hampshire.
On that occasion, his meritorious conduct was rewarded by
his being jointly appointed with Colonel Wilkinson, as the re
presentative of Genera] Gates, to meet two officers from Gen
eral Burgoyne, and settle the articles of capitulation. He was
also selected as one of the officers, who were appointed to
conduct the surrendered army to their destined encampment,
on Winter Hill, in the vicinity of Boston. On this expedi
tion, General Whipple was attended by a faithful negro ser
vant, named Prince, a native of Africa, and \\hom the gene
ral had imported several years before. " Prince," said the
general, one day, as they were proceeding to their place of
destination, " we may be called into action, in which case,
I trust you will behave like a man of courage, and fight
bravely for the country." " Sir," replied Prince, in a manly
tone, " I have no wish to fight, and no inducement; but had I
my liberty, I would fight in defence of the country to the last
drop of my blood." " Well," said the general, " Prince, from
this moment you are free."

In 1778, General Whipple, with a detachment of New-
Hampshire militia, was engaged, under General Sullivan, in
executing a plan which had for its object the retaking of
Rhode Island from the British. By some misunderstanding,
the French fleet, under Count D'Estaing, which was destined
to co-operate with General Sullivan, failed of rendering the

142 NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

expected assistance, in consequence of which General Sulli
van was obliged to retreat. General Sullivan, with his
troops, occupied a position on the north end of the island
One morning, while a number of officers were breakfasting
in the general's quarters, a detachment of British troops were
perceived on an eminence, at the distance of about three
quarters of a mile. A field piece was soon after discharged
by the enemy, the ball of which, after killing one of the
horses at the door, passed through the side of the house, into
the room where the officers were sitting, and so shattered the
leg of the brigade major of General Whipple, that imme
diate amputation became necessary.

During the remaining years of Mr. Whipple's life, he filled
several important offices. In 1780, he was elected a repre
sentative to the general assembly of New-Hampshire, the
duties of which office he continued to discharge during seve
ral re-elections, with much honour to himself, and to the ge
neral acceptance of his constituents.

In 1782, he received the appointment of receiver of public
moneys for the state of New-Hampshire, from Mr. Morris,
the superintendant of finance. The appointment was accept
ed by Mr. Whipple, but the duties devolving upon him were
both arduous and unpopular. The collection of money was,
at that time, extremely difficult. Mr. Whipple experienced
many vexations in the exerc^e of his commission ; and at
length, in 1784, found it necessary, on account of the infirm
state of his health, to relinquish his office. About the same
time that he received the above appointment, he was created
a judge of the superior court of judicature. He began now,
however, to be afflicted with strictures in the breast, which
prevented him from engaging in the more active scenes of
life. He was able, however, to ride the circuits of the court
for two or three years, but owing to an affection of the heart,
he was unable to sum up the arguments of council, or state a
cause to the jury.

In the fall of 1785, while riding the circuit, his disorder so
rapidly increased, that he was obliged to return home.
From this time he was confined to his room, until the 28th

MATTHEW THORNTON. 143

day of November, when he expired, in the 55th year of his
age.

The mind of Mr. Whipple was naturally strong, and his
power of discrimination quick. In his manners, he was easy
and unassuming ; in his habits correct, and in his friendships
constant. Although his early education was limited, his sub
sequent intercourse with the world, united to his natural
good sense, enabled him to fill with ability the various offices
to which he was appointed.

Few men have exhibited a more honest and persevering
ambition to act a worthy part in the community, and few,
with his advantages, have been more successful in obtaining
the object of their ambition.

MATTHEW THORNTON.

MATTHEW THORNTON was the son of James Thornton, a
native of Ireland, and was born in that country, about the
year 1714. When he was two or three years old, his father
emigrated to America, and after a residence of a few years
at Wiscasset, in Maine, he removed to Worcester, in Massa
chusetts.

Here young Thornton received a respectable academical
education, and subsequently pursued his medical studies,
under the direction of Doctor Grout, of Leicester. Soon
after completing his preparatory course, he removed to Lon
donderry, in New-Hampshire, where he commenced the
practice of medicine, and soon became distinguished, both as
a physician and a surgeon.

In 1745, the well known expedition against Cape Breton
was planned by Governor Shirley. The co-operation of
New-Hampshire being solicited, a corps of five hundred men
was raised in the latter province. Dr. Thornton was select
ed to accompany the New-Hampshire troops, as a surgeon*

144 NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

The chief command of this expedition was entrusted to
Colonel William Pepperell. On the 1st of May, he invested
the city of Louisburg. Lieutenant Colonel Vaughan con
ducted the first column, through the woods, within sight of
Louisburg, and saluted the city with three cheers. At the
head of a detachment, chiefly of New-Hampshire troops, he
marched in the night, to the northeast part of the harbour,
where they burned the warehouses, containing the naval
stores, and staved a large quantity of wine and brandy. The
smoke of this fire, being driven by the wind into the grand
battery, so terrified the French, that, spiking the guns, they
retired into the city.

The next morning, as Colonel Vaughan, with his men, con
sisting of only thirteen, was retiring, he accidentally dis
covered that the battery was deserted. Upon this, he hired
a Cape Cod indian to creep into an embrasure and open the
gate. Thus he obtained possession of the place, and imme
diately dispatched a messenger to the commanding general,
with the following note : " May it p-lease your honour to be
informed, that, by the grace of God, and the courage of thir
teen men, I entered the royal battery about nine o'clock, and
am waiting for a reinforcement and a flag."

In the mean time, the news of Vaughan's capture of the
battery being communicated to the French, a hundred men
were dispatched to retake it; but the gallant colonel suc
ceeded in preventing their design, until reinforcements ar
rived.

The capture of Louisburg followed after a long and peri
lous siege. It was here that cannons were drawn by men,
for fourteen nights, with straps over their shoulders, from
the landing place through a deep morass, into which they
sunk, at every step, up to their knees in mud.

Few expeditions in the annals of American history, will
compare with this. Louisburg was the " Dunkirk" of Ame
rica ; yet it surrendered to the valour of our troops. It is
recorded to the praise of Dr. Thornton, and as an evidence
of his professional abilities, that of the corps of five hundred
men, of whom he had charge as a physician, only six died of

MATTHEW THORNTON. 145

sickness, previous to the surrender of the city, although they
were among those who assisted in dragging the cannon over
the abovementioned morass.

Under the royal government, he was invested with the of
fice of justice of the peace, and commissioned as colonel of
the militia. But when the political crisis arrived, when that
government in America was dissolved, Colonel Thornton ab
jured the British interest, and, with a patriotic spirit, adhered
to the glorious cause of liberty. In 1775, the royal governor
was obliged to flee from the province of New-Hampshire.
A provincial convention was at this time in session at Exeter,
for temporary purposes, of which Colonel Thornton was
president. In this capacity we find him addressing the in
habitants of the colony of New-Hampshire in the following
manner :

" Friends and brethren, you must all be sensible that the
affairs of America have, at length, come to a very affecting
and alarming crisis. The horrors and distresses of a civil
war, which, till of late, we only had in contemplation, we
now find ourselves obliged to realize. Painful beyond ex
pression, have been those scenes of blood and devastation,
which the barbarous cruelty of British troops have placed be
fore our eyes. Duty to God, to ourselves, to posterity, en
forced by the cries of slaughtered innocents, have urged us
io take up arms in our own defence. Such a day as this was
never before known, either to us or to our fathers. You will
give us leave, therefore, in whom yon have reposed special
confidence, as your representative body, to suggest a few
things, which call for the serious attention of every one, who
has the true interest of America at heart. We would, there
fore, recommend to the colony at large, to cultivate that
Christian union, harmony, and tender affection, which is the
only foundation upon which our invaluable privileges can
rest with any security, or our public measures be pursued
with the least prospect of success."

After enjoining an inviolable observance of the measures
recommended by the congress of 1774, lest they should cross
the general plan, he proceeds to recommend, " that the
T 13

146 NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

most industrious attention be paid to the cultivation of lands
and American manufactures, in their various branches, espe
cially the linen and woollen, and that the husbandry might be
managed with a particular view thereto ; accordingly, that
the farmer raise flax, and increase his flock of sheep to the ex
tent of his ability.

" We further recommend a serious and steady regard to the
rules of temperance, sobriety, and righteousness ; arid that
those laws which have, heretofore, been our security and de
fence from the hand of violence, may still answer all their
former valuable purposes, though persons of vicious and cor
rupt minds would willingly take advantage from our present
situation.

" In a word, we seriously and earnestly recommend the
practice of that pure and undefiled religion, which embalmed
the memory of our pious ancestors, as that alone upon which
we can build a solid hope and confidence in the Divine pro
tection and favour, without whose blessing all the measures
of safety we have, or can propose, will end in our shame and
disappointment."

The next year he was chosen a delegate to the continental
congress, and took his seat on the fourth of November fol
lowing. He was, therefore, not a member of that illustrious
body which planned and published the declaration of inde
pendence. This was true, also, of Benjamin Rush, George
Clymer, James Wilson, George Ross, and George Taylor.
But all these gentlemen acceding to the declaration, were
permitted to affix their signatures to the engrossed copy of
that instrument.

During the same year, he was appointed chief justice of
the court of common pleas ; and not long after was raised to
the office of judge of the superior court of New-Hampshire,
in which office he remained until 1782. In 1780, he pur
chased a farm, pleasantly situated on the banks of the Mer-
rimack, near Exeter, where, in connexion with his other di
versified occupations, he devoted himself to the business of
agriculture. Although advanced in life, he cheerfully grant
ed his professional services, whenever they were required,

MATTHEW THORNTON. 147

and they were at all times highly appreciated. In the muni
cipal affairs of the town, he took a lively interest. Of the
general court he was a member for one or two years, and a
senator in the state legislature, and served as a member of
the council in 1785, under President Langdon.

Dr. Thornton was a man of strong powers of mind, and
on most subjects to which he directed his attention, was able
to elicit light and information. In private life, he was pecu
liarly instructive and agreeable. The young were delighted
with his hilarity and humour. His memory was wrell stored
with entertaining and instructive anecdotes, which he was
able to apply upon any incident or subject of conversation.
He often illustrated his sentiments by fable. He delighted
to amuse a circle of an evening by some fictitious narrative,
in which he greatly excelled. At such times, placing his
elbows upon his knees, and supporting his head with his
hands, he would rivet the attention of his auditors, and as
tonish them by his powers of invention. In satire he was
scarcely equalled. And though he sometimes employed his
power immoderately, he was universally beloved, and occu
pied a large share of the confidence of his neighbours. A
single fault of his character should not pass unnoticed. It is
asserted, that he betrayed some traits of an avaricious dispo
sition, and sometimes enforced his rights, when if justice did
not require, charity dictated a relinquishment of them. If,
however, he was severe in his pecuniary claims, he was also
strict in the payment of his debts.

The powers of Dr. Thornton's mind continued unusually
vigorous to a late period of his life. After he was eighty
years of age, he wrote political essays for the newspapers,
and about this period of life prepared for the press a meta
physical work, comprised in seventy-three manuscript pages
in quarto, and entitled, " Paradise Lost ; or, the Origin of
the Evil called Sin, examined ; or how it ever did, or ever
can come to pass, that a creature should or could do any thing
unfit or improper for that creature to do," &c. This work
was never published ; but those who have had access to tho
manuscript, pronounce it a very singular production.

148 NEW-HAMPSHIRE DELEGATION.

It is not a little remarkable, that, although a physician,
and consequently often exposed to the whooping cough, he
did not take that disease until he had passed his eightieth
year. Although at this time enfeebled by years, he survived
the attack, and even continued his medical practice.

In stature, Dr. Thornton exceeded six feet in height, but
lie was remarkably well formed. His complexion was dark,
and his eyes black and piercing. His aspect was uncom
monly grave, especially for one who was naturally given to
good humour and hilarity.

Dr. Thornton died while on a visit at Newburyport, Mas
sachusetts, on the 24th of June, 1803, in the 89th year of his
age. In the funeral sermon by Rev. Dr. Burnap, we are
furnished with the following sketch. " He was venerable
for his age, and skill in his profession, and for the several
very important and honourable offices he had sustained ;
noted for the knowledge he had acquired, and his quick
penetration into matters of abstruse speculation ; exemplary
for his regard for the public institutions of religion, and foi
his constancy in attending the public worship, where he trod
the courts o| the house of God, with steps tottering with
age and infifflhity. Such is a brief outline of one who was
honoured in his day and generation ; whose virtues were a
model for imitation, and while memory does her office, will
be had in grateful recollection."

THE

RHODE ISLAND DELEGATION.

STEPHEN HOPKINS,
WILLIAM ELLERY.

STEPHEN HOPKINS

STEPHEN HOPKINS was a native of tha ;<irt of Providence
which is now called Scituate, where he v is born on the 7th
of March, 1707. His parentage was very respectable, being
a descendant of Benedict Arnold, the first governor of Rhode
Island.

His early education was limited, being confined to the in
struction imparted in the common schools of the country.
Yet it is recorded of him, that he excelled in a knowledge of
penmanship, and in the practical branches of mathematics,
particularly surveying.

For several years he followed the profession of a farmer.
At an early period, he was elected town clerk of Scituate,
and some time after was chosen a representative from that
town to the general assembly. He was subsequently ap
pointed a justice of the peace, and a justice of one of the
courts of common pleas. In 1733, he became chief justice
of that court.

In 1742, he disposed of his estate in Scituate, and removed
to Providence, where he erected a house, in which he con
tinued to reside till his death. In this latter place he entered
into mercantile business, and was- extensively engaged in
builJing and fitting out vessels.

13*

150 RHODE ISLAND DELEGATION.

When a representative from Scituate, he was elected
speaker of the house of representatives. To this latter office
he was again chosen after his removal to Providence, and
continued to occupy the station for several successive years,
being a representative from the latter town. In 1751, he
was chosen chief justice of the superior court, in which office
he continued till the year 1754.

In this latter year he was appointed a commissioner from
Rhode Island, to the celebrated convention which met at Al
bany ; which had for its object the securing of the friendship
of the five nations of Indians, in the approaching French war,
and an union between the several colonies of America.

In 1750, he was elected chief magistrate of the colony of
Rhode Island, which office he continued to hold, with but few
intervals, until the year 1767. In the discharge of the duties
of this responsible station, he acted with dignity and decision.
The prosperity of his country lay near his heart, nor did he
hesitate to propose and support the measures, which appeared
the best calculated to promote the interests of the colonies in
opposition to the encroachments of British power.

At an early period of the difficulties between the colonies
and Great Britain, he took an active and decided part in
favour of the former. In a pamphlet, entitled, " The rights
of colonies examined," he exposed the injustice of the
stamp act, and various other acts of the British government.
This pamphlet was published by order of the general assem
bly, in 1765.

The siege of fort William Henry, by the Marquis de Mont-
calm, 1757, and its surrender to the force under that general,
with the subsequent cruel outrages and murders committed
by the savages of the French army, are too well known to
need a recital in this place. It is necessary only to state,
that the greatest excitement prevailed throughout all the colo
nies. In this excitement, the inhabitants of Rhode Island
largely participated. An agreement was entered into by a
volunteer corps, couched in the following terms :

" Whereas the British colonies in America are invaded by
a large army of French and Indian enemies, who have

STEPHEN HOPKINS. 151

already possessed themselves effort William Henry, and are
now on their march to penetrate farther into the country, and
from whom we have nothing to expect, should they succeed
in their enterprise, but death and devastation ; and as his ma
jesty's principal officers in the parts invaded, have in the
most pressing and moving manner, called on all his majesty's
faithful subjects, for assistance to defend the country : — There
fore, we, whose names are underwritten, thinking it our duty
to do every thing in our power, for the defence of our liberties,
families, and property, are willing, and have agreed to enter
voluntarily into the service of our country, and go in a war
like manner against the common enemy ; and hereby call up
on and invite all our neighbours, who have families and pro
perty to defend, to join with us in this undertaking, promising to
march as soon as we are two hundred and fifty in number,
recommending ourselves and our cause to the favourable
protection of Almighty God."

To this agreement, Mr. Hopkins was the first to affix his
name, and was chosen to command the company thus raised,
which consisted of some of the most distinguished men in
Providence. Preparations for a speedy departure for the
field of action were made, but on the eve of their march, in
telligence arrived, that their services were no longer necessa
ry, as the progress of hostilities towards the south was not to
be expected.

In 1774, Mr. Hopkins received the appointment of a dele
gate from Rhode Island to the celebrated congress, which met
at Philadelphia that year. In this assembly he took his seat
on the first day of the session, where he became one of the
most zealous advocates of the measures adopted by that illus
trious body of men.

In the year 1775 and 1776, he again represented Rhode
Island in the continental congress. In this latter year he
had the honour of affixing his name to the imperishable instru
ment, which declared the colonies to be free, sovereign, and
independent states. He recorded his name with a trembling
hand, the only instance in which a tremulous hand is visible
among the fifty-six patriots who then wrote their names. But

152 RHODE ISLAND DELEGATION.

it was in this case only that the flesh was weak. Mr. Hop
kins had for some time been afflicted with a paralytic affection,
which compelled him, when he wrote, to guide his right hand
with his left. The spirit of the man knew no fear, in a case
where life and liberty were at hazard.

In 1778, Mr. Hopkins was a delegate to congress for the
last time. But in several subsequent years, he was a member
of the general assembly of Rhode Island. The last year in
which he thus served, was that of 1779, at which time he was
seventy-two years of age.

Mr. Hopkins lived to the 13th of July, 1785, when he
closed his long, and honourable and useful life, at the advan
ced age of 78. His last illness was long, but to the period of
his dissolution, he retained the full possession of his faculties.
A vast assemblage of persons, consisting of judges of the
courts, the president, professors and students of the college,
together with the citizens of the town, and inhabitants of the
state, followed the remains of this eminent man to his resting
place in the grave.

Although the early education of Mr. Hopkins was limited,
as has already been observed, the vigour of his understanding
enabled him to surmount his early deficiencies, and an
assiduous application to the pursuit of knowledge, at length,
placed him among the distinguished literary characters of the
day. He delighted in literature and science. He was atten
tive to books, and a close observer of mankind ; thus h.e went
on improving, until the period of his death. As a public
speaker, he was always clear, precise, pertinent, and pow
erful.

As a mathematician, Mr. Hopkins greatly excelled. Till
in advanced age, he was extensively employed in surveying
lands. He was distinguished for great exactness in his calcu
lations, and an unusual knowledge of his business.

As a statesman and a patriot, he was not less distinguished.
He was well instructed in the science of politics; had an ex
tensive knowledge of the rights of his country, and proved
himself, through a longer life than falls to the lot of most men,
an unshaken friend of his country, and an enemy to civil ant)

WILLIAM ELLERY. 153

religious intolerance. He went to his grave honoured as a
skilful legislator, a righteous judge, an able representative, a
dignified and upright governor. Charity was an inmate of his
habitation. To the cry of suffering his ear was ever open,
an 1 in the relief of affliction he ever delighted.

WILLIAM ELLERY.

WILLIAM ELLERY, the son of a gentleman of the same
name, was born at Newport, on the 22d day of December,
1727. His ancestors were originally from Bristol, in Eng
land, whence they emigrated to America during the latter
part of the seventeenth century, and took up their residence
at Newport, in Rhode Island.

The early education of the subject of this memoir, was
received almost exclusively from his father, who was a gra
duate of Harvard university ; and who although extensively
engaged in mercantile pursuits, found leisure personally to
cultivate the mind of his son. At the age of sixteen, he was
qualified for admission to the university, of which his father
had been a member before him. In his twentieth year, he
left the university, having sustained, during his collegiate
course, the character of a faithful and devoted student. In a
knowledge of the Greek and Latin languages, he is said to
have particularly excelled, and through the whole bustle of
his active life, until the very hour of dissolution, he retained
his fondness for them.

On his return to Newport, he commenced the study of the
law, and after the usual preparatory course, he entered upon
the practice, which for twenty years he pursued with great
zeal. During this period, no other particulars have been re
corded of him, than that he succeeded in acquiring a compe
tent fortune, and receiving the esteem and confidence of his
fellow citizens.

u

154 RHODE ISLAND DELEGATION.

At an early period of the controversy between Great Bri
tain and the colonies, Rhode Island strongly enlisted herself
in the patriotic cause. She was not backward in expressing
her disapprobation of the arbitrary measures of the parent
country. Indeed, it is doubtful whether Rhode Island is not
equally entitled, with Virginia and Massachusetts, to the ho
nour which they claim, of being earliest in the measures lead
ing to the revolution. Among the great scenes which led the
way to actual resistance, two occurred in Narraganset bay.
The first of these was an attack by the people of Rhode Isl
and, upon the armed revenue sloop, Liberty, in the harbour
of Newport, June 17th, 1769. The second was the memora
ble affair of the Gaspee, June 9th, 1772, and in which it may
be said, was shed the first blood in the revolution. This lat
ter occurrence excited an unusual alarm among the royal
party in the provinces, and gave occasion to Governor Hutch-
inson to address the following letter to Commodore Gambier :
" Our last ships carried you the news of the burning of the
Gaspee schooner, at Providence. I hope, if there should be
another like attempt, some concerned in it may be taken
prisoners, and carried directly to England. A few punished
at execution dock, would be the only effectual preventive of
any further attempts."

By other acts did the people of Rhode Island, at an early
period, evince their opposition to the royal government. On
the arrival in the year 1774 of the royal proclamation pro
hibiting the importation of fire arms from England, they dis
mantled the fort at Newport, and took possession of forty
pieces of cannon. Again, on the occurrence of the battle of
Lexington, they simultaneously roused to the defence of their
fellow citizens, in the province of Massachusetts. Within
three days after that memorable event, a large number of her
militia were in the neighbourhood of Boston, ready to co
operate in measures either of hostility or defence. In the
same year she sent twelve hundred regular troops into the
service, and afterwards furnished three state regiments to serve
during the war.

No sooner was the formation of a continental conress su

WILLIAM ELLERY. 155

gested, than Rhode Island took measures to be represented in
thai body, and elected as delegates two of her most distin
guished citizens, Governor Hopkins and Mr. Ward.

During these movements in Rhode Island, Mr. Ellery,
the subject of this notice, was by no means an idle spectator.
The particular history of the part which he took in these
transactions is, indeed, not recorded ; but the tradition is, that
he was not behind his contemporaries either in spirit or action.

In the election for delegates to the congress of 1776, Mr.
Ellery was a successful candidate, and in that body took hi?
seat, on the seventeenth of May. Here, he soon became ar
active and influential member, and rendered important ser
vices to his country, by his indefatigable attention to duties
assigned him, on several committees. During this session,
he had the honour of affixing his name to the declaration of
independence. Of this transaction he frequently spoke, and
of the notice he took of the members of congress when they
signed that instrument. He placed himself beside secretary
Thompson, that he might see how they looked, as they put their
names to their death warrant. But while all appeared to
feel the solemnity of the occasion, and their countenances
bespoke their awe, it was unmingled with fear. They re
corded their names as patriots, who were ready, should occa
sion require, to lead the way to martyrdom.

In the year 1777, the marine committee of congress, of
which Mr. Ellery was a member, recommended the plan, and
it is supposed, at his suggestion, of preparing fire ships, and
sending them out from the state of Rhode Island. Of this
plan, the journals of congress speak in the following terms :

" If upon due consideration, jointly had by the navy board
for the eastern department, and the governor and council of
war for the state of Rhode Island, and for which purpose the
said navy board are directed to attend upon the said gover
nor and council of war, the preparing fire ships be judged
practicable, expedient, and advisable, the said navy board im
mediately purchase, upon as reasonable terms as possible,
six ships, or square rigged vessels, at Providence, in the state
of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, the best calcu-

156 RHODE ISLAND DELEGATION.

lated for fire ships, with all possible expedition ; that the said
navy board provide proper materials for the same, and employ
a proper captain or commander, one lieutenant, and a suitable
number of men for each of the said ships, or vessels, of ap
proved courage and prudence ; and that notice be given to all
the commanders of the continental ships and vessels in the
port of Providence, to be in readiness to sail at a moment's
warning : that as soon as the said fire ships are well prepared,
the first favourable wind be embraced to attack the British
ships and navy in the rivers and bays of the state of Rhode Isl
and and Providence Plantations : that the officers of the conti
nental navy there, favour, as much as possible, the design, and
use their utmost efforts to get out to sea, and proceed to such
cruise, or to such ports, as the said navy board, or the marine
committee, shall appoint or order."

During the year that the British army under General Pig-
got took possession of Newport, where they fortified them
selves, and continued their head quarters for some time,
the inhabitants sustained much injury in their property. Mr.
Ellery shared in the common loss, his dwelling house being
burned, and other destruction of property occasioned.

Mr. Ellery continued a member of congress until the year
1785, and indeed, through that year, when he retired to his
native state. Soon after, however, he was elected by con
gress, a commissioner of the continental loan office, to which
was subsequently added, by the citizens of Rhode Island, the
office of chief justice of their superior court, a station which
he did not continue to hold long. On the organization of the
federal government, he received from General Washington
the appointment of collector of the customs for the town of
Newport, an office which he retained during the remainder of
his life.

On the 15th of February, 1820, this venerable man — vene
rable for his age, which had been prolonged to ninety-two
years, and venerable for the services which he had rendered
his country, was summoned to his account. His death was
in unison with his life. He wasted gradually and almost im
perceptibly, until the powers of nature were literally worn

WILLIAM ELLEUY. 157

sut by use. On the day on which his death occurred, he had
risen, as usual, and rested in his old flag bottomed chair, the
relict of half a century ; he had employed himself in reading
Tully's offices in Latin.

"While thus engaged, his family physician called to see him.
On feeling his pulse, he found that it had ceased to beat. A
draught of wine and water quickened it into life, however,
again, and being placed and supported on the bed, he continu
ed reading, until the lamp of life, in a moment of which his
friends were ignorant, was extinguished.

"Of no distemper, of no blast he died,
But fell like autumn fruit that mellowed long1,
E'en wonder'd at because he falls no sooner.
Fate seem'd to wind him up for fourscore years,
Yet freshly ran he on twelve winters more:
Till, like a clock worn out with eating1 time,
The wheels of weary life at last stood still."

In the character of Mr. Ellery there was much to admire. He
was, indeed, thought by some to have been too tenacious of his
opinion, and not always free from asperity to others. But
years mellowed down these unpleasant traits of his cha
racter, and showed that he had exercised a watchfulness over
himself, not entirely in vain. He manifested an uncommon
disregard of the applause of men. It was often upon his
lips : " humility rather than pride becomes such creatures as
we are." He looked upon the world and its convulsions with
religious serenity, and in times of public danger, and of public
difficulty, he comforted himself and others, with the pious re
flection of the psalmist, " The Lord reigneth."

In conversation, Mr. Ellery was at once interesting and in
structive. His advice was often sought, and his opinions re
garded with great reverence. In letter writing he excelled,
as he did in fine penmanship, which latter would be inferred
from his signature to the declaration of independence. In
stature, he was of middling height, and carried in his person
the indications of a sound frame and an easy mind. In the
courtesies of life, he kept pace with the improvements of the
age; but his conversation, and dress, and habits of life, plainly
showed that he belonged to a more primitive generation.
14

THE

CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

ROGER SHERMAN,
SAMUEL HUNTINGTON,
WILLIAM WILLIAMS,
OLIVER WOLCOTT.

ROGER SHERMAN.

ROGER SHERMAN, the subject of the present memoir, was
a native of Newton, Massachusetts, where he was born on
the 19th of April, 1721. His ancestors were from Dedham,
in England, whence they removed to America about the year
1635, and settled at Watertown in the same state. The
father of Mr. Sherman, whose name was William, was a
respectable farmer, but from his moderate circumstances was
unable to give his son the advantages of an education, be
yond those which were furnished by a parochial school.

He was' early apprenticed to a shoemaker, which occupa
tion he followed for some time after he was twenty-two years
of age. It is recorded of him, however, that he early
evinced an uncommon thirst for knowledge, and was wont,
even while at work on his seat, to have a book open before
him, upon which he would employ every moment, not ne
cessarily devoted to the duties of his calling.

The father of Mr. Sherman* died in the year 1741, leaving
his family, which was quite numerous, in circumstances of
dependence. The care of the family devolved upon Roger,

ROGER SHERMAN. 159

Ms older brother having sometime before removed to New-
Milford, in Connecticut. This was a serious charge for a
young man only nineteen years of age. Yet, with great
kindness and cheerfulness did he engage in the duties which
devolved upon him. Towards his mother, whose life was
protracted to a great age, he continued to manifest the ten-
oercst affection, and assisted two of his younger brothers to
obtain a liberal education. These, afterwards, became clergy
men of some distinction in Connecticut.

It has already been observed, that an older brother had
established himself in New-Milford, Connecticut. In 1743,
it was judged expedient for the family, also, to remove to
that place. Accordingly, having disposed of their small
farm, they became residents of New-Milford, in June of that
year. This journey was performed by young Roger on foot,
with his tools on his back.

At New-Milford, he commenced business as a shoemaker ;
but not long after he relinquished his trade, having entered
into partnership with his older brother, in the more agree
able occupation of a country merchant.

Mr. Sherman early evinced, as has already been observed,
an unusual thirst for knowledge. This led him to seize with
avidity every opportunity to acquire it. The acquisitions
of such a mind, even with the disadvantages under which he
laboured, must have been comparatively easy, and his im
provement was rapid. The variety and extent of his attain
ments, even at this early age, are almost incredible. He soon
became known in the county of Litchfield, where he resided,
as a man of more than ordinary talents, and of unusual skill
in the science of mathematics. In 1745, only two years
after his removal into the above county, and at the age of
twenty-four, he was appointed to the office of county sur
veyor. At this time it appears, also, he had made no small
advance in the science of astronomy. As early as 1748, he
supplied the astronomical calculations for an almanac, pub-
'ishetl in the city of New-York, and continued this supply
for several succeeding years.

In 1749, he was married to Miss Elizabeth Hartwell, of

160 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

Stoughton, in Massachusetts. After her decease, in 1760, he
married Miss Rebecca Prescot, of Danvers, in the same state.
By these wives he had fifteen children, seven by the former,
and eight by the latter.

In 1754, Mr. Sherman was admitted as an attorney to the
bar. It is a trite remark, that great effects often proceed from
small causes, and that not unfrequently some apparently
trivial occurrence, exercises a controling influence over the
whole after life of an individual. Both these remarks are
eminently verified in the history of Mr. Sherman. While
yet a young man, and, it is believed before he had relinquish
ed his mechanical occupation, he had occasion to go to a
neighbouring town to transact some business for himself. A
short time previous to this, a neighbour of his, in settling the
affairs of a person deceased, became involved in a difficulty
which required the assistance of legal counsel. The neigh
bour stated the case to young Sherman, and authorized him
to seek the advice of the lawyer of the town to which he
was going.

As the subject was not without intricacy, Sherman com
mitted the case to paper, and on his arrival in the town, pro
ceeded with his manuscript to the lawyer's office. In stating
the case to the lawyer, he had frequent occasion to recur to
his manuscript. This \vas noticed by the lawyer, and, as it
was necessary to present a petition in the case to some court,
Sherman was requested to leave the paper, as an assistance
in framing the petition. The modesty of young Sherman
would scarcely permit him to comply with this request.
" The paper," he said,/4 was only a memorandum drawn by
himself to assist his memory." He gave it, however, into
the hands of the lawyer, who read it with surprise. He
found it to contain a clear statement of the case, and remark
ed, that with some slight verbal alterations, it would be equal
to any petition which he himself could draft.

The conversation now passed to the situation and circum
stances of young Sherman. The lawyer urged him seriously
to think upon the profession of law. At this time, he was
deeply involved in the care of his father's family, which, as

ROGER SHERMAN. 161

before noticed, were left in a great measure destitute at his
decease. The suggestion, however, appears not to have
been lost upon him. A new direction was given to his
thoughts. A stronger impulse was added to his energies.
His leisure hours were devoted to the acquisition of legal
knowledge, and in 1754, as already remarked, he entered
upon a professional career, in which few have attained to
greater honour and distinction.

From this date, Mr. Sherman soon became distinguished
as a judicious counsellor, and was rapidly promoted to offices
of trust and responsibility. The year following his admis
sion to the bar, he was appointed a justice of the peace for
New-Milford, which town he also represented the same year
in the colonial assembly. In 1759, he was appointed judge
of the court of common pleas for the county of Litchfield,
an office which he filled with great reputation for the two
following years.

At the expiration of this time, that is in 1761, he became
a resident of New-Haven, of which town he was soon after
appointed a justice of the peace, and often represented it in
the colonial assembly. To these offices was added, in 1765,
that of judge of the court of common pleas. About the
same time he was appointed treasurer of Yale College, which
institution bestowed upon him the honorary degree of Master
of Arts.

In 1766, he was elected by the freemen of the colony a
member of the upper house, in the general assembly of Con
necticut. The members of the upper house were called
assistants. This body held their deliberations with closed
doors. The precise rank, therefore, which Mr. Sherman
held among his colleagues, or the services which he rendered
his country, cannot now be ascertained. Few men, however,
were better fitted for a deliberative assembly. During the
same year, the confidence of his fellow-citizens was still far
ther expressed, by his appointment to the office of judge of
the superior court. The offices, thus conferred upon him,
during the same year, were not then considered as incompa
tible. He continued a member of the upper house for nine-
X 14*

162 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION

teen years, until 1785, at which time the two offices which
he held being considered as incompatible, he relinquished
his seat at the council board, preferring his station as a judge.
This latter office he continued to exercise until 1789, when
he resigned it, on being elected to congress under the federal
constitution.

At an early stage of the controversy between Great Britain
and her American colonies, Mr. Sherman warmly espoused
the cause of his country. This was to be expected of him.
A man of so much integrity and consistency of character, of
such firmness and solidity, would not be likely to be wanting
in the day of trial. It was fortunate for America that she
had some such men in her councils, to balance and keep in
check the feverish spirits which, in their zeal, might have in
jured, rather than beneritted the cause. Mr. Sherman was
no enthusiast, nor was he to be seduced from the path of duty
by motives of \vorldljr ambition, or love of applause. He
early perceived, that the contest would have to be terminated
by a resort to arms. Keuce, he felt the paramount import
ance of union among the colonies. He felt the full force of
the sentiment, " United we stand, divided we fall." From
the justice or clemency of Great Britain, he expected no
thing ; nor, at an early day, could he perceive any rational
ground to hope that the contest could be settled, but by the
entire separation of American and British interests. He was,
therefore, prepared to proceed, not rash.y, but with delibe
rate firmness, and to resist, even unto blood, the unrighteous
attempts of the British parliament to enthral and enslave the
American colonies.

Of the celebrated congress of 1774, Mr. Sherman was a
conspicuous member. He was present at the opening of
the session; and continued uninterruptedly a member o^ that
body for the long space of nineteen years, until his death
in 1793.

Of the important services which he rendered his country:
during his congressional career, it is difficult and even impos
sible to form an estimate. He served on various committees,
whose deliberations often involved the highest interest of the

ROGER SHERMAN. 163

country. During the continuance of the war of the revolu
tion, the duties of committees were frequently arduous and
.fatiguing. No man adventured upon these duties with more
courage ; no one exercised a more indefatigable zeal than did
Mr. Sherman. He investigated every subject with uncom
mon particularity, and formed his judgment with a compre
hensive view of the whole. This, together with the well
known integrity of his character, attracted universal confi
dence. He naturally became, therefore, one of the leading
and most influential members of congress, during the whole
period of his holding a seat in that body.

Of the congress of 1775, Mr. Sherman was again a mem-
oer ; but of this day of clouds and darkness, when the storm
which had long lowered, began to burst forth on every side,
we can take no further notice than to mention, with gratitude
and admiration, the firmness of those assembled sages who,
with courage, breasted themselves to the coming shock.
They calmly and fearlessly applied themselves to the defence
of die liberties of their country, having counted the cost,
and being prepared to surrender their rights only with their
lives.

In the congress of 1776, Mr. Sherman took a distinguished
part. He assisted on committees appointed to give instruc
tions for the military operations of the army in Canada ; to
establish regulations and restrictions on the trade of the
United States ; to regulate the currency of the country; to
furnish supplies for the army ; to provide for the expenses of
the government ; to prepare articles of confederation between
the several states, and to propose a plan of military opera
tions for the campaign of 1776.

During this year, also, he received the most flattering tes
timony of the high estimation in which he was held by con
gress, in being associated with Adams, Jefferson, Franklin,
and Livingston, in the responsible duty of preparing the de
claration of independence.

The reputation of Mr. Sherman abroad, was cordially re
ciprocated in the state in which he resided. Few men were
ever more highly esteemed in Connecticut. The people im-

164 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

derstood his worth. They respected him for his abilities,
but still more for his unbending integrity. During the war
he belonged to the governor's council of safety ; and from the
year 1784 to his death, he held the mayoralty of the city of
New-Haven. In 1783, he was appointed, with the honoura
ble Richard Law, both of whom were at this time judges of
the superior court, to revise the statutes of the state. This
service, rendered doubly onerous to the committee from their
being instructed to digest all the statutes relating to the same
subject into one, and to reduce the whole to alphabetical or
der, was performed with great ability. Many useless statutes
were omitted ; others were altered to correspond to the great
changes which had then recently taken place in the state of
the country, and the whole reduced to comparative order
and simplicity.

Another expression of the public confidence awaited Mr
Sherman in 1787. Soon after the close of the war, the in
efficacy of the old confederation between the states was ap
parent. The necessity of a federal constitution, by which
the powers of the state governments and of the general go
vernment should be more nicely balanced, became every
day more obvious. Accordingly, in 1787, a general conven
tion of the states, for forming a new constitution, was called,
and Mr. Sherman, in connexion with the learned Mr. Ells
worth and Dr. Johnson, were appointed to attend it, on the
part of Connecticut. In this assemblage of patriots, distin
guished for their political wisdom, Mr. Sherman was con
spicuous, and contributed, in no small degree, to the perfec
tion of that constitution, under which the people of America
have for more than forty years enjoyed as much civil liberty
and political prosperity as is, probably, compatible with the
lapsed condition of the human race. Many of the conven
tion, who warmly advocated the adoption of the constitution,
were not, indeed, well pleased with every feature of that in
strument. To this number Mr. Sherman belonged. He was

&

of the opinion, however, as were others, that it was the best
which, under existing circumstances, the convention could
nave framed. On his return to Connecticut, when the ques-

ROGER SHERMAN. 165

tion respecting the adoption of the constitution came before
tne convention of that state, its adoption, according to the
testimony of the late Chief Justice Ellsworth, was, in no
small degree, owing to the influence of Mr. Sherman. On
that occasion, he appeared before the convention, and, with
great plainness and perspicuity, entered into an explanation
of the probable operation of the principles of the constitution.

Under this new constitution, he was elected a representa
tive to congress, from the state of Connecticut. At the ex
piration of two years, a vacancy occurring in the senate, he
was elevated to a seat in that body, an office which he con
tinued to hold, and the duties of which he continued to dis
charge with honour and reputation to himself, and with great
usefulness to his country, until the 23d day of July, 1793,
when he was gathered to his fathers, in the 73d year of his
age.

In estimating the character of Mr. Sherman, we must
dwell a moment upon his practical wisdom This, in him,
was a predominant trait. He possessed, more than most
men, an intimate acquaintance with human nature. He un
derstood the springs of human action in a remarkable de
gree, and well knew in what manner to touch them, to pro
duce a designed effect. This practical wisdom, another name
for common sense, powerfully contributed to guide him to
safe results, on all the great political questions in which he
was concerned , and assisted him to select the means which
were best adapted to accomplish the best ends. With the
habits and opinions, with the virtues and vices, the prejudices
and weaknesses of his countrymen, he was also well ac
quainted. Hence, he understood, better than many others,
who were superior to him in the rapidity of their genius,
what laws and principles they would bear, and what they
would not bear, in government. Of the practical wisdom of
Mr. Sherman, we might furnish many honourable testimonies
and numerous illustrations. We must content ourselves,
nowever, with recording a remark of President Jefferson, to
the late Dr. Spring, of Newburyport. During the sitting of
Congress at Philadelphia, the latter gentleman, in company

166 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION

with Mr. Jefferson, visited the national hall. Mr. Jefferson
pointed out to the doctor several of the members, who were
most conspicuous. At length, his eye rested upon Roger
Sherman. " That," said he, pointing his finger, " is Mr
Sherman of Connecticut, a man who never said a foolish
thing in his life.11 Not less complimentary was the remark
of Mr. Macon, the aged and distinguished senator, who has
recently retired from public life : " Roger Sherman had more
common sense than any man I ever knew."

Another distinguishing trait in the character of Roger
Sherman, was his unbending integrity. No man, probably,
ever stood more aloof from the suspicion of a selfish bias,
or of sinister motives. In both his public and private con
duct, he was actuated by principle. The opinion which ap
peared correct, he adopted, and the measure which appeared
the best, he pursued, apparently uninfluenced by passion, pre-
iudice, or interest. It was probably owing to this trait in
his character, that he enjoyed such extraordinary influence
in those deliberative bodies of which he was a member. In
his speech, he was slow and hesitatrng. He had few of the
graces of oratory; yet no man was heard with deeper atten
tion. This attention arose from the solid conviction of the
hearers, that he was an honest man. What he said, was in
deed always applicable to the point, was clear, was weighty;
and, as the late President D wight remarked, was generally
new and important. Yet the weight of his observations,
obviously, sprung from the integrity of the man. It was this
trait in his character, which elicited the observation of the
distinguished Fisher Ames. "If I am absent," said he, " dur
ing the discussion of a subject, and consequently know not
on which side to vote, I always look at Roger ShermcMi, for
I am sure if I vote with him I shall vote right"

To the above excellent traits in the character of Mr. Shci
man, it may be added, that he was eminently a pious iran
He was long a professor of religion, and one of its brightest
ornaments. Nor was his religion that which appeared only
on occasions. It was with him a principle and a habit. It
appeared in the closet, in the family, on the bench, and in the

ROGER SHERMAN. 167

senate house. Few men had a higher reverence for the
bible ; few men studied it with deeper attention ; few were
more intimately acquainted with the doctrines of the gospel,
and the metaphysical controversies of the day. On these
subjects, he maintained an extended correspondence with
some of the most distinguished divines of that period, among
whom were Dr. Edwards, Dr. Hopkins, Dr. Trumbull, Presi
dent Dickenson, and President Witherspoon, all of whom
had a high opinion of him as a theologian, and derived much
instruction from their correspondence with him.

If the character of a man's religion is to be tested by the
fruits it produces, the religion of Mr. Sherman must be ad
mitted to have been not of this world. He was naturally
possessed of strong passions ; but over these he at length
obtained an extraordinary control. He became habitually
calm, sedate, and self-possessed. The following instance of
his self-possession is worthy of being recorded.

Mr. Sherman was one of those men who are not ashamea
to maintain the forms of religion in his family. One morn
ing he called them together, as usual, to lead them in prayer
to God : the " old family bible" was brought out, and laid on
the table. Mr. Sherman took his seat, and beside him placea
one of his children, a small child, a child of his old age ; the
rest of the family were seated round the room ; several of
these were now grown up. Besides these, some of the tutors
of the college, and it is believed, some of the students, were
boarders in the family, and were present at the time alluded
to. His aged, and now superanuated mother, occupied a
corner of the room, opposite to the place where the distin
guished judge of Connecticut sat. At length he opened the
bible, and began to read. The child which was seated beside
him, made some little disturbance, upon which Mr. Sherman
paused, and told it to be still. Again he proceeded, but again
he paused, to reprimand the little offender, whose playful
disposition would scarcely permit it to be still. At this time,
he gently tapped its ear. The blow, if it might be called a
blow, caught the attention of his aged mother, who now with
some effort rose from her seat, and tottered across the room.

168 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

At length, she reached the chair of Mr. Sherman, and in a
moment most unexpected to him, she gave him a blow on
the ear, with all the power she could summon. " TAere," said
she, " you strike your child, and I will strike mine.'1'1

For a moment, the blood was seen rushing to the face of
Mr. Sherman ; but it was only for a moment, when all was
as mild and calm as usual. He paused — he raised his specta
cles — he cast his eye upon his mother — again it fell upon the
book, from which he had been reading. Perhaps he re
membered the injunction, " honour thy mother," and he did
honour her. Not a word escaped him ; but again he calmly
pursued the service, and soon after sought in prayer ability to
set an example before his household, which should be worthy
their imitation. Such self-possession is rare. Such a victory
was worth more than the proudest victory ever achieved in
the field of battle.

We have room only to add the inscription, which is record
ed upon the tablet which covers the tomb of this truly excel
lent man :

In memory of
THE HON. ROGER SHERMAN, ES<^

Mayor of the city of New-Haven,

and Senator of the United States.

He was born at Newton, in Massachusetts,

April 19th, 1721,
And died in New-Haven, July 23d, A, D. 1793,

aged LXXI1.
Possessed of a strong1, clear, penetrating1 mind,

and singular perseverance,

he became the self-taught scholar,

eminent for jurisprudence and policy.

He was nineteen years an assistant,

and twenty-three years a judge of the superior court,

in hisrh reputation.

He was a Delegate in the first Congress,

signed the glorious act of Independence,

and many years displayed superior talents arid ability

in the national legislature.
He was a member of the general convention,

approved the federal constitution,

And served his country with fidelity and honoin;

in the House of Representatives.

SAMUEL HUNTINGTON. 109

and in the Senate of the United States.
He was a man of approved integrity ;

a cool, discerning- Judge ;
a prudent, sagacious Politician ;
a true, faithful, and firm Patriot.

He ever adorned
the profession of Christianity

which he made in youth ;
and distinguished through life

for public usefulness,
died in the prospect of a blessed immortality.

SAMUEL HUNTINGTON.

SAMUEL HUNTINGTON was born in Windham, Connecticut,
on the 2d day of July, 1732. His ancestors were respect
able ; they came to America at an early period of the country,
and settled in Connecticut.

The father of the subject of the present memoir was
Nathaniel Huntington, who resided in the town of Windham,
where he was a plain but worthy farmer. His mother was
distinguished for her many virtues. She was a pious, dis
creet woman, and endued with a more than ordinary share
of mental vigour. A numerous family of children cemented
the affection of this worthy pair. Several of the sons devoted
themselves to the gospel ministry, and attained to a highly
respectable standing in their profession. Of those who thus
devoted themselves to the clerical profession, Dr. Joseph
Huntington was one. He is well known as the author of a
posthumous work, on universal salvation. It was entitled,
" Calvinism Improved, or the Gospel illustrated as a system
of real Grace, issuing in the salvation of all men." This
work was afterwards ably answered by Dr. Nathan Strong,
of Hartford.

In the benefits of a public education, which were thus con
Y 15

17C CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

ferred on several of his brothers, Samuel Huntington did not
share. He was the eldest son, and his father needed his as
sistance on the farm. Indeed, his opportunities for obtaining
knowledge were extremely limited, not extending beyond
those furnished by the common schools of that day.

Mr. Huntington, however, possessed a vigorous under
standing, and, when released from the toils of the field, he
devoted himself with great assiduity to reading and study.
Thus, the deficiencies of the common school were more than
supplied. He became possessed of an extensive fund of in
formation upon various subjects, and by the time he was
twenty-one years of age, he probably fell little short in hig
acquisitions of those who had received a collegiate educa
tion, except in some particular branches. His knowledge
was less scientific, but more practical and useful.

Although not averse to husbandry, he early manifested a
fondness for legal pursuits, and at the age of twenty-two he
relinquished the labours of the field, for the more agreeable
study of the law. Pecuniary circumstances prevented his
availing himself of legal tuition in the office of a lawyer.
But he was contented to explore the labyrinths of the pro
fession unaided, except by his own judgment. The library
of a respectable lawyer in a neighbouring town, furnished
him with the necessary books, and his diligence and perse
verance accomplished the rest.

Mr. Huntington soon obtained a competent knowledge of
the principles of law, to commence the practice of the pro
fession. He opened an office in his native town, but in 1760^
removed to Norwich, where a wider field presented itself,
for the exercise of his talents. Here, he soon became emi
nent in his profession. He was distinguished by a strict
integrity, and no man exceeded him in punctuality. These
traits of character, united to no ordinary legal attainments,
and strong common sense, insured him the respect of the
community, and a large share of professional business.

In 1764, Mr. .Huntington represented the town of Nor
wich in the general assembly. This was the commencement
of his political career. In the year following he was ap-

SAMUEL HUNTINGTON. 171

pointed to the office of king's attorney, the duties of which
he continued to discharge, with great fidelity, for several
years. In 1774, he became an associate judge in the supe
rior court, and soon after an assistant in the council of Con
necticut.

Mr. Huntington was among those who early and strongly
set themselves in opposition to the claims and oppressions of
the British parliament. In his opinions on national subjects,
he was eminently independent ; nor was he backward in
expressing those opinions, on every suitable occasion. His
talents and patriotism recommended him to public favour, and
in October, 1775, he was appointed by the general assembly of
Connecticut to represent that colony in the continental con
gress. In the January following, in conjunction with his dis
tinguished colleagues, Roger Sherman, Oliver Wolcott, &c.
he took his seat in that venerable body. In the subsequent
J|uly he voted in favour of the declaration of independence.

Of the continental congress, Mr. Huntington continued a
member until the year 1781, when the ill state of his health
required the relinquishment of the arduous services in which
he had been engaged for several years. These services had
been rendered still more onerous by an appointment, in 1779,
to the presidency of the congress, in which station he suc
ceeded Mr. Jay, on the appointment of the latter as minister
plenipotentiary to the court of Madrid. The honourable sta
tion of president, Mr. Huntington filled with great dignity
and distinguished ability. " In testimony of their approba
tion of his conduct in the chair, and in the execution of public
business," congress, soon after his retirement, accorded to
him the expression of their public thanks.

Thus relieved from the toils which his high official station
in congress had imposed upon him, Mr. Huntington was soon
able to resume his judicial functions in the superior court of
Connecticut, and his duties as an assistant in the council of
that state, both of which oflices had been kept vacant during
his absence.

The public, however, were unwilling long to dispense with
his services in the great national assembly. Accordingly, io

172 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

1782, he was re-elected a delegate to congress ; but eithei
feeble health, or his duties as a judge, prevented his attend
ance for that year. He was re-appointed the following yeai
to the same office, and in July resumed his seat in congress,
where he continued a conspicuous and influential member,
until November, when he finally retired from the national
assembly.

Soon after his return to his native state, he was placed at
the head of the superior court, and the following year, 1785,
was elected lieutenant governor of the state. The next year
he succeeded Governor Griswold in the office of chief magis
trate of the state, and to this office he was annually re-elected
during the remainder of his life.

The death of this excellent and distinguished man occurred
on the 5th of January, 1796, in the 64th year of his age.
His departure from the world, as might be expected, from
the even tenor of his life, and from the decided Christian
character and conversation which he had manifested, was
tranquil. He had for many years been a professor of reli
gion, and a devoted attendant upon the ordinances of the
gospel. His seat in the house of God was seldom vacant,
and, when occasion required, he was ready to lead in an ad
dress to the throne of grace, and was able to impart instruc
tion to the people, drawn from the pure oracles of God.

Such, in few words, was the religious character of Governos
Huntington. His domestic character was not less excellent
To strangers, he might appear formal. He possessed a dig
nity, and a natural reserve, which repressed the advances of
all, except his intimate friends ; but to these he was ever ac
cessible and pleasant. Few men ever possessed a greatei
share of mildness and equanimity of temper. Sentiments of
anger seem to have found no place in his breast ; nor was he
scarcely ever known to utter a word which could wound the
feelings of another, or asperse the good name of an absent
person.

To show and parade, Mr. Huntington was singularly
averse. In early life he had acquired rigid habits of econo
my, which appear to have continued during his life. Hence,

SAMUEL HUNTINGTON. 173

in his domestic arrangements, in his cliet, in his dress, his
simplicity was such as to bring upon him the charge of par
simony. The justice or injustice of this charge, we have not
the means of determining ; but the private beneficence of
Mr. Huntington is so amply attested to, that the charge of
parsimony was probably brought against him only by the
profuse.

Mr. Huntington was not connected in life untii the 30th
year of his age. At that time he married a daughter of Ebe-
nezer Devotion, the worthy minister of the town of "Wind-
ham. Having no children, Mr. Huntington adopted two of
the children of his brother, the Reverend Joseph Huntington,
one of whom afterwards became governor of Ohio ; and the
other is at present the wife of the Reverend Doctor Griffin,
president of Williams' College, in Massachusetts. The death
of Mrs. Huntington preceded that of her husband about two
years.

On the public character, or the public services of Governor
Huntington, it is unnecessary to enlarge. It is pleasant,
however, to mark the progress of such a man, from obscurity
to the exalted and dignified walks of life, and from the hum
ble occupation of a plough boy, to the deep and learned in
vestigations of the judge, and to the wise and sagacious plans
of the statesman. What was true of Mr. Huntington, in this
respect, was true of a great proportion of that phalanx of pa
triots who, during the days of our revolutionary struggle,
opposed themselves with success to British exactions and
British oppressions. They came from humble life. They
rose by the force of their native genius. Obstacles served
only to rouse their latent strength. They threw aside dis
couragements, as the skilful swimmer dashes aside the wa
ters which impede his course.

Mr. Huntington was one of these men. He had not the
advantage of family patronage, or the benefit of a liberal
education ; nor did hereditary wealth lend him her aid. But,
instead of these, he had genius, courage, and perseverance.
With the united assistance of these, he entered upon his pro
fessional course, and afterwards, on his political career. He
15*

174 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

rendered services to his country, which will long be remem
bered with gratitude ; he attained to honours with which a
high ambition might have been satisfied ; and, at length, went
down to the grave, cheered with the prospect of a happy im
mortality.

WILLIAM WILLIAMS.

THE family of WILLIAM WILLIAMS is said to have been
originally from Wales. A branch of it came to America in
the year 1630, and settled in Roxbury, Massachusetts. His
grandfather, who bore the same name, was the minister of
Hatfield, Massachusetts ; and his father, Solomon Williams,
D. D. was the minister of a parish in Lebanon, Avhere he was
settled fifty-four years. Solomon Williams, the father, mar
ried a daughter of Colonel Porter, of Hadley, by whom he
had five sons and three daughters. The sons were all libe
rally educated. Of these, Eliphalet was settled, as a minister
of the gospel, in East-Hartford, where he continued to offi
ciate for about half a century. Ezekiel was sheriff of the
county of Hartford for more than thirty years; he died a
few years since at Wethersfield, leaving behind him a cha
racter distinguished for energy and enterprise, liberality and
benevolence.

William Williams, the subject of this memoir, w?p borr» in
Lebanon, Connecticut, on the eighth of Apri1, 1731. A.t the
age of sixteen, he entered Harvard college. During his col
legiate course, he was distinguished for a diligent attention,
and, at the proper period, was honourably graduated. From
the university he returned home, and, for a considerable time,
devoted himself to theological studies, under the direction of
his father.

In September, 1755, was fought, at the head of Lake
George, a celebrated battle between the provincial troops,

WILLIAM WILLIAMS. 175

under command of major general, afterwards Sir William
Johnson, aided by a body of indians led by the celebrated
Hendrick, and a body of French Canadians and indians, com
manded by Monsieur le Baron de Dieskau. At this time, Co
lonel Epliraim Williams commanded a regiment of provincial
troops, raised by Massachusetts, with which he was engaged
in the above battle. William Williams, the subject of our
memoir, belonged to his staff.

Colonel Williams was an officer of great merit. He was
much beloved by his soldiers, and highly respected by the
people of Massachusetts, in the place where he resided.
Williams' college owes its existence to him. As he was pro
ceeding through Albany, to the head of Lake George, he
made his will in that city. In this instrument, after giving
certain legacies to his connexions, he directed that the remain
der of his land should be sold at the discretion of his execu
tors, within five years after an established peace, and that the
interest of the monies arising from the sale, together with
some other property, should be applied to the support of a
free school, in some township in the western part of Massa
chusetts. This was the origin of Williams' college. Both
the college, and the town in which it is situated, were named
after their distinguished benefactor.

Previous to the battle of Lake George, Colonel Williams
was despatched with a party of twelve hundred men, to ob
serve the motions of the French and Indian army, under BL-
ron Dieskau. He met the enemy at Rocky Brook, four miles
from Lake George. A tremendous battle now ensued. The
English soldiers fought with great courage, but at length
they were overpowered, and obliged to retreat. During the
contest, Colonel Williams was shot through the head by an
Indian, and killed. The command of the detachment now
devolved upon Colonel Whiting, of New-Haven, who succeed
ed in joining Sir William Johnson, with the force which had
escaped the power of the enemy. The issue of this day is
well known. The French army was finally repulsed, and the
Baron Dieskau was both wounded and taken prisoner.

Soon after the death of Colonel Williams, the subject of

176 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

this memoir, returned to Lebanon, where he resolved to fix
his permanent residence. In 1750, at the age of twenty-five
years, he was chosen clerk of the town of Lebanon, an office
which he continued to hold for the space of forty-five years.
About the same time, he was appointed to represent the town
in the general assembly of Connecticut. In this latter capa
city, he served a long succession of years, during which he
was often chosen clerk of the house, and not unfrequently
filled, and always with dignity and reputation, the speaker's
chair. In 1780, he was transferred to the upper house, being
elected an assistant ; an office to which he was annually re-
elected for twenty-four years. It was recorded of him, what
can probably be recorded of few, and perhaps of no other man,
that for more than ninety sessions, lie was scarcely absent
from his seat in the legislature, excepting when he was a
member of the continental congress, in 177G and 1777.

During the years last mentioned, he was a member of the
national council; and in the deliberations of that body OOA a
part, during the memorable period, when the charter of our
independence received the final approbation of congress.

At an early period of the revolution, he embarked with
great zeal in the cause of his country. During the campaign
of 1755, while at the north, he had learned a lesson, which he
did not forget. lie was at that time disgusted with the
British commanders, on account of the haughtiness of their
conduct, and the little attachment which they manifested for
his native country. The impression was powerful and last
ing. At that time he adopted the opinion, that America would
see no days of prosperity and peace, so long as British officers
should manage her affairs. On the arrival of the day, there
fore, when the revolutionary struggle commenced, and a
chance was presented of release from the British yoke, Mr.
Williams was ready to engage with ardour, in bringing about
this happy state of things. He had for several years been in
terested in mercantile pursuits. These he now relinquished,
that he might devote himself to the cause of his country. He
powerfully contributed to awaken public feeling, by several
essays on political subjects and when an occasion called him

WILLIAM WILLIAMS. 177

to speak in public, his patriotic zeal and independent spirit
were manifested, in a powerful and impressive eloquence.

Nor was Mr. Williams one of those patriots with whom
words are all. He was ready to make sacrifices, whenever
occasion required. An instance of his public spirit is recorded,
in the early part of the revolution. At this time the paper
money of the country was of so little value, that military ser
vices could not be procured for it. Mr. Williams, with great
liberality, exchanged more than two thousand dollars in
specie, for this paper, for the benefit of his country. In the
issue, he lost the whole sum.

A similar spirit of liberality marked his dealings, in the
settlement of his affairs, on the eve and during the course of
the revolution. He was peculiarly kind to debtors impover
ished by the war ; and from the widow and the fatherless,
made so by the struggle for freedom, he seldom made any
exactions, even though he himself suffered by his kindness.

At the commencement of the war, it is well known, there
was little provision made for the support of an army. There
were no public stores, no arsenals filled with warlike instru
ments, and no clothing prepared for the soldiers. For many
articles of the first necessity, resort was had to private contri
butions. The selectmen in many of the towns of Connecti
cut volunteered their services, to obtain articles for the neces
sary outfit of new recruits, for the maintenance of the families
of indigent soldiers, and to furnish supplies even for the
army itself.

Mr. Williams was, at this time, one of the selectmen of the
town of Lebanon, an office which he continued to hold
during the whole revolutionary war. No man was better
fitted for such a station, and none could have manifested more
unwearied zeal than he did, in soliciting the benefactions
of private families for the above objects. Such was his suc
cess, that he forwarded to the army more than one thousand
blankets. In many instances, families parted with their last
blanket, for the use of the soldiers in the camp ; and bullets
were made from the lead taken from the weights of clocks.
Such was the patriotism of the fathers and mothers of the
Z

178 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

land, in those days of trial. There were no comforts, which
they could not cheerfully forego, and no sacrifices which
they did not joyfully make, that the blessings of freedom
might be theirs, and might descend to their posterity.

In confirmation of the above evidence of the firmness and
patriotism of Mr. Williams, the following anecdote may be
added. Towards the close of the year 1776, the military
affairs of the colonies wore a gloomy aspect, and strong
fears began to prevail that the contest would go against
them. In this dubious state of things, the council of safety
for Connecticut was called to sit at Lebanon. Two of the
members of this council, William Ilillhouse and Benjamin
Huntington, quartered with Mr. Williams.

One evening, the conversation turned upon the gloomy
state of the country, and the probability that, after all, success
would crown the British arms. " Well," said Mr. Williams,
with great calmness, "if they succeed, it is pretty evident
what will be my fate. I have done much to prosecute the
contest, and one thing I have done, which the British will
never pardon — I have signed the Declaration of Indepen
dence. I shall be hung" Mr. Hillhouse expressed his
hope, that America would yet be successful, and his confi
dence that this would be her happy fortune. Mr. Hunting-
ton observed, that in case of ill success, he should be exempt
from the gallows, as his signature was not attached to the
declaration of independence, nor had he written any thing
against the British government. To this Mr. Williams re
plied, his eye kindling as he spoke, " Then, sir, you deserve
to be hanged, for not having done your duty."

At the age of 41, he became settled in domestic life, having
connected himself with the daughter of Jonathan Trumbull,
at that time governor of the state. His lady, it is believed,
is still living. Three children were the offspring of this
marriage. Of these children, Solomon, the eldest, died in
New-York, in 1810, a. man greatly beloved by all who had the
pleasure to know him. The only daughter is respectably
connected in Woodstock, and tLe remaining son resides in
Lebanon.

OLIVER WOLCOTT. 179

The demise of his eldest son was a great affliction to the
aged and infirm father. The intelligence produced a shock
from which he never recovered. From this time, he gradu
ally declined. Four days before his death, he lost the power
of utterance, nor was it expected that he would again speak
on this side the grave. A short time, however, previously to
his death, he called aloud for his deceased son, and requested
him to attend his dying parent. In a few moments he closed
his life. This event occurred on the *2d day of August, 1811,
in the 81st year of his age.

To this biographical sketch of Mr. Williams, we have
only to add a word, respecting his character as a Christian.
He made a profession of religion at an early age, and through
the long course of his life, he was distinguished for a humble
and consistent conduct and conversation. While yet almost
a youth, he was elected to the office of deacon, in the congre
gational church to which he belonged, an office which he re
tained during the remainder of his life. His latter days were
chiefly devoted to reading, meditation, and prayer. At length
the hour arrived, when God would take him to himself. He
gave up the ghost, in a good old age, and was gathered to
his fathers.

OLIVER WOLCOTT.

FEW families have been more distinguished in the annals
of Connecticut, than the Wolcott family. The ancestor of
this family was Henry Wolcott, an English gentleman of
considerable fortune, who was born in the year 1578. Dur
ing the progress of the Independents in England, he em
braced the principles of that sect, and hence becoming ob
noxious to the British government, he found it expedient to
emigrate to America. His emigration, with his family, took

180 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

place in 1630. They settled for a time at Dorchester, in
Massachusetts.

Mr. Wolcott is represented to have been a man of talents
and enterprise. Possessing an ample fortune, he associated
himself with John Mason, Roger Ludlow, Mr. Stoughton, and
Mr. Newberry, who were also men of wealth, in the settle
ment of Windsor, in Connecticut. About the same time, as
is well known, settlements were made at Hartford and
Mrethersneld.

In 1639, the first general assembly of Connecticut was
holden at Hartford. It was composed of delegates from the
above towns. Among these delegates was Henry Wolcott.
Since that date, down to the present time, some of the mem
bers of this distinguished family have been concerned in the
civil government of the state.

Simon Wolcott was the youngest son of Henry Wolcott.
Roger Wolcott, who is distinguished both in the civil and
military annals of the state, was the youngest son of Simon
Wolcott. Oliver Wolcott, the subject of the present me
moir, was the youngest son of Roger Wolcott. He was
born in the year 1726, and graduated at Yale College in 1747.
In this latter year he received a commission as captain in
the army, in the French war. At the head of a company,
which was raised by his own exertions, he proceeded to the
defence of the northern frontiers, where he continued until
the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle.

At this time he returned to Connecticut, and commenced
the study of medicine. He, however, never entered into the
practice of the profession, in consequence of receiving the
appointment of sheriff of the county of Litchfield, which
was organized about the year 1751.

In 1774 he was appointed an assistant in the council of the
state. This may be considered as the commencement of his
political career. To the office of assistant, he continued to
be annually re-elected till 1786. In the interval, he was for
some time chief judge of the court of common pleas for the
county, and judge of the court of probate for the district of
Litchfield

OLIVER WOLCOTT. 181

In the revolutionary contest, Mr. Wolcott was one of the
strong pillars of the American cause. He inherited much of
the independent feeling of the ancestor of the family, of
whom we have spoken in the commencement of this me
moir. In 1776, he was summoned by his native state to re
present it in the national congress in Philadelphia. He had
the honour of participating in the deliberations of that body,
on the declaration of independence, and of recording his
vote in favour of its adoption.

Immediately after the adoption of that instrument, he re
turned to Connecticut, and was now invested with the com
mand of fourteen regiments of the state militia, which were
raised for the defence of New- York. In November, he re
sumed his seat in congress, and on the adjournment of that
body to Baltimore, he accompanied them, and there spent
the winter of 1777. In the ensuing summer, he was engaged
in several military movements ; after which, he joined the
northern army, under General Gates, with a corps of several
hundred volunteers, and assisted in the memorable defeat of
the British army under General Burgoyne. From this period,
until 1786, he was either in attendance upon congress, in the
field in defence of his country, or, as a commissioner of indian
affairs for the northern department, he was assisting in
settling the terms of peace with the six nations. In 1786 he
was elected lieutenant governor, an office to which he was
annually elected for ten years, when he was raised to the
chief magistracy of the state. This latter office, however,
he enjoyed but a little time, death putting an end to his active
and laborious life, on the first of December, 1797, in the 72d
year of his age.

The life of Mr. Wolcott was extended beyond the common
age of man, but it was well filled with honourable services
for his country. He merited and received the confidence of
his fellow citizens. In his person, he was tall, and had the
appearance of great muscular strength. His manners were
dignified. He had great resolution of character, and might
be said to be tenacious of his own opinions; yet he could
surrender them, in view of evidence, and was ready to alter

16

182 CONNECTICUT DELEGATION.

a course which he had prescribed for himself, when duty and
propriety seemed to require it.

In 1755, he was married to a Miss Collins, of Guilford,
with whom he enjoyed great domestic felicity, for the space
of forty years. Few women were better qualified for the
discharge of domestic duties, than was Mrs. Wolcott. During
the long absence of her husband, she superintended the edu
cation of her children, and by her prudence and frugality ad
ministered to the necessities of her family, and rendered her
house the seat of comfort and hospitality.

Mr. Wolcott never pursued any of the learned professions,
yet his reading was various and extensive. He cultivated an
acquaintance with the sciences, through the works of some
of the most learned men of Europe, and was intimately ac
quainted with history, both ancient and modern. He has
the reputation, and it is believed justly, of having been an
accomplished scholar.

Mr. Wolcott was also distinguished for his love of order
and religion. In his last sickness he expressed, according to
Dr. Backus, who preached his funeral sermon, a deep sense
of his personal unworthiness and guilt. For several days
before his departure, every breath seemed to bring with it a
prayer. At length, he fell asleep. He was an old man, and
full of years, and went to his grave distinguished for a long-
series of services rendered both to his state and nation. The
memory of his personal worth, of his patriotism, his in
tegrity, his Christian walk and conversation, will go down tu
generations yet unborn.

THE

JTEW-YORK DELEGATION-

FLOYD,
PHILIP LIVINGSTON,
FRANCIS LEWIS,
LEWIS MORRIS,
HENRY MISNER.*

WILLIAM FLOYD.

WILLIAM FLOYD, who was the first delegate from New-
York that signed the Declaration of Independence, was born
on Long Island, on the 17th of December, 1734. His father
was Nicoll Floyd, an opulent and respectable landholder,
whose ancestors came to America from Wales, about the
year 1680, and settled on Long Island. The father of Wil
liam died while his son was young, and left him heir to a
large estate.

The early education of young Floyd, by no means corres
ponded to the wealth and ability of his father. His studies
were limited to a few of the useful branches of knowledge,
and these were left unfinished, in consequence of the death
of that gentleman. The native powers of Floyd were, how
ever, respectable, and his house being the resort of an exten

* This gentleman was present when congress expressed their approbation
of the Declaration of Independence, and voted in favour of it. But, before
the engrossed copy was signed by Mic several members, Mr. Misncr left
congress, and thus failed of aflixing his name to this memorable instrument.

184 NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

sive circle of connexions and acquaintance, which included
many intelligent and distinguished families, his mind, by the
intercourse which he thus enjoyed with those who were en
lightened and improved, became stored with rich and varied
knowledge. His wealth enabled him to practice a generous
hospitality, and few enjoyed the society of friends with more
pleasure.

At an early period in the controversy between Great Bri
tain and the colonies, the feelings of Mr. Floyd were strongly
enlisted in the cause of the latter. He was a friend to the
people ; and, with zeal and ardour, entered into every mea
sure which seemed calculated to ensure to them their just
rights. These sentiments on his part excited a reciprocal
confidence on the part of the people, and led to his appoint
ment as a delegate from New-York to the first continental
congress, which met in Philadelphia on the fifth of Septem
ber, 1774. In the measures adopted by that body, so justly
eulogized by the advocates of freedom, from that day to the
present, Mr. Floyd most heartily concurred.

In the following year, he was again elected a delegate to
congress, and continued a member of that body until after the
Declaration of American Independence. On that occasion,
he assisted in dissolving the political bonds which had united
the colonies to the British government ; and in consequence
of which, they had suffered numberless oppressions for years.
Into other measures of congress, Mr. Floyd entered with
zeal. He served on numerous important committees, and
by his fidelity rendered essential service to the patriotic
cause.

It was the lot of not a few, while thus devoted to the pub
lic good, to experience the destructive effects of the war
upon their property, or the serious inconveniences arising
from it in relation to their families. In both these respects
Mr. Floyd suffered severely. While at Philadelphia, attend
ing upon congress, the American troops evacuated Long
Island, which was taken possession of by the British army.
On this latter event, the family of Mr. Floyd were obliged to
flee for safety to Connecticut. His house was occupied by a

WILLIAM FLOYD. 185

company of horsemen, which made it the place of their ren
dezvous during the remainder of the war. Thus, for nearly
seven years, Mr. Floyd and his family were refugees from
their habitation, nor did he, during this long perod, derive
any benefit from his landed estate.

In the year 1777, General Floyd (we give him this military
appellation, from the circumstance of his having some time
before been appointed to the command of the militia on
Long Island) was appointed a senator of the state of New-
York, under the new constitution. In this body, he assisted
to organize the government, and to accommodate the code
of laws to the changes which had recently been effected in
the political condition of the state.

In October, 1778, he was again elected to represent the
state of New-York in the continental congress. From this
time, until the expiration of the first congress, under the
federal constitution, General Floyd was either a member of
the national assembly, or a member of the senate of New-
York. In this latter body, he maintained a distinguished
rank, and was often called to preside over its deliberations,
when the lieutenant governor left the chair.

In 1784, he purchased an uninhabited tract of land upon
the Mohawk River To the clearing and subduing of this
tract, he devoted the leisure of several successive summers.
Under his skilful management, and persevering labours, a
considerable portion of the tract was converted into a well
cultivated farm ; arid hither, in 1803, he removed his resi
dence. Although, at this time, he was advanced in life, his
bodily strength and activity were much greater than often
pertain to men of fewer years. He enjoyed unusual health,
until a year or two before his death. The faculties of his
mind continued unimpaired to the last. A little previous to
nis death, he appeared to be affected with a general debility,
which continuing to increase, the lamp of life was at length
extinguished. This event occurred on the 4th of August,
1821, ana when he had attained to the extraordinary age of
eighty-seven years.

In his person, General Floyd was of a middle stature. He
2 A 16*

186 NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

possessed a natural dignity, which seldom failed to impress
those into whose company he was thrown. He appeared to
enjoy the pleasures of private life, yet in his manners he was
less familiar, and in his disposition less affable, than most
men. Few men, however, were more respected. He was
eminently a practical man. The projects to which he gave
his sanction, or which he attempted, were those which judg
ment could approve. When his purposes were once formed,
he seldom found reason to alter them. His firmness and re
solution were not often equalled.

In his political character, there was much to admire. He
was uniform and independent. He manifested great candour
and sincerity towards those from whom he happened to dif
fer ; and such was his well known integrity, that his motives
were rarely, if ever, impeached. He seldom took part in the
public discussion of a subject, nor was he dependent upon
others for the opinions which he adopted. His views were
his own, and his opinions the result of reason and reflection.
If the public estimation of a man be a just criterion by which
to judge of him, General Floyd was excelled by few of his
contemporaries, since, for more than fifty years he was ho
noured with offices of trust and responsibility by his fellow
citizens.

PHILIP LIVINGSTON.

PHILIP LIVINGSTON was born at Albany, on the fifteenth
of January, 1716. His ancestors were highly respectable, and
for several generations the family have held a distinguished
rank in New-York. His great grandfather, John Livingston,
was a divine of some celebrity in the church of Scotland,
from which country he removed to Rotterdam in the year
1663. In 1772, or about that time, his son Robert emigrated
to America, and settled in the colony of New-York, He was

PHILIP LIVINGSTON. 187

fortunate in obtaining a grant of a tract of land in that colo
ny, delightfully situated on the banks of the Hudson. This
tract, since known as the Manor of Livingston, has been in
possession of the family from that time to the present.

Robert Livingston had three sons, Philip, Robert, and
Gilbert. The first named of these, being the eldest, inherit
ed the manor. The fourth son of this latter is the subject of
the present memoir.

The settlement of New-York, it is well known, was com
menced by the Dutch. For many years scarcely any atten
tion was paid by them to the subject of education. They
had few schools, few academies, and, until the year 1754, no
college in the territory. Such gentlemen as gave their sons
a liberal education, sent them either to New-England, or to
some foreign university. But the number of liberally edu
cated men was extremely small. As late as 1746, their num
ber did not exceed fifteen in the whole colony. The subject
of this memoir, and his three brothers, were included in the
number. The author is ignorant where the brothers of Mr.
Livingston received their education, but he was himself gra
duated at Yale College, 1737.

Soon after leaving college he settled in the city ot New-
York, where he became extensively engaged in commercial
operations. Mercantile life was, at this time, the fashionable
purs ait. Mr. Livingston followed it with great ardour ; and,
having the advantage of an excellent education, and being
distinguished for a more than ordinary share of integrity and
sagacity, he was prosperous in an eminent degree.

In 1754, he was elected an alderman in the city of New-
York. This was his first appearance in public life. The
office was important and respectable. The population of
the city was ten thousand eight hundred and eighty-one
souls. Mr. Livingston continued to be elected to this office
for nine successive years, by his fellow citizens, to whom he
gave great satisfaction, by his faithful attention to their in
terests.

In 1759, Mr. Livingston was returned a member from the
of New-York to the general assembly of the colony,

188 NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

which was convened on the- thirty-first of January of that
year. This body consisted of twenty-seven members, repre
senting a population of about one hundred thousand inhabit
ants, the number which the colony at that time confined.

At this period, Great Britain was engaged in a war with
France. A plan had been formed for the reduction of Cana
da by the United Colonies. For this object, it was proposed
to raise twenty thousand men. The quota of New-York was
two thousand six hundred and eighty. This number the
general assembly directed to be raised, and appropriated one
hundred thousand pounds for the support of the troops, and
ordered an advance of one hundred and fifty thousand pounds
to the British commissariat, for the general objects of the
expedition. Similar measures were adopted by the other
colonies, which, together with the assistance of the mother
country, led to the capture of several important posts in Ca
nada ; and, in the following year, to the subjugation of the
whole territory to the British power.

In this assembly, Mr. Livingston acted a distinguished
part. His talents and education gave him influence, which
was powerfully exerted in promoting the above important
measures. He als«» suggested several plans, which were cal
culated to improve the condition of the colony, particularly
in relation to agriculture and commerce. He was deeply
impressed with the importance of giving to the productions
of the country a high character in the markets abroad, and
of increasing the facilities of communication with other coun
tries. In respect to these and other subjects, he possessed a
well informed mind, and was desirous of pursuing a most libe
ral policy.

Previous to the revolution, it was usual for the respective
colonies to have an agent in England, to manage their indi
vidual concerns with the British government. This agent
was appointed by the popular branch of the colonial assem
blies. In 1770, the agent of the colony of New-York dying,
the celebrated Edmund Burke was chosen in his stead. Be
tween this gentleman and a committee of the colonial as
sembly, a correspondence was maintained. As the agent

PHILIP LIVINGSTON. 189

of the colony, he received a salary of five hundred pounds.
He represented the colony in England, and advocated her
rights. Hence the office was one of great importance. Not
less important were the duties of the committee of correspon
dence. Upon their representations, the agent depended for
a knowledge of the state of the colony. Of this committee
Mr. Livingston was a member. From his communications,
and those of his colleagues, Mr. Burke doubtless obtained
that information of the state of the colonies, which he some
times brought forward, to the perfect surprise of the house
of commons, and upon which he often founded arguments,
and proposed measures, which were not to be resisted.

The patriotic character and sentiments of Mr. Livingston,
led him to regard, with great jealousy, the power of the Bri
tish government over the colonies. With other patriots, he
was probably willing to submit to the authority of the mother
country, while that authority was confined to such acts asrea
son and justice approved. But, when the British ministers
began to evince a disposition to oppress the colonies, by way
of humbling them, no man manifested a stronger opposition
than Mr. Livingston. His sentiments on this subject may be
gathered from an answer, which he reported in 1764, to the
speech of Lieutenant Governor Golden. In the extract we
give, may be seen the very spirit of the revolution, which led
to American independence.

" But nothing can add to the pleasure we receive from the
information your honour gives us, that his majesty, our most
gracious sovereign, distinguishes and approves our conduct.
When his service requires it, we shall ever be ready to exert our
selves with loyalty, fidelity, and zeal ; and as we have always
complied, in the most dutiful manner, with every requisi
tion made by his directions, we, with all humility, hope tha
his majesty, who, and whose ancestors, have long been the
guardians of British liberty, will so protect us in our rights,
as to prevent our falling into the abject state of being forever
hereafter incapable of doing what can merit either his distinc
tion or approbation. Such must be the deplorable state of
that wretched people, who (being taxed by a power subordi-

190 NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

nate to none, and in a great degree unacquainted with their
circumstances) can call nothing their own. This we speak
with the greatest deference to the wisdom and justice of the
British parliament, in which we confide. Depressed with this
prospect of inevitable ruin, by the alarming information we
have from home, neither we nor our constituents can attend
to improvements, conducive either to the interests of our mo
ther country, or of this colony. We shall, however, renew
the act for granting a bounty on hemp, still hoping that a stop
may be put to those measures, which, if carried into execu
tion, will oblige us to think that nothing but extreme poverty
can preserve us from the most insupportable bondage. We
hope your honour will join with us in an endeavour to secure
that great badge of English liberty, of being taxed only with
OUT own consent ; which we conceive all his majesty's sub
jects at home and abroad equally entitled to."

The colony of New-York, it is well known, was, for a
time, more under the influence of the British crown than se
veral others, and more slowly, as a colony, adopted measures
which hastened forward the revolution. But all along, there
were individuals in that colony, of kindred feelings with those
who acted so conspicuous a part in Massachusetts and Vir
ginia.

Among these individuals, none possessed a more patriotic
spirit, or was more ready to rise in opposition to British ag
gressions, than Philip Livingston. The sentiments which he
had avowed, and the distinguished part which he had all along
taken, in favour of the rights of the colonies, marked him out
as a proper person to represent the colony in the important
congress of 1774. In the deliberations of this body he bore
his proper share, and assisted in preparing an address to the
people of Great Britain.

Of the equally distinguished congress of 1776, Mr. Living
ston was a member, and had the honour of jnvino- his vote in

7 o o

favour of that declaration, which, while it was destined to per
petuate the memory of the illustrious men who adopted it,
was to prove the charter of our national existence. In the
following year, he was re-elected to congress by the state

PHILIP LIVINGSTON. 191

convention, which, at this time, tendered to him and his col
leagues an expression of public thanks, for the long and faith
ful services which they had rendered to the colony of the
state of New- York.

The constitution of the state of New- York was adopted at
Kingston, on the twentieth of April, 1777. Under this
constitution, Mr. Livingston, in May following, was chosen
a senator for the southern district, and in that capacity at
tended the first meeting of the first legislature of the state oi
New-York.

In October of the same year, an election took place for
members of congress, under the new constitution. Among
the number chosen, Mr. Livingston was one. On the 5th
of May, 1778, he took his seat in that body. This was an
eminently critical and gloomy period in the history of the re
volution. The British had taken possession of Philadelphia,
compelling congress to retire from that city. They had
agreed to hold a session at York.

At this time, the health of Mr. Livingston was exceedingly
precarious. And such was the nature of his complaint, which
was a dropsy in the chest, that no rational prospect existed
of his recovery. Indeed, he was daily liable to be summoned
from the active scenes of life to his final account. Yet, in
this dubious and anxious state, his love to his country conti
nued strong and unwavering. For her good he had made
many sacrifices ; and, now that her interests seemed to re
quire his presence in congress, he hesitated not to relinquish
the comforts of home, and those attentions which, in his fee
ble and declining state, he peculiarly needed from a beloved
family.

Previous to his departure, he visited his friends in Albany,
whom he now bid a final farewell, as he expected to see them
no more. His family, at this time, were at Kingston, whi
ther they had been obliged to .flee to escape the British army.
To these, also, he bid an affectionate adieu, at the same time
expressing his conviction, that he should no more return.

These sad anticipations proved too true. On the fifth
of May, he took his seat in congress, from which time his de-

192 NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

cline was rapid. On the twelfth of June, he ended his valu
able life. Although deprived of the consolations of home,
he was attended, during the few last days of his illness, by
his son, Henry, who was at that time a member of General
Washington's family. Hearing of the illness of his father,
he hastened to administer such comforts as might be in his
power, and to perform the last duties to a dying parent.

On the day of his decease, his death was announced in the
hall of congress, and by that body the following resolutions
adopted :

" Congress being informed that Mr. P. Livingston, one of
the delegates for the state of New-York, died last night, and
that circumstances require that his corpse be interred this
evening,

" Resolved, that congress will in a body attend the funeral
this evening, at six o'clock, with a crape round the arm, and
will continue in mourning for the space of one month.

" Ordered, that Mr. Lewis, Mr. Duer, and Mr. G. Morris,
be a committee to superintend the funeral ; and that the Rev.
Mr. Duffield, the attending chaplain, be notified to officiate on
the occasion."

Mr. Livingston married the daughter of Colonel DirckTen
Broeck, by whom he had several children. His family has
furnished several characters who have adorned society, and
whose virtues have imparted dignity to human nature. Mr.
Livingston is said to have been naturally silent and reserved,
and, to strangers, to have appeared austere. Yet he was un
commonly mild and affectionate to his family and friends.
He was a firm believer in the great truths of the Christian
system, and a sincere and humble follower of the divine Re
deemer.

FRANCIS LEWIS. 193

FRANCIS LEWIS.

FRANCIS LEWIS was a native of Landaff, in South Wales,
where he was born in the year 1713. His father was a
clergyman, belonging to the established church. His mo
ther was the daughter of Dr. Pettingal, who was also a
clergyman of the episcopal establishment, and had his resi
dence in North Wales. At the early age of four or five years,
being left an orphan, the care of him devolved upon a mater
nal maiden aunt, who took singular pains to have him in
structed in the native language of his country. He was
afterwards sent to Scotland, where, in the family of a relation,
he acquired a knowledge of the Gaelic. From this, he was
transferred to the school of Westminster, where he completed
his education ; and enjoyed the reputation of being a good
classical scholar.

Mercantile pursuits being his object, he entered the count
ing room of a London merchant ; where, in a few years, he
acquired a competent knowledge of the profession. On at
taining to the age of twenty-one years, he collected the property
which had been left him by his father, and having converted it
into merchandise, he sailed for New-York, where he arrived
in the spring of 1735.

Leaving a part of his goods to be sold in New- York, by
Mr. Edward Annesly, with whom he had formed a commer
cial connexion, he transported the remainder to Philadelphia,
whence, after a residence of two years, he returned to the
former city, and there became extensively engaged in naviga
tion and foreign trade. About this time he connected him
self by marriage with the sister of his partner, by whom ho
had several children.

Mr. Lewis acquired the character of an active and enter
prising merchant. In the course of his commercial transac
tions, he traversed a considerable part of the continent of
Europe. He visited several of the seaports of Russia, the
Orkney and Shetland Islands, and twice suffered shipwreck
of the Irish coast.

SB 17

194 NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

During the French or Canadian war, Mr. Lewis was, for
a time, agent for supplying the British troops. In this capa
city, he was present at the time, when, in August, 1756, the
fort of Oswego was surrendered to the distinguished French
general, de Montcalm. The fort was, at that time, command
ed by the British Colonel Mersey. On the tenth of August,
Montcalm approached it with more than five thousand Europe
ans, Canadians, and Indians. On the twelfth, at midnight,
he opened the trenches, with thirty-two pieces of cannon, be
sides several brass mortars and howitzers. The garrison
having fired away all their shells and ammunition. Colonel
Mersey ordered the cannon to be spiked, and crossed the rivei
to Little Oswego Fort, without the loss of a single man. Oi
the deserted fort, the enemy took immediate possession, and
from it began a fire, which was kept up without intermission.
The next day, Colonel Mersey was killed while standing by
the side of Mr. Lewis.

The garrison, being thus deprived of their commander,
their fort destitute of a cover, and no prospect of aid present
ing itself, demanded a capitulation, and surrendered as prison
ers of war. The garrison consisted at this time of the re
giments of Shirley and Pepperell, and amounted to one thou
sand and four hundred men. The conditions required, and
acceded to, were, that they should be exempted from plunder,
conducted to Montreal, and treated with humanity. The
services rendered by Mr. Lewis, during the war, were
held in such consideration by the British government, that
at the close of it he received a grant of five thousand acres
of land.

The conditions, upon which the garrison at Fort Oswego
surrendered to Montcalm, were shamefully violated by that
commander. They were assured of kind treatment ; but no
sooner had the surrender been made, than Montcalm allowed
the chief warrior of the Indians, who assisted in taking the
fort, to select about thirty of the prisoners, and do with
them as he pleased. Of this number Mr. Lewis was one.
Placed thus at the disposal of savage power, a speedy and
cruel death was to be expected. The tradition is, however

FRANCIS LEWIS. 195

that he soon discovered that he was able to converse with
the indians, by reason of the similarity of the ancient lan
guage of Wales, which he understood, to the indian dialect.
The ability of Mr. Lewis, thus readily to communicate with
the chief, so pleased the latter, that he treated him kindly ;
and on arriving at Montreal, he requested the French go
vernor to allow him to return to his family, without ransom.
The request, however, was not granted, and Mr. Lewis
was sent as a prisoner to France, from which country,
being some time after exchanged, he returned to America.

This tradition as to the cause of the liberation of Mr.
Lewis, is incorrect ; no such affinity existing between the
Cymreag, or ancient language of Wales, and the language of
any of the indian tribes found in North America. The cause
might have been, and probably was, some unusual occurrence,
or adventure ; but of its precise nature we are not informed.

Although Mr. Lewis was not born in America, his attach
ment to the country was coeval with his settlement in it.
He early espoused the patriotic cause, against the encroach
ments of the British government, and was among the first to
unite with an association, which existed in several parts ot
the country, called the " sons of liberty," the object of which
was to concert measures against the exercise of an undue
power on the part of the mother country.

The independent and patriotic character which Mr. Lewis
was known to possess, the uniform integrity of his life, the
distinguished intellectual powers with which he was en
dued, all pointed him out as a proper person to assist in ta
king charge of the interest of the colony in the continental
congress. Accordingly, in April, 1775, he was unanimously
elected a delegate to that body. In this honourable station he
was continued by the provincial congress of New-York,
through the following year, 1776; and was among the num
ber who declared the colonies forever absolved from their
allegiance to the British crown, and from that time en
titled to the rank and privileges of free and independent
states.

In several subsequent years, he was appointed to represent

196 NEW-YORK. DELEGATION.

the state in the national legislature. During his congressional
career, Mr. Lewis was distinguished for a becoming zeal in
the cause of liberty, tempered by the influence of a correct
judgment and a cautious prudence. He was employed in
several secret services ; in the purchase of provisions and
clothing for the army ; and in the importation of military
stores, particularly arms and ammunition. In transactions
of this kind, his commercial experience gave him great facili
ties. He was also employed on various committees, in
which capacity, he. rendered many valuable services to his
country.

In 1775, Mr. Lewis removed his family and effects to a
country seat which he owned on Long Island. This proved
to be an unfortunate step. In the autumn of the following
year, his house was plundered by a party of British light
horse. His extensive library and valuable papers of every
description were wantonly destroyed. Nor were they con
tented with this ruin of his property. They thirsted for re
venge upon a man, who had dared to affix his signature to a
document, which proclaimed the independence of America.
Unfortunately Mrs. Lewis fell into their power, and was re
tained a prisoner for several months. During her captivity,
she was closely confined, without even ^he comfort of a bed
to lie upon, or a change of clothes.

In November, 1776, the attention of congress was called to
her distressed condition, and shortly after a resolution was
passed that a lady, who had been taken prisoner by the Ame
ricans, should be permitted to return to her husband, and
that Mrs. Lewis be required in exchange. But the ex
change could not at that time be effected. Through the in
fluence of Washington, however, Mrs. Lewis was at length
released ; but her sufferings during her confinement had so
much impaired her constitution, that in the course of a year
or two, she sunk into the grave.

Of the subsequent life of Mr. Lewis, we have little to
record. His latter days were spent in comparative poverty,
his independent fortune having in a great measure been sac
rificed on the altar of patriotism, during his country's strug-

LEWIS MORRIS. 197

glc for independence. The life of this excellent man, and
distinguished patriot, was extended to his ninetieth year. His
death occurred on the 30th day of December, 1803.

LEWIS MORRIS.

LEWIS MORRIS was born at the manor of Morrisania, ia
the state of New York, in the year 1726. His family was of
ancient date ; the pedigree of it has been preserved ; but it is
too extended to admit of a particular notice in these pages.
Richard Morris, an ancestor of the family, beyond whom it is
unnecessary to trace its genealogy, was an officer of some dis
tinction in the time of Cromwell. At the restoration, how
ever, he left England, and came to New-York ; soon after
which he obtained a grant of several thousand acres of land,
in the county of West-Chester, not far from the city. This
was erected into a manor, and invested with the privileges,
which usually pertain to manorial estates.

Richard Morris died in the year 1673, leaving an infant
child by the name of Lewis, who afterwards held the office of
chief justice of the province of New-York, and became go
vernor of New-Jersey. In both these offices he was much
respected, and exercised an enviable influence in both these
colonies. The sons of Lewis were not less eminent ; one
being appointed a judge of the court of vice admiralty; ano
ther chief justice of New-Jersey ; and a third lieutenant go
vernor of the state of Pennsylvania.

From one of these sons, Lewis Morris, the subject of the
present memoir, was descended. He was the eldest of four
brothers. Staats became an officer in the British service, and
for some time a member of parliament. Richard and Gover-
neur both settled in the state of New- York, and both became
men of considerable distinction ; the former as judge of the

17*

198 NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

of the vice admiralty court, and chief justice of the state, and
the latter as a representative in congress.

The early education of Lewis was respectable. At the
age of sixteen he was fitted for college, and was entered
at Yale college, the honours of which he received in due
course, having acquired the reputation of good scholarship,
and a strict morality. Immediately on leaving college, he
returned to his father's residence, where he devoted himself
to the pursuits of agriculture. As he entered upon manhood,
he seems to have possessed every thing which naturally com
mands the respect, and attracts the admiration of men. His
person was of lofty stature, and of fine proportions, imparting
to kis presence an uncommon dignity, softened, however, by
a disposition unusually generous and benevolent, and by a
demeanor so graceful, that few could fail to do him homage.

Although thus apparently fitted for the enjoyment of so
ciety, Mr. Morris found his greatest pleasure in the endear
ments of domestic life, and in attention to his agricultural ope
rations. He was early married to a Miss Walton, a lady of
fortune and accomplishments, by whom he had a large family
of six sons and four daughters.

The condition of Mr. Morris, at the time the troubles of
the colonies began, was singularly felicitous. His fortune
was ample ; his pursuits in life consonant to his taste ; his
family and connexions eminently respectable, and eminently
prosperous. No change was, therefore, likely to occur which
would improve his condition, or add to the happiness which
he enjoyed. On the contrary, every collision between the
royal government and the colonies, was likely to abridge
some of his privileges, and might even strip his family of all
their domestic comforts, should he participate in the struggle
which was likely to ensue.

These considerations, no doubt, had their influence at
times upon the mind of Mr. Morris. He possessed, however,
too great a share of patriotism, to suffer private fortune, or
individual happiness, to come in competition with the interests
of his country. He could neither feel indifferent on a subject
of so much magnitude, nor could he pursue a course of neu-

LEWIS MORRIS. 199

trality. He entered, therefore, with zeal into the growing con
troversy ; he hesitated not to pronounce the measures of the
British ministry unconstitutional and tyrannical, and beyond
peaceful endurance. As the political condition of the coun
try became more gloomy, and the prospect of a resort to arms
increased, his patriotic feeling appeared to gather strength ;
and although he was desirous that the controversy should be
settled without bloodshed, yet he preferred the latter alterna
tive, to the surrender of those rights which the God of nature
had given to the American people.

About this time, the celebrated congress of 1774 assembled
at New-York. Of this congress Mr. Morris was not a mem
ber. He possessed a spirit too bold and independent, to act
with the prudence which the situation of the country seemed
to require. The object of this congress was not war, bul
peace. That object, however, it is well known, failed, not
withstanding that an universal desire pervaded the country,
that a compromise might be effected between the colonies
and the British government, and was made known to the lat
ter, by a dignified address, both to the king and to the people
of Great Britain.

In the spring of 1775, it was no longer doubtful that a re
sort must be had to arms. Indeed, the battle of Lexington
had opened the war ; shortly after which the New-York con
vention of deputies were assembled to appoint delegates to
the general congress. Men of a zealous, bold, and indepen
dent stamp, appeared now to be required. It was not singu
lar, therefore, that Mr. Morris should have been elected.

On the 15th of May, he took his seat in that body, and
eminently contributed, by his indefatigable zeal, to promote
-*he interests of the country. He was placed on a committee
of which Washington was the chairman, to devise ways and
means to supply the colonies with ammunition and military
stores, of which they were nearly destitute. The labours of
this committee were exceedingly arduous.

During this session of congress, Mr. Morris was appointed
to the delicate and difficult task of detaching the western
Indians from a coalition with the British government, and

200 NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

securing their co-operation with the American colonies.
Soon after his appointment to this duty, he repaired to Pitts
burg, in which place, and the vicinity, he continued for some
time zealously engaged in accomplishing the object of his
mission. In the beginning of the year 1776, he resumed his
seat in congress, and was a member of several committees,
which were appointed to purchase muskets and bayonets,
and to encourage the manufacture of salt-petre and gun
powder.

During the winter of 1775 and 1776, the subject of a De
claration of Independence began to occupy the thoughts of
many in all parts of the country. Such a declaration seemed
manifestly desirable to the leading patriots of the day, but
an unwillingness prevailed extensively in the country, to
destroy all connexion with Great Britain. In none of the
colonies was this unwillingness more apparent than in New-
York.

The reason which has been assigned for this strong reluc
tance in that colony, was the peculiar intimacy which existed
between the people of the city and the officers of the royal
government. The military officers, in particular, had ren
dered themselves very acceptable to the citizens, by their
urbanity ; and had even formed connexions with some of the
most respectable families.

This intercourse continued even after the commencement
of hostilities, and occasioned the reluctance which existed in
that colony to separate from the mother country. Even as
late as the middle of March, 1776, Governor Tryon, although
he had been forced to retreat on board a British armed vessel
in the harbour for safety, had great influence over the citi
zens, by means of artful and insinuating addresses, which he
caused to be published and spread through the city. The fol
lowing extract from one of these addresses, will convey to
the reader some idea of the art employed by this minister of
the crown, to prevent the people of that colony from mingling
in the struggle.

"It is in the clemency and authority of Great Britain only
that we can look for happiness, peace, and protection; and I

LEWIS MORRIS. 201

have it in command from the king, to encourage, by every
means in my power, the expectations in his majesty's well-
disposed subjects in this government, of every assistance and
protection the state of Great Britain will enable his majesty
to afford them, and to crush every appearance of a disposi
tion, on their part, to withstand the tyranny and misrule,
which accompany the acts of those who have but too well,
hitherto, succeeded in the total subversion of legal govern
ment. Under such assurances, therefore, I exhort all the
friends to good order, and our justly admired constitution, still
to preserve that constancy of mind which is inherent in the
breasts of virtuous and loyal citizens, and, I trust, a very few
months will relieve them from their present oppressed, in
jured, and insulted condition.

"I have the satisfaction to inform you, that a door is still
open to such honest, but deluded people, as will avail them
selves of the justice and benevolence, which the supreme le
gislature has held out to them, of being restored to the king's
grace and peace ; and that proper steps have been taken for
passing a commission for that purpose, under the great seal
of Great Britain, in conformity to a provision in a late act of
parliament, the commissioners thereby to be appointed having,
also, power to inquire into the state and condition of the colo
nies for effecting a restoration of the public tranquillity. "

To prevent an intercourse between the citizens and the
fleet, so injurious to the patriotic cause, timely measures
were adopted by the committee of safety ; but for a long
time no efforts were availing, and even after General Wash
ington had established his head-quarters at New-York, he
was obliged to issue his proclamation, interdicting all inter
course and correspondence with the ships of war and other
vessels belonging to the king of Great Britain.

But, notwithstanding this prevalent aversion to a separation
from Great Britain, there were many in the colony who
believed that a declaration of independence was not only a
point of political expediency, but a matter of paramount
duty. Of this latter class, Mr. Morris was one ; and, in
giving his vote for that declaration, he exhibited a patriotism
2C

203 NEW-YORK DELEGATION.

and disinterestedness which few lhad it in their power to dia
play. He was at this time in possession of an extensive domain,
within a few miles of the city of New-York. A British
army had already landed from their ships, which lay within
cannon shot of the dwelling of his family. A signature to
the Declaration of Independence would insure the devasta
tion of the former, and the destruction of the latter. But,
upon the ruin of his individual property, he could look with
comparative indifference, while he knew that his honour was
untarnished, and the interests of his country were safe. He
voted, therefore, for a separation from the mother country, in
the spirit of a man of honour, and of enlarged benevolence.

It happened as was anticipated. The hostile army soon
spread desolation over the beautiful and fertile manor of Mor-
risania. His tract of woodland of more than a thousand
acres in extent5 and, from its proximity to the city, of incal
culable value, was destroyed ; his house was greatly injured;
his fences ruined ; his stock driven away ; and his family obliged
to live in a state of exile. Few men during the revolution
were called to make greater sacrifices than Mr. Morris; none
made them more cheerfully. It made some amends for his
losses and sacrifices, that the colony of New- York, which
had been backward in agreeing to a Declaration of Indepen
dence, unanimously concurred in that measure by her con
vention, when it was learned that congress had taken that
step.

It imparts pleasure to record, that the three eldest sons
of Mr. Morris followed the noble example of their father,
and gave their personal services to their country, during the
revolutionary struggle. One served for a time a? aid-de-camp
to General Sullivan, but afterwards entered the family of
General Greene, and was with that officer during his brilliant
campaign in the Carolinas ; the second son was appointed
aid-de-camp to General Charles Lee, and was present at the
gallant defence of Fort Moultrie, where he greatly distin
guished himself. The youngest of these sons, though but a
youth, entered the army as a lieutenant of artillery, and
honourably served during the war.

LEWIS MORRIS. 203

Mr. Morris left congress in 1777, at which time, he re
ceived, together with his colleagues, the thanks of the pro
vincial convention, " for their long and faithful services ren
dered to the colony of New-York, and the said state."

In subsequent years, Mr. Morris served his state in various
ways. He was often a member of the state legislature, and
rose to the rank of major general of the militia.

The latter years of Mr. Morris were passed at his favourite
residence at Morrisania, where he devoted himself to the
noiseless, but happy pursuit of agriculture ; a kind of life to
which he was much attached, and which was an appropriate
mode of closing a long life, devoted to the cause of his coun
try. He died on his paternal estate at Morrisania, in the
bosom of his family, January, 1798, at the good old age of
seventy-one years.

THE

NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

RICHARD STOCKTON,
JOHN WITHERSPOON,
FRANCIS HOPKINSON,
JOHN HART,
ABRAHAM CLARK.

RICHARD STOCKTON.

THE first of the New-Jersey delegation, who signed the
Declaration of Independence, was Richard Stockton. He
was born near Princeton, on the 1st day of October, 1730.
His family was ancient and respectable. His great grand
father, who bore the same name, came from England, about
the year 1670, and after residing a few years on Long Island,
removed with a number of associates to an extensive tract
of land, of which the present village of Princeton is nearly
the centre. This tract consisted of six thousand and four
hundred acres. This gentleman died in the year 1705, leav
ing handsome legacies to his several children ; but the chief
portion of his landed estate to his son, Richard. The death
of Richard followed in 1720. He was succeeded in the
family seat by his youngest son, John; a man distinguished
for his moral and religious character, for his liberality to the
college of New-Jersey, and for great fidelity in the discharge
of the duties of public and private life.

Richard Stockton, the subject of the present memoir, was
the eldest son of the last mentioned gentleman. His early

RICHARD STOCKTON. 205

education was highly respectable, being superintended by
that accomplished scholar, Rev. Dr. Samuel Finley, in a ce
lebrated academy at West-Nottingham. His preliminary
studies being finished, he entered the college of New-Jersey,
whose honours he received in 1748. He was even at this
time greatly distinguished for intellectual superiority ; giving
promise of future eminence in any profession he might
choose.

On leaving college, he commenced the study of law with
the honourable David Ogclen, of Ne\vark, at that time at the
head of the legal profession in the province. At length, Mr.
Stockton was admitted to the bar, and soon rose, as had been
anticipated, to great distinction, both as a counsellor and an
advocate. He was an able reasoner, and equally distinguish
ed for an easy, and, at the same time, impressive eloquence.

In 1766 and 1767, he relinquished his professional busi
ness, for the purpose of visiting England, Scotland, and Ire
land. During his tour through those countries, he was re
ceived with that attention to which he was eminently entitled,
by the estimable character which he had sustained at home,
and his high professional reputation. He was presented at
court, by a minister of the king, and had the honour of being
consulted on American affairs, by the Marquis of Rocking-
ham, by the Earl of Chatham, and many other distinguished
personages.

On visiting Edinburgh, he was received with still greater
attention. He was complimented with a public dinner, by
the authorities of that city, the freedom of which was unani
mously conferred upon him, as a testimony of respect for his
distinguished character.

A short time previous, the presidency of New-Jersey col
lege had been conferred upon the Reverend Dr. Wither-
spoon, a distinguished divine, of the town of Paisley, in the
vicinity of Glasgow. This appointment Dr. Witherspoon
had been induced to decline, by reason of the reluctance of
the female members of his family to emigrate to America.
At the request of the trustees of the college, Mr. Stockton
dsited Dr. Witherspoon, and was so fortunate in removing
18

206 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

objections, that not long after the latter gentleman accepted
the appointment, and removed to America, where he became
a distinguished supporter of the college over which he pre
sided, a friend to religion and science in the country, and one
of the strong pillars in the temple of American freedom.

The following instances in which Mr. Stockton narrowly
escaped death, during his absence, deserve notice. While
he was in the city of Edinburgh, he was waylaid one night by
a furious robber. He defended himself, however, by means
of a small sword, and even succeeded in wounding the despe
rado. He was not materially injured himself, but was not so
fortunate as to prevent the escape of his assailant. In the
other case, he was designing to cross the Irish channel, and
had actually engaged a passage in a packet for that purpose.
The unseasonable arrival of his baggage, however, detained
him, and fortunate it was that he was thus detained, for the
packet, on her voyage, was shipwrecked during a storm, and
both passengers and crew found a watery grave.

The following year he was appointed one of the royal
judges of the province, and a member of the executive coun
cil. At that time he was high in the royal favour, and his
domestic felicity seemed without alloy. He possessed an
ample fortune, was surrounded by a family whom he greatly
loved, and held a high and honourable station under the king
of Great Britain.

But the time at length arrived, when the question arose,
whether he should renounce his allegiance to his sovereign,
and encounter the sacrilices which such a step must bring
upon him, or continue that allegiance, and forfeit his charac
ter as a friend to his country.

Situated as was Mr. Stockton, the above question could
not long remain unsettled ; nor was it for any length of time
doubtful into which scale he would throw the weight of his
influence and character. The sacrilices which he was called
upon to make, were cheerfully endured. He separated him
self from the royal council, of which he was a member in
New-Jersey, and joyfully concurred in all those measures
of the day, which had for their object the establishment of

RICHARD STOCKTON. 207

American rights, in opposition to the arbitrary and oppressive
acts of the British ministry.

On the twenty-first of June, 1776, he was elected by the
provincial congress of New-Jersey a delegate to the general
congress, then sitting in the city of Philadelphia. On the
occurrence of the question relating to a declaration of inde
pendence, it is understood that he had some doubts as to the
expediency of the measure. These doubts, however, were
soon dissipated by the powerful and impressive eloquence of
John Adams, the great Colossus on this subject on the floor
of congress. Mr. Stockton was not only convinced of the
importance of the measure, but even addressed the house in
its behalf, before the close of the debate. It is needless to
detain the reader by a particular mention of the many im
portant services which Mr. Stockton rendered his country,
while a member of congress. In all the duties assigned to
him, which were numerous and often arduous, he acted with
an energy and fidelity alike honourable to him as a man and
a patriot.

On the thirtieth of November he was unfortunately taken
prisoner by a party of refugee royalists. He was dragged
from his bed by night, and carried to New-York. During
his removal to the latter place he was treated with great in
dignity, and in New- York he was placed in the common
prison, where he was in want of even the necessaries of life.
The news of his capture and sufferings being made known to
congress, that body unanimously passed the following re
solution :

'* Whereas congress hath received information that the
honourable Richard Stockton, of New-Jersey, and a member
of this congress, hath been made a prisoner by the enemy,
and that he hath been ignominiously thrown into a common
goal, and there detained — Resolved, that General Washing
ton be directed to make immediate inquiry into the truth of
this report, and if he finds reason to believe it well founded,
that he send a flag to General Howe, remonstrating against
this departure from that humane procedure which has mark
ed the conduct of these states to prisoners who have fallen

208 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION*.

into their hands ; and to know of General Howe whether he
chooses this shall be the future rule for treating all such, on
both sides, as the fortune of war may place in the hands of
either party."

Mr. Stockton was at length released ; but his confinement
had been so strict, and his sufferings so severe, that his con
stitution could never after recover the shock. Besides this,
his fortune, which had been ample, was now greatly reduced.
His lands were devastated ; his papers and library were burnt;
his implements of husbandry destroyed ; and his stock seized
and driven away. He was now obliged to depend, for a
season, upon the assistance of friends, for even the necessa
ries of life. From the time of his imprisonment his health
began to fail him ; nor was it particularly benefitted by his
release, and a restoration to the society of his friends. He
continued to languish for several years, and at length died at
his residence, at Princeton, on the 28th of February, 1781,
in the fifty-third year of his age.

His death made a wide chasm among the circle of his
friends and acquaintance. He was, in every respect, a dis
tinguished man ; an honour to his country, and a friend to the
cause of science, freedom, and religion, throughout the world.
The following extract from the discourse delivered on the
occasion of his interment, by the Rev. Dr. Samuel S. Smith,
will convey to the reader a just account of this distinguished
man:

" Behold, my brethren, before your eyes, a most sensible
and affecting picture of the transitory nature of mortal things,
in the remains of a man who hath been long among the fore
most of his country for power, for wisdom, and for fortune ;
whose eloquence only wanted a theatre like Athens, to have
rivalled the Greek and the Roman fame ; and who, if what
honours this young country can bestow, if many and great
personal talents, could save man from the grave, would not
thus have been lamented here by you. Behold there * the
end of all perfection.'

"Young gentlemen, (the students of the college,) another
of the fathers of learning and eloquence is gone. He went

RICHARD STOCKTON. 209

before in the same path in which you are now treacling, and
hath since long presided over, and helped to confirm the
footsteps of those who were here labouring up the hill of
science and virtue. While you feel and deplore his loss as
a guardian of your studies, and as a model upon which you
might form yourselves for public life, let the memory of what
he was excite you to emulate his fame ; let the sight of what
he is, teach you that every thing human is marked with im
perfection.

"At the bar he practised for many years with unrivalled
reputation and success. Strictly upright in his profession,
he scorned to defend a cause that he knew to be unjust. A
friend to peace and to the happiness of mankind, he has often
with great pains and attention reconciled contending parties,
while he might fairly, by the rules of his profession, have
drawn from their litigation no inconsiderable profit to him
self. Compassionate to the injured and distressed, he hath
often protected the poor and helpless widow unrighteously
robbed of her dower, hath heard her with patience, when
many wealthier clients were waiting, and hath zealously pro
moted her interest, without the prospect of reward, unless he
could prevail to have right done to her, and to provide her
an easy competence for the rest of her days.

" Early in his life, his merits recommended him to his
prince and to his country, under the late constitution, who
called him to the first honours and trusts of the government.
In council he was wise and firm, but always prudent and mo
derate. Of this he gave a public and conspicuous instance,
almost under your own observation, when a dangerous insur
rection in a neighbouring county had driven the attorneys
from the bar, and seemed to set the laws at defiance. Whilst
all men were divided betwixt rash and timid counsels, he
only, with wisdom and firmness, seized the prudent mean,
appeased the rioters, punished the ringleaders, and restored
the laws to their regular course.

" The office of a judge of the province, was never filled
with more integrity and learning than it was by him, for
several years before the revolution. Since that period, he
2D 18*

210 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

hath represented New-Jersey in the congress of the United
States. But a declining health, and a constitution worn out
with application and with service, obliged! him, shortly after,
to retire from the line of public duty, and hath at length
dismissed him from the world.

" In his private life, he was easy and graceful in his man
ners ; in his conversation, affable and entertaining, and mas
ter of a smooth and elegant style even in his ordinary dis
course. As a man of letters, he possessed a superior genius,
highly cultivated by long and assiduous application. His
researches into the principles of morals and religion were
deep and accurate, and his knowledge of the laws of his
country extensive and profound. He was well acquainted
with all the branches of polite learning ; but he was particu
larly admired for a flowing and persuasive eloquence, by
which he long governed in the courts of justice.

" As a Christian, you know that, many years a member of
this church, he was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ.
Nor could the ridicule of licentious wits, nor the example of
vice in power, tempt him to disguise the profession of it, or
to decline from the practice of its virtues. He was, however,
liberal in his religious principles. Sensible, as became a
philosopher, of the rights of private judgment, and of the
difference in opinion that must necessarily arise from the
variety of human intellects ; he was candid, as became a
Christian, to those who differed from him, where he observed
their practice marked with virtue and piety. But if we follow
him to the last scene of his life, and consider him under that
severe arid tedious disorder which put a period to it, there
the sincerity of his piety, and the force of religion to sup
port the mind in the most terrible conflicts, was chiefly visi
ble. For nearly two years he bore with the utmost constancy
and patience, a disorder that makes us tremble only to think
of it. With most exquisite pain it preyed upon him, until it
reached the passages by which life is sustained: yet, in the
midst of as much as human nature could endure, he always
discovered a submission to the will of heaven, and a resigna-

lmon kPiLbr-ow S

JOHN WITHERSPOON. 211

tion to his fate, that could only flow from the expectation of
a better life.

" Such was the man, whose remains now lie before us, to
teach us the most interesting lessons that mortals have to
learn, the vanity of human things; the importance of eter
nity ; the holiness of the divine law ; the value of religion ;
and the certainty and rapid approach of death "

JOHN WITHERSPOON.

JOHN WITHERSPOON, a man alike distinguished as a mi
nister of the gospel, and a patriot of the revolution, was born
in the parish of Tester, a few miles from Edinburgh, on the
5th of February, 172*2. He was lineally descended from
John Knox, the Scottish reformer, of whom Mary, queen of
Scots, said, "she was more afraid of his prayers, than of an
army of ten thousand men."

The father of Mr. Witherspoon was the minister of the
parish of Yester. He was a man, eminent for his piety and
literature, and for a habit of great accuracy in his writings
and discourses. The example of the father contributed, in no
small degree, to form in his son that love of taste and simpli
city, for which he was deservedly distinguished.

He was sent, at an early age, to the public school at Had-
dington, where he soon acquired a high reputation for the na
tive soundness of his judgment, his close application to study,
and the quick and clear conceptions of his mind. Many, who
at that time were the companions of his literary toils, after
wards filled some of the highest stations in the literary and
political world.

At the age of fourteen, he was removed to the university
of Edinburgh. Here he was distinguished, as he had been at
the school of Haddington, for his great diligence and rapid
literary attainments. In the theological hall, particularly, he

NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

exhibited an uncommon taste in sacred criticism, and an unu
sual precision of thought, and perspicuity of expression. At
the age of twenty-one, he finished his collegiate studies, and
commenced preaching.

Immediately on leaving the university, he was invited to
become the minister of Tester, as colleague with his father,
with the right of succeeding to the charge. He chose, rather,
however, to accept an invitation from the parish of Beith, in
the west of Scotland, and here he was ordained and settled,
by the unanimous consent of his congregation.

Soon after his settlement at Beith, a circumstance occur
red of too interesting a nature to be omitted. On the 17th of
January, 1746, was fought the battle of Falkirk. Of this bat
tle, Dr. Witherspoon and several others were spectators. Un
fortunately, they were taken prisoners by the rebels, and shut
up in close confinement in the castle of Doune. In the same
room in which he was confined, were two cells, in one of
which were five members of a military company from Edin
burgh, who had also been taken prisoners, and two citizens
of Aberdeen, who had been threatened to be hanged as spies.
In the other cell were several others who had been made pri
soners, under circumstances similar to those of Dr. Wither
spoon.

During the night which followed their imprisonment, the
thoughts of the prisoners, who were able to communicate
with one another, were turnbd on the best means of mak
ing their escape. The room where they were confined was
the highest part of the castle, not far from the battlements,
which were seventy feet high. It was proposed to form a
rope of some blankets which they had purchased, and by
means of this to descend from the battlements to the ground.

A rope was accordingly made, in the best manner they
were able, and about one o'clock in the morning they com
menced descending upon it. Four reached the ground in
safety. Just as the fifth touched the ground the rope broke,
about twenty feet above. This unfortunate occurrence was
communicated to those who remained on the battlements, and
warning was given to them not to attempt the hazardous de-

JOHN WITHERSPOON. 213

scent In disregard, however, of the advice, the next one
whose turn it was to descend, immediately went down the
rope. On reaching the end of it, his companions below per
ceiving him determined to let go his hold, put themselves in
a posture to break his fall. They succeeded, however, only
in part. The poor fellow was seriously injured, having one
of his ancles dislocated, and several ribs broken. His com
panions, however, succeeded in conveying him to a village on
the borders of the sea, whence he was taken, by means of a
boat, to a sloop of war lying in the harbour.

The other volunteer, and Dr. Witherspoon, were left be
hind. The volunteer now drew the rope up, and to the end
of it attached several blankets. Having made it sufficiently
long, he again let it down and began his descent. He reached
the place where the rope was originally broken, in safety ;
but the blankets, which he had attached to it, being too large
for him to span, like his predecessor, he fell, and was so much
wounded, that he afterwards died. The fate of these unhap
py men induced Dr. Witherspoon to relinquish the hope of
escape in this way, and to wait for a safer mode of liberation.

From Beith, Dr. Witherspoon was translated, in the course
of a few years, to the flourishing town of Paisley, where he
was happy in the affections of a large congregation, among
whom he was eminently useful, until the period of his emi
grating to America, to take charge, as president, of the col
lege of New-Jersey.

The election of Dr. Witherspoon to the presidency of the
above college, occurred in the year 1766. This appointment,
however, he was induced to decline, in the first instance, from
the reluctance of the female members of his family, and espe
cially of Mrs. Witherspoon, to leave the scene of their happi
ness and honour, for a land of strangers, and that land so dis
tant from her father's sepulchres.

4t a subsequent period, however, Dr. Witherspoon again
took the subject into consideration ; and at length, through the
influence and representations of Mr. Stockton, of whom we
have spoken in the preceding memoir, acceded to the wishes
of the trustees, in accepting the presidency of the college. It

214 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

reflects no small honour upon Dr. Witherspoon, that he
should consent to cross the ocean, and take charge of a col
lege in a new country, leaving behind him a sphere of great
respectability, comfort, and usefulness. Having previously
declined, it is understood, an urgent invitation to an honoura
ble station in Dublin, in Rotterdam, and in the town of Dun
dee, in his own country. It deserves also to be mentioned,
that a little previous to his embarking for America, and while
still in a state of suspense, respecting his duty, an unmarried
gentleman of considerable fortune, and a relation of the
family, offered to make him his heir, provided he would remain
in Scotland.

Dr. Witherspoon arrived in America in August, 1768, and
in the same month was inaugurated president of the college.
The fame of his literary character caused an immediate ac
cession to the number of students, and an increase of the
funds of the college. At that time it had not been patronized
by the state. It had been founded and supported by private
liberality. At the period of Dr. Witherspoon's arrival, the
finances of the college were in a low and declining condition.
His reputation, however, in connexion with his personal ex
ertions, excited the generosity of all parts of the country,
from Massachusetts to Virginia ; in consequence of which,
the finances of the institution were soon raised to a flourishing
state. During the war of the revolution, the college was
broken up, and its resources nearly annihilated. Yet it can
scarcely be estimated how much the institution owed, at that
time, to the enterprise and talents of Dr. Witherspoon.

"But the principal advantages it derived," says Dr. Rogers,
in a discourse occasioned by his death, " were from his litera
ture, his superintendency, his example as a happy model
of good writing, and from the tone and taste which he gave
to the literary pursuits of the college."

He made great alterations in every department of instruc
tion. " He endeavoured," says the same writer, "to establish
the system of education in this institution, upon the most ex
tensive and respectable basis, that its situation and its finances
would admit. Formerly, the course of instruction had been

JOHN WITHERSPOON. 215

too superficial : and its metaphysics and philosophy were too
much tinctured with the dry and uninstructive forms of the
schools. This, however, was by no means to be imputed as
a defect to those great and excellent men who had presided
over the institution before him, but rather to the recent origin
of the country, the imperfection of its state of society, and
to the state of literature in it. Since his presidency, ma
thematical science has received an extension that was not
known before in the American seminaries. He introduced
into philosophy all the most liberal and modern improve
ments of Europe. He extended the philosophical course to
embrace the general principles of policy and public law ; he
incorporated with it sound and rational metaphysics, equally
i-emote from the doctrines of fatality and contingency, from
the barrenness and dogmatism of the schools, and from the
excessive refinements of those contradictory, but equally im
pious sects of scepticism, who wholly deny the existence of
matter, or maintain that nothing but matter exists in the
universe.

" He laid the foundation of a course of history in the col
lege, and the principles of taste, and the rules of good wri
ting, were both happily explained by him, and exemplified in
his manner" He possessed an admirable faculty for go
verning, and was very successful in exciting a good degree
of emulation among the pupils committed to his care. Un
der his auspices, many were graduated, who became distin
guished for their learning, and for the eminent services which
they rendered their countrymen as divines, as legislators, and
patriots.

On the occurrence of the American war, the college was
broken up, as has already been noticed, and the officers and
students were dispersed. Dr. Witherspoon now appeared in
a new attitude before the American public. Although a fo
reigner, he had laid aside his prejudices on becoming a citi
zen of the country, and now warmly espoused the cause of
the Americans against the English ministry. His distin
guished abilities pointed him out to the citizens of New-Jer
sey, as one of the most proper delegates to that convention

216 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

which formed their republican constitution. In this respect
able assembly he appeared, to the astonishment of all the
professors of the law, as profound a civilian as he had before
been known to be a philosopher and divine.

Early in the year 1776, he was elected a representative to
the general congress, by the people of New-Jersey. He
took his seat a few days previously to the fourtii of July, and
assisted in the deliberations on the momentous question of a
declaration of independence. Of this measure he was an ad
vocate. It was a happy reply which he made to a gentleman
who, in opposing the measure, declared that the country was
not yet ripe for a declaration of independence. " Sir," said
he, " in my judgment the country is not only ripe, but
rotting"

For the space of seven years, Dr. Witherspoon continued
to represent the people of New-Jersey in the general con
gress. He was seldom absent from his seat, and never al
lowed personal considerations to prevent his attention to of
ficial duties. Few men acted with more energy and promp
titude ; few appeared to be enriched with greater political
wisdom ; few enjoyed a greater share of public confidence ;
few accomplished more for the country, than he did, in the
sphere in which he was called to act. In the most gloomy and
formidable aspect of public affairs, he was always firm, dis
covering the greatest reach and presence of mind, in the most
embarrassing situations.

It is impossible here to particularise all, or even a small
part of the important services which he rendered his country,
during his continuance in the grand legislative council. He
served on numerous committees, where his judgment and ex
perience were of eminent importance. He seldom took part
in the discussions of public measures, until, by reason and
reflection, he had settled his ideas on the subject. He would
then come forward with great clearness and power, and sel
dom did he fail to impart light to a subject, and cause even
his opponents to hesitate. His speeches were usually com
posed in closet, and committed to memory. His memory was

JOHN WITHERSPOON. 217

unusually tenacious. He could repeat verbatim a sermon,
or a speech, composed by himself, by reading it three times.

Dr. Witherspoon, it must be admitted, was a sagacious po
litician. He indeed adopted views which, in some respects,
differed from those of his brethren in congress ; yet his prin
ciples have been justified by the result. A few examples may
be mentioned. He constantly opposed the expensive mode
of supplying the army by commission. For several years
this was the mode adopted. A certain commission per cent,
on the money that the commissioners expended, was allowed
them, as a compensation. A strong temptation was thus pre
sented to purchase at extravagant prices, since the commis
sioners correspondingly increased their compensation.

In consequence of this mode of supplying the army, the
expenses of the country became alarmingly great. Much
dissatisfaction, from time to time, existed in reference to the
management of the commissary general's department, and a
reform was loudly demanded by many judicious men in the
country. Among those who loudly complained on this sub
ject, and who deemed a change essential to the salvation of
the country, Dr. Witherspoon was one. This change, so
useful and economical, was at length agreed to, July 10th,
1781. The superintendent of finance was authorized to pro
cure all necessary supplies for the army and navy of the
United States by contract, i. c. by allowing a certain sum to
the purchaser for every ration furnished.

Another point on which Dr. Witherspoon differed from
many of his brethren in congress, was the emission of a pa
per currency. After the first or second emission, he strongly
opposed the system, predicting the wound which would be
ultimately given to public credit, and the private distress
which must necessarily follow. Instead of emissions of an
unfunded paper beyond a certain quantum, Dr. Witherspoon
urged the propriety of making loans and establishing funds
for the payment of the interest. Happy had it been for the
country, had this better policy been adopted. At a subse
quent date, at the instance of some of the very gentlemen
who opposed him in congress, he published his ideas on the
2E 19

218 NNW-JERSEY DELEGATION,

nature, value, and uses of money, in one of the most clear
and judicious essays that perhaps was ever written on the
subject.

At the close of the year 1779, Dr. Witherspoon voluntari
ly retired from congress, desirous of spending the remainder
of his life, as he said, in " otio cum dignitate" According
ly, he resigned his house in the vicinity of the college to his
son-in-law, the Rev. Dr. Samuel Smith, to whom was com
mitted the care and instruction of the students, who now be
gan to return from their dispersion. Dr. Witherspoon retired
to a country seat, at the distance of about one mile from
Princeton. His name, however, continued to add celebrity
to the institution, which not long after recovered its former
reputation.

But he was not long allowed the repose which he so much
desired. In 1781, he was again elected a representative to
congress. But at the close of the following year, he retired
from political life. In the year 1783, he was induced, through
his attachment to the institution over which he had so long
presided, to cross the ocean to promote its benefit. He was
now in his sixtieth year, and strong must have been his re
gard for the interests of learning, to induce him, at this ad
vanced age, to brave the dangers of the ocean. Much suc
cess could scarcely be expected in an undertaking of this
kind, considering the hostility which still subsisted between
England and America. The pecuniary assistance which he
.obtained exceeded only, by a little, his necessary expenses,
although he was not wanting in enterprise and zeal in relation
to the object of his voyage.

After his return to this country, in 1784, finding nothing
to obstruct his entering on that retirement which was now
becoming dear to him, he withdrew, in a great measure, ex
cept on some important occasions, from the exercise of those
public functions that were not immediately connected with
the duties of his office, as president of the college, or his
character as a minister of the gospel.

Although Dr. Witherspoon was peculiarly fitted for politi
cal life, he appeared with still more advantage as a ministei

JOHN WITHERSPOON. 219

of the gospel, and particularly as a minister in the pulpit.
" He was, in many respects," says Dr. Rogers, " one of the
best models on which a young preacher could form himself.
It was a singular felicity to the whole college, but especially
to those who had the profession of the ministry in contempla
tion, to have such an example constantly in view. Religion, by
the manner in which it was treated by him, always command
ed the respect of those who heard him, even when it was not
able to engage their hearts. An admirable textuary ; a pro
found theologian, perspicuous and simple in his manner ; an
universal scholar, acquainted with human nature ; a grave,
dignified, solemn speaker ; — he brought all the advantages
derived from these sources, to the illustration and enforce
ment of divine truth."

The social qualities of Dr. Witherspoon rendered him one
of the most companionable of men. He possessed a rich
fund of anecdote, both amusing and instructive. His mo
ments of relaxation were as entertaining as his serious ones
were fraught with improvement The following anecdote
presents a specimen of his pleasantry. On the surrender of
the British army to General Gates, at Saratoga, that officer
dispatched one of his aids to convey the news to congress.
The interesting character of the intelligence would have
prompted most men to have made as expeditious a journey as
possible ; but the aid proceeded so leisurely, that the intelli
gence reached Philadelphia three days before his arrival. It
was usual for congress, on such occasions, to bestow some
mark of their esteem upon the person who was the bearer of
intelligence so grateful ; and it was proposed, in this case, to
best w upon the messenger an elegant sword. During the
conversation on this subject in the hall, Dr. Witherspoon
rose, and begged leave to amend the motion, by substituting
for an elegant sword, a pair of golden spurs.

Another interesting trait in his character, was his attention
to young persons. He never suffered an opportunity to es
cape him of imparting the most useful advice to them, ac
cording to their circumstances, when they happened to be in
his company. And this was always done with so much kind-

220 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

ness and suavity, that they could neither be inattentive to it
or easily forget it.

In domestic life, he was an affectionate husband, a tender
parent, a kind master, and a sincere friend. He was twice
married. The first time in Scotland, at an early age, to a
lady by the name of Montgomery. She was a woman dis
tinguished for her piety and benevolence. At the time of his
emigration to America, he had three sons and two daughters.
James, his eldest son, was killed in the battle of Germantown.
John was bred a physician, and David applied himself to the
study of the law. Both were respectable men. Of the
d ughters, one was married to the Rev. Samuel S. Smith,
the successor of Dr. Witherspoon in the presidency of
the college. The other became connected with Dr. Ramsay,
the celebrated historian. The second marriage of Dr. With
erspoon occurred when he was seventy years old ; the lady
whom he married was only twenty-three.

In his person, Dr. Witherspoon was remarkably dignified.
He was six feet in height, and of fine proportion. He was
distinguished for a fervent piety, and for great punctuality
and exactness in his devotional exercises. " Besides his
daily devotions of the closet, and the family, it was his stated
practice to observe the last day of every year, with his family,
as a day of fasting, humiliation, and prayer: and it was also
his practice to set apart days for secret fasting and prayer, as
occasion suggested."

" Bodily infirmities began at length to come upon him. For
more than two years before his death, he was afflicted with
the loss of sight, which contributed to hasten the progress
of his other disorders. These he bore with a patience, and
even with a cheerfulness, rarely to be met with in the most
eminent for wisdom and piety. Nor would his active mind,
and his desire of usefulness to the end, permit him, even in
this situation, to desist from the exercise of his ministry, and
nis duties in the college, as far as his strength and health
would admit. He was frequently led into the pulpit, both at
home and abroad, during his blindness ; and always acquitted

JOHN WITHERSPOON. 221

himself with his usual accuracy, and frequently with more
than his usual solemnity and animation."

At length, however, he sank under the accumulated pres
sure of his infirmities ; and on the 15th day of November, 1794,
in the seventy-third year of his age he retired to his final rest.
The following epitaph is inscribed on the marble which covers
his remains :

Beneath this marble lie interred

the mortal remains of

JOHN WITHERSPOON, D. D. LL. D.

a venerable and beloved President of the College of

New- Jersey.
He was born in the parish of Ycster, in Scotland,

on the 5th of February, 1722, O. S.

And was liberally educated in the University of Edinburgh,

invested with holy orders in the year 1743,

he faithfully performed the duties of

his pastoral charge,

during five and twenty years,

first at Beith, and then at Paisley.

Elected president of Nassau Hall,

he assumed the duties of that office on the 13th of August, 1768,
with the elevated expectations of the public.

Excelling in every mental gift,

he was a man of pre-eminent piety and virtue

and deeply versed in the various branches

of literature and the liberal arts.

A grave and solemn preacher,

his sermons abounded in the most excellent doctrines and precepts,

and in lucid expositions of the Holy Scriptures.
Affable, pleasant, and courteous in familiar conversation,

he was eminently distinguished
in concerns and deliberations of the church,

and endowed with the greatest prudence
in the management and instruction of youth.

He exalted

the reputation of the college amongst foreigners,

and greatly promoted the advancement

of its literary character and taste.

He was, for a long time, conspicuous

Among the most brilliant luminaries of learning and of the Church.

At length,

universally venerated, beloved, and lamented,

he departed this life on the fifteenth of November, MDCCXCIV.

aged LXXIII years.

222 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION

FRANCIS HOPKINSON

FRANCIS HOPKINSON was a native of Pennsylvania, and
was born in the city of Philadelphia, in the year 1737. His
father, Thomas Hopkinson, was an Englishman, who emigra
ted to America, but in what year is unknown to the writer.
A short time previous to his emigration, he became respecta
bly connected by marriage, with a niece of the bishop of Wor
cester.

On his arrival in America, he took up his residence in the
city of Philadelphia, where he honourably filled several offices
of distinction, under the government of his native country.
Mr. Hopkinson was distinguished for his scientific attainments.
He was intimate with that distinguished philosopher, Benja
min Franklin, by whom he was held in high estimation. The
intimacy which subsisted between these gentlemen, seems to
have arisen from a similarity of taste, particularly on philoso
phical subjects. To Mr. Hopkinson is attributed the first ex
periment of attracting the electric fluid, by means of a
pointed instrument, instead of a blunt one. This experiment
he had the pleasure of first exhibiting to Dr. Franklin. Its
practical importance consisted in preventing the severe explo
sion, which always takes place in the passage of the electric
fluid, upon a blunted instrument.

Upon the death of Mr. Hopkinson, Avhich occurred while
he was in the prime of life, the care of his interesting and
numerous family devolved upon his widoxv. Fortunately,
Mrs. Hopkinson was a lady of superior mental endowments,
and well qualified to superintend the education of her child
ren. At an early period, discovering indications of genius in
her son, the subject of the present memoir, she resolved to
make every sacrifice, and every effort in her power, to give
him the advantages of a superior education. Her income
was comparatively limited, but a mother can relinquish every
enjoyment for her children. This Mrs. Hopkinson did with
the greatest pleasure; and to the practice of self-denial for her
son, she added, for his benefit, the most admirable precepts.

FRANCIS HOPKINSON. 223

and the most excellent example. Her efforts were crowned
with singular success. She lived to see him graduate with repu
tation, from the college of Philadelphia, and become eminent
in the profession of law. He possessed talents of a high or
der. His genius was quick and versatile. He penetrated the
depths of science with ease, and with grave and important
truths stored his capacious mind. But he by no means ne
glected the lighter accomplishments. In music and poetry he
excelled, and had some knowledge of painting. Few men
were more distinguished for their humour and satire.

In the year 1766, Mr. Hopkinson embarked for England,
for the purpose of visiting the land of his fathers. Such was
the estimation in which he was held in his native city, that he
received a public expression of respect and affection, from
the board of trustees of the college of Philadelphia, which the
provost of that institution was desired to communicate to
him, and wish him, in the behalf of his Alma Mater, a safe
and prosperous voyage.

After a residence of more than two years in England, he re
turned to America, soon after which he became settled in life,
having married a Miss Borden, of Bordentown, in the state
of New-Jersey. His acknowledged talents soon drew the at
tention of the royal government, under which he received the
appointment of collector of the customs, and executive coun
sellor.

These offices, however, he did not long enjoy, being obli
ged to sacrifice them in the cause of his country. He entered
with strong feelings into the public measures which preceded
the revolutionary contest, and having taken up his residence
in New-Jersey, his abilities and patriotism pointed him out
as a proper person to represent her in congress. According
ly, in the year 1776 he received this appointment, and in this
capacity he voted for the declaration of independence, and
subsequently affixed his signature to the engrossed copy of
that memorable instrument.

On the retirement of Mr. Ross, in 1779, the judge of the
admiralty court of Pennsylvania, the president of that state
nominated Mr. Hopkinson as his successor ; an office to

224 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

which he was unanimously appointed, and the duties of
which, for ten years, until the organization of the federal
government, he continued to discharge with honour to him
self, and benefit to his country.

Soon after the adoption of the federal constitution, General
Washington, with the advice and consent of the senate, ap
pointed Mr. Hopkinson to the office of Judge of the United
States, for the district of Pennsylvania. This was an impor
tant and dignified station, for which he was admirably fitted,
and in which capacity he assisted in giving stability and dig
nity to the national government.

During the period of his judicial career, he conscientiously
avoided mingling in party, or occasional politics. He em
ployed his powers, however, when occasion required, in pro
moting the public good. He contributed in no small degree
in rousing the feelings of the people, during the war of the
revolution. The chief means by which he accomplished this,
was the employment of his powers of satire, which he pos
sessed in an uncommon degree. His occasional productions
were quite numerous, and were well adapted to the state of
the country at that time. They rendered the author justly
popular at that day, and will continue to interest and amuse,
while the memory of these times shall remain.

Mr. Hopkinson published several poetical pieces. His chief
merit as a poet consisted in an easy versification. His poeti
cal productions were chiefly designed tu amuse. This object
they effected. They attracted no small attention, through
out the country ; but none was more popular than the humo
rous and well known ballad, called " The Battle of the Kegs."

The life of Mr. Hopkinson was suddenly terminated,
while in the midst of his usefulness, on the eighth of May, 1791,
in the fifty-third year of his age. He died of an apoplectic
fit, which, in two hours after the attack, put a period to his
mortal existence. In stature, Mr. Hopkinson was below the
common size. His countenance was extremely animated,
though his features were small. In speech he was fluent,
and in his motions he was unusually quick. Few men were
kinder in their dispositions, or more benevolent in their lives

JOHN HART. 225

He was distinguished for his powers of taste, and for his love
and devotion to science. He possessed a library, which con
tained the most distinguished literary productions of the
times ; and in his library room was to be found a collection
of scientific apparatus, with wrhich he amused himself in his
leisure hours, and added greatly to his stock of knowledge.
The following anecdote furnishes evidence of the estimation
in which he was held, as a philosopher, and a man of letters.
Sometime during the revolutionary war, Bordentown, the
place where Mr. Hopkinson and family resided, was suddenly
invaded by a party of Hessians. Tfee family had hardly time
to escape before the invaders began the plunder of the house.
After the evacuation of Philadelphia, by the British, a vo
lume, which had been taken from the library of Mr. Hopkin
son, at the above period, fell into his hands. On a blank leaf,
the oflicer, who took the book, had written in German an
acknowledgment of the theft, declaring that although he
believed Mr. Hopkinson to be an obstinate rebel, the books
and philosophical apparatus of his library were sufficient evi
dence, that he was a learned man.

Mr. Hopkinson, at his decease, left a widow and five chil
dren. The eldest of these, Joseph Hopkinson, who still lives,
strongly resembles his father, in the endowments of his mind,
and the brilliancy of his genius. He occupies an enviable
rank among the advocates of the American bar.

JOHN HART.

THE history of the world probably furnishes not another
instance in which there was a nobler exhibition of true patri
otism, than is presented in the history of the American revo
lution. It was certain at its commencement, in respect to
numerous individuals, whose talents, wisdom and enterprise
w^re necessary to its success, that they could derive but little,
2F

226 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

if any, individual advantage. Nay, it was certain, that in
stead of gain they would be subjected to great loss and suffer
ing. The comforts of their families would be abridged ; their
property destroyed ; their farms desolated ; their houses plun
dered or consumed ; their sons might fall in the field of battle ;
and, should the struggle be vain, an ignominious death would be
their portion. But, then, the contest respected rights which
God had given them ; it respected liberty, that dearest and
noblest privilege of man ; it respected the happiness of gene
rations yet to succeed each other on this spacious continent
to the end of time. Such considerations influenced the pa
triots of the revolution. They thought comparatively little
of themselves ; their views were fixed on the happiness oi
others ; on the future glory of their country ; on universal
liberty !

These sentiments alone could have actuated JOHN HART, the
subject of the present memoir, a worthy and independent
fanner of New-Jersey. He was the son of Edward Hart, of
Hopewell, in the county of Hunterdon, in New-Jersey. The
time of his birth is unknown to the writer ; and unfortunate
ly few incidents of his life have been preserved. He inherited
from his father a considerable patrimonial estate. To this he
added, by purchase, a farm of about four hundred acres. He
married a Miss Scudder, a respectable and amiable lady, by
whom he had a numerous family of children. He was fond of
agricultural pursuits ; and in the quiet of domestic life, sought
those enjoyments, which are among the purest which the
world affords.

The character which Mr. Hart sustained for wisdom, sta
bility, and judgment naturally brought him into notice, and
disposed the community to seek the aid of his counsel. He
was often a member of the colonial assembly ; and rendered
important service to the section of country in which he re
sided, by suggesting improvements as to laying out new roads,
the erection of bridges, the superior means of education, and
the prompt administration of justice.

At the commencement of the aggressions of the British
ministry upon the rights of the colonies, Mr. Hart perceived,

JOHN HART. 227

in common with many of the thinking men of the day, that
the only alternative of the latter would be a resort to arms*
or absolute slavery. Although he was not one of the most
zealous men, or as easily roused to adopt strong measures, as
were some of those around him, still he was not backward to
express his abhorrence of the unjust conduct of the mother
country, nor to enter upon a well matured system of opposi
tion to her designs. He was particularly disgusted with the
stamp act. Not that he feared pecuniary loss from its exac
tions ; it was an inconsiderable tax ; but trifling as it was, in
volved a principle of the greatest importance. It gave to the
crown a power over the colonies, against the arbitrary exer
cise of which they had no security. They had in truth, upon
the principles claimed by the British government, little or no
control over their own property. It might be taxed in the
manner, and to the extent, which parliament pleased, and not
a single representative from the colonies could raise his voice
in their behalf. It was not strange, therefore, that the setting
up of such a claim, on the other side of the water, should have
been severely felt in the American colonies, and that a spirit
of opposition should have pervaded all classes, as we" the
humble as the elevated, the farmer in his retirement as well
as the statesman in his public life.

This spirit of opposition in the colonies kept pace with the
spirit of aggression in the mother country. There were few
men in the community, who did not feel more intensely each
succeeding month the magnitude of the subject ; and who
were not more and more convinced of the necessity of an
united and firm opposition to the British government.

When the congress of 1774 assembled, Mr. Hart appeared,
and took his seat ; having been elected by a conference of
committees from several parts of the colony. The precise
share which he took in the deliberations of this august and
venerable body, is unknown. If his habits and unambitious
spirit led him to act a less conspicuous part than some others,
he rendered perhaps no less valuable service, by his modera
tion and cool judgment.

During several succeeding sessions, Mr. Hart continued to

' NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

represent the people of New-Jersey in the continental con
gress. When the question respecting a Declaration of Inde
pendence was brought forward, he was at his post, and voted
for the measure with unusual zeal. It was a- distinguished
honour to belong to this congress, under any circumstances ;
but the appointment of Mr. Hart must have been peculiarly
flattering to him. A little time previous, the provincial con
gress of New-Jersey had made several changes in their delega
tion to the general congress. Their confidence was not entire
in some of their representatives, especially in regard to that bold
and decisive measure, a declaration of independence, which
was now occupying the thoughts of many in the country. But
the firmness of Mr. Hart, or, as he was afterwards called,
" honest John Hart," they could safely trust. They knew
him to be a man of tried courage, and never inclined to adopt
temporizing or timorous measures. He was accordingly re
tained, while others were dismissed; and was instructed, "to
join with the delegates of the other colonies in continental
congress, in the most vigorous measures for supporting the
just rights and liberties of America ; and if you shall judge it
necesoary or expedient for this purpose, to join with them in
declaring the United Colonies independent of Great Britain,
entering into a confederation for union and common defence,
making treaties with foreign nations for commerce and assist
ance, and to take such other measures as may appear to them
and you necessary for those great ends, promising to support
them with the whole force of this province; always observing,
that whatsoever plan of confederacy you enter into, the regu
lating the internal police of this province is to be reserved to
the colonial legislature."

Sometime during the latter part of the year 1776, New-Jer
sey became the theatre of war. The distress which the peo
ple suffered in consequence, was very great ; and a wanton
destruction of property was often occasioned by the enemy.
In this destruction, the property of Mr. Hart largely partici
pated. His children were obliged to flee, his farm was pil
laged, and great exertions were made to secure him, as a
prisoner. The situation of Mrs. Hart was at the time pecu
liarly distressing. She was afflicted with a (li^m^r, \vMch

JOHN HART. 229

prevented her removal to a place of safety, and eventu
ally caused her death. Mr. Hart continued by her side,
until the enemy had nearly reached the house, when he made
his escape, his wife being safer alone than if he 'were present.
For some time, he was hunted and pursued with the most un
tiring zeal. He was scarcely able to elude his enemies, was
often in great want of food, and sometimes destitute of a com
fortable lodging for the night. In one instance, he was
obliged to conceal himself, during the night, in the usual rest
ing place of a large dog, who was his companion for the time.

The battles of Trenton and Princeton led to the evacua
tion of New- Jersey by the British. On this event, Mr. Hart
again collected his family, and began to repair the desolation
of his farm by the hand of the enemy. His constitution, how
ever, had received an irreparable shock. His health gradual
ly failed him ; and though he lived to see brighter prospects
opening before his country, he died before the contest was
ended. His death occurred in the year 1780. Although the
domestic peace and tranquillity of few men had been more
disturbed than those of Mr. Hart, he never repented the course
he had taken. He enlisted himself in a good cause ; and in the
darkest periods, still believed that a righteous Providence would
ultimately enable that cause to prevail, and finally to triumph.

The personal appearance of Mr. Hart was uncommonly in
teresting ; in his form he was straight and well proportioned.
In stature, he was above the middling size, and, when a young
man, was said to have been handsome. In his disposition
he was uncommonly mild and amiable. He was greatly be
loved by his family and friends, and highly respected by a
large circle of acquaintance, who often appealed to his wis
dom and judgment in the settlement of their local affairs. In
addition to this, he enjoyed the reputation of being a sincere
snd humble Christian. He was exceedingly liberal to the
Baptist church of Hopewell, to which community he belonged ;
and greatly assisted them in the erection of a public house of
worship; the ground for which he presented to the church,
as also the ground for a burial place. Such was the life, an<*
such the last end, of " honest John Hart.'

20

230 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION.

ABRAHAM CLARK.

IT is unfortunately the fact, in respect to many of the dis
tinguished actors in the revolutionary drama, but especially
in reference to the subject of this memoir, that but few inci
dents of their lives have been preserved. The truth is, that
although men of exalted patriotism, who filled their respec
tive duties, both in public and private life, with great honour
to rhemselves and benefit to all around them, they were
naturally unobtrusive and unambitious. The incidents of their
lives were, indeed, few. Some of them lived in retirement,
pursuing the " even tenor of their way," nor was the regularity
of their lives often interrupted, except, perhaps, by an atten
dance upon congress, or by the discharge of some minor civil
office in the community.

These remarks apply with some justice to Mr. CLARK,
but perhaps not with more force, than to several others, who
stand enrolled among the signers of the declaration of inde
pendence.

Mr. Clark was a native of Elizabethtown, New-Jersey,
where he was born, on the fifteenth of February, 1726. His
father's name was Thomas Clark, of whom he was an only
child. His early education, although confined to English
branches of study, was respectable. For the mathematics and
the civil law he is said to have discovered an early predilec
tion.

He was bred a farmer ; but his constitution being inade
quate to the labours of the field, he turned his attention
to surveying, conveyancing, and imparting legal advice.
For this last service he was well qualified ; and as he
gave advice gratuitously, he was called, " the poor man's
counsellor."

The course of Mr. Clark's life, his love of study, and the
generosity of his character, naturally rendered him popu
lar. His opinion was valued, and often sought, even beyond
the immediate circle within which he lived. He was call
ed to fill various respectable offices, the duties of which

ABRAHAM CLARK. 231

he discharged with great fidelity ; and thus rendered him
self highly useful in the community in which he lived.

At an early period of the revolution, as he had formed his
opinion on the great question, which divided the British go
vernment and the American colonies, he was appointed one
of the committee of public safety ; and some time after was
elected by the provincial congress, in conjunction with the gen
tlemen, a sketch of whose lives has already been given, a dele
gate to the continental congress.

Of this body he was a member, for a considerable period ;
and was conspicuous among his colleagues from New-Jersey.
A few days after he took his seat for the first time, as a mem
ber of congres-s, he was called upon to vote for, or against, the
proclamation of independence. But he was at no loss on
which side to throw his influence. His patriotism was of the
purest character. Personal considerations did not influence
his decision. He knew full well that fortune and individual
safety were at stake. But what were these in comparison
with the honour and liberty of his country. He voted, there
fore, for the declaration of independence, and affixed his
name to that sacred instrument with a firm determination to
meet the consequences of the noble, but dangerous action,
with a fortitude and resolution becoming a free born citizen
of America.

Mr. Clark frequently, after this time, represented New-
Jersey in the national councils. He was also often a
member of the state legislature. But in whatever capacity
he acted as a public servant, he attracted the respect and ad
miration of the community, by his punctuality, his integrity,
and perseverance.

In 1787, he was elected a member of the general con
vention, which framed the constitution ; but in consequence
of ill health, was prevented from uniting in the deliberations
of that body. To the constitution, as originally proposed;
he had serious objections. These, however, were removed
by subsequent amendments ; but his enemies took advan
tage of his objections, and for a time he was placed in
the minority in the elections of New-Jersey. His popu-

232 NEW-JERSEY DELEGATION

larity, however, again revived, and he was elected a re
presentative in the second congress, under the federal con
stitution; an appointment which he continued to hold until
a short time previous to his death. Two or three of the
sons of Mr. Clark were officers in the army, during the re
volutionary struggle. Unfortunately they were captured by
the enemy. During a part of their captivity, their suffer
ings were extreme, being confined in the notorious prison-
ship, Jersey. Painful as the condition of his sons was,
Mr. Clark scrupulously avoided calling the attention of
congress to the subject, excepting in a single instance.
One of his sons, a captain of artillery, had been cast into a
dungeon, where he received no other food than that which
was conveyed to him by his fellow prisoners, through a key
hole. On a representation of these facts to congress, that
body immediately directed a course of retaliation in reject
to a British officer. This had the desired effect, and Captain
Clark's condition was improved.

On the adjournment of congress in June, 1704, Mr. Clark
finally retired from public life. He did not live long, how
ever, to enjoy even the limited comforts he possessed. In the
autumn of the same year a stroke of the sun put a period to
his mortal existence, in the space of two hours. He was al
ready, however, an old man, having attained to his sixty-
ninth year. The church yard at Rahway contains his mor
tal remains, and the church of that place will long have rea
son to remember his benefactions. A marble slab marks the
place where this useful and excellent man lies deposited, and
the following inscription upon it, records the distinguish
ed traits of his character :

Firm and decided as a patriot,
zealous and faithful as a friend to the public,

he loved his country,

and adhered to her cause

in the darkest hours of her struggles

against oppression.

THE

PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

ROBERT MORRIS,
BENJAMIN RUSH,
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN,
JOHN MORTON,
GEOGE CLYMER,
JAMES SMITH,
GEORGE TAYLOR,
JAMES WILSON,
GEORGE Ross.

ROBERT MORRIS.

ROBERT MORRIS was a native of Lancashire, England,
where he was born January, 1773 — 4, O. S. His father
was a Liverpool merchant, who had for some years been ex
tensively concerned in the American trade. While he was
yet a boy, his father removed to America; shortly after
which, he sent to England for his son, who arrived in this
country at the age of thirteen years.

Young Morris was placed at school in Philadelphia, but
his progress in learning appears to have been small, probably
from the incompetency of his teacher, as he declared to his
father one day, on the latter expressing his dissatisfaction at
the little progress he made, " Sir," said he, " I have learn
ed all that he can teach me."

" During the time that young Morris was pursuing his
2F 20*

334 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

education at Philadelphia, he unfortunately lost his father, in
consequence of a wound received from the wad of a gun,
which was discharged as a compliment, by the captain of a
snip consigned to him, that had just arrived at Oxford, the
place of his residence, on the eastern shores of the Chesa
peake Bay, and was thus left an orphan, at the age of fifteen
years. In conformity to the intentions of his parent, he was
bred to commerce, and served a regular apprenticeship in
the counting-house of the late Mr. Charles Willing, at that
time one of the first merchants of Philadelphia. A year or
two after the expiration of the term for which he had engaged
himself, he entered into partnership with Mr. Thomas Wil
ling. This connexion, which was formed in 1754, continued
for the long period of thirty-nine years, not having been dis
solved until 1793. Previously to the commencement of the
American war, it was, without doubt, more extensively en
gaged in commerce than any other house in Philadelphia.

" Of the events of his youth we know little. The fact just
mentioned proves, that although early deprived of the benefit
of parental counsel, he acted with fidelity, and gained the
good will of a discerning master. The following anecdote
will show his early activity in business, and anxiety to pro
mote the interests of his friends. During the absence of Mr.
Willing, at his country place, near Frankford, a vessel ar
rived at Philadelphia, either consigned to him, or that brought
letters, giving intelligence of the sudden rise in the price of
ilour, at the port she left. Mr. Morris instantly engaged all
that he could contract for, on account of Mr. Willing, who, on
his return to the city next day, had to defend his young friend
from the complaints of some merchants, that he had raised
the price of flour. An appeal, however, from Mr. Willing,
to their own probable line of conduct, in case of their having
first received the IMBWS, silenced their complaints."

There were few men who viewed with greater indignation
the encroachments of the British government upon the liber
ties of the people, or were more ready to resist them, than
Mr. Morris. Nor did he hesitate to sacrifice his private in
terest for the public good, when occasion demanded it. This

ROBERT MORRIS. 235

disposition was strikingly manifested in the year 1765, at
which time he signed the non-importation agreement, entered
into by the merchants of Philadelphia. The extensive mer
cantile concerns with England of the house of Mr. Morris,
and the large importations of her manufactures and colonial
produce by it, must have made this sacrifice considerable

The massacre at Lexington, April,^1775, seems to have de
cided the mind of Mr. Morris, as to the unalterable course
which he would adopt in respect to England. The news of
this measure reached Philadelphia four days after its occur
rence. Robert Morris, with a large company, were at this
time engaged at the city tavern, in the celebration, on George's
day, of their patron saint. The news was received by the
company with the greatest surprise. The tables, at which
they were dining, were immediately deserted. A few only
of the members, among whom was Mr. Morris, remained.
To these, indeed to all, who had been present, it was evident
that the die \vas cast — that the Lexington measure was an
event which must lead to a final separation from the British
government. Such an opinion Mr. Morris, at this time, ex
pressed ; he was willing it should take place, and from this
time cordially entered into all the measures which seemed
the most likely to effect the object.

On the third of November, 1775, Mr. Morris was elected,
by the legislature of Pennsylvania, a delegate to the second
congress that met at Philadelphia. " A few weeks after he
had taken his seat, he was added to the secret committee of
that body, which had been formed by a resolve of the pre
ceding congress, (1775,) and whose duty it was ' to contract
for the importation of arms, ammunition, sulphur, and salt
petre, and to export produce on the public account, to pay
for the same.' He was also appointed a member of the com
mittee for fitting out a naval armament, and specially com
missioned to negociate bills of exchange for congress ; to
borrow money for the marine committee, and to manage the
fiscal concerns of congress on other occasions. Independ
ently of his enthusiastic zeal in the cause of his country, his
capacity for business, and knowledge of the subjects com-

236 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

mitted to him, or his talents for managing pecuniary con
cerns, he was particularly fitted for such services ; as the
commercial credit he had established among his fellow-
citizens probably stood higher than that of any other man in
the community, and this he did not hesitate to avail himself
of, whenever the public necessities required such an evidence
of his patriotism.

A highly interesting illustration of this last remark, is
furnished in the conduct of Mr. Morris in the December
following the declaration of independence. For some time
previous, the British army had been directing its course to
wards Philadelphia, from which congress had retired, leaving
a committee, consisting of Mr. Morris, Mr. Clymer, and Mr.
Walton, to transact all necessary continental business.

While attending to the duties of their appointment, Mr.
Morris received a letter from Gen. Washington, then with his
army on the Delaware, opposite Trenton, in which letter he
communicated to Mr. Morris his distressed state, in conse
quence of the want of money. The sum he needed was ten
thousand dollars, which was essentially necessary to enable
him to obtain such intelligence of the movement and position
of the enemy, as would authorise him to act offensively.
To Mr. Morris, Gen. Washington* now looked, to assist him
in raising the money.

This letter he read with attention, but what could he do ?
The citizens generally had left the city. He knew of no one,
who possessed the required sum, or who would be willing to
lend it. The evening approached, and he left his counting-
room to return home. On the way, he accidentally overtook
an honest quaker, with whom he was acquainted. The qua-
ker inquired of him the news. Mr. Morris replied, that he
had but little news of importance to communicate, but he had
a subject which pressed with great weight upon his mind.
He now informed the quaker of the letter which he had re
ceived, the situation of General Washington, and the imme
diate necessity of ten thousand dollars. " Sir," said Mr.
Morris, " you must let me have it. My note and my honour
will be your only security." The quaker hesitated a moment,

ROBERT MORRIS. 237

but at length replied, " Robert, thou shalt have it.'* The
money was soon told, was transmitted to Washington, whom
it enabled to accomplish his wishes, and to gain a signal vic
tory over the Hessians at Trenton, thus animating the droop
ing spirits of patriotism, and checking in no small degree,
the proud hopes and predictions of the enemy.

Another instance of patriotic liberality is recorded of Mr.
Morris in 1779, or 1780. These were distressing years of
the war. The army was alarmingly destitute of military
stores, particularly of the essential article of lead. It was
found necessary to melt down the weights of clocks and the
spouts of houses ; but, notwithstanding resort was had to
every possible source, the army was often so destitute, that it
could scarcely have fought a single battle.

In this alarming state of things, General Washington
wrote to several gentlemen, and among the rest to Judge
Peters, at that time secretary to the board of war, stating his
necessities, and urging an immediate exertion to supply the
deficiency.

This it seemed impossible to do. Mr. Peters, however,
showed the letter of Washington to Mr. Morris. Fortu
nately, just at this juncture, a privateer belonging to the lat
ter gentleman had arrived at the wharf, with ninety tons of
lead. Half of this lead was immediately given by Mr. Mor
ris, for the use of the army, and the other half was purchas
ed by Mr. Peters of other gentlemen, who owned it, Mr.
Morris becoming security for the payment of the debt.
At a more advanced stage of the war, when pressing distress
in the army had driven congress and the commander in chief
almost to desperation, and a part of the troops to mutiny,
he supplied the army with four or five thousand barrels of
flour upon his own private credit ; and on a promise to that
effect, persuaded a member to withdraw an intended motion
to sanction a procedure, which, although common in Europe,
would have had a very injurious effect upon the cause of the
country : this was no less than to authorize General Wash
ington to seize all the provision that could be found, within a
circle of twenty miles of his camp. Wliile financier, his

238 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

notes constituted, for large transactions, part of the circula
ting medium. Many other similar instances occurred of this
patriotic interposition of his own personal responsibility for
supplies which could not otherwise have been obtained.

Allusion has been made above to the gloomy posture of
affairs, during the year 1780 ; at this time the wants of the
army, particularly of provisions, were so great, as to threaten
its dissolution. This state of things, being communicated
to Mr. Morris, he immediately proposed the establishment
of a Bank, the principal object of which was, to supply the
army with provisions. This plan becoming popular, ninety-
six subscribers gave their bonds, on this occasion, by which
they obliged themselves to pay, if it should become neces
sary, in gold and silver, the amounts annexed to their names,
to fulfil the engagements of the Bank. By this means, the
confidence of the public in the safety of the bank was con
firmed.

Mr. Morris headed the list with a subscription of 10,OOOZ. ;
others followed to the amount of 300,000/. The directors
were authorized to borrow money on the credit of the bank,
and to grant special notes, bearing interest at six per cent.
The credit thus given to the bank effected the object in
tended, and the institution was continued until the bank of
North America went into operation in the succeeding year.
It was probably on this occasion, that he purchased the four
or five thousand barrels of flour, abovementioned, on his own
credit, for the army, before the funds could be collected to
pay for it."

We have not yet spoken of the congressional career of
Mr. Morris, nor is it necessary to delay the reader by a mi
nute account of the services which he rendered the country,
in the national assembly. In this capacity, no one exhibited
a more untiring zeal, none more cheerfully sacrificed ease and
comfort than he did. He accomplished much by his active
exertions, and perhaps not less by the confidence which he
uniformly manifested of ultimate success. The display of
such confidence powerfully tended to rouse the desponding,
to fix the wavering, and confirm the brave.

ROBERT MORRIS. 239

Tn another way, Mr. Morris contributed to advance the
patriotic cause. During the whole war, he maintained an
extensive private correspondence with gentlemen in England
by means of which he often received information of impor
tance to this country. "These letters he read to a few select
mercantile friends, who regularly met in the insurance room
at the merchant's coffee house, and through them the intel
ligence they contained was diffused among the citizens, and
thus kept alive the spirit of opposition, made them acquaint
ed with the gradual progress of hostile movements, and con
vinced them how little was to be expected from the govern
ment in respect to the alleviation of the oppression and hard
ships against which the colonies had for a long time most
humbly, earnestly, and eloquently remonstrated. This prac
tice, which began previous to the suspension of the inter
course between the two countries, he continued during the
war; and through the route of the continent, especially
France and Holland, he received for a while the despatches,
which had formerly come directly from England."

In the year 1781, Mr. Morris was appointed by congress,
superintendant of finance, an office then for the first time
established. This appointment was unanimous. Indeed it
is highly probable that no other man in the country would
have been competent to the task of managing such great
concerns as it involved, or possessed, like himself, the happy
expedient of raising supplies, or deservedly enjoyed more,
if equal, public confidence among his fellow-citizens, for
punctuality in the fulfilment of his engagements.

Some idea may be formed of them, when it is known that
he was required to examine into the state of the public debts,
expenditures, and revenue ; to digest and report plans for
improving and regulating the finances ; and for establishing
order and economy in the expenditure of public money. To
him was likewise committed the disposition, management,
and disbursement of all the loans received from the govern
ment of France, and various private persons in that country
and Holland ; the sums of money received from the different
states ; and of the public funds for every possible source of

240 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

expense for the support of government, civil, military, and
naval ; the procuring supplies of every description for the
army and navy ; the entire management and direction of the
public ships of war; the payment of all foreign debts; and
the correspondence of our ministers at European courts, on
subjects of finance. In short, the whole burden of the money
operations of government was laid upon him. No man ever
had more numerous concerns committed to his charge, and
few to greater amount ; and never did any one more faithful
ly discharge the various complicated trusts with greater dis
patch, economy, or credit, than the subject of this sketch."

Never was an appointment more judicious than the ap
pointment of Mr. Morris as financier of this country. At
this time the treasury was more than two millions and a half
in arrears, and the greater part of the debt was of such a
nature that the payment could not be avoided, or even de
layed, and therefore, Dr. Franklin, then our minister in
France, was under the necessity of ordering back from Am
sterdam monies which had been sent thither for the purpose
of being shipped to America. If he had not taken this step,
the bills of exchange drawn by order of congress must have
been protested, and a vital stab given to the credit of the go
vernment in Europe. At home, the greatest public as well
as private distress existed ; public credit had gone to wreck,
and the enemy built their most sanguine hopes of overcoming
us, upon this circumstance ; and the treasury was so much
in arrears to the servants in the public offices, that many of
them could not, without payment, perform their duties, but
must have gone to jail for debts they had contracted to ena
ble them to live. To so low an ebb was the public treasury
reduced, that some of the members of the board of war
declared to Mr. Morris that they had not the means of send
ing an express to the army. The pressing distress for pro
vision among the troops, has already been mentioned. The
paper bills of credit were sunk so low in value, as to require a
burdensome mass of them to pay for an article of clothing."
But the face of things soon began to change through the
exertions of Mr. Morris. Without attempting to give the

ROBERT MORRIS.

241

history of his wise and judicious manag ;ment, it will be suffi
cient to say, in the language of an elegant historian of the
American war, " certainly the Americans owed, and still owe,
as much acknowledgment to the financial operations of Ro
bert Morris, as to the negociations of Benjamin Franklin,
or even the arms of George Washington."

To Mr. Morris, also, the country was indebted for the es
tablishment of the bank of North America, and for all the
public benefits which resulted from that institution. By
means of this, public credit was greatly revived ; internal im
provements were promoted, and a general spring was given
to trade. " The circulating medium was greatly increased
by the circulation of its notes, which being convertible at
will into gold or silver, were universally received equal there
to, and commanded the most unbounded confidence. Hun
dreds availed themselves of the security afforded by the vaults
of the bank, to deposit their cash, which, from the impossi
bility of investing it, had long been hid from the light ; and
the constant current of deposits in the course of trade, au
thorised the directors to increase their business and the
amount of their issues, to a most unprecedented extent.
The consequence of this was, a speedy and most perceptible
change in the state of affairs, both public and private."

We now come to an event, on account of the interest in
which the name of Robert Morris should be remembered with
gratitude by the American people, while republican America
shall last. The campaign of 1781, respected the reduction
of New- York; this was agreed upon by Washington and the
French general, Count Rochambeau, and it was expected that
the French fleets, under De Barras and De Grasse, would
co-operate. Judge the surprise when, on the arrival of the
French fleet, it was announced to Washington, that the
French admiral would not enter the bay of New- York, as
was anticipated, but would enter and remain for a few weeks
in the Chesapeake.

This necessarily altered all the arrangements respecting the
campaign. It was now obvious to Washington, that the re
duction of New- York would be impracticable. In this state
21 21

& PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION

of things, it is hinted by Dr. Mease, in his biographical
sketch of Mr. Morris, in the Edinburgh Encyclopedia, to
which article we are greatly indebted, that Mr. Morris sug
gested to Washington the attack on Cornwallis, which put a
finishing stroke to the war. Whether this be so or not, cer
tain it is, that until the news was communicated to Wash
ington, that the French fleet would not come into New-York
bay, the project of a southern campaign had not been deter
mined upon by the commander in chief. But when, at length,
it was determined upon, whether at the suggestion of Robert
Morris or not, we are unable to say, it is certain that he pro
vided the funds which enabled General Washington to move
his army towards the south, and which led to the decisive
battle which terminated the war.

The length to which this article is already extended, for
bids any further account of the services of this distinguished
patriot.

" It adds not a little, however,'' says Dr. Mease, " to the
merit of Mr. Morris, to be able to say, that notwithstanding
his numerous engagements as a public or private character,
their magnitude, and often perplexing nature, he was enabled
to fulfil all the private duties which his high standing in so
ciety necessarily imposed upon him. His house was the seat
of elegant, but unostentatious hospitality, and he regulated
his domestic affairs with the same admirable order which had
so long proverbially distinguished his counting-house, and
the offices of the secret committee of congress, and that of
finance. The happy manner in which he conducted his offi
cial and domestic concerns, was owing, in the first cah-e, to
his own superior talents for dispatch and method in busi
ness, and, in the last, to the qualifications of his excellent
partner, the sister of the esteemed bishop of Pennsylvania,
Dr. White. An introduction to Mr. Morris was a matter of
course, witn all the strangers in good society, who, for half a
century, visited Philadelphia, either on commercial, public,
or private business ; and it is not saying too much to assert,
that during a certain period, it greatly depended upon him to
do the honours of the city ; and certainly no one was more

ROBERT MORRIS. 34C

qualified, or more willing to support them. Although active
in the acquisition of wealth as a merchant, no one more free-
.y parted with his gains, for public or private purposes of a
meritorious nature, whether these were to support the credit
of the government, to promote the objects of humanity, local
improvement, the welfare of meritorious individuals in society,
or a faithful commercial servant. The instances in which he
shone on all these occasions were numerous. Some in refe-
ference to the three former particulars, have been mentioned,
and more of his disinterested generosity in respect to the last
could be given, were the present intended to be any thing
more than a hasty sketch. The prime of his life was enga
ged in discharging the most important civil trusts to his coun
try that could possibly fall to the lot of any man ; and mil
lions passed through his hands as a public officer, without the
smallest breath of insinuation against his correctness, or of
negligence amidst "the defaulters of unaccounted thousands,"
or the losses sustained by the reprehensible carelessness of
national agents.

From the foregoing short statement, we may have some
idea of the nature and magnitude of the services rendered by
Mr. Morris to the United States. It may be truly said, that
few men acted a more conspicuous or useful part; and when
we recollect, that it was by his exertions and talents, that the
United States were so often relieved from their difficulties, at
times of great depression and pecuniary distress, an estimate
may be formed of the weight of obligations due to him from
the people of the present day. The length to which this ar
ticle is already extended, forbids any further particulars res
pecting this distinguished man. It may be proper to add,
however, that the latter part of his life was rendered unhappy,
by an unfortunate scheme of land speculation, in which he en
gaged, and by which his pecuniary affairs became exceeding
ly embarrassed ; yet amidst his severest trials, he maintained
a firmness and an independence of character, which in similar
circumstances belong to but few.

At length, through public labour, and private misfortune

244 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

his constitution was literally worn out, and like a shock of
corn fully ripe, he came to his end on the 8th of May 1806,
m the seventy-third year of his age.

BENJAMIN RUSH.

BENJAMIN RUSH was born on the 24th of December, 1745,
O. S. in the township of Byberry, twelve or fourteen miles
northeast of Philadelphia. His ancestors emigrated from
England to Pennsylvania, about the year 1683.

The father of young Rush died when he was six years of
age. The care of his education therefore devolved upon his
mother, who well understood the importance of knowledge,
and early took measures to give her son a liberal education.
Young Rush was sent to the academy at Nottingham, in Ma
ryland, about sixty miles southeast from Philadelphia. This
academy had long been conducted, \rith great reputation, by
the Reverend Dr. Finley, afterwards president of Princeton
college, in New-Jersey.

Under the care of this excellent man, and among the peo
ple of Nottingham, who were remarkable for their simplicity,
industry, morality, and religion, Rush spent live years, in ac
quiring a knowledge of the Greek and Latin languages. In
this retired spot, and at this early age, he is said to have been
deeply impressed with a reverence for religion, with the im
portance of a regular life, and of diligence, industry, and n
punctual attention to business ; and in general, of such steady
habits, as stamped a value on his character through life. The
solid foundation which was thus laid for correct principles
and an upright conduct, was chiefly the work of the learned
and pious Dr. Finley. He was an accomplished instructor of
youth. He trained his pupils for both worlds, having re
spect in all his intercourse with them, to their future, as well
as present state of existence.

BENJAMIN RUSH. 245

After finishing his preparatory studies at Nottingham, he
was entered in 1759, a student in the college of Princeton,
then under the superintendence of President Davies. Such
had been his progress in his classical studies at Nottingham,
that he obtained the degree of bachelor of arts in 1760, and
before he had completed his fifteenth year.

On leaving college, he commenced the study of medicine,
under the direction of the eminent Dr. Redman, of Philadel
phia. He was also one of Dr. Shippe-n's ten pupils, who at
tended the first course of anatomical lectures given in this
country. In 1766, he went to Edinburgh, where he spent
two years at the university in that city, and from which he
received the degree of M. D. in 1768.

The next winter after his graduation he spent in London ;
and the following spring having visited France, in the autumn
of the same year he returned to Philadelphia, and commen
ced the practice of medicine.

In 1760, he was elected professor of chemistry in the col-
'ege of Philadelphia. This addition to Drs. Shippen, Mor
gan, Kuhn, and Bond, who had begun to lecture a few years
before, completed the various departments, and fully organi
zed this first medical school in America. By a subsequent
arrangement in 1791, the college was merged in a university,
and Dr. Rush was appointed professor of the institutes and
practice-of medicine, and of clinical practice, in the university
of Pennsylvania.

As a lecturer on chemistry, and a practitioner, Dr. Rush
became deservedly popular. During his residence abroad,
his professional attainments were much enlarged, and he was
successful in introducing several valuable improvements.
He was particularly attached to the system of depletion, and
resorted to bleeding in many new cases. Next to the lancet,
he used cathartics ; and upon these two remedies he chiefly
depended for the cure of diseases. About the year 1790,
twenty years after Dr. Rush had been a practitioner, and
professor of medicine, he began to publish his new principles
of medicine. These were more or less developed by him ih

21*

346 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION

his successive annual course of lectures, for the subsequent
twenty-three years of his life.

It is not our province to settle the merits of that system,
which Dr. Rush adopted. He applied his principles of medi
cine to the cure of consumptions, dropsies, hydrocephalus,
apoplexy, gout, and other diseases of the body, and also to
madness, and the diseases of the mind. He depended chiefly
upon the lancet, and strongly urged the use of calomel, to
which he gave the name of " the Sampson of the Materia
Medica."

It was not to be expected that a system, in many respects
so novel, should be adopted by every one. It had its strong
opposers, and these opposers exist at the present day. They
objected to the system of depletion, but agreed with Doctor
Rush, that calomel was well entitled to the name of " Samp
son," not for the reason which he assigned, but "because,'"
said they, " it has slain its thousands."

In the year 1793, Dr. Rush had an opportunity of apply
ing his principles, in the treatment of yellow fever. In that
^ear, Philadelphia was desolated by that tremendous scourge,
after an interval of thirty-one years. The disease baffled the
skill of the oldest and most judicious physicians ; and they
differed about the nature, and the treatment of it. " This
general calamity lasted for about one hundred days, extend
ing from July till November. The deaths in the whole of
this distressing period, were four thousand and forty-four,
or something more than thirty-eight each day, on an average.
Whole families were confined by it. There was a great defi
ciency of nurses for the sick. There was likewise a great
deficiency of physicians, from the desertion of some, and the
sickness and death of others. At one time, there were but
three physicians, who were able to do business out of their
houses, and at this time there were probably not less than six
thousand persons ill with the fever."

" A cheerful countenance was scarcely to be seen for six
weeks. The streets every where discovered marks of the
distress that pervaded the city. In walking for many hun
dred yards, few persons were met, except such as were in

BENJAMIN RUSH. 347

quest of a physician, a nurse, a bleeder, or the men who
buried the dead. The hearse alone kept up the remembrance
of the noise of carriages, or carts, in the streets. A black
man leading or driving a horse, with a corpse, on a pair of
chair wheels, met the eye in most of the streets of the city, at
every hour of the day ; while the noise of the same wheels
passing slowly over the pavement kept alive anguish and fear
in the sick and well, every hour of the night."

For some time after the commencement of the disease, all
the physicians were nearly alike unsuccessful in the manage
ment of it. At this time, Dr. Rush resorted to gentle evacu-
ants as had been used in the yellow fever of 1762 ; but find
ing these unavailing, he applied himself to an investigation
of the disease, by means of the authors who had written on
the subject. He ransacked his library, and pored over every
book which treated of the yellow fever. At length he took
up a manuscript, which contained an account of the disease,
as it prevailed in Virginia, in 1741, and which was given to
him by Dr. Franklin, and had been written by Dr. Mitchell of
Virginia. In this manuscript the propriety and necessity of
powerful evacuants were stated and urged, even in cases of
extreme debility.

These ideas led Dr. Rush to an alteration in his practice.
He adopted the plan of Dr. Mitchell. He administered calo
mel and jalap combined, and had the happiness of curing four
of the first five patients to whom he administered this medi
cine, notwithstanding some of them were advanced several
days in the disease.

" After such a pledge of the safety and success of this new
medicine," says Dr. Thatcher, in his biographical sketch of
Dr. Rush, ** he communicated the prescription to such of the
practitioners as he met in the streets. Some of them, he
found, had been in the use of calomel for several days ; but as
they had given it in single doses only, and had followed it by
large doses pf bark, wine, and laudanum, they had done little
ir no good with it. He imparted the prescription to the col
lege of physicians, on the third of September, and endeavour
ed to remove the fears of his fellow citizens, by assuring them

248 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

that the disease was no longer incurable. The credit his
prescription acquired, brought him an immense accession of
business. It continued to be almost uniformly effectual, in
nearly all those cases which he \vas able to attend, either in
person, or by his pupils. But he did not rely upon purges
alone to cure the disease. The theory which he had adopted
led him to use other remedies, to abstract excess of stimulus
from the system. These were blood letting, cool air, cold
drinks, low diet, and application of cold water to the body.
He began by drawing a small quantity of blood at a time.
The appearance of it when drawn, and its effects upon the
system, satisfied him of its safety and efficacy, and encouraged
him to proceed. Never did he experience such sublime joy
as he now felt, in contemplating the success of his remedies.
It repaid him for all the toils and studies of his life. The
conquest of this formidable disease was not the effect of acci
dent, nor of the application of a single remedy ; but it was
the triumph of a principle in medicine. In this joyful state
of mind, he entered in his note book, dated the 10th of Sep
tember, ' Thank God, out of one hundred patients whom 1
have visited or prescribed for this day, I have lost none.'

" Being unable to comply with the numerous demands
which were made upon him, for the purging powders, not
withstanding he had employed three persons to assist his
pupils in putting them up, and finding himself unable to at
tend all the persons who sent for him, he furnished the apo
thecaries with the receipt for the mercurial purges, together
with printed directions for giving them, and for the treatment
of the disease. Had he consulted his own interest, he would
silently have pursued his own plans of cure, with his old pa
tients, who still confided in him and his new remedies ; but
he felt, at this season of universal distress, his professional
obligations to all the citizens of Philadelphia, to be superior
to private and personal considerations ; and therefore de
termined, at every hazard, to do every thing in his power to
save their lives. Under the influence of this disposition, he
addressed a letter to the college of physicians, in which he
stated his objections to Dr. Stevens's remedies, and defended

BENJAMIN RUSH. 349

those he had recommended. He likewise defended them in
the public papers, against the attacks that were made upon
them by several of the physicians of the city, and occasion
ally addressed such advice to the citizens as experience had
suggested to be useful to prevent the disease. In none of the
recommendations of his remedies did he claim the credit of
their discovery. On the contrary, he constantly endeavour
ed to enforce their adoption by mentioning precedents in
favour of their efficacy, from the highest authorities in medi
cine. This controversy was encouraged merely to prevent
the greater evil of the depopulation of Philadelphia, by the
use of remedies which had been prescribed by himself as
well as others, not only without effect, but with evident inju
ry to the sick. The repeated and numerous instances of
their iaefficacy, and the almost uniform success of the de
pleting remedies, after a while procured submission to the lat
ter, from nearly all the persons who were affected by the
fever.

" Many whole families, consisting of five, six, and, in
three instances, of nine members, were recovered by plenti
ful purging and bleeding. These remedies were prescribed
with great advantage by several of the physicians of the city
But the use of them was not restricted to the physicians alone;
the clergy, the apothecaries, many private citizens, several
intelligent women, and two black men, prescribed them with
great success. Nay, more, many persons prescribed them
to themselves. It was owing to the almost universal use of
these remedies, that the mortality of the disease diminished
in proportion as the number of persons who were affected by
it increased. It is probable that not less than six thousand
of the inhabitants of Philadelphia were saved from death by
bleeding and purging, during the autumn of 1793.

" The credit which this new mode of treating the disease
acquired in all parts of the city, produced an immense influx
of patients to Dr. Rush. His pupils were constantly employ
ed at first in putting up purging powders, but after a while
only in bleeding and visiting the sick.

" Between the 8th and 15th of September, Dr. Rush visited

350 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

and prescribed for a hundred and a hundred and twenty pa
tients a day. In the short intervals of business, which he
spent at his meals, his house was filled with patients, chief
ly the poor, waiting for advice. For many weeks he sel
dom ate without prescribing for numbers as he sat at table.
To assist him, three of his pupils, Mr. Stall, Mr. Fisher,
and Mr. Cox, accepted of rooms in his house, and became
members of his family. Their labours now had no re
mission. He employed every moment in the interval of
his visits to the sick, in prescribing in his house for the
poor, or in sending answers to messages from his patients.
Unable to comply with the numerous applications that were
made to him, he was obliged to refuse many every day.
His sister counted forty-seven applicants for medical aid
turned off in one forenoon, before eleven o'clock. In
riding through the streets, he was often forced to resist the
entreaties of parents imploring a visit to their children, or of
children to their parents. He was sometimes obliged to
tear himself from persons who attempted to stop him, and to
urge his way by driving his chair as speedily as possible be
yond the reach of their cries. While he was thus over
whelmed with business, and his own life endangered, without
being able to answer the numerous calls made on him, he re
ceived letters from his friends in the country, pressing him,
in the strongest terms, to leave the city. To one of these
letters he replied, " that he had resolved to stick to his prin
ciples, his practice, and his patients, to the last extremity."

The incessant labours of Dr. Rush, both of body and mind,
during this awful visitation, nearly overpowered his health,
and for a time his useful life was despaired of. By a timely
application of remedies, however, he was restored, and able
to return to the duties of his profession. But ill health was
not the only evil he suffered, as the consequence of his ac
tivity, during the prevalence of the yellow fever in Philadel
phia. His mode of treatment was called in question by many
of his contemporaries, notwithstanding the great success
which attended it. At length the prejudices against him in
fected not only physicians, but a considerable part of the

BENJAMIN RUSH. 251

community. The public journals were enlisted against him,
and in numerous pamphlets his system was attacked with
great severity. He was even called a murderer, and was at
length threatened to be prosecuted and expelled the city.

The benefactors of mankind have not unfrequently been
treated in a similar manner. They suffer for a time ; but
justice is at length done them. Dr. Harvey, as a conse
quence of publishing his account of the circulation of the
blood, lost his practice ; and the great Dr. Sydenham suffered
in a similar manner, for introducing depleting medicine in
cases of inflammatory fevers. On the termination of the fever
in Philadelphia, a motion was made in a public meeting of
the citizens in that city, to thank the physicians for their ser
vices during the prevalence of the fever, but no one would
second it. This was high ingratitude, and especially when
it is considered that eight out of thirty-five of the physicians,
who continued in the city, died; and of those who remained,
but three escaped the fever.

Notwithstanding the great labours of Dr. Rush as a lec
turer and practitioner, he was a voluminous writer. His
printed works consisted of seven volumes, six of which treat
of medical subjects. One is a collection of essays, literary,
moral, and philosophical. It is a matter of wonder how a
physician, who had so many patients to attend — a professor,
who had so many pupils to instruct — could find leisure to
write so much, and at the same time so well. Our wonder
will cease, when it is known that he suffered no fragments of
time to be wasted, and that he improved every opportunity
of acquiring knowledge, and used all practicable means for
retaining and digesting what he had acquired. In his early
youth he had the best instructors, and in every period of his
life, great opportunities for mental improvement. He was
gifted from heaven with a lively imagination, a retentive me
mory, a discriminating judgment, and he made the most of
all these advantages. From boyhood till his last sickness,
he was a constant and an indefatigable student. He read
much, but thought more. His mind was constantly en
grossed with at least one literary inquiry, to which, for the

252 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

time, he devoted his undivided attention. To make himsell
master of that subject, he read, he meditated, he conversed.
It was less his custom to read a book through, than to reaa
us much of all the authors within his reach as bore on the sub
ject of his present inquiry. His active mind brooded over
the materials thus collected, compared his ideas, and traced
their relations to each other, and from the whole drew his
own conclusions. In these, and similar mental exercises, he
was habitually and almost constantly employed, and daily
aggregated and multiplied his intellectual stores. In this
manner his sound judgment was led to form those new com
binations, which constitute principles in science. He formed
acquaintances with his literary fellow-citizens, and all wel'
informed strangers, who visited Philadelphia; and drew from
them every atom of information he could obtain, by conver
sing on the subjects with which they were best acquainted.
He extracted so largely from the magazine of knowledge
deposited in the expanded mind of Dr. Franklin, that he
once mentioned to a friend, his intention to write a book with
the title of Frankliniana, in which he proposed to collect the
fragments of wisdom, which he had treasured in his memory,
as they fell in conversation from the lips of this great ori
ginal genius. To Dr. Rush, every place was a school, every
one with whom he conversed was a tutor. He was never
without a book, for, when he had no other, the book of nature
was before him, and engaged his attention. In his lectures
to his pupils, he advised them, ' to lay every person they
met with, whether in a packet boat, a stage wagon, or a
public road, under contribution for facts on physical sub
jects.' What the professor recommended to them, he prac
tised himself. His eyes and ears were open to see, hear,
and profit by every occurrence. The facts he received
from persons of all capacities he improved to some valuable
purpose. He illustrates one of his medical theories by a fact
communicated by a butcher ; another from an observation
made by a madman, in the Pennsylvania Hospital. In his
scientific work on the diseases of the mind, he refers fre
quently to poets, and particularly to Shakspeare, to illustrate

BENJAMIN RUSH. 253

the history of madness, and apologises for it in the following
words. ' They (poets) view the human mind in all its ope^a-
tions, whether natural or morbid, with a microscopic eye,
and hence many things arrest their attention, which escape
the notice of physicians.' It may be useful to students to
be informed, that Dr. Rush constantly kept by him a note
book, consisting of two parts, in one of which he entered
facts as they occurred ; in the other, ideas and observations,
as they arose in his own mind, or were suggested by others
in conversation. His mind was under such complete dis
cipline, that he could read or write with perfect composure,
in the midst of the noise of his children, the conversation
of his family, and the common interrogatories of his visiting
patients. A very moderate proportion of his time was devo
ted to sleep, and much less to the pleasures of the table. In
the latter case, sittings were never prolonged, but in conver
sation on useful subjects, and for purposes totally distinct
from the gratifications of appetite. In the course of nearly
seventy years spent in this manner, he acquired a sum of
useful practical knowledge that has rarely been attained by
one man, in any age or country."

Medical inquiries were the primary objects of Dr. Rush's
attention ; yet he by no means neglected other branches of
knowledge. In the earlier part of his life, he paid great
attention to politics. The subjects of a political character,
which chiefly engrossed his mind, were the independence of
his country, the establishment of wise constitutions for the
states generally, and for his own state particularly, and the
diffusion of knowledge among the American people. On
these subjects he usefully employed his pen in numerous
essays, which were published under a variety of names.

This political knowledge, and political integrity, were so
well appreciated, that sundry offices were conferred upon
him. He was a member of the celebrated congress of 1776,
which declared these states free and independent. This
event Dr. Rush perceived to be the harbinger of important
blessings to the American people. He was not one of those
who thought so much of commerce, of the influx of riches,
22

254 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

or high rank among the nations. These, indeed, he well
knew were consequences which would result from the decla
ration of independence. But these he viewed as a minor
consideration, compared with the increase of talents and know
ledge. The progress of eloquence, of science, and of mind,
in all its various pursuits, was considered by him as the ne
cessary effect of republican constitutions, and in the pro
spect of them he rejoiced. Nor was he disappointed ; for in
a lecture, delivered in November, 1799, he observes : "from
a strict attention to the state of mind in this country, before the
year 1774, and at the present time, I am satisfied the ratio of
intellect is as twenty are to one, and of knowledge as a hun
dred are to one, in these states, compared with what they
were before the American revolution."

In 1777, he was appointed physician general of the military
hospital in the middle department, sometime after which he
published his observations on our hospitals, army diseases,
and the effects of the revolution on the army and people.

In 1787, he became a member of the convention of Penn
sylvania for the adoption of the federal constitution. This
constitution received his warmest approbation. He pro
nounced the federal government a masterpiece of human
wisdom. From it he anticipated a degree of felicity to the
American people which they have not, and probably never
will, experience.

For the last fourteen years of his life, he was treasurer for
the United States mint, by appointment of President Adams ;
an office which was conferred upon him, as a homage to his
talents and learning, and by means of which something was
added to his revenue.

Dr. Rush took a deep interest in the many private associa
tions, for the advancement of human happiness, with which
Pennsylvania abounds. In the establishment of the Phila
delphia Dispensary, the first institution of the kind in the
United States, he led the way. He was the principal agent
in founding Dickinson College, in Carlisle ; and through his
influence, the Rev. Dr. Nisbet, of Montrose, in Scotland, was
induced to remove to America to take charge of it. For some

BENJAMIN RUSH. 255

years, he was president of the society for the abolition of sia-
very, and, also, of the Philadelphia Medical Society. He was
a founder of the Philadelphia Bible Society, and one of its vice-
presidents, and a vice-president of the American Philosophical
Society. He was an honorary member of many of the literary
institutions, both of this country and of Europe. In 1805, he
was honoured by the king of Prussia, with a medal, for his re
plies to certain questions on the yellow fever. On a similar
account, he was presented with a gold medal in 1807, from the
queen of Etruria; and in 1811, the Emperor of Russia sent
him a diamond ring, as a testimony of his respect for his me
dical character.

Dr. Rush was a public writer for forty-nine years, and
from the nineteenth to the sixty-eighth year of his age. His
works, which were quite numerous, show much reading, deep
investigation, and tried experience. He seems to have com
bined the most useful in physical science, with the most ele
gant in literature. Instead of being a mere collator of the
opinions of others, he was constantly making discoveries and
improvements of his own ; and from the result of his indivi
dual experience and observation, established more principles,
and added more facts to the science of medicine, than all who
had preceded him in his native country. The tendency of all
liis writings was decidedly good.

He po \verfully, and to .some extent successfully, employed
his pen against some of the habits and vices of mankind. His
" Inquiry into the effects of ardent spirits upon the human
body and mind," has been more read than any of his works.
All the medical philosophy that was pertinent to the subject,
was incorporated with it. Striking descriptions of the per
sonal and family distress occasioned by that vice, and of its
havoc on the minds, bodies and estates of its unhappy votaries,
were given, and the means of prevention and cure pointed
out. The whole was illustrated by a scale, graduated like a
thermometer, showing at one view the effects of certain
enumerated liquors on the body, the mind, and the condition
in society of those who are addicted to them. In the last
year of Dr. Rush's life, he presented to the general assembly

256 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

of the Presbyterian church in the United StaU , ./ne thousand
copies of this popular pamphlet, to be given away among the
people of their respective congregations. About the same
time, that numerous and respectable body passed a resolution,
enjoining on their members to exert themselves in counter
acting this ruinous vice.

In his " Observations upon the influence of the habitual
use of tobacco upon health, morals, and property," Dr. Rush
employed his eloquent pen in dissuading from practices,
which insensibly grow into habits productive of many unfore
seen evils.

Dr. Rush was a great practical physician. In the treat
ment of diseases he was eminently successful, and in descri
bing their symptoms and explaining their causes, he was un
commonly accurate. Nor is this matter of wonder, for he
was minutely acquainted with the histories of diseases of all
ages, countries, and occupations. The annals of medicine
cannot produce an account of any great epidemic disease,
that has visited our earth, in any age, or country, which is
more minute, accurate, and completely satisfactory, than Dr
Rush's description of the yellow fever of 1793, in Philadel
phia. Had he never written another line, this alone would
have immortalized his name. He was a physician of no
common cast. His prescriptions were not confined to doses
of medicine, but to the regulation of the diet, air, dress, exer
cise, and mental actions of his patients, so as to prevent
disease, and to make healthy men and women from invalids.
His pre-eminence as a physician, over so many of his contem
poraries, arose from the following circumstances :

He carefully studied the climate in which he lived, and the
symptoms of acute and chronic diseases therein prevalent ;
the different habits and constitutions of his patients, and
varied his prescriptions with their strength, age, and sex.

He marked the influence of different seasons, upon the
same disease; and varied his practice accordingly. He obser
ved and recorded the influence of successive epidemic dis
eases upon each other, and the hurtful as well as salutary
effects of his remedies, and thereby acquired a knowledge ot

BE:-; JAM IN R-USII. 257

the character of the reigning disease in every successive sea
son. His notes and records of the diseases, which have taken
place in Philadelphia for the last forty-four years, must be
of incalculable value to such as may have access to them. In
attendance upon patients, Dr. Rush's manner was so gentle
and sympathising, that pain and distress were less poignant in
his presence. On all occasions he exhibited the manners of
a gentleman, and his conversation was sprightly, pleasant,
and instructive. His letters were peculiarly excellent ; for
they were dictated by a feeling heart, and adorned with the
effusions of a brilliant imagination. His correspondence
was extensive, and his letters numerous ; but every one of
them, as far as can be known to an individual, contained
something original, pleasant, and sprightly. I can truly say, re
marks Dr. Ramsay, that in the course of thirty-five years' cor
respondence and friendly intercourse, I never received a let
ter from him without being delighted and improved ; nor left
his company without learning something. His observations
were often original, and when otherwise, far from insipid :
for he had an uncommon way of expressing common thoughts.
He possessed in a high degree those talents which engage the
heart. He took so lively an interest in every thing that
concerned his pupils, that each of them believed himself a
favourite, while his kind offices to all proved that he was the
common friend and father of them all.

In lecturing to his class, Dr. Rush mingled the most ab
struse investigation with the most agreeable eloquence ; the
sprightliest sallies of imagination, with the most profound dis
quisitions ; and the whole was enlivened with anecdotes, both
pleasant and instructive. His language was simple and al
ways intelligible, and his method so judicious, that a consistent
view of the subject was communicated, and the recollection
of the whole rendered easy. His lectures were originally
written on leaves alternately blank. On the blank side he
entered from time to time, every new fact, idea, anecdote, or
illustration, that he became possessed of, from any source
whatever. In the course of about four years, the blank was
generally so far filled up, that ho found it expedient to make
2L 22*

258 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

a new set of lectures. In this way he not only enlightened
the various subjects, on which it was his province to instruct
his class ; but the light which he cast on them, for forty-four
successive years, was continually brightening. The instruc
tions he gave to his pupils by lectures, though highly valua
ble, were less so than the habits of thinking and observation
he, in some degree, forced upon them. His constant aim was
to rouse their minds from a passive to an active state, so as
to enable them to instruct themselves. Since the first insti
tution of the medical school in Pennsylvania, its capital,
Philadelphia, has been the very atmosphere of medicine, and
that atmosphere has been constantly clearing from the fogs
of error, and becoming more luminous from the successive
and increasing diffusion of the light of truth. A portion of
knowledge floated about that hallowed spot, which was im
bibed by every student, without his being conscious of it,
and had an influence in giving to his mind a medical texture.
To this happy state of things all the professors contributed.
Drs. Wistar, Barton, Physick, Dorsey, Coxe, and James, the
survivors of that illustrious and meritorious body, will ac
knowledge that their colleague, Professor R"fc"h, was not de
ficient in his quota.

We have hitherto viewed Dr. Rush as an author, a physi
cian, a professor, and a philosopher ; let us now view him as
a man. From him we may learn to be good, as well as great.
Such was the force of pious example and religious education
in the first fifteen years of his life, that though he spent the en
suing nine in Philadelphia, Edinburgh, London, and Paris, ex
posed to the manifold temptations which are inseparable from
great cities, yet he returned, at the age of twenty-four, to his na
tive country, with unsullied purity of morals. The sneers of in
fidels, and the fascinations of pleasure, had no power to divert
him from the correct principles and virtuous habits which had
been ingrafted on his mind in early youth. He came home
from his travels with no excessive attachment but to his books ;
no other ambition than that of being a great scholar ; and with
out any desire of making a stepping-stone of his talents and
education, to procure for him the means of settling down in

BENJAMIN RUSH. 259

inglorious ease, without the farther cultivation and exertion of
his talents. In a conversation which he held with Dr. Ram
say, thirty-five years ago, Dr. Rush observed, that as he step
ped from the ship that brought him home from Europe, he
resolved that " no circumstances of personal charms, fortune,
or connexions, should tempt him to perpetrate matrimony,
(his own phrase,) till he had extended his studies so far that a
family would be no impediment to his farther progress." To
this resolution of sacrificing every gratification to his love
for learning, and his desire of making a distinguished figure
in the republic of letters, he steadily adhered. For this he
trimmed the midnight lamp ; for this, though young, gay,
elegant in person and manners, and possessed of the most in
sinuating address, he kept aloof from all scenes of dissipation,
enervating pleasure, and unprofitable company, however
fashionable ; and devoted himself exclusively to the cultiva
tion of those powers which God had given him.

Piety to God was an eminent trait in the character of Dr
Rush. In all his printed works, and in all his private trans
actions, he expressed the most profound respect and venera
tion for the great Eternal. At the close of his excellent ob
servations on the pulmonary consumption, he observes, " I
cannot conclude this inquiry without adding, that the author
of it derived from his paternal ancestors a predisposition to
pulmonary consumption ; and that, between the eighteenth
and forty-third year of his age, he has occasionally been af
flicted with many of the symptoms of that disease which he
has described. By the constant and faithful use of many of
the remedies which he has now recommended, he now, in
the sixty-first year of his age, enjoys nearly an uninterrupted
exemption from pulmonary complaints. In humble gratitude,
therefore, to that Being who condescends to be called the
1 preserver of men,' he thus publicly devotes the result of his
experience and inquiries to the benefit of such of his fellow
creatures as may be afflicted with the same disease, sincerely
wishing that they may be as useful to them as they have been
to the author."

It was not only by words, but in deeds, that he expressed

260 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

his reverence for the Divine character. It was his usual prac
tice to close the day by reading to his collected family a
chapter in the Bible, and afterwards by addressing his Maker
in prayer, devoutly acknowledging his goodness for favours
received, and humbly imploring his continued protection and
blessing. His respect for Jehovah, led him to respect his
ministers, who acted consistently with their high calling. He
considered their office of the greatest importance to society,
both in this world and that which is to come. He stiengthen-
ed their hands, and was always ready and willing to promote
and encourage arrangements for their comfortable support,
and for building churches, and for propagating the gospel
In an address to ministers of every denomination, on subjects
interesting to morals, he remarks, " If there were no here
after, individuals and societies would be great gainers by at
tending public worship every Sunday. Rest from labour in
the house of God winds up the machine of both soul and
body better than any thing else, and thereby invigorates it
for the labours and duties of the ensuing week." Dr. Rush
made his first essay as an author, when an apprentice to Dr.
Redman, by wrriting an eulogy on the Rev. Gilbert Tennent,
who had been the friend and fellow labourer of the celebrated
George Whitfield, and an active, useful, animated preacher
of the gospel, from 1725 till 1764. On the 27th of May,
1809, he wrote to his cousin, Dr. Finley, to this effect : u The
general assembly of the presbyterian church is now in ses
sion in Philadelphia. It is composed of many excellent men,
some of whom are highly distinguished by talents and learn
ing, as well as piety. I have had some pleasant visits from n
number of them, and have been amply rewarded for my ci
vilities to them, by their agreeable and edifying conversation.
They remind me of the happy times whsn their places in the
church were filled by your venerable father, and his illus
trious contemporaries and friends, Messrs. Tennent, Blair,
Davies, and Rodgers."

The life of Dr. Rush was terminated on the 19th of April,
in the 68th year of his age. During his illness, which was
of but few days continuance, his house was beset with crowds

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 261

of citizens, such was the general anxiety in respect to the life
of this excellent man. When, at length, he died, the news
of his decease spread a deep gloom over the city, and ex
pressions of profound sympathy were received from all parts
of the country.

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN was born at Boston, on the 17th of
January, 1706. His ancestors were from the county of
Northampton, in England, where they had for many genera
tions possessed a small freehold estate, near the village of
Eaton. During the persecutions in the reign of Charles II.,
against the puritans, the father of Benjamin, who was of
that persuasion, emigrated to America, and settling in Bos
ton, had recourse for a livelihood to the business of a chan
dler and soap boiler. His mother's name was Folger. She
was a native of Boston, and belonged to a respectable family.

At an early age, young Franklin discovered, as his parents
thought, a more than ordinary genius ; and they resolved to
give hrm an education, with reference to the profession of a
clergyman. Accordingly, he was placed at a grammar school,
where he soon attained the reputation of a lad of industrious
habits, and respectable genius.

His parents, however, at the expiration of a year, found
that their slender revenues would not admit of the expense of
collegiate instruction. He was, therefore, soon after taken
home to prosecute the business of his father. In this occu
pation he was employed for two years, but it was ill adapted
to his constitution, and he felt unwilling to continue cutting
wicks for candles, filling moulds, and running of errands. He
became uneasy, and at length resolved to embark on a sea
faring life. To such a proposition, however, his parents
strongly objected, as they had already lost a son at sea. He

262 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

was permitted, however, to change his business, and allowed
to choose an occupation which was more congenial to his in
clinations.

His fondness for books had, from an early age, been singu
larly great. He read every thing within his reach. His fa
ther's library was itself scanty, being confined to a few such
works as Defoe's Essay upon Projects, Mather's Essay on
doing Good, and the Lives of Plutarch. These he perused
with great attention, and they appear to have exercised a fa
vourable influence on his mind. His love of books was fre
quently noticed by his father, who, at length, proposed to
bind him as an apprentice to an elder brother, who was at
that time a printer of a newspaper in Boston. He was ac
cordingly thus situated, in the year 1717, when he was scarce
ly twelve years of age. He soon became a proficient in the
mechanical part of the business, and seized every opportuni
ty for reading books that he could borrow from his acquaint
ance, in which employment he spent the greater part of his
nights. He soon began to indulge himself in writing ballads
and other poetical pieces ; but, it is said, that his father spee
dily satisfied him that this was not the species of composition
in which he could excel. His next efforts were directed to
prose composition, in which his success is well known, and
duly appreciated. With a passion for reading and writing,
he imbibed a kindred one for disputation ; and adopting the
Socratic method, he became dexterous in confuting and con
founding an antagonist, by a series of questions. This
course gave him a sceptical turn with regard to religion, and
while he was young he took every opportunity of propagating
his tenets, and with the ordinary zeal of a new convert. He
was, however, soon convinced, by the effect produced on
some of his companions, that it was extremely dangerous to
loosen the ties of religion, without the probability of substi
tuting other principles equally efficacious. The doubts
which subsisted in his own mind, he was never able to re
move ; but he was not deficient in fortifying himself with
such moral principles as directed him to the most valuable
ends, by honourable means. By habits of self-denial, early

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 263

formed, he obtained a complete dominion over his appetites,
so that, at the age of sixteen, he readily discarded animal
food, from the conviction produced in his mind by perusing a
work on the subject, that he should enjoy a more vigorous
state of health without it. He now arTered his brother to
maintain himself, for half the sum paid for his board ; and
even with this he was able to make savings to purchase what
books he wanted. In his brother, he found a harsh master,
and Benjamin felt indignant at the treatment which he ex
perienced from him in the way of business. His brother had
established a newspaper, in which the apprentice contrived
to insert some papers and essays anonymously. These were
read and highly commended by people of the best judgment
and taste in the town. The young man began now to feel
his importance, which was still more impressed on him by
having the paper published in his own name, that of his
brother, for some political offence, having been interdicted
by the state.

On the release of his brother, who had for some time been
imprisoned for the above political offence, Franklin was treat
ed by him with so much severity, that at length he determin
ed to leave him. His indentures having before this been can
celled, he secretly went on board of a vessel, bound to New-
York, in which he took passage for that city. After a few
days spent in New-York, having sought in vain to procure
business, he proceeded on foot to Philadelphia, where he
at length arrived, fatigued and destitute of all means of sup
port. He was now but seventeen years of age, at the dis
tance of four hundred miles from home, nearly pennyless,
without employment, without a counsellor, and unacquainted
with a single person in the city.

The day following his arrival he wandered through the
streets of Philadelphia with an appearance little short of a
beggar. His pockets were distended by his clothes, which
were crowded into them ; and provided with a roll of bread
under each arm, he proceeded through the principal streets
of the city. His uncouth appearance attracted the notice of
several of the citizens, and among others of a Miss Reed,

264 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

who afterwards became his wife, and by whom, as he passed
along, he was thought to present a very awkward and ridicu-
Jous appearance.

There were at this time but two printing offices in Phila
delphia. Fortunately, in one of these he found employment
as compositor. His conduct was very becoming ; he was at
tentive to business, and economical in his expenses. His
fidelity not only commended him to his master, but was no
ticed by several respectable citizens, who promised him their
patronage and support.

Among others, who took much notice of him, was Sir Wil
liam Keith, at that time governor of the province. The go
vernor having become acquainted with the history of his re
cent adventures, professed a deep interest in his welfare, and
at length proposed that he should commence business on his
own account ; at the same time, promising to aid him with
his influence and that of his friends, and to give him the
printing of the government. Moreover, the governor urged
him to return to Boston, to solicit the concurrence and as
sistance 6f his father. At the same time, he gave him a let
ter to that gentleman, replete with assurances of affection,
and promises of support to the son.

With this object in view, he sailed for Boston, and /at
length, after an absence of several months, he again entered
his father's house. He was affectionately received by the
family. To his father he communicated the letter of Go
vernor Keith, which explained the object of his return. His
father, however, judiciously advised him, on account of youth
and inexperience, to relinquish the project of setting up a
printing office, and wrote to this effect to his patron, Govern
or Keith. Having determined to follow the advice of his
father, he returned to Philadelphia, and again entering the
employment of his former master, pursued his business with
his usual assiduous attention.

Governor Keith, on learning the advice and decision of
Franklin's father, offered himself to furnish the necessary
materials for a printing establishment, and proposed to Frank
lin to make a voyage to England to procure them. This pro-

BENJAMIN FKANKLIN. 265

posal Franklin readily accepted, and with gratitude to his
generous benefactor, he sailed for England in 1725, accom
panied by his friend Ralph, one of his literary associates in
Philadelphia.

Before his departure, he exchanged promises of fidelity
with Miss Reed of Philadelphia, with whose father he had
lodged. Upon his arrival in London, Mr. Franklin found
that Governor Keith, upon whose letters of credit and re
commendation he relied, had entirely deceived him. He
was now obliged to work as a journeyman printer, and ob
tained employment in an office in Bartholomew-close. His
friend Ralph did not so readily find the means of subsist
ence, and was a constant drain upon the earnings of Frank
lin. In that great city, the morals of the young travellers
were not much improved ; Ralph forgot, or acted as if he
had forgotten, that he had a wife and child across the Atlan
tic ; and Franklin was equally forgetful of his promises and
engagements to Miss Reed. About this period he published,
** A Dissertation on Liberty and Necessity, Pleasure and
Pain," dedicated to Ralph, and intended as an answer to
Wollaston's " Religion of Nature." This piece gained for
him some degree of reputation, and introduced him to the
acquaintance of Dr. Mandeville, author of the " Fable of the
Bees," and some other literary characters Franklin was
always temperate and industrious, and his habits in this
respect were eventually the means of securing his morals,
as well as of raising his fortune. In the interesting account
which he has left of his own life, is a narrative of the method
which he took in reforming the sottish habits of his fellow-
workmen in the second printing office in which he was
engaged in London, and which was situated in the neighbour
hood of Lincoln's-inn-fields. He tried to persuade them
that there was more real sustenance in a penny roll, than in a
pint of porter; at first, the plan of economy which he pro
posed was treated with contempt or ridicule ; but in the end
he was able to induce several of them to substitute a warm
and nourishing breakfast, in the place of stimulating liquors.

Having resided about a year and a half in London, he
2M 23

266 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

concerted a scheme with an acquaintance, to make the tour
of Europe. At this juncture, however, he fell in company
with a mercantile friend, who was about returning home to
Philadelphia, and who now persuaded Franklin to abandon
his project of an eastern tour, and to enter his service in the
capacity of a clerk. On the 22d of July. 172S, they set sail
for Philadelphia, where they arrived the llth of October.

The prospects of Franklin were now brighter. He was
attached to his new adopted profession, and by his assiduous
attention to business gained the confidence of his employer
so much, that he was about to be commissioned as supercargo
to the West Indies, when of a sudden his patron died, by
which, not only his fair prospects were blighted, but he was
once more thrown out of all employment.

He had, however, one resource, and that was a return to
the business of printing, in the service of his former master.
At length, he became superintendant of the printing office
where he worked, and finding- himself able to manage the
concern with some skill and profit, he resolved to embark in
business for himself. He entered into partnership with a
fellow-workman, named Meredith, whose friends were ena
bled to furnish a supply of money sufficient for the concern,
which was no doubt very small ; for Franklin has recorded
the high degree of pleasure, which he experienced from a
payment of five shillings only, the first fruits of their earn
ings. " The recollection," says this noble spirited man,
** of what I felt on this occasion, has rendered me more dis
posed, than perhaps I might otherwise have been, to encour
age young beginners in trade." His habitual industry and
undeviating punctuality, obtaine-d him the notice and business
of the principal people in the place. He instituted a club
under the name of " the Junto," for the purpose of the dis
cussion of political and philosophical questions, which proved
an excellent school for the mutual improvement of its several
members. The test proposed to every candidate, before his
admission, was this ; " Do you sincerely declare that you
love mankind in general, of what profession or religion so
ever ? Do you think any person ought to be harmed in his

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 207

body, name, or goods, for mere speculative opinions, or his
external way of worship ? Do you love truth for truth's sake ;
and will you endeavour impartially to find and receive it
yourself, and communicate it to others." Mr. Franklin and
his partner ventured to set up a new public paper, which his
own efforts as writer and printer caused to succeed, and they
obtained likewise the printing of the votes and laws of the
assembly. In process of time, Meredith withdrew from the
partnership, and Franklin met with friends, who enabled him
to undertake the whole concern in his own name, and add to
it the business of a stationer.

In 1730, he married the lady to whom he was engaged be
fore his departure for England. During his absence he for
got his promises to her, and on his return to America, he
found her the wife of another man. Although a woman of
many virtues, she suffered from the unkindness of her hus
band, who, fortunately for her, lived but a short time. Not
long after his death, Franklin again visited her, soon after
which they were married, and for many years lived in the
full enjoyment of connubial peace and harmony.

In 1732, he began to publish "Poor Richard's Almanac,"
a work which was continued for twenty-five years, and which,
besides .answering the purposes of a calendar, contained
many excellent prudential maxims, which were of great
utility to that class of the community, who by their poverty
or laborious occupations, were deprived of the advantages
of education. Ten thousand copies of this almanac are
said to have been published every year, in America. The
maxims contained in it, were from time to time republished
both in Great Britain, and on the continent.

The political course of Franklin began in the year 1736, when
he was appointed clerk to the general assembly of Pennsyl
vania ; an office which he held for several years, until he was,
at length, elected a representative. During the same year,
he assisted in the establishment of the American Philosophi
cal Society, and of a college, which now exists under the title
of the University of Pennsylvania. In the following year he
was appointed to the valuable office of post-master of Phila-

268 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

delphia. In 1738 he improved the police of the city, in re
spect to the dreadful calamity of fire, by forming a society
called a fire company, to which was afterwards added an as
surance office, against losses by fire.

In 1742 he published his treatise upon the improvement
of chimnies, and at the same time contrived a stove, which
is in extensive use at the present day.

In the French war of 1744, he proposed a plan of volun
tary association for the defence of the country. This was
shortly joined by ten thousand persons, who were trained to
the use and exercise of arms. Franklin was chosen colonel
of the Philadelphia regiment, but he refused the honour in
favour of one, whom he supposed to be more competent to
the discharge of its duties.

During the same year he was elected a member of the pro
vincial assembly, in which body he soon became very popu
lar, and was annually re-elected by his fellow-citizens for the
space of ten years.

About this time, the attention of Mr. Franklin was parti
cularly turned to philosophical subjects. In 1747, he had
witnessed at Boston, some experiments on electricity, which
excited his curiosity, and which he repeated on his return
to Philadelphia, with great success. These experiments led
to important discoveries, an account of which was transmit
ted to England, and attracted great attention throughout all
Europe.

In the year 1749 he conceived the idea of explaining the
phenomena of thunder gusts, and of the aurora borealis, upon
electrical principles ; he pointed out many particulars, in
which lightning and electricity agreed, and he adduced many
facts and reasonings in support of his positions. In the same
year, he thought of ascertaining the truth of his doctrine by
drawing down the forked lightning, by means of sharp
pointed iron rods, raised into the region of the clouds. Ad
mitting the identity of lightning and electricity, and knowing
the power of points in conducting away .silently the electric
fluid, he suggested the idea of securing houses, ships, &c.
from the damages to which they were liable from lightning,

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 269

by erecting pointed iron rods, which should rise some feet
above the most elevated part, and descend some feet into the
ground, or the water. The effect of these, he concluded,
would be either to prevent a stroke, by repelling the cloud
beyond the striking distance, or by drawing off the electrical
fluid, which it contained ; or at least, conduct the stroke to
the earth, without any injury to the building. It was not till
the summer of 1752, that Mr. Franklin was enabled to com
plete his grand experiment. The plan which he proposed
was, to erect on some high tower, or elevated place, a sort of
nut, from which should rise a pointed iron rod, insulated by
being fixed in a cake of resin. Electrified clouds passing
over this, would, he conceived, impart to it a portion of their
electricity, which might be rendered evident to the senses by
sparks being emitted, when the knuckle or other conductor
was presented to it. While he was waiting for the erection
of a spire, it occurred to him, that he might have more ready
access to the region of clouds by means of a common kite ;
he accordingly prepared one for the purpose, affixing to the
upright stick an iron point. The string was as usual, of
licmp, except the lower end, which was silk, and where the
hempen part terminated, a key was fastened. With this sim
ple apparatus, on the appearance of a thunderstorm approach
ing, he went into the fields, accompanied by his son, to whom
alone he communicated his intentions, dreading probably the
ridicule which frequently awaits unsuccessful attempts in ex
perimental philosophy. For some time no sign of electricity
appeared ; he was beginning to despair of success, when he
suddenly observed the loose fibres of the string to start for
ward in an erect position, He now presented his knuckle to
the key, and received a strong spark. How exquisite must
his sensations have been at this moment? On this experiment
depended the fate of his theory ; repeated sparks were drawn
from the key, a phial was charged, a shock given, and all the
experiments made, which are usually performed with electri
city. He immediately fixed an insulated iron rod upon his
house, which drew down the lightning, and gave him an op
portunity of examining whether it were positive or negative,
23 *

270 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

and hence he applied his discovery to the securing of build
ings from the effects of lightning.

It will be impossible to enumerate all, or even a small part
of the experiments which were made by Dr. Franklin, or to
give an account of the treatises which he wrote on the
branches of science. Justice requires us to say, that he sel
dom wrote, or discoursed on any subject, upon which he did
not throw light. Few men possessed a more penetrating
genius, or a happier faculty of discrimination. His investiga
tions attracted the attention, and his discoveries called forth the
admiration of the learned in all parts of the world. Jealousy
was at length excited in Europe, and attempts were made,
not only to detract from his well earned fame, but to rob him
of the merit of originality. Others claimed the honour of
having first made several of his most brilliant experiments, or
attempted to invalidate the truth and reality of those, an ac
count of which he had published to the world. The good
sense of Dr. Franklin led him to oppose his adversaries only
by silence, leaving the vindication of his merit to the slow, but
sure operations of time.

In 1753 he was raised to the important office of deputy
post master general of America. Through ill management,
this office had been unproductive : but soon after the appoint
ment of Franklin, it became a source of revenue to the British
crown. In this station, he rendered important services to
General Braddock, in his wild and fatal expedition against
fort Du Quesne. When, at length, Braddock was defeated,
and the whole frontier was exposed to the incursions of the
savages and the French, Franklin raised a company of volun
teers, at the head of which he marched to the protection of
the frontier.

At length, in 1757, the militia was disbanded by order of
the British government, soon after which Franklin was ap
pointed agent to settle the disputes which had arisen between
the people of Pennsylvania, and the proprietary government.
With this object in view, he left his native country once more
for England. On his arrival, he laid the subject before the
privy council. The point in dispute was occasioned by an

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 271

effort of the proprietors to exempt their private estates from
taxation ; and because this exemption was not admitted, they
refused to make appropriations for the defence of the pro
vince, even in times of the greatest danger and necessity.
Franklin managed the subject with great ability, and at length
brought the proprietary faction to terms. It was agreed,
that the proprietary lands should take their share in a tax for
the public service, provided that Franklin would engage that
the assessment should be fairly proportioned. The measure
was accordingly carried into effect, and he remained at
the British court as agent for his province. His reputation
caused him also to be entrusted with the like commission
from Massachusetts, Maryland, and Georgia. The molesta
tion received by the British colonies, from the French in
Canada, induced him to write a pamphlet, pointing out the
advantages of a conquest of that province by the English; and
the subsequent expedition against it, and its retention under
the British government, at the peace, were, it is believed,
much influenced by the force of his arguments on the subject.
About this period, his talents as a philosopher were duly
appreciated in various parts of Europe. He was admitted a
fellow of the royal society of London, and the degree of doc
tor of laws was conferred upon him at St. Andrews, Edin
burgh, and at Oxford.

In 1762 he returned to America. On his arrival the pro
vincial assembly of Pennsylvania expressed their sense of his
meritorious services by a vote of thanks ; and as a remune
ration for his successful labours in their behalf, they granted
him the sum of five thousand dollars. During his absence, he
had annually been elected a member of the assembly, in
which body he now took his seat. The following year he
made a journey of sixteen hundred miles, through the nor
thern colonies, for the purpose of inspecting and regulating
the post offices.

In 1764, he was again appointed the agent of Pennsylvania,
to manage her concerns in England, in which country he ar
rived in the month of December. About this period the
famous stamp act was exciting violent commotions in America.

272 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

Against this measure, Dr. Franklin strongly enlisted himself,
and on his arrival in England, he presented a petition against
it, which, at his suggestion, had been drawn up by the Penn
sylvania assembly. At length the tumults in America became
so great, that the ministry found it necessary either to modify
the act, or to repeal it entirely. Among others, Dr. Franklin
was summoned before the house of commons, where he un
derwent a long examination. " No person was better ac
quainted with the circumstances and internal concerns of the
colonies, the temper and disposition of the colonists towards
the parent country, or their feelings in relation to the late
measures of parliament, than this gentleman. His answers
to the numerous questions put to him in the course of
this inquiry, not only show his extensive acquaintance with
the internal state of the colonies, but evince his sagacity as a
statesmen. To the question, whether the Americans would
submit to pay the stamp duty if the act were modified, and
the duty reduced to a small amount ? He answered, no, they
never will submit to it. British statesmen were extremely
desirous that the colonial assemblies should acknowledge the
right of parliament to tax them, and rescind and erase from
their journals their resolutions on this subject. To a ques
tion, whether the American assemblies would do this, Di.
Franklin answered, ' they never will do it, unless compelled
by force of arms.' '

The whole of this examination on being published was
read with deep interest, both in England arid America. To
the statements of Dr. Franklin, the repeal of the stamp act
was, no doubt, in a great measure, attributable.

In the year 1766, and 1T67, he made an excursion to Hol
land, Germany, and France, where he met writh a most flat
tering and distinguished reception. To the monarch of the
latter country, Louis XV., he was introduced, and also to
other members of the royal family, by whom, as well as by
the nobility and gentry at court, he was treated with great
hospitality and courtesy. About this time, he was elected a
member of the French Academy of Sciences, and received

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 273

diplomas from several other literary societies in England,
and on the continent.

Allusion has already been made, in our introduction, to the
discovery and publication, in 1772, of certain letters of Go
vernor Hutchinson, addressed by that gentleman to his
friends in England, and which reflected in the severest man
ner upon the people of America. These letters had fallen
into the hands of Dr. Franklin, and by him had been trans
mitted to America, where they were at length inserted in the
public journals. For a time, no one in England knew
through what channel the letters had been conveyed to
America. In 1773, Franklin publicly avowed himself to be
the person wrho obtained the letters and transmitted them to
America. This occasioned a violent clamour against him,
and upon his attending before the privy council, in the fol
lowing January, to present a petition from the colony of
Massachusetts, for the dismission of Mr. Hnt.rhinson, a most
violent invective was pronounced against him, by Mr. Wed-
deburne, afterwards Lord Loughborough. Among other
abusive epithets, the honourable member called Franklin a
coward, a murderer, and a thief. During the whole of this
torrent of abuse, Franklin sat with a composed and unaverted
aspect, or, to use his own expression, in relation to himself
on another occasion, "as if his countenance had been made
of wood." During this personal and public insult, the whole
assembly appeared greatly amused, at the expense of Dr.
Franklin. The president even laughed aloud. There was a
single person present, however, Lord North, who, to his
honour be it recorded, expressed great disapprobation of the
indecent conduct of the assembly. The intended insult,
however, was entirely lost. The dignity and composure of
Franklin caused a sad disappointment among his enemies,
who were reluctantly compelled to acknowledge the superi
ority of his character. Their animosity, however, was not
to be appeased, but by doing Franklin the greatest injury
within their power. They removed him from the office of
deputy post master general, interrupted the payment of his
salary as agent for the colonies, and finally instituted
2N

274 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

against him a suit in chancery concerning the letters of
Hutchinson.

At length, finding all his efforts to restore harmony be
tween Great Britain and the colonies useless ; and perceiv
ing that the controversy had reached a crisis, when his pre
sence in England was no longer necessary, and his continu
ance personally hazardous, he embarked for America, where
he arrived in 1775, just after the commencement of hostilities.
He was received with every mark of esteem and affection.
He was immediately elected a delegate to the general con
gress, in which body he did as much, perhaps, as any other
man, to accomplish the independence of his country.

In 1776, he was deputed by congress to proceed to Canada,
to negociate with the people of that country, and to persuade
them, if possible, to throw off the British yoke ; but the in
habitants of Canada had been so much disgusted with the zeal
of the people of New-England, who had burnt some of their
chapels, that they refused to listen to the proposals made to
them by Dr. Franklin and his associates. On the arrival of
Lord Howe in America in 1776, he entered upon a correspon
dence with him* on the subject of reconciliation. He was
afterwards appointed, with two others, to wait upon the Eng
lish commissioners, and learn the extent of their powers ;
but as these only went to the granting of pardon upon sub
mission, he joined his colleagues in considering them as in
sufficient. Dr. Franklin was decidedly in favour of a decla
ration of independence; and was appointed president of the
convention assembled for the purpose of establishing a new
government for the state of Pennsylvania. When it was
determined by congress to open a public negociation with
France, he was commissioned to visit that country, with
which he negotiated the treaty of alliance, offensive and de
fensive, which produced an immediate war between England
and France. Dr. Franklin was one of the commissioners
who, on the part of the United States, signed the provincial
articles of peace in 1782, and the definitive treaty in the fol
lowing year. Before he left Europe, he concluded a treaty
with Sweden and Prussia. By the latter, he obtained several

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 275

most liberal and humane stipulations in favour of the free
dom of commerce, and the security of private property
during war, in conformity to those principles which he had
ever maintained on these subjects. Having seen the accom
plishment of his wishes in the independence of his country,
he requested to be recalled, and after repeated solicitations,,
Mr. Jefferson was appointed in his stead. On the arrival of
his successor, he repaired to Havre de Grace, and crossing
the English channel, landed at Newport in the Isle of Wight,
whence, after a favourable passage, he arrived safe at Phila
delphia, in September, 1785.

The news of his arrival, was received with great joy by
the citizens. A vast multitude flocked from all parts to see
him, and amidst the ringing of bells, the discharge of artillery,
the acclamations of thousands, conducted him in triumph to
his own house. In a few days, he was visited by the mem
bers of congress, and the principal inhabitants of Philadel
phia. From numerous societies and assemblies he received
the most affectionate addresses. All testified their joy at his
return, and their veneration of his exalted character.

This was a period in his life of which he often spoke with
peculiar pleasure. "I am now," said he, "in the bosom of
my family, and find four new little prattlers, who cling about
the knees of their grandpapa, and afford me great pleasure.
I am surrounded by my friends, and have an affectionate
good daughter and son-in-law to take care of me. I have
got into my niche, a very good house, which I built twenty-
four years ago, and out of which I have been ever since kept
by foreign employments."

The domestic tranquillity in which he now found himself,
he was not permitted long to enjoy, being appointed presi
dent of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, an office which
he held for three years, and the duties of which he discharged
very acceptably to his constituents. Of the federal conven
tion of 1787, for organizing the constitution of the United
States, he was elected a delegate, and in the intricate discus
sions which arose on different parts of that instrument, he
bore a distinguished part.

276 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

In 1788, he withdrew from public life, his great age ren
dering retirement desirable, and the infirmities of his body
unfitting him for the burdens of public office. On the 17th
of April, 1790, in the eighty-fourth year of his age, he ex
pired, in the city of Philadelphia. He was interred on the
21st of April. Congress directed a general mourning for
him, throughout the United States, for the space of a month.
The national assembly of France testified their sense of the
loss which the world sustained, by decreeing that each mem
ber should wear mourning for three days. This was an ho
nour perhaps never before paid by the national assembly of
one country, to a citizen of another. Dr. Franklin lies bu
ried in the northwest corner of Christ Church yard, in Phila
delphia. In his will he directed that no monumental orna
ments should be placed upon his tomb. A small marble
slab only, therefore, and that, too, on a level with the sur
face of the earth, bearing the name of himself and wife, and
the year of his death, marks the spot in the yard where he
lies.

Dr. Franklin had two children, a son and a daughter. The
son, under the British government, was appointed governor
of New-Jersey. On the occurrence of the revolution, he left
America, and took up his residence in England, where he
spent the remainder of his life. The daughter was respecta
bly married in Philadelphia, to Mr. William Bache, whose
descendants still reside in that city.

In stature, Dr. Franklin was above the middle size. He
possessed a healthy constitution, and was remarkable for his
strength and activity. His countenance indicated a serene
state of mind, great depth of thought, and an inflexible re
solution.

In his intercourse with mankind, he was uncommonly
agreeable. In conversation, he abounded in curious and in
teresting anecdote. A vein of good humour marked his con
versation, and strongly recommended him to both old and
young, to the learned and illiterate.

As a philosopher, he justly ranks high. In his specula
tions, he seldom lost sight of common sense, or yielded up

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 277

his understanding either to enthusiasm or authority. He
contributed, in no small degree, to the extension of science,
and to the improvement of the condition of mankind. He
appears to have entertained, at some periods of his life, opi
nions which were in many respects peculiar, and which pro
bably were not founded upon a sound philosophy. The fol
lowing experiment, which he made some years after his fa
ther's death, and after an absence of several years, to ascer
tain whether his mother would know him, wrill be thought at
Jeast curious and interesting. It was his conjecture, if not a
well settled opinion, that a mother might, by a kind of in
stinct or natural affection, recognize her children, .even al
though she had lost the recollection of their particular fea
tures. It was on a visit to his native town of Boston, after
an absence of many years, that this curious incident oc
curred.

" To discover the existence of this instinct by actual ex
periment," says an unknown writer, to whom we are indebt
ed for the story, and upon whose responsibility we give it to
our readers, " the Doctor resolved to introduce himself as a
stranger to his mother, and to watch narrowly for the mo
ment in which she should discover her son, and then to de
termine, with the cool precision of the philosopher, whether
that discovery was the effect of that instinct of affection, that
intuitive love, that innate attachment, which is conjectured
to cement relatives of the same blood ; and which, by ac
cording the passions of parent and child, like a well-tuned
viol, would, at the first touch, cause them to vibrate in uni
son, and at once evince that they were different chords of the
same instrument.

" On a sullen, chilly day, in the month of January, in the
afternoon, the Doctor knocked at his mother's door, and
asked to speak wTith Mrs. Franklin. He found the old lady
knitting before the parlour fire. He introduced himself, and
observing, that he understood she entertained travellers, re
quested a night's lodging. She eyed him with that cold look
of disapprobation which most people assume, when they ima
gine themselves insulted, by being supposed to exercise an
24

278 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

employment but one degree below their real occupation in
life — assured him that he had been misinformed, that she did
not keep tavern ; but that it was true, to oblige some mem
bers of the legislature, she took a number of them into her
family during the session ; that she had four members of tne
council, and six of the house of representatives, who then
boarded with her ; that all her beds were full ; and then be
took herself to her knitting, with that intense application,
which expressed, as forcibly as action could do, if you have
concluded your business, the sooner you leave the house the
better. But upon the Doctor's wrapping his coat around him,
affecting^ to shiver with cold, and observing that it was very
chilly weather, she pointed to a chair, and gave him leave to
warm himself.

" The entrance of her boarders precluded all further con
versation; coffee was soon served, and the Doctor partook with
the family. To the coffee, according to the good old custom
of the times, succeeded a plate of pippins, pipes, and a paper
of M'Intire's best, when the whole family formed a cheerful
smoking semi-circle before the fire. Perhaps no man ever
possessed colloquial powers to a more fascinating degree,
than Dr. Franklin, and never was there an occasion when he
displayed those powers to greater advantage, than at this
time. He drew the attention of the company, by the solidity
of his modest remarks, instructing them by the varied, new,
and striking lights in which he placed his subjects, and de
lighted them with apt and amusing anecdotes. Thus employ
ed, the hours passed merrily along, until eight o'clock, when,
punctual to a moment, Mrs. Franklin announced supper.
Busied with her household affairs, she fancied the intruding
stranger had quitted the house, immediately after coffee, and
it was with difficulty she could restrain her resentment, when
she saw him, without molestation, seat himself at the table
with the freedom of a member of the family.

" Immediately after supper, she called an elderly gentle
man, a member of the council, in whom she was accustomed
to confide, to another room ; complained bitterly of the rude
ness of the stranger : told the marmer of his introduction t<*

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 279

her house ; observed that he appeared like an outlandish
man ; and, she thought, had something very suspicious in
his appearance ; concluding by soliciting her friend's advice
with respect to the way in which she could most easily rid
herself of his presence. The old gentleman assured her,
that the stranger was certainly a young man of education, and
to all appearance a gentleman ; that, perhaps, being in agreea
ble company, he had paid no attention to the lateness of the
hour ; and advised her to call him aside, and repeat her ina
bility to lodge him. She accordingly sent her maid to him,
and then, with as much temper as she could command, reca
pitulated the situation of her family, observed that it grew
late, and mildly intimated that he would do well to seek him
self a lodging. The Doctov replied, that he would by no
means incommode her family ; but that, with her leave, he
would smoke one pipe more with her boarders, and then
retire.

" He returned to the company, filled his pipe, and with
the first whiff his powers returned with double force. He
recounted the hardships, he extolled the piety and policy of
their ancestors. A gentleman present mentioned the subject
of the day's debate in the house of representatives. A bill
had been introduced to extend the prerogatives of the royal
governor. The Doctor immediately entered upon the sub
ject ; supported the colonial rights with new and forcible ar
guments ; was familiar with the names of the influential men
in the house, when Dudley was governor ; recited their
speeches, and applauded the noble defence of the charter
of rights.

" During a discourse so appropriately interesting to the
company, no wonder the clock struck eleven, unperceiv-
ed by the delighted circle ; and was it wonderful that the
patience of Mrs. Franklin grew quite exhausted ? She now
entered the room, and, before the whole company, with much
warmth, addressed the Doctor ; told him plainly, she thought
herself imposed on ; observed, it was true she was a lone
woman, but that she had friends who would protect her, and
concluded by insisting on his leaving the house. The Doc-

280 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

tor made a slight apology, deliberately put on his great coat
and hat, took polite leave of the company, and approached
the street door, lighted by the maid, and attended by the mis
tress. While the Doctor and his companions had been en
joying themselves within, a most tremendous snow storm had,
without, filled the streets knee deep ; and no pooner had the
maid lifted the latch, than a roaring northeaster forced open
the door, extinguished the light, and almost filled the entry
with drifted snow and hail. As soon as it was re-lighted, the
Doctor cast a woful look towards the door, and thus address
ed his mother : ' My dear madam, can you turn me out in
this dreadful storm ? I am a stranger in this town, and shall
certainly perish in the streets. You look like a charitable
lady ; I shouldn't think you could turn a dog from your
door, in this tempestuous night/ ' Don't tell me of charity,'
said the offended matron ; ' charity begins at home. It is
your own fault you tarried so long. To be plain with you.
sir, I do not like your looks, or your conduct ; and I fear
you have some bad designs in thus^ introducing yourself to my
family.'

" The warmth of this parley had drawn the company from
the parlour, and by their united interference the stranger
was permitted to lodge in the house ; and as no bed could
be had, he consented to rest on an easy chair before the par
lour fire. Although the boarders appeared to confide, per
fectly, in the stranger's honesty, it was not so with Mrs.
Franklin. With suspicious caution, she collected her silver
spoons, pepper-box, and porringer, from her closet ; and,
after securing her parlour door, by sticking a fork over the
latch, carried the plate to her chamber ; charged the negro
man to sleep with his clothes on, to take the great lever to
bed with him, and to waken and seize the vagrant at the first
noise he made, in attempting to plunder the house. Having
thus taken every precaution, she retired to her bed with her
maid, whom she compelled to sleep in her room.

" Mrs. Franklin rose before the sun, roused her domestics,
unfastened the parlour door with timid caution, and was
agreeably surprised to find her guest sleeping on his own

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 281

chair. A sudden transition from extreme distrust to perfect
confidence, was natural. She awakened him with a cheerful
good morning ; inquired how he rested ; invited him to par
take of her breakfast, which was always served previous to
that of her boarders. ' And pray, sir,' said the lady, as she
sipped her chocolate, ' as you appear to be a stranger here,
to what distant country do you belong ?' 'I, madam, belong to
the city of Philadelphia.' At the mention of Philadelphia,
the Doctor declared he, for the first time, perceived some emo
tion in her. ' Philadelphia /' said she, and all the mother
suffused her eye : ' if you live in Philadelphia, perhaps you
know our Ben.' ' Who, madam ?' ' Why Ben Franklin — my
Ben. — Oh ! he is the dearest child that ever blest a mother !'
' What,' said the Doctor, ' is Ben Franklin, the printer, your
son ; why he is my most intimate friend: he and I lodge in
the same room.' ' Oh ! God forgive me,' exclaimed the old
lady, raising her watery eyes to heaven — ' and have I suffered
a friend of my Benny to sleep in this hard chair, while I my
self rested on a good bed?'

" How the Doctor discovered himself to his mother, he
has not informed us ; but from the above experiment, he was
firmly convinced, and was often afterwards heard to declare,
that natural affection did not exist."

Few men have exhibited a more worthy conduct than did
Dr. Franklin, through his long life. Through every vicissi
tude of fortune, he seems to have been distinguished for his
sobriety and temperance, for his extraordinary perseverance
and resolution. He was not less distinguished for his veracity,
for the constancy of his friendship, for his candour, and his
fidelity to his moral and civil obligations. In the early part
of his life, he acknowledged himself to have been sceptical in
religion, but he became in maturer years, according to the tes
timony of his intimate friend, Dr. William Smith, a believer in
divine revelation. The following extract from his memoirs,
written by himself, deserves to be recorded: " And here let
me with all humility acknowledge, that to Divine Providence
I am indebted for the felicity I have hitherto enjoyed. It is
that power alone which has furnished me with the means I
2O 24*

283 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

have employed, and that has crowned them with success.
My faith in this respect leads me to hope, though I cannot
count upon it, that the divine goodness will still be exercised
towards me, either by prolonging the duration of my happi
ness to the close of life, or by giving me fortitude to support
any melancholy reverse which may happen to me as well as
to many others. My future fortune is unknown but to Him,
in whose hand is our destiny, and who can make our very
afflictions subservient to our benefit."

We conclude our notice of this distinguished man and
profound philosopher, by subjoining the following epitaph,
which was written by himself, many years previously to his
death :

The body of

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, PRINTER,
Like the cover of an old book,

its contents torn out,
and stript of its lettering- and gilding1,

lies here food for worms ;

Yet the work itself shall not be lost,

For it will (as he believed) appear once more

in a new

and more beautiful edition,

Corrected and amended

by the Author.

JOHN MORTON.

JOHN MORTON was a native of Ridley, in the county of
Chester, now Delaware. His ancestors were of Swedish ex
traction, and among the first Swedish emigrants, who loca
ted themselves on the banks of the Delaware. His father,
after whom he was called, died a few months previously to his
birth. His mother was some time after married to an Eng
lishman, who possessed a more than ordinary education, and
who, with great kindness, on young Morton's becoming of

JOHN MORTON. 283

the proper age, superintended and directed his education at
home. Here his active mind rapidly expanded, and gave
promise of the important part which he was destined to act
in the subsequent history of his country.

About the year 1764, he was commissioned as a justice of
the peace, and was sent as a delegate to the general assembly
of Pennsylvania. Of this body he was for many years an
active and distinguished member, and for some time the
speaker of the house of representatives. The following year
he was appointed by the house of representatives of Pennsyl
vania to attend the general congress at New-York. The
object and proceedings of this congress are too well known to
need a recital in this place.

In 1766, Mr. Morton was appointed sheriff of the county
in which he lived, an office which he continued to hold for
the three following years, and the duties of which he dis
charged with great satisfaction to the public. Some time
after, he was elevated to a seat on the bench, in the superior
court of Pennsylvania.

Oi the memorable congress of 1774 he was a member, and
continued to represent the state of Pennsylvania in the national
assembly, through the memorable session of that body which
gave birth to the declaration of American Independence.

On the occurrence of the momentous subject of independ
ence, in the continental congress, Mr. Morton unexpectedly-
found himself placed in a delicate and trying situation. Pre
viously to the 4th of July, the states of Delaware and Pennsyl
vania had voted in opposition to that measure. Great doubts
were therefore entertained by the other members of con
gress, how the Pennsylvania and Delaware delegations would
act. Much was obviously depending upon them, for it was
justly apprehended, that should these two states decline to
accede to the measure, the result might prove most unfortu
nate. Happily, the votes of both these states were, at length,
secured in favo1/ r of independence. But, as the delegation
from Pennsylvania were equally divided, it fell to Mr. Mor
ton to give his casting vote. The responsibility which he
thus assumed was great, and even fearful, should the measure

284 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

be attended by disastrous results. Mr. Morton, however,
was a man of firmness and decision, and, in the spirit of true
patriotism, he enrolled his vote in favour of the liberty of his
country. Considering his novel and solemn situation, he de
serves to be remembered with peculiar respect, by the free
and independent yeomanry of America.

In the following year, he assisted in organizing- a system of
confederation, and was chairman of the committee of the
whole, at the time it was finally agreed to, on the 15th of No
vember, 1777. During the same year, he was seized with an
inflammatory fever, which, after a few days, ended his mor
tal existence, in the 54th year of his age. Mr. Morton was a
professor of religion, and a truly excellent man. To the
poor he was ever kind ; and to an affectionate family, consist
ing of a wife, three eons, and five daughters, he was an affec
tionate husband and father. His only enemies were those
who would not forgive him because of his vote in favour of
independence. During his last sickness, and even on the
verge of the eternal world, he remembered them, and re
quested those who stood round him, to tell them, that the
hour would yet come, when it would be acknowledged, that
his vote in favour of American independence was the most il
lustrious act of his life.

GEORGE CLYMER.

GEORGE CLYMER was born in the city of Philadelphia, in
the year 1739. His father was descended from a respecta
ble family of Bristol, in England ; and after his emigration
to America became connected by marriage with a lady in
Philadelphia. Young Clyiner was left an orphan at the age
of seven years, upon which event the care of him devolved
upon William Coleman, a maternal uncle, a gentleman of
much respectability among the citizens of ' 'hiladelphia.

GEORGE CLYMER. 285

The education of young Clymer was superintended by his
uncle, than whom few men were better qualified for such a
charge. The uncle possessed a cultivated mind, and early
instilled into his nephew a love of reading. On the comple
tion of his education, he entered the counting-room of his
uncle. His genius, however, was little adapted to mercantile
employments, being more inclined to literary and scientific
pursuits. At a suitable period he commenced business for
himself, in connexion with Mr. Robert Ritchie, and afterwards
with two gentlemen, father and son, by the name of Mere
diths, a daughter of the former of whom he subsequently
married.

Although Mr. Clymer embarked in the pursuits of com
merce, and continued engaged in that business for many
years, he was always decidedly opposed to it. During his
mercantile operations, he found much time to read. He
was distinguished for a clear and original mind ; and though
he never pursued any of the learned professions, he became
well versed in the principles of law, history, and politics.

At the age of twenty-seven, he was married, as has already
been noticed, to a daughter of Mr. Meredith, a gentleman of
a generous and elevated mind, as the following anecdote of
him will show. While yet a young man, General Washing
ton had occasion to visit Philadelphia, where he was an en
tire stranger. Happening in at the public house where
Washington lodged, Mr. Meredith observed him, inquired his
name, and findmg him to be a stranger in the place, invited
him to the hospitalities of his house, and kindly insisted upon
his continuance with his family while he remained in the
city. This accidental acquaintance led to a friendship of
many years continuance, and at Mr. Meredith's, Washington
ever after made it his home when he visited Philadelphia.

Mr. Clymer may be said to have been by nature a repub
lican. He \vas, also, a firm and devoted patriot. His feel
ings were strongly enlisted, at an early age, against the arbi
trary acts of the British government. Gifted with a sort of
prescience, he foresaw what was meditated against his coun
try, and was ready to hazard every interest in support of the

286 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

pillars of American freedom. Hence, when conciliatory
measures with the parent country were found unavailing, he
was one of the foremost to adopt measures necessary for de
fence. He early accepted a captain's commission in a com
pany of volunteers, raised for the defence of the province,
and manfully opposed, in 1773, the sale of tea, which was
sen| out by the British government for the purpose of indi
rectly levying a contribution on the Americans without their
consent. Never was a plan more "artfully laid by the minis
try of Great Britain ; never was an attack upon American
liberty more covert and insidious ; and never was a defeat
more complete and mortifying. On the arrival of the tea
destined to Philadelphia, the citizens of that place, in a nume
rous meeting, adopted the most spirited resolutions, the ob
ject of which was to prevent the sale of it. A committee
was appointed, of which Mr. Clymer was chairman, to wait
upon the consignees, and to request them not to attempt to
sell it. This was a delicate office ; the committee, how
ever, fearlessly and faithfully discharged the duties of their
appointment ; and not a single pound of tea was offered for
sale in the city of Philadelphia.

In 1775, Mr. Clymer was chosen a member of the council
of safety, and one of the first continental treasurers. On the
20th of July, of the following year, he was elected a member
of the continental congress ; and though not present when
the vote was taken on the question of independence, he had
the honour of affixing his signature to that instrument in the
following month.

In September, Mr. Clymer was appointed to visit Ticon-
deroga, in conjunction with Mr. Stockton, to inspect the
affairs of the northern army. In December of the same
year, congress, finding it necessary to adjourn to Baltimore,
in consequence of the advance of the British army towards
Philadelphia, left Mr. Clymer, Robert Morris, and George
Walton, a committee to transact such business in that city as
might be found necessary.

In 1777, Mr. Clymer was again a member of congress.
His duties during this session were particularly arduous, and

GEORGE CLYMER. 287

owing to his unremitting exertions, he was obliged to retire
for a season, for the recovery of his health.

During the fall of this distressing year, the family of Mr.
Clymer, which, at that time resided in the county of Chester
about twenty-five miles from Philadelphia, suffered severely,
in consequence of an attack by a band of British soldiers.
The furniture of the house was destroyed, and a large stock
of liquors shared a similar fate. Fortunately, the "family
made their escape. Mr. Clymer was then in Philadelphia.
On the arrival of the British in that place, they sought out
his residence, and were proceeding to tear it down, and were
only diverted from their purpose by the information, that the
house did not belong to him.

During this year. Mr. Clymer was appointed a commis
sioner, in conjunction with several other gentlemen, to pro
ceed to Pictsbvrg, on the important and confidential service,
of preserving a good understanding with several indian tribes
in that country, and particularly to enlist warriors from the
Shawanese and Delaware indians into the service of the
United States. During his residence at Pittsburg, he nar
rowly escaped death from the tomahawk of the enemy,
having, in an excursion to visit a friend, accidentally and for
tunately taken a route which led him to avoid a party of
savages, who murdered a white man at the very place where
Mr. Clymer must have been, had he not chosen a different
road.

In our biographical sketch of Robert Morris, we have
given some account of the establishment of a bank by the
patriotic citizens of Philadelphia, the object of which was
the relief of the army, which, in 1780, was suffering such a
combination of calamities, as was likely to lead to its dis
banding. Of the advocates of this measure, Mr. Clymer
was one, and from the active and efficient support which he
gave to the bank, he was selected as a director of the insti
tution. By means of this bank, the pressing wants of the
army were relieved. Congress, by a resolve, testified the
high sense which they entertained of the generosity and pa
triotism of the association, and pledged the faith of the

288 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

United States to the subscribers to the bank, for their ulti
mate reimbursement and indemnity.

Mr. Clymer was again elected to congress in 1780 ; from
which time, for nearly two years, he was absent from his
seat but a few weeks, so faithfully and indefatigably atten
tive was he to the public service. In the latter part of 1782,
he removed with his family to Princeton, in New-Jersey,
for the purpose of giving to his children the advantages
of a collegiate education, in the seminary in that place. After
the many toils and privations through which he had passed,
it was a luxury, indeed, to enjoy the peace of domestic life,
especially having to reflect that the glorious object for which
he and his fellow-countrymen had laboured so long, was
now with certainty soon to be accomplished.

In 1784, Mr. Clymer was again summoned by the citizens
of Pennsylvania, to take a part in the general assembly of
that state. Of this body he continued a member until the
meeting of the convention to form a more efficient constitu
tion for the general government; of which latter body he was
elected a member, and after the adoption of the constitution,
he represented the state of Pennsylvania, in congress, for
two years ; when declining a re-election, he closed his long
and able legislative career.

In the year 1791, congress passed a bill imposing a duty
on spirits distilled in the United States. To the southern
and western part of the country, this duty was singularly
obnoxious. At the head of the excise department, in the
state of Pennsylvania, Mr. Clymer was placed. The duties
of this office were rendered extremely disagreeable, by rea
son of the general dissatisfaction, which prevailed on account
of the law. This dissatisfaction was particularly strong in
the district of Pennsylvania lying west of the Alleghany
mountains, and here the spirit of discontent broke out into
acts of open opposition. At the risk of his life, Mr. Clymer
made a visit to this theatre of insurrection, to ascertain the
existing state of things, and if possible to allay the spirit of
opposition, which was manifesting itself. His instructions,
however, were so limited, that he was able to produce but

GEORGE CLYMER. 289

little effect upon the turbulent and heated minds of the fac
tion. Soon after his return, he was induced to resign an
office, which, from the difficulty of faithfully discharging it,
had become extremely disagreeable to him.

In the year 1796, Mr. Clymer was appointed, together with
Colonel Hawkins and Colonel Pickins, to negotiate a treaty
with the Cherokee and Creek indians, in Georgia. With
this object in view, he sailed from Philadelphia for Savannah,
in the month of April, accompanied by his wife. Their
voyage proved not only exceedingly unpleasant, but extreme
ly hazardous, in consequence of a violent storm, during
which, the crew were for several days obliged to labour in
cessantly at the pumps. Having satisfactorily completed the
business of his mission, he again returned to Philadelphia.
At this time, he closed his political life, and retired to the
enjoyment of that rest which he justly coveted, after having
served his country, with but few short intervals, for more
than twenty years.

At a subsequent date, he was called to preside over the
Philadelphia bank, and over the Academy of Fine Arts, and
was elected a vice president of the Philadelphia Agricultural
Society, upon its re-organization, in 1805. These offices he
held at the time of his death, which occurred on the 23d of
January, 1813, in the 74th year of his age.

The following extracts from an eloquent eulogium, pro
nounced before the Academy of Fine Arts, upon the charac
ter of Mr. Clymer, by Joseph Hopkinson, Esq. may pro
perly conclude this brief biographical notice. After alluding
to the election of Mr. Clymer to the presidency of the Aca
demy of Fine Arts, Mr. Hopkinson happily observes : " At
different periods of our national history, from the first bold
step which was taken in the march of independence, to its
full and perfect consummation in the establishment of a wise
and effective system of government, whenever the virtue and
talents of our country were put in requisition, Mr. Clymer
was found with the selected few, to whom our rights and
destinies were committed.

" When posterity shall ponder on the declaration of July
2P 2£

290 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

1776, and admire, with deep amazement and veneration, the
courage and patriotism, the virtue and self-devotion of the
deed, they will find the name of Clymer there. When
the strength and splendour of this empire shall hereafter be
displayed in the fulness of maturity, (heaven grant we reach
it,) and the future politician shall look at that scheme of go
vernment, by which the whole resources of a nation have
been thus brought into action ; by which power has been
maintained, and liberty not overthrown; by which the people
have been governed and directed, but not enslaved or op
pressed ; they will find that Clymer was one of the fathers
of the country, from whose wisdom and experience the sys
tem emanated. Nor was the confidence, which had grown
out of his political life and services, his only claim to the
station which he held in this institution. Although his
modest, unassuming spirit never sought public displays of his
merit, but rather withdrew him from the praise, that was his
due ; yet he could not conceal from his friends, nor his
friends from the world, the extraordinary improvement of
his mind. Retired, studious, contemplative, he was ever
adding something to his knowledge, and endeavouring to make
that knowledge useful. His predominant passion was to
promote every scheme for the improvement of his country,
whether in science, agriculture, polite education, the useful
or the fine arts. Accordingly, we find his name in every as
sociation for these purposes ; and wherever we find him, we
also find his usefulness. Possessed of all that sensibility and
delicacy, essential to taste, he had of course, a peculiar fond
ness for the fine arts, elegant literature, and the refined pur
suits of a cultivated genius. It was in the social circle of
friendship that his acquirements were displayed and appre
ciated, and although their action was communicated from
this circle to a wider sphere, it was with an enfeebled force.
His intellects were strong by nature, and made more so by
culture and study ; but he was diffident and retired. Capa
ble of teaching, he seemed only anxious to learn. Firm, but
not obstinate ; independent, but not arrogant ; communica
tive, but not obtrusive, he was at once the amiable and in«

JAMES SMITH. 291

structive companion. His researches had been various, and,
if not always profound, they were competent to his purposes,
and beyond his pretensions. Science, literature, and the arts,
had all a share of his attention, and it was only by a frequent
intercourse with hirn, we discovered how much he knew of
each. The members of this board have all witnessed the
kindness and urbanity of his manners. Sufficiently fixed in
his own opinions, he gave a liberal toleration to others, as
suming no offensive or unreasonable control over the conduct
of those with whom he was associated."

In a subsequent part of his discourse, Mr. Hopkinson, allu
ding to the value of a punctual performance of our promises,
remarks : " In this most useful virtue, Mr. Clymer was pre
eminent. During the seven years he held the presidency of
this academy, his attention to the duties of the station were
without remission. He excused himself from nothing that
belonged to his office; he neglected nothing. He never once
omitted to attend a meeting of the directors, unless prevented
by sickness or absence from the city ; and these exceptions
were of very rare occurrence. He was indeed the first to
come ; so that the board never waited a moment for their
president. With other public bodies to which he was at
tached, I understand, he observed the same punctual and con
scientious discharge of his duty. It is thus that men make
themselves useful, and evince that they do not occupy places
of this kind merely as emptyand undeserved compliments, but
for the purpose of rendering all the services which the place
requires of them."

JAMES SMITH.

JAMES SMITH, the subject of the following memoir, was a
native of Ireland ; but in what year he was born is unknown.
This was a secret which, even to his relations and friends, he

292 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

would never communicate, and the knowledge of it was
buried with him in the grave. It is conjectured, however,
that he was born between the years 1715 and 1720.

His father was a respectable farmer, who removed to Ame
rica with a numerous family, and settled on the west side of
the Susquehanna. He died in the year 1761. James, who
was his second son, received his education from the distin
guished Dr. Allison, provost of the college of Philadelphia.
His attainments in classical literature were respectable. In
the art of surveying, which at that early period of the coun
try was of great importance, he is said to have excelled.
After finishing his education, he applied himself to the study
of law, in the office of Thomas Cookson, of Lancaster. On
being qualified for his profession, he took up his residence as
a lawyer and surveyor, near the present town of Shippens-
burg ; but some time after, he removed to the flourishing vil
lage of York, where he established himself, and continued the
practice of his profession during the remainder of his life.

On the occurrence of the great contest between Great
Britain and her American colonies, Mr. Smith entered with
zeal into the patriotic cause, and on a meeting of delegates
from all the counties of Pennsylvania in 1774, convened to
express the public sentiment, on the expediency of abstaining
from importing any goods from England, and assembling a
general congress, Mr. Smith was a delegate from the county
of York, and was appointed one of the committee to report a
draft of instruction to the general assembly, which was then
about to meet. At this time, a desire prevailed throughout
the country, that the existing difficulties between the mother
country and the colonies should be settled, without a resort
to arms. Mr. Smith, however, it appears, was disposed to
adopt vigorous and decided measures, since, on his return to
York, he was the means of raising a volunteer company,
which was the first volunteer corps raised in Pennsylvania, in
opposition to the armies of Great Britain. Of this company
he was elected captain, and when, at length, it increased to a
regiment, he was appointed colonel of that regiment; a title,

JAMES SMITH. 293

however, which in respect to him was honorary, since he
never assumed the actual command.

In January, 1775, the convention for the province of Penn
sylvania was assembled. Of this convention, Mr. Smith was
a member, and concurred in the spirited declaration made by
that convention, that " if the British administration should
determine by force to effect a submission to the late arbi
trary acts of the British parliament, in such a situation, we
hold it our indispensable duty to resist such force, and at
every hazard to defend the rights and liberties of America."

Notwithstanding this declaration by the convention, a great
proportion of the Pennsylvanians, particularly the numerous
body of Quakers, were strongly opposed, not only to war,
but even to a declaration of independence. This may be in
ferred from the instructions given by the general assembly to
their delegates, who weie appointed in 1775 to the general
congress, of the following tenor : — that " though the oppres
sive measures of the British parliament and administration,
have compelled us to resist their violence by force of arms ;
yet we strictly enjoin you, that you, in behalf of this colony,
dissent from and utterly reject any proposition, should such
be made, that may cause or lead to a separation from our mo
ther country, or a change in this form of government."

This decided stand against a declaration of independence,
roused the friends of that measure to the most active exertions,
throughout the province. On the 15th of May, congress
adopted a resolution, which was in spirit a declaration of in
dependence. This resolution was laid before a large meet
ing of the citizen^ of Philadelphia, assembled five days after
the passage of it, and in front of the very building in which
congress was assembled, digesting plans of resistance. The
resolution was received by this assembly of citizens, who
were decided whigs, with great enthusiasm, the instructions
of the provincial assembly to the Pennsylvania delegation in
congress was loudly and pointedly condemned, and a plan
adopted to assemble a provincial conference to establish a
new government in Pennsylvania.

Accordingly, such a conference was assembled, on the
25*

294 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

18th of June. Of this conference, Mr. Smith was an active
and distinguished member. The proceedings of the confe
rence were entirely harmonious. Before it had assembled,
the provincial assembly had rescinded their obnoxious in
structions to their delegates in congress. Still, however, it
was thought advisable for the conference to express in form
their sentiments on the subject of a declaration of indepen
dence. The mover of a resolution to this effect, was Dr.
Benjamin Rush, at that time a young man. Colonel Smith
seconded the resolution, and these two gentlemen, with
Thomas M'Kean, were appointed a committee to draft it.
On the following morning, the resolution being reported, was
unanimously adopted, was signed by the members, and on
the 25th of June, a few days only before the declaration of
independence by congress, was presented to that body.

This declaration, though prepared in great haste, contain
ed the substance of that declaration, which was adopted by
congress. It declared, that the king had paid no attention to
the numerous petitions which had been addressed to him,
for the removal of the most grievous oppressions, but (to
use the language of the preamble to the resolution) he
" hath lately purchased foreign troops to assist in enslaving
us ; and hath excited the savages of this country to carry on
a war against us, as also the negroes to imbrue their hands
in the blood of their masters, in a manner unpractised by
civilized nations ; and hath lately insulted our calamities, by
declaring that he will show us no mercy, till he has reduced
us. And whereas the obligations of allegiance (being recip
rocal between a king and his subjects) are now dissolved, on
the side of the colonists, by the despotism of the said king,
insomuch that it now appears that loyalty to him is treason
against the good people of this country ; and whereas not
only the parliament, but there is reason to believe, too many
of the people of Great Britain, have concurred in the arbi
trary and unjust proceedings against us ; and whereas the
public virtue of this colony (so essential to its liberty and
happiness) must be endangered by a future political union
with, or dependence on, a crown and nation, so lost to jus-

JAMES SMITH. 295

tice, patriotism, and magnanimity :" Therefore, the resolu
tion proceeded to assert that " the deputies of Pennsylvania
assembled in the conference, unanimously declare their wil
lingness to concur in a vote of the congress, declaring the
united colonies free and independent states : and that they
call upon the nations of Europe, and appeal to the great
Arbiter and Governor of the empires of the world,, to wit
ness, that this declaration did not originate in ambition, or
in an impatience of lawful authority ; but that they are dri
ven to it in obedience to the first principles of nature, by the
oppressions and cruelties of the aforesaid king and parlia
ment of Great Britain, as the only possible measure left to
preserve and establish our liberties, and to transmit them in
violate to posterity."

In the month of July, a convention was assembled in Phi
ladelphia, for the purpose of forming a new constitution for
Pennsylvania. Of this body, Colonel Smith was elected a
member, and he appeared to take his seat on the 15th day of
the month. On the 20th he was elected by the convention a
member of congress, in which body he took his seat, after
the adjournment of the convention. Colonel Smith continu
ed a member of congress for several years, in which capacity
he was active and efficient. He always entertained strong
anticipations of success during the revolutionary struggle,
and by his cheerfulness powerfully contributed to dispel the
despondency which he often saw around him. On with
drawing from congress, in November, 1778, he resumed his
professional pursuits, which he continued until the year,
1800, when he withdrew from the bar, having been in the
practice of his profession for about sixty years. In the
year 1806, he was removed to another world. He had
three sons and two daughters, of whom only one of each
survived him.

In his disposition and habits, Colonel Smith was very pe
culiar. He was distinguished for his love of anecdote and
conviviality. His memory was uncommonly retentive, and
remarkably stored with stories of a humourous and diverting

296 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

character, which, on particular occasions, he related with
great effect

He was for many years a professor of religion, and very
regular in his attendance on public worship. Notwithstand
ing his fondness for jest, he was more than most men ready
to frown upon every expression which seemed to reflect on
sacred subjects. It was a singular trait in the character of
Mr. Smith, that he should so obstinately refuse to inform his
friends of his age. The monument erected over his grave
informs us, that his death occurred in the ninety-third year
of his age. It is probable, however, that he was not so old
by several years.

GEORGE TAYLOR.

OF the early life of GEORGE TAYLOR, although he acted a
distinguished part in the political affairs of his time, few
incidents are recorded, in any documents which we have
seen, and few, it is said, are remembered by the old men of
the neighbourhood in which he lived. Mr. Taylor was born
in the year 1716. Ireland gave him birth. He was the
son of a respectable clergyman in that country, who having
a more just estimation of the importance of a good educa
tion, gave to his son an opportunity to improve his mind,
beyond most youth in the country about him. At a proper
age he commenced the study of medicine ; but his genius
not being adapted to the profession, he relinquished his me
dical studies, and soon after set sail for America.

On his arrival, he was entirely destitute of money, and
was obliged to resort to manual labour to pay the expenses
of his voyage to America. The name of the gentleman
who kindly employed him, and paid his passage, was Savage.
He was the owner of extensive iron works at Durham, a

GEORGE TAYLOR. 297

.small village, situated on the river Delaware, a few miles
from Easton.

In these works, young Taylor was for a time employed
to throw coal into the furnace, when in blast. The business
was, however, too severe for him, and at length Mr. Savage
transferred him from this menial and arduous service, into
his counting-room as a clerk. In this situation, he rendered
himself very useful and acceptable, and, at length, upon the
death of Mr. Savage, he became connected in marriage with
his widow, and consequently the proprietor of the whole es
tablishment. In a few years the fortune of Mr. Taylor was
considerably farther increased. He was now induced to pur
chase a considerable estate near the river Lehigh, in the
county of Northampton, where he erected a spacious man
sion, and took up his permanent residence.

A few years after, Mr. Taylor was summoned by his fel
low-citizens into public life. Of the provincial assembly,
which met at Philadelphia, in October, 1764, he was for the
first time a member, and immediately rendered himself con
spicuous, by the active part which he took in all the impor
tant questions which came before that body.

From this period, until 1770, Mr. Taylor continued to
represent the county of Northampton in the provincial as
sembly. He was uniformly placed on several standing com
mittees, and was frequently entrusted, in connexion with
other gentlemen, with the management of many important
special concerns, as they continued to rise. At Northampton,
Mr. Taylor entered into the business, which had so exten
sively occupied him, while at Durham. The business, how
ever, at the, former place was by no means as profitable as
it had been at the latter. Indeed it is said, that the fortune
of Mr. Taylor suffered so considerably, that he was at length
induced to return to Durham to repair it.

In October, 1775, he was again elected a delegate to the
provincial assembly in Pennsylvania, and in the following
month was appointed, in connexion with several other gen
tlemen, to report a set of instructions to the delegates, which
the assembly had just appointed to the continental congress.

298 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

The circumstances of the colony of Pennsylvania, were at
this time, in some respects, peculiar. She was far less op
pressed than the other colonies in America. On the contrary,
she had been greatly favoured by his British majesty. Her
government, which was proprietary, was administered without
the least political oppression, and her constitution was free
and liberal.

In consequence of these, and other circumstances, a strong
reluctance prevailed in Pennsylvania to sever the bonds of
union between herself and the mother country. Hence, the
measures of her public bodies were characterized by a more
obvious respect for the British government than the measures
of other colonies. This might be inferred from the instruc
tions reported at this time, by Mr. Taylor and his associates,
and adopted by the assembly:

" The trust reposed in you is of such a nature, and the
modes of executing it may be so diversified, in the course of
your deliberations, that it is scarcely possible to give you par
ticular instructions respecting it. We, therefore, in general,
direct that you, or any four of you, meet in congress the dele
gates of the several colonies now assembled in this city, and
any such delegates as may meet in congress next year ; that you
consult together on the present critical and alarming state of
public affairs ; that you exert your utmost endeavours to
agree upon, and recommend such measures as you shall judge
to afford the best prospect of obtaining redress of American
grievances, and restoring that union and harmony between
Great Britain and the colonies, so essential to the welfare and
happiness of both countries."

" Though the oppressive measures of the British parlia
ment and administration have compelled us to resist their
violence by force of arms, yet we strictly enjoin you, that you,
in behalf of this colony dissent from, and utterly reject any
propositions, should such be made, that may cause or lead to
a separation from our mother country, or a change of the
form of this government."

During the winter and spring of 1776, a great change was
effected in public sentiment in the province of Pennsylvania,

GEORGE TAYLOR. 299

on the subject of the contest between the mother country and
the colonies. Hence the provincial assembly rescinded their
former instructions to their delegates in congress, and while
they expressed an ardent desire for the termination of the
unhappy controversy, they were unwilling to purchase peace
by a dishonourable submission to arbitrary power. " We,
therefore," said the assembly, in their instructions to their
delegates in congress, "authorize you to concur with the other
delegates in congress, in forming such further compacts be
tween the united colonies, concluding such treaties with foreign
kingdoms and states, and in adopting such other measures as,
upon a view of all circumstances, shall be judged necessary
for promoting the liberty, safety, and interests of America ;
reserving to the people of this colony the sole and exclusive
right of regulating the internal government and police of the
same.

" The happiness of these colonies has, during the whole
course of this fatal controversy, been our first wish. Their
reconciliation with Great Britain our next. Ardently have
we prayed for the accomplishment of both. But if we must
renounce the one or the other, we humbly trust in the mer
cies of the Supreme Governor of the universe, that we shall
not stand condemned before his throne, if our choice is de
termined by that overruling law of self-preservation, which
His divine wisdom has thought fit to implant in the hearts of
his creatures."

Fortunately for the cause of American liberty, the change in
public sentiment above alluded to, continued to spread, and
on taking the great question of a declaration of independence,
an approving vote by all the colonies was secured in its favour
The approbation of Pennsylvania, however, was only obtain
ed by the casting vote of Mr. Morton, as has already been
mentioned in our biographical notice of that gentleman. On
the 20th of July, the Pennsylvania convention proceeded to a
new choice of Representatives. Mr. Morton, Dr. Franklin,
Mr. Morris, and Mr. Wilson, who had voted in favour of the
declaration of independence, were re-elected. Those who
had opposed it were at this time dropped, and the following

300 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

gentlemen were appointed in their place, viz- : Mr. Taylor,
Mr. Ross, Mr. Clymer, Dr. Rush, and Mr. Smith. These latter
gentlemen were consequently not present on the fourth of
July, when the declaration was passed and proclaimed, but
they had the honour of affixing their signatures to the en
grossed copy, on the second of August following, at which
time the members generally signed it.

Mr. Taylor retired from congress in 1777, from which time
we know little of his history. He settled at Easton, where he
continued to manage his affairs with much success, and to re
pair his fortune, which had greatly suffered during his resi
dence on the banks of the Lehigh. Mr. Taylor died on the
23d of February, 1781, in the sixty-sixth year of his age. He
had two children by his wife, a son, who became an attorney,
but died before his father, and a daughter who was never
married

JAMES WILSON.

JAMES WILSON was a native of Scotland, where he was
born about the year 1742. His father was a respectable far
mer, who resided in the vicinity of St. Andrews, well known
for its university. Though not wealthy, he enjoyed a com
petency, until at length, a passion for speculation nearly
ruined him.

James Wilson received an excellent education. He
stuuied successively at Glasgow, St. Andrews, and Edinburgh.
He had the good fortune to enjoy the instruction of the dis
tinguished Dr. Blair, and the not less celebrated Dr. Watts.
By the former he was taught rhetoric ; by the latter, both
rhetoric and logic. Under these eminent men, Mr. Wilson laid
the foundation of an impressive eloquence, and a superir
and almost irresistible mode of reasoning.

After completing his studies under the superior advantages

JAMES WILSON. 301

already named, he resolved to seek in America that indepen
dence which he could scarcely hope for in his native country
\ccordingly, he left Scotland, and reached Philadelphia early
in the year 1766. He was highly recommended to several
gentlemen of that city, by one or more of whom he was in
troduced as a tutor to the Philadelphia college and academy.
During the period that he served in this capacity, he enjoyed
a reputation of being the best classical scholar who had offi
ciated as tutor in the Latin department of the college.

He continued, however, only a few months to fill the above
office, having received an offer, through the assistance of
Bishop \Vhite and Judge Peters, of entering the law office of
Mr. John Dickinson. In this office he continued for the
space of two years, applying himself with great ardour to the
study of the profession of law. At the expiration of this
time, he entered upon the practice, first at Reading, but soon
after removed to Carlisle, at which latter place he acquired the
reputation of being an eminent counsellor previous to the re
volution. From Carlisle, Mr. Wilson removed to Annapolis,
in Maryland, whence, in 1778, he came to Philadelphia, where
he continued to reside for the remainder of his life.

At an early day, Mr. Wilson entered with patriotic zeal in
to the cause of American liberty. He was an American in
principle from the time that he landed on the American shore ;
and at no period in the revolutionary struggle, did he for a
single hour swerve from his attachment to the principles
which he had adopted.

Mr. \\Tilsons who was a member of the provincial conven
tion of Pennsylvania, was proposed as a delegate to the con
gress of 1774, in conjunction with his former instructor, Mr.
Dickinson. Neither, however, was elected, through the in
fluence of the speaker, Mr. Galloway, of whom we have
spoken in our introduction, and who afterwards united him
self to the British on their taking possession of Philadelphia.
In the following year, however, Mr. Wilson was unanimously
elected a member of congress, and in that body took his
seat on the 10th of May, 1775. In this distinguished station,
he continued until 1777, when, through the influence of party

26

302 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

feeling, he was superseded, and another appointed in his
stead.

In 1782, however, he was again elected to congress, and
took his seat in that body, on the second of January, 1783.
A few months previously to his re-election, he was appoint
ed by the president and supreme executive council, a coun
sellor and agent for Pennsylvania, in the great controversy
between that state and the state of Connecticut, relating to
certain lands within the charter boundary of Pennsylvania.
These lands the state of Connecticut claimed as belonging to
her, being included within her charter. On the thirtieth of
December, 1782, this great question was determined at Tren
ton, New-Jersey, by a court of commissioners appointed for
that purpose, who unanimously decided it in favo-ur of Penn
sylvania. To the determination of the question in this man
ner, Mr. Wilson, it is said, greatly contributed, by a lumi
nous and impressive argument, which he delivered before the
court, and which occupied several days.

The high estimation in which Mr. AVilson was held, about
this time, may be learned from his receiving the appointment
of advocate general for the French government, in the Uni
ted States. His commission bore date the fifth of June,
1779; and at a subsequent date was confirmed, by letters pa
tent from the king of France. The duties of this office were
both arduous and delicate. Few men, however, were better
qualified for such an office than Mr. Wilson. In 1781, diffi
culties having arisen as to the manner in which he should be
paid for his services, he resigned his commission. He con
tinued, however, to give advice in such cases as were laid
before him, by the ministers and consuls of France, until
1783. At which time, the king of France handsomely re
warded him by a gift of ten thousand livres.

Tha standing of Mr. Wilson, during the whole course of
his attendance in congress, was deservedly high. As a man
of business, Pennsylvania had, probably, at no time, any one
among her delegation who excelled him. He was placed on
numerous committees, and in every duty assigned him ex
hibited great fidelity, industry, and perseverance.

JAMES WILSON. 303

Notwithstanding this high and honourable conduct of Mr
Wilson, and the active exertions which he made in favour of
his adopted country, he had enemies, whose slanders he did
not escape. It was especially charged against him, that he
was opposed to the declaration of independence. This, how
ever, has been amply refuted by gentlemen of the highest
standing in the country, who were intimately acquainted with
his views and feelings on that important subject. Many who
voted for the measure, and who sincerely believed in the ulti
mate expediency of it, were of the opinion, that it was brought
forward prematurely. But when, at length, they found the
voice of the nation loudly demanding such a measure, and
saw a spirit abroad among the people determined to sustain
it, they no longer hesitated to vote in its favour. Mr. Wil
son, probably, belonged to this class. Though at first doubt
ful whether the state of the country would justify such a mea
sure, he at length became satisfied that existing circumstances
rendered it necessary ; and accordingly it received his vote.

Notwithstanding that a declaration of independence had
been spoken of for some time previously to the fourth of
July, 1776, no motion was brought forward in congress re
specting it, until the 7th of June. This motion was referred
the following day to a committee of the whole, but it was
postponed until the tenth of June. On the arrival of the
tenth of that month, the following resolution was offered :
" That these united colonies are, and of right ought to be,
free and independent states ; that they are absolved from all
allegiance to the British crown ; and that all political con
nexion between them and the state of Great Britain is, and
ought to be, totally dissolved." The consideration of this
resolution was postponed to the first of July, on which day
it was expected that the committee which was appointed to
draft a declaration, and which consisted of Mr. Jefferson, J.
Adams, Dr. Franklin, and R. R. Livingston, would report.

At length, the first of July arrived, when the motion was
further discussed, and the question taken in committee of the
whole. The declaration received the votes of all the states
excepting Pennsylvania and Delaware. The delegates of the

304 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

former state were four to three in the opposition ; the dele
gates of the latter, Thomas M'Kean and George Read, were
divided, the one in favour of the measure, the other opposed
to it. The final question was postponed from day to day,
until the fourth of July, when it was taken, and an unanimous
vote of all the states was obtained. The day was rainy. Of
the Pennsylvania delegation, Messrs. Morris and Dickinson
were absent, and consequently the vote of Pennsylvania was
now in favour of the measure, Messrs. Wilson, Franklin, and
Morton, being in favour of it, and Messrs. Humphreys and
Willing being opposed to it. Fortunately, at this juncture,
Caesar Rodney, a delegate from Delaware, arrived. He had
been sent for by an express from Mr. M'Kean, and arrived in
time to vote with that gentleman, in opposition to their col
league, George Read.

Thus, an unanimous vote of the thirteen colonies was se
cured. Thus, a question was decided which deeply agitated
the whole American community, and the decision of which
was fraught with blessings to the country, which will go down,
we trust, to the end of time.

• In a preceding paragraph we have intimated that a charge
was brought against Mr. Wilson of being opposed to the de
claration of independence. Had such been his sentiments,
who could have charged him with a want of patriotism ? The
truth is, there were hundreds, and even thousands, at that
day, in America, as strongly attached to her cause, as friend
ly to her liberties, and as firmly resolved never to surrender
the rights which the God of nature had given them, as were
those who voted in favour of a declaration of independence,
but who yet thought the time had not arrived when the wisest
policy dictated such a measure. Mr. Wilson was, indeed,
not altogether of this class. He would perhaps not have
brought forward the subject at so early a day ; but when it
was brought forward, he voted in favour of it, on the first of
July, even in opposition to the majority of his colleagues ;
and on the fourth, as it happened, fortunately for the cause of
his country, in a majority.

Another charge has also been brought against Mr. Wilson,

JAMES WILSON. 305

(viz.) a participation in the combination which was formed
against General Washington, towards the close of the year
1777. This conspiracy, if it may be so called, originated in
the discontent of many who felt envious at the exalted station
which Washington occupied ; and was founded, at this time,
upon the high military reputation which General Gates had
acquired by the capitulation of Saratoga, and the gloomy as
pect of affairs in the region where Washington was in parti
cular command. In this combination, it was supposed seve
ral members of congress, and a very few officers of the army,
were concerned. Among these officers, it is believed, Gene
ral Gates himself may be included. " He had not only omit
ted," says Marshall, in his life of Washington, " to communi
cate to that general the successes of his army, after the vic
tory of the seventh of October had opened to him the pros
pect of finally destroying the enemy opposed to him ; but he
carried on a correspondence with General Conway, in which
that officer had expressed himself with great contempt of
the commander in chief, and on the disclosure of this circum
stance, General Gates had demanded the name of the in
former, in a letter expressed in terms by no means concilia
tory, and which was accompanied by the very extraordinary
circumstance of being passed through congress.

" The state of Pennsylvania, too, chagrined at losing its
capital, and forgetful of its own backwardness in strengthen
ing the army, which had twice fought superior numbers in
its defence, furnished many discontented individuals, who
supposed it to be the fault of General Washington that he
had not, with an army inferior to that of the enemy in num
bers, and in every equipment, effected the same result, which
had been produced in the north, by a continental army, in
itself much stronger than its adversary, and so re-inforced by
militia as to amount to three times the number opposed to
them. The legislature of that state, on the report that Gene
ral Washington was moving into winter quarters, addressed
a remonstrance to congress on the subject, which manifested,
in very intelligible terms, their dissatisfaction with the com
mander in chief. About the same time, a new board of war
2R 26*

306 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

was created, of which General Gates was appointed the pro
sident ; and General Miffiin, who was supposed to be also of
the party unfriendly to Washington, was one of its number.
General Conway, who was, perhaps, the only brigadier in
the army that had joined this faction, was appointed inspector
general, and was elevated above brigadiers older than himself,
to the rank of major general. There wer.e other evidences
that, if the hold which the commander in chief had taken of
the affections and confidence of the army, and of the nation,
could be shaken, the party in congress which was disposed
to change their general, was far from being contemptible in
point of numbers."

Fortunately for America, it was impossible to loosen this
hold. Even the northern army clung to Washington as the
saviour of their country. The only effect of this combina
tion was, to excite a considerable degree of resentment, which
was directed entirely against those who were believed to be
engaged in it. General Gates himself, in consequence of
this, and of the disastrous battle of Camden, fell into obscu
rity ; and General Conway, the great calumniator of General
Washington, scorned by honourable men, on account of his
cowardice at the battle of Germantown, and other equally
unworthy conduct, resigned his commission on the 28th of
April, 1778.

The charge brought against Mr. Wilson, of having been
hostile to General Washington, and of having participated in
the combination formed against him, was wholly unfounded.
The evidence on this point is complete.

Of the celebrated convention of 1787, which was assembled
in Philadelphia, for the purpose of forming the constitution
of the United States, Mr. Wilson was a member. During
the long deliberations of the convention on that instrument,
he rendered the most important services. He possessed
great political sagacity and foresight, and being a fluent
speaker, he did much to settle upon just principles the great
arid important points which naturally arose in the formation
of a new government. On the twenty-third of July, the con
vention resolved, " That the proceedings of the convention

JAMES WILSON. 307

for the establishment of a national government, except what
respects the supreme executive, be referred to a committee
for the purpose of reporting a constitution, conformably to
the proceedings aforesaid." In pursuance of .this resolution,
a committee was appointed on the following day, consisting
of Messrs. Wilson, Rutledge, Randolph, Gorham, and Ells
worth, who accordingly, on the sixth of August, reported the
draught of a constitution.

When the state convention of Pennsylvania assembled to
ratify the federal constitution, Mr. Wilson was returned a
member of that body, and as he was the only one who had
assisted in forming that instrument, it devolved upon him to
explain to the convention the principles upon which it was
founded, and the great objects which it had in view. Thus he
powerfully contributed to the ratification of the constitution
in that state. The following language, which he used in
conclusion of his speech, in favour of this ratification, de
serves a place here : " It is neither extraordinary nor unex
pected, that the constitution offered to your consideration,
should meet with opposition. It is the nature of man to
pursue his own interest, in preference to the public good ;
and I do not mean to make any personal reflection when I
add, that it is the interest of a very numerous, powerful, and
respectable body, to counteract and destroy the excellent
work produced by the late convention. All the officers of
government, and all the appointments for the administration
of justice, and the collection of the public revenue, which are
transferred from the individual to the aggregate sovereignty
of the states, will necessarily turn the stream of influence and
emolument into a new channel. Every person, therefore,
who enjoys, or expects to enjoy, a place of profit under the
present establishment, will object to the proposed innova
tion ; not, in truth, because it is injurious to the liberties of
his country, but because it affects his schemes of wealth and
consequence. I will confess, indeed, that I am not a blind
admirer of this plan of government, and that there are some
parts of it which, if my wish had prevailed, would certainly
have been altered. But, when I reflect how widely men dif-

308 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

fer in their opinions, and that every man, (and the observa
tion applies likewise to every state,) has an equal pretension
to assert his own, I am satisfied that any thing nearer to per
fection could not have been accomplished. If there are er
rors, it should be remembered, that the seeds of reformation
are sown in the work itself, and a concurrence of two thirds
of the congress may, at any time, introduce alterations ana
amendments. Regarding it, then, in every point of view,
with a candid and disinterested mind, I am bold to assert, that
it is the best form of government which has ever been offered
to the world."

After the ratification of the federal constitution in Penn
sylvania, a convention was called to alter the constitution of
that state, to render it conformable to that of the United
States. Mr. "Wilson was one of the committee appointed to
prepare the form of a constitution, and upon him devolved
the task of making the draught.

In the year 1789, General Washington appointed Mr. Wil
son a judge of the supreme court of the United States, under
the federal constitution. In this exalted station he was asso
ciated with John Jay, who was placed at the head of the de
partment, and Judge Rutledge, of South Carolina, William
Gushing, of Massachusetts, Robert Harrison, of Maryland,
and John Blair, of Virginia. In this office he continued until
his death, which occurred on the twenty-eighth of August,
1798, at Edenton, in North Carolina, while on a circuit attend
ing to his duties as a judge. He is supposed to have been
about fifty-six years of age.

In stature, Judge Wilson was about six feet. His appear
ance was dignified and respectable, and in his manners he
was not ungraceful. As a lawyer, he stood at the head ot
his profession, while he practised at the Philadelphia bar
He was not less eminent as a judge on the bench. He enter
ed with great readiness into the causes which came before
him, and seldom did he fail to throw light on points of law of
the most difficult and perplexing character.

In his domestic relations, such was his happy and consist
ent course, as to secure the respect and affection of his family

GEORGE ROSS. 309

nnd friends. Towards all with whom he had intercourse
from abroad, he was friendly and hospitable, and within his
family he was affectionate and indulgent. He was distin
guished for great integrity of character, and for an inviolate
regard for truth. Mr. Wilson was twice married, the first
time to a daughter of William Bird, of Berks county, and the
second time to a daughter of Mr. Ellis Gray, of Boston. By
the former wife, he had six children ; and by the latter one.
Two only of these children are now living, the one at Phila
delphia, the other in the state of New-York. After the death
of Mr. Wilson, his wife became connected in marriage with
Dr. Thomas Bartlett, of Boston, whom she accompanied to
England, where she died in 1807.

GEORGE ROSS.

THE last gentleman wh*o belonged to the Pennsylvania de
legation, at the time the members of the revolutionary con
gress affixed their signatures to the declaration of indepen
dence, was GEORGE Ross. He was the son of a clergyman
by the same name, who presided over the episcopal church
at New Castle, in the state of Delaware, in which town he was
born in the year 1730.

At an early age, he gave indications of possessing talents
of a superior order. These indications induced his father to
give him the advantages of a good education. At1 the age of
eighteen he entered upon the study of law, under the super
intendence of an elder brother, who was at that time in the
practice of the profession, in the city of Philadelphia.

Soon after being admitted to the bar, he established himself
at Lancaster, at that time near the western limits of civiliza
tion. He soon became connected in marriage with a lady of
a respectable family. For several years he continued to de
vote himself, with great zeal, to the duties of his profession,

310 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

in which, at length, he attained a high reputation, both as a
counsellor and an advocate.

Mr. Ross commenced his political career in 1768, in which
year he was first returned as a representative to the assembly
of Pennsylvania. Of this body he continued to be re-elected a
member, until the year 1774, when he was chosen in connec
tion with several other gentlemen, a delegate to the celebra
ted congress which met at Philadelphia. At the time he was
appointed to a seat in this congress, he was also appointed to
report to the assembly of the province, a set of instructions,
by which the conduct of himself and colleagues were to be
directed. The instructions thus drafted and reported, were
accepted by the assembly. In concluding these instructions,
the assembly observed : " that the trust reposed in you is of
such a nature, and the modes of executing it may be so di
versified in the course of your deliberations, that it is scarcely
possible to give you particular instructions respecting it. We
shall, therefore, only in general direct, that you are to meet in
congress the committees of the several British colonies, at such
time and place as shall be generally agreed on, to consult toge
ther on the present critical and alarming situation and state of
the colonies, and that you, with them, exert your utmost en
deavours to form and adopt a plan, which shall afford the best
prospect of obtaining a redress of American grievances, as
certaining American rights, and establishing that union and
harmony, which is most essential to the welfare and happi
ness of both countries. And in doing this, you are strictly
charged to avoid every thing indecent or disrespectful to the
mother state."

Mr. Ross continued to represent the state of Pennsylvania
in the national legislature, until January, 1777, when, on ac
count of indisposition, he was obliged to retire. During his
congressional career, his conduct met the warmest approba
tion of his constituents. He was a statesman of enlarged
views, and under the influence of a general patriotism, he
cheerfully sacrificed his private interests for the public good.
The high sense entertained by the inhabitants of the county of
Lancaster, of his zeal for the good of his country, and of his

GEORGE ROSS. 311

constituents in particular, was expressed in the following re
solution : "Resolved, that the sum of one hundred and fifty
pounds, out of the county stock, be forthwith transmitted to
George Ross, one of the members of assembly for this county,
and one of the delegates for this colony in the continental
congress ; and that he be requested to accept the same, as a
testimony from this county, of their sense of his attendance on
the public business, to his great private loss, and of their appro
bation of his conduct. Resolved, that if it be more agreeable,
Mr. Ross purchase with part of the said money, a genteel piece
of plate, ornamented as he thinks proper, to remain with him,
as a testimony of the esteem this county has for him, by reason
of his patriotic conduct, in the great struggle of American li
berty." Such a testimony of respect and affection, on the
part of his constituents, must have been not a little gratifying
to the feelings of Mr. Ross. He felt it his duty, however, to
decline accepting the present, offering as an apology for so do
ing, that he considered it as the duty of every man, and espe
cially of every representative of the people, to contribute, by
every means within his power, to the welfare of his country,
without expecting pecuniary rewards.

The attendance of Mr. Ross in congress, did not prevent
him from meeting with the provincial legislature. Of this
latter body, he was an active, energetic, and influential mem
ber. In the summer of 1775, it was found by the general as
sembly, that the circumstances of the state required the adop
tion of some decisive measures, especially in respect to put
ting the city of Philadelphia, and the province, in a state of
defence. A committee was accordingly appointed, of which
Air. Ross was one, to report what measures were expedient
In a few days that committee did report, recommending tr
the people to associate for the protection of their lives, and
liberty, and property, and urging upon the several counties o
the province the importance of collecting stores of ammuni
tion and arms. A resolution was also offered, providing for
the payment of all such associations as should be called out to
repel any attacks made by the British troops. To carry
these plans into effect, a general committee of public safety

312 PENNSYLVANIA DELEGATION.

was appointed, and clothed with the necessary authority. To
this committee Mr. Ross was attached, and was one of its most
active and efficient members. He also belonged to another
important committee, viz. that of grievances.

On the dissolution of the proprietary government in Penn
sylvania, a general convention was assembled, in which Mr.
Ross represented the county of Lancaster. Here, again, he
was called to the discharge of most important duties, being
appointed to assist in preparing a declaration of rights on be
half of the state, for forming rules of order for the convention,
and for defining and settling what should be considered high
treason and misprision of treason against the state, and the
punishment which should be inflicted for those offences.

In the year 1779, Mr. Ross was appointed a judge of the
court of admiralty for the state of Pennsylvania. This was
on the 14th of April. He was permitted to enjoy, however,
the honourable station which he now filled but a short time.
In the month of July following, he was suddenly and violently
attacked by the gout, which terminated his useful life, in the
fiftieth year of his age.

In respect to the character of Judge Ross, we have little to
add to the preceding account. As a lawyer, even before the
revolution, he was among the first of his profession, a rank
which he continued to hold, while he practised at the bar.
As a politician, he was zealous, patriotic, and consistent. As
a judge, he was learned and upright, and uncommonly skilful
in the despatch of business. He comprehended with ease
causes of the greatest intricacy, and formed his decisions,
which often displayed much legal knowledge, with great
promptness. It is to be added to his honour, that while he
was thus distinguished abroad, he was characterized in the
fulfilment of his domestic duties, by an uncommonly kind and
affectionate disposition.

THE

DELAWARE DELEGATION.

CAESAR RODNEY,
GEORGE READ,
THOMAS M'KEAN.

CAESAR RODNEY.

C.ESAR RODNEY, the first of the delegation from Dela
ware, was a native of that state, and was born about the
year 1730. His birth-place was Dover. The family, from
which he was descended, was of ancient date, and is honour
bly spoken of in the history of early times. We read of
Sir Walter De Rodeney, of Sir George De Rodeney, and
Sir Henry De Rodeney, with several others of the same
lame, even earlier than the year 1234. Sir Richard De Ro
deney accompanied the gallant Richard Cceur de Lion in his
crusade to the Holy Land, where he fell, while fighting at
the seige of Acre.

In subsequent years, the wealth and power of the family
continued to be great. Intermarriages took place between
Kome of the members of it, and several illustrious and noble
families of England. During the civil wars, about the time
of the commonwealth, the family became considerably re
iluced, and its members were obliged to seek their fortunes
in new employments, and in distant countries. Soon after
the settlement of Pennsylvania by William Penn, William
Rodney, one of the descendants of this illustrious family
2S 27

314 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

removed to that province and after a short residence in Phi
ladelphia, settled in Kent, a county upon the Delaware.
This gentleman died in the year 1708, leaving a considerable
fortune, and eight children, the eldest of whom is the subject
of the following sketch. Mr. Rodney inherited from his
father a large landed estate, which was entailed upon him,
according to the usages of distinguished families at that day.
At the early age of twenty-eight years, such was his popu
larity, he was appointed high sheriff in the county in which
he resided, and on the expiration of his term of service, hi
was created a justice of the peace, and a judge of the lowei
courts. In 1762, and perhaps at a still earlier date, he repre
sented the county of Kent in the provincial legislature.
In this station he entered with great zeal and activity into
the prominent measures of the day. In the year 1765, th°
first general congress was assembled, as is well known, •*
New-York, to consult upon the measures which were neces
sary to be adopted in consequence of the stamp act, and
other oppressive acts of the British government. To this
congress, Mr. Rodney, Mr. M'Kean, and Mr. Kollock, were
unanimously appointed by the provincial assembly of Dela
ware to represent that province. On their return from New-
York, they reported to the assembly their proceedings,
under the instructions which they had received. For the
faithful and judicious discharge of the trust reposed in them,
the assembly unanimously tendered them their thanks, and
voted them a liberal compensation.

The tumults caused m America by the stamp act, we have
had frequent occasion to notice, as well as the joy consequent
upon the repeal of that odious measure. In this universal
joy, the inhabitants of Delaware largely participated. On
the meeting of their legislature, Mr. Rodney, Mr. M'Kean,
and Mr. Read, were appointed to express their thanks to the
king, for his kindness in relieving them, in common with
their country, from a burden which they had considered
as exceedingly oppressive. In the address which was report
ed by the above committee, and forwarded, by direction
of the assembly, to England, we find the following language-

C^JSAR RODNEY. 315

(* We cannot help glorying in being the subjects of a king,
that has made $he preservation of the civil and religious
Bights of his people, and the established constitution, the
foundation and constant rule of his government, and the
safety, ease, and prosperity of his people, his chiefest care ;
of a king, whose mild and equal administration is sensibly
felt and enjoyed in the remotest parts of his dominion.
The clouds which lately hung over America are dissipated.
Our complaints have been heard, and our grievances re-
Iressed ; tra.de and commerce again flourish. Our hearts
ire animated with the warmest wishes for the prosperity of
the mother country, for which our affection is unbound
ed, and your faithful subjects here are transported with joy
and gratitude. Such are the blessings we may justly expect
will ever attend the measures of your majesty, pursuing
steadily the united and true interests of all your people,
throughout your wide extended empire, assisted with the advice
and support of a British parliament, and a virtuous and wise
ministry. We most humbly beseech your majesty, graciously
to accept the strongest assurances, that having the justest
sense of the many favours we have received from your royal
benevolence, during the course of your majesty's reign, and
now much our present happiness is owing to your paternal
love and care for your people ; we will at all times most
cheerfully contribute to your majesty's service, to the utmost
of our abilities, when your royal requisitions, as heretofore,
shall be made known ; that your majesty will always find
euch returns of duty and gratitude from us, as the best of
kings may expect from the most loyal subjects, and that you
will demonstrate to all the world, that the support of your
majesty's government, and the honour and interests of the
British nation, are our chief care and concern, desiring no
thing more than the continuance of our wise and excellent
constitution, in the same happy, firm, and envied situation,
in which it was delivered down to us from our ancestors, and
your majesty's predecessors."

This address, according to the agent who presented it, was

316 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

kindly received by his majesty, who expressed his pleasure
by reading it over twice.

Unfortunately for the British government, but perhaps
fortunately in the issue for the America colonies, the repeal
of the stamp act was followed by other oppressive measures,
which caused a renewal of the former excitement in the
American colonies, and led to that revolution, which deprived
Great Britain of one of her fairest possessions. The inha
bitants of Delaware were for a long time anxious for a re
conciliation between the mother country and the American
colonies ; still they understood too well their unalienable
rights, and had too high a regard for them, tamely to relin
quish them. In a subsequent address, prepared by the same
gentlemen who had drafted the former, they renewed their
protestations of loyalty ; but at the same time took the
liberty of remonstrating against the proceedings of the Bri
tish parliament :

" If our fellow-subjects of Great Britain, who derive no
authority from us, who cannot in our humble opinion repre
sent us, and to whom we will not yield in loyalty and affec
tion to your majesty, can at their will and pleasure, of right,
give and grant away our property ; if they enforce an impli
cit obedience to every order or act of theirs for that purpose,
and deprive all, or any of the assemblies on this continent,
of the power of legislation, for differing with them in opinion
in matters which intimately affect their rights and interests,
and every thing that is dear and valuable to Englishmen, we
cannot imagine a case more miserable ; we cannot think that
we shall have even the shadow of liberty left. We conceive
it to be an inherent right in your majesty's subjects, derived
to them from God and nature, handed down from their ances
tors, and confirmed by your royal predecessors and the con
stitution, in person, or by their representatives, to give and
grant to their sovereigns those things which their own la
bours and their own cares have acquired and saved, and in
such proportions and at such times, as the national honour
and interest may require. Your majesty's faithful subjects
of this government have enjoyed this inestimable privilege

CAESAR RODNEY. 317

uninterrupted from its first existence, till of late. They
have at all times cheerfully contributed to the utmost of their
abilities for your majesty's service, as often as your royal
requisitions were made known ; and they cannot now, but
with the greatest uneasiness and distress of mind, part with
the power of demonstrating their loyalty and affection to
their beloved king."

About this time, Mr. Rodney, in consequence of ill health,
was obliged to relinquish his public duties, and seek medical
advice in the city of Philadelphia. A cancerous affection had
some time previously made its appearance on his nose, and
was fast spreading itself over one side of his face. Fortunate
ly, the skill of the physicians of Philadelphia afforded him
considerable relief, and deterred him from making a voyage
to England to seek professional advice in that country. In
1769, Mr. Rodney was elected speaker of the house of repre
sentatives, an office which he continued to fill for several
years. About the same time he was appointed chairman of
the committee of correspondence with the other colonies. In
the discharge of the duties of this latter office, he communi
cated with gentlemen of great influence in all parts of the
country, and by the intelligence which he received from them,
and which he communicated to his constituents, contributed
to that union of sentiment which, at length, enabled the colo
nies to achieve their independence.

Among the persons which composed the well known con
gress of 1774, Mr. Rodney was one, having for his colleagues
the gentlemen already named, viz. Thomas M'Kean and
George Read. The instructions given to this delegation re
quired them to consult and determine upon such measures as
might appear most wise for the colonies to adopt, in order to
obtain relief from the sufferings they were experiencing. On
the meeting of this congress, on the fifth of September, in
the year already named, Mr. Rodney appeared and took his
seat. He was soon after appointed on several important
committees, in the discharge of which he exhibited great
fidelity, and as a reward -for his services he received the
thanks of the provincial assembly, together with a re-appoint-
27*

318 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

ment to the same high station in the following year. He
was also appointed to the office of brigadier general in the
province.

At the time that the important question of independence
came before congress, Mr. Rodney was absent on a tour into
the southern part of Delaware, having for his object to quiet
the discontent which prevailed in that section of the country,
and to prepare the minds of the people to a change of their
government. On the question of independence, his col
leagues, Mr. M'Kean and Mr. Read, who were at this time
in attendance upon congress, in Philadelphia, were divided.
Aware of the importance of an unanimous vote of the states
in favour of a declaration of independence, and acquainted
with the views of Mr. Rodney, Mr. M'Kean dispatched a
special messenger to summon him to be present in his seat
on the occurrence of the trying question. With great effort,
Mr. Rodney reached Philadelphia just in time to give his
vote, and thus to secure an entire unanimity in that act of
treason. In the autumn of 1770, a convention was called in
Delaware, for the purpose of framing a new constitution, and
of appointing delegates to the succeeding congress. In this
convention there was a majority opposed to Mr. Rodney,
who was removed from congress, and another appointed in
his stead. Such ingratitude on the part of a people was not
common during the revolutionary struggle. In the present
instance, the removal of this gentleman was principally at
tributable to the friends of the royal government, who were
quite numerous, especially in the lower counties, and who
contrived to enlist the prejudices of some true republicans in
accomplishing their object.

Although thus removed from congress, Mr. Rodney still
continued a member of the council of safety, and of the com
mittee of inspection, in both of which offices he employed
himself with great diligence, especially in collecting supplies
for the troops of the state, which were at that time with
Washington, in the state of New-Jersey. In 1777, he re
paired in person to the camp near Princeton, where he re-

CJESAR RODNEY. 319

mained for nearly two months, in the most active and labori
ous services.

In the autumn of this year. Mr. Rodney was again appoint
ed as a delegate from Delaware to congress, but before taking
his seat he was elected president of the state. This was an
office of great responsibility, demanding energy and prompt
ness, especially as the legislature of the state was tardy in
its movements, and the loyalists were not unfrequently ex
citing troublesome insurrections. Mr. Rodney continued
in the office of president of the state for about four years.
During this period, he had frequent communications from
Washington, in relation to the distressed condition of the
army. In every emergency, he was ready to assist to the
extent of his power ; and by the influence which he exerted,
and by the energy which he manifested, he succeeded in af
fording the most prompt and efficient aid. The honourable
course which he pursued, his firm and yet liberal conduct, in
circumstances the most difficult and trying, greatly endeared
him to the people of Delaware, who universally expressed
their regret when, in the year 1782, he felt himself obliged,
on account of the arduous nature of his duties, and the deli
cate state of his health, to decline a re-election.

Shortly after retiring from the presidency, he was elected
to congress, but it does not appear that he ever after took
his seat in that body. The cancer which had for years af
flicted him, and which for a long time previously had so
spread over his face as to oblige him to wear a green silk
screen to conceal its ill appearance, now increased its ra
vages, and in the early part of the year 1783, brought him to
the grave.

It would be unnecessary, were it in our power, to add any
thing further on the character of Mr. Rodney. He was, as
our biographical notice clearly indicates, a man of great in
tegrity, and of pure patriotic feeling. He delighted, when
necessary, to sacrifice his private interests for the public
good. He was remarkably distinguished for a degree of
good humour and vivacity ; and in generosity of character
was an ornament to human nature.

320 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

GEORGE READ.

GEORGE READ was a native of the province of Maryland,
where he was born in the year 1734. His grandfather was
an Irishman, who resided in the city of Dublin, and was pos
sessed of a considerable fortune. His son, John Read, the
father of the subject of the present memoir, having emigrated
to America, took up his residence in Cecil county, where he
pursued the occupation of a planter. Not long after the
birth of his eldest son, he removed with his family into the
province of Delaware, and settled in the county of Newcas
tle. Mr. Read designing his son for one of the learned pro
fessions, placed him in a seminary at Chester, in the province
of Pennsylvania. Having there acquired the rudiments of
the learned languages, he was transferred to the care of that
learned and accomplished scholar, the Rev. Dr. Allison, a
gentleman eminently qualified to superintend the education
of young men. With this gentleman young Mr. Read con
tinued his studies until his seventeenth year, when he enter
ed the office of John Moland, Esq. a distinguished lawyer in
the city of Philadelphia, for the purpose of acquiring a know
ledge of the legal profession. The intense application, arid
the sober habits of Mr. Read, were at this time highly ho
nourable to him. While yet a student, he gave promise of
future eminence in his profession. Mr. Moland reposed so
great confidence in his abilities, that even before he had fin
ished his preparatory studies, he entrusted to him a consider
able share of his attorney business.

In 1753, at the early age of nineteen years, Mr. Read was
admitted to the bar. On this event he performed an act of
singular generosity in favour of the other children of the
family. As the eldest son, he was entitled, by the existing
laws, to two shares of his father's estate, but he relinquished
all his rights in favour of his brothers, assigning as a reason
for this act, his belief that he had received his proper portion
in the education which had been given him.

In the following year, he commenced the practice of law,

GEORGE READ. 321

in the town of Newcastle, and although surrounded by gen
tlemen of high attainments in the profession, he soon ac
quired the confidence of the public, and obtained a respect
able share of business. In 1763, he was appointed to suc
ceed John Ross, as attorney general of the three lower
counties on the Delaware. This office, Mr. Read held until
the year 1775, when, on being elected to congress, he re
signed it.

During the same year, Mr. Read was connected by mar
riage with a daughter of the Rev. John Ross, a clergyman,
who had long presided over an episcopal church, in the town
of Newcastle. The character of Mrs. Read was in every
respect excellent. She possessed a vigorous understanding.
In her person she was beautiful, and to elegant manners was
added a deep and consistent piety. She was also imbued
with the spirit of a pure patriotism. During the revolutionary
war, she was often called to suffer many privations, and was
frequently exposed with her infant family to imminent danger,
by reason of the predatory incursions of the British. Yet, in
the darkest hour, and amidst the most appalling danger, her
fortitude was unshaken, and her courage undaunted.

In the year 1765, Mr. Read was elected a representative
from Newcastle county to the general assembly of Delaware,
a post -which he occupied for twelve years. In this station,
and indeed through his whole political course, he appears to
have been actuated neither by motives of self-interest nor
fear. By an adherence to the royal cause, he had reason to
anticipate office, honour, and wealth. But his patriotism and
integrity were of too pure a character to be influenced by
worldly preferment, or pecuniary reward. The question
with him was, not what a worldly policy might dictate, but
what reason and justice and religion would approve.

On the first of August, 1774, Mr. Read was chosen a mem
ber of the continental congress, in connexion with Cresar
Rodney, and Thomas M'Kean. To this station he was an
nually re-elected, during the whole revolutionary war, and
was indeed present in the national assembly, except for a few
short intervals, during the whole of that period.
2T

322 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

It has already been noticed, that when the great question
of independence came before congress, Mr. Read was op
posed to the measure, and ultimately gave his vote against
it. This he did from a sense of duty : not that he was
unfriendly to the liberties of his country? or was actuated by
motives of selfishness or cowardice. But he deemed the
agitation of the question, at the time, premature and inex
pedient. In these sentiments, Mr. Read was not alone. Many
gentlemen in the colonies, characterized for great wisdom,
and a decided patriotism, deemed the measure impolitic, and
would have voted, had they been in congress, as he did. The
idle bodings of these, fortunately, were never realised. They
proved to be false prophets, but they were as genuine
patriots as others. Nor were they, like some in similar cir
cumstances, dissatisfied with results, differing from those
which they had predicted. On the contrary, they rejoiced
to find their anticipations were groundless. When, at length,
the measure had received the sanction of the great national
council, and the time arrived for signing the instrument, Mr.
Read affixed his signature to it, with all the cordiality of
those who had voted in favour of the declaration itself.

In the following September, Mr. Read was elected presi
dent of the convention which formed the first constitution
of the state of Delaware. On the completion of this, he
was offered the executive chair, but chose at that time to de
cline the honour. In 1777, the governor, Mr. M'Kinley,
was captured by a detachment of British troops, when Mr.
M'Kean was called to take his place in this responsible office,
the duties of which he continued to discharge, until the release
of the former gentleman.

In 1779, ill health required him to retire for a season from
public employment. In 1782, however, he accepted the ap
pointment of judge of the court of appeals in admiralty cases,
an office in which he continued till the abolition of the court.

In 1787, he represented the state of Delaware in the con
vention which framed the constitution of the United States,
under which he was immediately elected a member of the
Senate. The duties of this exalted station he discharged till

THOMAS M*KEAN. 323

1793, when he accepted of a seat on the bench of the su
preme court of the state of Delaware, as chief justice. In
this station he continued till the autumn of 1798, when he
was suddenly summoned to another world.

In all the offices with which Mr. Read was entrusted by
his fellow citizens, he appeared with distinguished ability ;
but it was as a judge that he stood pre-eminent. For this
station he was peculiarly fitted, not only by his unusual legal
attainments, but by his singular patience in hearing all that
council might deem important to bring forward, and by a
cool and dispassionate deliberation of every circumstance
which could bear upon the point in question. To this day
his decisions are much respected in Delaware, and are often
recurred to, as precedents of no doubtful authority.

In private life, the character of Mr. Read was not less
estimable and respectable. He was consistent in all the rela
tions of life, strict in the observance of his moral duties,
and characterized by an expanded benevolence towards all

arnnnrl him.

THOMAS M'KEAN.

THOMAS M'KEAN was the second son of William M'Kean,
a native of Ireland, who sometime after his emigration to
America, was married to an Irish lady, with whom he settled
in the township of New-London, county of Chester, and the
province of Pennsylvania, where Thomas was born, on the
nineteenth of March, 1734.

At the age of nine years, he was placed under the care of
the learned Dr. Allison, who was himself from Ireland, and
of whose celebrated institution at New-London, we have al
ready had occasion to speak, in terms of high commendation.
Besides an unusually accurate and profound acquaintance
with the Latin and Greek classics, Dr. Allison was well in

324 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

formed in moral philosophy, history, and general literature.
To his zeal for the diffusion of knowledge, Pennsylvania
owes much of that taste for solid learning and classical litera
ture, for which many of her principal characters have been
so distinguished.

Under the instructions of this distinguished scholar, young
M'Kean made rapid advances in a knowledge of the lan
guages, rhetoric, logic, and moral philosophy. After finishing
the regular course of studies, he was entered as a student at
law, in the office of David Finney, a gentleman who was re
lated to him, and who resided in Newcastle, in Delaware.
Before he had attained the age of twenty-one years, he com
menced the practice of law, in the courts of common pleas for
the counties of Newcastle, Kent, and Sussex, and also in the
supreme court. His industry and talents soon became known,
and secured to him a respectable share of business. In 1756,
he was admitted to practice in the courts of the city and
county of Philadelphia. In the following year he was ad
mitted to the bar of the supreme court in Pennsylvania. In
the same year the house of assembly elected him as their
clerk, and in the following year he was re-appointed to the
same station.

Mr. M'Kean was as yet a young man, but at this early
age, he occupied an enviable rank among men of maturer
years. He had held several offices of distinction, and by his
industry and assiduity, his judgment and ability, he gave pro
mise of his future eminence.

The political career of Mr. M'Kean commenced in the year
1762, at which time he was returned a member of the assem
bly from the county of Newcastle, which county he continued
to represent in that capacity for several successive years, al
though the last six years of that period he spent in Philadel
phia. In 1779, Mr. M'Kean appeared at Newcastle on the
day of the general election in Delaware, and after a long and
eloquent speech addressed to his constituents, he requested
the privilege of being considered no longer one of their can
didates for the state legislature. Most unexpectedly he was
now placed in a peculiarly delicate situation. His constitu-

THOMAS M'KEAN. 325

ents, although unwilling to dispense with his services in the
assembly, consented to comply with his wishes ; but at the
same time requested him to nominate certain gentlemen,
whom they should consider as candidates for the next general
assembly. This was conferring on Mr. M'Kean an honour
which must have been highly nattering. It was a mark of
confidence in his judgment, without a parallel within our
recollection. To a compliance with this request, Mr. M'Kean
delicately gave his refusal ; but, it being repeated, he deliver
ed, with much reluctance, to the committee who waited upon
him, the names of seven gentlemen, who were all elected with
great unanimity.

We have had frequent occasion, in these biographical no
tices, to speak of the congress which assembled in New-York
in 1765, usually called the stamp act congress, its object being
to obtain relief of the British government from the grievances
generally under which the colonies were suffering, and of the
stamp act in particular. Of that illustrious body Mr. M'Kean
was a member, from the counties of Newcastle, Kent, and
Sussex, on the Delaware. Of the proceedings of this first
American congress, little has been known, or can probably
be collected, except from their general declaration of rights,
and their address to the king, and petitions to parliament.
Yet it i& known, that in that congress, there were some who
were distinguished for great energy and boldness of character.
Among those of this description was James Otis of Boston,
who, as Caesar Rodney afterwards said, " displayed that light
and knowledge of the interest of America, which, shining like
a sun, lit up those stars which shone on this subject after
wards." In original firmness and energy, Mr. M'Kean was
probably not greatly inferior to Mr. Otis. His independent
conduct, on the last day of the session of the above congress,
reflects the highest honour upon him, and deserves a special
notice in every history of his life.

A few of the members of this body appeared not only timid,
but were suspected of hostility to the measures which had
been adopted. Among these, was Timothy Ruggles, a repre
sentative from the province of Massachusetts, who had been

28

326 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

elected president of the congress in preference to James Otis,
by only a single vote. In conclusion of the business, and
when the members were called upon to sign the proceedings,,
Mr. Ruggles, with a few others, refused to affix their signa
tures.

At this moment, Mr. M'Kean rose, and with great dignity,
but with deep feeling, addressing himself to the president,
requested him to assign his reasons, for refusing to sign the
petitions. The president refused, on the ground that he was
not bound in duty to state the cause of his objections. So
uncourteous a refusal, especially as unanimity and harmony
had prevailed during the session, called forth a rejoinder from
Mr. M'Kean, in which he pressed upon the president the im
portance of an explanation. At length, after a considerable
pause, Mr. Ruggles observed, that it was " against his con
science." " Conscience!" exclaimed Mr. M'Kean, as he rose
from his seat, " conscience /" and he rung changes on the
word so long and so loud, that at length the president, in a
moment of irritation, gave Mr. M'Kean, in the presence of
the whole congress, a challenge to fight him, which was in
stantly accepted. The president, however, had no m-ore
courage to fight than to sign the proceedings of congress; and
the next morning he was seen wending his way through the
streets of New-York, towards the province of Massachusetts,
the legislature of which, not long after, ordered him to be
reprimanded.

The only other member of the congress of 1765, who re
fused to sign the petitions, was Mr. Robert Ogden, at that
time speaker of the house of assembly of New-Jersey. This
gentleman, Mr. M'Kean strongly solicited in private to adopt
a bold and manly course, by affixing his signature to the pro
ceedings of the congress. Arguments, however, were in
vain ; yet he was reluctant that his constituents in New-Jer
sey should become acquainted with his refusal. It was,
however, communicated to them. The people of New-Jer
sey, justly indignant at his conduct, burnt his effigy in several
towns, and on the meeting of the general assembly, he was
removed from the office of speaker. As Mr. M'Kean, in pass-

THOMAS M'KEAN. 327

Ing; through New-Jersey, had without hesitation, when asked,
communicated the course which Mr. Ogden had taken, the
latter gentleman, it is said, threatened him with a challenge,
which, however, ended much as had the precipitate challenge
of the president from Massachusetts.

We must necessarily pass over several years of the life of
Mr. M'Kean, during which he was engaged in various public
employments. A short time before the meeting of the con
gress of 1774, Mr. M*Kean took up his permanent residence
in the city of Philadelphia. The people of the lower coun
ties on the Delaware were anxious that he should represent
them in that body, and he was accordingly elected as their
delegate. On the 3d.of September, he took his seat in that
august assemblage. From this time, until the 1st of Febru
ary, 1783, he continued annually to be elected a member of
the great national council, a period of eight years and a half.
This was the only instance, it is said, in which any gentleman
was continued a member of congress, from 1774, to the
signing of the preliminaries of peace in 1783. It is also
worthy of notice, that at the same time he represented the
state of Delaware in congress, he was president of it in 1781,
and from July, 1777, was the chief justice of Pennsylvania.
Such an instance of the same gentleman being claimed as a
citizen of two states, and holding high official stations in both
at the same time, is believed to be without a parallel in the
history of our country.

As a member of congress, Mr. M'Kcan was distinguished
for his comprehensive views of the subjects which occupied
the deliberation of that body, and for the firmness and deci
sion which marked his conduct on all questions of great na
tional importance. On the 12th of June, 1776, he was
appointed, in connexion with several others, a committee to
prepare and digest the form of a confederation between the
colonies. This committee reported a draught the same day ;
but it was not finally agreed to until the 15th of November,
1777, nor was it signed by a majority of the representatives
of the respective colonies, until the 9th of July, 1778. Even
at this latter date, New- Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland, had

328 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

not authorized their delegates to ratify and sign the instru
ment. But, in the November following, New-Jersey acceded
to the confederation, and on the 22d of February, 1779, Mr.
M'Kean signed it in behalf of Delaware. Maryland ratified
the act of union in March, 1781.

On the great question of a declaration of independence.
Mr. M'Kean was, from the first, decidedly in favour of the
measure. He subscribed his name to the original intrument
deposited in the office of the secretary of state, but it was
omitted in the copy published in the journals of congress.
This omission it is now impossible satisfactorily to explain
The following letter on the subject, addressed by Mr.
M'Kean to Mr. Dallas of Pennsylvania, on the 20th of Sep
tember, 1796, will, it is believed, be thought a valuable docu
ment :

" Sir,

"Your favour of the 19th instant, respecting the Decla
ration of Independence, should not have remained so long
unanswered, if the duties of my office of chief justice had
not engrossed my whole attention, while the court was
sitting.

" For several years past, I have been taught to think less
unfavourably of scepticism than formerly. So many tilings
have been misrepresented, misstated, and erroneously print
ed, (with seeming authenticity,) under my o\vn eye, as in
my opinion to render those who doubt of every thing, not
altogether inexcusable : The publication of the Declaration
of Independence, on the 4th of July, 1776, as printed in the
second volume of the Journals of Congress, page 241 ; ami
also in the acts of most public bodies since, so far as respects
the names of the delegates or deputies, who made that De
claration, has led to the above reflection. By the printed
publications referred to, it would appear, as if the fifty-five
gentlemen, whose names are there printed, and none other,
were on that day personally present in congress, and assent
ing to the Declaration ; whereas, the truth is otherwise. The
foliar* ing gentleman were not members of congress on the

THOMAS M'KEAN. 329

4th of July, 1776 ; namely, Matthew Thornton, Benjamin
Rush, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, and
George Ross. The five last named were not chosen delegates
until the 20th day of the month ; the first, not until the 12th
day of September following, nor did he take his seat in con
gress, until th<3 4th of November, which was four months
after. The journals of Congress, {vol. ii. page 277 and 442.)
as well as those of the assembly of the state of Pennsylvania,
(p. 53.) and of the general assembly of New-Hampshire,
establish these fa^ts. Although the six gentleman named
had been very active in the American cause, and some of
them, to my own knowledge, warmly in favour of indepen
dence, previous to the day on which it was declared, yet I
personally know that none of them were in congress on that
day.

" Modesty should not rob any man of his just honour,
when by that honour, his modesty cannot be offended. My
name is not in the printed journals of congress, as a party to
the Declaration of Independence, and this, like an error in
the first concoction, has vitiated most of the subsequent pub
lications; and yet the fact is, that I was then a member of
congress for the state of Delaware, was personally present
in congress, and voted in favour of independence on the 4th
of July, 1776, and signed the declaration after it had been
engrossed on parchment, where my name, in my own hand
writing, still appears. Henry Misner, of the state of New-
York, was also in congress, and voted for independence. I
do not know how the misstatement in the printed journal has
happened. The manuscript public journal has no names
annexed to the Declaration of Independence, nor has the
secret journal ; but it appears by the latter, that on the 19th
day of July, 1776, the congress directed that it should be
engrossed on parchment, and signed by every member, and
that it was so produced on the 2d of August, and signed.
This is interlined in the secret journal, in the hand of Charles
Thompson, the secretary. The present secretary of state
of the United States, and myself, have lately inspected the
journals, and seen this. The journal was first printed bj^
2U 28*

330 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

Mr. John Dunlap, in 1778, and probably copies, with the
names then signed to it, were printed in August, 1776, and
that Mr. Dunlap printed the names from one of them.

" I have now, sir, given you a true, though brief, history
of this affair ; and, as you are engaged in publishing a new
edition of the Laws of Pennsylvania, I am obliged to you
for affording the favourable opportunity of conveying to you
this information, authorizing you to make any use of it you
please.

" I am," &c.

In the life of Mr. Rodney, we have had occasion to re
mark that Mr. M'Kean and Mr. Read voted in opposition to
each other, when the question of independence was put in
committee of the whole, on the 1st of July. Delaware was
thus divided. As it was improbable, in the estimation of Mr.
M'Kean, that the views of Mr. Read would undergo a favour
able change before the final question should be taken, he be
came exceedingly anxious that Mr. Rodney, who he knew
was in favour of the declaration, should be present. At his
private expense he dispatched an express into Delaware to
acquaint Mr. Rodney with the delicate posture of affairs,
and to urge him to hasten his return to Philadelphia. For
tunately, »by an exertion which patriotism only could have
prompted him to make, that gentleman arrived in Philadel
phia, just as the members were entering the door of the state
house, at the final discussion of the subject. Without even
an opportunity of consulting Mr. M'Kean, on the momentous
question before them, he entered the hall with his spurs on
his boots. Scarcely had he taken his seat, before the report
of the chairman of the committee of the whole was read,
soon after which the great question was put. Mr. M'Kean
and Mr. Rodney voted in favour on the part of Delaware,
and thus contributed to that unanimity among the colonies,
on this great subject, without which a declaration had been
worse than in vain.

At the time congress passed the declaration of indepen
dence, the situation of Washington and his army, in New-Jer-

THOMAS ai'KEAK. 331

sey was exceedingly precarious. On the 5th of July, it was
agreed by several public committees in Philadelphia, to
dispatch all the associated militia of the state to the assist
ance of Washington, where they were to continue, until ten
thousand men could be raised to relieve them. Mr. M'Kean
was at this time colonel of a regiment of associated militia.
A few days following the declaration of independence, he was
on his way to Perth Amboy, in New- Jersey, at the head of
his battalion. In a letter, dated at head quarters, Perth Am
boy, July 26th, 1776, he describes the narrow escape which
he had in executing an order of the commander-in-chief,
which required him to march his battalion into the town.
Having put his troops in motion, under Lieutenant Colonel
Dean, he mounted his horse, and proceeded to wait upon the
general for more particular orders. At this time, the enemy's
batteries were playing along the road which it was necessavy
for him to take. Amidst balls, which were flying in every di
rection around him, he proceeded to the general's hei.d
quarters. An order had just been issued to prevent the bat
talion from proceeding into the town. It became necessary,
therefore, for him to follow them, in order to stop them. As
he turned to execute the order, a horse at a short distance
from him was shot through the neck by a cannon ball, and
such was the incessant discharge from the enemy's batteries
along the road, over which he passed, that it appeared impos
sible that he should escape. A merciful providence, however,
protected him on his return. He executed his order, and
safely marched his troops to the camp.

The associate militia being at length discharged, 'Mr. M'Kean
returned to Philadelphia, and was present in his seat in con
gress on the second of August, when the engrossed copy of
the declaration of independence was signed by the members.
A few days after this, receiving intelligence of his having
been elected a member of the convention in Delaware, assem
bled for the purpose of forming a constitution for that state,
he departed for Dover, which place he reached in a single
day. Although excessively fatigued, on his arrival, at the
request of a committee of gentlemen of the convention, he

332 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

retired to his room in the public inn, where he was employed
the whole night in preparing a constitution for the future go
vernment of the state. This he did without the least assist
ance, and even without the aid of a book. At ten o'clock
the next morning it was presented to the convention, by
whom it was unanimously adopted.

In the year 1777, Mr. M'Kean was appointed president
of the state of Delaware, and on the twenty-eighth of July of
the same year, he received from the supreme executive coun
cil the commission of chief justice of Pennsylvania. The
duties of this latter station he continued to discharge for
twenty-two years. At the time of his accepting the commis
sion, he was speaker of the house of assembly, president of
Delaware, as already noticed, and member of congress.

The duties of so many offices pressed with too much weight
upon Mr. M'Kean, and he found himself compelled to offer
his resignation, in 1780, to the people of Delaware, as their
delegate to congress. They were, however, unwilling to dis
pense with his services, and he continued still to represent
the state in the national council. In July of the following
year, on the resignation of Samuel Huntington, he was elect
ed president of congress, a station which he found it neces
sary in the following October to relinquish, as the duties of it
interfered with the exercise of his office of chief justice of
Pennsylvania. On accepting his resignation, it was resolved :
" that the thanks of congress be given to the honourable
Thomas M'Kean, late president of congress, in testimony of
their approbation of his conduct in the chair, and in the exe
cution of public business."

We must here devote a paragraph to speak of Mr. M'Kean,
in the exercise of his judicial functions. As a judge, he had
few equals, in this, or any other country. At this time the
law of the state of Pennsylvania was in a great measure un
settled. It devolved upon him to reduce it to a system. His
decisions were remarkably accurate, and often profound. He
was distinguished for great perspicuity of language, for an.
easy and perfectly intelligible explication of even intricate
and difficult cases. In his manners, while presiding, to a

THOMAS M'KEAN. 333

proper affability, he united great dignity. In short, few men
while living have acquired a higher reputation than did chief
justice M'Kean, and few have enjoyed, after death, a greater
share of judicial fame.

In the year 1788, an attempt was made to impeach the con
duct of Mr. M'Kean, as chief justice. The ground of accusa
tion arose from the following circumstance. Eleazer Oswald,
in a column of a paper of which he was editor, attempted to
prejudice the minds of the people, in a cause then in court,
in which he was defendant ; at the same time casting highly
improper reflections upon the judges. In consideration of
this contempt of court, the judges inflicted a fine upon Os
wald of ten pounds, and directed him to be imprisoned for
the space of one month, that is, from the fifteenth day of July
to the fifteenth day of August. At the expiration of twenty
eight days, a legal month, Oswald claimed his discharge. The
sheriff, upon this, consulted Mr.. M'Kean, who not knowing
that the sentence was entered upon the record "/or the space
of one month" without the explanatory clause, directed the
sheriff to detain the prisoner until the morning of the fifteenth
of August. Finding his mistake, however, he directed Oswald
to be discharged ; but as he had been detained beyond the
time specified in the sentence, he presented a memorial to the
general assembly, complaining of the chief justice, and de
manding his impeachment. After a discussion of the subject
by the assembly for several days, and a long examination of
witnesses, it was at length resolved : " that this house, having,
in a committee of the whole, gone into a full examination of
the charges exhibited by Eleazer Oswald, of arbitrary and
oppressive proceedings in the justices of the supreme court,
against the said Eleazer Oswald, are of the opinion, that the
charges are unsupported by the testimony adduced, and, con
sequently, that there is no just cause for impeaching the said
justices." .

Of the convention of Pennsylvania, which was assembled
on the twentieth of November, 1787, to ratify the constitution
of the United States, Mr. M'Kean was delegated a member
from the city of Philadelphia. In this convention, Mr

334 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

M'Kean and Mr. Wilson, of the latter of whom we have spo
ken in a former biographical sketch, took the lead. On the
twenty-sixth of this month, the former submitted the follow
ing motion: "That this convention do assent to, and ratify
the constitution agreed to on the seventeenth of Septembei
last, by the convention of the United States of America, held
at Philadelphia." On a subsequent day, he entered at length
into the merits of the constitution, which he demonstrated in
the most masterly manner, and triumphantly answered the
various objections which had been urged against it. In the
conclusion of this eloquent speech, he used the following
language : " The law, sir, has been my study from my infan
cy, and my only profession. I have gone through the circle
of office, in the legislative, executive, and judicial, depart
ments of government; and from all my study, observation,
and experience, I must declare, that from a full examination
and due consideration of this system, it appears to me the
best the world has yet seen.

" I congratulate you on the fair prospect of its being
adopted, and am happy in the expectation of seeing accom
plished, what has been long my ardent wish — that you will
hereafter have a salutary permanency in magistracy, and
stability in the laws."

In the following year, the legislature of Pennsylvania took
measures for calling a convention, to consider in what re
spects their state constitution required alteration and amend
ment. This convention commenced its session on the 24th
of November, 1789 ; Mr. M'Kean appeared and took his seat
as a delegate from the city of Philadelphia. When the con
vention resolved itself into a committee of the whole, on the
subject of altering or amending the constitution, he was ap
pointed chairman. During the whole of the deliberations, he
presided with great dignity and ability, for which he received
the unanimous thanks of the convention. In 1779, Mr. M'Kean
was elected to the chief magistracy of the state of Pennsyl
vania. His competitor at this time, was the able and distin
guished James Ross. Mr. M'Kean belonged to the politics
of Mr. Jefferson, to whose elevation to the presidency of the

THOMAS M'KEAN. 335

United States, his election is supposed to have powerfully
contributed. The administration of Mr. M'Kean was mark
ed with ability, and with ultimate benefit to the state ; yet
the numerous removals from office of his political opponents,
produced great excitement in the state, and, perhaps, upon
the whole, betrayed, on his part, an unjustifiable degree of
political asperity.

During the years 1807 and 1808, through the influence of
a number of the citizens of the city and county of Philadel
phia, an inquiry was instituted by the legislature into the offi
cial conduct of Governor M'Kean. The committee appointed
for this purpose reported to the legislature :

" I. That the governor did, premeditatedly, wantonly, un
justly, and contrary to the true intent and meaning of the
constitution, render void the late election, (in 1806,) of a she
riff in the city and county of Philadelphia.

"II. That he usurped a judicial authority, in issuing a
warrant for the arrest and imprisonment of Joseph Cabrera ;
and interfered in favour of a convict for forgery, in defiance
of the law, and contrary -to the wholesome regulations of the
prison in Philadelphia, and the safety of the citizens.

" III. That, contrary to the true intent and meaning of the
constitution, and in violation of it, did he appoint Dr. George
Buchanan lazaretto physician of the port of Philadelphia.

" IV. That, under a precedent, acknowledged to have been
derived from the king of Great Britain, and contrary to the
express letter of the constitution, did he suffer his name to be
stamped upon blank patents, warrants on the treasury, and
other official papers, and that, too, out of his presence.

" V. That, contrary to law, did he supersede Dr. James
Reynolds as a member of the board of health.

"VI. That, contrary to the obligations of duty, and the
injunctions of the constitution, did he offer and authorize
overtures to be made to discontinue two actions of the com
monwealth against William Duane and his surety, for an al
leged forfeiture of two recognizances of one thousand
dollars each, on condition that William Duane would discon
tinue civil actions against his son Joseph B. M'Kean, and

336 DELAWARE DELEGATION.

others, for damages for a murderous assault, committed by-
Joseph M'Kean, and others, on William Duane."

This report the committee followed by affixing the follow
ing resolution :

" Resolved, That Thomas M'Kean, governor of this
commonwealth, be impeached of high crimes and misde
meanours."

On the twenty-seventh of January, the house proceeded to
the consideration of the above resolution, and on the same
day indefinitely postponed the further consideration of the
subject.

Although this attempt to impeach the governor was thus
unsuccessful, the following day he presented to the house a
reply to the charges which had been exhibited against him
by the committee of inquiry. After being read, a motion
was made to insert it at large on the journal, which, at length,
was carried in the affirmative.

In the course of this reply, which contained, in the view
of temperate men, a triumphant vindication of his character,
Mr. M'Kean observed as follows : " That I may have erred
in judgment ; that I may have been mistaken in my general
views of public policy ; and that I may have been deceived
by the objects of executive confidence, or benevolence — I am
not so vain nor so credulous as to deny; though, in the
present instance, I am still without the proof and without
the belief; but the firm and fearless position which I take,
invites the strictest scrutiny, upon a fair exposition of our
constitution and laws, into the sincerity and truth of the
general answer given to my accusers — that no act of my
public life was ever done from a corrupt motive, nor with
out a deliberate opinion that the act was lawful and prope?
in itself."

At the close of the year 1808, Mr. M'Kean, having occu
pied the chair of state during the constitutional period of nine
years, retired from the cares of a long life to the enjoyment
of a peaceful retirement, rendered doubly grateful by the
consciousness of a well earned and honourable fame. In
the enjoyment of this retirement, he lived until the twenty-

THOMAS M'KEAN. 337

fourth of June, 1817, when he was gathered to the generation
of his fathers, at the uncommon age of eighty-three years,
two months, and sixteen days. He lies interred in the burial
ground of the First Fresbyterian Church, in Market-street,
Philadelphia.

2X 29

THE

MARYLAND DELEGATION.

SAMUEL CHASE,
WILLIAM PACA,
THOMAS STONE,
CHARLES CARROLL.

SAMUEL CHASE.

SAMUEL CHASE was the son of the Rev. Thomas Chase, a
clergyman of distinction, in the protestant episcopal church
who, after his emigration to, America, married the daughter
of a respectable farmer, and settled, for a time, in Somerset
county, in Maryland, where this son was born, on tne 17th of
April, 1741.

In 1743, Mr. Chase removed to Baltimore, having been ap
pointed to the charge of St. Paul's church, in that place
Even in Baltimore, at this period, there was no school of a
high order. The instruction of his son, therefore, devolved
upon Mr. Chase, than whom few, fortunately, were better
qualified for such a charge. His own attainments in classi
cal learning were much superior to those who had been edu
cated in America. Under the instruction of one so well
qualified to teach, the son soon outstripped most of his com
peers, and at the early age of eighteen was sent to Annapolis,
to commence the study of law. After a sedulous attention
to his preparatory course, for two years, he was admitted to
practice in the mayor's cc jrl, and two years from this latter

SAMUEL CHASE. 339

date, was licensed for the chancery, and some of the county
courts. Finding the number of practitioners at Annapolis
small, he settled in that place as a lawyer, where he was soon
after connected in marriage with an amiable and intelligent
lady, by whom he had two sons and two daughters, all o
whom survived their parents.

The incidents in the life of Mr. Chase, for several years,
were but few. Devoted to his professional duties, he not
only acquired a respectable share of business, but became
highly distinguished for his legal attainments.

The political career of Mr. Chase commenced about the
time of the congress of 1774, in which body he acted as a de
legate from Maryland. This station he continued to occupy
for several years. In the spring of 1776, he was appointed
by congress, in conjunction with Dr. Franklin and Mr. Car
roll, to a trust of a most important nature. This was a mis
sion to Canada, the object of which was, to induce the inha
bitants of that country to withdraw their connexion from
Great Britain, and to join the American confederacy. The
undertaking was attended with great difficulties ; but as Mr.
Chase, though young, was distinguished for his abilities, and
characterized for a most ardent patriotism, he wr.s appointed
one of the commissioners. Mr. Carroll, and his brother, af
terwards the archbishop of Baltimore, were added to the com
mission, under an apprehension that they might exercise a
salutary influence with the catholics in Canada. Although
the objects of the expedition were not attained, the fidelity of
the commissioners was never, for a moment, questioned.

On his return to Philadelphia, Mr. Chase found that a pro
position had been made in congress to issue a declaration of
independence. The situation of the Maryland delegation, in
respect to such a measure, was peculiarly trying. They had
been expressly prohibited, by the convention which appointed
them, from voting in favour of a declaration of independence ;
and, as they had accepted their appointments under this re
striction, they did not feel at liberty to give such a measure
their active and open support.

It was not compatible with the independent and patriotic

340 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

spirit of Mr. Chase, quietly to endure such a situation. Rj
left congress, and proceeded to Maryland. He traversed the
province, and, assisted by his colleagues and friends, as
sembled county meetings, and persuaded the inhabitants to
send addresses to the convention, then sitting at Annapolis,
in favour of independence. Such an expression of cordiality
to a measure, the convention could not resist, and at length
gave an unanimous vote in its favour. With this vote, Mr.
Chase hastened to Philadelphia, where he arrived in time to
take his seat on Monday morning, having rode, on the two
previous days, one hundred and fifty miles. On the day of
his arrival, the resolution to issue a declaration of indepen
dence came before the house, and he had the pleasure of
uniting with a majority in favour of it.

This success was a sufficient reward for all the labour
which he had sustained, in accomplishing an object so de
sirable. A pure patriotism only, however, could have sus
tained the fathers of the revolution, under all the toils and
fatigue which they endured. They were fitted for high and
mighty enterprises. Common dangers, and common suffer
ings, they regarded not. The object presented to their view,
was connected with the liberty not only of themselves, but
with the millions of their future posterity. With this object
before them, therefore, they heeded not danger, nor were
they subdued, or even disheartened, by the most unexpected
reverses.

Our limits permit us not to enter into a minute detail of
the congressional services rendered by Mr. Chase, during
several years which followed the declaration of indepen
dence. In the number, variety, and importance of those
services, he was probably surpassed by few. He possessed,
beyond most others, an ardour of mind, which sometimes, in
debate, carried him almost beyond the bounds of propriety.
There were some others from time to time in congress of a
similar stamp. They were important members ; they served
to animate that body by the warmth wrhich they manifested
in debate, and to rouse the more supine or timid to action, as
the necessity of the times required.

SAMUEL CHA . 34l

In 1783, Mr. Chase being accidentally in Baltimore, was
invited to attend the meeting of a club of young men, who
assembled at stated times, for the purpose of debating
Among the speakers of the evening, there was one who,
from his force of argument, and gracefulness of delivery,
attracted his attention. At the close of the debate, Mr. Chase
entered into conversation with him, and advised him to think
of the profession of law. The young man was at the time a
clerk in an apothecary's shop. Finding him destitute of the
means necessary for an undertaking so expensive, Mr. Chase
kindly offered him the benefit of his library, his instruc
tion, and his table. That young man was William Pinkney.
He accepted the invitation of his generous benefactor, who
afterwards had the pleasure of seeing him one of the most
distinguished lawyers ever at the American bar. It may be
proper to add in this place, that he was afterwards attorney
general of the United States, and a minister in successive
years at the courts of St. James, at Naples, and St. Peters
burg. In the same year, Mr. Chase visited England, on be
half of the state of Maryland, for the purpose of reclaiming
a large amount of property, which, while a colony, she had
entrusted to the bank of England. In the prosecution of
this business, he continued in England about a year, in which
time he had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with many
of the distinguished men of that country, among whom were
Pitt, and Fox, and Burke. Although unsuccessful in accom
plishing the object of his mission, while he continued in
England, he put the claim in so favourable a train, that at
a subsequent period, the state recovered about six hundred
and fifty thousand dollars. While in England, he was mar
ried to his second wife, the daughter of Dr. Samuel Giles, of
Kentbury, with whom, in 1784, he returned to America.

In the year 1786, at the pressing invitation of his friend,
Colonel Howard, he removed from Annapolis to Baltimore.
By this gentleman, he was generously presented with a
square of ten lots of land, upon a spot in which he erected a
house, in which he lived until his death. On his removal
from Annapolis, the corporation of that city tendered to him
29*

342 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

the expressions of their respect, in the following address*
"Sir, the mayor, aldermen, and common councilmen of the
city of Annapolis, impressed with a due sense of the services
rendered to this corporation by you, in the capacity of re
corder thereof, do take this occasion to assure you of their
entire approbation of your conduct in the performance of the
duties of that trust, and to acknowledge your ready exertion,
at all times, to promote the interest and welfare of this city.
They sincerely regret the occasion of this address, as your
removal from the city of Annapolis will deprive this body of
a faithful and able officer, and the city of a valuable citizen.
You have our warmest wishes for your happiness and wel
fare."

To this address, Mr. Chase returned the following an
swer : " The address of the mayor, aldermen, and common
councilmen of this city, presented me this day, affords me
just pleasure, as I flatter myself they speak the genuine senti
ments of the citizens. As recorder of the city, duty and in
clination urged me to enforce due obedience to the by-laws,
and assist in the framing of ordinances for the regulating the
police of the city. In the discharge of this duty, I ever re
ceived the ready assistance of my brethren on the bench,
and of the other members of the corporation, and but a small
portion of merit is due to me. My abilities have been much
overrated by the corporation ; I only wish they had been
equal to my inclination to serve them.

" As one of the delegates of Annapolis, my public powers
were exerted on all occasions to promote the interest and
welfare of the city ; and supported by my colleagues, my
endeavours were in some instances crowned with success. I
feel myself amply rewarded by the approbation of the body
over whom you have the honour to preside. There can be
nothing more agreeable to a public character, than to receive
the public approbation of his conduct, from those who speak
the collected and unbiassed sense of his constituents; and it
is the only reward a free and virtuous people can bestow,
and the only one an honest representative can expect.

" Be pleased to present the corporation my warmest

SAMUEL CHASE. 343

wishes for their prosperity, and I sincerely hope that the
city of Annapolis may be forever distinguished for the har
mony and friendship, the benevolence and patriotism of its
citizens."

In the year 1788, Mr. Chase was appointed the presiding
judge of a court of criminal jurisdiction, for the county and
town of Baltimore, at that time organized. This situa
tion, however, did not prevent him from the practice of his
profession, in which he continued until the year 1791, when
he accepted the appointment of chief justice of the general
court of Maryland. In a previous year, Mr. Chase had served
in the convention of Maryland, assembled to ratify the
federal constitution on the part of Maryland. With this in
strument he was not entirely pleased, considering it not
sufficiently dcmocratical. He is said to have belonged to the
federal party in the country, and so to have continued to the
end of his life ; but not to have entertained that partiality
for England which has been ascribed to that party. With
this peculiarity of views and feelings, Mr. Chase was not, as
might be expected, without his enemies.

In the year 1794, an event occurred in the city of Balti
more, which gave an opportunity to Judge Chase of exhibit
ing the firmness of his character, in respect to maintaining
the dignity of the bench and the supremacy of the law. The
event to which we allude was the tarring and feathering of
two men, in the public streets, on an occasion of some popu
lar excitement. The circumstances of the case were inves
tigated by Judge Chase, in the issue of which investigation,
he caused two respectable and popular men to be arrested as
ring-leaders.

On being arraigned before the court, they refused to give
bail. Upon this the judge informed them that they must go
to jail. Accordingly, he directed the sheriff to take one of the
prisoners to jail. This the sheriff informed the judge he
could not do, as he apprehended resistance. ** Summon the
posse comitatus then," exclaimed the judge. «« Sir," said the
sheriff, " no one will serve." " Summon me then," said Judge

344 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

Chase, in a tone of lofty indignation, " I will be the posse
comitatus, and I will take him to jail."

A member of the bar now begged leave to interpose, and
requested the judge to waive the commitment. "No, God for
bid," replied the judge, "I will do my duty, whatever be the
consequences to myself or my family." He now directed the
parties to meet him the next day, and to give him the required
security. He was told that the next day would be the sabbath
"No better day," said Judge Chase, "can be named, on
which to execute the laws of the country. I will meet you
here, and from this seat of justice I will go to the house of
God."

The parties in question, however, neglected to give the re
quired security on the sabbath, on account of which neglect,
the judge despatched an express to the governor and council,
calling upon them for assistance in the execution of the laws.
On Monday the required security was given ; but when the
grand jury met, instead of finding a bill against the accused,
they delivered a presentment against Judge Chase himself,
in which they reflected with severity upon his censure of the
sheriff, and charged him with having violated the bill of rights,
by holding at the same time two incompatible offices, viz.
the office of chief justice of the criminal court, and that of the
general court of the state. To this presentment Judge Chase
replied with becoming moderation, and yet with firmness. In
conclusion, he informed the jury that they had touched upon
topics beyond their province ; he advised them to confine
themselves to the line of their duty, assuring them that what
ever opinions they might form, or whatever resentments they
might indulge, he should ever respect them as the grand in
quest of the state of Maryland.

In the year 1796, he was appointed by Washington an as
sociate judge of the supreme court of the United States, a sta
tion which he continued to occupy for fifteen years, and in
which he generally appeared with great dignity and ability.
It was the ill fortune of Judge Chase, however, to have his
latter days on the bench embittered by an impeachment by
the house of representatives, on which he was tried before the

SAMUEL CHASE. 345

senate of the United States, where he narrowly escaped con
demnation. This impeachment was made in 1804, and was
recommended by a committee of inquiry, raised, it is said, on
the motion of John Randolph, of Virginia, to which he was
incited through political animosity. The articles of impeach
ment originally reported were six in number, to which two
others were afterwards added. On these articles Judge Chase
was put upon his trial, which began on the second of January,
and was finally ended on the fifth of March, 1805.

The articles of impeachment were founded on certain con
duct of the judge, on different occasions, at Philadelphia, Rich
mond, and other places, in which he was said to have tran
scended his judicial powers. The minute history of this
affair, our limits forbid us to detail. It is sufficient to say, that
much exertion was made by his political opponents to pro
duce a conviction, but without effect. On five of the charges
a majority of the senate acquitted him. On the others, a ma
jority was against him : but as a vote of two thirds is neces
sary to conviction, he was acquitted of the whole.

This was a severe trial to a man of the independent spirit
of Judge Chase. Its disagreeableness was not a little increas
ed by a severe attack of the gout, during the progress of the
impeachment. After his acquittal, he continued to exercise
his judicial functions, unmolested by his enemies, and with
his usual ability.

In the year 1811, his health began to fail him, and though
his disease was slow in its progress, he well understood, that
it was of a nature to bring him to the grave. His death oc
curred on the nineteenth of June. In his dying hour, he ap
peared calm and resigned. He spoke of his domestic affairs
with great propriety, and to his weeping family recommend
ed composure and fortitude. He was a firm believer in
Christianity, and but a short time before his death, having
partaken of the sacrament, he declared himself to be in peace
with all mankind. In his will, he directed that no mourning
should be worn for him, and requested that only his name,
with the dates of his birth and death, should be inscribed on
his tomb.

2Y

346 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

From the foregoing sketch, it is easy to perceive that Judge
Chase was no ordinary man. He possessed an intellect of
great power, and a courage which was at all times undaunted.
It was his unhappiness to have feelings which were too iras
cible and vehement for his personal comfort, and which be
trayed him at times, into a course of conduct, that sober
judgment would have pronounced at least impolitic. Yet few
men were more sincere, or more firmly patriotic. He ar
dently loved his friends, and by them, was ardently loved in
turn. He loved his country. In the days of her deepest de
pression, he stood firm to her interests, and will occupy a
distinguished place among those who have " graced the rolls
of fame."

WILLIAM PACA.

WILLIAM PACA was born on the 31st of October, 1740.
He was the second son of John Paca, a gentleman of large
estate, who resided in the county of Harford, in the state of
Maryland. His father, sensible of the importance of a good
education, placed his son, at a proper age, in the college at
Philadelphia, at that time under the care of the learned and
eloquent Dr. William Smith. On commencing bachelor of
arts, in 1759, he entered the office of Stephen Bradley, a dis
tinguished lawyer of Annapolis, for the purpose of pursuing
the profession of law.

Mr. Paca was a diligent student, and early gave promise of
eminence in his profession. He was licensed to practice in 1761.
and was admitted to the bar at the provincial court in 1764. He
established himself at Annapolis, where he had for his com
petitors, John Price, and Samuel Chase, with the latter of
whom he became intimately acquainted, and with whom he
acted an important part during the revolutionary struggle.

The political career of Mr. Paca commenced in 1771, at

WILLIAM PACA. 347

which time he was appointed to represent the county in the
popular branch of the legislature. At this time, and for se
veral years after, much contention existed between the go
vernment of Maryland, which was proprietary, and the peo
ple. The government consisted of three branches : a house
of burgesses, the members of which were selected by the
people. The second branch was called the upper house, the
members of which were elected and removed, at the pleasure
of the proprietor. The governor formed the third branch,
without whose assent no act of assembly was valid. Anc^in
addition to this, the proprietor himself, who generally resid
ed in England, claimed the privilege of dissenting from such
laws as he pleased, although they had received the sanction
of the above branches of the legislature. Hence, there wag
often no small collision between the lower house, or those
who represented the people, and the upper house and go
vernor, who were considered as under the influence of the
proprietor.

In this provincial assembly, Mr. Paca represented the peo
pie, whose interests he strongly felt, and faithfully guarded.
The interests of the proprietor and of the people were often
thought to be at variance. An avaricious and oppressive
spirit marked the proceedings of the proprietor and his par
tisans. It was important, therefore, for the people, to have
men to represent them in the house of burgesses, who un
derstood their rights, and were sufficiently bold to assert and
maintain them. Such a man was Mr. Paca. He was learn
ed as to a knowledge of law, and of the principles of the
proprietary government ; and at all times, when necessary,
sufficiently courageous to resist the aggressions of avarice,
and the usurpations of tyranny.

The following anecdote will illustrate the bold and inde
pendent spirit of Mr. Paca. In 1771, an act expired in
Maryland, the object of which was to regulate the staple of
tobacco, and the fees of certain officers. This act the house
of burgesses refused to continue, without a reduction of the
officers' fees. As neither branch of the assembly would re
cede from the ground it had taken, the fee bill fell. In this

348 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

state of things, the governor issued his proclamation direct
ing the officers to proceed according to the old law.

The commotion excited throughout the province was
great, and at some places, particularly at Annapolis, even
tumultuous. At this latter place, a multitude of citizens col
lected to express their abhorrence of the conduct of the go
vernor. At the head of this multitude were Mr. Paca and
Mr. Chase. A procession was formed, and with these two
gentlemen for leaders, they proceeded to a gallows which
had been previously erected, upon which they hung the
governor's proclamation, in due form, with a halter. At
length it was taken down, inclosed in a coffin prepared for
the purpose, and consigned to a grave dug beneath the gal-
lows. During the whole ceremony, minute guns were fired
from a schooner owned by Mr. Paca, which was stationed al
no great distance. In conclusion, the citizens marched back
to the city, where they devoted the remainder of the day to
festivity.

The controversy to which we have now alluded had long
existed, and continued to exist, quite down to the era of the
revolutionary struggle. When that struggle commenced,
about the year 1774, there were men, therefore, in Maryland,
who were well prepared to enter into it, with energy and de
cision. They had been trained in the school of controversy.
They had studied every chapter relating to American rights;
and possessing a boldness and a courage commensurate with
their knowledge, they were prepared to act a decided part.

Of the illustrious congress of 1774, Mr. Paca was a mem
ber, in conjunction with Samuel Chase, and several others.
They were instructed by the Maryland convention, from
which they received their appointment : " To effect one
general plan of conduct, operating on the commercial con
nexion of the colonies with the mother country, for the
relief of Boston, and the preservation of American liberty."
As a member of this congress, Mr. Paca so well pleased his
constituents, that he was re-appointed to the same station,
until the year 1778, at the close of which he retired.

Mr. Paca was an open advocate for a declaration of inde-

WILLIAM PACA. 349

pendence, as were several of his colleagues. For the ac
complishment of such an object, they laboured with unwea
ried zeal. A majority of the people of Maryland, however,
were not prepared for such a measure. They still felt
H strong affection for the king, and the mother country, to
wards whom they expressed by their convention, early in
vhe year 1776, many professions of loyalty and regard.

At the same time, they strictly enjoined their representa
tives in congress, not to consent to any propositions for pub
lishing a declaration of independence, and accompanied
these restrictions with a resolution, that Maryland would not
be bound by any vote of congress, which should sanction
such a measure.

In the life of Mr. Chase, we have related the manner in
which a change was effected among the people in relation to
this subject, particularly through the instrumentality of Mr.
Chase. On the 23th of June, the convention of Maryland
recalled their instructions to their delegates, whom they left
free to vote in favour of a declaration of independence. In
consequence, their vote was given in its favour, shortly after
which the convention expressed their approbation of the
measure, and in support of it pledged their lives and fortunes
and sacred honour.

Early in the year 1778, Mr. Paca was appointed chief jus
tice of the supreme court of his state, an office which he
continued to exercise with great ability, until 1780, when he
was advanced by congress to the still more important office
of chief judge of the court of appeals, in prize and admiralty
cases. In this new station, he acquitted himself with great
honour. He entered with ability into the subject of inter
national law, and had the happiness to learn that his deci
sions were highly approved, both at home and abroad.

In 1782, he was elected to the chief magistracy of his na
tive state. Here, again, he was distinguished for great cor
rectness and integrity, for dignity and simplicity. He en
tered with zeal into the interests of literature and religion,
both of which he promoted by his private donations, and his
executive patronage. These subjects he officially recom-
30

350 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

mended to the general assembly in the following language
"It is far from our intention," said he, " to embarrass your
deliberations with a variety of objects ; but we cannot pass
over matters of so high concernment as religion and learning.
The sufferings of the ministers of the gospel of all denomi
nations, during the war, have been very considerable ; and
the perseverance and firmness of those, who discharged theii
sacred functions under many discouraging circumstances,
claim our acknowledgments and thanks. The bill of rights
and form of government recognize the principle of public
support for the ministers of the gospel, and ascertain the
mode. Anxiously solicitous for the blessings of government,
and the welfare and happiness of our citizens, and thoroughly
convinced of the powerful influence of religion, when dif
fused by its respectable teachers, we beg leave most seriously
and warmly to recommend, among the first objects of your
attention, on the return of peace, the making such provision
as the constitution, in this case, authorizes and approves."

The recommendation of Governor Paca was kindly re
ceived by the assembly, which passed several acts in aid of
the several denominations of Christians, which were at that
time numerous in Maryland. The interest which he mani
fested in favour of religion, met the warm approbation of
the various sects ; and from the episcopalians, in particular,
it elicited, through their convention, a formal expression of
thanks.

After holding the office of chief magistrate for one year,
Mr. Paca retired to private life, until 1786, when he again
accepted the executive chair for a single year.

In 1789, on the organization of the federal government,
Ixj received from President Washington the appointment of
judge of the district court of the United States for Mary
land. This office he held until the year 1799, when he was
summoned to another world, in the sixtieth year of his age.

Mr. Paca was twice married. The first time to a daughter
of Samuel Chew, in the year 1761, while he was pursuing
the study of law. The second time in 1777, to a daughter
of a respectable gentleman of Philadelphia, by the name of

THOMAS STONE. 351

Harrison. By the former lady he had five children, one of
whom only survives. By the latter he had a son, who died
shortly after his mother, whose decease occurred in 1780.

Few men in America, as maybe gathered from the prece
ding sketch, were ever more estimable in their character than
Governor Paca. He possessed a mind of superior order,
which was greatly improved by his intercourse with man
kind, and his extensive acquaintance with books.

In his address he was unusually graceful, and in his social
powers was excelled by few. His attention to the young
was not the least excellent trait in his character. He sought
their company, and took a deep interest in their moral and
intellectual improvement. Even alter he became governor
of the state, he was in the habit of attending a club at Anna
polis, composed of young men and gentlemen of science. In
this school, many were trained, who afterwards became
highly distinguished both as statesmen and lawyers. It was
here that that celebrated orator, William Pinkney, first at
tracted the attention of Judge Chase, an account of whose
particularly kind conduct towards him, we have given in the
life of that gentleman. We shall only add to this notice of
Mr. Paca, that as he lived a life of distinguished usefulness,
so he died regretted by all who knew how to estimate moral
worth, intellectual elevation, and political integrity.

THOMAS STONE.

THOMAS STONE was the son of David Stone, of Pointon
Manor, Charles county, Maryland. His father was a de
scendant of William Stone, who was governor of Maryland
during the protectorate of Oliver Cromwell. The boyhood
of Thomas Stone was distinguished by an unusual fondness
for learning. At the age of fifteen, having acquired a re
spectable knowledge of the English language, he obtained

352 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

the reluctant consent of his father to enter the school of a MJ,
Blaizedel, a Scotchman, for the purpose of pursuing the
Greek and Latin languages. This school was at the distance
of ten miles from his father's residence ; yet, such was the
zeal of young Stone, that he was in the habit of rising suffi
ciently early in the morning, to traverse this distance on
horseback, and enter the school at the usual time of its com
mencement.

On leaving the school of Mr. Blaizedel, the subject of our
memoir was anxious to prosecute the study of law. But, al
though his father was a gentleman of fortune, his son was
under the necessity of borrowing money to enable him to
carry his laudable design into effect. He placed himself under
the care of Thomas Johnson, a respectable lawyer of Anna
polis. Having finished his preparatory studies, he entered
upon the practice of his profession in Fredericktown, Mary
land, where having resided two years, he removed to Charles
county, in the same state.

During his residence in the former of these places, his
business had enabled him to discharge the obligations under
which he had laid himself for his education. At the age of
twenty-eight, he married the daughter of Dr. Gustavus
Brown, with whom he received the sum of one thousand
pounds sterling. With this money, he purchased a farm,
near the village of Port Tobacco, upon which he continued
to reside during the revolutionary struggle.

The business of Mr. Stone, during a considerable part of
that period, was not lucrative ; and as the soil of the farm
upon which he lived was poor, he found it difficult to obtain
more than a competent livelihood. The expenses of his fa
mily were increased by the charge of four brothers, who were
yet of tender years. The situation of many of our fathers,
during those trying times, was similar to that of Mr. Stone.
They had small patrimonies ; business was in a great mea
sure suspended ; and, added to this, their time and talents
were imperiously demanded by their suffering country. Yet,
amidst all these difficulties and trials, a pure patriotism con
tinued to burn within their breasts, and enabled them most

THOMAS STONE 353

cheerfully to make any and every sacrifice to which they
were called by the cause of freedom. Nor should it be for
gotten, that in these sacrifices the families of our fathers joy
fully participated. They received without a murmur " the
spoiling of their goods," being elevated by the reflection,
that this was necessary for the achievement of that indepen
dence to which they considered themselves and their posteri
ty as entitled.

Although Mr. Stone was a gentleman of acknowledged ta
lents, and of inflexible and incorruptible integrity, it does not
appear that he was brought forward into public life until
some time in the year 1774. He was not a member of the
illustrious congress of that year, but receiving an appoint
ment as a delegate in December, he took his seat in that body
in the following May ; and, for several years afterwards, was
annually re-elected to the same dignified station.

In our biographical sketches of the other gentlemen who
belonged about this time to the Maryland delegation, we have
had frequent occasion to notice the loyalty and affection
which prevailed in that province, for several years, towards
the king and the parent country; and hence the reluctance
of her citizens to sanction the declaration of independence.
When, therefore, towards the close of the year 1775, such a
measure began seriously to be discussed in the country, the
people of Maryland became alarmed ; and, apprehensive lest
their delegation in congress, which was composed generally
of young men, should be disposed to favour the measure, the
convention of that province attempted to restrain them by
strict and specific instructions :

" We instruct you," said they, " that you do not, without
the previous knowledge and approbation of the convention
of this province, assent to any proposition to declare these
colonies independent of the crown of Great Britain, nor to
any proposition for making or entering into an alliance with
any foreign power ; nor to any union or confederation of
these colonies, which may necessarily lead to a separation
from the mother country, unless in your judgments, or in the
judgments of any four of you, or a majority of the whole of
2Z 30*

354 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

you, if all shall be then attending in congress, it shall be
thought absolutely necessary for the preservation of the liber
ties of the united colonies ; and should a majority of the colo
nies in congress, against such your judgment, resolve to de
clare these colonies independent of the crown of Great
Britain, or to make or enter into alliance with any foreign
power, or into any union or confederation of these colonies,
which may necessarily lead to a separation from the mother
country, then we instruct you immediately to call the conven
tion of this province, and repair thereto with such proposi
tion and resolve, and lay the same before the said convention
for their consideration; and this convention will not hold this
province bound by such majority in congress, until the repre
sentative body of the province in convention assent thereto."

The cautious policy observable in these instructions, arose,
not so much from timidity on the part of the people of Ma
ryland, as from a sincere attachment to the royal government,
and an equally sincere affection to the parent country. Soon
after, however, the aspect of things in this province began to
change. The affections of the people became gradually
weaned from Great Britain. It was apparent that a reunion
with that country, on constitutional principles, though infi
nitely desirable, was not to be expected. By the fifteenth
of May, 1776, these sentiments had become so strong, that a
resolution passed the convention, declaring the authority of
the crown at an end, and the necessity that each colony
should form a constitution of government for itself.

In the latter part of June, the work of regeneration was
accomplished. The people of Maryland generally expressed
themselves, in county meetings, decidedly in favour of a de
claration of independence. This expression of public senti
ment proved irresistible, and the convention proceeded to
resolve : " That the instructions given to their deputies be
recalled, and the restrictions therein contained, removed ;
and that the deputies of said colony, or any three or more of
them, be authorized and empowered to concur with the other
united colonies, or a majority of them, in declaring the united
colonies free and independent states ; in forming such fur-

THOMAS STONE. 355

ther compact and confederation between them ; in making
foreign alliances ; and in adopting such other measures as
shall be adjudged necessary for securing the liberties of
America; and that said colony will hold itself bound by the
resolutions of the majority of the united colonies in the pre
mises ; provided the sole and exclusive right of regulating
the internal government and police of that colony be reser
ved to the people thereof."

Being thus relieved from the trammels which had before
bound them, Mr. Stone and his colleagues joyfully recorded
their names in favour of a measure, which was connected with
the imperishable glory of their country.

Soon after the declaration of independence, congress ap
pointed a committee to prepare articles of confederation.
To act on this committee, Mr. Stone was selected from the
Maryland delegation. The duty devolving upon them was
exceedingly arduous. Their report of the plan of a confede
ration was before the house for a long period, and was the
subject of debate thirty-nine times. Nor was it at length
agreed to, till the fifteenth day of November, 1777. Although
the people of Maryland had consented to a declaration of in
dependence, after their first fervour had subsided, their for
mer jealousy returned ; and the Maryland convention pro
ceeded to limit the powers of their delegates, as to the forma
tion of the confederation. At the same time, not obscure
ly hinting in their resolution, that it might be still possible,
and certainly desirable, to accommodate the unhappy diffe
rences with Great Britain.

The above resolution was expressed in the following
terms : "That the delegates, or any three or more of them,
be authorized and empowered to concur with the other
United States, or a majority of them, in forming a confedera
tion, and in making foreign alliances, provided that such
confederation, when formed, be not binding upon this state,
without the assent of the general assembly ; and the said
ilelegates, or any three or more of them, are also authorized
and empowered to concur in any measures, which may be
resolved on by congress for carrying on the war with Great

356 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

Britain, and securing the liberties of the United States ; re
serving always to this state, the sole and exclusive right of
regulating the internal police thereof. And the said dele
gates, or any three or more of them, are hereby authorized
and empowered, notwithstanding any measure heretofore
taken, to concur with the congress, or a majority of them, in
accommodating our unhappy difference with Great Britain,
on such terms as the congress, or a majority of them, shall
think proper."

After seeing the confederation finally aqrecd upon in con
gress, Mr. Stone declined a re-appointment to that body, but
became a member of the Maryland legislature, where lie pow
erfully contributed to meliorate the feelings of many, who
were strongly opposed to the above plan of confederation.
He had the pleasure, however, with other friends of that
measure, to see it at length approved by the general assem
bly and the people generally.

Under this confederation, in 1783, he was again elected to
a seat in congress. In the session of 1784 he acted for some
time as president pro tempore. On the breaking up of con
gress this year, he finally retired from that body, and again
engaged actively in the duties of his profession. His prac
tice now became lucrative in Annapolis, whither he had re
moved his residence ; and in professional reputation he rose
to great distinction. As an advocate, he excelled in strength
of argument. He was often employed in cases of great
difficulty ; and by his brethren of the bar, it was thought emi
nently desirable, at such times, to have him for their colleague.

In 1787, Mr. Stone was called to experience an affliction
which caused a deep and abiding melancholy to settle upon
his spirits. This was the death of Mrs. Stone, to whom he
was justly and most tenderly attached. During a long state
of weakness and decline, induced by injudicious treatment
on the occasion of her having the small pox by inoculation,
Mr. Stone watched over her with the most unwearied devo
tion. At length, however, she sank to the grave. From
this time, the health of Mr. Stone evidently declined. In
the autumn of the same year his physicians advised him to

CHARLES CARROLL. 357

make a sea voyage ; and in obedience to that advice, he re
paired to Alexandria, to embark for England. Before the
vessel was ready to sail, however, he suddenly expired, on
the fifth of October, 1787, in the forty-fifth year of his age.

Mr. Stone was a professor of religion, and distinguished
for a sincere and fervent piety. To strangers, he had the
appearance of austerity ; but among his intimate friends, he
was affable, cheerful, and familiar. In his disposition he was
uncommonly amiable, and well disposed. In person, he was
tall, but well proportioned.

Mr. Stone left one son and two daughters. The son died
in 1793, while pursuing the study of law. One of the daugh
ters, it is said, still lives, and is respectably married in the
state of Virginia.

Clf \RLES CARROLL.

CHARLES CARROLL was a descendant of Daniel Carroll, an
Irish gentleman, who emigrated from England to America
about the year 1G89. He settled in the province of Mary
land, where, a few years after, he received the appointment
of judge, and register of the land office, and became agent
for Lord Baltimore.

Charles Carroll, the father of the subject of the present
sketch, was born in 1702. His son, Charles Carroll, sur-
named of Carrollton, was born September 8, 1737, O. S. at
Annapolis, in the province of Maryland.

At the age of eight years, he was sent to France for the
purpose of obtaining an education. He was placed at a col
lege of English Jesuits, at St. Omer's, where he remained for
six years. Afterwards he staid some time at Rheims, whence
he was removed to the college of Lewis le Grand. On
leaving college, he entered upon the study of the civil law, at
Bourges ; from which place he returned to Paris, where he

358 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

remained till 1757, in which year he jemoved to London, and
commenced the study of law. He returned to America in
1764, an accomplished scholar, and an accomplished man
Although he had lived abroad, a.,J might naturally be sup
posed to have imbibed a predilection for the monarchical in
stitutions of Europe, he entered with great spirit into the
controversy between the colonies and Great Britain, which,
about the time of his arrival, was beginning to assume a most
serious aspect.

A few years following the repeal of the stamp act, the
violent excitement occasioned by that measure, in a degree
subsided throughout all the colonies. In this calmer state of
things the people of Maryland participated. But about the
year 1771, great commotion was excited in that province, ii»
consequence of the arbitrary conduct of Governor Eden and
his council, touching the fees of the civil officers of the colo
nial government. These fees, as was noticed in the life of
Mr. Paca, had become, in the estimation of the popular
branch of the assembly, from the manner in which they were
charged, exceedingly exorbitant. To correct the abuses
growing out of the indefinite character of the law, a new law
was framed ; and, after being passed by the lower house, was
sent to the upper house for their concurrence. This, how
ever, was refused ; and the assembly was prorogued, without
coming to any agreement on the subject. Shortly after, Go
vernor Eden issued his proclamation, the ostensible object of
which was to prevent oppressions and extortions on the part
of the officers, in exacting unreasonable and excessive fees.
The proclamation was in reality, however, highly exception
able in the view of the people, as it affected to settle the
point, which was the prerogative only of the people. The
fees in question were considered in the light of a tax, the
power to lay which the people justly claimed to themselves.

The controversy which grew out of this arbitrary exercise
of power on the part of Governor Eden, became exceedingly
spirited. It involved the great principles of the revolution.
Several writers of distinguished character enlisted them
selves on different sides of the question. Among these wri-

CHARLES CARROLL.

ters, no one was more conspicuous than Mr. Carroll. The
natural consequence of his firmness in defence of the rights
of the people was, that great confidence was reposed in him
on their part, and he was looked up to as one who was emi
nently qualified to lead in the great struggle which was ap
proaching between the colonies and the parent country.

From what has been observed respecting Mr. Carroll, it
may justly be inferred that his mind was made up at an early
day, as to the course duty required him to take in respect to
this coming storm. An anecdote is related of him, which
will illustrate his influence with the people of Maryland. By
a resolution of the delegates of Maryland, on the 22d day of
June, 1774, the importation of tea was prohibited. Some
time after, however, a vessel arrived at Annapolis, having a
quantity of this article on board. This becoming known,
the people assembled in great multitudes, to take effectual
measures to prevent its being landed. At length the excite
ment became so high, that the personal safety of the captain
of the vessel became endangered. In this state of things, the
friends of the captain made application to Mr. Carroll, to in
terpose his influence with the people in his behalf. The pub
lic indignation was too great to be easily allayed. This Mr.
Carroll perceived, and advised the captain and his friends, as
the only probable means of safety to himself, to set fire to the
vessel, and burn it to the water's edge. This alternative was
indeed severe ; but, as it was obviously a measure of neces
sity, the vessel was drawn out, her sails were set, her colours
unfurled, in which attitude the fire was applied to her, and, in
the presence of an immense concourse of people, she was
consumed. This atonement was deemed satisfactory, and
the captain was no farther molested.

In the early part of 1776, Mr. Carroll, whose distinguished
exertions in Maryland had become extensively known, was
appointed by congress, in connexion with Dr. Franklin and
Samuel Chase, on a commission to proceed to Canada, to per
suade the people of that province to relinquish their alle
giance to the crown of England, arid unite with the Americans
in their struggle for independence.

360 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

In the discharge of their duties, the commissioners met
with unexpected difficulties. The defeat and death of Mont
gomery, together with the compulsion which the American
troops found it necessary to exercise, in obtaining the means of
support in that province, conspired to diminish the ardour of
the Canadians in favour of a union with the colonies, and
even, at length, to render them hostile to the measure. To
conciliate their affections, and to bring to a favourable result
the object of their mission, the commissioners employed their
utmost ingenuity and influence. They issued their proclama
tions, in which they assured the people of the disposition of
congress to remedy the temporary evils, which the inhabi
tants suffered in consequence of the presence of the American
troops, so soon as it should be in their power to provide spe
cie, and clothing, and provisions. A strong tide, however,
was now setting against the American colonies, the strength
of which was much increased by the roman catholic priests,
who, as a body, had always been opposed to any connexion
with the united colonies. Despairing of accomplishing the
wishes of congress, the commissioners at length abandoned
the object, and returned to Philadelphia.

The great subject of independence was, at this time, under
going a discussion in the hall of congress. It has been al
ready noticed, that the Maryland delegation, in that body,
had been instructed by their convention to refuse their assent
to a declaration of independence. On returning to Maryland,
Mr. Carroll resumed his seat in the convention, and, with the
advocates of a declaration of independence, urged the with
drawal of the above instructions, and the granting of power
to their delegates to unite in such a declaration. The friends
of the measure had at length ithe happiness, on the 28th of
June, of procuring a new set of instructions, which secured
the vote of the important province of Maryland in favour of
the independence of America.

On the same day on which the great question was decided
in congress, in favour of a declaration of independence, Mr.
Carroll was elected a delegate to that body from Maryland.

CHARLES CARROLL. 361

and accordingly took his seat on the eighteenth of the same
month.

Although not a member of congress at the time the question
of a declaration of independence was settled, Mr. Carroll had
the honour of greatly contributing to a measure so auspicious
to the interests of his country, by assisting in procuring the
withdrawal of the prohibiting instructions, and the adoption
of a new set, by which the Maryland delegates found them
selves authorized to vote for independence. He had the
honour, also, of affixing his signature to the declaration on
the second of August, at which time the members generally
signed an engrossed copy, which had been prepared for that
purpose. From the printed journals of congress, it would
appear, that the declaration was signed on the fourth of July,
the same day on which the final question was taken. This
is an error. The declaration, as first published, had only the
name of Hancock affixed to it; and it was only on the nine
teenth of July, that a resolution was adopted, directing the
declaration to be engrossed on parchment, with a view to a
general signature on the part of the members.

The truth of this statement may be inferred from the fol
lowing letter, addressed by Mr. Secretary Adams to Mr. Car
roll, on the twenty-fourth of June, 1824 :

"SIR,

"In pursuance of a joint resolution of the two houses of
congress, a copy of which is hereto annexed, and by direction
of the president of the United States, I have the honour of
transmitting to you two fac simile copies of the original de
claration of independence, engrossed on parchment, confor
mably to a secret resolution of congress of nineteenth July,
1776, to be signed by every member of congress, and accord
ingly signed on the second day of August of the same year.
Of this document, unparalleled in the annals of mankind, the
original, deposited in this department, exhibits your name as
one of the subscribers. The rolls herewith transmitted, are
copies as exact as the art of engraving can present, of the in
strument itself, as well as of the signers to it.
3 A 31

362 MARYLAND DELEGATION.

4 While performing the duty thus assigned me, permit me
to felicitate you, and the country, which is reaping the reward
of your labours, as well that your hand was affixed to this
record of glory, as that, after the lapse of near half a century,
you survive to receive this tribute of reverence ant! gratitude,
from your children, the present fathers of the land.

"With every sentiment of veneration, I have the ho
nour," &c.

A signature to the declaration, was an important step for
every individual member of congress. It exposed the signers
of it to the confiscation of their estates, and the loss of life,
should the British arms prove victorious. Few men had more
at stake in respect to property than Mr. Carroll, he being con
sidered the richest individual in the colonies. But wealth
was of secondary value in his estimation, in comparison with
the rights and liberties of his country. When asked whether
he would annex his name, he replied, " most willingly," and
seizing a pen, instantly subscribed " to this record of glory."
" There go a few millions," said some one who watched the
pen as it traced the name of "Charles Carroll, of Carrollton,"
on the parchment. Millions would indeed have gone, for
his fortune was princely, had not success crowned the Ame
rican arms, in the long fought contest.

Mr. Carroll was continued a member of congress until
1778, at which time he resigned his seat in that body, and
devoted himself more particularly to the interests of his native
state. He had served in her convention in 1776, in the lat
ter part of which year he had assisted in drafting her consti
tution. Soon after, the new constitution went into operation,
and Mr. Carroll was chosen a member of the senate of Ma
ryland. In 1781 he was re-elected to the same station, and
in 1788, on the adoption of the federal constitution, was
chosen to the senate of the United States.

In 1791 Mr. Carroll relinquished his seat in the national
s&nate, and was again called to the senate of his native state.
This office he continued to hold until 1804, at which time the
democratic party was successful in electing their candidate,
to the exclusion of this long tried and faithful patriot. At

CHARLES CARROLL. 363

this time, Mr. Carroll took leave of public life, and sought in
retirement the quiet enjoyment of his family circle.

Since the date of his retirement from public office, few in
cidents have occurred in the life of this worthy man, which
demand particular notice. Like a peaceful stream, his days
have glided along, and have continued to be lengthened out,
while the generation of illustrious men, with whom he acted
on the memorable fourth of July, 1776, have all descended to
the tomb.

At the age of nearly ninety-two years, he alone survives.
" He seems an aged oak, standing alone on the plain, which
time has spared a little longer, after all its contemporaries
have been levelled with the dust. Sole survivor of an assem
bly of as great men as the world has witnessed, in a transac
tion, one of the most important that history records; whal
thoughts, what reflections, must at times fill his soul! If he
dwell on the past, how touching its recollections ; if he sur
vey the present, how happy, how joyous, how full of the frui
tion of hope, which his ardent patriotism indulged; if he
glance at the future, how must the prospect of his country's
advancement almost bewilder his weakened conceptions.
Fortunate, distinguished patriot ! Interesting relic of the
past !"

To few men has it been permitted to number so many
years — to none, to have filled them up more honourably and
usefully, than Charles Carroll. Happy in the recollection of
the past — conscious of a life well spent, and possessing

A peace above all earthly dignities —
A still and quiet conscience,

He may well hope to pass the remaining hours of the even
ing of his life in tranquillity; and may be assured, that when
called to follow his illustrious predecessors to the grave,
liberiy, and intelligence, and patriotism, and affection, will
weep at his departure, while they will rejoice that his honour
ie placed where no accident can reach it, and no stain can
tarnish it.

THE

VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

GEORGE WYTHE,
RICHARD HENRY LEE,
THOMAS JEFFERSON,
BENJAMIN HARRISON,
THOMAS NELSON, JUN.
FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE,
CARTER BRAXTON.

GEORGE WYTHE.

GEORGE WYTHE was a native of the county of Elizabeth
city, Virginia, where he was born in the year 1726. His
father was a respectable farmer, in easy circumstances, and
bestowed upon his son a competent patrimony. At a proper
age he was placed at school ; but the knowledge which he
here obtained was extremely limited and superficial, being
confined to the English language, and the elementary rules
of arithmetic. Fortunately for young Wythe, his mother
was a woman of extensive knowledge for those times, and
undertook to supply the defect of his scholastic education.
By her assistance, the powers of his mind, which were ori
ginally strong and active, rapidly unfolded. He became ac
curately versed in the Latin and Greek languages, and made
honourable attainmentr \i several of the solid sciences, and
in polite literature.

GEORGE WYTHE. 365

Before he Became of age, he had the misfortune to lose
his excellent mother, whose death was, not long after, follow
ed by that of his father. Being deprived, at this unguarded
period of life, of the counsel and example of these natural
guardians, he became devoted, for several years, to amuse
ment and dissipation, to which he was strongly enticed by the
fortune that had been left him. During this period, his litera
ry pursuits were almost entirely neglected ; and there was
the greatest reason to fear he would not escape that vortex
into which so many young men remedilessly sink. At the
age of thirty, the principles which had been instilled into his
mind by his virtuous parents, asserted their proper influence
ever him. He abandoned his youthful follies, applied him
self with indefatigable industry to study, and from this date,
during a life which was protracted to the uncommon age of
eighty years, he maintained a rigid and inflexible integrity of
character.

Devoting himself to the profession of law, he pursued his
preparatory studies under the direction of Mr. John Lewis.
The courts in Virginia, where he was called to practice, were
filled by gentlemen of distinguished ability in their profes
sion. With these he soon held an equal rank, and eventual
ly, by his superior learning, greater industry, and more pow
erful eloquence, occupied the chief place at the bar.

The estimation in which he was held by his fellow-citizens,
was early manifested in an appointment from his native coun
ty to a seat in the house of burgesses. This station he held
for several years, even to the dawn of the revolution. In this
assembly were found, from time to time, men of distinguish
ed genius and of great attainments. Among these, George
Wythe was conspicuous. In 1764, he assisted in preparing
a petition to the king, a memorial to the house of lords, and
a remonstrance to the house of commons, on the subject of
the stamp act, which was then occupying the deliberations of
parliament. The remonstrance to the house of commons
was the production of his pen. The tone and language of
this paper were both in spirit and style of too independent a
character for the times, especially in the estimation of the

31*

366 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

more timid in the house of burgesses, who required, be
fore it received their sanction, that its asperities should be
softened.

We have had frequent occasion, in the course of these
biographical sketches, to allude to the friendly feelings of the
Americans, at this time, to the parent country. Few, if any,
were to be found whose views or wishes extended to a sepa
ration from Great Britain. Hence, the language which was
used by the colonies, in setting forth their rights, was gene
rally supplicatory in its style. Their remonstrances were
mild and conciliatory. These, however, it was at length
found, were in vain, and a loftier tone was adopted.

The passage of the celebrated stamp act, in January, 1765,
diffused a spirit of discontent and opposition throughout all
the American colonies, and was the signal for the commence
ment of those stronger measures which led on to the great
revolutionary struggle.

In measures of this kind, it is well known that Virginia
took the lead. About this time, Patrick Henry, a young
man, became a member of the house of burgesses. Although
a young man, he was possessed of a most powerful eloquence,
and of an intrepidity of character which eminently fitted him
to take the lead in the work of opposition.

Towards the close of the session, in May, 1765, Mr. Henry
presented to the house the following resolutions :

" Resolved, That the first adventurers and settlers of this,
his majesty's colony and dominion, brought with them, and
transmitted to their posterity, and all other his majesty's sub
jects, since inhabiting in this, his majesty's said colony, all
the privileges, franchises, and immunities, that have at any
time been held, enjoyed, and possessed by the people of
Great Britain.

" That by two royal charters granted by King James the
First, the colonists aforesaid are declared entitled to all the
privileges and immunities of denizens and natural born sub-
iects, to all intents and purposes, as if they had been abiding
and born within the realm of England.

" That the taxation of the people by themselves, or by per-

GEORGE WYTHE. 367

sons chosen by themselves to represent them, who can only
know what taxes the people are able to bear, and the easiest
mode of raising them, is the distinguishing characteristic of
British freedom, and without which the ancient constitution
cannot subsist.

" That his majesty's liege people of this most ancient co
lony have, uninterruptedly, enjoyed the right of being thus
governed by their own assembly in the article of their taxes
and internal police ; and that the same hath never been for
feited, or any other way given up, but hath been constantly
recognized by the king and people of Great Britain.

" Resolved, therefore, that the general assembly of this co
lony have the sole right and power to lay taxes and imposi
tions upon the inhabitants of this colony : and that any at
tempt to vest such power in any person or persons what
soever, other than the general assembly aforesaid, has a
manifest tendency to destroy British as well as American
freedom."

The language of these resolutions, so much stronger than
the house had been accustomed to hear, at once caused no in
considerable alarm among many of its members. A power
ful opposition arose to their passage, and in this opposition
were to be found some of the warmest friends of American
independence. Among these was Mr. Wythe ; not that he,
and many others, did not admit the justice of the sentiments
contained in the resolutions; but they remonstrated on the
ground of their tending to involve the colony, at a time when
it was unprepared, in open hostility with Great Britain. The
eloquence of Henry, however, silenced, if it did not convince
the opposition, and produced the adoption of the resolutions
without any material alteration. As the fifth resolution was
carried by a majority of only a single vote, the house, on the
following day, in the absence of Henry, rescinded that re
solution, and directed it to be erased from the journals.

The above resolutions spread rapidly through the Ameri
can colonies, and in every quarter of the country found men,
who were ready to justify both their spirit and language.
They served ta rouse the energies of the American people,

368 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

and were among the measures which powerfully urged on
the revolutionary contest. The bold and decided measure
thus adopted in the colony of Virginia, loudly called upon the
patriots of other states to follow her in measures of a similar
character. This they were not backward in doing. After
the temporary revival of the affection of the colonies, conse
quent upon the repeal of the stamp act, had ceased, their op
position became a principle, and in its operation was strong
and lasting. In the history of the opposition of America to
Great Britain, the colony of Virginia did themselves immor
tal honour. In this honour, as an individual, Mr. Wythe
largely participates. For many years, during the approach
of the great conflict, he held a seat in the house of burgesses ;
and by his learning, his boldness, his patriotic firmness,
powerfully contributed to the ultimate liberty and indepen
dence of his country.

In 1775, he was appointed a delegate from his native state
to the continental congress in Philadelphia ; and in the fol
lowing year, assisted in bringing forward and publishing to
the world the immortal declaration of independence. During
this latter year, Mr. Wythe was appointed, in connexion with
Thomas Jefferson, Edward Pendlcton, and several others, to
revise the laws of the state of Virginia, and to accommodate
them to the great change which had been effected in her
transition from a colony to an independent state. In this im
portant work, only the three gentlemen mentioned were ac
tually engaged. The original commission included also the
names of George Mason and Thomas Ludwell Lee ; the for
mer of whom deceased before the committee entered upon
the duties assigned them ; and the latter tendered his resig
nation, leaving the arduous task to be accomplished by the
gentlemen already named.

"The report of this committee was at lengtn made, and
showed such an intimate knowledge of the great principles of
legislation, as reflected the highest honour upon those who
formed it. The people of Virginia are indebted to it for the
best parts of their present code of laws. Among the changes
then made in the monarchical system of jurisprudence, which

GEORGE WYTHE. 309

had been previously in force, the most important were effected by
the act abolishing the right of primogeniture, and directing the
real estate of persons dying intestate, to be equally divided
among their children, or other nearest relations; by the act for
regulating conveyances, which converted all estates in tail into
fees simple, thus destroying one of the supports of the proud
and overbearing distinctions of particular families ; and finally
by the act for the establishment of religious freedom. Had
all the proposed bills been adopted by the legislature, other
changes of great importance would have taken place. A wise
and universal system of education would have been establish
ed, giving to the children of the poorest citizen the oppor
tunity of attaining science, and thus of rising to honour and
extensive usefulness. The proportion between crimes and
punishments would have been better adjusted, and malefactors
would have been made to promote the interests of the com
monwealth by their labour. But the public spirit of the as
sembly could not keep pace with the liberal views of Wythe."

In the year 1777, Mr. Wythe was elected speaker of the
house of delegates, and during the same year was appointed
iudge of the high court of chancery of Virginia. On the new
organization of the court of equity, in a subsequent year, he
was appointed sole chancellor, a station which he filled, with
great ability, for more than twenty years.

During the revolution, Mr. Wythe suffered greatly in re
spect to his property. His devotion to public services left
him little opportunity to attend to his private affairs. The
greater part of his slaves he lost by the dishonesty of his su-
perintendant, who placed them in the hands of the British.
By economy and judicious management, however, Mr. Wythe
was enabled, with the residue of his estate, and with his sala
ry as chancellor, to discharge his debts, and to preserve his
independence.

Of the convention of 1787, appointed to revise the federal
constitution, Mr. Wythe was a delegate from Virginia, having
for his colleagues Washington, Henry, Randolph, Blair, Ma
dison, and Mason. " During the debates, he acted for the
most part as chairman, Being convinced that the confede-
3 B

370 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

ration was defective in the energy necessary to preserve the
union and liberty of America, this venerable patriot, then be
ginning to bow under the weight of years, rose in the con
vention, and exerted his voice, almost too feeble to be heard,
in contending for a system, on the acceptance of which he
conceived the happiness of his country to depend. He was
ever attached to the constitution, on account of the principles
of freedom and justice which it contained ; and in every
change of affairs he was steady in supporting the rights of
man. His political opinions were always firmly republican.
Though in 1798 and 1799, he was opposed to the measures
which were adopted in the administration of President Adams,
and reprobated the alien and sedition laws, and the raising of
the army, yet he never yielded a moment to the rancour of
party spirit, nor permitted the difference of opinion to inter
fere with his private friendships. He presided twice succes
sively in the college of electors in Virginia, and twice voted
for a president whose political principles coincided with his
own.

" After a short, but very excruciating sickness, he died,
June 8, 1806, in the eighty-first year of his age. It was sup
posed that he was poisoned ; but the person suspected was
acquitted by a jury of his countrymen. By his last will and
testament, he bequeathed his valuable library and philosophi
cal apparatus to his friend, Mr. Jefferson, and distributed the
remainder of his little property among the grandchildren of
his sister, and the slaves whom he had set free. He thus
wished to liberate the blacks, not only from slavery, but from
the temptations to vice. He even condescended to impart
to them instruction ; and he personally taught the Greek lan-
gua'ge to a little negro boy, who died a few days before his
preceptor.

" Chancellor Wythe was indeed an extraordinary man.
With all his great qualities, he possessed a soul replete with
benevolence, and his private life is full of anecdotes, which
prove, that it is seldom that a kinder and warmer heart throbbed
in the breast of a human being. He was of a social and affec
tionate disposition. From the time when he was emanci

GEORGE WYTHE. 371

pated from the follies of youth, he sustained an unspotted re
putation. His integrity was never even suspected.

" While he practised at the bar, when offers of an extraor
dinary, but well merited compensation, were made to him by
clients, whose causes he had gained, he would say, that the
labourer was indeed worthy of his hire ; but the lawful fee
was all he had a right to demand ; and as to presents, he did
not want, and would not accept them from any man. This
grandeur of mind, he uniformly preserved to the end of his
life. His manner of living was plain and abstemious. He
found the means of suppressing the desires of wealth by limit
ing the number of his wants. An ardent desire to promote
the happiness of his fellow men, by supporting the cause of
justice, and maintaining and establishing their rights, appears
to have been his ruling passion.

** As a judge, he was remarkable for his rigid impartiality,
and sincere attachment to the principles of equity; for his vast
and various learning ; and for his strict and unwearied atten
tion to business. Superior to popular prejudices, and every
corrupting influence, nothing could induce him to swerve from
truth and right. In his decisions, he seemed to be a pure in
telligence, untouched by human passions, and settling the dis
putes of men, according to the dictates of eternal and immu
table justice. Other judges have surpassed him in genius, and
a certain facility in despatching causes ; but while the vigour
of his faculties remained unimpaired, he was seldom surpassed
in learning, industry, and judgment.

" From a man, entrusted with such high concerns, and
whose time was occupied by so many difficult and perplexing
avocations, it could scarcely have been expected, that he should
have employed a part of it in the toilsome and generally unplea
sant task of the education of youth. Yet, even to this, he was
prompted by his genuine patriotism and philanthropy, which
induced him for many years to take great delight in educating
such young persons as showed an inclination for improve
ment. Harassed as he was with business, and enveloped
with papers belonging to intricate suits in chancery, he yet
found time to keep a private school for the instruction of a

372 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

few scholars, always with very little compensation, and of
ten demanding none. Several living ornaments of their coun
try received their greatest lights from his sublime example and
instruction. Such was the upright and venerable Wythe."

RICHARD HENRY LEE.

RICHARD HENRY LEE, a descendant from an ancient and
distinguished family in Virginia, was born in Westmoreland
county, of that province, on the twentieth of January, 1732.
As the schools of the country for many years furnished but
few advantages for an education, those who were able to meet
the expense, were accustomed to send their sons abroad for
instruction. At a proper age, young Lee was sent to a flou
rishing school, then existing at Wakesfield, in the county ol
Yorkshire, England. The talents which he possessed, indus
triously employed under the guidance of respectable tutors,
rendered his literary acquisitions easy and rapid ; and in a few
years he returned to his native country, with a mind well
stored with scientific and classical knowledge.

For several years following his return to America, he con
tinued his studies with persevering industry, greatly adding to
the stock of knowledge which he had gained abroad, by
which he was still more eminently fitted for the conspicuous
part he was destined to act in the approaching revolutionary
struggle of his country.

About the year 1757, Mr. Lee was called to a seat in the
house of burgesses. For several years, however, he made
but an indifferent figure, either as an orator or the leader of a
party, owing, it is said, to a natural diffidence, which prevent
ed him from displaying those powers with which he was
gifted, or exercising that influence to which he was entitled.
This impediment, however, was gradually removed, when
he rapidly rose into notice, and became conspicuous as a poli

RICHARD HENRY LEE. 373

tical leader in his country, and highly distinguished for a na
tural, easy, and at the same time impressive eloquence.

In the year 1765, Patrick Henry, proposed the celebrated
resolutions against the stamp act, noticed in the preceding
sketch of the life of Mr. Wythe. During the debate on these
resolutions, Mr. Lee arrived at the seat of government, soon
after which he entered with great spirit into the debate, and
powerfully assisted in carrying these resolutions through the
house, in opposition to the timidity of some, and the mis
taken judgment of others.

The above strong and spirited resolutions served, as has
already been noticed in a former page, to rouse the energies
of the Americans, and to concentrate that feeling, which was
spending itself without obtaining any important object. Not
long after the above resolutions were carried, Mr. Lee pre
sented to his fellow citizens the plan of an association, the
object of which was an effectual resistance to the arbitrary
power of the mother country, which was manifesting itselt
in various odious forms ; and especially in that detestable
measure, the stamp act. The third article of the constitu
tion of this association will show the patriotic and determined
spirit which prevailed in the county of Westmoreland, the
people of which generally united in the association. " As the
stamp act does absolutely direct the property of people to be
taken from them, without their consent, expressed by their
representatives, and as in many cases it deprives the British
American subject of his right to be tried by jury, we do deter
mine, at every hazard, and paying no regard to death, to
exert every faculty to prevent the execution of the stamp act,
in every instance, within the colony."

The influence of this association, and of other associations
of a similar kind, rendered the execution of the stamp act dif
ficult, and even impossible. It was a measure to which the
Americans would not submit; and the ministry of Great Bri
tain were reluctantly forced to repeal it. To Mr. Lee, as
well as to his countrymen, the removal of the stamp act was
an occasion of no'small joy ; but the clause accompanying the
repealing act, which declared the power of parliament to bind

32

374 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

the colonies in all cases whatever, was a dark cloud, which in
a measure obscured the brightness of the prospect, and fore
boded an approaching storm.

In the year 1773, Mr. Lee brought forward in the Virginia
house of burgesses his celebrated plan for the formation of a
committee of correspondence, whose object was to dissemi
nate information, and to kindle the flame of liberty, through
out the continent ; or, in other language, " to watch the con
duct of the British parliament, to spread more widely correct
information on topics connected with the interests of the co
lonies, and to form a closer union of the men of influence in
each." The honour of having first established corresponding
societies is claimed both by Massachusetts and Virginia ; the
former placing the merit to the account of her distinguished
patriot, Samuel Adams ; and the latter assigning it to Richard
Henry Lee. It is probable, however, that each of these dis
tinguished men are entitled to equal honour, in respect to ori
ginating a plan which contributed, more than most others, to a
unity of sentiment and harmony of action among the different
leaders in the respective colonies. Without concert between
them, each of these individuals seems to have introduced the
plan, about the same period, to the legislatures of their re
spective colonies. It is certain, however, that in respect to
Mr. Lee, the plan of these corresponding societies was not
the result of a few days reflection only. It had occupied his
thoughts for several years ; had been there forming and ma
turing, and, at length, was proposed and adopted, to the infi
nite advantage of the cause of liberty in the country.

Of the distinguished congress which met at Philadelphia in
1774, Mr. Lee was a delegate from Virginia, with Washington

nd Henry. In the deliberations of this celebrated body,
. Lee acted a conspicuous part, and served on several com-

ittees ; and to his pen is attributed the memorial, which the
continental congress authorized, to the people of British Ame
rica. In the following year, Mr. Lee received the unanimous
suffrage of the district in which he resided to,jthe assembly of
Virginia, by which he was deputed to represent the colony
in the second congress, which was to meet on the tenth of

RICHARD HENRY LEE. 375

May of that year. At the same time, he received an expres
sion of the thanks of the assembly, " for his cheerful under
taking, and faithful discharge of the trust reposed in him,
during the session of the last congress."

On the meeting of this second congress, it was apparent
that all hope of peace and reconciliation with the mother
country was at an end. Indeed, hostilities had actually com
menced ; the busy note of preparation was heard in all the
land. Washington was summoned by the unanimous voice
of congress to the command of the American armies ; and
his commission and instructions it fell to Mr. Lee to furnish,
as the chairman of a committee appointed for that purpose.
During the same session, also, he was placed on committees
which were appointed to the important duties of preparing
munitions of war, encouraging the manufacture of saltpetre
and arms, and for devising a plan for the more rapid commu
nication of intelligence throughout the colonies.

The period had now arrived, when the thoughts of the
American people were turned, in solemn earnest, to the great
subject of American independence. Most of the colonies
were already prepared to hail with joy a measure which
should declare to the world their determination to be ac
counted a free and independent people. Most of the provin
cial assemblies had published resolutions in favour of such a
declaration, and had even instructed their delegates to urge
upon congress the importance and necessity of this decisive step.

Mr. Lee was selected to move the resolution in congress
on this great subject. This he did on the seventh of June,
1776, in the following words : " That these united colonies
are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states ;
that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British
crown ; and that all political connexion between them and the
state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved."

The motion, thus introduced by Mr. Lee, he followed by
one of the most luminous and eloquent speeches ever deli
vered, either by himself or any other gentleman, on the floor
of congress. "Why then, sir," (said he, in conclusion,)
" why do we longer delay ? Why still deliberate ? Let thi«

376 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

happy day give birth to an American republic. Let her arise,
not to devastate and to conquer, but to re-establish the reign
of peace and of law. The eyes of Europe are fixed upon us ;
she demands of us a living example of freedom, that may ex
hibit a contrast in the felicity of the citizen to the ever in
creasing tyranny which desolates her polluted shores. She
invites us to prepare an asylum, where the unhappy may find
solace, and the persecuted repose. She entreats us to culti
vate a propitious soil, where that generous plant which first
sprung and grew in England, but is now withered by the
poisonous blasts of Scottish tyranny, may revive and flourish,
sheltering under its salubrious and interminable shade, all
the unfortunate of the human race. If we are not this day
wanting in our duty, the names of the American legislators
of 1776 will be placed by posterity at the side of Theseus,
Lycurgus, and Romulus, of the three Williams of Nassau,
and of all those whose memory has been, and ever will be,
dear to virtuous men and good citizens."

The debate on the above motion of Mr. Lee was protracted
until the tenth of June, on which day congress resolved :
" that the consideration of the resolution respecting indepen
dence be postponed till the first Monday in July next; and, in
the mean while, that no time be lost, in case the congress
agree thereto, that a committee be appointed to prepare a
declaration to the effect of the said resolution."

On the day on which this resolution was taken, Mr. Lee
was unexpectedly summoned to attend upon his family in
Virginia, some of the members of which were at that time
dangerously ill. As the mover of the original resolution for
independence, it would, according to parliamentary usage,
have devolved upon Mr. Lee to have been appointed chair
man of the committee selected to prepare a declaration, and,
as chairman, to have furnished that important document. In
the absence of Mr. Lee, however, Mr. Jefferson was elected
to that honour, by whom it was drawn up with singular en
ergy of style and argument.

In the following month, Mr. Lee resumed his scat in con
gress, in which body he continued till June, 1777, during

RICHARD HENRY LEE. 377

which period he continued the same round of active exertions
for the welfare of his country. It was his fortune, however,
as well as the fortune of others, to have enemies, who charged
him with disaffection to his country, and attachment to Great
Britain. The ground upon which this charge was made, was,
that contrary to his former practice, previously to the war,
he received the rents of his tenants in the produce of their
farms, instead of colonial money, which had now become
greatly depreciated. This accusation, though altogether un
just, and unwarrantable, at length gained so much credit, that
the name of Mr. Lee was omitted by the assembly, in their
list of delegates to congress. This gave him an opportunity,
and furnished him with a motive, to demand of the assembly
an inquiry into the nature of the allegations against him.
The inquiry resulted in an entire acquittal, and in an expres
sion of thanks to Mr. Lee, which was conveyed, on the part
of the house, by their speaker, Mr. Wythe, in the following
language : — " It is with peculiar pleasure, sir, that I obey this
command of the house, because it gives me an opportunity,
while I am performing an act of duty to them, to perform an
act of justice to yourself. Serving with you in congress, and
attentively observing your conduct there, I thought that you
manifested, in the American cause, a zeal truly patriotic ; and
as far as I could judge, exerted the abilities for which you are
confessedly distinguished, to promote the good and prosperity
of your own country in particular, and of the United States
in general. That the tribute of praise deserved, may reward
those who do well, and encourage others to follow your ex
ample, the house have come to this resolution: that the thanks
of this house be given by the speaker to Richard Henry Lee,
for the faithful services he has rendered his country, in dis
charge of his duty, as one of the delegates from this state in
general congress."

At a subsequent period, Mr. Lee was again elected a dele
gate to congress ; but during the session of 1778 and 1779,
in consequence of ill health, he was obliged frequently to ab
sent himself from the arduous duties which devolved upon
him, and which he could no longer sustain. From this time,
3C 33*

378 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

until 1784, Mr. Lee declined accepting a seat in congress,
from a belief that he might be more useful to his native state,
by holding a seat in her assembly. In this latter year, how
ever, the people of Virginia again honoured him, by appoint
ing him one of her representatives to congress, of which body
he was unanimously elected president. In this exalted sta
tion h-e presided with great ability ; and on the expiration of
his time of service, he received the thanks of congress for his
able and faithful discharge of the duties of president, while
acting in that station."

To the adoption of the federal constitution without amend
ment, although not a member of the convention which dis
cussed its merits, he was strongly opposed. The tendency
of the constitution, he apprehended, was to consolidation. To
guard against this, it was his wish that the respective states
should impart to the federal head only so much power as
was necessary for mutual safety and happiness. Under the
new constitution, Mr. Lee was appointed the first senator from
Virginia; in the exercise of which office, he offered several
amendments to the constitution, from the adoption of which
he hoped to lessen the danger to the country, which he had
apprehended.

About the year 1792, Mr. Lee, enfeebled by his long at
tention to public duties, and by the infirmities of age, retired
to the enjoyment of his family and friends. Not long after,
he had the pleasure of receiving from the senate and house
of delegates of Virginia, the following unanimous vote of
thanks : " Resolved, unanimously, that the speaker be de
sired to convey to Richard Henry Lee, the respects of the
senate ; that they sincerely sympathise with him in those in
firmities, which have deprived their country of his valuable
services ; and that they ardently wish he may, in his retire
ment, with uninterrupted happiness, close the evening of a
life, in which he hath so conspicuously shone forth as a states
man and a patriot ; that while mindful of his many exertions
to promote the public interests, they are particularly thankful
for his conduct as a member of the legislature of the United
States."

RICHARD HENRY LEE.

The life of Mr. Lee was continued until the nineteenth of
June, 1794, when he breathed his last, at the age of sixty-
three years.

Few men, in any age or in any country, have shone with
greater brilliancy, or have left a more desirable name, than
Richard Henry Lee. Both in public and private life, he had
few equals. In his public career, he was distinguished for
no common ardour and disinterestedness. As an orator, he
exercised an uncommon sway over the minds of men. His
manners were perfectly graceful, and his language universally
chaste. " Although somewhat monotonous, his speeches,"
says a writer, " were always pleasing, yet he did not ravish
your senses, nor carry away your judgment by storm. His
was the mediate class of eloquence, described by Rollin in
his belles lettres. He was like a beautiful river, meandering
through a flowery mead, but which never overflowed its banks.
It was Henry who was the mountain torrent, that swept away
every thing before it ; it was he alone, who thundered and
lightened ; he alone attained that sublime species of eloquence,
also mentioned by Rollin."

In private life, Mr. Lee was justly the delight of all who
knew him. He had a numerous family of children, the off
spring of two marriages, who were eminently devoted to their
father, who in his turn delighted to administer to their inno
cent enjoyments, and to witness the expansion of their intel
lectual powers.

We conclude this hasty sketch, with the following account
of Mr. Lee, from the flowing pen of the author of the life of
Patrick Henry. — " Mr. Lee," says he, " had studied the
classics in the true spirit of criticism. His taste had that de
licate touch, which seized with intuitive certainty every
beauty of an author, and his genius that native affinity, which
combined them without an effort. Into every walk of litera
ture and science, he had carried his mind of exquisite selec
tion, and brought it back to the business of life, crowned with
every light of learning, and decked with every wreath that
all the muses and all the graces could entwine. Nor did
these light decorations constitute the whole value of its

380 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

freight. He possessed a rich store of political knowledge,
with an activity of observation, and a certainty of judgment,
which turned that knowledge to the very best account. He
was not a lawyer by profession, but he understood thoroughly
the constitution both of the mother country and of her colo
nies, and the elements, also, of the civil and municipal law.
Thus, while his eloquence was free from those stiff and tech
nical restraints, which the habit of forensic speaking are so
apt to generate, he had all the legal learning which is neces
sary to a statesman. He reasoned well, and declaimed freely
and splendidly. The note of his voice was deep and melo
dious. It was the canorous voice of Cicero. He had lost
the use of one of his hands, which he kept constantly covered
with a black silk bandage, neatly fitted to the palm of his
hand, but leaving his thumb free ; yet, notwithstanding this
disadvantage, his gesture was so graceful and highly finished,
that it was said he had acquired it by practising before a mir
ror. Such was his promptitude, that he required no prepa
ration for debate. He was ready for any subject, as soon as
it was announced, and his speech was so copious, so rich, so
mellifluous, set off W7ith such bewitching cadence of voice,
and such captivating grace of action, that while you listened
to him, you desired to hear nothing superior ; and, indeed,
thought him perfect. He had quick sensibility and a fervid
imagination."

THOMAS JEFFERSON.

THOMAS JEFFERSON was born on the second day of April,
O. S. 1743, at a place called Shadwell, in the county of Al-
bermarle, and state of Virginia, a short distance from Mon-
tioello. His family were among the earliest emigrants from
England. They sustained an honourable standing in the
territory in which they resided, and lived in circumstances of

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 381

considerable affluence. His father, Peter Jefferson, was
much known in the province, as a gentleman of considerable
scientific attainments, and more than ordinary firmness and
integrity. It was probably in consequence of these qualifica
tions, that he was selected as one of the commissioners ap
pointed to the delicate and responsible task of determining
the division line between Virginia and North Carolina. On
the decease of the father, the son inherited from him an ex
tensive and valuable estate.

Of the early incidents in the life of Thomas Jefferson, but
little is known. He was entered, while yet a youth, a stu
dent in the college of William and Mary, in Williamsburg ;
but the precise standing which he occupied among his litera
ry associates, is probably now lost. He doubtless, however,
left the college with no inconsiderable reputation. He ap
pears to have been imbued with an early love of letters and
science, and to have cherished a strong disposition to the
physical sciences especially ; and to ancient classical litera
ture, he is understood to have had a warm attachment, and
never to have lost sight of them, in the midst of the busiest
occupations.

On leaving college, he applied himself to the study of the
law under the tuition of George Wythe, of whose high judi
cial character we have had occasion to speak in a preceding
memoir. In the office of this distinguished man, he acquired
that unrivalled neatness, system, and method in business,
which through all his future life, and in every office that he
filled, gave him so much power and despatch. Under the
direction of hrs distinguished preceptor, he became intimately
acquainted with the whole round of the civil and common
law. From the same distinguished example he caught that
untiring spirit of investigation, which never left a subject till
he had searched it to the very foundation. In short, Mr.
Wythe performed for him, as one "of his eulogists remarks,
what Jeremiah Gridley did for his great rival, Mr. Adams ;
he placed on his head., the crown of legal preparation, and
well did it become him.

For his able legal preceptor, Mr. Jefferson always enter-

382 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

tained the greatest respect and friendship. Indeed, the at
tachment of preceptor and pupil was mutual, and for a long
series of years continued to acquire strength and stability.
At the close of his life, in 1806, it was found that Mr. Wythe
had bequeathed his library and philosophical apparatus to
his pupil, as a testimony of the estimation in which he was
held by his early preceptor and aged friend.

Mr. Jefferson was called to the bar in the year 1766.
With the advantages which he had enjoyed with respect to
legal preparation, it might naturally be expected that he
would appear with distinguished credit in the practice of his
profession. The standing which he occupied at the bar, may
be gathered from the following account, the production of
the biographer of Patrick Henry : " It has been thought that
Mr. Jefferson made no figure at the bar ; but the case was far
otherwise. There are still extant, in his own fair and neat
hand, in the manner of his master, a number of arguments,
which were delivered by him at the bar, upon some of the
most intricate questions of the law ; which, if they shall ever
see the light, will vindicate his claim to the first honours of
the profession. It is true, he was not distinguished in popular
debate ; why he was not so, has often been matter of surprise
to those who have seen his eloquence on paper, and heard it
in conversation. He had all the attributes of the mind, and
the heart, and the soul, which are essential to eloquence of
the highest order. The only defect was a physical one : he
wanted volume and compass of voice, for a large deliberative
assembly ; and his voice, from the excess of his sensibility,
instead of rising with his feelings and conceptions, sunk under
their pressure, and became guttural and inarticulate. The
consciousness of this infirmity, repressed any attempt in a
large body, in which he knew he must fail. But his voice
was all sufficient for the purposes of judicial debate ; and
there is no reason to doubt that, if the service of his country
had not called him away so soon from his profession, his
fame as a lawyer would now have stood upon the same dis
tinguished ground, which he confessedly occupied as a states
man, an author, and a scholar."

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 383

The year previous to Mr. Jefferson's admission to the bar,
Mr. Henry introduced into the Virginia house of burgesses,
then sitting at Williamsburg, his celebrated resolutions
against the stamp act. Mr. Jefferson was, at this time, pre
sent at the debate. *' He was then," he says, " but a student,
and stood in the door of communication, between the house
and the lobby, where he heard the whole of this magnificent
debate. The opposition to the last resolution was most ve
hement ; the debate upon it, to use his own strong language,
' most bloody ;' but," he adds, " torrents of sublime eloquence
from Henry, backed by the solid reasoning of Johnson, pre
vailed ; and the resolution was carried by a single vote. I
well remember," he continues, " the cry of * treason,' by the
speaker, echoed from every part of the house, against Mr.
Henry : I well remember his pause, and the admirable ad
dress with which he recovered himself, and baffled the charge
thus vociferated."

He here alludes to that memorable exclamation of Mr.
Henry, now become almost too familiar for quotation :
" Caesar had his Brutus, Charles the First his Cromwell, and
George the Third (' treason !' cried the speaker ; « treason !
treason !' echoed the house ;) may profit by their example.
If this be treason, make the most of it."

The talents of Mr. Jefferson, which were early well known,
permitted him not long to remain in a private station, or to
pursue the ordinary routine of his profession. A career of
more extensive usefulness, and objects of greater importance,
were now presented to him. His country demanded his ser
vices ; and at the early age of twenty-five, that is, in the
year 1769, he entered the house of burgesses in Virginia, and
then first inscribed his name as a champion of his country's
rights.

At a former period, the attachment of the American colo
nies to England was like that of an affectionate child towards
a venerable parent. In Virginia, this attachment was unusu
ally strong. Various circumstances combined to render it
so. Many of the families of that province were allied to dis
tinguished families in England, and the sons of the former

384 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

sought their education in the universities of the mother coun
try. It was not singular, therefore, that a strong affection
should exist, on the part of this colony, for the people in
England, nor that the people of the colonies generally should
have come to the severance of these ties with peculiar reluc
tance. Resistance, however, was at length forced upon them,
by the rash course pursued by the British ministry. The rights
of the colonies were invaded ; their choicest privileges were
taken away, and loudly were the patriots of America called
upon, by the sufferings of the country, to awake to a strong and
effectual resistance. At this time, Mr. Jefferson commenced
his political career, and has himself given us, in few words,
an outline of the reasons which powerfully impelled him to
enter the lists, with other American patriots, against the pa
rent country.

" The colonies," says he, "were taxed internally and ex
ternally ; their essential interests sacrificed to individuals in
Great Britain ; their legislatures suspended ; charters an
nulled ; trials by jurors taken away ; their persons subjected
to transportation across the Atlantic, and to trial by foreign
judicatories ; their supplications for redress thought beneath
answer, themselves published as cowards in the councils of
their mother country, and courts of Europe ; armed troops
sent amongst them, to enforce submission to these violences ;
and actual hostilities commenced against them. No alterna
tive was presented, but resistance or unconditional submis
sion. Between these there could be no hesitation. They
closed in the appeal to arms."

In the year 1773, Mr. Jefferson became a member of the
first committee of correspondence, established by the pro
vincial assemblies. We have already noticed the claim
which Virginia and Massachusetts have respectively urged,
to the honour of having first suggested this important mea
sure in the revolution. Both, probably, in respect to this,
are entitled to equal credit ; but to whomsoever the honour
belongs, that honour is, indeed, great, since this measure,
more than most others, contributed to that union of action
and sentiment, which characterized the proceedings of the

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 385

several colonies, and which was the foundation of their final
triumph over an ancient and powerful kingdom.

In 1774, Mr. Jefferson published a ''Summary View of
the Rights of British America," a valuable production among
those intended to show the dangers which threatened the
liberties of the country, and to encourage the people in their
defence. This pamphlet was addressed to the king, whom,
in language respectful but bold, it reminded that America
was settled by British freemen, whose rights had been vio-
Jated ; upon whom the hand of tyranny was thus heavily
lying, and from the sufferings which they were experiencing,
they must be, and they would be, free.

The bold and independent language of this pamphlet gave
great umbrage to Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of the
province. Mr. Jefferson, on avowing himself the author of
the pamphlet, was threatened with a prosecution for high
treason by the governor ; a threat, which he probably would
have carried into effect, could he have hoped that the vindic
tive measure would succeed.

In the following year, 1775, Mr. Jefferson was selected by
the Virginia legislature to answer Lord North's famous
*' Conciliatory proposition," called, in the language of the
day, his " Olive branch ;" but it was an olive branch that
concealed a serpent ; or, as the former President Adams ob
served, "it was an asp, in a basket of flowers." The task
assigned him, was performed by Mr. Jefferson in a manner
the most happy and satisfactory. The reply was cool and
calm and close — marked with uncommon energy and keen
sagacity. The document may be found in most of the his
tories of that period, and is manifestly one of the most ner
vous and manly productions of that day. It concluded with
the following strong and independent language :

" These, my lord, are our sentiments, on this important
subject, which we offer only as an individual part of the
whole empire. Final determination we leave to the general
congress, now sitting, before whom we shall lay the papers
your lordship has communicated to us. For ourselves, we
have exhausted every mode of application, which our inven-
3D 33

386 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

tion could suggest, as proper and promising. We have de
cently remonstrated with parliament — they have added new
injuries to the old ; we have wearied our king with supplica
tions — he has not deigned to answer us ; we have appealed
to the native honour and justice of the British nation — their
efforts in our favour have hitherto been ineffectual. What
then remains to be done ? That we commit our injuries to
the even handed justice of that Being, who doth no wrong,
earnestly beseeching Him to illuminate the councils, and
prosper the endeavours of those to whom America hath con
fided her hopes ; that through their wise directions, we may
again see reunited the blessings of liberty, prosperity, and
harmony with Great Britain."

In the month of June, 1775, Mr. Jefferson appeared and
took his seat in the continental congress, as a delegate from
Virginia. In this enlightened assembly, he soon became
conspicuous among the most distinguished for their abilities
and patriotism. He was appointed on various important
committees, towards the discharge of whose duties he con
tributed his full share. The cause of liberty lay near his
heart, nor did he hesitate to incur all necessary hazard in
maintaining and defending it.

Antecedently to the year 1776, a dissolution of the union
with Great Britain had not been contemplated, either by con.
gress, or the nation. During the spring of that year, how
ever, the question of independence became one of deep and
solemn reflection, among the American people. It was per
ceived by many in all parts of the land, that the hope of re
conciliation with the parent country was at an end. It was,
indeed, an unequal contest, in which the colonies were en
gaged. It was a measure of unexampled boldness, which
they were contemplating — a step which, should it not receive
the smiles of a propitious Providence, would evidently in
volve them and their posterity in calamities, the full measure
and duration of which no political prophet could foretel.
But, then, it was a measure rendered necessary, by the op
pression which they were suffering. The '* shadows, clouds,
and darkness," which rested on the future, did not deter them.

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 387

The language which they adopted, and the feelings which
they indulged, were the language and feelings of the patriotic
Hawley, who said, " We must put to sea — Providence will
bring us into port."

It was fortunate for the cause of America, and for the cause
of freedom, that there was a class of men at that day, who
were adequate to the high and mighty enterprise of sunder
ing the ties which bound the colonies. For this they were
doubtless specially raised up by the God of heaven ; for this
they were prepared by the lofty energies of their minds, and
by that boldness and intrepidity of character, which, perhaps,
never so signally marked another generation of men.

The measure thus determined upon was, at length, brought
forward in the continental congress. We have already
noticed in several preceding sketches, the debate on this
subject, and the important part which various individuals
took in urging it forward. It belongs to this place to notice,
particularly, the important services which Mr. Jefferson ren
dered in relation to it. A resolution had been presented by
Richard Henry Lee to declare America free and independent.
The debate upon this resolution was continued from the
seventh to the tenth of June, when the further consideration
of it was postponed until the first of July, and at the same
time a committee of five was appointed to prepare provi
sionally a draught of a declaration of independence. At
the head of this committee was placed Thomas Jefferson.
He was at this time but thirty-two years of age, and was
probably the youngest member of the committee, and one
of the youngest men in the house, for he had only served
part of the former session.

Mr. Jefferson being chairman of this committee, the im
portant duty of preparing the draught of the document was
assigned to him. It was a task of no ordinary magnitude,
and demanded the exercise of no common judgment and fore
sight. By the act itself, a nation was to stand or fall. Nay,
in its effects, it was to exercise a powerful influence upon
other nations on the globe, and might extend forward to the
end of time.

388 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

To frame a document, which should precisely meet the exi
gencies of the case — \vhich should set forth the causes of com
plaint, according to truth — which should abide the scrutiny
of enemies at home and abroad — which should stand the test
of time, especially of a day which would come, when the high
wrought excitement, then existing, would have subsided —
this was no ordinary task. Indeed, there were few minds,
even at that day, which would have felt adequate to the un
dertaking.

From his study, Mr. Jefferson at length presented to his
colleagues the original draught. A few changes only in the
document were suggested by two of them, Dr. Franklin and
Mr. Adams. The whole merit of the paper was Mr. Jeffer
son's. On being reported to congress, it underwent a few
other slight alterations ; none of which, however, altered the
tone, the frame, the arrangement, or the general character of
the instrument.

" It has sometimes been said," observes an eloquent writer,
"as if it were a derogation from the merits of this paper, that
it contains nothing new ; that it only states grounds of pro
ceeding, and presses topics of argument, which had often been
stated and pressed before. But it was not the object of the
declaration to produce any thing new. It was not to invent
reasons for independence, but to state those which governed
the congress. For great and sufficient reasons it was pro
posed to declare independence ; and the proper business oi
the paper to be drawn, was, to set forth those causes, and
justify the authors of the measure, in any event of fortune, to
the country and to posterity. The cause of American inde
pendence, moreover, was now to be presented to the world
in such a manner, if it might so be, as to engage its sympa
thy, to command its respect, to attract its admiration ; and in
an assembly of most able and distinguished men, Thomas Jef
ferson had the high honour of being the selected advocate of
this cause. To say that he performed his great work well,
would be doing him injustice. To say that he did excellently
well, admirably well, would be inadequate and halting praise.
Let us rather say, that he so discharged the duty assigned

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 389

him, that all Americans may well rejoice that the work of
drawing the little deed of their liberties devolved on his
hands."

In 1778, Mr. Jefferson was appointed by congress, in con
junction with Dr. Franklin andSilasDeane,a commissioner to
France, for the purpose of forming a treaty of alliance and
commerce with that nation. In consequence, however, of ill
health, and impressed with the conviction that he could be
of greater service to his country, and especially to his state, by
continuing at home, he declined accepting the office, and Ar
thur Lee was appointed in his place.

Between 1777 and 1779, Mr. Jefferson was employed, con
jointly with George Wythe and Edmund Pendleton, on a com
mission for revising the laws of Virginia. This was an ar
duous service, requiring no less than one hundred and twenty-
six bills, which were drawn by these gentlemen, and which for
simplicity and perspicuity have seldom been excelled. In
respect to Mr. Jefferson, it should be noticed, that, besides
the laborious share which he took in revising the laws of the
state, to him belongs the honour of having first proposed the
important laws in the Virginia code, forbidding the importa
tion of slaves; converting estates tail into fees simple ; annul
ling the rights of primogeniture ; establishing schools for ge
neral education, and confirming the rights of freedom in re
ligious opinion, with several others.

In 1779, Patrick Henry, who was the first republican go
vernor, under the renovated constitution, and the successor
of the earl of Dunmore, having served his appointed term,
retired from that office, upon which Mr. Jefferson was chosen
to succeed him. To this office he was re-elected the follow
ing year, and continued in office until June, 1781.

The administration of Mr. Jefferson, as governor of Virgi
nia, during the above term, was arduous and difficult. The
revolutionary struggle was progressing, and the southern
states were particularly the theatre of hostile operations. At
three several times, during his magistracy, the state of Virgi
nia was invaded by the enemy ; the first time in the spring of
1780, by the ferocious General Tarlton, whose military move-

33*

390 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

ments were characterized by unusual barbarity, and who waa
followed in his invasion, by the main army, under Lord Corn-
wallis.

While the eyes of all were directed to these military move
ments in the south, the state experienced a still more unex
pected and disastrous attack, from a body of troops, under
the guidance of the infamous Arnold, whom treachery had
rendered more daring and more vindictive.

In respect to preparations for hostilities within her own
limits, the state of Virginia was sadly deficient ; nor had the
habits and pursuits of Mr. Jefferson been of a kind which fitted
him for military enterprise. Aware, however, of the neces
sity of energy and exertion, in this season of danger and ge
neral distress, he applied his mind, with alacrity and ardour,
to meet the exigencies of the case. Scarcely had Arnold left
the coast, when Cornwallis entered the state, on its southern
border. At this time, the condition of Virginia was extreme
ly distressing; she was wholly unprepared ; her troops were
fighting in remote parts of the country ; she had few military
stores; and, to add to her distress, her finances were exhaust
ed. On the approach of Arnold in January, the general as
sembly had hastily adjourned, to meet again at Charlottesville,
on the twenty-fourth of May.

In the mean time, a most anxious part devolved upon the
governor. He had few resources, and was obliged to depend,
in a great measure, upon his personal influence to obtain the
munitions of war, and to raise and set in motion troops from
different parts of the state. The various expedients which he
adopted were indicative of much sagacity, and were attended
by success highly important to the common cause.

On the twenty-fourth of May, the legislature was to meet
at Charlottesville. They were not formed for business, how
ever, until the twenty-eighth. A few days following which,
the term for which Mr. Jefferson had been elected expired,
when he again found himself a private citizen.

On leaving the chair of state, Mr. Jefferson retired to Mon-
ticello, when intelligence was received, two days after, that a
body of troops under comnand of General Tarlton were ra-

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 391

pidly hastening to Charlottesville, for the purpose of surpri
sing and capturing the members of the assembly. They had
only time, after the alarm was given, to adjourn to meet at
Staunton, and to disperse, before the enemy entered the vil
lage. Another party had directed their course to Monticello
to capture the ex-governor. Fortunately, an express hasten
ed from Charlottesville, to convey intelligence to Mr.- Jeffer
son of their approach. Scarcely had the family time to make
arrangements, indispensable for their departure, and to effect
their escape, before the enemy were seen ascending the hill,
leading to the mansion-house. Mr. Jefferson himself, mount
ing his horse, narrowly escaped, by taking a course through
the woods. This flight of Mr. Jefferson, eminently proper,
and upon which his safety depended, has unwarrantably ex
cited in times gone by the ridicule and censure of his enemies.

Agreeably to their appointment, the legislature assembled at
Staunton on the seventh, soon after which, at the instigation
of Mr. George Nicholas, an inquiry was moved into the con
duct of Mr. Jefferson in respect to remissness in the discharge
of his duty, at the time of Arnold's invasion. The ensuing session
of the legislature was fixed upon for the investigation of the
charges. At the arrival of the appointed time, Mr. Nicholas had
become convinced that the charges were without foundation,
and this impression having generally obtained, no one ap
peared to bring, forward the investigation. Upon thi's, Mr.
Jefferson, who had been returned a member of the assembly,
rose in his place, and entered into a justification of his con
duct. His statement was calm, lucid, and convincing. On
concluding it, the house unanimously adopted the following
resolution :

" Resolved, That the sincere thanks of the general assem
bly be given to our former governor, Thomas Jefferson, for
his impartial, upright, and attentive administration, whilst in
office. The assembly wish, in the strongest manner, to de
clare the high opinion they entertain of Mr. Jefferson's abili
ty, rectitude, and integrity, as chief magistrate of this com
monwealth ; and mean, by thus publicly avowing their opi
nion, to obviate and to remove all unmerited censure."

392 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

To this it may be added, that Mr. Nicholas, some time af
ter, did Mr. Jefferson the justice to acknowledge, in a public
manner, the erroneous views which he had entertained, and
to express his regret that more correct information had not
been obtained, before the accusation had been brought forward.

In the year 1781, Mr. Jefferson composed his " Notes on
Virginia," a work which grew out of a number of questions,
proposed to him by M. De Marbois, the secretary of the
French legation in the United States. It embraced a general
view of the geography of Virginia, its natural productions,
statistics, government, history, and laws. In 1787, Mr. Jef
ferson published the work, under his own signature. It at
tracted much attention in Europe, as well as in America ; dis
pelled many misconceptions respecting this continent, and
gave its author a place among men distinguished for science.
It is still admired, and will long be admired, for the happy
simplicity of its style, and for the extent and variety of its
information.

In 1782, Mr. Jefferson received the appointment of minis
ter plenipotentiary, to join commissioners already in Europe,
to settle the conditions of peace between the United States
and Great Britain. Before his embarkation, however, intel
ligence was received, that the preliminaries of peace had been
signed. The necessity of his mission being removed, congress
dispensed with his leaving America.

In November, 1783, he again took his seat in the conti
nental congress ; but in May following was appointed minis
ter plenipotentiary to act abroad in the negotiations of com
mercial treaties, in conjunction with Dr. Franklin and Mr.
Adams. In the month of July, Mr. Jefferson sailed for France,
and joined the other commissioners at Paris, in August.

Although ample powers had been imparted to the commis
sioners, they were not as successful in forming commercial
treaties as had been expected. It was of great importance to
the United States to effect a treaty of this kind with Great
Britain, and for this purpose Mr. Jefferson and Mr. Adams
proceeded to London. In this important object they failed,
owing, probably, to the hostile feelings which the ministry

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 393

indulged towards America, and to the wounded pride which
still rankled in their breasts ; and, moreover, to a selfish po
licy which they had adopted in respect to their navigation
system, by which they intended to increase their own navi
gation at the expense of other nations, and especially of the
United States. The only treaties which the commissioners
were at this time able to negotiate, were with Morocco and
Prussia.

In 1785, Mr. Jefferson was appointed to succeed Doctor
Franklin as minister plenipotentiary to the court of Versailles.
The duties of this station he continued to perform until Octo
ber, 1789, when he obtained leave to retire, just on the eve oi
that tremendous revolution which has so much agitated the
world in our times.

The discharge of Mr. Jefferson's diplomatic duties while
abroad, " was marked by great ability, diligence, and patriot
ism ; and while he resided at Paris, in one of the most inte
resting 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, in Paris, a representative com
manding or enjoying higher regard, for political knowledge,
or for general attainment, than the minister of this then infant
republic.'.'

During his residence in France, Mr. Jefferson found leisure
to visit both Holland and Italy. In both countries he was
received with the respect and attention due to his official sta
tion, as the minister of a rising republic, and as a man of learn
ing and science.

In the year 1789, he returned to his native country. His
talents and experience recommended him to President Wash
ington for the first office in his gift. He was accordingly
placed at the head of -the department of state, and immediately
entered on the arduous duties of that important station.

Soon after Mr. Jefferson entered on the duties of this office,
congress directed him to prepare and report a plan for esta
blishing a uniform system of currency, weights, and measures.
This was followed, at a subsequent day, by reports on the
3E

394 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

subject of tonnage duties payable by France, and on the sub
ject of the cod and whale fisheries. Each of these reports
displayed the usual accuracy, information, and intelligence of
the writer.

Towards the close of the year 1791, the relation of the
United States to several countries abroad became embarrass
ing, and gave occasion to Mr. Jefferson to exercise those ta
lents of a diplomatic character, with which he was pre-emi
nently endowed. " His correspondence with the ministers of
other powers residing here, and his instructions to our own di
plomatic agents abroad, are among our ablest state papers. A
thorough knowledge of the laws and usages of nations, perfect
acquaintance with the immediate subject before him, great fe
licity, and still greater facility, in writing, show themselves in
whatever effort his official situation called on him to make. It
is believed, by competent judges, that the diplomatic inter
course of the government of the United States, from the first
meeting of the continental congress in 1774 to the present time,
taken together, would not suffer, in respect to the talent with
which it has been conducted, by comparison with any thing
which other and older states can produce ; and to the attainment
of this respectability and distinction, Mr. Jefferson has con
tributed his full part."

On the sixteenth of December, 1793, Mr. Jefferson com
municated his last official report to congress, on the nature
and extent of the privileges and restrictions on the commerce
of the United States in foreign countries, and the measures
which he deemed important to be adopted by the United
States, for the improvement of their commerce and navigation.

This report, which has ever been considered as one of pri
mary importance, gave rise to a long and interesting discus
sion in the national legislature. In regard to the measures
recommended in the report, a wide difference prevailed in
congress, among the two great parties, into which that body
had become obviously and permanently divided. Indeed, it
may be said to have been this report, which finally separated
the statesmen of the country into two great political parties,
which have existed almost to the present time.

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 39»>

On the thirty-first of December, 1793, Mr. Jefferson ten
dered his resignation as secretary of state, and again retired
to private life. The interval which elapsed between his re
signation of the above office, and his being summoned again
to the councils of the nation, he employed in a manner most
delightful to himself, viz. in the education of his family, the
management of his estate, and the pursuit of philosophical
studies, to the latter of which, though long neglected, in his
devotion to higher duties, he returned with renewed ardour.

The attachment of a large proportion of his fellow-citizens,
which Mr. Jefferson carried with him into his seclusion, did
not allow him long to enjoy the pleasures of a private life, to
which he appears to have been sincerely devoted. General
Washington had for some time determined upon a relinquish-
ment of the presidential chair, and in his farewell address, in
the month of September, 1796, announced that intention.
This distinguished man, having thus withdrawn himself, the
two political parties brought forward their respective candi
dates, Mr. Adams and Mr. Jefferson. On counting the votes
in February, 1797, in the presence of both houses of con
gress, it was found that Mr. Adams was elected president, he
having the highest number of votes, and Mr. Jefferson vice
president, upon which respective offices they entered on the
following fourth of March.

In the life of Mr. Adams, we had occasion to allude to the
unsettled state of the country, and the general dissatisfaction
with his administration, which prevailed. During this pe
riod, however, Mr. Jefferson resided chiefly at Monticello,
pursuing the peaceful and noiseless occupations of private
life. The time, at length, approached for a new election of
president. Mr. Jefferson was again proposed by the republi
can party as a candidate for that office. The candidate of
the federal party was Mr. Burr.

On the eleventh of February, 1801, the votes were counted
in the presence of both houses of congress, and the result
declared by the vice president to be, for Thomas Jefferson
seventy-three ; for Aaron Burr seventy-three ; John Adams
sixty -five ; C. C. Pinckney sixty-four ; and John Jay one.

396 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

The vice president then, in pursuance of the duty enjoined
upon him, declared that Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr,
having an equal number of votes, it remained for the house
of representatives to determine the choice. Upon this, the
two houses separated, " and the house of representatives re
turned to their chamber, where seats had been previously
prepared for the members of the senate. A call of the mem
bers of the house, arranged according to states, was then
made; upon which it appeared that every member was pre
sent, except General Sumpter, who was unwell, and unable
to attend. Mr. Nicholson, of Maryland, was also unwell, but
attended, and had a bed prepared for him in one of the com
mittee rooms, to which place the ballot box was carried to
him, by the tellers, appointed on the part of the state.

" The first ballot was eight states for ?vlr. Jefferson, six
for Mr. Burr, and two divided ; which result continued to be
the same after balloting thirty-five times."

Thus stood affairs, after a long and even distressing con
test, when a member of the hotise, (General Smith,) commu
nicated to the house the following extract of a letter from
Mr. Burr : " It is highly improbable that I shall have an
equal number of votes with Mr. Jefferson: but if such should
be the result, every man who knows me, ought to know,
that I would utterly disclaim all competition. Be assured
that the federal party can entertain no wish for such an
exchange.

" As to my friends, they would dishonour my views, and
insult my feelings, by a suspicion that I would submit to be
instrumental in counteracting the wishes and expectations of
the United States ; and I now constitute you my proxy to
declare these sentiments, if the occasion shall require."

This avowal of the wishes of Mr. Burr, induced two fede
ral members to withdraw ; in consequence of which, on the
thirty-sixth balloting, Mr. Jefferson was elected president.
Colonel Burr, by the provision of the constitution, became,
of course, vice president.

On the fourth of March, 1801, Mr. Jefferson, agreeable to
the constitution, took the oath of office, in the presence of

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 397

both houses of congress, on which occasion he delivered his
naugural address.

In this address, after expressing his diffidence in his powers
satisfactorily to discharge the duties of the high and respon-
*iblc office assigned him, he proceeded to state the principles
oy which his administration would be governed. These
were, " Equal and exact justice to all men, of«whatever state
or persuasion, religious or political: peace, commerce, and
honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with
none : the support of the state governments in all their rights,
as the most competent administration for our domestic con
cerns, and the surest bulwarks against anti-republican ten-
lencies : the preservation of the general government in its
whole constitutional vigour, as the sheet anchor of our peace
it home, and safety abroad : a jealous care of the right of
election by the people, a mild and safe corrective of abuses
which are lopped by the sword of revolution, where peacea
ble remedies are unprovided : absolute acquiescence in the
decisions of the majority, the vital principle of republics,
from which is no appeal but to force, the vital principle and
immediate parent of despotisms : a well disciplined militia,
our best reliance in peace, and for the first moments of wai,
till regulars may relieve them : the supremacy of the civil
over the military authority : economy in the public ex
pense, that labour may be lightly burthened : the honest
payment of our debts, and sacred preservation <of the public
faith : encouragement of agriculture, and of co mmerce as its
hand-maid: the diffusion of information, and a.rraignment of
all abuses at the bar of public reason : freed om of reljgio-n :
freedom of the press : and freedom of perse ,n, under the pro
tection of the habeas corpus : and trial by ? juries impartially
selected. — These principles," added Mr. Jefferson, " should
be the creed of our political faith ; and should we wander
from them in moments of error or of aJ arm, let us hasten to
-etrace our steps, and to regain the 7JOad which alone leads
to peace, liberty, and safety."

To enter into a minute detail of the administration of
Mr Jefferson, would neither com port with the duties of a

34

398 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

biographer, nor with the limits which must necessarily be
prescribed to the present sketch. At a future day, more dis
tant by far than the present, when the remembrance of poli
tical asperities shall have passed away, can exact justice be
done to Mr. Jefferson and his administration. That he was
a distinguished man, distinguished as a statesman, none can
deny. But as^the measures of his administration were called
in question, in respect to their policy, and as the day of ex
citement has scarcely passed by, it is deemed more judicious
to leave the subject to the research and deliberation of the
future historian, than, in this place, to attempt to settle ques
tions, about which there was, while he lived, and still may
exist, an honest difference of opinion.

On the meeting of congress in December, 1801, Mr. Jef
ferson, varying from the practice of the former presidents,
communicated a message to congress, instead of delivering
a speech in person. The change in this respect thus intro
duced was obviously so popular and acceptable, that it has
been adopted on every subsequent similar occasion.

The principal acts which characterized the first term of
Mr. Jefferson's career, were, a removal from responsible and
lucrative offices of a great portion of those whose political
opinions were opposed to his own ; the abolition of the inter
nal taxes ; a reorganization of the judiciary ; an extension of
the laws relative to naturalization ; the purchase of Louisi
ana, and the establishment of commercial and friendly rela
tions with various western tribes of indians.

On the occurrence of a new presidential election, in 1805,
the administration of Mr. Jefferson had been so acceptable,
that he was re-elected by a majority, not of eight votes, as in
the former instance, but by one hundred arid forty-eight. In
spired with new zeal by this additional proof of confidence
which his fellow-citizens had given him, he took occasion, in
his second inaugural address, to assert his determination to
abide by those principles upon which he had administered
the government, and the approbation of which, on the part
of the people, he read in their re-election of him to the same
exalted station. In concluding his inaugural address, he took

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 399

occasion to observe : " I do not fear that any motives of in
terest may lead me astray ; I am sensible of no passion which
could seduce me knowingly from the path of justice ; but the
weaknesses of human nature, and the limits of my own un
derstanding, will produce errors of judgment sometimes inju-
rio^s to your interests ; I shall need, therefore, all the indul
gence I have heretofore experienced ; the want of it will
certainly not lessen with increasing years. I shall need, too»
the favour of that Being in whose hands we are, who Jed 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 poxver."

On the second election of Mr. Jefferson to the presidency,
the vice presidency was transferred from Mr. Burr to George
Clinton, of New-York. A merited odium had settled upon
Mr. Burr in consequence of his unprincipled duel with Gene
ral Hamilton, in which the latter gentleman had fallen a vic
tim to murderous revenge. From this time, Mr. Burr sunk,
as it was thought, into final obscurity ; but his future conduct
showed, that, while unobserved by his fellow citizens, he had
been achieving a project, which, but for the sagacity and ef
fective measures of Mr. Jefferson, might have led even to a
dissolution of the union.

In the autumn of 1806, the movements of Mr. Burr first at
tracted the notice of government. He had purchased and
was building boats on the Ohio, and engaging men to descend
that river. His declared purpose was to form a settlement
on the banks of the Washita, in Louisiana ; but the character
of the man, the nature of his preparations, and the incautious
disclosures of his associates, led to the suspicion that his true
object was either to gain possession of New-Orleans, and to
erect into a separate government the country watered by the
Mississippi and its branches, or to invade, from the territories
of the United States, the rich Spanish province of Mexico.

From the first moment of suspicion, he was closely watch
ed by the agents of the government. At Natchez, .while on
his way to New-Orleans, he was cited to appear before the

100 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

supreme court of the Mississippi Territory. But he had so
enveloped his projects in secrecy, that sufficient evidence to
convict him could not be produced, and he was discharged.
Hearing, however, that several persons, suspected of being
his accomplices, had been arrested at New-Orleans and else
where, he fled in disguise from Natchez, was apprehendedfOn
the Tombigbee, and conveyed a prisoner to Richmond. Two
indictments were found against him, one charging him with
treason against the United States, the other with preparing
and commencing an expedition against the dominions of Spain.

In August, 1807, he was tried upon those indictment'? be
fore John Marshall, the chief justice of the United States.
Full evidence of his guilt not being exhibited, he was acquit
ted by the jury. The people, however, believed him guilty ;
and by their desertion and contempt he was reduced to a
condition of the most abject wretchedness. The ease with
which his plans were defeated, demonstrated the strength of
the government ; and his fate will ever be an impressive
warning to those who, in a free country, listen to the sugges
tions of criminal ambition.

While these domestic troubles were, in a measure, agitating
the country, questions of still greater importance were en
gaging the attention of the government in respect to our fo
reign relations. War was at this time waging between
England and France. America, taking advantage of the bel
ligerent state of these kingdoms, was advantageously em
ploying herself, as a neutral power, in carrying from port to
port the productions of France and her dependent kingdoms,
and also to the ports of those kingdoms the manufactures of
England.

Great Britain, at this time, and indeed from the peace of
1783, had claimed a right to search for and seize her seamen,
even on board of neutral vessels while traversing the ocean.
In the exercise of this pretended right, many unlawful seizures
were made, against which Washington, Adams, and Jeffer
son, had successively remonstrated in vain. Added to this,
the Americans were molested in the carrying trade, their ves
sels being seized by British cruisers while transporting to the

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 401

continent the products of the French colonies, and condemn
ed by the English courts as lawful prizes. In May, 1806,
were issued the British orders in council, by which several
European ports, under the control of France, were declared
to be in a state of blockade, although not invested with a Bri
tish, fleet, and American vessels, in attempting to enter those
ports, were captured and condemned.

As a measure retaliatory to the above orders in council, the
French emperor issued a decree at Berlin, in 1806, declaring
the British islands in a state of blockade. In consequence of
these measures of the two belligerents, the commerce of the
United States severely suffered, and their merchants were
oud in their demands on the government for redress and
protection.

In June, 1807, an act was committed which raised the in
dignation of the whole American people, and concentrated
upon the British government the whole weight of popular in
dignation. This was an attack upon the frigate Chesapeake,
just as she was leaving her port, for a distant service, by
order of a British admiral, in consequence of which three of
her men were killed, and four taken away. This outrage
occasioned an immediate proclamation on the part of Mr.
Jefferson, requiring all British armed vessels immediately to
depart from the waters of the United States, and forbidding
all such to enter. Instructions were forwarded to the Ame
rican minister at the court of Great Britain, to demand satis
faction for the insult, and security against future aggression.
Congress was summoned to meet, and to decide upon the
further measures which should be adopted.

In the mean time, the British government promptly disa
vowed the act of the officer, by whom the above outrage had
been committed, and offered reparation for the injuries done,
which some time after was carried into effect.

From this time, the conduct of the belligerents was such,
in respect to each other, as to bear oppressively upon the
American nation, leaving the government of the latter no
other alternative, but abject submission, or decided retalia
tion. In respect to the latter course, two measures only
3F 34*

402 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

could be adopted, a declaration of war, or a suspension of the
commerce of the United States. The latter alternative was
adopted, and on the twenty-second of December, 1807, an
act passed both houses of congress, laying a general embargo.

In respect to the policy of the embargo, the most promi
nent feature in the administration of Mr. Jefferson, different
opinions prevailed among the American people. By the ad
ministration, it was acknowledged to be only an experiment;
which, while it showed the spirit of the nation, and operated
with no inconsiderable severity upon the interests of the bel
ligerents, left the way open to negociations, or, if necessary
to actual war.

Before the result of that system of measures which had.
been recommended by Mr. Jefferson was fully known, the
period arrived when a new election to the presidency was to
take place. As Mr. Jefferson had reached the age of sixty-
five years, forty of which had almost uninterruptedly been
devoted to the arduous duties of public life, he was desirous,
at the close of his then presidential term, of ending his poli
tical career.

Having formed this determination, he alluded to it in a
message to congress, in the following language: "Availing
myself of this, the last occasion which will occur of address
ing the two houses of the legislature at their meeting, I can
not omit the expression of my sincere gratitude for the re
peated proofs of confidence manifested to me by themselves,
and their predecessors, since my call to the administration,
and the many indulgences experienced at their hands. The
same grateful acknowledgments are due to my fellow-citizens
generally, whose support has been my great encouragement,
under all embarrassments. In the transactions of their busi
ness, I cannot have escaped error. It is incident to our im
perfect nature. But I may say with truth, my errors have
been of the understanding, not of intention ; and that the ad
vancement of their rights and interests has been the constant
motive of every measure. On these considerations, I solicit
their indulgence. Looking forward with anxiety to their
future destinies, I trust, that in their steady character, un-

THOMAS JEFFERSON. 403

haken by difficulties, in their love of liberty, obedience to
law, and support of public authorities, I see a sure guarantee
of the permanence of our republic ; and retiring from the
charge of their affairs, I carry with me the consolation of a
firm persuasion, that heaven has in store for our beloved
country, long ages to come of prosperity and happiness."

From the time of his retirement from public life, in 1807,
Mr. Jefferson resided at Monticello, and lived as became a
wise man. " Surrounded by affectionate friends, his ardour
in the pursuit of knowledge undiminished, with uncommon
health, and unbroken spirits, he was able to enjoy largely
the rational pleasures of life, and to partake in that public
prosperity, which he had so much contributed to produce.
His kindness and hospitality, the charm of his conversation,
the ease of his manners, the extent of his acquirements, and
especially the full store of revolutionary incidents which he
possessed, and which he knew when and how to dispense,
rendered his abode, in a high degree, attractive to his ad
miring countrymen, while his high public and scientific
character drew towards him every intelligent and educated
traveller from abroad.''

Although Mr. Jefferson had withdrawn from public life, he
was still anxious to promote the objects of science, taste, and
literature ; and especially solicitous to see established a uni
versity in his native state. To this object he devoted several
years of incessant and anxious attention, and by the enlight
ened liberality of the legislature of Virginia, and the co-ope
ration of other able and zealous friends, he lived to see it ac
complished. Of this institution, of which he was the father,
he was elected the rector, and, during the declining years of
his life, devoted himself, with unceasing ardour, to its perma
nent prosperity.

It has often been the lot of those who have devoted
themselves to the public service, to suffer in the decline of
life from the hand of poverty. This was the lot of Mr. Jef
ferson. His patrimony was originally Iarge5 but was una
voidably neglected, in his attendance upon the duties of the
high official stations which he had filled. Partial efforts

404 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

were made in his native state, and in other parts of the coun
try, to relieve his embarrassments ; but the precise extent of
the measures adopted, in reference to this subject, we have
not the means of ascertaining.

At length, the day on which this illustrious man was to
terminate his long and useful career, approached. That day,
by the appointment of heaven, was to be the fourth of July,
1826. He saw its approach with undisturbed serenity. He
had no wish to live beyond that day. It was a day which,
fifty years before, he had helped to make immortal. His
wishes were answered ; and at ten minutes before one o'clock,
on that day — memorable, also, for the departure of his com
patriot, Adams — Mr. Jefferson himself expired at Monticello.
At this time he had reached the age of eighty-three years,
two mpnths, and twenty-one days. In stature, he was six
feet and two inches high. His person was erect and well
formed, though spare. The colour of his eyes was light, but
they beamed with intelligence.

We shall not attempt minutely to delineate the character
of Mr. Jefferson ; this must be left to others, who may pos
sess greater facilities of doing him justice. It maybe ob
served, however, that in his manners he was simple and un
affected ; at the same time possessing no inconsiderable
share of dignity. In disposition he was uncommonly liberal
and benevolent. In seasons of danger and perplexity, he
exhibited no ordinary fortitude and strength of mind. His
opinions were slowly formed, but yielded with great re
luctance. Over his passions he possessed an uncommon
control.

In his domestic habits, he was quite simple. He rose
early, and through the whole day was unusually diligent in
his application, eifher to business or study. He was ardent
ly devoted to literature and science, with almost every branch
of which he was well acquainted. Of his peculiar opinions
on religious subjects, we are designedly silent. In respect
to these, the best and wisest of his countrymen have enter-
tuined very different sentiments. At a future day, it will

BENJAMIN HARRISON. 405

oe easier to decide in respect to their true character and
tendency.

It remains to notice only one circumstance more. " In a
private memorandum found among some other obituary pa
pers and relics of Mr. Jefferson, is a suggestion, in case a
monument over him should ever be thought of, that a granite
obelisk, of small dimensions, should be erected, with the fol
lowing inscription :

" HERE WAS BURIED

THOMAS JEFFERSON,

Author of the Declaration of Independence,

Of the Statutes of Virginia, for Religious Freedom,

And Father of the University of Virginia."

BENJAMIN HARRISON.

BENJAMIN HARRISON was the descendant of a family long
distinguished in the history of Virginia. Both his father and
grandfather bore the name of Benjamin, and lived at Berkeley,
where they owned, and where the family still owns, a seat,
beautifully situated on the banks of the James River, in full
view of City Point, the seaport of Petersburg and Richmond

The father of Mr. Harrison married the eldest daughter oi
Mr. Carter, the king's surveyor general, by whom he had six
sons and four daughters. Two of the latter, with himself,
were, at the same time, during the occurrence of a thunder
storm, killed by lightning in the mansion house at Berkeley.

The subject of the present memoir was the eldest son of
the preceding, but the date of his birth has not been satisfac
torily ascertained. He was a student in the college of Wil
liam and Mary at the time of his father's death ; but, in con
sequence of a misunderstanding with an officer of the college,
he left it before the regular period of graduation, and returned
aome.

406 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

The management of his father's estate now devolved upon
him ; and though young to be entrusted with a charge so im
portant, and involving responsibilities so weighty, he dis
played an unusual share of prudence and judgment.

His ancestors having long been distinguished as political
leaders in the province, he was summoned at an early date,
even before he had attained to the age required by law, to
sustain the reputation which they had acquired. He com
menced his political career as a member of the legislature,
about the year 1764, a station which he may be said to have
held through life, since he was always elected to a seat,
whenever his other political employments admitted of his oc
cupying it. As a member of the provincial assembly, Mr.
Harrison soon became conspicuous. To strong good sense
he united great firmness and decision of character. Besides,
his fortune being ample, and his connexions by marriage
highly respectable, he wras naturally marked out as a politi
cal leader, in whom general confidence might well be re
posed.

The royal government, awrare of his influence and respect
ability, was, at an early day, anxious to enlist him in its fa
vour, and accordingly proposed to create him a member of
the executive council in Virginia, a station corresponding to
the privy council in England, and one which few would have
had the firmness to have declined.

Mr. Harrison, however, though a young man, was not to
be seduced from the path of duty by the rank and influence
conferred by office. Even at this time, the measures of the
British ministry, although not as oppressive as at a later day,
were such as neither he nor the patriotic burgesses of Virgi
nia could approve. In opposition to the royal cause, he iden
tified himself with the people, whose rights and liberties he
pursued with an ardour which characterized most of the pa
triots of the revolution.

Passing over the following ten years of Mr. Harrison's life,
in which few incidents either of a private or political nature
are recorded of him, we arrive at the year 1774, the era of

BENJAMIN HARRISON. 407

the memorable congress which laid the foundation of Ameri
can liberty, of which body Mr. Harrison was a member.

From this period until the close of 1777, during nearly
every session of congress, Mr. Harrison represented his na
tive state in that distinguished assembly. Our limits forbid
us entering into a minute detail of the important services
which he rendered his country during his career in the na
tional legislature. As a member of the board of war, and as
chairman of that board, an office which he retained until he
left congress, he particularly distinguished himself. Accord
ing to the testimony of a gentleman who was contemporary
with him in congress, he was characterized for great firmness,
good sense, and a peculiar sagacity in difficult and critical
situations. In seasons of uncommon trial and anxiety, he
was always steady, cheerful, and undaunted.

Mr. Harrison was also often called to preside as chairman
of the committee of the whole house, in which station he was
extremely popular. He occupied the chair during the deli
berations of congress on the despatches of Washington, the
settlement of commercial restrictions, the state of the colo
nies, the regulation of trade, and during the pendency of the
momentous question of our national independence. By his
correctness and impartiality, during the warm and animated
debates which were had on questions growing out of these
important subjects, he gained the general confidence and ap
probation of the house.

An interesting anecdote is related of him, on the occasion
of the members affixing their signatures to the declaration of
independence. While signing the instrument, he noticed
Mr. Gerry of Massachusetts standing beside him. Mr. Har
rison himself was quite corpulent ; Mr. Gerry was slender
and spare. As the former raised his hand, having inscribed
his name on the roll, he turned to Mr. Gerry, and facetiously
observed, that when the time of hanging should come, he
should have the advantage over him. " It will be over with
me," said he, " in a minute, but you will be kicking in the air
?ialf an hour after I am gone."

Towards the close of the year 1777, Mr. Harrison resigned

408 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

his seat in congress, and returned to Virginia. He was soon
after elected a member of the house of burgesses, of which
body he was immediately chosen speaker, a station which he
held until the year 1782.

In this latter year, Mr. Harrison was elected to the office
of chief magistrate of Virginia, and became one of the most
popular governors of his native state. To this office he was
twice re-elected. In 1785, having become ineligible by the
provisions of the constitution, he returned to private life, carry
ing with him the universal esteem and approbation of his
fellow citizens.

In 1788, when the new constitution of the United States
was submitted to Virginia, he was returned a member of her
convention. Of the first committee chosen by that body, that
of privileges and elections, he was appointed chairman.
Owing, however, to his advanced years, and to infirmities
which were now coming in upon him, he took no very active
part in the debates of the convention. He was a friend,
however, to the constitution, provided certain amendments
could be made to it, and opposed its ratification until these
should be incorporated with it. When the question was
taken in the convention as to its unconditional ratification,
the majority in the affirmative was but ten. A minority so
respectable in point of number and character was not to be
slighted. Hence, the convention appointed a committee to
prepare and report such amendments as they should deem
necessary. Of this committee Mr. Harrison was a member,
and, in connexion with his colleagues, introduced such a se
ries of amendments as were thought advisable, and which,
after passing the convention, formed the basis of the altera
tions which were subsequently made.

In 1790, Mr. Harrison was again proposed as a candidate
to the executive chair. Finding, however, that if run it must
be in opposition to Mr. Beverley Randolph, who was at that
time governor, a gentleman distinguished for his great amia-
bleness of character, and a particular and intimate friend of
Governor Harrison, the latter declined the designed honour,

BENJAMIN HARRISON. 409^

in consequence of which, Mr. Randolph was elected, but by
only a majority of two or three votes.

In the spring of 1791, Mr. Harrison was attacked by a se-
rere fit of the gout, of which however he partially recovered.
In the month of April, he was elected a member of the legis
lature. On the evening of the day after, however, a recur-
ence of his disease took place, which on the following day
terminated his life.

In his person, Mr. Harrison was above the ordinary height;
ne possessed a vigorous constitution, and in his manners was
remarkably dignified. Owing to the free manner in which he
lived, he, at length, became quite corpulent ; his features
were less handsome, and the vigour of his constitution was
much impaired.

Those who recollect him represent his talents as rather
useful than brilliant. He seldom entered into public discus
sions, nor was he fond of writing; yet when occasion required,
he appeared with respectability in both.

Mr. Harrison became connected by marriage with Eliza
beth Bassett, daughter of Colonel William Bassett, of the
county of New Kent, a niece to the sister of Mrs. Washing
ton. He had n^ny children, seven of whom only attained to
any number of years. Several of his sons became men of
considerable distinction, but no one has occupied so conspicu
ous a place in society as his third son, William Henry Harri
son. While young, this gentleman distinguished himself in
a battle with the Indians at the rapids of Miami ; since which
time, he has filled the office of governor of Indiana Territory
served as a high military officer on the north-western fron
tier, been sent as a delegate from the state of Ohio in con
gress, and more recently been appointed to the important
office of minister plenipotentiary to Mexico.
3G 35

410 VIRGINIA DELEGATION

THOMAS NELSON, JUN.

THOMAS NELSON was born at York on the twenty-sixth of
December, 1738. He was the eldest son of William Nelson,
a merchant of highly respectable character, who was de
scended from an English family, which settled at York, in
the province of Virginia. By his prudence and industry, the
latter acquired a large fortune. After the meridian of life, he
held several offices of high distinction ; and at his death, which
occurred a few years before the revolution, left a character,
not only sullied by no stain, but justly venerated for the many
virtues which adorned it.

At the age of fourteen, Thomas Nelson was sent to Eng
land, for the purpose of acquiring an education. He was for
some time placed at a private school, in a village in the neigh
bourhood of London ; whence he was removed to the uni
versity of Cambridge, where he enjoyed the instruction of
that distinguished man, Doctor Beilby Porteus, afterwards
bishop of London. Under the guidance of this excellent
man and accomplished scholar, young Nelson became deeply
imbued with a taste for literary pursuits.

About the close of 1761, he returned to his native coun
try, and in the following year became connected by marriage
with a daughter of Philip Grymes, Esq. of Brandon, with
\vhom he settled at York. The ample fortune given him by
his father, at the time of his marriage, enabled him to main
tain a style of no common elegance and hospitality.

At what period Mr. Nelson commenced his political careei,
we have not been able to ascertain. He was, however, a
member of the house of burgesses in 1774, and during the
same year was appointed to the first general convention,
which met at Williamsburg on the first of August. The next
year, 1775, he was a second time returned a member to the
general convention of the province, during the session of
which, he introduced a resolution for organizing a military
force in the province, a step which obviously placed the co
lony of Virginia in the attitude of opposition to the mother

THOMAS NELSON, JUN. 411

Country. This plan was at first startling to some of the
warmest friends of liberty ; but in the issue, it proved a mea
sure of high importance to the colonies.

In July, 1775, the third convention of Virginia delegates
assembled at Richmond, and in the following month Mr. Nel
son was appointed a delegate to represent the colony in the
continental congress, which was to assemble at Philadelphia.
Agreeably to this appointment, he took his seat in that body
on the thirteenth of September.

From this time, until May, 1777, Mr. Nelson continued to
represent the colony of Virginia in the national council, where
he was frequently appointed on important committees, and
was highly distinguished for his sound judgment and liberal
sentiments. In the month of May, of the year mentioned
above, while attending in his place in congress, he was sud
denly attacked with a disease of the head, probably of a para-
lytic nature, which, for a time, greatly impaired his mental
faculties, particularly his memory.

He now returned to Virginia, soon after which he resigned
his %seat in congress. His health gradually returning, his ser
vices were again demanded by the public, and by the governor
and council he was appointed brigadier general and com
mander in chief of the forces of the commonwealth. In this
office he rendered the most important services to his country
in general, and to the colony of Virginia in particular. His
ample fortune enabled him, in cases of emergency, to advance
money to carry forward the military operations of the day,
nor did the generosity of his nature allow him to withhold
his hand whenever occasion demanded advancements.

In 1779, the health of Mr. Nelson being, as it was thought,
confirmed, he was induced again to accept a seat in congress.
The arduous duties, however, to which he was called, con
nected with the long confinement which those duties required,
induced a recurrence of his former complaint, which com
pelled him again to return home.

Happily for his country, his health was again restored, and
he entered with great animation into several military expedi
dons against the British, who, at that time, were making the

412 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

southern states the chief theatre of war. In 1781, Mr. Jef
ferson, who had for three years filled the executive chair, left
it, upon which General Nelson was called to succeed him.
This was a gloomy period in the annals of Virginia. In re
peated instances the state was invaded, and the path of the
enemy marked by wanton and excessive barbarity. The le
gislature were several times interrupted in their deliberations,
and repeatedly obliged to adjourn to a different and more re
tired place. Immediately following the accession of Mr. Nel
son to the executive chair, they were driven, as was noticed
in the life of Mr. Jefferson, by Tarlton, from Charlottesville
*o Staunton.

At this time they passed a law, " by which the governor,
with the advice of the council, was empowered to procure.
by impress or otherwise, under such regulations as they
should devise, provisions of every kind, all sorts of clothing,
accoutrements and furniture proper for the use of the army,
negroes as pioneers, horses both for draught and cavalry,
wagons, boats, and other vessels, with their crews, and all
<.»iher things which might be necessary for supplying the
militia, or other troops, employed in the public service."

According to this law, Mr. Nelson could not constitution
ally act, except with the advice of his council. Owing to
the capture of two of the council by Tarlton, and to the
Designation of two others, that body was reduced to four
•members, the least number which agreeably to the constitu-
ion could act. Even this number, in the distracted state of
lie country, it was difficult and nearly impossible to keep
together.

Thus circumstanced, Governor Nelson determined, at the
risk of public censure, to take those measures which the
safety of the state and the good of the country demanded.
These measures were taken ; and though departing from the
strict line of duty as denned by the laws of the common
wealth, it was owing to his prompt and independent course
that the army was kept together until the battle of Yorktown
gave the finishing stroke to the war.

Soon after the occurrence of that memorable and glorious

THOMAS NELSON, JUN.

event, Governor Nelson had the pleasure of receiving a just
expression of thanks from General Washington, who, in his
general orders of the 20th of October, 1781, thus spoke of
him : " The general would be guilty of the highest ingrati
tude, a crime of which he hopes he shall never be accused,
if he forgot to return his sincere acknowledgments to his
excellency Governor Nelson, for the succours which he re
ceived from him, and the militia under his command, to
whose activity, emulation, and bravery, the highest praises
are due. The magnitude of the acquisition will be ample
compensation for the difficulties and dangers which they
met with so much firmness and patriotism."

At the expiration of a month, following the surrender of
Lord Cornwallis, Governor Nelson finding his health im
paired by the arduous duties to which he had been called,
tendered his resignation as chief magistrate of Virginia.

The many services which he had rendered, the great self-
denial which he had practised, the uncommon liberality
which he had manifested, entitled him to the gratitude of the
people, and to the unmolested enjoyment of the few years
which remained to him. But scarcely had his resigna
tion been accepted, when an accusation was laid before the
legislature by his enemies, charging him with having tran
scended his powers in acting without the consent of his
council.

Soon after the presentment of this accusation, Governor
Nelson addressed a letter to the legislature, requesting an in
vestigation of his official conduct. In compliance with this
request, a committee was appointed for that purpose, who,
at length, having reported, the legislature, on the 31st of
December, 1781, passed the following act :

" An act to indemnify THOMAS NELSON, Junior, Esquire,
late governor of this commonwealth, and to legalise certain
acts of his administration. Whereas, upon examination it
appears that previous to, and during the seige of York,
Thomas Nelson, Esquire, late governor of this common
wealth, was compelled by the peculiar circumstances of the
state and army, to perform many acts of government without

35*

414 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

the advice of the council of state, for the purpose of pro
curing subsistence and other necessaries for the allied army
under the command of his excellency General Washington :
be it enacted, that all such acts of government, evidently
productive of general good, and warranted by necessity, be
judged and held of the same validity, and the like proceed
ings be had on them, as if they had been executed by and
with the advice of the council, and with all the formalities
prescribed by law. And be it further enacted, that the said
Thomas Nelson, Jun. Esq. be, and hereby is, in the fullest
manqer, indemnified and exonerated from all penalties and
dangers which might have accrued to him from the same."

Having thus been honourably acquitted of charges from
which his noble and patriotic conduct ought to have saved
him, he now retired wholly from public life. His death oc
curred on the 4th 3f January, 1789, just after he had com
pleted his fiftieth year. Few patriots of the revolution have
descended to the grave more justly honoured and beloved.
Few possessed a more ample fortune ; few contributed more
liberally to support the cause of liberty. It was the patriot
ism, the firmness, the generosity, the magnanimous sacrifices
of such men, that conducted the colonies through a gloomy
contest of seven years continuance, and gave them a rank
amxmg the independent nations of the earth.

We shall conclude this notice of this illustrious man, by
presenting to our readers the tribute, which was happily and
affectionately paid to his memory by Colonel Innes :

" The illustrious General Thomas Nelson is no more !
He paid the last great debt to nature, on Sunday, the fourth
of the present month, at his estate in Hanover. He who
undertakes barely to recite the exalted virtues whi^h adorned
the life of this great and good man, will unavoidably pro
nounce a panegyric on human nature. As a man, a citizen,
a legislator, and a patriot, he exhibited a conduct untarnished
and undebased by sordid or selfish interest, and strongly
marked with the genuine characteristics of true religion,
sound benevolence, and liberal policy. Entertaining the
most ardent love for civil and religious liberty, he was

THOMAS NELSON, JUN. 415

among the first of that glorious band of patriots whose ex
ertions dashed and defeated the machinations of British
tyranny, and gave United America freedom and independent
empire. At a most important crisis, during the late struggle
for American liberty, when this state appeared to be desig
nated as the theatre of action for the contending armies, he
was selected by the unanimous suffrage of the legislature to
command the virtuous yeomanry of his country ; in this
honourable employment he remained until the end of the
war ; as a soldier, he was indefatigably active and coolly in
trepid ; resolute and undejected in misfortunes, he towered
above distress, and struggled with the manifold difficulties to
which his situation exposed him, with constancy and courage.
In the memorable year 1781, when the whole force of the
southern British army was directed to the immediate subju
gation of this state, he was called to the helm of govern
ment; this was a juncture which indeed ' tried men's souls.'
He did not avail himself of this opportunity to retire in the
rear of danger ; but on the contrary, took the field at the
head of his countrymen ; and at the hazard of his life, his
fame, and individual fortune, by his decision and magna
nimity, he saved not only his country, but all America, from
disgrace, if not from total ruin. Of this truly patriotic and
heroic conduct, the renowned commander in chief, with all
the gallant officers of the combined armies employed at the
siege of York, will bear ample testimony ; this part of his
conduct even contemporary jealousy, envy, and malignity
were forced to approve, and this, more impartial posterity,
if it can believe, will almost adore. If, after contemplating
the splendid and heroic parts of his character, we shall in
quire for the milder virtues of humanity, and seek for the
man, we shall find the refined, beneficent, and social qualities
of private life, through all its forms and combinations, so
happily modified and united in him, that in the words of the
darling poet of nature, it may be said,

' His life was gentle : and the elements

So mixed in him, that nature might stand up

And say to all the world— this was a man.' "

416 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE.

FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE, the fourth son of Thomas Lee,
was born on the fourteenth day of October, 1734. His father
for several years held the office of president of the king's
council of the provincial government of Virginia. He had
several sons, all of whom were highly distinguished for their
talents, and for the services which they rendered their coun
try. Philip Ludwell, a member of the king's council ; Tho
mas Ludwell, a member of the Virginia assembly; Richard
Henry, as the champion of American freedom ; William, as a
sheriff and alderman of London, and afterwards a commis
sioner of the continental congress at the courts of Berlin and
Vienna ; and Arthur as a scholar, a politician, and diplomatist.

Francis Lightfoot, the subject of the present memoir, was
perhaps not less distinguished, although he had not the ad
vantages, which were enjoyed by the elder sons, of an educa
tion at the English universities. His advantages, however,
were not of a moderate character. He was placed under the
care of a domestic tutor of the name of Craig, a gentleman
distinguished for his love of letters, and for his ability to im
part useful knowledge to those of whom he had the care. Un
der such a man, the powers of Francis Lightfoot rapidly un
folded. He acquired an early fondness for reading and men
tal investigation, and became well acquainted with the vari
ous branches of science and literature.

The fortune bequeathed him by his father rendered the
study of a profession unnecessary. He, therefore, devoted
himself for several years to reading, and to the enjoyment of his
friends. He was a man, however, in whom dwelt the spirit
of the patriot, and who could not well be neglected, nor could
he well neglect his country, when the political troubles of the
colonies began.

In 1765, he was returned a member of the house of bur
gesses from the county of Loudon, where his estate was si
tuated. In this situation, he proved himself to be a gentleman
of strong good sense and discriminating judgment ; and to this

FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE. 417

office he was annually re-elected until 1772 ; when having be
come connected by marriage with a daughter of Colonel John
Tayloe, of the county of Richmond, he removed to that coun
ty, the citizens of which soon after elected him a member ol
the house of burgesses.

In 1775, Mr. Lee was chosen a member of the continental
congress, by the Virginia convention. This was an eventful
period in the annals of America. It was the year in which
was shed the first blood in the revolutionary struggle. It
was emphatically the year of " clouds and darkness," in which
indeed the hope of better days was indulged, but in which,
notwithstanding this hope, "men's souls were tried."

Mr. Lee continued a member of congress until the spring
of 1779. During his attendance upon this body, he seldom
took part in the public discussions, but few surpassed him in
his warmth of patriotism, and in his zeal to urge forward those
measures which contributed to the success of the American
arms, and the independence of the country. To his brother,
Richard Henry Lee, the high honour was allotted of bringing
forward the momentous question of independence, and to him,
and his associates in that distinguished assembly, the not in
ferior honour was granted of aiding and supporting and
finishing this important work.

As already noticed, Mr. Lee retired from congress in the
year 1779. It was his wish to be exempted from public care,
and in the pleasures of home to seek those enjoyments which
were consentaneous to his health and happiness.

This seclusion, however, he was not permitted long to en
joy. The internal condition of Virginia, at this time, was
one of much agitation and perplexity. His fellow citizens,
justly appreciating the value of such a man, summoned him
by their suffrages to represent them in the legislature of Vir
ginia. Although reluctantly, he obeyed the summons, and
took his seat in that body. He was fond of ease, and of the
pleasures of domestic life ; still he was conscious of his obli
gations, and most faithfully discharged them. While a mem
ber of the continental congress, he had been characterized for
3 H

418 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

integrity, sound judgment, and love of country. In his pre
sent office, he was distinguished for the same virtues.

He could not content himself, however, long in this situa
tion. He became wearied with the duties of public life ; and,
at length, relinquished them for the pleasures of retirement.

In this latter course of life, he not only enjoyed himsell
highly, but contributed greatly to the happiness of many
around him. The benevolence of his disposition, and the
urbanity of his manners, recommended him both to the old
and the young, to the gay and the grave. The poor shared
in his benevolence and advice. In his intercourse with
his particular friends, he was uncommonly pleasing and in
structive.

Mr. Lee, having no children to require his care and atten
tion, devoted much of his time to the pleasures of reading,
farming, and the company of his friends. His death was oc
casioned by a pleurisy, which disease about the same time,
also, attacked his beloved wife, and terminated the life of both,
within a few days of each other. It is said, that he had em
braced the religion of the gospel, and that under its support
ing hope and consolation, he made his exit in peace from
the world.

CARTER BRAXTON.

CARTER BRAXTON was the son of George Braxton, a
wealthy planter of Newington, in the county of King and
Queen, in Virginia, where he was born on the tenth of Sep
tember, 1736. His mother was the daughter of Robert Car
ter, who was for some time a member, and the president of
the king's council.

Carter Braxton was liberally educated, at the college of Wil
liam and Mary. About the time that he left college, it ie
supposed that his father died, although this is not well ascer-

CARTER BRAXTON. 419

tained. On this event, he became possessed of a considerable
fortune, consisting chiefly of land and slaves. His estate was
much increased, by his marriage, at the early age of nineteen
years, with the daughter of Mr. Christopher Robinson, a
wealthy planter of the county of Middlesex.

He had the misfortune to lose his wife within a few years
of his marriage, soon after which he embarked for England,
for the purpose of improving his mind and manners. He re
turned to America in 1760 ; and, in the following year, was
married to the eldest daughter of Richard Corbin, of Lanne-
ville, by whom he had sixteen children. The life of Mrs.
Braxton was continued until the year 1814. Of her numer
ous children, one only, a daughter, it is believed, is still living.

The ample fortune of Mr. Braxton rendering the study of
a profession unnecessary, he became a gentleman planter.
He lived in considerable splendour, according to the fashion
of the landed aristocracy at that day. Yet, it is said, that
his fortune was not impaired by it.

Upon his return from a voyage to England, he was called
to a seat in the house of burgesses ; and in 1765, particu
larly distinguished himself at the time that Patrick Henry
brought forward his celebrated resolutions on the stamp act.

From this date, until 1776, the political career of Mr<
Braxton corresponded, in general, with that of the other
delegates from Virginia, of whom we have given a more par
ticular and circumstantial account. It will be unnecessary
therefore, to observe in this place more than that Mr. Brax
ton was, during this period, for the most part, a member of
the house of burgesses, and a member of the first convention
which ever met in Virginia. Nor is it necessary to speak
particularly of the patriotic zeal and firmness which charac
terized him, in all the duties which he was called upon to
discharge.

On the twenty-second of October, 1775, the distinguishea
Peyton Randolph died at Philadelphia, while presiding over
congress. In the following month, the convention of Vir
ginia proceeded to appoint his successor, upon which Mr.
Braxton was elected. In that body he soon ifter too]? his

420 VIRGINIA DELEGATION.

seat, and was present on the occasion which gave birth to
the declaration of independence.

In June. 1776, the convention of Virginia reduced the
number of their delegates in congress to five, any three of
whom, it was directed, should be sufficient. In consequence
of this resolution, Mr. Harrison and Mr. Braxton were
omitted.

In the month of October, 1776, the first general assembly
under the republican constitution, assembled at Williamsburg.
Of this assembly Mr. Braxton was a member, and soon after
taking his seat, he had the pleasure of receiving, in connexion
with Thomas Jefferson, an expression of the public thanks in
the following language :

" Saturday, October 12th, 1776.

" Resolved, unanimously, that the thanks of this house are
justly due to Thomas Jefferson and Carter Braxton, Esquires,
for the diligence, ability, and integrity, with which they exe
cuted the important trust reposed in them, as two of the dele
gates for this county in the general congress."

Of the above first session of the legislature of Virginia,
Mr. Braxton was an active member. This session, as might
be supposed, was interesting and important, from the circum
stance that being the first, it was called upon to accommodate
the government to the great change which the people had
undergone in their political condition. From this time, he
continued to be a delegate in the house for several years,
where he proved himself to be faithful to his constituents,
and a zealous advocate for civil and religious liberty.

In 1786, he received an appointment as a member of the
council of state of the commonwealth, which office he con
tinued to execute until the thirtieth of March, 1791. After
an interval of a few years, during which he occupied a seat
in the house of delegates, he was again elected into the exe
cutive council, where he continued until October, 1797, on
the tenth of which month he was removed to another world,
by means of an attack of paralysis.

CARTER BRAXTON. 421

Mr. Braxton was a gentleman of cultivated mind, and re
spectable talents. Although not distinguished by the im
pressive eloquence of Henry and Lee, his oratory was easy
and flowing. In his manners, he was peculiarly agreeable,
and the language of his conversation and eloquence was
smooth and flowing.

The latter days of Mr. Braxton were embittered by several
unfortunate commercial speculations, which involved him in
pecuniary embarrassments, from which he found it impossible
to extricate himself. Several vexatious law-suits, in which
he became engaged, contributed still farther to diminish his
property, and unfortunately led him unintentionally to injure
several of his friends, who were his sureties. The morning
of his days was indeed bright ; but, like many a morning
which appears in the natural world without clouds, his was
followed, towards the close of the day, by clouds and dark
ness, under which he sunk, imparting an impressive lesson of
the passing nature of the form and fashion of the present
world

36

THE

NORTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

WILLIAM HOOPER,
JOSEPH HEWES,
JOHN PENN.

WILLIAM HOOPER.

WILLIAM HOOPER was a native of Boston, province of
Massachusetts Bay. where he was born on the seventeenth
of June, 1742.

His father's name was also William Hooper. He was
born in Scotland, in the year 1702, and soon after leaving the
university of Edinburgh emigrated to America. He settled in
Boston, where he 'became connected in marriage with the
daughter of Mr. John Dennie, a respectable merchant. Not
long after his emigration, he was elected pastor of Trinity
Church, in Boston, in which office, such were his fidelity and
affectionate intercourse with the people of his charge, that
long after his death he was remembered by them with pecu
liar veneration and regard.

William Hooper, a biographical notice of whom we are
now to give, was the eldest of five children. At an early age
he exhibited indications of considerable talent. Until he was
seven years old, he was instructed by his father ; but, at
length, became a member of a free grammar school in Boston,

• I

WILLIAM HOOPER. 423

winch at that time was under the care of Mr. John Lovell, a
teacher of distinguished eminence. At the age of fifteen, he
entered Harvard university, where he acquired the reputation
of a good classical scholar ; and, at length, in 1760, com
menced bachelor of arts, with distinguished honour.

Mr. Hooper had destined his son for the ministerial office.
But his inclination turning towards the law, he obtained his
father's consent to pursue the studies of tlxit profession, in
the office of the celebrated James Otis. On being qualified
for the bar, he left the province of Massachusetts, with the
design of pursuing the practice of his profession in North
Carolina. After spending a year or two in that province, his
father became exceedingly desirous that he should return
home. The health of his son had greatly suffered, in conse
quence of an excessive application to the duties of his profes
sion. In addition to this, the free manner of living, generally
adopted by the wealthier inhabitants of the south, and in which
he had probably participated, had not a little contributed to
the injury of his health.

Notwithstanding the wishes of his father, in regard to his
favourite son, the latter, at length, in the fall of 1767, fixed
his residence permanently in North Carolina, and became
connected by marriage with Miss Ann Clark, of Wilmington,
in that province.

Mr. Hooper now devoted himself with great zeal to his
professional duties. He early enjoyed the confidence of his
fellow citizens, and was highly respected by his brethren at
the bar, among whom he occupied an enviable rank.

In the year 1773, he was appointed to represent the town
of Wilmington, in which he resided, in the general assembly.
In the following year he was elected to a seat in the same
body, soon after taking which, he was called upon to assist
in opposing a most tyrannical act of the British government,
in respect to the laws regulating the courts of justice in the
province.

The former laws in relation to these courts being abc^t to
expire, others became necessary. Accordingly, a bill was
brought forward, the provisions of which were designed to

424 NORTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

regulate the courts as formerly. But the advocates of the
British government took occasion to introduce a clause into
the bill, which was intended to exempt from attachment all
species of property in North Carolina, which belonged to
non-residents. This bill having passed the senate, and been
approved of by the governor, was sent to the house of repre
sentatives, where it met with a most spirited opposition. In
this opposition Mr. Hooper took the lead. In strong and
animated language, he set forth the injustice of this part of
the bill, and remonstrated against its passage by the house.
In consequence of the measures which were pursued by the
respective houses composing the general assembly, the pro
vince was left for more than a year without a single court of
law. Personally to Mr. Hooper, the issue of this business
was highly injurious, since he was thus deprived of the prac
tice of his profession, upon which he depended for his sup
port. Conscious, however, of having discharged his duty,
he bowed in submission to the pecuniary sacrifices to which
he was thus called, preferring honourable poverty to the *
greatest pecuniary acquisitions, if the latter must he made at
the expense of principle.

On the twenty-fifth of August, 1774, Mr. Hooper was elect
ed a delegate to the general congress, to be held at Philadel
phia. Soon after taking his seat in this body, he was placed
upon several important committees, and when occasion re
quired, took a share in the animated discussions, which were
had on the various important subjects which came before
them. On one occasion, and the first on which he addressed
the house, it is said, that he so entirely rivetted the attention
of the members by his bold and animated language, that many
expressed their wonder that such eloquence should flow forth
from a member from North Carolina.

In the following year, Mr. Hooper was again appointed a
delegate to serve in the second general congress, during whose
session he was selected as the chairman of a committee ap
pointed to report an address to the inhabitants of Jamaica.
The draught was the production of his pen. It was charac
terized for great boldness, and was eminently adapted to pro-

WILLIAM HOOPER. 425

duce a strong impression upon the people for whom it was
designed. In conclusion of the address, Mr. Hooper used
the following bold and animated language :

" That our petitions have been treated with disdain, is now
become the smallest part of our complaint : ministerial inso
lence is lost in ministerial barbarity. It has, by an exertion
peculiarly ingenious, procured those very measures, which it
laid us under the hard necessity of pursuing, to be stigma
tized in parliament as rebellious : it has employed additional
fleets and armies for the infamous purpose of compelling us
to abandon them : it has plunged us in all the horrors and ca
lamities of a civil war : it has caused the treasure and blood
of Britons (formerly shed and expended for far other ends) to
be spilt and wasted in the execrable design of spreading
slavery over British America : it will not, however, accom
plish its aim ; in the worst of contingencies, a choice will still
be left, which it never can prevent us from making."

In January, 1776, Mr. Hooper was appointed, with Dr.
Franklin and Mr. Livingston, a committee to report to con
gress a proper method of honouring the memory of General
Montgomery, who had then recently fallen beneath the walls
of Quebec. This committee, in their report, recommended
the erection of a monument, which, while it expressed the re
spect and affection of the colonies, might record, for the be
nefit of future ages, the patriotic zeal and fidelity, enterprise
and perseverance of the hero, whose memory the monument
was designed to celebrate. In compliance with the recom
mendation of this committee, a monument was afterwards
erected by congress in the city of New-York.

In the spring, 1776, the private business of Mr. Hooper so
greatly required his attention in North Carolina, that he did
not attend upon the sitting of congress. He returned, how
ever, in season to share in the honour of passing and pub
lishing to the world the immortal declaration of independence.

On the twentieth of December, 1776, he was elected a de
legate to congress for the third time. The embarrassed situ
ation of his private affairs, however, rendered his longer ab-
cnce from Carolina inconsistent with his interests. Accord
31 36*

426 NORTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

ingly, in February, 1777, he relinquished his seat in con
gress, and not long after tendered to the general assembly his
resignation of the important trust.

But, although he found it necessary to retire from this par
ticular sphere of action, he was nevertheless usefully employed
in Carolina. He was an ardent friend to his country, zeal
ously attached to her rights, and ready to make every required
personal sacrifice for her good. Nor like many other patriots
of the day, did he alfow himself to indulge in despondency.
While to others the prospect appeared dubious, he would al
ways point to some brighter spots on the canvass, and upon
these he delighted to dwell.

In 1786, Mr. Hooper was appointed by congress one of the
judges of a federal court, which was formed for the purpose
of settling a controversy which existed between the states of
New-York and Massachusetts, in regard to certain lands, the
jurisdiction of which each pretended to claim. The point at
issue was of great importance, not only as it related to a con
siderable extent of territory, but in respect of the people of
these two states, among whom great excitement prevailed on
the subject. Fortunately, the respective parties themselves
appointed commissioners to settle the dispute, which was, at
length, amicably done, and the above federal court were saved
a most difficult and delicate duty.

In the following year, the constitutional infirmities of Mr.
Hooper increasing, his health became considerably impaired.
He now gradually relaxed from public and professional exer
tions, and in a short time sought repose in retirement, which
he greatly coveted. In the month of October, 1790, at the
early age of forty-eight years, he was called to exchange
worlds. He left a widow, two sons, and a daughter, the last
of whom only, it is believed, still lives.

In his person, Mr. Hooper was of middle stature, well
formed, but of delicate and slender appearance. He carried
a pleasing and intelligent countenance. In his manners he
was polite and engaging, although towards those with whom
he was not particularly acquainted, he was somewhat re
served. He was distinguished for his powers of conversa-

JOSEPH HEWES. 427

tion ; in point of literary merit he had but few rivals in the
neighbourhood in which he dwelt.

As a lawyer, he was distinguished for his professional
knowledge, and indefatigable zeal in respect to business with
which he was entrusted. Towards his brethren he ever
maintained a high and honourable course of conduct, and
particularly towards the younger members of the bar. As a
politician, he was characterized for judgment, ardour, and
constancy. In times of the greatest political difficulty and
danger, he was calm, but resolute. He never desponded ;
but trusting to the justice of his country's cause, he had
an unshaken confidence that heaven would protect and de
liver her.

JOSEPH HEWES.

JOSEPH HEWES was born near Kingston, in New-Jersey,
in the year 1730. His parents were Aaron and Providence
Hevves, who were members of the society of friends, and
who originally belonged to the colony of Connecticut. They
were induced, however, to remove from New-England, on
account of the prejudices which existed among the descen
dants of the puritans against those who adopted the quaker
dress, or professed the quaker faith.

At the period of their removal, many parts of New-Eng
land were suffering from the frequent hostilities of the in-
dians, who, roving through the forests in their vicinity, often
made sudden incursions upon the inhabitants of those colo
nies, and generally marked their route with the most shock
ing barbarities. The murderous spirit of the indians was
. also, at this time, much inflamed by an act of the govern
ment of Massachusetts, which had increased the premium on
Indian scalps and indian prisoners to a hundred pounds for
each. By way of retaliation, the indians often made their

428 NORTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

sanguinary incursions into the territory of Massachusetts,
and not unfrequently extended their journies among the in
offensive farmers of Connecticut. Hence, many of the latter,
desirous of a more quiet and secure life, were induced to
seek a permanent residence in the remoter parts of the
country.

Among those who thus fled from the annoyance of preju
dice, and from the deeper wrath of a savage foe, were the
parents of Joseph Hewes. But even in their flight they nar
rowly escaped the death which they wished to avoid. On
passing the Housatonic River, a party of the indians came so
nearly upon them, that Mrs. Hewes was wounded in the neck
by a ball shot from the gun of a savage.

In New-Jersey, however, where they at length arrived,
they found a peaceful and secure home. Here, some time
after their settlement, their son Joseph Hewes Avas born. Of
the incidents of his younger days we know but little. At a
proper age he became a member of Princeton College, from
which, having graduated in due course, he was placed in the
counting-house of a gentleman at Philadelphia, to be educated
as a merchant.

On leaving the counting-house of his employer, he entered
into the mercantile business for himself, and soon became
an active and thrifty merchant.

At the age of thirty he removed to North Carolina, and
settled in the village of Edenton. The same prosperity
which had attended him at Philadelphia, followed him to a
more southern province, and in a few years he acquired a
handsome fortune.

Mr. Hewes, both before and after his removal to North
Carolina, sustained the reputation of a man of probity and
honour. He acquired the confidence and esteem of the peo
pie among whom he lived, and was soon called to represent
them in the colonial legislature of the province. This dis
tinction was conferred upon him for several successive years
•with increasing usefulness to his constituents, and increasing
credit to himself.

At length, in the year 1774, a congress, well known in the

JOSEPH HEWES. 429

annals of the American colonies, assembled in Philadelphia.
In that body were three delegates from North Carolina, of
whom Mr. Hewes was one.

The instructions and powers given to the delegates of this
congress by the people of the several colonies, were consider
ably diversified. No public body, at that time, contemplated
a separation from the mother country, and with no powers
to this effect were any of the delegates to the congress of
1774 invested. Their object respected the means most
proper to restore harmony between themselves and Great
Britain, to obtain redress of grievances which the colonies
suffered, and to secure to them the peaceful enjoyment of
their unalienable rights, as British subjects.

No delegates to this congress carried with them credentials
of a bolder stamp, than those from North Carolina. They
were invested with such powers as might " make any acts
done by them, or consent given in behalf of this province,
obligatory in honour upon any inhabitant thereof, who is not
an alien to his country's good, and an apostate to the liberties
of America."

On the meeting of this congress, two important committees
were appointed ; the one, to " state the rights of the colonies
in general, the several instances in which these rights are
violated or infringed, and the means most proper to be pur
sued for obtaining a restoration of them ;" the other, to
" examine and report the several statutes which affect the
trade and manufactures of the colonies." Of the former of
these committees, Mr. Hewes was appointed a member, and
assisted in preparing their celebrated report.

This report contained a temperate, but clear declaration
of the rights of the English colonies in North America, which
were expressed in the following language :

" 1. That they are entitled to life, liberty, and property;
and they have never ceded to any sovereign power whatever
a right to dispose of either, without their consent.

" 2. That our ancestors, who first settled these colonies,
were, at the time of their emigration from the mother coun-

430 NORTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

try, entitled to all the rights, liberties, and immunities of free
and natural born subjects, within the realm of England.

"3. That by such emigration they by no means forfeited,
surrendered, or lost, any of those rights ; but that they were,
and their descendants now are, entitled to the exercise and
enjoyment of all such of them as their local and other cir
cumstances enable them to exercise and enjoy.

"4. That the foundation of English liberty, and of free go
vernment, is a right in the people to participate in their legisla
tive council ; and as the English colonists are not represented,
and, from their local and other circumstances, cannot pro
perly be represented in the British parliament, they are enti
tled to a free and exclusive power of legislation in their seve
ral provincial legislatures, where their right of representation
can alone be pursued in all cases of taxation and internal po
lity, subject only to the negative of their sovereign, in such
manner as has been heretofore used and accustomed ; but if
from the necessity of the case, and a regard to the mutual
interests of both countries^ we cheerfully consent to the ope
ration of such acts of the British parliament as are bona
fide restrained to the regulation of our external commerce,
for the purpose of securing the commercial advantages of the
whole empire to the mother country, and the commercial be
nefit of its respective members ; excluding every idea of taxa
tion. internal or external, for raising a revenue on the subjects
in America, without their consent.

" 5. That the respective colonies are entitled to the common
law of England, and, more especially, to the great and inesti
mable privilege of being tried by their peers of the vicinage,
according to the course of that law.

"6. That they are entitled to the benefit of such of the Eng
lish statutes as existed at the time of their colonization, and
which they have, by experience, respectively found applica
ble to their several local and other circumstances.

"7. That these his majesty's colonies are likewise entitled
to all the immunities and privileges granted and confirmed
to them by royal charters, or secured by their several codes
of provincial laws.

JOSEPH HEWES. 431

" 8. That they have a right peaceably to assemble, consider
ry( their grievances, and petition the king ; and that all pro
secutions, prohibitory proclamations, and commitments for
the same, are illegal.

" 9. That the keeping a standing army in these colonies in
times of peace, without consent of the legislature of that co
lony in which such army is kept, is against the law.

" 10. It is indispensably necessary to good government, and
rendered essential by the English constitution, that the con
stituent branches of the legislature be independent of each
other; and therefore the exercise of legislative power in seve
ral colonies by a council appointed during pleasure by the
crown, is unconstitutional, dangerous, and destructive to the
freedom of American legislation.

"All and each of which the aforesaid deputies, in behalf of
themselves and their constituents, do claim, demand, and in
sist on, as their indisputable rights and liberties, which can
not be legally taken from them, altered, or abridged, by any
power whatever, without their consent, by their representa
tives in their several provincial legislatures."

To the above declaration of rights was added an enumera
tion of the wrongs already sustained by the colonies ; after
stating which, the report concluded as follows :

" To these grievous acts and measures, Americans cannot
submit ; but in hopes their fellow subjects in Great Britain
will, on a revision of them, restore us to that state in which
both countries found happiness and prosperity, we have, for
the present, only resolved to pursue the following peaceable
measures : 1. To enter into a non-importation, non-con
sumption, and non-exportation agreement, or association.
2. To prepare an address to the people of Great Britain, and
a memorial to the inhabitants of British America. And, 3. to
prepare a loyal address to his majesty, agreeably to resolu
tions already entered into."

Few measures adopted by any session of congress during
the revolutionary struggle, were more remarkable than that
of the congress of 1774, which recommended the system of
non-importation. It was a measure dictated by the highest

432 NORTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

patriotism, and proceeded upon the acknowledged fact, that
the same exalted patriotism which existed among them, exist
ed, also, among the American people. The efficiency of the
measure, it was obvious, must lie in the union of the people
to support it. They must adopt and persevere in a system
of privation. A willingness to do this generally prevailed
throughout the colonies ; and to the government of Great
Britain was presented the spectacle of thirteen colonies
adopting a measure, novel, perhaps, in the history of the
world, and supporting it at the sacrifice of a great portion of
those comforts which they had been accustomed to enjoy.

Although a merchant, and one who had been engaged in
commercial transactions with England for the space of twenty
years, Mr. Hewes cheerfully assisted in forming a plan of the
non-importation association, and most readily became a
member of it.

The manner in which Mr. Hewes had acquitted himself
during the session of this congress, was so acceptable to the
people of North Carolina, that he was again appointed to the
same high office, and in the month of May, 1775, again ap
peared at Philadelphia, and continued in congress until the
adjournment of that body, on the last day of July. During
the recess of congress, between July and September, he made
a visit to his friends in New-Jersey, and in the latter month
again resumed his place. From this date until the twenty-
ninth of October, 1779, Mr. Hewes continued to represent
the state of North Carolina, with the exception of something
more than a year, during which he devoted himself to his
private affairs, and to the interests of his state at home.

The last time that he appeared in congress was on the
twenty-ninth of October, of the year last mentioned, after
which, an indisposition under which he had laboured for
some time confined him to his chamber, and at length, on the
tenth of November, terminated his life, in the fiftieth year of*
his age. His funeral was attended on the following day by
congress, by the general assembly of Pennsylvania, the presi
dent and supreme executive council, the minister plenipoten
tiary of France, and a numerous assemblage of citizens. In

JOHN PENN, 433

testimony of their respect for his memory, congress resolved
to wear a crape around the left arm, and to continue in mourn
ing for the space of one month.

Although the events in the life of Mr. Hewes, which we
have been able to collect, are few, they perhaps sufficiently
speak his worth, as a man of integrity, firmness, and ardent
patriotism. To this may be added, that in personal appear
ance he was prepossessing, and characterized in respect to his
disposition for great benevolence, and in respect to his man
ners for great amenity. He left a large fortune, but no chil
dren to inherit it.

JOHN PENN.

JOHN PENN, was a native of the county of Caroline, in the
province of Virginia, where he was born on the seventeenth
day of May, 1741. He was the only child of his parents,
Moses and Catharine Penn.

The early education of young Penn was greatly neglected
by his parents, who appear in no degree to have appreciated
the value of knowledge. Hence, on his reaching the age of
eighteen, he had only enjoyed the advantages conferred by a
common school, and these for the space of but two or three
years.

The death of Mr. Penn occurred in the year 1759, on which
event his son became his own guardian, and the sole mana
ger of the fortune left him, which, though not large, was com
petent. It was fortunate that his principles, at this early age,
were in a good degree established; otherwise he might, at
this unguarded period of life, left as he was without pater
nal counsel and direction, have become the dupe of the un
principled, or giving loose to licentious passions, have ruined
himself by folly and dissipation.

Although the cultivation of his mind had been neglected in
3K 37

434 NORTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

the manner we have stated, he possessed intellectual powers
of no ordinary strength ; and, as he now enjoyed a competent
fortune, and possessed a disposition to cultivate those powers,
it is not surprising that his progress should have been rapid.

Fortunately he lived in the vicinity of Edmund Pendleton,
a gentleman of rare endowments, highly distinguished for his
legal attainments, and well known as one of the most accom
plished statesmen of Virginia. Mr. Pendleton being a rela
tive, young Penn sought access to his library, which was one
of the best in the province. The privilege which was thus
freely and liberally granted him, was by no means neglected.
By means of reading, the powers of his mind soon began to
unfold themselves, and he, at length, determined to devote
himself to the study of law.

Such a project, on the part of a young man whose early
education had been so greatly neglected, and whose only
guide through the labyrinth that lay before him, was to be
his own good sense, was indicative of powers of no ordina
ry character. Our country has furnished examples of a simi
lar kind ; and to the obscure and neglected, they present the
most powerful motives to exertion and perseverance. The
author of our being has prescribed no narrow limits to human
genius, nor conferred upon any one class of persons the exclu
sive privilege of becoming intellectually great.

At the age of twenty-one, Mr. Penn reaped in part the re
ward of his toil and indefatigable industry, in being licensed
as a practitioner of law. The habits of study and application
which he had now formed, were of great advantage to him in
pursuing the business of his profession. He rose with great
rapidity into notice, and soon equalled the most distinguished
at the bar. As an advocate, in particular, there were few
who surpassed him.

In 1774, Mr. Penn moved to the province of North Caroli
na, where he soon occupied as distinguished a place at the
bar, as he had done in Virginia; although by his removal to
another province it was necessary to understand and apply a
new code of laws. With these he made himself acquainted
with ease and celerity

JOHN FENN. 435

In 1775, he was elected a member of the continental con
gress, in which body he took his seat on the twelfth of Octo
ber. He was successively re-elected to congress, in the
years 1777, 1778, and 1779, in which body he was distin
guished for his promptitude and fidelity. He was seldom ab
sent from his seat, and hesitated not, either from want of
firmness or patriotism, to urge forward those measures, which
were calculated to redress the wrongs, and establish and per
petuate the rights of his country.

After the return of peace, Mr. Penn retired to the enjoy
ment of private life. The incidents in the remaining portion
of his history were, therefore, probably few ; and differed in
nothing from those which usually belong to individuals of
respectability, in the shades of peaceful retreat. His death
occurred in the month of September, 1788, at the age of forty-
six years. He had three children, two of \vhom died un
married.

THE

SOUTH CAROLINA DELEGATION

EDWARD RUTLEDGE,
THOMAS HEYWARD,
THOMAS LYNCH, JUN.
ARTHUR MIDDLETON.

EDWARD RUTLEDGE.

EDWARD RUTLEDGE, the first of the South Carolina dele
gation, who affixed his name to the Declaration of Indepen
dence, was born in the city of Charleston, November, 1741$.
lie was the youngest son of Doctor John Rutledge, who emi
grated from Ireland to South Carolina, about the year 1755,
His mother was Sarah Hert, a lady of respectable family, am!
large fortune. At the age of twenty-seven, she became a
widow with seven children. Her eldest son was John Rut-
ledge, distinguished for his patriotic zeal during the revolu
tion. Her youngest son was the subject of the present me
moir.

Of the early years of Edward Rutledge we have little to
record. He was placed under the care of David Smith, of
New-Jersey, by whom he was instructed in the learned lan
guages ; but he appears not to have made as rapid attainments
as some others, although, as a scholar, he was respectable.
Before he had devoted as much time to academic studies, as

EDWARD RUTLEDGE. 427

•s *mld have been desirable, he commenced the study of law
with his elder brother, who, at that time, was becoming the
most eminent advocate at the Charleston bar. Although at
this time he was still young, he was capable of appreciating
the advantages which he enjoyed, and was strongly impelled
to exertion, by the brilliant and successful example which
his brother held constantly before him.

In 1769, at the age of twenty years, he sailed for England,
to complete his legal education. He became a student at the
Temple. He derived great advantage from an attendance
upon the English courts, and houses of parliament. In the
latter place, he had an opportunity of listening to the elo
quence of some of the most distinguished orators who lived
at that day.

In 1773, he returned to his native country, and entered
upon the duties of his profession. He was at this time distin
guished for his quickness of apprehension, fluency of speech,
£iid graceful delivery. Hence he early excited the admiration
of those who heard him, and gave promise of that future emi
nence to which he was destined to arrive.

The general esteem in which he was held, was evinced in
1774, by his appointment to the distinguished congress which
assembled at Philadelphia in that year. He was at this time
but twenty-five years of age. It was a high honour for so
young a man to be called to serve in the national council,
with men of exalted powers and pre-eminent experience. It
furnished unquestionable pro,of of the estimation in which he
was held, and strong presumptive evidence that this estima
tion of his talents and moral worth was not unjust. As the
proceedings of the congress of 1774 were conducted with
closed doors, and an injunction of secrecy laid upon its mem
bers, it is impossible, at this day, to ascertain the precise
share of influence which the individual members exerted, on
all the measures which they advocated. Mr. Rutledge was,
however, with the other delegates of South Carolina, for
mally thanked by the provincial congress, for the spirited
and independent course he had pursued, and was again elected
to the important station which he held.

37*

43? SOUTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

In ine congress of 1776, he took an active part in the dis
cussions which preceded the declaration of independence.
He is said to have proposed some alterations in the original
draught of that celebrated instrument : but the precise nature
of them it is now impossible to ascertain. The merit of the
instrument doubtless wholly belongs to Mr. Jefferson. Some
alterations, indeed, were made in it ; but they were chiefly
verbal, while the spirit and texture remained untouched.

At a subsequent date, Mr. Rutledge was appointed, with
Dr. Franklin and John Adams, as commissioners to wait upon
Lord Howe, who had requested congress to appoint such a
committee to enter with him into negotiations for peace. In
a former page we had occasion to allude to the appointment
of these commissioners, and to state that the conference was
productive of no beneficial results.

On the breaking up of the conference, Lord Howe despatch
ed his own barge to convey the commissioners from Long
Island to New-York. A little before reaching the shore.
Doctor Franklin, putting his hand in his pocket, began chink
ing some gold and silver coin. This, when about leaving the
boat, he offered to the sailors, who had rowed it. The Bri
tish officer, however, who commanded the boat, prohibited
the sailors accepting it. After the departure of the boat, one
of the commissioners inquired why he had offered money to
the sailors. " Why," said the doctor, in reply, " the British
think we have no hard money in the colonies, and I thought
I would show them to the contrary. I risked nothing," added
he, " for I knew that the sailors would not be permitted to
accept it."

Mr. Rutledge was again appointed to congress, in the year
1779 ; but in consequence of ill health he was unable to reach
the seat of government, and returned home. In 1780, during
the investment of Charleston by the British, Mr. Rutledge
was taken prisoner by the enemy, and sent to St. Augustine
as a prisoner, where he was detained nearly a year before he
was exchanged. Soon after his exchange was effected, he
landed at Philadelphia, near which he resided, until a short
time before the city of Charleston was evacuated by the Bri-

EDWARD RTJTLEDGE. 439

tish, when he returned to the place of his nativity, and to the
enjoyment of the society of his friends and relations.

From this period, for the space of seventeen years, Mr.
Rutledge was successfully engaged in the practice of his pro
fession, and from time to time in important services which
he rendered to the state, as a member of her legislature.

In 1708, he relinquished his station at the bar, and was
elected the chief magistrate of South Carolina. His consti
tution, however, became much impaired in consequence of
severe and repeated attacks of the gout, to which he was sub*
ject. He continued, however, to perform his official duties
until within a short time before his death. This event is
supposed to have been somewhat hastened, by a necessary
attendance upon the sitting of the legislature at Columbia,
and an unfortunate exposure to rain and cold during his re
turn from the latter place to Charleston. On reaching home,
he was confined by a severe illness, which terminated his life
on the 23d day of January, 1800.

The death of Mr. Rutledge was felt to be a severe loss, both
by the people of Charleston and by the state at large. Few
men were more deservedly respected ; no one could be more
generally beloved. Military and other funeral honours were
paid to him on the occasion of his being carried to his long
home ; and the universal regret expressed at his departure,
showed full well how sincerely he was lamented.

Both in his public and private character, Mr. Rutledge was
adorned with many virtues. In his disposition, he was un
commonly benevolent ; he entered with great feeling into the
sufferings of his fellow men, and felt it not only his duty, but
his pleasure, to administer to their necessities. His deeds of
kindness were many, were widely extended, and are still re
membered with affection and gratitude.

As an orator, he was deservedly eminent. He had fault?,
indeed, both in point of manner and style, being too studied
in respect to the former, and too metaphorical, and sometimes
inaccurate, in respect to the latter. He also, it is said, ad
dressed himself rather to the passions than to the under
standing; yet, with these faults there were few speakers who

440 SOUTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

commanded greater attention, or were more successful. He
was Jess impetuous, and perhaps less commanding, than his
brother John Rutledge ; but he possessed more of the style
of Cicero. There was a suavity in his manner, a conciliatory
attraction in his arguments, which had frequently the effect
of subduing the prejudices of the unfriendly, and which sel
dom failed to increase the ardour and inflexibility of steady
friends. The eloquence of John Rutledge, like that of Pat
rick Henry of Virginia, was as a mountain torrent; that of
Edward Rutledge, that of a smooth stream gliding along the
plain ; the former hurried you forward with a resistless im
petuosity ; the latter conducted you with fascinations, that
made every progressive step appear enchanting.

In his person, Mr. Rutledge was above the middle size, and
of a florid, but fair complexion. His countenance expressed
great animation ; and, on account of his intelligent and bene
volent aspect, was universally admired.

On his return from Europe, Mr. Rutledge married the
daughter of Henry Middleton, by whom he left a son, Ma
jor Henry M. Rutledge, of Tennessee ; and a daughter, who,
it is believed, now resides at Charleston. Upon the death of
his first wife, he married the widow of Nicholas Eveleigh,
comptroller of the treasury of the United States, in the time
of Washington's administration. This lady is supposed to be
etill living.

THOMAS HEYWARD.

THOMAS HEYWARD was born in St. Luke's parish, in the
province of South Carolina, in the year 1746. His father,
Colonel Daniel Heyward, was a planter of great wealth, which
he had chiefly acquired by his industry.

Unlike many gentlemen of fortune, Mr. Heyward did not
appear to idolize his possessions ; at least, convinced of the
importance of intellectual cultivation, he determined to be-

THOMAS HEYWARD. 441

stow upon his son all the advantages which a thorough edu
cation might impart. Accordingly, the best school in the
province was selected for young Heyward, who, by his dili
gence, became well acquainted with the Latin language, and
with such other branches as were at that time taught in the
most respectable provincial seminaries.

Having finished his scholastic studies, he entered the law
office of a Mr. Parsons, a gentleman who at that time was dis
tinguished for his professional learning and practical skill.
On accomplishing the usual term of study, young Mr. Hey
ward, according to the fashion adopted by families of fortune,
was sent to England to complete his legal preparation. He
was entered as a student in one of the Inns of Court. Al
though he had in expectancy a large fortune, he devoted him
self with great ardour to the study of law, emulating the dili
gence of those who expected to derive their subsistence froru
the practice of the profession.

On completing his studies in England, he commenced the
tour of Europe, which occupied him several years. This
was an advantage which he enjoyed beyond most of the
youth of the colonies ; nor did he neglect to improve the su-
periour means which were thus allowed him of gaining a
knowledge of the different countries of Europe. He enjoyed
a rare opportunity of contrasting the industry and simplicity
of his countrymen, with the indolence, and luxury, and li
centiousness, the pride and haughtiness, so prevalent on the
old continent.

At length, satisfied with the observations which he had
made of men and manners abroad, he returned, with pleasure,
to his native country; and impressed with the obligations of
application to some honest calling, he devoted himself, with
great zeal for a man of fortune, to the labours of the law.

In 1775, Mr. Heyward was elected to supply a vacancy in
congress, occasioned by the recall of the distinguished John
Rutledge, whose presence was required at home to assist in
defending the state against a threatened invasion. This
honour, owing to his peculiar modesty, he at first declined.
He was, however, at length induced to enter upon the duties
3L

442 SOUTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

of his appointment, and arrived in Philadelphia in season to
attend upon the discussion of the great question of American
independence.

In the year 1778, Mr. Heyward was appointed a judge of
the criminal courts of the new government. A sense of duty
alone prompted him to accept of this arduous and responsible
station. Soon after his elevation to the bench, he was called
to the painful duty of presiding at the trial and condemnation
of several persons charged with a treasonable correspondence
with the British army, which, at that time, was in the vicinity
of Charleston. The condemnation of these persons was fol
lowed by their execution, which took place within view of
the enemy, and which served to render the judge most ob
noxious to the British.

In the spring of 1780, the city of Charleston was besieged
by General Clinton, and was taken possession of by him, on
the 12th of May. Judge Heyward, at this time, had com
mand of a battalion. On the reduction of the place, he be
came a prisoner of war. As he had been one of the leaders
of the revolution, he, with several others who had acted a
similarly distinguished part, were transported to St. Augustine,
while the other prisoners were confined on board some prison
ships in the harbour of Charleston. During his absence, be
suffered greatly in respect to his property; his plantation
being much injured by a party of marauders, and all his slaves
seized and carried away. Some of his slaves were after
wards reclaimed ; but one hundred and thirty were finally
lost, being transported, as was supposed, for the benefit of
the sugar planters on the island of Jamaica.

Judge Heyward, and his fellow prisoners at St. Augustine,
at length had leave to return to Philadelphia. On his passage
thither, he narrowly escaped a watery grave. By some acci
dent he fell overboard ; but, fortunately, kept himself from
sinking by holding to the rudder of the ship, until assistance
could be rendered to him.

On returning to Carolina, he resumed his judicial duties ;
in the exercise of which he continued till 179S. During this
interval, he acted as a member of a convention for forming

THOMAS LYNCH. 443

the state constitution, in 1790. In the following year, he
retired from all public labours and cares, except those which
were attached to his commission as judge.

Mr. Hey ward was twice married ; in 1773, to a Miss Mat
thews, a lady of affectionate disposition, and great personal
charms. Sometime after her death, he was again connected
in marriage with a Miss Savage. By both of these wives he
had children, the history of whom, however, we have not as
certained. Judge Heyward died in March, 1809, in the sixty-
fourth year of his age.

Although we have been able to collect but few incidents in
the life of Thomas Heyward, our readers may be assured that
he was among the most estimable of the men who lived in his
time, and one of the most firm, honest, intelligent, and fear
less, who embarked in the revolution. He was characterized
for sound judgment, and an ardent disposition. Possessing
such a character, he naturally acquired, and was justly enti
tled to, the confidence and esteem of his fellow-citizens.

It was happy for America, happy for the cause of freedom,
that the God of heaven raised up such a generation of men at
a time when the civil and religious liberties of the country de
manded their wisdom, fortitude, and patriotism ; and at a
time, too, when, without their existence, and without their
exalted virtues, the world had never seen so brilliant an ex
hibition of political liberty, order, and peace, as is presented
in the government of republican America.

THOMAS LYNCH.

THOMAS LYNCH was the son of a gentleman of the same
name, and was born on the fifth of August, 1749, at Prince
George's Parish, in the province of South Carolina. The
family was an ancient one, and is said to have originally emi
grated from Austria to England, where they settled in the

444 SOUTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

county of Kent; sometime after which, a branch passed over
to Ireland, and thence some of the descendants removed to
South Carolina. The name of the family is said to have been
derived from a field of pulse called lince, upon which the
inhabitants of a certain town in Austria lived, for some time,
during a siege which was laid to it; and from which circum
stance they changed the name of the town to Lince or Lintz,
which name was adopted by the principal family of the place.

The precise period when Jonack Lynch, the great grand
father of Thomas Lynch, the subject of the present memoir,
emigrated from Ireland to America is uncertain, but, proba
bly, at an early period after the settlement of the colony. At
his death, he left his son Thomas a slender patrimony, which,
however, by his industry, and especially by the purchase of a
large tract of land, which he devoted to the cultivation of
rice, was increased to a princely fortune. This fortune, at his
death, was left to a son by the name of Thomas, father of the
subject of the present sketch.

At an early age, young Thomas Lynch was sent to a flou
rishing school, at that time maintained at Georgetown, South
Carolina. Before he had reached his thirteenth year, his fa
ther removed him from this school and sent him to England,
to enjoy those higher advantages, which that country pre
sented to the youth of America. Having passed some time
in the collegiate institution of Eaton, he was entered a mem
ber of the university of Cambridge, the degrees of which in
stitution he received in due course. On leaving the universi
ty, he sustained a high reputation, both in respect to his clas
sical attainments, and for the virtues which adorned his cha
racter.

This intelligence, communicated by some friend to his fa
ther, was so highly flattering, that he was induced to continue
his son abroad for some years longer, and wrote to him, ex
pressing his wish that he should enter his name at the tem
ple, with a view to the profession of law. This he accord
ingly did, devoting himself with his characteristic zeal to the
philosophy of jurisprudence, and to the principles of the Bri
tish constitution.

THOMAS LYNCH.

445

About the year 1772, after an absence of eight or nine
years, young Mr. Lynch returned to South Carolina. He
returned an eminently accomplished man ; in his manners
graceful and insinuating, and with a mind enriched with
abundant stores of knowledge, justly the pride of his father,
and an ornament to the society in which he was destined to
move.

Although he was eminently qualified to enter upon the pro
fession of law, he succeeded in persuading his father to allow
him to relinquish the pursuit of a profession which his for
tune rendered it unnecessary for him to pursue. Such a pre
liminary course was unnecessary to entitle him to the confi
dence and esteem of his fellow-citizens. These he at once
enjoyed.

In 1775, on the raising of the first South Carolina regiment
of provincial regulars, he was appointed to the command of
a company. Having received his commission, he soon en
listed his quota of men, in some of the neighbouring coun
ties, and at the head of them took up his march for Charles
ton. Unfortunately, during the march he was attacked by a
violent bilious fever, which greatly injured his constitution,
and from the effects of which he never afterwards entirely re
covered.

On his recovery, he joined his regiment, but was at this
time unable, from the feeble state of his health, to perform
the duties of his station according to his wishes. Added to
this affliction, the unwelcome intelligence was received of the
dangerous illness of his father, who was at that time attend
ing in his place upon congress in Philadelphia. He imme
diately made the necessary arrangements to hasten to a dying
father, if possible to administer to him the support and con
solation which an affectionate son only could impart. To
his surprise, his application for a furlough for this purpose
was denied by the commanding officer, Col. Gadsden. This
disappointment, however, and the controversy whicli grew
out of the above refusal, were terminated by his election to
congress, as the successor of his father. He now lost no time
in hastening to Philadelphia, where he found his father still

44C SOUTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

living, and so far recovered that the hope was indulged that
he might yet be able to reach Carolina.

The health of the younger Mr. Lynch, soon after joining
congress, began also to decline with the most alarming ra
pidity. He continued, however, his attendance upon that
body, until the declaration of independence had been voted,
and his signature affixed to that important instrument. He
then set out for Carolina in company with his father, who
had hitherto been detained by feeble health in Philadelphia ;
but the father lived only to reach Annapolis, when a second
paralytic attack terminated his valuable life.

After this afflicting event, the son proceeded to Carolina ;
but such was his own enfeebled state of health, that he had
little reason to anticipate the long continuance of life. A
change of climate, in the view of his physicians and friends,
presented the only hope of his ultimate recovery. A voyage
to Europe was at that time eminently hazardous, on account
of exposure to capture. A vessel, however, was found pro
ceeding to St. Eustatia, on board of which, accompanied by
his amiable and affectionate wife, he embarked, designing to
proceed by a circuitous route to the south of France.

From the time of their sailing, nothing more is known of
their fate. Various rumours were from time to time in cir
culation concerning the vessel in which they sailed ; but their
friends, after months of cruel suspense, were obliged to adopt
the painful conclusion, that this worthy pair found a watery
grave during some tempest, which must have foundered the
ship in which they sailed.

Although the life of Mr. Lynch was thus terminated, at an
early age, he had lived sufficiently long to render eminent ser
vices to his country, and to establish his character as a man
of exalted views and exalted moral worth. Few men pos
sessed a more absolute control over the passions of the heart,
and few evinced in a greater degree the virtues which adorn
the human mind. In all the relations of life, whether as a
husband, a friend, a patriot, or the master of the slave, he ap
peared conscious of his obligations, and found his pleasure in
discharging them.

ARTHUR MIDDLETON. 447

That a man of so much excellence, of such ability and in
tegrity, such firmness and patriotism, so useful to his country,
so tender and assiduous in all the obligations of life, should
have been thus cut off, in the midst of his course, and in a
manner so painful to his friends, is one of those awful dispen
sations of HIM whose way is in the great deep, and whose
judgments are past finding out.

ARTHUR MIDDLETON.

ARTHUR MIDDLETON was the son of Henry Middleton, and
was born in the year 1743, at the seat of his father, at Mid
dleton place, near the banks of the Ashley.

At the early age of twelve years, he was sent to the cele
brated school of Hackney, in the neighbourhood of London ;
whence, after spending two years, he was removed to the
school of Westminster. The advantages which he here en
joyed resulted in a thorough acquaintance with the Greek and
Roman classics, especially in a knowledge of the former, in
which he is said to have greatly excelled. The taste which
he acquired for classical literature he preserved through life,
and from the indulgence of it derived an exalted pleasure,
lost to minds of a heavier mould.

At the age of eighteen or nineteen, ydung Middleton be
came a member of one of the colleges of the university of
Cambridge. Having for his companions young men frequently
of dissipated habits, he was often powerfully tempted to en
ter into their youthful follies ; but fortunately he escaped the
contagion of their pernicious examples, and devoted that lei
sure to the improvement of his mind, which the less reflect
ing devoted to amusements and vicious indulgence. In his
twenty-second year, he was graduated bachelor of arts, and
left the university with the reputation of an accomplished
scholar, and a moral man.

448 SOUTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

By means of his father's liberality, he was now enabled to
travel. After visiting several parts of England, he proceeded
to the continent, where he spent two years, chiefly in the
southern parts of Europe. At Rome, he passed several
months in viewing the various objects of taste afforded by
that ancient and splendid spot. He here greatly improved
his taste for music and painting ; and even became well versed
in the principles of sculpture and architecture.

Soon after his return to South Carolina, he was connected
in marriage with the daughter of Walter Izzard, Esq. Hav
ing still a fondness for travelling, he, soon after his marriage,
again embarked on a visit to Europe, accompanied by his
wife. In this tour he visited many places in England, whence
proceeding to the continent, they passed through several of
the principal cities of France and Spain. In 1773, Mr. Mid-
dleton once more returned to America, and now settled down
on the delightful banks of the Ashley.

The father of Mr. Middleton was, at this time, a man of
great wealth, and both by himself and family the approaching
controversy between Great Britain and her American colo
nies might have been viewed with great concern, had not the
patriotism with which they were imbued much preferred the
welfare of their country, to their private interests. A rupture
with the mother country would necessarily put to hazard the
wealth which had long been enjoyed by the family, and might
abridge that influence, and diminish those comforts, which that
wealth naturally gave them. But what were these in compari
son with the rights and liberties of a country, destined to em
brace millions within its bosom ? Between the alternatives
presented, there was no room to hesitate. Both father and
son, in the spirit which had long characterized the family,
stood forth in the defence of the rights of America, and "left
not a hook to hang a doubt on," that they were patriots of
the noblest stamp.

In the spring of 1775, Mr. Arthur Middleton was chosen
on a secret committee, who were invested with authority to
place the colony in a state of defence. In the exercise of the
trust with which they were charged, they immediately took

ARTHUR MIDDLETON. 449

possession of the public magazine of arms and ammunition,
and removed its contents to a place of safety.

In the following June, the provincial congress of South
Carolina proceeded to appoint a council of safety, con
sisting of thirteen persons. This council, of which Mr. Mid-
dleton was a member, took measures to organize a military
force, the officers of which received commissions at their
hands, and under their signatures. Among the members of
this committee, no one exhibited more activity, or manifested
a greater degree of resolution and firmness, than did Arthur
Middleton.

In February, 1776, the provincial legislature of South
Carolina appointed a committee to prepare and report a con
stitution, which ** should most effectually secure peace and
good order in the colony, during the continuance of the dis
pute with Great Britain." This duty was assigned to Mr
Middleton and ten others.

Having discharged the duty to the satisfaction of the as
sembly, Mr. Middleton was soon after elected by that body
a representative of South Carolina in the congress of the
United States, assembled at Philadelphia. Here he had an
opportunity of inscribing his name on the great charter of
American liberties. At the close of the year 1777, Mr. Mid
dleton relinquished his seat in congress, and returned to
South Carolina, leaving behind him, in the estimation of those
who had been associated with him in the important measures
of congress, during the time he had been with them, the cha
racter of a man of the purest patriotism, of sound judgment,
and unwavering resolution.

In the spring of 1778, the assembly of South Carolina pro
ceeded to the formation of a new constitution, differing, in
many important points, from that of 1776. On presenting it
to the governor, John Rutledge, for his approbation, that
gentleman refused to assent to it. But, as he would not
embarrass the assembly in any measures which they might
deem it expedient to adopt, he resigned the executive chair,
upon which the assembly proceeded by a secret ballot again
to fill it. On counting the votes, it was found that Mr. Mid-
3M 38*

450 SOUTH CAROLINA DELEGATION.

dleton was elected to the office by a considerable majority.
But, entertaining similar views in respect to the constitution,
expressed by the distinguished gentleman who had vacated
the chair of state, he frankly avowed to the assembly, that he
could not conscientiously accept the appointment, under the
constitution which they had adopted. The candour with
which he had avowed his sentiments, and the sterling integ
rity of the man, exhibited in refusing an honour from con
scientious scruples, instead of diminishing their respect for
him, contributed to raise him still higher in the confidence of
his fellow-citizens. The assembly proceeded to anothei
choice, and elected Mr. Rawlins Lowndes to fill the vacancy,
who gave his sanction to the new constitution.

During the year 1779, the southern states became the prin
cipal theatre of the war. Many of the plantations were wan
tonly plundered, and the families and property of the princi
pal inhabitants were exposed to the insults and ravages of
the invaders. During these scenes of depredation, Middle-
ton place did not escape. Although the buildings were
spared, they were rifled of every thing valuable. Sucli arti
cles as could not easily be transported were either wantonly
destroyed, or greatly injured. Among those which were in
jured, was a valuable collection of paintings belonging to Mr.
Middleton. Fortunately, at the time the marauders visited
Middlcton place, the family had made their escape a day's
journey to the north of Charleston.

On the investment of the latter place, in the following year,
Mr. Middleton was present, and actively engaged in the de
fence of the city. With several others, on the surrender of
this place, he was taken prisoner, and was sent by sea to St.
Augustine, in East Florida, where he was kept in confinement
for nearly a year. At length, in July, 1781, he was ex
changed, and proceeded in a cartel to Philadelphia. On his
arrival at the latter place, Governor Rutledge, in the exercise
of authority conferred upon him by the general assembly of
South Carolina, appointed him a representative in congress.
To this office he was again elected in 1782 ; but in the month
of November of that year, he returned to South Carolina on

ARTHUR MIDDLETON. 451

a visit to his family, from whom he had been separated during
a long and anxious period.

On the signing the preliminaries of peace, Mr. Middleton
declined accepting a seat in congress, preferring the pleasures
of retirement with his family, to any honour which could be
conferred upon him. He occasionally, however, accepted of
a seat in the state legislature, in which he was greatly instru
mental in promoting the tranquillity and happiness of his fel
low-citizens.

The life of Mr. Middleton was terminated on the 1st of
January, 1787. His death was occasioned by an intermittent
fever, which he took in the preceding month of November,
by an injudicious exposure to the unsettled weather of the
autumnal season.

In his person, Mr. Middleton was of ordinary size, sym
metrically proportioned, with fine features, and countenance
expressive of firmness and decision.

THE

GEORGIA DELEGATION.

BUTTON GWINNETT,
LYMAN HALL,

GEORGE WALTON

BUTTON GWINNETT.

BUTTON GWINNETT was a native of England, where he wan
horn about the year 1732. His parents were respectable in
life, and gave their son as good an education as their mode
rate circumstances would allow. On coming of age, Mr.
Gwinnett became a merchant in the city of Bristol.

Some time after his marriage in England, he removed to
America, and selecting Charleston, South Carolina, as a place
of settlement, he continued there for about two years ; at the
expiration of which, having sold his stock in trade, he pur
chased a large tract of land in Georgia, where he devoted
himself extensively to agricultural pursuits.

Mr. Gwinnett had from his earliest emigration to America
taken a deep interest in the welfare of the colonies ; but, from
the commencement of the controversy with Great Britain, he
had few anticipations that the cause of the colonies could
succeed. A successful resistance to so mighty a power as
that of the United Kingdoms, to him appeared extremely

BUTTON GWIXXETT. 453

doubtful ; and such continued to be his apprehensions, until
about the year 1775, when his views experienced no incon
siderable change.

This change in his sentiments, touching the final issue of
the controversy, produced a corresponding change in his con
duct. He now came forth as the open advocate of strong and
decided measures, in favour of obtaining a redress, if possi
ble, of American grievances, and of establishing the rights of
the colonies on a firm and enduring basis. In the early part
of the year 1776, he was elected by the general assembly,
held in Savannah, a representative of the province of Georgia,
in congress. Agreeably to his appointment he repaired to
Philadelphia, and in the following month of May, for the first
time, took his seat in the national council. In October, he
was re-elected for the year ensuing to the same responsible
station.

In the month of February, 1777, a convention of citizens
from Georgia was held in Savannah to frame a constitution
for the future government of the state. Of this convention
Mr. Gwinnett was a member, and is said to have furnished
the outlines of that constitution, which was subsequently
adopted.

Shortly after the above convention, occurred the death of
Mr. Bullock, the president of the provincial council. To this
office Mr. Gwinnett was immediately elevated. Unfortu
nately, while he represented the colony in congress, he was a
competitor with Colonel Lackland M'Intosh, for the office of
brigadier general of the continental brigade, about to be levi
ed in Georgia, to which office the latter was appointed. The
success of his rival, Mr. Gwinnett bore with little fortitude.
His ambition was disappointed, and being naturally hasty in
his temper, and in his conclusions, he seems, from this time,
to have regarded Colonel M'Intosh as a personal enemy.

On becoming president of the executive council, Mr. Gwin-
aett adopted several expedients by which to mortify his ad-
rersary. Among these, one was the assumption of great
power over the continental army in Georgia, in consequence

454 GEORGIA DELEGATION.

of which General M'lntosh was treated with much disrespect
by a part of his officers and soldiers. To humble his adver
sary still further, Mr. Gwinnett, in an expedition which he had
projected against East Florida, designed to command the con
tinental troops and the militia of Georgia himself, to the ex
clusion of General M'lntosh from the command even of his
own brigade.

Just at this period, it became necessary to convene the le
gislature for the purpose of organizing the new government.
In consequence of the station which Mr. Gwinnett held as
president of the council, he was prevented from proceeding
at the head of the expedition destined against East Florida.
The troops, therefore, were by his orders placed under the
command of a subordinate officer of M'Intosh's brigade. The
expedition entirely failed, and probably contributed to the
failure of Mr. Gvvinnett's election to the office of governor, in
May, 1777.

This failure blasted the hopes of Mr. Gwinnett, and brought
his political career to a close. In the disappointment and
mortification of his adversary, General M'lntosh foolishly
exulted. The animosity between these two distinguished
men, from this time, continued to gather strength, until Mr.
Gwinnett, unmindful of the high offices which he had held,
of his obligations to society, and of his paramount obligations
to the author of his being, presented a challenge to General
M'lntosh. They fought at the distance of only twelve feet.
Both were severely wounded. The wound of Mr. Gwinnett
proved mortal ; and on the 27th of May, 1777, in the forty-
fifth year of his age, he expired.

Thus fell one of the patriots of the revolution; and though
entitled to the gratitude of his country, for the services which
he rendered her, her citizens will ever lament that he fell a
victim to a false ambition, and to a false sense of honour. No
circumstances could justify an action so criminal, none can
ever palliate one so dishonourable.

In his person, Mr. Gwinnett was tall, and of noble and
commanding appearance. In his temper, lie was irritable ;

LYMAN HALL. 456

yet in his language he was mild, and in his manners polite
and graceful. Happy had it been for him, had his ambition
been tempered with more prudence ; and probably happy for
his country, had his political career not been terminated in
the prime of life.

LYMAN HALL.

LYMAN HALL was a native of Connecticut, where he was
born about the year 1731. After receiving a collegiate edu
cation, and having acquired a competent knowledge of the
theory and practice of medicine, he removed, in 1752, to
South Carolina. He was induced, however, during the same
year, to remove to Georgia, where he established himself at
Sunbury, in the district of Medway. In this place he con
tinued attending to the duties of his profession, until the com
mencement of the revolutionary contest.

On the arrival of this important crisis in the history of the
colonies, the patriotism of Doctor Hall became greatly excited
to the interests and dangers of his country. He perceived
that the approaching storm must necessarily be severe ; but
with the kindred spirits of the north, he was determined to
meet it with patriotic firmness and resolution. Having ac
cepted of a situation in the parish of St. John, which was a
frontier settlement, both his person and property were ex
posed to great danger, from his proximity to the Creek in-
dians and to the royal province of Florida.

The parish of St. John, at an early period of the contest,
entered with great spirit into the general opposition of the
country against Great Britain, while a majority of the inhabi
tants of Georgia entertained different sentiments. So widely
different were the views and feelings of the people of this pa
rish from those of the inhabitants of the province generally
that an almost entire separation took place between them.

456 GEORGIA DELEGATION.

In July, 1774, the friends of liberty held a general meeting
at Savannah, where Doctor Hall appeared as a representative
of the parish of St. John. The measures, however, adopted
at that time, fell far short of the wishes both of this patriot
and his constituents. In January, 1775, another meeting
was held at Savannah, at which it was agreed to petition the
king for a redress of grievances, and for relief from the arbi
trary acts of the British ministry.

The parish of St. John, dissatisfied with the temporizing
policy of the Savannah convention, in the following month
made application to the committee of correspondence in
Charleston, South Carolina, to form an alliance with them, by
which their trade and commerce should be conducted on the
principles of the non-importation association. The patriotic
views and feelings of this independent people were highly ap
plauded by the committee, but they found themselves under
the necessity, by the rules of the continental association, of
declining the alliance.

Upon receiving this denial, the inhabitants of St. John
agreed to pursue such independent measures as the patriotic
principles which they had adopted should appear to justify.
Accordingly, they resolved not to purchase slaves imported
into Savannah, nor to hold any commercial intercourse with
that city, nor with surrounding parishes, unless for the neces
saries of life, and these to be purchased by direction of a com
mittee. Having taken this independent stand, they next pro
ceeded to choose a representative to congress, and on count
ing the votes, it was found that Doctor Hall was unanimously
elected.

In the following May, Doctor Kail appeared in the hall of
congress, and by that body was unanimously admitted to a
seat. But, as he represented not the colony of Georgia, bu*
only a parish of the colony, it was at the same time resolved
to reserve the question as to his right to vote for the further
deliberation of the congress.

The above question at length coming before the house, on
the occasion of congress taking the opinions of its members
by colonies, Doctor Hall expressed his willingness to give his

LYMAN HALL. 457

vote only in those cases in which the sentiments of congress
were not taken by colonies.

Fortunately for the cause of liberty, or. tne 15th of July,
1775, the convention of Georgia acceded to the general con
federacy, and proceeded to the appointment of five delegates
to congress, three of whom attended at the adjourned meeting
of that body, September 13, 1775.

Among the delegates thus appointed, Dr. Hall was one.
To this station he was annually re-elected until 1780, at the
close of which year he finally retired from the national legis
lature.

At length Georgia fell temporarily into the power of the
British. On this event, Doctor Hall removed his family to the
north, and suffered the confiscation of all his property by the
British government established in the state. In 1782, he re
turned to Georgia, and in the following year was elected to
the chief magistracy of the state.

After enjoying this office for a time, he retired from the
cares of public life, and about the sixtieth year of his age,
died at his residence in the county of Burke, whither he had
removed.

Doctor Hall in hi* person, was tall and well proportioned.
In hie manners he was easy, and in his deportment dignified
and courteous. He was by nature characterised for a warm
and enthvsiastic disposition, which, however, was under the
guidance of a sound discretion. His mind was active and
discriminating. Ardent in his own feelings, he possessed the
power of exciting others to action; and though in congress
he acted n.jt so conspicuous a part as many others, yet his
example and his exertions, especially in connexion with those
of the inhabitants of the circumscribed parish of St. John,
powerfully contributed to the final accession of the whole co
lony of Georgia to the confederacy ; thus presenting in array
against the mother country the whole number of her Ameri
can colonies.

3 N 39

45S GEORGIA DELEGATION.

GEORGE WALTON.

GEORGE WALTON, the last of the Georgia delegation, who
signed the declaration of independence, and with an account
of \vhom we shall conclude these biographical notices, was
born in the county of Frederick, Virginia, about the year
1740. He was early apprenticed to a carpenter, who being a
man of selfish and contracted views, not only kept him closely
at labour during the day, b.ut refused him the privilege of a
candle, by which to read at night.

Young Walton possessed a mind by nature strong in its
powers, and though uncultivated, not having enjoyed even
the advantages of a good scholastic education, he was ardently
bent on the acquisition of knowledge ; so bent, that during
the day, at his leisure moments, he would collect light wood,
which served him at night instead of a candle. His applica
tion was close and indefatigable ; his acquisitions rapid and
valuable.

At the expiration of his apprenticeship, he removed to the
province of Georgia, and entered the office of a Mr. Young,
with whom he pursued the preparatory studies of the profes
sion of law, and in 1774, he entered upon its duties.

At this time the British government was in the exercise of
.full power in Georgia. Both the governor and his council
were firm supporters of the British ministry. It was at this
period that George Walton, and other kindred spirits, assem
bled a meeting of the friends of liberty, at the liberty pole, at
Tondee's tavern in Savannah, to take into consideration the
means of preserving the constitutional rights and liberties of
the people of Georgia, which were endangered by the then
recent acts of the British parliament.

At this meeting, Mr. Walton took a distinguished part.
Others, also, entered with great warmth and animation into
the debate. It was. at length, determined, to invite the dif
ferent parishes of the province, to come into a general union
and co-operation with the other provinces of America to se
cure their constitutional rights and liberties.

GEORGE WALTON. 45$

In opposition to this plan, the royal governor and his coun
cil immediately and strongly enlisted themselves, and so far
succeeded by their influence, as to induce another meeting,
which was held in January, 1775, to content itself with pre
paring a petition to be presented to the king. Of the com
mittee appointed for this purpose Mr. Walton was a member.
The petition, however, shared the fate of its numerous pre
decessors.

In February, 1775, the committee of safety met at Savan
nah. But notwithstanding that several of the members advo
cated strong and decisive measures, a majority were for pur
suing, for the present, a temporising policy. Accordingly,
the committee adjourned without concerting any plan for the
appointment of delegates to the continental congress. This
induced the people of the parish of St. John, as noticed in the
preceding memoir, to separate, in a degree, from the provin
cial government, and to appoint Mr. Hall a delegate to repre
sent them in the national legislature.

In the month of July, 1775, the convention of Georgia ac
ceded to the general confederacy, and five delegates, Lyman
Hall, Archibald Bullock, John Houston, John J. Zubly, and
Noble W. Jones, were elected to represent the state in con
gress.

In the month of February, 1776, Mr. Walton was elected
to the same honourable station, and in the following month of
October, was re-elected. From this time, until October, 1781,
he continued to represent the state of Georgia at the seat of
government, where he displayed much zeal and intelligence,
in* the discharge of the various duties which were assigned
him. He was particularly useful on a committee, of which
Robert Morris and George Clymer were his associates, ap
pointed to transact important continental business in Phila
delphia, during the time that congress was obliged to retire
from that city.

In December, 1778, Mr. Walton received a colonel's com
mission in the militia, and was present at the surrender of
Savannah to the British arms. During the obstinate defence
of that place, Colonel Walton was wounded in the thigh, in

460 GEORGIA DELEGATION.

consequence of which he fell from his horse, and was made 3
prisoner by the British troops. A brigadier-general was de
manded in exchange for him ; but in September, 1779, he was
exchanged for a captain of the navy.

In the following month, Colorrel Walton was appointed
governor of the state ; and in the succeeding January, was
elected a member of congress for two years.

The subsequent life of Mr. Walton was filled up in the
discharge of the most respectable offices within the gift of
the state. In what manner he was appreciated by the peo
ple of Georgia, may be learnt from the fact that he was
at six different times elected a representative to congress ;
twice appointed governor of the state ; once a senator of
the United States ; and at four different periods a judge
of the superiour courts, which last office he held for fifteen
years, and until the time of his death.

It may be gathered from the preceding pages, respect
ing IYII:. VtVitCn, ^at he was no ordinary man. He rose
into distinction by the force of his native powers. In
his temperament he was ardent, and by means of his en
thusiasm in the great cause of liberty, rose to higher emi
nence, and secured a greater share of public favour and con
fidence, than he would otherwise have done.

Mr. Walton was not without his faults and weaknesses.
He was accused of a degree of pedantry, and sometimes
indulged his satirical powers beyond the strict rules of pro
priety* He was perhaps, also, too contemptuous of public
opinion, especially when that opinion varied from his own.

The death of Mr. Walton occurred on the second day of
February, 1804. During the latter years of his life, he suf
fered intensely from frequent and long continued attacks of
the gout, which probably tended to undermine his constitu
tion, and to hasten the event of his dissolution. He had at
tained however to a good age, and closed his life, happy in
having contributed his full share towards the measure of his
country's glory..

SKETCH

LIFE OF WASHINGTON

GEORGE WASHINGTON, the third son of Augustine Wash
ington, was born Feb. 22, 1782, near the banks of the Po-
lomac, in the county of Westmoreland, Virginia. When
but ten years old, he was deprived of his father, in conse
quence of which the care of his improvement devolved ex
clusively upon his remaining parent, who admirably fulfilled
her duty towards him ; but, from the limited extent of her
fortune, his education was confined to the strictly useful
branches of knowledge. In 1743, his elder brother mar
ried a connexion of lord Fairfax, the proprietor of the
northern neck of Virginia ; in consequence of which George
was introduced to the acquaintance of that nobleman, who
gave him, when in his eighteenth year, an appointment as
surveyor in the western part of the territory mentioned.
In 1751, his military bent induced him to accept the station
of one of the adjutant-generals of Virginia, with the rank
of major. Soon afterwards, he was sent, by governor Din-
kiddie, on a perilous mission, in consequence of the French
troops having taken possession of a tract of country claim
ed by Virginia, and commenced the erection of a line of
posts, to be extended from the lakes to that river. After
£reat toil and danger, he reached the station of the French

462 SKETCH OF THE

commander, to whom he delivered the governor's letter ;
and, having received an answer from him, he returned.
As no disposition was indicated to comply with the requisi
tion which had been made, a regiment was raised to main
tain the rights of the British crown, and Mr. Washington
was appointed its lieutenant-colonel. On the death of the
colonel, Mr. Fry, he succeeded to the command, and great
ly distinguished himself by his defence of fort Necessity
against a very superior French force. He was obliged, at
length, to capitulate, but on highly favorable terms, and the
legislature of Virginia passed a vote of thanks to him for
his conduct on the occasion. In the course of the winter
of 1754, orders were received from England for settling
the rank of the officers of his majesty's forces ; and, those
who were commissioned by the king being directed to take
rank of the provincial officers, colonel Washington resign
ed his commission in disgust. He then retired to a country-
seat, which he had acquired by the death of his brother,
who, having served in the expedition against Carthagena,
had named it Mount Vernon, in honor of the admiral who
commanded the fleet in that enterprise. He did not, how
ever, remain long in private life. In the spring of 1755, he
was invited, by general Braddock, to enter his family as a
volunteer aid-de-camp, in his expedition to the Ohio. The
history of this disastrous expedition, and the admirable con
duct of Washington, are too well known to need repetition :
had his counsels been followed, the result, in all probability,
would have been different. In the battle with the Indians,
he had two horses killed under him, and four balls passed
through his coat; but, to the astonishment of all, he escap
ed unhurt, while every other officer on horseback was either
killed or wounded. His reputation was now established,.
and he was immediately appointed to the command of a
regiment, consisting of sixteen companies, raised by the
legislature of Virginia, for the defence of the province, after
the intelligence of the defeat of Braddock, and the retreat
of Dunbar, had been received. He was also designated, in<

LIFE OF WASHINGTON.

463

his commission, as the commander-in-chief of all the forces
raised and to be raised in the colony j and, as a still further
proof of the public confidence, he was intrusted with the
unusual privilege of selecting his field-officers.

During the years 1755 — 1758, he was engaged in protect
ing the frontier from the incursions of the French and Indians
— a duty from which he was at length relieved by the capture
of fort Duquesne. After this expulsion of the French from
the Ohio, the hostile operations of the Indians ceased, and
Virginia was relieved from the dangers with which she had
been threatened; and, as the health of colonel Washington
had been much impaired by his arduous labors, and his do
mestic affairs required his attention, he resigned his com
mission, having established an exactness of discipline in his
regiment, which reflected the grearest credit on his military
character. He soon afterwards married Mrs. Custis, a
young lady to whom he had been long attached, and who,
besides a large fortune, possessed great personal attractions
arid accomplishments of mind. Previously to his resigna
tion, he had taken his seat in the general assembly, of which
he had been elected a member by the county of Frederick.
For several years after his marriage, the attention of colonel
Washington was principally directed to the management of
his estate. He continued a most respectable member of the
legislature of the province, and took an early and decided
part against the claims of supremacy asserted by the British
parliament.

As hostilities approached, he was chosen by the inde
pendent companies formed through the northern parts of
Virginia to command them, and was also elected a member
of the first congress which met at Philadelphia. Here he
was placed on all those committees whose duty it was to
make arrangements for defence. When it became neces
sary to appoint a commander-in-chief, his military charac
ter, the solidity of his judgment, the steady firmness of hi&
temper, the dignity of his person and deportment, the con
fidence inspired by his patriotism and rectitude, and the in-

464

SKETCH OF THE

dependence of his fortune, combined to designate him, in
the opinion of all, for that important station; and, accord
ingly, on the fourteenth of June, 1775, he was unanimously
chosen " general and commander-in-chief of the armies of
the United Colonies, and all the forces now raised or to be
raised by them." After expressing his high sense of the
honor conferred upon him, his firm determination to exert
every power he possessed in the service of his country, and
her "glorious cause," and his diffidence of his abilities
and experience, and declining all compensation for his ser
vices, at the same time avowing an intention to keep an
exact account of his expenses, which he should rely on
congress to discharge, he proceeded, as soon as the neces
sary arrangements could be made, to the head-quarters of
the American army, thefc at Cambridge, in the neighbor'
hood of Boston. On arriving there, he bent the whole
force of his mind to overcome the great difficulties with
which he was obliged to struggle, in consequence of the
want of ammunition, clothing and magazines, the deficien
cy of arms and discipline, and the evils of short enlistments.
The history of this campaign before Boston is a history
of successive exertions to surmount almost insuperable ob
stacles, by one who was solicitous, in the extreme, to per
form some great and useful achievement, in order to prove
himself worthy of his high station. In one of his letters to
congress, at this period, he says, " I cannot help acknowl
edging that I have many disagreeable sensations on account
of my situation ; for to have the eyes of the whole conti
nent fixed upon me, with anxious expectation of hearing of
some great event, and to be restrained in every military
operation, for want of the necessary means to carry it on,
is not very pleasing, especially as the means used to conceal
my weakness from the enemy, conceal it also from our
friends and add to their wonder." This was written in
February, after a council of war had expressed an opinion,
chiefly on account of the want of ammunition for the artil
lery, against the execution of a bold plan which he had

LIFE OF WASHINGTON. 465

formed of crossing the ice, and attacking general Howe,
in Boston. He then took possession of the heights of Dor
chester, in the persuasion that a general action would ensue,
as the position enabled him to annoy the ships in the harbor
and the soldiers in the town.

The British general, in consequence, was reduced to the
alternative of either dislodging the Americans or evacuating
the place, and endeavored to accomplish the former ; but
the troops which were embarked for the purpose were scat
tered by a furious storm, and disabled from immediately
prosecuting the enterprise. Before they could be again in
readiness for the attack, the American works were made
so strong that an attempt upon them was thought unadvisa-
ble ; and the evacuation could no longer be delayed. It
took place on the seventeenth of March, and gave great joy
to the United Colonies. Congress passed a vote of thanks
to the general and his army, " for their wise and spirited
coiiduct in tne seige and acquisition of Boston," and direct
ed a medal of gold to be struck in commemoration of the
event.

As soon as the British fleet had put to sea, the American
army proceeded, by divisions, to New York, where it arriv
ed on the fourteenth of April. Every effort was made by
Washington to fortify the city, before the appearance of the
enemy. In the beginning of July, the British troops were
landed on Staten island, and some efforts were made by lord
Howe, who commanded the fleet, to open negotiations for
the restoration of peace; but they failed, in consequence
of the refusal of the American commander to receive any
communication not addressed to him in such a way as to
acknowledge his public character. The English com
mander had directed his letters to " George Washington,
esquire," and then to "George Washington, &c., &c.,
&c.," but declining an unequivocal recognition of his sta
tion. The disastrous affair of Lono- island soon afterwards

O

occurred, on the twenty-seventh of August, in which Washi
ngton was obliged to behold the carnage of his troops

466 SKETCH OF THE

without being able to assist them. It constrained him to
withdraw his forces entirely from the island, which he ac
complished on the night of the twenty-eighth, with such
secrecy, that all the troops and military stores, with the
greater part of the provisions, and all the artillery, except
such heavy pieces as could not be drawn through the roads,
rendered almost impassable by rains, were carried over in
safety. From the commencement of the action, on the
morning of the twenty-seventh, until the American forces
had passed the East river, on the morning of the twenty-
ninth, his exertions and fatigues were unremitted. Through
out that time, he was almost constantly on horseback, and
never closed his eyes. The manner in which this operation
was performed, greatly enhanced his military reputation,
and it may justly be ranked among those skilful manoeuvres
which distinguish a master in the art of war. No ordinary
talents, certainly, are requisite to withdraw, without loss, a
defeated, dispirited and undisciplined army from the view
of an experienced and able enemy, and to transport them
in safety across a large river, while watched by a numerous
and vigilant fleet.

In consequence of the operations of the British general,
it soon became indispensable to evacuate New York. This
was done on the fifteenth of September, with an inconsider
able loss of men. The strongest point of the position which
Washington then took, was at Kingsbridge; but it was soon
afterwards deemed necessary to withdraw altogether from
York island, and the army moved towards the White Plains.
General Howe followed, and the battle of the White Plains
ensued, in which a portion of the American forces, occupy
ing a hill on the right of the army, under the command of
general MacDougal, were driven from their station after an
animated engagement. Washington then changed his posi
tion for another, and Howe, considering this too strong to
be attempted with prudence, retired down the North river,
for the purpose of investing fort Washington, on York
island. It was taken, and its garrison made prisoners of

LIFE OF WASHINGTON. 467

war ; on which the American general retreated into New
Jersey.

His situation now was gloomy in the extreme. All his
efforts to raise the militia had been ineffectual ; and no
confidence could be entertained of receiving reinforcements
from any quarter. But that unyielding rirmness, which
constituted one of the most valuable and prominent traits
of his character, enabled him to bear up against every diffi
culty. " Undismayed," says Marshall, " by the dangers
which surrounded him, he did not, for an instant, relax his
exertions, nor omit any thing which could obstruct the pro
gress of the enemy, or improve his own condition. He did
not appear to despair of the public safety, but struggled
against adverse fortune, with the hope of yet vanquishing
the difficulties which surrounded him, and constantly show
ed himself to his harassed and enfeebled army, with a serene,
unembarrassed countenance, betraying no fears in himself,
and invigorating and inspiring with confidence the bosoms
of others. To this unconquerable firmness, to this perfect
self-possession, under the most desperate circumstances, is
America, in a great degree, indebted for her independence."

In his retreat through New Jersey, Washington was fol
lowed by the British army, flushed with victory, highly dis
ciplined, and perfectly equipped, whilst his own troops were
dispirited, destitute, and daily decreasing by the expiration
of their terms of service. In December, the British gene
ral made an attempt to get possession of a number of boats
for the transportation of his forces over the Delaware ; but,
having failed, he went into quarters. Washington, having,
about the same time, been joined by some effective rein
forcements, meditated a blow on the enemy while distribu
ted in their cantonments, which might retrieve, in a meas
ure, the disastrous posture of American affairs, relieve
Philadelphia from immediate danger, and rouse the droop
ing spirits of his countrymen. He accordingly formed the
plan of attacking all the British posts on the Delaware at
the same instant ; but only that part of it succeeded which

468

SKETCH OF THE

was conducted by him in person. It is unnecessary to give
the particulars of the successes at Trenton and Princeton*
Besides the immediate advantages accruing from them in
saving Philadelphia, and recovering New Jersey, the moral
effects which they produced in re-animating the spirit of
the people, were incalculable. Confidence in the com-
mander-in-chief became universal. Immediately afterwards,
congress declared, that, in the then state of things, the very
existence of civil liberty depended on the right execution
of military powers, to a vigorous direction of which, distant,
numerous and deliberative bodies were unequal, and author
ized general Washington to raise sixteen additional regi
ments, conferring upon him, at the same time," for six
months, dictatorial power, for the conduct of the war.

In the beginning of 1777, Washington caused all his
soldiers to be inoculated, as the small-pox had proved more
fatal in his camp than the sword of the enemy. During
this winter, while the two armies were in their respective
quarters, he used every exertion to raise a powerful force
for the ensuing campaign; but his efforts were not attended
with corresponding success. Not allowing himself to be
dispirited, he endeavored to make the most of the means in
his hands, which, however, so far from enabling him to
carry into effect the offensive operations he had meditated,
were unequal even to defensive war.

In July, general Howe embarked his forces ; and, it
having been ascertained that the destination of the fleet
was against Philadelphia, Washington moved southward to
the Delaware. On the twenty-fifth of August, the British
disembarked at the ferry of Elk river, and, on the tenth of
September, the battle of Brandywine was fought, in which
the Americans were defeated. It opened the way to Phila
delphia for the enemy ; and, on the twenty-sixth, they en
tered the city, though not before Washington had made an
effort to engage them again on the sixteenth, which was
frustrated by a violent rain, that rendered the fire-arms of
the Americans unfit for use, and obliged them to retreat,

LIFE OF WASHINGTON. 469

without any thing more than a skirmish between the advan
ced parties. " From the twenty-fifth of August," says Mar
shall, "when the British army landed at the head of Elk,
until the twenty-sixth of September, when it entered Phila
delphia, the campaign had been active, and the duties of
the American general uncommonly arduous. The best
English writers bestow high encomiums on sir William
Howe for his military skill and masterly movements during
this period. At Brandywine, especially, Washington is
supposed to have been ' out-generalled, more out-generalled
than in any action of the war.' If all the operations of this
trying period be examined, and the means in possession of
both be considered, the American chief will appear in no
respect inferior to his adversary. With an army decidedly
inferior, not only in numbers, but in every military requi
site, except courage, in an open country, he employed his
enemy near thirty days in advancing about sixty miles. In
this time, he fought one general action, and, though defeat
ed, was able to re-assemble the same undisciplined, un
clothed, and almost unfed, army, and, the fifth day after
wards, again to offer battle. When the armies were sepa
rated by a storm, which involved him in the most distress
ing circumstances, he extricated himself from them and still
maintained a respectable and imposing countenance. The
only advantage which he is supposed to have given was at
the battle of Brandywine ; and that was produced by the
contrariety and uncertainty of the intelligence received. In
a new army, where military talent has not been well tried,
the general is peculiarly exposed to the chance of employ
ing not the best instruments. In a country, too, which is
covered with wood, precise information of the numbers
composing different columns is to be gained with difficulty."
After the occupation of Philadelphia, the British gene
ral having divided his force, so as to give Washington a fair
opportunity to engage him with advantage, he determined
to avail himself of it by surprising the camp which had been

formed at Germantown, and attacking both wings, in front

40

470 SKETCH OF THE

and rear, at the same time. He made all his arrangements
with his wonted caution and address; and, on the fourth of
October, the enterprise was carried into effect, and, for a
time, seemed certain of a successful issue ; but the dark
ness of the morning, produced by a fog of uncommon den
sity, introducing confusion into the American troops, Wash
ington was compelled to relinquish his hopes, and to direct
his attention to secure the retreat of his men. This he did
without loss. Decided approbation was expressed by con
gress, both of the plan of this enterprise, and of the courage
with which it was executed ; and their thanks were voted
to the general and the army.

Having taken all possible measures to cut off the enemy
from supplies, Washington took post at White Marsh, where
an attempt to surprise him was made by general Howe; but
it was disconcerted, intelligence having reached him of the
intended stroke. He then distributed his soldiers in winter
quarters at Valley Forge, where their sufferings were ex
cessive in consequence of the intense severity of the season,
and their want of most of the necessaries for comfort, and
even for existence. Every effort was made by him to im
prove their condition, and augment their numbers ; and for
these ends, he exercised, though with caul ion, the dictato
rial powers entrusted to him by congress.

His incessant labors and unyielding patriotism could not,
however, save him from the imputations which want of
success, even though occasioned by insuperable obstacles,
always engenders ; and a combination was formed to de
prive him of his command, and substitute in his place the
victor of Saratoga, general Gates. But to weaken his hold
upon the confidence and affection of the great body of the
people and the army, was found impossible ; and even the
troops who had conquered under Gates received the idea of
the change with indignation. The machinations of his en
emies were frustrated without any efforts on his part, and
only did injury to themselves. They made no undue im
pression on his steady mind, nor did they change one of his

LIFE OF WASHINGTON.

471

measures. His sensibilities were for his country, and not
for himself.

In June, 1778, the British evacuated Philadelphia, which
was rendered a dangerous position for them by the part it
was now evident that France was about to take in the war,
and the naval force which had been prepared by that power
before she declared herself. They retreated upon New
York, through Jersey, followed by Washington, who, in
opposition to the opinion of a council of general officers,
and taking his measures on his own responsibility, brought
them to an action on the 24th of the month, at Monmouth,
which, though not a decided victory, was yet favorable to
the American arms, and productive of great satisfaction to
congress and the country. He passed the night in his
cloak, in the midst of his soldiers, intending to renew the
engagement on the following morning ; but, before the re
turn of the day, the enemy had marched off in silence, and
effected their retreat to New York. Marshall has given an
extract from a letter of Lafayette to him respecting this
battle, in which he says, " Never was general Washington
greater in war than in this action : his presence stopped
the retreat; his dispositions fixed the victory. His fine
appearance on horseback, his calm courage, roused by the
animation produced by the vexation of the morning (16
depit de la matinee,) gave him the air best calculated to
excite enthusiasm."

In the year 1779, congress had formed the plan of an in
vasion of Canada, which was deemed altogether inexpedi
ent by Washington ; and, in consequence, he requested a
personal interview. This was acceded to ; and, on his
arrival in Philadelphia, a committee was appointed to con
fer with him on that particular subject, and on the general
state of the army and the country. The result of their con
ferences was, that the expedition against Canada was aban
doned ; and every arrangement recommended by the com-
mander-in-chief received the attention to which all his
opinions were entitled. From this period to the siege of

472 SKETCH OF THE

Yorktown, no incident calling for particular mention occur
red in Washington's career. He remained in the neighbor
hood of New York, watching the enemy, and taking every
measure for the welfare of the country, without being able
to perform any striking exploit. He had to contend with
difficulties the mastering of which required higher qualities
than are necessary to gain a brilliant victory. His soldiers
could scarcely be kept from perishing with cold and hunger,
or from dispersing and living on plunder. They were daily
leaving the service : some regiments mutinied ; others re
volted and marched home ; and he could obtain no compli
ance with his urgent requisitions for recruits. Nothing
could be looser and more precarious than the thread by which
the army was kept together ; and in any other hands than
his, it must inevitably have been broken. But, in spite of
every obstacle and disaster, he prevented the enemy from
accomplishing any thing material, and adopted such prepa
ratory steps as might enable him to turn to advantage any
fortunate incident which might occur.

In 1781, he planned, in conjunction with count de Ro-
chambeau, a grand enterprise against New York ; but cir
cumstances concurred to induce an alteration in his views,
and to direct them to operations in the south. He contin-
ed, however, arrangements for the attempt on the city, in
order to deceive sir Henry Clinton as to his real intentions,
which he did with considerable address. In August, he
commenced his movement; and, having taken measures for
the transportation of his army down the Chesapeake, he
proceeded to Virginia with De Rochambeau and the cheva
lier de Chatelleux. On the 14th of September, he reached
Williamsburg, and had an immediate interview with count
de Grasse, the admiral of the French fleet, which was lying
in the bay at the time, for the purpose of adjusting a plan of
co-operation with regard to the investment of the British in
Yorktown, to which they had retired. The siege com
menced on the 28th of September; and, on the 19th of
October, after severe fighting, lord Cornwallis was reduced

LIFE OF WASHINGTON. 473

to the necessity of surrendering the posts of Yorktown and
Gloucester Point, with their garrisons, and the ships in the
harbor, with their seamen, to the land and naval forces of
America and France.

The capture of Cornwall is was generally considered as
the finishing stroke of the war ; but it produced no disposi.
tion in the American commander-in-chief to relax in those
exertions which might yet be necessary to secure the great
object of the contest. He hastened to Philadelphia to con
fer with congress respecting the military establishment of
the succeeding year. He addressed a circular to all the
state sovereignties, pressing the importance of supplies.
He promised and made all possible exertions towards ex
pelling the British from New York and Charleston. He
felt alarm; and proclaimed increased danger, lest the de
bates in the British parliament concerning peace should
beget supineness in America. During the winter-quarters,
when the military situation of affairs in general would have
allowed of his absence from camp, he remained there in
order to watch and allay the discontents of the American
troops, who supposed themselves ill-treated by congress and
the states. After the treaty of peace was signed, those dis
contents, which he knew at least to be plausible, gave him
much trouble and disquietude. He added to his reputation
by the manner in which he noticed and counteracted the
famous Newburgh letters, and suppressed the mutiny of the
Philadelphia line. While, however, he vindicated disci
pline, and enforced subordination to the civil authorities,
he deeply sympathized with the suffering troops, and used
every lawful means of procuring redress for their grievances.

On the 25th of November, 1783, peace and independence
being achieved, the British forces evacuated New York,
and Washington made his public entry into that city, at
tended by a splendid volunteer retinue. On the 4th of De
cember, he took his solemn farewell of the principal offi
cers of the American army, assembled in a hotel at New

York. On the 19th of that month, at Annapolis, where
40*

474 SKETCH OF THE

congress was then in session, he resigned, in form, to that
body, the commission which he had so long and gloriously
borne, and returned to private life, which he so much loved-
After peace was proclaimed, congress unanimously passed
a resolution for the erection of an equestrian statue of their
general, at the place which should be established for the
seat of government. Te legislature of Virginia also de
creed to him " a statue of the finest marble and best work
manship," with an appropriate inscription. It was placed
in the capitol of Virginia.

Washington took great interest in the navigation of the
Virginia rivers : he exerted himself to procure joint legisla
tive acts of Virginia and Maryland for the improvement of
the Potomac. He negotiated with the latter on the part of
the former state ; and the legislature of Maryland, anxious
to bear some testimony to his worth, unanimously passed a
bill authorizing the treasurer to'fcbscribe, " for the benefit
of general Washington," the same number of shares in each
of the navigation companies to be formed, as were to be
taken for the state. Washington was embarrassed by this
generous and honorable proceeding. In a fine letter of
acknowledgment, he declined the large donation for him
self, but asked it for some objects of a public nature. The
shares were then reserved for the use of a seminary of
learning established in the vicinity of James and Potomac
rivers.

In 1787, the legislature of Virginia unanimously elected
him one of their delegates to the convention to be held at
Philadelphia for the revisal of the federal system. He final
ly consented to serve, making a painful sacrifice of his
plans and expectations of uninterrupted retirement, in order
to assist in " averting the contemptible figure which the
American communities were about to make in the annals of
mankind, with their separate, 'independent, jealous state
sovereignties." The convention, when assembled at Phila
delphia, unanimously chose him for their president ; and no
member of that august body more decidedly approved the

LIFE OF WASHINGTON. 475

constitution which they gave to the country. All America,
as soon as it was adopted, looked to him as the first presi
dent under it, with an eye of affectionate confidence and
desire which could not be resisted. His reluctance to quit
his retreat was extreme. The expression of his feelings on
this head, in his private letters, is a striking mixture of gen
uine diffidence, personal disappointment and elevated patri
otism. Neither the animosity of parties, nor the prepon
derance of the enemies of the new system in some of the
states, could deprive him of a single vote for the station of
president. From Mount Vernon to New York, when con
gress was in session, the journey of Washington had the
character of a triumph. He delivered his inaugural address
on the 30th of April, 1789, and, throughout his administra
tion, acted up to the principles and promises therein con
tained. As before in his military capacity, so now in his
civil, he declined receiving any thing beyond his actual ex
penditures, in his official character. We need not repeat
the names of the eminent men whom he associated with
him, in the arduous business of putting the government into
successful operation. The machinery of the system was to
be contrived, adapted, set in motion, and gave rise contin
ually to the most important questions to be decided, and a
conflict of strong prejudices, keen jealousies, partial inter
ests, and untried theories. Washington was chosen as the
man of the nation, the guardian of the universal weal : in
no instance did he act or appear otherwise. His incessant
application to business impaired his robust constitution^
Successive attacks of a severe disease compelled him, in
1790, to retire, for a short time, to Mount Vernon. On all
points of consequence connected with domestic or foreign
affairs, he consulted his able cabinet with much deference,
collected their opinions anxiously, and decided only after
mature deliberation.

The occurrence and progress of the French revolution
occasioned that complete division of parties, and those bit
ter animosities, which engendered the most perplexity and

476 SKETCH OF THE

chagrin for Washington, and emboldened or exasperated men
to impeach, in the end, even his spirit of impartiality and
love of freedom. In the outset, he felt a lively interest in the
success of that revolution: he did not hesitate to avow his
sympathies and wishes; but when the reign of terror and
the order of Jacobins were established, he experienced re
pugnance and horror, in common with so many other true
friends of liberty and humanity throughout the civilized
world. In his circular of 17S3, he had said, " There is a
natural and necessary progression from the extreme of an
archy to the extreme of tyranny ; and arbitrary power is
most easily established on the ruins of liberty abused to
licentiousness;" and in 1793, he perceived that this maxim
was to be verified in the case of France. The result justi
fied the caution with which he avoided an alliance with that
power ; but, independent of the fatal character of French
affairs, he knew that peace was indispensable for the United
States, in the infancy of their national existence and union.
The proclamation of neutrality, and his resolute enforce
ment of it ; Jay's treaty with Great Britain ; and the gene
ral firmness of Washington's opinions and proceedings, sus
tained by the unequalled favor and authority of his name
with the people, saved our young republic from being hur
ried into a dreadful vortex. The vigor and lenity of Wash
ington's government were exemplified in the manner in
which the insurrection in the western parts of Pennsylva
nia, in 1794, were suppressed : not a drop of blood was
shed.

At the expiration of eight years, having served two terms,
Washington retired from the presidency, though, had he
consented to retain the station, there can be no doubt he
would have been unanimously re-elected. His valedic
tory address to the nation is too well known for com
ment. His last speech to congress was delivered on the 7th
of December, 1790. He returned to Mount Vernon to
enjoy the pleasures of retirement ; but he was not left to
perfect repose. No sooner had war with France become

LIFE OF WASHINGTON. 477

probable (1798,) than all eyes were directed to him as the
person to lead the American army. President Adams nom
inated him to the chief command of all the land forces, and
the senate unanimously confirmed the appointment. He
accepted it, asking only riot to be called into the field until
his presence should be required, and refusing to receive
any emoluments annexed to it before he was in a situation
to incur expense. The occasion for his services, which was
anticipated, did not happen. His devotedness to the cause
of his country was not the less appreciated.

His public toils were now finished ; but the period allow
ed him for the enjoyment of a private life was short. On
Friday, the 13th of December, 1799, exposure to rain pro
duced an inflammatory affection of his throat. He expired
in the night of Saturday, having been early aware of the
certainty of his fate. He manifested an equanimity, in his
last moments, suitable to the whole tenor of his life. Fune
ral honors were paid to him in every part of his country,
with the most sincere and impressive manifestations of sor
row. His character is thus drawn by chief justice Mar
shall .

" General Washington was rather above the common
size ; his frame was robust, and his constitution vigorous,
capable of enduring great fatigue, and requiring a considera
ble degree of exercise for the preservation of his health. His
exterior created in the beholder the idea of strength united
with manly gracefulness. His manners were rather reserv
ed than free, though they partook nothing of that dryness
and sternness which accompany reserve when carried to an
extreme ; and, on all proper occasions, he could relax suffi
ciently to show how highly he was gratified by the charms
of conversation and the pleasures of society. His person
and whole deportment exhibited an unaffected and indescri
bable dignity, unmingled with haughtiness, of which all who
approached him were sensible; and the attachment of those
who possessed his friendship, and enjoyed his intimacy, was
ardent, but always respectful. His temper was humane,

478 SKETCH OF THE

benevolent and conciliatory ; hut there was a quickness in
his sensibility to any thing apparently offensive, which ex
perience had taught him to watch and to correct. In the
management of his private affairs, he exhibited an exact,
yet liberal economy. His funds were not prodigally wasted
on capricious and ill-examined schemes, nor refused to ben
eficial though costly improvements. They remained, there
fore, competent to that expensive establishment which his
reputation, added to a hospitable temper, had in some meas
ure imposed upon him, and to those donations which real
distress has a right to claim from opulence. He made no
pretensions to that vivacity which fascinates, or to that wit
which dazzles and frequently imposes on the understanding.
More solid than brilliant, judgment rather than genius con
stituted the most prominent feature of his character. As a
military man, he was brave, enterprising and cautious. That
malignity which has sought to strip him of all the higher
qualities of a general, has conceded to him personal cour
age, and a firmness of resolution which neither dangers nor
difficulties could shake. But candor will allow him other
great and valuable endowments. If his military course does
not abound with splendid achievements, it exhibits a series
of judicious measures, adapted to circumstances, which
probably saved his country. Placed, without having studi
ed the theory, or been taught in the school of experience the
practice of war, at the head of an undisciplined, ill-organi
zed multitude, which was unused to the restraints and un
acquainted with the ordinary duties of a camp, without the
aid of officers possessing those lights which the commander-
in-chief was yet to acquire, it would have been a miracle,
indeed, had his conduct been absolutely faultless. But,
possessing an energetic and distinguishing mind, on which
the lessons of experience were never lost, his errors, if he
committed any, were quickly repaired ; and those measures
which the state of things rendered most advisable were
seldom, if ever, neglected. Inferior to his adversary in the
numbers, in the equipment, and in the discipline of his

LIFE OF WASHINGTON. 479

troops, it is evidence of real merit, that no great and deci
sive advantages were ever obtained over him, and the oppor
tunity to strike an important blow never passed away unused.
He has been termed the American Fabius ; but those who
compare his actions with his means, will perceive at least
as much of Marcellus as of Fabius in his character."

It was a habit adopted by general Washington, at an
early stage of his life, to preserve copies of all his impor
tant letters, as well those of a private as those of a public
nature. The transcripts of his revolutionary papers occupy
forty-four large folio volumes. Each class of subjects is
brought together in a strict chronological order, and a co
pious index is added to every volume. After the revolution
had terminated, and he was settled on his farm, though re
lieved from public duties, his correspondence continued to
be very extensive with eminent persons in this country and
in Europe ; and from that time till his acceptance of the
presidency, his copied letters fill six folio volumes ; and,
even during the period of his presidency, his habits of indus
try enabled him to find leisure for preparing seven volumes
of recorded letters, besides many others of which press
copies were taken, and which are not preserved in books.
There are fourteen other volumes, in which are recorded
the transactions of the president with congress and the
heads of departments, and which consist of letters that
passed between him and the secretaries, on special subjects;
also opinions, reports and intelligence from the secretaries?
Among other records is a private journal kept by him, in
which his official acts and intercourse with the departments
are daily noted down. His letters remained numerous and
important to the end of his life. This great collection
shows, in a striking light, the industrious, methodical and
careful habits of Washington.

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