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1958

The Tertium Quids and the Election of 1808

Richard B. Reed College of William & Mary - Arts & Sciences

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Recommended Citation Reed, Richard B., "The Tertium Quids and the Election of 1808" (1958). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539624506. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-6w6n-6b17

This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE TERTIUM QUIDS AMD THE ELSOttGK OF 1608 //

A The ©is Presented to the Faculty of the Department of History the Qollege of William and Mary

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements fo r the Degree Master of Arts

by Bichard 8* lead m m t& L SHEET fill® the si a i s submitted in partial fulfillment of the requiremeata far the degree of Master of Arts

^ /3 erte^ Author

Approved*

tester J^Oappbn, ?h*0«

i S / ^ a * . (■ ki ^ 3ruoe ®» MoOully, Ph

May 1956 I # The Background I IS* The Break 20 III* The Election JS IT* Epllogue 5& la tee 6 l Bibliography 60 jSHsasaS

While the responsibility for the ultimate form of a Master*e theel# m*eb rest with the author* t o to hi a my he, charged any errors of fact or late sp re* tation, a debt of gratitude I# t o to the numerous In­ dividuals who to e .possible the fIMshei products To the following makers of the faculty- of 'The College of hi Warn .and toy* t o the, staff of the In­ stitute of Early American Ulttory t o Culture* the author 4 s.indebted for invaluable criticisms and asaia* taaoe in the preparation of this thesis* to Dr* William W* Abbot* for directing the actual composition* t o for anting as -a moderating Influence on the author*a nat­ ural verbosity! to Drs. Mlehnrd b* Morton* Bruce T* MeOully, .and Do star a* Oappon* for their helpful crit­ icism© .and advice, whi le acting as the author1© examining cosB&tbee* to Drs* .Michael 0* Hall t o Wilcomb E* Wash* hum* for greatly facilitating the toting of the first chapter as a recrem ent for their course in Early American History! to Dre* dames M* Smith and Lawrence W* Tomer* for their Interest and helpful suggestions! and finally* to the Department of ’History of the College of William and Mary* for granting m the graduate assistant* ship which t o e possible this year of study* the author also wishes to acknowledge the ascla- iaaee of the staff of the Library of the 0©liege of William and Maxy* and the staff of the Library of Oongreee* for aid in locating much .of' the material need, in this thesis* To ay parents mast-go a deep obligation* for without their raderstanding and patience* this year of study would have been virtually i%ossible*.

Williamsburg* Virginia t o 25* 195s Obaptw I , J&* Sasterffgi-

I regret sxoeedingly Mr. Jefferson's resolution to retire* and almost as mmti t o premature annunciation of to t deiei^nstien* It almost preclude a a revision of his purpose* to t o nothing of t o Intrigue a which it will sot'on foot* If I were sure to t .Monroe would succeed M% ay regret would be very mesh diminished* - John’ Randolph, to Albert, #ai~ labia* October t% 1805*

These words* w ritten by dote Randolph* to - O h airsm n o fto lays ted Means 0® «iito of the Bouse of .Representatives* to Thomas Jefferson*© Secretary of the 'Treasury* 'are t o perfect prologue to the drama of t o flection of 1608* Although Han* dolph1© regret at to President*© pending desire for retire­ ment was soon' to be erased* his prophecy of' Hntvlgufe11 and his speoulation about the successor* provide m introduction to one of to least studied presidential election a in American hi story * iy the end of Jefferson* a first admlni strati on, to phen­ omenon of party politics had become a fairly well-established tradition, However* In studying the period of “Jeffersonian Democracy1* most political scientists and '.historians have:- be­ come so preoccupied with t o struggle between t o Republicans and the cnee-powerful federalists*, that they tend to ignore to some degree* or refuse to acknowledge* the two-fold significance of the development of what Jefferson* himself* called the 8 sc hi am" § within hie own party* this defecting grate* wader the leader ship of John Ran­ dolph of Roanoke* became la time the firs t ttiird-party move­ ment la our political hletoiy*^ aa well as the precursor of that spirit of sectionalism wMofcwas eventually to erupL Into deadly conflict a half-century later* Combining an abhorrence of Federalist cenirallaction with am extreme eiabee-righie philosophy of government* the Terbium Quids, ^ a® th is group has come to he styled, charted a course of opposition that could mot he consistent with either of the* major parties, and which nurtured the embers of abate sovereignty for future gen­ erations to, fan Into'' the flame©’., of violence and bloodshed. The Quiddist movement was aeesnit&lly a Southern reaction? against what was considered to be Jeffarson *e abandonment of his strict construstionist, agrarian ideals of 1600* for the ©mbmoe of the opposition*© centralizing tendencies. The Quids represented the conservative land-holding a n ©tooracy of the ultra-atate#Q rights school, and -looked (with varying degrees : of moderation} upon popular government as a t best, k necessary evil, to bo inflicted upon the electorate with as little palm as possible* Edmund Burke was their political and philosophical mentor, and In his conservative declarations they found the principles upon which a sound political foundation for the pres­ ervation of their society sight rest* Essentially Anglophilia In their foreign perspective, they could not abide the pro-French outlook of the Jeffersonian©* and to y adjudged Hapoleon Bona­ parte to be the “great defiowersr of to virginity of- repot- ItOB.*6 t o opposition of the Terbium Quids eskraosd lees then a decade in American history# from the opening attacks against to ' admlnl stra ti on1 a eosprcmi se on t o 1mm land alalas in 1804, to the fu tile efforts to stem the ambitions of the to 1- Hawks In the Twelfth Congress* However, t o ' culmination of to movement was reached In the election of 1608, In to ir abortive effo rts to. elect James Monroe to the presidency over the candidacy of Jefferson1© Secretary of State and “heir appar­ ent* * James Madison# t o Quids achieved an I n itia l ratty of purpose that they Hal not possessed at any other Mac, After the election whichresulted -in a decisive victory fo r Madi so% the Quids were a broken and divided group* Var­ ious members returned to the old party and the new administration* others retired from active participation in political.affairs* until by the time of the debates preceding to declaration of war In 1812, John Randolph could not depend, much more than upon the sterile Federalists for support* His opposition to to to of 1812 occasioned his defeat for re-election, to to Thirteenth Congress* and with his temporary retirement to last active ves­ tiges of Quiddist reaction ceased# i «

• the loader and oust Influential mesfeer of the ferttum Qaida was the b rillia n t and a rra y s loto Randolph of Hea&oke*? The scion of m axietoe retie, eoaservatlve yirgiMssi family i of ancient and proud antecedents,® Baodolph m s one of the neat remarkable awm of Mo day* it ms tbs matchless orator' 1 of the Home of ftepreeent&Ufre* in Me early years* the moat { opinionated individual of Me time*, -a man who glorified the role of denmoiabor and antagontner* foaaoaaed of ■am e w * iaied and ghostlike oomiehatieei cosxtfaualiy racked with phy- $ sloal infinaatiea# with a tA&gMHftagat-$f violent hostility and extrem aeneibiliiy, Randolph «m (m i still la) one of the most controversial. p olitical figure© o f hie era* la- hi# ©hthua** iaam and devotion to the principles which he' established for himself, he exhibited a oensistsney ihat-'wa© rare among both Me associates m i Ms adversaries# The word cornered as did not eecupy a prominent place in- hie extend we vocabulary* Once he had■ daterdaed the coarse which he intended to-pursue* no amount of criticism or argument could temper his position* The 1st© Olawd© Bowers has said’ that *In the armory of his orator leal genius the weapons most feared by Ms Ho time were those of wit, satire, sarcasm, and invective* In the use of these no other man In American history has been so ruthless and davaatatlng,*9 Tha aansa author oonttnuess "Bo human boing ever me a greater master of vitaperation* and none ever had a greater vocabulary of addle words. Bone ever matched hi e verbal abuse and hie fierce m i savage m€ eon temp iuous mmmt* In another gensr&tidn fhad Stevens was to crush the wavering nltli a me&t-axei but Randolph used rap ier and dagger and dut his. victims to ahrods bit by felt, mining the: wound© as he pro­ ceeded*,*1^ John Randolph has not fared particularly well la the Judgement of fedctery*., &.« biographers, with, one exception,, have tried to present M» In a ttOOi favorable light, hot la. almost every other ioatano© he earns off with sore tamleh than lustre* the biographers of James Madicca, Henry Olay* m i the others with whom he oam in e-oaf|ie% generally present him in a moat unflattering attitude, .fhi.a is indeed naforttmate because John Randolph deserves, impartial oonsiderfttlon if anyone ever did, for hi© convictions were too- deep-rooted to- he tossed off merely as evidence of ^neurotic jealousy*1 ^ m i his actions certainly transcend the level, of the ;#heardlets eccentric1* or the ** sm- fivailed bully* # ^ , is chairman of the powerful, dowse Poms!thee on Ways and Means, Randolph was an in flu en tial lieutenant of Thomas Je ffer­ son’s during the first administration, and to him any fee credit* ed much of the ease with which the Presidsnt1© legislative pro* grams were enacted, but his independent spirit often mm to the for# and oeeaeionsd some- feelings of resentment on the part of his colleagues. Although his oratorical powers were early recognised, I t l@ only after the ■* break*-with the adminis* t ration that hie viperous tongue really mad© its sting felt* In spite of his genius, he was‘not a leader# Ba»dolpi*,s philippic addressee before the House are clas* oioo of their kind# He was the mater of the art of sarcasm, earing not a whit whom he abbasked, nor in what direction his Infective was directed.* Ills remark upon the occasion of Rich-- ard Hush’s appointment as Ooaptmller of the treasury Is an i excellent emails - 11 never were abilities so much below med­ io crity so well rewarded no, not when Oaltgula’s horse was made Ooneul*®^ this, then, was the man moat, responsible for the terbium Quids# His personality is reflected in every action taken by that group, mi- when, he faltered, the whole movement collapsed# John Randolph so dominated Quiddls® th at hie associates and colleagues pale by comparison, but there are two at least who are certainly worthy of notice# John T ayiorof Qareliae has been termed the ^philosopher® of the Quiddisb movement*^ His p o rtio n m e essentially peripheral since he m e not an active politician and lived In virtual retirement onfcla estate in Virginia* lAke Randolph he was an aristocrat, but bla convict!one were not so consistent, ■and on occasion the two men differed strongly* fay lor was mm amenable to the exigencies of a situation, and could view a given circumstance with a detachment m i ©oreisiiy eospletely Impos­ sible fo r Randolph# Be was m original sufporter of f homes Jefferson* hut a# the President steadily retreated from hie early ideals, fay- lor loot confidence in him* and looked, upon a oooUnuanoe of hi# policies (by Edison) aa detrimental to the beat Interests of the nation* Hi a aai.moolty toward# James tfe&soa ocoastoned

i hi# oharpioning Monroe for the presidency* although he was fully aware of the mormm rl.sk. attendant upon a realisation of that objective* fay lor never really identified htoself out­ wardly with-Randolph1# faction* but in hi© antagonism toward the ada&nistraMon and hi# ©import of Monroe* he la generally accorded the reputation'of being'# Quid* for all Intent# and purpose© th eir Ideal# mm identicals although fay lor exhibited a moderation that was foreigni to' the - majority of the Monroe supporter©* A a loser-friend of Randolph1©* m i a more active Quid* was Hathard el Macon of Horth Oarolina* W the Speaker of the House of Representatives during the Seventh* Sighth* m i Sinth □©ogresses* Macon had been a devoted follower of Jefferson and hi© policies* but with the disclosure of the Xatoo frauds in 1604* he began to follow the lead of Randolph and allied himself with the. diceident#* Jefferson tried to reconcile hi% but Macon persisted in hi© opposition and was written off by the administration forces* Although he was a consistent Quid and open- If advocated ifea retirement of Madieon from further public Ufa* Ms choice of a successor mo not Monroe, tot the Secre­ tary of the treasury* Albert Gallatin# During the debates over if offeree*!1® embargo in 160?, he broke with Randolph m i eventually. became m open supporter of the mr with .Great Brit­ ain, mm though he concistsntly opposed e ll m ilitary and saw-, a|. appropriations t&r defense and preparation* : Other Quids of raffing loyalties ins,Mod dame's Meroer A Hameti* Bsnjami*! Watkins tsigh, Georg© Hay* Edwin Gray, l#lt- tletfen W. faseweli* and fhomos. Hi to hie* a ll of Virginia! Rich- ■&rd Stanford, fhomas Wynne, and Joseph Winston, of Horif* Caro­ lina! Joseph fioholson of Maryland* Caesar Rodney of Delaware! and, — James Monroe* Monroe Is .the least eonststent and understandable ©ember of the Qxsiddlet movement* 'Uhlitee Randolph, fay lor* sad: Macon, hi a defection .from the Jeffersonian rmlm mm not based upon any moral m political principles, nor did he engage In open debate with the Frosi dent m i the Secretary of State* Co. the contrary, .Honroels identification with the so hi cm, aswe shall see, ©ay be laid almost m®%m&mlf to personal reason®, and when events indicated th at ids own aaSbltl.one,might suffer a© a resu lt of Ida defection he was quick, to compromise and play both sides to Id# own advantage. Of the whole group, Monroe was by far the most sesoaplisted politician# He recognized the dan­ gers of sacrificing expediency for principle* and in this re- ipsei, in contrast to alma at all the others,. he amerged from the fuaeral-pyra of the election with Me am reputation and influence relatively inbaet* fhe course of James candidacy for the presidency la 1808 as the major factor in the opposition of the fertlum: Quids la the essential substance of this study* However* to ;:

i understand how th is earns about,. we oust f i r s t briefly emv&m the el roumatances which,' prompted the break with the adminle-; tm tloa and the ultimate deel eloa of the malcontents to all di­ ets themes Ires from the Republican majority end pursue an inde­ pendent mmm of opposition*

tt*

The whole e m o tiv e government. has had a hies to the tasoo in tersets ewer since I had a seat -here* this is the original sin which has created all the u4 noMefe which gentlemen pretend to- throw on the isip reasajeot of our seamen and $ed knows what I * * * ffew faaoo, business id the beginning m& the end, the alpha..and 'Omega of our alphabet* - John Randolph, March 29, %m»

Despite the.‘fact that John Randolph himself has given us a point of departure through fels first reference to *q«iddleaft and a third party in, 1805, It Is relatively difficult to estab­ lish a particular moment when the concerted opposition of the Roanoke planter and his few -dissident followers began to achieve '"’iO***

the proportions of actu al •rebellion wit da the Republican Party* A ■ myriad of dates within tbs years 1SGA and 180? night be presented which oould fee conveniently taken to represent a. definite breach Is agreement with the atainl strati on* hoi. the real .extent of the di saffeetlon extend a back as fa r'a s the infamous 7mm land seandftls. of 1793* - As dsndolph rather' propheticly put it* this 'ms #thebeginning and the end* the Alpha and Omega of stir alphabet* *1? In January, 1795, the fleerg£a legislature authorised the Governor of that state to convey to the representatives of four lend companies*® the -title to more than thi rty~fl we si 111 on acres of frontier land extending to the Mississippi River for the sum o f five hundred thousand dollars**? th is bargain rate of appmdn&tely one and one-half cents per note, doubled with- the fm% that the. legislature had been bribed almost to the mo to effect the authorisation, brought about a storm of public Indignation in Georgia which oulsdnatod in the election of an entirely new legislature in IfpS* the new assembly nullified the previous salt* but only after several d 111 on sores of the land ted been, disputed of by the land eospany speculators, mostly to Mew Shglandera, at a profit of over one .si 1 lion dollars*^ To further eetg>lieabe matters, the IMfeed States Govern- eseiib, in 1798, appropriated aaieh of the disputed area into the newly organised M ississippi teffitory# Ignoring the claims which the state ©f Georgia had aseeried to- it© jurisdiction over the land In It© c ©institution of that ©am© ymr*^ then defterson came to the presidency in 1.801, he appointed a ©oat* mission eoa^osed of three meaner© of hi© cabinets dame© Mad* l©oa# Soorotacy of Statej hIbert Ciailatiu, Secretary of the froaougy; and JUerl lAncola, Ait©mey~3«n# ralt to investigate the conflicting claim© of. jurisdiction, over the area In. $©©©*

M oh #^ In April, 1802# the oosK^eelon secured an agreement wheroby Oeorgia agreed, to. the. cession to the. federal govern­ ment of the disputed territory in return for a payment of on© 'oil lion. two. hundred and fifty thousand dollars* fhe tinder* standing was th at the government of the. United Stats© would, among other things, assume the obligation of investigating the' validity of the.grants, of the many claimants (both individuals and. land ..speculators) who had invested in the land prior to the resotndlng aetlon of the Seorgla Legislature In l?96.a5 It was further stipulated that a total of five million acres * of land in the. Mississippi territory;wm to be set aside to satisfy my title.#, or claim© that might arise a# a result of the transfer* On the basis of this agreement, the President10 comad g- ©ion proceeded, to examine and consider the validity of both individual and company title s * On February 14, 1805, the com* a&oelaaer# reported that although In their estimation the titles **12*

to the land wore not valid, the interests of the Halted State#t "the tranquility of those who may hereafter Inhabit that territory* and ration# equitable considerations which f my be urged la favor of met of the present olaiaanis, rea­ der it expedient to enter Into a neap w ise on reasonable terms ,^ 5 In effect, the claimants were to be offer|d what remined of the five ail 11 on acres of land after establishedI f settlers had been satisfied, or else they sight accent their I1 Indemnity In the form of lend certificates of an appropriate value* I I = li to John Randolph th is was a compromise .with corruption

/ s and. fraud*, is.a .visitor in Georgia when the scandal broke, he had witnessed at first-hand the revulsion with which the citisens of that state had greeted the revelations! and had himself been horrified at the dieeloaures of bribery and collusion th a t accompanied the grants*. By effecting a com­ promise, the administration was closing its eyes to corrup­ tion, and he deteraitted to re el at such a dealing -with all the power and influence a t hie command# The report o f th e commlaai oners was presented to Con­ gress la February, %&)% but it was not until the next year that'-.actual debate on the proposal# began* Meanwhile, 'Ran­ dolph had offered several resolutions aimed at defeating the eoapyeaise, and on February 20, 1604, he presented a series of eight reeal*** which ranged variably over the whole field of his opposition* In the first place, lie iaintainti that the Georgia teglelature had not had the fight to alienate terri­ tory except for the' public good; that consequently the legis­ lature of 170 had the' power to abrogate the lap roper actions of i t s predecessor; and that the rescinding action was not in with conf11ct/constltutionai principles* He dea&nded, therefore* that no portion of the lire si 111 on acres set aside by the agreement of 1BQ2 be used to--compensate the claimants whose titles rested on the Irresponsible action of the legislature of 1?95.26 On March f 9 Bandolph delivered the- first of several speeches before the Souse in support of hi* resolutions* He set the tenor of his position thus* course that can be pursued shall prevent m f rom bit-aging out the sense of the House* Whether the question on- these resolutions shall be at* teopted to be got jpid of by the previous question* or by a postponement* 1 s i l l have the cense of the House expressed to the publici for this i s one of the cases which* once being- en­ gaged in* 1 can never desert- or reiinquleh t i l l I have ester- el sod every energy of mind and faculty of body 1 possess in refuting so nefarious a project*®^? Hie arguments were character!stloally distinguished more by their moral Indignation than by sound legal reasoning* Po­ litic a l expediency was never a factor in Randolph1 $ conduct, and as feds biographer says, rtit is impossible not to feel the glow of hie kindling imginatlea m i fine m m l passion* but along with it, l& mmmmimtei to the reader the l&evi* table reflection that * • * ■ * it was impossible for a wm to continue to be the ©aster of the House of tepre aent&ti vm, who unfalteringly opposed * &' oofljprond ee in a dubious' eotsbro*' •w ay- • * * ' 'Oft March 12# the'House voted to- postpone farther debate Maili the nert eehateaof SoBgrese.29 So January* 1805, teddolph renewed his attack on the compromise, and struck oat viciously a t 01 deoa Orange r, the Postoaate r~0eneral, who it&d been seen openly soliciting rotes In favor of the commissi oner's report# Alluding to Granger's previous interests In the featsm Heeerve speculate on, ten* deiph lashed out at aHis gigantic grasp /wbloh/ susbraeoe with one hand the shores of bake Iris and stretches with the other to the Say of Hohile*®^® He asked, “Are heads of escecu- Uvo departments of the government to.be brought into th is House, with all the .Influence m i patronage attached' to them, to cohort - from us now what was refused at ’the- last cession of Oongresai 1. .hope not, Sir, but, if they are, and i f the abominable villainy, 'practiced upon and by the legislature of Georgia in 1|^5# I a'.now to be glossed over,, 1, for one, will ask what security they by whom it shall be done can offer for their reputations better than can be given for the character of that legislature* .1 will pin ay self upon tide text, and preach upon i t aa long, as I have U fe#*^ Ciedainiog to feel ooagmsale& for the purchasers of the land from the ©peculating companies, HondoIph maintained that since the ci rcumetaaees o f. the original grant were public knowledge, “They ^the pnrch&serj/ offer, indeed, to v irtu e, the only.homagewhich she la ever likely to. receive a t th e ir hand© — .th e .homage of • th e ir hypocrisy*.*^ Turning to the purchase of the land. by the federal gov­ ernment In 1603, he- maintained that a recompense to the spec­ ulators would* In effect, •“record a -solemn acknowledgement th at Congress has unfairly and dishonestly obtained from Osorgia a grant of land, to which that state m longer possess­ ed a title, having previously sold It to others for a valuable consideration, of wttoh transaction Congress was at the time fully apprised*. Are you prepared to make this humiliating eon- fees!on? To Identify yourselves with the swindlers of 1795* To acknowledge th at you have unfairly obtained from another th at to- which you know he had no t l t l e f “^5 th is was the crux of his legal argument against the compromise, and had he pur­ sued i t more determinedly and abandoned some of the personal abuse and-tone of high moral principled, .in his speeches, he might have been .more effective In his opposition* 0©spite Randolph1s best- effo rts, the House* on February . 2# 160^, voted to .direst the -oooalssioaers to proceed with th e ir proposals and ..attempt a fin al sebtlameni of the .outstand­

ing c l a i m s * 5^ the vote was close, sixty-throe to fifty-eight •*16**

in favor of the resol oil on* with all but two of the Virginia delegation -voting with Hanftolptk on the aide of the opposition* the Yasoo debates rep re seat the opening wedge In the split within'the Eepuhiicaa fariy that led to internal 0ppoai~ Mon to the Mabisoiv eandidaey in 1608* Prior to 100$ there had been l i t t l e di ©agreement) among the leading- figures 'of I the adeini strati on 'Ml 0ongrle% but' after the -revelation of what had transpired In Georgia, and the subsequent - efforts of deffersosls oo^s9ionefe':ioifepfidr sow'of the damages* there ■ was;an-, irreparable, lif t thatj threatened a serious rupture* John Randolph was primarily respohalbie for this turn of events* i | Bmh future Quids’as MathaniOl Ifeooa*' Joseph Hleholeon '(the . . , ’ j - . author ■ of ■ the original • respluM m :. I nod rporating the ’ oot$ roM ©e)f and -daese? Bedaey of Belavarl*' were for the most p art 'mm eym*

•m m u - H * - . * * • ~ ““ “ ■ with very little asM stance from Me supporters*

. :' 1. that' the transact! one'In Georgia mm perpetrated -under the most questionable of oiroumstanoQs In 1795 there : could be no' doubt* the foot that-the legislature' was b it bed by the pur** ohasers 'was 'enough to give" the whole affair- an aura of Indecency* the subsequent Interference by the federal government was an-* tire iy tod mush for 'Randolph' to taice* through - this •rescinding notion of - the legislature of tW& ’ the people- of Georgia had attested to abrogate the grants of the' preceding year end re** 'store' the land to' Its original jurisdiction* By what right then did the federal government:organ !m this land into a nm te r r i­ tory? the title- mM bmk. in the bands of the state* and th at state ted not. given up her claim to the land when the IMtod States atteehed.lt'for other purposes* the eonp.roaine was* i s itself* an anomaly beeauee the action of-the-federal govonuaaiit la taking the land .proved that -■It ted considered the original grant to- the- apeeul&bora to..he livalid* l e t the &d&&al strati on was attempting to; provide m m pteaatlefi f o r -purchasers whose title* therefore, was not* and I • * “d not,- he reoogni&ed by the -United States. is Bandolph * 11 with wteb face oould the President reeommend or Congress endeavor to oh tain from Otofgia a cession-of the-whole or any part -of'the land within' her -Indian houndaii.es * if they believed that the land in question te d , been conveyed to- others by a f a ir and bona fide sale! if .-they attached to the- lot of January* 1795# WH idoa of validity*-0?? 'f-* the part tte t Jamb tedlson played In ifcie affair identi­ fied him In tendsIph1© mind with corruption and fraud* As Secretary of State,: Uadi eon ms the ranking member both of the cabinet and of the mm&mkon which reported the ©oapreolee*'

Randolph' considered M e - almost b a il rely - responsible for the report, as well as for the speech delivered la its favor by his brother-in-law,':Beprssentatlv© John a. .Jaofeso© of firginia. Just how or why Gallatin- escaped the wrath of Ha&delph at this time Is not entirely clear*: but- the i m men .remined fairly close friend& u n til the Virginian tried to involve the See re* tary in his later intrigues, at which time the latter abstain* ed from any further intercourse with tHe Quid*® leader* Randolphs opposition was a natural reaction when one consider® hie personality and background, but th is i s not to a ay, m Mr* Brant does* th at *81 s' ten-year assault on. Madison m a #Yazoo man1 was a calculated prostitution of the troth to p o litica l demagogy and neurotic Jealousy,**^ nor that the reasons for Randolphfa animosity to the Secretary of'S tate *11 a • * 4 in the realm of psychiatry* ' the Intensity of John Randolph1® opposition to the faaoo oooproatae had certainly 'not escaped the eye of fhomas doff or* son* tfriling to Wilson 0ary Blob© las on March36, 1803, the President expressed 'hie ©pin!da th at the emerging division el thin Republican ranks were * distressing,* hut n»©t unexpect­ ed to ae.*^ However blase Jefferson mey have appeared at this time, Ids later letters indicate that the defection was causing Mm no little concern, and that he regretted consider* ably Randolph1© deter mtnatioa to follow an independent course of action* detin Randolph was m% yet prepared to engage in open con­ troversy -with the adainintrattan and alienate himself and his followers coa^letsly from, the Republican major!iy. On the con*’ trary, he wi shed to cooperate with .Jefferson as well fee could without feeing inconsistent.1 with his principles* However, the -19

Frestdent1© pa Hoy ■with regard to %ea&eh Florida mm pm- vided the otLaolup farm opm breach, md the eabeequeat formtioa of the fertiam (lol.de* -2 0 -

Chapter IX* J&g .^rsife

I came hem prepared to cooperate with the dow- emmmt In all It® mmmm* I. told them so. Sot I soon found there was no a holes left* and that to- cooperate in them would be to destroy the tiai- loaal character* I found I sight cooperate or be an honest man* t: hare - therefore opposed and w ill oppose them# - John Randolph, April 7* 1006**

When the U n i session, of the Ninth Ctangrea* opened on i December Z$ %&$%. HathanlsI Mheon was ye-elected Speaker of the House* b u tealy a fte r three ballots had been taken* and a concerted effort- to depose him had been defeated* Mason*® inconspicuous Identification with the anti-ooiEproa&ae forces- during the fa-aoo debate® of the preceding seseic® and lit® intimate friendship with John iSsadolfk had prompted a defin­ ite movement to- replace him in the Speaker1® chair with some­ one mm amenable to the aetffiini stra ti on.1 a wishes* there i s no Indication, however, that Jefferson took any personal inter­ est in the effo rt to oust- the Speaker* On the contrary* he still appeared to hold the north Oaro'llnian in high regard* both as m individual and a® a party member*^ l |t h Macon1® election assured* Randolph1 & appointment aa.Ohdirmxn of the (Jomatttee on Way® and Means was -a certainty* furthermore* Macon saw to i t that the other member® of the committee were either Federalist® or strong adherents of the *21 «*•

Uhalfaaa tweh a# Joseph Hiabolson, David It# tfiXXi&msof South Carolina* and Robert Brem of Pennsylvania. the sole spokesman fo r the admini aimblen was a freshman oongressmaa from li&asaohasetta* Barnabas SldweXX* #£bh the two 'key positions of leadership in the House of aeprsssata.ti.ves. aeemri ly held by men who were not folly } la aceord with hi# polio! e% Jefferson sight well have pro~ seeded with some prudeaee in proposing le^ slat!on for con* gressional approval* Bowaver* in his initial reoomndationa to. the new congress, he provided the atimalas for. the final break between the adas&iiistraiten and the Quids.

i*

On Deoember % the day following the opening, of the ninth Congress*. f reed dent Jefferson presented hi.# annual •message to. both hou.ee# of th at body* I t m© m alternatingXy optioistie and pessimistic message* reflecting the sidgen«* alee of the day* with the executive*# recommendations fo r resolving the most pressing of the enm ity1# problems* At a time when Frans# and in&Xand war# engaged in a great strug­ gle to determine the destiny of Europe, Jefferson devoted son** e&derable time to 4 dieoassion of the Injuries the United States had suffered at the hand# of these two belligerents, is then turned with warlike tone# to Spain* Antagonisms along the border of Spanish Florida be-* tween the inhabitant# of th at province and the frontier mm of the Southern state# had hem Gnomon sime early in the Oolonial Period# I t had been hoped that with the signing of Pinckney1# treaty, {the treaty of San hormm) in Octob­ er# 179% the Halted States* relatione with Spain would be planed on a more saleable basiei however, this expectation proved to fee Illusory* the natural agreeeivenea© of the fan- kee# coupled with the Inability of Spain to control her Ind­ ian inhabitants effectively# made for an'exp loa&oe stiua- tion; Effort# to obtain a satisfactory recognition of the boundaries of the houidimm territory fey the Spanish govern­ ment had also, failed# and the American a&n&eter in Madrid# Charles Pinckney,, had been unable to secure any settlement of the outstanding differences* James Monroe# who had been sent to aid Pinckney* in til.# negotiations# fared no better* After onumemting the Halted State# * grievances# Jef­ ferson declared he ..had *femi i t necessary at length to give' order# to our troop# on-, that fm atter /Florida/ to fee in readiness to protect our citi sens, and to repel fey arms any slot liar aggressions in future**^ Be then called for a strengthening of the coastal defence## additions to the fle e t of gunboats# and the placing of the m ilitia on an emergency basis* Very little .objection was .raised to- .the President's res- omMidatloae# but# unknown to the majority of the legisla­ tors, including John Bandolph* another message relating to Spanish affaire had fees# prepared m i was to he presented confidentially to the. Oongrese within a few days* In con­ trast to the strong stand assumed in the first document# the tone of the second was eonoi ii&tory# recognising that i t ms more expedient to deal through the channel a of diplomacy than through war,4 J offer eon ohifted the responsibility for m f show of force to the legislature# saying w3onsideiing that Congress alone Is constitutional ly Invested with the power of changing our condition fro® peace to war#' I have thought I t tty duty to await their authority for using force in any degree whloh oould be e»oided.»5 Taking into aooount the fact 'that Spain was considsmhly wider' the Influence of francs# he urged that the Halted States would do- well to eon- .elder the willingness of the F a n * government to s e ttle the issues at hand* ffee negotiations in Madrid had not :gons t»- noticed In the french capital# and Jefferson, pointed out that 8we have reason to belief© th at she' m® disposed to effect a settlement on a plan analogous to what mr ad clot ere had proposed# & so comprehensive as to re w e as. fa r a® pos­ sible the grounds of future collision & controversy cm the Eastern as well as ifestem side of the Mississippi . ^ the message closed with an tt&tl-olla&tle shifting of responsibility to*'the Oongresei 6Shit the course to be pursued will require the command of mm® which i t belong* to Oongrose exclus­ ively to yield or to deny# fo them I eommtMeabe every fact .material for. th e ir Information* I* the documents nmeemtf to enable them to judge for themselves, to their id she# then I.,look for the course 1' am to take# md will pursue with sine ere seal th at which they shall approve#”? Gallatin had suggested' that .a request for m appro? fl­ at! on he included In the message# hut Jefferson declined and left i t to the Secretary1© discretion 'to- obtain the money to deal with France*® I t was .finally decided that Joseph Hlch- elX son should he asked to introduce a resolution offering the admi ni at rati on * s .request for at* appropriation of two Billion. t 1 dollars to sustain negotiation# with the French government#

; Meanwhile O allatin received the following note from Jef­ ferson the day after the presentation of the secret message* ftJ* Randolph has ju st called to ask. a conversation w ith m t fo r which purpose he w ill fee w ith me toamorrew morning; e v e r y ­ thing therefore had better fee suspended till that is over, ” 9

Randolph was In a. defiant m o d when he called at the Executive

Mansion* He declared that he would never support any a tte s ts to purchase Florida from either France or Spain# m d that the

President had deceived the country fey calling, for strong war­

like m easures.In a public declaration# and-.,then, secretly plac­ ing the responsibility for any action, on the shoulders of the. 10 doagree©* fhie was the end as fa r as John Randolph .and fhomes Jefferson were concerned* I% only remained now for the fo r­ mal break to he off sated* and the fertl m Quids would become a reality*

11 .

Jefferson1#, second message with i t s accompanying dess** stents, wm referred by the speaker to itodolph*a Oosra&ttes on Way© and Means.. I t was destined to remain there fo r sewer* si meka, deep!to the President* e determination to secure the necessary congressional approval with a# much speed a# possible. Dating th is time, il&ndolph paid Madison a. v is it and m s informed that the only method by which Spain could be in** dumi to relinquish her claim to florid# was through the pay** mmt of the two million dollar# to Prance* Randolph later ex­ plained in a speech before the House that Madison had told him *Prance would not permit Spain to. adjust her difference# with us; th at Prance wanted money* and th at we must give i t to hart or have a Spanish and French war**** On December 14t Randolph abruptly le f t Washington fo r Baltimore on an. errand .which has various unsatisfactory ex­ planations and interpretattoms, and did not return for a full week.Hi cholson*, who m e second, to the chairman, in rank* refused to act or recommend noil on m the message, and since "*26-

he we® in possession of SaiXailo1® mmwm&vm requesting the financial appropriation* he was in a position to delay any decision by the eomn&ttee u n til Randolph*® return* On. Baeember 21, ■ Randolph arrived back la Washington and waa immediately presented with a copy of (fellatin1# financial Statement on the Florida purchase, which he promptly tossed aside* declaring that.he .would resist my attempt to deliver “the public purse to the ft. ret cut-throat that demanded It,** that he could net 11 understand this double m% of opinions * * . 1 m i pxinoiplee* ~'r the one ostensible* the other real* I hold true wisdom and: cunning to he utterly incompatible*,*^ Over the protests of SI dwell, the doma&ttee m Ways and $eans prepared, a resolution that ignored the President’® request for a peaceable approach* *Resolved. th a t such number rf troops (not, exceeding ..._ ..-—0 as the President of the United States shall deem sufficient to protect the South* em frontiers of the Halted States from Spanish inroad and Insult, and to chastise the same,, be Immediately wised,* ^ On January 5, 1606, the resolution was placed before' the House, and after a considerable debate, was rejected by a vote of ocventy-two to ftfty-thrae.1? 3idweU lmediateljr proposed a counter****® solution grantsag the President’® request for money to deal with foreign powers, which was passed on January 3# and sent to the Senate where i t was approved with little opposition* Jeff croon had won the first round, but only —27*'

a t %m price of m considerable amount of dissension, which Invoked tht outspoken hostility of dote* Bimdolph*

t i t .

I.o addition to the Spanish pmblm, defferaon’e annual message of December, % t$$5# had contained a review of the grievances arising out of the B ritish and Frenoh dap relatione oo. ttobed States* aomatrelal vmml& on the high seas* fhe British practice of impressing, American &mwm Into the royal mvy had a particularly galling effect upon the- congressional leaders*. In order to make an end of this abuse without resort­ ing 'to fores* Andrew Gregg of Pennsylvafslei offered a resolu­ tion In the House on £pt 3l£G£9 which called for the non-lmoortailon of British oom*ditlea until the 0hitel States had been properly noonred th at such violations would cease in the future*. John B&odolpfe immediately seised upon the Gregg reso­ lution as being motivated strictly by the commercial interests without due regard for the nation*» agricultural sitiream that the Spanish incursions mm mmh m m deserving of cen­ sure than those of England since they violated the actual territory of the United States! that hide country was by nature not a naval power* and that to antagonise the British navy in. Its own element was to court disaster# and* finally* that -2 6 —

mwmrol&l restrictions' against front Britain would be of great benefit to France* aHow far is it politic in the Baited States to throw their weight into the seals of frame at this moment; to make her’ atotreee of the sea and land; to Jeop­ ardise the liberties of taankindf Sir* you any help to crush Great Britain* you say aeelet In breaking down her naval dominion; but you cannot succeed to it* fhe Iron scepter of the ocean w ill pass Into- td a'hands who wears tbs iron crown of the laad*?-^ Sensing .that the Gregg, resolution was too all-encQapa#- £ sing* the adclal straiten induced Hicholson to offer a substi­ tute measure which called fo r aoo~iaportation only of those goods which could be manufactured In the Halted States* fhe Maryland eongressssau was only luke-warsa in his aequiesenos, however* and voted tm hi# own measure only a fte r I t became certain th at i t would be fru itle s s to oppose i t s passage* In -his speeches against the adoption of the Gregg resolu­ tion* Hando.lFh.dd4 not confine hie roaarke to the Issue direct­ ly at hand. On the contrary,* be took advantage of his debating privilege to cast mm very uncompilmsntary observations In the direction of Jefferson and his Secretary of State* Still nursing the Mite mess of the Florida affair* he assailed the administration in no uncertain terae-s X ■ have 'before pretested, and I again protest, against secret i ^responsible, overruling Influ­ ence# ’The f i r s t question X naked when I saw the gentlemans He solution was, 1# till# a measure of the Oabieet? Hat of an' open declared Cabinet, but of an inviaibie, inserutable, unconstitution­ al Cabinet, mi the wt'responsibility, unknown to the Constitution* I epsale of back-stairs influ­ ence, — of men who ...bring massages to th is House, which* a lt Hough they do not-appear on the Journals# govern its decision## Sir, the' first question that- X asked on the subject o f British. • relation# waa, "Shat i t the position of the Cabinet? what measure© will they recommend to Congress? — well knowing th at whatever aoas~‘ ures we adght take they mist execute them* and there- fore th at we* should have th e ir opinion on the sub4* ject. % answer was -{and from a Cabinet oini ©ter too),. 1 There is no longer 'mf Cabinet)1 ^7

deferring to a paaptklei'that Madison had written concern­ ing the rights of neutrals, iteiolph declared, tt$oms time ago, a bock was laid on off tables, which* 'ilk# ’©case other bant­ lings, did .not bear the mm of its father «- * ♦ * If, sir, X m m the foe — as. I trust I an the friend of this nation — I. would declaim, l0h$ th at ctno enetqy would write a book}'***® He asked for a copy of the pasfblst, looked at it for a brief moment, and then threw it-'to the floor#^ llicholson, who was pursuing a cost i noon si st&oi and non* tradictory congressional career, took, the floor of the Souse and proceeded to t^hold -fttndolph'*# every argument despite the fact, that hi# own resolutions were little lees than the same' m Gregg*#* Holding that the carrying trade wa© 9a trade total­ ly unconnected with agriculture and enjoyed by a few merchants only,® lie characterised the resolution a* an 8olive branch with a dogger in lie boughs* 20 Macon alee spoke against the §regg. pro 00sale, expressing identical sentiments with Mmti&lpk and Btcholaon*2^ On larch 11, Macon argued against rr the resolutions, nailing them, In effect, a declaration of war, and adding, dWe talk of war with an almost espty treas­ ury! no two thing#. cat* be lees connected, except that they are both bad,*22 »ichoIson,s substitute resolve was passed after three readings m the House floor, with the author voting for I t half-heartedly, the vote was ninety-three to thirty-two, with licholson, tray , Winston, and Wynn Voting la favor of i t , and Randolph,, damett, and Stanford opposing its passage#2^ On .March, %% Randolph, .after a prolonged harangue on party p o litics, announced his willingness to be considered a ®#uld,# or member of a third party*^ And on April % the final Irrevocable attack upon Madison was nade,2^ Speaking in defense of his measure to have Jefferson’s secret sassage on florlda placed on the record# of the House, Randolph al­ luded to hie conversation .with the Secretary' of State in which the latter had .stated his preposition of buying off France to avert a war, Randolph declared* 8 From the moment 1 heard that declaration, all the objections I originally had to the procedure were aggravated to the highest degree# I considered it a baas proatatlon of the national character to excite one **31-*

nation by money to- bully another nation out of it® property, and from th at moment, and to the loot moment of ay life , ay confidence in the principle® of the mm entertaining those sentiments died never to live again# From this point on, there was no turning bank. The estrangement woe couplets, and the battle for th# presidency was on*

iv# •

Throughout the remainder-of the- M ath Oongrees and the first session of the tenth, the Quids* opposition was designed primarily to embarrass the Jefferson administration and to discredit Edison*® candidacy for the presidency. Their argu­ ments lacked1 the high moral foundations and the righteous in­ dignation that had eharaeterised the Tasso and Florida debates* It was opposition bated on personal prejudice, and political gain m& the primary concern* Randolph*® denunciations became more violent and erratic as time went- on* is- deliberately introduced a resolution cal­ ling for the repeal of the duty on salt in order to embarrass m already financially hard-pressed treasury, and he and Macon argued moat vehemently against the adminl stra ti on * a naval appropriation recommendstlone» The Committee on bays and Means kept urgent .legislation from being presented on the floor- of the Bouse, and the .Quids often absented themselves from voting rather than sateiowlcdgc a defeat#^? Olearly, Sandolph was allowing Ms. prejudice against the ads&ni strati on and Madi­ son .to affect Ms te tte r judgement# In- fact, i t night net he tea la$ roper to suggest the. possibility that ■ the curious mental disease that was later to affect Ms mind was begin­ ning is make itself apparent* Despite Ms frequent excursions into, oratorical defam­ ation, John Randolph still exerted considerable influence among Ms. congressional colleagues* 4# long as he retained Ms comMttse chairmanship, and Macon the Speaker*s chair, the Quid a could maintain there opposition' with very l i t t l e hindrance* £ his, however, could not last indefinitely* When the la s t «ee|4ng..#f .the .firs t session of the Mlnth Oongress ended on April 22, 1806, Handolph knew th at Ms position was precarious and .that every effort would he made to unseat him the. following Muter* During the mmmr Teeeaa the Quids kept in constant Communioation with each .other* While th is correspondence did reflect pessiMstle attitude# In some rejects, there, was evident, nevertheless, .a great deal of. enthusiasm for Monroe *# candidacy# &uidalph*s le tte rs to .Ilchoieon particularly show th is optimism and. on dune 24, 1806, he was able to write that *lf the other States leave It to Virginia, he JvtoMmn/ never w ill be With the re-convening of ®m$mm in December, 1806, an attempt was made in hata ooms&ttee chMrma&ehlp* depend­ ent upon the choice of the majority of the ©emailiter1# mem­ bership. However, the proposal failed # and with teen ©till occupying the Speakership* Randolph wee able to retain Me peel Men of leadership* the second' session of the Mi nth Oongress was extremely Mid la ©oispaMeon.to the first*- the Quids* including their voluble leader*, had little opportunity to express their ©pin- lone of the adoinl.stration* Jefferson gays them very little occasion to strike at him of his policies * In fact* in'M s annual message of December.®!* he substantially ju stified the Quids! position insane respect© by -recommending legisla­ tion which they wereknown to favor* Be asked for presidential power to suspend the Mom-Importailoo H ill a t his own diesre- Uon and for the repeal of the salt tthings were going s© well th at Macon was able to wri te to Ml © hoi eon on December

26 that *th© doings here -will hereby convince every candid man In the world th at the Republicans of the OjU .3oho©l were not wrong last winter* Oiv® truth fair play and it will pre­ vail*11^ And In the important debates concerning the slave trade, the Quids remained uncommonly silent* John Randolph broke loose only once .to argue against the bill as an infrac­ tion- of the lights of private, property*^' the Mlnth Qongrese ioradmatcd i t s dell be ra ti one in March* 180?* and almost immediately Jtadolph was appointed foreman of the Brand Jury that- was 'to Indict Aaron Burr for treason* •Bis attention was oooupied with this for ©oat of the summer, although both he and John faylor found the time to aorreo- pond regularly with Monroe in tendon* Slowly they increased the pressure m hi% by .appealing, to his vanity and patriot- ism, to return to.'the M t«i States m i declare hie inten­ tions with regard to the eotdttg election* ihen the .first meeting of the tenth Bongrase convened on October 26$ 180?, teen was defeated for re-election as Speaker of the Bouse-* ffe&Ot of course, tarred Randolph’s being appointed to- his former position at the head of' the Bemad tiee on fays and Means* Both mm mm naturally embittered, m i the relative o&imwhieh 'had prevailed In the preceding session mm destined to be shattered* Previous to the calling of Ooagrese, Jefferson had made a successful attempt to bring Joseph Hicholcon 'back into the fold* da appointment to a federal judgeship had been offered m i accepted* Strange as I t may seem, however, Randolph -did not break off ..hie friendship with Hieholeonj the correspon­ dence between the two man continued as i f nothing had sec tired* It appears that the only immediate effect Sicfeolson1® depar­ ture had.was to diminish somewhat the Quids1 power in the House* As far as the presidency was concerned. Hi o hoi son con­ tinued to support Monroe, although hi a letters do show a dis­ tinct restraint not in evidence before* the great. event of th is session of 'Congress me the passage of the President1® embargo* the attack hr the Brit* ish ship .Ifeos^yd on the American frig ate Chesapeake on June 22, had aroused the ire of the nation as no event since the Revo in ti on- had tee*, and John Randolph was among the m&% t i vociferous of those .who deflate that Jefferson taws&atsl/ thhh 'retaUatoff eteps against Croat ftrltato#^ When the I ■. Pjreidtet hesitated and continued to ast through diplomatic ! 1 . protests and pioolamtiono, Randolph* Macon, and others con* j - domed him for his caution# while the Mew England Federal* I , 11 lets abused him for doing too m b*

, j «“« , <*»****• ***' «*•. * * * ’ *« w »s w * * ; subsided somewhat* Severer, the .news, of a new set of British 'Orders In Council*. coupled with the fact that Napoleon was jaitsopttng to enforce the- Berlin Oeoree, revived the demands ] f ir r e td nation* the return of James Ma&fos to the CMitsd ''S|ates with vefp little to show for the time spent in England,/- I persuaded the Mmioi strati on that drastic measures mm need* hi to uphold, the. dignity and rights o f the American people* i On' Beeember 'IT* .1.80?, the cabinet met, and a fte r eeaoiderable discussion* Jefferson, drafted the embargo message to dong roes* 4 I t was read before a Joint' atsolen of both houses on the next day, and 'within three or few hours- the Senate had given Its overwhelming; approval* When the message use presented to the Bouse* Randolph immediately proposed a resolution that 11 an embargo be laid : m all shipping of the property of aitisane of the Halted States non in port and vt&ofet shall hereafter arrive.® 55 Sub before a rote could be taken on ihl a resolution, the one that the Senate had'’ passed me brought into the House* Bam- doiphl;e proposal me tabled mod debate immediately began. m the upper house1 a resolve# liafortunately the conclave m e held in secret session and m feaow nothing of the actual olroumBtsmoee of the debate# However^ i t la knom that dote fteotdolph warmly opposed the Senate eubstitwte* even though I t was almost ideatieai with hi* om resolution* In a letter to to telso n * dated Deoeaber 2$9%8QJ* he gives a to t of his feelings-a **$©«©/ here I beseech you*11 he wrote# *1 w ill then stew you tew Impossible i t m s fo r me to have voted fo r the embargo* The circumstance# wader which i t presented itse lf were peculiar and compelled m to- oppose i t j although other­ wise a favorite mmmm with m $ as you well know*®^ Borne writers have seined upon this statement as .an Indication that Randolph*s opposition was based entirely upon hi© resent­ ment that his om resolution was not adopted,55 but the evi­ dence i s so incoaplete as to preclude any valid conclusions concerning Randolph*© opposition* By the close of this session'of-fongrees, the Quids1 potency had - lessened- considerably* However# the year ISOS was m election year, ■ and the m$% m fk of; the defeat- ora was do m not in the. h allo 'o f the legislature, but father in the p o litic a l oaspe&gxi th a t was rapidly gaining momentum# Ohepter III, Thg

I fe e l w ith the gratitude m i sensibility I ought tho ©mfl&mm which you m i other friends repose la mef as i t i s the strongest proof which sen be given of yours m i their approbation of m p a st conduct in public life* X fm t proud also in a 'be* lief that' I shall do nothing- hereafter to fo rfe it this good opinion# * James Hmme to John Stadelph, June I6t 18G6#1

She primary rem it of the Quiddlst reaction against the Jefferson addni strati on was a 41 stinat movement to- prevent James Kadi eon from enjoying the presidential succession# '1810 role In the fasoo debates m$ the Florida purchase affair had eeqpletel? alienated hi® from John Randolph and his fol* lowers- and had in s tille d in them a deep- desire to keep the deerotary of State from further perpetuating the Jeffersonian brand of HepuhUosntsm. to oppose Madison in his bid fo r the j presidency they chose the American mlrdster in hm&tm9 Jamas Monroe# the only mn who could possibly obtest the Secretary, of State in hie horns stats of Virgin!** Monroe had been assigned to the position of minister at the Court of St# Jams in 1809# after having spent several months in P aris in m a tte st to- negotiate the felted States1 differences with Spain# I n th ta , he. and his associate# the Amaiioan e&nlater to Madrid, Oharles flnelmsy* had hem singu­ larly unsuccessful# When It- became obvious that he was wasting hie time In Paris# Jefferson Inst rusted .Monroe to proceed to London m i a tte st to settle the long-standing American grievances vomiting from Brltl eh commercial depredations* After a series of prolonged diplomatlo negotiations, Monro# consented, la December, 1806, to sign a treaty th a t was j little better than the 111-received Jay treaty of 1794* Al­ though he had'been instructed to obtain agmmntee that the B ritish weald abaadea the practice of impressment, the best he could do 'was '.to.obtain the assurance that the English would henceforth he mm dleotiaiiiatiag la their habitof seising American seamen# 8© Indemnity was arranged fo r prev­ ious outrages on American shipping, and the ade&nl ot ration was to be ./obliged to- abandon fo r a period of ten years any commercial restrictio n s that sight be imposed against Srsah BH tain* The final major eons eastern m the p art o f Monroe mm in the form of a B ritish amenda^nt which stated that ua- lees the U&tod States refused to resogni.se Uapeleoo1# Berlin Decree, Hi# Majesty1# government would not adhere to- the terms previously determined upoiw^ Monro# .taunt that he had violated his instructions and had negotiated an agreement that left mush to be desired* Be signed in ..the belief that a .poor treaty was preferable to none at all* His feelings may be gauged by a letter to Jefferson in January, 1807* in which he defended his actions as follows* aI tru s t i t Will be seen th a t we have * * .* done as mush as could reasonably have been expected* It is Important for us **ilQ *»

to stand well with some power* I think- the U States have sustained the attitude they took with dignity, that by this arrangement they will terminate a .oontroversy} not la favor of themselves alone, hot of neutral rights, with some

degree of c r e d i t * *2. Poor years later his attitude had not changed, and he wrote to John fay lor of Scrollne that "fhc treaty ms an honorable and advantageous adjustment with England* I adopted i t in the firm belief that it was so, and la nothing has sine# of cared to change that opinion*"^ Jefferson and Madison, however, failed to perceive the ®h|norahlo and advantageous^ aspects of Monroe *8 treaty, and I trip President refuged even to sub-alb I t to the Senate for- son** fifisation* Be had written Madison on February 1, 1807, saying tbit Hhe ajff non we made It that of the. nation, 4 that ; . '%I thly would father go on without a treaty than, with one which doe a noi settle this article ^is^reasmen^*”^ Meanwhile, as we 'have seen, Randolph was expressing his preference for Monroe as early as October, In Febru­ ary, 1806, John fay lo r wrote a lengthy letter to Monroe in tendon In,which he mentioned the emergence of a third party composed of disaffected Republicans and some Federal lets* faylor also mentioned th a t I t was rumored th at the Olinton supporters In lew fork' were favorable to his candidacy*^ ISou­ rce, however, was not willing a t th is point to committ him­ self to any course of action in opposition to the admlfti stra - ~ ht *Mr

t&ttft* He preferred' to maintain a cordial relationship with mil -concerned without placing himself under obligation to

Jefferson knew the aitimtion, m i m mm m he was cer­ tain that Monroe had been contacted regarding the coming election* he wrote tta a detailed mm ly sis of Randolph*a do- j faction and the In h e rit dangers of Monroe1 a beeos&og too involved with the Quids* leader* fid.a letter deserves to he I ' piloted a t length* not only fo r the advice that it contains fir Monroe hot also-.an an indication of the President1 e feel* | lags toward the whole Qulddlst movements ‘

Our old friend* Mercer* broke off from m so m time ago I at first professing to disdain join­ ing the federalists*, yet* from the habit of voting together*, heeoa&og soon identified with them* Without carrying over with him one single person* he is now In a state of as perfect obscurity as i f Ids mm .had never been known* Mr* J*. Handolph t s in the same track* .and w ill end in the same' way* His.course has excited considerable alarm* fie ld mm consider it as a proof of the weakness of our government* & that it is to be rent into pieces by demagogues* & to end in anarchy* I sur­ vey the scene with a Afferent eye* and draw a different a«&txxy from it* In a House of Represen­ tatives of a great mass of good sense*-Mr*. B*© popular eloquence gave him such advantages as to place him unrivalled as the leader of the house* and* alth o 1 not conciliatory to those whom he led* principles of duty & patriotism induced many of them to swallow the huadllatlons he subjected them to* m i to vote as was right* as long as he kept the path‘of fig h t himself* 'fhe sudden de­ fection of such a mm could not but produce a momentary asbooi shment* b even dlamayi but for a moment only* the good sense of the .house m l- *42

‘lied around i t 1# principles, 4 without any lead­ er pursued sieadi ly the busioes© of the session* did it well, 4 by'a strength of vote mhlob baa never before beam seen# lip cm a ll trying questions, exolusl ve of the federalists, the minority of republic©!*© voting with bim hm been from 4* to 6, or &*, against from 90, to 100* * and altfc©1 he yet treats the federalists with Ineffable contempt* yet haying dee laved eternal opposition to this ad­ ministration, associated with them, ia Iks votes,' he will, Ilk© Kercer, end with them# # .. * the great- body of your friends are mm$ the firmest adherents to the ada&d,strati on j and- in their support of you, will suffer Hr* 1 to have no oonmjnloatione with them* % former letter told you- the line which both duty-, and inclination would lead me sacredly to pursue* But i t ia unfortunate for you to be embarrassed .with #«ch a sol~dl ©ant friend* You must not edma&t. yourself to him* * '* * _ and I verily 'believe i t would be to your advantage : to be ju s t th a t much withdrawn tmm the Yoons of | the eng^ng coats at, until l t #s event should be I known*®

fii£'• the detached'1 sinner 1 a which theP resident viewed the fectioa of .Randolph was in direst contrast to an earlier tier that he had. written' to William Duane, in which ho stated 1 " that *0ur situation is difficult} 4 whatever we do- Is liable "tb the ©fittctam of those who wish to represent It awry* If m recommend measures in a public message* I t my ha said ' th at members arc not ©ant here to ebay the mandat©® of the President, or to reglstar the edicts of a sovereign* If we express opinions in conversation, m have then our Charles Je&klneeaa,. 4 backdoor m m w llftm * I f wc m y nothing, 4$© have no opinions, no plans, m cabinet*1 In truth It Is the fable of the eM.man, hi© son 4 ass, over again^ -4 J -

This letter, however, is the only instance in which Jefferson displayed real concern over the Quids * opposition to his adml ni strati on * His other frequent referenced to tan* dolph m i his followers are all in the same relatively un­ concerned manner la which he wrote to Monroe* to Oaesar Hoi* ney he wrote in March, 1606, h e. separation of a meaner of great talents m i weight from the present course of things, scattered dismay for a time among those who had been used to see him with them* A little time however enabled them to rally to their own principles & to resume their track under the guidance'of th e ir own good 'tense*® He further aAnia&sed the danger of th e Quids in a le tte r to Wilson O&ry Hi chelae in April, 1606*

* * • • the M o f B I t a t well disposed a s t ever saw one* the defection of so pm®&nm% a leader, threw them Into dismay & confusion fo r a momenti hut they soon rallied to th e ir own principles, & le t him. go off with. % or 6* followers only* One half of these are from Virginia* She late declar­ ation of perpetual opposition to this adainiatra* tion, drew off' a few others whs ah first had loin* ed him-, supposing his opposition occasional only, & not systematic* * * * On the whole, th is l i t t l e trial of the firmness of m r representatives in their principles, & that of the people also, which Is declaring Itself in support of their public functionaries, has added much to my conviction, that, should things g

And to Jote ly le r he wrote th at * Hepubii oahi am may perhaps have lo st a few of i t fe anomalous members, but the steadiness of It’s great mm has considerably increased m the whole W oon.fidence la the solidity & permanence of our govern- merit In Marsh, 18C3$, began the long ©cries of oOrrespoadsaee between Monroe and various members of the Quiddlat faction relative to hit prospective candidacy in I8Q6. John Randolph led off the o&mpsigji on the 20th of that month with a letter to Monroe whichvividly portrayed the Quids* resentment to­ ward the ada4nl strati on* after reel ting some of the evils of Madison * e tenure as Secretary of State, he aonUoued with the assertion that, “"there is no.longer a doubt but the principles of our adminl stra ti on have been materially chang­ ed, the compass of a letter * * ♦ cannot suffice to give you even art outline*. Suffice i t to say, that everything is made a business of bargaining and tm fiick, the ultimate object of which is to .raise Mr* Madison to the presidency* then cams the proposition? “Heed 1 te ll you that they y'the Old Be- publ leans/ are mi,ted la your support? That they look to you, Sir, for the sjc&ajple which this nation has yet to receive to demonstrate that the government can be conducted on open,, upright principles without intrigue or any species of dis­ ingenuous artifice* * # *■ four country requires, nay, demands your presence* It. lb time that a character, which has proved invulnerable to eveiy open attack, should triumph over Insid­ ious enmity**1^ Or April 21# Msnroe received another communication from Randolph in the ease vein m the fl ret* the Qulddlah leader advised the Minister that only through hie o m pres* mm in this eowitry could he see .for 'himself the dlcrept)* tlb le condition in which the government had found itself* Since he was not certain Just exactly how Monroe fe lt about the p ossibility of hi.® name being ©mitred m a can#date in opposition to Had!eon# Randolph hedged a M i and declared that "My object at present 1® merely to guard you,, which your known prudence perhaps render# an unaeeeeeaiy caution, against a eompromitmeoi of yourself to men in whom you can­ not wholly confide*"^ On June l£# Monroe reciprocated with a lengthy dis­ cussion of the situation in Washington# which clearly indi­ cated that he was not totally adverse to Identifying himself with the "Old Republicans* ® Although he professed th at pro­ priety should indicate hi® determination to withdraw We name from thecontest coa$> lately#he left the door open to further communication by stating that "the cause may some­ times derive more support from .the. retirement of individuals than from any service they might render® though i t would- be far from ay dispoWtlon altogether to retire** Private inter­ ests would consume his time.Immediately after Ms return to the United States, but he desired to confer with Randolph ! upon various topics .as soon afte r hie return as possible# so that 8the ultiamte course u til fee decided on md pursued with feeeeatsg firm e s s i8^ ftadolpti took heart and penned m enthusiastic reply In July in which he confided that Virginia was almost solidly behind Monroe * 8 there hare been schisms end divisions amongst us which do ms very little honor, but* in regard to yourself# there is hut one sentiment — at least amongst the mass of the people*8^ fhe next letter became even more persuasive* with Handolph calling open Monroe1 s sense of public doty and the necessity for Mm to seek the iepubliean nomination*

lft heretofore# I had been at a loss to fix upon the individual the most disinterested & virtuous who® I have known# I could# now.* find m difficulty in determlftlngi nor do I hesitate to declare that the very arguments, which t you adduce to dtsnsde your friends from supporting you at the next presi­ dential election, form# with m* an invincible mo­ tive for persltittig In that supports since they exhibit the most Irrefragable proof of that super­ ior merit which you alone are unwilling to acknow­ ledge* fet# I must confess there are considerations# amongst those presented by you, that would' have great, &# perhaps, decisive influence upon «y mind# where the pretensions of the candidates were nearly equal* But in this case, there Is not only a strong preference for the one party, but a decided objec­ tion to .the other* It is not a singular belief among the republicans# that, to the great & acknow­ ledged Influence .of this last gentleman we are In­ debted for th at strange amalgamation of mm 4 prin­ ciples which has distlnguished some of the late acts of the administration 4 proved so injurious to it. Many, the most consistent 4 influential of the old republicans# by whose exertions the present men were brought into power, have beheld with immeasur­ able disgust the principles for which they had con­ tended# & (as they thought) established, neutral- Ised at the touch of a cold 4 ineldnous moderation, - -47

As the time of the election drew nearer* Randolph’s le tte rs to London grew mm indelleate and blent* In an ef­ fort to- derive some definite word from Monroe as to his willingness to export actively Ms own candidacy, he be­ gan be "sow the tare©1* that Jefferson had so heartily com­ plained of In Me letters to Macon and Soane* In an effort •to. minimise Monroe *e confidence in the admlni stra ti on1 a backing of Ms negotiations with the British government* Randolph insinuated that * exertions to diminish the vain# of your character and public- service© have been made by per­ sons and In a manner th at w ill be scarcely credible to you***9 a^hen yon return* you w ill hardly know the country* A sys­ tem of espionage and denunciation has been organised which pervades every quarter; distrust and suspicion generally prevail, in, the intercourse between man and man* All I® con­ straint, reserve end 'myotony* Intrigue has arrived at a pitch which I hardly supposed i t would have reached in five cen­ turies* Hypocrisy and treachery have reached their acme amongst os**2® In an effort to place Mm in lea© prominent circumstances, Jefferson offered Monroe the position of Governor of the Louis­ iana territory, but the latter refused on the grounds of per­ sonal inconvenience,2* Monroe knew that the President’© mo­ tives were mot purely the result of Ms concern for Ms (Mon­ roe* o) financial position, as was alleged* Acceptance of the Mew Orlcano appointment would be tantamount to political exile* The long-range advantage© of such a position did not Influence tile attitude at the time, and he hastened to ad- vise the President not to keep the appointment open for Ids, Monroe returned,to the Salted States in December, • ISO?, and immediately retired-to- feds home near Richmond*. He re­ ceived a letter from Randolph dated. December 24, in which'he was warned against any further communication between himself .and Randolph except through personal imtervi ewe* Rudolph was afraid that hie own letters, to Monro# night inadvertedly fall into the wrong hands*^ On January 21, 1S08, the p arti ©ana of Madi son, in the Virginia State Legislature held a caucus at the Bell Tavern in Richmond* Willi am Branch 01 lee moderated the meeting which was attended by one hundred and nineteen members of the legis­ lature* Tbeeaueue enthusiastically recommended Madison to be Jefferson’s successor, with Oooige Clinton of Bow fork' as the vioe-p re si denti al choice. On the mm day, sixty of Mon­ roe’s supporter# in the legislature .met at the Oapltol and declared their endorsement of him m the Republican candidate.

This was the firstp o s it iv e test of strength between the two men in the state of Virginia, and It clearly showed that Madi­ son.’# prospect# were inftM teiy better than those of Monroe* I f the la tte r could not command a majority in the Old Poudnion, then bis chances were relatively slim throughout the rest of the country* Madison1# decisive majority in. the legislature caused, many of the Monroe partisans to abandon hi© ©andi- dacy and support the Secretary of State* Two days later, on January 2% a congressional oauous convened in Washington under the .direction of Senator Brad­ ley of Vermont* Again Madison was, the presidential choice, receiving the support.- of .eighty-three of the eighty-nine member©, attending the meeting# A resolution was- proposed and passed which recommended the formation of a committee of cor­ respondence in..each state to stimulate enthusiasm for Madison* candidacy, Monro©'1© adherent© lo s t no time in oondemaiisg the caucus .as being mconsti tub!onal and opposed to the best in tere sts of the people* In the Interest of their own candidate they issued a statement denouncing the meeting*

A© being In direct hostility to the principles of the constitution* As a gross assumption of power not delegated, by the people, and not justified, or extenuated by any ac­ tual necessity* As an attempt to produce an undue bias in the en­ suing ©lection of President m i Vice-President, and virtually to transfer the appointment of those of­ ficer© from the people, to a majoiity of the two House© of Oongress*

t And. w© do i n the same .manner protest against the nomination of Jame© Madison, a© we believe him to be unfit to fill the office of President in the present juncture of our affair©,*** *90-

This declaration was signed fey John Randolph, Richard Stanford, Littleton Waller Taceweil, Edwin 3rey, and other®. Against the eighty^throe who had endorsed Mad! eon *9 candi­ dacy, there' were only nineteen who signed the' protest for Monroe# Although th is was-not a positive indication of the < - T , r \ relative strength' of the two candidates on a national scale, ' : 4 it'Showed which■-imp the wind was blowing* Randolph^ extrav* agant claims- of support' for Monroe weft proving to he mm , illusion than fact* let it was precisely at this point that Monroe chose to declare himself definitely available for the nca&n&ti'On.. After pnretdsg a policy of vacillation, Monroe selected the moment of Madison's apparent triumph to write the follow­ ing . letter to Dr. falter donee# Scarce undoubtedly was aware of the results of the caucuses in Richmond, although It is not certain that he knew of the results of the Washington meetings* At any rate, on January 24, three days a fte r the Richmond meetings, and -one day following the congressional caucus, he wrote Dr* donee*

that'I .have-not offered ay self a candidate for the office to which you allude I s moat certain, as i t likewise is that I have entered into no arrange* meat or compact with any one m that subject# % opinion Is, that the nation should be left perfectly at liberty to make its own selection, without any the slightest Interference, on the part' of those to whom the public attention may be in any degree drawn in reference to that object* On this principle I have acted Invariably whenever I have been applied -51-

to respecting it* At the same time I t hae been £*S £ m M M M£MsU a from jg country ,1a eaefQ thpy should ,| .f .galled for jjg it* j j | M i aontm i^. Jt'Jfcgy£g blip MEgw to£ora and jh all op.attjras J& bg, fcfMss j'.lig ,sUltor. is Mm M l a .gags 1 gliaaU M a ls g l- #3 As lias aeroae ..tegs jaSaMI> sl&si? alaas Is ■SfiaataAssA J a p„rlagA;te sS. aat gwwa- “s»i. A iB a a s Aa Afcs .a a te aaS Aiis earga .Sia J22Z be th« ob^Pt jgf All WSUS' ' Hosting m this ground I shall maintain It le t 'the consequences 'to myself be -what they my# I am-uadei* obligation jgiy kfod Ag n#iia^ £m&W M W & &3hi 3&m M S im M i m s M s srsieaaioas ff a m ana* I holt It to be equal­ ly isp roper to take that step# as to sateavoir to promote my own election* In 'th e course which Is too often practices# ita lic s supplied*/

Here Is the first clear-out statement by Monroe as to hi#availability for the' and i t came a t a time when his prosy©eis had dimmed considerably as a result of Madison1 a great show of strength* Why did he choose th is particular time, to writs suoh a letter! % making a positive deelamtl.en of his position, he might have had in mind an effort to sway to his side those who 'had heretofore heal bat­ ed because-of the ^certainty of feds intentions* Sub what­ ever his .motivation# he soon changed Ids mind again and re­ treated to lie former position of non«coMltmeat* One of his most ardent supporters, deha fay lor ofOaro- line# was quick to fecogclse the hopelessness of Monroe1 e candidacy* After observing the result© of the Mehmoad and Washington caucuses# he wrote Monroe advising th at he with- draw his mm* After elaborating the difficulties that would be encountered if'ho persisted'in hie deteraimabion to challenge Madison, tailor observed that °an unsuccessful attoapt will probably both close upon you for ever the ave­ nue to the presidency, and u tterly demolish your private fortunes* Oonelder well therefore whether these great stakes ought to be.betted upon, the, chance of success* from what I can leam* i t is pertainly’ bad* probably desperate*5*^ faylor urged Monro# to accept the post offered at Mew Orleans, argidng that the Weei would certainly be a potent force in national politic# In the near future* and that the loui alana appointment would -identify, him with western inter­ est# that would conceivably support hi# next bid for the presidency* He also pointed out that the rename ration offer* ed would b# more than adequate to satisfy the need# of Mon­ roe* s financial condition-* He concluded with a reference that left no doubt a# to txta loyalty and hi# opinion of Monroe1# chance# fo r the presidency i * though such are s$r opinions* I hare no Idea of withdrawing from- the tic k et jji® a supportej/ should you persevere, but shall contentedly Immolate sy l i t - • tie popularity In the funeral pile which will consume yours,*2? Evidently fsylor* e advice had a sobering effect upon Monroe, for he Immediately dispatched a letter to- -Jefferson assuring him that his loyalty to the administration was not loped red, and th at he was ready and able to support Mr* Madison in the presidency*

In regard to the approaching election I hare been and, shall continue’ to be an inactive Spectator of the movement* Should the nation be disposed to call any oltiaen to that sta­ tion i t .would be hie duty to accept it* On that ground I rent* 1 have d ^ e foothtng «$$ draw the attentiop c f. qn# ..©fie J i JSt Jli rsfsrsap© tq aai'-SSail I l ajb & m * K» one knows b etter than I do the merits of Mr* Madison* and t can de­ clare that should he be elected he will have my beet wishes for the success- of hie sdMnla- t ration* as well on" accost o f the great'inter­ est which I take In what concerns hie. welfare aa in th a t of w country* It Mil not lessen friendship for Mm which i s sincere & strong* ® /Italic© supplied//

These sentiments art' hardly constatent with those voiced to fr* Walter Jones in January* when Monroe had ex­ plicitly stated Ms position with' regard to his candidacy*. He was emphatic in his assertion that he was under no obli­ gation of'any ,Mnd to' shrink from a ptibliek duty with a view to favor the pretensions of any o n e / Presumably the '*any one** included the Secretary of State* If* a© he wrote to' had | Jefferson, he/done ^nothing to draw the attention of any one to * * * /Mmselg/ in reference to It/th e noMnaiion/, # how can the letter to Jones be explained? Olearly ha had indi- 1 sated Ms availability in the Jones letter* yet ha advised Jefferson that he had done nothing to favor Ms own pretea- Mono* The evidence appears to indicate that he was quite willing to play both sides a t the same time* Presumably th is was the ease, because factor found I t necessary to caution ■hi© again m March 20# by advising that 0fhe opinion of all your friends who© I have seen is, that a difference with Mr. «?offeree** w ill destroy year popularity. Many have never even conceived its possibility. And a multitude would desert y#% I f i t was avowed th at you would change* and Mr* Madison ad­ here to, the system of .hi# adcAnl stration,^fortunately we do not have any of Monroe*s observations with regard to fay ler1# admonition®, but there- is an indication that he was heeding this latest pi see of aivloe* because he wrote Jefferson again on Maroh 22, giving a detailed explanation of r f his conduct in london# and apologising for any mlaeoheepiion he might have had regarding the President1# confidence in his abilities*^ It is interesting to note that fsylor1© letter |i%>Iiss th at some of Monroe1# strength lay among those who were not oil tie# of the administration, but who apparently preferred .Monroe to Madison for.personal reasons'only* On March t% Monroe, wrote Randolph saying *Qn p o litical topi ok# I have nothing to communicate being a distant and inactive spectator of the mv ^ent,*21 with this, the cor­ respondence between the two iersdiiated abruptly until a fte r the election* During the summer Monroe and the President con­ tinued on friendly terms# and in September he sent to deffar­ son copies of all the letter# he had written to Randolph# say­ ing *Xou will .perceive that they were not intended for your view, a®, there are passages in them which may not. be agree­ able* feu will however perceive that there is nothing In the© to sanation what has been by some most ungenerously insinuated*11^

With this action Monroe confirmed the fears that-Ran- , dolph had previously, expressed regarding their correspondence, although the latter undoubtedly did not anticipate the agent fey which his confidence would bo betrayed* the only thing that can. fee said in Monroe* a favor concerning this trans­ act! onr i s that he did not divulge .the .contents of Randolph1® letters to him* By making certain that Jefferson was fully apprised of his dealings with Randolph, Hoaroe completely cut any tie s th at remained with the- Quids* and allied him­ self fully with the administration* for all practical purposes# hie opposition to Madison1# presidential aspirations m s com­ pletely abandoned* While th is action may fee considered to have been an astute p o litica l maneuver, nevertheless, i t does not .reflect very highly on Monroe1# trustworthiness as a -po­ litical cohort or confidant* During a ll of th is time an interesting newspaper war- was feeing, carried on in the columns of the Richmond Enquirer between the parti sane of both Madison and Monroe* Randolph, faylor, fas© we 11, and Leigh, were actively endorsing Monroe1# candidacy under such pseudonyms as Bed us, Hermodeus, Arieti- dee, Tulllue, Horten si us, and Publico la* They attacked the adi&ii|eiratl©»,a record, the tattoo frauds, the Florida affair, and the enlarge, as well as the assumption by Jef­ ferson that he could hand-pick the next Republican nominee for the presidency* However bitter the accusations were that flowed from .the peas of the Quids, i t i# evident th a t they had very little effect open the final results* The ad­ m inistration forces, led by William Branch &Ues, the Mad­ ison leader In.. Virginia* .answered most of the charges and mstiatlagly upheld their candidate with, great fervor* the President himself was not adverse to joining in the fray, although he preffered to answer his critics in private letters to 14s own followera*^ By the middle of the earner of 1806, it was evident to any observer of the political scene, that there was really no question m to the final outcome, of the election* It was merely a case of how large Uadison*e majority would u l­ timately be* the federalists could hold no hope of achieving any substantial gains fo r th e ir party, and even the most die-hard Quids. such as John Randolph could see that the Sec­ retary of State was clearly m his way to the presidency* the wail ©us..Republican sp lin ter groqpe outside of Virginia had conceded the election **- the Quids of Pennsylvania and the Ollmtoa-baokere In Hew fork had. resigned themselves to . token opposition only* As was expected, Madison easily swept to victory over -57-

the Federal! at candidate, Charles ®**d the' Insur­ gent Republicans, Monroe and Clinton* there are no o ffic ia l records of the popular woiej bub according bo the Virginia A^gua of Moveafeei* 22* in. Virginia Madison' received 12,431 votes! Monroe, 2|T?0s and Pinckney*, 4j^*^ Unfortunately we do not know the geographical distribution of the vote a, but the figures indicate that Monroe probably received may votes that otherwise aight -have gone to the Federalist can­ didate* Out of a total possible electoral count of V&t Mad­ ison received 122 1- Pinckney* 4fi and Oliaton, 6, Kentucky failed to ©cad one of .its alloted electors, so that only 175 electoral vote© were actually oast# Madison, of course,, carried Virginia, as veil as cost of the other Southern states, the Mi,ddle-Ailactic states, and Vermont* Pinckney carried a ll of lew England esc apt ferajomti and O llnton4© 6 m votes mmo from Hew fork* 11 is ton was elected vice-pres­ ident with an electoral vote of 113# while the rest of the votes were scattered among Rufus King (federalist), kmgdon, Madison, and Monroe, (he received 3 vote# from Hew fork) for the vice-presidenoy * MAasa?«

Madt aon’e trtumph, for a ll praotleal purposes, aonih- Ilated the fo rtiu s "Quid#* Monroe tmmmi M e lew practice which hepm am d' unii I he wee elected dfcweynd* of Virginia in 1811 i Randolph returned to the Eoo.ee of Representatives end kept op a ep iiited but ineffectual opposition to Madison’s administration mM> X his defeat for re-election in 1812 j Macon end. Moholaon had 'long since been, reconciled .with Jef­ ferson and his follower#! and John tailor returned to quiet retirement a t Ms estate in Caroline $ouaiy* tilth the excep­ tion of Hcnroef. mmw again were any of these gentlemen t©‘ play a. really Mgnificant role In national politic##. It i# true th at John Randolph1# retirement from the House was only temporary*. hut after hi# return he failed to regain the power that lie had once held, and m the years passed by i t became increasingly evident that Ms mental condition was deterior­ ating rapidly* fhe tin®ml pile that fayler had predicted if Monroe persisted in Ms opposition did not mateiialise# of course, and as Mstory has shown, Monroe1 a national political career was Just beginning* .During the War of 1812 he served as Secre­ tary of Ear with- considerable distinction, then as Secretary of State, and finally 'as President of the United States* And i t might be added th a t he was elected to the presidency under almost identical circumstance# m Had!eon* he became the nhei r apparent,® From the very beginning the Quid# ;ha4 undertaken an impossible assignment* for a use-re handful of men to ■aiieafb to oferthtoif one of the moat popular and'powerful presiden­ tia l adsdni strati one in American history appears today' to ■ he almost- ludicrous# despite the nobl© sentiment# that-1 sight- hare in ep iret .them* thorns#Jefferson wm too moot'of an obstacle even for John Randolph in his hey-day of'polit­ ical power# ,ft.o he eertitaljf wae In hie early'coagreeolonal.' years* with ft&ndolplls# their leader# the Quids may -be justly accused of acting purely out of political- activation in many Instances! however# i t mm% alec he recognized that their' ©ppoeitien was substantially based upon sound principles, their bade belief sin a sttiet-constri^tionist# state1 a rights# agrarian society cannot be dismissed a© mere polit­ ical expediency, that they were sincere in thslr belief that the deffersoni&na were abontaldg those Ideals is a truth­ ful assertion* It is not fair to the individuals• involved to condemn their action# in sweeping generalizations without ‘a ‘ clear understa&ding of the motives behind them* In the tm m debates, and to a lesser extent in the Florida affair, they did have a valid argument on th e ir side# but unfortunately they permitted their emotions to gUn the upper hand and pro- pel them into position where pereonallty rather than Ideals was the dominant'faster# A rational point of 'view would tew. steed thm that they eooli not hope to defeat, Madison in 1606, but beoanse of the Intense personal antagonisms engendered in the eewse of th e ir opposition, they eotiM look in no other direeiloii* From a = really sound moral oppo- nltioii they allowed _ their passions to drag them.into petty partisan polities,,. and heoed to their ultimate destruction# As an effective thi rd party, the Quids fed led to- mabef~ i&llse, btit they did stew the way* They proved that even ■ the greatest of political leaders must w&teh not only the organised opposition, but also the members of his am fel**! lowing* ini In .another re spent, they also proved to. be the forerunners* At a .time when centralisation appeared to be making I ts mark on American life , -the Qaida regained fa ith - fill to the-, principles, of state sovereignly* they kept alive those Ideals which later inspired O&lbowa and Kayns — ideals which have remained fa irly constant with os today* S siss

3haptar I . JJa B^fercund.

1 Quoted In Henry Adaoe, John Randolph {Boston, 1694), 161. * Xhonsaa Jefferson to Wilaon Story Stoholae, April 15, 1806, in Paul b. Pord, ed., Jhg iaj&gaS. 3Hms . l?69-ll&4f.. oth Qsogreas. let session, 77% hereafter cited as 'Annals of §mm&M* Most of his biographers have insinuated or implied that Bmdolph used the exact term •*er­ bium Quid* in th is speech, however* th is reader has been un­ able to find a .single instance of this in the speech under consideration*. fhe: reference Is almost always In the context as. Saadelpb stated above, and the designation * terbium Quid* appears to have been a. latter-day Innovation* ^ At the time of the Quiddist defection among the Souths fa Republicans, there was also- a reaction among anti-Madi son Hepubl.leans Mn 'Pennsylvania and Hew fork* However, since they supported ieorge Ollnton. in preference to ilonroc for the •presidency in 180% and'since 'they were in m way affiliated with the fto&olph. faction, they are not seriously considered In this study, except in connection with the final electoral vote count* 6 Mmk1 M :§mmM$ .*2th session, 444. T The most oos^plete biography of dote Randolph i s William Sabell Bruce"a John Handolnb uf Boanokf*. 2 vole* (Hew forte and tendon, 1922}* This by far the moat coexists and author­ itative study that we have on the man, although It suffers from a distinct lack of organisation and is somewhat pro- -62-

Randolph la i t s oonplexica* leveriheleas* until a mm objective biography come© along, Bruce*® work will stand m the most important and useful study that m have* Henry Adams’ John Randolph (Boaton, 1094), i s somewhat overly c ritic a l and does not conform to the high standard set by the eminent historian1® previously praised works* Hugh 3ar- land*6 life of dote Hapdolo|i (many editions), is s t i l l useful, but suffers from‘an-entirely -too laudatory and' biased approach. Bussell.Elite1© flandoln.li j§g Roanoke i s an excellent dieeueeion o f the Virginian*® p o litica l phi loe- ophy* The-‘definitive * biography of Jeba Rudolph of Roanoke has yet to be written*' ® The Randolph'feedly wm {and still is) a very procinent Virginian institution. Its genealogy may be traced back to Pocahontas, and Includes com of the most illuetrleue mm® in colonial and early American hi story , including Thomas Jefferson and Hebert S# tee# See* Bruce, John Randolph* I, chapter I # 9 Quoted in Olaude Bowers, Jefferson in Power (Boston, I9 p h 194, 10 m a .. n x. Xrvlng Brant, James Had!soni 'Seo.retarr of State, 1800- 1809 (Indianapolis and New York, 1955), 240. *2 Bernard Hayo, Henry Olavi SpaVawmn of the New Beat (Boston, 1957), 408, 13 Bowers, jsStfXSSS M I2S3£. 1°5* V* Joseph I . Shulim, The 01^ temi.nl an and Sapolaorii JJ, Study i s ifflastefl C»w tone, 1952), 57. ' 13 William B, fleddte The Mf* Nathaniel Macon (Raleigh, I9 0 5 ), Is old hut good. Jaasla a£ £gBgWfl» 9th 3o«gress, 1*4 session, 912-15. the beet secondary account of the Yazoo affair ie to be found in Oharloo S* Hackles, 8The tamo Land Ooa^&niee,11 pm m s& Mm tegdsm &s&ateal JmmMMm* 'l* *** * (October, il-IOJ* Heal of the official documents are reproduced In the jagftMHI -§MM Fublic Land#, I , IJ2-247* tee alec* S#3* McLendon, History ~.|te ,gub||c Boaaltt of .gge.rgjfi •(Atlanta. l' 191®)* 1® The four companies were knoim as the Ooorgla Ooispony, the Tennessee Qotqpany* the Upper Mississippi Oos^&ny, and the Gcorgia-Mi as! salppl Oeapany* i ^ Haskins, "Xa>200 Laed Oonspaoios," 62; McLendon, fublia .BaMa* 20 Haekina, "Tease Lead Oospaiites,* 87-86.

21 Tysat* afttt.3.S%i MM Mistes, W* oo ^ When the fweetien of the legality of the f^eeladiog action of the Georgia legislature finally reached the United States Sap rerne Gourt in 1810, in the ease of Fletcher .%.» Peak. 6 Oranch 8? (1810)* Obi af $m1&m John Marshall delivered the opinion of the Goart in a decision which held that the grant to the speculators, although obtained under scandalous and corrupt conditions, was Valid*, .end that the action-of the legislature of 170. was m laspairabai of the;contract, and thus wold within the meaning of the United States lonatiiutton. See; Hubert S* OusHiog, %§§MM ed. (Hew font* IfSV Haskins, “fasQO.tand Oocpaniee,11 80#

** IMIS -g&BfH* M»Uo lands, I, 11%* _ ^ rtReport of the Oommissi oners,1* XMd»« 152rl59*. Annalp .pff Gougreas* 1st session, 10%0*

27 1MJ*» ii®^* 2® Bruce, John rtandoloh. I, 198. 29 Annala of Ciongreag. fith Congress, let oesalon, 1176 . 30 Ibid. . 2nd session. X0J1.

31 ia j* » 1°51* 52 Ibi

55 Ib id . . 1027 . 54 Ibid.. 1175. 5 5 iMMdc M S sa m a s. 6 th Congress, 2nd session, 1027, 56 Brant, James Madison. 240. 57 Ibid. . 257 . 56 Thomas Jefferson to Wilson Oaiy Hloholaa, Harsh 26, I 8 O5, in Pord, ed», Works of Jefferson. X, 1J7.

Chapter I I . Tjjg Break.

JgmajLsS i Oongroas. 9th Congress, le t session, 964. 2 William S. fiodd, Ifea j&fg S i B3SPS (Halelgh, 1905), 199. 5 Pord, ed., Wgjckg As iSllSSSSS, X, 189-90. ^ The fu ll text of th is message along with the aeeouspanying documents may be found in Herd, ed., WatissS i d&llsxsm. 196-203. 5 Ibid. . 203.

6 IM J m 20*. 7 ISM*. 205. 8 Ibid.. 200. 9 Ibid.. 201. 10 Brace, John Randolph. I, 225-326, 11 Amals of Oongreee. 9th Congress, le t session, 904-83. 12 these who tend to be pro-Handolph pass over this absence with lit t le or m mtwm% while those who ere oiitioal of hie mtl&m tend to blame i t on hie oootra fines© and hie deal re to confound Jefferson* M mls of Qmrntea&* 9th Jongreso, let cession, 98k, ** Ibid.. 1119. 15 B y . , 54o. 16 IM£«. 559.

17 IMJm 56 i.

»8 1 M2 ., 5 6 5 . 19 Bruoe, John Randolph. I , 24$j Adaos, Btatorr

51 Annals of Oangrees. 9th.Oongreee, 2nd session, 6 )6 - 5 7 .

Jaia .teM pJ, *, 5 1 1 - 1 2 .

55 Aaaala s£ S aasm s, lOlh OoBgrese, 1st session, 1 2 3 7 . 54 Jolm Randolph t© Joseph liohoXeos* 8a© ©sober 24, 2,607, Ni«h- ©Leon Me©#, Library of Oeagreea* 59 Manae, 227 **229i Bowera, Jefferson In Font- j * 44 x; Otapter. I l l « the MMMM*

* diantaiaue Ms Saailton* edU, pjm MriUmm of lames H$a» .roe* (&ts* fork an# hmioup 1900)f liJ lm T % lillia © JPiuQten©^ had hem sent to London to aid the sain- later la hi3 negotiations, however* Monroe always eoasiderel the treaty as hi a atm pfeduot* &nj, oospia^aeg bitterly that , leffereoa had.'lost faith la hie ^Monroe *j/ capabilities by ©ending him an assistant*

5 BartHon, ed.» M U SSS a£ S B B S . V, 2* ^ Jamas Monroe to John Taylor, September 10, 1810, Monroe Mm*$ Library, of Oongress* 5 *>«*•. «a**-JtEaiktt Jti ig & U M b *t 3?4f * £ See page I* Ohapter I # “the San^rom!11* ^ JohnTayior to lames Monroet febrmiy 27, 1806, 11 Letters of loha fey lor,, of la ro lia s Oomty, Virginia,8 fhf loh^ P.* ffoaaffh Pas era jjg fomdolpb4$aeoft StitiSS* ** ' (I me 1908}# 29

8 p°rd, ed., issajefisgfiasflse, X, 2 5 9 -3 6 2 . 9 243. 10 Ibid.. 245-46. 11 Ibid.. 245fn. 12 Ibid.. 252, 15 Jobs Bandolph to Jams* Monroe, March 20, 1806, Monroe Mss Library of Oongress*

^ IM i* John Ban do Ip h to lames Monroe, April 21# 1805, Ib id *

16 Hamilton, ed., Muting* s £ Itetoe. IV, 460-68,

1 - / 1? lohn ftandoiph to lames Monroe, Inly 1805, Monroe Mss*, Library of Oongreee* ^ Haollto% si** Writings of Monroe* If, 486 fti* John Bandolpfe to James ‘Monroe, May3 0 , 1607* Monroe Mss*, Library of Qimgmm* 20 Ibid* 2* fhomas Jefferson to James Monroe, May 4, 1806, ford, ed*, berks :gg' Jefferson* X, a#i*6 2 . 22 John Handeiph to James Monroe, December 24, 1607* Monroe Mss., library of -Oongreee* 25 IntelllgstHMig. January 25, 1808.

24 Ibid.. March 7, 1808.

25 Bssilton, ed„ j|E^sas je£lsass, V, 22-35, 26 John Taylor to James Monroe, February 22, 1808, "Lettere of John feylor,* 27 IMd.. 294. 28 Hamilton, ed., MSSSSMSBISSf ?* 27.

®9 Jofm Taylor to James Monroe, March 20, 1808,"Letter 0 of John fay lor,®2 9 5 *

^ Haad Iton, 6d», m u a s ss £ ,m m > v> 2 7 - 5 5 . 51 IM i-, 55-58-. 5s James Monroe to Thomas Jefferson, September 27, 1808, Ibid 63-64. 22 See for example Jefferson*8 letter to W.A* Burwell dated Sep tester If, 1606, Ford, ed., l&rka of* Jefferson* X, 285-291 54 Quoted In Else 3. tedereon, B. 111,89 MXSSSh SM$& (Kenaeha, wise., 1914), 126.

55 Edward stanwood, J MsMSC M MS ImfMSSX £SSS 1IS§ i s 1897 (Boston and Sew fork, 1698), 9 5 , M aszSasEss-

the primary materiala used in thepreparation of this manuscript do not eoneUtobe a complete listing of a ll those aval lahle* fhe abundance of mumm- extant for the Jefferson- fan period are well;known# andequaXly well distrlfeiited* Man- uaeript material© are particularly wide spread# and, many were

ihaooes'eable for present purposes* 4

Adorns, Charles Francis, ed*, Tfaa Mega.lrg sg jgtffi .jj^agC i#.3gt 12 TOlsi (Philadelphia, 1874-77)7 aL®8* 8 BB*y* «<>*» JEW jb£ ilS sOthitei&a* 5 *ois. (Philadelphia, 1879)# aisas S$a|sSssma 1 J a a s M p i kssislsMss m£ jjg 99» tt« > 38 vole, (Washington, 1832-61)# ': .. °l SsBsms) iaSalsg jao 4 zms$$M$a la l&s flaamaa the tklted 33SSbtHmkf ^ble# (Washington# 16p4-

[Sfttldin# Fowatan, ed##. Home S tm iat {RisWend, 1837)# !Bbuldtn, Powatan, “John Randolph of Roanokei Recollections I and Unpublished Lettera." Century Magazine. 12 (Marsh, 1896), 1 I 712 - 18 # t artment at State, Bureau of Roils and library, Calendar of JUS .Correspondence ^ lisgBSdtt&ttim* ? vola. (Washing- ! ton, 1894-1903)#

5 s Department of State# Bureau of Hoi is and Library# Qalendar of f lb s OorrflBPondenoe 4if JgSSS ^61 son (Washington, 1694). • Department of State# Bureau of Hell© and library# Oalewdar of MS Correspondence ££ janga i t a (Washington, 1893)* Dodd, William S#, ed*, 11 tetters of Jo&o fay lor, of Caroline Oounfcy, Vi rginla,, “' The is2B !• fEgffiaH iMtarffiftt 19BSES °£ JfeiMafe-jfeSSB &&««» «»• 5 « ^ (Richmond, 1908), 233-555. ford, Paol Leioeeter, ed„ The Works___ 12 *©le* (Haw fork and London, If#)* Hand 1 ton, Stantaiaua M*, ed*, Jfeg Writings of lames Monroe. T **!«# (London, 1900}, Samm^d, Hama, #iebb#ro of Cohn fabler of Carolina,0 yiradLnia mMagazine m m lm . f&atory and Qiogr.fapfoy* US, nos* I and 2 Samaary, April, IfW , l~l4# 121-154* Hunt, Oalll&rd, ed*, ftm Writing^ of James Madison. 8 vola* (Hew fork, l90Bh Jams© Monroe Itenaoilpta, Library of Oongreee national iatanijowwor (Waaliington, 1807 *08 ) Joseph Hioliolsoa tfeawoiipt*, Mbmfy of Oongreee r&otamd i^oyIrer {i&ehmond, ¥i rginla, 1807-00) Stokes, William 1*, Jr*, and ftaaol* L* Berkeley, Jr*, ©nape*, B g f&Btg§ si M lfieii j£ .IiiiasjSf1 1 l£tIIAcme fliasattUt m i i o a a t o & 2t* i i M m f e i s j s i & £& & (ofe&r- iotteeville, Virginia, fnakor^oleaan.- OolleoMoa, Colonial Williameburg, Ino*

it* ism asBism ss*

Marne, Henry, SsSaSKM M& M M .4 M&MM fiHflM 1M iM s * IgtoMflM M M feM . Jia IMU»»9 vole* (Hew fork,

Mmm&f Henry, Jp|n .jandolo.li (Boston and Hew fork, 1882)*

Mama, Henry, j j f a $ t j^ g g S t Jte&te&g (Philadelphia, 1879)* Ambler, Charles H*t. Seetionaliem in Virginia froso 1778 fo M i (CWUago# 1 9 1 0 )* Anderson, dee R„ i tm k M M 6» 1 J&H& Afi Jfc&S m M llssltstei J I2 2 M l S 2 i Wi $mminp

Bowers, 31eude a ., j g f j g g m IS JSgggg (Boston, 193*).

8ra»t, irwing. iaaaa JaAAsss* lagr.ateg .ag ateis. i§ 22- 1 509 (Indianapolis and Sew fork, 193?17 Bruce, William Oaboll, John Randolph of Roanoke. 2 vole. (Hew fork and London, 1922),

Burt, a.i.., .Us M$aA iMaa. SiM'MMa.asA M M . M am J m m * JJM-mrt*™ Haven, 1940). Ouohman, Robert S . ^ beading Jonstltutional Peoislona. 6th - ed, (Hew fork, IsSfJ* Dodd, H illia* g,, "John Taylor, of Jaroline, Prophet of ; seoeoeion,” jgg Jpjm p.- sms® HjagaeipA Imm sti la s - i dolph-Haeon flollege, II, noe. ? emd V (Rlehmond, 1906), | 315-258. i i l l Mam 1## ftia Mfa Hathaaiel ftHwm (ftalalgb* | lorth Ctetoiltftt* W l T ■ ' ;0|riaad# ffhfr ftaadolok gf Roanok^ 2 vols. ‘ ] In I , I5tl! edu (tfew Vork, 19%)* '

aiipatrick, seibert a., jM g & m & m .Ssaasiaag As Saetl? 1769-1616 (Hew fork, 1951).. $rlgaky# lugfe ila l r* B&^ugag g f ig f M.f« aai gharacte** Jaa* MAMatas laliar .laiassM (sorfoik, yirginia, iasoJ. M&skiaa* Charles I## *Thm Ifaaoo l#a»i 3oap&fii6ay ” Papers of tg^aeTldan^m etoriaal Association. V, no. 4 (October,

Bioko, John S., “The Third Party Tradition in Aaerioan Poli- tloe.” Mississippi fallev BlstarisalMsAm. U (June, 1944), 5-38.

Honeywell, Roy J ., "President Jefferson and His Susoeesor," American BtstortOft^. Review. XWI (October, 1940), 64-75, Klffe* Rueseilf BatUtolpft of .Roaaoteei A Sfry&y Mayo, Bernard, Henry Olay* Spokesmens£ jyjg |*2a .%tyat (Booton, 195?)*

McLendon, 3 .8 ,, B j l g f f i s£ j&8 M>.US J08B3S St Mm SSS (Atlanta, 1924).

Herriam, Sharleo E„ J Hla^gg jBttlffltt fSMHasIt JSSS2E" lao (Haw York, 1920). Hondall, Benry 3 .. the U fa of Thomaa Jaffaraon. 5 vole.- (Philadelphia, ISfl), Soars, Loula S ., Jeffcraon and the Embargo (Durham, 1927),

Shullm, Joseph I the Old Dominion and S^polcon Bonaoartpi a i$s$e4 b ja g g s s a s e M s s (h«« *>»*. 1952). Simas, Henry a ., Life of John Taylor (Hlohonnd, Virginia, 1952), • .....

Stanwood, Edward, J Historyb £ Presidency froml786 42 1697 (Boston and Hew fork, 1698). Styron, Arthur, J&g 4 ag 4 M IBS 22S&S3 J s i 8 » iSSSS |2fflE2S « g S a f e f e .ftraasat (Norman, Oklahoma, 1945), Trent, «illlam P., Southern Statesmen M& £M SSSLSS (Hew fork, 1910). Wilson, Edwin M., “The Congressional Oareer of Bathanl el teoon." James 3nrunt Blsterjaal Amageafih, no. 2 (1900). 3 M J&SSI

?b# author of this thmi a was feoa* ml sod, and ed­ ucated In Indianapolis* Indiana* He nee graduated from thorn- as Oarr Howe Hlghachool la th at sity* In 195** he received the degree Bachelor of Arts in iisioiy fmm iusknsll vere&ty In l#et»l sburg* Pemi«yX?$r*iUu ■ After a year and a half with Blue Shield in Indianapolis* he enter­ ed Indiana University to work for the Master of Arte de­ gree in featln American Studies* with a concentration in History, At the present liis% the course teqislmmnta for this degree have been consisted*. however* the thesis — Pernio Qardtm and His OonirtbuUtma to Brasilian Qultm&a — has not been finished* In September 195?# the author entered the Ooliege of William and Mary as a graduate assistan t in the Department of History, this the sis'a partial fulfillment of the re­ quirement for the degree Master of Arts In Early American History*

May 195$ Richard S, Heed "