• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

THEPAPERSOF THOMAS JEFFERSON BarBara B. oBerg general editor THE PAPERS OF Thomas Jefferson Volume 39 13 November 1802 to 3 March 1803 BarBara B. oBerg, eDITor james p. mcclure and elaine weber pascu, senior associate editors tom downey and martha j. king, associate editors w. bland whitley, assistant editor linda monaco, editorial assistant john e. little, research associate princeton and oxford princeton university press 2012 Copyright © 2012 by Princeton University Press Published by Princeton University Press, 41 William Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 In The United Kingdom: Princeton University Press, 6 oxford Street, Woodstock, oxfordshire oX20 1TW all rights reserved ISBN 978-0-691-15671-2 Library of Congress Number: 50-7486 This book has been composed in Monticello Princeton University Press books are printed on acid-free paper and meet the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee on Production guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on Library resources Printed in the United States of america dedicated to the memory of aDoLPH S. o C H S publisher of the new york times 1 8 96-1 9 35 who by the example of a responsible press enlarged and fortified the jeffersonian concept of a free press aDVISorY CoMMITTee JoYCe aPPLeBY J. JeFFerSoN LooNeY LeSLIe greeNe BoWMaN JaMeS M. McPHerSoN aNDreW BUrSTeIN JoHN M. MUrrIN roBerT C. DarNToN roBerT C. rITCHIe PeTer J. DoUgHerTY DaNIeL T. roDgerS JaMeS a. DUN JaCK roSeNTHaL aNNeTTe gorDoN-reeD HerBerT e. SLoaN roNaLD HoFFMaN aLaN TaYLor WILLIaM C. JorDaN SHIrLeY M. TILgHMaN STaNLeY N. KaTZ SeaN WILeNTZ THoMaS H. KeaN gorDoN S. WooD JaN eLLeN LeWIS CoNSULTaNTS FraNÇoIS P. rIgoLoT and CaroL rIgoLoT, Consultants in French SIMoNe MarCHeSI, Consultant in Italian SUPPorTerS This edition was made possible by an initial grant of $200,000 from The New York Times Company to Princeton University. Contributions from many foundations and individuals have sustained the endeavor since then. among these are the Ford Foundation, the Lyn and Norman Lear Foundation, the Lucius N. Littauer Foundation, the Charlotte Palmer Phillips Foundation, the L. J. Skaggs and Mary C. Skaggs Foundation, the John Ben Snow Memorial Trust, Time, Inc., robert C. Baron, B. Batmanghelidj, David K. e. Bruce, and James russell Wiggins. In recent years generous ongoing support has come from The New York Times Company Foundation, the Dyson Foundation, the Barkley Fund (through the National Trust for the Humanities), the Flor - ence gould Foundation, the “Cinco Hermanos Fund,” the andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Pew Charitable Trusts, and the Packard Humanities Institute (through Founding Fathers Papers, Inc.). Benefactions from a greatly ex- panded roster of dedicated individuals have underwritten this volume and those still to come: Sara and James adler, Helen and Peter Bing, Diane and John Cooke, Judy and Carl Ferenbach III, Mary-Love and William Harman, Fred- erick P. and Mary Buford Hitz, governor Thomas H. Kean, ruth and Sidney Lapidus, Lisa and Willem Mesdag, Tim and Lisa robertson, ann and andrew C. rose, Sara Lee and axel Schupf, the Sulzberger family through the Hillan- dale Foundation, richard W. Thaler, Tad and Sue Thompson, The Wendt Family Charitable Foundation, and Susan and John o. Wynne. For their vision and extraordinary eCorts to provide for the future of this edition, we owe spe- cial thanks to John S. Dyson, governor Kean, H. L. Lenfest and the Lenfest Foundation, rebecca rimel and the Pew Charitable Trusts, and Jack rosen- thal. In partnership with these individuals and foundations, the National His- torical Publications and records Commission and the National endowment for the Humanities have been crucial to the editing and publication of The Papers of Thomas JeCerson. For their unprecedented generous support we are also indebted to the Princeton History Department and Christopher L. eisgruber, provost of the university. FOREWO RD uring the period covered by this volume, 13 November 1802 Dthrough 3 March 1803, Thomas Jefferson never left the nation’s capital, forgoing even one of the brief visits to Monticello that he treasured. at the start, he was busy preparing his annual message to Congress, referring it to members of his cabinet and taking their suggestions under consideration. By mid-November, he had a draft ready for the scheduled opening of the session on 6 December, but members of Congress trickled in. While the House of representa- tives had a quorum by the 7th, on the 10th Jefferson reported that there was still “no senate, nor any prospect of one for several days.” only 12 senators had arrived. Finally, on 15 December, Meriwether Lewis delivered copies of the message to the House and Senate. Jefferson’s words were resoundingly optimistic as he observed that the nation enjoyed prosperity and economy at home and was “still blessed with peace and friendship abroad.” He briefly noted the achievements of the previous year and described the challenges that remained. among these were calculating the impact of the restora- tion of peace on american trade with europe; preparing for a change in foreign relations if the cession of Louisiana to France took place; keeping watch on the harbor of Tripoli to determine whether rein- forcements were needed; “marking the boundaries” with Indian na- tions; and weighing the construction of a dry dock in Washington to preserve navy vessels when not at sea. Jefferson’s message avoided the issue that loomed largest, at least for the western states: the october order by the acting Spanish inten- dant of Louisiana, in apparent violation of the Treaty of 1795, with- drawing the right of americans to store goods awaiting export at New orleans. Jefferson received the news not long before the opening of Congress. Westerners demanded a vigorous response against this threat to their economic well-being, grimly predicting, as governor James garrard of Kentucky wrote, that Spain’s action would “at one blow cut up the present and future prospects of their best interests by the roots.” The clamor from the west was echoed by Jefferson’s polit- ical opponents in the east. Some, such as Senator James ross of Penn- sylvania, pressed for acquiring New orleans by force if necessary. Federalists called for the president to permit open debate in Congress and to make public all papers and correspondence related to the po- tential consequences of the retrocession of New orleans and the Louisiana territory to France. Jefferson, however, preferred a more <vii> F o r e W o r D confidential, behind-the-scenes approach to the whole issue, one that would rely on diplomacy rather than confrontation. on the final day of 1802, Jefferson received Pierre Samuel Du Pont’s letter of 4 october recommending various steps that might lead to a mutually acceptable accord between France and the United States. Jefferson was happy to rely on his “private friendship” with Du Pont to persuade him to use his good offices with the French gov- ernment to keep the two nations at peace. Jefferson also took the adroit step of naming James Monroe as special envoy to proceed im- mediately to europe. There he would join robert r. Livingston in negotiating a resolution of the problem. Monroe received letters of credence for both France and Spain, and he was to go to Paris first, then, depending upon what he learned there, to Madrid if necessary. Because he owned land in the west and was reputed to be a strong advocate of free navigation of the Mississippi, Monroe’s participation would help to deflect “all further inflammatory proceedings medi- tated by the Federalists.” He was also popular in France, where he would be called upon to handle not just the right of deposit but the more complex and far-reaching consequences of the retrocession. Jefferson was also convinced that the future course of the country depended upon the transfer of large sections of land owned by Native american nations to the United States. The prospect of French troops arriving in the Louisiana Territory and supporting Indian re- fusals to part with their soil persuaded the president that he must move expeditiously to carry out his plans for confirming the bound- aries and, eventually, for assuming ownership of Indian property. With the Indians, Jefferson’s language was gracious, respectful, and conciliatory. He assured delegations led by Seneca leaders Handsome Lake, Cornplanter, and Farmer’s Brother that he would “watch over” their interests and renew the “chain of friendship.” The president cajoled, explained, and offered incentives and an accommodation of their wishes, but he was also firm. He insisted to owl and other members of the Miamis and Delawares who had traveled to the cap- ital to meet him that the government desired to live “in peace and friendship” with them, and had even gone so far as to give up terri- tory that their ancestors had ceded and therefore by “right” belonged to the United States. Jefferson concluded by declining their offer to deduct the travel expenses from the next year’s annuity. He assured the delegation that the government would absorb those costs “with satisfaction.” When the president wrote privately to Secretary of War Henry Dearborn or William Henry Harrison, governor of the Indiana Ter- <viii> F o r e W o r D ritory, however, his words were candid and his directions emphatic: persuade Indian nations to live within greatly reduced borders, adopt an agricultural economy, and relinquish all claims to terrain east of the Mississippi. What the Indians considered to be their territory must ultimately belong to the United States. To Jefferson, the bar- gain seemed reasonable: the Indians had an abundance of land, which the United States needed, and in exchange the United States could supply them with “necessaries, with which we abound.” above all, the nation must secure its boundary on the Mississippi and the federal government had “paramount sovereignty” over the western territories.

Load more

  15

Copy Link