Glass Booki_ii • ^^'^l:J'^ >-"(" A BIO&RAPIY JOHN RANDOLPH, OF ROANOKE, A SELECTION EEOM HIS SPEECHES. LEMUEL SAWYER, FORHERLY OF NORTH CAROLINA, AND FOR SIXTEEN TEARS AN ASSOCIATE IN C0MORBS3 WITH MR. BAMDOLPH. NEW YORK: PUBLISHED BY WILLIAM ROBINSON, No. 206 Broadway. 1844. « 4 , 4- U1 Entered according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1844, by WILLIAM ROBINSON, in the Clerk's office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York. — CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. Preliminary Remarks—Genealogy of the Randolph Family—Birth of John Randolph—Early Studies—Enters Princeton College—Aflair of Honor with Robert B. Taylor—Opportunities for Information with respect to the Foreign Policy of this Country—Incident at a Gaming-table—En- ters into possession of his Patrimonial Estate—First elected to Congress for his own District in 1799, 5 CHAPTER II. Mr. Randolph's Maiden Speech—Difficulty with two Officers of the Na- vy—Made Chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means—Indefati- gable in the Discharge of his Legislative Duties—Deliberations on the Cession of Louisiana by Spain and France—Impeachment of .Judge Chase—The Yazoo Claim—Mr. Randolph's Speech—Debate on the Proposition to present a Sword to General Eaton—Sudden Change in Mr. Randolph's Political Sentiments—True Cause of his Hostility to the Administration—Judge Innes of Ohio—Burr's Conspiracy—Letter of Burr to Wilkinson—Anecdotes of Mr. Randolph—Debate on the Em- bargo Message—Case of Mr. Key, 13 CHAPTER III. Contest on Electing the Clerk of the House—Debate on the Application of certain Appropriations—The Republican Party nominate Mr. Madison for President—Inquiry into the Conduct of General Wilkinson^—De- bate on the Embargo Question—Mr. Randolph's Resolutions on National Defence—Quarrel between Randolph and Eppes—and between Ran- dolph and Alston—Mr Randolph's Style and Address as an Orator His Person^ll Habits and Character, 33 — IV CONTENTS. CHAPTER IV. Remarks of Randolph on Loans and Taxes—Debate on the Subject—Re- solution for the Reduction of the Army and Na\'y—Debate on the Sub- ject of the Repeal of the Act interdicting Commercial Intercourse Resolution on the Demise of Lieut. Col. W. Washington—Further De- bates on the Non-Intercourse Law—Congress convened by Proclamation —^Petition of Matthew Lyon—Night Sittings of Congress—Convention of Commerce between Great Britain and the United States—Mr. Ran- dolph's Speech on the Subject—Active Part taken by him on the Reve- nue Bills—Debate on the Constitutionality of the Appointment of P. B. Porter, as Commissioner—The Presidency and other stirring Questions —Repeal of the Compensation Act—-Animadversions of Mr. Randolph on certain Irregularities in the Treasury Department—Resolution con- cerning OHver H. Perry, of the U. S. Navy—^Mr. Randolph's Motion on the Contingent Expenses of the House of Representatives—His Speech on the Missouri Question—Duel between Commodores Decatur and Barron—Proceedings of the House thereupon—Mr. Randolph's Speech on Appropriations for the Indian Department—Debate on the Ap- portionment of the Representation—Death of William Pinckney, and Oration by Mr. Randolph—Election of Mr. Randolph to tlie Senate of the United States—Letter from John Tyler—Pubhc Diiniers given to Mr. Randolph—Appointed Minister to Russia by General Jackson—Singu- lar Conduct on that Occasion—Visit to England—Debate on the Subject of his Salary as Mmister—His Death'—Disputes concerning his Will Anecdotes, 4S CHAPTER V. Mr. Randolph's Voyage to England—-Visit to Newgate—His Society courted by the Nobility and Gentry^—Obtains the private Entree to the House of Commons, 113 CHAPTER VI. Letters to T. B. Dudley and others, 117 CHAPTER VII. Difficult to find a Parallel to John Randolph—More splendid than solid as an Orator—Want of Consistency—Fine Taste—Wit—Powers of Ridi- cule—His Friendship unstable—His Appetite for Money, . 122 Appendix, 121 BIOGRAPHY JOHI RUDOLPH CHAPTER I. HIS BIRTH PARENTAGE EARLY EDUCATION RELATIONS. We are forced to pause a moment at the commencement of this "work, to express our wonder and astonishment that no fegii^r biography of John Ran- dolph has yet made its appearance. We should have supposed that some of his many gifted relatives would have felt it a sacred duty to have taken the lead, in transmitting to future ages, in an imperishable memoir, the great founder of their name and fortunes. So lofty a theme is well calculated to rouse the ambition of the higher order of native talent, and to insure a rich harvest of laurels and wealth to the success- ful adventurer in this unoccupied field of hterature. He has long passed from among us, his " sun has made a glorious set," but no one has ventured to mark " the bright track of his resplendent car." In the " Port-FoHo" of 1 81 2, is a print of Mr. Randolph from a miniature hkeness, furnished at the instance of Dr. Nathaniel Chapman of Philadelphia, with a promise that it should be followed with a biographical sketch in a succeeding number. Some overtures were made to Mr. Randolph, on behalf of Dr. Chapman, through Theodore Bland Dudley, Mr. Randolph's nephew and correspondent, a student attending the medical lec- tures of Dr. Chapman and his brethren of the Faculty, for some materials for the projected work. Mr. Randolph, in reply, tenders his thanks to Dr. Chap- man for his good intentions, but says his life, though eventful, did not afford the requisite materials. In a letter written in the November following, he directs his nephew to infoi-m Dr. Chapman that he would give him some mevioires pour servir, if he had an amanuensis. In another letter, written to his nephew, of the 19th of December following, he expresses some dissatisfaction at the print given of him in the Port-FoHo. " I really regret," says he, " that you lent the minia- ture for the purpose of having it so wretchedly engraved." Whether he felt 2 b BIOGRAPHYOF his " life" unsafe in the hands of a physician—whether he thought he had undergone torture enough already—whether from a knowledge of their con- tracted sphere of thought, arising from their education for a particular profession, they might not be too apt to infuse a little tincture of their peculiar cast of mind or bias, or if we may be permitted to use one of their own terms, idiosyncracy, into the work—whether it would not still prove physic, or smell strongly of the shop, I am not able to say, but the promises held out by the learned Doctor not being sufficiently encouraged from the right quarter, or from professional avoca- tions, have never been performed. Perhaps, like Alexander, he deemed no artist worthy of taking his portrait but Apelles, and as such a person was hard to be found, it would have been well both for him and the public that he had treated them with the more fehci- tous presentment of his own autobiography. Under these circiunstances, in the absence of even an apology for a desired work of the kind, after waiting in vain for more than ten years for an abler pen than mine to meet the urgent necessity of the occasion, though with a fuU sense of my inability to accomplish the un- dertaking in a proper manner, I am induced by several considerations to hazard the attempt. As nothing in relation to the subject of this memoir caii be unac- companied with interest, I am flattered with the hope that if I can succeed in erecting a structure, however modest, simple, and unpretending, provided it dis- play some proportion and symmetry of parts, the humble artificer will be unob- served, while the spectator is absorbed in the richness and splendor of the mate- rials. My opportunities of possessing information on the subject, I am willing to admit, are sufficient to justify the public in tlieir expectations of obtaining a work, more worthy the exalted subject on which I have engaged to treat, than any I can pretend to supply. If, however, a firm determination on my part to give a fair and impartial history of the life of the illustrious subject of my sketch, by presenting him as he was, at least as I viewed him, without exaggerating his merits " or setting down aught in malice," shall entitle me to a due share of indulgence from a generous community for any deficiency that may appear in its execution, I shall spare no pains to earn and deserve it. The parents of Mr. Randolph were John Randolph of Roanoke and Frances Bland, daughter of Theodore Bland of Cawsons, of the family of Bland in the West Riding of Yorkshire. They were married in 1762, and his father died in Mattox in 1776. John was born in June, in the year 1773, at Mattox in Chester- field, and was the youngest of three sons, Richard and Theodoric Bland. The i odoric died soon after he became of age, of pulmonary consumption. Richard married the daughter of Thomas Randolph of Tuckahoe, and was a man of gi-eat personal beauty and superior talents. After Richard's death, his widow's sister married Gouverneur Morris of Morrisiana, Westchester County, in the State of New York, and by him had a son, Gouverneur Morris, Esq., who resides on the patrimonial estate. Richard had two sons by his wife Judith Randolph, John St. George and Tudor. The latter died in England, in 1814. John St. George is deaf and ; JOHN RANDOLPH. 7 dumb, and has been for twenty years confined in the Lunatic Asylum in Balti- more.