Adams Family Correspondence, volume 14
The rain comeing on the morning I left Bristol,1 I reachd Vantilburys
about noon & remaind there untill Yesterday Mor’g when I procceeded
to Brunswick. Soon after I got there the col & Major Ripley arrived,
and informd me that Mrs smith would expect me to dinner.2 we accordingly sit out and got
here about 2 oclock. the col was not able to be absent as Gen’ll Hamilton was on his way to Camp—and
arrived about 5 oclock in the afternoon at the Village, and is to
Breakast here this Mor’g3
I found the officers with their harps hung upon the
willows from the late resolutions of congress—but they Submit with a
good grace.4 I suppose
the col has written to you respecting one Brigade—the incorporation of
which he Seems to have much at Heart, tho he says there are a large
proportion of the officers who new
in the service, whom never will be capable of Such service as a country
ought to receive from Men bearing commissions.— that in his own Regiment
there is but one capt who deserves the Name.—5 there are some in the Brigade
Men of real military talents, and Men who are now trained to service
seasoned arm’d &c who are willing to inlist and fill up the
Regiments which congress have ordered still to be kept up of Engineers
& articificers— He also thinks it best for those Men who are at a
distance from their Homes to be taken by their officers on to the places
where they were inlisted previous to the time of disbanding, or
otherways a great Number of Men will be turnd loose, perhaps disgrace
themselves.
I have just returnd from a Reveiw of the troops which
Genll Hamiton & North have given
them, and I regreeted exceedingly that you could not see them before
they were seperated.6
Major Tousard will tell you how well they performed. I acted as the
Aurora says, as your Proxy praised and admired, and regreeted &c
I have only time to add my kindest Love to You & pray you to take good care of your Health
My Coachman & horses perform well I am just going off
yours affectionatly
RC (Adams Papers); addressed by Louisa
Catharine Smith: “The President of the United / States / Philadelphia”;
endorsed: “Mrs Adams / Thursday May 22d / 1800 / Scotch Plains / Union
Brigade.”
AA’s first letter to JA en route to Quincy was dated 19 May. It reported her arrival in Bristol, Penn., assessed the quality of her horses, and recommended that JA take warm baths for his health (Adams Papers).
Maj. John Ripley of Coventry, Conn., served in the
13th Regiment of Infantry from 13 Feb. 1799 to 15 June 1800 (Carlos E.
Godfrey, “Organization of the Provisional Army of the United States in
the Anticipated War with France, 1798–1800,”
PMHB
,
38:168 [1914]).
Alexander Hamilton on 21 May traveled to Scotch
Plains, N.J., from New York City to review the Union Brigade. He
reviewed the troops on the 22d and departed Scotch Plains on 31 May,
arriving back in New York by 2 June (Hamilton, Papers
, 24:469).
Psalms, 137:2.
On 21 May WSS wrote to JA,
requesting command of the 2d Regiment of Artillerists and Engineers, a
battalion that had been without a commander since its formation on 27
April 1798. On 22 May 1800 JA sent WSS’s
letter to James McHenry, requesting his “candid opinion” of
WSS’s proposition (LbC, APM Reel 120), and a copy to
Hamilton, in which JA stated, “I am at present at a loss to
judge it.” McHenry sent a long reply the next day (Adams Papers), rejecting
WSS’s proposition on the grounds that the president did
not have the authority to make a recess appointment to a position that
had never been filled. Hamilton replied on 24 May, opposing the
appointment of an infantry officer to the command of a regiment of
artillerists and engineers. On 26 May, without seeing Hamilton’s
response, JA wrote to WSS rejecting the
proposal. WSS then wrote to JA twice on 5
June, requesting command of “the atlantic Coast” and questioning
McHenry’s justification for rejecting his earlier request.
WSS wrote again to JA on 14 June,
reporting that the Union Brigade had disbanded without incident (all
Adams Papers).
JA later offered the 2d Regiment position to Maj. Anne
Louis de Tousard, whose appointment was confirmed by the Senate on 31
Dec. (Hamilton, Papers
, 24:516–517, 523–524,
529–530, 532;
U.S. Statutes at Large
,
1:552–553; JA, Works
, 9:61–62; U.S. Senate, Exec. Jour.
, 6th Cong., 2d sess.,
p. 361–362, 364).
Brig. Gen. William North (1755–1836), of Duanesburg,
N.Y., had a long military career and served briefly as a U.S. senator.
On 19 July 1798, JA appointed him adjutant general of the
U.S. Army, and in March 1799 he assumed the additional duties of
assistant inspector general and chief of staff to Hamilton (
ANB
).
I reachd this city in good Health last Evening I have not
felt dissagreable at any place upon my Journey through absence of any
Gentleman attendent, except at this North River I found a Boat just going
off. with several Horses and chaises on Board, my own Carriage could not go.
I saw none but Irishmen by their Tongues going on Board, decent looking
people however. the ferryman appeard civil and what was of no small
concequence, sober I call’d Richard & took him over with me. We had a
Short passage of 15 minuets only, a brisk wind you may be sure. just after I
got into the Boat, some person from the House run down with a Letter to me.
it was from mrs Adams informing me that they had removed to No 30 Broad street—1 I landed, and hearing mr Hall
lived near the ferry, I 253 found
the House, & mr Hall conducted me here.2 it is a clever House, and Sally
& susan gave Me a cordial Welcome— Mr Adams was at his office.3 he came home in the Evening and
appeard glad to See me, tho a good deal affected by it, inquired after your
Health & talkd about the Election, said many similar things to those
which you have already heard— the coalition which we heard of in
Philadelphia had reachd this city. col B——s visit, his numerous confidential
communications whilst at Philadelphia are believed by Many: You took him to
your own Room & there a coalition of Parties took place— mr Madison too,
is to be secretary of state in case of the refusal of Marshal4 I am told that col Burr has said,
that col Smith was appointed to the place now held by mr Lassher. this
gained so much credit, that mr Morris who is in the office of mr sands, and
who is desirious of obtaining it, he told Mr Adams, that tho he thought he
might entertain a reasonable hope of having the appointment from his
Services in the office which he now held but he felt So much for col smith
and his family that he should not open his Lips upon the occasion—5 there is a very general regreet
exprest, for the col; he is considerd as the former of the troop’s as the
chief hand in their order Decipline and regularity, and I really think if
there is any opening to which he could be appointed it would not be
considerd improper, unless by those who May themselves wish for it, and the
number of those are pretty numerous— a military appointment is what he is
peculiarly fitted for— I do not know what call there is for any officers of
that description unless in the fortification Line—
Burrs report, I take to be for Mere political purposes— the Pardon of all the insurgents was unexpected here— it was generally Supposed that Fries would have been made an example of—6
There are many Picaroons in
this city. Malcombe Says for Several days there was no opening ones mouth at
the coffe House— I saw mr Sands & mr Giles the Marshall. they Made me a
visit to day. they appeard much mortified at their late Election they say,
that they urged Troupe LeRoy and others to permit themselves to be put up,
but no, they would not. Troupe is devoted to P——g Lessher sent out all the
antifeds he could pick up to vote against the federal Party.7 the report of much Moneys being
expended is current—
Tomorrow morning I Shall persue my journey and hope to reach Quincy by tomorrow week—
I have got Thomas Books such as were packd on Board a vessel. inclosed is the Bill of lading8 write to me So that I may find a Letter 254 at the post office at New Haven and at Hartford with a direction that the Letter remain in the office untill sent for by mrs Adams— I received mr shaws Letter & News paper to day—9 My Love to mr shaw I shall write to him Soon. I shall direct my Letters to Thomas care in Philadelphia when I find he has returnd to the city
with renewed
constant Regard and affection / your
RC (Adams Papers); notation by
CFA: “A. A. / May 23d.
1800.”
Not found.
The ferry from Paulus Hook, N.J., landed in New York
City at Mesier’s Dock, which was near the 144 Washington Street home of
Fitch Hall (Raymond J. Baxter and Arthur G. Adams, Railroad Ferries of the Hudson and Stories of a
Deckhand, N.Y., 1999, p. 64; New York
Directory, 1800, p. 218, Evans, No. 37844).
CA’s law office was in the U.S. Custom
House at the lower end of Broadway (New York
Directory, 1799, p. 148, Evans, No. 35740; Stokes, Iconography of Manhattan Island
,
3:974).
In May, rumors circulated that JA and
Thomas Jefferson had formed a political alliance. On the 13th Gouverneur
Morris noted in his diary, “It is said that Mr. Jefferson and Mr. Adams have
made a Coalition,” and in a letter of the same date Theodore Sedgwick
informed Alexander Hamilton that the removal of James McHenry and
Timothy Pickering were “peace offerings” from JA to
Jefferson. Rumors also spread that JA would appoint
Democratic-Republicans to replace McHenry and Pickering and that
Jefferson might withdraw from the presidential race. Senator James Gunn
of Georgia told Morris that Aaron Burr was to be appointed secretary of
war (Morris, Diaries
, 2:91; Hamilton, Papers
, 24:482–484).
John Lasher (1726–1806) was a New York City merchant.
He served as surveyor and inspector of the port of New York between 1784
and his resignation in 1800. For JA’s 24 June recess
appointment of WSS to Lasher’s vacated post, see
AA to
JQA, 1 Sept., and note 1, below. William
Walton Morris (1760–1832) served as one of the surveyors appointed to
map western lands under the Northwest Ordinance (Washington, Papers, Presidential Series
, 2:191; Marshall, Papers
, 4:168; Jay, Selected Papers
, 4:653–654). For
New York merchant Joshua Sands, see vol. 11:464.
JA solicited advice on 20 May in a joint
letter to Charles Lee, Benjamin Stoddert, and Oliver Wolcott Jr., and
the next day instructed Lee to prepare a pardon for Fries’ Rebellion
leaders John Fries, Frederick Heaney, and John Gettman (all Adams Papers).
JA further ordered the drafting of a proclamation
pardoning all those involved, stating, “I must take on myself alone the
responsibility of one more appeal to the humane and generous natures of
the American People.” Lee prepared the proclamation later that day, and
on 23 May JA issued “a full, free, and absolute pardon, to
all and every person or persons concerned in the said insurrection”
(
Annals of Congress
, 7th Cong.,
Appendix, p. 1552–1553).
That is, Joshua Sands; Aquila Giles (1758–1822), a
federal marshal for the state of New York; the lawyer and former federal
judge Robert Troup; and Herman Le Roy, a merchant who had known the
Adamses since the early 1780s (vols. 4:148, 9:276; Washington, Papers, Revolutionary War Series
, 9:513–5–14;
ANB
).
Enclosure not found.
Not found.