I am honoured with yours of the 30th. of May, and find We are well agreed in opinion in all points.1

Nothing Since my return to America, has alarmed me So much, as those habits of Fraud, in the Use of Language which appear in conversation and in public writings. Words are employed like paper money, to cheat the Widow and the fatherless and every honest Man. The Word Aristocracy is one Instance. ’tho I cannot say, that there is no colour, for the Objection against the Constitution, that it has too large a Proportion of Aristocracy in it; Yet there are two Checks to the Senate evidently designed and prepared, the House of Representatives on one Side and the President on the other. Now the only feasable remedy against this danger is to compleat the Equilibrium, by making the Executive Power distinct from the Legislative, and the President as independent of the other Branches as they are of him.— But the Cry of Monarchy is kept up, in order to deter the People, from recurring to the true Remedy, and to force them into another which2 would be worse than the disease, i e. into 34 an entire relyance on the popular Branch, and a rejection of the other two. a remarkable Instance of this, I lately read, with much concern, in the Message from the Governor to the House.—3 the attention and affections of the People are there tu[rned] to [their] Representatives only, and very artfully terrified with the Phantoms of Monarchy and Despotism.— Does he mean to insinuate that there is danger of a Despotism? or of Simple Monarchy? or would he have the People afraid of a limited Monarchy? in Truth Mr H. himself is a limited Monarch. The Constitution of the Massachusetts is a limited Monarchy. So is the new Constitution of the United States.— both have very great Monarchical Powers; and the real defects of both are, that they have not enough to make the first magistrate, an independent and effectual Ballance, to the other Branches. But does Mr H. mean to confound these limited Monarchical Powers, with Despotism & Simple Monarchy which have no limits? Does he wish and mean to level all Things and become the Rival of General Shase? the Idea of an equal distribution of Intelligence and Property, is as extravagant as any that ever was avowed by the madest of the Insurgents, another Instance of the false Coin, or rather paper Money in Circulation, is the Phrase “confederated Republick” and “confederated Commonwealth.”— The new Constitution might in my opinion, with as much Propriety, be denominated judicial Astrology.— My old Friend your Lt Governor, in his devout Ejaculation for the new Government, very carefully preserves the Idea of a confederated Commonwealth, and the independent States that compose it.—4 Either his Ideas or mine, are totally wrong upon this Subject.— in Short Mr A. in his Prayer and Mr H. in his message, either understood not the force of the Words they have used, or they have made the most insidious Attack on the new Constitution that has yet appeared.

With two Such popular Characters at the Head of Massachusetts so near to Rhode Island: with Governor Clinton at the head of N.Y. and Governor Henry, in Virginia so near to N. Carolina: there is some reason to be jealous. a convulsion with Such Men engaged openly or Secretly in favour of it, would be a Serious Evil. I hope however that my fears are groundless.— and have too much Charity for all of them, to imagine that they mean to disturb the Peace of our Israel.

Mr Henshaw like all others must apply to the President, if he has any Views of Employment.—5 He has never communicated to me any desire of any Thing. I believe him to be a very worthy man.

This Letter is very free, and of course confidential.

We have got down Molasses to two and an half Cents: but I was obliged to reduce it, the senators being equally divided. But when they Saw that I had reduced it to three Cents, they took the Resolution to take away the Drawback on Rum, and reduce Molasses half a Cent lower.— They have not been very Severe upon me for what they call my Partiality for the Eaters and Distillers of Molasses.

With great Regard, I am, sir your / most obedient

Your Single Principle, in your Letter of the 15th must fail you.— You say “that Republican Systems have never had a fair Tryal.”— What do you mean by a fair Tryal? and what by Republican systems.— Every Government that has more than one Man in its soverignty is a republican system. Tryals innumerable have been made. as many as there have existed Nations. There is not and never was, I believe, on Earth, a Nation, which has not been, at Some Period of its duration, under a republican Government. i. e. under a Government of more than one. all the various combinations and modifications which the subtile Brains of Men could invent have been attempted, to no other purpose but to shew that Discord Anarchy and Uncertainty of Life, Liberty and Property; can be avoided only by a perfect Equilibrium in the Constitution. You Seem determined not to allow a limited 36 monarchy to be a republican System, which it certainly is, and the best that ever has been tryed.—

There is no Proposition, of the Truth of which I am more clearly convinced than this, that the “Influence of general Science,” instead of curing any defects in an unballanced Republick, would only increase and inflame them and make them more intollerable. for this obvious and unanswerable Reason, that Parties would have in them, a greater number of able and ambitious Men, who would only understand the better, how to worry one another with greater Art and dexterity.— Religion itself, by no means cures this inveterate Evil, for Parties are always founded on some Principle, and the more conscientious Men are, the more determined they will be in pursuit of their Principle system and Party.

I Should as soon think of closing all my Window shutters, to enable me to see, as of banishing the Classicks, to improve Republican Ideas.— How can you Say that Factions have been few in America? Have they not rendered Property insecure? have they not trampled Justice under foot? have not Majorities voted Property out of the Pocketts of others into their own, with the most decided Tyranny.?

Have not our Parties behaved like all Republican Parties? is not the History of Hancock and Bowdoin, the History of the Medici, and Albizi—that of Clinton and Yates, the Same with that of the Cancellieri and the Panchiatichi.?1 and so on through the Continent.— and We Shall find, that without a Ballance the Progress will soon be, from Libels to Riots, from Riots to Seditions and from Seditions to civil Wars.

Every Project to enlighten our Fellow Citizens has my most hearty good Wishes: because it tends to bring them into a right Way of thinking respecting the means of their Happiness, civil political social and religious.

I wish with all my heart, that the Constitution had expressed as much Homage to the Supream Ruler of the Universe as the President has done in his first Speech. The Petit Maitres who call themselves Legislators and attempt to found a Government on any other than an eternal Basis of Morals and Religion, have as much of my Pitty as can consist with Contempt.

I am my dear sir yours