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PHILADELI^-HIA

THE

NATIONAL

PORTRAIT GALLERY

DISTINGUISHED AMEEICANS:

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

IN FOUR VOLUMES.

VOL. ni.

In every age and nation distinguished for arts and learning, the inclination of transmitting the
memory and even the features of illustrious persons to posterity, has uniformly prevailed. The
greatest poets, orators, and historians, were contemporaries with the most celebrated painters,
statuaries, and engravers of gems and medals j and the desire to be acquainted with a man's aspect,
has ever risen in proportion to the known excellence of his character, and the admiration of his
writings. — Granger.

PHILADELPHIA:
ROBERT E. PETERSON & CO
1852.

Entered according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1852, by
EDWARD GASKILL.
In the Clerk's OfBce of the District Court of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

CONTENTS.

James Madison, (T'wo Portraits. )
Mrs. D. p. Madison.
Lachlan McIntosh.
Wm. Washington.
James Jackson.
Richard Dale.
William Bainbridge.
Stephen Decatur.
Rufus King.
Stephen Van Rensselaer.
William Pinckney.
Robert Fulton.
LiNDLEY Murray.
Charles Brockden Brown.
Joseph Story.
Martin Van Buren.
William Henry Harrison.
Oliver Ellsworth.
Jonathan Trumbull.

contents.
Robert Morris.
John Rutledge.
Henry Laurens.
Thomas Pinckney.
Richard Montgomery.
Thomas Sumter.
Thomas Mifflin.
Thomas McKean.
Francis Hopkinson.
Joshua Barney.

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JAMES MADISON

James Madison was bom on the 5th of March, 1751, (0. S.) at the
dwelUng of his maternal grandmother opposite to Port Royal, a town
on the south side of the Rappahannock, in Virginia. The house of
his parents, James Madison and Nelly Conway, was in Orange county,
where he resided through life. In his father's lifetime it was a plain
brick building, to which Mr. Madison added porticoes with extensive
colonnades in front and rear, and other improvements. Situated on
the west side of the south-west mountain, at the foot of the Blue Ridge,
about five and twenty miles from Charlottesville, it is remarkable for
the beauty of the scenery and the purity of the air ; and likewise that
within a short distance of each other, in that region, three presidents
of the United States, Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe, all resided, as
closely connected in personal attachment as political faith, who have
impressed on the country a large share of the policy and distinction
of these United States
After passing through the usual elementary education, Mr. Madison
was placed, at about twelve years of age, under the tuition of Donald
Robertson, a distinguished teacher in that neighborhood, with whom
he accomplished the common preparatory studies for a collegiate
course. These studies were further prosecuted under the Reverend
Thomas Martin, the parish minister, of the established church of
England, who was engaged as private tutor in his father's family.
The climate of Williamsburgh being deemed uncongenial with per
sons from the mountain region, Mr. Madison, instead of being put at
the college of William and Mary, was sent to that of Princeton, N. J.,
of which Dr. Witherspoon was then president ; where he completed
his college education, and received the degree of bachelor of arts in
the autumn of 1771. Mr. Madison always retained a lively recol
lection of Dr. Witherspoon's learning, and often indulged the inclina
tion, which throughout life characterized him, of sprightly narrative
VOL. III-l I

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
and imitation, by playfully repeating the doctor's curious remarks in a
broad Scotch accent. While at college, his health was impaired by
over-ardent study : it continued feeble in consequence, during some
years after his return home. He had laid the deep foundations of
those attainments, habits, and principles, which gradually, but without
fail, raised him to after eminence : and when he got home, with ruined
health, far from neglecting literary pursuits, he persevered in extensive
and systematic reading, somewhat miscellaneous, but not without
reference to the profession of the law, although he formed no absolute
determination to enter upon the practice ; which Burke says, while it
sharpens the wits, does not always enlarge the mind. Mr. Madison
studied probably just law enough, but his breeding was altogether that
of a statesman ; an American statesman, for he never was out of his
own country ; and though it has often, truly, been said, that he would
have made a great chief justice of the United States, yet his studies
and acquirements were free from all technical or professional restraint,
and his seldom if ever equalled power of reasoning was always exer
cised on a large scale, and philosophical comprehension of the subject
matter. From nature, from habit, it may be even from the imperfect
state of health to which he was reduced at the outset of his career, his
was the most passionless course of education and elevation. He never
addressed a passion or required a prejudice : but relying on reason
alone for every conviction, he eifected his purpose without any appeal
to prejudices. His political principles do not differ so much from his
great predecessor's, Mr. Jefferson, as his manner of imbibing and
imparting them. Taking nothing for granted, by intuition, or sympa
thy, he worked out every result like a problem to be proved. No one
was ever more inflexibly attached to the principles of his adoption :
but then he always adopted them on earnest consideration and sufii-
cient authority, before he gave them his affections. They were not
his natural offspring.
Having received very early and strong impressions in favor of
liberty, both civil and religious, he embarked with the prevalent zeal
in the American cause at the beginning of the dispute with Great Bri
tain ; but his devotion to study, and his impaired health, probably pre
vented his performmg any military service. Devoted to freedom of
conscience, he was particularly active in opposing the persecution of
the Baptists, then a new sect in Virginia, who were consigned in some
instances to jail for violating the law prohibiting preaching by dissent
ers from the established church. Throughout life he was remarkable
''or strict adherence to the American doctrine of absolute separation

JAMES MADISON.
between civil and religious authority ; and one of his vetoes, while
president, attested, that in advanced station and age, the principles
early taken upon this subject were as dear to him as at first, when
he was but a young and gratuitous reformer.
In the spring of 1776, when twenty-five years of age, he was ini
tiated into the public service, from which he rarely afterwards was
absent for forty years of constantly rising eminence, till it was all
crowned by that spontaneous retirement from the highest station
which is itself the crown of American republicEinism. His first
election was to the legislature of Virginia, which, in May of that year,
anticipated the declaration of independence by unanimously instruct
ing the deputies of that state to propose it.
It is a signal proof of Mr. Madison's merits, that in this assembly,
being surrounded by experienced and distinguished members, he mo
destly refrained from any active part in its proceedings ; and never
tried that talent for public debate which afterwards he displayed so
eminently. Beyond committee duty and private suggestions, he was
unknown in the assembly. At the succeeding county election he was
superseded by another competitor. His failure was partly owing to
his declining to treat the electors ; but in no small degree to the diffi
dence which restrained him from giving fair play to his faculty of
speech, and active participation in public affairs. His refusal to treat,
because he held it inconsistent with the purity of elections, may be a
lesson to the ambitious, and not unworthy the notice of the temperate.
In one of the first steps of his public life, he sacrificed success to that
purity, sobriety, and it may be said chastity, of conduct, from which
he never swerved. Because, as was imputed, he would not treat, and
could not speak, James Madison lost his election !
But the legislature, in the course of the ensuing session, repaired
this popular defection by appointing him member of the council of
state, which place he held till 1779, when he was elected a delegate
to the congress of the revolution. During the first part of his ser
vice in the council, Patrick Henry was governor of the state ; anS
during the latter part of it, Mr. Jefferson. Both these personages
experienced and appreciated the importance of Mr. Madison's assist
ance, knowledge, and judgment, in a station which did not put his
natural modesty to the severe trial of pubhc display. His information,
patriotism, perfect probity, and unpretending worth, gained for him
the first fruits of his maturing character. He proved himself a safe
and serviceable man; recommendations, without which brilliancy is
often troublesome, and always useless.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Mr. Jefferson used to say, that Mr. Madison rendered himself very
acceptable to the members of the legislature by his amiable deport
ment, and by the services he performed in drafting teports, bills, &c.,
for them. It was this that recommended him for election the next
winter as a member of the executive council, where his talents for
writing and for business generally, particularly his acquaintance with
the French language, of which Governor Henry was ignorant, and
which was necessary to the executive of Virginia, in their then con
stant intercourse with French officers, soon made Mr. Madison the
most efficient member of the council. He wrote so much for Gover
nor Henry, that Mr. Jefferson said he was called the governor's secre
tary. This council was, moreover, the best adapted stage for his first
essays as a public speaker : not consisting of more than ten persons,
their debates were less trying to a modest man. So extreme was Mr.
Madison's diffidence, that it was Mr. Jefferson's opinion, that if his
first public appearance had taken place in such an assembly as the
house of representatives of the United States, Mr. Madison would
never have been able to overcome his aversion to display. But by
practice, first in the executive council of Virginia, and afterwards
in the old congress, which was likewise a small body, he was gra
dually habituated to speech-making in public, in which he became so
powerful. Elected to congress, he took his seat in that body in March, 1780 ;
and was continued there by reelections till the expiration of the allowed
term, computed from the ratification of the articles of confederation in
1781. From the spring of 1780 to the fall of 1783, the journals show,
what is known to all, that he became an active and leading member of
congress, taking prominent part in many of the most important trans
actions. The letter of instructions to Mr. Jay, American minister in
Spain, in October 1780, maintaining the right of the United States to
the Mississippi river, and the address to the states at the close of the
war, urging the adoption of the plan providing for the debts due to the
army, and the other public creditors, were composed by him, and are
some of the earliest of his contributions to those American state papers
which, during the infancy of the United States, were among their most
powerful means of conservation and advancement.
In the years 1784, '5, and '6, he was elected a delegate by his
county to the state legislature : and it is worthy of remark, that one
reason why Virginia was always fruitful of statesmen of the first rank,
is, that they constantly, all of them, sought seats in the state assembly,
where such men both acquired and conferred the experience and

JAMES MADISON.
knowledge which make statesmen. During Mr. Madison s service in
this capacity, it was his primary object to explain and inculcate the
pressing necessity of a reform in the federal system, and to promote
llje means leading to such amelioration. The independence of the
United States was recognised rather than estabhshed. More perfect
union was indispensable to their general welfare. The pressure of war
being withdrawn, nationality almost disappeared amid the conflicting
interests of many independent states, languid with exhaustion, after the
struggle almost in conflict with each other, and in obvious danger of a
deplorable relapse. The unsuccessful attempt to vest congress with
powers immediately required for the public wants, led to the meeting
at Annapolis in August, 1786, to which Mr. Madison was deputed,
and which resulted in a recommendation of the convention with fuller
powers, at Philadelphia, in May, 1787. The state of Virginia promptly
set the example of compliance with this recommendation, by an act
drawn by Mr. Madison, and by the appointment of a deputation, in
which he was included. The tenor of that act, and the selection of the
delegates, with Washington at their head, manifest her solicitude on
the occasion.
From 1784 to 1786, inclusive, beside what related to the federal
system, several subjects of great importance were agitated in the
Virginia legislature : paper money, British debts, the separation of
Kentucky from Virginia, the code of laws revised by Jefferson,
Wythe, and Pendleton, and the religious establishment proposed by
Mr. Henry: Mr. Madison took a conspicuous and effective part in all
these proceedings ; against paper emissions, in favor of paying British
debts, in favor of the separation of Kentucky, in support generally of
the revised code, and in opposition to a religious establishment. To
the latter project he was strenuously and successfully an explicit anta
gonist ; and he composed the memorial and remonstrance, which was
so generally concurred in and signed by persons of all denominations,
as to crush Mr. Henry's scheme.
The journal of the federal convention which sat at Philadelphia in
1787, proves that he participated as much as any member of that
body in framing the constitution of the United States, which for now
sixty-five years has been the government of this country. A letter
from Mr. Jefferson to Mr. Adams the elder, which has been published,
states, as is otherwise well authenticated, that Mr. Madison preserved
the debates of that convention at much length and with great exact
ness : and there is reason to beheve, that in due time this precious
minute will be given to the community. For many years the survivor

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
of all his associates in that illustrious assembly, Mr. Madison is enti
tled by various claims to be called the father of the constitution. As
a leading member of the convention which framed the government, of
the congresses which organized it, of the administration of Mr. Jeffer
son, which conducted it for a long time in the path it has since for the
most part followed, and finally as the head of his own administration
in its most trying time, when the exigencies of war were superadded
to the occasions of peace, no individual has impressed more of his
mind, either theoretically or practically, on it, than James Madison.
During the same period, and until the expiration of the old congress,
to which he had been reappointed in 1786, he continued a member of
that body. His avowed object in returning there, was to prevent, if
possible, the project, favored by congress, of shutting up the river
Mississippi for a long period. That measure, besides other causes of
complaint, threatened to ahenate Kentucky, then a part of Virginia,
from any increase of the federal powers. If the magnificent and inex
haustible south-west now teaches us by overwhelming lessons the
impolicy of any thing tending to deprive the United States of such
immense resources, let the foresight of Mr. Madison, and such other
statesmen as strained every nerve to avert that misfortune, be appre
ciated as it should be, not only throughout that region, but everywhere
in the United States.
In the interval between the close of the convention at Philadelphia
for framing the federal constitution, and the meeting of the state con
ventions to sanction it, the well-known work called the Federalist was
written, which has since become a constitutional text-book. Gideon's
edition authenticates Mr. Madison's contributions to it, and it is too
well known to require that in this sketch of his life it should be dwelt
upon. Till his country was secured, and its welfare established by a proper
form of national government, Mr. Madison was constant and indefat
igable in his endeavors to explain and recommend it for adoption.
Accordingly, in 1788, he was elected by his county a delegate to the
convention, of Virginia, which was to determine whether that state
would accede to it. His agency in the proceedings of that convention
appears in the printed account of them, and is too familiar with every
person whose attention has been turned to the subject, to require
explanation. On the adoption of the constitution, he was elected a representative
to congress from the district in which he lived, in February, 1789, and
remained a member by reelections till March, 1797. His participa-

JAMES MADISON.
tion during those eight years in all the acts and dehberations of con
gress, was so prominent and pervading, that nothing of importance
took place without his instrumentality, and in most of the leading mea
sures his was the leading place ; especially in all that concerned foreign
relations. Addressing the house on all important questions, he never
spoke without full preparation; and so completely exhausted every
topic he discussed, that it was remarked by his adversaries that Mr.
Madison's refutation of their views frequently suggested arguments
which they themselves had not thought of, to be answered by him in
the same triumphant strain of calm and respectful, but irresistible rea
soning. Every one knows that in the formation of parties under the
lead of Mr. Jefferson and Colonel Hamilton respectively, Mr. Madison
took side with the former, or what was called the democratic party,
contradistinguished from what was called the federal party, particu
larly on the great dividing questions of the bank and the British treaty.
But there never was any personal estrangement between him and
Washington ; and throughout the lives of both, each did full justice to
the talents, principles, and patriotism of the other. Nor did Mr. Madi
son, however differing from much of the politics of Hamilton, ever
entertain any but the highest opinion of his abilities, services, and good
intentions. In 1794 he married Mrs. Todd, the widow of a respectable lawyer
of Philadelphia ; a lady of Virginia parentage, of most amiable dis
position and engaging deportment, whose constant attachment and
excellent temper, her courtesy to all persons while her husband was
president, and her imintermitting attentions to him afterwards, when
enfeebled by age and infirmity, rendered his connection with her what
he never ceased to consider it, as the happiest event of his hfe.
The celebrated resolutions of the legislature of Virginia, in 1798,
against the alien and sedition laws, are now known to have been writ
ten by Mr. Madison, though not a member of that legislature. • And
it beino- understood that a vindication of those resolutions would be
called for, he was elected a member the next year, and drew up the
yet more celebrated report containing the vindication, which, like the
papers of the Federalist, has become an acknowledged standard of
constitutional doctrine. These state papers were frequently appealed
to during the unhappy nullification controversy, and though some
times partially misrepresented, cannot be misunderstood when properly
explained and considered. For under whatever state of excitement,
either between contending parties of his own country, or between it
and foreign nations, Mr. Madison's numer6us and admirable state

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
papers may have been drawn up, there is a tone of moderation, as well
as an abiding earnestness, candor, and force of truth about them,
together with a simplicity of diction and plainness of argument, that
prevent either misrepresentation or refutation.
In 1801, he was appointed one of the Virginia electors of president
and vice president, and voted with all the rest of his associates for
Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr.
Mr. Jefferson, after the well-known struggle that preceded his elec
tion, being chosen president of the United States in 1801, appointed
Mr. Madison his secretary of stale, in which office he continued
during the eight years of Jefferson's presidency, illustrating the whole
period by his masterly writings, judicious suggestions, and unexcep
tionable conduct. This is not the occasion for a full view of his per
formances in the department of state : but it may be said, in a word,
that of all the great disputes on international and municipal law,
evolved by an epoch that at last, after unexampled forbearance and
efforts to avert hostilities, closed with the war which it was Mr. Madi
son's destiny to conduct as chief magistrate, — the complicated ques
tions of the confficting rights of war and peace, colonial commerce,
contraband trade, impressment of seamen, search and seizure of ships
and cargoes, blockades, embargoes, non-importation and non-inter
course, — there was not one which Mr. Madison did not present to his
country and before the world with a power of research, of argument,
and of reasoning, unsurpassed in the annals of diplomatic writing. In
1805, he visited Philadelphia, for more convenient access to the best
treatises on the subject of a pamphlet he published in 1806, on the
British doctrine against' the trade of neutrals with enemies' colonies.
Throughout every succeeding year, the public was constantly enlight
ened by his elaborate productions, which every session of congress
brought forth. On the question of impressment, the most trying and
also the most perplexing of the grievances to which the United States
were then subjected, his letters to the American ministers in England,
and the British ministers in this country, were composed with a power
equal to all we could desire, and in a temper which it was impossible
for them to take offence at. It has been said with perfect truth, that
give Mr. Madison the right side of a good cause, and no man could
equal him in its vindication. The department of state at that time was
the main stay of the country. Doubting the ability of the United
States to contend in war with the great belligerents who were devas
tating the world by land and sea ; at all events, deeply interested in
adhering to that^ system of neutrality which Washington established

JAMES MADISON.
and to which no one was more thoroughly attached than Mr. Madison ;
his exertions to substitute the moral artillery of that department for
brute force, were incessant and intense. Although the war he tried so
hard to prevent came at last, in spite of his exertions and Mr. Jeffer
son's immoveable determination to go out of office in peace ; yet the
legacy of trouble which was left by him to Mr. Madison when he
succeeded to the presidency, was at any rate preceded by a theory of
prevailing if not perpetual peace in that code of international justice
and fair intercourse, which is now a goodly part of the inheritance of
these United States, and a national property that all other civilized
nations have begun to appreciate. That free ships make free goods,
was a principle deemed by Mr. Madison a legitimate part of the law
of nations, and the best guarantee for maritime peace. Peace on earth
and good- will to all mankind, were always principles dear to him.
W^ar he considered only and rarely tolerable as a necessary evil, to be
kept off as long, and whenever it takes place, to be closed as soon, as
possible. With these impressions, it was nevertheless his lot to be president
during the war which was declared against Great Britain in June,
1812. In 1809, he was elected president, on the retirement of Mr.
Jefferson : and excepting the short glimpse of accommodation which
proceeded from Mr. Erskine's short-lived arrangement, the first period
of his chief magistracy was but the prelude to the war which accom
panied his reelection. His inaugural addresses, annual messages,
frequent special communications to congress, his proclamation for a
fast, with the particular grounds on 'which it was issued, his letters to
Governor Snyder of Pennsylvania in the Olmstead case, his recom
mendation of war, his conduct of the war, his various missions for
peace, the peace of Ghent negotiated under his auspices, his settlement
of the army, the navy, and the internal revenue, at the close of the war,
his veto, on one of the last days of his administration, of the great
system of internal improvement introduced by some of those who have
since relinquished it as unconstitutional — these, together with the
bank of the United States, may be deemed the principal measures of
his plan of the federal government. Too many of the actors in those
scenes are yet living and in public life, to render it proper to do more
than merely indicate these measures. Before long, they will be treated
by history and judged by posterity. But already, before Mr. Madi
son's demise, there appeared to be well-nigh one universal sentiment
of cordial respect and deference towards him as a patriot of the purest
intentions and wisest conduct. Undertaking the presidency at a crisis

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
of the utmost difficulty, he continued in it, by reelection, during the
established period of eight years, and when he retired, left the country
in the highest degree glorious, prosperous, and content. It cannot be
but that future ages must look back to his administration as a time of
great trial and great renown. The constitution which had succeeded
in peace, under his governance triumphed in war. Hostilities were
indeed checkered with the reverses which seldom fail to occur. But
under all circumstances, Mr. Madison was the same. Victory never
elated, disasters never depressed him beyond measure ; always calm,
consistent, and conscientious, there was confidence that he would do
right, come what might. Exposed to that deluge of abuse which the
leading men of free countries, with a licentious press, cannot avoid, he
was perfectly serene and unmoved by any vindictive emotion ; true to
friends, patient with adversaries, resolute but forbearing even with
public enemies. All the emergencies of war never once betrayed him
into infringements of the constitution. It has been stated on high
authority, that while a candidate for the presidency, no one, however
intimate, ever heard him open his lips or say one word on the subject.
While president, he underwent torrents of calumny without the slight
est complaint. If the uncomfortable necessity of being obliged to
remove a secretary of state, or of war, or a postmaster-general, crossed
his path, he performed the disagreeable duty with all possible gentle
ness, but with inflexible firmness. Constitutionally simple and unos
tentatious in his habits, tastes, and intercourse, he still sustained the
dignity belonging to such a life and such a station as his.
At about sixty-six years of age he retired from public life, and ever
after resided on his estate in Virginia, except about two months while
at Richmond as a member of the convention in 1829, which sat there
to remould the constitution of that state. His farm, his books, his
friends, an^, his correspondence, were the sources of his enjoyment
and occupation, during the twenty years of his retirement. During
most of that time his health, never robust, was as good as usual, and
he partook with pleasure of the exercise and the conviviality in which
he had always enjoyed himself. A good farmer on a large scale, he
acted for some time as president of an agricultural society, and for a
much longer time, first as visiter, and after Mr. Jefferson's death, as
rector of the University of Virginia, located at Charlottesville, in his
neighborhood; among whose founders and friends he bore a conspic
uous part. Prevailed upon, when just convalescent from severe ill
ness, to be a member of the Virginia convention of 1829, the infirm
condition of his health, being then near eighty years old, prevented his

JAMES MADISON.
taking a very active part in its deliberations. His main purpose, indeed,
appears to have been to promote a compromise between parties so
stiffly divided on local and personal interests as to threaten the tran
quillity of the state. On some of the principal topics discussed, he is
understood to have yielded his own opinions to that consideration, as
well as the urgent instances of his constituents.
At eighty-five years of age, though much reduced by debility, his
mind was bright, his memory retentive, and his conversation highly
instructive and delightful. Suffering with disease, he never repined.
Serene, and even lively, he still loved to discuss the constitution, to
inculcate the public good, and to charge his friends with blessings for
his country. He was long one of the most interesting shrines to which
its votaries repaired : a relic of republican virtue which none could
contemplate without reverence and edification.
On the 28th of June, 1836, he died; as serene, philosophical, and
calm in the last moments of existence, as he had been in all the trying
occasions of hfe.
We cannot close this brief account of the life and public services of
Mr. Madison more appropriately, than by the following extract from
the proceedings in the house of representatives of the United States,
when the announcement of his death was made by the president to both
houses of congress. " Washington, June 30, 1836.
" To the Senate and House of Representatives .
" It becomes my painful duty to announce to you the melancholy
intelligence of the death of James Madison, ex-president of the United
States, lie departed this life at half past six o'clock, on the morning
of the 28th inst., full of years and of honor.
" I hasten this communication, in order that congress may adopt
such measures as may be proper to testify their sense of the respect
which is due to the memory of one whose life has contributed so essen
tially to the happiness and glory of his country, and to the good of
mankind. " ANDREW JACKSON."
The message having been read, and the house addressed by Mr.
Patton, of the Virginia delegation, who offered the following resolution :
" Resolved, That a committee be appointed on the part of this house,
to join such committee as may be appointed on the part of the senate,
to consider and report by what token of respect and affection it may
be proper for the congress of the United States to express the deep

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
sensibility of the nation to the event of the decease of Mr. Madison,
just announced by the president of the United States to this house."
On the reading of the resolution, the following remarks were made
by Mr. Adams, the only surviving ex-president of the United States,
and then a member of the house of representatives.
" It is not without some hesitation, and some diffidence, that I have
risen to offer in my own behalf, and in that of my colleagues upon this
floor, and of our common constituents, to join our voice, at once of
mourning and of exultation, at the event announced to both houses of
congress by the message from the president of the United States — of
mourning, at the bereavement which has befallen our common country
by the decease of one of her most illustrious sons — of exultation, at
the spectacle afforded to the observation of the civihzed world, and for
the emulation of after times, by the close of a life of usefulness and of
glory, after forty years of service in trusts of the highest dignity and
splendor that a confiding country could bestow, succeeded by twenty
years of retirement and private life, not inferior, in the estimation of
the virtuous and the wise, to the honors of the highest station that
ambition can ever attain.
" Of the public life of James Madison, what could I say that is not
deeply impressed upon the memory and upon the heart of every one
within the sound of my voice? Of his private life, what but must
meet an echoing shout of applause from every voice within this haU ?
Is it not in a preeminent degree by emanations from his mind, that we
are assembled here as the representatives of the people and states of
this union ? Is it not transcendantly by his exertions that we address
each other here by the endearing appellation of countrymen and fellow-
citizens ? Of that band of benefactors of the human race, th3 founders
of the constitution of the United States, James Madison is the last
who has gone to his reward. Their glorious work has survived them
all. They have transmitted the precious bond of union to us, now
entirely a succeeding generation to them. May it never cease to be a
voice of admonition to us of our duty to transmit the inheritance unim
paired to our children of the rising age."

£2f.^hcA^»7Z^-^

MRS. MADISON.

The parents of Dolly Payne were natives of Virginia, and ranked
among the most respectable citizens of the state. While on a visit to
some of her friends in North Carolina, Mrs. Payne gave birth to her
eldest daughter, the subject of this memoir, who, although accidentally
bom in another state, claims the title, so dear to all who possess it, of
being a Virginian. In disposition she is decidedly so, having been
imbued by nature with all that warmth, frankness, and generosity,
which are the distinguishing traits of the Virginian character.
Soon after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Payne joined the society
of Friends, or Quakers, manumitted their slaves, and removed to
Pennsylvania. The subject of this memoir was educated in Phila
delphia, according to the strict system of the society to which her
family belonged ; a system which has utility for its basis, and which
forbids the acquirement of those graceful and ornamental accomplish
ments, which are too generally considered the most important parts of
female education.
Whatever grace and polish, dancing, music, painting, and foreign
languages may bestow, many most lovely examples among the women
of this society, prove that these accomplishments may be dispensed
with without any diminution of the attractions of the sex.
To none of these acquired graces and accomplishments was Miss
Payne indebted, for the admiration and regard which followed her
wherever she was known : nor were her attractions only those of form
or feature, for although nature had lavished on her much personal
beauty, her greatest charm consisted in the warm heart that lent its
glow to her cheek, and its sparkle to her eye, — the kindness and
benevolence of her disposition, which imparted a fascinating smile to
her lips, and a beaming brightness to her countenance. These were
charms that won her not only admirers but friends, and which the
withering effects of time cannot destroy, but which " at sixty, bloom
as fair as at sixteen."

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Although nature was prodigal, fortune was niggard in its gifts ; nor
in her early life was she indebted to wealth or rank for the considera
tion she enjoyed in society.
At an early age Miss Payne was married to Mr. Todd, a young
lawyer of Philadelphia, and a member of the society of Friends.
During his lifetime she continued to live in the simplicity and seclu
sion of that sect, though even then, the beauty which became after
wards so celebrated, began to attract attention. Soon, however, she
was left a widow with an infant son. After the death of her husband,
her father also being dead, she returned to live with her surviving
parent, who had fixed her residence in Philadelphia.
The personal charms of the young widow, united as they were with
manners, cordial, frank, and gay, excited the admiration and awakened
the kind feelings of all who came within their influence ; and, unaided
by the extrinsic and accidental advantages of fortune or fashion, she
became a general favorite, and the object not only of admiration, but
of serious and devoted attachment. Among many lovers, equally
distinguished by their rank and talents, who sued for her favor, she
gave the preference to Mr. Madison, then one of the most conspicuous
and respectable members of congress ; and in the year 1794, became
the wife of that truly great and good man.
From that time until Mr. Madison came into the administration
along with Mr. Jefferson, she lived in the full enjoyment of that abun
dant and cordial hospitality, which is the distinguishing characteristic
of a Virginia planter. The house was always filled to overflowing
with guests, who came, not ceremoniously invited to formal entertain
ments, but freely and kindly bidden to the hospitable board, and
social pleasures of the domestic circle. Her widowed mother and
orphan sisters were made partners of the bounties and blessings
lavished on her by a kind Providence ; and the fond affection of her
husband was evinced by the regard and kindness he showed to all
whom she loved and cherished, and on her part was reciprocated by a
similar attention to the happiness and comfort of his aged mother,
who continued to dwell with her son.
In this situation, Mrs. Madison appeared to be in the very sphere
for which nature had designed her. Her circumstances were in per
fect accordance with her disposition, and the liberal gifts of fortune
were liberally participated with all around her. The happiness she
herself enjoyed, she bestowed on others ; and the sunshine of her own
bosom gladdened with its warmth and brightness the little world of
'which she was the centre — her family and friends.

MRS. MADISON
Mr. Madison being appointed secretary of state, removed with his
family from his happy home to Washington, in April, 1801.
The infant metropolis of the union was at that time almost a wil
derness. The president's house stood unenclosed on a piece of waste
and barren ground, separated from the capitol by an almost impassable
marsh. That building was not half completed, and standing as it did
amidst the rough masses of stone and other materials collected for its
constmction, and half hidden by the venerable oaks that still shaded
their native soil, looked more like a ruin in the midst of its fallen
fragments and coeval shades, than a new and rising edifice. The
silence and solitude of the surrounding space were calculated to
enforce this idea; for beyond the capitol hill, far as the eye could
reach, -the city as it was called, lay in a state of nature, covered with
thick groves and forest trees, wide and verdant plains, with only here
and there a house along the intersecting ways, that could not yet be
properly called streets.
The original proprietors of the grounds on which the city was
located, retained their rural residences and their habits of living. The
new inhabitants who thronged to the seat of government, came from
every quarter of the Union, bringing with them the modes and customs
of their respective states. Mr. Madison from Virginia, Mr. Gallatin
firom Pennsylvania, General Dearborn from Massachusetts, and Robert
Smith from Maryland, were the heads of the several departments
of government. With these came numerous political friends and
dependants, to fill the subordinate places in the public offices.
A society formed of such various materials, presented a most novel
aspect. LTnconnected by similarity of habits — by established fashions
— by the ties of acquaintance or consanguinity — this motley throng
soon became united into one close and intimate circle, by a feeling
common to all, — they were strangers in a strange land, and felt the
necessity of mutual aid and accommodation, and might be compared
to a beautiful piece of mosaic, in which an infinity of separate pieces
of diversified colors, are blended into one harmonious whole. Mr.
Jefferson, many years after his retirement from public life, recurring
to that time, remarked to a friend, that the peculiar felicity of his
administration was, the unanimity that prevailed in his cabinet ; " we
were," said he, "like one family." The same spirit of union and
kindness pervaded the whole circle of society — a circle, at that time,
very limited in its extent, and very simple in its habits. The most
friendly and social intercourse prevailed through all its parts, un
shackled by that etiquette and ceremony, which have since been

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
introduced, to the no small detriment of social enjojnnent. The
president's house was the seat of hospitality, where Mrs. Madison
always presided, (in the absence of Mr. Jefferson's daughters,) when
there were female guests. After the president's, the house of the
secretary of state was the resort of most company. The frank and
cordial manners of its mistress, gave a peculiar charm to the frequent
parties there assembled. All foreigners who visited the seat of govern
ment ; strangers from the difierent states of the union ; the heads of
departments ; the diplomatic corps ; senators, representatives, citizens,
mingled with an ease and freedom, a sociability and gayety, to be met
with in no other society. Even party spirit, viralent and embittered
as it then was, by her gentleness was disarmed of its asperity. Indi
viduals, who never visited at the president's, nor met at th» other
ministerial houses, could not resist the softening influences of her
conciliatory disposition, of her frank and gracious manners, but
frequented her evening circle and sat at her husband's table — a table
that was covered with the profusion of Virginian hospitality, rather
than with the elegance and refinement of European taste. The lady
of a foreign minister was once ridiculing the enormous size and num
ber of the dishes with which the board was loaded, and observed, that
it was more like a harvest-home supper, than the entertainment of a
secretary of state. Mrs. Madison heard of this and similar remarks,
and only observed with a smile, that she thought abundance was
preferable to elegance ; that circumstances formed customs, and cus
toms formed taste; and as the profusion, so repugnant to foreign
customs, arose from the happy circumstance of the superabundance
and prosperity of our country, she did not hesitate to sacrifice the
delicacy of European taste, for the less elegant, but more liberal
fashion of Virginia. The many poor families daily supplied from
that profusely spread table, would have had reason to regret the intro
duction of European fashion, had Mrs. Madison been prevailed on to
submit to its dictation.
During the eight years that Mr. Madison was secretary of state, he
and his family lived with the inhabitants of Washington as ¦with fellow-
citizens ; receiving and reciprocating civilities in the most kind and
friendly manner. The secretary himself, being wholly absorbed in
public business, left to Mrs. Madison the discharge of the duties of
social intercourse. And never was a woman better calculated for the
task. Exposed, as she necessarily must have been in so conspicuous
a situation, to envy, jealousy, and misconstraction, she so managed as
to conciliate the good-will of all, without ever offending the self-love

MRS. MADISON.
of any of the numerous competitors for her favor and attention. Every
visiter left her with the pleasing impression of being an especial
favorite, of having been the object of peculiar attention. She never
forgot a name she had once heard, nor a face she had once seen, nor
the personal circumstances connected with every individual of her
acquaintance. Her quick recognition of persons ; her recurrence to
their peculiar interests, produced the gratifying impression, in each
and all of those who conversed with her, that they were especial
objects of regard.
Her house was very plainly fiimished, and her dress in no way
extravagant. It 'was only in hospitahty and in charity that her pro-
fiision was unchecked, and sometimes made her sensible that her
income was not equal to her wishes.
When the term of Mr. Jefferson's presidency drew near its close,
the spirit of political intrigue which had lain dormant, was again roused
into activity. A new president was to be chosen, and there were
several competitors for the people's favor. Each had partisans,
zealous and untiring in the canvass, who left no means unemployed to
ensure success. Private society felt the baneful influence of these
political intrigues ; social intercourse was embittered by party spirit ;
personal confidence was so often violated, that a degree of circum
spection became necessary, almost incompatible with that frankness
and candor, which constitutes the charm of intimate society.
In these trying times Mrs. Madison appeared to peculiar advantage;
her husband was assailed with all the violence of political animosity,
and calumnies invented where facts were wanting. Amid this cruel
warfare of conflicting parties, so calculated to excite angry feelings,
Mrs. Madison, who felt every attack on her husband more keenly
than any made on herself, (and such were not wanting,) met these
political assailants with a mildness, which disarmed their hostility of
its individual rancor, and sometimes even converted political enemies
into personal friends, and still oftener succeeded in neutralizing the
bitterness of opposition. In accordance with her husband's wishes,
she continued her civilities, uninfluenced by party politics, whilst
Mr. Madison, with the imperturbable serenity of unimpeachable integ
rity, viewed with philosophic indifference the violence, injustice, and
turbulence of the political combatants. He considered the assaults
of the press, only as proof of its freedom, and that the angry feelings
which found a vent through this medium, were far less dangerous than
if restricted by legal prohibition; he believed that when the effer
vescence of popidar excitement should subside, hostility would cease.
VOL. III-2 s

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Thus thinking, he with unaltered equanimity continued his social
intercourse with persons of all opinions ; the chiefs of different parties
met at his house with perfect good humor ; and the frank and polite
attentions of Mrs. Madison were paid, without distinction, to all who
ioined her social circle.
Her snuff-box had a magic influence, and seemed as perfect a secu
rity from hostihty, as a participation of bread and salt is among many
savage tribes. For who could partake of its contents, offered in a
manner so gracious, and retain a feeling inimical to its owner ? Any
one, a stranger to the persons of the great leaders of opposition, and
to the violent partisans, who on the arena of public contention were
almost at daggers drawn, would not have recognised them in the
smiling and courteous personages who stood round the mistress of the
mansion. The kindly feelings thus cultivated, triumphed over the animosity
of party spirit, and won a popularity for her husband, which his lofty
reserve and cold manners would have failed in effecting.
The moment of decision arrived, and Mr. Madison was declared
president of the United States.
In Washington, the day of his inauguration was a day of jubilee.
Gladness and kindness seemed the imiversal feeling. Every face
beamed with smiles of gratulation, and every hand was stretched out
in cordial greeting. A residence of eight years in the city, by making
Mr. and Mrs. Madison well known, had obtained for them a regard,
warm and sincere. To sentiments of personal regard, was added the
full assurance of a continuance of the same paternal interest and
watchful care for the welfare and advancement of the city, which had
been ilniformly exhibited by the late administration.
After Mr. Jefferson left the city, Mr. Madison removed to the presi
dent's house, which soon became the centre of a gay and brilliant
circle, and yet of social and delightful society. In addition to large
dinners every week, a drawing-room was now opened, where the beauty
and fashion of the nation found the best theatre for display. Those
who remembered the stiff formality and strict ceremonials of Mrs.
Washington's drawing-room, anticipated a renewal of the same dull
scene. But Mrs. Madison was a foe to dulness in every form, even
when invested with the dignity which high ceremonial could bestow.
All unnecessary etiquette was banished, and no requisitions made
beyond those which regulated good society in private houses.
The sunshine of prosperity shed its most unclouded rays on this
favorite of nature and of fortune. But prosperity could not spoil her;

MRS. MADISON.
could not harden a heart susceptible of all the tenderest charities
of life.
But this scene of general and individual prosperity was interrupted
by the war, which spread d_esolation along our coasts, and brought
ruui and devastation to the city of Washington.
This is not the place to discuss the causes of that fatal event
News arrived that the British forces -had landed forty miles below the
city. Their destination was unknown. Several roads led across the
country to the city, and several to Baltimore ; and when it was ascer
tained that Washington was their object, the commanders of our army
— for unfortunately the command was divided, at least authority over
General Winder was claimed by the secretary of war — could not
agree on the route to be chosen, nor the measures to be adopted to
oppose the British forces who were advancing in the country. In this
dilemma, the president was appealed to, and with a view of settling
this difference, went, accompanied by several members of the cabinet
and some personal friends, to Bladensburg, where they unexpectedly
found the two armies engaged. Meanwhile terror spread over the
city. Every one who could find a conveyance of any kind whatever,
made their escape to the adjoining towns. Those who were unpro
vided with a conveyance,-fled on foot, carrying with them whatever
could be so carried. The sound of the cannon was distinctly heard.
The dismay was universal. Mr. Madison, who had gone forth only
to hold a council of war, returned not ; no one in the city pretended
to any authority ; the whole was a scene of confusion. Some per
sonal friends who had remained with Mrs. Madison, most vehemently
urged her to leave the city. They had her carriage brought to the
door, but could not persuade her to enter it until her husband should
return and accompany her. But an extract from a letter written
to her sister, though necessarily broken and abbreviated, will give
a truer, if not a fuller view of her trying situation, than any other pen
can do. " Tuesday, August 23, 1814.
" Deak Sister. — ^My husband left me yesterday morning to join General Winder. — ^He
inquired anxiously whether I had courage, or firmness, to remain in the president's house
until his retum, on the morrow, or succeeding day, and on my assurance that I had no fear
but for him and the success of our army, he left me, beseeching me to take care of myself
and of the cabinet papers, public and private. — I have since received two despatches from
him, written with a pencil ; the last is alarming, because he desires I should be ready at a
moment's warning to enter my carriage and leave the city; that the enemy seemed stronger
than had been reported, and that it might happen that they would reach the city, with inten
tion to destroy it******I am accordingly ready ; I have
pressed as many cabinet papers into trunks as to fill one carriage ; our private property
7

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
must be sacrificed, as it is impossible to procure waggons for its transportation. I am deter
mined not to go myself until I see Mr. Madison safe, and he can accompany me, — as I hear
of much hostility towards him, * * * disaffection stalks around us. * *
* * * My friends and acquaintances are all gone, — even Col. C  , with
his hundred men, who were stationed as a guard in this enclosure. * * French
John (a faithful domestic), with his usual activity and resolution, ofl«rs to spike the cannon
at the gate, and to lay a train of powder which would blow up the British, should they enter
the house. To the last proposition I positively object, without being able, however, to make
him understand why all advantages in war may not be taken.
" Wednesday morning, twelve o'clock. — Since sunrise I have been turning my spyglass in
every direction and watching with unwearied anxiety, hoping to discern the approach of niy
dear husband and his friends ; but, alas, I can descry only groups of military wandering in
all directions, as if there was a lack of arms, or of spirit to fight for their own firesides !
" Three o'ciocfc.— Will you believe it, my sister? We have had a battle or skirmish near
Bladensburg, and I am still here within sound of the cannon ! Mr. Madison comes not ;
may God protect him! Two messengers covered with dust, come to bid me fly; but I
wait for him. * * * At this late hour, a waggon has been procured ; I have
had it filled with the plate and most valuable portable articles belonging to the house ;
whether it will reach its destination, the Bank of Maryland, or fall into the hands of British
soldiery, events must determine. S
" Our kind friend, Mr. Carroll, has come to hasten my departure, and is in a very bad
humor with me because I insist on waidng until the large picture of General Washington
is secured, and it requires lo be unscrewed from the wall. This process was found too
tedious for these perilous moments ; I have ordered the frame to be broken, and the canvass
taken out ; it is done, — and the precious portrait placed in the hands of two gentlemen of
New York, for safe keeping. And now, dear sister, I must leave this house, or the retreat
ing army will make me a prisoner in it, by filling up the road I am directed to take. When
I shall again write to you, or where I shall be to-morrow, I cannot tell ! !" '
The disastrous events which followed, are too well kno'wn to need
description, even if the limits of this sketch allowed of the melan
choly details. During the remainder of Mr. Madison's presidential
term, he resided in a private house; where, however, he received
company with undiminished hospitality. When at the expiration of
his official service he left the city of Washington, and returned to his
mountain home, his departure was lamented as a private as well as
public loss by the citizens, with whom his family for sixteen years
had lived on terms of reciprocal kindness.
Always fond of agricultural pursuits, Mr. Madison joyfully returned
to his beautiful and peaceful home. Montpelier was within less than
a day's ride of Monticello, and in the estimate of a Virginian, Mr.
Jefferson and Mr. Madison were neighbors. Both had run the whole
career of public life — had endured its toils and its troubles, had been
crowned with its highest honors, and were now reunited in the dignity
and tranquillity of domestic retirement, surrounded with the objects of
their dearest affections, and every resource which virtue, learning, and
philosophy could furnish ; and to crown all, a friendship which the

MRS. MADISON.
conflicts of public life had never interrupted, which absence had never
chilled, and which death only could terminate.
Embosomed among the hills which lay at the foot of the south
mountain, was the paternal estate of Mr. Madison. Naturally fertile,
but much improved by his judicious care, a comparatively small part
was kept under cultivation, the greater part being covered with its
native forests. A large and commodious mansion, designed more for
comfort and hospitality than ornament and display, rose at the foot of
a high wooded hill, which, while it afforded shelter from the north
west winds, added much to the picturesque beauty of the scene. The
grounds around the house owed their ornaments more to nature than
art, as, with the exception of a fine garden behind, and a wide spread
lawn before the house, for miles around the ever varying and undulat
ing surface of the ground was covered with forest trees. The extreme
salubrity of the situation induced the proprietor to call it Montpelier.
One wing of the house, during her lifetime, was exclusively appro
priated to the venerable and venerated mother of Mr. Madison, to
which was attached offices and gardens, forming a separate establish
ment, where this aged matron preserved the habits and the hours of
her early life, attended by old family slaves, and surrounded by her
children and grandchildren.
Under the same roof, divided only by a partition wall, was thus ex
hibited the customs of the beginning and end of a century ; thus offering
a strange but most interesting exhibition of the differences between the
olden and the present age. By only opening a door, the observer
passed from the elegancies, refinements, and gayeties of modern life,
into all that was venerable, respectable, and dignified in gone-by days.
From the airy apartments — windows opening to the ground, hung
with light silken drapery, French furniture, light fancy chairs, gay
carpets, &c., &c., — to the solid and heavy carved and polished maho
gany furniture darkened by age, the thick rich curtains, and other more
comfortable adjustments of our great-grandfathers' times. It was
considered a great favor and distinction by the gay visiters who
thronged Mr. Madison's hospitable mansion, to be admitted to pay
the homage of their respects to his revered mother. The last time the
writer of this article enjoyed that privilege, she was in her ninety-
seventh year, but she still retained all her faculties, though not free
from the bodily infirmities of age. She was sitting, or rather reclining
on a couch ; beside her was a small table filled with large, dark, and
worn quartos and folios, of most venerable appearance. She closed
one as we entered, and took up her knitting which lay beside her.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Among other inquiries, I asked her how she passed her time. "I am
never at a loss," she replied; "this and these," touching her knitting
and her books, " keep me always busy ; look at my fingers and you
will perceive I have not been idle." In truth, her delicate fingers
were polished by her knitting-needles. "And my eyes, thanks be to
God, have not failed me yet, and I read most part of the day. But in
other respects I am feeble and helpless, and owe every thing to Aer,"
pointing to Mrs. Madison who sat by us. "She is my mother now,
and tenderly cares for all my wants." My eyes were filled -with
tears, as I looked from the one to the other of these excellent women,
and thought of the tender ties by which they were united. Never, in
the midst of a splendid drawing-room, surrounded by all that was
courtly and brilliant — all that was admired and respected — the centre
of attraction — the object of admiration, — never was Mrs. Madison so
interesting, so lovely, so estimable, as in her attendance on this vener
able woman, the acknowledged object of her grateful affection.
Much as she graced her public station, she was not less admirable
in domestic life. Neighborly and companionable among her country
friends, as if she had never lived in a city; delighting in the society of
the young, and never better pleased than when promoting every
youthful pleasure by her participation ; she still proved herself the
affectionate and devoted wife during the years of suffering health of
her excellent husband. Without neglecting the duties of a kind
hostess, a faithful friend and relative, she smoothed and enlivened,
occupied and amused, the languid hours of his long confinement : he
knew, appreciated, and acknowledged the blessing which heaven had
bestowed on him, in giving him such a wife.
Mrs. Madison lived to adorn society and to enjoy its honors, till a
good old age ; and at her death was surrounded with unusual marks of
public esteem. 10

En^ivcd by Hopgr.er Meyer from a Famuiif( by J.B. Longaire afur an- origHud Portraii.

'/Z.

iTzf.

¦/

LACHLIN M'l N T O S H.

Major-General Laciilin M'Intosh was born at Borlam, not far
from Inverness, in Scotland, in the year 1727. He was the second
son of John More M'Intosh, who was the head of the Borlam branch
of the clan M'Intosh. The kindred houses of Moy and Borlam had
been the chiefs of the warlike clan "Chatan"for many ages; they
had mingled in all the feuds that divided Scotland for centuries, and
though not decorated with courtly titles, claimed for themselves a
distinction in the ancient wars of their country, beyond all others of
the northern clans. But the glory of the house of Borlam was destined
to sink in the Rebellion of 1715. John More M'Intosh, the father of
Gene^-al Lachlin M'Intosh, was born in the year 1701. He was not
fourteen years old at the period of the RebeUion, and was therefore too
young to command his clan in battle ; but his uncle, William M'Intosh,
had gained experience and acquired renown in foreign service, and as
he then administered the affairs of his nephew, he led that po];tion of
the clan M'Intosh that were immediately connected with the house of
Borlam, to join the Pretender of that day, who made him a brigadier
general. William M'Intosh crossed the frith of Forth in open boats at
night, surprised and defeated the English near Edinburgh. He dis
tinguished himself during the whole contest; but when finaUy the
collected forces of the Pretender were assembled at Preston, they
were surrounded, and he was taken prisoner. His fall brought down
ruin upon his nephew and the house of Borlam. The property of his
family was confiscated ; too young himself to suffer in person, he was
stripped of every thing, and, from having been rich, became poor
From that memorable time to 1736. John More M'Intosh lingered in
obscurity upon what had been his own property. He married, how
ever, and had several children, naming his eldest son WiUiam after
his unhappy uncle, then a prisoner in the Tower ; and his second son,
Lachlin, after his own father, who had died a few years before the

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
RebeUion of 1715. It is not to be wondered then that the invitation
of General Oglethorpe (who was himself more than suspected of par
ticipating in the political feelings of the family) to emigrate to America,
should have been welcomed at Inverness by one then living in poverty,
but who had not forgotten that the time was when the sound of his
own bugle would have raUied a thousand kinsmen around him for
war — to the knife.
John M'Intosh, with his family, and one hundred and thirty High
landers who followed his fortunes, arrived in Georgia with General
Oglethorpe, in the month of February, in the year 1736, and was
immediately settled upon the Altamaha, at a point which they named
New Inverness, now Darien. General Oglethorpe had, three years
before this time, purchased land of the Creek Indians, and planted a
small colony at Savannah, upon the Savannah river, to be a chain of
connection with Carolina. The eastern costume of the highland clans
man, his cap and plume, his kilt and plaid, soon became very dear to
the red man of the woods : they mingled together in their sports, they
hunted the buffalo together, for the woods of Georgia were then as
full of buffalo as the plains of Missouri now are ; and the writer of this
notice was told when a boy, by General Lachlin M'Intosh, that
when a youth, he had seen ten' thousand buffalo within ten miles of
Inverness. But new misfortunes now awaited the M'Intosh famUy. John More
M'Intosh had first been appointed the civil commandant of New Inver
ness, and after General Oglethorpe had been authorized to raise a
regiment, he was instructed to enrol a hundred of his Highlanders,
wbo were to constitute the light infantry of the regiment.
General Oglethorpe advanced in 1740 to the invasion of Florida,
through the rivers that constitute the inland navigation of this country,
and took post upon an island opposite St. Augustine. Captain M'In
tosh, with his Highlanders and a few auxiliary Indians, marched by
land. Upon reaching within a few mUes of St. Augustine, he was
joined by some militia from Carolina, and placed under the command
of Colonel Palmer of that state. From his superior officer underva
luing the Spaniards, or not being aware of their numbers, he allowed
himself to be surprised at fort Moosa, within four miles of the Spanish
fort, by almost the whole Spanish garrison. There were many
breaches in the walls of fort Moosa, and the first notice that Captain
M'Intosh had of the advance of the Spaniards, was the rush of a regi
ment of Spanish grenadiers through these breaches. His Highlanders
rallied around him, but himself and thirty-six of his men fell wounded

LACHLIN M'INTOSH.
or dead at the first charge. This surprise, in truth, led to the failure
of Oglethorpe's expedition. Oglethorpe had no officer to exchange
for Captain M'Intosh ; the Spaniards, therefore, sent him a prisoner
to Old Spain, where he was detained several years from his family :
nor did he return to them, but with a broken constitution, soon to die,
leaving his chUdren to such destiny as might await them, without
friends, in the wilds of America : for their only friend, General Ogle
thorpe, was soon to be recalled in preparation to meet the Rebellion of
1745, when he too was doomed to suffer degradation from the duke
of Cumberland, and injury to his military reputation.
Lachlin M'Intosh was thirteen years of age, when his father was
wounded and taken prisoner at St. Augustine. General Oglethorpe,
upon his return, placed his elder brother and himself in his regiment
as cadets, and would no doubt, in due season, have prbcured commis
sions for them ; but just as he was himself leaving Georgia to meet
rumors of the invasion of England by the Pretender, the two young
brothers were found hid away in the hold of another vessel ; for they
too had heard the rumors of another attempt of the ancient house of
StTiart to vindicate their rights against the Brunswick family, and were
anxious to regain or perish in the attempt of reestablishing their own
house. General Oglethorpe sent for the two young lads into his own '
cabin ; he spoke to them of the friendship he entertained for their
father, of the kindness he entertained for themselves, of the hopeless
ness of every attempt of the house of Stuart, of their own folly in
engaging in this wild and desperate struggle, of his own duty as an
officer of the house of Brunswick ; but if they would go ashore, be
hereafter quiet, and keep their own secret, he would forget all that had
passed ; — he received their pledge, and they never again saw him.
The means of education in Georgia at that period, as may well be
supposed, were very limited, yet Lachlin M'Intosh and his brothers
were weU instructed in English under their mother's care, and after
they were received under the patronage of General Oglethorpe, were
instructed in mathematics, and other branches necessary for their
future mUitary course. But when General Oglethorpe left Georgia,
all hope, and perhaps all wish, for remaining longer attached to his
regiment, ceased in the young men. WUliam became an active and
successful agriculturist, and Lachlin, in search of a wider field of
enterprise, went to Charleston in South Carolina, where his father's
gallantry, and his father's misfortunes, drew upon him the attentions
of many ; and his fine and manly appearance, his calm, firm temper,
his acquirements for his opportunity, procured for him first the ac
vol. Ill— 3 3

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
quaintance, and -then the warm friendship, of Henry Laurens, the most
distinguished and most respectable merchant at that time in Charles
ton, afterwards president of congress, and first minister from the United
States to Holland. Mr. Laurens took the young M'Intosh into his
counting-house and into his family, and with him he remained some
years. In association with this enlightened and respectable gentleman,
Mr. M'Intosh had an opportunity of studying men and books, and of
fiUing up the blanks in his education. From some repugnance to
commerce, arising probably from his early military propensities, he
did not adopt the pursuit of his friend and patron, but after s'^ending
some years in Charleston, he returned to his friends still residing on
the Altamaha ; where he married and engaged in the profession of a
general land surveyor. His talents particularly qualified him for this
course, as well by his education, as by his disposition, and therefore
he soon obtained independence and the promise of fortune, in the
acquirement of extensive bodies of what were then deemed valuable
lands. But when he had been engaged for some years in these pur
suits, Georgia became involved in a dispute with Carolina about the
right of soil of the lands between the Altamaha and St. Mary's rivers.
The first charter of Georgia to the trustees, had taken out of the
'ancient limits of Carolina the territory between these two rivers ; she
still claimed all that was beyond the. Altamaha, therefore, as belonging
to Carolina, and as the Indian claim to this land was extinguished, she
gave grants to individuals for portions of the soil. Subsequent to that
period, the chartered limits of Georgia had been extended to St.
Mary's. Governor Wright was a native of South Carolina, and had been
attorney general of that province, before he was appointed governor
of Georgia ; he had both officially and personally differed with the
higher authorities of South Carolina, and, in his administration of the
government of Georgia, exhibited on every occasion great bitterness
of feeling against his native province. Mr. M'Intosh, from his long
residence in Charleston, and from his many friendships there, was the
person to whom they looked, and with whom they advised, upon the
many occasions in which they considered themselves unjustly treated.
This circumstance was really the cause of, or afforded Governor
Wright the pretence for, a long but deliberate opposition to the views
and interests of Mr. M'Intosh : and thus was he gradually prepared
and schooled by a petty persecution for the event that was approach
ing, long TDefore the time had arrived for the separation of England
and her American colonies.

LACHLIN M'INTOSH.
Every eye in Georgia was turned to General M'Intosh, as the future
leader of whatever force Georgia might bring to the struggle for inde
pendence ; and although living in solitude, and at a distance from
Savamiah, which had then become the populous and important and
wealthy portion of the province ; yet the Elberts, the Habershams,
and Harrises, of that day, gallant and good men, felt no reluctance
in yielding to him the first rank. When, therefore, a revolutionary
government was organized, and an order for raising a regiment in
Georgia was adopted, Lachlin M'Intosh was made colonel com
mandant ; and again, soon after, when the order was extended to four
regiments, he was immediately appointed brigadier general command
ant, to take rank from September, 1776.
But about this time, unhappily for Georgia, and unhappily for Gene
ral M'Intosh, the enlightened and patriotic president of the council,
Archibald Bulloch, died, and was succeeded by a disappointed, ambi
tious, and restless man. Button Gwinnett was placed at the head of
the civil power.
Georgia was at the extremity of the colonies ; her people were more
divided in sentiment upon the subject of independence than in the
older provinces, for she had passed the last from the bosom of the
mother country, and, in the convulsive struggle of parties so equally
divided, there was more of venom than elsewhere. Division of opinion
soon began to show itself in the state administration. General M'In
tosh had been bred in a soldier's tent ; he had been taught in his
youth that it was honorable and just, because it was necessary, to kill
his enemy in the field, with arms in his hands ; but he could not recon
cile it to his feelings to hunt him down like the wolf of the woods, nor
permit this to be done where he could prevent it. This desire on his
part to repress unnecessary cruelty, or impolitic suspicion, soon led to
some bickerings with the head of the civil government. Although he
had brought his troops into good militarj'' discipline, and into a high
state of military feeling ; and although he had turned aside, without
material injury to Georgia, a strong invading force from Florida, and
was himself wounded on the occasion ; although his brother, his ne
phews, and his sons, all held rank under him, and had gained praise
at this early period, wherever opportunity had been afforded them;
yet still there had been no great occasion to win renown for himself :
the enemy was elsewhere engaged, and Georgia had temporary repose ,
and but for the unquiet man at the head of the government, would have
had time to prepare and .strengthen herself against the evil day that
was to arrive. This man had ventured to offer himself to the com-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
mand of the troops, in opposition to General M'Intosh, and was
rejected; and when unhappUy, upon the death of Mr. BuUoch, he
succeeded to civil power, he intermeddled with the discipline of
the troops, irritated the angry passions of the people, and finally
pointed suspicion and instituted a cruel prosecution against an honor
able gentleman, a near and dear relation of General M'Intosh. The
elder brother of General M'Intosh, WiUiam, had been appointed to
recruit and command a regiment of cavalry, and which he, in a great
measure, armed and equipped at his own expense ; but upon this attack
of the civU power upon his relative, he indignantly threw up his com
mand. General M'Intosh, more calm, waited untU Gwinnett ceased
to be governor, when he told him sternly his opinion of his actions.
Gwinnett challenged him ; they met with pistols at eight feet ; both
fired ; both were wounded : Gwinnett mortally. But all feud did not
die with him, and Georgia being free from foreign enemies, General
M'Intosh applied through his friend, Colonel Henry Laurens, to be
ordered to join the central army under General Washington. This
was most readily granted, with permission to carry his staff with him.
He soon '•.Von the confidence of the commander-in-chief, and was
placed for a long time in his front, whUe watching the superior
forces under General Howe in PhUadelphia. He remained in this
delicate and important position untU his services were required
elsewhere. The Indians on the north-western frontier, from New York to Vir
ginia, had been brought into action by England ; — General Schuyler
was doing all he could to mitigate the sufferings of the people to the
west of New York, but on the Ohio there was no unity of action in
defence. In this situation, and under these circumstances, congress
instructed General Washington to indicate an officer to undertake the
difficult command : there were no laurels to be gleaned in a defensive
war in an Indian field, and congress could not spare men foi an offen
sive war with Indians, when her capitals, Philadelphia and New York,
were in quiet possession of the enemy. General Washington knew,
by e.xperience, what unwearied watchfulness was necessaiy, even for
self-preservation, in a war of this kind ; and the officer in command
was to march with a few hundred men over the same hills, and
through the same valleys, for the same point, where Braddock and his
troops were met, and had been destroyed : he was to encounter the
same ruthless enemy, with feeble means, in the infancy of American
power, before whom, many years after, a Harmar and a St. Clair were
to fall.

LACHLIN M'INTOSH.
General Washington reluctantly called upon General M'Intosh to
undertake this difficult and dangerous command : and it was only the
deepest sense of public duty, and obedience to the will of the com
mander-in-chief, whom he revered as a soldier and loved as a man,
that made him consent to accept it.
General M'Intosh was instructed by congress to take command of
the western districts of Virginia and Pennsylvania. He marched with
a reenforcement of five hundred men to fort Pitt. He marched in
single files, cautiously examining every brake and thicket in the way.
The Indians hovered around him continually ; but such was his cau
tious advance in the day, and his watchfulness in the night, that they
found no opportunity of attack. He united the jarring opinions of
people in that quarter, and gave repose to western Virginia. Under
his auspices. Colonel Clark took Lieut. Governor Hamilton, and car
ried terror into the most secret retreat of the Indians ; and during the
whole period of his command, he was preparing means for offensive
war at more distant points, until the early part of the year 1779.
It will be remembered by many, that at no period of the revolution
ary struggle, was there more actual danger to American liberty, than
at this eventful time ; for Lee, and Gates, and Conway, and others,
had almost seduced congress itself from the love which was borne to
the virtues, and the respect which was entertained for the profound
and varied talents of their great chief ; and congress had contracted a
habit of arranging plans, and of fashioning them, too, without availing
themselves of his mighty mind Thus, a combined expedition to the
south was arranged with Count d'Estaing, when there really were not
troops enough in Charleston to insure its future defence. Congress
engaged them in offensive operations in summer, without remembering
that the night dew, in September, in Georgia, brought death upon its
wings to all who were subjected to its influence : nor did it occur to
Count d'Estaing, in entering into this arrangement, that the 11th of
September would be the hurricane season upon a coast which did not,
for five hundred miles, afford a single port in which his fleet might
enter, in the event of disaster.
General M'Intosh had completed, in the month of April, 1779,
every preparation for a successful attack upon Detroit, when he was
recalled by the anxieties of General Washington (who foresaw all the
dangers of this attempt), to take part in this ill-omened expedition ;
and he carried from General Washington to congress the letter which
follows : —
" May 11, 1779. Brigadier General M'Intosh wUl have the honor

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
of delivering you this. The war in Georgia, being the state to which
he belongs, makes him desirous of serving in the southern army. I
know not whether the arrangements congress have in contemplation
may make it convenient to employ him there ; but I take the liberty to
recommend him as a gentleman, whose knowledge of service and of
the country promises to make him useful. I beg leave to add, that
General M'Intosh's conduct, while he acted immediately under my
observation, was such as to acquire my esteem and confidence, and I
have had no reason since to alter my good opinion of him.
General M'Intosh was deeply sensible of the difficulties, which the
time, and the condition of the American troops, afforded to success ; but
was too much interested in his country, his famUy, and his friends,
not to desire to mingle his efforts with theirs for deliverance, if deli
verance were possible.
The British troops were in the quiet possession of Savannah, under
General Provost, and had an imposing force threatening Charleston
under Colonel Maitland.
When General M'Intosh joined General Lincoln in Charleston,
they made every preparation that their feeble means afforded for the
invasion of Georgia, whenever the French fleet should arrive on the
coast. General M'Intosh marched to Augusta, and took command
of the advance of the American troops. He proceeded from thence
down to Savannah, which he reached about the 10th of September,
cutting off some small British parties, and driving in all the British
outposts ; — in expectation of being joined by the French, he marched
to Beauley, where they expected to effect a landing.
From the 12th to the 14th, the French were landing. On the 15th,
Genera] Lincoln joined. By a fatality, the British commandant had
been apprised of the approach of the French fleet as early as the 3d
of September ; the despatched vessels from which had made their first
appearance off Tybee island, instead of Charleston ; and the British
troops had been most diligently engaged in improving their fortifica
tions from that time : stiU, upon the 15th and 16th, their works were
incomplete, and not more than thirty or forty guns mounted ; but what
was more important still, Colonel Maitland, with the hlite of the British
troops, had not arrived from Carolina. General M'Intosh, who had
learned all this, pressed for an immediate attack ; but Count d'Estaing,
the commanding officer, believed he was sure of his game, and would
not listen to the proposition. He coolly summoned General Provost
to surrender ; General Provost demanded time for reflection and con
sultation, which was granted. Colonel Moncrief, the most distin-

LACHLIN M'INTOSH.
guished engineer of his day, was engaged, with a thousand men,
white and black, strengthening the British post. Colonel Maitland
arrived on the night of the 17th, with eight hundred veterans, to man
the works ; and General Provost then sneeringly refused to surrender.
What was practicable and easy on the 15th and 16th, became impos
sible on the 17th and 18th, when one hundred and fifty cannon had
been mounted, and 2,800 veteran troops manned the trenches.
From that time to the Sth of October, the aUied troops had been
wasting away under the influence of 'chmate ; and Count d'Estaing
became sensible that he could no longer trust his ships upon the open
coast, exposed to tempest, and to the attack of the enemy. Stung
with disappointment at reflections upon the past, he determined, before
his retreat, to lead the American and French army to a desperate
attack upon the British lines. At the rising of the sun on the 9th of
October, the allied troops were led on by their officers : they succeed
ed in planting their standards on several points of the works ; but the
British cannon were pouring a fire upon their flanks that swept them
off in masses. They were compelled at length to retire, leaving one
thousand out of four thousand upon the field. The French troops and
French fleet went to sea, and General Lincoln and General M'Intosh
had to recoil upon Charleston, where they were soon themselves to be
besieged by an overwhelming force under General Clinton ; and where,
after a long and gallant defence, and after doing all that human pru
dence and human courage could accomplish, they were compelled to
surrender. General M'Intosh was detained for a long time a prisoner
of war ; and here, in a great measure, closes his military life, for he
never again took any command.
When General M'Intosh was finally released, he retired with his
family to Virginia, carrying with him the high testimonial that follows,
from the officers who had served with him, and under him, at the siege
of Charleston, belonging to the Virginia line ; which constituted the
most efficient part of the force of the southern army. This paper is
in the form of a letter to Governor Jefferson : —
" Haddrel's Point, January 8, 1781.
"Sir, — The general and field officers whose names are subscribed,
in behalf of themselves and the other officers of the Virginia line, take
the liberty, through your excellency, to recommend Brigadier-General
M'Intosh, of the continental army, to the particular notice of our state ;
and we request that himself and family may be entitled to lands, and
every other emolument and advantage given for the encouragement of

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
officers, agreeable to the respective ranks that each of them held in the
service, and to be considered every way in the same manner, as if he
and they belonged to our line of the state of Virginia. We are induced
to make this application in behalf of General M'Intosh, to show our
esteem for him, as well as on account of the uncommon sufferings and
sacrifices he has made in the service in behalf of this country, which
deserve particular attention. This gentleman has, moreover, com
manded part of our line with approbation, and the western part of our
state for a considerable time, the good effects of which are stUl felt
and acknowledged by our back inhabitants, some of whom are now
here." Signed hy ttvo general officers, sixteen field officers, and one hun
dred officers of lower grade.
General M'Intosh remained in Virginia with his family, untU the
British troops were driven from Savannah. When he returned to
Georgia, he found his personal property had been all wasted, and his
real estate diminished in value; and from that time to the close of his
life, he lived in a great measure in retirement, and in some degree of
poverty. His two gallant sons, William and Lachlin, who had followed
him to the field, died at an eariy period of life, leaving no children
behind them. His younger children had suffered much from his long
absence in the public service, and all that remained of them at his
death were four grand-daughters.
General M'Intosh died at Savannah in the year 1S06, in the 79th
year of his age. In his person he was tall : five feet, eleven inches ;
of athletic form and great activity. The writer of this memoir has
heard his grandfather (the elder brother of General M'Intosh) say,
that when a lad at New Inverness, there was not an Indian in all the
tribes that could compete with him in the race : and he has heard his
own father say, who first met General M'Intosh when twenty-five
years of age, that he thought him the handsomest man he had ever
seen. But times change, and men change -with them. General
M'Intosh in his old age, no more resembled Lachlin M'Intosh in his
youth, than the trunk that has been reft by the lightning, and whose
leaves have been scattered by the storm, resembles the tree that had
once waved its green boughs on the hill. •

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WILLIAM WASHINGTON.

William Washington was one of those high-minded, chivalrous
spirits of the south, whom the war of the revolution found and
carried from his studies, and who exerted the most beneficial
influence, throughout his career, in the glorious cause of American
independence. He was called " the modern Marcellus," " the Sword
of his country."
Colonel Washington was the eldest son of Baily Washington, of
Stafford county, Virginia, and was designed by his father for the
church ; his attainments as a scholar were highly respectable : of the
Greek language he was a remarkable proficient. He was one of the
earliest to engage in the straggle of his country with Great Britain,
and was appointed to the command of a company of infantry in the
third regiment of the Virginia line. His first essay in arms was at
York island, where his conduct elicited warm applause. In the retreat
through New Jersey, he was distinguished for the fortitude with which
he sustained its difficulties, hardships, and dangers. At the surprise
of the Hessians, he led the van of one of the assailing columns, and
whilst rushing with his company to the attack, received a severe
wound from a musket ball, which passed entirely through his hand.
Soon afterwards, three regiments of light dragoons having been raised,
he was appointed a major in one of them, commanded by Lieut. Colo
nel Baylor. This corps was surprised in 1778, by a detachment of
the enemy under General Grey, and almost cut to pieces. Washing
ton, however, escaped, and, in the following year, was detached to
join the army of General Lincoln in South Carolina.
There he was constantly employed with the light troops. His first
rencounter with the enemy took place between Ashley ferry and Ran-
towle's bridge, when he drove back the cavalry of the British legion,
commanded by Lieut. Colonel Tarleton, and took several prisoners ;
but being unsupported by infantry, he gained little advantage firom
vol. Ill— 4 I

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
success. It is declared that Tarleton and Washington were person
ally engaged, and that in his flight Tarleton lost several of his fingers
from a stroke of Washington's sword. An anecdote is current, which
we believe to be correct, respecting this rencounter, to the following
effect. Tarleton, when on a visit to an American family, remarked in
conversation that he should be glad to get a sight of this Colonel
Washington, of whom he had heard so much; when a lad-y in com
pany smartly observed " What a pity Colonel Tarleton did not turn
his head when he lost his fingers !"
He has been thoroughly exonerated from all blame in relation to the
surprises at Monk's Corner and Lanian's ferry, which had nearly
caused the annihilation of the American cavalry, as in both instances
he was acting in a subordinate capacity. Being compelled by these
disasters to retire, with the remainder of his corps, to the borders of
North Carolina, he solicited from General Gates the aid of his name
and authority to facilitate its restoration and equipment. The general
thought proper to refuse, and this refusal was severely punished in the
battle of Camden, where the presence of a superior cavalry, led by
such a gallant soldier as Washington, might have done much to
insure success, or, at least, would have prevented the terrible slaughter
which foUowed the defeat.
After this occurrence, Lieut. Colonel Washington was attached,
with his cavalry, to the light corps commanded by General Morgan.
By an ingenious stratagem, he carried the post at Rugely's, taking a
large body of the enemy without firing a single shot. Aware of the
character of his opponent, Rugely, he placed a pine log on the front
wheels of a wagon, and painted it so as to have the appearance, at a
distance, of a field-piece, threatening immediate destruction if resist
ance should be attempted. The affrighted colonel begged for quarter,
and surrendered at discretion !
To the brilliant victory of the Cowpens, Colonel Washington con
tributed in a high degree, and congress voted him a silver medal in
testimony of his gallant conduct on that occasion. His ardor in this
affair had nearly cost him his life. An.xious to animate the troops to
the pursuit by his example, he was hurried so far in advance as to be
surrounded by several officers of the British legion, and was saved
only by the bravery of a sergeant and his bugleman. Ball, who, by a
pistol shot, disabled an officer, whose sword was actually raised for
his destruction.
After the junction of the two divisions of the American army, at
Guilford Court-house, his cavalry was made a part of a body of horse

WILLIAM A. WASHINGTON.
and foot, selected by General Greene and placed under Colonel Wil
liams. In the retreat into Virginia, and in all the manceuvres subse
quent to the recrossing of the Dan, he essentially aided in baffling the
skUful efforts of Cornwallis to force Greene to a battle. In the affair
of Guilford, he acted a very conspicuous part. By a spirited and
judicious charge, he broke the regiment of guards commanded by
Colonel Stewart, who was killed, and in conjunction with Colonel
Howard and his gallant Marylanders, nearly effected their entire
destruction. Unfortunately, his hat fell from his head, and whilst
dismounting to recover it, the officer next in command was so griev
ously wounded as to be disabled from managing his horse, which,
wheeling round, carried him off the field. The rest of the cavalry
followed, imagining that the movement had been directed. This acci
dent saved the remnant of the guards, and in all probabUity the whole
British army.
Colonel Garden says, " I heard from an officer of distinction in the
army of the enemy, who was wounded in this action, the following
interesting particulars : — ' I was near General Webster when the
charge was made by Washington. The desperate situation of the
guards had its effect on all around. An officer of rank in the Ameri
can army, quickly perceiving it, rode up to the British line, and called
aloud, " surrender, gentlemen, and be certain of good quarters." Ter
rified by appearances, and concluding that defeat was inevitable, the
soldiers of the regiment De Bose 'Were actually throwing down their
arms. Confusion was increasing. General Webster, whose presence
of mind could not be disturbed, exclaimed, " Unless that gallant fellow
is taken off, 'vve are lost." A lieutenant of artillery, bringing up a field-
piece at the moment, was directed to fire into the throng where the
guards now appeared to be greatly outnumbered, and did so with the
happiest success — the cavalry wheeled off, the remains of the batta
lion rallied, and the army was saved.' "
At Hobkirk hill. Colonel Washington obtained fresh and enduring
laurels. By skilful manoeuvring, he gained the rear of the British
army, and captured eleven officers, with upwards of two hundred men.
He was only able, however, to bring fifty of them off the field, in con
sequence of the retreat of the American forces.
At the battle of Eutaw, he exhibited signal valor, and made repeated
charges on the British light infantry, who maintained their ground with
a steadiness worthy of the attack. In a last effort for victory, his horse
was killed under him, and, becoming entangled as he feU, in the ranks
of the enemy, and unable to extricate himself, he was made prisoner

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Though unfortunate, no hero had ever in a higher degree merited
success. This was the final scene of his military performances, which had
alvvays been characterized by decision, firmness, and bravery ; he was
always at his post, courting danger, and contemning difficulty.
He remained a prisoner until the close of the war. He then settled
in Charleston, but passed much of his time at his plantation, Sandy
Hill, in the parish of St. Paul's, thirty miles distant. He married a
lady, equally distinguished for her virtues and accomplishments, of
South Carolina, to whom he had become attached during his captivity.
He had two children, a son, WiUiam, and a daughter ; the former died
at Charleston in March, 1830, aged 42 ; the daughter, who is a widow,
Mrs. Ancram, survived her whole family.
After the war, he served as a member of the legislature, where he
gave such strong evidence of a capacity for civil service, that his fel
low-citizens were induced to endeavor to persuade him to become a
candidate for the office of governor. But his great modesty caused
him to refuse every solicitation to that effect. " My ambition is," he
constantly said, " to devote my services to my country, but there are
two powerful reasons which render it impossible for me to aspire to
the honor of governing the state. The first is, that till lately I was a
stranger among you; and in my opinion the chief executive officer
should be a native of the land over which he presides. Nor would I,
on the score of qualification, put my talents in competition with those
of many able men, who are ambitious of the honor. My other reason
is insurmountable. If I were elected governor, I shoidd be obliged to
make a speech ; and I know, that in doing so, without gaining credit
in your estimation, the consciousness of inferiority would humble me
in my own — / cannot make a speech."
When General Washington accepted the command of the army,
during the presidency of Mr. Adams, he selected his relative to be one
of his staff, with the rank of brigadier general. His death occurred on
the 6th of March, 1810, after a tedious and suffering indisposition,
which he bore with heroic fortitude.
In person, Colonel Washington (who, it will be seen, had the title
of general, but who is called colonel to distinguish him from the com
mander in chief,) was tall, and possessed of great strength and activity.
His deportment in society was taciturn and modest. Possessing a
very considerable property, in disposition he was hospitable, generous,
and benevolent in the extreme, combining uprightness with kind and
courteous manners.

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JAMES JACKSON.

General James Jackson was born in the county of Devon, in Eng
land, on the 21st of September, in the year 1757. From his father of
the same name, a man of respectable connections, honest character,
and stern repubhcan principles, he inherited an ardent devotion to
liberty, which strongly manifested itself at a very early age. King,
lords, and commons, with all the boasted glory and grandeur of Britain,
had no charms for his unyielding and buoji-ant spirit, which already
aspired at equality, and saw the prospect of gratification in the far
distant regions of America. In 1772, at the instance of John Wereat,
a leading whig in Georgia, the parental sanction was given to his
abandonment of the home of his ancestors. With that gentleman he
repaired to Savannah, and began to read law in the office of Samuel
Farley, an eminent attorney, carrying on at the same time, with very
limited advantages, the course of education commenced in England.
His forensic and common studies were soon interrupted.
In 1775, he warmly espoused the cause of freedom ; and is believed
to have been among the first lads of his age who shouldered a musket
in hostUity to the tyranny of Britain. He first distinguished himself
when Commodore Barclay, and Majors Maitland and Grant, came in
force, in 1776, against Savannah, being one of a party of nine, who,
under command of Captain Bowen, after the detention of a flag sent
by the patriots, and the discharge of a voUey by the enemy, boarded
and set fire to a merchant vessel, that drifted against and caused the
precipitate abandonment of others held by British troops, in the river
immediately opposite the town. In the same year, he was a volunteer
in an attack, conducted by Colonel Baker, upon Tybee island, where
some houses were occupied by armed men from hostUe vessels of war
that lay in the river, and drew fresh supplies from herds of cattle upon
it.' The buildings were destroyed, and the enemy driven lo their ships.
For gallant conduct on this occasion, he was honored with the thanks

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
of Governor Bulloch. Pubhc regard was now so strongly attracted to
the youthful soldier, that a company of light infantry was organized
and placed under his orders. He continued to direct it untU the fatal
Florida expedition under General Howe, when he resigned, and had
conferred upon him the appointment of brigade-major of the Georgia
mihtia. In this capacity, he was in many skirmishes with the enemy,
then advancing towards Savannah from the south ; particularly in one
in which the brave General Scriven was -kiUed, and in which he re
ceived a wound in the ankle. After the faU of Savannah, on the 29th
December, 1778, in the defence of which he had participated against
the superior forces of Lieut. Colonel CampbeU, the Georgians were
reduced to the utmost misery. Their property was confiscated, their
famUies were brought to poverty, their most venerable citizens were
crowded on board of prison ships, and cruelties were inflicted unbe
coming the most barbarous foe. The greater number of the state
troops and organized mUitia having been, in the assault, kiUed or
taken prisoners, and there being no longer a field in Georgia for his
exertions. Major Jackson crossed the Savannah river, to aid the whigs
of Carolina. Barefoot and penniless, friendless and unknown, but
resolute and sanguine, he joined General Moultrie's command, march
ing as a common soldier, and active in the engagements that ensued.
It was his singular misfortune before he had reached the army, so
wretched was his appearance, to have his character as an American
officer denied, to be apprehended as a spy by a party of whigs whom
he went to succor, condemned to execution, and saved from the gibbet
only by the timely arrival of Peter Deveaux, a gentleman of ireputation,
afterwards a member of the executive council of Georgia.
In October, 1779, Major Jackson served again in Georgia, in the
unsuccessful assault upon Savannah by General Lincoln and Count
d'Estaing. In March, 1780, he, unhappily, was the antagonist of
Lieut. Governor Wells in a duel, which terminated fatally to the latter
gentleman. The major was shot through both knees ; and, confined
by his wounds for months, refusing amputation, and abandoned by his
surgeons, was prevented from taking part in the military operations of
the spring of 1780. Here, justice to the major requires the declara
tion, that, although he was forced into this difficulty by a gross personal
indignity, which his honor as an officer, and the spirit of the period,
:;ompelled him to resent, and although he had done nothing wherewith
to reproach himself, yet he ever afterwards deeply lamented the dread
ful catastrophe. He was no duellist from principle : he abhorred the
practice. It was his lot on several other occasions in subsequent

JAMES JACKSON.
life to be simUarly involved ; but he went always to the place of
contest without preparation, with no vindictive passion, confiding in
the rectitude of his cause, and convinced that duty to his country
demanded the exposure of his person.
In August, 1780, Major Jackson repaired to Colonel Elijah Clarke's
camp of Georgians. He was in the celebrated battle of Blackstocks,
under General Sumter, in South Carohna. When the gallant Sum
ter was wounded, the command deyolved upon Colonel Twiggs, of
Georgia, the senior officer present. At the close of the encounter, the
major was despatched with a body of cavalry in pursuit of Colonel
Tarleton, whom he vigorously pressed, and from whom he captured
and brought off thirty horses. No disparagement of the veteran
Sumter, nor of the patriotic sons of Carolina, is intended : true valor
is never envious of the mUitary laurels of others : let it therefore be as
readUy conceded, as it is firmly insisted, that the conduct of the Geor
gians in that memorable engagement contributed greatly to the success
of the day. History has given them but little credit here ; and history
has been equally unjust to them, when treating of many other events
in which their valor was signalized. Indeed, throughout the war, in
the three most southern states, they were always found in scenes of
the greatest peril, ever prompt to hazard their lives for the geneiral
good. Georgia rightfully boasts of many brilliant and valiant names
— they should be rescued from oblivion: especially should the me
mories of Twiggs and of Clarke be respected by one who would faith
fully recount the story of the revolution. They were among the
bravest of the brave — officers of skill and unceasing enterprise, to
whom American liberty is indebted for a thousand noble deeds. Such
was the confidence reposed in Major Jackson at this time, that, after
the battle of Long-Cane, in which Colonel Clarke was disabled, the
major, more than once, saved his command from total dispersion. Of
impassioned eloquence and the highest powers for declamation, he
frequently addressed the troops, setting before them in glowing terms
the wrongs of their country, and arousing them to acts of patriotic
effort. The affection of the Georgians for his person was, we are
assured, also felt by the Carolinians, who were well pleased when he
was in charge of parties, or acted, as he often did, as major of brigade
to the united combatants of the two states.
Early in 1781, General Pickens, who properly conceived himself
justified by Lord Gornwallis's proclamation, and by British outrage,
in breaking his parole, was intrusted with the command of the Caro
lina and Georgia militia attached to General Morgan's army. Major

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Jackson was his brigade-major. Is it too late for a magnanimous and
grateful people to acknowledge meritorious service, although that ser
vice may not, heretofore, have been fully recorded by the annalist ?
May not the author of this memoir, acutely feeling for the honor of his
native state, and justly alive to the reputation of Major Jackson, confi
dently hope, that even now, an achievement of high chivalry may be
admitted, if satisfactory evidence be adduced ? It is asserted, then,
upon the authority of General Pickens, whose certificate, dated 6th
February, 1787, is in the writer's possession, which was published in
the gazettes of the south at a period when Major, then General, Jack
son's enemies were striving to overthrow him ; which was given
voluntarily, and never contradicted ; published, too, during the lives of
General Pickens, and of the principal continental and militia officers
who fought at the Cowpens : that Major Jackson, " by his example,
and firm, active conduct," did much " to animate the troops, and insure
the success" of the Americans ; that "it was owing to accident, or
mistake, that his name was not returned to congress, as one of the
officers who particularly signalized themselves at the Cowpens ;" and
that " the major, in the face of the whole army, ran the utmost risk of
his life in seizing the colors of the 71st British regiment, and after
wards introducing Major M' Arthur, commanding officer of the British
infantry, as a prisoner of war to General Morgan." After this, the
major was at the crossing of the Catawba by Lord CornwaUis. He
narrowly escaped the sabres of Tarleton, while endeavoring to raUy
and form the discomfited mUitia surprised by that officer at Tennant's
tavern. He was with General Pickens and Colonel Lee, when Pyle's
corps was destroyed on Haw river. It was his fortune to be engaged
frequently and conspicuously, and to gain the approbation of General
Greene, to whom he was introduced at Sahsbury by General Morgan ;
and who then determined to place under his direction a legionary
corps, as soon as one could be raised for the service in Georgia.
Colonel Baker having undertaken an expedition against Augusta,
Major Jackson considered it his duty to abandon the main southern
army, and return to the state whose commission he bore. The inter
vening country was almost wholly hostile : but he surmounted every
difficulty, joined Baker, and was immediately ordered to recross the
Savannah, and imbody a force in Carolina. Having succeeded in
collecting two hundred and fifty men, who were committed to the
charge of Colonel Hammond, he returned to the camp, from which
Colonel Baker, in disgust, had retired. Colonel WiUiamson, who
succeeded Bakear, had also withdrawn. General Pickens and Colonel

JAMES JACKSON.
Lee were yet with General Greene. This was the hour on which
depended the future capture of Augusta. Had the Georgians then
abandoned the field, Colonel Brown, the British commander, might
have been secure against all future enterprise. The major assumed
the command. His talent for extemporaneous elocution was again
called into exercise. He, on horseback, depicted to the dispirited
patriots " the miseries they had endured, and the cruelties that had
been perpetrated by Brown and Grierson ; cruelties which their dis
persion would only tend to renew. That vengeance was within their
reach. That to give up the opportunity of obtaining it, was giving up
their pretensions to the character of good soldiers ; was sacrificing
their feelings and duties as citizens, sons, fathers, and husbands." A
resolution to conquer, or die, was proclaimed by the brave men whom
he addressed. Operations were forthwith commenced anew, against
the garrison. The major had prepared fascines, mounted a nine-
pounder, and was ready to break ground against Grierson's fort,. when
Colonel Clarke arriving, superseded him. General Pickens and Co
lonel Lee appeared afterwards, and Augusta fell. The certificate by
General Pickens, to which reference has already been made, also
makes known, that, at Augusta, " Major Jackson's exertions in the
early period of the siege, laid the ground work for the reduction of
that place. He led one of the advanced parties, as Captain Rudolph
did another, at the storming of Grierson's fort ; and had the command
of a moving battery at the time of the surrender of fort George, in
which he conducted with honor to himself and his country."
In conformity with his resolution, taken during the campaign in
North Carolina, General Greene now gave to Major Jackson a com
mission for a partisan legion, confirmed b);^ congress in 1781. This
he enlisted in a few days. Appointed commandant at Augusta, he
maintained his post, notwithstanding Lord Rawdon's march, General
Greene's retreat from Ninety-Six, his being entirely separated from
the American forces, and encompassed by hostile troops. A more
dangerous enemy than the British bayonet, arose in the heart of his
camp. Treason presented its front, excited by emissaries from Savan
nah. His infantry became disaffected, and his own quarter-guard, with
others, were engaged to murder the colonel in his bed, bayonet the
principal officers, and, seizing the governor of Georgia, conduct him a
prisoner to the enemy. Information of this plot was given to Colonel
Jackson by an honest dragoon. His cavalry were forthwith drawn
out, the infantry paraded without arms, a charge upon them made by
the dragoons, and the ringleaders arrested, tried, condemned, and exe-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
cuted. This rigid discipline produced the happiest effect; his infantry,
m which alone disaffection had existed, behaving afterwards, in many
engagements, with fidelity and consummate bravery. Savannah re
maining in possession of the British, the legion was detailed by General
Twiggs, to operate in its vicinity. A statement of the various skir
mishes in which it acted, would be prolix and unprofitable. With it,
the colonel attacked a post on the Ogeechee, which surrendered : but
one of the officers being slain by an American, its garrison resumed
their arms, and the enterprise was defeated. On the same day, he
assaulted another, held by royal militia, and killed or captured them
almost to a man ; and was himself, in the afternoon, charged by the
entire force of British cavalry from Savannah, led by Colonel Camp
bell in person; whom, with inferior numbers, he fought with despe
ration, destroying or disabling as many of the foe as he had himself
men engaged in action. When General Anthony Wayne assumed the
direction of affairs in Georgia, Colonel Jackson joined him at Ebene
zer. The legion was, in general orders, designated as the advance
corps of the army. In this hazardous service, the colonel was em
ployed until the reduction of Savannah ; experiencing, for six months,
every embarrassment which such a situation could produce in a
destroyed, swampy, and pestilential country, fifteen mUes in advance
of the main body, exposed to continual incursions from the enemy,
with not a hovel to cover a corps, already in rags, from the vicissitudes
of the weather. He very often pursued parties of hostUe cavalry to
the fortifications of Savannah, and picked off men and horses from the
town commons : destroyed a magazine of rice, stored for the British
garrison, within reach of their cannon ; passing through an encamp
ment of diseased tories, who had exhibited no mercy for the patriots,
but whom he humanely spared : drew the enemy into ambuscades,
from which they greatly suffered ; and was prominent in the battle of
May, 1782, between General Wayne and Colonel Brown. His last
engagement, and the last in Georgia between the troops of the two
countries, was fought on Skidaway island, on the 25th July. On the
11th of the same month, " in consideration of his severe and fatiguing
service in the advance," as General Wayne was pleased to say, the
keys of Savannah had been, by the general's order, delivered by a
committee of British officers to the colonel, who was the first Ameri
can soldier to tread the soil of a town, from which, the arms of a tyrant
had too long kept its lawful possessors.
Closing here our recital of Colonel Jackson's revolutionary acts, it
may be admissible to express our admiration of that zealous patriotism

JAMES JACKSON.
and gallant bearing, which, in seven years, elevated a boy without a
shiUing, an emigrant without connections, and with little patronage, to
the rank of lieutenant-colonel in the service of his adopted country ;
honored with the friendship of Sumter, Pickens, Morgan, Wayne,
and Greene, and possessed of the affection and confidence of that
people, whose - destinies he had crossed the Atlantic to share — the
people of the sovereign state of Georgia. Her legislature, on the 30th
July, 1782, unanimously voted, that he had " rendered many great and
useful services " to America ; and presented to him a house and lot in
Savannah, " as a mark of the sense entertained of his merits."
The profession to which Colonel Jackson's early studies had been
directed, demanded his unremitting attention. Assisted by the advice
of George Walton, one of the signers of the Declaration of Indepen
dence, he was soon admitted to its honors and emoluments. In 1785,
the claims of a family were added to his other motives for exertion.
In that year, he was married to Mary Charlotte Young, daughter of
William Young, a deceased patriot, who had been among the foremost
to raise the standard of freedom. But the bar presented a field too
limited for his active mind. He sought political advancement. By
the people of Chatham county, he was sent several years, successively,
to the state legislature. Early after his entering upon political life,
the benignity of his heart impelled him to support enactments, by
which certain obnoxious individuals were relieved from the acts of
confiscation and banishment. But for his influence, they might never
have returned to America, nor recovered a dollar of their estates. The
ingratitude of our nature was glaringly exhibited in the subsequent
conduct of many of these pardoned men, who were, throughout the
life of Colonel Jackson, his most bitter and uncompromising foes.
And the grovelling, calculating baseness of that nature, was manifested
in an offer made for his support by one, who tendered a direct bribe,
which was indignantly rejected.
In 1786, he was made a brigadier general, and an honorary member
of the Cincinnati society. On the 7th January, 1788, at the age of
thirty years, he was elected governor of Georgia, which office he
modestly declined, declaring that neither his age, nor experience,
would justify acceptance. As brigadier general, however, he proved
his readiness to serve his country by actively directing, in person,
military operations for the defence of the counties on the seaboard,
harassed by predatory and murderous bands of Creek Indians. After
ratification by Georgia of the federal constitution, he was, in 1789,
chosen to represent her eastern district in the first congress held under

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
that sacred instrument. In many of the most important debates, now
referred to as exhibiting an authoritative exposition by that body of
the principles of the constitution, General Jackson engaged. In
1791, his great and sincerely respected friend. General Wayne, who
had become a citizen of Georgia, and possessed, very justly, the vene
ration of her people, was induced, doubtless with honest purposes in
himself, yet certainly, perhaps unconsciously, by the instigations of
General Jackson's adversaries, to become, in opposition, a candidate
for the same district. An animated contest was waged before the
people. General Wayne was returned. General Jackson presented
himself before the house of representatives in February, 1792, con
tested the return, personally conducted his claim to the seat, and
obtained a decision, awarded without a dissenting voice, that General
Wayne was not entitled to retain it. The house refused, by the
casting vote of the speaker, to declare General Jackson elected. The
concluding speech of General Jackson is represented, in a published
statement of that contested election, one of the first under the present
constitution, to have been a display of briUiant oratory, followed by
long continued applause. "With these sentiments, Mr. Speaker,"
said he, in closing, " I submit the facts I have brought forward to the
house ; and with them I commit the rights of myself, the rights of the
state of Georgia, and, I had almost said, the rights of the United States,
to their decision ; and I beg leave to repeat, that a free representa
tion was what we fought for, a free representation was what we
obtained, a free representation is what our children should be
taught to LISP, and our youths to relinquish only with their lives."
Charging against General Wayne, for whose character and services
he had profound respect, no improper conduct ; he did not hesitate
to drive home against his own enemies accusations of the blackest
corruption at the polls. His charge was sustained by the legislature
of Georgia, who, in December 1791, investigated the conduct of a
judge of her superior courts in connection with that election ; General
Jackson then a member of the house and of the impeaching com
mittee. The house unanimously impeached, the senate unanimously
convicted, and the judge was sentenced to loss of office, and disqua
lification for thirty years.
In December, 1792, when again a member of the legislature, Gene
ral Jackson, jealous, like other statesmen, of the jurisdiction assumed
by the supreme court in the case of Chisholm against the state of
Georgia, and believing that, were such jurisdiction permitted, the
retained sovereignty of the states would be lost, introduced resolutions

JAMES JACKSON.
which, sustained by the legislature, caUed for, and, in part, produced
the eleventh amendment of the federal constitution. In this year, he
was elected a major general; and was again, in the next, employed on
the frontiers in repressing the violence of our savage foes. In 1793,
1794, and 1795, he was a senator in congress. Recalled by his feUow
citizens, who (inflamed almost to madness, and discerning around them,
in every quarter, their rights trampled upon by men of highest charac
ter,) passed resolutions in their primary county meetings demanding
his aid at home, he resigned his honorable station, and immediately
embarked all the faculties of his mind, all the firmness of his nature,
and all the reputation he had acquired, in indefatigable exertions to
effect a repeal of the act by which Georgia had sold to companies of
speculators millions of acres of her western territory. To recall the
memory of her degradation, to assist in extending remembrance of her
shame, can give no satisfaction to her sons. The biographer ap
proaches the subject with loathing, impelled to it by the obligations he
has assumed. His painful duty will be comparatively light, if he can
convince himself that his succinct presentation of the speculation shall
have the least effect in fastening upon the minds of the American peo
ple the belief, that " the price of liberty is eternal vigilance ;" and in
convincing them that, whilst a just confidence is given to their pubhc
servants, they should be watched with eyes that never sleep. A ma
jority of the Georgia legislature had been bribed by promises of shares
— some by certificates of shares, for which they were never to pay —
others by expectations of slave property. The foulest treason had
been perpetrated, under the guise of legislation. Citizens of the most
exalted standing from several states, some of them high public func
tionaries : one a senator from Georgia, whose duty required him to
have been at his post in congress ; others judges, generals, revolution
ary characters, whose popularity and past services made them more
dangerous, and served ultimately to heap degradation upon their heads,
Aad attended at Augusta, in January 1795, and executed their unhal
lowed purpose. Georgia had been robbed of her domain — her own
lawgivers corrupted and consenting — and an indelible stigma fixed
upon her fame, her own children blackening her escutcheon. The
full iniquity of this nefarious legislation — if usurpation can be denom
inated legislation — was exposed by General Jackson in a series of
letters addressed to the people under the signature of " Sicilius." At
the foUowing session he was a member. The all-absorbing subject,
with the petitions, remonstrances, memorials, and other proceedings
of the people, was referred to a committee of wh.ch he was chairman

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Testimony was taken upon oath, which established deep and incontro
vertible guUt. The rescinding law was passed. It was drawn and
reported by General Jackson, and adopted as it came from his pen.
The merits of this latter act — its constitutionality — its consistency
with republican principles — its necessity — its justice — have aU been
freely and ably discussed in our country, in private circles, in pam
phlets, in the public gazettes, in the congress of the union, in the
supreme court. The decision of the country, perhaps, has been
against the power of the rescinding legislature, so far as innocent .
purchasers under the fraudulent grants were interested ; but, whether
constitutional or not, nothing is more certain than that the honest of
every section of the United States : aU who detest corruption, admire
virtue, and regard an honest representation as the bulwark of the public
liberties, have considered its action upon the Yazoo speculation as
pure, and its motives patriotic. The citizens of Georgia, especially,
have held in horror and detestation the authors and abettors of her
humiliation; and have consecrated with their best affections the mem
ories of those who were faithful to the state. The Yazoo Act repealed,
every vestige and memorial of its passage expunged from the public
records, and burnt with all the ceremony and circumstance which
popular indignation demanded, the popularity of General Jackson
became unrivalled. But his happiness, and that of his family, were
destroyed. By resistance to the speculation, the number of his adver
saries was vastly augmented. Aristocratic pride had been humbled,
venality had been exposed, visionary fortunes had been prostrated,
principalities had been lost. His person was repeatedly attacked ; his
life was often in imminent danger ; and his reputation was assailed
with unrelenting calumnies, from one end of the United States to ano
ther, wherever purchasers and sub-purchasers resided, which pursued
him to the grave.
General Jackson was, in 1798, a member of the convention that
formed the present constitution of Georgia. Much, if not the greater
part, of this instrument was prepared by him. He was governor from
January 1798 to March 1801. His administration was remarkable
for efforts to effect a cession of the territory now embraced within the
states of Alabama and Mississippi ; for exertions in behalf of the uni
versity of Georgia, which commenced operations under the venerable
Josiah Meigs in 1801 ; and for the cordial support he gave to the
republican party, in opposition to the policy of President John Adams.
In December, 1801, he resumed his station in the senate of the United
States. In 1802, he signed, as a commissioner of Georgia, jointly

JAMES JACKSON.
with Abraham Baldwin and John MiUedge, articles of cession, by
which Georgia yielded her territory west of the Chattahoochee. In
1803, certain charges of cormption in office when governor, relating
to the Yazoo deposite, were preferred against him by one Zachariah
Cox. These, together with documents in support, were referred by
the general assembly of Georgia to a select committee ; and the spec
tacle was presented of a grave inquiry instituted into the official con
duct of a citizen, charged with accepting a douceur, when at the head
of the state, who, within a short period previous, had stemmed, with
indomitable courage and unshaken virtue, a torrent of the vilest ini
quity ; and had contemptuously rejected overtures, the acceptance of
which might have imparted princely wealth to himself and his posterity.
A resolution was reported, and adopted by both branches, no one dis
senting, that General Jackson " had been vilified by the said Zacha
riah Cox ; that his conduct was, during his administration, character
ized with honesty and disinterestedness ;" and that " his reputation
stands too high in the opinion of this legislature, and his fellow-citizens
at large, to be affected by any malicious insinuations or assertions
whatsoever." General Jackson was a member of the senate until March, 1806.
In his career in that exalted body, he was perfectly independent. He
supported the administration of Mr. Jefferson only so far as he deemed
it correct, opposing its measures when his judgment so directed, and
declaring, in the judiciary debate in 1802, that " as a pohtical man, he
was no more for Thomas Jefferson than he was for John Adams.
When he acts according to my opinion right, I will support him ;
when wrong, oppose him — and I trust a majority on this floor will
always act in the same way." The station of president, pro tempore,
was tendered to him : but he declined it, preferring to be on the floor,
always ready to resist the claims of the grantees and purchasers under
the rescinded Georgia grants, to a large portion of which claims he
made opposition ending only with his last gasp. He died on the 19th
March, 1806. Interred four miles from Washington, his remains have
lately been removed to the congressional burial yard. John Randolph
of Roanoke, his personal friend and political admirer, wrote the inscrip
tion on the tablet which covers them. Mr. Randolph had in youth
been inflamed with a high respect for his lofty public integrity ; was
five years in congress with him, where a personal attachment was
contracted ; and is understood to have said that his own life had, in
some degree, its model in his. Hence, perhaps, connected with his
own abhorrence of every thing vile, proceeded Mr. Randolph's invin-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
cible hostUity to the Yazoo claims. Georgia has sought to perpetuate
General Jackson's name, and services, by giving the first to a county,
and by expressions of her sense of the last in her legislative resolutions.
Her gratitude was merited. If there was a passion stronger than
aU others in the heart of General Jackson, that was devotion to her
service. She was the earthly object of his adoration. For her, and in
her service, he surrendered all hope of federal distinction and federal
advantages, which his revolutionary deeds, his civil life, his early con
gressional displays, his acknowledged talents, his admitted abilities
for public usefulness, might have led him to expect. WhUst, with
enlarged patriotism, he frequently affirmed that the proudest title
known to man was that of " an American citizen," and warmly cher
ished the union of the states, and the constitution adopted by the
sages and fathers of the revolution ; he yet regarded Georgia, emphati
cally as Ms country, and as such, congratulated her in debate in the
senate in 1803. Time has passed away, and with it the bitterness of
hostility. Prejudice and passion have passed, and truth and justice
have sway. Whatever may be the violence and conflicts of contending
parties ; however, occasionally, authority may be claimed for opposing
doctrines : in General Jackson's acts and principles it is conceded by
all in Georgia, that never had the Union a more patriotic citizen, never
Georgia a more resolute soldier, a more intelligent statesman, a more
devoted servant

''^

Li.'.;,N,

RICHARD DALE.

Justice has not been done to the naval heroes of our revolution.
Some of the most patriotic spirits of that eventfiil period, employed
their noblest energies, in maintaining on the ocean, the interests and
the honor of their country. The glory of their achievements was
enhanced by the circumstance, that with means feeble, inadequate
and uncertain, they contended against the highest naval reputation,
the best appointed forces, and the most exact state of disciplme.
Though the fitting memorial has never yet been inscribed, it shall not
be for want of the becoming disposition or the requisite exertions, if
our work does not to a considerable extent, rescue from oblivion, those
occurrences worthy of remembrance and praise, which belong to this
portion of our nation's annals.
Richard Dale was born on the 6th day of November, 1756, in
Norfolk county, Virguiia. He was descended from a highly respect
able family. His parents were both natives of Virginia. His father
left five children, of -whom Richard was the eldest. Ha'ving mani
fested a strong predilection for the sea, Richard was aUowed, at
twelve years of age, to enter on board a vessel commanded by his
uncle, with whom he made a voyage to Liverpool and back. Sub
sequently, he made several voyages to the West Indies, and in 1775,
when nineteen years of age, -was chief officer of a valuable brig. He
had early and various experience of the hazards of a saUor's hfe.
Among other mishaps, he was on one occasion knocked overboard by
the jib sheets, in the night, and after being several hours in the water,
with no aid but such as a hencoop afforded, was with much difficulty,
after day-light, rescued by his own vessel. He remained in the mer
chant service tiU the spring of 1776. The revolutionary fervor was
now excited. The best of the youthful blood of the land was roused.
Our young sailor is accordingly presented to us early in 1776, as a
lieutenant of a vessel of war belonging to Virguiia. WliUe on public
duty "in James river, in a smaU craft, he was captured by a tender of
VOL. Ill— 5 1

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
a Liverpool frigate ; he was carried to Norfolk, put on board a
prison-ship, and confined there for several weeks.
It was in the summer of 1776, however, that he commenced his
career as an officer of the United States navy, in the character of a
midshipman on board of the brig Lexington, Captain John Barry. A
rapid review of some of the incidents of this portion of his life, will
exhibit him, though but a youth, and then in subordinate stations, as
eminently entitled to distinction, for able seamanship, dauntless
courage, ardent love of country, perilous adventure, bold and daring
exploits, and the sufferings and anxieties of wounds and captivity.
The Lexington sailed in the autumn of 1776, for Cape Francois,
and a cruise, ilnder the orders of Captain Hallock, the gaUant Barry
having been appointed to the command of a frigate. In December,
1776, the Lexington was captured by the Liverpool frigate off the
capes of Virginia. In consequence of a sudden gale, the captors could
take out only the captain and five of the crew, Dale, then acting as
master's mate, being one of the number. The officers and crew who
remained on board, retook the brig, and carried her to Baltimore.
Dale was landed with some of his fellow prisoners, at Cape Henlopen,
in January, 1777. He immediately repaired to Philadelphia, where he
was ordered to join the Lexington again, now commanded by Captain
Henry Johnson. His vessel proceeded to Bordeaux with despatches,
having made a short passage and taken many valuable prizes. At
Nantes, she joined a small squadron, consisting of the ship Reprisal
of sixteen guns, Captain Wicks, and a cutter of ten four pounders,
Captain Samuel Nicholson. These three vessels under the orders of
Captain Wicks, sailed on a cruise in May, 1777, took and sunk many
prizes, and did great injury to the coasting trade of the British Islands.
After a narrow escape from an English seventy-four, they reached
French ports.
The Lexington sailed from Morlaix for the United States, in Sep
tember, 1777. On the 19th of that month, she encountered an Eng
lish cutter of superior force. Some of the higher officers employed
by congress in the naval service, were without the kind of experience
which alone confers that laiowledge of the discipline of a man of war,
which is indispensable to success in battle. This deficiency was
severely felt in the early part of this engagement. WTien the cutter
commenced her fire, not a match was ready on board of the Lexing
ton. Dale was one of her youngest officers, and could not have
interfered. For some time the guns were fired by means .of the
muskets. When, however, the preparations were completed, the action

RICHARD DALE.
Decame warm in the extreme. In a dead calm it was maintained for
nearly two hours, with the most determined resolution on both sides,
Nothing but the same undaunted heroism which is now the acknow
ledged characteristic of American seamen, could have sustained the
Lexington under her manifold and hea-vy disadvantages. The capture
of the enemy was hardly to be hoped for, and a breeze springing up,
the American conunander, having expended almost his last shot,
availed himself of the opportunity to crowd sail and get off. In this
he succeeded for a time. In a few hours, however, the cutter over
took him. The action was renewed with increased obstinacy. Hav
ing used not only every shot, but all the iron and other articles which
could be employed as a substitute for shot, the brig being reduced
to a wreck, a large portion of the officers and many of the men killed,
and many more severely wounded, the demands of honor all nobly
satisfied, nothing remained but to spare the lives of the gallant sur
vivors by acknowledging a conquest which belonged to the superior
force of the enemy.
The cutter's advantage consisted not only in her full and complete
equipments, but in the fact, that her crew was composed entirely of
picked men. Few of the Lexington's officers or crew had ever been
in an engagement. This hard fought and protracted battle, notwith
standing its issue, will therefore be regarded as reflecting credit on
the American name. The good conduct of Dale was conspicuous
throughout. He displayed the same admirable qualities which under
better auspices subsequently led to victory and renown.
Captivity again awaited him. He not only suffered the mortifica
tion of being rendered useless to his country at a most momentous
crisis, but was exposed in common with his fellow-prisoners to the
indignity of treatment which was thought to be due to rebels. The
contumely with which, on this and other occasions during the conffict,
Americans in imprisonment were insulted, proved utterly impotent in
regard to the object vainly expected from it. In invigorating patriot
ism, and strengthening the determination to resist oppression, it
recoiled with tremendous power on the government which, to the
disgrace of humanity, permitted it to be inflicted. After a rigorous
examination at Plymouth, the surviving officers and crew of the
Lexington were throvm into Mill prison, upon a charge of high trea
son. In this loathsome abode, their confinement for several months
was unusual and cruel. Without uncontrovertible authority, we
would not venture to make the assertion, that so scanty and miserable
was the supply of food, the Americans to sustain life, actually seized*

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
killed, and dressed a dog which accidentally found his way to them
So atrocious was this severity, that the private judgment and sympathy
of English gentlemen revolted at the public conduct of those who in this
matter were allowed unworthUy to wield the authority of the nation.
The complaint becoming general respecting the treatment of the Ame
rican prisoners, a committee was appointed to inquire into the matter.
A large sum of money was raised by private subscription. The
government, thus awakened, sanctioned a -visit of the committee to the
prison. The result was that provisions, clothing, and every thing that
could alleviate their sufferings, were furnished to the Americans.
This benevolence so pure and liberal, this phUan thropy so disinte
rested and practical, is mentioned with peculiar gratification. Counter
acting the abuses of public authority, it dignified and ennobled human
nature, and deserves to be faithfully recorded for universal applause
and imitation.
Though grateful for being thus rendered as comfortable as a state
of confinement would permit, Dale and his companions could not
forget that they were prisoners of war, and that their country had
need of their services. Hearing of no opportunity of an early ex
change, they determined on attempting an escape. The plan having
been concerted, Captain Johnson, young Dale, and a number of others,
effected their purpose in February, 1778. They had with great
secrecy, but most tediously and under apprehension of daily discovery,
worked a hole under the wall. Being obliged to get rid of the gravel
and earth, they managed to do it by putting it into their pockets, and,
during the few minutes occasionally allowed for exercise on the wall,
adroitly emptying them. After wandering about for more than a
week, encountering difficulties and privations, they, to avoid detection,
divided their company and pursued different routes. Dale and a
single companion, after a variety of adventures, reached London. At
one time they were secreted under the straw of a small outhouse,
belonging to a cottage, while their pursuers, who had tracked them
to the neighborhood, actually made what they deemed a thorough
search of the buUding. At London they immediately embarked on
board a trading vessel bound to Dunkirk. On the same day, whUe at
anchor waiting for a change of the tide, an officer with a press-gang
came on board and arrested them on suspicion of being prisoners from
Mill prison. After examination they were recommitted to that place.
PrivUeges and indulgences which had been formerly extended, were
now denied. Forty days of rigid confinement in a dungeon denomi-
"Viated with peculiar fitness, " the black hole" was a part of their reward

RICHARD DALE.
for exerting, without the violation of any of the laws of God or man,
the sacred right of self-preservation. After being once released from
the gloom and the misery of this subterraneous prison-house, Dale
was again made to taste its tender mercies, for allowing a little of his
patriotic enthusiasm to escape his lips, mingled with the melody of
what were termed rebeUious songs.
He was at last indebted to his own prompt sagacity and persevering
boldness for his relief In February, 1779, after more than a year's
captivity, imbittered as we have seen it was, he again escaped. He
accomplished this by walking out of prison in the fuU uniform of a
British officer, the guard having no suspicion of the truth, till Dale
was enabled to elude pursuit. How he obtained this uniform
remained a secret. He repaired without delay to London, and, by
fortunate management and address, procured a passport to go to
France. In a short time he arrived at L'Orient, where, with elate
and buoyant spirit, he joined, in the character of master's mate, the
renowned Paul Jones, then commanding the American ship "Bon
Homme Richard."
This is a most interesting epoch in his life. He had hitherto con
tended with difficulties the most appalling, and adversities that would
have subdued to despondency a mind less resolute and inflexible than
his. He now beheld in the character of his commander a pledge of
happier fortunes, and enjoyed in anticipation the brilliant career that
awaited him.
After three months of constant employment in manning the Bon
Homme Richard, in which great difficulty was experienced, Dale, at
the age of twenty-two, was selected by the discriminating eye of Cap
tain Jones to be his first lieutenant. How well he deserved the confi
dence thus bestowed, was abundantly demonstrated by the noble part
which he took with his distinguished commander in a series of
exploits, which for prowess and intrepidity surpass the fictions of
poetry, and distance the marvels of romance.
The Bon Homme Richard sailed on a cruise in the summer of 1779,
in company with the Alliance of thirty-six guns, the Pallas of thirty-
wo, the Vengeance brig of sixteen, and two or three smaUer vessels,
all under the command of Commodore Paul Jones. They cruised
with great success for a time, off the western coast of Ireland, when it
was determined that the Bon Homme Richard, the Pallas, and the
Vengeance, should proceed to the north. An armed ship of twenty
guns and two or three fine cutters were understood to be in Leith
Roads. The town of Leith being designated as the first object of

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
attack, every disposition was made for taking the guard-ship and cut
ters, and landing troops. The ransom of £200,000 which Jones
proposed to levy, was considered by him " as a contribution towards
the reimbursement which Britain owed to the much injured citizens
of America." After working up to windward tUl they were, on the
1 7th September, almost within gun shot of the town, a sudden and
very severe gale of wind arose, and, being directly ahead, obliged them
to run down the firth, and go to sea, having in vain endeavored to
withstand the violence of the storm. This attempt, so skUfuUy and
daringly pursued tiU baffled by circumstances beyond human calcu
lation or control, has often been the subject of comment ; and the
sensation it occasioned is hardly yet forgotten on the coast of Fife.
A renewal of the enterprise was out of the question, the alarm ha'ving
reached Edinburgh, only a mile or two distant, whence troops could
have been readily procured. The cruise, however, was marked by
the destmction and capture of many valuable vessels, and proved a
most serious annoyance to the enemy's trade.
It was on the 23d of September, 1779, that the engagement took
place between the Bon Homme Richard and the Serapis, an Enghsh
frigate. We have space but for a few of the details of this battle,
which was certainly one of the most interesting ever fought, and, as
has often been remarked, has probably no paraUel in the history of
naval warfare. Properly to appreciate the splendid victory achieved
by the American arms, we must keep in view the great superiority
of the enemy in the strength and construction of his vessel, the num
ber of guns, the weight of metal, and the amount and discipline of his
crew. The vessels met off Flamborough head, on the north-east coast
of England, about seven o'clock in the evening, under a bright moon,
and in sight of multitudes who watched the engagement from the
shore. When within half pistol shot, the Bon Homme Richard was
haUed from the Serapis, and Lieutenant Dale received orders to com
mence the action with a whole broadside. The battle was continued
with the utmost fury. In an effort of Jones to lay his ship athwart
the enemy's bow, the bowsprit of the Serapis came over the Bon
Homme Richard's poop by the mizen-mast. The ships were then
made fast together. The action of the wind forced the Serapis' stern
close to the Bon Homme Richard's bow, so that the ships lay square
along side of each other, the yards being all entangled, and in the
language of Jones " the cannon of each ship touching the opponent's."
In an account furnished long afterwards by Dale, he remarks, " a
novelty in naval combats was now presented. The rammers were

RICHARD DALE.
run into the respective ships, to enable the men to load ;" he adds, " In
this situation the ships remained until between ten and eleven o'clock,
P. M., when the engagement terminated by the surrender of the
Serapis." In the hottest of the fight, the master-at-arms of the Bon Homme
Richard, under a belief that she was sinking, let loose all the prisoners,
several hundred in number, who being greatly terrified, occasioned
extreme confusion. The carpenter, too, reported the water in the
pump-weU to be up to his chin. Lieutenant Dale was ordered down
to the lower deck, to see how near the water was to the lower ports.
To allay the excessive alarm, he reported that she had not settled
much in the water. At this moment also the sentinels at the maga
zine, seeing many strange faces, barred all access to it. Lieutenant
Dale went below to ascertain the cause of their withholding the
powder. He now for the first time knew that the prisoners had been
let out. Having put matters right, he returned to his post on the
deck. The flag of the Serapis, which had been nailed to the mast, was
struck by Captain Pearson's own hand. Upon obser-ving that she had
strack, Dale asked for and obtained permission to board her. Jump
ing upon the gunwale, he seized the main brace, and swung himself
upon her quarter deck ; he was the first man on board. Midshipman
Mayant followed 'with a party of men, and was immediately run
through the thigh with a boarding pike by some of the enemy sta
tioned in the waist who were not informed of the surrender. Captain
Pearson was passed over to the deck of the Bon Homme Richard.
Dale received orders to cut loose the lashing, and follow Jones with
the Serapis. Dale now found to his astonishment, that he had the
use of only one of his legs. A splinter had badly wounded him, but
during the excitement of the contest he had not perceived it. He
directed another officer to follow with the Serapis, and was taken on
board the Bon Homme Richard to have his wound dressed.
The slaughter on board of each ship was dreadful. The Bon
Homme Richard was so much shattered, that it was necessary to
abandon her. The next day she sunk, her crew having been trans
ferred to the Serapis. The rest of the squadron arrived in a few days
at the Texel.
Jones now took command of the Alliance, and made a short cruise
in her, Dale being with him. This cruise afforded a bold display
of the most extraordinary seamanship. The AUiance passed along
the Flemish banks, and getting to windward of the enemy's fleets of
7

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
observation in the North Sea, the next day passed through the straits
of Dover in fuU view of the fleet in the Do-wns. On the succeeding
day she sailed near the Isle of Wight in view of the British squadron
at Spithead, and in two days more got safe through the Channel,
having passed to windward in sight of several of the enemy's large
two-decked craising ships. In March, 1780, they arrived at L'Orient.
Notwithstanding that Captain Landais, the former commander of the
AUiance, a man whose eccentricity approached, if it did not amotmt
to, insanity, had been ordered to America for trial, for certain insub
ordinate conduct, which we have not room to detaU, but which, both
before and after this, occasioned Jones much vexation ; he contrived
to secure the influence of some one or two of our public functionaries
abroad, who were not well disposed towards Jones ; and, by means
which Jones deemed unfair and iUegal, regained, during his temporary
absence, the command of the ship. Dale scornfully rejected Landais'
proposal that he should join him ; and not only adhered to his com
mander, but with the ardor of youthfiil indignation, offered to attempt
a recovery of the vessel at the hazard of his life. Pubhc considera
tions, however, induced Jones to prevent the serious consequences
that would have resulted from such a step.
Dale returned to America in the Ariel, a twenty-gmi ship com
manded by Jones. During the voyage they had an encoimter 'with
the British armed ship Triumph, of twenty guns. After sustaining
for a short time the vigorous fire of the Ariel's battery and tops, the
Triumph struck her colors. This short cruise was full of hazardous
incident. Before the battle, while they were off Penmarque rocks, a
terrible ledge between L'Orient and Brest, a violent gale reduced them
to such extremity of distress, that they were obhged to return to port
under jury masts to refit. It was of this storm that Jones declared
in one of his letters, that " tiU that night he did not fully conceive the
awfiil majesty of tempest and shipwreck." To Dr. Franklin he
¦wrote : " I owe the warmest thanks to the spirited and unremitting
assistance of my officers, who behaved with a steady, composed cou
rage, that does them the highest honor." Another cause of ceaseless
anxiety was the heterogeneous character of a crew which had been
shipped abroad with much difficulty. The detection of a conspiracy
among a part of it, exacted unwearied vigilance. AU the officers, and
even the passengers, were constantly armed. The Ariel reached
PhUadelphia in February, 1781.
On the 14th of AprU, 1781, the thanks of congress were voted to
Captam Jones, for " good conduct and eminent services," and to Lieu-

RICHARD DALE.
tenant Dale and his other associates, " for their steady affection to the
cause of their country, and the bravery and perseverance they had
manifested therein."
In the spring of 1781, Dale was most usefully employed with two
public schooners in Delaware Bay, in successfully convoying the
pubhc stores to PhUadelphia, and dispersing the marauding refiagees
who aimed at intercepting those supplies.-
His services with Jones now closed. That extraordinary man
and distinguished commander being at this period appointed to the
charge of a seventy-four, then on the stocks to the northward, mani
fested his elevated opinion of his thoroughly-tried companion, by
soliciting him to become again his first lieutenant. This proposal
was declined by Dale, only from an apprehension, which proved
well founded, that a long period of comparative inactivity would
elapse before the ship could be got ready for sea.
In July of this year, Dale sailed from the capes of Delaware as
lieutenant of the Trumbull frigate, Captain James Nicholson ; when
at sea but a few hours, they fell in with a British frigate and sloop of
war. After a severe engagement in a dark and stormy night, the
TrumbuU, having been crippled by the gale, was compelled to strike
her flag to a force so vastly superior. Lieutenant Dale was severely
wounded in this rencounter. In a short time he was put on Long
Island, a prisoner on parole : he was soon afterwards exchanged, and
in November, 1781, returned to PhUadelphia.
The government had now no occasion for his services. He accor
dingly obtained the command of a large merchant ship, " The Q.ueen
of France," mounting twelve six pounders, and saUedfor L'Orient in
the spring of 1782. On the passage he had a spirited conffict with a
British privateer of fourteen guns, and succeeded in beating her off",
both vessels sustaining very heavy damage. Captain Dale returned
to Philadelphia in February, 1783.
Upon the conclusion of the peace, no provision being made for the
navy or its gallant officers. Captain Dale turned his attention to'
commercial pursuits. In December, 1783, he sailed for London in
command of a large ship in which he had become interested. From
this period, untU 1794, he was engaged in a lucrative East India
business, several times making the voyage himself, in some of the
finest ships of the day. In 1791, he married.
In 1794, he was selected by President Washington to be one of the
six captains of the naval estabUshment, for which provision had just
been made. He was the fourth in rank. He was appointed to super-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
intend the construction of a large frigate at Norfolk. The govern
ment, however, having deferred building her, he obtained a furlough,
and continued industriously engaged in the Canton trade, tUl 179S.
At this period war with France was generally expected, and the
government purchased several large vessels to be converted into ships
of war. One of these, the Ganges, was assigned to Captain Dale,
who had recently commanded her as a merchant-ship. After she was
equipped for service, some misunderstanding arose with respect to
rank. Dale obtained a furlough until the matter could be adjusted.
On his return to Philadelphia m April, 1800, from a Canton voyage,
he was happy to find the point of rank settled to his entire satisfaction.
He now received orders to hold himself ready for important service,
and in May, 1801, was appointed to command the squadron of obser
vation, about to sail from Hampton roads to the Mediterranean.
Having hoisted his broad pendant on board the President, he sailed
on the 1st of June, with the squadron, consisting of the President
frigate, Captain James Barron, the Philadelphia firigate, Captain
Samuel Barron, the Essex frigate, Captain WiUiam Bainbridge, and
the schooner Enterprise, Lieutenant Andrew Sterrett. He found lying
at Gibraltar, the High Admiral of Tripoli with a ship of twenty-six
guns and two hundred and sixty men, and a brig of sixteen guns and
one hundred and sixty men. These vessels had arrived only the day
before. . Although the admiral disclaimed any knowledge of hostile
views on the part of the Bey his master, yet Commodore Dale formed
and acted upon the opinion that he designed to cruise against Ameri
can vessels in the Western ocean. The Philadelphia was accordingly
ordered to lie off and on Gibraltar, to watch the Tripolitan, and if he
ventured out, to capture him. In despair of eluding this vigUance,
the admiral soon dismantled his ships, and discharged his crews. Au
thentic information obtained in the Mediterranean, placed beyond
doubt, the hostile intentions of the Bey, and confirmed the propriety
and value of the determination of the American commander.
A proper disposition having been made of the other vessels, with a
view to the complete protection of the trade of his countrymen, the
commodore repaired to Tripoh, and, after an unavailing correspond
ence with the Bey, kept up a strict blockade of the port. The arrival
of this squadron m the Mediterranean was most opportune, as the
Tripolitan corsairs had been directed to capture all American vessels.
So efficient was the assistance afforded to the American trade, that not
a single capture was made. In the summer of 1802, Commodore
Dale arrived in Hampton roaus. 10

RICHARD DALE.
Soundness of judgment, firnmess of purpose, and sagacity of mind,
were indispensable to the successful performance of this service.
While the prevention of injury by a wUy and treacherous power was
a primary object of the expedition, it pecuharly belonged to the Ame
rican commander to avoid the conunission of any act offeree, beyond
the limits prescribed by the relative situation of his own nation. The
obligation to blend a large portion of forbearance with the bold deter
mination which marked the commodore's character, rendered the task
one of delicacy and difficulty.
In this squadron and under the sailor-like accomplishments and
thorough discipline of Commodore Dale, several of our gaUant naval
officers received their earliest instruction, and the noble stamp of sea
manship which proved so true in the war of 1812.
In the fall of 1802, he received an order firom the na'vy department,
to hold himself in readiness to take command of the squadron which
was to sail in the following spring for the Mediterranean. In the
order he v/as informed that he could not have a captain under him
in the flag ship as he had before. There were other officers not
employed, whose ambition would have been gratffied by the charge
of this squadron. WhUe Dale was therefore sensible of the honor
conferred by the government, in thus selecting him a second time for
the most important of our nava. commands, he was conscious that a
great sacrifice of the honor of the na'vy and of his own just pride would
be made by his returning to the station in a less dignified character
than he had before enjoyed. Nothing existed in the situation of his
country to require such an offering, and finding the difficulty was not
to be removed, he resigned his commission. He had the less hesita
tion on the subject, as there were able officers anxious for the service
to whom the objection did not apply.
He spent the rest of his days in Philadelphia, in the enjoyment of
universal respect and confidence. Amiable and generous in the rela
tions of private life, as he had been faithful and distinguished in his
country's dangerous service, he won esteem by the dignity of his
personal demeanor, the strength of his intellectual qualities, the
uprightness and liberality of his views, the sincerity and value of his
friendship, and the frankness of his hospitality.
In the war of 1812, he witnessed two gaUant sons ardently pursuing
fame in the path which he himself had trod. His gratification at the
victories in which they both participated, was, however, mingled with
a parent's sacred sorrow for the touching loss of the object of affection
ate pride who bore his name. This noble youth died at Bermuda of

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
wounds received in the engagement between the President frigate and
a British squadron.
There is one trait of Commodore Dale's character which must not
be omitted. He himself deemed it of far more importance than all
of regard and reverence which this world could confer. He was
eminently a pious man. Deeply impressed with the solemn truths
of religion, he, many years before his death, made an open pro
fession of his holy faith, and entered into full communion with the
Episcopal Church. This was the result of no sudden and transient
impulse. When in full health, and surrounded by all of earth's
advantages which could contribute to render his life one of happiness
and pleasure, he reviewed for himself the evidences of Christianity,
pondered upon its truths, felt its sacred influences, and deliberately
made his decision. Such examples deserve commemoration. By their
freedom from the suspicion of insincerity or impurity, they silence the
prejudices of mere worldlings, and by their peculiar force and beauty,
they attract to the contemplation of the things which belong to our
eternal peace.
His latter days were marked with tranquil cheerfulness. In the
bosom of a family that was most dear to him, he was blessed 'with
" AU that should accompany old age.
As honor, love, obedience ;"
and on the 24th day of February, 1826, ha'ving reached his seventieth
year, in the humble hope of a joyful resurrection through the atoning
merits of his Redeemer, he resigned his purified spirit into the hands
of that God, who, through so many perils and temptations, had merci-
fiiUy protected and preserved him.

ting^by.G.Pni-lcor.

v:ir:rjX,:iAi» ®&.ir.Ki3B:KJ(;D©js, tr.. s.ifo

WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE.

The rise and progress of the navy of the United States, may be dis
tinctly traced in the lives of its distinguished captains. It sprung
originaUy from the merchant service. The first armed vessels in the
service were merchantmen hastily fitted out soon after the commence
ment of the revolution ; their commanders were thorough-bred seamen,
whose services were eminently useful to the cause of their country —
much more so than they have ever had credited to them — and their
actions ofttimes brilliant and worthy of commemoration. At the con
clusion of the revolutionary war, many of our armed ships and their
commanders again resumed their commercial character, and the
American navy closed the first era of its history.
As our commerce extended and became an object of plunder to the
helhgerents of Europe and the freebooters of Africa, the necessity of
affording it protection by a naval force became apparent, and the
present navy of the United States began its existence ; experienced
officers were again recruited from the merchant service, some of whom
are at the present day the pride of their country, and most of them
have secured the records of their glory upon the brightest pages in
our national archives. The subject of this notice was one of this class.
William Bainbridge was bom at Princeton, New Jersey, on the
7th of May, 1774. He was the son of Dr. Absalom Bainbridge, a
respectable physician of that town. His education was limited to the
ordinary branches taught in an English school, and the rudiments of
the French language.
He was placed in a counting-house in New York when sixteen years
of age, but soon afterward went into the employment of a mercantile
house in Philadelphia, and was sent to sea ; in about two years after
this, he was mate of the ship Hope, and on a voyage to Holland, saved
the life of his captain who had been seized by a mutinous crew, with
the intention of throwing him overboard. On his retum home, he

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
was promoted, for his good conduct and abUities, to the command of
a ship in the Dutch trade, and he continued in command of various
ships imtU 1798.
In July of that year, hostUities having commenced with France,
he received the offer of the command of the United States' schooner
Retaliation, of fourteen guns, which he accepted, with the rank of
lieutenant in the navy, and saUed with a small squadron under com
modore Murray, on a cruise to the West Indies. In November of the
same year, the Retaliation was captured by two French frigates and
a logger, and carried into Guadaloupe. Here he found several Ame
rican vessels of great value detained, and their crews treated with
great severity. The governor, General Desfourneaux, made great
professions of friendship to the United States, and proposed that Lieu
tenant Bainbridge should resume the command of his vessel, and
return home. What design the governor had in making this propo
sition does not very clearly appear, but Lieutenant Bainbridge
appears to have believed it a scheme to get a national vessel and officer
out of the way, with some other object than friendship ; he, therefore,
replied that he knew of no other light in which he could be regarded
than either as a prisoner or entirely free. The governor insisted on
his returning to the United States 'with his vessel and forty of his crew,
and declared that if the Retaliation were again found cruising against
the French, every American within Jiis power should be put to the
sword. Being obliged by force to resume the command of his vessel,
of which Desfourneaux gave him a declaration, he returned home in
company with two flags of truce in February, 1799.
He again sailed for the West Indies in the brig Norfolk, of eighteen •
guns, with the commission of master-commandant. During his cruise,
he gave protection to the trade of our merchants, captured several of
the enemy's merchantmen and a privateer, destroyed a number of
barges, and compelled a privateer of sixteen guns to run ashore.
In 1800, he was promoted to the rank of a captain, and sailed in
the frigate George Washington, with presents to the Dey of Algiers,
according to the treaty then existing. At Algiers, he consented
(though with great reluctance) to carry an ambassador with presents
from the Dey to the Grand Seignior at Constantinople.
The arrival of an American frigate for the first time at Constanti
nople, caused a great sensation among the Turks, who were altogether
unable to comprehend where the country was situated from which
she came, or what flag they had to salute, but being informed that
America was otherwise called the new world, they gave the captain a

WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE.
cordial welcome, and he was treated with great respect by the Turk
ish authorities, and by the diplomatic corps at Pe'ra.
The Algerine ambassador was, on the contrary, repelled with
indignity by the capudan pacha, who spat and stamped upon his
letters and refused the presents of his master, on account of his depre
dations on the commerce of nations in amity with the Porte, and also
for having made peace with France without consulting the sultan.
Captain Bainbridge, accompanied by Dr. Clarke, the celebrated
traveUer, and other distinguished foreigners, proceeded to the Black
sea in his long-boat, where he had the pleasure of displaying " the star-
spangled banner" for the first time. On his return, he gave an enter
tainment on board the frigate. The natives of Europe, Asia, Africa,
and America, sat do'wn together at the same table, and were regaled
with water, bread, fruit, and meat from the four quarters of the globe.
This visit to Constantuiople left a favorable impression of the Ameri
can character, and opened the way to subsequent negotiations and
more intimate relations.
On his return to Algiers with the secretary of the ambassador, war
was immediately declared against France, and the French consul and
citizens were ordered to leave the country in forty-eight hours. To
save them from capti'vity, Captain Bainbridge received them all on
board his ship, and landed them at Alicant ; he then returned home,
and arrived at PhUadelphia, in AprU, 1801. He returned to the
Mediterranean in the foUowing June, in the Essex frigate, to protect
our commerce against the TripoUtans ; he came home in July, 1802,
and again sailed in July, 1803, to join the squadron under Commo
dore Preble. The frigate PhUadelphia, which Captain Bainbridge
now commanded, had been built by the merchants of PhUadelphia,
and by them presented to the government.
On the 26th of A\igust, off cape De Gatt, he fell in with a Moorish
cruiser of twenty-two guns, in company with an American brig, which
had been captured a few days before, and her captain and crew car
ried on board the ship, and there confined. This practical hostUity
was accounted for by the orders found on board, which proved the
intention of the emperor of Morocco to let loose his forces against
American commerce. On making the discovery, Captain Bain
bridge made prize of the ship, which he manned from the PhUadel
phia, and having pursued and recaptured the brig, he carried them to
Gibraltar. The loss of one of his finest vessels at the very commencement of his
war-like speculation, convinced the emperor of its folly, and led to a

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
speedy and permanent peace. WhUe Commodore Preble was engaged
in negotiation. Captain Bainbridge proceeded to blockade Tripoh
with the Philadelphia and Vixen. Being informed that a Tripolitan
cmiser had escaped from the port, the Vixen was ordered to cmise
off cape Bon in quest of her. After her departure, the Philadelphia
was driven fi:om her cruising ground by strong westerly gales ; but the
wind coming round to the eastward, she was returning to her station,
when a strange ship was discovered in shore and running for the
harbor of Tripoli : the PhUadelphia gave chase, and when about four
miles and a half from the town, and going at the rate of six or seven
knots, she ran upon a reef of rocks which were unknown to our navi
gators in that sea. This unfortunate event occurred on the morning
of the 31st of October. Every exertion was made to float the ship by
throwing overboard the guns and anchors, starting the water, and
cutting away the foremast, but to no purpose. The gun-boats came
out of the harbor and fired upon her, but so long as she kept an
upright position, they were kept off by the few guns which could be
brought to bear upon them. At length she turned upon her side, and
could no longer be defended ; the magazine was drowned, every article
of value thrown overboard, the ship skuttled, the pumps choked, and
aU this being accomphshed, the colors were struck at five o'clock in
the afternoon. The officers and crew were plundered of every thing
valuable on their persons before they reached the shore, but were
afterward kindly treated by the pacha, untU Decatur burnt the PhUa
delphia on the sixteenth of February, 1804, after which they were
closely conffiied in the castle, through fear of their escape. On the
3d of February, 1805, they were Uberated, a treaty having been con
cluded, by which the pacha was to receive the sum of sixty thousand
dollars. From this period till the commencement of the year 1812, Captain
Bainbridge was occasionaUy employed in the pubhc service, and
at other times, while on furlough, engaged in the merchant service,
which was rendered necessary by the reduced state of his fimds.
On the declaration of war in 1812, he had command of the na^vy-
yard at Charlestown, Massachusetts, but soon after was appointed to
the command of the Constellation frigate ; he was thence transferred to
the Constitution on the arrival of that ship at Boston, after the capture
of the Guerriere.
He sailed in company with the sloop of war Hornet, Captain LaW'
rencc, on a cruise to the East Indies. After parting with the Homet,
he was running down the coast of BrazU, when, on the 29th of

WILLIAM BAINBRIDGE.
December, he feU in with the Java, a British frigate of forty-nine guns,
commanded by Captain Lambert, with a full crew of more than four
hundred men, and upwards of one hundred officers and men for ships
on the East India station, together with Lieutenant-General Hislop
and suite, of the British army.
The action conmienced at the distance of half a mile, but the two
ships gradually approached each other, untU the jib-boom of the Java
got foul of the Constitution's mizen rigging. The battle lasted nearly
two hours, and only terminated when the last spar of the Java had
gone by the board. The slaughter on board of this ship was dread
ful. Her captain and sixty men were kiUed, and upwards of a hun
dred wounded.
The Constitution had nine kUled and twenty-five wounded, among
¦whom was the commodore himself
As it was found impossible to bring the Java to the United States,
the prisoners and baggage were removed to the Constitution in the
only boat which remained between the two frigates; this service
occupied two days, after which the -wreck was blown up, and the Con
stitution put into St. Salvador, where the prisoners were set at liberty
on parole, and had every article of their private property restored to
them. The kind attention which Commodore Bainbridge paid to his
prisoners, was gratefully acknowledged by them, and their letters to
him added to the honor of his 'victory.
The original plan of the cruise having been thus interrupted, the
Constitution returned to Boston.
Commodore Bainbridge was received with enthusiastic welcome
by his countrymen. The same crew had twice encountered the
enemy with success, and congress granted fifty thousand dollars for
each of the captured frigates.
The noble ship which had in so short a time destroyed two British
frigates of the first class, becEune an object of national pride ; and the
names of her gallant captains are associated with every recoUection
of the steps by which our na'vy has won its way to universal favor.
There are few ships in any na'vy, there are certainly none in our o-wn,
which have seen more service ; and if there be at the present time
any object in which our people feel an undivided interest, it is in this
same Constitution, which, from the little damage she sustained in her
numerous encounters, has acquired the popular soubriquet of " Old
Ironsides." At the conclusion of the war, Commodore Bainbridge went to tne
vol. III-6 r

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Mediterranean in command of the Columbus seventy-four, and this, we
believe, was the last of his services at sea ; he commanded at several
of our naval stations, and was every where respected and esteemed,
and acted for several years as one of the board of naval commission
ers. Commodore Bainbridge had been in infirm health for some
years previous to his death, and while on a tour of inspection to the
eastern states, was admonished by the increasing severity of his disease,
that his voyage was nearly ended. With this impression, he returned
to Philadelphia with the obvious desire to breathe his last in that city,
and died on the 27th of July, 1833.

;cL oyT SiilLy-. Ijig-. by AB Jlurand. -£tiUL aCopy&y James "Homny

STEPHEN DECATUR.

Stephen Decatur was born in the county of Worcester, upon the
eastern shore of Maryland, on the 5th January, 1779. His father,
Stephen Decatur, a native of Ne^wport, Rhode Island, was a captain
in the U. S. na^vy from its first establishment until the termination of
our difficulties with the French repubhc, when he retired from the
ocean. He died in PhUadelphia, in 1808, honored and lamented.
His son, Stephen, entered the na^vy in 1798, as a midshipman on
board the firigate United States, under the conunand of Com. Barry.
In 1801 he sailed as first lieutenant of the Essex, one of Commo
dore Dale's squadron, to the Mediterranean. He went out with the
second expedition to the same station, as first heutenant of the New
York. At Malta he had a Tencontre with a British officer, which
terminated fatally ; in consequence of which he was suspended, and
sent home in the Chesapeake as a passenger. After his conduct in
this affair had been investigated, he was appointed to the command of
the brig Argus, and proceeded to join Commodore Preble's squadron,
then lying before Tripoli. On his arrival there, he took command of
the schooner Enterprise, in which he engaged and in a few minutes
captured a Tripolitan ketch, within sight of the town. This little
prize was afterward called the Intrepid.
Shortly after this, Lieutenant Decatur conceived the daring pro
ject of recapturing or destroying the frigate Philadelphia, as she lay
in the harbor of Tripoli. With great difficulty he obtained the com
modore's sanction to his perilous enterprise ; but having at last gained
his consent, Decatur manned the Intrepid ¦with seventy volunteers,
and accompanied by other yotmg officers, all of whom have since
acquired fame, he sailed from Sjrracuse on the 3d of February, 1804,
in company with the United States' brig Syren, Lieutenant Stewart,
who was to take off the men in his boats, in case it should be found
necessary to use the Intrepid as a fire-ship.
After a tempestuous passage of a fortnight, they arrived off Tripoli
towards evening. It had been arranged between lieutenants Deca-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
TUR and Stewart, that the ketch and the boats of the Sjn-en should
enter the harbor about ten o'clock that night. The time arrived;
but a change of wind had carried the Syren several mUes to leeward,
and Decatur determined to take advantage of the wind which was
then fair, and venture into the harbor without waiting for the boats.
The PhUadelphia, -with her guns mounted and loaded, was moored
under the guns of the castle ; two Tripolitan cruisers lay ¦within two
cables' length on her starboard quarter, and several gun-boats within
half gun-shot on her starboard bow. The ketch carried her gallant
crew within two hundred yards of the frigate, without interruption ;
they were then hailed, and ordered to anchor. A Maltese pilot, by
Decatur's order, answered that they had lost their anchors in a gale
of wind off the coast, and therefore could not anchor. By this time
they had approached near the frigate, and were becalmed. Lieutenant
Decatur then directed a small boat to take a rope, and make it fast
to the fore-chains of the frigate ; this being accomplished, the crew
began to warp the ketch alongside. Up to this moment the enemy
had suspected no danger ; but now, in great confusion, they began to
prepare for defence. Before they were well aware of the character of
their visiters, Decatur had sprung on board, followed by midship
man Charles Morris. These two were nearly a minute on the deck
before their companions joined them ; fortunately the surprise was too
sudden for advantage to be taken of the delay. The Turks crowded
together on the quarter deck v/ithout attempting to repel the boarders,
who, as soon as a sufficient number were assembled to form a front
equal to their adversaries, rushed upon them and very soon cleared
the deck. About twenty Turks were killed in the assault ; the rest
jumped overboard or fled below. He ordered the ship to be set on
fire in several parts, and when certain of her destruction, the crew
returned on board the ketch ; a favorable breeze sprung up, and they
sailed out of the harbor without the loss of a man, four only being
wounded. For this gallant achievement, congress voted Decatur
their thanks and a sword ; and he was promoted to the rank of post-
captain, with the full approbation of the officers over whose heads he
was raised.
The following spring Commodore Preble determined to make an
attack on Tripoli ; and having obtained the loan of some gun-boats and
bombards from the king of Naples, he gave the command of one
division of them to Captain Decatur. These boats were manned
by a mixed crew of Americans and Neapolitans, but the latter appear
to have contributed little or nothing to the success of the day. The

STEPHEN DECATUR.
signal to prepare for action was made from the commodore's ship, the
Constitution, on the morning of the 3d of August ; and at nine o'clock
the squadron began to bombard the town, and the vessels m the har
bor. The gun-boats, led on by Decatur, advanced ni a line to attack
the Tripolitan gun-boats, which were moored along the mouth of the
harbor, and ¦within musket-shot of the batteries. He ordered the bow
sprits of aU the boats of his division to be unshipped, and every prepa
ration made to board the boats of the enemy; he then advanced
through a hea^vy fire from the battery and gun-boats, and boarded one
of the boats with twenty-seven Americans : the deck was cleared in a
few minutes, and Decatur was about to take his prize out of the
line, when a boat which had been commanded by his brother, Lieu
tenant James Decatur, came under his stern ; and he was informed
that his brother, after capturing one of the enemy's boats, had been
treacherously slain by the commander, who was then maldng for the
port. He waited to hear no more, but hastened to overtake the assas
sin, and avenge his brother: with his single boat he pursued the
retreating foe beyond the line of the enemy ; he succeeded in laying
his boat alongside and threw himself on board with eleven of his men,
all the Americans he had left. The fight continued on the deck for
twenty minutes, and but four of his men remained unwounded.
Decatur now singled out the commander, who was the special object
of his vengeance. With his cutlass he attempted to, cut off the head
of the espontoon with which his antagonist was armed ; but striking
the iron, the treacherous steel broke at the hilt, and he received a
wound in the right arm and breast. They then closed, and after a
fierce struggle both fell. The Turk endeavored to stab him with a
dagger ; but Decatur seized his arm with his left hand, and with his
right brought a small pistol to bear upon his antagonist — cocked it,
fired through his pocket, and killed him. During this struggle, one
of the TripoUtans behind Decatur, aimed a blow at his head with a
sabre ; an American seaman, who had been so severely wounded as
to lose the use of both hands, rushed between the uplifted sabre and
his commander's head, and received the blow upon his own head,
which fractured his skull. The generous sailor survived, and his
self-devotion was afterward rewarded by the government.
Decatur secured both his prizes, and received the highest com
mendation from Commodore Preble ; who, on retiring from the com
mand of the squadron, gave him the command of the Constitution.
From that ship he was removed to the Congress, and, on the conclu
sion of peace with Tripoh, returned to the United States.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
At this time his gallantry and success had rendered him a favorite
officer with his countrymen. He superseded Commodore Barron, as
commander of the Chesapeake, and was afterwards removed to the
frigate United States.
In the late war with Great Britain, his skill and intrepidity were
again eminently conspicuous. On the 25th of October, 1812, the
United States fell in -with and captured the Macedonian of forty-nine
guns, esteemed one of the finest ships of her class in the British navy.
The battle lasted an hour and a half The United States received
but little damage in her hull and rigging, and had but six killed and
seven wounded. The Macedonian lost her mizen-mast, fore and
main-top-masts, and main yard, and was much battered in the hull.
Her loss was thirty-six killed, and sixty-eight wounded.
The reception of Captain Garden on board of the United States was
highly honorable to Decatur, evincing a chivalrous and delicate
courtesy. When Captain Garden presented his sword, Decatur
declined receiving it, observing that he could not think of taking the
sword of an officer who had defended his ship so gallantly, but he
should be glad to take him by the hand.
Decatur escorted his prize into the harbor of New York, where
she was repaired and equipped as an American frigate. The name
of the gaUant victor was hailed with enthusiastic admiration through
out the country ; and congress, several of the state legislatures, and
the principal cities of the union, testified their high sense of his services
by votes of thanks and costly presents.
In 1813, he attempted to get to sea with the United States, the
Macedonian, and the Hornet, through Long Island sound ; but was
compelled to run into the mouth of the Thames, in Connecticut, by a
squadron of British ships of much superior force. He lay off New
London several months, without any opportunity of running out to sea.
Decatur could not abide to be thus cooped up within sight of the
ocean without using every expedient in his power to relieve himself
He sent a chaUenge to the commander of the blockading squadron. Sir
Thomas M. Hardy, offering to meet two British frigates with the
United States and Macedonian ; but the invitation was declined.
At length the two frigates were dismantled, and Decatur returned
to New York, where he took command of a squadron destined for the
East Indies ; and having appointed a rendezvous for the other ships,
he put to sea, in the frigate President, on the 14th of January, 1815.
Owing to some mistake of the pilot, the ship in going out grounded
on the bar, and continued to strike heavily for an hour and a half,

STEPHEN DECATUR.
which greatly injured her sailing. The next morning the British
squadron were discovered in pursuit, consisting of the Majestic razee,
the Endymion, Tenedos, and Pomona frigates, and a brjg. It was
soon apparent that the Endymion was the fastest ship. Decatur,
always fertile in resources, projected a plan of escape in accordance
with the daring of his character, in which, had he succeeded, he would
have reached the summit of naval reno^wn. His design was to lead
the Endymion as far as possible away from her consorts ; board her
with aU his crew, who were in readiness at a moment's warning ;
abandon or destroy the President, and then escape ; but the project
was defeated by the caution of his antagonist, who suspecting the
ru^e, avoided it, and preserved the advantage of his position so long
as Decatur kept his course. Confident of his ability to throw the
Endymion out of the combat before the other ships could come to her
assistance, Decatur changed his course and made battle. He com
pletely crippled his adversary's ship, and silenced her battery. He
then pursued his course as before ; but by this time the other ships
had opened their fire upon the President. To escape was out of the
question, to fight the squadron with his single ship with a view to
conquest was hopeless, and an unjustifiable waste of the lives of his
men ; he therefore surrendered to the commander of the squadron.
The British have endeavored to make it appear that the President
surrendered to the Endymion ; it was not so. There were intervals
of minutes in which she did not fire a gun before the President left
her, nor did she fire a gun when the latter changed her course and
might have been raked.
Decatur soon after returned to the United States, and was imme
diately employed on his favorite element.
The Algerines, instigated as was supposed, by British agents, but
more probably by the hope of plunder, had taken advantage of our
war with Great Britain, to capture some of our merchantmen, and
enslave their crews. That war having been terminated, a squadron
was despatched to the Mediterranean, under command of Commodore
Decatur. He captured an Algerine frigate of forty-nine guns after
a short action, (in which the celebrated Rais Hammida was kiUed,)
and a brig of twenty-two guns. He arrived before Algiers on the 22d
of June, 1815, and immediately demanded a treaty. His terms were
stated, with aU possible brevity, to be a relinquishment of aU annual
tribute or ransom for prisoners, — property taken from Americans to
be restored or paid for, — all enslaved Americans to be released, and no
American ever again to be held as a slave. The rehnquishment of

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
tribute was the most difficult point to settle, as it was contended that
it might be used as a precedent by the European powers, and prove
destructive to the Dey; "even a little powder," said the Algerine
negotiator, " might prove satisfactory." " If," replied Decatur, " you
insist upon receiving powder as tribute, you must expect to receive
baUs with it." In forty-eight hours the treaty was negotiated, giving
to Americans privileges and immunities never before granted by a
Barbary state to a Christian power. He then proceeded to Tunis and
Tripoli, and obtained redress by a similar summary process, and
returned home in the autumn of the same year. He was subsequently
appointed one of the board of na^vy commissioners, and resided in the
city of Washington, at Kalorama, formerly the seat of Joel Barlow.
We now approach the last act of Commodore Decatur's life, the
result of which was his untimely death, with painful emotions. In
October, 1819, a correspondence was commenced between Commo
dores Barron and Decatur, in relation to expressions said to have
been used by the latter disrespectful to the former. Decatur
promptly denied having used the language stated, but left the infer
ence open that he had not been particular to conceal his opinions,
which were not very favorable to the former commander of the Chesa
peake. As is generally the case in such controversies, the difficulties
became less likely to be adjusted, the more they were discussed. The
correspondence on the part of Decatur was remcu:kable for its keen
sarcasm and severity, beyond the bounds of justification, either by his
position or the letters ot Commodore Barron. Both the parties
reprobated duelling, and yet the controversy ended as such a bitter
controversy could only end — in a duel. They met at Bladensburg
on the morning of the 22d of March, 1820. At the first fne both
were wounded ; Decatur mortally, Barron dafigerously. Commo
dore Decatur was conveyed to Washington to his distracted wife,
and died the same evening. His remains were attended to the vault
at Kalorama, in which they were deposited, by a great part of the
male population of Washington and the adjacent country, by nearly
all the officers of government, members of congress, and representa
tives of foreign governments resident there.
Thus Decatur, in the prime of life, in the enjoyment of his
country's highest regard and confidence, a husband, on whom the
cherished object of his love was entirely dependent, threw away his
valuable life in what is misnamed " an affair of honor," and added
one more to the list of victims of a barbarous code, which few of his
profession have had the moral courage to resist.

ETi.';i::-avi?cL liy T. K-eXK- from the

WiWWWS IKZmM

UAyLA/J A^^w?

RUFUS KING.

Rufus King, the eldest son of Richard King, a wealthy merchant
of Scarborough, Maine, was born in the year 1755. After having
received a good common school education, he was placed under
the care of Mr. Samuel Moody, an eminent classical teacher at
Byfield. He removed to Harvard coUege in 1773, where he continued until
the commencement of the war of independence, when the students
were dispersed, and the college was occupied several months by the
American troops. During this interval, Mr. King pursued his
studies with his former teacher, at Byfield. In 1777, he returned to
college, and graduated with great reputation, as a classical scholar,
and as an orator of extraordinary powers. He immediately com
menced the study of law at Newburyport, under the late chief justice
of Massachusetts, Theophilus Parsons, and was admitted to practice
in 1780.
For a short period, in 1778, he took the field as a volunteer, and
served as an aid to General Glover, in the enterprise conducted by
General Sullivan against the British on Rhode Island.
Mr. King made his debut at the bar, as adverse counsel to his
great instructor, Parsons. Undaunted by the gigantic powers of his
antagonist, he put forth his efforts with the skilfulness of an experi
enced lawyer, and exhibited so successfully his talents as an orator,
that he at once opened for himself the path to future eminence. He
was soon after elected a representative from Newburyport, to the
legislature of Massachusetts. WhUe he was a member of that body,
in 1784, congress recommended to the several states to vest in the
general government " fuU authority to regulate their commerce, both
external and internal, and to impose such duties as might be necessary
for that purpose." In the debate which foUowed, Mr. King sup
ported the grant, and prevailed. This was one of the eariiest instances
in which the line of distinction was strongly marked, between the
federal and state interests.
VOL. Ill— 7 1

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
In the same year (1784), he was elected as a delegate to congress,
and took his seat as a member of that body, then in session at
Trenton, and never after resumed his practice at the bar. He was
reelected to the same station, the two following years.
On the 16th of March, 1785, Mr. King brought forward and
advocated the passage of the resolution by which slavery was pro
hibited in the territory north-west of the Ohio.
As a member of the convention held in PhUadelphia, in 1787, for
the purpose of revising the articles of confederation, and for his
labors in the Massachusetts convention, to consider and decide on its
adoption, Mr. King is entitled to the lasting gratitude of every Ame
rican. Next to that venerated conclave, the signers of the Declaration
of Independence, that wise and patriotic body who framed the present
constitution of the United States is worthy of our reverence. Those
who are famUiar with the history of the American government, from
the peace of 1783 to 1788, wUl sustain this opinion. As has been
correctly said by a late 'writer,*
" The history of the -world records no case of more intense interest, than that which
pervaded the United States, in 1788. Thirteen independent sovereignties, seriously
alarmed for their preservation against each other, more alarmed with the apprehension
that they might give up the liberty which they had gained with the utmost exertion of
mind and body from foreign tyranny, to one of their own creation, within their own
limits, called into the deliberative assemblies of the time all the able men of the country.
Some union of the states was admitted by all to be indispensable ; but in what manner
it -was to be effected, what powers should be given, and what powers reserved, — how
these should be modified, checked, and balanced, — were points on which honest men might
zealously contend. Here was a case, in which a whole people, unawed by any foreign
power, in peace with all the world, sorely experienced in what may be the exercise of
civil authority, dependent on no will but their own, convinced of the necessity of
forming some government, were called on to settle, by peaceful agreement among them
selves, the most important questions which can be presented to the human mind."
The great question of all was, as Washington said, " whether we
were to survive as an independent republic, or decline from our
federal dignity into insignificant and wretched fragments of empire."
The old government by experiment had been proved to be inefficient ;
the embarrassment of debt which it could not command the means
to pay, and the necessity of foreign treaties which it could not effectu
ally guaranty, exposed the country to distrust and contempt abroad,
and to tumults and distress at home. Mr. King, having been in

¦William Sullivan, Esq.

RUFUS KING,
congress three years, knew the imbeciUty of the national government
and the necessity of a revision, A convention to deliberate on the
subject was recommended by some of the state legislatures, and
congress gave it their sanction by a similar recommendation on
motion of the Massachusetts delegation, then consisting of Mr, Dana
and Mr, King, He attended with the convention during their whole
session, took a large share in the discussion and formation of the
new constitution, and was a member of the committee appointed to
prepare the final draft of that instrument. When it was referred to
the several states for ratification, Mr. King was sent to the state
convention by his constituents of Newburyport.'* In this assembly
he distinguished himself by his intimate knowledge of the subject,
the weight of his arguments, and the popular style of his oratory.
Soon after this, Mr. King removed to the city of New York. He
had, in 1786, married Miss Alsop, the only child of John Alsop, an
opulent merchant of that city, and one of the delegates from New
York to the first continental congress. In 1789, he was chosen a
member of the legislature ; and during its extra session, in the summer
of that year, he and General • Schuyler were elected the first senators
in congress from that state.
During the great excitement which was caused by the promulga
tion of the British treaty, in 1794, Mr. King appeared by the side of
his friend, General Hamilton, at a public meeting of the citizens of
New York. But their attempts to explain and defend it, were refused.
They then endeavored to reach the public mind through the press,
and jointly wrote a series of papers, under the signature of Camillus ;
the first ten numbers of which were from the pen of Hamilton, the
remainder of the series were written by Mr. King.
About this period, a petition was presented to the senate of the
United States, by some citizens of Pennsylvania, in which it was
alleged that Albert Gallatin, who had recently been elected a senator
from that state, was not qualified to take his seat, in consequence of
his not having been naturalized a sufficient number of years, A warm

* Mr. Sullivan, in his " Familiar Letters," before quoted, says, " Rufus King at this
time was about thirty-three years of age. He was an uncommonly handsome man, in
face and form; he had a powerful mind, well cultivated, and was a dignified and
graceful speaker. He had the appearance of one who was a gentleman by nature, and
who had well improved all her gifts. It is a rare occurrence to see a finer assemblage
of personal and intellectual qualities, cultivated to best elFeet, than were seen in this
eentleman."

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
controversy ensued. Mr. Taylor of Virginia, Mr. Monroe, and
Colonel Burr, maintained the right of the returned member to his
seat ; they were successfully opposed by Mr. Ellsworth, Mr. Story,
and Mr. King, and their political friends. The speech of Mr. King
on this occasion is said to have been one of the most powerful
displays of eloquence produced in modern times.
In the spring of 1796, he was appointed by President Washington
minister plfenipotentiary to Great Britain. He continued at the
English court through the administration of Mr. Adams, and for two
years of the presidency of Mr. Jefferson. While abroad, he lived on
intimate terms with the most eminent statesmen and literary cha
racters ; and by the mild dignity of his manners, and his talents and
capacity for public business, he acquired and maintained a powerful
personal influence, which he exerted to advance the interests of his
country. Many important subjects were adjusted to the satisfaction of both
nations, particularly the Maryland claim, which was finally settled by
a convention, in which the British government agreed to pay
£600,000. But the most important negotiation in which he was
engaged was that which related to the impressment of American
seamen. During the war between Great Britain and France, he had
been unwearied in urging that great grievance upon the attention of
the ministry, and finally succeeded in obtaining their assent to the
principles of an agreement ; but the peace of 1801 terminated the
practice complained of, and the negotiation together. In 1802, a
convention was agreed to by the British government relative to the
boundary lines of the United States ; but it was rejected by the presi
dent, and the subject for some years remained unadjusted.
Mr. King had requested permission to return to his own country,
when the war between France and Great Britain was renewed. He
then made another effort to prevent a revival of the practice of im
pressment, and on the 7th of May, 1803, he submitted the foUowing
article :
" No person shall be impressed or taken on the high seas, out of any ship or vessel
belonging to the subjects or citizens of one of the parties, by the public or private armed
ships or men of war belonging to, or in the service of, the other party."
To this article Lord St. Vincent, the first lord of the admiralty, and
Lord Hawkesbury, the secretary of state for foreign affairs, at first
assented; but after a consultation with Sir William Scott, an exception

RUFUS KING,
was required in favor of the narrow seas. Mr. King, after delibe
rately considering the proposal, determined to reject it.
After his return home, he continued in retirement at his farm on
Long Island, until the war of 1812, when he came forward and
offered his services in support of the cause of his country. The
following extract from a pamphlet ascribed to the pen of Mr. Van
Buren, is alike honorable to the writer and to Mr. King.
" At this momentous crisis, which applied the touchstone to the hearts of men, when
many of the stoutest were appalled, and the weak despaired of the republic, Mr. King
was neither idle nor dismayed. His love of country dispelled his attachments to party.
In terms of the warmest solicitude and in strains of the most impassioned eloquence, he
remonstrated in his correspondence with the leaders of the opposition in this state and
in the east, on the folly, the madness, and the mischief of their course ;. he contributed
largely of his means to the loans to government ; he infused confidence into the de
sponding, and labored to divest the timid of their fears; he sought Governor Tompkins,
to whom, from the warmth of his devotion to his country's cause, and from the plenitude
of his responsibility, rather than of his powers, every eye was directed, and to him Mr.
King communicated the patriotic ardor with which he was himself animated.
" The purport and object of his interesting interview with the governor, is thus
described by the latter: ' "Venerable and patriotic citizens, such as Colonel Rutgers,
Colonel 'Willet, Governor Wolcott, Mr. King, and others, animated me to the greatest
efforts ; the latter gentleman in an interview with me was peculiarly impressive : he
said that the time had arrived when every good citizen was bound to put his all at the
requisition of government, that he was ready to do this, that the people of the state of
New York would and must hold me personally responsible for its safety. I acquainted
him with the difficulties under which I had struggled for the two preceding years, the
various instances in which I had been already compelled to act without law or legisla
tive indemnity, and urged, that if I should once more exert myself to meet all the
emergencies and pecuniary difficulties with which we were pressed, I must inevitably
ruin myself. " "Well, sir, " added he with that enthusiasm which genius lends to
patriotism, " what is the ruin of an individual compared with the safety of the republic ¦?
If you are ruined, you will have the consolation of enjoying the gratitude of your fellow-
citizens ; but you must trust to the magnanimity and justice of your country, you must
transcend the law, you must save this city and state from the danger with which they
are menaced, you must ruin yourself if it become necessary, and I pledge you my honor
that I will support you in whatever you do." ' Having done all in his power to induce
to exertions at home, Mr. King repaired to his post in the senate of the United States,
and in that body zealously supported the prominent measures of the administration to
sustain the country in the severe struggle in which she was engaged."
In consequence of the decided stand which Mr. King had taken at
the commencement of the war, the legislature, in 1813, elected him
to the senate of the United States for six years. In 1819, the legisla
ture of the state of New York was divided into three political parties,
each having a candidate for the vacant seat in the senate of the
nation. Neither candidate could obtain a majority, consequently
there was no election. At the session in 1820, Mr, King was
6

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
reelectfed, with only three dissenting votes in the two branches of the
legislature. It was to promote this election that the pamphlet quoted
above was published.
It has been remarked (Annual Register, 1826-'7) that, " Mr, King
was one of those senators whom no habit of opposition to administra
tion, and no arbitrary classification of supposed claims of party, could
induce to a forgetfulness that the United States was his country, and
that the rights and the honor of that country he ought to support and
maintain. It has been observed that the conduct of the enemy in
their destruction of Washington, tended to unite all parties in America.
The speech of Mr, King in the senate on this occasion, while it may
compare with any of his former efforts in eloquence, has the rare and
enviable distinction of being approved and applauded for its senti
ments also, by the whole nation. "
The principal measures originated by Mr. King in the senate are,
the law requiring cash payments upon sales of the public lands ; and
the act of 1818, on which is founded the navigation system of the
United States.
The most unpopular act of Mr. King's political life was tne part
he took in the discussion of the celebrated slavery-question on the
admission of Missouri to the rank of a state. An allusion to this
subject is all that is necessary in this place.
At the termination of his second term in the senate, he intended to
close his political career ; but, in the hope of contributing to the
adjustment of some disputed questions between the United States and
Great Britain, he accepted the mission offered him by President
Adams, and once more took up his residence near the British court.
He was received by Mr. Canning and the other ministers with a
marked and respectful attention. But his health was impaired to such
a degree, that he was unable to attend to business ; and after spending
a year in England, he returned to his native land, and died on the
29thof April, 1827.
Mr. King's political sentiments were settled in early life, by the
circumstances of his country. He was a federalist from the birth of
the party, but he acted independently on the great questions which
successively came under discussion. The consequence of his inde
pendent course necessarily was, that he became by turns a favorite
with all parties, or an object of attack and virulent denunciation.
These effects of party strife, however, wiU not deprive his name of that
measure of honorable distinction to which our brief sketch is sufficient
to show it is fairly entitled.

Eniraved by G.Fnrker. frmii. (iMmaturt by C Fuoaec.

STSiPiiE'sr TAsr miisr§§siL..g^'ismc,

STEPHEN VAN RENSSELAER,

It has been remarked by a writer of some eminence, " that in wishing,
mankind are nearly alike ; and it is chiefly the striking incongruity
that exists between their thoughts and actions that chequers society,
and produces those endless varieties of character and situation which
prevail in human life." An examination of our own hearts, and a
comparison of our thoughts and actions, will at once satisfy us of the
comparative truth of the remark.
The architect of his own fame and fortune, and the proud possessor
of hereditary wealth and distinction, tested by this rule, stand upon a
level ; and starting at the same time on the race of life, it not unfre
quently happens that the man of large estate finds himself, in view of
the goal, outstripped in his career by the humblest of his tenants.
Wealth and profligacy are frequent companions ; but such is the
strength of pubhc opinion in our community, that the wealth of the
profligate can neither purchase for him the honors of office, nor screen
him from public contempt.
Born to a large hereditary estate, it was the merited praise of the
subject of our present sketch, that throughout a long hfe he, by his
personal worth and conduct, commanded the respect and admiration
of all classes of his fellow-men. His evil deeds are unknown, whilst
his munificent contributions to works of science, his many beneficent
acts of kindness to struggling genius, his fostering patronage of im
poverished talent, and his noble and.untiring efforts in the great cause
of human improvement, constitute for him imperishable claims to the
gratitude and veneration of posterity.
Stephen Van Rensselaer, commonly kno'wn as the Patroon of
Albany, was born in the city of New York on the first of November,
1764. His first paternal ancestor in this country was a native of Hol
land, and a director of the Dutch West India Company, to whom a
grant had been made of the state of New York, then known as New
Netherlands, by the States General of Holland, themselves claiming
title to the soil on the principle adopted among the nations of Europe,

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
by common consent : that discovery gave title to the nation by whose
subjects it was made, against all other European powers, and that
possession consummated this right.
For the purpose, therefore, of founding a colony, and thus consum
mating their title by possession, the West India Company was formed,
and received a grant of the newly discovered domain.
Hendrich Hudson, according to the best authorities, on his first
voyage, explored the river which bears his name, as far north as the
city of Albany, at which place the director obtained an extensive grant
of land on both sides of the river, then and now known as the Manor
of Rensselaer'wych, which, in the regular course of descent, was
transmitted to its late possessor. His father having died during his
early youth, his person and estate were committed to the charge of,
guardians, one of whom was his maternal grandfather, Philip Livings
ton. The education of Mr. Van Rensselaer was commensurate •with his
station in life. His collegiate course, commenced at Nassau Hall Col
lege, New Jersey, was finished at Harvard University (then the pride
of the new world,) where he received the degree of A. B. in 1782.
Mr. Van Rensselaer attained his majority at a period of eventful
interest in the history of his country.
The struggle for independence had successfully terminated, and the
infant republic had commenced its existence among nations.
All, however, was not yet accomplished: a victory over ourselves
was yet to be achieved. The articles of confederation imder which the
United Colonies had triupiphantly resisted the power of the British
Crown, were at once discovered as defective for the purposes of self-
government. Discussions ensued, marked with great power and un
usual warmth : in these discussions, which terminated in the adoption
of the constitution, Mr, Van Rensselaer took an active part, enlisting
himself in the controversy on the side of the federalists. The
confidence of his immediate fello'w-citizens was evinced by successive .
elections to the assembly and senate of the state, over which latter
body, in 1795, he was called to preside as lieutenant-governor of the
state, with.,John Jay as governor, in which station he continued six
years, Mr, Van Rensselaer's prospect of higher advancement terminated
with the defeat of the party to which he was attached; but in his o'-vn
county, so great was his popularity, so venerated his character, that
upon all occasions of his nomination to the councils of the state or the
nation, he rarely if ever was met by an opponent.

STEPHEN VAN RENSSELAER.
During the last war ¦with Great Britain, Mr, Van Rensselaer was
selected by the late .Governor Tompkins for the command of our
militia on the Niagara frontier ; and, by the energy of his conduct,
and the moral force of his character, succeeded in giving confidence
to the army, dispirited by former reverses, and eventually to place his
forces upon offensive ground.
The bloody though unsuccessful battle of Queenstown, fought by a
portion of his forces under command of General Solomon Van Rens
selaer, was the result of the new spirit infused into the army ; and
although, by the cowardice of a portion of the troops in refusing to
cross to the assistance of their fellow-soldiers, the field of battle
remained in possession of the enemy, yet the moral victory was with
the American arms.
After the termination of the war, his services were again rendered
in our halls of legislation ; which scene he finally abandoned on the
termination of the twentieth congress, having previously, in 1824,
determined the election of John Quincy Adams as President, by giving
the casting vote in the state delegation in his favor.
Such is a brief sketch of his public or official career ; but slight is its
importance in comparison with the noble and beneficent course of his
private life. Looking alike to the moral, intellectual, and physical
improvement of his fellow-men, he ever considered himself as not
formed merely for political uses in the machinery of state affairs, but
as an intelligent being created for those great ends which God has
established as the objects of existence. Hence he sought out the errors
of our social system, and strove to apply a remedy. Regarding
knowledge as power, he lent himself and his fortune to the diffusion of
education. He sought to carry that great mainspring of virtue to the
fire-sides of our whole people, and in its train the beautiftil precepts of
Christianity. Nor did he content himself with general effort. He always looked
into the mass of society ; he went into the abodes of poverty, and
selected from among their inmates those whose genius and talents
would fit them to be ministers to the improvement and happiness of
their fellow-men.
In all the liberal professions there may be found individuals who
owe their advancement to the secret liberality of the " Patroon" of
Albany. In the cause of temperance Mr, Van Rensselaer was always an
efficient laborer ; and to all the associations for the diffusion of the
Scriptures, the spread of Christianity, and the moral reformation of
VOL. ni-8 3

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
the community, he contributed his means and influence, and in several
of them he held high official stations.
In the success of the great works of internal improvements, as
developed in our Erie and Champlain canals, Mr, Van Rensselaer
materially assisted ; and on the death of the lamented Clinton, he was
appointed President of the Board of Canal Commissioners, which
station he continued to occupy till his death.
As President of the Board of Agriculture from its, incorporation to
the period of its dissolution, he rendered the most important services
to the cause ; and the geological surveys, made under his direction, of
various portions of the state, produced a happy effect upon the in
terests of agriculturists.
To perpetuate and extend these efforts, he established in the vicinity
of Troy the institution which bears his name ; and, were other topics
of praise wanting, the system of instruction pursued in the " Rensse
laer School," suggested by himself, will always entitle him to be
classed as one of the benefactors of the age.
This school was instituted in 1824, for the purpose, as stated by its
founder, " of qualifying teachers for instructing the children of farmers
and mechanics in the application of experimental chemistry, philoso
phy, and natural history, to agriculture, domestic economy, the arts,
and manufactures."
The system of instruction pursued is one of practical application,
each pupil becoming a teacher in all his exercises, and the school may
justly be considered as the common workshop of all literary and
scientific institutions.
Instead of commencing with the elementary principles, the student,
reasoning from effects to causes, acquires them in the progress of his
study. For many years the school has been in successful operation,
and has given full satisfaction to its patrons and trustees.
We have given this brief outline of the pecuhar characteristics of
the Rensselaer Institute, as exhibiting the benevolent mind of its
founder in its strongest coloring. Beautiful indeed is the picture !
Amid the temptations of the world, the allurements of ambition
and the all-pervading influence of earthly renown, he was seen devot
ing his mind and fortune to the paramount though humble duty of
diffusing the blessings of knowledge among that portion. of his fellow-
men, who, from their station in society, are least likely to possess the
means of its acquirement. When we remember that "hberty and
learning lean on each other for support," we can well appreciate the
value of such efforts.

STEPHEN VAN RENSSELAER,
But alas, even such a man, though so eminently distinguished, both
in public and private life, for his wealth, munificent charities, and ex
emplary and Christian virtues, must "needs die," This painful event
took place at Albany, January 26, 1840, in the seventy-fifth year of
his age, "In General Van Rensselaer," says the Journal of Science,
"we have a remarkable case of a man of great weight of character,
continually acting a conspicuous part, where conflicting interests were
often at his disposal, but who never had an enemy, and whose name
the tongue of slander never assailed. Still he was always decided in
his politics, from the revolution to his death, Washington, Hamilton,
Jay, and C. C, Pinkney, were among his personal friends ; and though
he outlived them, he never outlived their principles. His munificent
deeds of benevolence are found on the printed pages of almost every
leading religious and scientific journal in our country. Almost every
important public improvement exhibits evidence of his generous zeal.
But the strongest marks of his own pecuhar characteristic views are
found among his efforts to benefit the common laboring classes.
Through his munificence, as we have already seen, those useful
sciences, which had been locked up among the learned few, are now
the property of the farmer and the mechanic."
Like every ¦wise man. General Van Rensselaer was the enemy of
an improvident expenditure. He not only observed a sound economy,
but also great moderation in the use of the bounties of Providence.
He saved to give, and gave "without stint;" and in a manner so
kind and winning, so free from ostentation, and so entirely with a
brother's heart, as very greatly to enhance the value of his gifts.
Born to a princely affluence, he sustained the dignity of his station by
a noble hospitality in its best forms, not of show, but in the liberal
gifts of kindness. His own wants were few and simple ; he was
moderate and self-denying in personal indulgence, while his almost
boundless liberality may be read throughout the land, in many
churches of different denominations, in institutions of learning for dif
ferent classes, and on the lists of our benevolent and religious societies.
For the benefit of all these he was always ready to suggest the wisest
plans ; and having devised the means, set a good example in furnishing
funds. It may not be improper, before we close this imperfect sketch, to
remark, that the title of Patroon, which General Van Rensselaer in
herited from his ancestors, indicated, certainly not in him, any thing anti-
American. His whole life disproved this, nor have we ever heard that
he ever ¦wished the title to be used in reference to himself It was
s

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
derived from the civil law and the institutions of Rome, belonged
exclusively to proprietors of large estates in lands, occupied by a
tenantry, like that of Seignior, which the French bestowed ¦with
seigniories, or large landed estates, in Lower Canada. General Van
Rensselaer was the fifth in the direct line of descent from Kilian Van
Rensselaer, the original proprietor and Patroon of the Colony of Rens-
selaerwyck, a territory about forty-eight miles long and twenty-four
wide ; completed and established under its original proprietor in 1637.
The Patroons were, before the American revolution, baronial proprie
tors, possessed of peculiar privileges and honors. General Van Rens
selaer was too young to take a part in the revolutionary struggle,
but he was early imbued with the sentiments and feelings which ani
mated the patriots of that period, and he retained them through life.
To use the language of Mr, Barnard, in his funeral discourse, " He
had no regrets for the past. He was satisfied with his position ; and
though the revolution, in giving his country independence, had stripped
him of power and personal advantages, yet, as it raised a whole nation
of men to the condition and dignity of freedom, and so to a political
equality with himself, it was an event, which to a mind attuned as.
his always was to a liberal and enlightened philanthropy, was only to
be thought of with the strongest approbation and pleasure."

^^¦|

^H
^Ih
i^^^H
Engraved tiy EWellnvorc from a Paindng by C.B. Ving
WEILILni^MI IPHSTMSrHTo-
WILLIAM PINKNEY.

William Pinkney was born on the 17th of March, 1764, at Anna
polis, in the state of Maryland. His father was an Englishman by
birth, and during the whole course of our struggle for independence,
maintained his allegiance to the British crown ; but his son, from his
early youth, was a firm supporter of the principles of the American
revolution. The elementary education of Mr. Pinkney was defective,
but as good as could ordinarily be obtained during the revolutionary
war. He commenced his classical studies under a private teachei^
and soon after adopted the study of medicine ; but not finding it
adapted to his cast of mind, he relinquished the profession, and in
1783 was enrolled in the office of Judge Chace as a student of the
law. In 1786 he was admitted to the bar, and removed the same year
to Harford county for the practice of his profession. In 1788 he was
elected a delegate from that county to the convention of Maryland
which ratified the constitution of the United States ; and in October
of the same year, was chosen a representative to the house of dele
gates of Maryland from the county of Harford, in which office he
continued until 1792, when he returned to Annapolis.
He was married in 1789, at Havre de Grace, in the state of Mary
land, to Miss Ann Maria Rodgers (sister to Commodore Rodgers of
the American navy), by whom he had a family of ten children, of
which eight survived him, most of them residents of Baltimore.
In 1792 he was elected a member of the executive council of the
state of Maryland, and continued in office tUl 1795, when he resigned
his seat at the executive board, of which he was president, having been
chosen a delegate from Anne Arundel county to the state legislature.
In 1796 Mr. Pinkney was appointed by President Washington a
commissioner of the United States, under the seventh article of Mr.
Jay's treaty with Great Britain, and accordingly he embarked for
London with his family, and arrived in July of the same year, meeting
Mr. Gore, another commissioner on the part of the American govern-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
ment. During his official labors at the board, several important ques
tions of international law, such as the practice of prize courts, the law
of contraband, domicU, and blockade, were brought incidentally into
discussion, and the written opinions of Mr. Pinkney on these subjects
were regarded as models of powerful argument and judicial eloquence.
Within the time of his residence abroad, he was also deeply engaged
in managing the claims of the state of Maryland to a large amount
of public property, which had been invested in the stock of the Bank
of England, and which had been long involved in chancery Htigation ;
which claims he adjusted to the ample satisfaction of the parties.
In 1804 Mr. Pinkney returned to the United States. In his absence
he had enjoyed an intimacy with some of the most distinguished English
jurists, among whom was Sir William Scott ; he had heard Mr. Ers
kine, and had given an habitual attendance upon the British parliament;
and he returned with the conviction that a higher standard of legal
attainment ought to be adopted in this country, than that which was
already established. He therefore embraced the opportunity to supply
in some measure his own conscious defects, by extending his knowl
edge of English and classical literature, and by devoting himself to the
study of elocution. Soon after his return from England, he removed
from Annapolis to Baltimore, deeming it a broader field for the exer
cise of professional enterprise ; and in 1805 he was appointed attorney
general of the state of Maryland.
In 1806 he was appointed (in conjunction with Mr. Monroe, then
American minister at London) minister extraordinary to treat with the
British government regarding the collisions which ultimately involved
the United States in a war with Great Britain ; and in accordance with
this mission, he soon embarked for the British court. After having
for a long period continued to,f|iress upon the British government the
claims of his country for the redress of grievances, without success,
Mr. Pinkney was recalled from England at his own solicitation, and
arrived in the United States in June, 1811, when he resumed 'with
ardor the labors of his profession. In September, 1811, he was
elected senator of the state of Maryland, and in the following Decem
ber he received from Mr. Madison, the appointment of attorney general
of the United States,
In the controversies growing out of our last war with Great Britain,
Mr. Pinkney took a decided part in the belligerent discussions of the
day; and in 1813, he pubhshed a pamphlet of considerable power,
maintaining the justice of the war on the part of our own government,
which at that crisis excited a strong public interest.

WILLIAM PINKNEY.
During that war, Mr. Pinkney commanded a battalion of riflemen
which was raised in Baltimore for local defence; and in the battle
at Bladensburg he conducted with great bravery, but was severely
wounded. Soon after this occurrence he was elected a representative
to Congress, firom the city of Baltimore. In March, 1816, he was
appointed minister plenipotentiary to the court of Russia, and special
minister to that of Naples. He embarked on board of the Washing
ton, a ship of the line, under the command of Commodore Chauncey,
and on the 26th of July of the same year, he landed at Naples. The
object for which this mission was established at the Neapolitan court,
was to demand indemnification for the losses which had been sustained
by our merchants, on account of the seizure and confiscation of their
property in the year 1809, during the administration of Murat ; but his
negotiations with this government proved unsuccessful. In histravels
through the continent, Mr. Pinkney visited Rome, and most of the
principal Italian cities, and ultimately proceeded through Vienna to
St. Petersburgh, to fulfil the duties of his mission at the Russian court.
After the lapse of two years, he returned to the United States.
Soon after his return from the Russian court, he was engaged in an
important case, which sprang up on the alleged right of the state
legislature to tax the national bank, which in 1819 came on for trial
before the supreme court of the United States. This action was based
upon a writ of error to the court of appeals of the state of Maryland,
which had given judgment against the national bank for the penalties
prescribed for non payment of the tax which had been assessed by the
state. Mr, Pinkney contended that the state law was unconstitutional ;
and after a long and powerful argument to establish this conviction in
the mind of the court, judgment was recovered, exempting the bank
of the United States from state taxation.
His talents, however, brought him once more into public life ; he
was elected a senator to congress, and took his seat on the fourth of
January, 1820. One of the most important efforts upon which he was
here engaged, was the great Missouri question ; and his speech on that
(fccasion, which is on record, abounds with the strongly-marked cha
racteristics of his powerful mind. In the bill for the admission of
Missouri into the federal union, there was a clause imbodied, prohi
biting the introduction of slaves into the new state, and Mr. Pinkney
argued against the prohibition on the ground that congress had no
power to make such a restriction upon the admission of a new state to
the confederacy, and that such restriction was consequently unconsti
tutional and void. WhUe in the senate, he performed immense labors

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
at the bar of the supreme court of the United States, On the 17th
of February, after extraordinary fatigue in an important cause, he was
attacked by a severe indisposition ; and after a period of acute distress,
he expired on the 25th of February, 1822 ; faUing like a brilhant star,
just as he had culminated to the zenith of his professional fame. He
was buried in Washington, where he died, with the honors due to his
senatorial office, and upon his grave was erected an appropriate marble
monument. Mr. Pinkney's mind was of the highest cast of inteUectual power,
solid as well as briUiant ; combining the fruits of laborious mdustry
with extraordinary natural talents. Endowed with something of the
eiUarged phUosophy, the exuberant metaphor, and the gorgeous rhetoric
of Burke, — the chaste and pruned sentunent of Canning, — the lofty
and impassioned declamation of the younger Pitt, — the briUiant iUus-
tration of Sheridan, — the ardent enthusiasm of Fox, and the rapid
elegance of Erskine, — the eloquence of Mr. Pinkney was founded
upon his own model, and abounded probably with more advantages
than that of any of the orators we have mentioned. Its foundation
was laid in the most extensive and accurate knowledge, and a verdant
and masculine imagination. Possessed of the most persevering habits
of investigation, and disposed from these habits to labor, under all
circumstances, in drawing his legal reasons from the great fountains
of jurisprudence, he had always at his command the most abstruse
learning of the law, while the course of his otherwise barren argu
ment was generally reUeved by the exuberance of a fruitful fancy,
which always brought him a great strength and fulness of illustration.
In his political character, Mr, Pinkney was a thorough and firm
republican. Belonging to the party denominated democratic, he
always advocated those doctrines of public policy upon which he
deemed our government was founded ; holding it to be a great public
establishment, founded on the rights of man, and framed for the benefit
of the great body of the people.
It is to be regretted that the record of his extraordinary powers
lives only in the recollection of his contemporaries, or in mutUatSd
firagments, which might otherwise have been handed down to posterity
as a mighty and glorious monument of his forensic fame, and a valuable
legacy to American jurisprudence.

.i^hy 0 Fnrkci

It o:a:E irj' °ji"rr~LT Diif„

:^<^

ROBERT FULTON.

The aid of the historian or biographer is hardly necessary to preserve
the name of Fulton. He is identified with the age in which he
lived, and so long as a knowledge of the power of steam remains,
tradition will perpetuate the character and exertions of him, who, by
his successful application of its power to the purposes of navigation,
defied alike wind and tide, and compelled the elements to bow to the
genius of man.
Yet although his memory exists, and will exist untU the unsparing
hand of time shaU have swept away alike the records of his fame, and
the Imowledge of his triumphs, and mental darlmess shall agam
obscure the earth ; it becomes not less our duty to render him the
praise which is his due, and to enrol his honored name in our work
among the illustrious worthies of our native land. Lowly in his
origin, needy in circumstances, and devoid in his youthful career of
the appliances of wealth, and the patronage of friends ; he possessed
a mind and temperament that enabled him, in the pride of genius, and
by his self-dependence, to command the one and disregard the other.
He smoothed for himself the rugged road to fame, and when stand
ing on its lofty eminence, he relaxed not the toils by which he had
attained his elevation, but  " Gazing higher,
Purposed in his heart to take another step."
The father of Robert Fulton was an emigrant from Ireland to
this country. He married Mary, the daughter of Irish parents by the
name of Smith, then settled in Pennsylvania ; and from this union
Robert was born, in the town of Little Britain, in the county of
Lancaster, in the year 1765, being the third child and oldest son.
His father dying when Robert was little more than three years old,
his means of instruction, which, during the lifetime of his parent,
were smaU, were still more reduced, and to the viUage school of Lan
caster, he was indebted for the ordinary rudiments of a coinmon
Enghsh education. The early bent of his genius was directed to

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
drawing and painting, and such was his proficiency, that at the age
of seventeen, we find him in Philadelphia pursuing this avocation for
a livelihood, and with a success that enabled him by strict frugahty,
by the time he had arrived at the age of twenty-one, to acquire suffi
cient means for the purchase of a small farm in Washington county,
on which, with filial affection, he settled his mother, and which yet
remains in the possession of his family.
In 1786, he embarked for England, and became an inmate in the
family of his distinguished countryman, Benjamin West, where he
remained several years, and with whom he formed an intimacy which
death alone dissolved.
For some time after leaving the family of Mr. West, he devoted
himself chiefly to the practice of his aft, and during a residence of two
years in Devonshire, near Exeter, he became known to the duke of
Bridgewater and the earl of Stanhope, with the latter of whom he
was afterwards for a long time in regular correspondence. About
this period he conceived a plan for the improvement of inland naviga
tion, and in 1794, received the thanks of two societies for accounts of
various projects suggested by him. In 1796, he published in London
his treatise on the system of canal improvement. The object of this
work was to prove that small canals navigated by boats of little bur
then, were preferable to canals and vessels of large dimensions ; and
to recommend a mode of transportation over mountainous regions of
country, without the aid of locks, raUways, and steam-engines. This
he proposed to accomplish by means of inclmed planes, upon which
vessels navigating the canals should be raised or lowered from one
level to another, through means of some ingeniously contrived ma
chinery placed on the higher level, by lifting and lowering the vessel
perpendicularly. The only ideas in these projects claimed by him as
original, were the perpendicular lift, and the connection of the inclined
planes with machinery.
From England, in 1796, Mr. Fulton proceeded to France, and
took up his lodgings at the same hotel with his celebrated fellow-citi
zen, Mr, Joel Barlow. Mr. Barlow afterwards removing to his own
house, Mr. Fulton accepted an invitation to accompany him, and
continued to reside in his family for seven years. In this period he
studied several modern languages, and perfected himself in the higher
branches of mathematics and natural philosophy.
The attention of Mr. Fulton appears to have been early directed
to the application of steam to the purposes of navigation. It is not
claimed for him that he was the originator of the idea, nor that he

ROBERT FULTON,
¦was the first to make the experiment ; but it is affirmed, and justly,
that he was the first who successfuUy applied this powerful engine to
this branch of human industry, and by his genius and perseverance
removed the incumbrances which had hitherto obstructed the path,
and contributed to those splendid results which we are daily witness
ing, and which, in its saving of time, has shortened space, and by
bringing the various sections of our beloved country into more frequent
intercourse, has strengthened the federal compact, and joined more
closely the bonds of union. This important object was, however,
temporarily suspended ; and in the meantime, in addition to various
other scientific projects, Mr. Fulton embarked in a series of experi
ments, having for their object the destruction of ships of war by
submarine explosion. The situfition of France at this period, engaged
in a war with nearly all the powers of Europe, and compelled to
succumb on the ocean to the naval superiority of Great Britain, gave
a universal interest to his scheme, and at once invited the attention
of the .French government to the suggestion. A coimnission was
appointed by Napoleon, then first consul, to examine the plans, and
report upon the probabiUty of their success. Accordingly, in 1801,
Mr. Fulton repaired to Brest, ahd there commenced the experiment
with his plunging boat, the result of which we find detailed by himself
in an interesting report to the committee, from which, as related in
Colden's memoir, we gather the following facts :
" On the 3d July, 1801, he embarked with three companions on
board his plunging boat in the harbor of Brest, and descended in it to
the depth of five, ten, fifteen, and so to twenty-five feet ; but he did
not attempt to go lower, because he found that his imperfect machine
would not bear the pressure of a greater depth. He remained below
the surface one hour. During this time they were in utter darkness.
Afterwards he descended with candles ; but finding a great disadvant
age from their consumption of vital air, he caused, previously to his
next experiment, a small window of thick glass to be made near the
bow of his boat, and he again descended with her, on the 24th of July,
1801. He found that he received from his window, or rather aperture
covered with glass, for it was no more than an inch and a half in
diameter, sufficient light to enable him to count the minutes on his
watch. Havinff satisfied himself that he could have sufficient light
when under water ; that he could do without a supply of fresh air for
a considerable time ; that he could descend to any depth, and rise to
the surface with facUity ; his next object was to try her movements,
as weU on the surface as beneath it. On the 26th of July, he weighed

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
his anchor and hoisted his saUs ; his boat had one mast, a mainsail
and jib. There was only a light breeze, and therefore she did not
move on the surface at more than the rate of two miles an hour ; but
it was found that she would tack and steer, and sail on a wind or
before it, as weU as any conunon sailing boat. He then strack her
mast and saUs ; to do which, and perfectly to prepare the boat for
plunging, required about two minutes. Ha'ving plunged to a certain
depth, he placed two men at the engine, which was intended to give
her progressive motion, and one at the helm, while he, 'with a
barometer before him, governed the machine, which kept her balanced
between the upper and lower waters. He found that, with the exer
tion of one hand only, he could keep her at any depth he pleased.
The propelling engine was then piit in motion, and he found upon
coming to the surface, that he had, in about seven minutes, made a
progress of four hundred meters, or about five hundred yards. He
then again plunged, turned her round whUe under water, and returned
to near the place he began to move from. He repeated his experi
ments several days successively, untU he became familiar ¦with the
operation of the machinery, and the movements of the boat. He
found that she was as obedient to Eer helm under water, as any boat
could be on the surface, and that the magnetic needle traversed as weU
in the one situation as the other.
" On the 7th of August, Mr. Fulton again descended with a store
of atmospheric air, compressed into a copper globe of a cubic foot
capacity, into which two hundred atmospheres were forced. Thus
prepared, he descended with three companions to the depth of about
five feet. At the expiration of an hour and forty minutes, he began
to take small supplies of pure air from his reservoir, and did so as he
found occasion, for four hours and twenty minutes. At the expiration
of this time, he came to the surface without having experienced any
inconvenience from having been so long under water.
" Mr. Fulton was highly satisfied with the success of these experi
ments ; it determined him to attempt to try the effects of these inven
tions on the English ships which were then blockading the coast of
France, and were daily near the harbor of Brest.
" His boat at this time he called the submarine boat, or the plunging
boat ; he afterwards gave it the name of the Nautilus ; connected' with
this machine, were what he then called submarine bombs, to which
he has since given the name of torpedoes. This invention preceded
the NaiitUus. It was, indeed, his desire of discovering the means of
applying his torpedoes, that turned his thoughts to a submarine boat.

ROBERT FULTON,
Satisfied with the performance of his boat, his next object was to make
some experunents with the torpedoes. A smaU shallop was anchored
in the roads ; with a bomb containing about twenty pounds of powder,
he approached to within about two hundred yards of the anchored
vessel, struck her with the torpedo, and blew her into atoms. A
column of water and fragments, was blown from eighty to one hun
dred feet in the air. This experiment was made in the presence of
the prefect of the department, Admiral Villaret, and a multitude of
spectators. The experiments of Mr. Fulton, with his torpedoes, were subse-
qiiently renewed in England, where, in 1805, he blew up in Walmer
roads, near Deal, a Danish brig of two himdred tons, provided for the
purpose. On his retum to this country, he continued his experiments, and in
1807, blew up a large hulk brig, in the harbor of New York.
These experiments, however satisfactory to himself, were not so to
the various governments to whom he had offered his services, and his
efforts were therefore productive of no further immediate resiflts, than
to demonstrate the effect of submarine explosions.
We now recur to an important period of Mr. Fulton's life, for the
purpose of tracing, in a connected point of view, those labors, the suc
cessful result of which has exercised so beneficial an influence on the
destinies of the world, and on which rest his own claims to imperisha
ble reno^wn. As early as 1793, as appears from a letter addressed by
him to Lord Stanhope, his attention had been dra^wn to the practi
cability of steam navigation. , It does not appear that any experiments
were made by him, until the year 1803.
" Among his papers," says Colden, " are a variety of drawings, dia
grams, and innumerable calculations, which evidently relate to the
subject : but they are imperfect ; most of them are mutilated, and they
are without dates, so that they cannot ¦with certainty be assigned to
any period. They render it very evident, however, that the applica
tion of water-wheels as they are now used in the boats which he buUt
in this country, was among his first conceptions of the means by
which steam-vessels might be propelled."
It is not our intention to enter into an examination of Mr. Fulton's
claims as an originator of this idea ; he made no such pretensions.
Experiments had again and again been tried by different individuals,
but without success; in some instances, indeed, vessels had been
moved by the power of steam, but they had only served to prove the
fallaciousness of each invention, and to confirm the ignorant in their

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
belief of its impracticability ; and until the attempt of Fulton, we
unhesitatingly assert, that the practical establishment of navigation by
steam was wanting, and that to him is the world indebted for its
advantages. How contemptible is that narrow-minded sectional feeling which,
in its desire to give credit to natives of a particular country, would
descend to calumny and falsehood, for the purpose of robbing another
of his well earned laurels, merely because his birth-place was on a
different soil.
Genius belongs to the earth at large. It is the property of the
universe. It disdains conventional trammels, and like our own fi-ee
eagle, it soars in the boundless space far above the clouds of prejudice
and envy, and regardless of the petty storms beneath.
As well might the claims of Watt as an inventor be disputed,
because steam-engines were in operation before his day, as those of
Fulton, because others had unsuccessfully attempted simUar experi
ments ; and yet we are told by Stuart, in his " Anecdotes of Steam
Engines and of their Inventors and Improvers," that " there is probably
no one, whose name is associated with the history of mechanism, and
whose labors have received so large a share of applause, who appears
to have less claim to notice as an inventor, than Robert Fulton."
So also in another part of his work, in speaking of Mr. Fulton's
publication on the subject of canals before adverted to, he says, " The
character of this book was that of its author, it contained nothing
original, either in matter or manner." We can hardly return the
compliment upon Robert Stuart, in reference to his production, as he
is certainly entitled to the credit of originality for his idea of Fulton's
character, and we may add, that in this thought he stands alone.
While Mr. Fulton was yet in France engaged in his experiments
with the Nautilus, Robert R. Livingston, Esq., arrived in that country
as American minister, and an intimacy at once commenced between
them. Chancellor Livingston had previously been engaged in some
experiments in this country, and in 1798, had procured from the
legislature of the state of New York the passage of an act vesting him
with the exclusive right of navigating all kinds of boats which might
be propeUed by the force of fire or steam, on all the waters within the
jurisdiction of that state, for the term of twenty years, upon condition
that he should, within one year, build such a boat, the mean rate of
whose speed should be at least four miles an hour.
A boat was accordingly constracted by Mr. Livingston in accord- .
ance with the act ; but not meeting the condition of the law, the pro-

ROBERT FULTON
ject was for the time abandoned. His acquaintance with Fulton was
the commencement of a new era in the history of science. It was the
union of congenial spirits — a junction of minds alike distinguished
for capacity, energy, and perseverance, and bent upon the same grand
design, and from whose embrace sprung into being that mighty
improvement, which, in its influence on human affairs, has outstripped
all other efforts of modern times.
The mind of Fulton was of an order which peculiarly fitted him
for this undertaking : active, inventive, and unyielding, towering in
stature, it may be aptly compared to that of the bard who saw
 " The tops of distant thoughts,

Which men of common stature never saw."
Possessing a keen penetration, a mind also of superior mechanical
order, and a thorough theoretical knowledge of the laws of mechanics,
Mr. Livingston was deficient in that practical information, which with
the other qualities was united in Fulton; and on meeting with
Fulton, he at once perceived the man through whose talents he
might hope to accomplish his valuable designs.
It was immediately agreed between them to embark in the enter
prise, and a series of experiments were had on a small scale, which
resulted in a determination to build an experimental boat on the Seine.
This boat was completed early in the spring of 1803 : they were
on the point of making an experiment with her, when one morning
as Mr. Fulton was rising from a bed in which anxiety had given
him but little rest, a messenger from the boat, whose precipitation and
apparent consternation announced that he was the bearer of bad
tidings, presented himself to him, and exclaimed in accents of despair,
" Oh, sir, the boat has broken in pieces and gone to the bottom ! " Mr.
Fulton, who himself related the anecdote, declared that this news
created a despondency which he had never felt on any other occasion ;
but this was only a momentary sensation. Upon examination, he found
that this boat had been too weakly framed to bear the great weight of
the machinery, and that in consequence of an agitation of the river by
the wind the preceding night, what the messenger had represented, had
literally happened. Without returning to his lodgings, he immedi
ately began to labor with his o'wn hands to raise the boat, and worked
for four and twenty hours incessantly, without allowing himself rest
or taking refreshment, an imprudence which, as he always supposed,
had a permanently bad effect on his constitution, and to which he
imputed much of his subsequent bad health.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
The accident did the machinery very little injury, but they were
obliged to build the boat almost entirely anew ; she was completed in
July; her length was sixty-six feet, and she was eight feet wide.
Early in August, Mr. Fulton addressed a letter to the French
national institute, inviting them to witness a trial of his boat, which
was made in their presence, and in the presence of a great multitude
of the Parisians. This experiment was so far satisfactory to its pro
jectors, as to determine them to continue their efforts in this country ;
and arrangements were accordingly made with Messrs. Watt and
Bolton, to furnish certain parts of a steam-engine according to the
directions of Fulton.
Mr. Livingston also procured a reenactment of the law of 1798,
extending the provisions of that act to Fulton and himself, for the
term of twenty years from the date of the new act.
In 1806, Mr. Fulton returned to this country, and at once com
menced building his first American steamboat. In the spring of 1807,
the boat was launched from the ship-yard of Mr. Charles Brown. The
engine from England was put on board, and in August, she was moved
by the aid of her machinery from her birth-place to the Jersey shore.
Great interest had been excited in the public mind, in relation to
the new experiment ; and the wharves were crowded with spectators,
assembled to witness the first trial. Ridicule and jeers were fi'eely
poured forth upon the boat and its projectors, until at length, as the
boat moved from the wharf and increased her speed, the silence of
astonishment which at first enthralled the immense assemblage, was
broken by one universal shout of acclamation and applause. The
triumph of genius was complete, and the name of Fulton was thence
forward destined to stand enrolled among the benefactors of mankind.
The new boat was called the Clermont, in compliment to the place
of residence of Mr. Livingston, and shortly after made her first trip to
Albany and back, at an average speed of five mUes an hour. The
successful application of Mr. Fulton's invention had no"w been fairly
tried, and the efficacy of navigation by steam fully determined.
The Clermont was advertised as a packet-boat between New York
and Albany, and continued, with some intermissions, running the
remainder of the season.
Two other boats, the Rariton and Car of Neptune, were launched
the same year, and a regular passenger-line of steamboats estabhshed
from that period between New York and Albany.
In each of these boats great improvements were made, although
the machinery was yet imperfect.

ROBERT FULTON.
In 1811-'12, two steamboats were buUt under the superintendence
df Mr. Fulton as ferry-boats for crossing the Hudson river, and
shortly after another of the same description for the ferry between
Brookljm and New York. These boats consisted of two complete
hulls united by a common deck, moving either way with equal facility,
and thereby saving the necessity of turning. The writer of this
article vi'vidly remembers the starting of this latter boat, and a painful
incident therewith connected ; on which occasion, he for the first time
saw the extraordinary individual whose genius and triumphs this
humble production commemorates.
The boat had made one or two trips across the river, and was lying
at the wharf at the foot of Beekman slip. Some derangement had
taken place in the machinery, which the chief engineer was engaged
in rectifying ; when the machinery was set in motion, and, coming in
contact with the engineer, mangled him in a manner that produced
his death the next day. He was removed to the house adjacent to
that occupied by the author, and well does he recall to mind the
conversation between Mr. Fulton and the attending surgeon, in re
ference to the unfortunate man ; after some conversation in relation to
the prospect of his recovery, Mr. Fulton, much affected, remarked,
" Sir, I wUl give all I am worth to save the life of that man." When
told that his recovery was hopeless, he was perfectly unmanned, and
wept like a child. It is here introduced as showing that while his
own misfortunes never for a single moment disturbed his equanimity,
the finer feelings of his nature were sensitively ahve to the distresses
of others.
It is hardly necessary to trace the further progress of Mr. Fulton's
career in regard to steam navigation. Altogether thirteen boats were
buUt in the city of New York, under his superintendence, the last
being the steam-frigate, which, in compliment to its projector, was
caUed Fulton the First.
The keel of this immense vessel was laid on the 20th of June, 1814,
and in little more than four months she was launched from the ship
yard of Adam and Noah Brown, her architects, amid the roar of
cannon and the plaudits of thousands of spectators.
From the report of the commissioners appointed to superintend her
construction, we extract the following description of this magnificent
vessel. " She is a structure resting on two boats and keels, separated from
end to end by a channel fifteen feet wide, and sixty-six feet long ; one
boat contains the caldrons of copper to prepare her steam. The
vol. Ill— 9 9

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
cylinder of iron, its piston, levers, and wheels, occupy part of the
other. The water-wheel revolves in the space between them. The
main or gun deck supports the armament, and is protected by a para
pet four feet ten inches thick, of solid timber, pierced by embrasures.
Through thirty port-holes, as many thirty-two pounders are intended
to fire red hot shot, which can be heated with great safety and con
venience. Her upper or spar deck, upon which several thousand
men might parade, is encompassed with a bulwark, which affords
safe quarters. She is rigged with two stout masts, each of which
supports a large latteen yard, and sails ; she has two bow-sprits and
jibs, and four rudders, one at each extremity of each boat, so that she
can be steered with either end foremost ; her machinery is calculated
for the addition of an engine, which will discharge an immense
column of water, which it is intended to throw upon the decks and
through the port-holes of an enemy, and thereby deluge her armament
and ammunition."
Before the conclusion of this mighty undertaking, it pleased the
Almighty to summon Mr. Fulton from the scene of his labors. He
died in the city of New York, on the 24th day of February, 1815,
after a short illness consequent on severe exposure.
The announcement of his death was accompanied with all those
tokens of regret which mark the decease of a great public character.
His corpse was attended to its last resting-place by all the pubhc
officers in the city, and by a larger concourse of citizens than had
ever been assembled on any similar occasion. Minute-guns marked
the progress of the procession, and every testimonial of gratitude and
respect was lavished upon his memory.
Mr. Pulton left four children, one son and three daughters, and
we regret to add, in the language of Colden, with no other " patrimony
than that load of debt which their parent contracted in those pursuits
that ought to command the gratitude as they do the admiration of
mankind." In person Mr. Fulton was about six feet high, slender,
but well proportioned and well formed. In manners he was cordial^
cheerful, and unembarrassed; in his domestic relations, eminently
happy. A kind husband, an affectionate parent, a zealous friend,
he has left behind him, independent of his public career, an unsullied
reputation, and a memory void of reproach. 10

We-s'Cot^ pzax.

LIIMlEILiISY fflUJEEAY.

^^^¦t^^Ap^ ^.y^,^y?-y^,ityy

LINDLEY MURRAY.

Among those who have contributed to dignify the annals of their
country, by a devotion to the interests of the rising generation, and
by the unobtrusive but impressive example of a virtuous life, may be
ranked the subject of this memoir.
Lindley Murray was born at Swetara, near Lancaster, in the
state of Pennsylvania, in the year 1745. His father was an enter
prising trader and miller, and for the purpose of obtaining a more
effectual support for a numerous and growing family, he removed to
New York, and there distinguished himself as an active merchant
and a man of great integrity and respectability. Lindley was the
eldest of twelve children. His mother, he commemorates, as "a
woman of an amiable disposition, remarkable for mildness, humanity,
and liberality of sentiment, a faithful and affectionate wife, a tender
mother, and a kind mistress, and that the recollection of her unwea
ried solicitude for his health and happiness, ever awakened the emo
tions of affection and gratitude." %The character of Lindley Mur
ray, therefore, and we may add, that of his brother, John Murray
Junior, who will long be remembered in the city of New York, for
his beneficence and worth, furnish additional evidence of the infinite
importance of maternal influence in laying the foundation of intel
lectual and moral greatness.
Prior to the removal of his father to New York, Lindley was
placed at school in Philadelphia, at an academy of which the Eng
lish department was conducted by Ebenezer Kinnersley, the friend
and correspondent of Dr. Franklin, and his coadjutor in electrical
researches. At New York, at his own request, his father procured
for him a private tutor, for instruction in classical learning, but such
was the ardor of his pursuit of knowledge, and so close his applica
tion, his constitution was found inadequate to the pressure ; he was
compelled to relax in his studies. He was then introduced to his
father's counting-room, and for some time was intently engaged in
the pursuits and gains of commerce. He greatly lamented however,

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
the deficiencies of his education. He became a member of a debat
ing society, which met weekly for the discussion of such topics as
might be agreed upon, and while he admitted that his stock of
knowledge was increased, and the logical arrangement of his ideas
much facUitated by this exercise, he has left in his autobiography, a
caution to his readers against the tendency of such institutions to
produce a spirit of disputation and loquacity, and an inclination to
scepticism on subjects of high importance. Though naturally of
an ardent temperament, and much inclined to an indulgence in
pleasures, his mind was fortified against infidel opinions by an early
perusal of some of the most distinguished authors in favor of a divine
revelation. Among these were Leland's View of the Deistical
Writers ; Butler's Analogy of Religion ; Sherlock on Providence ; and
Sherlock's Discourses. These books, he observed, with some others,
were the means of impressing upon his mind, such a survey of the
Christian religion, and the divine economy, as to relieve him from
all the embarrassments which are so apt to perplex men of prejudiced
'and short sighted views relative to the nature of religious obligation.
To reconcile him to the relinquishment of hterary applications
which were so obviously injuring his health, and to encourage him
in the pursuits of commercial life, his father consigned to him an
invoice of silver watches and some other articles, by the sale of
which he realized so much profit, as to enlist in this traffic the
natural ardor and energy of his feelings. The routine and restraints
of the counting-house were, however, still irksome to him. His
father's government, although dictated by the strongest parental
solicitude for his welfare, he deemed to be too rigid, and having on
one occasion received chastisement for a disobedience of orders with
respect to evening hours, although the time was spent by invitation
at the house of an uncle, he forthwith planned an elopement, pro
cured a stock of new clothes, packed up his wardrobe and his books,
and undiscovered and unknown to any of the family, proceeded to
Burlington, in New Jersey, and entered himself as a pupU in a board
ing school, of whose reputation he had previously been informed.
His parents were greatly distressed at such an abandonment on the
part of their oldest son ; it was net long before he was restored to
their arms by an incident which farther illustrated his characteristic
energy, and his sense of honorable treatment. He met accidentally
in the street, a person who had dined at his father's table, and who
supposing him to be only on a visit, engaged him to convey a letter
to New York, the speedy delivery of which he intimated, was of

LINDLEY MURRAY.
some importance. Not being disposed to betray the secret of his
residence, Murray took the letter, not doubting that he might find
an opportunity of sending it without much delay ; but not succeed
ing in this, and scorning to betray the confidence thus reposed in
him, he hired a carriage, proceeded to New York, and dehvered the
letter, intending immediately to return without seeking an intervie-w
with any of his acquaintance. But the packet boat in which he had
crossed the bay, could not sail till the next morning, and his only
alternative was to remain at the ferry inn all night, and depart in
the earliest boat. He was greatly surprised, however, in the evening
by a visit from his uncle, who had received information of his being
in the city, by some person who had noticed him ; the affectionate
expostulations of his uncle, and especially his representation of the
distress and anxiety of his mother, at length overcame his resolution
to return to Burlington, without first seeing her. He agreed to ac
company his uncle on a visit to her, but he still intended to lodge at
the inn, and to resume his station in the school. The tears and
entreaties of his mother greatly affected him. His father unexpect
edly came in, and instead of reproaching him, accosted him with affec
tion, tenderly saluted him, and by a reception so different from what
he had anticipated, effectually dispelled from his bosom every feeling
of resentment, and determined him without hesitation to abandon
the idea of leaving a home and family which had thus become dearer
to him than ever. A messenger was sent the next day to the place
of his retreat, to settle his accounts and bring back his property.
This event was regarded throughout his future life as a providen
tial rescue from the danger to which such an act of insubordination
might have exposed his character and his happiness. His disrelish
for mercantile business, and his thirst for some employment more
essentially connected with literature and intellectual occupation still
¦continued. His father, sensible of the advantages he would possess
in point of emolument and respectability if he continued in trade,
and doubtless convinced of his qualification for filling the most ele
vated and honorable sphere of mercantile life, was averse to any
change. Personal arguments, on a subject in which both parties
felt a deep interest, and on which both claimed the right of an inde
pendent judgment, might have led to a collision which would put to
hazard the good feelings which subsisted between them. Lindley,
therefore, had recourse to his pen. Of the several pursuits to which
he had turned his attention, none appeared to suit him so well as
he law. He wrote a paper in which he fully set forth his dissatis-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
faction with the business and duties of a merchant. No prospect of
gain could reconcile him to the business of unpacking and repack
ing, of chaffering, of taking advantage of seasons, and watching
the fluctuations of the market. His earnest desire for a Uterary pro
fession was justified and defended by aU the arguments he could
muster, and the objections which had been, or might be advanced
against such a predilection, were answered in a manner satisfactory
at least to himself
This paper was shown to his father, and also to a gentleman of
the law, Benjamin Kissam, Esq., who was his father's counseUor,
and a person of eminence and integrity in his profession. It had a
most favorable effect. The counsellor became his advocate, and in
a short time the fee was cheerfully advanced for his initiation as a
student of law. His father generously presented him with an excel
lent library adapted to his taste and his wants. In this office John
Jay was his fellow student, and it may readily be supposed that the
talents and early virtues of one who attained to so high and eminent
a station in the civil and political ranks of his country, contributed
to soften the asperities of a study which, it is admitted, has much in
its nature that is jejune and repulsive.
After remaining four years in the office of his preceptor, he was
called to the bar and licensed to practise both as counsel and attor
ney. He prospered in his new employment, and soon formed a mat
rimonial engagement, which proved to him one of the greatest
sources of felicity throughout the remaining period of a long life.
The young lady was of a worthy and respectable family, possessed
of personal attractions and good sense, and a most amiable disposi
tion. She long survived him, a dignified example of feminine virtue.
Not long after he had commenced business, his father, whose
health had for some time been impaired, went to England on some
commercial concerns, and in about a year afterward it became ad
visable for his son to join him. The latter, finding his parent's
health so much benefited by the change of climate, induced him to
invite his famUy to come over to him, and in that country the united
families remained for some time.
On returning to New York, in 1771, Lindley Murray resumed
the practice of the law, in the exercise of which, he conscientiously
endeavored to discouiage litigation whenever he thought the cause
of his client was unjust or indefensible. Pecuniary interest was not
his rule of action, but it was his invariable practice to recommend a
peaceable settlement of differences in all cases in which he deemed

LINDLEY MURRAY.
such a procedure practicable, and mutually advantageous to the par
ties concerned. It would be difficult to assign limits to the amount
of benefit which a la'wyer of reputation may effect by practising on
such principles of Christian benevolence; and we are happy in
believing that there are many such among gentlemen of legal dis
tinction in different parts of our country, whatever may be the num
ber of those who, under the sole guidance of lucre, aggravate the
petty feuds of vulgar life, and encourage the spirit of litigation.
His practice continued to be very successful, until the commence
ment of the revolutionary struggle. The general faUure of proceed
ings in the courts of law incident upon the difficulties of that period,
together with the feeble state of health which foUowed an attack of
severe illness, induced him to remove to a pleasant retreat at Islip, on
Long Island, and to wait the events of the war. During the four
years of his residence at this place, a portion of his time was spent
in the rural sports of rowing, fishing, and fowling, of which he became
very fond, and which contributed to the reestablishment of his health.
But the retrospection of this period of his life, afforded him, as he
acknowledged in its latter stages, no solid satisfaction, from the con
viction that the greater part of it might have been better spent in doing
good to others, and in such profitable conversation and reading as
Avould have tended to establish the heart and life in the love and
practice of goodness. The highest interests of the soul, might have
been made to coincide with health and with rational physical enjoy
ments, without any of those indulgences which tend to produce dis
sipation of mind, or those selfish and injurious habits which are
almost unavoidably consequent upon a thirst for amusements.
Dissatisfied at length with a life of mere bodily exercise and
amusement, and unable to resume the practice of the law, in con
sequence of the possession of New York by the British, his only
alternative appeared to be to return to the city and enter once more
into trade. His father furnished him with an unlimited credit in
England, he made out large orders, the goods arrived and were
readUy sold, new importations succeeded, and thus he continued,
until the establishment of independence, when he found himself in a
situation to gratify his favorite wish of retiring from business with
enough to satisfy the moderate demands of himself and his compa
nion, and to gratify that love of beneficence which is so characteris
tic of the Christian virtues. With a view to a life of rural enjoy
ment and exercise, in connection with the means of doing good
which the proximity of a populous city more extensively affords, he

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
purchased a seat on the Hudson, about three miles from New York
in all respects adapted to his scheme of enjoyment. Prior to his
removal to this alluring retreat, he had a severe fit of illness which
left him greatly debilitated, the tone of his muscles being so much
impaired as almost to prevent him from walking. The air and
retirement of his chosen residence brought him little or no relief, —
season after season passed without much amendment. Travelling
was resorted to ; but neither mountain air nor medicinal springs
were able to restore the energy of his system, and the return to his
favorite Bellevue after a summer's excursion found him but littie
improved. Perceiving that the relaxing heats of the American suni-
liiers had an unfavorable effect, his medical advisers encouraged him
to give a fair trial to the more uniform and cooler temperature
which might be found in some parts of England.
To this suggestion, both he and his wife at length cheerfully
acceded, trusting that the separation from their country would be but
temporary, and that improved health would compensate for a dissev-
erment of the powerful ties of relatives and friends.
A prosperous voyage landed them safely in England in 1784.
Agreeably to the previous prospects of himself and his American
physician, he selected Yorkshire as his residence, and established
himself in a modest, but very pleasant and convenient mansion, in
the little village of Holdgate, within a mile of the city of York. His
general health at the time of making this settlement, had been in
some degree improved. He was able, without assistance, to walk in
his garden severa*. times in the course of a day. He had for more
than twenty years purposely avoided the use of much medicine, so
that his digestive system remained unimpaired. His disease was mus
cular ; and tempted by the pleasure of gentle exercise, he encroached
far on his remaining and improved strength, and was at length
compeUed from the severe pain which voluntary motion produced,
to renounce it almost entirely, and confine himself to a sitting pos
ture throughout the day. He continued for some time to ride daily
in his carriage, deriving pleasure from the change of scene ; but his
muscular debility and the pain of moving continuing to increase, h
was compelled at length to relinquish this, as well as the enjoyment
of being drawn about his garden in a chair conveniently made for
the purpose. The last time he went out in his carriage was in 1809,
and from that time till his decease, upwards of sixteen years, he was
wholly confined to the house. The position which he found most
favorable to the preservation of his remaining strength, was an erect

LINDLEY MURRAY.
sitting posture, and it was seldom that his friends found him in any
other. When dressed in the morning and seated in an arm chair,
which had casters, his wife rolled him with ease to the sofa, in his
sitting room, on which, after he gave up taking exercise, he sat
during the whole day.
His bodily sufferings appear to have produced in his mind, in.
every period of his adult life, the feelings of piety and devotion ; and
his recovery from danger or severe pain, awakened the liveliest
gratitude. The total want of exercise seems to have brought on a
calculous affection, which in June, 1810, terminated in the discharge
of a small stone. His sufferings for some days were severe, but his
mind was, as usual, calm and resigned. In an interval of com
parative ease, he said, " My trust is in the mercy of God, through
Christ my Redeemer. Nothing which I have done, that may seem
meritorious, affords me any satisfaction on reflection, except as
an earnest of divine mercy and goodness." He had subsequently
a slight return of the disease, and was much afflicted with oppres
sive languor; but upon the whole his health was not so much
impaired as might have been expected, from his total confine
ment to the house, his advanced age and enfeebled constitution.
His spirits with slight exceptions, were uniformly good ; his demea
nor was at all times gentle ; and his disposition mild, cheerful, and
obliging. There was a genuine humility and even diffidence in -his
nature, which seemed to shrink from the idea of personally attracting
any share of public curiosity or observation. His extreme debility
induced him to decline much company, and to refuse many of the
numerous calls which were offered him in consequence of the excel
lence of his character and the extent of his literary reputation. Mr.
Edgeworth and his daughter Maria, have commemorated a visit
¦which they paid him in 1803. They considered Mr. and Mrs. Mur
ray as " the most striking example of domestic happiness, and of
religion without ostentation, or the spirit of dogmatizing, which they
had ever beheld." An American traveller of distinction,* who has
described at length his visit at Holdgate, in reference to his charac
ter, observes, "He belongs to the society of Friends ; but both he and
Mrs. Murray have so tempered the strictness of the manners peculiar
to their society, that they are polished people, with the advantage of
the utmost simplicity of deportment. One would suppose that a

» Professor Silliman, in 1805.
7

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
situation so peculiar, would naturally induce a degree of irnpatience
of temper, or at least a depression of spirits ; but I know not that I
have ever seen more equanimity, and sweetness of deportment, joined
with a more serene and happy cheerfulness, than in this instance.
When the painful circumstances of his situation were alluded to, he
expressed his gratitude to heaven, for the many comforts and allevia
tions which, he said, he enjoyed under his confinement.
" You would not judge from his appearance, that he is an infirm
man, for his countenance is rather ruddy ; and it is animated with a
strong expression of benevolence. His person is tall and weU
formed ; and his manner of conversing is modest, gentle, easy, and
persuasive." Another of his fellow-countrymen'* who visited him in 1819, re
marks, " Though so weak as scarcely to bear his own weight, he has
been enabled by the power of a strong and well balanced mind, and by
the exercise of the Christian virtues, to gain a complete ascendency
over himself; and to exhibit an instance of meekness, patience, and
humility, which affords, I may truly say, one of the most edifying
examples I have ever beheld. I have been informed by persons who
were his youthful contemporaries, that he was possessed by nature of
great vivacity of feeling and passions not less difficult to control,
than those which fall to the ordinary lot of humanity. But so
effectually have the graces of the Christian surmounted the way
wardness of nature, and diffused their benign influence over the
whole tenor of his mind, as to produce upon his countenance, a
lustre and a sweetness of expression, ' with less of earth in them than
heaven.' "
Thus prepared for his final change by a life of extraordinary self-
denial and fortified by the exercise of the most eminent virtues of
the Christian, Lindley Murray closed his earthly career on the
16th of February, 1826, in the eighty-first year of his age. His last
illness scarcely exceeded two days. He died in the full possession
of all his mental faculties. His characteristic benevolence forsook
him not in the latter stages of his life. His income from the estate
which he brought with him from America did not exceed five or six
hundred pounds sterling ; but this was sufficient for his demands, in
the style of simple neatness and plenty in which he lived, leaving a
burplus for the exercise of charity. The very considerable profits

* Professor Qiiscom.
s

LINDLEY MURRAY.
which he derived from the almost unprecedented sale of his gram
mar and other works, were altogether devoted to acts of beneficence.
He distributed books of piety ; he gave much alms ; he contributed,
in various ways, to render more comfortable many persons in strait
ened circumstances. He paid annually for the education of several
poor children in his neighborhood; which, before the general esta
blishment of Sunday schools, was a peculiarly useful charity.
By his wiU signed February 1st, 1821, written by himself in a very
neat hand, after providing amply for his wife, and commemorating
a large number of relatives and friends by donations, either of books
or money, and bestowing on several poor persons a small sum each,
he bequeathed to the British and Foreign Bible Society, and to the
African Institution, two hundred pounds each, and to seven chari
table institutions in the city of York, twenty-five pounds each.
The residue, after the decease of his ¦wife, was to be transferred to New
York, and vested in trustees, so as to form a permanent fund, the
income of which is to be appropriated, first, to the liberation of
colored people from sla^very, and aiding in the education of their
children ; second, to the civilization of the Indians of North America ;
and third, to the purchase and distribution of books tending to pro
mote piety and virtue.
Of the character of Lindley Murray's literary productions, we
cannot here say much, nor is it necessary that much should be said.
But few authors in our language have had, within an equal period
of time, so many readers. His works all had their origin in one main
source, the discriminating benevolence of his character. He had
formed a high estimate of the importance of a guarded, moral, and
religious education of youth, and was of opinion that sufficient care
had never been taken to incorporate sound principles of piety and
virtue with the elements of literature and knowledge in the books
which are constantly put into the hands of children at school. In
this respect it must be confessed that he has wrought a most exten
sive and salutary reformation.
The first of his publications was the Power op Religion on the
Mind. This littie work exhibits in a judicious manner the senti
ments expressed by distinguished individuals when in near prospect
of the close of life. Although it aims at no literary pretensions, and
was written only for distribution among his friends and neighbors ;
it has been received with great approbation, as the sale of seventeen
editions, some of them consisting of three or four thousand copies,
fully demonstrates. The next work was his English Grammar.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
This celebrated production originated in a kind personal effort on
his part to instruct a few female teachers at York, in a more ex
tended acquaintance with the principles and elegancies of the English
language. In this he was so successful, as to receive from these
young teachers an urgent request to prepare for their pupUs, an
English grammar, based on the same plan of simplicity and clearness
that he had pursued in his verbal instructions. He acknowledges
in this work, his indebtedness to Lowth and other grammarians, and
styled himself only a compiler ; but both hemispheres have amply
testified to the superiority of this grammar over every work that
preceded it. It was begun in the spring of 1794, and published in
the spring of 1795. The Exercises and Key, which followed the
grammar, contributed greatly to the extension of a taste for pure
English, and at the same time to inculcate on the mind of the young
student elevated sentiments of morality and civil life. The Abridg
ment of the grammar, published about the same time with the
exercises, became so popular, that about forty-eight thousand copies
of it have been sold annuaUy in England for many years past. The
English Reader, Introduction, and SEauEL met with a corres
ponding reception, on botla sides of the Atlantic. No school books
have ever been diffused in a manner so nearly approaching to uni
versal as those of Murray. The names of teachers and editors
who have published these works with slight modifications to suit
their own views, would make no inconsiderable catalogue.
The Introduction au Lecteur Francois; and the Lecteuh
Francois, are worthy, in point of selection and arrangement, of the
same praise as the corresponding English works, although from the
grave character of the extracts, they have not been so popular among
the students of that language. The Octavo English Grammar
in two volumes, has been considered as a standard in setthng the
principles and adjusting the niceties of English composition. It has
gone through five or six editions in England, and several in America.
The demand for the school grammars has been so great in England
as to require the types to be kept standing, and for many years
past every edition has consisted of ten thousand copies.
The author published also a little work on the Duty and Bene
fit of a daily perusal of the Holy Scriptures in families, chiefly
for gratuitous distribution, and a selection from Bishop Home's com
mentary on the Psalms.

¦a.Tred Irf IBToxxest from, a Miiiia.tnre liy "WHUi am. D unlay ial609.

(S&M®.IL1^ BII®(SISID)1B! IBm®W]^,

^X^ /J. /jf^^TTl^fZ?

CHARLES BROCKDEN BROWN.

Surprise has been expressed, that in the early period of our existence
as a nation, so few men of talents and literature devoted themselves to
authorship as a profession, and that the subject of this memoir should
appear for a time almost alone in a field, where so much was to be done,
and so rich a harvest reaped ; but, on the contrary, it is more surprising
that any one quahfied for those pursuits which seemed alone, at that
time, to open the path to distinction and fortune, should turn aside to
sport in the regions of fancy, and offer the result of his lucubrations
to a public, who were impressed with the firm conviction, that to teach
or to delight by the peri, belonged to Europe exclusively. Charles
Brockden Brown had received an education which qualified him
for the profession which secured wealth, free firom the risks of mer-
cantUe speculation — the profession from which proceeded our states
men, legislators, and rulers ; yet he preferred the toUsome occupation
of book-making, from the pure love of literature, and a benevolent
desire to benefit his feUow-creatures.
The parents of Brown were of the sect called quakers, and
descended from the immediate foUowers or companions of the phUan-
thropist, WiUiam Penn. Born in PhUadelphia, on the 17th of January,
1771, Charles was the youngest but one of five sons, and by far the
most feeble in constitution and diminutive in stature. This dehcacy
of frame, and the early development of his uncommon mental faculties,
wth his pecuhar modes of thinking, and facUity in the expression of
his ideas, united the affections of the family in him, and they looked
forward, fondly, to his great success in the profession of the law which
they had chosen for him. But he had conceived a prejudice against
the practice of our courts, and to the great chagrin of the famUy, he
abandoned the study without undergoing the necessary examination
which precedes practice.
Charles had associated with several young men, who formed
schemes for literary improvement, and for discussing subjects in the
way of debate^ Doctor Mihior, of the Episcopal Church, then a stu-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
dent of law, was one ; Joseph Bringhurst of the society of fi:iends,
another ; and a youth of uncommon talents and personal beauty, Wil
liam Wilkins, who was cut off in the blossom, was, perhaps, the leader
of the band, and the best beloved by Brockden, The older brothers
of Charles, all men engaged in business of a mercantile character,
although they considered his views visionary, yet felt a pride in his
attainments ; and loved him, perhaps, the more for those qualities in
which he differed from themselves. They, however, joined with his
parents in pressing Charles to make choice of a profession, and do
as other men of this world do : their importunities probably drove him
from home, for with the ostensible purpose of improving his delicate
health, and invigorating a feeble frame, he made several pedestrian
tours, indulging in the romance which was so dear to him.
The removal of one of his favorite companions, Elihu Hubbard
Smith, from PhUadelphia, (where he had completed his medical educa
tion,) and his settlement as a physician in New York, brought Charles
to that city, and introduced him to a society of young men ardent in
literary pursuits, and filled ¦with sentiments to which his own were
congenial. Brown became particularly attached to three of this
association, who, like himself, were impressed with the conviction of
the propriety of exerting their faculties for the promotion of human
happiness, and desirous of knowledge to be devoted to that purpose.
His views in becoming an author were distinct from all selfish motives.
He wished to become a teacher of truth, and he adopted the vehicle
of novel-writing, as most likely to produce the effect he desired upon
the greater number of his fellow-creatures.
Ever ardently devoted to study, he had from infancy devoured
every book thro^wn in his way ; but very early he "Systematized his
reading ; and history, with its necessary attendant, geography, occu
pied the boy instead of marbles or any of the sports usually the dehght
of that period in man's existence — the study of architecture was hke
wise a favorite with him, and he drew plans for earthly houses and
palaces, at the same time that he built castles in the air ; — he kept a
diary; — he made efforts to form his style upon such models as he
admired, beginning with Johnson ; but Godwin became his favorite,
and was such at the time he commenced author. A pure style, more
exclusively his own, flowed rapidly from his pen and his lips in a
more advanced stage of his existence.
Brown's introduction to his New York friends occurred in 1793, and
he then had commenced without defmite plan or object, a story which
he caUed " Sky-walk ;" portions of this romance he afterward com-

CHARLES BROCKDEN BROWN,
bined with the works he published. The dialogue entitled " Alcuin,"
was the first volume given to the public ; and it was not untU 1798, that
he published his powerful and successfiil novel of " Wieland ;" although
a writer of the North American Review of October, 1834, says, " under
cover of the popularity acquired by his Wieland, Ormond, and Arthur
Mervyn, Charles Brockden Brown, ui 1794, tried a monthly
magazine in PhUadelphia."
The residence of Brown's parents was at No 117 South Second
street, Philadelphia, and that was the home of Charles ; but for several
years foUo^wing 1793, the greater portion of his time was passed with
his friend Dunlap, in New York and Perth Amboy. The impression
made on Brown by his first visit to New York, may be judged of by
an extract from a letter to this friend, dated August 13th, 1794. " It
¦will doubtless be pleasing to be assured that your hospitable intentions
towards me were answered, and that I owe to you particularly, as
much pleasure as I ever experienced on a like occasion, and that my
excursion to New York, will long be remembered by me with the
most pleasing emotions." In September, 1795, after a visit to New
York, he 'writes to the same, "Soon after my retum, I began the
design of which we talked so much, I had planned so that I could
finish a work equal in extent to Caleb Williams in less than six weeks;
and 'wrote a quantity equivalent to ten of his (Godwin's) pages daUy,
tUl the hot weather and inconvenient circumstances obhged me to
relax my diligence. Great expedition does not seem very desirable.
Tenets so momentous require a leisurely and deep examination ; and
much meditation, reading, and ¦writing, I presume, are necessary to
render my system of morality perfect in all its parts, and to acquire a
full and luminous con^viction ; but I have not stopped — I go on, though
less precipitately than at first, and hope finaUy to produce something
valuable for its utility." The work here spoken of was never finished ;
but the requisite study, and parts of the manuscript, enriched other
compositions. It appears from another part of this letter, that the
novelist had thought of accepting his brothers' in-vitation to become a
partner in mercantUe business, and even to go as supercargo to Spain
and Germany. His oldest brother, Joseph, had likewise invited him
to " pass the winter on the solitary banks of the Roanoke, where he
tells me" says Charles, "there are musty books to read, and wUd
woods to moralize in. The arrangements above mentioned, will pro
bably fix me here."
Four months afterward, he again wrote to his friend Duiilap;
" After wandering through fifty pages, the experiment was sufficientiy

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
made, and the thorough consciousness that I was imfitted for the
instructer's chair, that my style was feeble and diffuse, my method
prolix and inaccurate, my reasoning crude and superficial, and my
knowledge narrow and undigested, suddenly benumbed my fingers : I
dropped the pen, and I sunk into sUent and sohtary meditation on the
means of remedying these defects." UntU July, 1796, Brown con
tinued a kind of sleeping partner of the counting-house, reading prin-
cipaUy books of travels, and studying architecture -with his PaUadio,
and at length joined his friend at Perth Amboy. In September, he
went with him to New York, and shortly after became an inmate ¦with
Dr. E. H. Smith and WUham Johnson, Esq., who kept house in Pine
street, and there he wrote a great part of his novels. Tliis happy
establishment was broke up by the death of Smith, who feU a victim
to his benevolence in the yellow fever of 1798.
On the 5th of September, 1798, the three friends, Smith, Bro^wn,
and Johnson, ¦wrote a letter in conjunction to Dunlap, whose summer
residence was Perth Amboy. Brown says, "Johnson and I are
pretty well; but E. H. Smith, by midnight sallying forth, sudden
changes of temperature, fatigue, and exposure to a noon-day sun, is
made sick : perhaps it would not have been so if this demon had not
lurked in the air. This afternoon I revised the last sheet of Wieland.
It ¦will form a handsome volume of three hundred pages. Some ten
or twelve have been added since you last saw it. I have ¦written
something of the history of Carwin, which I wiU send. I have
deserted for the present from the prosecution of this plan, and betook
myself to another, which I mean to extend to the size of Wieland, and
to finish by the end of this month, provided no yellow fever disconcert
my schemes." Johnson on the same sheet mentions the labors of
Charles, and Smith concluded the letter thus, probably the last of
his epistolary efforts, " These gay friends of mine have so covered the
paper with their gambols, that nothing but coldness and conclusion
dulness and death-heads, are left for me.
" Had you seen me extended on my bed yesterday, rejecting (alas the
while !) half a dozen applications from the sick, and confined to pUls
and potions, you would have trembled for the safety of your poor
philosopher. To-day, however, I have sitten up tiU this hour ; and,
if the day be fair, to-morrow shall resume my customary functions.
'• Tuesday noon, September lith, 1798.
" By order of the Committee,
"E.H. Smith, (this day 27)."

CHARLES BROCKDEN BROWN.
On the 18th, Charles Brockden Brown and WUliam Johnson
¦write to the same friend, saying that they have in the house a young
Itahan, Signer Scandella, dangerously iU of the fever, and under the
care of Smith, ScandeUa was a physician and a scientific traveller,
who was seized with the epidemic on his way from Philadelphia to
New York, and removed fi:om a hotel by Smith, that he might attend
to him. He died. Smith sunk under fatigue, anxious exertions, and
disease, and on the 24th, the two surviving friends ¦wrote to teU Dunlap
that " Elihu Hubbard Smith was no more," On the 29th, they joined
their friend at Amboy,
In the year 1799, Brown supported a monthly magazine published
by the Messrs Swords of New York, (the first work of the kind that he
undertook,) and was engaged in his " Arthur Mer^vyn," the scene of
which was suggested by those he had witnessed in PhUadelphia, in
1793, and the recent events of 1798, in New York. " Edgar Huntiey"
followed, and partook largely of his first composition of the same kind
(above mentioned), " Sky-walk," It is full of incident and extraordi
nary adventure. Brown's Indians have by certain critics been pre
ferred to those of James Fenimore Cooper, although the latter was con
versant with the Indian character, and the former drew his pictures
from his own fertile fancy. Both these gentlemen so highly gifted by
nature, have been intimately known by the ¦writer ; and although few
men have more differed in person, manner, and all the modes of social
intercourse, as well as style in writing, they both considered them
selves in the high character of teachers of truth, and benefactors of
the human race. Brown was cut off in early life and in the career
of usefulness ; and the career of Cooper, whUe executing a plan of the
utmost importance, which, by a succession of novels, attacked the
rotten institutions of European prejudice and aristocratic tyranny, was
interrupted by those who know not how to appreciate his motives or
his character.
In 1800, appeared the second part of Arthur Mervyn. The author
has in this work fully expressed his conviction, that he was to die
early and by consumption. In 1801, Brown published "Clara
Howard ;" and in 1804, his last novel, "Jane Talbot," was published,
first in London by his brother James, and immediately reprinted in
America. He had now become stationary in PhUadelphia, and was
engaged by Conrad to conduct " The Literary Magazine, and American
Register." In 1803, Mr. Brown turned his attention to political writing. It
might appear to many, that his studies and previous writings had httle
VOL. Ill— 10 5

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
qualified him for such speculations ; but it is not the party men and
party writers of a country who are the soundest politicians ; Brown's
Essay on the Cession of Louisiana to France, and other patriotic
works of this period, entitle the writer to the praise and gratitude of liis
countrymen. Little as Brown's habits or studies might appear to have prepared
him for political discussions, yet, in addition to such labors of that
nature as belonged to the two periodical works he conducted, he pub
lished several pamphlets which attracted great attention, in addition
to that on Louisiana — pamphlets rich in facts and deductions, fuU of
genuine patriotism, and displaying a view of the future, amounting
to a strain of apparent prophesy.
In 1804, Mr. Brown married Elizabeth Linn, the daughter of the
Rev. Dr. Linn, a Presbyterian clergyman of great popularity in New
York. Miss Linn was a woman of taste and literary acquirements,
and the marriage was a happy one. Brown was now professionally
and altogether an author. His domestic estabUshment was in
Eleventh street, Philadelphia, near Chesnut street ; and in the adjoin
ing house his venerable parents found a peacefiil retreat from the cares
of the world, surrounded by their affectionate children ; their daughter
and sons being all at this period residents of their native city, ¦with
the exception of James, who married and became a permanent inhabit
ant of the island from whence his ancestors originally emigrated.
In addition to the periodical publication above mentioned, Brown
now projected an Annual Register, the first work of the kind under
taken in America. Conrad was the proprietor and publisher of this
work also. The persevering industry and extreme facility in composi
tion which distinguished this extraordinary man, could alone account
for the quantity of matter and the amount of valuable information
contained in these works. They prove the extent of knowledge he
had obtained by his previous apparently desultory reading, and evinced
the correctness of his taste, the result of much study and profound
meditation. But laborious as these employments were, he found time
for contributions to Dennie's Portfolio, and for a beautiful eulogium
(in the form of a biographical sketch) on the Rev. J. B. Linn, his
brother-in-law, who died while performing his duties as pastor of a
Presbyterian congregation in Philadelphia.
No employment could be more congenial to the disposition and
wishes of Charles Brockden Brown, than that in which he was
engaged. No situation more calculated for happiness. His ¦wife, hfs
chUdren, his parents, his brothers and their children, were his riches

CHARLES BROCKDEN BROWN.
and his world — but like all worldly riches, they were soon to pass
from him. Ever delicate, he became a victim to that cruel disease,
consumption ; and after trying the usual prescription of traveUing,
which, as is frequentiy the case, only added both to mental and
physical sufferings, he lingered untU February, 1810, and then expired
with characteristic fortitude in the bosom of his family, with full
reliance upon the benevolence of his Creator.
In 1811, his friend, being for some days in Philadelphia, made the
following entry in his diary : " I called yesterday for the second
time on the widow of my friend, Charles Brockden Brown, and
found her at home, and in company with his mother, likewise a widow
since my last visit to this place. I saw the twin boys who used to be
my playthings. I took them on my knees. I kissed them, and
remembered former days — poor things ! Charles has left another
boy besides these, and an infant girl."
The personal appearance of Brown was remarkable. Below the
medium height, and slender in an uncommon degree, he was active
and quick in his movements, and had always delighted in pedestrian
exercises. The writer has accompanied him in a day's walk of forty
miles, during which his copious funds of knowledge were poured forth
with boundless prodigality, to the delight of his companions — occa
sionaUy interrupted by fits of abstraction, during which he would walk
rapidly in silence, mentally conversing with himself or with the
inhabitants of other worlds. His usual dress was singular. His dark
bro^wn hair had never been disguised by powder, although such was
the fashion of the days of his youth, but fell in natural guise upon his
neck and shoulders. His complexion was pale and sickly, his eye a
dull gray, but capable of flashes when excited by conversation, and of
a general expression of benevolence. No feature of his face was
good, and yet the whole when animated was agreeable.
Although prone to conversation, it was only with a favorite few or
a single companion. In a mixed company he was reserved and silent ;
or if forced to open his lips by some intrusive question, his answer
was not unfrequently ludicrous or satirical, and followed by a laugh
that was not a littie disconcerting to the questioner; yet was his
general deportment peculiarly mild and conciliating.
To Charles Brockden Brown his country is indebted both for
the quantity and quality of his literary productions. It is said that
his published writings would amount to twenty-four volumes. He
had been engaged in a work comprising a general system of geo-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
graphy which he did not live to finish, or it would have proved a
source of emolument to his widow and children.
Much has been written of his style, his beauties and his faults. His
last writings evince an improvement which lead to the conviction that
if he had lived, his character as a writer would have been among the
first our country can boast — his character as a man stands conspicuous
among the best,
A clerical critic, who has contributed much towards a history of
American literature, and who wrote more than thirty years after the
death of Brown, has very truly said that he "has been more justly ap
preciated as a writer since his death, than in his life-time. At home and
abroad the power of his pen has been felt in its bold and vivid strokes.
He manifests much warmth of feeling, and a strong enthusiasm of
thought and expression. His delineations are not of ordinary and
common characters, of human nature in general, but of singular,
peculiar, and eccentric beings, who are not governed by ordinary
impulses, or destined to ordinary occurrences. In this particular, and
in making his 'Bulk' full of Brownies and Bogihs, we cannot think
him judicious ; for, as the Edinburgh Review says, ' No ghost was
ever seen in North America,' " Besides his novels, Mr, Brown
conducted three different periodicals — the Monthly Magazine, and
subsequently the Literary Magazine, and the American Register. His
hfe has been well written by Dunlap, the painter.

EnJmedbj-G.Piukei fiom a palnfiri frf Clieslei Hudinl

JOSEPH STORY, LL. D

This distinguished jurist was born at Marblehead, in the conunon-
wealth of Massachusetts, in the year 1779, and was the eldest child
of a second marriage. His father, Dr. Elisha Story, was a native of
Boston, ardent in the cause of liberty, an active participator in the
memorable destruction of the tea, and afterwards a surgeon in the
army of the revolution. Subsequently retiring from the service, he
settied in Marblehead, where he practised medicine with celebrity and
success, tiU the close of an honorable and useful hfe, in the year 1805.
The subject of this brief memoir received his early education in the
academy of his native town, then under the superintendence of the
Rev. Dr. Harris, afterwards president of Columbia College in New
York ; but under the more immediate care of Mr. Michael Walsh, an
usher in that institution, a ripe classical scholar, though better kno^wn
to the commercial public by his valuable system of mercantile arith
metic. With such instructors, such a pupil could not but make rapid
advances in good learning. He accordingly entered Harvard Uni
versity, at Cambridge, in 1795, a half year in advance ; and was
graduated with high and well-earned reputation, in 1798. On leav
ing the university, his prompt decision was for the profession of law ;
the study of which he commenced under the Honorable Samuel
Sewall, late chief justice of Massachusetts, then in the practice in
Marblehead ; arid completed, after the appointment of Mr. Sewall to
the bench, under Mr. Justice Putnam, of the same court, then practis
ing at the bar in Salem. To the mastery of this profound and noble
science he devoted hiinself with unconquerable vigor of application,
ardent thirst of knowledge, and the compacted and various energies
of a superior mind.
The period of his admission to the bar, in 1801, is still fresh in our
recollection as one of great political excitement. The democratic
party, after years of laborious struggle, had just gained a general
victory, by placing its chief in the presidential chair ; but it had still
to contend, with unabated efforts, for the control of the remaining state

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
governments, against an opposing party, every where formidable in
its numbers and talents, and in some states, vastly superior in strength.
The existing divisions had unfortunately and unjustly been made to
turn on our political relations with the two great contending powers of
Europe ; and the principles of the revolution were successfully invoked,
to swell the ranks of the dominant party. In Massachusetts, the demo
cratic party, in which Mr. Story was found, composed at that time a
minority, numerically strong indeed, but most strenuously resisted. Yet
amidst the bitterness of party strife, the respect in which New England
ever holds pure integrity and intellectual greatness could not but sooner
or later be manifested towards a son so eminently deserving her confi
dence. Mr. Story had brought into his profession untiring diligence,
extensive learning, ready and persuasive eloquence, keen sagacity,
integrity unspotted, and a tenacity and firmness of purpose which oppo
sition could seldom withstand. He was of course much resorted to, at
a very early period, and received solid proofs of the wisdom and dis
cernment of the public, in the great extent and variety of his profes
sional engagements. Political circumstances may have had their
influence with others, in opposing him so young, and often alone, in
important causes against the most eminent lawyers of that day. A
distinction like this, at once so honorable and so perilous, may be
regarded as a most felicitous event in the life of a professional man ;
since it brings him into immediate contact with powerful minds, and
familiarizes him with the depths of his favorite science. The art of
war is no where so rapidly and successfully acquired, as in the field
against the great captains of the age.
In 1805, Mr. Story was elected one of the representatives of the
to-wn of Salem, in the legislature of Massachusetts ; to which office
he was annually reelected, till his appointment to the bench. In
times of such political excitement, generous spirits are always found
in the front of the battle ; but the high estimation in which he was
held, is evinced by the fact that during his legislative career, he was
the acknowledged leader of the party with which he acted ; and that
on him, in 1808, was mainly devolved the task of defending the
embargo policy of the national administration, against the resolutions
introduced and supported by Christopher Gore, then in the fulness
of his intellectual strength, and the zenith of his influence. It should,
however, be remembered to the honor of Mr. Story, and for the
benefit of younger politicians and of later days, that he never was the
slave of party. He aclmowledged no party ligament, binding him to
the support of measures which his sober judgment could not approve,

JOSEPH STORY.
He recognised no code of political ethics, distinct from the principles
which govern every good man in his private life. On the great
questions of national politics, he was always a disciple of the school
of Washington. "While the restrictive system of Mr. Jefferson was
avowedly resorted to and pursued merely as a measure of precaution,
temporary in its nature, it could command his ¦wUling support, without
any compromise of consistency. But when it afterwards came to be
acknowledged as a system of permanent policy, he stood faithful to
his principles in as earnestiy seeking its repeal.
It was the good fortune of Massachusetts, that so much political
influence was at that time possessed by Mr. Story. From causes
not within our present limits to detail, its supreme judiciary, beside
the general odium in which the tribunals of justice are too often
undeservedly held, had become peculiarly obnoxious to the democratic
party ; and yet the aid of that party was now indispensably necessary,
in order to make some important alterations in the administration of
justice, and to place the salaries of the judges on the permanent
foundation intended by the constitution. Prior to the year 1806, their
stated compensation, which was very small, had become far inade
quate to afford a decent support ; and the course for many years had
been to make to each of the judges an annual legislative grant, to
supply this acknowledged deficiency. Yet the language of the con
stitution in relation to these officers is, that they shall have " honorable
salaries, ascertained and established by standing laws." A vacancy
occurring at this time in the office of chief justice of the supreme
judicial court, the appointment was offered to Mr. Parsons, then in
the most lucrative practice in Boston ; but it was declined by him,
miless the salary should first be made both honorable and permanent,
in the spirit of the constitution. This measure was accordingly
resolved on. His legal eminence rendered his appointment desirable
on public grounds. It was an era of necessary reform and improve
ment in the law ; to effect which his transcendent talents and exten
sive influence were deemed indispensable. Obnoxious as the bold
and decided tone of his politics had rendered him to the democratic
party, the friends of the measure, relying with confidence on the mag
nanimity of Mr. Story, and his devotedness to the true interests of the
commonwealth, at once intrusted to his hands the projection of the
means to carry it into effect, and the superintendence of their execu
tion. He accordingly moved the subject in the house of representa
tives, was appointed chairman of the committee to whom it was
referred, and reported a bUl fixing the salary of the chief justice at

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
twenty-five hundred dollars, and of his associates, at two thousand
each. A proposition of this kind, never regarded with universal
complacency, was at this time most furiously assailed. It was ably
supported, also, from various quarters ; but its fate, from the position
in which Mr. Story was placed, was wholly in his power ; and to
his vigorous efforts, and the earnest appeal of his commanding elo
quence, it is but justice to accord the merit of its passage.
The same causes which led to the permanent estabhshment of these
salaries in 1806, soon rendered it necessary that another effort should
be made to augment them. The judicial administration of Chief Justice
Parsons had fuUy satisfied the public anticipations ; but the experi
ment, so far as the emoluments of office were concerned, had con^vinced
him that in accepting it, he had sacrificed a portion of income, required
for domestic expenses. He therefore came to the resolution of return
ing to the bar, unless the deficiency was supplied by the state. At
this time, in 1809, the democratic party controlled all the branches
of the legislature, and, flushed with recent success, felt httle disposition
to gratify a leading political adversary, especially in a grant of money ;
an application very naturally concentrating, in some degree, the oppo
sition of political friends with foes. The alternative, too, of losing
the public services of the chief justice, could not be urged with much
hope of success on those who, in that case, would have the opportu
nity of appointing his successor. But Mr. Story was stiU in the
legislature, holding the same leading influence among his political
friends ; and his magnanimity and love of law and order, were again
invoked, not in vain, to place the salaries of the judges on such an
estabUshment as should suffice, at all times, to command for those
eminently responsible offices, the first order of legal talent in the com
monwealth. A. bill for increasing the salary of the chief justice to
thirty-five hundred dollars, and of his associates to three thousand,
was accordingly reported ; it was not only long and carefully con
sidered, but was hotly debated ; in the exertions made to defeat its
passage, the blows feU with indiscriminate force upon aU its supporters,
and upon none more than on him who had again led the column of
its friends ; but it was at length triumphantiy carried. His able report
on this subject, embodying a convincing argument in favor of honor
able and adequate provision for judicial officers, has been recently
pubhshed in Ohio, on a similiar occasion. The period to which we
have now alluded, was a crisis in the judicial affairs of the state. The
judges were all of the federal party, and the usages of that day, impo
litic as we now esteem them, seemed not only to permit but to require

JOSEPH STORY.
from the court, in each charge given to the grand jury, a discourse
on the political institutions of the country ; and these it was hardly
possible to expound, without discussing some of the essential doctrines
of the two great political parties. Such expositions were in no sense
welcome to the men then in power; and doubtless strengthened a
determination already manifest, to remove their authors by any con
stitutional mode from the offices they were thus supposed to pervert.
The most obvious and simple process was starvation ; supported by
an outcry against high salaries. Had this method been adopted, and
the doctrine been openly and generally maintained by the party, that
the emoluments of office were already too high, and must be reduced,
the tone of political morals, at that day, would have bound the party
to be consistent in making a general and extensive reduction ; and it
would not have been difficult to foresee the fate of the administration
of public justice, confided, as its tribunals must in that case have
been, to men of third and fourth rate abUities. It was necessary
that this threatened evil should be speedily stayed, and the public
mind disabused of the prejudices which were beginning to fasten
upon it. And it is no disparagement to the other friends of sound
policy and good order to state, that for this salutary change of
sentiment, Massachusetts is chiefly indebted to the discernment, the
straight forward honesty, and moral courage of Mr. Story. Few
young men, in the ascending node of political power, would have
ventured on sO bold a measure as openly to oppose the darling preju
dices and passions of their friends ; and it argues much for the good
sense of these men, that such an attempt was permitted to be so com
pletely successful. It is to the permanent and honorable provision
thus made for the judges, that the people of that commonwealth may
attribute the benefits they have since enjoyed from a wise, and digni
fied, and firm administration of justice.
It was during his continuance in the legislature, that the subject
of a separate chancery jurisdiction attracted much of the public atten
tion. The early fathers of the commonwealth, with their plain good
sense, thought that their tribunals ought to be enabled to administer
rehef commensurate with the wrong received by the party ; and that
where the apparatus of the common law fell short of affording such
relief, it ought to be supplied by equity. An act for this purpose was
accordingly passed under the old colonial charter ; but the royal assent
being withheld, it was never carried into effect. Something, however,
in tiie shape of equity, was subsequently administered by the governor
and councU ; but unfortunately it became associated, in the minds ot

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
the people, with other attributes of royalty, vested in the governor, and
of course came to be regarded with jealousy and distrust. Yet the
want of an equitable jurisdiction was constantly felt as a defect in the
municipal code ; and at the period to which we refer, an attempt was
made to reform this department of justice, by the establishment of a
separate court of chancery. The committee to whom this subject
was referred, was raised on the motion of Mr. Story; and their
report was justly attributed to his powerful pen. The substance of it
was afterward wrought by the author into a most instructive article
on chancery jurisdiction, published in the North American Re^dew.
In the year 1809, Mr. Story was elected a representative to con
gress, to supply the vacancy in Essex South District, occasioned by the
death of Mr. Cro-wninshield. He served but for the remainder of the
term for which he was chosen, and declined a reelection. But in that
brief space, in two important movements, he gave earnest of the
breadth and elevation of his views as a statesman, and of his deep
devotedness to the policy of the father of his country. The first was
a motion made by himself, for a committee to consider the expediency
of a gradual increase of the na^vy ; which he supported in a speech
marked at the time for its power, but of which no report is kno'wn to
be extant. Unfortunately for our naval prosperity, the blindness of
party zeal had fastened on the first proposal for augmenting the naval
force, in Washington's administration, as a topic of party denunciation.
The clamor had been continued and increased under that of his suc
cessor, till the leaders of the democratic party felt themselves too
deeply committed on the subject, to recede with honor or safety ; and
hostility to the system of naval defence, except in harbors by batteries
and gun-boats, had become a cardinal article in the political faith of
the party. Mr. Story's resolution, therefore, was a little in advance
of that pohtical age. It was met, not with open argument, but was
put do^wn by a party vote, as a measure inconsistent with the pohcy
and hostUe to the interests of the existing administration.
The other great measure to which we allude, was the repeal of the
embargo act. This statute, as a temporary resort, whether for the
prevention of war, or as anciUary to other and ulterior preparations
for that event, or as preparatory to negotiation for a firm and stable
peace, had been sustained by the friends of the administration witli
exemplary generosity and forbearance. Its long contmuance, how
ever, in the absence of any apparently beneficial results, had begun to
exhaust the patience of the people, whose urgent inquiries and de
mands had at length dra^wn from Mr. Jefferson the avowal that he

JOSEPH STORY.
relied on the measure as an essential part of a permanent system oi
policy ; and that in his opinion it was unwise in this nation " ever ¦
more to recur to the ocean." An avowal so starfling rallied at once
that independent class of his friends whose pohtical creed was not
contained in the formularies of a party, to attempt the removal of a
system they deemed so fi-aught with ruin to the strength and resources
of the nation. In this attempt, Mr. Story bore an early, an active,
and a conspicuous part ; so efficient, indeed, as to draw from Mr.
Jefferson, in a letter to General Dearborn, the complaint, which pos
terity will interpret as highly to his honor as it was intended othei
wise, that, but for him, the repeal would not have been effected.
In the spring following his return from Washington, he was again
elected to the house of representatives in Massachusetts; and in
January, 1811, and again in May, on the organization of the new
house, he was called to the speaker's chair. For the arduous and
often deUcate and embarrassing duties of that office, he was peculiarly
fitted; and the writer distinctly recollects the full and consenting
testimony of all parties, to the dignity, ability, and impartiality with
which he discharged them.
It was in November, 1811, at the early age of thirty-two, that Mr.
Story was appointed one of the associate justices of the supreme
court of the United States. Never was this high honor so early
achieved ; never more purely and worthily worn. Adjusting himself
to the proprieties of the station to which he was called, he withdrew
at once from the political arena; and though never an indifferent
spectator of his country's fortunes, he afterwards participated in them,
not as a partisan, but as a judge.
It may be proper in this place, to advert to the only other instance
in which he was called on to serve the public in labors not purely
juridical. In the year 1820, after the separation of Maine from
Massachusetts, it became necessary to make some alterations in the
constitution of the latter state, growing out of the exigencies of the
occasion ; and a convention was called for that purpose, of which Mr.
Justice Story was elected a member from Salem. It was a body
altogether resplendent in talent; for no one could anticipate the
changes which a spirit of innovation, if once aroused, might attempt ;
and hence the selection of members was generally made from the
highest order of minds within the reach of the electors. In that
assembly, his influence' was most extensive and salutary ; and his
speeches, published as they were uttered from the stenographer's notes,
and without revision, particularly his splendid speech on repreSenta-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
tion in the senate, attest the unabated fervor of his eloquence, and his
great power as a debater. i
To those who have been much in his society, or are famiUar ¦with
even his professional writings, it would be superfluous to remark that
he had been a votary of the muse ; since a highly cultivated taste, and
a lively sensibility to the beauties of poetry and the richer creations of
the imagination, are so visible in his compositions. His gravest juri
dical discourses, though wrought in enduring marble, are still finished
with the higher ornaments of intellectual affluence. Many were the
poetical effusions recognised as his by the delighted circle of his
youthful contemporaries ; but we recollect none of any magnitude
avowedly his own, except " The Power of Sohtude," a poem of wider
compass and more regular structure, which was published soon after
ne came to the bar, and constituted the most acceptabla souvenir of
that day. But though successfully cidtivating elegant hterature, he
was not unmindful of the severer duties of the law, whose worth, he
knew, would " not unsought, be won." In the yeai 1805, he pub
lished a selection of pleadings in ci^vil aetions, subsequent to the
declaration, from the pleadings of the most eminent in this science, in
England and America, with occasional annotations of his own. Pre
vious to this time, the science of special pleading, in Ne^w Engknd,
was principally contained in the manuscript formularies, handed do^wn
from one generation of lawyers to another, with scarcely a note or
coinment. The appearance of this work, with its most valuable body
of notes, gave a new impulse to study in this necessary branch of pro
fessional learning ; which after the lapse of near fifty years is resorted
to, with all the confidence originally reposed in its safety as a guide.
The second edition, published in 1829, is rendered more valuable, not,
as is often the case, by the correction of errors in the first, but merely
by the addition of new matter.
The judicial duties of Mr. Justice Story, other than those m the
supreme court, have been confined to the first circuit, embracing the
states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Rhode
Island ; and his judgments in this circuit are contained in the two
volumes of Mr. Gallison's reports, and in the six volumes of Mr.
Mason. His character and merits as a judge, it would be improper,
at this time, critically to examine and discuss. But it may be stated,
that on his coming to the bench, the principles of admiralty and ma
ritime law wore but imperfectly understood in this quarter of the
union ; their jurisdictional limits were iU-defined, and the practice in
admiralty was almost literally without form. The reader of the firs*

JOSEPH STORY.
volume of Mr. Galhson will^ot faU to be stmck with the evidence of
this great confusion of principles, and looseness of practice, by advert
ing to the points ruled by the court. We remember to have heard it
remarked of the case of one, who, several years before, had been
capitally arraigned in the district court of Maine, and, though' defended
by eminent counsel, was subsequently convicted and executed, that
the exceptions, unavailingly taken in arrest of judgment, were founded
chiefly on the common law ; while a valid objection, peculiar to the
national jurisprudence, was entirely overlooked. From this chaotic
state these branches of the law have been redeemed, and brought to
their present condition of beauteous symmetry and beneficial energy,
by the labors of this most enlightened and accomplished judge ; and
were there no other memorials of the comprehensive variety and the
exactness of his legal learning, his judgments in his own circuit, on
these questions, would deliver him to posterity as an associate in all
respects meet for the gifted mind which presides over our judicial
department. It wUl be interesting to the professional reader, to be
referred to his celebrated opinion in De Lovio v. Boit, 2 GaU. 398, a
finished discourse in which the admiralty jurisdiction is asserted over
all maritime contracts ; to the case of the Greek ship, Jerusalem, 2
GaU. 345, where it is applied to material-men ; and in Burke v. Tre-
•vit, 1 Mason 96, to wrongs, damages, and unlawful seizures at sea ; to
the case of the schooner TUton, 5 Mason 465, in which it is extended
to what are termed petitory suits, where the mere title to ships is hti-
gated, independently of any possession ; and to the masterly judgment
in the case of La Jeune Eugenie, 2 Mason 409, in which the power
of the admiralty is maintained to the extent of putting do^wn the slave
trade, as inconsistent with the law of nations, in all cases where it is
not expressly legalized by the claimant's own sovereign. We are
aware that this doctrine was subsequently qualified by the supreme
court in the ease of the Antelope ; but in its leading principles, it is
believed to have generally approved itself to the judgment of the
profession. The subject of seamen's wages has also been treated by him with
equal fulness, and its principles settled in harmonious arrangement.
The whole law on this subject ¦will be found in his judgments, on the
effect of capture and restitution, in the cases of the Saratoga, 2 GaU.
164, and Sheppard v. Taylor, 5 Pet. 675 ; of embezzlement, in Spurr
V. Pearson, 1 Mason 104 ; of shipwreck and salvage in the two Catha-
ruies, 2 Mason 319 ; of misconduct and desertion of duty, in the
Mentor, 4 Mason 84 ; and of sickness, in Harden v. Gordon, 2 Mason

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
541. For this last opinion, in which dt is shown that the entire
expenses of curing the sick seaman are a charge on the ship, includ
ing his support if he is carried ashore, and that no stipulation contrary
to the maritime law, and injurious to the seaman, will be allowed to
stand, unless an adequate compensation for it is shown, he is entitied
to the lasting gratitude of the friends of humanity in the commercial
world. The administration of the law of prize, too, unsettled as it was, and
almost unkno-wn to the profession before the war of 1812, feU heavily
to his share, in consequence of the extensive commerce of the north ;
and was discussed and illustrated with equal ability and learning.
The proximity of the British dominions, the conquest of part of our
territory by the enemy, the practice of trading under licenses, and
of collusive captures, gave rise to a multitude of questions before him,
embarrassing in their nature, the solution of which form a luminous
commentary on this branch of the law.
It was, moreover, his singular fortune, to be obliged to revise and
settle, and, with propriety it may almost be said, to create the Ameri
can law of patents. Prior to his elevation to the bench, the restrictive
policy of Mr. Jefferson had forced upon the commercial states the
necessity of employing a great portion of capital in manufactures ; and
consequently had rendered every improvement in the mechanic arts
of increased value to the inventor, and led to increased vigUance in
securing this value to his own use. Hence, probably more questions
of this kind have been litigated in the first circuit, than in the rest of
the union. The author of the valuable treatise on the American law
of patents justly acknowledges, what is apparent to the reader, that to
the decisions of Mr. Justice Story he is indebted for a great part of
his work.
His familiarity with these departments of the law was not acquired
at the expense of excellence in any other. In proof of this, we may
refer to the equity cases of West v. Randall, 2 Mason 181, upon parties
in equity; Dexter v. Arnold, 5 Mason 502, upon bills of review;
Trecothic v. Austin, 4 Mason 16, upon the rights and habUities of
executors and administrators ; and Prevost v. Gratz, 6 Wheat. 481,
upon trusts ; and to the common law cases of Fairfax's devisee v.
Hunter, 7 Cranch, 603, upon the capacity of an alien to take and hold
lands as a devisee; Green v. Liter, 8 Cranch 229, in which the
principles of the writ of right are at large discussed ; Halsey v. Whit
ney, 4 Mason 206, upon assignments by insolvent debtors; Tyler v.
Wilkinson, 4 Mason 397, upon aquatic rights ; and the celebrated

JOSEPH STORY.
cases of Pawlet v. Clark, 9 Cranch 292, and Terret v. Taylor, ib.
43, in which he expounded, in a manner so lucid and. universaUy
acceptable, the origin of church property, the rights of the Episcopal
Church to the glebe lands granted to it prior to the revolution, and
the hmits of the legislative power in relation to vested rights. These
last two cases, and the important decision in Beatty v. Kurtz, 2 Pet.
566, developing the true doctrine of the dedication of lands to public
uses, have settled interests and imparted quiet, in various parts of the
union, to an extent of which few are aware.
His edition of Mr. Chitty's treatise on the law of bills of exchange
and promissory notes, published in 1809, with a large body of well
digested notes of the more recent decisions, was a most acceptable
present to the profession. In the year 1810, he pubhshed an edition
of the valuable treatise on the law of shipping by Mr. Abbot, after
wards Lord Tenterden, with notes of American statutes and cases ;
of which, in 1829, he published another edition, with an additional
body of notes, including some English cases, overlooked by the author
and his English editor. These notes, the whole of which were by
him revised and recast, form a considerable portion of the work, which
they have greatly enriched, leaving little to be desired on this subject.
A new professorship of law, in Harvard University, having been
created, bearing the name of Dane, in honor of its munificent founder,
Mr. Justice Story was nominated, in tiie year 1829, to this chair.
Upon this occasion, he removed his residence from Salem to Cam
bridge. The Royall professorship, in the same department, was simul
taneously filled by the appointment of Mr. John Hooker Ashmun, a
jurist distinguished alike for the vigor of his intellect, and the extent
and accuracy of his learning. To the duties of this new office,
accepted for the advancement of his favorite science, Mr. Justice Story
brought all the unabated energies and affections of his early manhood.
The office proved no sinecure to him. It was discharged, not merely
by reading, at stated periods, a written course of public lectures, but
by close and daily personal examination of every student, in the
subject of his daily studies ; and he ever continued, by active and full
participation in the ordinary instruction of the law school, as well as
in his pubhc lectures, to afford advantages to the student, certainly
not surpassed at any simUar institution in the country.
One of the earliest fruits of his labors in this chair was the publica
tion of commentaries on the law of bailments, beuig the substance of
his lectures in this branch of the law. In the method of this work,
he followed the example of Domat and Pothier ; and has not ordy
11

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
incorporated into the text every position in their treatises which could
be of any use to a student of the common law, but may be said to
have exhausted the works of the other writers, both in the civU and
coinmon law, of whatever could illustrate the subject or add to its
value. The appearance of this work seems to have given occasion in
England, not to an English edition of the same treatise, but to a
reprint of the essay of Sir William Jones on baUments, the inaccuracy
of which, in many essential particulars, has long been confessed;
accompanied, however, by a fiiU body of notes, nearly aU of which are
taken from these commentaries, though not credited to the author
with that distinctness which the circumstances would seem to require.
His commentaries on the constitution of the United States, were
pubhshed in the year 1833, in three volumes. The work is com
prised in three great divisions, of which the first embraces a sketch
of the charters, constitutional history, and ante-revolutionary juris
prudence of the colonies ; the second contains a review of the con
stitutional history of the states, during the revolution, and the rise,
progress, decUne, and fall of the confederation ; and the third embraces
the history of the rise and adoption of the constitution, a full exposi
tion of all its provisions, with the reasons on which they were respect
ively founded, the objections by ¦which they were assailed, and such
illustrations, drawn from contemporaneous documents and subsequent
operations of the government, as may best enable the reader to esti
mate the true value of each. This work, admirable for its depth of
research, its spirited and interesting historical sketches, and its
treasures of political wisdom, has accomplished all which the friends
of constitutional law and liberty could desire. It has since been
abridged by the author, in one volume, for the use of the American
universities and higher seminaries ; and its elements have been -
wrought into a political class-book, for the subordinate departments
of instruction.
If, among Americans in general, his fame may be regarded as
resting chiefly on this masterly history and exposition of their consti
tution, perhaps jurists, both at home and abroad, wUl speak of bun
with stronger emphasis as the author of commentaries on the conflict
of laws, foreign and domestic, which he published in the year 1834.
In this most valuable work, the conflicting laws of different nations
are treated with especial reference to marriages, divorces, wUls, suc
cessions, and judgments. It has already received the highest com
mendation from enlightened and learned men in this country, and in
England, Germany, and France ; and has been reprinted in London,

JOSEPH STORY.
with the deliberate opinion of a late eminent Scottish judge, that " no
jurist can peruse it, without admiration of the industry, candor, and
learning with which it has been composed." It can be of no import
ance to settle the comparative merits of these two great works, as the
basis of professional fame. Uno remoto, non deficit alter.
In addition to these graver labors, he assisted in the collection of
the charters and laws of the colony and pro^vince of Massachusetts,
the publication of which was superintended by him, in conjunction
with Mr. Dane and Mr. WilUam Prescott, He also published, in the
year 1828, a revised edition of the statutes of the United States,
Works hke these would seem amply to have discharged the debt
which every man is said to owe to his profession ; and a mark far
lower would have satisfied the desires of many an aspirant after
honorable fame. But the exhaustless learning and untiring diligence
of this accomphshed scholar, have left us yet others, whose titles are
nearly all which our limits wiU permit us to record. His review of
Professor Hoffman's Course of Legal Study, may be found ui the six
teenth number of the North American Review. The twenty-first
number of that journal, contains his review of Jacobson's Sea La^ws,
comprising a beautifiil compend of the history, and an account of the
writers on commercial law. In the twenty-eighth number he
reviewed Mr, Johnson's Chancery Reports, in an able and learned dis
course on that branch of jurisprudence ; the forty-sixth is enriched
with an elaborate article on conmiercial law, with a review of Mr.
PhiUips' Treatise on the Law af Insurance ; the fifty-second number
contains a review of Mr. Dane's Abridgment of American Law ; and
in the fifty-eighth, and also in the first volume of this work, may
be found his highly finished sketches of the life and public services of
Mr. Chief Justice Marshall. To these are to be added his contribu
tions to the law department of the Encyclopaedia Americana, under
the title of the Congress of the United States — Contract — Courts of
the United States — Criminal law — Punishment by death — Domicil —
Equity — Jury — Lien — Law, legislation, codes — Natural law — Na
tional law — Prize — Usury. The memorial of the inhabitants of
Salem against the British orders in councU, in 1807, and that of their
merchants, in 1820, on the subject of the tariff, were also from his pen.
In the subject of education, both elementary and scientific, Mr.
Justice Story, amid all his other employments, always found time to
evince the deep and beneficial interest he felt; not only in contri
buting his full proportion of lectures to the lyceums and institutions
of education, but in effectual and active cooperation m the govern-
VOL. III-ll 13

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
ment of Harvard University. He was elected an overseer of that
institution m the year 1818 ; and, in 1825, was chosen a feUow of the
corporation. In January of that year, when still an overseer, he
delivered at the board an argument against the memorial of the pro
fessors and tutors, who claimed an exclusive right of being candidates
for election as fellows of the corporation, replete ¦with characteristic
research, not only into the law relating to the question, but into the
statutes and usages of the English colleges. The substance of this
argument was published in the fiirst volume of the American Jurist.
Among his published discourses and addresses, are his charge to
the grand jury at the first circuit court held in Maine, in the year
1820 ; his address to the gentlemen of the Suffolk bar, m the same
year; his eulogies on Mr. Samuel Dexter and Mr. Chief Justice
Parker ; and his biographical notices of Mr. WiUiam Pinckney, Mr.
Justice Washington, and Mr. Justice Trimble ; his discourse at the
anniversary of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, in the year 1825 ; his
centennial address before the Essex Historical Society, in 1828, upon
the two hundredth anniversary of the settlement of the colony of "the
Massachusetts ;" a discourse before the Mechanics' Institute of Boston ;
an address at the consecration of the rural cemetery of Mount
Auburn ; his discourse upon the occasion of his o^wn inauguration as
Dane Professor of Law, in 1829 ; and another, in 1833, at the funeral
of his colleague, the late Professor Ashmun.
Justice Story died September 10, 1845. In the cemetery of Mount
Auburn, not far from his favorite university, and within a few feet of
his earnest and eloquent friend Dr. Channing, repose his remains. The
remembrance of his virtues and accomplishments will lead posterity to
describe him in his own glowing but just delineation of [a kindred
mind. "Whatever subject he touched, was touched with a master's
hand and spirit. He employed his eloquence to adorn his leammg, and
his learning to give solid weight to his eloquence. He was always
instructive and interesting, and rarely without producing an instan
taneous conviction. A lofty ambition of excellence, that stirring spirit,
which breathes the breath of heaven, and pants for immortality,
Stistained his genius in its perilous course. He became, what he
intended, the jurist of the commercial world; and could look back
upon a long track illumined with glory." His life has been ably
written by his son, in two octavo volumes. 14

Eiigta.ved bj E Vftllroore from a painling b)- H.lnjnan.

MiJxiE.'ipnsg' w..^.w m\5fmM¥!o

O J l^^^^^^^Uc^^^

MARTIN VAN BUREN.

The subject of this memoir is the eldest son of Abraham Van Buren,
an upright and intelligent citizen of the state of New York, whose
ancestors were among the most respectable of those emigrants from
HoUand, who established themselves on the banks of the Hudson, in
the earliest period of our colonial history. His mother, Maria Goes, a
woman of exceUent sense and pleasing manners, was also of Dutch
descent. They died at advanced ages, the former in 1814, the latter
in 1818, having lived to witness and enjoy the prosperity and well
merited reputation of their son, not less distinguished by the unabated
warmth of his personal affections, than by the public honors he had
already received.
Martin Van Buren was born at Kinderhook, in the county of
Columbia, and state of New York, on the fifth of December, 1782.
In early boyhood, he displayed endowments so superior, that his
father resolved to educate him for the law, a science for which he
evinced both fitness and predilection. After obtaining the best course
of instruction which the schools of the neighborhood afforded, he
entered, in 1797, the office of Francis Sylvester, a lawyer of Kinder-
hook, and a man of estimable private character. Aspiring, from the
first, to distinction, his legal studies were pursued with great zeal ; he
was early aware of the competition with able men in which he would
be involved ; and having nothing to hope from patronage or connec
tions, he resolved to neglect no personal exertion that might pro
mise future success. He remained with Mr. Sylvester nearly six
years. Although his time, during this period, was chiefly engaged
by his studies, and by the other duties of a law student, yet, as he
grew up, he could not faU to become interested in the exciting polit
ical events which marked the close of the last century. His father,
who had been actively devoted to the American cause during the
revolution, had espoused the principles of the democratic party on the
formation of the national government, and was among the earliest
supporters of Mr. Jefferson when he became its leader. His son

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
early adopted the same sentiments; and though the gentleman with
whom he was studying, and most of his youthful associates, belonged
to the opposite party, then in the ascendant, yet he steadUy maintained
his opinions, and soon distinguished himself by his addresses at pubhc
meetings, and by other efforts, as a champion in their defence. This
course secured for him the confidence of the neighboring democracy,
and while yet young in years, he took a part in the contests of the
day, as active and efficient as that of veteran politicians. He per
ceived that the differences of opinion then agitating the country, were
not merely ideal, and that the distinctions of party were something
more than those of faction or ambition ; that under such circum
stances, every one who felt an interest in public events, must adopt
the views of one or the other, and that it became a duty to sustain
those which the honest reflections of each individual taught him to
consider best calculated to enforce the constitution, and promote the
welfare of his country. The confidence reposed in him by his feUow-
citizens holding simUar sentiments, and the reputation for talent he had
already acquired, were evinced by his being selected, when only
eighteen, as a representative in a republican convention of delegates
from the counties of Rensselaer and Columbia. From that time his
connection with the pohtics of the country, has never been mter-
mitted. Towards the close of 1802, and with a view to his approaclung
admission to the bar, he went to the city of New York, and completed
his studies in the office of WiUiam P. Van Ness, then an able lawyer
there, and afterwards the district judge of the United States for the
southern district of New York. In November, 1802, he received Ws
license to practise as an attorney of the supreme court, and immedi
ately returned to Kinderhook, where he commenced professional
business. At the succeeding term of the county courts, he was
admitted as an attorney and counsellor, and thus enroUed among the
members of the Columbia bar, then and afterwards exceedingly distin
guished in the professional history of the state. About the same time
he made his first appearance as an elector, and acting in common with
the great body of the democratic party, supported Morgan Lewis as
governor of New York, in opposition to Aaron Burr. From this
time till February, 1807, the exertions of Mr. Van Buren as an
advocate, were necessarily confined to the county courts, but at that
period, the requisite term having expired, he was admitted as a coun
sellor of the supreme court. The field of exertion was now fairly
opened to him. It was one where he could win no honor without
2

MARTIN VAN BUREN.
constant industry and high talent. He found men of distinguished
abUity practising at the same bar. To the natural opposition of profes
sional rivalry was added that of politics, the able lawyers in his vicinity
being also formidable political adversaries. The conflict rapidly con
firmed the powers of the youthful barrister ; and his forensic talent,
skill, and success soon equalled those with which he was called on to
contend. In 1808, he was first appointed to a public office, that of
surrogate of Columbia county, which he held for several years. In
1809, the increase of his business induced him to remove to Hudson,
the capital of the county, which continued to be his place of residence
during the next six years.
As the professional reputation of Mr. Van Buren became more
extended, his influence and activity in pubhc affairs were not dimi
nished. From the commencement of his career, and for many years
after his removal to Hudson, his political friends were in the minority
of his own county ; but this only served to augment his exertions, and
to confirm his sentiments, especially during the times of high excite
ment which preceded the declaration of war with Great Britain. He
had always been among those who labored to awaken, in our councils,
a spirit of resistance towards the invaders of our neutral rights, and as
the crisis approached, his position enabled him to do so with great
efficiency. In 1812, he was elected for the term of four years to the
senate of New York, in which body he took his seat in the following
November. He at once promoted and supported every measure, cal
culated to aid or strengthen the general government, in carrying on the
war. In the spring of 1813, he wrote an address to the electors of the
state, issued by the republican members of the legislature, in which
he enforced with energy and eloquence, as well as with effect, the duty
of sustaining the administration with all the influence and resources
of the state. During the subsequent session, his task became more
arduous. The federal party had a majority in the house of assembly,
though the friends of the administration continued to prevail in thei
senate. In the animated discussions to which this necessarily led, Mr.
Van Buren was a principal speaker on the floor of the senate, and at
the public conferences sometimes held by the two bodies. On all
these occasions he highly distinguished himself, both by the eloquence
of his speeches, and the readiness and dexterity he displayed in de
bates, eagerly hstened to by much excited audiences. In every mea
sure that was devised, in the bills brought forward, in the state papers
issued, his untiring industry, clear inteUect, and steady purpose were
strikingly and successfully developed.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
In the year 1814, the political friends of Mr. Van Buren regained
their ascendency in the house of assembly, and his efforts were con
sequently attended with more success. During a special session,
convened in the autumn by Governor Tompkins, he took the lead
in debate, and brought forward measures of a very decided charac
ter. Of these, the most prominent, as it was certainly one of the most
energetic ever adopted in this country, was a law, framed with refer
ence to property as well as persons, for raising immediately, through
the agency of classes, twelve thousand men, to be placed at the disposal
of the general government. This he introduced and carried against
the most strenuous opposition. He so arranged the details as to avoid
many of the obnoxious features of the mUitia law, and to place on the
wealth of the state a due share of the burden of its defence. The
strong measures of the session having been objected to, in the council
of revision, by Chancellor Kent, their validity and merits were after
wards discussed in the newspapers, and several essays of great ability
were written by Mr. Van Buren, in reply to a series attributed to the
chancellor himself At the "ensuing session, which commenced in
January, 1815, he again took the lead in support of the war, and was
actually engaged, as the chairman of a committee, in framing addi
tional measures for that end, when the express bringing the news of
peace reached Albany.
His abUity and reputation, both as a lawyer and politician, now
deservedly indicated him for the office of attorney-general of the
state, and to that he was accordingly appointed, in February 1815.
He was also chosen, about the same time, one of the regents of the
university, and soon after removed his residence to Albany. Though
the labors of his profession were thus increased, he did not retire fi'om
the senate. Reelected to that body in 1816, he continued to be found,
for the four succeeding years, among the supporters of every measure
connected with the welfare of the state. He was especially a leading
advocate of the great system of internal improvement, which was com
menced about that time, and has since, by its success, conferred so
much honor and advantage on the people of New York. The actual
foundation of that system was laid by the passage of two laws, the
one in 1816, the other in 1817 ; the former authorizing preparatory
surveys, and the latter providing for the construction of the canals.
Serious diversity of opinion upon the subject existed among menofaU
parties. Most of the political friends of Mr. Van Buren, who then
constituted a majority in the senate, were very decidedly opposed to the
measure ; and as his influence with them was great, the deepest inter-

MARTIN VAN BUREN.
est was felt in regard to his own conduct. It was at once prompt and
most efficient; and the uniform aid which those important public
works have received at his hands, is v/ell known and justly appreciated
by his fellow-citizens. A political opponent* has given the following
account of his course, relative to the two laws in question. " The biU
(of 1816) was taken up in committee of the whole, on the 16th (ot
April), on motion of Mr. Van Vechten. On motion of Mr. Van Buren,
it was amended, by striking out all those parts which went to autho
rize the commencement of the work, and making it altogether pre
paratory, by directing the procurement of more accurate surveys and
estimates. The reasons for this course were stated by Mr. Van Buren
at considerable length. ' It being evident,' he said, 'to his mind, that
the legislature did not possess sufficient information to justify the
passage of a law, authorizing the commencement of the work, and
apprehending that the measure might be prejudiced in the public mind
by inconsiderate legislation, he believed this to be the safer course.'
His amendment was adopted by a vote of twenty to nine." It may
here be remarked that almost all the western members, the most zeal
ous advocates of the measure, ultimately yielded their assent to these
views. Passing to the biU of 1817, the writer adds, " On the 14th, the
discussion was resumed, when Mr. Elmendorf, of Ulster, and Mr. P. R.
Livingston, of Dutchess, successively spoke at length in opposition.
Mr. Tibbits made a very sound and judicious reply, and was followed
by Mr. Van Buren, also in favor of the bill. This was Mr. Van
Buren's great speech of the session, and it was indeed a masterly
effort. I took notes of the whole debate at the time ; but being then
young in the business of reporting, and this being the first time I had
ever attempted to follow Mr. Van Buren, whose utterance is too rapid
for an unpractised pen, and whose manner was on that occasion too
interesting to allow a reporter to keep his eyes upon his paper, my
effort was little more than a failure. * * When Mr., Van Buren
resumed his seat, Mr. Clinton, who had been an attentive listener in the
senate chamber, breaking through that reserve which political divisions
had created, approached him, and expressed his thanks for his exer
tions, in the most flattering manner. * '* In the course of this day's
.sitting a very important motion was made by Mr. Van Buren with
success. The bill, as it passed the assembly, authorized the loans to
be made on the canal fund only ; and that was the best form in which

* Appendix to Hosack's Memoir of De 'Witt Clinton.
b

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
it could, in the first instance, be passed in that body. The vital im
portance of extending the security, was at that time fully appreciated
by the friends of the canal, and has been amply confirmed by expe
rience. The amendment was adopted by a vote of sixteen to eleven.
The result was that the bUl was successfully carried through both
houses, in the course of the evening session of the same day, and
sent to the council of revision. It became a law on the following
day, viz. the 15th day of April. Under this act the first meeting of
the commissioners, to receive proposals and make contracts, prepara
tory to the actual commencement of the work, was held at Utica, on
the 3d of July, 1817."
Continuing to act uniformly with his political associates of the
republican party, and sustaining with ability, certainly not surpassed if
equalled by any of his coadjutors, the particular views which they
deemed most conducive to the public interest, Mr. Van Buren had
now become their acknowledged leader, as he was decidedly among
the first in their confidence and affections. In the revolutions of party
politics, one so distinguished could not avoid some reverses ; and those
with whom he acted having, in the year 1819, lost the control of the
appointing power, he was removed from the office of attorney-general.
It was not long, however, before he was summoned by his fellow-citi
zens to a station of higher interest. He had, for some time, warmly
advocated a convention for amending the state constitution, which he
considered defective in many particulars. A law for the convocation
of one was passed by the legislature, and it assembled at the capital
in the year 1821. Mr. Van Buren though a resident of Albany, was,
unexpectedly to himself, returned as a member by the electors of
Otsego county, and took his seat as their representative. His speeches
in the convention are evidences at once of his ability, and of the
soundness, moderation, and justice which characterized his opinions
on the various principles of government brought into elaborate discus
sion. He resisted every measure of which he believed the operation
would be personal or partial, even when it emanated from his own
political associates ; whUe he labored to infuse into the new constitu
tion a broader republican spirit, he anxiously endeavored so to temper
it, that the just balance of influence, responsibility, and power might
be always preserved ; and the people of ^ew York certainly owe to
him, in no small degree, a system of government, doubtiess among the
best that has been formed in any of the states of our union.
From this convention, Mr. Van Buren was called to represent his
native state, in the senate of the United States. To that honorable

MARTIN VAN BUREN.
office he was elected, by the legislature of New York, in the same
year. In December, 1821, he took his seat there as the coUeague of
Rufus King, a statesman with whom indeed he differed on many ques
tions of fundamental policy, but to whose high talents no one more
willingly did justice, as certainly no one was better able to appreciate or
to cope with them. He continued in the senate more than seven years,
being reelected on the expiration of his first term, and in that enlarged
field displayed the same abilities, and soon acquired the same elevated
rank, which he had maintained in the more limited sphere afforded by
the councUs of his own state. In the discussion of all great questions
of public policy, his opinions were promptly and ably expressed. The
consistency and decision which had early secured the confidence of his
friends, still distinguished him.- Several subjects occurred which
strongly agitated the public mind, and certainly affected in no small
degree the interests and feelings of various portions of the American
people ; on each of these the views of Mr. Van Buren were candidly
and eloquently given, and although they who differed with him may
dispute their correctness, they were approved by the great mass of
those with whom he had always acted on political questions, and
whose pohtical principles had in general coincided with his own.
One of the earliest of the discussions, involving principles of policy,
was that relative to the protection of domestic manufactures, by im
posing high duties on foreign merchandise. On this, his views were
stated without reserve, and sustained in many able speeches. He
held the establishment of commercial regulations, with a view to the
encouragement of our own productions, to be within the constitutional
power of congress: but while he entertained that opinion, he was
always opposed to such an exercise of the power, as might produce
an oppressive inequality upon any portion of our citizens, or be of
advantage to one section of the union, at the expense of another ; on
the contrary, he asserted it was the sacred duty of those who adminis
tered the government, so to direct its operations as to distribute equally
its burdens and blessings among the several states and the people.
These wise and liberal sentiments were made, not unfrequently, topics
of accusation in his own state ; but while he always gave his vote
according to what he believed to be the wishes and instructions of his
constituents, holding that to be a cardinal duty of a representative, yet
he never ceased to urge conciliation and forbearance, with all the in
fluence he derived from public confidence. In addition to his speeches
in the senate, he communicated his sentiments at large to the people,
in a masterly address, delivered at a public meeting in Albany, in 1827.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
He was early sensible how much the preservation of our union
depended upon the exercise of a wise discretion on this point ; he saw
the mischief of excessive revenue on one hand, and the benefits of a
strict economy on the other ; and he endeavored to bring about that
dispassionate consideration, especially in his own state, which would
afford the best guaranty for the interests of all. Undoubtedly his con
duct greatly contributed to produce a state of feeling which has since
led to the most fortunate results.
The constitutional right of congress to appropriate money, for the
construction of improvements in the separate states, had been seriously
questioned before Mr. Van Buren became a senator ; but by degrees
the practice had increased, and with its increase became a subject of
more controversy and importance. Strongly admiring, and desirous
to aid these works, as he had evinced by sustaining the noble efforts
of his own state, he was willing to encourage all such as he deemed
to be within the sphere of the general government ; but he believed
that it was neither according to the intent of the constitution, nor
wise in policy, to interfere where the power and resources of the states
themselves could be legally exercised.
In addition to questions such as these, Mr. Van Buren devoted
himself specially to many subjects, which, if they involved less of
apparent and immediate consequence, were yet of deep and lasting
interest. When in the legislature of New York, he had proposed a
bill to abolish imprisonment for debt, except in cases of fraud, malicious
injury, or gross brealches of trust ; and these efforts he renewed for
several successive years, till at last a change of sentiment favorable to
so wise and benevolent a system was created. When transferred to
the senate of the United States, he distinguished himself by his eager
cooperation with Colonel Richard M. Johnson, then a senator from
Kentucky, in endeavoring to efface from the national code the same
provision, and his remarks on the subject were full of abUity and
eloquence. In behalf of the surviving soldiers of the revolution, he
exerted himself with even more than his usu al zeal. He spared no effort
to obtain the favorable decision of congress upon a biU introduced on
their behalf, by a committee of which he was a member. One of his
speeches, which has been reported at large, is among the most eloquent
as well as the most conclusive ever called forth by that interesting
subject from the lips of genius or the heart of patriot gratitude.
After a career, of somewhat less than eight years, thus eminently
distinguished, Mr. Van Buren was recalled by the citizens of New
York to his own state. Having been elected governor, he jesigned

MARTIN VAN BUREN.
his place in the senate, and on the first of January, 1829, entered upon
that office. His administration was short, but it was marked by a
successful effort to introduce salutary provisions for the independence
and security of elections ; and still more by at least one measure,
among the most striking and important in the financial history of the
United States. Every one had become alarmed at the evident inse
curity of many of the banking institutions of the state, arising some
times from fraud, sometimes from imprudence, sometimes perhaps from
misfortune, but always most injurious to the community. One of the
first acts of the governor was to discover and recommend a remedy
for this ; and he suggested, in a message to the legislature, the principal
provisions and outUne of a system, establishing a safety fund, which
was afterwards carried into operation, and, thus far at least, as will
probably be admitted even by political opponents, with singular benefit
to those for whose security it was devised.
He did not however remain in office to witness this result, nor that
of the other measures of public utility which he contemplated and
proposed. "Wlien General Jackson became president of the United
States, he immediately nominated Mr. Van Buren to the first place
in his administration, as secretary of state. This office he accepted,
and. resigned that of governor. A large portion of each branch
of the legislature of New York, consisted at the time of his political
opponents ; yet such had been his uprightness and abUity, that resolu
tions expressing the highest respect for his virtues and talents, and
tendering him, in warm and affectionate terms, the good wishes of the
representatives of the people, were in both unanimously passed.
Mr. Van Buren repaired to Washington, and on the twelfth of
March, 1829, commenced the discharge of his new duties, as secretary
of state, under circumstances, in one respect at least, less favorable to
their successful prosecution, than any of his distinguished predecessors.
Mr. Clay succeeded and served under Mr. Adams, who had himself
been eight years at the head of the department. Mr. Adams stood in
the same relation to Mr. Monroe, who had occupied the place under
Mr. Madison. The latter had himself performed the duties for eight
years under Mr. Jefferson. On the contrary, Mr. Van Buren entered
an administration of which no member had ever occupied a place in
the executive branch of the government, and served under a president
who was in the same situation. The advantages of commencing the
discharge of official duty so important, under the direction of those
to whom it lia4been rendered familiar by experience, must be e-vident.
Mr. Van Buren received no aid of this kind. He had to possess

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
himself of that minute acquaintance with the actual condition of our
foreign affairs, which is indispensable to a correct management of the
department, by a laborious examination of its archives ; and, once be
come master of these, he devoted himself to its business with the same
system and industry that he had displayed in every previous public
station. The records of his administration will show, that at no pre
vious period of the government was there as much official labor per
formed in the same time, or successful results to so many negotiations,
as during those two years ; and even though the credit of this be
awarded, as it justly may be in an eminent degree, to the high charac
ter, perseverance, and courage of the chief magistrate under whose
views of policy Mr. Van Buren acted, he is yet entitled to great
merit for the talent, fidelity, and zeal he displayed, in assisting to
produce these brilliant consequences. The long contested colonial
question between the United States and Great Britain, which had
been suspended by the preceding administration as hopeless, was
resumed, elaborately discussed, and finally adjusted, on terms pre-
'viously sought by the United States. New negotiations were opened
with France, relative to our claims for commercial spoliations, which
had existed for more than twenty years, and also to her demand
of commercial preferences under the eighth article of the treaty ot
Louisiana. Both of these were thoroughly investigated under the
instructions of Mr. Van Buren, and the whole matter settled by treaty,
in a manner highly satisfactory, very shortly after he left the depart
ment of state. Denmark had presented her ultimatum in respect to
simUar claims of our citizens, which had not been accepted ; nego
tiation was resumed under new instructions, and an adjustment effected
by which an indemnity, nearly fourfold larger than that previously
offered, was secured. Spain had positively refused redress for her
depredations upon our commerce, and so pertinaciously adhered to
her system of discrimination, that all negotiation on the subject had
ceased ; the question however was again opened under new and very
full instructions from Mr. Van Buren ; the matter was ably and
vigorously prosecuted by his successor ; a satisfactory indenmity was
secured : and notwithstanding the proverbial repugnance of the Spanish
government to make any change in its commercial policy, it was
induced to consent to an abolition of discriminating duties, and to the
adoption of the regulations offered by the United States to all nations.
Indemnity was obtained from Portugal for depredations upon our
commerce, and she consented to repeal the prohibitojar duties which
she had for a long time imposed upon our rice, in favor of that of

MARTIN VAN BUREN.
BrazU. Efforts, commenced by Mr. Jefferson and continued through
the succeeding administrations, to place our trade with the Levant on
a favorable and permanent footing, and to secure a passage for our
shipping to the Black Sea, were revived, and a treaty concluded with
Turkey, which has given stability and prosperity to our commerce, in
that interesting portion of the world. A negotiation opened by the
preceding administration 'with Austria was brought to a satisfactory
conclusion by a commercial treaty. For many years it had been an
object to form a commercial treaty with Russia, and repeated attempts to
do so had been made ; these were renewed : a minister was despatched
to that country with instructions in which the whole subject was fully
examined ; and the views of the United States were communicated
without reserve. Through adverse circumstances, this effort failed of
success at the time ; but when Mr. Livingston succeeded Mr. Van
Buren, he renewed it with complete success. With Mexico our affairs
were found to be in the worst condition. The ratification of a treaty
already concluded had been suspended in the Mexican congress; jea
lousies and suspicions of an aggravated nature had been excited against
us ; and such was the position of affairs, that the respect guarantied to
the diplomatic character; was actually violated in the person of our
minister. A new minister was despatched to Mexico ; the injustice and
impolicy of her course were strongly and unreservedly pointed out ;
and difficulties, which threatened an immediate rupture, were removed
-in such a manner, as to uphold our dignity and rights, and place the
relations of the two nations on the best footing of which they were
susceptible. With the republic of Colombia similar difficulties had
arisen. The head of that government had become impressed with
the belief that we were unfriendly to his country and to himself, and
this feeling had been communicated to his official associates. Its effects
were seen in the unfriendly temper manifested towards our minister,
in a refusal to listen to the just claims of our citizens, and in the
imposition of prohibitory duties on flour, our chief export to that part
of South America. A minister was sent with full instructions pre
pared by Mr. Van Buren on all these subjects, and his mission was
attended with complete success. Good feeling was restored, the
American claims were in a great degree adjusted, the exorbitant duties
on flour were reduced to the standard proposed by our government,
and the most liberal relations in all respects established. This series of
most interesting and important arrangements, relative to the foreign
intercourse of his country, so successfuUy conducted by Mr. Van
Buren, in an administration of but two years' duration, is a proof of

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
political industry, sagacity, and talent, not surpassed in our history ;
and when the feelings which seem unavoidably to spring from the
collisions and rivalry of parties shall have been forgotten, his claims to
the respect and gratitude of his country for the able and faithful per
formance of this branch of official duty, wiU be generally and cheer
fully acknowledged.
Having thus administered this important and laborious department
for about two years, Mr. Van Buren determined to retire from that
honorable trust. In June, 1831, he resigned the office of secretary of
state, with the reluctant consent of the president, by whom he was
soon after appointed minister to Great Britain. In thus leaving the
cabinet, he abandoned without hesitation the advantages which, as a
political leader, he derived from that elevated position ; but believing
that circumstances, personal to himself and which he could not other
wise control, rendered such a step beneficial to the influence and pros
pects of an administration whose measures and principles he approved,
and had hitherto sustained, he at once made the voluntary and cer
tainly" unexpected sacrifice. He did not receive the appointment to
England, separating him as it did from his own country, and espe
cially from his own state, which had so often honored him, without
some hesitation ; but our minister there being already recalled, his own
acquaintance with existing negotiations, and with the views of the
administration on several open and important questions, resulting from
the last war, made the president desirous that he should accept it. To
these views he assented, and in August, 1831, sailed for England. On
his arrival there, he Avas received by the government with that favor
and distinction to which the high offices he had previously held gave
him, perhaps, more than usual claims ; and he commenced under the
best auspices the interesting negotiations which he believed would be,
if successful, as useful to his country as honorable to himself While
thus employed abroad, his nomination was submitted by the president
at home to the senate for their constitutional advice and consent ; his
political opponents were at that time a majority, and after protracted
debates and delays, they negatived the appointment by the casting vote
of the vice-president, on the twenty sixth of January, 1832.
In consequence of this event, Mr. Van Buren returned home, and
of course was received by his numerous friends, who approved of his
public conduct, and admired his political principles and private cha
racter, with the zeal, confidence, and affection which the circumstances
were calculated to excite. As the period for electing a president and
vice-president of the United States was at hand, he was immediately.
12

MARTIN VAN BUREN.
nominated to the latter office by the convention which selected Gene
ral Jackson, a second time, as the candidate for the former. In
November foUowing, he was elected by a large majority ; on the
fourth of March, 1833, he took the oath of office ; and in December
of the same year, entered on his public duties as president of the
senate. His address on that occasion elicited the applause of all
parties, and was rendered the more conspicuous and honorable, by the
interesting associations connected with his rejection by the body over
which he was thus called to preside. The nature of his office had
now removed him in a great degree from the active public exertions
required by those he had previously held ; but as the official head of
the senate, he merited and received the approbation of his political
opponents as well as of his friends, by the simplicity and kindness of
his personal deportment, and his uniform and careful attention to the
duties of the chair. His term of service expired on the fourth of
March, 1837 ; but it having been ascertained the preceding year that
President Jackson, following the example of his predecessors, would
then retire from public life, a numerous body of delegates, representing
the democratic party of the Union, assembled at Baltimore in the
month of June, 1835, and unanimously presented him to the people of
the United States, as a candidate for the chief executive office.
The wishes of Mr, Van Buren's friends in connection with the
presidency were fully gratified. It was known that his nomination
had the cordial approbation of General Jackson, whose approval,
indeed was so ardent, that he openly and warmly advocated his
election. The day of trial gave him a handsome triumph in the
electoral colleges. He was inaugurated as president of the United
States, with all the usual honors, and with more' than usual splendor,
on the 4th of March, 1837. The day was uncommonly brilliant for
the season, which added both to the immense assembly, and to the
means of enjoyment on an event which always calls forth the highest
patriotism of our country.
The period of Mr. Van Buren's elevation to the presidential
chair was one of almost unprecedented prosperity. He found the
treasury overflowing, and the credit of the federal government, as well
as its finances, were in the most flourishing condition ; the states and
the commercial cities of the Union were proceeding in a career of
enterprise altogether unparalelled ; and so striking was all this that
General Jackson had on retiring from the chair, congratulated the
country, that he left his office while all was prosperous and happy.
The measures of the preceding administration had determined the line

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
of pohcy to be pursued by the party in power, so that Mr. Van Buren
had not to incur the responsibility of any new acts with which to
signalize or endanger the success of his administration. But alas, a
few months changed this apparent prosperity into a dense and
universal gloom. The credit system, so important, when imder a
healthy control, to the welfare of the country, had been expanded to
an undue extent ; partly as the result of the expiration of the charter
of the United States Bank, and partly to the transference of the busi
ness of the treasury to the banks of the several states. These things had
greatly increased the number of banks, fictitious capital was created,
and at length, in 1837, the very same year in which the new presi
dent entered on his office, the whole machinery fell into pieces, and a
general suspension of cash payments took place in connection with all
the banks of the United States. Mr. Van Buren thereupon recom
mended a radical change in the fiscal operations of the federal govern
ment, separating the government from all dependence on banks, and
providing that at the end of three years all payments to the government
should be made in gold and silver. The subject was universaUy and
warmly agitated, and before the plan was fully tried, the period arrived
for a new election, and on the fourth of March, 1841, Mr. Van Buren
was succeeded by General Harrison, and he soon after retired to his
beautiful estate at Kinderhook, there to enjoy his wealth, his ease,
and the respect and confidence of a very large and powerful party of
his countrymen. At the age of seventy, he cannot be expected again
to wield the sword of political power.
Mr. Van Buren married in 1806, Miss Hannah Goes, a young
lady of amiable character, whom twelve years afterwards he was called
to surrender to the grave. She was the mother of four sons, who rose
to bless their parentage, and to adorn society. In person the ex-presi
dent is about the middle height ; his figure has been remarkably erect
and graceful ; the expression of his countenance, as seen in our portrait
taken some twenty years since, is animated, and his head is large and
well formed. His manners are marked by the ease and affability
which spring from an amiable disposition, and a long acquaintance
with the world ; his moral character is unsullied by the slightest
reproach, and his domestic affections have always been maintained in
the utmost sincerity, purity, and warmth. 11

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WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON.

William Henry Harrison was bom at Berkley, the family seat of
his father, on James river, twenty-five miles from Richmond, Virginia,
in the year 1773. He was the youngest of three sons of Benjamin
Harrison, a descendant of the celebrated leader of the same name in
the wars of Cromwell. Benjamin Harrison acted a conspicuous part
in our own revolutionary struggle, and was one of the most active of
that daring band who set the ball in motion. He represented Virginia
in congress in the years 1774, '75, and '76 ; he was urged by a strong
party in the house to preside over that body, on the resignation of his
brother-in-law, Peyton Randolph ; but he declined the distinction, and
nominated John Hancock. It has been stated on contemporary au
thority, that he almost carried that modest but daring patriot into the
chair, on his at first declining to occupy it. He was chairman of the
committee of the whole house when the Declaration of Independence
was agreed to, and was one of the illustrious signers of that act. He
was afterwards a member of the house of delegates in the legislature
of Virginia, and filled the office of speaker until 1782, when he suc
ceeded Governor Nelson in_the executive chair of that state,
William Henry Harrison was placed, at an early age, at the
college of Hampden Sydney, which he left at the age of seventeen,
his mind weU imbued with classical literature, and deeply impressed
with admiration of the principles of republican Greece and Rome. In
obedience to the wishes of his father, whose hospitable and liberal
conduct through life prevented him from promising wealth to his son,
he entered on the study of medicine ; and after a short preparatory
course he repaired, in the spring of 1791, to PhUadelphia, to prosecute
his studies with greater advantage. The death of his distinguished
parent, immediately after his arrival, checked his professional aspira
tions ; and the " note of preparation" which was sounding through the
country, for a campaign against the Indians of the west, decided his
destiny. He resolved to enter into the service of his government, and
VOL. Ill— 12

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.'
to create a name for himself worthy of his father. His guardian, the
celebrated Robert Morris, opposed his wishes with all the eloquence
of his great mind ; but it was in vain that he placed the enterprise
before the enthusiastic youth in all its hardships and privations. In
order to deter him from his project, he painted an Indian war in a
remote and untried wilderness in the darkest colors ; he spoke of
victory, against such foes, as not involving glory ; but of defeat, as
insuring disgrace. The remonstrances of his friend and guardian
were fruitless, and General Washington at length yielded to the
importunities of the youth ; he presented him with an ensign's com
mission. With characteristic ardor he departed for Fort Washington,
now Cincinnati ; where, however, he arrived too late to participate in
the unfortunate campaign. The fatal 4th of November had passed,
and he was only in time to learn the earliest intelhgence of the death
of Butler, and of Oldham, and of the unparaUeled massacre of the
army of St. .Clair.
The return of the broken troops had no effect in damping the zeal
of young Harrison. He devoted himself ardently to the study of the
theory of the higher tactics ; his education gave him advantages pos
sessed by few young soldiers of that day ; and when, in the succeeding
year, the gallant Wayne assumed the command. Ensign Harrison was
immediately noticed by this experienced commander, and selected by
him for one of his aids. The judicious movements of the new army,
and the success which crowned the campaign under Wayne, are a
brilliant portion of our history. Harrison distinguished himself
handsomely in the affair of Roche de Bouc, and his chief did him the
justice to name him specially in the official report of the engagement.
After the treaty of GreenviUe, 1795, Captain Harrison was left
in command of Fort Washington ; and shortly after the departure of
General Wayne for the Atlantic states, he married the daughter of
Judge Symmes, the proprietor of the Miami purchase. The writer
of this brief sketch cannot let the opportunity slip, without offering a
passing tribute to the virtues of this estimable woman. She is distin
guished for her benevolence and her piety ; all who Imow her, view
her with esteem and affection ; and her whole course through life, in
all its relations, has been characterized by those qualifications that
complete the character of an accomplished matron.
The idleness and dissipation of a garrison life comported neither
with the taste nor active temper of Captain Harrison. He resigned
his commission, and commenced his civil career, at the age of twenty-
four years, as secretary of the north-western territory. His capacity

WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON.
was soon noticed by the leaders in the new territory, and he was
elected, in 1799, the first delegate in congress for that extensive region,
now comprising the states of Ohio, Indiana, lUinois, and the territory
of Michigan. The first and general object of his attention as a repre
sentative, was an alteration of the land system of the territory. The
law, as it then existed, ordained that not less than four thousand acres,
(except in particular cases of fractions on the banks of rivers,) could
be sold at once. The operation of such an ordinance must have been
fatal to that class of population, whose industry and labor have since
caused the country to advance with such rapid strides to wealth and
greatness ; it was alone calculated to benefit the speculator and rich
monopolist. He was appointed chairman of the committee on lands,
(the only instance, it is believed, in the history of our legislation, in
which a delegate was so distinguished,) and with the aid of the able
men who cooperated with him, he presented the celebrated Land Re
port, based on his own previous motion. A bill was framed, and after
undergoing some amendments in the senate, was passed into a law, by
which one half of the public lands were divided into sections of six
hundred and forty acres, and the other into half sections of three hun
dred and twenty acres. The old system of forfeiture for non payment
was abolished, and payment ordered to be made, one fourth in hand,
and the balance at the end of two, three, and four years, allowing still
one year, after the expiration of the fourth year, to enable the pur
chaser to extricate himself, if necessary. This was a point gained,
although it was not all the delegate contended for. To this measure
is to be imputed the rapid settlement of the country ; and if Mr. Har
rison had then been called from this world, without rendering any
other service to his country, he would richly have merited the title of
benefactor of the territory north-west of the Ohio.
The reputation acquired by the young delegate from his legislative
success, created a party in his favor, who intimated a desire that he
should supersede the" venerable governor of the territory. But Mr.
Harrison checked the development of this feeling as soon as it was
m-ade kno^wn to him. He cherished too high a veneration for the pure
and patriotic St. Clair ; he had too just an estimate of the splendid
talents of the governor, and too much sympathy for the war-worn,
though sometimes unfortunate hero, to sanction an attempt, which,
whether successful or not, would have inflicted one more pang in the
bosom of the veteran. A soldier can best feel for a soldier ; he de
clined the interference of his friends, and the subject was dropped.
But when, shortly after, Indiana was erected into a separate territory

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
he was appointed by Mr. Adams the first governor. Previously, how
ever, to quitting congress, he was present, at the discussion of the bill
for the settlement of Judge Symmes's purchase ; and although this
gentleman was his father-in-law, he took an active part in favor of
those individuals who had purchased from him before he had obtained
his patent. It was viewed as a matter of doubt, whether those who
had sued the judge in the courts of common law, would be entitled to
the remedy in equity against him. He went before the committee in
person, and urged them to insert a provision in their favor. Nor did
he desist until assured by the attorney-general and Mr. Harper, that
these persons came fully under the provisions of the act as it then
stood. This was the impulse of stern duty ; for at the moment he
was thus engaged, he considered himself as jeoparding a large pecu
niary interest of his father-in-law.
In 1801, Governor Harrison entered upon the duties of his new
office at the old mUitary post of Vincennes. The powers with which
he was vested by law have never, since the organization of our govern
ment, been conferred upon any other officer,* civil or mUitary ; and
the arduous character of the duties he had to perform, can only be
appreciated by those who are acquainted with the savage and cunning
temper of the north-western Indians ; with the genius of the early pio
neers, and the nature of a frontier settlement. The dangers of such
actions as the battle of Tippecanoe, the defence of Fort Meigs, and
the battle of the Thames, are appreciated and felt by all ; and the vic
tories which were consequent upon them have crowned the victors
with a never fading wreath : but these acts, brilliant as they were, fade
when put in comparison with the unremitting labor and exposure to
which, for many years after the organization of the first grade of
territorial government, the new executive was exposed. The whole
territory consisted of three settlements, so widely separated that it
was impossible for them to contribute to their mutual defence or
encouragement. The first was Clarke's Grant at the falls of Ohio •
the second, the old French establishment at Vincennes ; and the third
extended from Kaskaskia to Kahokia, on the Mississippi ; the whole
comprising a population of about five thousand souls. The territory
thus defenceless, presented a frontier, assaUable almost at every point,
on the north-east, north, and north-west boundaries. Numerous tribes
of warlike Indians were thickly scattered throughout the northern por
* Among his duties was that of commissioner to treat with the Indians. In tliis capacity
he concluded fifteen ti'eaties, and purchased their title to upwards of seventy millions of
acres of land. .

WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON.
tion of the territory, and far beyond its limits, whose hostUe feelings
were constantly inflamed by the intrigues of British agents and traders,
if not by the immediate influence of the English government itself,
and not unfrequently by the uncontrollable outrages of the Ameri
can hunters themselves ; a circumstance which it always has bee
found impossible to prevent, in the early settlement of the west. Go
vernor Harrison applied himself with characteristic energy and skill.
It seems truly miraculous to us, when we look back to the early his
tory of his government, that he should have been able to keep down
Indian invasion in the infant state of the territory, seeing the great
capacity the savages displayed for harassing him at a period when his
resources and means had so much increased. The fact proclaims
loudly the talents of the chief. Justice tempered by mildness ; con
ciliation and firmness, accompanied by a never slumbering watchful
ness ; were the means he used. These enabled him to surmount
difficulties, under which an ordinary capacity must have been pros
trated. The voluminous correspondence of Governor Harrison with
Mr. Jefferson, from 1802 till 1809, is a recorded testimony of the
ability and success of his administration.
During the year 1811, however, the intrigues of British agents
operating on the passions of the Indians, brought affairs to a crisis
which rendered hostilities unavoidable. Tecumseh, and his prophet
brother, had been laboring unceasingly, since 1805, to bring about this
result. Harrison called upon Colonel Boyd of the 4th United States
regiment, then at Pittsburgh (who immediately joined him), and em
bodied a mihtia force as strong as the emergency would permit. To
these were added a small but gallant band of chivahous volunteers
from Kentucky, consisting of about sixty-five individuals. With these
he commenced his march towards the prophet's town at Tippecanoe.
On the sixth of November he arrived in sight of the Indian village, and
in obedience to his orders made several fruitless attempts to negotiate
with the savages. Finding it impossible to bring them to any discus
sion, he resolved to encamp for the night, under a promise from the
chiefs to hold a conference next day. He sent forward Brigade Major
Clarke, and Major Waller Taylor, to select a proper position for the
encampment. These officers shortly after returned, and reported that
they had found a situation well calculated for the purpose, and on
examination, the commander approved of it. Subsequent examination
has proved that the ground was admirably adapted to baffle the success
of a sudden attack, the only kind which the great experience of Har
rison assured him would be attempted. The men reposed upon the
s

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
spot which each, individually, should occupy, in case of attack. The
event justified the anticipations of the chief. On the morning of the
7th, before daylight, the onset was made with the usual yells and
impetuosity. But the army was ready ; Harrison had risen some
time before, and had roused the officers near him. Our limits do not
permit us to enter into a detail of the action ; the arrangement of the
troops was masterly, and showed the well educated and experienced
soldier. The Indians fought with their usual desperation, and main
tained their ground for some time with extraordinary courage. Victory
declared in favor of discipline, at the expense, however, of some of the
most gaUant spirits of the age. Among the slain were Colonels Daveis
and Owen of Kentucky, and Captain Spencer of Indiana. Governor
Harrison received a bullet through his stock, without touching his
neck. The legislature of Kentucky, at its next session, whUst in
mourning for her gaUant dead, passed the foUowing resolution, viz :
"Resolved, That Governor William H. Harrison has behaved
like a hero, a patriot, and general ; and that for his cool, deliberate,
skilful, and gaUant conduct, in the battle of Tippecanoe, he weU
deserves the thanks of the nation."
From this period, until after the declaration of war against England,
Governor Harrison was unremittingly engaged in negotiating with
the Indians, and preparing to resist a more extended attack from them.
In August, 1812, he received the brevet of major general in the Ken
tucky militia, to enable him to command the forces marching to reheve
Detroit. He immediately applied himself to the proper organization
of his army on the north-western frontier. The surrender of HuU
changed the face of affairs ; he was appointed a major general in the
army of the United States, and his duties embraced a larger sphere.
Every thing was in confusion, and every thing was to be done ; money,
arms, and men were to be raised. It is under circumstances like these
that the talents of a great general are developed more powerfully than
in conducting a battle. To do justice to this part of the biography
of Harrison requires a volume of itself. Becoming stronger from
reverses, collecting munitions of war, and defending Fort Meigs, were
the prominent features of his operations, until we find him in pursuit
of Proctor on the Canadian shore. On the Sth of October, 1813, he
brought the British army and their Indian allies, under Proctor and
Tecumseh, to action, near the river Thames. The victory achieved
by militia over the disciplined troops of England, on this briUiant day,
was decisive ; and like the battle of the Cowpens in the war of the
Revolution, spread joy and animation over the whole Union. For this

WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON.
important action congress presented General Harrison with a gold
medal. The success of the day is mainly attributable to the novei
expedient of charging through the British lines with mounted infantry.
The glory of originating this manoeuvre belongs exclusively to General
Harrison.* The north-western frontier being relieved, and important aid given
to that of Niagara, General Harrison left his troops at Sacket's Har
bor, under the command of Colonel Smith, and departed for Wash
ington by the way of New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. On
the whole route he was received with enthusiasm, and honored with
the highest marks of distinction that can be offered to a citizen by a
republican people.
Owing to a misunderstanding between Mr. Secretary Armstrong
and himself. General Harrison resigned his commission in the spring
of 1814. Mr. Madison sincerely deplored this step, and assured Go
vernor Shelby, in a letter Avritten immediately after the resignation,
" that it would not have been accepted had he been in Washington."
It was received and accepted by Secretary Armstrong, while the
president was absent at the Springs.
General Harrison retired to his farm at North Bend, in Ohio, from
which he was successively called by the people, to represent them in
the congress of the United States, and in the legislature of the state.
In 1824-5, he was elected to the senate of the United States ; and in
1828, he was appointed minister to Colombia, which station he held
until he was recalled by President Jackson, not for any aUeged fault,
but in consequence of some difference of views on the Panama ques
tion. General Harrison again returned to the pursuits of agriculture
at North Bend. In 1834, on the almost unanimous petition of the
citizens of the county, he was appointed prothonotary of the court of
Hamilton county, which office he attended to in person.
The frosts of age were now gathering on his head, but the claims
of a large family demanded vigorous efforts for their benefit; and
there seemed a probability that he might yet gain the property which
he had been too honest hitherto to accumulate, even when many other
public servants would have done it. But in the year 1836, the eyes
of not a few of his countrymen were fixed on him as the future presi
dent of the Union. He then received seventy-two electoral votes,
and at the Whig Convention in Harrisburg, December, 1839, General
* This claim must not be considered as in the least detracting from the merit of CoIon.el
Jiihnson, by whom the mounted men were led lo the charge, and by whom Ihe manosuvre
was successfully and gallantly executed.— Ed.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Harrison received the unanimous nomination of that body as the
Whig candidate for the presidency ; and after a contest more animated
and more general than any which had before occurred, he received two
hundred and thirty-four of the two hundred and ninety-four votes
given in the twenty-six states.
General Harrison was now sixty-eight years of age; and his
elevation to the presidency diffused a general joy over the nation. His
progress from his residence, the log cabin — to the White house at
Washington, was marked by the most gratifying demonstrations of
popular affection and confidence. His immediate family remained in
Ohio, intending to follow him in the ensuing summer ; but, alas, how
were they doomed to disappointment. On the 4th of March, 1841,
his inauguration was attended by a multitude far greater than had
ever before assembled at Washington, many thousands of whom heard
his address, which was pronounced in a remarkably clear and distinct
voice. This composition, though not marked by any extraordinary
ability as a literary performance, was of a character and tone as
greatly to strengthen his hold on the affections of the people ; and he
entered, on the duties of his office, knowing that from the moment he
was nominated to the station he had been rising in public esteem,
that he was now exceedingly popular, and that the promise of the
future was all brightness. '
But how soon was that brightness converted into darkness and
gloom ! On the first of the following month he became indisposed,
and called in medical aid. His disease, it was soon found, baffled the
skill of the physicians, and so rapidly did his enfeebled frame sink
under it, that at half past twelve on the morning of the 4th of April,
one short month after his elevation to the presidential chair, he sunk,
calmly into the sleep of death. The last words he uttered were
characteristic of his life, and breathed the devotion of the patriot's
heart for the good of his beloved country ; they were — " My last
WISH, IS THAT the TRUE PRINCIPLES OF THE GOVERNMENT MAY BE
CARRIED out! — I ASK NOTHING MORE."
He was the first president of the United States who died in office,
and his death was regarded as a most calamitous event. The mem
bers of his cabinet in their notification of the fact, truly said, — "The
people of the United States, overwhelmed, like ourselves, by an event
so unexpected and so melancholy, will derive consolation from know
ing that his death was calm and resigned, as his life had been patriotic,
useful, and distinguished." His funeral presented a most imposing
scene of intense sorrow and of solemn grandeur.

.¦. e d. by E. Mackenzie &oina F4jTr*:rtjfcyJ.Heriin.'g

mmm. mM^mmmsiE

AuyO WbcAJ'fn^^

OLIVER ELLSWORTH, LL. D.
No country nas been so distinguished as our own by the numoer
and prominence of its self-made men. In science, they have been
her pioneers, disarming even the lightning of its terror; in prosperity,
they have been the guardians of her dearest treasures ; in the hour
of danger they have gathered, as the Macedonian phalanx, to her
side. The subject of this memoir was not born in obscurity, or compelled
to struggle with poverty and ignorance on his passage to renown.
Yet he was strictly of that number who, in the " baptism of fame,
have given themselves their own name ;" and for whom industry and
internal resource have stood in the place of parentage and of patri
mony. He sprang, as have many of our mightiest and noblest, from the
hardy yeomanry of New England. If he was indebted to education
for his greatness, he was still more indebted to patient labor ; as the
firmly-rooted oak owes less to culture, than to its power of enduring
those changes of climate which roughen its trunk but reveal its energy.
Oliver Ellsworth was bom in Windsor, one of the most ancient
ly settled towns in Connecticut, on the 29tii of April, 1745, of respect
able parents, inured to the pursuits of agriculture. From them he deri v-
ed the virtues of industry, economy, and integrity, which were incorpo
rated with the elements of his character. He derived also physical bene
fits from a system of nurture which rejected all luxurious indulgence.
Of him it might be said, as it was of Chief Justice Marshall, that " his
health was invigorated by the athletic exercises to which his father
inured him." Perhaps, also, from some sternness of parental disci
pline, which was often a feature of these early times, his mind drew a
portion of its Spartan firmness. His boyhood was so divided between
agricultural toils and classical studies, as to impress the invaluable les-
sons of the worth of time and the necessity of application.
VOL. 111-13 I

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
At the age of seventeen he entered Yale College, whence he after
wards removed to Princeton, and received there his honorary degree
at the completion of his twenty-first year. It is not known that his
academic course exhibited any remarkable superiority. Precocity was
not a feature of his mind. The slow ripening of its powers betokened
a deep root and long-contiuued harvest.
After terminating his collegiate studies, he engaged in the instruc
tion of youth, that most honorable employment to which so many of
our greatest men have for a time devoted themselves. Though sur
rounded by gay companions, he was enabled to resist their influence,
and make choice of that piety which was to be his guide on the slip
pery heights of honor, and his strength amid the feebleness of hoary
hairs. It laid its strong foundation at that momentous period when
youth is most tempted to contend with the restrictions of morality and
to forget God. His clear-sighted and majestic mind acknowledged
the truth of revelation, and humbled itself at the foot of the cross with
child-like simplicity. His public profession of a Christian's faith,
made when religion was less fashionable than it is at present, gave
proof of that fearless integrity in duty which is an element of true
greatness. He had a predilection for Theology, and made respectable
progress in its preparatory studies ; but ultimately decided on the pro
fession of law.
His marriage was early in life, and the result of mutual attachment.
The lady, who was of the highly-respected family of the "W olcotts,
by her unwearied and judicious attention to domestic care, left his
mind at liberty for higher departments. They became the parents of
nine children, six of whom survived him,connected with the aristocra
cy of their native State.
At the commencement of his household establishment, he found him
self thrown upon his own resources. A farm of wild land in the pa
rish of Wintonbury, and an axe, were the gifts of his father, with the
understanding that they completed his full moiety of the paternal es
tate. But as the shield given by the Spartan mothers to their sons,
with the charge, " return with it or return vpon it," enkindled an in
domitable courage ; so the consciousness of entire self dependence
awoke a spirit which was to conquer all obstacles. In those rough
preliminary toils, by which land is cleared and subjected to cultiva
tion, he performed the service of a day-laborer, and at night pursued
those studies by which his future eminence was to be attained. The
materials with which the fences of his farm were to be constructed he
wrought with his own hands from the trees that grew upon it, nor re-

OLIVER ELLSWORTH.
mitted this branch of labor until it was completely enclosed. With
hands swollen by unaccustomed effort, and painful from the wounds
of thorns with which he contended, he came every morning during
the session of the courts, to Hartford, returning at night to take charge
of his cattle, and to sustain the imperative duties of an agriculturist.
In this union of differing and difficult professions he evinced great
mental vigor and physical endurance. It is impossible to view the
future Chief Justice of the United States at this period of his existence
without peculiar and touching interest. At dawn, like Cincinnatus,
at his plough, and at eve laying his hand on the mighty fabric of ju
risprudence, as if, like the chosen people, he followed the " pillar of
cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night."
It would seem that no ambition of distinction had at this time sti
mulated his career. Perhaps his mind was not fully aware of its own
Herculean powers. Its moving principle had been the simple con
sciousness of duty, — a desire to provide for a growing family, and to
be found faithful in the stewardship of entrusted time and talents.
During a period of extreme exertion, while , sustaining a difficult
cause at the bar in Hartford, he received a new incentive — the voice ot
praise. " Who is that young man ? He speaks well." These were
the words of a stranger. They sank into his heart. As he went
homeward, he ruminated upon them. " He speaks loell." It was a
new idea to him. Vanity was not inherent to an intellect of his order,
but the sweetness of merited praise came when it began to be needed
as an encouragement on its arduous course. Of this incident he spoke,
even in his latest years, to his children. It would be interesting, were
it possible to discover who thus touched with electric spark that mighty
mind, and aided in developing its latent force.
The increase of his business imposed the necessity of a removal to
Hartford. There he received the lucrative office of States' attorney, and
was yearly elected representative to the general assembly. At the com
mencement of the war of the Revolution he took firm ground in favor
of the independence of the country. He even went out witii the mili
tia of the county when incursions were made by the enemy into his
native State, This he did, not from any complacency in military
life, but to show his approbation of the cause for which resistance was
hazarded. In 1777 he was chosen a delegate to Congress ; in 1784
a Judge of the Superior Court of Connecticut ; and in 1789 a senator
of the United States, under their new confederation. His talents as a
man, and his learning as a jurist, were now ptJt in strict requisition
for the public good. The system of policy which he advocated was

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
dignified and consistent. Avoidance of useless expenditure, prompt
execution of the laws, an open and severe simplicity, were its distin
guishing features. The regimen that promotes the health of repub
lics was well understood by him. It was the same which, as an indi
vidual, he had pursued with safety and success.
His mind had the capacity of intense and stern application. Never
was this more fully tested than during those seven years when he filled
a seat in the senate of the United States. So deep was his love of
country, that when any important point, involving her interests, was
in discussion, he has been known to pass the whole night traversing
his chamber, and repelling sleep, until he had possessed himself of the
subject in all its bearings. With such forgetfulness of self did he tax
his energies, that after the termination of such questions he would be
left exhausted, as after some extreme physical exertion.
It was remarked, that from these labors in the senate his mind evi
dently gained breadth and expansion. As the period of his continu
ance there extended beyond his fiftieth year, an argument is thus ob
tained to disprove the theory that rigidity settles upon intellect as upon
the muscles, and that age may limit its improvement as easily as to
chain the limbs from their elastic play.
In the spring of 1796 he received the appointment of Chief Justice
of the United States. It was the universal suffrage of the nation that
there was in him a fitness for the high honor of a place in that body,
which, like the ancient Ephori, lifted the supremacy of the law above
all other symbols of earthly majesty. In the discharge of the duties of
this elevated station he displayed an immoveable patience, and a judg
ment of men and things matured by long experience. His clear con
ceptions of right and wrong were never confused by a heated imagi
nation or morbid feelings. He was slow in arriving at the truth, but
in his decisions inflexible. His impartiality won the confidence of all ;
and throughout his whole judicial career, his integrity remained un
tarnished and above suspicion.
It was with reluctance that the nation saw him about to be with
drawn from a post where she was hourly deriving benefits from his
wisdom, to assume the office of ambassador to France. But a crisis
in our political intercourse with that kingdom, involving danger of
hostilities, required peculiar sldll in negotiation, and he was appointed,
in conjunction with Governor Davie of North Carolina, and the Hon.
William V. Murray, then resident minister at the Hague. This was
a nomination which he would not have desired ; and though his pa
triotism induced him to acquiesce, it was at an expense of health from

OLIVER ELLSWORTH.
which he never fully recovered. Physical infirmities, which before his
departure had revealed themselves, became confirmed by the hardships
of a protracted voyage and the fatigues of foreign travel, into incura
ble diseases.
It was at the close of the year 1799 that he took passage to Europe.
He found the government of France, then under the consulship ot
Bonaparte, unsettled and fluctuating. Duplicity and intrigue gave
coloring to its diplomacy. His upright mind, severe in rectitude,
found there little congeniality. Its earnestness for the right, and its
strict morality, were even marked as traits of imbecility, by a cabinet
whose pole-star was expediency.
After concluding the business entrusted to him, he passed over into
England, and experienced high gratification from a view of that glo
rious island, and an acquaintance with its illustrious men. He was
accompanied on his travels in Europe by his eldest son, a promising
youth, whose unremitting devotion to his collegiate studies had se
riously impaired his health. It was difficult, even by the excitement
and novelty of foreign cities, to divert his attention from books. He
received, therefore, but slight benefit from change of scene ; and his
death, which took place soon after his return, while making trial of
the more genial climate of the West Indies, was a deep affliction to the
affectionate father.
An incident connected with his return from Europe, shows the place
that religion habitually held in his soul. He had resigned the office
of Chief Justice of the United States, that he might devote the remain
der of his life to that retirement and domestic tranquillity from which
he had been so long an exile. His arrival at his home was therefore
anticipated with an eagerness proportioned to his long absence, and to
the cheering hope of retaining him there. At his beautiful mansion in
Windsor all was joyful expectancy. His children listened to the echo
of every approaching wheel, and saddened at perceiving that it had
not brought their father. At length his own carriage was indeed des
cried. The whole family group hastened forth to welcome him.
Wife, and son, and daughter, and servant born in his house, were
there. It was a thrilling moment. The profound statesman, whose
wealth and fame had been purchased by no sacrifice of virtue, wea
ried with those services which had rendered his name illustrious,
was coming to share the repose of his native shades, and to be parted
from them no more. He alighted from his carriage. But he spoke
not to his wife. He returned not the embrace of his chUdren. He
glanced not even at his twin boys, the youngest of that beloved circle,

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Leaning over his gate, and covering his face, he first 'silently breathed
a prayer of gratitude to that Being who gave him once more to see his
habitation in safety and in peace. He took not the full cup of joy that
was pressed to his lips until it had been hallowed by devotion,, until
he had humbly, yet openly, acknowledged the God who had " led him
all his life long, to that day."
His resolution to abstain from all public service in future, he found
it impossible perfectly to maintain. The urgent solicitations of the
people, combining with a patriotism which never slumbered, induced
him, in 1802, to accept the office of member of the CouncU of Con
necticut, in which he continued till his death. In 1807 he received
the appointment of Chief Justice of his native State ; but his increas
ing infirmities led him to decline the offered honor.
The leisure to which he had been for many years a stranger, ena
bled him to cultivate domestic enjoyment, and to recur, as an occasion
al amusement, to agricultural occupation. His ardent affections found
delight in the society of his children. The love of children had al
ways been one of his prominent traits of character. From the chi
canery and selfishness of mankind, he turned with renewed pleasure
to their simplicity. It was remarked of him in early life, that when
deeply engaged in those absorbing studies which afterwards won for
him fortune and renown, he daily spent some time in caressing his
neighbor's chUdren. He even seemed disappointed when any circum
stance prevented this accustomed intercourse. Though there were
long periods in which he was compelled to seclude himself from the
pleasures of the domestic circle, yet he would sometimes permit his
own littie ones to enter his study when occupied in the severest toils
of thought, and draw pictures for their amusement. " I like to indulge
them in this way," he observed ; " and when it is necessary to deny
them, I send them to their mother."
As they advanced in age, their improvement, and the formation of
their habits, were felt by him in their full importance. The incalcu
lable worth of time, the duty of industry, the folly of extravagance, the
necessity of rectitude and piety, were impressed both by precept and
example. In his letters, when absent from them, his rules for conduct
and principle were expressed with striking adaptation to their differ
ence of age or character. His family letters, notwithstanding the mag
nitude and pressure of public business, were exhibitions of correct and
beautiful chirography. In one of these, addressed to his wife, whUe
a senator in the first Congress convened at New- York, in 1789, he
says : —

OLIVER ELLSWORTH.
« The family in which I live have no white children. But I often
amuse myself with a colored one about the size of our little daughter,
who peeps into my door now and then, with a long story, which I
cannot more than half understand. Our two sons I sometimes fancy
that I pick out among the little boys playing at marbles in the street.
Our eldest daughter is, I trust, alternately employed, between her book
and her wheel. You must teach her what is useful, the world wUl
teach her enough of what is not. The nameless littie one I am hardly
enough acquainted with to have much idea of; yet I think she oc
cupies a corner of my heart, especially when I consider her at your
breast." Alluding to the death of an infant, several years after the event had
taken place, he says, in a letter to his wife : — " He who bore your
countenance and my name — the world has never been the same to
me since his death,"
These traits of household tenderness are peculiarly delightful in
great men. Perhaps we unconsciously associate with them some idea
of sternness, and are cheered when we find them linked to our common
nature by its gentler sympathies. In tracing to their famUiar sources
the warm current of his affections, we find that neither the toils of an
absorbing profession, the tumults of political life, nor the cares of
greatness, made him insensible to the enjoyments of the fireside, in
different to the innocent sports of infancy, or regardless of the humble
happiness of childhood. ¦
His long intercourse with men of education and rank created no
contempt for the rustic society and conversation of a retired country
village. He knew how to demean himself to men of low degree. His
was that simple moral greatness, which never fears to demean itself by
association with inferiors. He especially pitied those in a state of ser
vitude. He treated them with a kindness and sympathy that won
their confidence without diminishing their respect. ¦ He felt that in a
republic the grades of distinction ought not to be jealously defined.
His dignity had no need of the petty props of haughtiness and reserve.
Mingled with his high intellectual endowments, was a clear and
direct common sense. This kept him from mistake in the every-day
affairs of life, where sometimes the greatest men have been so much
at a loss, as to subject themselves to the scoffs of the vulgar, and even
to bring greatness into disrepute among the multitude. He was tho
roughly and practically acquauited with many of those details which
wealth seldom understands and often despises. This was remarked
with wonder during his tour through the southern States. There, in

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
the court-yard of a public house, when the stage-coach had sustained
same injury, the inquiry was once made, " Who is that gentleman
who understands every thing, and is eloquent about a coach-wheel 7 "
" The Chief Justice of the United States," was the reply.
His example before his household was calculated to impress the im
portance of that religion which he revered and loved. Guests occa
sionally present at their morning and evening devotions, were solem
nized by the fervor and sublimity of his prayers. He inculcated on
all under his roof a reverence for the sabbath ; and was in the habit
of gathering them around him, and reading them a sermon, in addition
to the public worship of the day. During the changes of an eventfiil
life, the fluctuations of revolution, the interruptions incidental to high
office, the gaiety of the court of France, and the desultory habits im
posed by foreign travel, he never overlooked the sacred obligation of
the sabbath, or shunned to give infidelity a " reason for the hope that
was in him."
As he approached the close of life, the Inspired Volume, which had
from youth been his guide and counsellor, became more and more
dear. Like a new book, it revealed to him unknown treasures. It
was both affecting and sublime, to see one who had attained such emi
nence in the knowledge of human laws, sitting at the feet of the Su
preme Lawgiver with the docility of a child. Day and night, while
he stood on the verge of a higher existence, did his soul, disengaging
itself from earthly things, search the scriptures of truth with solemnity
and delight. His last illness was sustained with the fortitude of a
Christian ; and his death took place on the 26th of November, 1807,
in the sixty-third year of his age.
In contemplating his elevated character, we are struck with the
prominence of high and inflexible rectitude, and of that patriotism
which, forgetful of self, firmly endured toil and sustained privation.
What was said of his excellent friend, Roger Sherman, might with
equal propriety be affirmed of him — that his " actions, whether public
or private, were attended by the secret interrogatory, what course is
right ? and that he never once propounded to himself the question,
will it be popular ? " He has also been heard to assert, that in youth
he took Sherman for his model ; and the elder President Adams re
marked, in his sententious manner, that " this was praise enough for
both." Let it also be added, as a part of the fame of Judge Ells
worth, that his pure principles, and the wisdom which regulated his
political course, won for him both the praise and friend-ship of Wash
ington.

OLIVER ELLSWORTH.
The stmcture of his mind was lofty and well-balanced. His elo
quence rested on the basis of the reasoning powers. It aimed not to
dazzle, but to convince. It has been pronounced deficient in the graces
of imagination- But the devotion with which he embraced that ma
jestic and severe science, which takes cognizance of man in his capa
city of " impeding or being impeded ; " which demands dexterity to un
twist thespider-web of in vention, strength to strike and wisdom to arrest
those ideas of justice which come " only as the lightning flash amid
the storm of human passions," scarcely comports with the play of fan
cy or the luxury of leisure. The department of imagination was
therefore in him uncultivated. Thought, accustomed, like the laborer,
to split the " unwedgeable and knotty oak," could not stoop to trim
the vine or to train the flower. In his mind the sentiment of the beau
tiful was overpowered by combinations derived from the usefiil and
the just. But the truth that phUosophy seeks, and ihe faith that Chris
tianity imposes, held ever their high places in his soul.
We perceive in him a predominance of those virtues which give
permanence to republics — indefatigable industry, opposition to luxury
and extravagance, contempt of show and pretension, inflexible inte
grity, respect for men of low degree, love of country, and fear of God.
His was the intellectual and moral power that would have arrested
heterogeneous and fluctuating particles, and settied them into order
and durabUity.
Educate a race with his principles and habits, and let them de
termine the question, whether a republic is a form of government in
trinsically and necessarily perishable.
The name of Oliver Ellsworth, by every succeeding genera
tion in this land of freedom, should be held venerable and dear ; cou
pled with the memory of our early liberties, and with the virtues that
preserve them.
It will not be inapposite to close this brief sketch with the inscrip
tion on his monument, from the pen of his valued friend, the late
Chauncey Goodrich, Governor of the State of Connecticut
To the Memory of
Oliver Ellsworth, LL.D.
An assistant in the Council, and
a Judge of the Superior Court
of the State of Connecticut ;
A member of the Convention which formed,
and of the State Convention of Connecticut which adopted
VOL. HI— u 9

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
the Constitution of the United States :
Senator, and Chief Justice of the United States •
One of the Envoys Extraordinary, and
Ministers Plenipotentiary,
who made the Convention of 1801,
between the United States and the French Republic.
Amiable and exemplary
in all the relations of the domestic, social, and Christian character.
Pre-eminentiy useful
in all the elevated offices he sustained ;
Whose great talents,
under the guidance of inflexible integrity,
consummate wisdom,
and enlightened zeal,
employed in his country's cause and service,
placed him among the first of the illustrious statesmen
who achieved the Independence,
and established the Government of the American Republic;
reflecting lustre
on the character of his native State,
and of the United States.
Bom at Windsor, on the 29th of AprU, 1745 :
and there died.
on the 26th of November, 1807.
Conjugal affection and filial piety
have erected this monument.

Pointed lij Col. John Trujnbiill.

Eugrtived hy f -Miiclceiizii;.

.JOMATMAW .TmiDrMIS'£riLIL«

JONATHAN TRUMBULL.
Joseph Trumbull, the ancestor of the Trumbull famUy, came, as
is understood, from Cumberland County, England, to Ipswich, in
Massachusetts, in the year 1640. His son, John, removed to Suffield,
Hartford County, Connecticut, which was then within the jurisdic
tion of Massachusetts. He had three sons, John, Joseph, and
Benoni. Their descendants have been distinguished in the civil, po
litical, and literary history of the State. John Trumbull, the cele
brated author of McFingal and other poems, was the son of John,
who was a distinguished clergyman at Waterbury. The Reverend
Benjamin Trumbull, D. D., the historian, was the son of Benoni,
who was a clergyman at Hebron. Jonathan Trumbull was the
son of Joseph, who settled at Lebanon as a merchant, where the sub
ject of this memoir was born, on the 10th of June, (O. S.) 1710.
He entered Harvard College in 1724, and graduated with honor
in 1727. He immediately commenced the study of Theology with
the Rev. Solomon WiUiams of Lebanon. In due time he was li
censed to preach, and soon after was invited to settle in the ministry
at Colchester, in his native State. WhUe deliberating upon the sub
ject, a family affliction turned the current of his life into another
channel. An elder brother, who was engaged in business with his
father, had saUed on a voyage to London, in June 1732, and was never
more heard of For a long time a forlorn hope was entertained that
the vessel had been captured by the Algerines ; but, distressing as even
that hope was, time proved it to be fallacious. The loss of this son,
with the vessel and cargo, which wholly belonged to them, was se
verely felt by the aged father, who found himself unfitted to settie up
his mercantile concerns without the assistance of his surviving son,
who, at the urgent request of his father, with great reluctance de
clined the caU of the church at Colchester.
In closing up the affairs of his brother, Jonathan Trumbull

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
gradually commenced business for himself, and was, for many years,
a merchant in his native town. He imported his goods direct from
London, and by his fair and upright dealing secured the respect and
confidence of the public.
At the age of twenty-three he was elected a member of the Gene
ral Assembly of the Colony. Here a new scene opened before him.
His talents for public business were soon perceived and acknow
ledged, and he rose rapidly in the ^estimation of the freemen of the
Colony. He was soon chosen speaker of the House, and shortly af
terward a member of the Council. In 1766 he was elected Lieute
nant-Governor of the Colony, and, by virtue of that office. Chief
Judge of the Superior Court. He continued in that office until 1768.
Pitkin, the Governor of the Colony, being advanced in life, was cau
tious in his proceedings upon the absorbing subjects which then agi
tated the public mind. The right claimed by the British Parliament
of taxing the Colonies at their pleasure, and the passage of the Stamp
Act, caused great excitement. Governor Pitkin, and several of the
council, took the oath enjoined by the British Government on that
occasion ; but the Lieutenant-Governor absolutely refused to take it
himself, or to be present when it was administered to others.
In resistance to the arbitrary acts of Parliament, no person in the
Colony was more active, ardent, or energetic, than Lieutenant-Go
vernor Trumbull.
In 1769 he was chosen by the people Governor of the Colony, as
one on whom, in times of danger and trouble, they could safely rely ;
and he fulfilled their expectations to the end of his career. He de
cided in councU, by his casting vote, to resist, by force of arms, the
encroachments of Great Britain against the liberties of the Colony.
This was an act of fearful responsibility, considering the power of
the nation to be resisted and the means of defence ; and it may here
be remarked, that he was the only Colonial Governor, at the com
mencement of the Revolution, who espoused the cause of the people.
During the whole controversy he remained steadfast in the cause ;
and he was the only Governor of a State who held his station through
the war. He was not only considered the leader of the Whigs in his
own State, but throughout New England. His firmness in danger ;
his persevering spirit in the most gloomy period ; his ardor, patriot
ism, and zeal in his country's cause ; endeared him to all lovers of
their country. As a politician, his views were clear, correct, and
open ; and the soundness and sagacity of his opinions and judgment
were proved by the happy results which followed his undeviating

JONATHAN TRUMBULL.
course. As he never paused in the performance of his duty, so he
never despaired of the triumph of his countrymen.
The immense business he transacted, and the manner in which it
was done, proved his diligence, ability, and fidelity. During the
whole war of the Revolution a council of safety sat with him, except
during the sessions of the General Assembly : at all other times he
and his council were the Executive of the State, In addition to his
duties as Governor, and his attendance with the Legislature, (at least
three times a year,) he sat in council during the war more than one
thousand days. His correspondence with the Governors of the other
States, and with the Commander-in-chief and other officers of the
army, was very extensive. He promptly complied with the requisi
tions of General Washington for supplies, to the extent of his ability,
or the power of the State : and it is a fact not generally known, that
Connecticut furnished the United States with more troops and sup
plies than any other State in the Union, except Massachusetts. In
addition to the contributions of Connecticut to the forces of the Union,
her own sons defended their soil themselves. It is believed the
United States never furnished a regiment for her protection, or to
repel an invading enemy, and yet the enemy never rested a single
night in the State undisturbed.
The foreign correspondence x)f Governor Trumbull was not only
extensive, but of great importance to the country, and should be pub
lished ; as we are confident, from what we have seen of it, that it
would not only be highly interesting, but that it would reflect a light
upon the history of the time, untinged by personal or partizan preju
dices, and confirm the claims of the venerable Governor to a place in
the first rank of American patriots. A few extracts from his domestic
and foreign correspondence will illustrate its character.
Letter from Governor Trumbull to Governor Gage.
"Hartford, April 28th, 1775.
"Sir,
" The alarming situation of public affairs in this country, and the late unfortunate transac
tions in the province of the Massachusetts Bay, have induced the General Assembly of this
Colony, now sitting in this place, to appoint a committee of their body to wait upon your
Excellency, and to desire me, in their name, to write to you relative to these very interesting
matters. "The inhabitants of this Colony are intimately connected with the people of your province,
and esteem themselves bound, by the strongest ties of friendship as well as of common in-
Jerest to regard with attention whatever concerns them. You will not therefore be surprised
that your first arrival at Boston with a body of his Majesty's troops, for the declared purpose
of carrying into execution certain acts of Parliament, which in their apprehension were un
constitutional and oppressive, should have given the good people of this Colony a very just
and general alarm. Your subsequent proceedings, in fortifying the town of Boston, and

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
other military preparations, greatly increased their apprehensions for the safety of their friends
and brethren ; they could not be unconcerned spectators of their sufferings, in that which is <
esteemed the common cause of this country : but the late hostile and secret inroads of some
of the troops under your command into the heart of the country, and the violences they have
committed, have driven them almost into a state of desperation. They feel now, not only for
their friends, but for themselves, and for their dearest interests and connexions. We wish
not to exaggerate, we are not sure of every part of our information ; but by the best intelli
gence that "we have yet been able to obtain, the late transaction was a most unprovoked
attack upon the lives and property of his Majesty's subjects, and it is represented to us
that such outrages have been committed as would disgrace even barbarians, and much more
Britons, so highly famed for humanity as well as bravery. It is feared, therefore, that we
are devoted to destruction, and that you have it in command and intention to ravage and
desolate the country. If this is not the case, permit us to ask, why have these outrages been
committed ? Why is the town of Boston now shut up ? To what end are all the hostile
preparations that are daily making? And why do we continually hear of fresh destinations
of troops for this country ? The people of the Colony, you may rely upon it, abhor the idea
of taking arms against the troops of their sovereign, and dread nothing so much as the hor
rors of civil war. But, at the same time, we beg leave to assure your Excellency, that as
they apprehend themselves justified by the principle of self-defence,' so they are most firml'S
resolved to defend their rights and privileges to the last extremity ; nor wUl they be restrained
from giving aid to their brethren if any unjustifiable attack is made upon them. Be so good,
therefore, as to explain yourself upon this most important subject, as far as is consistent with
your duty to our common sovereign. Is there no way to prevent this unhappy dispute from
coming to extremities ? Is there no alternative but absolute submission, or the desolations
of war? By that humanity which constitutes so amiable a part of your character, for the
honor of our sovereign, and by the glory of the British empire, we entreat you to prevent it,
if it be possible. Surely it is to be hoped that the temperate wisdom of the empire might
even yet find expedients to restore peace, that so all parts of the empire may enjoy their par
ticular rights, honors, and immunities. Certainly this is an event most devoutly to be wished
for. And will it not be consistent with your duty to suspend the operations of war on your
part, and enable us on ours to quiet the minds of the people, at least till the result of some
further deliberations may be known ? The importance of the occasion will, we doubt not,
sufficiently apologize for the earnestness with which we address you, and any seeming im
propriety which may attend it, as well as induce you to give us the most explicit, and favor
able answer in your power. " I am, with great esteem and respect,
" in behalf of the General Assembly,
" Sir, Your most obedient, humble servant,
"Jonathan Trcmbdll."
Letter from Governor Trumbull to the Baron 'Van De Capellan of Holland.
" Leba^non, 27th June, 1777.
" The cause of Liberty is not peculiar to one free State — it is a common cause ; the de
struction of one cannot be indifferent to the few other free States, which God, in his Pro
vidence, hath preserved from being swallowed up by tyranny. It was with the greatest
pleasure we were informed that the States of Holland refused to lend their troops to Great
Britain, to be used in extending the dominion of tyranny over these States, and effacing al
most the only traces of liberty which remain in one quarter of the globe ; I cannot suf
ficiently express the gratitude we feel for the generous part, you, Sir, was pleased to take in
that matter, worthy of a senator of a free State, and a candid and impartial friend of li
berty and humanity.
" In the United States of America you will be revered. We are now reduced to the ne-
4

JONATHAN TRUMBULL.
cessity of defending, by force, against the power of a renowned anft mighty empire, our
ancient and indubitable rights, immunities, and privileges, founded upon national liberty,
confirmed by Royal charters, of the predecessors of the (present) King of Great Britain j
approved and recognized by successive Parliaments ; and enjoyed, from the first settlement
of these States, to the present day. The present reign opened with a deliberate system
and digested plan to reduce these States to the most abject dependence and vassalage. By
our ancient charters, by the most solemn contracts with our kings, we were to have, and en
joy, all the liberties, privileges, and immunities of free and natural born subjects of the
realm of England ; of these privileges, that which fixes private property, and exempts the
subject from taxation but by his own consent, has been always justly reputed the chief, the
loss of which involves in it, or draws after it, the loss of all the rest; this was first attacked."
After giving a statement of the rise, origin, and cause of the con
test between the Colonies and the Mother country, their petitions and
causes of complaints, &c. (which, from its length, cannot be inserted
in this article,) he says :
" To many, the views of the British cabinet had been long apparent ; most people, how
ever, had flattered themselves the nation would not suffer the Court to take away their
privileges by force ; and that at length they would be confirmed ; but now, it is become evi
dent to all, that the design to strip them of their privileges, and lay their lives and property
at the mercy of a haughty and unfeeling ministry and a venal Pariiament, was fixed and
determined ; and that no step tending to that end would be deemed inexpedient or unjust, if
practicable. On the 19th day of April, 1775, the scene of blood was opened by the British
troops, by the unprovoked slaughter of the Provincial troops at Lexington and Concord.
The adjacent Colonies took up arms in their own defence; the Congress again met, again
petitioned the Throne for peace and settlement ; and again their petitions were contemptu
ously disregarded. When every glimpse of hope failed, not only of justice but of safety,
we were compelled, by the last necessity, to appeal to Heaven, and rest the defence of our
liberties and privileges upon the favor and protection of Divine Providence ; and the resist
ance we could make by opposing force to force. Although the war was begun on our part,
under the greatest disadvantages, without any preparation of arms, artillery, military stores,
magazines of provisions, or other necessaries, which proves to demonstration that the war
did not proceed from any ambitious, premeditated plan on our part ; yet Heaven has so
smiled upon us hitherto, that we have been able to maintain ourselves and make head
against our enemies. And, although all Europe has resounded with ostentatious accounts of
theur victories and success, it is nevertheless true that they have not yet been able to maintain
themselves in any post where they were not protected by their navy ; or where, if attacked,
thqy could not immediately retire on hoard their transports. And we have yet good hopes
and a fair prospect, with the smiles of Heaven, of making a good defence, and vindicating
our liberty against the unjust attempts of power to deprive us of it. From our brethren
in Great Britain we have not experienced their boasted candor, impartiality, and clemency.
We appeal from their injustice to the Supreme Governor and Judge, and to the candid
censure of the impartial world. In you. Sir, and in your wise and generous sentiments, we
find that justice, the sincerity of our intention and rectitude of our measures entitle us lo
hope for. We may justly flatter ourselves that no free State will so far forget what is due to
their own glory and interest, as to lend their aid to exterminate liberty, (even) from the
wilds of Anierica ; might they not rather be expected to assist in preserving what liberty
yet remains upon earth from falling a sacrifice to the encroachments and avidity of
Tyrants — lest Liberty itself should be banished or forced from amongst men, and universal
tyranny, with its attendant calamities and miseries, overwhelm the whole human race ? But

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
I desist ; it is not my intention to send you a history. I would only thank you for your fa-
vorable sentiments of us, and request a continuance of your good offices as far as we shall
appear to you to deserve them." i
The Baron's answer was received, dated ZwoU, 7th Dec, 1779,
written in Dutch — some few extracts are here inserted : —
"To be the object of public esteem of a people, worthy and virtuous as the brave Ameri
cans, is a thing so great, that all the credit of your name, (as also of Mr. Erkelaus,) could
not persuade me that I have merited the smallest part of the gratitude which you please to
testify (on their part) for the small services I have tried to render them.
"It is true, Sir, I have engaged, since the year 1775, in the good cause of your com
patriots, with that zeal as the love of liberty inspired me, for such as dare to defend it,
against the horrors of all sorts of oppression ; but after all, what I have done, is nothing
but an act of pure justice. By my birth I am a member of the nobles of my Province, and
am called in the Assembly of the States, not States General, (as is beheved in your coun
try,) but of the Province of Overysell. I should have thought myself responsible for the
innocent blood which has been shed in your country, if I had permitted such things without
opposition, &c  One other cause of the mistrust of the Americans' credit is, the false
news which the English continue to make concurrent, which the friends of America cannot
contradict, by want of information ; it would be of the last importance to enable them, by
authentic information, and which contains nothing that is not exact and true. If you would
choose. Sir, to honor me with such a correspondence, be persuaded I will make a very good
use of it. Communicate news as in confidence, and it will have more effect Your letters,
which I have communicated to others in Amsterdam, (however, with discretion, and with
out giving copies as yet,) have made a deep impression on all who have read them ; all
regretted that such a true and energetic defence of the cause of United America should be
buried in the portfolio of a private correspondence. A description of the present state of
United America, the forms of Governments in the different Republics, of the facilities
•with which strangers can establish themselves there, and find subsistence, the price of
lands, &c., with a history of the present war and the cruelties committed by the English,
would do wonders in a land where we don't know America even by the newspapers ; and
where there is, in the mean time, a very great number of honest people, who  but
I would here very near forget to be a Hollander. Continue to write me in Enghsh. Yes,
Sir, I long to make our epistolary correspondence to be a basis of friendship, which, founded
on our mutual attachment to the liberty of the human race, would become the most solid.
I'll try to merit the same so much, that I beg you to believe that I am, with all respect due
to your virtue, your talents, and your character, " Sir, I am,
(Signed.) , "Johan. Theodore 'Van De Capellan."
The correspondence continued till the Governor's death.
In 1780 the General Assembly of Connecticut passed an act to
authorize a loan abroad. The confidence which the firm and open
character of his correspondence had inspired now came into use for
the country. The Governor took great interest in effecting this loan,
that the finances of the State might be placed upon a sure footing.
The following letter to his son, Colonel John 'Trumbull, who was
then in Europe, wUl give his own views on the subject : —

JONATHAN TRUMBULL.
« Lebmtm, 30th Dec. 1780.
"Dear Son,
"The General Assembly of this State have passed an act to obtain a loan from Holland
or elsewhere, to the amount of £200,000, on terms which the enclosed act will show you.
This will go under cover to Messrs, Neufville & Son, in Amsterdam, to whom I refer you,
among others, for their assistance and council. As our prospects principally centre in Holland,
I can wish this letter may find you there, and that you will pay your first and most assidu
ous attention to that quarter. Give me the earliest information of the way and probable ex
pense of getting the money in speciehere, and of whatever else you may judge needful for me
to be advised. This (loan) is not sought on the principles of despair, but to put our finances
on a better footing ; the spirit of the country remains firm and steady ; men for three years,
or during the war, will fill and complete the army : I hope to get the finances (of our State)
upon a sure and good footing, "I am, my dear Son,
"Your ever affectionate Father,
" Jonathan Trumbull."
The services of Governor Trumbull, throughout the war, were
of very great importance, not merely to Connecticut, but to the United
States. " General Washington relied on him as one of his main pU-
lars of support," says Mr. Sparks, in a note to one of Washington's
letters ; and, indeed, the numerous letters of the General to the Go
vernor, which have been published, are full of evidence of the cor
rectness of the remark.
In October, 1783, Governor Trumbull declined any fiirther
election to public office, " A few days," said he, in his address to the
General Assembly, " wUl bring me to the anniversary of my birth ;
seventy-three years of my life will then be completed ; and next
May, fifty-one years will have passed since I was first honored with
the confidence of the people in a public character. During this pe
riod, in different capacities, it has been my lot to be called to public
service almost without interruption. Fourteen years I have had the
honor to fill the chief seat of Government. With what carefulness,
with what zeal and attention to your welfare, I have discharged the
duties of my several stations, some few of you, of equal age with
myself, can witness for me from the beginning. During the latter
period, none of you are ignorant of the manner in which my public
life has been occupied ! The watchful cares and solicitude of an
eight years' distressing and unusual war have also fallen to my
share, and have employed many anxious moments of my latest time ;
which have been cheerfully devoted to the welfare of my country.
Happy am I to find that all these cares, anxieties, and solicitudes are
amply compensated by the noble prospect which now opens to my
fellow-citizens, of a happy establishment (if we are but wise to im
prove the precious opportunity) in peace, tranquUlity, and national

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
independence. With sincere and lively gratitude to Almighty God,
our great protector and deliverer, and most hearty congratulations to
all our citizens, I felicitate you. Gentlemen, the other freemen, and all
the good people of the State, in this glorious prospect.
" Impressed with these sentiments of gratitude and felicitation,
reviewing the long course of years in which, through various events,
I have had the pleasure to serve the State ; contemplating, with
pleasing wonder and satisfaction, at the close of an arduous contest, the
noble and enlarged scenes which now present themselves to my coun
try's view ; and reflecting, at the same time, on my advanced stage of
life — a life worn out almost in the constant cares of office — I think it
my duty to retire from the busy concerns of public affairs : that at
the evening of my days I may sweeten their decline by devoting
myself with less avocation and more attention to the duties of reli
gion, the service of my God, and preparation for a future and hap
pier state of existence ; in which pleasing employment I shall not
cease to remember my country, and to make it my ardent prayer that
Heaven will not fail to bless her with her choicest favors.
" At this conspicuous moment, therefore, of my country's happi
ness, when she has just reached the goal of her wishes, and obtained
the object for which she has so long contended, and so nobly strug
gled, I have to request the favor from you, Gentlemen, and through
you, from all the freemen of the State, that, after May next, I may be
excused from any further service in public life ; and that from this
time I may be no longer considered as an object of your suffrages for
any ptiblic employment in the State."
After thanking the Assembly for the aid which they had always
afforded him in the discharge of his duties, the Governor avaUed
himself of his experience, and rendered his last address " an advisory
legacy " to his constituents. It is a patriarchal document, worthy of
the admiration of the lovers of their country ; and as such we com
mend it to the sons of Connecticut, that it may be rescued from
oblivion, and have its place amongst the wise and patriotic counsel of
the Fathers of the Commonwealth.
Governor Trumbull did not long survive to enjoy the tranquillity
of private life. He was seized with a malignant fever, and, after a
few days' illness, died on the 17th of August, 1785.
The subject of this brief sketch was a remarkable man, even
amongst the prominent men of his time. Educated for the ministry,
and his career changed by unexpected events to the discharge of the
highest civU duties of the State, there was a combination of religion

JONATHAN TRUMBULL.
and worldly wisdom in all his actions,' and which may be traced in
his correspondence. Even his manners were characterized by the
same traits, and won the admiration and regard of those who were
familiar with Courts and courtiers, as well as of his O'wn unsophisti
cated countrymen.
He was an indefatigable student j and notwithstanding his weighty
responsibilities and official cares, he found time to " search the
Scriptures " in the original languages ; kept up his acquaintance
with ancient and modern history; and did more than any other
person of his day to preserve the knowledge of the early history of
his own country. He retained the costume of the early part of the
eighteenth century, and the primitive habits of his fathers ; he was
grave, and serious, and mild in his discourse, but firm and resolute
in action. He took time to deliberate on all subjects, and expressed
his opinions forcibly and with decision.
The following letter, addresssed to the venerable Governor's son,
(who was afterward Governor,) will be read with attention and
respect ; and, in addition to what we have already stated, will, we
believe, furnish a sufficient answer to the numerous inquiries we
have received, why we have selected a subject about 'whom so little
is generally known : —

" Mount Vernon, Oct. 1st, 1785.
"My Dear Sir,
" It has so happened that your letter of the 1st of last month, did not reach me until Sa
turday's post.
" You know too well the sincere respect and regard I entertained for your venerable
father's public and private character, to require assurance of the concern I felt for his death ;
or of that sympathy in your feelings for the loss of him, which is prompted by friendship.
Under this loss, however, great as your pangs may have been at the first shock, you have
every thing to console you.
" A long and well-spent life in the service of his country, places Governor Trumbull
among the first of patriots. In the social duties he yielded to no one; and his lamp, from
the common course of nature being nearly extinguished, worn down with age and cares,
but retaining his mental faculties in perfection, are blessings which rarely attend advanced
life. All these combined, have secured to his memory unusual respect and love here, and,
no doubt, unmeasurable happiness hereafter.
" I am sensible that none of these observations can have escaped you, that I can offer
nothing which your own reason has not already suggested upon the occasion ; and being of
Sterne's opinion, that " before an affliction is digested, consolation comes too soon, and after
it is digested it comes too late, there is but a mark between these two, almost as fine as a
hair, for a comforter to take aim at," I rarely attempt it ; nor should I add more on this sub
ject to you, as it will be a renewal of sorrow, by calling afresh to your remembrance things
that had better be forgotten.
" My principal pursuits are of a rural nature, in which I have great delight, especially as
I am blessed with the enjoyment of good health. Mrs, Washington, on the contrary, is

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
hardly ever well; but, thankful for your kind remembrance of her, joins me in every good
wish for you, Mrs. Trumbull, and your family.
"Be assured, that with sentiments of the purest esteem and regard, I am,
" Dear Sir, your affectionate friend,
"And obedient servant,
"Geo. Washington."
It is a coincidence worth remarking that Governor Trumbull lived
to exactly the same age as his father. The Governor was interred in
the tomb of the Trumbull family, at Lebanon, It is believed that no
cemetery in this country contains the ashes of more revolutionary
worthies than this. There repose the remains of two Governors, one
commissary-general, and a signer of the declaration of independence.
The following inscription records the memory of the worthy Governor
Jonathan Trumbull, We have been unable to satisfy ourselves as
to the exact date of his death, whether it was on the ninth of August,
as recorded on the pedestal, or the seventeenth, as stated in the
memoir : — Sacred to the memory of Jonathan Trumbull, Esq,, who,
unaided by birth or powerful connexions, but blessed with a noble and
virtuous mind, arrived to the highest station in government. His
patriotism and firmness during fifty years' employment in pubhc
life, and particularly in the important part he acted in the American
revolution, as Governor of Connecticut, the faithful page of history
will record.
Full of years and honors, rich in benevolence, and firm in the faith
and hopes of Christianity, he died August 9, 1785, ./Etatis 75,

Governor Trumbull collected a large number of papers and manu
scripts, which were presented by the family to the Massachusetts
Historical Society ; several of them have been printed in the volumes
of their collections. 10

EBg.OTd Ly T B Wrfoh Lrom a Puinmg by'J, B Long.™ rfi.r an urign.l IbnrM bjr R F-Pine
IE.®IBI1IE.^ SflOIEIlirSo

ROBERT MORRIS.
Few names are to be found in the annals of the Revolution more
worthy of gratefiil remembrance than that of the Cheat Financier,
The zeal, and skill, and sleepless vigUance of Washington would have
been exerted in vain ; the flame of patriotism, which glowed far and
wide in the bosoms of thousands who were panting for freedom, would
have been kindled in vain, had it not been for the financial ability and
extensive credit of Robert Morris, The sword of a nation must
soon rest idly in the scabbard when the national purse is empty.
Some have even gone so far as to say, that his extraordinary
powers in the department of finance, the extent of his influence in
the commercial relations of this nation in its earliest time of trial, and
his unremitted devotion to the duties entrusted to him, entitie him to
honors second only to Washington himself We are, however, not
required to fix the precise degree of merit attached to the various in
dividuals who lent their powerful aid in various ways to the general
cause. Skill and valor in the field and on the ocean, eloquence in the
legislative hall or the popular assembly, the influence of the pen and
of the press, and the creation and management of funds or credit, are
all essential to success in a contest of nations. To the warriors, the
orators, and the writers of the revolutionary period, we have devoted
a large portion of our work ; we should still consider it imperfect with
out a respectful notice of the man, whose skilful efforts supplied the
funds necessary to give effect to the exertions of his contemporaries,
Robert Morris was born at Liverpool, England, on the 20th of
January, (O, S,) 1733, and was brought into this country by his fa
ther when about thirteen years of age. His education was continued
under the instruction of the Rev, Mr, Gordon, of Maryland, for about
two years, when the accidental discharge of a gun from a ship in the
Delaware deprived his father of life, and left him an orphan in a
strange l&nd. His education, therefore, went no farther than to qualify

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
him for business. Nature had endowed him liberally with powers of
mind, and his disposition and manners had endeared him to those
who knew him. He was not, therefore, without friends to aid him in
his youthful career. Soon after the death of his father he was re
ceived into the counting-house of Mr. Charles Willing, the most dis
tinguished merchant at that time in Philadelphia. When he became
of age he was established in business with his partner's son, Thomas
WUling, and embarked in an extensive and profitable West India
trade. Mr. Morris made several voyages as supercargo in the ships
belonging to the company, in one of which he was made a prisoner
by the French, and for some time was kept in close confinement. He
was, however, liberated ; and by exercising his ingenuity in repairing
a watch, obtained means to return to PhUadelphia, where he resumed
his station. Under his active superin tendance, the firm of Willing
and Morris rapidly attained the summit of commercial reputation.
Their foreign business was very extensive, and their punctuality and
integrity established them in the confidence and credit of the world.
To Mr. Morris business was a pleasure, yet the regulations and or
der of his counting-house enabled him td enjoy the society of his
friends, to whom he attached himself with all the ardor of a generou?
and ingenuous mind.
Mr. Morris, about the age of thirty-six. married the sister of the
the late Bishop White. A lady who has been described as " elegant,
accomplished, and rich, and well qualified to carry the felicity of con
nubial life to its highest perfection."
At the close of the year 1775 his public life commenced. He was
then sent to Congress as a member from Pennsylvania, and was im
mediately engaged on financial arrangements of the greatest im
portance. When Congress removed to Baltimore in 1776, Mr. Mor
ris was left at Philadelphia with Messrs. Clymer and Walton, to re
main as long as circumstances would permit, and transact such bu
siness as required attention in that city.
At this crisis General Washington was surrounded by secret foes,
and destitute of the means of detecting them, or of getting possession of
the enemy's designs, from the want of hard money ; nor could he keep
the troops which formed a considerable part of his army, and whose
time of service had expired, without the promise of a bounty, which
he had not the means to advance. Mr, Morris borrowed the neces
sary amount on his own note, and the receipt of it was acknowledged
by the General on the 1st of January, 1777.
The situation of General Greene, in South Carolina, was equally

ROBERT MORRIS.
critical, his distresses rendering it scarcely possible to keep the troops
together, when a gentleman of that State advanced the necessary
sums, and enabled him to avert the danger. When General Greene re
turned to Philadelphia, and repaired to the office of finance to settle his
accounts after the war had terminated, he found that he had been re
lieved under the direction of Mr. Morris. He felt hurt, at first, at
the apparent want of confidence in him ; but on reflection, he told Mr.
Morris he had never done a wiser thing ; " For," said he, " on other
occasions I was sufficiently distressed to have warranted my drawing
on you, had I known that I might have done so, and I should have
availed myself of the privilege." Mr. Morris informed him, that
even as matters had been conducted, the southern expedition had
gone nearer than the operations in any other quarter, to the arrest of
his commercial business.
When Washington suddenly abandoned the banks of the Hudson
to co-operate with Count de Grasse in Virginia, from seventy to eighty
pieces of battering cannon, and one hundred of field artillery, were
completely fitted and furnished with attirail and ammunition, and for
warded in three or four weeks, to the great honor of the officers and
men employed in the service. All this, together with the expense of
provisions and pay for the troops, was accomplished on the personal
credit of Robert Morris, who issued his notes, to the amount of one
million four hundred thousand dollars, which were finally all paid.
There was no money in the chest of the war office nor in the Trea
sury ; and the expedition which brought the war to a close by the cap
ture of Comwallis, never could have been effected had not Mr. Mor
ris's credit and management supplied the fimds necessary to give ef
fect to exertion.
In 1781 the office of Financier was established by resolution of
Congress, and Mr. Morris was unanimously elected Superintendant.
One of the first acts of his financial government was, the proposition to
Congress of his plan for the establishment of the Bank of North
America, which was forthwith chartered, and opened in January, 1782.
At that time the States were half a million of dollars in debt on the
taxes of the year, which had been raised by anticipation on that sys
tem of credit which Mr. Morris had created : and but for this esta
blishment, his plans must have been entirely frustrated.
On his retirement from office, it was affirmed that it cost Congress
at the rate of eighteen mUlions of dollars a year to carry on the war
tUl he was chosen financier, and then it cost them only about five
millions.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
He continued to superintend the department of finance until the
30th of September, 1784, when he resigned, and immediately issued
an advertisement, pledging himself to the payment of all his outstand
ing notes as they should arrive at maturity.
Fatigued with the cares of public service, which, from his first
election to Congress, had engrossed a large proportion of his time, he
was now anxious to return to the relaxation of private life. He de
clined the office of Secretary of the Treasury, offered to him by
President Washington on the organization of the federal government
under the present Constitution, and recommended Colonel Hamilton,
who was accordingly appointed.
At the conclusion of the war, the propitious fortunes which attended
his official career seemed entirely to have forsaken him. His unre
mitted attention to the business of the country had necessarily been at
the expense of his private affairs, and was productive of great embar
rassments of mind and circumstances. His latter years were over
shadowed by poverty. He had sacrificed himself for the safety of the
commonwealth. After a life of inestimable value to the country, Mr. Morris died at
Philadelphia, on the Sth of May, 1806, in the 74th year of his age.

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jajMMiBiirrinugitD^E.

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JOHN RUTLEDGE.

" In the friendly competitions of the states for the comparative
merits of their respective statesmen and orators," says Dr. Ramsay,
(to whose sketches we are indebted for this memoir,) " whUe Massa
chusetts boasts of her John Adams — Connecticut of her Ellsworth —
New- York of her Jay — Pennsylvania of her Wilson — Delaware of
her Bayard — ^Virginia of her Henry — South Carolina rests her claims
on the talents and eloquence of John Rutledge."
This eminent patriot of the Revolution was the son of Dr. John
Rutledge, who, with his brother Andrew, both natives of Ireland,
settled in Carohna about the year 1735. Dr. Rutledge married Miss
Hext, who became the mother of the subject of the present memoir
in 1739 in the 15th year of her age. This lady became a widow
at an early period, and adds another example to the number, already
noticed in this work, of illustrous matrons, who, by devotion to their
maternal duties, have been honored and rewarded in the virtues and
eminence of their offspring.
The early education of John Rutledge was conducted by David
Rhind, an excellent classical scholar, and one of the most successful
of the early instructors of youth in Carolina. After he had made con
siderable progress in the Latin and Greek classics, he entered on the
study of law with James Parsons, and was afterwards entered a stu
dent in the Temple, and proceeding barrister, came out to Charleston
and commenced the practice of law in 176 1 . One of the first causes
in which he engaged was an action for breach of a promise of mar
riage. The subject was interesting, and gave an excellent oppor
tunity for displaying his talents. It was improved, and his eloquence
astonished all who heard him.
Instead of rising by degrees to the head of his profession, he burst
forth at once the able lawyer and accomplished orator. Business
flowed in upon him. He was employed in the most difficult causes,
and retained with the largest fees that were usually given. The
VOL. HI— 15 1

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
client in whose service he engaged, was supposed to be in a fair way
of gaining his cause. He was but a short time in practice, when
that cloud began to lower, which, in the course of ten or twelve years,
burst forth in a revolutionary storm. In the year 1764 Governor
Boone refused to administer to Christopher Gadsden the oaths which
the law required every person returned as a member in the com
mons house of assembly to take before he entered on his legislative
functions. This kindled the indignation of the house, as being an
interference with their constitutional privileges as the sole judges of
the qualifications of their own members. In rousing the assembly
and the people to resist all interferences of the royal governors in
deciding who should, or who should not be members of the commons
house of assembly, John Rutledge kindled a spark which has
never since been extinguished.
This controversy was scarcely ended when the memorable Stamp
Act was passed. The British Colonies were then detached from each
other, and had never acted in concert. A proposition was made by
the assembly of Massachusetts to the different provincial assemblies
for appointing committees from each to meet in congress as a rally
ing point of union. To this novel project many objections were
made ; some doubted its legality, others its expedience, and most its
efficiency. To remove objections, to conciliate opposition, and to
gain the hearty concurrence of the assembly and the people, was no
easy matter. In accomplishing these objects, the abilities of John
Rutledge were successfully exerted. Objections vanished — preju
dices gave way before his eloquence. The public mind was illumi
nated, and a more correct mode of thinking took place. A vote for
appointing deputies to a Continental congress was carried in South
Carolina at an early day, and before it had been agreed to by the
neighboring states. Christopher Gadsden, Thomas Lynch, and
John Rutledge, were appointed. The last was the youngest, and
had very lately began to tread the threshold of manhood. When
the first congress met in New-York in 1765, the members of the dis
tant provinces were surprised at the eloquence of the young member
from Carolina. In the means of education that province was far
behind those to the northward. Of it little more was known or be
lieved than that it produced rice and indigo, and contained a large
proportion of slaves and a handful of free men, and that most of the
latter were strangers to vigorous health, all self-indulgent, and none
accustomed to active exertions either of mind or body. From such
a province nothing great was expected. A respectable committee of

JOHN RUTLEDGE.
its assembly, and the distinguished abUities of one of them who was
among the youngest members of the congress, produced at this first
general meeting of the Colonies more favorable ideas of South Caro
lina than had hitherto prevailed.
After the repeal of the Stamp Act, John Rutledge was for some
yea;rs no further engaged in politics than as a lawyer and a member
of the provincial legislature. In both capacities he was admired as
a public speaker. His ideas were clear and strong — his utterance
rapid but distinct — ^his voice, action, and energetic manner of speak
ing, forcibly impressed his sentiments on the minds and hearts of all
who heard him. At reply he was quick — instantly comprehended
the force of an objection — and saw at once the best mode of weaken
ing or repelling it. He successfully used both argument and wit
for invalidating the observations of his adversary: by the former
he destroyed or weakened their force; by the latter he placed them
in so ludicrous a point of light that it often convinced, and scarcely
ever failed of conciliating and pleasing his hearers. Many were the
triumphs of his eloquence at the bar and in the legislature ; and in
the former case probably more than strict impartial justice would
sanction ; for judges and juries, counsel and audience, hung on his
accents. In or after the year 1774 a new and more extensive field was opened
before him. When news of the Boston port-bill reached Charles
ton, a general meeting of the inhabitants was called by expresses
sent over the state. After the proceedings of the British parliament
were stated to this convention of the province, sundry propositions
were offered for consideration. To the appointment of delegates for
a general congress no objection was made. But this was followed
by propositions for instructing them how far they might go in pledg
ing the province to support the Bostonians. Such a discordance of
opinions was discovered as filled the minds of the friends of liberty
with apprehensions that the meeting would prove abortive. In this
crisis John Rutledge, in a most eloquent speech, advocated a motion
which he brought forward to give no instructions whatever; but to
invest the men of their choice with full authority to concur in any
measure they thought best; and to pledge the people of South Caro
lina to abide by whatever they would agree to. He demonstrated
that any thing less than plenary discretion to this extent would be un
equal to the crisis. To those who, after stating the dangers of such
extensive powers, begged to be informed what must be done in case
the delegates made a bad use of their unlimited authority to pledge

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
the state to any extent, a laconic answer was returned: " Hang them."
An impression was made on the multitude. Their minds were sub
dued by the decision of the proposed measure, and the energy with
which it was supported. On that day and by this vote the Revolu
tion was virtually accomplished. By it the people of Carolina deter
mined to be free, deliberately invested five men of their choice as their
representatives with full powers to act for them and to take charge of
their political interests. Royal government received a mortal wound,
and the representative system was planted in its stead. The former
lingered for a few months and then expired. The latter instantly
took root, and has ever since continued to grow and flourish. An
election immediately followed. The mover of this spirited resolution,
his brother Edward Rutledge, Christopher Gadsden, Thomas Lynch,
and Henry Middleton, were elected. Furnished with such ample
powers, they took their seats in congress under great advantages, and
by their conduct justified the confidence reposed in them. John
Rutledge was continued by successive elections a member of con
gress tUl the year 1776. He returned to Charleston in the beginning
of that year, and was elected president and commander-in-chief of
Carolina, in conformity to a constitution established by the people, on
the 26th of March 1776. His duties henceforward were executive.
He employed himself diligently in arranging the new government,
and particularly in preparing for the defence of the state against an
expected invasion by the British. Their attack on Sullivan's Island
has been already related.* On this occasion John Rutledge ren
dered his country important service. General Lee, who commanded
the Continental troops, pronounced Sullivan's Island to be a " slaugji-
ter pen," and either gave orders or was disposed to give orders for its
evacuation. The zeal of the state, and the energy of its chief magis
trate, prevented this measure. Carolina had raised troops before con
gress had declared independence. These remained subject to the
authority of the state, and were at this early period not immediately
under the command of the officers of congress. To prevent the evacua
tion of the fort on Sullivan's Island, John Rutledge, shortly before
the commencement of the action on the 28th of June, 1776, wrote the
following laconic note to General Moultrie, who commanded on the
island. " General Lee wishes you to evacuate the fort. You wUl
not without an order from me. I would sooner cut off my hand than
write one. J. Rutledge."

* In the biography of General Moultrie, in the first volume of tliis work.
4

JOHN RUTLEDGE.
The consequences which would probably have foUowed from the
evacuation of the fort, may in some measure be conjectured from the
events of 1780 ; when the British, grown wiser, passed the same fort
without engaging it.
John Rutledge continued in the office of president till March
1778, when he resigned. The occasion and reasons of his resigna
tion are matters of general history. This did not diminish his popu
larity. Of this the legislature gave the strongest proof; for the next
election he was reinstated in the executive authority of the state,
but under a new constitution, and with the name of Governor sub
stituted in the place of President. He had scarcely entered on the
duties of this office, when the country was invaded by the British
General Prevost. Governor Rutledge made great exertions to
repel this invasion — to defend Charleston in the years 1779, 1780
— to procure the aid of congress and of the adjacent states — to drive
back the tide of British conquest — to recover the state, and to revive
its suspended legislative and judicial powers. On the close of his
executive duties in 1782, he was elected and served as a member of
congress till 1783. In this period he was called upon to perform an
extraordinary duty. The surrender of Lord Cornwallis in October,
1781, seemed to paralyze the exertions of the states. Thinking the
war and all danger to be over, they no longer acted with suitable
vigor. Congress, fearing that this languor would encourage Great
Britain to re-commence the war, sent deputations of their members
to rouse the states to a sense of their danger and duty. On the 22d
of May, 1782, John Rutledge and George Clymer were sent in
this character, and instructed "to make such representation to the
several states southward of Philadelphia as were best adapted to their
respective circumstances and the present situation of public affairs,
and as might induce them to carry the requisitions of congress into
effect with the greatest dispatch." They were permitted to make a
personal address to the Virginia assembly. In the execution of this
duty, John Rutledge drew such a picture of the United States, and
of the danger to which they were exposed by the backwardness of
the particular states to comply with the requisitions of congress, as
produced a very happy effect. The addresser acquitted himself with
so much abUity that the Virginians, who, not without reason, are
proud of their statesmen and orators, began to doubt whether their
Patrick Henry or the Carolina Rutledge was the most accomplished
public speaker. Soon after the termination of Mr. Rutledge's con-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
gressional duties, he was appointed minister plenipotentiary from the
United States to Holland, but declined serving.
In the year 1784 he was elected a judge of the court of Chancery
in South Carolina. The events of the late war had greatiy increased
the necessity for such a court. John Rutledge draughted the bUl for
organizing it on a new plan, and in it introduced several provisions,
which have been very highly commended as improvements on the
English court of the ^ame name. Mr. Rutledge's public duties
hitherto had been either legislative or executive. They were hence
forward judicial. If comparisons were proper, it might be added that
he was most at home in the latter. His knowledge of the law was
profound ; but the talent which pre-eminently fitted him for dispens
ing justice was a comprehensive mind, which could at once take into
view all the bearings and relations of a complicated case. When the
facts were all fairly before him, he promptly knew what justice re
quired. The pleadings of lawyers gratified their clients, but rarely
cast any light on the subject which had not already presented itself
to his own view. Their declamations and addresses to the passions
were lost on him. Truth and justice were the pole-stars by which
his decisions were regulated. He speedily resolved the most intri
cate cases, pursued general principles through their various modifi
cations till they led to the fountain of justice. His decrees were so
luminous, and the grounds of them so clearly expressed, that the de
feated party was generally satisfied.
In the year 1787 he was called upon to assist in framing a national
constitution in lieu of the advisory system of the confederation. In
arranging the provisions of that bond of union, and in persuading
his countrymen to accept it, he was eminently useful. As soon as it
was in operation, he was designated by President Washington as an
associate justice of the Supreme court of the United States. In
this office he served till 1791, when he was elected chief justice of
South Carolina. He was afterwards appointed chief justice of the
United States. Thus for more than thirty years, with few and short
intervals, he served his country in one or other of the departments
of government ; and in all with fidelity and ability. This illustrious
man closed his variegated career in the year 1800.

Engraved by T B Welr.n lrom a dravnng" by W. G. Amisirong alter the PonrBii by J. S. Copley.

lEiiKrmif ]LiiwiMi3E5rgo

HENRY LAURENS.
Henry Laurens was born at Charleston, South Carolina, in the year
1724. His ancestors were French protestants, who sought in the
American wilderness a retuge from persecution, shortiy after the revo
cation of the edict of Nantes. We have already traced the genealogy
of several of our Revolutionary patriots to the same period.
After receiving the best education which the most competent
teachers in Carolina could impart, Henry Laurens was put under
the care of Thomas Smith, a merchant of Charleston, and afterwards
of Mr. Crockatt of London, and acquired those habits of order and
method in business for which he was remarkable. On his retitrn to
Charleston he entered into partnership with Mr. Austin, a merchant
already engaged in an extensive trade. He devoted himself to busi
ness with a zeal and industry which far surpassed his contemporaries ;
and he established a character for himself worthy the emulation of all
young merchants. He was scrupulously punctual in the discharge of
all pecuniary engagements, and in being where, and doing what, he
had promised. He was an early riser, and frequently had the business
of the day arranged when others were beginning to think of leaving
their beds. His letters were generally written in the retired hours of
the night or morning ; and whether on subjects of business, friendship,
or amusement, were considered models of forcible expression and
perspicuity of language.
He studied human nature in all the various specimens which it was
his interest to know thoroughly, with the earnestness of Lavater ; and
his judgment enabled him very soon to ascertain the true value of
every man with whom he had to transact business. His diligence,
prudence, and knowledge of men and business, could not fail of suc
cess ; and in winding up the concerns of the partnership, in 1770,
twenty-three years after its commencement, and which had embraced
transactions to the amount of many miUions, such was their confidence
in the safety of their business, that he offered to his partner to take all

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
outstanding debts as cash at a discount of only five per cent, on the
aggregate amount.
One of the strong traits of his character, was his love of justice.
He would never draw a bill of exchange until he had a written ac
knowledgment of indebtedness to the amount drawn for. He once had
a lawsuit with the Vice- Admiralty Judge, in which he resisted the
claims of the royal government, which by some recent regulations
were hostile to American rights. Mr. Laurens being cast, he ten
dered to the Judge his legal fees to a considerable sum. The Judge
declined receiving them, and Mr. Laurens conceiving he had no
right to retain what was legally due from him, gave the amount to the
South Carolina Society, to be expended in charity. He pursued the
same course on other occasions, when money was left unclaimed in
his hands, which he was unwilling to keep.
He once persuaded a favorite slave to receive the small pox by in
oculation, which terminated fatally. To comfort the dying man for
the unfortunate issue of the experiment, assurances were given to him
that his chUdren should be emancipated; which was accordingly
done. Having amassed a fortune tar exceeding what was then common in
America, and being a widower, he went to Europe in 1771. to superin
tend the education of his sons. During his residence in England, the
disputes between the Colonies and the parent state continued to approach
the point where an amicable adjustment was hopeless. Mr. Laurens
saw the approaching crisis, and endeavored to arrest it. True to his
country, and fully assured of the firm determinations of his country
men to resist oppression, he was anxious to avert the stroke which he
foresaw would rouse them to arms in self-defence. He united with
ihirty-eight other Americans in a petition to the British Parliament
against the passage of the bill to shut up the port of Boston, and so
soon as he found the die was cast against his country, he hastened
his departure to Carolina, determined to take his share in the struggle
for freedom. Great efforts were made to induce him to remain in
England, but he would not listen to the persuasions of friends nor the
allurements of interest. When about to embark from Falmouth, he
wrote to Mr. Oswald, who was subsequently one of the negotiators for
peace, " Your ministers are deaf to information, and seem bent on pro
voking unnecessary contest. I think I have acted the part of a faith
ful subject. I now go resolved still to labor for peace ; at the same
time determined, in the last event, to stand or fall with my country."
To numerous friends in England he freely gave the assurance that

HENRY LAURENS.
America would not submit to the claims of the British Parliament ,
and on his landing at Charleston, in December 1774, he declared with
equal confidence that Britain would not recede, and that war was
inevitable. Much reliance was placed upon his opinion, and vigorous
preparations for defence were immediately commenced by the Caroli
nians. Mr. Laurens was a member of the first Provincial Congress, held
at Charleston on the 11th of January, 1775, and was elected president
of the Council of Safety, appointed by that body, with powers to carry
on the business of the Colony during the recess of the Congress. This
committee, or Council of Safety, were invested with full executive
powers; they stamped money, raised troops, issued commissions to
officers, authorised an attempt on the Island of Providence for the ac-
qiMsition of military stores; sent a talk to the Catawba Indians ; and
performed, indeed, all the functions of a regular government with ad
mirable firmness, although they were well aware that their lives and
fortunes were at stake.
The well-known activity and promptness which had distinguished
Mr. Laurens as a merchant, were equally valuable in him as a states
man; and the public business was despatched with vigor and sound
judgment until the establishment of a regular constitution in the State
of South Carolina, in March 1776. He was soon afterward elected a
member of Congress, of which he was appointed president on the 1st of
November, 1777. The station to which he was now elevated brought
him into intimate correspondence with Washington, and it may be re
marked as one of the events of this period of his life, of equal import
ance to his country and his own fame, that when the Commander-in-
chief was assailed by a malignant faction, which sought, by false and
anonymous suggestions, to obtain his removal, Mr. Laurens remained
firm and steadfast in his attachment to Washington, and was the first
to expose the artifices of his opponents. The alliance with France,
and the efforts of the British ministry to neutralize its effects by send
ing out commissioners to treat with the constituted authorities in
America, or with individuals, were also important events oi"the same
period. In December, 1778, Mr. Laurens resigned the chair of Congress.
In the following year he was appointed Minister Plenipotentiary to
Holland, for the purpose of forming a commercial treaty, and to obtain
loans. Some unofficial overtures had been previously received, and
even the plan of a treaty between the States general of Holland and
the United States had been communicated to Congress, which Mr.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Laurens was authorised to carry into effect. He sailed for Europe
in the summer of 1780, and was captured on his passage out by a
British frigate. He threw his papers overboard, but as they did not
immediately sink, they were recovered by the activity of a British
sailor, and disclosed the situation of affairs between the two countries,
and led to the declaration of war against Holland when the demand
of the English minister for speedy satisfaction was not complied with;
Mr. Laurens was carried to London, where he was examined be
fore the Privy Council, and committed a close prisoner to the Tower
on the charge of high treason. There he was confined more than a
year, and was treated with great severity. No person was permitted
to speak to him, nor was he permitted to speak to any one ; he was
deprived of the use of pen and ink, and all intercourse by letters was
strictly prohibited. These strict orders were, however, relaxed after
a few weeks; for the King's ministers were desirous of turning his in
fluence to advantage, and they dared not to punish him capitally for
fear of retaliation.
One of his friends in London applied to the Secretary of State for
Mr. Laurens's liberation on parole, and offered his whole fortune as
security for his good conduct ; he was authorised to say to Mr. Lau
rens, that " if he would point out any thing for the benefit of Great
Britain in the present dispute with the Colonies, he should be en
larged." This proposition was indignantly rejected. The same
friend soon after was permitted to visit him with another proposition,
the amount of which was, that he should remain in London, as the
ministers would have frequent occasion to consult him ; and that he
should write two or three lines to them, merely to say that he was
sorry for what had passed. " A pardon will be granted," said his
friend. " Every man has been wrong at some time or other of his
life, and should not be ashamed to acknowledge it." Mr. Laurens
replied, " I will never subscribe to my own infamy, and to the dishonor
of my children."
Cut off from all social intercourse, he was only permitted to learn
the progress of events during his confinement from such newspapers
as announced the successes of the British arms, particularly in South
Carolina, after the surrender of Charleston ; or his own misfortune
in the sequestration of his estate by the conquerors. Still he remained
steadfast and unmoved.
In the course of the year 1781, it was intimated to Mr. Laurens
that it would be advantageous to him if he would write to his son. Co
lonel Laurens, then on a mission to the Court of France, and request

HENRY LAURENS.
him to withdraw from that country. But he repUed, " My son is ot
age, and has a will of his own ; if I should write to him in the terms
you request, it would have no effect, he would only conclude that
confinement and persuasion had softened me. I know him to be a
man of honor. He loves me dearly, and would lay doAvn his life to
save mine ; but I am sure he would not sacrifice his honor to save my
life, and I applaud him."
Mr. Laurens wrote with a pencil a request to the Secretary of
State for permission to use pen and ink, for the purpose of drawing a
bill of exchange on a merchant in London, who was in his debt, as he
was in want of means for his immediate support. To this application
no answer was returned. As soon as he had completed a year in the
Tower, he was called on to pay ninety-four pounds ten shillings ster
ling to the two warders who had attended him ; but he replied, " I
will not pay the warders whom I never employed, and whose atten
dance I shall be glad to dispense with." Three weeks afterward, ma
terials were brought to him to write a bUl of exchange, but they were
removed the moment that business was done.
Towards the end of the year 1781, the sufferings which Mr. Lau
rens had been compelled to endure in the Tower began to be gene
rally Imown ; and elicited strong expressions of compassion in his fa
vor, and censure against the authors of his confinement. But there
were difficulties in the way of his release not easy to be overcome.
He would make no concessions, nor consent to any act which implied
that he was a British subject ; as such he had been committed, on
a charge of high treason, but he regarded himself as a citizen of the
United States, — a prisoner of war. To extricate themselves from this
difficulty. Ministers proposed to take bail for his appearance at the
court of King's Bench. When the words of the recognizance,
'• Our sovereign lord the King," were read to Mr. Laurens, he replied
in open court, " Not my sovereign ! I" Notwithstanding that, he, with
Mr. Oswald and Mr. Anderson as his securities, was bound for his ap
pearance at the next court of King's Bench for Easter term, and for not
departing without leave of the Court, on which he was immediately
released. When the time drew near for his appearance at court, he
was not only discharged from all obligations to attend, but was solicit
ed by Lord Shelbourne to assist, by his presence on the continent, at
the negotiations for peace which were then in progress. He proceeded
to Paris, and there signed the preliminaries of peace on the 30th of
November, 1782, in conjunction with Dr. Franklin, John Adams, and
John Jay.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Mr. Laurens soon after returned to Carolina, with a constitution
broken by the rigorous confinement of more than fourteen months in
the Tower, and he never afterwards enjoyed good health. His coun-
trjrmen rejoiced at his retum, and proffered every mark of honor in
their power to bestow ; but he declined all solicitations to suffer them
to elect him governor, a member of congress, or of the legislature of the
state. He was, without his consent, elected a member of the conven
tion for the revision of the federal constitution, but declined serving.
He retired from all public business, and interested himself only in
promoting the welfare and happiness of his family and dependents,
by various agricultural experiments, and the improvement of the so
ciety of his friends and neighbors.
His health gradually declined, and on the Sth of December, 1792,
near the close of his 69th year, he expired. His will concluded with
the following remarkable request, which was literally complied with :
" I solemnly enjoin it on my son, as an indispensable duty, that as
soon as he conveniently can after ray decease, he cause my body to be
wrapped in twelve yards of tow-cloth, and burnt until it be entirely
consumed, and then, collecting my bones, deposite them wherever he
may think proper." 0

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/y/ic'^^a^ ^t^^yujy^

THOMAS PINCKNEY.
The early years of Major-general Thomas Pinckney were passed
with his brother, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, the subject of a future
sketch ; and, in addition to the facts which will be found imbodied in
that memoir, it is now only necessary to say, that Thomas was born at
Charleston, South Carolina, on the 23d of October, 1750 ; and con
sequently was only three years old when taken to England by his
father. Like his brother, he made good use of his time and oppor
tunities for improvement, and after nearly twenty years of absence
returned to his native land full of patriotic ardor.
He was still engaged in his professional studies in London, when
the first notes of hostile preparation against his country were
sounded ; he immediately abandoned all other pursuits, and devoted
his whole attention to the acquisition of mUitary knowledge, by which
he afterward distinguished himself in the Revolutionary army. His
military services were put in requisition very soon after his return to
Charleston ; and according to the statement of Major Garden, the
rudiments of discipline were first taught by him to the infantry of the
South Carolina line. On the formation of the two Provincial regi
ments in 1775, he was appointed to the command of a company, and
soon after rose to the rank of Major. He had the reputation of an
able tactician and a rigid disciplinarian. Of his firmness and deci
sion pf character, he gave the following very unequivocal proof At
an early period of the war, a mutiny having broken out in his regi
ment, the officers attempted to suppress it by persuasion and remon
strance, which were succeeded by upbraidings and menaces. Major
Pinckney walked deliberately into the midst of the mutineers, and
with his sabre cut down the ringleader. Order and subordination
were immediately restored.
When General Lincoln took command of the Southern army,
Major Pinckney was appointed one of his aids, and acted in that
capacity with the Count D'Estaing at the siege of Savannah. At tho

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
attack on the enemy's works at Stono, in June, 1779, Major Pinck
ney gained great applause for his gallant conduct in the field, where
the battalion, to which he was attached, charged two companies of the
71st British regiment, and so completely routed them at the point of
the bayonet, that only nine men were able to take shelter within their
lines. At the siege of Savannah, while superintending the construc
tion of a redoubt, a shell from the enemy fell into the ditch and burst.
Major Pinckney and Colonel D'Oyley were blinded with dust and
covered with dirt ; but the Major, without changing his position, or
being in the least discomposed, calmly observed, " I think, D'Oyley,
that must have been very near us," and then continued to press on
the work with great animation. When the assault on the town was
determined on, Major Pinckney led one of the assaUing columns,
but was repulsed. Great confusion among the troops ensued, and all,
who could, pressed forward to avoid the destructive fire that poured
upon their rear. Major Pinckney hastened to the front of his sol
diers, and commanded them to halt. " Success, my brave fellows," he
exclaimed, " though richly merited, has not crowned your exertions ;
yet do not disgrace yourselves by precipitate flight, and, though re
pulsed, quit the field like soldiers." Order was restored, and the regi
ment regained their encampment with deliberate steps.
At the disastrous battle of Camden on the 16th of August, 1780.
Major Pinckney, acting as Aid-de-camp to General Gates, had his
leg shattered by a musket ball, and fell into the hands of the enemy.
When sufficiently recovered to be removed, he was sent as a prisoner
of war to Philadelphia.
In 1787 he succeeded General Moultrie as Governor of South Ca
rolina, and was eminently successful in re-establishing the authority
of the laws, which had been in a great measure dormant during the
war. He received from President Washington, in 1792, the appointment
of Minister Plenipotentiary to the Court of St. James. The duties
which devolved upon him during his residence in London were at
tended with circumstances which required the exercise of great deli
cacy and prudence, with vigilance and firmness. It will be recol
lected, that at that time some of the provisions of the treaty of peace
between Great Britain and the United States remained unfulfilled.
The war which arose out of the French Revolution, and very soon
involved nearly all the European powers, exposed the commerce of
the Union to many embarrassments from the belligerents, who strove
to injure and annoy each other without regard to the rights of neu-

THOMAS PINCKNEY.
tral nations. The neutrality of the United States was regarded with
jealousy by each of the great contending powers. Neutrality, indeed,
was offensive to both, and each strove to involve our country in the
war. But it was the settled policy of Washington's administration to
preserve a strict neutrality, and to favor neither of the belligerents.
There was an undoubted inclination, however, on the part of a ma
jority of the people of the United States, to arrange themselves on the
side of France ; and the British government soon became aware of
that fact, and adapted their measures to the expected result, which
their power on the ocean enabled them to render exceedingly vexa
tious. France being unable any longer to import the productions of
her colonies in her own ships, the carrying trade on the Atlantic
chiefly fell into the hands of the American merchants ; but that was
very soon interfered with by the orders of the British government to
their cruisers. The practice of impressing men from American
ships for the British navy, began also, about this time, to be a cause
of serious complaint ; and a renewal of hostilities seemed inevitable.
But the conduct of Republican France was equally unfriendly and
offensive ; and, considering the probable tendency of her great adver
sary's measures, far more impolitic. Still the President remained
firm in his purpose of maintaining the neutrality of the United States
until the aggressions of foreign powers should clearly render neu
trality inco^mpatible with honor. He therefore determined to make
one more effort with each of the great contending powers, that should
either remove all cause of quarrel or demonstrate the necessity of
war. He accordingly communicated to the Senate of the United
States the despatches, which, in the beginning of the year 1794, had
been received from Major Pinckney at London, and on the 16th of
¦ April nominated Mr. Jay as Envoy Extraordinary to his Britannic
Majesty. While Major Pinckney was Minister at London, he was instructed
to seize every proper occasion to express the interest taken by the
President in the fate of La Fayette, who was then a prisoner in Ger
many ; but his unofficial communications to the Austrian Minister in
London, and his endeavors to obtain the mediation of the British
government, were alike unavailing.
In November of the same year. Major Pinckney was appointed
Envoy Extraordinary to his Catholic Majesty, and repaired, in the
Summer of 1795, to Madrid. On the 20th of October following, he
concluded a treaty, which settied the controversy with Spain respect
ing boundary, and secured the free navigation of the Mississippi. In

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
the foUowing year his private affairs requiring his presence at home,
he was recalled at his own solicitation, and returned to Carolina ;
where he was received with the most grateful evidences of the regard
and affection of his fellow-citizens. He afterward served a few ses
sions in Congress, as a representative from Charleston district, and
then retired to private life.
When the despatches from our envoys to France in 1798 reached
this country, detailing the hostUity of the Directory, and the humUi-
ating proposition of tribute, and the indignities which had been offered
to Generals C. C. Pinckney and MarshaU, and Mr. Gerry ; President
Adams proposed to prevent their immediate publication, lest further
insults might follow, as those gentlemen were still in Paris. But on
consulting Major Pinckney, he gave a decided opinion that they
ought to be made public without delay, that the people might have a
perfect knowledge of the insulting conduct of the French Directory.
'' And, Sir," he added, " if the situation of my brother causes you to
hesitate, I speak for him, as I know he would for me, were I simUarly
circumstanced. The glory of our country is at stake. Individual
sufferings must not be regarded. Be the event what it may, life is
nothing compared with the honor of America."
After the lapse of several years, which had been devoted to the edu
cation of his children and the improvement of his estate, the veteran
was once more called by his country to the field. At the commence
ment of the war of 1812, President Madison appointed him to the
command of the Southern army. It was under his command that
the Indian war, in which General Jackson distinguished himself, was
undertaken and successfully terminated. He very early discerned
the talents of General Jackson, and recommended him to the War de
partment for the command of a separate .district, to be formed out of
his own, which extended from North Carolina to the Mississippi, and
which he considered entirely too large for one command. By thus
opening a field for the free exercise of the skill and enterprise of Ge
neral Jackson, he advanced the interest and honor of his country, and
the war was closed by one of the most brilliant victories that adorn
the annals of any nation.
On the return of peace he resigned his commission, and declined
all further public employment. From that period his attention was
given to various scientific improvements in agriculture, and to the
cultivation of social intercourse amongst a very extensive circle of
relatives and friends. He died on the 2d of November, 1828, after a
lingering and painful illness.

X'D.graN'ed byEHacketizie, fromtbe Painiing W.C'W.Feaie inthePkiladelphiaMiisenia..

3M€]Bm]mD) MOMTcSC'lffilMX

^.c4'^^^

RICHARD MONTGOMERY.

The subject of the present memoir was bom in the north of Ireland
in 1736 ; possessed of exceUent talents, his parents were careful to
mature them by a superior education. He embraced the profession of
arms at an early age, and entering the army of Great Britain, com
menced his military career in America, The regiment to which he
belonged made part of the army which, in 1757, was assembled at
Halifax, and intended for the reduction of Louisburg, a fortress of
great strength, which was believed to be the key to the French pos
sessions in America, In the attack on that place, which commenced
on the Sth of June 1758, Montgomery, who served in the dite of
the army, under the immediate command of General Wolfe, gave the
first decisive evidence of those high military qualities which marked
his subsequent conduct. After the capture of Louisburg he marched
with his regiment, under the orders of General Amherst, to the relief
of Abercrombie, who had been defeated at Ticonderoga. He re
mained at that point on lake Champlain untU 1760, when the con
quest of Canada was completed
Large detachments of the British forces in America were then sent
to operate against the French and Spanish West India Islands. In
the two campaigns which were employed on that laborious and
perilous service, Montgomery had a full share of toil and danger,
and his conduct was rewarded by promotion to the command of a
company. Soon after the peace in 1763, his regiment returned to New- York,
and he obtained leave of absence and revisited Europe, where he re
mained untU 1772, when, havmg been twice circumvented in the pur
chase of a majority, he. sold his commission, and in January of the
VOL. ill— 16 1

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
following year he arrived in New- York. On his arrival he purchased
an estate on the Hudson, about one hundred mUes from the city,
and married a daughter of Robert R. Livingston. Adopting, in their
fullest extent, the American feelings for liberty and hatred of opr
pression, he freely expressed his readiness to draw his sword on the
side of the Colonies ; and on the commencement of the revolutionary
struggle, the command of the Continental forces was intrusted to him
in conjunction with General Schuyler, in the fall of 1775. In Octo
ber, the indisposition of the latter preventing him from taking the
field, the chief command devolved upon General Montgomery.
Leaving his peaceful retirement on the banks of the Hudson, where
he had acquired that station and authority among his fellow-citizens
which superior acquirements and inflexible integrity never fail to
secure, he felt himself called upon, like another Regulus, to bid fare
well to those domestic endearments with which he was eminently
blessed, and to rush at once upon his short career, which, however
sudden its termination, was crowded with scenes of virtuous activity
sufficient to have dignified the longest life.
The Canada expedition of this year was one of those measures,
which the enemies of America having first rendered necessary, soon
strove to construe into an act of hostility and offence. It was evident
that preparations were in readiness to invade our frontiers by armed
bands of savages, supported by disciplined troops. General Mont
gomery was therefore despatched to avert the stroke if possible, but
if that should prove impracticable, his instructions authorized him to
storm the intermediate posts and to attack duebec. His movements
were characterised no less by their efficiency than their humanity.
He soon reduced Fort Chamblee, captured St. John's, and by the 12th
of November Montreal also surrendered. On the 1st of Decembei'
he joined Colonel Arnold at Point-aux-Trembles, and proceeded to
the siege of duebec ; but as his artillery was not of sufficient cali
bre to make the requisite impression, he determined upon attempting
the capture of the place by storm. The several divisions were ac
cordingly put in motion in the midst of a heavy snow storm, which
concealed them from the enemy. Montgomery advanced at the head
of the New-York troops along the banks of the St. Lawrence, and
assisted, with his own hands, in pulling up the pickets which ob
structed his approach to the second barrier, which he was resolved
to force. At this juncture the only gun that was fired from the bat
tery of the enemy kiUed him and his two aid-de-camps. The three
fell at the same time, and rolled upon the ice formed upon the river.

RICHARD MONTGOMERY.
The enemy had been struck with consternation, and all but one or
two had fled. The death of the general saved Q,uebec.
When he fell, he was in a narrow passage ; and when his body
was found the next morning among the slain, it was brought into the
city and buried by a few soldiers without any marks of distinction.
General Montgomery's military talents are admitted on all hands
to have been great; his measures were taken with judgment and
executed with vigor. With undisciplined and raw troops, illy sup
plied with arms and ammunition, yet he inspired his men with his
own enthusiasm; he led them in the coldest season of the year to an
inclement country, shared with them in all their hardships, and to the
hour of his death was the conqueror of our foes. His industry could
not be wearied, nor his vigilance imposed upon. Above the pride of
opinion, when a measure was adopted by the majority contrary to
his judgment he gave it his full support. He was in every respect ad
mirably calculated to fulfil his arduous enterprise ; the command and
conduct of the army formed but a small part of his difficult under
taking. The Indians were to be treated with, restrained, and kept
in good humor. The French Canadians were likewise to be soothed,
protected, and supported; his own army required to be formed, disci
plined, animated, accustomed to marches, encampments, dangers and
fatigues ; and frequently the want of necessary supplies demanded in
the first officer the courage of a soldier united to the benevolence of
a man. When the men labored under fatigue and wanted bread,
had their beds to make in snow or in morasses, they disdained com
plaint when they saw their commander share in every particular
but littie better than themselves. On one occasion he says in a
letter : —
" Our camp is so swampy I feel exceedingly for the troops ; and
provisions so scarce, it will require not only dispatch, but good for
tune, to keep us from distress. Should things go well, I tremble for
the fate of the poor Canadians who have ventured so much. What
shall I do with them should I be obliged to evacuate this country?
I have assured them that the United Colonies will as soon give up
Massachusetts to resentment as them."
Instead of making a merit of the difficuUies of his campaign, he
sought, in his letters and despatches, to conceal them, ascribing the
faults of his "young troops" to their "want of experience," to their
hard duty, the constant succession of bad weather, &c., stUl en
couraging them to nobler efforts in future; and if any impatience of
discipline appeared, he attributed it to " that spirit of freedom which

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
men, accustomed to think for themselves, wiU bring even into camps
with them."
His perseverance and good conduct in gaining possession of St.
John's and Montreal were the theme of every tongue ; his abUities in
negotiation ; the precision with which the various articles of treaties
and capitulations were expressed; the generous applause he gave,
not only to every worthy eflbrt of his own officers, but to the com
manding officer and garrison of St. John's ; his noble declaration to
the inhabitants of Montreal, that " the Continental armies despise every
act of oppression and violence, being come for the express purpose
of giving liberty and security ;" all these did honor to himself and
to congress, under whose authority he acted.
In a memoir of General Montgomery it would be unjust wholly
to omit a tribute to his aids, who fell with him in Canada. They
were Captains Macpherson and Cheesman. The first, ha'ving finished
his education at Princeton, studied law with John Dickinson; ani
mated by his example and precepts, he had become eminent in his
profession at a period when many are deemed " under age." The
love of liberty being his ruling passion, he thought it his duty to
offer himself td the service of his country, and he had soon an op
portunity of attaining the military rank of which he was laudably
ambitious. He soon became the bosom friend of General Mont
gomery, was entrusted with a share of his most important negotia
tions, and stood by his side in the attack upon Quebec; in death
they were not a moment divided.
Captain Cheesman, of the New- York forces, fell at the same time,
covered with honor, and lamented by all who knew him as an active
and gallant officer. Captain Hendricks also deserves mention; he
commanded one of the Pennsylvania rifle companies, and was a gal
lant soldier. The command of the guard belonged to him on
the morning of the attack ; but he solicited and obtained leave to
take a more conspicuous post, and ha'ving led his men through the
barrier where his commanding officer. General Arnold, was wounded,
he long sustained the fire of the garrison with unshaken firnmesSj
till, at last, receiving a shot in his breast, he immediately expired.
The sorrow of the American people for the loss of Montgomerv
was heightened by the esteem which his amiable character had
gained him. The whole country mourned his death ; and to ex
press the high sense entertained of his services, congress directed a
monument of marble to be placed in front of St. Paul's church in the
city of New- York, with the following appropriate inscription : —

RICHARD MONTGOMERY.
THIS MONUjVIENT
Was erected by order of
Congress, 25th January, .1776,
To transmit to posterity
A grateful remembrance of the
Patriotism, conduct, enterprise, and
Perseverance
Of Major-General Richard MoNGOMERTf
Who, after a series of success
Amidst the most discouraging difficulties,
Fell in the attack
On duebec,
31st December, 1775.
Aged 37* years.
His remains, (after resting forty-two years at Quebec,) by a reso
lution of the state of New- York, were brought to the city; and on the
Sth of July, 1818, they were deposited with gratefiil ceremonies be
neath the aforesaid monument.
Such an example is worthy of the great state which conceived and
executed it. Many of our brave men and legislators of the era that
tried men's souls still slumber in ignoble scites : it is time the nation
was awakened from its apathy on this subject.
As an appropriate conclusion, we may be permitted to quote the
following character of General Montgomery from Ramsay's His
tory of the American Revolution : —
" Few men have ever fallen in battle so much regretted by both
sides as General Montgomery. His many amiable qualities had
procured him an uncommon share of private affection, and his great
abilities an equal proportion of public esteem. Being a sincere lover
of liberty, he had engaged in the American cause from principle, and
quitted the enjoyment of an easy fortune and the highest domestic
felicity, to take an active share in the fatigues and dangers of a war
instituted for the defence of the community of which he was an
adopted member. His well-known character was almost equaUy
esteemed by the friends and foes of the side which he had espoused.

* The age on the monument is 37, as inserted in the text, but it is evidently an error.
General Armstrong, in his Memoir of Montgomery, says, he fell "io the first month of his
fortieth year." — Ed. s

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
In America he was celebrated as a martyr to the liberties of mankind ;
in Great Britain, as a misguided good man, sacrificing to what he
supposed to be the rights of his country. His name was mentioned in
parliament with singular respect. Some of the most powerful speakers
in that assembly displayed their eloquence in sounding his praise and
lamenting his fate. Those, in particular, who had been his fellow
soldiers in the late war, expatiated on his many virtues. The minister
himself acknowledged his worth while he reprobated the cause in
which he fell. He concluded an involuntary panegyric by saying —
' Curse on his virtues, they have undone his country.' "
Such was General Richard Montgomery ; a name that we have
cause to remember with pride, not unmingled with regret at his early
but honorable death. Had he lived, he would have stood among the
first of our mihtary leaders, our patriots, and our statesmen. Many,
it is true, have blamed him for rashness, in hazarding an attack on
Quebec with so small a force. But what could he have done ? To
abandon the project after all the expense and labor it had cost, 'without
an effort, would, probably, have subjected him to still severer condemna
tion, even from the same persons who now censure him. Both his coun
try's honor and his own reputation impelled him forward. To have kept
his men together among the ravages of the small-pox, and encamped
in open fields of snow, would have been impossible ; the only alterna
tive was an attempt to take the city by assault. Alas, it failed ; had
it succeeded, all men would have praised both the conception and its
execution. When men cannot command success, they ought not to be
blamed for the failure of noble intentions ; and but for the unhappy
sudden fall of Montgomery the fate of the day might have been very
different. All that a man could do in his circumstances was accom
plished, and he died with a character unsullied by a single stain, and a
heart true to virtue and honor. He was marked for his benevolence,
his eloquence, and his courage.

MIi\(JJ®IS. ©HSmiSJilti irilKDMMiS SWMISIlISo

^^^^^^Z/e.

THOMAS SUMTER.
The name of General Sumter, of South Carolina, is conspicuous in
the story of our revolutionary struggle, but the details of his actions
are scattered through many books, and have never, we believe, been
arranged in the form of a personal memoir, After many efforts to ob
tain new matter, and to render this sketch more perfect than we could
otherwise hope to make it from the materials within our reach, we
have to confess our utter failure. The indifference or procrastination of
the present representative of the family, to whom we have applied, has
left us, up to the last moment, without a line of information ; and the
unhappy fate of the Steamer Home deprived us of Professor Nott, who
had engaged to furnish a biography of General Sumter from such ma
terials as he could obtain in South Carolina. We are therefore thrown
upon our own resources, and can onlj'' promise a careful collection of
all the material facts in relation to the public life of the distinguished
soldier, who, as a partisan officer, scarcely ranked below even Marion
himself It is probable that the military talents of General Sumter had been
exhibited in the militia service of Carolina long before the commence
ment of the revolution ; as we find that so early as March, 1776, he
was appointed by the provincial congress lieutenant-colonel of the
second regiment of riflemen ; but he does not appear to have particu
larly distinguished himself until after the fall of Charleston, in May,
1780, His peculiar genius had then free scope, and led him on to a
series of actions of importance to his country, and the more remarkable
from the circumstances under which he organized his force, and the
sudden and unexpected check given to the rapid career of the con
querors of General Lincoln's army.
In a few weeks after the capitulation of Charleston, the enemy held
complete possession of the state, and on the 4th of June Sir Henry
Clinton wrote to his government, " I may venture to assert that there
are few men in South Carolina, who are not either our prisoners or

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
in arms with us." The few brave spirits who had not bowed to the
storm, sought shelter and the means of renewing the contest in North
Carolina. Among these was Colonel Sumter ; but despondency and
inactivity formed no part of his character. At the head of a body of
republicans like himself, driven from their native states, who had cho
sen him to their command ; few in number, imperfectiy armed, and al
most destitute of ammunition, he returned to South Carolina, to op
pose himself to a veteran and victorious army.
On the 12th of July he surprised and cut to pieces a superior party
of the enemy, composed of thirty-five dragoons of the legion, twenty
mounted infantry, and a large body of loyalists. The commander of the
party, Captain Huck, a miscreant noted for his cruelty and profanity,
was killed ; and of his whole party but about twenty made their escape.
Among those who served under Col. Sumter, was Colonel Neale.
This gentleman, an ardent Whig, had commanded a regiment of mili
tia in S. Carolina, and had fled from the state after the fall of Charles
ton. When Lord Cornwallis, contrary alike to policy and justice, de
termined to admit no neutrality in the contest, but that all who did
not unite themselves to the British force should be proceeded against
as enemies. Col. Neale's regiment was enrolled in the royal service.
Hearing of the approach of Sumter, together with their old command
er, they hastened to join him. His force was still farther increased ny
the junction of small parties of Whigs from the Waxsaw settlement, who
had been exasperated by the treatment of the British authorities. Col.
SumteR) now promoted by Governor Rutledge to the rank of briga
dier-general in the state militia, found himself in a situation to under-
.take some more considerable enterprise.
On the 30th of July he passed Broad river at Blair's ford, with about
six hundred men, and_^ advanced upon Rocky Mount. The defences
of the post consisted of two log-houses and a loop-holed building, sur
rounded by a ditch and an abattis — the whole placed upon a command
ing eminence, and encircled by an open wood. The garrison was
composed of the New- York volunteers and a party of royalist militia,
dnd was commanded by Col. Tumbull. Having no artUlery, Gen.
Sumter sheltered the greater part of his men among the trees and
rocks, with directions to keep up a heavy fire upon the garrison ; whUe
at the head of a picked party, he himself proceeded to: the assault.
After being twice repulsed, he still persevered, and succeeded in pene
trating within the abattis ; but the strength of the post was too great to
admit of its being taken without artillery, and he was finally compelled
to retire

THOMAS SUMTER.
Not discouraged by his want of success, after an interval of eight
days Sumter fell upon Hanging Rock, another of the chain of posts
by which the British kept up their communication with the lower
country. Hanging Rock was garrisoned by five hundred men, con
sisting of one hundred and sixty infantry of Tarleton's legion, a part
of Col. Brown's regiment, and Bryan's North Carolina corps. Through
an error of the guides, the attack was first directed against Bryan's roy
alists, who, being surprised, gave way in all directions. Tarleton's
infantry were next forced to fall back on Brown's detachment ; this,
though fighting with great bravery, was in its turn compelled to give
ground. The British troops retreating, formed themselves into a hol
low square in the centre of their position. In the mean time the ranks
of the mUitia had become disordered ; many had been attracted by the
plunder of the camp, and others had indulged too freely in the liquor
which had been found in it. Sumter, with the few troops that he
could bring into array, made a determined advance upon the new po
sition of the enemy ; but the disorder had spread too deeply, and a suf
ficient number of men could not be assembled to make an impression
on it. A retreat, therefore, was determined on. This was accomplished
leisurely, and in the face of the enemy, who had suffered too severely
to offer any interruption. When Gen. Sumter began the action, his
men had but ten rounds of ball each, and before its termination they
were amply supplied from the stores of the British and Tories.
From the inattention of the militia to regular returns of the killed
and wounded, the loss on the part of the Americans could not be
ascertained ; many of the wounded being carried home immediately
from the field of battle. The loss of the enemy considerably exceeded
our own. Of one hundred and sixty men of Tarleton's legion, they
acknowledge sixty-two to have been killed and wounded ; and their
other corps suffered severely. Immediately after the action Gen. Sum
ter crossed the Catawba. His reputation for enterprise and ability
was now established. His success in the two latter instances would
have been more decided, had it not been for his want of artillery,
and the undisciplined nature of his troops. As it was, it raised the
droopmg spirits of the Whigs, and gave his men confidence in the skill
and courage of their leader.
In the mean time Gen. Gates had entered South Carolina, and
shortiy afterwards his army took up a position at Rugely's Mills, not
far from Gen. Sumter's encampment. Receiving information that a
detachment of the enemy was on its march from Ninety-six to Camden,
with stores for the main army, Sumter requested a reinforcement

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
from Gen. Gates to enable him to intercept it. Col. Woolford, of the
Maryland line, with one hundred continentals, two pieces of camion,
and three hundred militia, were despatched to his assistance. Thus
reinforced, on the morning of the 15th of August Sumter appeared
.on the west bank of the Wateree, fell upon the convoy which was
the object of the expedition, and succeeded in taking forty-four
wagon loads of stores and clothing, together with a number of prison
ers. On the evening of the 17th, Sumter, who was on his retreat up
the river, received intelligence of the unfortunate battle of CamdeUj
and of the total dispersion of the American army. Unhappily, his
movement up the country had brought him into the immediate neigh
borhood of the British army. Encumbered as he was with prisoners
and baggage, he immediately continued his retreat, and by the celerity
of his movement, avoided a corps under the command of Col. TurnbuU,
which Lord Cornwallis had despatched against him. At noon on the
18th of August, he encamped his men on the north side of Fishing Creek,
a small stream that falls into the Catawba about forty miles above
Camden. Here the arms were stacked, videttes were posted ; and the
wearied troops, overcome by fatigue, enjoyed an interval of repose,
rendered more agreeable by their previous exertions.
The day after the battle of Camden, Lord Cornwallis, fearing lest
Sumter might escape Col. TurnbuU, had directed Col. Tarleton, with
his legion and some light infantry, to move likewise in pursuit. After
a rapid march, on the 17th, Col. Tarleton finding many of his men too
fatigued to continue the pursuit, selected one hundred of the dra
goons, together with about sixty of the light infantry, and pressed
forward without intermission. Passing the Catawba at Rocky-Ford,
he got into the rear of Sumter, who was utterly unapprized of his ap
proach. Two videttes, who fired upon his advance, being lulled
without the alarm being taken, Tarleton fell upon the camp, seized
the arms of the Americans, and instantly charged them while confus
ed, unprepared, and unarmed. A fearfiil slaughter followed. A few
of the regulars taking post behind the wagons, offered some resistance ;
but it was soon suppressed, and the rout was universal. One hundred
and fifty were killed and wounded, and over three hundred were made
prisoners ; while the stores and clothing previously captured, again
fell into the hands of the enemy. Sumter himself fortunately es
caped unhurt. By this terrible blow, South Carolina was again left
at the mercy of the conqueror ; the few men under Marion constitut
ing the sole force embodied for her protection.
Immediately on his defeat, Sumter retired to the upper country,

THOMAS SUMTER.
where he was soon joined by a few of his men who had escaped the
slaughter of the 18th. Volunteers flocked to his standard, and he was
again in a condition to harass the enemy.
He ranged the district about the Enoree, Broad, and Tiger Rivers.
His men being all mounted, were enabled to move about the country
with speed and facility. When they approached an enemy, the horses
were tied and left in charge of a few of the party ; so that in defeat
they afforded a safe retreat, in victory the means of pursuit.
In the early part of the fall, Sumter was at the head of such a force
as to attract towards him the attention of Lord Cornwallis ; and Major
Wemyss, with the sixty-third regiment and about forty of the legion
cavalry, was despatched in pursuit of him. The former success of
Tarleton inspired Wemyss with the hope of likewise surprising his ene
my. Pushing forward with great celerity on the night of the Sth No-
vember,he reached the encampmentof Sumter on the bankof the Broad
River. Fearing if he delayed till morning, Sumter might be advised of
his proximity, he determined upon an immediate attack. At one o'clock
in the morning his troops advanced to the assault. Col. Wemyss, who
was at the head of his men, fell by the fire of the picket, which was
immediately driven in. The British troops pushed forward ; but they
found the Americans in arms, and ready to receive them. Unprepared
to meet so firm a resistance, and discouraged by the fall of their leader,
the British forces soon retreated with precipitation, leaving their com
mander and twenty men upon the ground. In the morning Col. We
myss was discovered, badly wounded. He had been active in prosecut
ing the severe measures of Lord Cornwallis against those Whigs, who,
contrary to a solemn compact, being called upon to join the British
forces, had preferred the service of their countrymen. Some of the
Whigs had been hanged by his orders, and he in person had attended
their execution. In his pocket was found a list of the houses which
he had burned. The paper being handed to General Sumter, he im
mediately threw it into the fire, and ordered every attention to be paid
to the prisoner. Col. Wemyss was shortly after permitted to go to
Charleston on parole.
After the action, Gen, Sumter crossed the Broad River, and effect
ing a junction with Cols, Clarke and Banner, who commanded parties
of militia from the mountains, concerted with them measures for the
surprise of Ninety^ix. Lord Cornwallis, suspecting the designs of the
American commander, hastUy recalled Col, Tarleton, who at that time
was absent on an expedition against Marion, directing him to join his
forces to the sixty-third regiment, which had not yet returned from its

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
fruitless attack, and bring Sumter to action. Col, Tarleton pursued
his foe with the impetuosity by whjch he was characterized. Sum
TER, receiving timely information of his approach, and not being strong
enough to risk an engagement, retreated. On the afternoon of the
20th of Nov. he reached Blackstock's Hill, an eminence on the east
bank of the Tiger River. Here he received information of the rapid
approach of Col. Tarleton, who, apprehensive lest his prey should es
cape, had left behind him a majority of his troops, and was advancing
at the head only of the legion cavalry and some mounted infantry of the
sixty-third regiment ; the whole amounting to about four hundred men.
Confiding in the strength of his ground, Gen. Sumter determined to
await the approach of the enemy, and offer him battle. His centre
was posted in some log buildings occupying the middle of the hill ;
his right was placed behind some rails, which were flanked by an in
accessible mountain ; and his left was distributed in a piece of rugged
ground covered by a bend of the. river. A small biook ran in front of
the whole, and the road to the ford passed directly through the centre
of the position. On coming in view of the American position, Col.
Tarleton was struck with its strength, and halting his men on an op
posite eminence, determined to await the approach of the remainder of
his force. A portion of his men were accordingly dismounted, until the
arrival of his infantry should enable him to commence the battie.
Observing the movement, Sumter determined to bring on an imme
diate action. Accordingly a number of his militia were ordered to ad
vance upon the British. A sharp conflict ensued ; but the sixty-third
charging with fixed bayonets, the militia were driven back. Pursuing
their advantage too far, the sixty-third received a murderous fire from
the buildings in which the American centre was posted, and were
thrown into confusion. Col. Tarleton, seeing the dangerous situation
in which the regiment was placed, attempted, by a vigorous charge up
hill with his cavalry, to relieve them ; but his men, thinned by the fire of
the Americans, were forced to retire in disorder. A second attempt
on the American left was attended with no better success. All his ef
forts proving ineffectual, Tarleton was forced to retreat with precipita
tion, leaving his wounded upon the field.
On this occasion the American loss amounted to but three men
killed and four wounded. The British, according to their own accounts,
lost more than fifty men ; while the Americans, who from remaining
masters of the field, had every opportunity of information, make it
amount to ninety-two men killed and one hundred wounded. Un
fortunately, among the small number wounded on the American side,

THOMAS SUMTER.
was General Sumter, who received a musket ball in his breast near
the right shoulder.
After burying the dead, and supplying the woimded of the enemy with
every comfort in his power, Gen. Sumter continued his retreat. Having
reached a place of safety, the greater part of his followers dispersed, and
he himself, guarded by a few of his faithful soldiers, was borne into
North Carolina, there to waittUl the healing of hisAvound should enable
him to resume his active duties in the field. Shortly after this, Congress
passed a vote directing their thanks to be presented to Gen. Sumter
and the troops under his command for their patriotism, bravery, and
military conduct ; at the same time particularizing the affair at Hanging
Rock, the defeat of Major Wemyss, and the repulse of Col. Tarleton
at Blackstocks.
When Col. Tarleton wrote to Cornwallis his version of the affair,
Cornwallis in his answer said, " I shall be very glad to hear that Sum
ter is in a condition to give us no further trouble ; he certainly has
been our greatest plague in this country." Sumter was confined by
his wound for several months, but in the early part of Feb. 1781,
though still feeble, he was sufficiently recovered again to take the field.
General Greene was at that time retreating before Lord Cornwallis,
while South Carolina was again left without a continental army,
Under these circumstances, it was an important object to alarm the
enemy for the safety of the posts which he had left behind him in the
rapid pursuit of Greene. Assembling about two hundred and fifty
North Carolina mUitia, and being joined by Col. Wade Hampton with
a small reinforcement, Sumter made a rapid movement upon Fort
Granby, a post of the enemy situated on the south banks of the Conga-
ree. Piles of rails were constructed so as to enable the marksmen to
fire down upon the enemy, who were destitute of artiUery. The at
tack was pressed so vigorously, that the British were on the point of
yielding, when the appearance of Lord Rawdon on the opposite bank
of the river, at the head of a superior force, compelled Sumter to re
treat. Retirihg southward on the second day after the affair at Gran
by, he surprised and captured a detachment of fifty British troops, and
a convoy of provisions and clothing which they were escorting. Un
fortunately, the convoy, which- was of the highest importance to the
American army, being p^laced in boats and sent down the river, was re
taken by the British posted at Fort Watson, Swimming his horses across
the Santee, and transporting his men in canoes, Sumter attempted to
carry the post and recover the lost booty ; but being unprovided with
artillery, the attempt proved vain, and the Americans were repulsed.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
After sheltering his men a few days in the swamps on the north side
of the Santee, he moved towards the north-eastern part of the state,
and encamped in the friendly neighborhood of Charlotte.
This expedition annoyed and distressed the enemy, by breaking up
the communications between his posts, kept up the spirits of the Ameri
cans, and furnished Gen. Sumter with a mass of information concern
ing the force and movements of the enemy. This last was imme
diately dispatched to Gen. Greene through Col. Hampton.
Gen. Sumter's services had hitherto been performed altogether by
means of militia, a species of force, in the then state of the country,
constantly fluctuating in numbers, joining and leaving the camp with
almost equal facility, and little to be depended on in expeditions which
required time. He now attempted to enlist a body of men in the
service of the state for ten months. While thus engaged, he received
a letter from Gen. Greene, announcing the intention of the latter to
permit Lord Cornwallis to pursue his march north without interrup
tion from him, while he himself should again enter- South Carolina,
and attempt to drive the enemy from the southern states.. In accord
ance with this plan. Gen. Sumter was directed to procure provisions for
the main army, to obtain all the information in his power, and to break
up, as much as possible, the communications between the enemy's
posts. Sumter, in pursuance of these instructions, took the field on
the 20th of April, with the men he had been able to raise. Several
parties of the royalist militia were dispersed, and the country between .
the Broad, Saluda, and Wateree rivers completely swept. The im
portance of Sumter's services at this period is shown by the frequen
cy of his communications with Gen. Greene. Besides furnishing him
with all the provisions he could collect, sometimes in the course of a
day several letters containing information would be sent to the main
army. On the 11th of May he made a sudden attack on the post
at Orangeburg, and took near one hundred prisoners with a large
supply of stores and provisions. About this time some difficulty oc
curring between Col. Lee and himself, Sumter sent a remonstrance
to Gen. Greene, enclosing his commission ; the next day it was returned
with many expressions of esteem, and Sumter sacrificed his private
discontent to the service of his country.
In July, when General Greene, on account of the ill-health prevalent
in the army, retired to the high hills of Santee for the benefit of re
pose and purer atmosphere, he despatched Gen. Sumter, having
under him the corps of Marion and Lee, to break up the enemy's posts
in the vicinity of Charleston, and to dislodge the nineteenth regiment

THOMAS SUMTER.
Stationed at Monk's Corner. The country was swept to the gates of
Charleston, the fort at Dorchester broken up, and a large party of
mounted refugees were dispersed by Col. Wade Hampton, who com
manded Sumter's cavalry. The main object of the expedition, which
was the nineteenth regiment, then posted at Monk's Comer, failed ;
Col. Coates retreating during the night over a bridge which had been
deserted by the militia placed to guard it. On the following day Sum
ter came up with the enemy, who had taken post in the house and
the out-houses of Captain Shubrick ; but being unprovided with artil
lery, after an ineffectual effort to dislodge them, he was obliged to give
up the attempt.
After the expedition to Dorchester, Sumter was compelled to retire
to the upper country from indisposition ; nor was he enabled again to
take the field before the enemy were confined to the walls of Charles
ton. After the peace, he was for a long time a member of the Ameri
can congress — ^first as a representative and afterwards as a senator. He
lived respected alike for his talents and services, and died on the 1st
of June, 1832, at his residence near the Bradford Springs, South Ca
rolina, in the 98th year of his age.
Sumter was tall and robust, with a bold and open countenance, ex
pressive at once of energy and decision. As a partisan officer, his cha
racter was marked by courage, enterprize, and determination. " Great
ly superior to General Marion in personal strength, and trusting less
to stratagem and skill, he placed his fortune much more exclusively
on his daring resolution and the execution of his sword. Warm in
temperament and devoted to his country, whatever could contribute to
rescue her from the invader and establish her independence, became an
object of his ardent affection. He was also enamoured of brilliant
achievement for its own sake. To victory, and the glory attending it,
he would cut his way through every danger, regardless alike of his
own blood and that of the enemy." At the head of a force inferior
in equipment and discipline, and attached to their commander only
by their confidence in his prowess and ability, he constantiy kept
the field against a veteran and superior enemy, commonly suc
cessfiil, and in defeat ever able to rally his men and renew the con
test. On one unfortunate occasion he is perhaps justly chargeable
with a neo-ligence which led to the destruction of his party ; but, in
structed by experience, he was never again surprised, and both We
myss and Tarleton felt the effect of his vigilance. In addition to
his other qualities, Sumter was invariably humane in a contest Avhere
the conduct of both parties had afforded a good excuse for retaliatory

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
cruelty. His conduct toward Wemyss and the wounded of Tarleton's
legion will long remain evidence of a kindliness of nature not a,lways
to be found in the excited breast of the partisan.
This may not be an improper place to make a closing remark on
the fact that not a few names of the most useful men in our revolution
ary contest are almost lost to us. The principal histories of that con
flict say httle of the subject of this memoir, and of some others even
less is recorded. This fact may be easily accounted for. Not a few
representatives of families, as in the present instance, are comparatively
indifferent to their fame ; then again, historians themselves are apt to
be partial and love to surround their special favorites vrith as much
glory as possible, even at the expense of justice to others ; and finally,
those who are placed in the most prominent situations, must of neces
sity occupy the foreground of the picture. After all, however, the
gratitude of their country is due to the noble men who compose the
whole army, whether they hold important offices, or only obey those
in superior stations. Nor does the trae patriot object to this ; for his
object is, not to gain a name in history, but to serve his coimtry.
May we never need men indifferent to fame, but always have historians
anxious to bestow and record it. 10

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'iriS®S£^sa MHIFIFMSro

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THOMAS MIFFLIN.

Thomas Mifflin was born in the city of PhUadelphia, in the year
1744. His ancestors were of the society of Friends, and among the
earliest settlers of Pennsylvania, and of the most respectable class.
He was a graduate in the coUege of PhUadelphia, and was distin
guished for scholarship and genius. He ever afterwards retained a
fondness for classical literature, and was well acquainted with the
best writers. He was intended by his parents for a merchant, and,
after leaving college, was placed in one of the flrst counting houses
in the city. He subsequently made a voyage to Europe, and on his
return entered into business with one of his brothers. His gay and
generous temper, his extraordinary powers of conversation, with his
frank and popular manners, made him, at a very early age, a decided
favorite with his fellow-citizens. The city of Philadelphia was at
that time represented in the state legislature by two burgesses, annu
ally elected by the people. As the difficulties with the mother country
were becoming serious and threatening, it was particularly important
to advance to places of high public trust, men whose patriotic prin
ciples could be relied upon; and whose knowledge, talents, and force
of character qualified them to serve the country faithfully and effi
ciently in the impending danger. Thomas Mifflin was elected in
1772, although but twenty-eight years of age, as one of the burgesses
to represent the city in the general assembly of the state. Two years
afterwards he was appointed one of the delegates from the state to
the first congress.
The occasion now occurred to call forth, and exhibit to advantage,
his peculiar talents. No man of our country has excelled him in the fire,
energy, and effect of his addresses to an assembly of the people. There
was an earnest, — a fascinating animation in his manner, which touched
every heart ; a perspicuity in his ideas wliich every man could under
stand ; and a propriety, strength, and point in his language, which, alto
gether, was irresistible upon his audience. He knew exactly how and
VOL. Ill— 17 1

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
where to strike the public feeling. The news of the battie of Lexing
ton presented a noble and interesting opportunity for the display of his
powers of eloquence. Many addresses were delivered, such as the
solemnity of the subject and patriotism of the orators dictated ; but
Mifflin, although the youngest of the speakers, took the bold and
decisive ground of a steady adherence to the resolutions which were
then offered and adopted. In a memoir of his life read to the His
torical Society of Pennsylvania, the conclusion of his address is thus
quoted — " Let us not be bold in declarations and afterwards cold in
action. Let not the patriotic feeling of to-day be forgotten to-morrow;
nor have it said of Philadelphia, that she passed noble resolutions,
slept upon them, and afterwards neglected them." This was high
language for that day, although the men of the present time, when
our country has become powerful and proud, can scarcely believe it.
But Mifflin did not preach a doctrine which he would not himself
follow ; he did not begin and end his fit of patriotism with brave words
and briUiant speeches, in which there might have been as much of
vanity as love of country. He did not go home to sleep upon and
forget the resolutions he so warmly recommended to others. He fol
lowed them by corresponding actions, and entered at once into the
military service. Companies and regiments for the assertion and
defence of American liberties and rights were spontaneously formed,
and Mifflin was appointed the major of one of the regiments. To
wait until danger came upon him did not suit his ardent spirit ; he
determined to seek it, and accordingly joined the camp then formed
at Boston. He very soon distinguished himself there by opposing a
detachment of the British army sent to collect cattle from the neigh
borhood. An officer of high rank, who was a witness of this pro
ceeding, declared that he "never saw a greater display of personal
bravery than was exhibited on this occasion in the cool and intrepid
conduct of Colonel Mifflin." A short time after the withdrawal of the
British troops from Boston, Colonel Mifflin received from congress
the commission of brigadier-general; having previously performed,
in a most satisfactory manner, the arduous duties of quarter-master-
general. The high opinion which congress entertained of the talents,
judgment, and zeal in the great cause, of General Mifflin, was
manifested by a resolution of 25th of May, 1776, appointing a com
mittee to confer with General Washington, General Gates, and Ge
neral Mifflin, "touching the frontiers towards Canada." To be
associated with such men in such a service, at the age of thirty-two,,
was a most gratifying honor.

THOMAS MIFFLIN.
In the fall of 1776 American affairs bore a most desponding aspect,
and American liberty was drooping, almost td despair. The people,
even many who set out bravely on the onset, were becoming weary,
discontented, and disheartened with a contest in which they no longer
saw any hope of success. The army was melting away, and the
shattered remnant which stood to their arms and flag had ceased to
look for victory in the battie field, and were satisfied to' find refuge
from a conquering enemy in secure positions. In this gloomy state
of the country, her leading and undaunted patriots determined to
make an attempt to revive the spirit of the preceding year by per
sonal appeals to the patriotism and honorable feelings of the people.
The peculiar eloquence of General Mifflin was exactly what was
wanted for this purpose, and he was directed to go into the counties
of Pennsylvania, " to exhort and rouse the militia to come forth in
defence of their country." His selection for this service is mentioned
by Marshall in his Life of Washington ; who says, that "the exertions
of General Mifflin, who had been commissioned to raise the militia
of Pennsylvania, though they made but little impression on the
state at large, were attended with some degree of success in PhUa
delphia. A large proportion of the inhabitants of that city had as
sociated for the defence of their coimtry ; and on this occasion fifteen
hundred of them marched to Trenton." General Washington had
given up his design of marching to Princeton on receiving intelli
gence that Lord Cornwallis was rapidly advancing from Brunswick,
and had passed the Delaware; the British then occupying Trenton.
General Mifflin was again despatched to Philadelphia to take
charge of the numerous stores in that place. " The utmost exertions,"
says Marshall, "were made by the civil authority to raise the militia."
General Mifflin was directed to "repair immediately to the neigh
boring counties, and endeavor, by all the means in his power, to rouse
and bring in the militia to the defence of Philadelphia." Congress
also declared that they deemed it of great importance to the general
safety that " General Mifflin should make a progress through several
of the counties of the state of Pennsylvania, > to rouse the freemen
thereof to the immediate defence of the city and country ;" and they
resolved " that the assembly be requested to appoint a committee of
their body to make the tour with him, and assist in this good and
necessary work." General Mifflin cheerfuUy accepted this good
and necessary mission, and executed it with his usual ability and
zeal. He assembled the people at convenient places, and poured
forth his exciting eloquence in meeting-houses, churches, and court-

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
houses; from pulpits sacred to the offices of religion, and the judg
ment seats of the law. The battie of Princeton, in January, 1777, im
mediately followed these exertions ; and the victories of Trenton and
Princeton may be considered as having assured and sealed American
independence. General Mifflin was present at Princeton, and
makes a conspicuous figure in Col. Trumbull's painting of that me
morable conflict. In the foUowing February congress raised General
Mifflin to the rank of Major- General.
Although the health of General Mifflin was considerably im
paired by his constant and various labors in the military service of
his country, he continued in it to the end of the war; and he enjoyed,
¦with his co-laborers in the great work, the unspeakable happiness of
seeing the independence and liberties of his country firmly and for ever
established. He had maintained and augmented the attachment of
his fellow-citizens to him, and in 1783 was appointed, by the legis
lature of Pennsylvania, a member of congress. By that illustrious
body of true American patriots, he was, in the fall of the same year,
elevated to the seat of their president. In this capacity he received
from General Washington the resignation of his commission of Com
mander-in-chief of the American army. It was his duty to reply to
the address of Washington on this august occasion, which, in all
its interesting circumstances, has no parallel in the history of human
affairs. Both addresses were such as would be expected from the
respective officers.
In 1785 General Mifflin was chosen a member of the legislature
of Pennsylva,nia, and elected the speaker of that body. In 1788 he
became president of the supreme executive council of the state, under
the constitution of that day. In 1 787 the great convention assembled
at PhUadelphia to frame a government for the United States, (then
sinking into anarchy and ruin because they had no government,)
which should "form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure do
mestic tranquUlity, provide for the common defence, promote the
general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and
our posterity." A more dignified and solemn trust was never committed
to human agency. The destinies of a great empire, of innumerable
mUlions of men, were placed in their hands; and never' was a trust
more faithfully, more wisely, more successfully performed. In this
iUustrious assembly General Mifflin was one of the representatives
of Pennsylvania. We cannot withstand the temptation to note the
names of his colleagues in this delegation, that it may be seen to what
sort of men the people of that day entrusted their high concerns.

THOMAS MIFFLIN,
The Pennsylvania delegation consisted oi— Benjamin Franklin,
Thomas Mifflin, Robert Morris, George Clymer, Thomas Fitz-
simmons, Jared IngersoU, James Wilson, Gouverneur Morris !
Soon after the adoption of the constitution of the United States, a
convention was called by the people of Pennsylvania to reform their
plan of government. Of this convention General Mifflin was a
member, and the president. He had, as he had shown when speaker
of the house of assembly, an unusual fitness for presiding over such
assemblies. He was prompt and decisive, and exercised his authority
with dignity and impartiality. When the constitution, formed and
adopted by this convention, went into operation. General Mifflin
was elected the first governor, in whose hands the whole executive
power of the state was placed, and he continued to hold the office, by
reelections, for the whole constitutional term, to wit, nine years.
It will be remembered that it was during Governor Mifflin's
administration of the state government, that the insolent conduct of
the ministers of revolutionary France disturbed the quiet of our
country, by endeavoring to organize a regular opposition to the federal
administration, then in the hands of President Washington. The
feelings of our people were highly excited in favor of what they
thought was republican France. The French ministers presuming
upon this feeling, and ignorant of the superior and steady attachment of
our citizens to their own country and government, assumed to exercise
sovereign powers within the territories of the United States. The
governor of Pennsylvania, in common with a great majority of our
citizens, entertained a strong predilection for the French people and
their cause. But this did not lead him to forget or neglect the duties
which, as the governor of Pennsylvania, he owed to the government
of the Union. When the president found it necessary to call upon
him for his aid in executing the laws, and maintaining the authority
of the United States, the requisition was promptly complied with.
In 1794, in the midst of the excitement about French affairs, and
not without some connexion with it, an insurrection broke out in
some of the western counties of Pennsylvania, immediately inflamed by
the imposition of certain internal taxes, particularly that on whiskey.
The government of the United States, whose laws were thus defied
and opposed by force, was obhged to take the field to quell the in
surgents. On the call of the president, Governor Mifflin marched
at the head of the quota of militia demanded of Pennsylvania; and
putting aside all the pride of rank and etiquette, served undei Ge
neral Lee, the governor of Virginia, who had been mferior to Governor

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
Mifflin in rank in the army of the war of revolution ; and although
the service to be performed was in Governor Mifflin's own state.
Speaking of this insurrection, Marshall says — "By his personal
exertions the governor of Pennsylvania compensated for the defects
in the militia laws of that state. From some inadvertence, as was
said, on the part of the brigade inspectors, the militia could not be
drafted; and, consequently, the quota of Pennsylvania could be com
plied with only by volunteers. The governor, who was endowed
with a high degree of popular eloquence, made a circuit through the
lower counties of the state, and publicly addressed the militia at dif
ferent places, where he had caused them to be assembled, on the crisis
in the affairs of their country. So successful were these animating
exhortations, that Pennsylvania was not behind her sister states in
furnishing the quota required from her."
Governor Mifflin took his leave of the legislature on the 7th of
December, 1799 ; and having been elected a member of the house of
representatives, he took his seat in that assembly. His health was
now exceedingly impaired; he had frequent attacks of the gout,
which generally struck at his stomach. After a short confinement,
he died on the 20th of January 1800, at Lancaster, at that time the
seat of government. Resolutions were passed by the legislature ex
pressive of the high sense entertained of his public services as a sol
dier and a statesman; his interment was provided for at the public
expense, and a monument erected to his memory.
Governor Mifflin, from his early youth to the hour of his death,
was in the service of his country, and always in a prominent position.
He maintained the confidence and favor of his fellow-citizens from
the first to the last, without a moment's interruption or abatement;
they, indeed, went on increasing. In his personal appearance he was
uncommonly handsome ; rather below the ordinary height ; but his
form was in such good proportion, and so firmly set, that he was
admirably calculated for any exertion of activity or endurance of
fatigue. There was an extraordinary brilliancy in his eye ; an ani
mation and point in his conversation, which fastened upon all who
listened to him. He was an ardent and sincere friend, and nobody
sooner forgot an injury. His purse was too freely open to every caU
upon it, and his habits of expense too improvident for his own in
terest and comfort. A contemporary officer of the revolution, by no
means a personal friend, says that he was a man of " education, of
ready apprehension and brUliancy, and possessed fortitude equal to
any demands that might be made upon it."

EngravedbyXB 'Welch from apamiingbyC ?,mgn

HISC®M"Ci\S SC? JKlfv?',^

THOMAS MCKEAN.
The facUity with which the patriots of the American Revolution
passed from the excitement and turbulence of war to the cultivation
of the arts of peace, is one of the most remarkable of the numerous
excellencies for which they were conspicuous. They did not merely
convert weapons of warfare into implements of agriculture. They
displayed in civil occupations those exalted inteUectual qualities which
are usually the growth of peaceful nurture, but which in them
seemed to spring up spontaneously, in defiance of adverse circum
stances and perilous commotions. Perhaps the very concussion of
society may have elicited the sparks of genius which otherwise would
have lain inert, and never have been brought into existence.
We have been led to these remarks by contemplating the character of
an eminent lawyer and statesman, the foundation of whose greatness
was laid amidst the perils of a revolution. The condition of Chief
Justice McKean was similar to that of a majority of our illustrious
countrymen, who acquired in war the qualities essential to distinc
tion in peace. The subject of this memoir was a native of the county
of Chester, in the province of Pennsylvania, and was born on the
nineteenth day of March, A. D. 1734.
He received his academical education under the superintendence of
the Rev. Francis Allison, a scholar and divine, eminent for piety and
learning ; and after having acquired the customary branches of know
ledge, he commenced the study of the law in the office of his relative,
David Finney, Esq. at New Castle in Delaware. During the continu
ance of his studies, he performed the duties of Clerk of the Prothono
tary of the Court of Common Pleas, and subsequently became ueputy
Prothonotary. and Register for the probate of wiUs, &c. for the County
of Newcastie, the whole labor of which devolved upon him in conse
quence of the absence of his principal.
His career at the bar, to which he was admitted to practice before
he had arrived at the age of twenty-one years, was rapid; and

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
extended to his native county of Chester and to the city of PhUa
delphia. In 1756 he was appointed deputy of the Attorney-General
to prosecute in the County of Sussex, which appointment he re
signed after having, in a creditable manner, fulfilled its duties for
two years. In 1 757 he was admitted to the bar of the Supreme
Court of Pennsylvania, and was without solicitation elected clerk
of the Assembly, which appointment was renewed on the follow
ing year, but was subsequently declined. Another evidence of
his merit and growing reputation was exhibited by his having been
selected by the Legislature, together with Caesar Rodney, Esq. in
1762, to print and revise the laws enacted since 1752 ; an important
and responsible duty, which was executed -with promptness and suc
cess. The early part of his life having been thus devoted to the acquisi
tion of practical knowledge, to the improvement of his abilities, and
to the establishment of a broad foundation for his reputation, he was
admirably well prepared, for a long and active career of public life.
His qualifications were extensive, and his habits of industry firmly
settled. The scene which was before him, was full of difficulty and
peril. He, however, advanced with resolution, and being thoroughly
prepared for every emergency, was enabled to .sustain himself amidst
the most complicated and hazardous embarrassments which the con
dition of public affairs produced.
In 1762, as a member of the Assembly from the County of New
Castle, he commenced that active participation in politics which he
continued for nearly half a century, during which time few great
events transpired with which he was not connected, and associated
his name with the momentous transactions of the Revolution. Du
ring seventeen years he was annually re-elected in opposition to his
avowed inclination, and notwithstanding repeated communications
from him to his constituents, through the newspapers, declining a re
election. This is the more remarkable from the circumstance, that
for the space of six years of that time he resided in the city of Phila
delphia. It exhibits a singular proof of confidence on the part of the
constituents, and fidelity in the representative.
His repeated solicitations, to be relieved from his official burthen,
having been disregarded, he appeared on the 1st of October 1777, tho
day of the general election, at New Castle ; and after delivering a long
and eloquent address to his constituents on the condition of public
affairs, succeeded in withdrawing his name as a candidate. But no
<!ooner had he accomplished this object, than the confidence of the

THOM.iS MCKEAN.
people placed him in a situation of singular delicacy and embarrass
ment. A committee, composed of six persons, called upon him in the name
of the electors, and after expressing the reluctance with which they
acquiesced in his determination no longer to be their representative,
desired that, in consequence of the critical posture of affairs and their
confidence in his judgment, he would recommend seven persons in
whom they might confide as representatives for that county. Mr.
McKean made his grateful acknowledgments for so distinguished a
compliment, but struggled to be excused from a duty calculated to
give offence to his friends ; and assured them that he knew not only
seven, but seventy of the gentlemen present at the election whom he
believed to be deserving of their suffrages. The electors, however,
persisted in their purpose, and the committee having returned to Mr.
McKean, and informed him that a compliance with the popular will
would not only not give offence to any individual, but would confer
a benefit on the country, he wrote the names of seven persons, who
were elected. Of the eighteen hundred electors present, the lowest
of the gentlemen named by Mr, McKean, on the baUot wanted less
than two hundred votes of that number.
So distinguished a proof of confidence made a deep impression on
his mind, and is of itself conclusive evidence of his devotion to the
public service, and the commanding integrity of his life. The ex
perience of modern times, however, demonstrates that personal merit,
unaided by the peculiar condition of society, could not have been the
sole cause of the distinction. Merit in the constituents is essential td
such a result. The crowd of aspirants after official importance will
readily dispense with the services of an incumbent, however neces
sary they may be to the country, and wUl supply vacancies without
requiring the prompting or advice of others. Mr. McKean's consti
tuents were of a peculiar order. They conferred distinction on merit
without stint or envy ; and having once tested the fidelity of thoir re
presentative, they — •
" Grappled him to their souls with hooks of steel :
jlnd did not dull their palms with entertainment
Of each new-hatch'd, unfledged candidate."
In 1764 the Legislature gave an additional proof of its confidence, by
appointing him to be one of the three trustees of the loan office for
New Castie County, which station he filled until the year 1772.
The controversy with Great Britain, which was fruitful of so many
VOL. Ill— 18 3

NATIONAL PORTRAITS
thrilling incidents, and brought so many powerful minds into action,
displayed itself about this period like a speck on the horizon ; and to'
any other than the sagacious patriots of America would hardly have
seemed to portend a storm. But the legislation of the British Parlia
ment could not escape the vigilance of Colonial jurists. The arro
gance of British statesmen might look with contempt, on the apparent
simplicity of a race of men whom they affected to believe had degene
rated from the parent stock ; but the event proved that there were
veins of intellectual wealth pervading our country not surpassed in ¦
extent and value by any in Europe ; and that it only required the im
pulse of oppression to bring into active operation moral and mental
powers, which have commanded the admiration of mankind.
Mr. McKean represented the Counties of New Castle, Kent, and
Sussex, in the Congress which assembled at New- York in October,
1768. His intrepidity soon gained for him distinction. He actively
engaged in their proceedings, and vindicated a course of inflexible
firmness. The president and several members having refused,
through timidity, to sign the proceedings, Mr. McKean so warmly
displayed his indignation, that he became involved in a personal con
troversy, but which resulted in an increase of his reputation, and in the
exposure of his antagonists to popular obloquy. On his return to
New Castie, he and his colleague Mr. Rodney received the unani
mous thanks of the Legislature for the energy and abilities with
which they had performed their duties in Congress.
During this year he was appointed Notary Public for the lower
counties of Delaware, and was also raised to the Bench, having re
ceived a commission as a justice of the Court of Common Pleas, quar
ter Sessions, and Orphan's Court for the County of New Castle. His
energy was not out of place in the judicial station ; for the court dis
played an act of intrepidity which closelj'' resembles the daring spirit
by which he was actuated at every period of his life. The officers
of the court were ordered to perform their duties as usual on un
stamped paper, and thus he promptly repudiated an unconstitutional
act of Parliament.
If we are to judge of the estimation in which he was held by the
number and variety of his public employments, a high rank must be
assigned to him, for his services seem constantly to have been in
requisition. In 1769 he was sent by the Assembly to New York to
obtain copies of all documents relating to real estate in the lower
counties of Delaware prior to 1700; in 1771 he was appoihtedby the
Commissioners of his Majesty's customs, collector of the port of New

THOMAS MCKEAN,
Castle, and in October, 1772, he became the speaker of the House of
Representatives, Notwithstanding he had fixed his residence permanentiy in Phila
delphia, the affection of his old constituents followed him, and he was
appointed by the lower counties of Delaware a delegate to the Con
gress of 1774, Their confidence continued with undeviating con
stancy, and was exhibited by an annual re-election until the restora
tion of peace in 1783, a distinction which was peculiar to himself,
there being no other example of an unbroken term of service during
that space of time. The convenience of his location at the place of
the meeting of Congress may have induced the Delawarians to have
selected him, and the absence of extensive pecuniary means of de
fraying the expenses of a delegate, may have quieted the aspiring
spirits of rival candidates, and thus have thrown power into the hands
of a man who systematically disregarded selfish considerations.
The business of Congress was promptiy and efficiently transacted
by the aid of his indefatigable and enlightened services. The extent
and variety of his labors could only be fully appreciated by his coad
jutors in the many secret committees which were occupied in the
constant investigation of the affairs of a nation, and struggling to de
vise the means of carrying it triumphantly through a long and deso
lating conflict. In June, 1775, he was a member of the committee
which prepared and reported the articles of confederation, which how
ever were not finally agreed to, until late in the following year, and
not ratified by all the States untU March 1781, when the State of
Maryland authorised her delegates to concur.
In addition to his other public duties, he was President of the con
vention of deputies from the committee of Pennsylvania, held at Car
penters' Hall in Philadelphia, in June 1776, who recommended a
Declaration of Independence by Congress ; a similar resolution having
been previously adopted in the month of May by the regiment of
Associators of which he was the colonel. In the same year he was
chairman of the Committee of Safety of Pennsylvania, of the Com
mittee of observation and inspection for the city and liberties of Phila
delphia, and of a conference of delegates in Congress from the States
of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania ; thus exhibiting him
self as a prominent and untiring laborer in a glorious but most peril
ous conflict.
A slight knowledge of the character of Mr. McKean will prepare
us to find him in that intrepid rank of patriotic men who projected
the independence of their country, and at the risk of their lives severed

NATIONAL PORTRAITS,
the tie which bound her to the British dominions. He was the ear
nest advocate of the propriety of making a Declaration of Independ
ence, and its undaunfed supporter after the measure had been adopted,
Mr. Rodney, one of the three delegates from Delaware, being absent
on the first of July, when Independence was resolved on in Committee
of the whole, and Mr. Read and Mr. McKean differing in opinion, the
vote of Delaware would have been lost, had not the zeal of ])Ir. Mc
Kean induced him to send an express at his private expense for Mr.
Rodney. That gentleman arrived on the morning of the fourth, and
uniting with Mr. McKean, gave the vote of Delaware in favor of In
dependence ; by which means that measure was adopted with the con
currence of all the States. In consequence of his absence, performing
military services for several months immediately succeeding the fourth
of July, an opportunity did not occur until the month of October of
affixing his signature to the Declaration, engrossed on parchment.
But it was not merely in a civil capacity that Mr. McKean ac
quired distinction. He performed the duties of a soldier with firm
ness and activity. A pitched battle might have ranked him among
the military heroes of our country. Although he was never in a
regular engagement, his personal risk was great, and his exertions
ardent. The services of the militia of Pennsylvania having been re
quired in New Jersey, Mr. McKean, as colonel of a regiment, marched
a few days after the Declaration of Independence to Perth Amboy, to
support General Washington, and continued in active service until
the occasion which called them to camp had ceased. In the perfor
mance of military duty he faced the cannon's mouth, and had his
capacity as a soldier fuUy tested by his exposure to a heavy firing
from the enemy's batteries.
He had no sooner resumed his seat in Congress, than his attend
ance at Dover, as a member of the convention for forming a Consti
tution for Delaware, was required. On his arrival, after a fatiguing
ride, he was met by a committee, who requested him to write a con
stitution for them. The labor occupied the night. The constitution
written by him was presented at 10 o'clock the next morning, and
unanimously adopted.
On the 28th of July, 1777, he was commissioned by the Supreme
Executive council of Pennsylvania as Chief Justice, a station which
he filled with distinguished ability for twenty-two years. As the
nation was just emerging from a Colonial condition, and as the dis
turbed state of society unsettled the rights of property, great and novel
questions were constantly occurring, which required a court of more

THOMAS MCKEAN,
than ordinary sagacity, firmness, and learning to determine. Chief
Justice McKean displayed qualifications equal to the emergen
cies of the times ; and, independently of the high authority of his opi
nions, his character as a great judge has descended, in prominent re
lief, to posterity.
In the performance of his judicial functions he displayed a firm
ness which no danger could affect ; at one time braving the power of
Great Britain by the punishment of treason against his country, and
at another stemming the torrent of popular excitement by shielding
the accused from illegal punishment.
When we reflect that at the time of his appointment to the office of
Chief Justice he was a member of Congress, speaker of the Assembly,
President of Delaware, and that in July, 1781, he occupied the station
of President of Congress, we can form an estimate of the vast labor
which he performed, and of the unwearied application requisite to
master the complicated details of litigated cases, essential to the faith
ful fulfilment of his judicial duties. Yet amidst the violence of party
animosity in which he was extensively involved, his enemies do not
seem to have charged him with the neglect of any of his duties,
although his fiUing so many offices became the ground of complaint.
Mr. McKean struggled to obtain relief from the great burthen of
public affairs which was heaped upon him. His health and fortune
were impaired, by his attention to public business. As a delegate in
Congress, he had never received sufficient to defray his expenses ; and
for two years he had neither been offered nor received any compen
sation. The Legislature of Delaware, however, declined accepting
his resignation ; and although Congress, on the twenty-third of Octo
ber, 1781, accepted his resignation as president, on the next day they
requested him to resume that station until the fifth of the following
November, when, having elected an officer to supply his place, they
relieved him from the duties of the chair, and rewarded him by a vote
of thanks.
Chief Justice McKean was often exposed to party animosity. His
inteo-rity and great public services carried him through the fiery or
deal unscathed. The confidence of his countrymen sustained him in
every trial. His ardent temperament and energy of character, were
always accompanied by disinterested patriotism, and strength of in
tellect. An unsuccessful attempt was made to impeach him when
performing the duties of Chief Justice. But his reputation remained
unsuUied, and his career of usefulness was not yet terminated.
In 1787 Chief Justice McKean was a member of the Convention

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
of Pennsylvania which ratified the Constitution of the United States,
a measure which he advocated with all his zeal and ability. " I have
gone," said he, " through the circle of office, in the Legislature, Ex
ecutive, and Judicial departments of government ; and from all my
study, observation, and experience, I must declare, that from a full
examination and due consideration of this system, it appears to me
the best the world has yet seen. I congratulate you on the fair pros
pect of its being adopted, and am happy in the expectation of seeing
accomplished what has long been my ardent -wish, that you will
hereafter have a salutary permanency in magistracy and stabitity in
the laws."
He was always the advocate of the rights of the smaller States, which
he struggled to protect from the encroachments of the larger members
of the confederacy. In the Congress of 1765, and in that of 1774, he
insisted that they should vote by States, which course was adopted.
Although he was not a member of the Convention which framed the
Constitution of the United States, he took a deep interest in their pro
ceedings, and exerted his influence to secure the adoption of his fa
vorite principle, of an equal vote in national proceedings by all the
States. He furnished the delegates from Delaware with notes of his
arguments on former occasions, when the question was discussed in
Congress, and urged upon the members from the larger, the pro
priety of securing the rights of the smaller States. An equal repre
sentation in the Senate of the United States, accomplished his object.
In 1789 Chief Justice McKean was elected a delegate, from the city
of Philadelphia to the Convention, to amend the Constitution of Penn
sylvania. He engaged in the performance of his duties with his
usual earnestness ; but as he mostly occupied the chair when the Con
vention was in Committee of the whole, he was precluded from a
very active participation in the debate. A proposition for the gratui
tous education of the poor was suggested by him as an amendment
to Mr. Wilson's resolution for the establishment of schools, both of
which provisions were incorporated in the section of the Constitution,
which, on the motion of Mr. Pickering, was finally adopted.
After a warm party conflict, he was, in the year 1799, elected
Governor of Pennsylvania, which station he filled for nine years.
The extensive patronage of the Executive of Pennsylvania, renders
the possession of that office essential to party ascendency, and con
sequently the acquisition agitates the commonwealth with the most
violent party commotions. In the conflict the public good is too often
overlooked ; and he who gains the victory, is too apt to consider the

THOMAS MCKEAN,
emoluments of public employment as the appropriate reward for ser
vices rendered to a party.
Experience and skill are too often dispensed with, and the undisci
plined incumbent naturally strives during the brief and uncertain space
of his official career, to reap as large a share as practicable of the pe
cuniary benefits of his station. It is to be regretted that a man of
Governor McKean's high standing and independent spirit should
have yielded to the dominion of party feeling, and have sanctioned
by his high authoritjr the practice of removing from office on mere
party grounds, which has so completely gained the ascendency in
the State, and been so prolific of mischief to the public service. He,
however, did not hesitate to remove his pohtical antagonists, and
frankly avowed his motives. " It is at least imprudent," said he in a
letter to Mr, Jefferson, " to foster spies continually about one's self
I am only sorry that I did not displace ten or eleven more : for it is
not right to put a dagger in the hands of an assassin," The violence
of his animosity did not, however, continue without intermission ; for
after his administration became firmly settled, he distinguished merit
in the ranks of his opponents, and elevated men to office who belonged
to the party opposed to him.
Swayed, as he occasionally was, by party feeling, the general tenor
of his administration was marked by his accustomed ability and devo
tion to the public welfare. The extent of his knowledge, the vigor
of his language, and the ardor of his patriotism, gave him a lofty sta
tion in the confidence of the people, and sustained the popularity of
his administration. In the years 1807 and 1808 another attempt was
made, to impeach him, which drew from him a vigorous and success
ful defence.
In the exercise of the important and delicate power of appointment,
he acted from the impulse of his own mind, and disdained to submit
to party dictation. With a strongly marked character, and feelings
inured to independence, his errors and his 'virtues emanated from his
own breast, and were not derived from an imitation of others or from
a compliance with their views of propriety. Lofty and inflexible, he
pursued that course which he believed to be right, and met the conse
quences of public scrutiny, and the menace of popular condemnation,
with a fearless consciousness of rectitude.
In the year 1803 he declined an urgent solicitation to become a
candidate for the Vice-Presidency of the Union, and at the close of the
year 1808, having served as Governor during the constUutional pe
riod of nine years, he finally retired from public life, and sought, in

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
the endearments of domestic life, and in the cultivation of literature,
the enjoyments congenial to his age and inclination. He survived
his retirement about nine years, and, separated from all causes of ir
ritation, enjoyed the unbounded respect and gratitude of the people
whom he had so efficiently served.
In the year 1814, when the rapid advances of the British awakened
apprehensions for the safety of Philadelphia, which was almost en
tirely unprotected, a town meeting was convened in Independence
Square to devise measures for its security, The venerable patriot
attended, and his appearance was loudly greeted by the assembled
multitude, who unanimously called him to the chair. He briefly
addressed the meeting, aroused a spirit of devotion to their country;
and endeavored to soothe all dissentions by reminding them " that
there were then but two parties, our country and its invaders." His
speech was in the spirit of times which were past, and was recog
nised as the voice of a patriot and a sage. Prompt and effective mea
sures were the result of the meeting.
Governor McKean's deportment was dignified and impressive.
His fortitude, energy, and industry, were fully exhibited in his con
duct throughout life, whUst his public integrity has often been the
theme of commendation ; his private character seems to have escaped
reproach. He was twice married ; once in 1762 to Miss Mary Borden
of Bordentown, and in 1 774 to Miss Sarah Armitage of New Castie,
Delaware. He died on the twenty-fourth of June, 1817, aged eighty-three years
two months and sixteen days ; and was interred in the burial ground
of the first Presbyterian Church in Market Street, Philadelphia.
In reviewing the lives of patriotic men, who have devoted their abili
ties to the service of the republic, it is gratifying to dwell on illus
trious actions, upon which posterity pronounces an unanimous ver
dict of approbation. Differences of opinion on abstract points, or on
temporary measures, are overlooked in contemplating a career dis
tinguished for patriotic devotion to the public service. Party feeling
subsides, human infirmity is forgotten, and the reputation of the pa
triot survives for ages. The fame of Governor McKean is identified
with some of the most important events of our country. History, in
recording them, will recount the virtues and the privations by which
they were accomplished.

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FRANCIS HOPKINSON.

Francis Hopkinson, the son of Thomas and Mary Hopkinson, was
bom at Philadelphia in the year 1738. His mother was the niece of
the Bishop of Worcester; and his father and mother, immediately
after their marriage, which took place in England, came to PhUadel
phia, and continued to reside there untU their respective deaths. His
father was a man of genius, and a highly educated scholar ; he was
the intimate friend and scientific coadjutor of Dr. Franklin, to whom
he first exhibited the experiment to prove that the electric fluid may
be silently dra'wn off from a body charged with it, by a pointed instru
ment, without making the explosion and shock which attends a dis
charge by a blunt body. The excellent practical use to which the
sagacity of Franklin turned this discovery, is weU known. Thomas
Hopkinson died at an early age, leaving a widow and several chUdren,
of whom Francis, then not more than fourteen years old, was the
eldest. Shortly after the death of his father, Francis entered the
coUege of Philadelphia, of which his father had been one of the most
active founders, as he was of the " Philadelphia Library," and other
pubUc institutions. Francis was one of the first graduates of this
college, and the estimation in which he was held there, is manifested
by the foUowing extract from the minutes of the board of trustees of
May 20, 1766 : "It was resolved, thaf as Francis Hopkinson, Esq.,
who was the first scholar in this seminary at its opening, and likewise
one of the first who received a degree, was about to embark for Eng
land, and has done honor to the place of his education by his abilities
and good morals, as well as rendered it many substantial services on
aU public occasions, the thanks of this institution ought to be delivered
to him in the most affectionate and respectful manner."
After completing his collegiate education, Francis entered the
office of Benjamin Chew, Esq., as a student of law, and went through
a regular course of study under the direction of that eminent jurist,
.nen the attorney-general of Pennsylvania. In addition to the studies
VOL. Ill— 19 1

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
connected with his profession, Mr. Hopkinson gave a close application
to literary and scientific pursuits, in which he delighted, until his
departure for England in 1766. He remained abroad about two years,
residing with his maternal relation, the Bishop of Worcester, with
whom he became a great favorite, and very flattering prospects were
held out to him to induce him to fix himself permanently in England.
He was not to be weaned from his own country. His time in Eng
land was occupied, not with frivolous amusements, but in expanding
and strengthening his faculties, and acquiring knowledge in every
branch of liberal and useful science. His pen was not idle, but occa
sionaUy employed in essays in prose and verse, in which the good
taste, pure morality, and brilliant wit, which always distinguished his
writings, were displayed.
Soon after his return to his native city, in 1768, he married Miss
Ann Borden, of Bordento'wn, New Jersey. The discontents between
the colonies and the mother country were now darkening into deter
mined hostUity, and assuming the threatening aspect which afterwards
broke out into open defiance and war. Mr. Hopkinson had no hesi
tation as to the part he should take in this appalling controversy. The
cause of his country was as dear to his heart as its justice was mani
fest to his judgment. He took his ground firmly and for ever at the
first opening of the breach. He began with his pen, the only weapon
then employed by the colonists, and published, in 1774, a pamphlet
entitled "A Pretty Story," in which he portrayed, with a free and
pungent pencil, the unjust and oppressive pretensions of England, the
unalienable rights of the colonies, and their true loyalty and affection
for their rash and misguided mother. This pamphlet was widely
circulated, was read with avidity, and was believed to have had a
prevailing influence on the public opinion and feeling. During the
whole contest, Mr. Hopkinson was never idle with his pen, even whUe
discharging important and laborious public duties ; but seized on every
occasion to expose by argument, or hold up to ridicule and scorn; the
shallow pretences, the oppressive claims, and wanton cruelties of tho
enemy. As to the character of his wit, and the effect of his writings,
they are spoken of by a distinguished author and patriot, who was a
contemporary, in this language : " Mr. Hopkinson possessed uncom
mon talents for pleasing. His wit was not of that coarse kind which
was calculated to ' set the table in a roar.' It was mild and elegant,
and infused cheerfulness and a species of delicate joy, rather than
mirth, into the hearts of all who heard it. His empire over the atten
tion and passions of his company was not purchased at the expense

FRANCIS HOPKINSON,
of innocence. A person who has passed many delightful hours in his
society, declares with pleasure that he never heard him use a profane
expression, nor utter a word that would have made a lady blush, or
have clouded her countenance with a look of disapprobation. It is
this species of wit alone that indicates a rich and powerful imagina
tion ; while that which is tinctured with profanity or indelicacy, argues
poverty of genius, inasmuch as they have both been considered, very
properly, as the cheapest productions of the human mind."
In the memorable year 1776, Mr. Hopkinson, then residing at Bor
dentown, was appointed a delegate of the state of New Jersey to the
congress of the United Colonies. His name will be found subscribed,
like the rest, firmly written, to the " Declaration of Independence."
The courage and devoted patriotism of that illustrious act can hardly
be appreciated by this generation ; but those who did it well knew that
they were doomed men, and that they threw their lives on the stake ;
and that, should the struggle be unfortunate, they could never hope for
forgiveness, whatever lenity might be extended to others. After this
period Mr. Hopkinson held an appointment in the loan office, and
then received the commission of judge of the admiralty for the state
of Pennsylvania. His decisions in that high and responsible office
have been published since his death, and are received by the bench
and the profession with high respect. His judgments were results of
legal learning, aided by great acuteness and a steady eye to the justice
and truth of the case. It should be recollected that this branch of
jurisprudence, now so extended and full, was at that time compara
tively new, and growing into the importance it has assumed.
The war concluded and independence achieved, the country was
found in a deplorable state of poverty and weakness. The incompe
tency of our imperfect confederation was not only seen and felt, but
was bringing us rapidly to anarchy and dissolution. The great, and
wise, and virtuous men who then watched the destinies of their coun
try, and labored to secure for her for ever the blessings they had ob
tained by their constancy and courage, saw that these could be gained
only by establishing a " more perfect union." For this purpose the
great convention assembled at Philadelphia in 1787; and after much
deliberation, discussion, and patriotic concession, agreed upon and
submitted to the people of the United States a form of government
which they earnestly recommended to their adoption and support
In the interesting and ardent discussion which took place on the
question of the adoption of the constitution, Mr. Hopkinson took a
decided, active, and efficient part in favor of that noble instrument,

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
which has been the admiration of wise and liberal men in all coun
tries ; the source and protection of unexampled prosperity in our own ;
and which has no longer an open and avowed enemy among us, how
ever some may continue their efforts to weaken its powers, and others
to extend and confirm them by the force of construction. Upon the
absorbing subject of the ratification of the constitution, Mr. Hopkin
son wrote the " History of a New Roof," which the writer before
quoted says was a " performance which for wit, humor, and good
sense, must last as long as the citizens of America continue to admire,
and to be happy under the present, national government of the United
States," '
On the final adoption of the federal constitution, the admiralty juris
diction became exclusively vested in the courts of the United States,
and the state admiralty courts were of course abolished. In 1790,
Mr, Hopkinson was appointed by President Washington the judge
of the district court of the United States for the district of Pennsyl
vania, He did not long enjoy this honor. He had been for many
years subject to occasional fits of the gout, but they had not impaired
his general health, nor had he suffered an attack for a considerable
time previous to his death. On the ninth of May, 1791, he was sud
denly struck with an epilepsy, which, in a few hours, put a period to
his existence in the fifty-third year of his age.
There was an extraordinary variety and versatUity in the genius and
acquirements of Mr. Hopkinson. His poetry, although not of the
highest order, was smooth, and in good taste, and full of feeling. If
it does not command the admiration of the critic, it touches the heart
of the kind. He was a musician of a high grade in his performance
on the harpsichord, and composed some songs which were weU
received. He was well versed in mathematics, mechanics, philoso
phy, and chemistry. As a satirical writer, in its best sense, he had
no superior in our country ; and some of his pieces will beeir a com
parison with those of the most celebrated wits. His " Specimen of a
Collegiate Examination," and his "Letter on Whitewashing," have
been published in England as the productions of their o'wn distin
guished writers.
The works of Mr. Hopkinson, prepared by himself, were pubhshed
after his death in three volumes, and are now frequently sought for.

AniaWTe by Isabey

TI S, N.

JOSHUA- BARNEY.

The reputation of her citizens should be dear to every member of the
Union. The number and merit of their services is, indeed, often the
only patrimony of their children, but the effect of their example can
not pass away, whilst Honor continues to point to their deeds, in the
pages of the history of their country. No state has produced more
or brighter examples of bravery and patriotism than the gallant state
of Maryland, where the subject of this notice was born, on the 5th
of July, 1759, at Baltimore, He discovered early an inclination for
the sea, and after making several voyages, was second mate at the
early age of fourteen years, and was, by the accidental death of his
captain, placed in command of a vessel when only sixteen. A series
of adventures, ha'ving the character more of romance than reality,
attended this sudden and early responsibility, not the least singular
of which was his detention at Alicant, and his compulsory service
in the ill-conducted and disastrous expedition fitted out against Al
giers by the king of Spain, and entrusted to the unfortunate Count
O'ReUly. Released by the defeat of the Spaniards, he returned
home, arrived in the Chesapeike Bay on the 1st of October, 1775, and
learned from the officers of a British sloop of war, who boarded him,
that that Revolution which was to call forth in him a devotion to
native land that has never been surpassed, was already begun. His
services were quickly offered to his country ; he became master's
mate of the sloop Hornet, often guns, and was the first to unfurl, in
Maryland, the American flag, whose honor he afterwards so often
and so well sustained. This, his first service, was as a volunteer,
and he continued to act as such until his appointment as lieutenaM
in the navy, which took place in June, 1776.
On the 6th of July, 1776, Lieutenant Barney saUed from PhUa
delphia in the sloop Sachem, commanded by Captain Isaiah Robinson,
and very soon fell in with and captured a letter of marque brig, well

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
armed, after a very severe action of two hours. Transferred to the
Andrea Doria, of fourteen guns, in consequence of the shattered con
dition of the Sachem, Captain Robinson and Lieutenant Barney
sailed again from the port of Philadelphia, into which they had been
so fortunate as to bring their prize, for St. Eustatia, took in a cargo
of small arms and ammunition for the army, engaged and captured
the Racehorse of twelve guns, fitted out expressly with a picked crev)
to intercept and take the Andrea Doria, and cotnmanded by a lieu
tenant of the royal navy. It became hia lot, however, to be taken
prisoner by the enemy in January, 1777 — a prize, on board of
which he was prize-master, being retaken by the Perseus, of twenty
guns, then cruising off Cape Henry. He was carried into Charleston,
South Carolina, and there released on his parole. Upwards of eight
months passed before his exchange for Lieutenant Moriarty of the
Solebay was effected ; a period of time not unprofitably spent, for it
was devoted to study.
In December, 1777, Lieutenant Barney was appointed to the Vir
ginia frigate, and remained in her till her capture, on the 1st of
April following, by the British squadron in the Chesapeake. Another
period of imprisonment — an exchange and return to Baltimore, were
the precursors of new adventures, among which two engagements —
the capture of a British letter of marque and a voyage to France —
were the most important, particularly the last ; for that resulted in
pecuniary benefit, and probably led him to form the most important
connection of his life. He married the daughter of Gunning Bed-
lord, Esq., of Philadelphia, on the 16th of March, 1780.
After remaining some time ashore. Lieutenant Barney was or
dered to the United States' ship Saratoga, of sixteen guns. Captain
Young, and sailed from Philadelphia on a cruise. Various prizes
were made, and, among others, an English ship of thirty-two guns
and ninety men, carried by Lieutenant Barney, who boarded her
with fifty men under the smoke of a broadside ; and after a severe con
flict, hauled down her colors. Ordered to bring his prize in, he steered
for the Delaware ; but after stopping a formidable leak in her, he was
captured by a squadron of the enemy, landed at Plymouth in Eng
land, after enduring treatment that was never forgotten, and con
fined in MUl Prison.
Our limits do not permit us to relate the various adventures which
followed a well-laid and successfully conducted plan of escape.
After remaining some time at large in England, he reached Mar
gate, took passage in a packet for Ostend, and finaUy reached the

JOSHUA BARNEY.
Beverly, Massachusetts. He arrived in PhUadelphia on the 21st of
March, 1782.
We approach the best known, if it be not at the same time the
most brilliant, exploit of his life. The tories, with numerous craft,
had a force sufficient, aided by the presence of several British men of
war, to cause the greatest annoyance, during the spring of 1782, to
the commerce of Philadelphia. The state of Pennsylvania under
took to destroy these freebooters, and a force was organized under her
authority for that purpose. The offer of one of the vessels, a small ship
carrying sixteen six pounders and a hundred and ten men, equip
ped principally through the liberality and enterprise of citizens of
Philadelphia, was made to Lieutenant Barney, who took command
of her a few days after his return home. This vessel was the "Hy-
der AUy." She sailed on the 8th of AprU, 1782, with a fleet of mer
chantmen, under instructions to convoy them to the Capes, and then
to return for the protection of the Delaware. Upon reaching Cape May
road, the convoy were approached by two ships and a brig of the
enemy's forces, and immediately got under weigh in obedience to a
signal, and began to run up the bay. The brig first approached,
and gave the Hyder Ally a broadside, and passed on after the mer
chantmen. The broadside was not returned, as one of the enemy's
ships was fast approaching — into her, as soon as she came within
pistol shot. Captain Barney poured a tremendous fire ; and, as she
was ranging alongside, by a prompt manoeuvre, caught her jib-boom
in the Hyder Ally's fore rigging, thus obtaining a position which
enabled him to rake her with such effect, that in twenty-six minutes
her colors were struck. The enemy's other ship (the Gluebec frigate)
was by this time very near, and the first lieutenant of the Hyder
Ally and thirty-five men were quickly put on board the prize, which
was despatched with all speed up the bay. Having outsaUed the
frigate, the prize was hailed by Captain Barney, who found her to
be his Britannic Majesty's ship the " General Monk," mounting twenty
nine pounders, with a crew of one hundred and thirty-six men,
commanded by Captain Josiah Rodgers of the royal navy. The
General Monk had twenty men killed, including the first lieutenant,
purser, surgeon, boatswain, and gunner ; and thirty-three wounded,
among whom were Captain Rodgers and all the officers of the ship,
with the exception of one midshipman. The loss on board the Hyder
Ally was four men killed, and eleven were wounded. Captain Bar
ney escaped unhurt, though a musket ball passed through his hat
and another tore his coat.

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
The mortification of the British at this capture was extreme ;"* the
triumph of the Americans was expressed in congratulatory ad
dresses ; the legislature of Pennsylvania passed a vote of thanks to
Captain Barney, and also presented him, in the name of the state,
with a sword, superbly mounted with gold, and bearing the proper
emblematic representation of his victory. The ballads of the day —
for in those days they wrote baUads — celebrated his valor and good
conduct ; and there were few to whom the fame of " the roaring Hy
der Ally" and her gallant commander was unknown.
The Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania authorized the
purchase of the General Monk, and her name being changed to that
of the " General Washington," Captain Barney was commissioned as
her commander on the 16th of May, 1782. He proceeded in her to Ha
vana upon an important service ; and, having accomplished it,
returned to Philadelphia, where he arrived in safety, after having the
satisfaction of making a successful attack upon a number of refugee
barges in the Delaware Bay, sinking and destroying them, and re
capturing a number of vessels of which they had taken possession.
Selected, in October, 1782, to carry out to Dr. Franklin the instruc
tions of his own government before the British commissioners should
arrive at Paris, Captain Barney passed the British force at the
mouth of the Delaware, and arrived in seventeen days at L'Orient,
He returned to Philadelphia on the 12th of March, 1783, bearing the
news of peace — having been furnished with the king of Great
Britain's passport for the " ship General Washington, belonging to
the United States of North America."
Peace brought with it occupations of a character widely different,
from those in which Captain Barney had been accustomed to be en
gaged. He was appointed to civil office, but the sea seemed his ele
ment ; and in the summer of 1 790 he projected a voyage to South
America, and was engaged in various enterprizes of a commercial
nature until 1793, when his ship, the Sampson, was taken, on the
14tli of July, by three privateers from Jamaica and New Providence,
The firmness and decision of character for which he was so remark
able, soon evinced itself in the recapture of his vessel, five days after
iier capture, with the aid of his carpenter and boatswain, after a short
conflict, in which he wounded one of the three English prize officers
* It seems to have lasted for almost half a century. See the account of the action in
'Warner's Literary Recollections, "V^ol, I. p. 324, London, 1830. He describes the action as
"long and desperate — tremendous was the carnage on both sides ;" and avers Uiat Captain
Rodgers's antagonist was " greatly his superior in tonnage, guns, and men."
i

JOSHUA BARNEY,
severely. He arrived in Baltimore early in August, brmging his
English captors with him.
Having made the proper disposition of his late prisoners, Captain
Barney sailed for Cape Francois, to arrange his unsettled business
in the Island of St. Domingo, Having settied it, he sailed on the
last of December, 1793, from Port au Prince, for Baltimore, and the
next day was captured by the British frigate Penelope, Captain
Rowley, who, after behaving to him in a manner to lessen the fame
of his country's service, carried him and his captured vessel, the
Sampson, into Jamaica, The Grand Jury of the Admiralty Court
found a bill against him for Piracy, and another for " shooting with
intent to kill," founded upon the recapture of his own vessel, and
wounding one of the captors, as has been already related. He was,
however, triumphantly acquitted by the jury ; but his ship's cargo
was condemned as prize by the judge in the proceedings against
them. It must not be supposed that during these unexampled pro
ceedings against him he was forgotten by his country or his friends.
The statement which Captain Barney made of his case called forth
the prompt interference of his government. A vigorous remon
strance was addressed by the secretary of state to the British minis
ter on the subject, — General Washington declared his determina
tion to avenge any punishment inflicted upon him by the most prompt
retaliation — and he granted a special permission to a pilot boat from
Baltimore, manned with volunteers and despatched by his friends,
to proceed to his relief; an embargo, laid on all the ports of the
United States, having rendered such permission necessary. After
intolerable suffering and fatigue, the crew of the pilot boat arrived
in her at Jamaica, and the despatches they carried to the governor
from the British minister produced a change in the personal treat
ment of Captain Barney, but tiiey did not restore his property.
After his return to Baltimore, Captain Barney was appointed to
command one of the six vessels authorized by congress, which formed
the then navy of the United States. The letter of the secretary of
war, announcing his appointment to him, stated the relative rank of
the captains to be John Barry, Samuel Nicholson, SUas Talbot,
Joshua Barney, Richard Dale, Thomas Truxton. This appoint
ment he declined on the 7th of June, 1794, the day he received no
tice of it, on the ground that the appointment placed him in order of
rank below SUas Talbot, who had been a lieutenant colonel in the
army, but was without any experience as a naval officer.
Being thus at liberty to attend to his private affairs. Captain Barney
VOL. Ill— 20 6

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
sailed for France, to settle, if possible, some of the claims oft the go"-
vernment of that country arising out of his former St. Domingo
voyages. He was a fellow-passenger with Mr. Monroe, then minis
ter to that country, who, on the 14th of September, 1794, selected
him as the bearer of the American flag presented to the National
Convention. This body decreed that he should be employed in
the navy of the Republic ; and, just before his return to the United
States, he was offered, by the minister of marine, the command of the
Alexander, a seventy-four gun ship, not long before taken from the
British — a circumstance to him of no trifling import ; but his private
affairs prevented him from accepting the flattering offer, and until
they were arranged he declined an appointment. Subsequently he
received the appointments of Capitaine de Vaisseau, and Chef de
Division des Armies Navales, and before the end of May, 1795, he
sailed from Rochfort with two fine frigates. La Harmonie of forty-
four guns, on board of which he hoisted his flag, and La Railleuse
of thirty-six guns, bound for St. Domingo. He continued in the
French service, actively and efficiently engaged, and encountering
constant peril and adventure, until 1802, when he resigned ; and
after having received ample testimony of the merit of his ser'vices,
returned to the United States in October of that year.
To arrange affairs left during eight years' absence to the care of
others, and to establish himself at home for the rest of his days, be
came the immediate object of Commodore Barney's attention. In
the year 1804, the sentence of the court at Jamaica condemning the
Sampson and her cargo, was reversed, and their value ordered to be
restored; and in the course of the following year he received a
handsome remittance from Paris on account of his claims upon the
French Government.
The attack upon the Chesapeake frigate excited in Commodore
Barney, in a high degree, the feelings which pervaded the nation
at the outrageous insult offered to it ; and on that occasion he wrote
to Mr. Jefferson, the president of the United States, to offer his ser
vices, asking to be " employed in any manner which might be
thought conducive to the good of his country " — an offer which he
repeated to Mr. Madison in 1809.
The declaration of war against Great Britain in 1812, found Com
modore Barney on his farm, in Anne Arundel county (Md.) ; but he
remained there a very short time. Less than three weeks after its an
nunciation, he was on board an armed vessel, the Rossie, of ten
guns, in which, during a short cruise, he did the enemy incredible

JOSHUA BARNEY,
damage, and captured a letter of marque and a king's packet, the
latter after a severe action.
The command of the Flotilla, fitted out at Baltimore to protect the
Chesapeake Bay, was offered to him in 1813, but he was unable to
commence his operations tUl April 1814, He engaged the British
forces sent against him from the squadron on the 1st, 7th, 9th, and
10th of June following, with great gallantry and very decisive
effect. These engagements were but the prelude to more serious
operations. The British had determined to attack Baltimore and
Washington ; and with the view to be within reach of either place
on the occasion of an attempt upon it. Commodore Barney moved
his flotilla up the Patuxent as far as Nottingham, a village on that
river about forty miles from Washington, where he learned, on the
16th of August, that the enemy had entered and were ascending the
river. The orders of the secretary of the navy, to whom he commu
nicated the intelligence by express, were, to run the flotilla as far
up the river as possible, and upon the enemy landing, to destroy it,
and march to join General Winder's army with the men.
The British landed on the 21st of August at Benedict, and di
rected the march of their forces upon Washington. Upon receiving
intelligence of their approach, Commodore Barney landed with up
wards of four hundred men, leaving about a hundred men to blow
up the flotilla, then a short distance above Pig Point, if attacked, and
likely to fall into the hands of the enemy. On the 22d of August he
joined General Winder's army at the Woodyard, where he found
Captain Miller,* with eighty marines and five pieces of heavy artil
lery, placed under his command by the secretary of the navy. On the
24th of August he marched to Bladensburg, and pressing on, he found
the American forces drawn up, and covering the road for some distance
west of the town, and shortly after they became engaged with the
British. He formed his own men, and arranged his artiUery in battery,
and had scarcely so done before the enemy appeared in the road, and
advanced upon him. He opened his fire upon them with admirable
precision, and such destructive effect, as to drive them from the road
at the first discharge ; they rallied and returned, but it was to meet
the same result. They turned off to a field on their left, with the
view to avoid the battery and continue their advance ; but Commo
dore Barney, observing the movement, directed the marines under
Captains Miller and Sevier, and the flotiUa men acting as infantry,

Afterwards Colonel Miller.
T

NATIONAL PORTRAITS.
to charge them, whilst he poured a destructive fire upon their flank.
The charge was executed with great celerity and determination; the
veterans of the 86th and 4th, or "King's Own," giving way before
it, and flying, pursued by their assaUants — the sailors crying out to
" board them," — untU they got into a ravine covered with woods, leav
ing their wounded officers, among whom was Colonel Thornton,i
\vho had led them on, in the possession of the Americans. It would
have been well for the honor of America, if all who were present on
that day had behaved with the same decision and effect as Com
modore Barney and his command ; but whilst they were sus
taining the credit of their country, the other troops had disappeared ;
and in the confusion of their retreat, the wagon containing the ammu
nition for his cannon and small arms had been carried off. The
British light troops acting en tirailleur, had, in consequence of the
total absence of any support, gained positions on his flanks near
enough to produce effect with their fire, and to wound and kUl
several of his best officers — Captains Miller and Sevier had both been
wounded in charging the enemy; and Commodore Barney him
self, after having had his horse killed under him, received a musket
ball in the thigh. The force of the enemy was constantly increasing,
for the want of ammunition prevented the only effective resistance
they had met with from being continued ; and an order was given to
retreat, which the officers and men who were able to march effected
in excellent order ; but the Commodore's wound rendered him un
able to move, and he was made prisoner. He was treated by Gene
ral Ross with great attention and care, paroled upon the ground, and
conveyed to Bladensburg, where he remained until the 27th of
August, when he was conveyed to his farm at Elkridge.
On the Sth of October, 1814, Commodore Barney was exchanged,
and on the 10th resumed the command of the flotilla ; but the news
of peace, received in February, 1815, rendered his services no longer
necessary to his country. With the exception of a voyage to Eu
rope as the bearer of despatches, selected by the president, to the
American plenipotentiaries, he returned no more to public life ; unless
the appointment of naval officer at Baltimore, which he received in
November, 1817, from President Monroe, can be so termed. His
latter years were occupied in the settlement of his claims to a body
of valuable lands in Kentucky, to which state he was preparing to
remove when he was seized .with a bilious fever at Pittsburg in
Pennsylvania, where he died, on the 1st of December, 1818, at the
age of fifty-nine.

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