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ALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
3 9002 05350 2168

Biographical Sketch of
General John Adair
Washington, 1830.

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YALE UNIVEESITY LIBRAEY

FORMED BY
James Abraham Hillhouse, BA. 1749
James Hillhouse, B.A. 1773
James Abraham Hillhouse, B.A. 1808
James Hillhouse, BA. 1875
Removed 1942 from, the
Manor Souse in Sachem's Wood
GIFT OF
GEORGE DUDLEY SEYMOUR,

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

WASHINGTON :
miNTED BY GALES W SEATOS.
1830.

John Adair, the third son of William Adair and Mary
Moore, was born in Chester county, South Carolina, in the
year 1759. His elder brother, William, and himself, received
the rudiments of their education at Charlotte, North Carolina.
Their father was a determined whig, and his sons soon aban
doned their studies to take part in the Revolutionary struggle.
John Adair, though but seventeen years of age at the De
claration of Independence, had already exhibited among his
neighbors, traits of that cool and daring spirit for which his
after life has been so eminently distinguished. Modestly be
lieving, however, that he was too young to obtain a commis
sion, he entered as a volunteer in an independent corps under
the command of the gallant Sumpter.
The tory party had greatly the ascendency in the settle
ment. The whigs were proscribed and persecuted ; and old
Mr. Adair was particularly obnoxious, both on account of his
own decided patriotism, and the intrepid character of his sons.
To glut their resentment, and strike terror into the refrac
tory, a party of British and tories occupied the house of Adair;
turned his family out of doors, taking from them every ar
ticle of value, even to the shoe buckles of his wife ; and, after
carousing during the night, plundered or destroyed the furni
ture and moveables.

John Adair and his brother reported this outrage to Colo
nels Sumpter and Lacey, who were then collecting a force in
the neighborhood to check the operations of the enemy. Sym*
pathy for the family of, Adair excited a spirit of resistance
among his friends and acquaintances, and contributed, in com
mon with other incidents of the same kind, to the formation of
that Southern corps since so celebrated for their exploits un
der Marion and Sumpter.
Soon afterwards, John Adair, then in Sumpter's camp, re
ceived information that a small detachment of British and
tories were moving through the settlement in the direction of
his father's. He asked, and received from his commander, a
party to protect his parents and their dwelling. In the mean
time, the enemy arrived at the house. The commanding offi
cer, Captain Adamson, required of Mrs. Adair to produce her
husband and two sons, upon pain of having her house burnt
and farm laid waste, giving her till sun-rise the next morning
to comply. The old lady protested in vain that her sons were
with the American forces, and her husband from home. The
alternative had been declared, and the captain pitched his tent
in an adjoining wood.
At night the old man returned, and had gone to bed, when
a gentle tap was heard at the window. It was the family sig
nal. John was admitted, and told his father that he had come
to protect them — that he had reconnoitred the enemy's camp
and would attack it before day-light the next morning.
At the stipulated time, the report of fire-arms was heard,
and, before sun rise, Mr. and Mrs. Adair received an invita
tion from John to visit the camp of the enemy, where they
were introduced to Captain Adamson, then a prisouer of war.

The old lady, with perfect good humor, remarked, "she be
lieved she had seen the gentleman before;" and added, "at
that meeting, sir, you commanded me to produce my husband
and my two sons to you this morning before sun-rise ; the sun
has not yet risen ; here is my husband, and here is one of my
sons : the other, I assure you, is not within a day's walk, or
he would have been here too." The officer felt the sarcasm,
was ashamed of his conduct, apologized, and accepted an in
vitation to breakfast in the house he had threatened to burn.
When Sumpter's force was surprised and dispersed by
Tarleton's cavalry,* John Adair and his brothers, William
and James, fortunately escaped. They were among the few
who immediately rejoined their chief, and endeavored to re
establish the corps. John was soon afterwards despatched,
with a single companion, to reconnoitre Tarleton's position.
Exhausted by hunger and fatigue, they reached a house not
far from the out-posts of the British, and, while they were
taking some refreshment, were surprised and made prisoners.
They were heavily ironed, and marched to Camden jail,
where they were chained to the floor, and fed on bread and
water. An officer visited them every two or three days, to
offer Adair and his fellow-prisoners liberty and promotion in
his Majesty's service, and to threaten them with death in case
of refusal. These offers were constantly and contemptuously
rejected. One day, when the prisoners were amusing them
selves with a game at cards, the officer entered, and told them
that they had but thirty minutes to live. They looked at each
other in silence for a moment, until the merriest fellow among
them said, "come boys, we'll play out our hands." The game
* 18th August, 1780.

fi
was finished. The thirty minutes expired ; the prisoners were
marched out; the death-notes of a muffled drum preceded
them to a spot within sight of the jail windows, where some
of their companions had before been executed. The com
manding officer harangued them on the subject of their duty
to their king, and, finally, laid before them the alternative of
enlisting or instant death. Adair answered for himself and
his fellows, in the brief, bold language of a soldier, " lead us
to the gallows."
Whether the firmness of the prisoners won favor, or the
object was merely to intimidate, is not known. The threat,
however, was not executed on any of the party, but they were
marched back, by a circuitous route, to prison.
After a confinement of three months, the enemy despaired
of making any impression on such stubborn rebels, and they
were ordered to Charleston. A prison-ship, at anchor in the
harbor, was to receive them. To guard them more effectu
ally, their arms were pinioned, and they were marched on
foot under a strong escort. At night they were quartered in
an old house, where a prisoner named Wade, who had manag
ed to conceal a knife, first cut his own fetters, and then Adair's.
They eluded the vigilance of the guard ; but they escaped
from the house apparently only to perish in the forest, for
Adair, almost blinded with the small-pox which he had caught
in prison, was obliged to wander three days without food or
medicine, assisted only by his faithful but almost exhausted
companion. On the fourth day they received information of
the position of Marion's force, and that night arrived at the
encampment. It was dark and stormy. They had waded a
creek, and were passing up the bank, when they were hailed,

"Who comes there ?" " A friend," was the reply. "A friend
to whom ?" " A friend to the Americans." The officer of the
guard was called. Adair and Wade were ordered to enter,
and then, too late, discovered, they were surrounded by ene
mies, and a second time prisoners. Marion had decamped
the day before, and Tarleton had taken his place. The fugi
tives were remanded to Camden jail, where heavier irons
were placed upon their hands and feet, and rivetted to the
floor. In this situation they remained three months longer.
Sumpter, meantime, made every effort to effect their release ;
first offering equal, and then more than equal, terms of ex
change. One of these attempts was made through Mrs. Adair
herself. She left her home in company with a lady whose
husband was confined, and a British officer proposed to be ex
changed for her son. On their way to camp, she was com
pelled to pass a sleepless night at the foot of a tree, holding
her horse's bridle in her hand. On her arrival, she saw
seven bodies suspended on a gallows near the jail windows.
She trembled lest she was too late ; assured herself by a fear
ful glance, and waited, breathless with terror and anxiety, on
Cornwallis. He heard her supplicalion ; refused the ex
change ; but had the humanity to soften his refusal by per
mission to see her son. She provided some food, and was
admitted to the prison. The gloomy, foul, and miserable
dungeon, struck her with horror ; and, in the sick, emaciated,
and wretched inmate, who raised himself in his chains, and
called her " mother," maternal tenderness, alone, could have
pointed out her son. Impure air, unwholesome food, disease,
and long confinement, had changed him in every thing but his
indomitable spirit. The old lady embraced him, as she sup
posed for the last time, and departed in despair. What his
mother's entreaties and his commander's attachment could not

8
effect, a brother's valor and good fortune at last accomplished.
Although the cavalry under Tarleton had cut up and dispers
ed the little band of Sumpter and Lacey, fragments of that
gallant and devoted party still floated through the country,
and annoyed the enemy with the restless activity and des
peration of guerrilla warfare.
One of these parties, commanded by James Adair, fell in
with three British officers in the rear of Cornwallis' army,
whom they took, and carried into a swamp. The youngest of
the prisoners was immediately despatched with a letter to the
British officer in command at Camden, saying that, if John
Adair was not released in twelve hours, it would be taken for
granted he was murdered, and the lives of the prisoners
should atone for it. The device succeeded. John Adair was
exchanged, and, as soon as he had recruited his health, re
joined his commander. He was appointed a lieutenant, and
rose, step by step, to the rank of major ; in which rank he
served until the end of the war, having never been absent
from active duty one week, except while a prisoner, or engag
ed in bringing down men from the upper country. He was
present at the battle of the Eutaw Springs, and participated
in the affairs of Rocky Mount and the Hanging Rock, and
many other actions and skirmishes of less notoriety. During
the battle of King's Mountain he was a prisoner in Camden.
In the year 1786, General Adair removed to Kentucky.
At that period, when civilized and savage man were contend
ing for the empire of those beautiful and fertile regions whicli
now support a large and happy population, military skill and
courage were of the highest consequence. The hardy ad
venturers who had gone forth into the wilderness, rallied,
each in their own settlement, round the man who displayed

9
the greatest capacity for warfare. The arrival of General
Adair, therefore, was hailed with pleasure by the inhabitants
of Mercer county ; and they soon learned to consider him an
invaluable member of their little commonwealth. Whenever
Indian murders or depredations were committed, every eye
was turned on him with that ready and implicit confidence
which a master spirit inspires in extreme danger. Sagacious
in council, prompt and daring in execution, he vindicated
their choice by his success, and became almost equally an
object of terror to the savages and of affection to his coun
trymen. Nor was his ardent spirit confined to the defence
of a single neighborhood. Active operations were carried on
against the common enemy, and many daring enterprises and
bloody conflicts in which Adair bore a conspicuous part, have
furnished romantic or melancholy stories familiar to the first
settlers, and still often heard at firesides beyond the moun
tains. The Government availed itself of his services. In
1791 he accompanied General Wilkinson on an expedition
against the Wea and Miami Indians on the Wabash, and
aided in the destruction of their towns, thus most effectually
securing the frontier. General Wilkinson took occasion, in
his despatches, to speak of Adair's conduct in the highest
terms. In the campaign against the Wea towns, to the North of
Eel river, in 1791, Adair held the office of Brigade Major,
under Wilkinson. The force consisted of about 400 men, and
information received from a prisoner, induced them to believe,
that a thousand warriors were waiting for an attack at Miami
Towns. Wilkinson, however, first took and burnt the Eel
river Towns, and then bent his course towards a Kickapoo
Town on the Wabash. In advancing towards it, he found the

10
country so excessively wet and swampy, that he was compel
led to give up the enterprise, and proceeded obliquely down
the Wabash to Tippecanoe, near wliich, there still remained a
small Kickapoo Town.
After attempting to ascertain from some of the oldest priso
ners, the direction of the town in question, Colonel James
McDowell, with his battalion, and thirty-five prisoners, advan
ced towards it, while General Wilkinson, with General Adair
and Major Caldwell's battalion, went down to the town at the
mouth of Tippecanoe, which had been burnt in Scott's cam
paign, the month before. On approaching the ruins, they
discovered a considerable party of savages, and knowing that
sufficient time had elapsed, they concluded, that the thousand
warriors said to have been at the Miami Town, had got there
before them.
Notwithstanding the supposed superiority of the enemy's
force, Adair, by order of the General, took a part of Cald
well's battalion, plunged into the river, swam across it, and
charged the Indians, who were so alarmed by the intrepidity
of the onset, that they fled. It was afterwards ascertained,
that the party consisted of about three hundred warriors, who
had encamped the night before, within half a mile of Wilkin
son's quarters, and held a council of war, to deliberate on the
propriety of attacking him. They forbore doing so, from a
fear that the thirty-five prisoners might be sacrificed.
In 1792, Adair had command of a party charged with the
duty of reconnoitring, and escorting provisions from Cin
cinnati and Foi't Hamilton, to Fort St. Clair. The late. Go
vernor Madison of Kentucky was second in command. They

11
were attacked by a large party of Indians, led by the cele
brated Little Turtle,' a war chief of the Miami tribe. The
onset was furious, and the fire of the enemy, for some time,
could scarcely be withstood. Madison past Adair, in the hot
test^ the conflict, and was struck, as he afterwards men
tioned, with the animated and noble expression of his face.
The soldiers were retreating before the firing and numbers
of the savages, when Adair charged in person, with his sword
and tomahawk, upon the thickest of the enemy. The officers
and men instantly followed their commander, with desperate
enthusiasm, and the Indians in turn gave way. Adair esca
ped unhurt ; Madison and Taylor were wounded. After dri
ving the enemy before them for half a mile, they returned
to the battle ground. Adair, seated on a log, was reflecting
on the conduct of an officer, who commanded a garrison with
in sight of the battle, without sending to his relief; when a
lieutenant from the fort came up, and accosted him with com
pliments on the honor he had acquired. Adair replied, with
reproaches on the commander of the garrison : the young of
ficer, bursting into^tears, said, "if you knew me major, you
would not blame me : I went on my knees, and begged him to
let me take fifty men to your assistance : but he refused, and
said it would be sending them to be murdered." When the
report of this battle was received by General Wilkinson, he
wrote Adair a letter of congratulation, complimenting, in the
highest terms, his gallantry and good conduct.
In 1793, he was again called into service, and marched
with General Wayne to the North West, where he assisted in
building the fort at Greenville, and supplying the Western
Posts with provisions, preparatory to the operations of 1 794,

12
But the campaign ended without bloodshed, and Adair return
ed to his family. In 1799, he was elected a member of the
Convention wliich formed the Constitution of Kentucky. In
the next, and indeed for many succeeding years, he represent
ed his county in the State Legislature, where his course was
marked by manly, liberal, and enlightened opinions. In the
winter of 1805-6, he was elected a Senator in Congress, a
situation which he filled so much to the satisfaction of his
constituents, that, notwithstanding the turbulence ofthe times,
no objection has ever been urged to his political conduct.
General Adair's circumstances did not admit of his continu
ing in public life, and having purchased an interest in a valu
able tract of land in Louisiana, he left home in December,
1806, to visit it. Upon his arrival in New Orleans, he was
arrested by order of General Wilkinson, his papers seized,
and both sent on board of a vessel for Baltimore, there to be
examined by the Government. As soon as this arrest was
known in the city, a writ of habeas corpus was issued. Ge
neral Wilkinson appeared before the Judge, and in his reply
expressly admitted that he was not in possession of any evi
dence whatever against Adair, but that he felt it his duty to
arrest all strangers, particularly those of military distinction,
coming from that quarter of the country which had been the
scene of Burr's conspiracy.
The Judge ordered General Adair to be released ; but he
was then on board the vessel, and beyond the reach of the civil
authority. Oil the voyage, his life was in danger, from vio
lent and unremitted sea-sickness. When he arrived in Balti
more, the officer who accompanied him, as prosecutor, laid be
fore Judge Nicholson the evidence on which he had been ar
rested. The Judge treated the evidence in such a manner as

18
to extort from the officer an apology to the acccused, in open
Court. Discharged, by order of the Judge, he immediately
went to Washington City, where he solicited an investigation
from the Attorney General, who replied there was no evidence
on which to ground a prosecution.
Having a second time made application without success, he
returned to Kentucky. Determined to vindicate himself, in
the clearest and most conclusive manner, he commenced suit
at Natchez, against General Wilkinson, for false imprison
ment. His only object was to compel Wilkinson to exhibit
his evidence, and to shew, incontestibly, that there was not
the slightest reason to suspect him of any treasonable or other
unlawful design. After the institution of this suit, he return
ed home. The late Governor Madison gave him, on his re
turn, the strongest marks of friendship and esteem; generous
ly and earnestly urging him to become a candidate for the
office of Governor, at a time, when he himself had every
prospect of being elected. Nor was it by these tokens alone
Adair was taught to believe the injustice he had suffered had
not weakened the affection of his friends, or effaced the memo
ry of his services.
After the first disastrous events of the late war, in the
Northwest, had thrown a gloom over the country, and in- ,
creased the confidence of the enemy, the gallant and vener
able Shelby determined to stake anew, in his old age, the
laurels lie had acquired in his youth. Before he under
took the enterprise, he sought for Adair, to become his
counsellor and companion in arms. Adair received his let
ter in New Orleans, and hastened to join his fellow soldier
of the Revolution. He repaired to the Capital of Kentucky,

14
received the appointment of Aid-de-camp, and assisted in
conducting some of the most successful and brilliant exploits
in the annals of the war. It would be invidious to attempt
an apportionment of the merit of that Campaign. Suffice it
to say, that the sagacity, skill, and courage of Adair, were
justly estimated by his associates in peril and suffering ; and
the degree of honor attached to him, by them, was measured
with no stinted hand. After his return to Kentucky, Gover
nor Shelby, in a letter filled with the most kind and friendly
assurances of respect and esteem, enclosed to him the follow
ing acknowledgment of his distinguished services.
Camp at Limestone, November 2d, 1813.
General John Adair having acted as my first Aid-de-Camp
on the late expedition into Canada, I cannot, in justice to his
merit or my own feelings, take leave of him without express
ing my warmest approbation of his whole conduct during the
campaign, and the obligation I feel under for his attachment
to my person, and the zeal and promptitude with which he al
ways executed my orders, particularly in the battle of the 5th
of October last, on the river Thames. ISAAC SHELBY.
When Louisiana was threatened with invasion, and looked
to the Western States for assistance, Shelby, more than ever
convinced by experience, that he had not mistaken the charac
ter of Adair, conferred on him the appointment of Adjutant
General, with the rank of Brigadier. In the decisive action,
this appointment, in consequence of the illness of General
Thomas, the Major General, gave to Adair the command of
the Kentucky troops.
The memorable battle of the 8th January is familiar to
every one. The part that Adair acted on that occasion may
be collected from the official documents.

15
" General Adair, who, owing to the indisposition of General
Thomas, brought up the Kentucky Militia, has shown that
troops will always be valiant when their leaders are so. No
men ever displayed a more gallant spirit than did those under
that most valuable officer. His countrv is under obligations
to him."*

The commander in chief on that occasion did no more than
justice to Adair. He spoke only the sentiments of tlie army
and the country. The Legislature of New Orleans expressed
their grateful sense of Adair's services by a resolution, which
was enclosed to him in the following letter from the Governor.

New Orieans, February 2,5th, 1815.
Sir : To a soldier who has done his duty in all the conflicts
in which his country has been involved from the war of Inde
pendence to the present moment, it must be a matter of great
exultation to notice the valor and firmness of the children of
his old friends: to be convinced that they are the true descend
ants of the original stock. That the young men of your Brig
ade should have looked up to you in the hour of battle, is only
a continuance of that confidence which their fathers had in a
Chief whose arm had so often and so successfully been raised
against the foe. The enclosed resolution of the General As
sembly of Louisiana will show you the high sense which is
entertained in this State of your services, and those of your
brothers in arms. Be towards them the vehicle of our senti
ments, and receive for yourself the assurance of my respect
and best wishes for your health and happiness.
W. C. C. CLAIBORNE.
The Legislature of Kentucky, also, honored him with a
complimentary resolution.
The following extract from a letter of General Adair, pub
lished in the Lexington Reporter, of October 27, 1817, con-
* General Jackson's address lo the army, 21st January, 1815.

16
tains some highly interesting details. He had been invited by
the General-in-Chief, before the attack, to look at the works,
and speak his opinions freely.
" After I had examined his lines, by his order, and was
informed by him of his real strength, he asked what I thought
of our situation — did I believe we could defend those works,
or not ? I told him, there was one, and but one way, by which
we could hope for success : that he must have a strong corps
of reserve, to meet the enemy's main column, wherever it
approached. After some further conversation on the subject,
he agreed that I should act with the Kentuckians, as a reserve
corps, and directed me to select my ground for an encamp
ment, to govern my men as I thought most proper ; that I
would receive no orders but from himself. This arrangement
was verbal : I received no written order on the subject. In
consequence of this, I encamped in the rear of the centre of the
whole line, without any reference to General Carroll's com
mand. I immediately informed Colonel Slaughter, and the
field oflicers, of my command of our destination, that in case
of any accident to myself, they might be prepared to carry it
into effect. In obedience to this arrangement, on the morning
of the 8th, as soon as we discovered the enemy were in motion,
the Kentuckians were formed into two lines, in close order,
and marched within about fifty yards of the breast works, and
halted. I went to the breast work, myself, to see where the
main column would approach. The fog was thick, and it was
not yet day : I could only judge from their noise, as they ad
vanced. The enemy soon commenced the attack, with their
cannon and rockets : I then discovered their main column,
and returning to the Kentucky line, ordered Colonel Slaughter
to march, with his right, near to the nearest of our batteries ;
his right would govern the whole. The men were not at the
breast-work more than two or three minutes, when the enemy
approached, and our musketry commenced firing. I then dis
covered the enemy's column was somewhat further to the left
than 1 had expected. Three companies were instantly ordered
from Colonel Slaughter's right, and marched to the left. I
have ever been of opinion, and still am, that it was owing to
this disposition of the troops that the enemy were repulsed.
Had we been placed on any part of the line, with our due por
tion of it to. defend, no part of it would have been strong
enough to repel this column. Their discipline was such, that
they could only be checked by shooting them down."

17
The commanding General, it would seem, had contemplated
stationing his men, in equal force, on every part of his line.
The suggestion of a reserved corps, occupying a place near
the centre, which could be moved, with greater facility, to the
real point of attack, as soon as it should be known, was a
suggestion of Adair's. Its value will be perceived, in a
moment, by every military eye. The commanding General
saw it at once. The frankness and promptitude with which
this important change of disposition was suggested, and acted
on, was honorable, both to him who gave, and to him who
adopted it. That it contributed, greatly, to the effectual re
pulse and dreadful slaughter of the enemy, is beyond a doubt.
The Commander-in-Chief appreciated it justly, and history
will record it with that tribute which it would not become us
now to offer.
During the late animated canvass for the Presidency, the
extent to which Adair, by his presence and counsel, had pro
moted the success of our arms on this memorable occasion,
became the subject of public discussion. Nothing can more
strongly illustrate the magnanimity of his character, than his
conduct on that occasion. An attempt had been made to give
him the whole credit of the victory, at the expense of the com
manding General, between whom and himself an unpleasant
controversy had existed, in relation to the account given by
the former, in his letter to the Secretary of War, of the beha
viour ofthe Kentuckians,. on the opposite side of the river.
Forgetting every thing, but his sense of justice, General Adair
bore witness to the merits and services of General Jackson, in
terms, which proved him alike incapable of envy or servility.

18

We give the letters entire.

Louisvilxe, September 29, 1826.
Dear Sir : Many considerations induce me to obtrude this
letter upon you. I solicit you, as briefly as you shall choose,
to let me know your opinion of the merits of General Jackson,
for his defence of New Orleans, in the late war, as well as his
claims upon the West, and the Union at large, for those ser
vices. I am aware of the importance of this request, and that
it will be reluctantly granted ; but impelled, as I am, from
considerations of justice, to a distinguished citizen, free from
party motives, I hope that you will give me an answer, as
soon as your convenience will permit.
I am, Sir, with sentiments of high regard,
Your obedient servant,
WORDEN POPE.
Gen. John Adair.

Mercer County, October 15, 1826.
Dear Sir : Owing to an absence of ten days from home,
your's of the 29th ult. was not received until last evening, and
being now on the eve of setting out on a journey to Washita
and New Orleans, I have but little time for reflection, or recol
lection, on the subject of your letter. I will, however, in jus
tice to General Jackson, state, that all his measures for the
defence of New Orleans, after I arrived there, were well cal
culated to insure success, if success could be hoped for, from
the very slender and inadequate means under his command.
I did not reach his camp until the 3d January, at which
time his line of defence was nearly finished, and his men at
their posts. He had fought his first battle on the 23d Decem
ber, which, although a victory could not be claimed on either
side, was certainly of the utmost importance to him, from the
effects it produced in his own camp, as well as on the enemy.
To appreciate fully and fairly the military talents displayed,
or services performed by General Jackson, during the siege,
would require a detail of the difficulties and dangers which he
had daily and hourly to meet. Such a detail would not be
proper at this time, nor is it necessary for me to make it. An
opinion seems to prevail with many, that an officer may do
himself much honor, and acquire great fame, who possesses
little more than daring courage and bodily strength. This

19
may happen with an inferior officer, a colonel of a regiment,
or even a general of a brigade, who acts, always, under the
orders of a superior, and has no occasion to think for himself.
But the Commander-in-Chief of an army, in a difficult and
complicated service, must possess a cool, calculating head, a
vigorous mind, a rapidity of reasoning, with clear perceptions,
that will bring him, at once, to conclusions, on which he is
ready to act, for time, with him, is often all-important ; and
from my experience, through life, I believe there are fewer
men thus highly qualified to distinguish themselves at the
head of an army, than to fill any other station in any Govern
ment. Yet, such qualifications, alone, ever did, and ever will,
enable a Commander-in-Chief to acquire great fame, and per
form eminent services ; and it would be illiberal and unjust to
deny to General Jackson the possession of these qualifications.
In truth, it was the prompt and firm display of these quali
ties, that inspired the raw and untrained materials of which
his army was composed, with confidence and resolution, to
resist, successfully, the tremendous assault of the veteran in
vaders. Respectfully, your obedient servant,
JOHN ADAIR.
Wokden Pope, Esq.

While these events were passing, the suit of Adair against
Wilkinson, pending in the Court at Natchez, was, from term
to term, continued by the defendant.
At length, further procrastination became impossible, and
the trial was brought on. Reasonable ground of suspicion
against Adair, was all that Wilkinson could be required to
prove. He had had eight years to collect his evidence, and
prepare his defence. The concourse of spectators was unu
sually great. Instead, however, of the long expected disclo
sures of Adair's confederacy with Burr, the defendant's coun
sel were obliged to admit they had not been able to obtain any
such evidence, and the jury instantly returned a verdict of

20
$2,500 damages, at the same time, declaring, they would
have been made much heavier, but for the defendant's noto
rious poverty.
Satisfied with this triumphant vindication of his character,
not only from guilt, but the suspicion of it, General Adair, out
of regard to the family of Wilkinson, made no attempt to en
force the judgment, until a bill was brought forward, in Con
gress, to indemnify the defendant. During the progress of
that bill, in the House of Representatives, it was urged by
many of the speakers, that as the arrest was made by Wilkin
son, manifestly without reasonable ground of suspicion, he
ought not to be indemnified. On the other hand, it was con
tended, that although no such ground of suspicion appeared,
yet it should be presumed he acted with correct motives, and
although mistaken, ought to be protected. The latter opinion
prevailed, and Wilkinson was allowed a sum, large enough to
cover the damages and costs of the judgment.
This arrest, in its consequences, has been more injurious to
the fortune, than to the reputation of General Adair. His
affairs became much embarrassed, from his absence and heavy
expenses. In 1820 he was elected Governor of Kentucky;
an honor soothing to his feelings, certainly, but not at all
beneficial to his interests. At the expiration of his term of
service, he retired to his farm, near Harrodsburgh, where he
still resides. For many years, General Adair held several
thousand acres in the extensive tract of land in Washita,
granted to Baron Bastrop. To this land he had looked, as a
-source of fortune to his children, whenever a judicial decision
on the title could be had. He had once been offered an im
mense sum for his interest in it. The long delay of Govern-

21
ment to act definitively, upon large private land claims, either
by referring them to the tribunals for adjudication, or order
ing a sale of the lands, by which the individuals, purchasing,
would be liable to suits, has been injurious to the country, and
ruinous to the claimants. General Adair, among others, was
compelled to part with his interest to a large capitalist, who
can more conveniently await the tardy progress of national
justice. In the loss of two favorite daughters, both of whom had
grown up to womanhood, admired and beloved, the General
endured an infinitely heavier calamity.
Time, the great consoler, philosophy and religion, have
gradually alleviated his sorrows ; and, in the midst of his
children and grandchildren, respected by his friends, and
idolized by his family, the evening of his life is gliding tran
quilly away.
It is impossible for any one to be more generous and disin
terested than General Adair. For his revolutionary services
he neither demanded or received any remuneration whatever.
While with Sumpter, he got neither pay nor clothing ; and
the corps to which he belonged was not even furnished with
subsistence, by Government, except for a short time, while it
was attached to Greene's Army, and drew rations like the
rest. Shortly after the late war was declared against Great Bri
tain, he was strongly urged to enter the Mexican service.
An agent of that Government made him, by its authority, the
most tempting offers. The rank, it is believed, of Lieutenant-

22
General, and appointments of the value of ten or fifteen thou
sand dollars a-year. He had spent much time among the
French and Spanish inhabitants of Louisiana, and was ac
quainted with their language and manners. All these induce
ments he steadily withstood. The answer he gave was cha
racteristic. Even if his own- country was at peace, he would
engage in no enterprize without the express sanction of the
Government. While war continued she might require his
services, and her claim was superior to all others.
General Adair is now in his 71st year. He was married in
1782, to Catherine, daughter of Henry Palmer, of St. Mat
thew's Parish, South Carolina. He has seven daughters and
two sons still living. In person he is about six feet two
inches high, of spare habit, grave countenance, aquiline nose,
and grey eyes. Plain in his dress ; in speech, slow ; in man
ners, simple, retiring, and unaffected. There is an air of dig
nity in his calm, unobtrusive politeness, which commands re
spect, while it repels familiarity. He is habitually taciturn ;
yet, his disposition is social, and his affections warm. He is
proverbial for the equanimity of his temper, and the steadiness
of his friendships, and in all the domestic relations of life he is
without reproach. His years and labours have not impaired the
energy of his mind : misfortune has not destroyed his cheer
fulness. He lives retired, and continues to read much : but
though habitually sedentary, or rather recumbent, he is yet
capable of sustaining great fatigue, and often performs long
journies on horseback. No one can be freer from vanity, or
egotism, than General Adair. He is never the hero of his
own story ; and though answering promptly, and kindly, all
questions relative to others, whom he generously praises or
frankly blames, as the occasion requires, he evades, if possible,

23
or replies laconically, to enquiries about himself. The few
persons who are honored with his intimacy, are aware of his
habits, and set too high a value on his good opinion, to run
the risk of wounding his delicacy. Such, indeed, is his re
serve, in writing, or speaking, on this subject, that the ma
terials of this slight sketch have not been collected without
great difficulty.
They were originally obtained at different and distant
periods, from members of his family, companions in arms, or
intimate friends, who were acquainted with the facts, or had
heard them casually mentioned hy himself, or others, worthy
of entire confidence. The incidents of the revolutionary war
came principally from the lips of his parents. The informa
tion thus communicated was first reduced to the form of a
narrative, by an elegant and accomplished lady, now, unhap
pily, no more, who wrote it in a few ljours, while suffering
under a severe, painful, and ultimately fatal illness. In such
a composition, some errors were unavoidable; nor can it,
after many enquiries, be expected, even now, to have reached
entire accuracy. The details, however, are believed to be
generally correct, and of the truth of every important fact, no
doubt is entertained.

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