11
V
5 J
IS. B T v. ...vA'-i'-l1 XV!X X ;!? - J V :X X- .X .X X "X -Vl-vT 'J A' .X . ' "X v XX S'.-.'T XK f t w d o ut a a ' n . .: '
' -1. -., . - ' " -'.'I.1.' .". 11 . 1 . 1 " 1 1 "' ' " ' 'I I 1 11 r I 1 11 1 ..,, .nil., , n, 11 11. 1 ,11 1 .111.1 1 11 .. ..
z
' Dcclafatiph bf IndepCrtHen fettle purpose intendedj at-whlcb it vaj'hanifhed jroro the ladbeo
xW:VV'-V--- vf . Adams wai the cVi omr itl tbU glori- ltempioved the great Ulpntu of Dr.' Franl- church in Am?r!c,;.were et'f w'?"if
" AV BIr'efferoos name1; wUt probably oji$ ltransictioij ; and Is htf never any wliere lift and M?.: Adams,; awfsttd by the whole; .,m tbofe ia England, or in Scotland . r And f-
live ia the remembrance of posterity, it u appeared as a secondary character, we may .W1V" df Congest to form Wit instrument -,0 otplerMce wwilrt ivv
oerfectlyproperthathisfrien suppose he was not n inactive member of I whkh was adopted. Of that Mr. Adams -ath" f.Aoft cwntnes, j would impr njn2-
nerfectly proper
"deavff to accempaoy' it with some degree
"fiepittatiob The pitiful figure of a lugU
five in" Cartels mountain, will offer ao h
k torable portrait'of, hit character ai a War.
riefT j'The moneborepwing transaction
-' will bespeak little in favor of his morals,-
- li s femittjng the fine of convicted public
oTinder, and ftis cpairingi French hip at
"the public expencem open violation of the
law and theconsutution, cannot be offered
-an proofs of his regard for the latter ; and hi
sending Beau Dawson to France to tyrry a
kiter in a.public ship of ward the yearly
outfit 3 of ministers tQ foreign ISourtsy can
ncvar be added as evidences of hisreconq-',
1X11; But if the world can he . made to be
lieve that he drew, the declaration of.Inde
pcndf'nce, he will still have reputation en
ough to afford some shelter for the opinions
aniap'olog for' the conduct of his dust
licking parasites, -y ;- '
. Wepremise these rirrnirks to draw the
attention of bur( readerslo the toast drank
here on the Ath'of July, which ascribed to
Mr. Jefferson the authorship of the Dec la
rition of TuuepTndeocerwbkhwr
atth time in such a maimer as to make it
thevubjectof controversy. - It will be re
memhered that we dented the. fact, and 'we
supported the denial; but we are now en
1 f -. . . - .1 . - . -. - , i
aweu 10 prove mor wan wnat we onginai
. ly intended." :'-':i
We did not at firstintfcntl to deprive :5Ir.
Jeffcrscfn of the credit of being the tcribe of
the comtnitteevwho drew that instrument,
. ..but the ofEctqoncs4 of his friends, who are
sometimes Unawares, led to make" honest
confessions Of him, which they little in
tend,? have now developed facts which pot
only disprove his being the author of the
Declaration, but go eren to deprive hfm of
that empty; honor Which we were so lately
disposed to gr?nt.y ; All, except the i most
.abjectvftatterers of the , PrcStden't'srtdicu
j'us vanity, always cmsTdtrrcl'"R,iix
trefncljM ii4etroiiJt as'ciib'4lo feim x
,,clsi vely ;"whai -wai s done m .4 cotomiuee ;
ndiaa committee too, composed ct men
v suci' talents ,at Mr;1 Jtfferson must f
, nes9ityIrbave iacfed 1 a ery aubordinate
:, pm.; It is not to be supposed the transcend
v ant talents of John .Adams were on such an
; occasion, permitted to remain iniactive and
leave that i mportah instrument to be couch
ed in the ' feeble incorrect,, but soft and
1 tinsel language of Thomas Jefferson. Ins
; no longer lft to r conjecture : We have
X proof and. such proof that we presume no
. l Onewho has any regard tor truth, or the o
; nions of the worlJ, will after this evetfgain
A undertake so gross so mmemtcdxi flatte
. ' iy. of the idil cf DcmTrralk'pilbjy as . that
; wnich has called forth.c5 remarks. , t
. ."On the second dy f J'd) 1775, Rich
" -erfi IferifgLee moved a resolution in Con-
. grey .Was .seconded- by John Adarris;
A&hrihfcp'jfot these United Colonies' arc
f7f.ni of right okght to.be Tree and independent
-: Xw" And after liiU debate in whichull
the reasons in ;favot of that; reasure were;
ciojantly urged by lMcy Adams and ethers,,
a committee was appointed to drawin form
Dnlarertfon of Independence. xnCi of the
motives which led to it ; and htt the follow-'
inj day, (the jjd of July,) ;the day before
the . Declaration was reported by the com
f':? i)ittee and signed .oyCotfgfcas.atpfejfr
V He patriot John Adam wrote "the follow
r mg4etter tora fiiendjn JoSton, which 'was
"X immediately published in the newspapers,
.;" "VtflerJay the greattft queftioft wijrdeeided
; vlitt.h was ever decided in Amfrica ! ; and a great.
r perhaps, nevei Waf, or wi't be,' decided amon
wen. A refotiitlori was pafied, without one dif-
tteg colony, " 77at thefe Vitiifd Caloniti artl
X " The day ir pafld.'KThe &sjiV dayJorTiily,
, " i !.7 SrwiThe. 'memoral k efofh in thein dry of,
-America I am apt to believe . prnik teedratca
; b" fuecKJing generat-onSvas ikYjteit annivfrfarj.
--Jt1 ougbi t9$t ioptmrtntraied,' as i he day
- -r cfdcliv ranee, by folenf &ie( devotion to Al:
" rvgh'y God. . . Itiuf.ht to be foleihnited 'whh
perap, fn6,gime3i fports, guns, belli, bonfires,
j" . and iUumiwrnmiS, from one end of this CQntiiHeht
3 tVe otuer, from this tifne forward forever;
wi Pthiiik me trarfnor.ed with enthuITafm i but I
not." 1 rnwelaare of the toif, and fetobd
and TrtafHre, ihat-it will coft us to rnaintain this
"declaration, and ro fopport and defend theft ftatej;
yet thrcnghr all trie gloom, t can fee the ray of
-'Kin ana gory i lee mat tne ena ii flwur
than ofth all the meansjeand thalpofterity will
xrrompnaitnongn yem and I may rue s ;WP,cn
kopc we IhiH not.- - I km. v"
suppose
th'js committee which Reported the declara
tion.
, But vrc do norlraw conclusions entirety
from their relation to other transactions, or.
Irom the - characters f tbf merabw j : we
have the preciotct confes$Jon
Smith, the court hr inter at - W ashington,
which .conCrras tne pecjitiort we have as-;
sumcd and undertaken. to; maintain. . Ir
Smith is known to beaitaiinch friendofthe
Preside4haUe4Uhw
rymeasure of his infuriated administrati6n," :
and jrigh t or wrong applauds hi .m at e vtry
step. V If the President commits one of his
usual blunders. Smith stands ready with a
sahoo : If the President has a mind tp ruin
a powerful adversary , by Geiffry Letter sy
Smith pursues the. proacribeu victim with ;
the tears and the cruelty of a crockadile ; if
lor the High crime of daring to exercise the j
fretdoroof', opinion, some . old companibrt
In arms of AVashipgjton, is turned put of i
ofUre and lft with his family to starve,.;
Smith has ready a dissertation to prove him
an old tort '. If a vagrant foreigner, who
"has jHtnieied tKe-galkMsv and has not been j
1 r ' A li f I .
long enougn in America to get na oi wtu,
smeu ot DuttirmUK ana potatoes, oy railing
at John Adams and, the Federalists, hasob-:
taincd from the President the reward of.a
fat o3icei-Smith,'pen in hand, stands ready
to prove him a patriot ofx If the Pre
sident makes a report on weights and mea
sures, or communicates to Congress a plm
of a Dry Dock to rot vessels in,-- . BraM
bravo, the greatest philosopher, vpm earth
Smith lays on luv commendations with a
trowel. - . This is the man whose -evidence
we make use of againstjthe President. We
grant it would be worth nothing 6n the o
ther side, for his duplicity and jesu'tism
have become proverbial, and even r-ow wc
must suppose his story related with many
circumstances of falsehood, and a high co
louring in the President' favoV, and that he
has advanced.nothirg against the great man
JtlbathV uldp'oiMrility : uvwiTlMMcSWfeS'
stons furnish us with enough iqr every riir:
pose we could jdesire in relation to ttie pre
sent controversy. ' ' ' . ,, . ;. . V. . x f" .
Mr. Smuli says' that ?.s 't has been deni
ed" that Mr. Jtfferson penned the det lara
tion, to satisty his own niriosity, he bar;
access to the onginah 'VThat.it was in the
Kinfl w.tinAp rMFNT.flVrftn tl,f it wail
rnisedJHis ioadjutcrs (tnd .sundry idler-
adob'
who acted a consweuous -nart in tne a
mtnt of our in'dcpendehce4 wio instructed
us4n the formation bf our excellent con
'stitjiitlpn, who fir four years admkiisterrd
ourjgycrnment upon its 'true principles,
and whose name, will fill a disti nguished
pLice in history, while this Tn.antiyjsame
Jejfersori, who attempts to jffrA from others
the credit Jot penning tHe tlecUration bf Irt
dependence, and who wrote from France
advisinfr that .the conadtiuioo, Jhould-BSt be
adopted, will he remembered 'only as an
nmb'tthus. arid wiprincipecf demagogue, who
i. . ' i '-'" . J ' . J -tlT' -
rtireauase calumniators to iraauceanp vuu
fy Mr, Adams, and upon whose murdered
reputation he was enabled-to raise himself
to the Presidencv. ' . : : .'.'",' V
".Driven from every other point f defence,
th? democrats may prrhaps urge upon us
Mr Jrfferson's ability to write, a a strong
presumption Ma he did vifite the declara
tion of independence We ' ourselves, do
not presume toeffer our opinions tp the
public upon literary su! jects, We pretend
to be neither a ma ter of the elegancies of
ling'jage, nor to be ver3e d in verbal crui-
cism butwe have an opinion which satis- .
fies ourselves, and the more so as ifcoin-
cides wjth the opinions of the best scholars
of burvcountry. The President' inaugu
ral speech has beenreXtravagantlyr-xtolUd-by.his
party and jhas bjf all been consider
ed as the bappirat of his productions. It
Will not tbf rcfore be considered ungenerous
to firing forward that piece as the standard
by which to meaVur his abilities. We
accordingly submit (he following strictures
upiMi it by the Editor of the Port, Folio,
who is justly considered, as being one of
the politest scholars, and one of the most
judicious critics of the age, and who has
been aptly style d the, American Addison. :-
from ike Pott Folio,
t
sttgPtsted by tAem ; - l)rt Fraitilin
'entfKtr. Mams approved i thaihesmo the
".alterations inter lined and in the h&idjwrit
" in j of ibof gentlemen. Smith further
sa) s thesealteraticins vt;rv 'nstan.ct
soften the. spirit, observe thisj soften
spirit of the first drafts. : Prooahly it sof
tened it by ejecting nrre el his biunaenng
metaphors, and correct i ms tiimsy lusrian
Smith concludes his acconnt wtth an ac
knowledgment that the r port,notwithstand.
ing ail tne amenamenjs oi i ransim inu
Adams in the comrnfttre, aiterwardsun-
derwen't an alteration in Congress. .
Now in the name of common sense; what
degree of credit is Thomas Jefferson enti
tled to for his share in this transaction
Smiui savs the first draucht was in nis nana
. . . : ., . x
writing ; but it aoes not appear inajirewas
any thing more than the ammipms of Li
vingston or ShrrmariAapd Wy thing in the.
declaration had been urq$we preceding; day
in debate. . But let itifk dictated by.w&om
it mi ghtatwas cerfaijilyiytry ulttihing
or Dr. Frankjiri, wo va$ not a mtroher l
the 'mmittev would not have.wnderiakirn,'
to .itw'.-iJlesideM' it was corrected afso
bj'6hn Adams ana aue.cau utKiirrwent
other nlt&vt(0,n tn congress A snip muv
be repaired until t& t : three of the original
iecis timber are tcmitining, yet his
called the .same ship "still, Smith may in
this manner insist that the declaration 6t
Independence belongs to Mr. JtHerSon, be-
Aause half a Josen words; of the origtnHl
f th e scribe are stilt remaining, alter all the,
The ffcjendt fcdinlrers cJ.rukJvfrftfontfcave
"not on y extolled him a a prat Aatefman, but al
fo, -ara fimflied feholar Hirwritings, therefore,.
may be juftly ma e'the fttl jefl of critietfm.;; X" X
He feems tobe paffionately fond of foft language,
pd Bowirg period-' To this he famctinies fa
crifices correanefs of fcnfe. We hate an inflance
of this, in the fit A paragraph. " When J fee the
honor, the bap p r.efs, and the hot of thir be ;
lored country.- committed to the ffiu and the cu
fpuies of this day, ' &c. The day pf the fay
rattoit tJt a hew TreCdent, is, by no means, the.
niofl afpici.'UJ day to America j :nor do her ho
Porrhappinefs, and hopes, depend upon its tffae-
"The d'y Pfthe tleam it lureiy rne pre?t -ncl im
Wtant y, on ihe aulpiciesot wmcn reus evi
I thi a, that is deatM.tl.e country f or, jf thut
day, a frelidenv s. either cholen, or tae ctioice
of the Ivoufe of rcprsfentativ limited to tw o fpe
rce char flers. Nor is there-ny thirtjr. more
at iltae, on the tntirtn or warcn.nnan a ipeecn,
whtc:- the hopes, ores;
cite the fears ot'thecio'ry, rosy not always eon
tain the teadinnnciples of the new adanniflra
tinn, and, !huld it com an the principles, it will
hard yejfr mark their ).imitauonsMinGn f hlch
'th ft?oF the pdvernment mav derend. X
Dutina th cprJefl cf rp'micn, "through which
we have tnjl, the animation of difcufliofi Cd cfeXi-
crtions," &c. 5 It remain yet to be decided, whe
ther it was a conteft. merely cf e pinion. . That
the 4if uflio' and exertions, exhibited foTething
mere than (m'wAlitm, is undenisb'e. And, altho
every good mio wou'd Wilh to confijin thefe things
to oblivion yet ft cannot be correft to fay, thuf
"they weferwhat they Were not;"-The word pnjl,
isTiere pmpmppf;ltn
PaJ is an( adjeclive. Pfed is the, participle of
the Wd '.tp fUft. .s-; " But. tli'u being row decFded-.
the voice of the nation," Btev Ibtt. has no
mHSrisnFrTO
etseoueht-aUe'ratisin
VVith what shadow of propriety thc,n,. can
ne call it the production of one man. Mfi
Jefferson can in no JposSiMe view in which
the subject can b'ef placed, derive any, sort
af credit to the Jabpurs of Jas pen. ' If he
was really the ailthor of the first; draught,
(and of that there isrno prooQ he not only
derives no credit for the instrunicnt which
vas finall agreed to, because, it was md
a differentthing, . bat be has the demerit
1 ihe disgface oi proposing, onej which fi
y tne voice vi nuuu, nv
antecedeRt It refers to nothing in the preceding
part nf the fentence. ,but alludes to She eleftion of
Prcfif'ent. , And if M r. JeflFeffon's modefty
would ?ot allow him to mention th;s, lie might
bavp'ferved f rammatical accuracy, bjr faying,
tbe Voice of the nation," &c. - ; '. X .4--.
t An'dTet us refle'it, that haying bani'flied frohi
cor jand, that religious intolerance, under which,
manklndTo 'ono bed t'nd "fuifered?!: &eV- For
ter Jed to countenance thofe ca'umniouk af,erfionS
of-religion, -that have bees dilfeminate3 "from fine?.
et of America to the other. The fentericc im-.
pli, thallKere was once in this country, " a te:
ligus intolerance; under which mankind long
fetfered and b ed," and, that thisintolerance was,
at Tome time or tsther, banifhed from the land. I
When did this bloody intoieraoce prevail i Was
htt trie infancy of the cdnies,-whe(i there were;
to or three in (lances of excefs,'' a,moog a mere
hfftdfat of foolilh bigots I, Or was it imni"ediate:
ly batore the revolution, thf period, I fuppoGs,
worle than a perveriion.. or language - - cut tms ,
is a fubjet, which Mrt Jefferfon could never con
template, with ths loiter imagination of 4 jihilofo .
her. : It Teemed W prefent cothing to his mlod,
but racks and tortiorea Whereas, faithful hiftory
will fufScif nt y iocae Aoe ka from anyTuch
charge, and yield matter ot great joy that her re
ligion has never been debated by (Wh abei rations
of the human linger (la nd log -.. yi.: i .
, During the throes and convulfions of the an
cient world, during the agonizing fpifmj of nfu-
tigted man,, feeking, through b'ood and flaiigh.
ter,4 his Tlong loft I berty, it was not, wonderfuUi
that the agitation of the b'tlow Ihou'd reach even
this diflant and peaceful more " 'Before I pafs
bo to the figuratir language of this fentence, t :
flidljnft remark, hat the wotAancient is here afed
in a very improper fenfe. Mcuhi t$ ufe'l io op
pofition to modern tldla oppolitioo to ywng or
new. Ancient- means any thing that was done
or exhibited Ipng ag f old fignifies any thing
-that has exifted or continued for a !on duration
of time, Thf. coqntry. which i JMr. -Jefferfoo in
tended to defignate, . mnfl have been Europe
No, if to Europe he annexed ancient, the mean
ing, that country during the Roman empire. .
But it is evident, that the intention was to diflin-
g?(h tharjcmMrjJrW dien
oppofe ancient Europe "to mefcrit A nierica", and
we (hall hardly be able to comprehend ho the
thoes andconvulfions of -the one could afFe the
"other But if we hiake ufe of infted of and
tnt, old. Europe may He with much propriety, pu$
iri oppofitieo tojfou- America. - Aod if the ge
neral term wWbeTubftitttted; We Ml have tha
old ni the near vorJd, jjeoeminauons by which
"lEurope and America a-e pfien defii;nated.
. Every kind of figures io compofi.ion requires
to be managed with a mafttvly and delicate hand f
btherwife, inftead of giving elegance to thfe lan
guage, and petrp;cu)ty to the fenfe, they render
the former turg'd, and the Jater obfeure. Be
fidvthe too frqnent ufe of figures gives an air
of juvenility to writing, and makes it awluitabte
for grave and important TuBjecls. wAJo metai
phors," of which there are threei crouded into
the fentence under confederation, they ought to
exhibit clear and diflinct images of the, mind. -Confequetly,
rhetorician nave laid it down as a
rule in the ufe of them, that no more than on 9
ought to he introduced to tl eftraie one Otjtft
Mr,- Tefferlon's obieel was the t reach revoti
To give an adeque idea'of its fury,' hcprefeots
the reader with -the image of a womstn tnchi'd
hirth. - The word throct, wuboiani figure, xan
be app'iel to no other ' objtjx. He then intro
duces a madman, fetkingwough.h,ooi& jlaugh
teri "'"his long lottlffily .byt this madman is ob
liged to retire" tmrnidiaKly to'gtve foomto'a orv
my ,(ea.t whofeagitated billows may reach this
difta'nt (hprt: Thus there ate three njatophprs
mixedfid confounded together,' To as to leave no
di(HvA 'image on the mind,. '. ij-.lz
Another ru e in the management Of metaphor
is. that they ou'cht to be fuited to the nature of the '
fijbjeV Mr. Jefferfoo's intention appears to have
been, not only to give ao ides' of the French re-,
volut'on, but ilfo to (hew.that it' aflTefted this
country f The Gift THctaj)horj therefore, cannot
pollihly be applicab'e, vrttft he could fitve giver
hi woman an arm lorig epough to reach'over die
Af intic. Nor, indeed, was it any way Jailed, .
to giveanaderpaate reprefentaion of tbe internal :
' (late of that nation. .To tffel-thls a Jnetaphrw"
ou. h t to have been adopted, which would have
conveyed 'he idea of fometlung horribly awlul. ,
and alfo unufual. 7fiome'of the terrible and rard
phenomena of -nature wotfd have been: more op
pofiterrEven a convulfive madmaa, in a figura-,
tive fenfe, was below the fabjeJU. fh la(l me. -tsphor'
is tthe "6nly one that feems'heariyjaft.
The flora could have been raifed to n unufual ;
degree of fury, and conff quently the agitated bil-v
Iffws might have reat bed the A mericao ;fhore.X:; -
Let them (land undiflurbed at moflumeats,'..
"&1: From the
ox greatly detrafli." The figure is meuphor, &
not firaile : andTair or cu it atrt, before a meta--'
phor, is extremely swkward, and leflbns ihe
ftrenpth of the language.
Kirid y feparated by mttvrewi a ivideeeeanS
&e. There Is a tanto'ogy here, which -deftroys '
tbVjenfe.--1-'. If H had been by nature or a mitye '
"enV either- ejtpreffion would have 'been clear 'ao4
inteHigib'e. Or nairt had bien.madej the
agent. . apd tdt nka the inflrumcnt. it would
have flood AhpsNitare haying kindly feparat
td us by a Tde bceaBi,Sncpnveyed the najv-
inaS'earlt. ' But to Tif, that we are feparatedv
'mtriunr-and bsya fundi Ocrm.joHS cemin'yleem 1 X..'
to impiy, tnai iiictc way iuiiic oiner nacurai naf ; I
7
bo. , . U
ricr between us f and "Europe than the Atlantic
Ocean. --- X-S: Xx;iX-K: - v ...' ' '
, I ffiall cofe my retnaTki tiponthis ceVbrated
fpeech, with obferring,' that ia the famieparigraph;
and a fir in the Tuae-eding one; there are fome ijo.
ji.oaiiv.wkhoUi:Ter.';''which is a vio-at'bn .cf ,
concord, and gives an, affefted air to coinpofition. 4
-BefideayLh is an iniringement qajhejfj
language, which ought not tobe countenanced,. '
although it is fometitnes to be found to modern
Lauthoriv.,;;.X,:
X-'it
lid
m
3E