CHAPTER XIII. the administrations of washington, 1789 (1797). EARLY LEGISLATION AND PARTIES. |
CHAPTER XIII. the administrations of washington, 1789 - 1797. EARLY LEGISLATION AND PARTIES. 265. Washington as a Statesman.—When Washington took the oath of office in New York City[104] on April 30, 1789, few people could have foreseen that the elderly, dignified man, dressed in the picturesque costume of the period, would one day rank among the greatest statesmen of the world. His experience had been rather with military than with civil affairs. He was reserved in temper, and liked forms and ceremonies to which the masses were opposed. He had few of the arts of persuasion. His mind was not trained like that of John Adams, for example, nor was it markedly original. But he had had the training of experience, and he had what is essential to statesmanship of the first order—a great character, sobriety, dignity, perfect rectitude of purpose, knowledge of men, and willingness to trust those whom he regarded as competent—in short, wisdom as opposed to mere knowledge made Washington the great statesman we now know him to have been. He held the reins of government firmly and made few or no mistakes. He saw that the new nation should show prudence and by its dignity win the respect of other nations; and in spite of criticism, and often of frantic opposition, he kept his administrations well in line with his ideals. He avoided foreign complications and appeased or put down domestic discontent. He balanced political parties and made their leaders serve the state. When he laid down his office he explained his principles in his “Farewell Address,” which has become one of the political classics of the world. And now, after the lapse of a century, the perspective of time enables us to comprehend, in part at least, the unique grandeur of his position among men. 266. Early Legislation.—The first Congress, which was organized shortly before Washington was inaugurated, contained some eminent men, chief among them perhaps being James Madison of Virginia, in the House of Representatives, and John Adams of Massachusetts, who, as Vice President, presided over the Senate. The members were residents of the districts they represented, and their salary was at first six dollars a day. The most important work they did, after determining the rules of procedure that should govern them, was to organize those portions of the administration and government that had been left vague by the Constitution. They established the three departments of State, Treasury, and War, whose Secretaries, along with the Attorney-General, formed the President’s Cabinet.[105] The Post-Office Department was also organized, but the Postmaster-General was not then included in the Cabinet. Congress furthermore organized the Federal judiciary along the lines of circuit and district courts that it follows at present, the Supreme Court having been authorized by the Constitution, but the number of its justices not having been settled. They also passed a tariff law giving mild protection to manufacturers, as well as a moderate system of internal duties on distilled spirits. They arranged for the payment of the foreign and domestic public debt of the United States, about fifty-four million dollars, mainly incurred to carry on the Revolution, and also, after much discussion, agreed to assume a large part, i.e. twenty-one million five hundred thousand dollars, of the debts of the individual states contracted for the same purpose. The latter measure was carried only by means of an agreement to fix the Federal capital at a point on the Potomac River (afterward Washington), in return for which concession Southern votes were secured.[106] Finally, Congress established a National Bank with a capital of ten million dollars and a charter running twenty years, and also laid before the states twelve amendments to the Constitution which, as we have seen (§ 254), had been suggested during the state debates on the adoption of that instrument.[107] 267. Hamilton and the Federalists.—The financial legislation mentioned in the last paragraph had been outlined in the main by Alexander Hamilton of New York, the first Secretary of the Treasury. This remarkable man had distinguished himself as a soldier and as a contributor to The Federalist in defense of the Constitution (§ 254), before Washington chose him as his chief counselor. As a financier and an administrator working under a chief, he has probably had no equal in America. In his theories of government, however, he favored a strong central administration more than a simple people suspicious of tyranny thought proper. Hence, while he easily dominated all the supporters of the new government, he failed to secure the confidence of the masses and probably would not have been given the Presidency, even if he had not fallen in a duel with Aaron Burr in 1804. He did, however, during his life direct the policy of the Federalists, as the party supporting the Union under the Constitution was called. Washington would have liked to govern without parties, but the unsettled question whether the new central government should be strong or weak necessitated a twofold division of voters. And in the end even Washington was forced more or less to take sides with Hamilton and the Federalists. 268. Jefferson and the Democratic-Republicans.—Hamilton’s rival in the Cabinet was Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, who gave up his post as minister to France to accept the Secretaryship of State. Jefferson had already acquired great fame as the writer of the Declaration of Independence and other state papers. He had been governor of Virginia, and was a good legislator and administrative officer, although plainly Hamilton’s inferior in the latter respect. But he was especially strong in his thorough comprehension of the desires of the people and in his ability to criticise political institutions and measures. He believed in democracy and wished government to be simple in every respect. Being suspicious by nature, he thought that Hamilton and the Federalists were aiming to establish a strong republic that might develop into a monarchy. In order to oppose them, he drew together all the dissatisfied elements in the country, as well as all the advocates of a simple, popular government, into a party soon known as the Democratic-Republicans. Under one name or another, the two parties formed under Hamilton and Jefferson have existed to our own day. The two Secretaries naturally opposed each other in the Cabinet,[108] and Washington had a hard task in forcing them to work together. Finally Jefferson, who had indiscreetly used the newspapers against the administration, desired to resign and return to his home at Monticello,[109] and Washington let him go. After this, as we have just seen, the President allowed Hamilton more and more power, and the administration became practically a Federalist one, although its head was still superior to mere party considerations. DIFFICULTIES OF ADMINISTRATION. 269. Washington’s First Term.—At the appointed time, before the expiration of his first term, Washington was elected unanimously for a second. During his first term, in which North Carolina and Rhode Island were reconciled to the Union, and Vermont and Kentucky added to it, only two events of great importance took place. These were St. Clair’s defeat and the outbreak of the French Revolution. This latter event was destined to complicate domestic politics in America after Washington had begun his second administration. 270. St. Clair’s Defeat.—The Northwestern Indians had been giving trouble since 1786, and in 1791 had destroyed the settlement of Big Bottom, in Ohio. In order to check them, it was determined to construct a line of forts from Cincinnati to Lake Michigan. General Arthur St. Clair, governor of the Northwest Territory, was beginning the work when he was entrapped in ambush, and suffered a crushing defeat (1791). He resigned, and Washington, who was moved to indignation and grief by the catastrophe, appointed “Mad Anthony” Wayne, another Revolutionary veteran, as his successor (§ 198). Wayne, a thorough soldier, proceeded cautiously, and two years later (1793) broke the power of the tribes in a battle near Vincennes. The treaty of Greenville (1795) relieved eastern Ohio from Indian menaces. 271. Genet’s Indiscretions.—Early in 1793 war was declared between France and England, and the Democratic-Republican party wished to involve America in the struggle, directly or indirectly, in the interests of her former ally. We had a treaty binding us to defend French colonies, like those in the West Indies, but this treaty had been concluded with the French monarchy, not with the Republic that had overthrown Louis XVI. After some discussion in the Cabinet, Washington issued a proclamation of strict neutrality, which naturally disappointed the French revolutionists greatly. Their minister to America, Edmond Charles Genet, landed in Charleston and began to fit out privateers and enlist men in plain defiance of the President’s proclamation. He counted on the sympathy of the people with France, and was, indeed, received with enthusiasm by many visionary citizens. But Washington stopped his privateers, and treated all his demands with such firmness that he soon lost ground. He had the insolence to make a public appeal against the administration. This foolhardy act could lead to but one result—his recall, at the request of the United States. Genet, however, though recalled, chose not to run the risk of returning to France, where the guillotine was in full operation. John Jay. 272. Jay’s Treaty.—One of the chief events of Washington’s second administration was the ratification of the treaty with Great Britain, which bears the name of the statesman who negotiated it—John Jay,[110] then Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. There were various restrictions placed by England upon America’s trade, and the ships of the latter were being captured during the war then in progress between Great Britain and France. Native-born Americans were frequently taken from the decks of their country’s merchant vessels and pressed into the British naval service, on the pretense that they were really British born. As the two nations spoke the same language, it was often difficult to prove that this impressment was illegal. There were other troubles, connected with the failure of the British to abandon frontier posts, with boundary disputes, and with unpaid claims; hence there was much popular feeling against Great Britain. Jay, after great trouble, negotiated in the autumn of 1794 a treaty which removed some grievances, such as the unlawful occupation by the British of military posts upon American soil, but did not much improve the condition of trade, nor abate the impressment nuisance. Washington, although he was disappointed, thought that even such a treaty for twelve years would be better than a war with England. He called an extra session of the Senate in June, 1795, and after a hot debate, the treaty, slightly altered, was confirmed. There was great popular displeasure about the matter, and Jay and Washington were bitterly reviled, but in the end it was seen that they had acted wisely. 273. The Whisky Rebellion.—Another event of importance was an insurrection in western Pennsylvania in the summer and autumn of 1794, commonly known as “The Whisky Rebellion.” The moderate excise tax on whisky had outraged the rough frontiersmen of the district, since they made the liquor easily and could purchase goods in exchange for it.[111] They threatened the tax collectors in mobs, and finally blood was shed, in July, 1794. Great excitement followed, and the government mail was robbed. Then the President called out the militia from Pennsylvania and neighboring states, and fifteen thousand men were marched over the region, encountering no opposition, and making only a few arrests. Two rough fellows were convicted of treason, but Washington pardoned them, and the insurrection was at an end. 274. Washington Refuses a Third Term.—In 1796, in his famous “Farewell Address,” Washington declined reËlection for a third term, thus setting a precedent which has been followed ever since. He served his country from the spring of 1789 to that of 1797. During his second term his political assailants were especially venomous.[112] As criticism hurt him sorely, he was glad to lay down his office, and retire to Mount Vernon, particularly as it seemed that the new government was now stable enough to be able to exist without him.
References.—General Works which should be consulted in connection with Chapters XIII.–XVII.: W. Macdonald, Select Documents of United States History, 1776–1861; J. Schouler, History of the United States (6 vols.); J. B. McMaster, A History of the People of the United States (to 1830, 5 vols.); J. Winsor, The Narrative and Critical History of America (8 vols.); H. von Holst, The Constitutional History of the United States (8 vols.); G. Tucker, The History of the United States (4 vols.); Bryant and Gay, A Popular History of the United States (4 vols.); R. Hildreth, The History of the United States (1492–1821, 6 vols.); A. B. Hart, Formation of the Union, chaps. vii.–xi.; F. A. Walker, Making of the Union (“American History Series”); J. W. Burgess, The Middle Period, chap. i. (“American History Series”). Special Works in Connection with Chapter XII.: H. C. Lodge, George Washington, Vol. II., Alexander Hamilton; J. T. Morse, Thomas Jefferson; S. H. Gay, James Madison (these are in the “American Statesmen” series). See also other biographies of these four statesmen and their collected writings, as well as the Messages of the Presidents.
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