making treaties yet whenever they include in a treaty matters confided by the constitution to the three branches of legislature, an act of legislation will be requisite to confirm these articles, and that the H. of Repr. as one branch of the legislature are perfectly free to pass the act or to refuse it, governing themselves by their own judgment whether it is for the good of their constituents to let the treaty go into effect or not. On the precedent now to be set will depend the future construction of our constitution, and whether the powers of legislation shall be transferred from the P. Senate & H. of R. to the P. Senate & Piarningo or any other Indian, Algerine or other chief. It is fortunate that the first decision is to be in a case so palpably atrocious as to have been predetermined by all America.-The appointmte of Elsworth C. J. and Chace one of the judges is doubtless communicated to you. My friendly respects to mrs Monroe. Adieu affectionately.

TO JAMES MADISON.

MAD. MSS.

Mar. 27, 96.

Yours of the 13th is received. I am enchanted with mr. Gallatin's speech in Bache's paper of Mar. 14. It is worthy of being printed at the end of the Federalist, as the only rational commentary on the part of the constitution to which it relates. Not that there may not be objections, and difficult ones, to it, and which I shall be glad to see his answers to; but if they are never answered, they are more easily to be gulped down than those which lie to the doc

trines of his opponents, which do in fact annihilate the whole of the powers given by the constitution to the legislature. According to the rule established by usage & common sense, of construing one part of the instrument by another, the objects on which the P & S may exclusively act by treaty are much reduced, but the field on which they may act with the sanction of the legislature, is large enough; and I see no harm in rendering their sanction necessary, and not much harm in annihilating the whole treaty-making power, except as to making peace. If you decide in favor of your right to refuse co-operation in any case of treaty, I should wonder on what occasion it is to be used, if not on one where the rights, the interest, the honor & faith of our nation are so grossly sacrificed; where a faction has entered into a conspiracy with the enemies of their country to chain down the legislature at the feet of both; where the whole mass of your constituents have condemned this work in the most unequivocal manner, and are looking to you as their last hope to save them from the effects of the avarice & corruption of the first agent, the revolutionary machinations of others, and the incomprehensible acquiescence of the only honest man who has assented to it. I wish that his honesty and his political errors may not furnish a second occasion to exclaim, "curse on his virtues, the 've undone his country.". Cold weather, mercury at 26. in the morning. Corn fallen at Richmond to 20/-stationary here; Nicholas sure of his election; R. Jouett and Jo. Monroe in competition for the other vote of the county. Affections to mrs. M. and yourself. Adieu.

TO JAMES MADISON.

MAD. MSS.

Apr. 17, 1796.

DEAR SIR,-Yours of the 4th came to hand the day before yesterday. I have turned to the Conventional history, and enclose you an exact copy of what is there on the subject you mentioned. I have also turned to my own papers, & send you some things extracted from them, which shew that the recollection of the P has not been accurate, when he supposed his own opinion to have been uniformly that declared in his answer of Mar 30. The records of the Senate will vouch for this. * *

Extract, verbatim, from last page but one & the last page.

"Mr. King suggested that the journals of the Convention should be either destroyed, or deposited in the custody of the President. He thought, if suffered to be made public, a bad use would be made of them by those who would wish to prevent the adoption of the constitution.

Mr. Wilson preferred the 2d expedient. He had at one time liked the first best; but as false suggestions may be propagated, it should not be made impospossible to contradict them.

"A question was then put on depositing the journals & other papers of the Convention în the hands of the President, on which N H, ay, M, ay, Ct, ay, N J, ay, Penna, ay, Del, ay, Md, no, Virga, ay, N C, ay, S C, ay, Georgia, ay. This negative of Maryland was occasioned by the language of the instructions to the Deputies of that state, which required them to report to the state the proceedings of the Convention.

"The President having asked what the Convention meant should be done with the journals, &c., whether copies were to be allowed to the members, if applied for, it was resolved nem, con. ' that he retain the journals & other papers subject to the order of the Congress, if ever formed under the Constitution.' "The members then proceeded to sign the instrument, &c."

"In the Senate, Feb 1, 1791.

“The commee, to whom was referred that part of the speech of the Prt of the US, at the opening of the session, which relates to the commerce of the Mediterranean, & also the letter from the Secy of state, dated 20 Jan, 1791, with the papers accompanying the same, reported: whereupon,

Resolved, that the Senate do advise & consent, that the Pr of the US take

such measures as he may think necessary for the redemption of the citizens of the US, now in captivity at Algiers, provided the expense shall not exceed 40,000. Dolls, & also, that measures be taken to confirm the treaty now existing between the US and the Emperor of Morocco."

The above is a copy of a resoln of Senate, referred to me by the Pt, to prepare an answer to, and I find immediately following this, among my papers, a press copy, from an original written fairly in my own hand, ready for the P's signature, & to be given in to the Senate, the following answer :

"Gent of the Senate,

"I will proceed to take measures for the ransom of our citizens in captivity at Algiers, in conformity with your resoln of advice of the 1st inst, so soon as the moneys necessary shall be appropriated by the Legislature, & shall be in readiness.

"The recognition of our treaty with the new Emperor of Morocco requires also previous appropriation & provision. The importance of this last to the liberty & property of our citizens, induces me to urge it on your earliest attention."

Tho' I have no memm. of the delivery of this to the Senate, yet I have not the least doubt it was given in to them, & will be found among their records.

I find among my press copies, the following in my hand writing:

"The committee to report, that the President does not think that circumstances will justify, in the present instance, his entering into absolute engagements for the ransom of our captives in Algiers, nor calling for money from the treasury, nor raising it by loan, without previous authority from both branches of the legislature.”

"Apr 9, 1792."

I do not recollect the occasion of the above paper with certainty; but I think there was a comme appointed by the Senate to confer with the P on the

subject of the ransom, and to advise what is there declined, and that a member of the commee advising privately with me as to the report they were to make to the House, I minuted down the above, as the substance of what I conceived to be the proper report, after what had passed with the Prt, and gave the original to the member, preserving the press copy. think the member was either mr. Izard or mr. Butler, and have no doubt such a report will be found on the files of the Senate.

I

On the 8th of May following, in consequence of questions proposed by the Prt to the Senate, they came to a resolution, on which a mission was founded. *

TO PHILLIP MAZZEI.

J. MSS.

MONTICELLO, Apr. 24, 1796. MY DEAR FRIEND,-Your letter of Oct. 26. 1795. is just received and gives me the first information that the bills forwarded for you to V. S. & H. of Amsterdam on V. Anderson for £39-17-10 & on George Barclay for £70-8-6 both of London have been protested. I immediately write to the drawers to secure the money if still unpaid. I wonder I have never had a letter from our friends of Amsterdam on that subject as well as acknoleging the subsequent remittances. Of these I have apprised you by triplicates, but for fear of miscarriage will just mention that on Sep. 8. I forwarded them Hodgden's bill on Robinson Saunderson & Rumney of Whitehaven for £300. and Jan. 31. that of the same on the same for