John Quincy Adams Digital Diary

26. VI:45. The extreme cold weather continued until this morning, when at the dawn Fahrenheit’s thermometer was at -6. which from the experience of ten winters may be considered as the ne plus ultra of cold at Washington— It moderated through the course of the day, being +22 at Noon and +27 in the Evening— The preceding 36 hours were the coldest that I have witnessed at this place, and from the testimony of old inhabitants of the place the coldest extreme that has occurred since 1780. Mr Dickinson was here this morning with a Mr Delavan from New-York whom he introduced— General Vivés the Spanish Minister was at the Office— He came to ask again to ask for answers to several Notes, which I have postponed in expectation of the arrival of the ratified Florida Treaty— He said that he had been informed that a Mr de Barros was the bearer of it, and had been despatched with it from Madrid the twenty-fifth of October— He was to embark at Bordeaux in a vessel bound to Philadelphia— The severity of the Season here has had corresponding prevalent Westerly winds on the Atlantic Ocean— 498Mr Canning the British Minister called at the Office, and intimating that he came to have some conversation with me in his official character, observed that having been some days since present at a debate in the House of Representatives he had heard some observations made by Mr Nelson of Virginia, importing a design in the Government of this Country to form some new Settlement on the South Sea— That he should not particularly have noticed this; but that in the National Intelligencer of this morning, a Paper generally considered as partaking in some sort of an official character, there was a publication signed by Mr Eaton, a member of the Senate, which was a part of the Executive Government, and which disclosed an avowed project for such a Settlement on the pacific Ocean— He had therefore thought it his duty to call upon me and enquire what were the intentions of the Government in this respect— The personal communications between Mr Canning and me hitherto had all been of a character so conciliatory and friendly, that although much surprized both at the form and substance of this address, I answered him that I had not read the publication of Mr Eaton; nor had I heard of the remark which he mentioned to have been made by Mr Nelson— That I was not acquainted with the opinions of those Members of Congress on this subject; but from a prevailing disposition in the Country; it was very probable that our Settlement at the Mouth of Columbia river would at no remote period be increased— He immediately assumed an air widely different from that of the easy familiarity with which the Conversation had commenced and with a tone more peremptory than I was disposed to endure said he was greatly surprized at receiving this answer. With a corresponding change of tone, I told him he could not be more surprized than I was both at the form and substance of his address on this occasion— [“]And am I to understand this (said he) as the determination of the American Government”? “No Sir (said I) you are to understand nothing as the determination of the American Government, that I say to you, without consultation with, and directions from the President. What I have now said to you is merely an opinion of my own”— He then repeated that he was greatly surprized to hear it as he conceived such a Settlement would be a direct violation of the Article of the Convention of 20. October 1818. I immediately rose from my Seat, to look for the Volume of the Laws of the United States which contained the Convention— While I was looking for it, Mr Canning said it was not his wish to take me upon this subject by surprize, and that if it would be more agreeable to me he would call upon me some other day— Without replying to this remark, having found the book I resumed my Seat, and after reading audibly the Article of the Convention respecting the boundary, said, “now Sir, if you have any charge to make against the American Government, for a violation of this Article you will please to make the communication in writing”— He then said with great vehemence—“and do you suppose, Sir, that I am to be dictated to, in the manner, in which I may think proper to communicate with the American Government?”— I answered, “No Sir—we know very well what are the privileges of foreign Ministers, and mean to respect them— But you will give us leave to determine what communications we will receive, and how we will receive them; and you may be assured we are as little disposed to submit to dictation as to exercise it[”]— He then in a louder and more passionate tone of voice said—[“]and am I to understand, that I am to be refused henceforth any conference with you on the business of my Mission”? “Not at all, Sir, said I— My request is that if you have any thing further to say to me, upon this subject you would say it in writing— And my motive is to avoid what, both from the nature of the subject, and from the manner in which you have thought proper to open it, I foresee will tend only to mutual irritation, and not to an amicable arrangement.”— With some abatement of the tone, but in the same peremptory manner he said—“am I to understand that you refuse any further conference with me, on this subject[”]?— I said “No— But you will understand that I am not pleased either with the grounds upon which you have sought this conference, nor with the questions which you have seen fit to put to me— The only foundation upon which you rest your application is a remark made by a member of Congress in a debate: and a publication of another member of Congress in a Newspaper— The Members of the 499Legislature of this Country are not only perfectly independent of the Executive; but the Executive cannot permit itself to be questioned by any foreign Minister, upon any thing said or done by them— And as little do I admit your right to ask any question of our intentions with regard to the Mouth of Columbia river”— “What then (said Mr Canning,) was the meaning of the Article in the Convention, which you have just read”?— “Its true meaning I suppose to be, that both parties considered the whole subject not worth disputing about; but after the British Government had sent out a public ship with express orders to make a formal surrender to us, of the Post at the Mouth of the Columbia river, which had been taken during the late War, and after that restoration had been thus made, we certainly did expect that we should hear nothing further from them on that subject; we thought they had made up their minds concerning it; and it forebodes no good to the harmony between the two Countries if they have not”— (Canning) “I have understood that the transaction during the War, was rather a transfer of property between individuals than a capture— The property of the American settlement which had been made before was purchased by British Merchants from Canada— The order to restore the place was given, to put things in the same condition that they had been in before the War, but could have no effect on the question of title. It was therefore my duty to make this application to the American Government: a duty the more urgent, when it was considered that in 1817. the American ship of War Ontario was sent out, without any notice to the British Minister at Washington[”]— (He said this in a very emphatic manner, and as if there had been an intended secret expedition in the fitting out of the Ontario, which had been only detected by the vigilance and penetration of the British Minister— I answered) “why, Mr Bagot did say something to me about it; but I certainly did not think him serious, and we had a good humoured, laughing conversation on the occasion.” (Canning, with great vehemence) “You may rely upon it, Sir, that it was no laughing matter to him; for I have seen his report of it to his Government, and know what his feelings concerning it were.” (I replied) “This is the first intimation I have ever received that Mr Bagot took the slightest offence at what then passed between us— There never to my recollection at any time passed a word in anger between Mr Bagot and me; and you will give me leave to say that when he left this Country[”]— (here, I was going to add that the last words he said to me were words of thanks for the invariable urbanity and liberality of my conduct, and the personal kindness which he had uniformly received from me—but I could not finish the sentence— Mr Canning in a paroxysm of extreme irritation, broke out) “I stop you there— I will not endure a misrepresentation of what I say— I never said that Mr Bagot took offence at any thing that had passed between him and you; and nothing that I said imported any such thing[”]—then after a pause of a few moments he added in the same passionate manner— “I am treated like a Schoolboy.”— I then resumed— “Mr Canning, I have a distinct recollection of the substance of the short Conversation between Mr Bagot and me at that time, and it was this”— “No doubt Sir,” said Canning, interrupting me again—“no doubt Sir, Mr Bagot answered you like a man of good breeding, and good humour”— “He came (said I) and remarked that he had heard the Ontario, Sloop of War had been despatched to take possession of the Mouth of Columbia river and expressed some surprize that notice had not been given of it to him— I told him it had happened accidentally, just before I came into the Office, and during the absence of the President— It was merely to resume possession of a place which had been held by American Citizens before the War, and which had been taken during the War— It was simply to take again our own property— Mr Bagot then asked whether we did not consider Great-Britain as having a claim there— I answered no—what claim could she have? He replied, don’t you think we derive some claim from Sir Francis Drake? Methinks said I, you may as well claim the whole Eastern shore of this Continent by title from Sebastian Cabot— No, said Mr Bagot that question is settled—and here the Conversation ended— I never heard a word more from Mr Bagot on the subject, and 500very soon afterwards, Captain Hickey of the Blossom, by express orders from the British Government went purposely to the Columbia river, and there solemnly delivered possession to Mr Prevost, the Agent of the American Government, of the place in faithful execution of the stipulation in the Treaty of Ghent— By the Article afterwards, in the Convention of 20 October 1818 we had agreed that all the Ports and Places West of the Stony Mountains should lie open for ten years to both parties, an engagement which on our side will be scrupulously fulfilled, but of any claim of Great-Britain, supported by a shadow of evidence at the Negotiation of the Convention, I never heard”— Mr Canning, while I was speaking had now grown cooler, and seemed to be surprized that there had been no discussion of claims to territory on the South Sea, at the Negotiation of the Convention of October 1818. He said he had understood that the British Government considered the taking of the Settlement on Columbia river during the War, as merely a transaction between private individuals, and that the restoration of it by Captain Hickey was only to place things in the same state in which they had been before the War— But that Mr Bagot had been ordered verbally to require an explanation of the proceeding of the American Government in sending the Ontario without notice to him, and had been referred to a previous correspondence on the subject between Mr Monroe and Mr Baker— I said that Mr Bagot had not to my recollection spoken to me of this affair more than once; but that he certainly had never required any explanation from me after hearing from his Government concerning the Expedition of the Ontario.— It was therefore with extreme surprize that I found him, Canning, starting a question of our right to Columbia river, and the manner of his address, had been equally unexpected— Mr Canning then again with much warmth asserted his right to be the only judge of the manner of his proceedings— I said that on former occasions, from the great respect which he had avowed for this Government, and the conciliatory disposition which he had manifested, I had perhaps thrown off in conversation with him some of that cautious reserve which in our respective Stations might have been strictly regular. But that he was not to infer from that a right to question me in a manner to which I would not submit from any other foreign Minister. So long as his professions had been supported by his conduct . . . Here Mr Canning again stopped me by repeating with great vehemence . . . “my conduct!— I am responsible for my conduct only to my own Government”— I replied that we understood fully the rights and privileges of a foreign Minister, and meant that he should enjoy them— But we knew also the right of every Government receiving a foreign Minister to judge of the propriety of his conduct towards them, and should not relinquish it. But it was quite unnecessary, and would be worse than useless to pursue this discussion, as a question of personal conduct between him and me— It would be best to confine ourselves in future to the subject which concerned the two Governments, and my own opinion was that the best mode of treating it would be in writing— He said that for his part he was perfectly willing to forget all that had now passed— I told him that I neither asked nor promised him to forget— I could not forbear entertaining my opinions; nor did I wish him to forbear entertaining his— He asked again if he was to understand me, as refusing to confer with him further on this subject— I said no— Would I appoint a time for that purpose?— I said now, if he pleased— I was ready to hear any thing that he had to say to me concerning it— But as he appeared to be under some excitement, perhaps he might prefer some other time; in which case, I would readily receive him to-morrow at one O’Clock; upon which he rose, and took leave; saying he would come at that time— Immediately after this Conversation I went over to the President’s, and reported the substance of it to him— He said he thought it impossible that the policy of the British Government should at this time be, to seek causes of dispute with us. He supposed that Mr Canning wished to make a merit with his Government of his zeal, but he thought he would be cooler 501to-morrow, after sleeping upon it. He must see that he was wrong in questioning the Executive upon what was said or published by Members of Congress, and it was hardly to be expected that his Government would countenance him in it. The President also desired me in the Conference to-morrow, to be perfectly explicit, as to our claim of right, and equally so in denying the right of Great-Britain to contest it— We attended this Evening a party at Dr Thornton’s.