John Quincy Adams Digital Diary

24. V:15. Mr Seaton the junior Editor of the National Intelligencer, came to the Office, to request an advance upon the printing of the Census, to which I agreed— Adjourned Cabinet Meeting at the President’s— I received and took with me, a Letter from Governor Jackson, enclosing a proclamation, ordering several Spanish Officers who had remained there, to depart from the Province within four days. They had published in the Newspapers, a Declaration highly insulting to him, upon the affair of Callava— I told the President that upon further reflection I thought if he had made up his mind that General Jackson had no right to issue military orders to our troops stationed in the Province, both General Jackson and Coll Brook ought to be informed of it; because cases might arise in which the legality or illegality of his orders might be of infinite importance— It appeared that in Callava’s case, there had been threats on his part of resistance by force and of bloodshed—and that Coll. Butler’s soldiers had primed and loaded their muskets in front of Callava’s house. Violence might in the state of things there be expected; and if it should occur upon illegal orders, issued after the Government have had time and opportunity to forbid them blame would fall upon the Administration for the omission to give notice to the parties implicated, of the President’s determination— The question as to the right was then discussed again— Mr Wirt argued the point as he naturally and properly does all questions in the Cabinet, as a lawyer— He seemed to think, that General Jackson’s powers, being those heretofore exercised by the Provincial Governors, and by the Governor and Captain General of Cuba, could have operation, only upon the old inhabitants, and not upon Citizens of the United States. And he remarked that the object for which those powers were conferred upon Jackson was to maintain the old Spanish Inhabitants in the enjoyment of their Liberty, property and religion; provisionally and until they can be admitted to all the rights and privileges of Citizens of the United States— This was the stipulation of the Treaty; made for the benefit of the Spanish inhabitants— How then could Jackson exercise authority over Citizens of the United States? How could he have any command of the army; the creature of the Law; governed by the Articles of War, and having only the Officers and Commanders recognized by Law? All this appeared to me to be very sound reasoning; taking departure from the Constitution and Laws of the United States; with all our principles restrictive of power; and our cardinal maxim of separating the civil from the Military authority, and the Legislative, Executive and Judicial powers from each other— But nothing of all this is suited to the occasion— We have acquired a Spanish Province, heretofore governed by arbitrary principles and by military rule— Congress had not time at their last Session to introduce our checked and balanced system of Government there— They continued therefore until their next Session the antient system of Government; and all the powers formerly exercised by the Supreme Rulers of the Province were vested in the Governor. The military was their only executive— To deny the Governor the right to command the Soldiers, was to strip him of all effective power— If Citizens of the United States went into the Province, they must go and abide there conformably to the Law of the time and the place— They cannot carry the Constitution or the Laws of the United States there with them— To this, the authority of Congress is alone competent. The question whether Jackson can command, the troops is a question merely of forms. And where there is nothing but form at issue, I cannot perceive the use of attaching much importance to it— The more direct the power to command is, the more effective it will be to its purpose; nor do I perceive any inconvenience in direct command, more than would be incident to subsidiary 116requisition— Mr Calhoun expressed a doubt whether Jackson had the power to order the Spanish Officers out of the Province— Neither he nor Wirt seemed capable of realizing the exercise of absolute power by an American Governor— Calhoun said he was afraid the Officers would not go; in which case Jackson would certainly send them to Jail; in short he lived he said in continual fear of hearing from mail to mail of some Tragedy happening there. I said that undoubtedly the Spanish Governors had and exercised the power of ordering all Strangers out of the Province, or of committing them to prison for the mere act of being there— The question of Jackson’s authority to summon Judge Fromentin before him was yet more difficult— Calhoun and Wirt considered the issuing of the writ of Habeas Corpus as a judicial act; performed in his official capacity; for which he was not personally answerable— I thought that as it was agreed he had no right to issue it, he was at least so far answerable for it, as to be liable to a summons to declare the authority upon which he had issued it— Calhoun put the supposition that it was doubtful. I said that it made no difference— Fromentin had legally the right to issue the writ or he had not— If he had, he was not accountable to Jackson for issuing it—if he had not as was unanimously agreed, he was. It was a very dangerous interference with the Governor’s authority; and the doubtfulness of the question of his own right, could not impair or in any manner affect the Official powers of the Governor. Calhoun said he had no doubt that Jackson’s intentions were perfectly pure and upright— But his disposition was to exercise to its utmost extent, every particle of power given to him— He had not sufficient regard to the genius of our Institutions, and to the popular opinion— And he observed that almost all the newspapers had taken side against Jackson on this occasion— Even those which had supported him most strenuously in the affair of the Seminole War— I said with too much warmth that I could not and would not consider, the nature of our Institutions, the transient popular opinion, or the factious comments of Newspapers, as having any weight in the case— The enquiry was of Justice and of Power— Jackson’s Commission gave him all the powers of a Spanish Governor; he had exercised them only for the purposes of Justice— It seemed to me absurd after formally investing him with absolute power, utterly incompatible with all our Institutions and habits and opinions, to blame him for using it to the only ends which could justify the use of them at-all. Wirt thought that Jackson ought to have had regard to the popular opinion, because the credit and influence of the administration is affected by it; and the censure upon him for using the power, would be shared by them for conferring it upon him. The President said that Congress had extended to Florida, only the Laws relating to the revenue and to the Slave-trade— In all other respects the system of Spanish Government were continued till the next Session. Here then were two systems, different and opposite in their characters, in operation at once in the same territory— For the American Law, Fromentin was the judge, and in the exercise of his Jurisdiction was independent of Jackson— For the Spanish Law, Jackson was the judge; and independent of the authority of Fromentin— He thought therefore that judge Fromentin had no right to issue the writ of Habeas-Corpus, and that Jackson had no right to Summon Fromentin before him. Each jurisdiction was independent of the other. It was suggested by Mr Wirt that as the Government of Florida, was by the act of Congress to be administered by such persons and in such manner, as the President should direct, Instructions might be sent to Governor Jackson to exercise no authority but such as would be compatible with our Institutions: and the President said he wished there might be as little exercise of 117authority as possible. I said I thought such an order would be very dangerous, and equivalent to the suspension of all Government in the province. While the discussion continued four O’Clock came, and Mr Wirt finding himself somewhat unwell, the Meeting was again adjourned till to-morrow Noon. I received a despatch from Mr Middleton, at St. Petersburg, and three Volumes of a French History of Livonia, from the author, my old friend the Count de Bray. I dined at Mr Canning’s with a company of about 25 Gentlemen— Had some conversation with him upon the Bishop Prettyman Tomline’s life of Pitt; and upon Lord Byron, whom Canning cordially hates— He said he found the Cantos 3. 4. 5. of Don Juan, which I lent him so tedious, that he could not get through them— I walked home.