John Quincy Adams Digital Diary

28. VI. Mr William Elliot of the patent office came to my house, with a part of the manuscript prepared by Mr Little, and with a plan for planting trees, in the Botanical Garden of the Columbian Institute. Mr Salazar, the Minister from the Republic of Colombia, with his Secretary of Legation Gomez, and the Consul Palacio were here; recently from Philadelphia— I asked Mr. Salazar to call at the Office of the Department of State, at one O’Clock to-morrow— Mr H. Allen came again to take leave, on his departure for Norfolk— Having seen the President this Morning. At the Office, came the Count de Menou, Chargé d’Affaires from France— Speaking of the Convention of 24. June 1822. which is for two years, and longer until either party shall give to the other six months notice, of its intention to put an end to it; he asked if in case the French Government should conclude to give that notice, it must be given here— I said no doubt. It must be given to the Government—here if by France— At Paris, if by us. He said he had no reason to suppose that the French Government intended to give that Notice: but the question had occured to him this Morning— He spoke also of a claim belonging to a Prince of Luxemburg, and others upon the State of South-Carolina; of which part payment has been mare; but there are residual payments to be made to several individuals who cannot be ascertained for want of vouchers— The claim originated in the South-Carolina frigate, during the revolutionary War. In the year 1807. the Legislature of South-Carolina made provision for the payment, and it was paid in part; this act the Count shewed me— But about two years since they passed an Act withdrawing the fund which had been appropriated for the remainder— So Coll. Hayne the Senator from South-Carolina had told him this morning— The Viscount de Chateaubriant had written to him expressing the wish, that the State of South-Carolina, would pay over the money to the French Government, on their undertaking to satisfy all the 179claimants and to give the State a discharge in full— The Count enquired whether the Government of the United States would recommend this arrangement to the State of South-Carolina— I said I would take the directions of the President concerning it; and he might perhaps authorize me to send to the Governor of South-Carolina, any Note which the Count should write me upon the subject— The Count said he had heard it rumoured that Mr Brown of Louisiana was appointed Minister to France, and asked if it was true— I said it was, and the Count expressed great satisfaction at the choice— Mr M’Kean Buchanan of Philadelphia, brought me a Letter of recommendation from S. Ewing, and is applying for an appointment as Clerk in any of the Departments. Mr Addington came to speak of a Note, which he wrote me a few days since upon a long standing subject of complaint against our duties upon rolled iron— I told him that the Note was before the President— That we should endeavour to obtain from Congress the modification desired rather from a disposition to give the most liberal construction to the Convention, than from a full conviction of the correctness of Mr Canning’s argument— We had also much conversation upon the subject of the Colonial Intercourse, and less upon the South-American topic— He said Baron Tuyll had only read to him the despatch he had received from his Government announcing the Emperor’s determination not to receive Agents from South-America— He also read me a Letter from the British Consul at New-York, enquiring what he was to do, in cases of British Seamen, who entrapped, by intoxication, to declare themselves American Citizens, and then enlisted into our service, and afterwards wished to be discharged. Addington said that he had answered him, he should do nothing. For two reasons—first because a man, who even when drunk would renounce his Country, could deserve no after-interference in his favour; and secondly because such a man’s declaration, when sober, was no better than his declaration to the contrary, drunk— But said Addington, to get rid of the importunities of a meddlesome, tetchy, brouillon of a Consul, if in such cases there were means privately of discharging such men, he would consider it as a favour. I said I would speak of it to the Secretary of the Navy— That we had no desire to engage or to retain British Sailors in our service; but in such cases as he alluded to the principal difficulty would be in ascertaining the facts— Wyer called at the Office, and spoke to me of Andrew Stevenson, the member from Richmond, who still professes great regard for me, and who, Wyer says, told some one, that Alexander Smyth, obtained his last election by printing and circulating a hand-bill detailing a private conversation between me and C. F. Mercer— Miss M’Knight, returned this morning home to Mrs Decatur’s and Mary Hellen, and Abigail Adams went and dined with her— I wrote in the Evening, till the pen dropp’d from my hand, with drowsiness— J. W. Taylor was here part of the Evening, just arrived from New-York. He says there were this afternoon 120 seats of members of the House already taken, and he had no doubt there were 150 members in the City— This is earlier than usual. We had about two hours of conversation upon various political topics; the recent Election in the State of New-York—the impending election of Speaker of the House of Representatives; and the more distant Presidential Election— He spoke especially of the Election of a Vice-President, and intimated that Mr Crawford’s friends had in view for that Office Governor Yates of New-York, who desired it— I asked him what was to be done with Mr Tompkins, who had not declined— He seemed to think that after eight years service; it was Common Law, that the Vice-Presidency, as well as the chief magistracy should change hands— And he said that as he came through the City of New-York, he heard that he was in prison, for 10000 dollars at the suit of Peter Jay Munro— It was for money that Munro had been compelled to pay as bondsman or endorser for Tompkins; but he understood it was probable the affair would be adjusted— No doubt, it was desirable that some provision should be made for the comfortable support of Mr Tompkins, but the character of the State, and of the Nation was too much at stake for his re-election to the office of Vice-President— It was possible perhaps not improbable that there should be three candidates for the Presidency to be chosen by the House of Representatives; and no majority be found practicable for either of them— In which case the Executive Government must be administered by the Vice-President, though he knew not 180whether for a whole Presidential term or only until a new Election for President could be held— I told him I had seen a paragraph in the Richmond Enquirer; stating that there was a plan to that effect on foot, and that the Vice-President thus to be chosen had been named to them. This was all that I knew of the matter— But there would be so great inconvenience in devolving upon the Vice-President the Executive power, from mere inability to choose a President, that if the case should occur of three Candidates, as he had supposed, and no majority could be formed for either, I should expect one of them would ultimately withdraw— He said neither of them could withdraw— As he could not prevent those who adhered to him from voting for him. I said that if the case was supposable that I should be one of them, and should have of the three the smallest number of the electoral votes, I should not only think it my duty to withdraw, but to declare that if elected, I would not accept—rather than that the election should fail. We had also much conversation upon the approaching choice of Speaker, and the various contingencies of Taylor’s competition with Clay, Barbour and perhaps Webster— He did not know whether Clay intended to stand as a Candidate, or decline—and if he should stand, whether he, Taylor, should stand against him, or decline— I could give him no information, but only told him that if he should stand, he would have my best wishes for his success— He said about one half the delegation from New-York in the House, were personally and politically his friends: the other half were also personally friendly to him; but would vote as Mr Van-Buren would prescribe. He said also that Barbour’s friends were sanguine for his success in the hope of deterring Clay from offering, by a shew of competition.