6 February 1828
adams-john10 Emily Wieder Recreation Foreign Relations Colonization Movements Native Americans Slave Trade
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6. V:45. Round Capitol Square. Cabinet Meeting. Fifth Drawing Room.

M’Donald John G. Wing— Austin E. Douseman Doty Todsen George P. Clay— Henry Rush Richard Barbour James Southard Saml L. Wirt William

Mr M’Donald the acting Secretary of the Senate, brought me two Resolutions of that body; one advising and consenting to the Ratification of the Convention with Great-Britain respecting the North-western Boundary; and the other to several nominations of Justices of the Peace— Mr Wing, the Delegate from the Territory of Michigan, introduced a Mr Douseman from Detroit, and judge Doty came with them— Wing spoke of a remonstrance against the re-appointment of two of the Judges, Witherell and Sibley, received after the appointment was made— Witherell has in fact been removed by the appointment of Secretary, and Wing said there was no judge more useful and upright than Sibley— Dr Todsen came with some new recommendatory certificates, and soliciting a fresh appointment to an agency at the African Colony— The Cabinet Meeting was held from one to four O’Clock— Present all the members— I first referred to their Consideration a Letter, received this Morning from John Forsyth, Governor of Georgia, enclosing a printed pamphlet, containing a Constitution of the Cherokee Nation of Indians, regularly formed by an Assembly of Chiefs last July, in all essential points resembling the Constitution of our States; establishing a Legislative power in two branches; an elective Chief Magistrate, and a judiciary of a Supreme, and subordinate Courts. The Governor of Georgia considers this as violating the Article of the Constitution of the United States, that no new State shall be formed within any of the separate States or by uniting parts of different States; and he calls upon me to be informed, what the General Administration intended to do in this case— I observed that I did not consider the Article of the 424Constitution cited by the Governor of Georgia, as applicable to the case: supposing its operation must necessarily be limited to the parties to the compact. But I thought that the Indians could not by any formation of a Constitution, change the character of their Relations towards the United States, or establish an Independent civilized Government within the Territories of the Union— There was some discussion upon this point, and Mr Clay inclined to the opinion, that the principle which I assumed did bring the subject within the Article of the Constitution to which the Governor of Georgia appeals. He also thought that the right of the Cherokees to form a Constitution might depend upon the nature of the Constitution itself— He did not view it as a necessary consequence that their Constitution must be incompatible with our territorial rights— I therefore requested the members of the Administration to take and examine the papers with a view to an early meeting to determine what shall be done— The other and proper object of the present meeting was, the answer to be given to Mr Vaughan’s Note, upon the complaint of Lieutenant Holland, for the Seizure of 121. Africans by the Collector at Key-West— The instructions to be given to the Collector—the course to be pursued with regard to the claims for the Salvage; and the probable contingency that a Spanish claimant may hereafter appear, of the wrecked Slave trader— I never knew a transaction entangled with so many controvertible questions— After long discussion, which terminated more in passing from one difficulty to another than in settling any one of them, I concluded. 1. That the answer to Mr Vaughan, should explicitly deny all right of complaint by Lieutenant Holland, for the seizure of the Negros, and rather waive the claim of the Collector to payment of duties on the goods— But the claim to Salvage to be explicitly stated to him— An offer of time to be made, within which Lieutenant Holland may bring the question of his right to the negroes before the competent judicial tribunal within the United States, but with information that the men being emancipated by our Laws, must within a reasonable time be sent to the Colony of Liberia in Africa— Corresponding Instructions are to be given to the Collector at Key-West, and Mr Southard is to be making all necessary preparations to provide without unnecessary delay for the transportation of these people from Key West to the Colony— Mr Clay had a Note verbale, from the Russian Minister, Baron Krudener, complaining of the Slander upon the memory of the Emperor Alexander, in the pamphlet noticed by Mr Everett, and enquiring if there were no means of obtaining reparation for it— I advised Mr Clay to see the Baron, and say to him that there was no remedy against such libels in this country but contempt. But to observe that in this particular instance, the calumny upon the Emperor Alexander, was slight, and evidently used only as inducements to the infamous imputations upon me and my wife— This Evening we had the fifth Drawing-Room; very thinly attended. The House of Representatives, sat till ten O’Clock, and came to an unanimous vote on the Retrenchment Resolutions.

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