- Sergeant. John
- Smith and Son
- Austin. Captain William
- Anderson Samuel
- Armstrong W j
rand Son - Miner Charles
- Seymour Horatio
- Barbour James
- Marks— William
- M’Lane Louis
- Van Buren Martin
- Smith. William
- Cobb Thomas W
- Southard Samuel L
Garden— Catalpa’s appearing in Eastern seedling bed— Ouseley took from my chamber to the
garden seedling pot N. 2. with the walnut six apple trees and white
mustard growing— He thinks the plant in Tumbler N. 2. which came up the
14th. a grape vine— Oranges 3. 4. 5. are
piercing the surface of the Earth at the sides of the same tumbler, and
a Tamarind is heaving up at the Centre— And another in seedling pot N.
1.— These were planted 31. March and 4. April— This day was crowded with
business and with visitors. Mr Sergeant introduced a
Mr Smith and
his Son, from Philadelphia— Captain William Austin had heretofore
a complaint against the Government of Brazil for the seizure of a vessel
commanded by him— Mr Anderson member of the House
from Pennsylvania, and Mr Armstrong from Virginia with
this Son, came to take leave and Mr Anderson thanked me for the nomination of
his brother a Major in
the Marine Corps, for a brevet of Lieutenant Coll
which the Senate have confirmed— Mr Miner member of the House
from Pennsylvania, and the Senators Seymour, Marks,
M’Lane, Van Buren,
- Burges Tristam
- Everett
- Lawrence Joseph
- Kendrick
- Clay— Henry
- Maxwell Lewis
- Forward Chauncey
- Bates Isaac C
- Lee William
- Taylor William
- Merrill
- Bradlee and Son
- Duncan— Joseph
- Wing Austin E
- Bailey— John
- Rush— Richard
Smith of South-Carolina and
Cobb of Georgia, came
successively, on visits to take leave— Governor Barbour came and delivered to me his Letter of
resignation, and with it a Letter of kind and friendly feeling upon this
new appointment— He mentioned something of the business which he leaves
in the Department of War, and something of the Instructions that he is
to receive upon his mission— Said he had private concerns to arrange
which would occupy some weeks, and that he would be ready to embark by
the first of August—perhaps in July— Mr Southard called to enquire
if I should go to the Capitol this Evening— Mr Burges
the member from Rhode-Island introduced Dr
Everett a Surgeon in the Navy and Mr Lawrence, member from
Pennsylvania, a Mr
Kendrick of that State, who was earnestly disposed to sell
me a horse— Mr
Clay was here for a few minutes— Mr Maxwell
and Mr
Forward of the Committee of enrolled Bills brought
me Bills and one Resolution which I read and signed— Mr Bates,
member of the House from Massachusetts called to take leave— William Lee, the second Auditor came, I
suppose to speak on the subject of Mr M’Kenney’s Accounts which
the Comptroller Cutts still
scruples to pass.— I told him that I could not authoritatively interfere
in the case— William Taylor the
Consul at Vera Cruz called to pay a visit, being on a temporary absence
from his station. Mr
Merrill was here one of the Contractors for whom a warm
interest was taken by Mr Marvin— He claims an
allowance upon his contract for damage by a storm sustained upon
Articles after they were delivered. I had declined authorising the
allowance for want of authority and referred them to Congress— He now
desired me to reconsider this opinion, and told me the whole story over
again—but he still had not the contract, and adduced no new fact which
could justify me in reversing my own decision— Mr Bradlee of Boston, with his
Sons called and brought a Letter of introduction from Mr
Webster. General
Duncan, a member of the House of Representatives from
Illinois, and Mr
Wing the Delegate from Michigan came successively to speak
of the appointment of Commissioners to treat with the Winnebagoes, and
other tribes of Northern Indians for which a Bill had passed both Houses
of Congress— They were both anxious that the Commissioners should be
appointed as soon as possible; and the negotiation forthwith
commenced—hostilities by the Winnebagoes being apprehended— As the Bill
had passed the House of Representatives, the appointment of the
Commissioners was given to the President—the Senate inserted the clause,
requiring the concurrence of their own body—reduced the appropriation
from 25 to 15000 dollars with a discretionary power to the President to
apply part of the reduced sum to a Treaty with the Choctaws— I told
Duncan that I proposed Governor Cass
of Michigan should be one of the Commissioners, with which he expressed
himself satisfied, and recommended Governor
Clark of Missouri and Pierre
Menard of Illinois to be the others— Wing enquired of me
whether I intended that Cass should be a Commissioner, and I said I did—
He then with some apology asked if Mr
M’Kenney was to be also a Commissioner— I answered no— He said that his
reason for asking the question was that Governor Cass’s acceptance of
the appointment would be only upon the contingency that Mr M’Kenney
should not be joined in the Commission— He said that Cass was upon very
friendly terms with M’Kenney and did not wish in any manner to injure
him; but that having on their former joint Commissions with him got his
accounts involved in difficulties he was not willing to incur the same
hazard again— Mr Cutts had told me this
yesterday— Mr
Bailey the 551member from
Massachusetts came to recommend a Mr Doggett formerly of
Massachusetts but now an inhabitant of Florida, for once of the new
judicial appointments in that territory. But Mr Doggett is now in prison for debt in this City and the
Delegate, White, strongly objected
to his appointment on the score of character— Mr Rush was
here, and I had again a long conversation with him, upon the state of
the Post-Office at Philadelphia— He had sent me a fresh Letter from
C. J. Ingersoll, shewing
new evidence of frauds, on the part of the last Postmaster Bache— A thorough scrutiny into the
management of the Office for the last three years appears to me to be
necessary, and T. Sergeant the
brother in Law of Bache, ought not to be there while the examination is
carried on— But T. Sergeant is a man of respectable character which
would be hurt by the removal of him from Office under these
circumstances— He is brother to John
Sergeant, one of the ablest, purest, fairest men in
Congress, a warm and most efficient friend of the Administration— Mr Rush still thinks it most advisable to
make the Postmaster General
sensible that his duty imposes upon him the
obligation of suggesting it to T. Sergeant the awkwardness and delicacy
of his situation, and the propriety of his retiring from it— I must
reflect upon the subject further— Mr Rush,
Mr Southard, and Mr
Everett dined with us—and went with me at seven in the
Evening to the Capitol— My Son John
followed and Mr Clay joined us at the
Capitol— I remained there till Midnight, reading and signing Bills,
brought me successively by the Senators Ellis and Bateman, and the members of the House of Representatives
Forward and Maxwell, the joint Committee of enrolled Bills— Among them
was the Bill authorizing a Treaty to be held with the Winnebago and
other Indians, immediately after signing which I sent in to the Senate.
Message N. 41. nominating Lewis Cass and Pierre Menard as the
Commissioners. They were immediately confirmed. W. Lowrie, Secretary of the Senate
brought me Resolutions of that body confirming the nominations of
General Macomb, as Major
General of General Harrison as
Minister to Colombia of the Marine Corps staff, and some others— I had
sent this morning Message to the Senate N. 40. Nominating Peter B. Porter of New-York as
Secretary of War and some others—a motion was made to act upon them
immediately; but the rule of the Senate requiring an interval of one day
could be dispensed with only by unanimous consent, and an objection was
made— In the course of the Evening Genl. S. Smith, B. Ruggles, W Hendricks, B. W Crowninshield, J. Reed and other members of both Houses
came in and took leave— The Count de
Menou also came in and expressed his gratification at the
passage of the Bill reducing the duty upon wines— About Midnight I left
the Hall after requesting Mr Bateman of the
Committee of enrolled Bills to send me to-morrow morning all the Bills
not presented to me this Evening— The two Houses shortly afterwards
adjourned, to meet again at 6 O’Clock Monday Morning. I took Mr Southard and Mr Rush home, and got home myself at little before one in the
Morning.