- Hammond Leonard
- Miss Mary C. C. Cutts
The pressure upon my time as that for my departure approaches becomes
excruciating— So much to do at the last moment—and after all so much
left undone— Among the felicities of Washington’s Life is the unity of the two great objects
which he had to pursue— First the War of Independence, and secondly the
Establishment of the Constitution of the United States— There is the
unity of a Grecian Drama in both of them. A Tragedy and a Comedy— No
reputation of a great man, can be acquired, but by the accomplishment of
some great object— But perhaps Fortune is the great furnisher of
occasions.— The Revolutionary age and the Constituent age were the times
for great men— The administrative age is an age of small men, and small
things— I wrote this morning to George
W. La Fayette and enclosed to him the authenticated copy
of the Resolution of thanks of the two houses of Congress to him and the
surviving family of the General for
the copy of his writings and Memoirs presented by them for the library
of Congress. I enclosed also to Lewis and Pierce at Brooklyn
Long Island the Pension Certificate of Mrs Nancy Lewis, increased to
600 dollars a year I called at the Office of the Secretary of War; but he, and all the
other heads of Departments, and the President were gone to attend the funeral of General Samuel Smith.— I then called
at Bowen the Tailor’s shop, and paid an old
bill for I. H. A. Then at the
Library of Congress and returned all the Books with which I was charged
except the 10th. Volume of Peters’s Reports
which I could not find— I gave the packet for G. W. Lafayette to
Mr
Burch, and bespoke the sheets of the Journal not yet
printed, and the Index to be sent to me at Quincy— I had written a
dunning Letter to Mr Barnard, and he had answered that he would
call on me at 6. this Evening— He afterwards sent me an apologetic
Letter, with promises to pay hereafter— I wrote also to Mr Anthony
Rothwell, Treasurer of the
80the Columbian College, and enclosed to him a note
upon interest to be signed by him on the first of June, unless the
interest payable on that day should be punctually paid. Towards Evening
Mr
Leonard Hammond of Rochester came and made a statement of
a case according to which he has been greatly wronged on a contract to
build a light house at the Southwest pass of the Mississippi— And he
said Mr
Pleasonton would not hear him— I promised to go with him
to morrow to the Secretary of the
Treasury— I called upon Richard Smith one of the Executors of Dr Huntt
with the account of his House-rent from 1. Jany to 1. Novr 1838— He said it was
correct, but must be passed before the Orphan’s Court to authorize him
to pay it— Evening much harrassed.