possession of it, or abandon it to be occupied again by the Spanish authorities from Florida. Mr. Crawford was for giving it up, and the President evidently inclines also to that course. It was, however, determined to postpone that question.

I

29th. At the President's. He told me that his house would be opened on New Year's day at noon to receive company. enquired if a short time sooner should be appointed for the foreign Ministers. He at first objected, but afterwards said he would have a Cabinet consultation upon it to-morrow between eleven and twelve.

30th. I rode to the President's, where I found Mr. Crawford and Mr. Calhoun. They had agreed, and the President determined, to receive the foreign Ministers at half-past eleven on New Year's day, half an hour before the general company, and I sent notifications to the foreign Ministers to that effect.

Mr. Middleton, Chairman of the Amelia Island Committee, was also with me, and I gave him all the additional information that I possessed concerning it. I showed him the secret laws, those singular anomalies of our system which have grown out of that error in our Constitution which confers upon the legislative assemblies the power of declaring war, which, in the theory of government, according to Montesquieu and Rousseau, is strictly an Executive act. But as we have made it legislative, whenever secrecy is necessary for an operation of the Executive, involving the question of peace and war, Congress must pass a secret law to give the President the power. Now, secrecy is contrary to one of the first principles of legislation, but this absurdity flows unavoidably from that of having given to Congress, instead of the Executive, the power of declaring war. Of these secret laws there are four, and one resolution; and one of the laws, that of 25th June, 1812, is so secret, that this day it could not be found among the rolls at the Department. Another consequence has also followed from this clumsy political machinery. The injunction of secrecy was removed on the 6th of July, 1812, from the laws previously passed by a vote of the House of Representatives, and yet the laws have never been published. Mr. Middleton said he would see me again before he should make his report to the House.

31st. Madame Plantou came with a print of her allegorical picture of the Peace of Ghent, for which she laid me under a contribution. It is a bombastic and foolish thing, but Madame Plantou gives herself out for a native of Philadelphia, and is a painter. This is one of her works. There is an America in a triumphal car, and a Britannia upon her knees, submitting to terms of peace, dictated by Minerva and Hercules. O, the voracious maw and the bloated visage of national vanity! If it were true that we had vanquished or humbled Britannia, it would be base to exult over her; but when it is so notorious that the issue of our late war with her was at best a drawn game, there is nothing but the most egregious national vanity that can turn it to a triumph.

I received this morning notes from Mr. Bagot and Mr. Hyde de Neuville, to ask if their ladies could visit Mrs. Monroe tomorrow. At the President's, where I met Mr. Crowninshield, there was again a consultation, and my wife called on the ladies and informed them that they would also be received, at halfpast eleven to-morrow.

Day. In its general arrangement, the same as the last month; but on the first day of December the session of Congress commenced, since which the business of my office has been more pressing than before. On the other hand, during five or six days of very cold weather I rose much later in the morning, and could scarcely write at all, and we have dined several times and spent evenings abroad, which makes late hours, idle habits, and waste of time. My indispensable business runs in arrears, and sometimes crowds me almost to distraction. I seldom reach my office before one o'clock, or leave it till five.

I close the year with humble gratitude to God for his manifold mercies to me and mine during its course. It has been the period of another great change in the condition of my life, upon which I once more implore the blessing of Providence, to my country, my family, and myself; that I may know and be enabled faithfully to discharge the duties of my station, and that my heart and mind may be prepared for every dispensation of the divine wisdom and goodness.

January 1st, 1818.-In the evening, and until eleven, I was

VOL. IV.-3

writing remarks for Mr. Middleton's draft of a report to the House of Representatives upon Amelia Island. He sent it to me yesterday, with a private note requesting my observations upon it.

3d. Shaler's letters, and a complaint of A. Fitch, at Marseilles, against S. Cathalan, the Consul there, employed all the morning to read. At the President's, I mentioned to him again the proposal for the fisheries, to be made to Mr. Bagot. After some conversation on the subject, he directed me to ask Mr. Crowninshield, Mr. Holmes, Mr. Silsbee, Mr. Nelson, and all the members from Massachusetts representing districts interested in the fisheries, to call at his house at eleven o'clock, Monday morning, for a consultation upon the proposal to be made. The President also asked my opinion concerning his entertainments to be given to the heads of Departments and the foreign Ministers, whether they should be given together or separately. I advised that it should be separately-which was apparently his own inclination. He determined to give both dinners next week-the first on Wednesday, and the other on Friday.

5th. At eleven o'clock I called at the President's, where I found Mr. Crowninshield and nine or ten of the members of the House of Representatives from the districts of Massachusetts interested in the fisheries, consulting upon the subject of the proposal to be made to the British Government. After examining the map, and some conversation, several of the members asked for time to write to their districts for information, and I undertook to reconcile Mr. Bagot to wait until the February packet for the proposal.

Crowninshield had received dispatches with information of the surrender to us of Amelia Island on the 23d of last month. Mr. Calhoun afterwards came in with the same dispatches, and the President appointed a Cabinet meeting for eleven o'clock to-morrow morning, to determine what should be done with Amelia Island.

At the office I had visits from Mr. Gaillard, the President "pro tempore" of the Senate, and his colleague, Judge Smith, and had conversation with them on various topics. Mr. Gaillard

finally asked me if there had been any new system of etiquette established with regard to visiting, to which I answered certainly none to my knowledge. I was myself determined to make no question of etiquette with any one. But I had been negligent in paying visits, from absolute want of time. They said there had been a rule adopted by the Senators, so long ago as when Mr. Burr was a member of the body, and drawn by him, that the Senators should visit only the President of the United States, and Mr. King had lately referred them to a book in which it was recorded.

I told them this was the first intimation I had ever received of the existence of such a rule. I had been five years a member of the Senate, and at the commencement of every session had invariably paid the first visit to all the heads of Departments, excepting Mr. Gallatin, who never having returned my first visit, I never afterwards visited him, except upon business at his office, and I understood he had neither paid nor returned any visits while he was Secretary of the Treasury. I had always supposed the universal practice to be that the Senators paid the first visit to the heads of Departments, though since I had now arrived here I had heard the practice was different. I was ready to conform to any arrangement that might be proper, but I supposed the rule that Senators would visit only the President did not extend to a requisition that the heads of Departments should first visit them. We parted in perfect good humor on the subject.

6th. Attended at eleven o'clock the Cabinet meeting at the President's, concerning Amelia Island. McGregor's proclamation upon taking the island being wanted, I went for it to the office, and returned to the meeting, which was fully attended. The President had partly drawn up a message to Congress, stating the taking of Amelia Island, and concluding that the troops which took it would be withdrawn. It seems that when the orders for taking the island were sent, those from the War Department directed that the persons to be expelled should not carry away any public Spanish property taken by them upon the island. Those orders I never saw. The President says he has no doubt they were shown to and authorized by him, but

now comes the embarrassment what to do with that property, consisting of two or four cannons. The President is apparently determined to withdraw the troops from the island, but he asks the opinions of the Cabinet, to take the measure with deliberation.

Mr. Crawford, Crowninshield, and Wirt are with the President, for withdrawing the troops. Calhoun and I are for keeping possession of the island, subject to negotiation for it with Spain. If I understand the characters of my colleagues, Crawford's point d'honneur is to differ from me, and to find no weight in any reason assigned by me. Wirt and Crowninshield will always be of the President's opinion. Calhoun thinks for himself, independently of all the rest, with sound judgment, quick discrimination, and keen observation. He supports his opinions, too, with powerful eloquence. The discussion of this day was adjourned for the President to finish preparing his draft of the message to Congress.

8th. I received two notes from the Spanish Minister Onis, one with a strong remonstrance against the occupation of Amelia Island, and the, other, a third long memoir upon the negotiation pending.

9th. When I called at the President's I found N. Biddle, of Philadelphia, with him. He directed a Cabinet meeting on the Amelia Island affair at one o'clock. I went to the office, and returned to the President's at one. The draft of the message to Congress was again discussed, and it still persisted in the paragraph announcing that the troops would be withdrawn. I presented for consideration the doubt whether, having taken possession under the act of January, 1811, the Executive had a right to withdraw the troops and abandon the island unless authorized thereto by a new act of Congress.

This question was again discussed with great earnestness till past four o'clock. Calhoun urged retaining it, with great force and effect. I repeated the arguments of the former day, and added new ones, as they occurred to me now.

The President, without giving up his opinion, was very apparently affected by the conflict of sentiment among his advisers. Crawford was staggered, and maintained his ground

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