MR. ADAMS' FIRMNESS IN DISCHARGE OF DUTY--HIS EXERTIONS IN BEHALF OF THE
AMISTAD SLAVES--HIS CONNEXION WITH THE SMITHSONIAN BEQUEST--TOUR THROUGH
CANADA AND NEW YORK--HIS RECEPTION AT BUFFALO--VISITS NIAGARA
FALLS--ATTENDS WORSHIP WITH THE TUSCARORA INDIANS--HIS RECEPTION AT
ROCHESTER--AT AUBURN--AT ALBANY--AT PITTSFIELD--VISITS CINCINNATI--ASSISTS
IN LAYING THE CORNER STONE OF AN OBSERVATORY.
It would be impossible, in the limit prescribed to these pages, to detail
the numerous scenes and occurrences of a momentous nature, in which Mr.
Adams took a prominent part during his services in the House of
Representatives. The path he marked out for himself at the commencement of
his congressional career, was pursued with unfaltering fidelity to the
close of life. His was the rare honor of devoting himself, unreservedly,
to his legitimate duties as a Representative of the people while in
Congress, and to nothing else. He believed the halls of the Capitol were
no place for political intrigue; and that a member of Congress, instead of
studying to shape his course to make political capital or to subserve
party ends, should devote himself rigidly and solely to the interests of
his constituents. His practice corresponded with his theory. His
speeches, his votes, his entire labors in Congress, were confined strictly
to practical subjects, vitally connected with the great interests of our
common country, and had no political or party bearing, other than such as
truth and public good might possess.
His hostility to slavery and the assumptions and usurpations of slave
power in the councils of the nation, continued to the day of his death. At
the commencement of each session of Congress, he demanded that the
infamous "gag rule," which forbid the presentation of petitions on the
subject of slavery, should be abolished. But despite its continuance, he
persisted in handing in petitions from the people of every class,
complexion and condition. He did not hesitate to lay before the House of
Representatives a petition from Haverhill, Mass., for the dissolution of
the Union! Although opposed in his whole soul to the prayer of the
petitioners, yet he believed himself sacredly bound to listen with due
respect to every request of the people, when couched in respectful terms.
In vain did the supporters of slavery endeavor to arrest his course, and
to seal his lips in silence. In vain did they threaten
assassination--expulsion from the House--indictment before the grand jury
of the District of Columbia. In vain did they declare that he should "be
made amenable to another tribunal, [mob-law] and as an incendiary, be
brought to condign punishment." "My life on it," said a southern member,
"if he presents that petition from slaves, we shall yet see him within the
walls of the penitentiary." All these attempts at brow-beating moved him
not a tittle. Firm he stood to his duty, despite the storms of angry
passion which howled around him, and with withering rebukes repelled the
assaults of hot-blooded opponents, as the proud old headland, jutting far
into ocean's bosom, tosses high, in worthless spray, the dark mountain
billows which in wrath beat upon it.
"Do the gentlemen from the South," said he, "think they can frighten me by
their threats? If that be their object, let me tell them, sir, they have
mistaken their man. I am not to be frightened from the discharge of a
sacred duty, by their indignation, by their violence, nor, sir, by all the
grand juries in the universe. I have done only my duty; and I shall do it
again under the same circumstances, even though they recur to-morrow."
"Though aged, he was so iron of limb,
None of the youth could cope with him;
And the foes whom he singly kept at bay,
Outnumbered his thin hairs of silver grey."
Nor was Mr. Adams without encouragement in his trying position. His
immediate constituents, at their primary meetings, repeatedly sent up a
cheering voice in strong and earnest resolutions, approving heartily his
course, and urging him to, perseverance therein. The Legislatures of
Massachusetts and Vermont, rallied to his support. In solemn convocation,
they protested against the virtual annihilation of the right of
petition--against slavery and the slave trade in the District of
Columbia--gave their entire sanction to the principles advocated by Mr.
Adams, and pledged their countenance to all measures calculated to sustain
them.
Large bodies of people in the Eastern, Northern, and Middle States,
sympathized with him in his support of the most sacred of privileges
bestowed on man. Representative after Representative were sent to
Congress, who gathered around him, and co-operated with him in his holy
warfare against the iron rule which slavery had been enabled to establish
in the national Legislature. With renewed energy he resisted the mighty
current which was undermining the foundations of the Republic, and bearing
away upon its turbid waters the liberties of the people. And he resisted
not in vain.
The brave old man lived to see his labors, in this department of duty,
crowned with abundant success. One after another the cohorts of slavery
gave way before the incessant assaults, the unwearied perseverance, of Mr.
Adams, and the faithful compeers who were sent by the people to his
support. At length, in 1845, the obnoxious "gag rule" was rescinded, and
Congress consented to receive, and treat respectfully, all petitions on
the subject of slavery. This was a moral triumph which amply compensated
Mr. Adams for all the labors he had put forth, and for all the trials he
had endured to achieve it.
Yes; he "lived to hear that subject which of all others had been forbidden
an entrance into the Halls of Congress, fairly broached. He lived to
listen, with a delight all his own, to a high-souled, whole-hearted
speech on the slave question, from his colleague, Mr. Palfrey--a speech,
of which it is not too high praise to say, that it would not have
disparaged the exalted reputation of Mr. Adams, had he made it himself.
Aye, more, he lived to see the whole House of Representatives--the members
from the South, not less than those from the North, attentive and
respectful listeners to that speech of an hour's length, on the political
as well as moral aspect of slavery in this Republic. What a triumph! At
the close of it, the moral conqueror exclaimed, 'God be praised; the seals
are broken, the door is open.'" [Footnote: Rev. S. J. May.]
If anything were wanting to crown the fame of Mr. Adams, in the Last days
of life, with imperishable honor, or to add, if possible, new brilliancy
to the beams of his setting sun, it is found in his advocacy of the
freedom of the Amistad slaves.
A ship-load of negroes had been stolen from Africa, contrary to the law
of nations, of humanity and of God, and surreptitiously smuggled, in the
night, into the Island of Cuba. This act was piracy, according to the law
of Spain, and of all Governments in Christendom, and the perpetrators
thereof, had they been detected, would have been punished with death.
Immediately after the landing of these unfortunate Africans, about
thirty-six of them were purchased of the slave-pirates, by two Spaniards
named Don Jose Ruiz and Don Pedro Montes, who shipped them for Guanaja,
Cuba, in the schooner "Amistad." When three days out from Havana, the
Africans rose, killed the captain and crew, and took possession of the
vessel--sparing the lives of their purchaser's, Ruiz and Montes. This
transaction was unquestionably justifiable on the part of the negroes.
They had been stolen from their native land--had fallen into the hands of
pirates and robbers, and reduced to abject slavery. According to the first
law of nature--the law of self-defence--implanted in the bosom of every
human being by the Creator, they were justified in taking any measures
necessary to restore them to the enjoyment of that freedom which was
theirs by birthright.
The negroes being unable to manage the schooner, compelled Ruiz and
Montes to navigate her, and directed them to shape her course for Africa;
for it was their design to return to their native land. But they were
deceived by the two Spaniards, who brought the schooner to the coast of
the United States, where she was taken possession of by Lieut. Gedney, of
the U. S. surveying brig Washington, a few miles off Montauk Point, and
brought into New London, Conn., The two Spaniards claimed the Africans as
their property; and the Spanish Minister demanded of the President of the
United States, that they be delivered up to the proper authorities, and
taken back to Havana, to be tried for piracy and murder. The matter was
brought before the District Court of Connecticut.
In the mean time President Van Buren ordered the U. S. schooner Grampus,
Lieut. John S. Paine, to repair to New Haven, to be in readiness to convey
the Africans to Havana, should such be the decision of the Court. But the
Court decided that the Government of the United States had no authority to
return them into slavery; and directed that they be conveyed in one of our
public ships to the shores of Africa, from whence they had but recently
been torn away. From this decision the U. S. District Attorney appealed to
the Supreme Court of the United States.
These transactions attracted the attention of the whole people of the
Union, and naturally excited the sympathy of the masses, pro and con, as
they were favorable or unfavorable to the institution of slavery. Who
should defend, in the Supreme Court, these poor outcasts--ignorant,
degraded, wretched--who, fired with a noble energy, had burst the shackles
of slavery, and by a wave of fortune had been thrown into the midst of a
people professing freedom, yet keeping their feet on the necks of millions
of slaves? The eyes of all the friends of human rights turned
instinctively to JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. Nor were their expectations
disappointed. Without hesitation he espoused the cause of the Amistad
negroes. At the age of seventy-four, he appeared in the Supreme Court of
the United States to advocate their cause. He entered upon this labor with
the enthusiasm of a youthful barrister, and displayed forensic talents, a
critical knowledge of law, and of the inalienable rights of man, which
would have added to the renown of the most eminent jurists of the day.
"When he went to the Supreme Court, after an absence of thirty years, and
arose to defend a body of friendless negroes, torn from their home and
most unjustly held in thrall--when he asked the Judges to excuse him at
once both for the trembling faults of age and the inexperience of youth,
having labored so long elsewhere that he had forgotten the rules of
court--when he summed up the conclusion of the whole matter, and brought
before those judicial but yet moistening eyes, the great men whom he had
once met there--Chase, Cushing, Martin, Livingston, and Marshal himself;
and while he remembered that they were 'gone, gone, all gone,' remembered
also the eternal Justice that is never gone--the sight was sublime. It was
not an old patrician of Rome, who had been Consul, Dictator, coming out of
his honored retirement at the Senate's call, to stand in the Forum to levy
new armies, marshal them to victory afresh, and gain thereby new laurels
for his brow; but it was a plain citizen of America, who had held an
office far greater than that of Consul, King, or Dictator, his hand
reddened by no man's blood, expecting no honors, but coming in the name of
justice, to plead for the slave, for the poor barbarian negro of Africa,
for Cinque and Grabbo for their deeds comparing them to Harmodius and
Aristogeiton, whose classic memory made each bosom thrill. That was worth
all his honors--it was worth while to live fourscore years for that."
[Footnote: Theodore Parker.]
This effort of Mr. Adams was crowned with complete success. The Supreme
Court decided that the Africans were entitled to their freedom, and
ordered them to be liberated. In due time they were enabled, by the
assistance of the charitable, to sail for Africa, and take with them many
of the implements of civilized life. They arrived in safety at Sierre
Leone, and were allowed once more to mingle with their friends, and enjoy
God's gift of freedom, in a Pagan land--having fortunately escaped from a
cruel and life-long bondage, in the midst of a Christian people.
In reply to a letter requesting Mr. Adams to write out his argument in
this case, he concludes as follows: "I shall endeavor, as you desire, to
write out, in full extent, my argument before the Court, in which all this
was noticed and commented upon. If it has no other effect, I hope it will
at least have that of admonishing the free people of this Union to keep
perpetually watchful eyes upon every act of their executive
administration, having any relation to the subject of slavery."
In availing the country of the benefit of the "Smithsonian Bequest," and
in founding the "Smithsonian Institute" at Washington, Mr. Adams took an
active part. He repeatedly called the attention of Congress to the
subject, until he succeeded in causing a bill to be passed providing for
the establishment of the Institute. He was appointed one of the Regents of
the Institute, which office he held until his death.
In the summer of 1843, Mr. Adams visited Lebanon Springs, N. Y., for the
benefit of his health, which had become somewhat impaired, and also the
health of a cherished member of his family. He designed to devote only
four or five days to this journey; but he was so highly pleased with the
small portion of the State of New York he saw at Lebanon Springs, that he
was induced to proceed further. He visited Saratoga, Lake Georgia, Lower
Canada, Montreal and Quebec. Returning, he ascended the St. Lawrence and
the Lakes as far as Niagara Falls and Buffalo, and by the way of
Rochester, Auburn, Utica and Albany, sought his home in Quincy with health
greatly improved.
Although Mr. Adams had many bitter enemies--made so by his fearless
independence, and the stern integrity with which he discharged the public
duties entrusted to him--yet in the hearts of the people he ever occupied
the highest position. They not only respected and admired the politician,
the statesman, but they venerated the MAN! they loved him for his purity,
his philanthropy, his disinterested patriotism, his devotion to freedom
and human rights. All this was manifested during his tour through New
York. It was marked in its whole extent by demonstrations of the highest
attention and respect from people of all parties. Public greetings,
processions, celebrations, met him and accompanied him at every step of
his journey. Never since the visit of La Fayette, had such an anxious
desire to honor a great and good man been manifested by the entire mass of
the people. His progress was one continued triumphal procession. "I may
say," exclaimed Mr. Adams, near the close of his tour, "without being
charged with pride or vanity, I have come not alone, for the whole people
of the State of New York have been my companions!"
At Buffalo he was received with every possible demonstration of respect.
The national ensign was streaming from an hundred masts, and the wharves,
and the decks and rigging of the vessels, were crowded by thousands
anxious to catch a glimpse of the renowned statesman and patriot, who was
greeted by repeated cheers. Hon. Millard Fillmore addressed him with
great eloquence. The following is the conclusion of his speech:--
"You see around you, sir, no political partisans seeking to promote some
sinister purpose; but you see here assembled the people of our infant
city, without distinction of party, sex, age, or condition--all, all
anxiously vieing with each other to show their respect and esteem for
your public services and private worth. Here are gathered, in this vast
multitude of what must appear to you strange faces, thousands whose hearts
have vibrated to the chord of sympathy which your written speeches have
touched. Here is reflecting age, and ardent youth, and lisping childhood,
to all of whom your venerated name is as dear as household words all
anxious to feast their eyes by a sight of that extraordinary and venerable
man, of whom they have heard, and read, and thought so much--all anxious
to hear the voice of that 'old man eloquent,' on whose lips wisdom has
distilled her choicest nectar. Here, sir, you see them all, and read in
their eager and joy-gladdened countenances, and brightly-beaming eyes, a
welcome--a thrice-told, heart-felt, soul-stirring welcome to 'the man whom
they delight to honor.'"
Mr. Adams responded to this speech in a strain of most interesting
remarks. He commenced as follows:--
"I must request your indulgence for a moment's pause to take breath. If
you inquire why I ask this indulgence, it is because I am so overpowered
by the eloquence of my friend, the chairman of the Committee of Ways and
Means, (whom I have been so long accustomed to refer to in that capacity,
that, with your permission, I will continue so to denominate him now,)
that I have no words left to answer him. For so liberal has he been in
bestowing that eloquence upon me which he himself possesses in so eminent
a degree, that while he was ascribing to me talents so far above my own
consciousness in that regard, I was all the time imploring the god of
eloquence to give me, at least at this moment, a few words to justify him
before you in making that splendid panegyric which he has been pleased to
bestow upon me; and that the flattering picture which he has presented to
you, may not immediately be defaced before your eyes by what you should
hear from me. * * * * * *
In concluding his remarks he said:--"Of your attachment to moral principle
I have this day had another and pleasing proof in the dinner of which I
have partaken in the steamer, in which, by your kindness, I have been
conveyed to this place. It was a sumptuous dinner, but at which temperance
was the presiding power. I congratulate you on the evidence there
exhibited of your attachment to moral principle, in your co-operation in
that great movement which is promoting the happiness and elevation of man
in every quarter of the globe.
"And here you will permit me to allude to an incident which has occurred
in my recent visit to Canada, in which I perceived the cooperation of the
people of that Province in the same great moral reformation. While at
Quebec, I visited the falls of Montmorenci, a cataract which, but for
yours, would be among the greatest wonders of nature. In going to it, I
passed through the parish of Beauport, and there, by the side of the way,
I saw a column with an inscription upon its pedestal, which I had the
curiosity to stop and read. It was erected by the people of Beauport in
gratitude to the Virgin, for her goodness in promoting the cause of
temperance in that parish. Perhaps I do not sufficiently sympathize with
the people of Beauport in attributing to the Virgin so direct an influence
upon this moral reform; but in the spirit with which they erected that
monument I do most cordially sympathize with them. For, under whatever
influence the cause may be promoted, the cause itself can never fail to
make its votaries wiser and better men. I cannot make a speech. My heart
is too full, and my voice too feeble. Farewell! And with that farewell;
may the blessings of heaven be upon you throughout your lives!"
Mr. Adams was greatly delighted with his visit to Niagara Falls. A
letter-writer thus describes it:--
"Mr. Adams seems incapable of fatigue, either physical or mental. After a
drive in the morning to Lewiston, he stopped, on his return to the Falls,
at the whirlpool. The descent to the water's edge, which is not often
made, is, as you will remember, all but vertical, down a steep of some
three hundred and sixty feet. One of the party was about going down, when
Mr. Adams remarked that he would accompany him. Gen. Porter and the other
gentlemen present remonstrated, and told him it was a very severe
undertaking for a young and hearty man, and that he would find it, in such
a hot day, quite impracticable. He seemed, however, to know his
capacities; and this old man, verging on four score years, not only made
the descent, but clambered over almost impracticable rocks along the
margin of the river, to obtain the various views presented at different
points. The return was not easy, but he was quite adequate to the labor;
and after resting a few minutes at the summit, resumed his ride, full of
spirits and of animated and instructive conversation. After dinner, he
crossed over to Goat Island, and beheld the cataract from the various
points, and continued his explorations until all was obscured by darkness.
He seemed greatly impressed by the wonderful contrast presented by the
scene of rage and repose--of the wild and furious dashing of the mighty
river down the rapids, with its mad plunge over the precipice--and the
sullen stillness of the abyss of waters below. I wish I could repeat to
you his striking conversation during these rambles, replete with brilliant
classical allusions, historical illustrations, and the most minute, and as
it seemed to me, universal information. * * * * * * I sincerely concur
with the worthy captain of one of our steamboats, who said to me the other
day,--'Oh, that we could take the engine out of the old "Adams," and put
it into a new hull!'"
During his visit at the Falls, Mr. Adams, on a Sabbath morning,
accompanied by Gen. Porter, visited the remnant of the Tuscarora Indians,
and attended divine service in their midst. At the conclusion of the
sermon, Mr. Adams made a brief address to the Indians, which is thus
described by the letter-writer alluded to above:--
"Mr. Adams alluded to his advanced age, and said this was the first time
he had ever looked upon their beautiful fields and forests--that he was
truly happy to meet them there and join with them in the worship of our
common Parent--reminded them that in years past he had addressed them from
the position which he then occupied, in language, at once that of his
station and his heart, as 'his children'--and that now, as a private
citizen, he hailed them in terms of equal warmth and endearment, as his
'brethren and sisters.' He alluded, with a simple eloquence which seemed
to move the Indians much, to the equal care and love with which God
regards all his children, whether savage or civilized, and to the common
destiny which awaits them hereafter, however various their lot here. He
touched briefly and forcibly on the topics of the sermon which they had
heard, and concluded with a beautiful and touching benediction upon them."
At Rochester immense multitudes assembled to receive Mr. Adams. He was
welcomed in an eloquent address from the Mayor of the city. The following
are a few extracts from the reply of Mr. Adams:--
"Mr. Mayor and Fellow-citizens:--I fear you expect from me a speech. If it
were in my power, oppressed as I am with mingled astonishment and
gratitude at what I have experienced and now see of your kindness, to make
a speech, I would gratify you with one adorned with all the chaste yet
simple eloquence which are combined in the address to which you have just
listened from your worthy Mayor. But it is not in my power. You may
probably think there is some affectation on my part, in pretending
inability to address you, knowing as many of you do, that I have often
addressed assemblies like this. But I hope for greater indulgence from you
than this. I trust you will consider that I have seen and spoken to
multitudes like that now before me, but that these multitudes had frowning
faces. Those I could meet, and to those I could speak. But to you, whose
every face is expressive of generous affection--to you, in whose every
countenance I see kindness and friendship--I cannot speak. It is too much
for me. It overcomes my powers of speech. It is a new scene to me.
* * * * * *
"Amongst the sentiments which I have expressed, and the observations which
I have made during my brief tour through this portion of your State, it
was impossible for me to forego a constant comparison with what New York
was in other days, and what it is now. I first set my feet upon the soil
of the now Empire State, in 1785. I then visited the city of New York,--at
that time a town of 18,000 inhabitants. I tarried, while in that city, at
the house of John Jay--a man whom I name, and whom all will remember, as
one of the most illustrious of the distinguished patriots who carried our
beloved country through the dark period of the Revolution. Mr. Jay, the
Secretary of Foreign Affairs, under the Congress of the Federation, was
laying the foundation of a house in Broadway, but which was separated by
the distance of a quarter of a mile from any other dwelling. At that time,
being eighteen years of age, I received an invitation to visit western New
York; and I have regretted often, but never more than now, that I had not
accepted that invitation. Oh! what would I not have given to have seen
this part of this great State then, that I might be able to contrast it
with what it now is. * * * * *
"It has seemed to me as if in this region the God of nature intended to
make a more sublime display of his power, than in any other portion of the
world. He has done so in physical nature--in the majestic cataract, whose
sound you can almost hear--in forest and in field--in the mind of man
among you, In what has been accomplished to make your city what it is, the
aged have done the most. The middle aged may say we will improve upon what
has been done; and the young, we shall accomplish still more than our
fathers. That, fellow-citizens, was the boast in the ancient Spartan
procession--a procession which was divided into three classes--the old,
the middle-aged, and the young. They had a saying which each class
repeated in turn. The aged said--
'We have been, in days of old,
Wise and gentle, brave and bold.'
The middle-aged said--
'We, in turn, your place supply;
Who doubts it, let them come and try.'
And the boys said--
'Hereafter, at our country's call,
We promise to surpass you all.'
And so it will be with you--each in your order."
At Auburn every possible token of respect was paid to the venerable
statesman. A committee consisting of ex-Gov. Seward, Judge Conklin,
Judge Miller, Luman Sherwood, P. H. Perry, S. A. Goodwin, James C. Wood,
and J. L. Doty, Esqs., proceeded to Canandaigua to meet Mr. Adams. At
half past nine o'clock in the evening, Mr. Adams, accompanied by the
committee, arrived in Auburn. He was received by a torch-light procession,
composed of the Auburn Guards, the Firemen, and an immense concourse of
citizens, and conducted to the mansion of Gov. Seward, where he thus
briefly addressed the people:--
"Fellow-citizens:--Notwithstanding the glow with which these brilliant
torch-lights illuminate my welcome among you, I can only acknowledge your
kindness, on this occasion, by assuring you that to-morrow morning, by the
light of the blessed sun, I hope to take everyone of you by the hand, and
express feelings too strong for immediate utterance."
On the following morning at six o'clock, Mr. Adams visited the State
Prison, and made many inquiries concerning the discipline of the prison,
and its success in the prevention of crime and reformation of offenders.
At 9 o'clock he met the citizens in the First Presbyterian church, where
he was addressed by Gov. Seward, as follows:--
"SIR:--I am charged with the very honorable and most agreeable duty, of
expressing to you the reverence and affectionate esteem of my
fellow-citizens, assembled in your presence.
"A change has come over the spirit of your journey, since your steps have
turned towards your ancestral sea-side home. An excursion to invigorate
health impaired by labors, too arduous for age, in the public councils,
and expected to be quiet and contemplative, has become one of fatigue and
excitement. Rumors of your advance escape before you, and a happy and
grateful community rise up in their clustering cities, towns, and
villages, impede your way with demonstrations of respect and kindness, and
convert your unpretending journey into a triumphal progress. Such honors
frequently attend public functionaries, and such an one may sometimes find
it difficult to determine how much of the homage he receives is paid to
his own worth, how much proceeds from the habitual reverence of good
republican citizens to constituted elective authority, and how much from
the spirit of venal adulation.
"You, sir, labor under no such embarrassment. The office you hold, though
honorable, is purely legislative, and such as we can bestow by our
immediate suffrage on one of ourselves. You conferred personal benefits
sparingly when you held the patronage of the nation. That patronage you
have relinquished, and can never regain. Your hands will be uplifted
often, during your remaining days, to invoke blessings on your country,
but never again to distribute honors or reward among your countrymen. The
homage paid you, dear sir, is sincere, for it has its sources in the just
sentiments and irrepressible affections of a free people, their love of
truth, their admiration of wisdom, their reverence for virtue, and their
gratitude for beneficence.
"Nor need you fear that enthusiasm exaggerates your title to the public
regard. Your fellow-citizens, in spite of political prudence, could not
avoid honoring you on grounds altogether irrespective of personal merit.
John Adams, who has gone to receive the reward of the just, was one of the
most efficient and illustrious founders of this Empire, and afterwards its
Chief Ruler. The son of such a father would, in any other age, and even in
this age, in any other country than this, have been entitled, by birth
alone, to a sceptre. We not merely deny hereditary claims to civil trust,
but regard even hereditary distinction with jealousy. And this
circumstance enhances justly the estimate of your worth. For when before
has it happened that in such a condition of society the son has, by mere
civic achievement, attained the eminence of such a sire, and effaced
remembrance of birth by justly acquired renown?
"The hand we now so eagerly grasp, was pressed in confidence and
friendship by the Father of our Country. The wreath we place on your
honored brow, received its earliest leaves from the hand of Washington. We
cannot expect, with the agency of free and universal suffrage, to be
always governed by the wise and the good. But surely your predecessors in
the Chief Magistracy, were men such as never before successively wielded
power in any State. They differed in policy as they must, and yet,
throughout their several dynasties, without any sacrifice of personal
independence, and while passing from immature youth to ripened age, you
were counsellor and minister to them all. We seem therefore, in this
interview with you, to come into the presence of our departed chiefs; the
majestic shade of Washington looks down upon us; we hear the bold and
manly eloquence of the elder Adams; and we listen to the voices of the
philosophic and sagacious Jefferson, the refined and modest Madison, and
the generous and faithful Monroe.
"A life of such eminent patriotism and fidelity found its proper reward in
your elevation to the eminence from which you had justly derived so many
honors. Although your administration of the government is yet too recent
for impartial history, or unbounded eulogy, our grateful remembrance of it
is evinced by the congratulations you now receive from your
fellow-citizens.
"But your claims to the veneration of your countrymen do not end here.
Your predecessors descended from the Chief Magistracy to enjoy, in repose
and tranquillity, honors even greater than those which belonged to that
eminent station. It was reserved for you to illustrate the important
truths, that offices and trusts are not the end of public service, but are
merely incidents in the life of the true American citizen; that duties
remain when the highest trust is resigned; and that there is scope for a
pure and benevolent ambition beyond even the Presidency of the United
States of America.
"You have devoted the energies of a mind unperverted, the learning and
experience acquired through more than sixty years, and even the influence
and fame derived from your high career of public service, to the great
cause of universal liberty. The praises we bestow are already echoed back
to us by voices which come rich and full across the Atlantic, hailing you
as the indefatigable champion of humanity--not the humanity which embraces
a single race or clime, but that humanity which regards the whole family
of MAN. Such salutations as these cannot be mistaken. They come not from
your contemporaries, for they are gone--you are not of this generation,
but of the PAST, spared to hear the voice of POSTERITY. The greetings you
receive come up from the dark and uncertain FUTURE. They are the
whisperings of posthumous FAME--fame which impatiently awaits your
departure, and which, spreading wider and growing more and more distinct,
will award to JOHN QUINCY ADAMS a name to live with that of WASHINGTON!"
The audience expressed their sympathy with this address by long and
enthusiastic cheering. When order was restored, Mr. Adams rose, evidently
under great and unaffected embarrassment.
He replied to the speech in an address of about half an hour, during which
the attention of his audience was riveted upon the speaker, with intense
interest and affection. He declared the embarrassment he felt in speaking.
He was sensible that his fellow-citizens had laid aside all partizan
feelings in coming up to greet him. He desired to speak what would not
wound the feelings of anyone. He was grateful, deeply grateful, to them
all. But on what subject of public interest could a public man speak, that
would find harmony among an intelligent, thinking people? There were such
subjects, but he could not speak of them.
The people of Western New York had always been eminently just and generous
to him, and had recently proved their kindness on various occasions, by
inviting him to address the State Agricultural Society on agriculture. But
his life had been spent in the closet, in diplomacy, or in the cabinet;
and he had not learned the practice, or even the theory of agriculture.
After what he had seen of the harvests of Western New York, bursting with
food for the sustenance of man, for him to address the people of such a
district on agriculture, would be as absurd as the vanity of the
rhetorician who went to Carthage to instruct Hannibal in the art of war.
He had been solicited to address the young. In his life time he had been
an instructor of youth, and, strange as from his present display they
might think it, he had instructed them in the art of eloquence. And there
was no more honorable office on earth than instructing the young. But the
schools and seminaries had passed him, while he was engaged in other
pursuits; and for him now to attempt to instruct the young of this
generation, would evince only the garrulousness of age.
He had been invited to discourse on internal improvement; but that was a
subject he feared to touch. On one point, however, all men agreed. All
were in favor of internal improvement. But there was a balance between the
reasonable sacrifices of this generation, and the burden it had a right to
cast upon posterity, and every individual might justly claim to hold his
balance for himself. One thing, however, he was sure he might assume with
safety. In looking over the State of New York, upon its canals and
railroads, which brought the borders of the State into contiguity, and its
citizens in every part into communion with each other, he was sure that
all rejoiced, and might well glory in what had been accomplished.
Mr. A. said he had read and endeavored to inform himself concerning prison
discipline, a subject deeply interesting to the peace, good order, and
welfare of society; but after his examination of the penitentiary here, he
was satisfied that he was yet a learner, instead of being able to give
instruction on that important subject.
He had been asked to enlist in the growing army of temperance, and
discourse on that cause, so deeply cherished by every well wisher of our
country. And he would cheerfully speak; but other and more devoted men had
occupied the field, and what was left for him to say on temperance? In
passing through Catholic Lower Canada he saw a column erected to the
Virgin Mary, in gratitude for her promotion of the temperance cause. If
indeed the blessed Virgin did lend her aid to that great work, it would
almost win him to worship at her shrine, although he belonged to that
class of people who rejected the invocation of saints.
He felt, therefore, that he had no subject on which to address them, but
himself and his own public life. The experience of an old man, related by
himself, would, he feared, be more irksome than profitable.
"What, then, am I to say? I am summoned here to speak, and to reply to
what has been said to me by my respected friend, your late Chief
Magistrate. And what is the theme he has given me? It is myself. And what
can I say on such a subject? To know that he entertains, or that you
entertain for me the sentiments he has expressed, absolutely overpowers
me. I cannot go on. The only answer I can make, is a declaration, that
during my public service, now protracted to nearly the age of eighty, I
have endeavored to serve my country honestly and faithfully. How
imperfectly I have done this, none seem so sensible as myself. I must
stop. I can only repeat thanks, thanks, thanks to you, one and all, and
implore the blessings of God upon you and your children."
At the conclusion of this reply, Mr. Adams was introduced to a large
number of the ladies and gentlemen assembled in the church. He then
returned to the American Hotel, where he remained an hour, receiving the
visits of the citizens of the adjoining towns. At 11 o'clock the Auburn
Guards escorted Mr. Adams and the committee, followed by a large
procession, to the car-house. Accompanied by Gov. Seward, Judge Miller,
Hon. Christopher Morgan, the committee, Auburn Guards, and a number of the
citizens of Auburn, he was conveyed in an extra train of cars, in an hour
and five minutes, to Syracuse.
At Syracuse, at Utica, at Albany, the same spontaneous outgushing
manifestations of respect and affection met him that had hitherto attended
his journey in every populous place through which he passed. In his reply
to the address of Mr. Barnard, at Albany, he concluded in the following
words:--
"Lingering as I am on the stage of public life, and, as many of you may
think, lingering beyond the period when nature calls for repose--while I
remain in the station which I now occupy in the Congress of the United
States, if you, my hearers, as an assembly, or if anyone among you, as an
individual, have any object or purpose to promote, or any end to secure
that he believes can in any way advance his interests or increase his
happiness, then, in the name of God, I ask you to send your petitions to
me! (Tremendous cheering.) I hope this is not trespassing too far on
politics. (Laughter, and cheers.) I unhesitatingly promise you, one and
all, that if I can in any way serve you in that station, I will do it most
cheerfully; regarding it as the choicest blessing of God, if I shall thus
be enabled to make some just return for the kind attentions which you have
this day bestowed upon me."
In his route homeward, Mr. Adams was received and entertained in a very
handsome manner by the people of Pittsfield, Mass. He was addressed by
Hon. George N. Briggs, who alluded, in eloquent terms, to his long and
distinguished public services. Mr. Adams, in reply, spoke of the scenes
amidst which he had passed his early youth, and of the influence which
they exerted in forming his character and shaping his purposes. "In 1775,"
said he, "the minute men from a hundred towns in the province were
marching, at a moment's warning, to the scene of opening war. Many of them
called at my father's house in Quincy, and received the hospitality of
John Adams. All were lodged in the house which the house would contain;
others in the barns, and wherever they could find a place. There were then
in my father's kitchen some dozen or two of pewter spoons; and I well
recollect going into the kitchen and seeing some of the men engaged in
running those spoons into bullets for the use of the troops! Do you
wonder," said he, "that a boy of seven years of age, who witnessed this
scene, should be a patriot?"
In the fall of the same year, Mr. Adams received an invitation from the
Cincinnati Astronomical Society, to visit that city, and assist in the
ceremony of laying the corner stone of an observatory, to be erected on an
eminence called Mount Ida. The invitation was accepted. On his journey to
Cincinnati, the same demonstrations of respect, the same eagerness to
honor the aged patriarch were manifested in the various cities and towns
through which he passed, as on his summer tour.
324 LIFE OF JOHN QUINCY ADAMS.
The ceremony of laying the corner stone took place on the 9th of November,
1843. Mr. Adams delivered an address on the occasion, replete with
eloquence, wisdom, philosophy, and religion. The following beautiful
extract will afford a specimen:--
"The various difficult, and, in many respects, opposite motives which have
impelled mankind to the study of the stars, have had a singular effect in
complicating and confounding the recommendation of the science. Religion,
idolatry, superstition, curiosity, the thirst for knowledge, the passion
for penetrating the secrets of nature, the warfare of the huntsman by
night and by day against the beast of the forest and of the field, the
meditations of the shepherd in the custody and wanderings of his flocks,
the influence of the revolving seasons of the year, and the successive
garniture of the firmament upon the labors of the husbandman, upon the
seed time and the harvest, the blooming of flowers, the ripening of the
vintage, the polar pilot of the navigator, and the mysterious magnet of
the mariner--all, in harmonious action, stimulate the child of earth and
of heaven to interrogate the dazzling splendors of the sky, to reveal to
him the laws of their own existence.
"He has his own comforts, his own happiness, his own existence, identified
with theirs. He sees the Creator in creation, and calls upon creation to
declare the glory of the Creator. When Pythagoras, the philosopher of the
Grecian schools, conceived that more than earthly idea of 'the music of
the spheres'--when the great dramatist of nature could inspire the lips of
his lover on the moonlight green with the beloved of his soul, to say to
her:--
'Sit, Jessica.--Look how the floor of Heaven
Is thick inlaid with pattens of bright gold!
There's not the smallest orb which thou beholdest,
But in his motion like an angel sings,
Still choiring to the young eyed cherubim!'
"Oh, who is the one with a heart, but almost wishes to cast off this muddy
vesture of decay, to be admitted to the joy of listening to the celestial
harmony!"