Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume I.djvu/110

90 JOHN ADAMS the situation of Adams was rather mortifying than agreeable. Meanwhile he was obliged to pay a new visit to Holland to negotiate a new loan as a means of paying the interest on the Dutch debt. He was also engaged in a corre- spondence with his fellow commissioner, Mr. Jefferson, then at Paris, on the subject of a treaty with the Barbary powers and the return of the Americans held captive by them. But his most engrossing occupation at this time was the preparation of his "Defence of the American Constitutions," of which the object was the justification of balanced governments and a division of powers, especially the legis- lative, against the idea of a single assembly and a pure democracy, which had begun to find many ardent advocates, especially on the continent. The greater part, however, of this book the most voluminous of his publications consists of summaries of the histories of the Italian republics, by no means essential to the argument, and rather an excrescence. Though it afterward subjected the author to charges of monarchical and anti-republican tendencies, this book was not without its influence on the adoption of the federal constitution, during the discussion upon which the first volume of it appeared. Great Britain not having recipro- cated the compliment by appointing a minister to the United States, and there being no prospect of his being able to accomplish any of the objects of his mission, Adams had solicited a recall, which was sent out to him in February, 1788, accompanied by a resolution of congress conveying the thanks of that body for "the patriotism, perseverance, integrity, and diligence " which he had displayed in his ten years' service abroad. Immediately on his arrival home, Mr. Adams was reappointed a delegate from Massachusetts to the continental congress; but he never resumed his seat in that body, which was now just about to expire. When the new government came to be organized under the newly adopted federal constitution, as all were agreed to make Wash- ington president, attention was turned to New England for a vice president. This office was then regarded as of much higher consequence than now. In fact, as the constitution originally stood, the candidates for the presi- dency and vice presidency were voted for without any distinct specification, the second office falling to the person who had the second highest vote. Out of 69 electors, John Adams had the votes of 34; and this being the second highest number, he was declared vice presi- dent. The other 35 votes were scattered upon no less than 10 candidates. By virtue of his new office he becan?* president of the senate, a position not very agreeable to his active and leading .temperament, better fitted for debate, but one in which the close division in the senate, resulting often in a 'tie between the supporters and the opponents of the new system, gave him many times a controlling voice. In the first congress he gave no few- er than 20 casting votes, always upon im- portant organic laws, and always in support of Washington's policy. Down to this period Adams had sympathized in political feeling and sentiment with Jefferson, with whom he had served both in the continental congress and abroad. On the question of the French revolution, which now burst upon the world, a difference of opinion arose between them. From the very beginning Adams, then almost alone, had augured no good from that move- ment. As the revolution went on and began to break out in excesses, others began to be of this opinion. Adams then gave public ex- pression to some of his ideas on that subject in a series of " Discourses on Davila," fur- nished to a Philadelphia newspaper and after- ward collected into a volume. Taking the history of nations, particularly Davila's account of the French civil wars, and the general aspects of human society as his text, Adams pointed out as the great springs of human activity, at least in all that related to politics, the love of superiority, the desire of distinction, admiration, and applause ; nor in his opinion could any government be perma- nent or secure which did not provide as well for the reasonable gratification as for the due restraint of this powerful passion. Kepudi- ating that democracy pure and simple then coming into vogue, and of which Jefferson was the advocate, he insisted that a certain mixture of aristocracy and monarchy was necessary to that balance of interests and sentiments without which, as he maintained, free governments could not exist. This work, which reproduced more at length and in a more obnoxious form the fundamental ideas of his " Defence of the American Constitutions," made Adams a great bugbear to the ultra- democratic supporters of the principles and policy of the French revolutionists; and at the second presidential election in 1792, they set up as a candidate against him George Clinton of New York. But Mr. Adams was reelected by a decided vote. The wise policy of neu- trality adopted by Washington received the hearty concurrence of Adams. While Jeffer- son left the cabinet to become in nominal retirement the leader of the opposition, Adams continued as vice president to give Washing- ton's administration the benefit of his casting vote. It was only by this means that a neu- trality act was carried through the senate, and that the progress was stopped of certain resolutions which had previously passed in the house of representatives, embodying restrictive measures against Great Britain, intended or at least calculated to counterwork the mission to England on which Mr. Jay had already been sent. Washington being firmly resolved to retire at the close of his second presidential term, the question of the successorship now presented itself. Jefferson was the leader of the opposition, who called themselves repub- licans, the name democrat being yet in bad