Papers of John Adams, volume 21
thMarch 1793
You have most probably heard long before this, that I
have printed “Letters to Paine,” by your
son.—
A Copy was given to me by a Gentleman high in Government, to print as your production, with your name affixed, and I actually advertised it as such; but fortunately had information of its being written by your Son, and of course cancelled the Title before a Copy was seen by any one except the Printer and myself.—
The work does the highest honour to the writer, be he who he may.— The Attorney General assured me that it was the ablest work of the kind he had ever read.—1
The Speaker of the House of Commons, Mr. Pitt, and many other Gentlemen of the first
abilities spoke of it in the same terms.— It was printed as your Work
several times in Scotland before it came into my hands.—2
Your work on Government has never yet had fair play. I
wish you would give me a corrected Copy, with any additions that you may 186 have; and, at the same time, an Order
upon Mr. Copley for your Picture to engrave a
Frontispiece.—3 I would
with pleasure risque any sum in bringing out an Edition of the Work, and
that in a much more reputable stile than the former.— The Picture would be
returned to Mr Copley in two Months.—
Sincerely wishing that this may find you and your Family
well, / I am / Dear Sir / With great respect, / Your Much Obliged and / Very
Humle. Servt
P. S. Mrs. Stockdale
desires her kind respects.4 I shall be glad to receive an Answer by the first Ship.—
RC (Adams Papers); addressed: “John Adams Esqr. / Vice President of the / United States,
&c / Boston. / N. America.—”; endorsed: “Mr Stockdale / March 16. ansd / May
12. 1793.” Tr (Adams
Papers); APM Reel
327.
Scottish jurist Archibald Macdonald (1747–1826),
Oxford 1768, successfully prosecuted Thomas Paine for seditious libel
stemming from his publication of Rights of
Man in 1792. Macdonald, then serving as the British attorney
general, quoted heavily from JQA’s Publicola writings
during the trial (
AFC
, 9:413,
414;
DNB
).
J. Dickson published a compilation of
JQA’s articles as Observations
on Paine’s Rights of Man, in a Series of Letters, by Publicola,
Edinburgh, 1792. Several British editions listed “John Adams, Esq.” as
the author, possibly blurring the line between father and son for
profit’s sake, for which see JA’s 12 May 1793 reply to
Stockdale, below.
For the 1794 London edition of JA’s
Defence of the Const.
, Stockdale chose a cropped
engraving made by Mr. Hall after John Singleton Copley’s 1783 oil
portrait (
AFC
, 5:xvii; Oliver, Portraits of JA
and AA
, p. 24, 30).
That is, Mary Ridgway Stockdale, originally of
Cheshire, England (
DNB
, entry on John
Stockdale).
On Saturday night, Mr John
Quincy Adams my Son and no doubt your friend brought me from Boston your
Letter of the 25th of Feb. returned by the Post
from Philadelphia. I thank You Sir for your friendly congratulations, which
with some others contribute. not a little to animate me, under the dull
prospect of jolting Journeys and tedious sessions which in my old Age would
otherwise be rather gloomy.
The young Gentn, above named
I wish to introduce to your Friendship and Correspondence. He has litterary
Talents in Prose and Verse, of which if I should express my real opinion I
should be Suspected of Partiality. You may employ him to advantage in some
of your Patriotic Designs.— I have no Small Desire to See the Use you make
of the hint as you call it. The American I hope
will persevere 187 in his
own time and in his own way, and he cannot fail to do good. great good is
come into this State already from Hartford.
The Secretary of State, I am inclined to think will not resign. Hamilton has hitherto tryumphed over his Ennemies, and will continue to do so; nor is there any danger that the next Congress will overturn any of the present measures of Government. The Leaders in opposition will dare to vote as they please because they know they shall be in a Minority: but if they Saw they were to be responsible for overturning a system which has so suddenly procured so brilliant a Prosperity, they would shrink with terror from the danger of it. These are my humble Opinions—valeant, quantum valere possunt.
I left a Letter for you with Mr David Bull in which I requested you to have my Name Subscribed
for the Hartford Paper— I now request to subscribe for both the Papers, that
which contains the Eccho and that which contains the American.1 I should be glad to have sent to
my son in Boston for me, all the Ecchoes and all the Americans. Those
Productions have been more read, and have had a greater Effect in this state
than I was aware of. The Epistle to the Eccho was written by the youth whom
I just now recommended to your Patronage. He is rising into Business at the
Bar and into Fame in the litterary World, if not in the political, though I
fear that in this he will too soon be conspicious. Politicks are bred in his
bone. His Father when he begot him, had, I dare say, some political Project
in his head, though he was never a Politician.
I am commencing my Agricultural Career for the season in which I shall have as much Pleasure as all your Law, Politicks, Wit, and Fame will procure you though not so much Profit. It is very fortunate for me that I have a little farm and that I love it ardently, for without both, I should soon Sink under the Weight of dull Care.
Adieu, may the Muses be propitious and / the Temple of Themis productive.
RC (NjP:Andre De Coppet Coll.); addressed: “John
Trumbull Esqr / Councillor at Law / Hartford”; internal address: “John
Trumbull Esqr / Councillor at Law.”; endorsed: “Honble. John Adams / March 18th. 1793”; notation by JA:
“Free / John Adams.”
JA ordered subscriptions to the
Hartford, Conn., American Mercury and the
Philadelphia National Gazette. He also
referred to JQA’s poem “Epistle to the Echo,” which
appeared anonymously in the American
Mercury, 4 February.