Sir,

FROM THOMAS JEFFERSON TO JOHN JAY.

Paris, August 5, 1789.

I wrote you on the 19th of the last month, with a postscript of the 21st, and on the 23d and 29th. These letters went by private conveyance. This goes by the London post. Since my last, some small and momentary tumults have taken place in this city, in one of which a few of the rioters were killed by the city militia.

No more popular executions have taken place. The capture of the Baron de Besenval, commander of the Swiss troops, as he was flying to Switzerland, and of the Duke de la Vauguyon, endeavoring to escape by sea, would endanger new interpositions of the popular arm were they to be brought to Paris. They are, therefore, confined where they were taken. The former of these being unpopular with the troops under his command, on account of oppressions, occasioned a deputation from their body to demand justice to be done him, and to avow the devotion of the Swiss troops to the cause of the nation. They had before taken side in part only. M. Necker's return contributed much to reëstablish tranquillity, though not quite as much as was expected. His just intercessions for the Baron de Besenval, and other fugitives, damped very sensibly the popular ardor towards him. Their hatred is stronger than their love.

Yesterday the other Ministers were named. The Archbishop of Bordeaux is Garde des Sceaux; M. de la Tour Depin, Minister of War; the Prince of Beauvon is taken into the Council, and the feuille des bénéfices given to the Archbishop of Bordeaux. These are all of the popular party; so that the minority (M. de la Luzerne excepted) and the Council, being all in reformation principles, no further opposition may be expected from that quarter.

The National Assembly now seriously set their hands to the work of the Constitution. They decided, a day or two ago, the question whether they should begin by a declaration of rights, by a great majority in the affirmative. The negatives were of the Clergy, who fear to trust the people with the whole truth. The declaration itself is now on the carpet. By way of corollary to it they last night mowed down a whole legion of abuses, as you will see by the heads of the arrêté which I have the honor to enclose you. This will stop the burning of chateaux, and tranquillize the country more than all the addresses they could send them.

I expressed to you my fears of the impracticability of debate and decision in a room of one thousand and two hundred persons, as soon as M. Necker's determination to call that number was known. The inconveniences of their number have been distressing to the last degree, though, as yet, they have been employed in work which could be done in the lump. They are now proceeding to instruments, every word of which must be weighed with precision. Heretofore, too, they were hooped together by a common enemy. This is no longer the case. Yet a thorough view of the wisdom and rectitude of this Assembly disposes me more to hope they will find some means of surmounting the difficulty of their numbers than to fear that, yielding to the unmanageableness of debate in such a crowd, and to the fatigue of the experiment, they may be driven to adopt, in the gross, some one of the many projects which will be proposed.

There is a germ of schism in the pretensions of Paris to form its municipal establishment, independently of the authority of the nation. It has not yet proceeded so far as to threaten danger.

The occasion does not permit me to send the public papers; but nothing remarkable has taken place in the other parts of Europe. I have the honor to be, &c., TH: JEFFERSON.

FROM THOMAS JEFFERSON TO WILLIAM CARMICHAEL.

Dear Sir,

Paris, August 9, 1789.

Since your last, of March the 27th, I have only written that of May the 8th. The causes of this long silence on both parts has been the expectation I communicated to you of embarking for America. In fact, I have expected permission for this every hour since the month of March; and, therefore, always thought that by putting off writing to you a few days, my letter, while it should communicate the occurrences of the day, might be a letter of adieu. Should my permission now arrive, I should put off my departure till after the equinox. They write me that my not receiving it had proceeded from the ceasing of the old Government in October last, and the organization of the higher departments in the new, which

had not yet taken place when my last letters came away. Bills had been brought in for establishing departments of Foreign Affairs, Finance, and War. The last would certainly be given to General Knox. Mr. Jay would probably have his choice of the first and second; and it was supposed Hamilton would have that which Mr. Jay declined. Some thought Mr. Jay would prefer and obtain the head of the law department, for which Wilson would be a competitor. In such a case, some have supposed C. Thomson would ask the Foreign Affairs. The Senate and Representatives differed about the title of the President. The former wanted to style him "His Highness, George Washington, President of the United States, and Protector of their Liberties." The latter insisted, and prevailed, to give no title but that of office, to wit: "George Washington, President of the United States." I hope the terms of Excellency, Honor, Worship, Esquire, will forever disappear from among us from that moment. I wish that of Mr. would follow them. In the impost bill the Representatives had, by almost an unanimous concurrence, made a difference between nations in treaty with us, and those not in treaty. The Senate had struck out this difference, and lowered all the duties. Query: Whether the Representatives would yield?

Congress were to proceed, about the last of June, to propose amendments to the new Constitution. The principal would be the annexing a declaration of rights, to satisfy the minds of all on the subject of their liberties. They waited the arrival of Brown, delegate from Kentucky, to take up the receiving that district as a fourteenth State. The only objections apprehended were from the partisans of Vermont, who might insist on both coming together. This would produce a delay, though probably not a long one.

To detail to you the events of this country would require a volume. It would be useless, too, because those given in the Leyden Gazette, though not universally true, have so few and such unimportant errors mixed with them, that you may give a general faith to them. I will rather give you, therefore, what that paper cannot give, the views of the prevailing power, as far as they can be collected from conversation and writings. They will distribute the powers of Government into three parts, legislative, judiciary, and executive. The legislative will certainly have no hereditary branch, probably not even a select one, (like our Senate.) If they divide it

into two chambers at all, it will be by breaking the representative body into two equal halves, by lot. But very many are for a single house, and particularly the Turgotists. The imperfection of their legislative body, I think, will be that not a member of it will be chosen by the people directly. Their representation will be an equal one, in which every man will elect and be elected as a citizen, not as a distinct order. Query, whether they will elect placemen and pensioners? Their legislature will meet periodically, and set at their own will, with a power in the executive to call them extraordinarily, in case of emergencies. There is a considerable division of sentiment whether the executive shall have a negative on the laws. I think they will determine to give such a negative, either absolute or qualified. In the judiciary the parliaments will be suppressed, less numerous judiciary bodies instituted, and trial by jury established in criminal, if not in civil cases. The executive power will be left entire in the hands of the King. They will establish the responsibility of Ministers, gifts, and appropriations of money by the National Assembly alone; consequently, a civil list, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, freedom of commerce and industry, freedom of person against arbitrary arrests, and modifications, if not a total prohibition of military agency in civil cases. I do not see how they can prohibit altogether the aid of the military in cases of riot, and yet I doubt whether they can descend from the sublimity of ancient military pride, to let a Mareschal of France, with his troops, be commanded by a magistrate. They cannot conceive that General Washington, at the head of his army, during the late war, could have been commanded by a common constable to go as his posse comitatus, to suppress a mob, and that Count Rochambeau, when he was arrested at the head of his army by a sheriff, must have gone to jail if he had not given bail to appear in court. Though they have gone astonishing lengths, they are not yet thus far. It is probable, therefore, that not knowing how to use the military as a civil weapon, they will do too much or too little with it.

I have said that things will be so and so. Understand by this that these are only my conjectures, the plan of the Constitution not being prepared yet, much less agreed to. Tranquillity is pretty well established in the capital, though the appearance of any of the refugees here would endanger it. The Baron de Besenval is kept away; so is M. de la Vauguyon. The latter was so short a time a

member of the obnoxious administration, that probably he might not be touched were he here. Seven princes of the house of Bourbon, and seven Ministers, fled into foreign countries, is a wonderful event indeed.

I have the honor to be, &c.,

TH: JEFFERSON.

FROM THOMAS JEFFERSON TO JOHN JAY.

Paris, August 12, 1789.

Sir,

I wrote you on the 19th, 23d, 29th of the last, and 5th of the present month. The last occasions not having admitted the forwarding to you the public papers, I avail myself of the present, by a gentleman going to London, to furnish you with them to the present date. It is the only use I can prudently make of the conveyance. I shall, therefore, only observe, that the National Assembly has been entirely occupied, since my last, in developing the particulars which were the subjects of their resolutions of the 4th instant, of which I send you the general heads.

The city is, as yet, not entirely quieted. Every now and then summary execution is done on individuals by individuals, and nobody is in condition to ask for what, and by whom. We look forward to the completion of the establishment of the city militia, and that which is to restore protection to the inhabitants. The details from the country are as distressing as I had apprehended they would be. Most of them are doubtless false, but many may still be true. Abundance of chateaux are certainly burnt and burning, and not a few lives sacrificed. The worst is probably over in this city; but I do not know whether it is so in the country. Nothing important has taken place in the rest of Europe.

I have the honor to be, &c.,

TH: JEFFERSON.

FROM JOHN JAY TO THOMAS JEFFERSON.

New York, June 19, 1789.

I have at length, my dear sir, the pleasure to inform you (though not officially) that you have leave to return, and that Mr. Short is appointed to take charge of the public affairs during your absence.