The History of the United States of North America, from the plantation of the British colonies till their revolt and declaration of independence

617 Pages·1846·46.661 MB·English

by  James Grahame

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THE
HISTORY
OF
THE UNITED STATES
OF
NORTH
AMERICA,
FROM THE
PLANTATION OF THE BRITISH COLONIES
TILL
THEIR ASSUMPTION OF NATIONAL INDEPENDENCE.
By JAMES GRAHAME, LL. D.
IN TWO VOLUMES.
VOL. L
SECOND EDITION, ENLARGED AND AMENDED.
^
ll
y I
PHILADELPHIA:
LEA AND BLANCHARD.
1846.
Entered according to actofCongress,in the year 1845,by
Lea and Blanchard,
in the Clerk's oiEce ofthe DistrictCourt for the Eastern District ofPennsylvania.
PrintedbyT,K &P G Collins.
PREFACE
TO THE
AMERICAN EDITION
settIsnHDiesctoermibcealr,So1c8i4e2t,yt"hetounpdreerpsairgenaedMewmasoirappoofinMtre.d GbryahthaemeM,astshaechhius--
torian of the United States," who had been one ofits correspondingmem-
bers. In fulfihnentofthatduty,he entered into a correspondencewith Mr.
Grahame's familyand European friends, in the course of which he learned
that"Mr. Grahame had left, at his death, a corrected and enlarged copy of
his History ofthe United States ofNorth America," and had expressed,
among his last wishes, an earnest hope that it mightbe published in the
form which it had finally assumed underhis hand.
This information having been communicated to Mr. Justice Story,
Messrs. James Savage, Jared Sparks, and William H. Prescott, they
concurred inthe opinion, thatit " scarcely comported with American feel-
ings,interest,or self-respect to permit a workofso much laboriousresearch
and merit, writtenin a faithful and elevated spirit, and relating to our own
history, to want an American edition, embracing the last additions and cor-
rections ofits deceased author." Influenced by considerations ofthiskind,
those gentlemen, in connection with the undersigned, undertook the office
oafndpraommeontdiengdafnodrms.uperAintceonpdyi,ngprtehepapruebdlicfartoimontohfatthleeftwboyrkthienaiutstheonrl,arwgaesd
wachcoorsduibnsgelqyuepnltalcyedtraantsmtihtetierddtihsepoosrailginbayl,hiaslsos,ont,oRboebedreptosGirtaedhaimnet,heEhsbqr.a-;
ryofHarvard University. The supervision ofth—e work,duringits progress
through the press, devolved on the undersigned, a charge which he has
executed with as thorough fidelityto Mr. Grahame and the public as its
natAurewiasnhdhhaivsionfgfibcieaelneningtaigmeamteendtsbyhathveespoenrmoifttMedr.. Grahame, that the Me-
moir, prepared at the request of the Massachusetts Historical Society,
should be prefixed to the American edition of the—History,it has been ac-
ceded to. The principal materialsfor this Memoir consisting ofextracts
from Mr. Grahame'sdiary and correspon—dence, accompanied by interesting
notices of his sentiments and character were furnished by his highly ac-
complished widow,his son-in-law, John Stewart, Esq., and his friend. Sir
John F. W. Herschel, Bart., who had maintained with him from early
youth an uninterruptedintimacy. Robert Walsh, Esq., the present Amer-
ican consul at Paris, well known and appreciated in this country and in
Europe for his moral worth and literary eminence, who had enjoyed the
VOL. I. t
iv PREFACE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION.
privilegeofan intimate personal acquaintance with Mr. Grahame,alsotrans-
mitted many of his letters. Like favors were received from William H.
Prescott, Esq., and the Rev. George E. Ellis. In the use of these mate-
rials, the endeavour has been, as far as possible, to make Mr. Grahame's
own language the expositor of his mind and motives.
The portrait prefixed to this work is from an excellent painting by
Healy, engraved witii great fidehty by Andrews, one of our most eminent
artists ; the cost both of the painting and the engraving having been de-
frayed by several American citizens, who interested themselves in the sue
cess of the present undertaking.
JOSIAH QUINCY
Cambridge, September 9, 1845.
MEMOIR
OF
JAMES GRAHAME, LL.D.
James Grahame, the subject of this Memoir, was born in Glasgow,
Scotland, onthe 21st of December, 1790, of a family distinguished, in its
successive generations, by intellectual vigor and attainments, united with a
zeal forcivil liberty,chastened and directedbyelevated religious sentiment.
His paternal grandfather, Thomas Grahame, was eminent for piety, gen-
erosity, and talent. Presiding in the Admiralty Court, at Glasgow, he is
said to have been the first British judge who decreed the liberation of a
negro slave brought into Great Britain, on the ground, that "a guiltless hu-
man being, in that country, mustbe free" ; ajudgmentpreceding by some
years the celebrated decision ofLord Mansfield on the same point. In the
war for the independence of the United States, he was an early and uni-
tfhoermveorpypocnoemnmtenofcethmeenptreotfentshieoncsonatnedst,pothhacty"ofitGwraesatliBkreittahienc;ondtercolvareirnsgy,oifn
Athenswith Syracuse,and hewaspersuaded itwouldend inthesameway.''
He died in 1791, at the age of sixty, leaving two sons, Robert and
James. Ofthese, the youngest, James, was esteemed for his moral worth,
and admired forhis genius; delighting his friends and companions by the
readiness and playfulness of his wit, and commanding the reverence of all
rwehloigikounsepwrihnicmi,pleb.y tHhee pwuarsitythoefaautlhioferuonfdaerpotheemgeunitdiatnlecde"ofTahneeSvaebrbaactthi,v"e
which, admired on its first publication, still retains its celebrity among the
minor effusions of the poetic genius of Britain.
Robert, the elder ofthe sonsofThomas Grahame,andfather ofthe sub-
ject ofthisMemoir, inheriting die virtues of his ancestors, and imbued with
their spirit, has sustained, through a long life, notyet terminated, the char-
acter ofauniform friend of liberty. His zeal in its cause rendered him, at
different periods, obnoxious to the suspicions of the British government.
When the ministry attempted to control the expression ofpublic opinion by
the prosecution of Home Tooke, a secretary of state's warrantwas issued
aagcqauiintsttalhiomf;Toforkome btyheacLoonnsdeoqunejnucreys. ofWhwheinchCahsederweaasghs'asveadsctehnrdoaungthptohle-
icy had excited the people ofScotland to a state ofrevolt, and several per-
sons were prosecuted for high treason, whose poverty prevented them from
engaging the best counsel, he brought down, at his own charge,for their de-
fence, distinguished English lawyers from London,they being deemed bet
ter acquainted than those of Scotland with the law of high treason ; and
MEMOIR.
yi
the result was the acquittalof the persons indicted. He sympathizedwith
the Americans in their struggle for independence, and rejoiced in theirsuc-
cess. Regarding the French Revolution as a shoot from the American
stock, he hailed its progress in its early stages with satisfaction and hope.
So long as its leaders restricted themselves to argument and persuasion, he
was their adherentand advocate ; hut withdrew his countenance,when they
resorted to terror and violence.
By his profession as writer to the signet^ he acquired fortune and emi-
nence. Though distinguished for public and privateworth and well directed
talent, his political course excluded him from official power and distinction,
until 1833, when, after the passage ofthe Reform Bill, he was unanimous-
ly chosen, at the age ofseventy-four, without any canvass or solicitation on
his part, at the first electionunder the reformed constituency. Lord Provost
ofGlasgow. His character is notwithoutinteresttotheAmerican people ;
for his son, whose respect for his talents and virtues fell little short of ad-
miration, acknowledgesthat it was his father's suggestionand encouragement
which first turned his thoughts to writing the history of the United States.
Under such paternal influences, James Grahame, ourhistorian,wasearly
imbued svith the spirit of liberty. His mind became familiarized with its
principles and their limitations. Even in boyhood, his thoughts were direct-
ed towards that Transatlantic peoplewhose national existence was the work
omafinthtaatinspainridt,pearnpdetwuhaotseeit.instHiitustieoanrslyweerdeucaftriaomnedwawsitdhomaenstiecx.presAs vFireewnctho
emigrant priest taught him the first elements of learning. He then passed
through the regular course of instruction at the Grammar School of Glas-
gow, and afterwards attended the classes at the University in that city. In
both he was distinguished by his proficiency. After pursuing a preparatory
course in geometry and algebra, hearing the lectures of Professor Playfair,
and reviewing his former studies under private tuition, he entered, about his
twentieth year, St. John's College, Cambridge. But his connection with
the University was short. In an excursion during one of the vacations, he
formed an attachment to the lady whom he afterwards married ; becoming,
in consequence, desirous ofan early establishment in life, he terminated ab-
ruptly his academical connections, and commenced a course of professional
study preparatory to his admission to the Scottishbar.
AtCambridge he had thehappiness toform anacquaintance,whichripen-
ed into friendship, with Mr. Herschel,nowknown to theworld as Sir John
F. W. Herschel, Bart., and by the high rank he sustains among the astron-
hoimserdsiaroyf:E—uro"peI.thasCoanlcwearynsingbeethnisanfrieennndosbhliipngMrt.ie.GfaWhaemehatvheusbwereintesthien
friends of each other's souls and of each other's virtue, as well as of each
other's person and success. He was of St. John'sCollege, as well as I.
Manya daywe passed in walking together, and manya night in studying to-
gether." Their intimacy continued unbroken through Mr. Grahame's life.
In June, 1812, Mr. Grahame was admitted to the Scottish bar as an ad-
vocate,andimmediatelyenteredon thepracticeofhis profession. It seems,
h—ow"eUvnetr,ilnontowt,o hIahvaevebeebneesnuitmeyd toowhnismtaasstteer;,faonrdabIountotwhisretsiimgenhmeywriitnedse,-
pendence for a service I dislike." His assiduity was, nevertheless, unre-
mitted, and was attended with satisfactory success ; indicative, in the opin-
ionofhis friends, of ultimate professional eminence.
' An attorney.
MEMOIR.
yij
In October, 1813, he married Matilda Robley, of Stoke Newington, a
—pupi"lSohfeMriss.bByafrabrauolnde;owfhtoh,eimnoastletcthearrmto.iangfrwioenmde,nwrIotheavceonecveerrniknngohwenr.,
Young, beautiful, amiable, and accomplished; with a fine fortune. She is
going to be married to a Mr. Grahame, a young Scotch barrister. I have
the greatest reluctance to partwiththis precious treasure,and can onlyhope
that Mr. Grahame is worthy of so much happiness."
All the anticipationsjustified by Mrs. Barbauld's exalted estimate ofthis
lady were realized by Mr. Grahame. He found in this connection a stim-
ulus and a reward forhis professional exertions. "Love and ambition,"
he writes to his friend Herschel, soon afterhis marriage, "unite to incite
my industry. My reputation and success rapidly increase, and I see clear-
lythatonlyperseverance iswanting to po—ssess me ofall thebarcanafford."
And again, at a somewhat later period, "You can hardly fancy the de-
light T felt the other day, on hearing the Lord President declare that one
ofmy printed pleadings was most excellent. Yet, although you were more
ambitious than I am, you could not taste the full enjoyment of professional
success, without a wife to heighten your pleasure, by sympathizing in it."
Soon after Mr. Grahame's marriage, the religious principle tookpredom-
inating possession of his mind. Its depth and influence were early indicat-
ed in his correspondence. As the impression had been sudden, his friends
anticipated it would be temporary. But it proved otherwise. From die
bentwhich his mind now received it never afterwards swerved. His gen-
eral religious views coincided with those professed bytheearlyPuritans and
the ScotchCovenanters ; but theywere sober, elevated, expansive,and free
from narrowness and bigotry. Thoughhistemperamentwas naturallyardent
and excitable, he was exempt from all tendency to extravagance or intoler-
ance. His religious sensibilities were probably quickened by an opinion,
which the feebleness of his physical constitution led him early to entertain,
that his life was destined to b—e ofshort duration. In a letter to Herschel,
about this period, he writes, "I have a horror of deferring labor; and
also such fancies or presentiments of a short life, that I often feel I cannot
afford to trust fate for a day. I know of no other mode of creating time,
if the expression be allowable, than to make themost of every moment."
Mr. Grahame's mind, naturally active and discursive, could not be cir-
cumscribed within the sphere of professional avocations. It was early en-
gaged on topics ofgeneral literature. He began, in 1814, to write for the
Reviews, and his labors in this field indicate a mind thoughtful, fixed, and
comprehensive, uniting greatassiduityin researchwith an invinciblespiritof
i"ndependence. In 1816, he sharply assailed Malthus, on the subject of
Population, Poverty, and the Poor-laws," in a pamphlet which was well
received bythe public, and passed through two editions. In this pamphlet
he evinces his knowledge ofAmerican afiairs byfrequentlyalluding to them
and by quoting from the works ofDr. Franklin. J\Ir. Grahame was one of
the few to whom Malthus condescended to reply,and a controversy ensued
between them in the periodical publications of the day. In the year 1817,
his religious prepossessionswere manifestedin ananimated "Defenceofthe
oSfcotmtyishLanPdrelsobrydt'er"ia;nsthaensde Cporvoednuacntitoenrss abgeaiinngstrtehgearAduetdhobryohfim' T"haes aTnalaets-
tempt to hold up to contempt and ridicule those Scotchmen, who, under a
galling temporal tyrannyand spiritual persecution, fled from theirhomes and
MEMOIR.
y[\[
comforls, to worship, in tlie secrecy of deserts and wastes, their God, ac-
cording to the dictates of their conscience ; the genius of the author being
thus exerted to falsify history and confound moral distinctions." Mr, Gra-
hame also published, anonymously, several jiantphlets on topics of local in-
terest; ^'all," it is said, "distinguished for elegance and learning." In
mature life, when time and th—e hal)itof composition had chastened his taste
and impr—oved his judgment, his opinions, also, on some topics having
changed, he was accustomed to look back on his early writings with little
com])lacency, and the severity with which lie a|)plie(l self-criticism led him
to express a liopethatall memoryofthese publications mightbeobliterated.
Although some ofthem, perhaps, arenot favorable specimens ofhis ripened
powers, theyare farfrom meriting the oblivion to which hewould have con-
signed them.
—In the course ofthis year (1817), Mr. Grahame's eldest daughter died,
an event so deeply afflic^tive to him, as to induce an illness which endan-
gered his life. In the year ensuing, he was subjected to the severest of all
bereavements in the deathofhis wife,who had been theobjectofhis unlim-
ited confidence and allection. The elTect produced on Mr. Grahame'smind
bythissucc—essionofafflictions is thusnoticedbyhis son-in-law, John Stew-
art, Esq. : "Hereafter the chief characteristic of his journal is deep re-
ligious feeling pervading it throughout. It is full of religious meditations,
tempering the natural ardor of his disposition; presciiting curious and in-
structive records, atthe same time showing that these convictions did not
preventhimfromminglingasheretofore in generalsociety. It also evidences
that all he there sees, the events passing around him, the m—ost ordinary oc-
currences of his own life, are subjected to another test, are constantly
referred to a religious standard, and weig—hed by Scripture princi—ples. The
severe application of these to himself, to self-examination, is as re-
markable as his charitable application ofthem in his estimate ofothers."
To alleviate the distress consequent on his domestic bereavements, Mr.
—Grahameextendedtherangeofhis intellectual pursuits. In 1819,hewrites,
havi"nIghmaavsetebreeedntfhoerfsiervsterdailriiwceulelkises,entgheagleadngiunagtehewisltludbyeomfyHeobwrnewin;aafnde,w
months. I am satisfied with what I have done. No exerciseofthe mind is
wholly lost, even when not prosecuted to the end originally contemplated."
For several years succeeding the death of his wife, his literary and pro-
fessional labors were much obstructed by precarious health and depressed
spirits. His diary during this period indicates an excited moral watchful-
ness, and is replete—with solemn and impiessive thoughts. Thus, in April,
1821, he remarks, "In writing a law-pleading to-day, I was struck with
what I have often before reflected on, the subtle and dangerous temptations
that our profiission presen—ts to us of varnishing and disguising the conduct
and views of our clients, ofmending the natural complexion of a case,
fifinrlgul,iitni—gonup"ofiWttshhgyeampissisaitsnodtmherattoiumnthdeeisngcartiettaestnusdrheeadsrpwsicotohrosnfaettreisne.td"yis?aAppnWodienitnturOsyc,ttoaonbmdearktehfaotltlhtoewhm-e
vmaoirn.e toWuestdhoanno(tJoednjhoaystlihletemdatshetmhetogifbtes.anSducr-ehfraetsthemmepnttssmaufsltbredveedrubsebiyn
God, and in snl)ordinat!oii to his will and puipose in giving. If we did so,
our use would be Iniuible, grateful, moderate, and happy. The good that
God puts in them is bounded ; but when that is drawn ofl", their highest
MEMOIR.
jX
shawuesettlneessssloavnedabnedstguosoednmeas—ys.b"eAfnoudndagianint,heinteFsetbirmuoanryy,the1y82—a2f,fo—rd"ofWhies eaxr-e
ail travelling to the grave, but in very different attitudes ; some feasting
and jesting, some fasting and praying; someeagerly andanxiouslystruggling
for tilings temporal, some humbly seeking things eternal."
An excursion into the Low Countries, undertaken for the benefit of his
health, in 1823, enabled Mr. Grahame to gratify his "strong desire to be-
come acquainted with extremavestigiaofthe ancient Dutch habits andman-
ners." In this journey he enjoyed the hospitalities, at Lisle, of its gover-
nor, INfarshal Cambronne, and formed an intimacy with that noble veteran,
which, through thecorrespondenceoftheirsympathies and })rinciples, ripen-
ed into a friendship that terminated only with life itself.
About this period he was admitted a fellow ofthe Royal Society of Ed-
inburgh, and soon after began seriously to contemplate writing the history
ofthe United States ofNorth America. Early education, religious princi-
ple, and a native earnestness in the cause of civil liberty concurred to in-
cline his mind to this undertaking. He was reared, as we have seen, under
the immediate eye of a father who had been an early and uniform advocate
ofthe principles which led to American independence. Li 1810, whil yet
but on the threshold of manhood, his admiration ofthe illustrious men who
were distinguished in the American Revolutionwas evinced bythe familiari-
ty with which he spoke of their characters or quoted from their writings.
The names ofWashington and Franklinwere everonhis lips, and hischief
source ofdelight was in American history.^ This interest was nitensely in-
creased by the fact, that religious views, in many respects coinciding with
his own, had been the chief moving cause of one of the earliest and most
successful of the emigrations to North America, and had exerted a material
effect on the structure of the political institutions of the United States.
tThheessuebjceocmtboifneAdniienrfilcuaenncheissteolreyv,aatenddhliesdfheielmintgosrteogaardstaitteasof"etnhtehunsobilaessmtoinn
dignity, the most comprehensive in utility, and the most interesting in pro-
gress and event,ofall the subjects—ofthought and investigation." In June,
1824, he remarks in his journal, "I have had some thoughts of writing
the history of North America, from the period of its colonization from Eu-
rope till the Revolution and the establishment ofthe republic. The subject
seems to me grand and noble. It was nota thirst of gold or of conquest,
but piety and virtue, that laid the foundation ofthose settlements. The soil
was not made by its planters a scene ofvice and crime,but ofmanlyenter-
prise, patient industry, good morals,and happiness deserving universal sym-
pathy. TheRevolutionwasnotpromoted byinfidelity,norstainedbycruel-
ty, asinFrance ; nor was the fair cause ofFreedom betrayed and abandon-
ed, as in both France and England. The share thatreligious men had in
accomplishing the American Revolution is a matter well deserving inquiry,
but leading, I fear, into very difficult discussion."
Although his predilections for the task were strong,it is apparent that he
engaged in it with many doubts and after frequent misgivings. Nor did he
conceal from himself the peculiar difliculties of the undertaking. The ele-
mentsof the proposed history, he perceived, were scattered, broken, and
confused ; differentlyaffectingandaffectedbythirteenindependentsovereign-
ties ; and chiefly to be sought in local tracts and histories, hard to be ob-
' SirJohnF.W.Herschel'sletters.