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 CHAIRMAN, 
 
 JACOB HOLGATE AND HENRY HORN, 
 
 SECRETARIES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 COMMITTEE OF SUFERIXTTEirDEirCE AND VIGIIiAlTCE, 
 
 FOR THE 
 CitY AND COUNTY OF PHILADELPHIA. 
 
 IN REPLY 
 
 TO 
 
 JONATHAN ROBZSRTS, ESQ. 
 
 BY JOHN H. EATON, Esq. 
 
 OF THE UNITED STATES SENATE. 
 
 PHILJiDELPHM: 
 
 1826 
 

To Chandler Price, Chairman, Jacob Holgate and Henry Horn, 
 Secretaries of the Committee of Superintendence and Vigilance, for 
 the City and County of Philadelphia. 
 
 The address lately presented by 3'ou to the public in favour 
 of the election of Andrew Jackson, has awakened the attention 
 of Mr Jonathan Roberts of vour state. He has ventured to 
 present a reply, and by way of producing a stronger etlect, has 
 accompanied his re-narks with his name. My object in address- 
 ing you, is to aftbrd further explanation and greater certainty to 
 the statements submitted by him, and to show, as 1 expect to do, 
 most conclusively, that his entire production, must be, and in fact 
 IS, the result of a deeply prejudiced mind ; for the reason, that in 
 it there is nothing of truth. In such an undertaking it is but an 
 act of justice to Mr. Roberts, that he should have my name, as 
 well as my remarks ; and therefore are both presented, with per- 
 mission for you to use them after whatever manner your discre- 
 tion may dictate to be right. 
 
 As early as the year 1819, while the famous Seminole cam- 
 paign question was pending at the city of Washington, Mr. 
 Roberts was found the earnest opponent of General Jackson, 
 hurried to his conclusions then, through the same false reasoning 
 by which he has been carried to the results he has arrived at in 
 his late publication. I speak the things that 1 do know! At that 
 period of his political history, a circumstance that cannot but 
 appear strange, he was, and since has continued to be, the warm 
 friend of Mr. Monroe, who was then President. Then was he 
 not ignorant, that as well by previous acts, as by declarations 
 repeatedly made, the President constantly maintained, that he 
 desired no line of separation, or reference to aftairs in Florida, 
 to be drawn between himself and Andrew Jackson. But more 
 than this was known ! It was known to him, nor can it here be 
 forgotten, that the Secretary of State, Mr. Adams, in an official 
 dispatch to our Minister at Madrid, and which was laid before 
 Congress, had proceeded to an elaborate defence of every step 
 which the Commanding General had taken, and of every act he 
 had performed during the prosecution of that war: acts, every 
 one of which, was by the representatives of the nation in Con- 
 gress, maintained, justified and defended. 
 
 These things i allege were familiar to Mr. Roberts in 1819, 
 nor can the recollection of them have faded from his memory now. 
 Yet notwithstanding, his inventive mind was so far enabled to 
 adopt distinctions, as to continue, all that time, the political advo- 
 
cate and friend of President Monroe, and subsequently of Presi- 
 dent Adams, whilst against Jackson, whom both of them sustained, 
 his mind has rankled from that to the present moment. If Jack- 
 son was guilty of error in consequence of entering the territory 
 of Florida, — for seizing on the posts of St. Marks and Pensacola; 
 or what perhaps is more properly " the head and front of his 
 offending" for the execution of Ambrister and Arbuthnot, those 
 English emissaries, who had excited the Savages to the butchery 
 and murder of our border settlers, then have Mr. Monroe and 
 Mr. Adams fallen into precisely the same error, inasmuch as his 
 acts were defended, and his course sustained by both these gen- 
 tlemen. It is a fair consequence that the guilt of one, is the guilt 
 of the others. Strange inconsistency then, that this Seminole 
 aftair should have festered on his imagination for seven years; 
 and that while Mr. Roberts finds nothing, in the vials of his 
 wrath, too severe to be poured upon the head of Jackson, his 
 mildest unction is ready to be bestowed on Mr. Adams who 
 defended all that was done. I am indeed unable to scan the 
 operation of the mind, if this circumstance, apart from others and 
 Strong ones, which will be adduced, tends not to prove that some 
 lingering prejudice has controlled the operation of his judgment : 
 and that nothing of generous sentiment, and patriotic feeling had 
 an influence in the course deemed proper by him to be pursued. 
 There is another circumstance calculated to show the preju- 
 dice of the mind, and the disposition that must have been enter- 
 tained by Mr. Roberts, to distort and pervert the meaning of 
 things. Addressing himself to the Committee, he remarks: 
 " The intelligence of your candidate is certainly not pre-eminent, 
 when his biographer claims merit for him for havihg retired from 
 inferior stations, to make way for those who could be more use- 
 ful : he resigned every civil station he ever held." 
 
 There is more intended here, that at the first glance meets the 
 mind. It is intended, that he resigned civil, never miUtarx/ ap- 
 pointments ; and that he resigned them too from an admitted 
 inability to perform the duties assigned ; which to him is evidence 
 conclusive, that the people" should forbear to think of him for 
 President of the United States. His Biographer is referred to, 
 to prove the averment true. 
 
 How far ftft-. Roberts has given a candid exposition, or such 
 as he hoped would better tend to beguile or deceive, may be 
 ascertained by reference to the Book itself, whence he pretends 
 to have formed hi-; opinions. The language is this. '' Becoming 
 tired of political lifi,', for the intrigues of which he declared him- 
 self >m(|ualined, and having for two years voted in the minority 
 in Congress [l7!)7-y0] he resigned after the first session his seat 
 
5 
 
 in the benate.* To this measure he was strongly induced from 
 a desire to make way for General Smith, who he conjectured in 
 that capacity, would be able to render more important services 
 to the government than himself. Immediately after his resigna- 
 tion he was appointed one of the judges of the Supreme Court of 
 the State. Sensibly alive to the difficult duties of the station 
 distrusting his legal acquirements, and impressed with the <^reat 
 mjury he might produce to suitors, by erroneous decisionl he 
 advanced to the office with reluctance, and in a short time re- 
 signed, leaving it open to those who he believed were better 
 qualified than himself to discharge its intricate and important 
 duties. Unambitious of those distinctions and honours, which 
 young men are usually proud to possess, finding too that his cir- 
 cumstances were not such as to permit his time and attention to 
 be devoted to public matters, he determined to yield them into 
 other hands, and to devote himself to agricultural pursuits." 
 Such is the extract referred to, and such the materials seized 
 upon by Mr. Roberts to show Jackson's want of qualification. 
 Ihis modesty and distrust of mind which ever in early life has 
 been considered the sure presage of talent and promise, is made 
 a ground of reliance, to prove the want of merit. If this be 
 argument. It is indeed a novel species of it. And yet it is argued 
 that his intelligence is certainly not pre-eminent." And wiiy^ 
 simply because at the age of thirty he declined two offices of hic^Ii 
 and important character : offices which seldom or never are con- 
 lerred on persons at so early a period of life ; and to one of which, 
 none are by the constitution eligible until they attain to the age 
 ""^ ^''""^7-., ^l 's very true that General Jackson has resigned 
 every civil office he ever held ; and if this be crime, there is at 
 least one piece of good fortune attending it— it lies at the door of 
 but few very few of her distinguished men : it is an example 
 which few others, not even Mr. Roberts can say, has been fol- 
 lowed closely. -^ 
 
 Jackson was appointed minister to Mexico, which, with an 
 acceptance of the appointment for one year only, would have 
 placed in h.s possession at least $20,000. He declined it, which 
 proves at least that he was neither sordidly disposed, nor vet a 
 seeker after office. The reason of his refusal, though, as given 
 by himself, that he would not aid by his presence the cause of 
 an usurper [Iturbide] who had seized upon the government, 
 places h.m on :ven higher, and more praise-worfhy ground. 
 
 inTlT Vm J'u^^""^ J"'' ''^^ '" ^'^^ ^^"^^^ ^f ^he United States; 
 and had Mr. Roberts been able to procure a thorough examina- 
 
 firs*t 'SrTs'ent'atl^' fo^if ^ \T "^' """T '" ^^^^- J^'^^^"" ^^'^^ ^J^^ted the 
 Td in iS re'^ in. K f' """' ^""^^eq^ently transferred to the senate; 
 
 aiiu m i/ys resig'ned his appointment. 
 
tion of that part of the President's secret bureau, whence was 
 obtained his private confidential correspondence relative to the 
 Cabinet appointments, in 1817, it might have been ascertained, 
 that he had declined even military, as well as civil trusts — that 
 be declined under Mr. Monroe the appointment of Secretary of 
 War. It will not surely be urged, that this is another evidence 
 that " his intelligence is not pre-eminent ,•" because even his enemies 
 concede to him " some grace" in milit;iry matters. There is 
 likewise another part of secret untold history, which a close 
 examination misjht have discovered, that he was desirous of retir- 
 ing from the army, and of surrendering his commission of Major 
 General, and was restrained from doing so, through the recjiiest 
 of one who shared his friendship, and whose administration then 
 near!} closed, he was desirous of aiding and supporting. His 
 country freed from war, he was not solicitous of retaining even 
 the rank and office of •' Military Chieftain," so often objected 
 against him as a favourite hobby and pursuit. 
 
 But what more did he do in his objectionable career of retir- 
 ing from office — from public to private life? He resigned the 
 office of Governor of Florida, the salary of which was equal to 
 that of the Vice President of the United States, while the pow- 
 ers appurtenant to the office by the act of Congress, were even 
 greater than those which, by the constitution of this country, the 
 President himself could exercise. Whatever of authority could 
 be claimed Ijy the Captain General of Cuba was conceded to 
 Jackson — an authority in which every right of sovereignty, civil 
 and military, executive and judicial, were coml)ined and center- 
 ed. Yet even this office, of sufficient importance certainly for 
 any want, if ambition iMllucnced him, he retained no longer than 
 the country was received and the government organised. These 
 done, he surrendered the office, having declared previoirsly that 
 the powers which were attached to it were such as should be 
 yielded into the hands of none. The language employed by him 
 is this : " / am clothed nulk poroers 7r/u'c/^ no one under a Rcpnhlic 
 onght to possess^ and zohich I trust loill never again be given to any 
 man.'' Ambition should be made of sterner siufi" than this. And 
 he who with such circumstances and information standing before 
 him, can yet impute ambition and selfishness, must either be re- 
 gardless of assertion, or else directed by personal dislike and 
 prejudice. If Mr. llobcrts does not admire the character of 
 Gen. .Jackson, or entertains towards him any thing of animosity, 
 no matter whether well or ill founded, that is his, not the busi- 
 ness of others. Or if, indeed, he cannot reconcile to hin)self the 
 idea that he should be the President of this Union, but prefers an- 
 other, it is a right wliirli ho witli every other man possesses. It 
 is a birth-right, an indulgence for which our father? fought, and 
 
for which Jackson himself has in two wars contended. For the 
 exercise, frankly, of this privilege, none will, because none has 
 a right to complain. The exception as it relates to Mr. Roberts 
 consists in this, that well knowing the facts and circumstances 
 about which he wrote, or being ignorant of them, should have 
 heen silent, he has proclaimed as true, those things which are 
 altogether the reverse of truth ; and this assertion I shall main- 
 tain and prove, to the satisfaction of the most incredulous; to 
 the satisfaction of those, prejudiced even to the extent that he 
 himself is prejudiced. Unlike him, I am no volunteer in this 
 controversy. 1 am doing that only, which, under such circum- 
 stances, would become the duty of any and every one, seeking, 
 because of information possessed, to ward off the effect of impu- 
 tation from one whose name and reputation, so far from being 
 assailed, ought to be considered national stock, the property of 
 the country. 
 
 It certainly should not be supposed, that a gentleman of Mr. 
 Roberts's character would attach his signature to any inaccurate 
 statement ; nor should it be held a reasonable presumption, that 
 in volunteering himself against a man of Jackson's merited stand- 
 ing, he would indulge opinions in reference to any matter, which 
 his mind had not accurately scanned, and particularly examined. 
 Yet that the fact is otherwise, will be clearly shown. Anony- 
 mous writers can claim larger scope and greater license, because 
 responsibility for the accuracy of statements is not felt. But 
 when a gentleman appears before the public, and by the sanc- 
 tion which a respectable name affords, attempts to sustain his 
 averments, respect for himself, and what is of no less importance, 
 a regard for truth, should admonish him to be at least accurate 
 and particular in his facts. Assertion is easy to be made; there 
 is no difficulty in the effort; but to assert is one thing, to prove 
 the assertion true, another, and a different one. 
 
 And here I admit myself to be the friend and advocate of Gen. 
 Jackson, and of his election; and if this admission shall be of 
 any service in throwing around the statements 1 shall offer, aught 
 of suspicion or doubt, those who, from such a cause, shall be dis- 
 posed to question them, are welcome, quite welcome, to all the 
 benefit the concession may afford. J have known him long; and 
 if vanity will pardon the assertion, may add, 1 have known him 
 intimately and well. It is this that has induced me (o admire 
 the man, and to desire that he should be placed at the helm of 
 this country's affairs. Nor is the preference thus produced, the 
 result of any motives of person, as appertaining lo himsell': they 
 flow from a higher soui-ce, and from a more praiseworthy con- 
 sideration. They flow from a desire to see (hat man in the 
 management of our affairs, whose plain habits, republican fitness. 
 
8 
 
 untiring vigilance, proverbial firmness, and devotion to the cause 
 and interest of his country in times of greatest peril, place him 
 on higher ground than any other man living; and induce a be- 
 lief, that more than any other, he is calculated to inspire confi- 
 dence through our land, and to restore good feelings. Enter- 
 taining these sentiments, which are addressed from acquaintance, 
 a knowiodge of the man, it will ever afford me pleasure, when 
 possessed of the means of doing so, to repel any erroneous im- 
 putations that may be urged to his prejudice. 
 
 In this burnished essay of Mr. Roberts, censure, with an illiberal 
 and unsparing hand, is bestowed upon Jackson, while cheerfully 
 the writer seems to lend himself the eulogist of the President 
 and of Mr. Clay. Taste cannot be questioned ! With neither 
 of ^hese gentlemen, in the inquiry submitted for examination, 
 have I any thing to do ; against them nothing to urge. Jackson 
 requires not to be sustained on the defamation or abuse of any. 
 If his merits be incompetent to the end, then let him fail. De- 
 feated upon this ground, consolation and pride will be left, while 
 to he successful through the example set by Mr. Roberts, the 
 abuse and traducement of others, would be inglorious. 
 
 My object is to meet the presented essays, this uncalled-for 
 volunteer^ so far only as it relates to him whom it was intended 
 to denounce, not those whom it w^as designed to commend : yet 
 it cannot but appear strange and inconsistent too, that, while the 
 writer, with unbecoming freedom, deals harshly in expression 
 against Jackson, he should at the same time manifest for the 
 President, and his particular friend, so great feeling, as to threat- 
 en the possibility that " they maj' call you (the committee) to 
 the proof of what you assert against them." He should have 
 borne in mind, that at present this country is without the brnefit 
 of a sedition law ; and that even if it were not, he yet might have 
 recollected, that under it, the truth could be given in evidence ; 
 a provision which would throw around the Philadelphia com- 
 mittee a shield and a protection, which in vain might be resorted 
 to in defence of any thing contained in the reply presented by 
 him to the consideration of the public. 
 
 The charges and inductions of the writer, as to want of merit, 
 temper, passion, military chieftain, " with aw that and aw that," 
 need not be attended to: they do not deserve attention. All 
 these things being matter of opinion and private thought, and 
 they arc nothing more or less, have, over and over again, from 
 former pens, been submitted to the consideration of the people 
 of this country, with precisely the effect they merited, to wit, 
 none at all ! ! If the wielding to happiest success, a suffering, 
 and consc(|nently dispirited army, comjiosed almost exclusively 
 of citizen soldiers ; if the drawing together the most incongruous 
 
9 
 
 materials that ever did compose an army, and rendering them 
 effective against disciplined and well-trained troops, be not one 
 of the highest evidences of genius and talents, then is the mind 
 without any thing to indicate its fitness and strength, its capacity 
 for exertion. To be informed upon any one subject, affords no 
 evidence of mental strength and power; nor furnishes the means 
 of determining upon capacity, except in reference to the particu- 
 lar matter itself; and for the reason, that the information pos- 
 sessed may alone proceed from application to that particular 
 matter. But when an individual is found a gallant young soldier 
 at fifteen years of age ; a lawyer of respectability and promise 
 at twenty-two; a judge of the Supreme Court in his State, re- 
 spected and confided in ; a senator in Congress, listened to and 
 regarded with attention ; (his first appointment of senator being 
 before he was thirty-one, immediately that he was eligible;) fill- 
 ing, indeed, every office he ever held, to (he entire satisfaction 
 of those who had conferred it on him ; and when, lastly, he is 
 found in the field and in the forest, at the head of an army cre- 
 ated by himself, contending successfully, with brave enemies, and 
 through means only which his own inventive mind could supply : 
 when this picture is looked to, incredulity even is compelled to 
 recognise in it, not merely the evidences of genius and mind, but 
 of serious reflection, sound thought, strength of investigation, and 
 accuracy of conclusion. 
 
 These things show an implicit popular confidence reposed on 
 the part of Jackson's merit; a devotion to his country and to her 
 interests, and a well-founded claim to her gratitude in return, 
 certainly not to abuse and insult. How strange, under all the 
 circumstances, that censure should sedulously be hunted after to 
 be urged against him : and stranger still, that it should proceed 
 from one, who, having shared liberally of that same country, 
 ought unquestionably to be able to judge more dispassionately, 
 and certainly with greater candor and accuracy. In despite 
 though of these considerations, and opposing proofs, Mr. Roberts, 
 of whose military knowledge and prowess none has ever heard, 
 claims a right to decide ; nay, does decide, that Jackson " is of 
 military growth entirely," and that nature must change before a 
 nation's peace could be secure in the hands of such a man. 
 Then, because he has been a faithful and successful General, he 
 is to be excluded, for this is the amount of the argument. In 
 virtue of the principles on which our government is based, by 
 any and every one, may any and every office in it be aspired to ; 
 a gallant and successful defender of the country, alone, excepted. 
 That general, who meets the enemy and is vanquished — who at 
 every step finds disaster and disgrace, may avoid thereby the 
 opithet of '^military chieftain," and be esteemed worthy to be 
 
10 
 
 confickd in ; but he who spends toilson>e days and sleepless 
 nights; who guards with caution the safety and lives of his 
 troops, brings them off victorious from every field of battle, and 
 at last, by high and daring effort, gives lustre and deliverance 
 to his country, is to stand where no other citizen does, proscribed 
 from office. If such shall ever become the established doctrine 
 in this country, in some future war, when desolation and ruin 
 and subjugation threaten, we may have cause for repentance. 
 For who will march, and risk his life for the defence of his coun- 
 try when her deliverance and safety eflected, through his valor, 
 *' a common virtue amongst men,"" that shall be relied on to place 
 him on the list of proscribed citizens, to exclude him frem that 
 road to honor and office, in which all others have a right to move, 
 Not only is the doctrine ridic4alous, but it is dangerous, wich 
 moi'c dangerous to the liberties of this country than any " mili- 
 tary chieftain" ever can be ; and incalculably great will be its 
 mischiefs, if any sanction from the people shall ever give it cur- 
 rency. 
 
 I come now to a consideration of that part of Mr. Roberts's 
 address which contains charges against the standing and cha- 
 racter of General Jackson, with the reasons which have induced 
 him to stand forth in opposition. They are wholesome and good, 
 Avere they only true. If he is not under the government of pre- 
 judice, if he shall be disposed to make reason and fact and fair 
 inference, the touchstone between us, then shall 1 not distrust my 
 ability to make even a convert of himself. 
 
 The first subject which presents itself for consideration, is the 
 disrespect manifested by General Jackson for the laws of the 
 Country at New Orleans, and rohich consequently " drew upon hint 
 a heavy Jine properly imposed.^'' Such is the language of Mr. Jona- 
 than Roberts, who has been always considered as attached to 
 the Republican School of that state, whose opinions on the Presi- 
 dential election, he would now gladly control and alter. If the 
 presented charge be true, 1 readily concede it shall have weight. 
 If Andrew Jackson when clothed with authority, outraged the 
 laws of the Comitry, and from mere wantonness trampled under 
 foot the liberty of the citizens, then freely as any other, shall I 
 impute to him, not rashness merely, but a want of good sense and 
 judgment besides, and shall not hesitate to unite with any partj', 
 to stay his advance to ollice. But if on the other hand, the 
 charge shall be found misconceived — witho^jt any authority 
 whatever by which to sustain it, then will it be proper to re(]uire 
 of those who have urged it, as a prominent ground of objection, 
 to make a surrender of the opinions they have so erroneously 
 entertained, and at the shrine of truth and justice, to yield their 
 opposition. 
 
11 
 
 After all that has been said in reference to the declaration 6f 
 Martial law at New Orleans, I had not supposed that there was 
 an intelligent man in the Country, who, although he might by 
 the rigid rules of strict construction conceive it to be error, would 
 not admit at the same time the strong, the great necessity there 
 was for its adoption. None has ever pretended that it was not a 
 departure from the strict principles of the constitution. Jackson 
 himself never urged a different opinion, or indeed entertained 
 any different one. He never pretended to any thing beyond a 
 Justification of the act, on the ground of extreme — of urgent ne- 
 cessity; a necessity which held in doubtful poise, whether the 
 constitution should be partially departed from, or the invaders of 
 his country prove successful It was one of those strong and 
 imposing pleas, which controlled by no rule, rises superior to all 
 law; and which not unfrequently excuses the hand that reeks 
 itself, even in a brother's blood. 
 
 Let it not be rephed, that I am an advocate for individuals in 
 power, to claim any departure from the constitution, which their 
 sense of right may hold to be proper, and then to urge some 
 seeming necessity as a defence. 1 press no such broad and 
 general principle. 1 argue on the facts of the case only which 
 are now before me, and maintain that language, which hundreds 
 — nay thousands before have held, that, situated as Jackson was 
 at New Orleans, he ought not to have cleaved to the constitution, 
 and lost the Country. One or the other was unavoidable — not 
 to be prevented. They were mighty evils presenting themselves 
 to the view ; a choice of one or the other was necessary to be 
 made, and promptly, and without hesitation, he decided on that 
 which he would adopt — on the course he would pursue. If by 
 the tax police of his camp, spies could have ascertained and com- 
 municated to the enemy his situation — the strength of his army, 
 and the varied materials that composed it, who cannot perceive 
 the advantages that such information would have afforded ; and 
 although the city in the end, might have been preserved, yet 
 what an immense destruction of our troops might too, have been 
 consequent on the result. But agreeably to the theory and 
 opinion of Mr. Roberts, the adopted course was wrong; it would 
 by his standard, have been better, even that our brave soldiers 
 should have perished on the memorable plains of New Orleans, 
 than that the civil rights of the citizens should have been dis- 
 turbed. Away with such beliefs! They are too refined— too 
 setherial ! They are such, as should they ever becowie fashiona- 
 ble, may in some after times of peril, prove the destruction of the 
 liberty of this Country. I would that every ministerial agent — 
 aye and executive one too, should look to the constitution, not 
 merely with respect and regard, but with reverence and awe, yet 
 
12 
 
 when invasion threatened angrily, and the lives of our citizens 
 are at peril, I should not hesitate to condemn him, who would 
 pause an instant between " want of respect for the laws and a 
 heavy fine" or the safety of those whom he defended. Like the 
 Mariner, in pressing to his destined port, through aid of some 
 well known light, 1 would that in pleasant weather he should 
 mark every bearing, and with rigid caution observe every thing 
 of course, of distance, and of point ; yet should a storm arise, 
 and threaten to dash his vessel amidst the rocks, and breakers, 
 putting the helm down to whatever haven promised safety and 
 deliverance from the danger, I would he should seek to gain it, 
 regardless of the olden tract which pilots and well established 
 rules had directed. To determine by a smooth sea, what things 
 may be necessary in a perilous storm, is most absurd. As well 
 might a man in moment of cool reflection, decide what he would 
 do, when directed by a violence of passion, which his judgment 
 was incompetent to control. The calculating statesman in his 
 closet, now that all is ended, can nothing know of the uneasiness, 
 the disquietude and trouble — the danger which every where 
 hung upon the invasion of Orleans ; and still less can any accu- 
 rate estimate be made of them, by that man, whose mind may be 
 infected by bitter prejudice. 
 
 Of the difliculties that surrounded the commandinggeneral, and 
 the promptness with which he met the emergencies of that event- 
 ful period, much heretofore has been advanced, although its dif- 
 fusion has been too limited, to prevent even at this day perverted 
 and garbled accounts from obtaining currency and circulation. 
 By some they have been misconceived through want of all the 
 attendant facts •, while others have been influenced from motive 
 and design — from a disposition to deceive Mr. Roberts is of the 
 latter description ; and in saying so, I feel that 1 am hazarding 
 nothing, at least, as regards the probable proof. He came into 
 the Senate, a member, March, 1815, directly after the war had 
 closed, and when every newspaper, teemed with official informa- 
 tion as to events which had just passed. It is by no means then 
 a reasonable inference that he could remain in ignorance of those 
 leading facts in the history of his country. Such an inference 
 would be to him, as unreasonable, as it would be disrespectful to 
 his intelligence. Was he ignorant of them? He should have 
 refrained from writing! Did he possess an intimate knowledge? 
 Still worse, then has he practised perversion. He must, he did 
 know all the circumstances, then is he highly culpable for ascrib- 
 ing that course to a want of " rc.^jfc/ /or the lawb\'''' which was 
 imposed by a necessity as strong as ever operated upon the feel- 
 ings and judgment of any man. 
 
 That the constitution was preserved entire, and unmolested, 
 
13 
 
 none has ever maintained. With this admission, let the circum- 
 stances and the danger which hung around that eventful period 
 of our history be looked to, and then, be the decision pronoun- 
 ced, if propriety did not rather sanction, then oppose the course 
 pursued. The danger over, and the enemy gone, Jackson was 
 on an attachment issued by the Judge, arraigned before the court, 
 and a fine of ^1000 imposed, because of the declaration of mar- 
 tial law. To that decision he yielded without a murmur, and 
 paid the fine assessed against him, without complaint. To de- 
 termine, under what circumstances of pressing necessity, the 
 civil authorities had been suspended, can be better understood 
 by reference to what transpired at the time. Let the answer 
 submitted by General Jackson to the court, in opposition to the 
 attachment, and in defence of the course he had taken, be re- 
 ferred to, and while it pourtrays in lively, the accurate colours, 
 his own and the situation of the country, it shows also, that the 
 posture of affairs there, were critical, difficult and dangerous. 
 The language he employed as having induced him to the decla- 
 ration, is this. 
 
 " A disciplined and powerful army was on our coast, com- 
 manded by officers of tried valor, and consummate skill : their 
 fleet had already destroyed the feeble defence on which alone 
 we could rely to prevent their landing on our shores. Their 
 point of attack was uncertain ; — a hundred inlets were to be 
 guarded, by a force not sufficient in number for one. We had 
 no lines of defence. Treason lurked amongst us, and only 
 waited the moment of expected defeat, to show itself openly. 
 Our men were few, and of those few not all were armed. Our 
 prospect of aid and supply were distant and uncertain; our utter 
 ruin, if we failed, at hand and inevitable : every thing depended 
 on the prompt and energetic use of the means we possessed, — on 
 calling the whole force of the community into action. It was a 
 contest for the existence of the State, and every nerve was to be 
 strained in its defence. No delay, — no hesitation, — no enquiring 
 about rights, or all was lost ; and every thing dear to man, his 
 property, life, the honour of his family, his country, its constitu- 
 tion and laws were swept away by the avowed principles, the 
 open practice of the enemy, with whom we had to contend. 
 Fortifications were to be erected, supplies procured, arms sought 
 for, requisitions made, the emissaries of the enemy watched, 
 lurking treason overawed, insubordination punished, and the con- 
 tagion of cowardly example to be stopped." 
 
 " In this crisis, and under a fair persuasion that none of those 
 objects could be effected by the exercise of the ordinary powers 
 confided, — under a solemn conviction that the country committed 
 to his care, could be saved by that measure only from utter ruin, 
 
14 
 
 ■—under a religious belief that he was performing the most im- 
 portant and sacred duty, he proclaimed martial law. He thought 
 at such a moment constitutional forms must be surrendered ior ihe 
 permanent preservation of constitutional rights ^ and that there 
 could be no question whether it were best to depart for a moment 
 from the enjoyments of our dearest privileges or have them 
 wrested from us forever. He well knew if the civil magistrate 
 were permitted to exercise their usual functions, none of the 
 measures necessary to avert the awful fate that threatened us, 
 could be expected," &c. &c. &,c. 
 
 From this picture drawn as every actor of that period well 
 knows, with fidelity and accuracy, let the intelligent mind deter- 
 mine if the ancient maxim, that laws must be departed from in 
 war, even had circumstances presented, to warrant more strongly 
 the exercise and application of the rule. 
 
 At this period of the enquiry then, for reasons already sub- 
 mitted, we have the civil authority superceded, and in its place, 
 the laws of war established. Any person who before had not 
 heard of this affair, might now naturally begin to enquire, what, 
 and how many, were the acts of oppression and tyranny, to which 
 the rule gave birth ; for it cannot but appear a matter of sur- 
 pl'ise, if upon a subject so frequently spoken of, and written about 
 clamorously and angrily, it shall on examination turn out, that 
 under its provisions and operations, no act of oppression or in- 
 justice was witnessed. It is for Mr. Roberts then to disclose the 
 mighty sequel, and to declare amidst the diihcultics and dangers 
 of that period, and the thousands who were subjected to the 
 operation of this martial law declaration, how vast the number 
 was that fell under its denunciations, or that in consequence of 
 it felt the stroke of oppression. Fearful of trusting to his candor, 
 I will answer for him. A member of the legislature was arrest- 
 ed and tried for the offence with which he stood charged, and 
 was acquitted. What the nature of the offence was, and how, 
 and wherefore he came to be discharged, may be found in the 
 Life of Jackson, last edition, and in these words : 
 
 "Louillier was detained under guard, and brought before a 
 court martial, of which General Gaines was President. For the 
 reason, however, that the inflammatory and mutinous publication 
 which had occasioned his arrest, could not be shown to have 
 been conveyed to the enemy, he was acquitted : the quo animo 
 being from this circumstance in the proof not sutlkiently appa- 
 rent!" 
 
 Under the operation of this martial law too. Judge Hall was 
 arrested, but he was neither tried, nor imprisoned. He was 
 merely sent beyond the line of encampment, to that point ot 
 safety, where all along he had reposed, during the time the enc- 
 
15 
 
 my remained before ihe city, with this order signed by Jackson, 
 and directed to be placed in his possession. " I have thought 
 proper to send you beyond the limits of my encampment, to pre- 
 vent a repetition of the improper conduct with which you have 
 been charged. You will remain without the line of my sentinels 
 until the ratification of peace is regularly announced, or until the 
 British shall have left the Southern Coast." 
 
 Here is a concise and accurate outline of this often decryed 
 war measure, and of those acts which under it took place. A 
 member of the legislature, the author of a violent and inflam- 
 matory publication, which introduced mutiny into the army, and 
 caused many to abandon their posts and their duty, is arrested, 
 put upon his trial, and acquitted ; while a Judge of the United 
 States Court in that district, for an attempt to arrest the law in 
 its penalty, is politely required to retire beyond the line of en- 
 campment; not to punish, but in the language of the order, to 
 " prevent a repetition of improper conduct." The Judge himself, 
 under the same plea of necessity, had omitted to hold the term 
 of his court : for the same reason he had consented to have dis- 
 charged men, who were " indicted for capital crimes, without 
 bail and without recognizance ;" and had, moreover, during the 
 siege, retired twelve miles beyond the city. When the enemy 
 departed, Judge Hall returned. Then it was, that, interposing 
 his civil functions, in behalf of one who had by his publications, 
 sown disaffection in the army, he was ordered to retire to the 
 place at which he had previously reposed, and to remain with- 
 out the line of sentinels. These are the only two cases to which 
 this martial law measure gave birth, and about which such cla- 
 mor has been raised, and such censure and reproach heaped 
 upon the head of Jackson. Under its provisions none were op- 
 pressed, none injured. And if they had been, sufficient repara- 
 tion would have been found in this, that by it the country was 
 protected and saved from pillage, rapine, and plunder. 
 
 This is the narrative, and this the great disrespect for the 
 laws, to which JVJr. Roberts in his publication adverted. Is there 
 any thing more? Yes! So soon as the enemy had retired, and 
 peace been proclaimed, the Judge caused Jackson to appear be- 
 fore him for a contempt, and subjected him to a fine of j^lOOO. 
 The privilege of being heard by himself or counsel, was denied 
 him. It might be inferred that a rash man, such as Jackson is 
 so frequently represented to be — one who, according to Mr. 
 Roberts's account, manifested such disrespect to the laws, would 
 have gotten somewhat out of temper, at being refused permission 
 to be heard in his defence; and moreover being at the head of 
 an army, flushed with victory, that he might have altogether dis- 
 regarded the Judge and his ra^andate. It was surely an ample 
 
16 
 
 field for disregard and want of respect for both the law and its 
 ministers, if such had been his proneness. Then, nothins; of the 
 imagery of office, actual or in expectancy, was before him, to 
 control the natural tendency of feelings. He was simply Gen. 
 Jackson, the defender of his country, and the restorer of that 
 honour, which before had been lost to her. Yet, when this ju- 
 dicial examination was in progress, and when the clamors of the 
 crowd became so great, as to awaken the fears of the Judge, and 
 to induce an order from him to the Marshal, to adjourn the court, 
 what was then the conduct of this man esteemed so passionate 
 and rash? Addressing the bench, he expressed a desire that his 
 order might be withdrawn, and the business before him brought 
 to a close ; and then said, " there is no danger here ; there shall 
 be none. The same arm that protected from outrage this city, 
 against the invaders of the country, vsill shield and protect this 
 court, or perish in the effort.'''' The effect of this declaration was 
 to tranquilize the feelings of the Judge, and the trial proceeded. 
 
 When the prosecution had ended, in consequence of the man- 
 ner of its termination, passion in its most angry form arose, 
 threatening violence to that authority, which had acted with se- 
 verity against him who had emphatically been styled the deliv- 
 erer of the country. What did he do ? Did he seek to excite 
 and to encourage those feelings of resentment, which were fast 
 swelling in every bosom ? Far from it ! So fearful was he of 
 the consequences to which the excitement might tend, that amidst 
 the tumult he arose, and addressing himself to the crowd, by that 
 means arrested the impending danger. Here is the language 
 which on that occasion he employed. Let Mr. Roberts decide, 
 if it prove what he has asserted, a disrespect for the laws. From 
 the court room he was seized, and on the shoulders of the peo- 
 ple borne with acclamations; a carriage was met with in the 
 street, whence the horses were removed, Jackson placed in it, 
 and hurried to the coffee-house, surrounded by an immense 
 throng, huzzaing, and menacing violently the Judge. At this 
 moment, and under such a state of violent excitement, he 
 manifested his great disrespect for the lav:s, by addressing himself 
 to the people as follows : 
 
 " If you entertain the least gratitude for my services, or regard 
 personally for me, you can evince it in no way so satisfactorily 
 as by assenting, as I most cheerfully do, to the decision that has 
 just been pronounced against me. The civil is the i>ara,mount 
 and supreme authority of the land. I have never pretended to 
 any thing else, nor advocated a different doctrine. 1 had to de- 
 part from its rules, because they were too feeble for the state of 
 the times. I3y resOrtiiig to martial law, 1 succeeded in defending 
 •ind protecting a country which, without it must have been lost; 
 
17 
 
 yet, under its provisions, / have oppressed no one, nor extended 
 them to any other purpose than defence and safety : objects 
 which its declaration was intended, alone, to effect. 1 feel sen- 
 sible of your personal regard manifested towards me, and with 
 pleasure remember those high efforts of valor and patriotism, 
 which so essentially contributed to the defence of the country. 
 If recent events have shown you what ft urless valor can effect, 
 it is a no less important truth to learn, that submission to the civil 
 authority, is the first duty of a citizen. Imperious circumstances 
 compelled me, either to jeopardize the important interest confid- 
 ed to me, or to take upon myself the responsibility of those 
 measures which have been termed high handed ; but which were 
 absolutely essential for defence. Thus situated I did not hesi- 
 tate — I could not ! I risked all consequences, and you have seen 
 me meet the penalty of my aggression, and bow with submission 
 to the sentence of the law. If the oftencewith which 1 am charg- 
 ed had not been committed, the laws by which I am punished 
 would not have existed. I rejoice in their safety and maintain- 
 ance, although the first indication of their violated supremacy, 
 has been evinced in the punishment of myself. The order and 
 decorum you have manifested, under circumstances of strong 
 excitement, merits my warmest acknowledgments. I pray you 
 permit that moderation to continue. If you have any regard for 
 me, you will not do otherwise than yield respect to the justice of 
 the country, and to the character of its ministers : that feeling 
 and disposition will I hope always characterize you, and evince 
 on your part as firm a disposition to maintain inviolate and unim- 
 paired the laws of the country, as you have recently show^n to 
 defend yourself against invasion and threatened outrage." 
 
 These sentiments, after he had ceased to speak, being by one 
 of his Aids translated into the French language, tranquillity and 
 good order forthwith succeeded. 
 
 My object in this communication, (designed for the informa- 
 tion of the public.) l-eing rather to preserve, than to weary the 
 patience of any, I shall venture to take as admitted, that the first 
 charge exhibited by Mr. Roberts against General Jackson, to 
 wit: a zvant of respect for the laws at Nero Orleans, has been fully 
 met, answered, and disproved. His motives for hazarding an 
 assertion so palpably erroneous, belongs not to me to enquire 
 about. 
 
 But another objection and one which presses heavily on the 
 mind of Mr. Roberts, is, that Neil Cameron, a soldier in Jack- 
 son's division, " was put to death without the form of trial, and 
 his body left unburied, a prey to Vultures." The evident inten- 
 tion here, was to impress a belief that the general himself was 
 the cause of the deed being done, or else why did Mr. Roberts 
 
 3 
 
18 
 
 ofter a mere assertion ? Why did he not state by whom it had 
 been done, and the circumstances in relation to it fully and fairly : 
 again is a further evidence afforded of the dread prejudice which 
 infests his mind. And is Andrew Jackson by some new fashioned 
 system of ethics to be held responsible for every thing that hap- 
 pened in his division ? Benedict Arnold was a traitor, and secretly 
 practised treason in General Washington's division ; and so too, 
 within that same division, was Major Andre arrested and execu- 
 ted as a spy ; but did any body, at that period of our history ; or 
 has any one since, considered it necessary to hold Washington 
 accountable for those acts ; and yet he should be held accountable 
 precisely as Jackson should be for the death of Cameron. But he 
 was not killed in Jackson's division ; it is a misstatement on the 
 part of Mr. Roberts, and one which he must have known to be 
 incorrect at the time he made it. Cameron was killed in Florida 
 — within the territory of Spain, and within fifteen miles of Pensa- 
 cola, on the IGth of September, IGIS, three years before it was 
 attached to the United States, and consequently at the time re- 
 ferred to, formed no part of the military division of this country. 
 
 Cameron, who was a deserter, was shot by orders of Colonel 
 King. Subsequently King was arrested ; and the execution of a 
 soldier, without trial, was one of the charges preferred against 
 him on his trial. He was suspended for five years, and last year 
 died. Pray then who was culpable in this business but Colonel 
 King himself. Jackson was not present — was not in that section 
 of country ; and in fact, not nearer to the transaction than Nash- 
 ville, a distance of four hundred miles. I know of no rule, by 
 which to render one man lial^le and answerable for the misdeeds 
 of another, when he is absent — ignorant of what is about to be 
 done, and wholly without the means of preventing it. As well 
 might a judge be held responsible for every crime committed in 
 the range of his circuit. 
 
 I intend not to enter into any formal discussion of this matter, 
 because it is not necessary. Whether it forms any excuse for 
 Colonel King, that he was in a foreign country and in presence 
 of a force that might speedily have been converted into an 
 active enemy, does not pertain to the present inquiiy. That was 
 matter for the court which passed his conduct in review before 
 them. It is enough that he was punished by a competent tribu- 
 nal. There let it rest. My objection lies in this, that Mr. 
 Roberts has no well founded right to hold General Jackson an- 
 swerable for the acts of others ; and when he seizes hold on such 
 circumstances, to produce against him unfavourable impressions 
 in the public mind, it is but further evidence of the prejudice 
 under which he is labouring. Mr. Roberts was a member of the 
 
19 
 
 Senate in the winter of 1818-19, when all and every thing rela 
 ting to the Seminole war was discussed and examined in Con- 
 gress. He well knew the trial of Colonel King took place in 
 1821, and that subsequently the proceedings of the court were 
 published. With this information before him, he must have 
 known, and did know, that Cameron was shot near to Pensacola 
 in the territory of Florida, and not in Jackson's division, as he 
 has asserted. And even if it had been in his division, he was no 
 more liable for it, than was General Washington for the treason 
 of Arnold ; or than a judge would be for the crimes committed in 
 his circuit, whose powers extended merely to the punishing for 
 offences committed, not to the preventing them. 
 
 I may be content here to stay any further enquiry, and leave 
 the accuracy of the remaining charges contained in the address 
 of Mr. Roberts, to be determined by what has already been pre- 
 sented. But my design is to show, that every thing he has urged 
 is alike untenable and unfounded. With this view I proceed to 
 a consideration of the other points of attack which stand before 
 the public, under the sanction of his name ! Wonderful prejudice! 
 He will leave to Jackson nothing — not even the humble merit 
 of having defended his country; of saving her from pillage and 
 outrage. It was " Mr. Monroe's extraordinary exertions, with 
 Mr. Madison's co-operation, that prepared the defensive force for 
 New Orleans, and urged General .Jackson to repair there." Such 
 is the language of Mr. Roberts, such the accusation he prefers. 
 
 This truly is a new discovery in the history of our country; 
 and as every author possesses an ambition, that his facts should 
 be accurate, however badly they may be thrown together, it is 
 not unreasonable to ask, that he should direct an uninformed com- 
 munity to the data whence his opinions were formed. They are 
 not in the Department of War, 1 well know. From Mr. Monroe, 
 they were not obtained ; for however efficient his services may 
 have been, during our recent contest, he would not, to benefit 
 himself, pluck a single leaf from that civic wreath, which he well 
 knows Jackson wove for himself, still less for the sake of aiding 
 another, amidst difficulties which he alone had to encounter and 
 subdue. "Render unto Cesar, that which is Cesar's;" and let 
 Mr. Madison and Mr. Munroe, claim every honour and right that 
 is theirs. 1 would not sully, or take a single one away; yet to 
 ascribe to either of them an}'- portion of the efforts made at New 
 Orleans, or the means of defence resorted to, is to tender ihe-n 
 those things, which they have too much magnanimity to acccp'., 
 Such was not the language at the close of the war; and truth will 
 not sustain it now. By those two distinguished indivi'"- 'r.^ 
 nothing then" was claimed. The whole country had aw iiueu 
 whatever meed of praise was due to Jackson. If then Mr. Ro~ 
 
20 
 
 berts, after a lapse of ten years would change this order of things, 
 something more than assertion must be necessary, and will be 
 required of him. 
 
 I have already said, that never was an army composed of 
 more discordant materials, than that which made up the defence 
 of Louisiana; with the exception of the 7th and 44th regiments, 
 amounting to about 700 men, there were volunteer militia, and 
 drafted militia, black troops, and white troops, Americans, 
 Frenchmen and Spaniards; Sailors and Landsmen, all mixt to- 
 gether, and constituting the strength of our army. To give direc- 
 tion and efficiency to these — so to arrange this discordant mass, 
 as that it should be blended, and every thing of pride, of feeling, 
 of colour and interest, so happily arranged, that harmony and 
 eftcct should he attained, was certainly no easy eflbrt, and cannot 
 be ascribed to any who were distant 1000 miles from the place 
 of action. Selecting the most defensible points, and day and 
 night toiling to have them placed in readiness for resistance; 
 untiring perseverance, and a confidence and severity that inspired 
 with serenity and resolution every bosom, could, likewise, belong 
 not to any who was absent from the scene. So far as merit may 
 be claimed for these things, or that any thing of benefit has re- 
 sulted from them, it will certainly not be insisted on for those 
 who were far distant from the place where the etfect was pro- 
 duced. 
 
 I admit that men, arms and money are the sinews of war ; and 
 whenever a general embarks in service, it is expected that these 
 will be furnished by his country. Mr. Rolierts' allusion thm 
 must be, I presume, that these necessary materials and ingre- 
 dients were supplied " through the extraortlinary exertions and 
 co-operation" of President Madison and Mr. Monroe. Well, sup- 
 pose this to be just as he would have it, is the credit of the 
 defence the less on that account? Are the galhint officers of our 
 navy indebted to the Secretary of the navy for their brilliant 
 successes. Hull, in the first naval victory achieved, was on 
 board a frigate built and armed by his government, and well 
 supplieiJ with munitions of war. Such also was the case with 
 Bainbridge and Decatur. Yet the destruction of the Guerriere, 
 and the Java; and the subsequent capture of the Macedonian, 
 were not ascribed to the " extraordinary exertions and co-opera- 
 tion" of any body. It was yielded, as justly it should have 
 been, to the gallant commanders of our ships. The successful 
 battles of Chi[)pewa and Lundy's lane, and the brilliant defence 
 of Fort Erie, was never ch.irged " to the extraordinary exer- 
 tions and co-o[)eraiion"ofthc President and his Cabinet, althoiigh 
 men, money and arms were furnished. If then all these things 
 had been most liberally supplied at New Orleans, by every rule 
 
21 
 
 of right, whatever credit flowed from a successful battle and 
 defence, could belong only to those, who were present and waged 
 it, not to those whose distance from the scene of action wassuch 
 as that thf'j could not even catch the sound of the battle. 
 
 If every thing contained in this charge of Mr. Roberts were 
 true, — were worthy of belief, even to the extent that he would 
 have it to be believed, it in no wise alters the matter, nor detracts 
 from Andrew Jackson any thing of that merit which every where 
 by his country has been conceded to him. But it is not true; 
 and I challenge the records in the war department, to which Mr. 
 Roberts can readily obtain access, to disprove the assertion. 
 Nay, 1 go further, and say, that every thing of credit and of 
 merit, as well in the preparation for defence, as in the defence 
 itself, belongs exclusively and alone to Jackson, and to those 
 brave officers and men, who contended with him. 
 
 As early as August, 1S14, directly after the Creek war had 
 been concluded, through the treaty made at Fort Jackson, the 
 Secretary of War was written to, and apprised of the wants under 
 which the general was labouring. He says, " 1 am destitute of 
 funds, nor can procure them. There is not in the hands of the 
 quarter-master, money sufficient to purchase an express horse, 
 my present means are so limited ; with a sickly climate to com- 
 bat, as well as an enemy, without the means of transportation, 
 to change the position of my army, my whole reliance is on the 
 bravery of my little phalanx. You must afford the means, or I 
 cannot be successful." 
 
 At this period, and to the time of its reduction, Pensacola was 
 truly a British port. Officers of England were seen there drilling 
 and preparing troops for action; and the expedition which made 
 an assault upon Mobile point, had not merely been fitted out 
 from that place, but likewise after its defeat, had returned there. 
 Jackson, foreseeing the danger which threatened Mobile and the 
 contiguous country, — satisfied that Spain through such permission 
 was not merely surrendering her neutrality, but was in fact vio- 
 lating the treaty stipulation of 1795, felt it to be necessary to 
 reduce Pensacola, and only waited for permission to do so. 
 Time after time he wrote, and not merely urged, but implored 
 permission to take possession of a point which threatened to the 
 South Western section of the country so much, and so great dan- 
 ger. At last, when no reply could be procured, when nothing of 
 consent or refusal could be obtained, he determined for himself, 
 and taking possession of the port of Pensacola, dislodged the ene- 
 my, and compelled Spain to the maintainance of her neutrality. 
 
 This was an important blow for the defence and security of 
 New Orleans, in which Jackson alone had any agency ; without 
 it, Florida would have remained a resting point, and rendezvous 
 
22 
 
 (o the British. There preparation would have been made, and 
 thence, when all was ready, descents have been projected, too 
 rapidly and well timed, to have been resisted. But the advance 
 made there, brought the enemy to the conclusion, that under 
 rover of the neutrality of Spain nothing further could be conceal- 
 ed, and beside this, it was altogether " too unsafe a place to 
 resort, now that the defence of Fort Barancas had been destroyed : 
 the consequence was, that the British fleet were dependant entirely 
 on other resources, and were driven to seek an anchorage at Cat 
 Island in the gulf, where they reposed during the siege, and 
 where they had nothing to fear, because without the reach of 
 danger from us. 
 
 This descent upon Pensacola, which under all the circumstan- 
 ces, was a most important movement in the defence of Orleans, 
 was entirely by the determination of Jackson himself. The men 
 were raised by himself, and money for the quarter master pro- 
 cured through exertions of his friends at Nashville, acting upon 
 his request. 
 
 It is true the government were either so tardy in decision, or 
 so fearful of the consequences incident on an otTence to Spain, 
 that to the repeated suggestions of Jackson of the necessity of 
 breaking up this resting place of Great Britain, no answer, no 
 permission could be had, although by the course pursued, she 
 had long before evidently forsaken every thing like neutral po- 
 licy. It remained at last for him to take the step on his own 
 responsibility ; and upon his own responsibility to concentrate 
 the means necessary to its eflcctuation. 
 
 About this period it was that Jackson addressed himself press- 
 ingly every where to procure for his country the means ot de- 
 fence. In a letter to Mr. Blount, who was at that time Governor 
 of Tennessee, he says, " I shall be very thankful for any volun- 
 teers, and in any shape you may be pleased to send them. Our 
 country needs them. 1 had hoped, and do still hope, to see you 
 stand forth in a patriotic appeal to the citizens of Tennessee, in- 
 viting them to the field to save their country from subjugation 
 and ruin. We have too long rested in feeling, unsupported by 
 
 f)roper action. By misplaced confidence our capitol has been 
 ost, and we shall not recover the national disgrace, unless ener- 
 gy becomes the order of the day." 
 
 The latter part of October he addressed the Governor of Loui- 
 siana : " The exposed state of the coast from New Orleans to 
 Pass Huron, and ihe precarintts situalion of tnr/ supplies here caus- 
 ed me great uneasiness, and kept my little force stationary for 
 its protection. I hope shortly to visit you ; in the mean time let 
 me reiterate, that vigilance and energy is necessary to defend a 
 country." 
 
23 
 
 To the Secretary of War he says, " The city of New Orleans 
 has addressed me, calling for additional defence ; my whole force 
 would not satisfy the demands they make." 
 
 Again in another letter he remarks : '' I have been using every 
 exertion in my power to have a train of artillery prepared for 
 active service in the field. I find it on examination here (Mobile) 
 not only out of repair, but entirely unfit for service. The car- 
 riages from exposure to the weather are entirely decayed, and 
 unable to support the pieces." 
 
 He also despatched Colonel Butler, a confidential officer, to 
 Tennessee, to endeavour by every practicable means to prevail 
 on her citizens to take the field and press to his relief. In his 
 letter of instructions to him he employs this language : " I have 
 called on all the militia I am authorized by the government, and 
 I now enclose an appeal to the patriotism of my fellow citizens, 
 and hope to see my former comrades in arms again in the field, 
 bravely defending the eagles of their country. For, believe me, 
 we have to defend not only our territory, but our liberties. 
 From the confidential information I possess, 1 have no doubt but 
 the whole coalition are engaged in a league to subjugate America. 
 I mean to make a desperate struggle." 
 
 Let any man of thought and reflection go back to this period 
 of our history, and say if the difficulties of the moment were not 
 such as to have depressed and sunk down any man not gifted 
 with the most extraordinary powers of mind and action. The 
 information confidentially received was, that a large force had 
 embarked from England, destined for the southern coast of the 
 United States. At this moment he was without money, and with- 
 out arms ; without men, and without the munitions of war. Thus 
 situated, he forwarded expresses to Tennessee, where he pro- 
 cured funds from the banks, and whence General Coffee, with 
 his mounted volunteers, hastened to join him. There was no time 
 to be lost. Where the enemy would strike could not be told. 
 Immediately he marched against Pensacola, and having reduced 
 it, returned ; placed Mobile in the best defence he could, and 
 departing, arrived at New Orleans, on the 1st day of December. 
 
 Jackson was now at the grand point of expected attack. The 
 city guards, a few regular troops, and General Coffee's volun- 
 teers, who had followed on from Mobile, constituted that whole 
 " defensive force prepared for New Orleans." The militia from 
 Tennessee had not arrived, and did not arrive until the 22d day 
 of December, one day previous to the landing of the British, 
 and those from Kentucky, reached the city on the 4th of January, 
 just in time for the decisive action of the Sth. The forts were to 
 be repaired, and the negroes of the planters were employed for 
 that purpose. The Bayous and inlets were to be obstructed to 
 
24 
 
 guard against secret approach. No ordnance was at hand, ex- 
 cept what could be procured through the officers of the Navy. 
 Guns could not be had to place in the hands of our unarmed 
 troops ; and of those which were there, flints to place in them 
 were not at hand. From the pirates at Barataria, throu2;h their 
 leader Lafite, whose services Jackson had secured by promise 
 of a pardon made to him, seven thousand had fortunately been 
 procured; and but for this piece of good fortune and accident, 
 instead of the proud pleasure felt for the termination of the bat- 
 tle of the 8th, it would have returned each year to us, a day of 
 sorrow and of mourning. 
 
 Such was the ^tate of preparation when Jackson reached the 
 city of New Orleans; and such, indeed, it continued to the ter- 
 mination of the invasion, only so far as his own exertions enabled 
 him to effect an alteration. For the truth of which let his letter 
 to the Secretary of War of the 3d of January, five days before 
 the battle of the 8th, be appealed to. This is its language : 
 " Again I must apprise you, that the arms 1 have been so long 
 expecting, have not arrived. All we hear of them is, that they 
 are on the river, and that the man who has been entrusted with 
 their transportation, has halted on the way for the purpose of 
 private speculation. Depend upon it, this supineness, this negli- 
 gence, this criminality let me call it, of which we witness so 
 many instances in the agents of government, must finally lead, if 
 it be not corrected, to the defeat of our armies, and to the dis- 
 grace of those who superintend them. It is impossible 1 should 
 not feel the utmost solicitude, and even uneasiness on the occa- 
 sion. Every reliance may be placed on the bravery of my men, 
 but without arms it is impossible they can etlect much. The 
 Kentucky troops have been delayed by adverse winds, but when 
 they come, not more than a third arc armed, and those indiller- 
 cntly. 1 have none? to place in their hands." 
 
 In the facts detailed in this letter, there is no mistake. The 
 captain of the boat who undertook to be the carrier of the arms, 
 on reaching New Orleans, after all the danger had subsided, de- 
 fended his tardiness on the way, by showing the contract he had 
 entered into with the agent of the government, which secured to 
 him the right of tarrying on the road with a view lo his own 
 ^'■privulf sptculalion.'''' And if this, at so critical and dangerous 
 a periotl, seems too marvellous for liclief, a reference to the ar- 
 chives of the War Department will establish its accuracy. 
 
 On the 15th of February, after the bailie's strife had ended, 
 and only three days before the enemy yielded the contest and 
 reiircd hum our shores, Jackson again addressed the Secretary 
 of War. Spcakir)g of the facility with which the entire British 
 army, after th-.' 8lh, might have been captured, and not a man ot 
 
25 
 
 ihem escaped, if arms to place in the hands of the troops had 
 been furnished, he remarks : " I am sensible, however, that we 
 have a thousand times greater cause to rejoice, than to repine. 
 Heaven, to be sure, has interposed most wonderfully in our be- 
 half, and I am filled with gratitude when 1 look back to what we 
 have escaped ; yet I grieve that we did not with more wisdom 
 and more industry, use the means with which she had blessed 
 us. Again and again I must repeat, we have been always too 
 backward with our preparations. When the enemy comes we 
 begin to think of driving him away, and scarcely before." 
 
 Here then is that " extraordinary exertion," that state of pre- 
 paration, of which Mr. Roberts speaks ; a preparation so full and 
 so complete, as that nothing remained for General Jackson on 
 his arrival at New Orleans, but to fight. Wonderful accuracy 
 indeed. Truly as it relates to facts, Mr. Roberts would make a 
 most intolerable historian. The cemmon legends of olden time 
 would be better entitled to confidence ; but it seems the General 
 was not merely ordered, but was in fact " urged to repair there.'''' 
 The accusation intended to be made, the inference designed to 
 be adduced is, that the importance of the Mississippi had never 
 occurred to him, and that he was planning and arranging the 
 defence of points of infinitely less importance ; and was at last 
 found at the city of New Orleans for the reason onlj', that he 
 was ''^ urged to repair there,'''' 1 am sorry to have occasion to re- 
 mark that this is ^not true either; it is precisely of a piece with the 
 '^ rest of the publication. In support of the assertion made, 1 refer 
 to, and quote the Secretary's own words, on the day after impor- 
 tant information had reached the city of Washington; they are 
 these : " Intelligence was yesterday received from Cuba of the 
 9th ult. that the British force from that Bay under Admiral 
 Cochrane, had united at Jamaica, with other troops, and had 
 sailed, or were on the point of sailing to make an attack on New 
 Orleans. It is hoped you will have long since taken a suitable 
 position on the river, to afford complete protection to that city. 
 Mobile is comparatively a trifling object with the British govern- 
 ment. Your presence at such a point on the river will be of vital 
 importance. It will inspire the inhabitants with confidence, and 
 enervate them with vigorous exertions." 
 
 This letter, or order, if Mr. Roberts prefers to call it so, bears 
 date on the 10th of December, 1814, and was forwarded by Dr. 
 Cozens, express from the city, though he never got farther than 
 Nashville in Tennessee. A duplicate was hurried through an- 
 other express, who got sick on the road, and wrote back to know 
 what he should do with his despatches. It is believf^d that upon 
 this subject no other order is to be found on file in the War De- 
 partment : it is asserted that none other order was ever received^ 
 
 4 
 
26 
 
 Now it will be borne in mind that General Jackson arrived, and 
 took command at New Orleans on the first day of December ; 
 ergo, he could not have " been urged to repair there" in conse- 
 quence of an order which issued twelve hundred miles distance 
 from him, ten days previously. Even before the day that it was 
 wh'itten, Jackson through his spies in the South, had obtained in- 
 telligence of the views and designs of the enemy; had weakened 
 their intended assault, through the reduction of Pensacola, 
 strengthened Mobile and Fort Bowyer, and reached the point of 
 expected attack. Already had he been at that place, preparing, 
 arranging, and concentrating the resources within his reach, ten 
 days before the letter, or order, was written at Washington ; nor 
 could it have reached him until about the time that his decisive 
 battle was fought, and had been gained. It is again clearly mani- 
 fest then, that Mr. Roberts is wrong ; and that General Jackson 
 was not at his post through any order from the President and 
 Secretary of War, which " urged him to repair there." His 
 conduct and acts alone proceeded from himself, the suggestions of 
 his own mind and judgment. His preparations were the effect of 
 his own exertions, and his success the result of that confidence 
 which his firmness and untiring zeal every where inspired. 
 
 Two charges remain to be replied to, when I shall have gotten 
 through with the catalogue submitted by Mr. Roberts. It is 
 charged that pending the enquiry before Congress of the Semi- 
 nole campaign, Jackson appeared at the city of Washington, 
 while it was a subject of discussion and legislative enquiry, and 
 that it was an evidence of want of respect for the public authori- 
 ties. Wonderful ! ! most wonderful ! ! 
 
 By the constitution of this country, every individual is secure, 
 in his life, liberty and property. He is protected in the privi- 
 lege of speech, and in the freedom of the press ; nor has the 
 right of any, to travel where they please, been Liefore questioned; 
 but agreeably to Mr. Roberts' republican theory, you may not 
 appear at the capitol of the Union where congress sits, or else it 
 is " want of respect to the public authorities." I believe the con- 
 stitution of every state secures to a party accused, the right of 
 speedy trial, and of being confronted with accusers; yet let con- 
 gress become the accusing power, a body privileged and unan- 
 swerable for any thing they say or do, and then by Mr. Roberts' 
 standard of political ethics, an appearance of the party accused, 
 to defend, and to explain, and to justify to his friends his course, 
 " is want of respect for the public authorities." Apart from any 
 other consideration, this would seem a sufficient answer to the 
 charge preferred. A further answer however will he found in 
 this; that Washington City was within Jackson's division, and 
 that by the rules and usages of the army, he had a right to go 
 
27 
 
 at any time he pleased to any part of that division without the 
 sanction or permission of any one. Besides this, there is one 
 fact, which Mr. Roberts being then a member of Congress can- 
 not have forgotten ; that such was the prudence and caution of 
 Jackson — his desire to manifest nothing " of want of respect for 
 the public authorities" that pending the enquiry before congress 
 of this Seminole campaign, he never appeared on the floor of 
 either House, where by the rules of both, he had the right and 
 privilege to be. In this course of respectful forbearance, was 
 certainly and clearly manifested, " an evidence of his respect for 
 the public authorities,''^ certainly nothing of disrespect. 
 
 The last charge to be adverted to, like all the others that have 
 been noticed, requires some higher authority than the mere 
 assertion of the writer to obtain for it confidence. It is alleged, 
 that " as governor of Florida, men were banished, and subse- 
 quently imprisoned under his good pleasure, and released by the 
 President." Here I take the liberty of soliciting the proofs of 
 an assertion so bold. 1 say there are none. The charge is 
 untrue. Law and right, not "Aw good pleasure,''^ were the cause. 
 
 A treaty had been concluded with Spain ; and by virtue of an 
 act of congress, and commission from the President of the United 
 States, General Jackson became governor of Florida; and in 
 July, 1821, took possession of the country. By the 7th article 
 of that treaty it was stipulated as follows : The officers and troops 
 of His Catholic Majesty, in the territory hereby ceded to the United 
 States, shall be withdrawn, and possession of the places occupied by 
 them, given within sice months, <$/-c." 
 
 It is unnecessary to state to Mr. Roberts, that as an official 
 organ of the government, General Jackson was bound to regard 
 the laws ; nor is it necessary to tell him, that by our constitution 
 all treaties become parts of our laws. Unquestionably then, it 
 was the duty of the governor to cause the treaty to be executed, 
 and carried fully into effect. The article referred to, stipulates 
 for two things. 
 
 1st. That the officers and troops of Spain should be withdrawn 
 in six months. 
 
 2d. That occupied places should be surrendered. A disre- 
 gard and neglect of either provision was a violation of the stipu- 
 lations of the treaty which the governor should not have sanc- 
 tioned. 
 
 On the 29th of September, 1821, Jackson as governor of Flori- 
 da, issued his proclamation requiring three Spanish officers who 
 had remained at Pensacola, and who were included in the provi- 
 sions of the treaty, to depart the territory. It was their duty to 
 have done so before; and failing to do so, it was Jackson's 
 
28 
 
 to see that the treaty was complied with. But another and 
 stronger reason operated. 
 
 In deciding the case of two orphan children, whose rights 
 under the Spanish government had been long refviscd, and pro- 
 perty withheld from them, Jackson sitting as judge, and before 
 whom the trial was pending, had required the original will under 
 which those orphans claimed to be produced. The former 
 governor who took possession of it, and who claimer, to retain it 
 as an official paper, caused the mandate of the court to be dis- 
 obeyed. Conciliatory steps were resorted to, but these failing, 
 the governor was imprisoned for a contempt, and remained in 
 prison a short time until the will was obtained ; after which he 
 'was discharged. The Sp.inish governor having remained in 
 Florida beyond the time, that he should, by the treaty, have 
 retired from the country, could be considered in no other light 
 than any private man. He was amenable to the laws and sub- 
 ject to the rules and orders of the court, as any other citizen of 
 the country. A citizen refusing to deliver a paper under order 
 of a court is guilty of contempt and ma}'^ be imprisoned ; there is 
 no reason why this former governor, then no longer representing 
 the authority of Spain, should have been suflVred to claim any 
 higher privilege. The will was obtained, imd the property of 
 these orphans thereby secured to them, which under a diflerent 
 course would have been lost. 
 
 Soon afterwards a violent and inflammatory publication ap- 
 peared, assailing Jackson and tending to bring into disrespect the 
 civil authority. It was ascertained to be the labour of three 
 Spanish officers. In this country we understand, that to print 
 and publish with a view to control judicial investigation is 
 wrong ; and instances are not wanting where the authors have 
 "been severely punished. Some of the most intelligent and re- 
 flecting men entertained the opinion, that for this high aggression, 
 those Spanish officers should be sent to prison. Jackson how- 
 ever, who so often has been declared bold to rashness, deter- 
 mined otherwise ; and adopting the milder course, F'equired, 05 by 
 the treaty they were bound, ihsii they should betake themselvos from 
 the country. Mis mandate was obeyed. Subsequently iwo of 
 them returned, when they were arrested \)y Mr. VVoIkm), then 
 the acting governor, and restricted lo their houses on their p irole 
 of honour ; but not put in prison as is alleged. At this lime Jack- 
 son was not governor of Florida. He was at Mashville in 1 en- 
 nessee, about 400 miles from Pensaeola. 
 
 The facts concisely then, in which alone Mr. Roberts ran 
 repose for proof of his strong assertion, arc theSe : on the 29th 
 of September, the proclamation issued, requiring those Spanish 
 officers, for n rontempt offiired to the court, to leave tlie coun- 
 
29 
 
 try. Subsequently General Jackson retired from Florida to 
 Tennessee, and on the 13th of November, forwarded to the 
 President his resignation of governor of the territory ; leaving 
 Mr. Walton, a worthy and competent man, the acting governor. 
 Between the 1st and 7th of January those Spanish officers re- 
 turned, when by Mr. Walton they were required upon honour 
 to remain in their houses, until further advices could be re- 
 ceived ; and there they did remain until the President directed 
 them to be discharged. Yet, says Mr. Roberts " they were 
 banished, and subsequently imprisoned at his good pleasure." 
 
 As it regards the attempt of Mr. Roberts to excite the citizens 
 of Kentucky, I feel confident they will neither applaud nor 
 thank him. The subject he has selected is a family matter of 
 their own, and he greatly errs in knowledge of her people, if he 
 supposes they have any use for him as an auxiliary and helper 
 in their afiairs. The retreat which took place on the left bank 
 of the river, is well understood to have been communicated to 
 the commanding general by those who were present ; and upon 
 that information the report was made to the secretary of war. 
 A court was subsequently organized, excused the retreat of the 
 tfoops, on the ground that they were enfeebled greatly by their 
 position, and by the weak condition of the line behind which 
 they acted. On this ground the decision of the court placed the 
 matter: the proceedings were approved by General Jackson, 
 and tliere history has also placed it. He has in all his general 
 orders spoken of the troops of Kentucky, in the way that the 
 country at large has spoken of them, as a brave and high minded 
 people. Mr. Roberts though in the hope of exciting prejudice, 
 finds it convenient to travel by all that can be found on this sub- 
 ject, and to take for his text, the words " ingloriously fled." 
 
 Already has more been said, than was designed at the com- 
 mencement of this address. If any shall peruse the remarks 
 submitted, they will have cause greatly to wonder how it was, 
 that Mr. Roberts could plunge himself into so many and so 
 various errors : and be more surprised too that he should act so 
 inconsiderately as to give his name to the assertions he has 
 offered. Should his future course be, to become again an instruct- 
 or to the public, care and caution should prompt him, at least to 
 be accurate and particular in his facts, to be controlled by reason, 
 not by prejudice. With your pardon for the trouble afforded 
 to you, 
 
 I am respectfully, 
 
 JOHN H. EATON. 
 
 Franklin, Tenn. Aug. 30, 1826. 
 
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