Monroe's Administration, 1817-1825.
James Monroe.
THE policy of Madison was adopted by his successor. The stormy times of the war gave place to many years of peace. The new President was a native of Virginia, a man of great talents and accomplishments. He had been a Revolutionary soldier, a member of Congress, governor of Virginia, envoy to France and England, and Secretary of State under Madison. The members of the cabinet were: John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State; William H. Crawford, Secretary of the Treasury; John C. Calhoun, Secretary of War; William Wirt, Attorney-general. Statesmen of all parties devoted their energies to the payment of the national debt. Commerce soon revived; the government was economically administered, and in a few years the debt was honestly paid.
Mississippi Admitted.
2. In December of 1817 Mississippi was organized and admitted into the Union. The new State came with a population of sixty-five thousand souls. At the same time the attention of the government was called to a nest of pirates on Amelia Island, off the coast of Florida. An armament was sent against them, and the lawless establishment was broken up. Another company, on the island of Galveston, was also suppressed.
3. The question of internal improvements now began to be agitated. Without railroads and canals the products of the interior could never reach a market. Whether Congress had a right to vote money to make public improvements was a question of debate. Among the States, New York took the lead in improvements by constructing a canal from Buffalo to Albany. The cost of the work was nearly eight million dollars.
Trouble with the Seminoles.
4. In 1817 the Seminole Indians of Georgia and Alabama became hostile. Some negroes and Creeks joined the savages in their depredations. General Jackson was ordered to reduce the Indians to submission. He mustered a thousand riflemen from Tennessee, and in the spring of 1818 completely overran the hostile country.
The Cession of Florida.
5. While on this expedition, Jackson took possession of St. Mark's. The Spanish troops stationed there were removed to Pensacola. Two Englishmen, named Arbuthnot and Ambrister, charged with inciting the Seminoles to insurrection, were tried by a court-martial and hanged. Jackson then captured Pensacola, and sent the Spanish authorities to Havana. The enemies of General Jackson condemned him for these proceedings, but the President and Congress justified his deeds. The king of Spain now proposed to cede Florida to the United States. On the 22d of February, 1819, a treaty was concluded at Washington City by which the whole province was surrendered to the American government. The United States agreed to relinquish all claim to Texas, and to pay to American citizens, for depredations committed by Spanish vessels, five million dollars.
New States.
6. In 1818 Illinois, the twenty-first State, was organized and admitted into the Union. The population of the new commonwealth was forty-seven thousand. In December of 1819 Alabama was added, with a population of one hundred and twenty-five thousand. About the same time Arkansas Territory was organized. In 1820 the province of Maine was separated from Massachusetts and admitted into the Union. The population of the new State had reached two hundred and ninety-eight thousand. In August of 1821 Missouri, with a population of about seventy-four thousand souls, was admitted as the twenty-fourth member of the Union.
The Missouri Compromise.
7. When the bill to admit Missouri was brought before Congress, a proposition was made to prohibit slavery in the new State. This was supported by the free States of the North, and opposed by the slaveholding States of the South. After long and angry debates the measure brought forward by Henry Clay, and known as the Missouri Compromise, was adopted. Its provisions were—first, the admission of Missouri as a slaveholding State; secondly, the division of the rest of the Louisiana purchase by the parallel of thirty-six degrees and thirty minutes; thirdly, the admission of new States south of that line, with or without slavery, as the people might determine; fourthly, the prohibition of slavery in all the new States north of the dividing-line.
8. The President's administration grew into high favor with the people; and in 1820 he was reelected. As Vice-president, Mr. Tompkins was again chosen. The attention of the government was next called to a system of piracy which had sprung up in the West Indies. Early in 1822 an American fleet was sent thither, and more than twenty piratical ships were captured. In the following summer, Commodore Porter was dispatched with a larger squadron. The retreats of the sea-robbers were completely broken up.
The Monroe Doctrine.
9. About this time many of the countries of South America declared their independence of foreign nations. The people of the United States sympathized with the patriots of the South. Henry Clay urged upon the government the duty of recognizing the South American republics. In March of 1822, a bill was passed by Congress embodying his views. In the President's message of 1823 the declaration was made that the American continents are not subject to colonization by any European power. This is the principle ever since known as the Monroe Doctrine.
Henry Clay.
10. In the summer of 1824 the venerated La Fayette, now aged and gray, revisited the land for whose freedom he had shed his blood. The patriots who had fought by his side came forth to greet him. In every city he was surrounded by a throng of shouting freemen. His journey through the country was a triumph. In September of 1825 he bade adieu to the people, and sailed for his native land. While Liberty remains, the name of La Fayette shall be hallowed.
11. In the fall of 1824 four candidates were presented for the presidency. John Quincy Adams was put forward as the candidate of the East; William H. Crawford, of Georgia, as the choice of the South; Henry Clay and Andrew Jackson as the favorites of the West. Neither candidate received a majority of the electoral votes, and the choice of President was referred to the House of Representatives. By that body Mr. Adams was elected. For Vice-president, John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina, was chosen by the electoral college.