"Col. Kirkbride at whose house I am, desires me to present you his respectful compliments."
Paine had a happy visit at Washington's headquarters, where he met old revolutionary comrades, among them Humphreys, Lincoln, and Cobb. He saw Washington set the river on fire on Guy Fawkes Day with a roll of cartridge-paper. When American art is more mature we may have a picture of war making way for science, illustrated by the night-scene of Washington and Paine on a scow, using their cartridge-paper to fire the gas released from the river-bed by soldiers with poles!*
* See Paine's essay on "The Cause of the Yellow Fever."
These experiments on the river at Rocky Hill were followed
by others in Philadelphia, with Rittenhouse.
There was a small party in Congress which looked with sullen jealousy on Washington's friendliness with Paine. The States, since the conclusion of the war, were already withdrawing into their several shells of "sovereignty," while Paine was arguing with everybody that there could be no sovereignty but that of the United States,—and even that was merely the supremacy of Law. The arguments in favor of the tax imposed by Congress, which he had used in Rhode Island, were repeated in his last Crisis (April 19th), and it must have been under Washington's roof at Rocky Hill that he wrote his letter "To the People of America" (dated December 9th), in which a high national doctrine was advocated. This was elicited by Lord Sheffield's pamphlet, "Observations on the Commerce of the United States," which had been followed by a prohibition of commerce with the West Indies in American bottoms. Lord Sheffield had said: "It will be a long time before the American States can be brought to act as a nation; neither are they to be feared by us as such." Paine calls the attention of Rhode Island to this, and says: "America is now sovereign and independent, and ought to conduct her affairs in a regular style of character." She has a perfect right of commercial retaliation.
"But it is only by acting in union that the usurpations of foreign nations on the freedom of trade can be counteracted, and security extended to the commerce of America. And when we view a flag, which to the eye is beautiful, and to contemplate its rise and origin inspires a sensation of sublime delight, our national honor must unite with our interest to prevent injury to the one or insult to the other."
{1784}
Noble as these sentiments now appear, they then excited alarm in certain Congressmen, and it required all Washington's influence to secure any favorable action in Paine's case. In 1784, however, New York presented Paine with "two hundred and seventy-seven acres, more or less, which became forfeited to and vested in the People of this State by the conviction of Frederick Devoe."* With such cheerful prospects, national and personal, Paine rose into song, as appears by the following letter ("New York, April 28th") to Washington:
* The indenture, made June 16, 1784, is in the Register's
Office of Westchester County, Vol. T. of Grantees, p. 163.
The confiscated estate of the loyalist Devoe is the well-
known one at New Rochelle on which Paine's monument stands.
I am indebted for investigations at White Plains, and
documents relating to the estate, to my friend George
Hoadly, and Mr. B. Davis Washburn.
"Dear Sir,—As I hope to have in a few days the honor and happiness of seeing you well at Philadelphia, I shall not trouble you with a long letter.