E-text prepared by Suzanne Shell, Carla Foust, and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this file which includes the original illustrations. See 28992-h.htm or 28992-h.zip: (https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/28992/pg28992-images.html) or (https://www.gutenberg.org/files/28992/28992-h.zip) Transcriber's note: Minor punctuation errors have been corrected without notice. Printer's errors have been corrected and are listed at the end of the book. All other inconsistencies are as in the original. Giants of America The Founding Fathers [Illustration: James Madison] JAMES MADISON by SYDNEY HOWARD GAY [Illustration: _The Home of James Madison_] ARLINGTON HOUSE _New Rochelle, N.Y._ CONTENTS CHAP. PAGE I. THE VIRGINIA MADISONS 1 II. THE YOUNG STATESMAN 15 III. IN CONGRESS 28 IV. IN THE STATE ASSEMBLY 45 V. IN THE VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE 61 VI. PUBLIC DISTURBANCES AND ANXIETIES 73 VII. THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION 84 VIII. "THE COMPROMISES" 94 IX. ADOPTION OF THE CONSTITUTION 110 X. THE FIRST CONGRESS 122 XI. NATIONAL FINANCES--SLAVERY 144 XII. FEDERALISTS AND REPUBLICANS 164 XIII. FRENCH POLITICS 185 XIV. HIS LATEST YEARS IN CONGRESS 207 XV. AT HOME--"RESOLUTIONS OF '98 AND '99" 225 XVI. SECRETARY OF STATE 242 XVII. THE EMBARGO 254 XVIII. MADISON AS PRESIDENT 272 XIX. WAR WITH ENGLAND 290 XX. CONCLUSION 309 INDEX 325 ILLUSTRATIONS JAMES MADISON _Frontispiece_ From the painting by Sully in the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C. Autograph from a MS. in the New York Public Library, Lenox Building. The vignette of "Montpelier," Madison's home at Montpelier, Va., is from a photograph. Page CHARLES COTESWORTH PINCKNEY _facing_ 98 From the original painting by Gilbert Stuart in the possession of Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, D. D., LL. D., Charleston, S. C. Autograph from a MS. in the New York Public Library, Lenox Building. FISHER AMES _facing_ 162