To George HARRISON, Esq., Navy Department, Philadelphia. June 26, 1805. Sir: I have received your letter, accompanied by drawings of the medal for Commodore Preble. I now return you the Commodore's likeness and one of the drawings sent to me by you. I approve the drawings, excepting as to size, which appears to me to be too large. I doubt whether any die can be made to impress so large a surface. We should depart, too, from general custom, by making this medal so large. The medal voted by the old Congress, for General Washington, was three inches diameter, those for General Greene, Gates, &c., were two and a half inches, and those for Morgan, Wayne, &c., were two inches. The drawings of the medal for Commodore Preble are four inches. I have no objections to the medal for Commodore Preble being two and a half inches. Confer with artists upon the subject and let me hear from you. It is my determination to have it made by Mr. Reich, and you may so inform him, that he may not engage in other business to interfere with this. I am respectfully, sir, your most obedient servant, R. SMITH. No. 24. (p. 151) PLATE XXV. _March 4, 1809--March 4, 1817._ James Madison President of the U. S. A. D. 1809. [Rx]. Peace and friendship. PRESIDENT JAMES MADISON. [_Fourth President of the United States of America._] JAMES MADISON PRESIDENT OF THE U. S. (_United States_) A. D. (_Anno Domini: The year of our Lord_) 1809. Bust of President Madison, facing the left. On ring, R. (_Reich_). PEACE AND FRIENDSHIP. Two hands clasped, in token of amity; on the cuff of the left wrist three stripes and as many buttons with the American eagle on them; the other wrist bare; above the hands, a calumet and a tomahawk crossed--Indian emblems of peace and war.[74] [Footnote 74: See INTRODUCTION, page xxiv.] The dies of the reverse of this medal served for all the Indian Presidential medals struck previous to July, 1846, when new ones had to be made, as will be seen from the following extracts from despatches of R. M. Patterson, director of the Mint, to William Merrill, commissioner of Indian affairs, bearing date, Philadelphia, July 18, 1846: "As the dies for the Indian medals belong to the War Department, it is proper that I should mention that the reverses are no longer in a condition to be employed. They have been used for all the medals struck since the time of President Jefferson, and it was with difficulty that they could be made to answer for those which we have just completed. A new set will be absolutely necessary, and it seems not unreasonable that they should be paid out of the appropriation made for these medals, in striking which they have finally failed."