The Writings of Thomas Jefferson, Vol. 7 (of 9): Being His Autobiography, Correspondence, Reports, Messages, Addresses, and Other Writings, Official and PrivateJefferson, Thomas
Philosophy
The Writings of Thomas Jefferson, Vol. 7 (of 9): Being His Autobiography, Correspondence, Reports, Messages, Addresses, and Other Writings, Official and Private
Jefferson, Thomas
United States -- Politics and government -- 1775-1783; United States -- Politics and government -- 1783-1865
words: "1789, Oct. 1. By my bill on Willincks, Van Staphorsts & Hubbard
for 2,800 florins, equal to 6,230 livres 18 sous." An inspection of the
account, too, shows that whenever I received _cash_ for a bill, it is
uniformly entered "by cash received of such an one, &c;" but where a
bill was drawn to constitute an item of account only, the entry is "by
my bill on, &c." Now to these very words "cash received of Grand," not
in my original but interpolated by himself, he constantly appeals as
proofs of an acknowledgment _under my own hand_ that _I received the
cash_. In proof of this, I must request patience to read the following
quotations from his denunciations as standing in the Federal Republican
of May 24:
Page 2, column 2, 1. 48 to 29 from the bottom, "he [Mr. J.] admits in
his account rendered in 1790 and settled in 1792, that he had _received
the_ '_cash_,' [placing the word _cash_ between inverted commas to
have it marked particularly as a quotation] that he had _received the_
'_cash_' for the bill in question, and he does not directly deny it now.
Will he, can he, in the _face of his own declaration in writing_ to the
contrary, publicly say that he did not receive the money for this bill in
Europe? This is _the point_ on which the whole matter rests, the _pivot_
on which the arguments turn. If he did receive the money in Europe,
(no matter whether at Cowes or at Paris,) he certainly had no right to
receive it a second time from the public treasury of the United States.
This is admitted I believe on all sides. Now, _that he did receive the
money in Europe_ on this bill, is proved by the _acknowledgment of the
receiver himself_, who credits the amount in his account as settled at
the treasury thus: "_cash received of Grand_ for bill on Willincks, Van
Staphorsts, 2,876 gilders, 1,148 dollars."
Col. 3, 1. 28 to 21 from bottom. There is a plain difference in the
phraseology of the account, from which an extract is given by Mr. J. as
above, and that _which he rendered to the Treasury_. In the former he
gives the credit thus, "By my bills on Willincks," &c. In the latter he
states, "By _cash received of Grand_ for bill on Willincks, &c." There
is a difference, indeed, as he states it, but it is made solely by his
own interpolation.
Col. 3, 1. 8, from bottom. "That Mr. Jefferson should, in the very teeth
of the facts of the evidence before us, and in his own breast, gravely
say that he had paid the money for this bill, and that therefore it
was but just to return him the amount of it, when he had, _by his own
acknowledgment_, sent it to Grand & Co., and _received the money for
it_, is, I confess, not only matter of utter astonishment but regret."
I spare myself the qualifications which these paragraphs may merit,
leaving them to be applied by every reader according to the feelings
they may excite in his own breast.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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