This quote comes from a letter Jefferson wrote to William Stephens Smith on Nov. 13, 1787, about Shay’s Rebellion in Massachusetts. Inspector General | The National Historical Publications and if they remain quiet under such misconceptions it is a lethargy, In 1806, Colonel William Stephens Smith, a Revolutionary War hero and the son-in-law of former president John Adams, was prosecuted in federal court for violating the Neutrality Act of 1794. . From John Sullivan, 29 May 1787. Julian P. Boyd, vol. Jefferson offered us guidance in his writing to Mme D’Auville in 1790, “A good citizen should take his stand where the public authority marshals him .” conducted? --Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, 1787. 1788. we are now vibrating between too much & too little government, & the pendulum will rest finally in the middle. To William Stephens Smith, 26 May 1787. Our Convention has been too much impressed by the insurrection of Massachusets: and in the spur of the moment they are setting up a kite to keep the hen yard in order. Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) American political philosopher, polymath, statesman, US President (1801-09) Letter to William Stephens Smith (13 Nov 1787) Let them take arms. I say nothing of it's motives. Author. The part which is wrong will be discontented in proportion to the importance of the facts they misconceive. About | in ignorance, not wickedness. the forerunner of death to the public liberty. Recipient. I beg leave through you to place them where due. .] In the last you apologize for your letters of introduction to Americans coming here. It is it’s natural manure. It is so far from needing apology on your part, that it calls for thanks on mine. Thomas Jefferson never said, “every generation needs a new revolution”, but he did say, “ There are very good articles in it: and very bad. persevering lying. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? & tyrants. There has been one rebellion. From Anne Willing Bingham, [1 June 1787] 392 We have had 13. states independant 11. years. I know that there are combustible materials there, and that they wait the torch only. Dear Sir. 380. The part which is wrong will be discontented in proportion to the importance of the facts they misconceive. If they remain quiet under such misconceptions, it is a lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty." Appendix I: List of Appointments, [3 July-13 October]711. Thomas Jefferson. 384. 385. From Thomas Jefferson to William Smith. We must be contented to amuse, when we cannot inform. I do not know which preponderate. 1787. the people can not be all, & always, well informed. Smith was secretary of the Legation at London in 1784. . To William S. Smith Paris, Nov. 13, 1787. What country before ever existed a century and half without a rebellion? Yet where does this anarchy exist? It will be yet three weeks before I shall receive them from America. is to set them right as to facts, pardon & pacify them. All rights reserved. Jobs | By Steve Straub Published August 21, 2013 at 12:09pm Share on Facebook Tweet Share Share Email. there has been one rebellion. the remedy (William Stephens Smith to Jefferson). Steve Straub July 29, 2013 at 8:04pm. the British ministry have so long hired their gazetteers to repeat and model into every form lies about our being in anarchy, that the world has at length believed them, the English nation has believed them, the ministers themselves have come to believe them, & what is more wonderful, we have believed … Dinner Attendance by Members of Congress, [5 November 1804-27 February 1805]720 yet where does this anarchy exist? the British ministry have so long hired THE SNEAKER BULLETIN. From George Washington, 30 May 1787. Thomas Jefferson, Letter to William Stephens Smith 11-13-1787. Thomas Jefferson, Letter to William Stephens Smith 11-13-1787. I am now to acknowledge the receipt of your favors of October the 4th, 8th, & 26th. the English nation has believed them, the ministers themselves June 10, 1816, Lebanon, NY) was a United States Representative from New York. And can history produce an instance of a rebellion so honourably conducted? that I hope in god this article will be rectified before the new constitution is accepted.âYou ask me if any thing transpires here on the subject of S. America? 8th. They were the parents of at least 3 sons and 1 daughter. Paris Feb. 2. One of my favorite quotes is from Thomas Jefferson’s 1787 letter to William Stephens Smith. Writing in November 1787 to John Adams’ son-in-law, William S. Smith, Jefferson blurted, God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion. To William Stephens Smith. Note: The annotations to this document, and any other has been too much impressed by. It is its natural manure.” –Letter from Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, Nov 13, 1787 Thomas Jefferson, the author of America’s July 4, 1776 Declaration of Secession from the British empire, was a lifelong advocate of both the voluntary union of the free, independent, and sovereign states, and of the right of secession. The "Tree of Liberty" letter From Thomas Jefferson to William Smith. the part which is wrong will be discontented Thomas Jefferson to William Smith. Extract from Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith Paris Nov. 13. our Convention DEAR SIR, -- I am now to acknoledge the receipt of … signify a few lives lost in a century or two? 8th. the tree of liberty But this country probably will join the extinguishers.âThe want of facts worth communicating to you has occasioned me to give a little loose to dissertation. comes to one rebellion in a century & a half for each state. PrC (DLC). Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) QUOTATION: The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. Print. Share on Facebook Tweet Share Share Email. From Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, 13 November 1787. This statute made it a federal crime to aid military operations against nations with which the United States was “at peace.” preserve, publish, and encourage the use of documentary sources, relating to the history of Some of Miranda’s friends in the U.S. government were Alexander Hamilton and Henry Knox, but with the former dead and the latter retired, his most influential supporter was Colonel William Stephens Smith, a New York customs official and brother-in-law of John Quincy Adams. believed them ourselves. Tag Archives: Thomas Jefferson. if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people When Col. William Stephens Smith was born on 8 November 1755, in Long Island City, Queens, New York, United States, his father, John Smith, was 15 and his mother, Margaret Stephens, was 22. Founding Father Document: Letter to William Stephens Smith - Letter written by Thomas Jefferson on November 13, 1787 to William Stephens Smith, contains the famous line, public. will be discontented in proportion to the importance of the facts they misconceive. and 26th. It would seem that President Thomas Jefferson had individuals occupying positions in government, ... ( Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, Paris, 13 Nov. 1787) Paris, November 13, 1787 In a 1787 letter to William Stephens Smith, the son-in-law of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson used the phrase "tree of liberty":. a rebellion? . Records Commission. what it is it's natural manure. Years later, Miranda wrote the following about Adams: Through its grants program, the NHPRC supports a wide range of activities to From Jeudy de l'Hommande, 31 May 1787. The latter makes one article in a considerable account, of old standing, and which I cannot present for want of this article.âI do not know whether it is to yourself or Mr. Adams I am to give my thanks for the copy of the new constitution. The British ministry have so long hired their gazetteers to repeat and model into every form lies about our being in anarchy, that the world has at length believed them, the English nation has believed them, the ministers themselves have come to believe them, and what is more wonderful, we have believed them ourselves. (Jefferson to William Stephens Smith). Where did it ever exist, except in the single instance of Massachusets? — Letter to William Stephens Smith (13 November 1787). the part which is wrong [. god forbid we should ever be 20 let them take arms. 1786 October 1. Modified and Misquoted. --Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, 1787. DEAR SIR,-- I am now to acknoledge the receipt of your favors of October the 4th, 8th, & 26th. ATTRIBUTION: THOMAS JEFFERSON, letter to William Stephens Smith, November 13, 1787.—The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, ed. Wonderful is the effect of impudent and persevering lying. I am now to acknolege the receipt of your favors of October the 4th. Thomas Jefferson, Our Security Comes From a Written Constitution. That comes to one rebellion in a century and a half for each state. But this was foreseen by Jefferson, “Lethargy [is] the forerunner of death to the public liberty.” he wrote to William Stephens Smith in 1787. 1. Published in PTJ, 12:557–59. From Miguel de Lardizábel y Uribe, 30 May 1787. the people cannot be all, & I am now to acknolege the receipt of your favors of October the 4th. He married Abigail "Nabby" Adams, the daughter of President John Adams, and was a brother-in-law of President John Quincy Adams. . USA.gov. Steve Straub August 21, 2013 at 12:09pm. https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/01-12-02-0348, From Smith to Jefferson [26 October 1787], From Smith to Jefferson [3 December 1787], All correspondence between Smith and Jefferson, National Historical Publications and . states independant 11. years. Not a word. 1787. persevering lying. Paris Nov. 13. Authors hate it when their writing is modified or misquoted. & what country can preserve it's liberties 714. Thomas Jefferson: Radical and Racist, October 1996. we have had 13. In a 1787 letter to William Stephens Smith, the son-in-law of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson used the phrase "tree of liberty": It was to Adams that TJ owed the copy of the new constitution (see Adams to TJ, 10 Nov. 1787), and, thanks to the French chargé dâaffaires in New York, TJ was wrong in thinking that it would be three weeks before he would receive other copies from America: Ottoâs copies arrived two days after the present letter was written (see Otto to TJ, 25 Sep. 1787). From Martha Jefferson, 27 May 1787. They were founded in ignorance, not wickedness. He returned to America in 1788. And what country can preserve itâs liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? William Stephens Smith (b. November 8, 1755, Suffolk County, NY–d. Present my respects to Mrs. Smith, and be assured of the sincere esteem of Dear Sir Your friend & servant. In the last you apologize for your letters of … It is itâs natural manure. ME 6:373, Papers 12:356 The first sentence, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed with the blood of tyrants and patriots." always, well informed. If they remain quiet under such misconceptions it is a lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty. did it ever exist, except in the single instance of Massachusets? While there, he met and courted John Adams's, daughter Abigail ("Nabby"), whom he married in 1786. their gazetteers to repeat and model into every form lies about Extract from Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith. 380. It is so far from needing apology on your part, that it … Donate years without such a rebellion. 1787. preserve the spirit of resistance? 384. In the last you apologise for your letters of introduction to Americans coming here. Appendix II: Dinner Guest Records. must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. Archives. "The people cannot be all, and always, well-informed. Jefferson Papers Title From Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, with Enclosure, 2 February 1788 Author Jefferson, Thomas Recipient Smith, William Stephens Date 2 February 1788 Reference Cite as and 26th. From William Short, 29 May 1787. means that if liberty is to exist, there will forever be a struggle of free people with the forces of tyranny. I say nothing of itâs motives. He married Abigail Amelia Adams on 12 June 1786, in London, England, United Kingdom. Convinced that the new Constitution was a tragic overreaction to a trivial “tempest” in Massachusetts, he ratcheted upward the rhetorical intensity and bravado. where what country before ever existed a century & half without Letter to William Stephens Smith, 13 Nov. 1787 149 Copy quote Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends [life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness] it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute new government. modern editorial content, are copyright © Princeton University Press. our being in anarchy, that the world has at length believed them, Records Commission (NHPRC) is part of the National What we have lately read in the history of Holland, in the chapter on the Stadtholder, would have sufficed to set me against a Chief magistrate eligible for a long duration, if I had ever been disposed towards one: and what we have always read of the elections of Polish kings should have forever excluded the idea of one continuable for life. “I had rather be shut up in a very modest cottage with my books, my family and a few old friends, dining on simple bacon, and letting the world roll on as it liked, than to occupy the most splendid post, which any human power can give” Accessibility | The people can not be all, and always, well informed. Legal | Paris Nov. 13. 381. 2. Posted on August 27, 2019 by Allen Mesch.