Obituary of James Monroe

This is rather amusing – you can check out the obituary of James Monroe at this site. It is rather short when you think he was a President! What I found interesting was that inside of talking about Monroe’s life, it described the funeral instead, including the casket! Monroe was first put in a leaden coffin and then that was put into a mahogany coffin with a silver plate with an inscription that read:

James Monroe
Of Virginia
Died 4th July 1831
Aged 74 years

Again notice it doesn't even list that he was President.

U.S. Presidency Isn't Easy to Pass Along

So, is it tough for one American President to pass the job onto someone else? An article at Yahoo! argues that it is. David Shribman wrote an essay titled U.S. Presidency Isn't Easy to Pass Along. The current Presidential election is included as he talks about Hillary Clinton and George W. Bush.

Shribman wrote, "The thing about the presidency is that it's usually nontransferable...There are exceptions, of course. James Madison wanted James Monroe, his secretary of state (and his secretary of war), to ascend to the White House. Thomas Jefferson supported Monroe as well. Together, they pulled it off. Monroe served two terms and lent his name to the most important foreign-policy doctrine in American history. Andrew Jackson was able to choose his successor, too."

Teddy Roosevelt was able to get Taft elected as well. However, he soon regretted it and ran against him in 1912. And the first President Bush probably had soon influence in getting the second President Bush elected as well eight years after his term ended.

However, many other presidents have failed to get their annointed successor elected. Or, they have not even tried to do so. Shribman wrote, " The problem with trying to transfer the presidency is that the transferrer (a) doesn't have any power to do so; and (b) oftentimes has disadvantages of his own ("negatives," in the argot of politics). Touring the United States in 1842, Charles Dickens described Washington as a City of Magnificent Intentions. Every presidential aspirant is a candidate of Magnificent Intentions. But every president is necessarily a politician of Magnificent Disappointments. The hazards of a president's record detracts from the hope of a candidate's appeal."

Which leads to Hillary Clinton. Can Bill Clinton help get her elected or does his presence actually hurt her? McCain is supportive of many of President Bush's policies but Bush is not embracing McCain. And McCain seems to appreciate that. Is Hillary's link to a past president hurting her? Or has it gotten her further than she would have on her own? Of course, it may make no difference at all.

An Anachronism with Value

It was independent reading time. Many students were at their desks with books they had chosen from my classroom library. Some students were reading at the computers. Two or three had gotten on the floor up under the table portion of their desk. A group was at the back table huddled around a book about the Civil War rich with images. A child with special needs was partnered with another student, and every so often you could hear them reading to each other. Students were also coming and going to the media center. As one student would return they would quietly tap the next one on the shoulder so they could depart. I read during independent reading time as well, but I periodically eye the room and walk the room to make sure everyone is on task.

Occaisionally a student will become so excited about what they have learned or they get so involved with the action in the story they will want to share it with me. I noticed one young man had gotten up and was on his way back to where I sat. He stopped occaisionally to show his book to his friends and neighbors. I could tell by their reactions…..snickers, guffaws, and a continuous stream of hands slapped over open mouths….that whatever was in the book was something that shouldn’t be there, or it was something that was being misinterpreted.

Like the Pied Piper of Hamlin the reporting student soon had a stream of gawkers behind him. By the time he reached my desk there was a line of eight people behind the Pied Piper wanting to get in on the scandal.

I looked up from my book and said, “May I help you?”

A torrid of reports issued forth from each young mouth at the same time.

“There’s a bad word in Kevin’s book.”

“It’s the c-word, Elementaryhistoryteacher.”

“I don’t think my mother wants me to see that word.”

“Why would they have that word in a book for kids?”

“It could mean a rooster. That word means that, you know…”

“My Daddy uses that word, but he put sucker on the the end of it.”

I held up one hand to silence the children before anything else was said that shouldn’t be and held out my other my hand for the book. The Pied Piper handed it over. It was a book from a series of biographies regarding the presidents that is very popular with school libraries. The books have all been reviewed and over the years I think I have read every single one of them at one point or another. The subject of Pied Piper’s book was James Monroe.

“Where’s the word you’re having a problem with?” I asked the Pied Piper. He pointed and there it was in black and white…..the word cock. Of course my young friends had just singled out the one word and alone it can have over fourteen different meanings other than the one that would be inappropriate for elementary age reading. The word was not alone on the page and taken within its entire context it did not mean anything remotely inappropriate.

“Hmmmmmmmm, “I said. “Can I hold your book for a bit? Perhaps we can discuss it later during Social Studies. Can you choose something else to read for the remainder of class today?”

The Pied Piper assured me that he could and we all returned to our reading.

Later I wrote the phrase “last of the cocked hats” on the board. We had a quick lesson reminding students that some words have several meanings and that when quotations are surrounding a group of words they should be taken all together for a particular meaning. The phrase that had set off the Pied Piper’s parade was used to describe President Monroe because he was the last of our presidents who participated in the American Revolution.

Then we had a short review regarding cocked hats and what they are. Many remembered we had discussed the hats many minutemen and other colonials wore during the 1700s. I attempt to develop a fashion sense in students regarding what was worn through various decades because I feel it is just one more skill students can rely on when analyzing historical information. I wrote about fashion sense in an introduction to this post over at History Is Elementary.

Tricorne or three-cornered hats were very popular during the 17th and 18th century. The tricorne style eventually developed into the cocked hat which was popular beginning in the mid-19th century. More than likely when you see an image of a tricorne the patriots and the American Revolution come to mind.

President Monroe was definitely an anachronism in that he continued to wear breeches and a cocked hat even though those items had fallen out of fashion. He wore what was comfortable for him. Even at their young age my students are very conscience regarding what they wear and what their friends wear, so I like to hit on the fact that Monroe was thinking very independently with his clothing choice. I ask them to brainstorm regarding reasons why Monroe chose Revolutionary dress rather than newer fashions. Some of the reasons why ranged from he couldn’t afford anything else (somewhat possible since Monroe had money problem) to he was simply more comfortable in the breeches and hat and that he didn’t care what anyone else thought.

To get kids into the mind-set of connecting to Monroe’s fashion sense I usually begin by asking them to write about a favorite piece of clothing they have. Perhaps it is a sweatshirt, a pair of jeans, a pair of shoes. I ask them to detail how the article of clothing came to be theirs and why it is a favorite. I encourage them to provide me with details that really tap into to their senses….how the article feels, how it smells (hopefully after being washed), and how it sounds as their body moves around. Finally, I ask them to address this question: If you could, would you always wear this article of clothing? Most say they would.

Early in his presidency James Monroe used his Revolutionary background to connect to the American people and to remind them concerning how our nation was created. He toured the nation three different times resulting in the fact that more Americans could boast they had seen their president with their own eyes than at any other time in the nation’s history.
James Monroe was not only an anachronism but he was considered to be the last of what is termed the Virginia Dynasty meaning that four of our first five presidents were from Virginia. There were several issues surrounding Monroe’s time in office….slavery, Native Americans, westward expansion, foreign relations following the War of 1812, and the young nation was still attempting to get a handle on the state and federal government relationship. It seems many folks had an opinion and very few wanted to compromise and agree on the best course of action to take regarding the nation’s problems. These problems could not be tackeled until the rift of party factualism had been tackled.

The first tour Monroe undertook was to New England and he paid for it with his own money. He traveled as any citizen would without pomp or ceremony. The President’s itinerary included important American Revolution as well as War of 1812 sites in order to honor veterans and to remind citizens how important certain events were in the founding of our nation.

The tours were very successful. President Monroe, an anachronism representing our nation’s founding and the “last of the cocked hats”, did a great job of tying together the memory of George Washington and patriot feelings to help heal some of the division in the nation caused by the War of 1812 and other national issues. Monroe is often remembered as the president who ushered in the Era of Good Feelings which is characterized by a time period of conciliation and compromise rather than partisan attacks. Actually the phrase regarding good feelings was bestowed by a journalist in response to the reactions stemming from Monroe’s New England visit.

Of course, the good feelings didn’t last and soon the nation was experiencing the Panic of 1919 and the debate over slavery came to the forefront again resulting in the Missouri Compromise of 1820, and by 1824 four men vied for the presidency resulting in cries of a corrupt bargain.

For a brief time, however, an anacronism reminded our country what it was to have a hunger for liberty and why we owe our Revolutionary forefathers so very much.

U.S. Mint offers sneak peek of 2008 dollar coins

Is it me or does President Van Buren look like a goofy professor?

From USA Today:

On Thursday, the U.S. Mint offers the first glimpse of four presidential $1 coins it plans to issue in 2008. The coins bear the images of the fifth through the eighth U.S. presidents.

Beginning Feb. 14, the Mint will issue a new dollar every three months. James Monroe will be first, followed by John Quincy Adams on May 15, Andrew Jackson on Aug. 14 and Martin Van Buren on Nov. 13.

Poll: Who was the most effective early President?

The poll has closed for the question, "Who was the most effective early President?" Thanks to those who participated by voting.

George Washington won handily with 60%. Thomas Jefferson came in a distant second with 18%. James Monroe received 11% and John Adams got 5%. James Madison came in last with 3%.

Monroe Crossing the Delaware

Monroe crossing the Delaware.

That sounds strange, doesn’t it? The name of the famous painting should be correctly termed Washington Crossing the Delaware. I misnamed it on purpose to bring another president to the forefront because President James Monroe is also depicted in this famous painting.

Do you see him? The boat is rather crowded, isn’t it? You might notice several different figures of interest. Can you pick out the man of Scottish descent? What about the African Prince Whipple? Can you find the two frontiersmen? The two farmers? What about the man who looks very feminine? No, this isn’t going to be a replay of The Davinci Code…..but, you’ve got to admit the man with the red shirt does look feminine, or at least many art scholars seem to think so.

The artist, Emanuel Leutze, positioned many different types of people in the boat. He was attempting to show that the desire for independence….the willingness to fight for it existed all across the colonies from an African to even the remote west. The feminine man has been suggested by some art scholars to be representative of the many women who followed men in battle and even fought themselves.

Take another look at the painting. The frontiersmen are located at the bow and stern of the durham boat. Prince Whipple is seen kneeling by George Washington. He is looking backwards and is on the backside of the boat. Arguments exists that lay out the case that Whipple did not actually cross with Washington and that he may have been in Baltimore at the time. The two men with hats are the farmers. One has a bandaged head. The Scottish man is on the side of the boat closest to the viewer sitting even with Prince Whipple and he is also facing backwards.

George Washington is very easy to pick out, but what about James Monroe. Where is he? See the young man holding the flag. There he is. The two of them are interesting together in that Washington was our first president under the Constitution while Monroe was our last president who actually fought in the Revolution. Yes, I know that Andrew Jackson was involved during the Revolution, however, he was very young, was a courier, and was held as a British prisoner during the war.

The flag Monroe is holding is one of the inaccuracies of the painting because it did not exist on December 25, 1776. The correct flag at the time would have been the Grand Union flag, the standard of the Continental Army. Many argue even this, however, it would not have been the one used if one was used at all.

There are some questions concerning if Monroe would have actually crossed with Washington. Monroe was a lieutenant at the time and he was at Trenton. He did cross that night along with several other notables in U.S. history including future Chief Justice John Marshall, Aaron Burr, and Alexander Hamilton. It has been documented that Monroe was quartered in the house where the decision was made to cross the Delaware and he may have been involved in the discussion. He has been described as a scout and advisor to Washington, but there have been no records to indicate he crossed in Washington’s boat.

James Monroe attended William and Mary College in Williamsburg at the time the Revolution was heating up. When Royal Governor Dunmore left the capital the Governor’s Palace was exposed, and it is said that Jame Monroe joined in with some of his college friends to loot the arsenal. Two hundred muskets and three hundred swords were obtained for the cause. Later Monroe joined the Virginia Third Regiment in the spring of 1776 and saw action in New York before heading to Trenton. Monroe also served as an aide to General William Alexander, was at Valley Forge, and the Battle of Monmouth.

For his efforts at Trenton James Monroe received a near fatal wound to his shoulder. In fact only two Americans were wounded at Trenton….Monroe and William Washington, a cousin to George Washington. The injury occcurred as the Americans tried to rush the Hessian soldiers to prevent them from using their guns. The bullet grazed Monroe’s chest before entering the shoulder. John Bumgarner’s The Health of the President advises a major artery that brings blood to the arm was injured. Monroe would have bled to death if a doctor had not saved his life by sticking his index finger into the wound and applying pressure. The bullet remained in Monroe shoulder for the rest of his life.

James Monroe was an authentic Revolutionary War hero and he died appropriately on July 4th following in the footsteps of Jefferson and Adams who had passed on the same date five years earlier.

My DC Trip....Part III: Ash Lawn - Highland

So you are all probably wondering what took me so long to get to Part III! Well, unfortunately life intervened, but finally here is Ash Lawn (Highland).

Highland was the home of James Monroe. Notice the name change? Well, the Monroes' called their home Highland, but after their deaths it was called Ash Lawn. As a historian, I'm being obstinate and using Highland.

Actually I didn’t realize that it was so close to Monticello. I had planned on going to Montpelier and Monticello from my map and I knew that Monroe was from Virginia, but not where in the state he was. As I got closer to Monticello I also began seeing signs for Highland. It turns out that Highland is only a few miles from Monticello (next door neighbors when you are talking about plantations). After I left Monticello I started following the signs for Highland. After getting lost only once, I found it. I didn’t have time to actually tour the house (my husband kind of expected me to pick him up eventually!), but did go take a quick look.

Highland is owned and operated by the College of William and Mary. You can take a virtual tour of the place on your computer.

The Monroe’s house was a farmhouse, but elegantly decorated with many items from Napoleonic France. This Neoclassical chair was made in Paris in 1800. I used this picture because this chair actually looks like it might be comfortable and I find that most antiques look the exact opposite!

The dining room set is Hepplewhite and the chairs went with them to the White House.

The grounds of Highland are huge – 535 acres today and 3500 acres in Monroe’s time. You can see these pictures that I took on the long drive way. The Monroes were slave owners. Thomas Jefferson noted that Monroe’s slave quarters were "of much better built than is usual....,” but they were still slaves. The Highland website on Monroe slaves ends with this thought:
In the main house, the formal rooms on the main floor remind visitors how dependent the household was on its slave labor force. The banquet of food in the dining room, the pressed linens in the chamber, and the polished furniture and swept floors all bear witness to a labor force that is, today, all but invisible. The challenge for Ash Lawn-Highland is to remind the modern visitor of the profound influence of this invisible force, whose coerced labor enabled the plantation system to function and to thrive.

Highland offers a wide variety of workshops and tours. You can access their schedule and see that there is something for almost any taste. I was quite impressed with the workshop choices.

Some things to remember about Highland:

• The signs are clear and you should have no trouble finding it, although after you get past Monticello there are a couple of places were it seems like you’ve gone too far, but you really haven’t. It really is out in the country!
• Admission is $9 for adults, making it much cheaper than Monticello. As a note, you can purchase a joint ticket (the Presidents’ Pass) for Monticello and Highland, making it cheaper for you to visit. This pass includes Michie Tavern as well. It also offers discounts to local residents, Triple A members, seniors and children. They do offer group rates and if you take a workshop (which is $15 for adults and $10 for students), you get a house tour with it.
• Ash Lawn does a summer opera festival if you are interested. Since they are affiliated with William and Mary they have a huge offering of special events – check out what is going on while you are in the area.

Well, this concludes my trip posts. Hope you enjoyed them!

If you missed a part you can find them:

Introduction

Part I: Montpelier

Part II: Monticello

Furnishings, Personal Objects, and Portraits of a President

The University of Mary Washington has a James Monroe Museum Memorial Library. One of the online exhibits is Furnishings, Personal Objects, and Portraits of a President.

When James Monroe was the US Minister to France in the late 1790s, he purchased a suite of Louis XVI furniture. You can see the secretary to the left.

This quilt was pieced by Maria Monroe Gouverneur (Monroe’s daughter). She began the quilt prior to Elizabeth Monroe’s death in 1830, but never finished it.

This tiara was Elizabeth Monroe’s. It is unsure how Mrs. Monroe purchased this piece, but it probably originally belonged to the Bonaparte family.

This is Elizabeth’s Necessaire Kit and probably was inherited from her family. The kit was for holding personal care items.

Governor James Monroe And Southampton Slave Resistance Of 1799 - Critical Essay

Governor James Monroe And Southampton Slave Resistance Of 1799 - Critical Essay. Paper by Arthur Scherr which looks at Virginia Governor James Monroe's suppression of slave resistance in Southampton in 1799. Scroll down the page to find the article. The page looks bad due to some dumb coding but the article is there if you scroll down.

From the site:

James Monroe's governorship of Virginia (1799-1802) is best known for the violent suppression of "Gabriel's slave conspiracy" in 1800, in which freedom-seeking slaves from Henrico and neighboring counties plotted to burn the capital, Richmond, kill its white slaveholders, and kidnap Governor Monroe. The rebellion was quickly crushed, and over 30 blacks were executed in its aftermath. Less well known is Monroe's involvement in another case of slave resistance that took place in Southampton County in 1799 shortly after Monroe took office.

On 15 October, Georgia slave traders Joshua Butte and Harris Spears (or Spiers), partners of James Simms, a member of Georgia's legislature, used ten thousand dollars Simms had embezzled from the state treasury to purchase "a considerable number" of slaves in southeastern Virginia's Southampton County.(1) Travelling along the high road leading from Broadwater to Jerusalem, Butte and Spiers also bought several Maryland blacks from Virginia slave dealers William Boykin and Ben Drew, adding them to their Georgia-bound slave coffle. Several of the Maryland slaves, wielding sticks, knives, and pistols, escaped after having robbed and murdered Butte and Spiers. When the slave patrol caught up with them, ten runaways reportedly were killed, but five were recaptured, identified, and tried before the Southampton County court of oyer and terminer (criminal court). Their names--Hatter Isaac, Old Sam, Jerry, Isaac, and Young Sam--suggest family ties between four of them.(2)

The eight-magistrate court, headed by Chief Justice Benjamin Blunt, Southampton's county lieutenant and militia commander during the Revolution, convicted the first four men of "conspiracy, insurrection, rebellion, and murder" on 25 October 1799 and scheduled their hanging for 25 November. Young Sam pleaded benefit of clergy, an option for first-time youthful offenders until 1848, and was released after receiving 39 lashes and a branding on the hand. Governor Monroe reprieved the other four slaves for several months while he determined whether they had perhaps been freedmen defending themselves from kidnappers. In the interim he pardoned one slave, young Jerry; a second slave, Old Sam, died of exposure in the county jail during the winter. On 5 May 1800, Monroe consented to the execution of the two remaining convicts.(3)

Monroe, James

Monroe, James. An encyclopedic biography from the New Book of Knowledge written for 3-8 grade students. Includes fact file and inaugural addresses.

From the site:

James Monroe was the last of the Virginia Dynasty of U.S. presidents, which also included Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. A modest man, Monroe was overshadowed by the brilliance of his great contemporaries, but his honesty and integrity won him wide esteem and the unwavering loyalty of his friends. He spent nearly all of his adult life in the public service, steadily rising to ever higher office. As president, he is best known for his proclamation of the Monroe Doctrine, opposing European intervention in the affairs of the countries of the Western Hemisphere. His two terms in office, sometimes called the Era of Good Feelings, were generally a period of national optimism, growth, and expansion for the United States.

Second Inaugural Address of James Monroe

Second Inaugural Address of James Monroe. This is the speech given the second time President James Monroe took the oath of office. It was delivered on March 5, 1821.

From the site:

shall not attempt to describe the grateful emotions which the new and very distinguished proof of the confidence of my fellow-citizens, evinced by my reelection to this high trust, has excited in my bosom. The approbation which it announces of my conduct in the preceding term affords me a consolation which I shall profoundly feel through life. The general accord with which it has been expressed adds to the great and never-ceasing obligations which it imposes. To merit the continuance of this good opinion, and to carry it with me into my retirement as the solace of advancing years, will be the object of my most zealous and unceasing efforts.

Having no pretensions to the high and commanding claims of my predecessors, whose names are so much more conspicuously identified with our Revolution, and who contributed so preeminently to promote its success, I consider myself rather as the instrument than the cause of the union which has prevailed in the late election In surmounting, in favor of my humble pretensions, the difficulties which so often produce division in like occurrences, it is obvious that other powerful causes, indicating the great strength and stability of our Union, have essentially contributed to draw you together. That these powerful causes exist, and that they are permanent, is my fixed opinion; that they may produce a like accord in all questions touching, however remotely, the liberty, prosperity and happiness of our country will always be the object of my most fervent prayers to the Supreme Author of All Good.

In a government which is founded by the people, who possess exclusively the sovereignty, it seems proper that the person who may be placed by their suffrages in this high trust should declare on commencing its duties the principles on which he intends to conduct the Administration. If the person thus elected has served the preceding term, an opportunity is afforded him to review its principal occurrences and to give such further explanation respecting them as in his judgment may be useful to his constituents. The events of one year have influence on those of another, and, in like manner, of a preceding on the succeeding Administration. The movements of a great nation are connected in all their parts. If errors have been committed they ought to be corrected; if the policy is sound it ought to be supported. It is by a thorough knowledge of the whole subject that our fellow-citizens are enabled to judge correctly of the past and to give a proper direction to the future.

First Inaugural Address of James Monroe

First Inaugural Address of James Monroe. This is the complete text of this Inaugural speech presented by President Monroe in 1817.

From the site:

I should be destitute of feeling if I was not deeply affected by the strong proof which my fellow-citizens have given me of their confidence in calling me to the high office whose functions I am about to assume. As the expression of their good opinion of my conduct in the public service, I derive from it a gratification which those who are conscious of having done all that they could to merit it can alone feel. MY sensibility is increased by a just estimate of the importance of the trust and of the nature and extent of its duties, with the proper discharge of which the highest interests of a great and free people are intimately connected. Conscious of my own deficiency, I cannot enter on these duties without great anxiety for the result. From a just responsibility I will never shrink, calculating with confidence that in my best efforts to promote the public welfare my motives will always be duly appreciated and my conduct be viewed with that candor and indulgence which I have experienced in other stations.

In commencing the duties of the chief executive office it has been the practice of the distinguished men who have gone before me to explain the principles which would govern them in their respective Administrations. In following their venerated example my attention is naturally drawn to the great causes which have contributed in a principal degree to produce the present happy condition of the United States. They will best explain the nature of our duties and shed much light on the policy which ought to be pursued in future.

From the commencement of our Revolution to the present day almost forty years have elapsed, and from the establishment of this Constitution twenty-eight. Through this whole term the Government has been what may emphatically be called self-government. And what has been the effect? To whatever object we turn our attention, whether it relates to our foreign or domestic concerns, we find abundant cause to felicitate ourselves in the excellence of our institutions. During a period fraught with difficulties and marked by very extraordinary events the United States have flourished beyond example. Their citizens individually have been happy and the nation prosperous.

History of Liberia

History of Liberia. It is a well known but still interesting bit of trivia that the capitol of Liberia is named after President Monroe.

From the site:

Portuguese explorers established contacts with Liberia as early as 1461 and named the area Grain Coast because of the abundance of grains of Malegueta Pepper. In 1663 the British installed trading posts on the Grain Coast, but the Dutch destroyed these posts a year later. There were no further reports of European settlements along the Grain Coast until the arrival of freed slaves in the early 1800s.

Liberia, which means "land of the free," was founded by freed slaves from the United States in 1820. These freed slaves, called Americo-Liberians, first arrived in Liberia and established a settlement in Christopolis now Monrovia (named after U.S. President James Monroe) on February 6, 1820. This group of 86 immigrants formed the nucleus of the settler population of what became known as the Republic of Liberia.

James Madison and James Monroe

James Madison and James Monroe - Features information on America's fourth and fifth presidents with an emphasis on their similarities and differences in politics and childhood.

From the site:

A few years ago two popular singers who had discovered that their work was very sympathetic, each to the other, made a recording that they called "Twin Sons of Different Mothers." That is a phrase which could also be applied to James Madison and James Monroe — and indeed increased to triplets, to include Thomas Jefferson. These men shared so much — and from each came one of the three great documents of the formation of our country in the world, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Monroe Doctrine.

Madison and Monroe were both born in the Northern Neck (as was Washington, and ancestors of many others, including Jefferson), and both spent their mature years on piedmont Virginia farms they loved, in Albemarle and Orange and Loudoun counties. Their lives were tightly interwoven, like brothers — including healthy rivalries, as when Monroe twice ran against Madison, and one major period of strain, when for two years they did not speak to or see each other. And they began and ended their careers as colleagues and personal friends.

Amendment X: James Monroe, Views of the President of the United States on the Subject of Internal Improvements

Amendment X: James Monroe, Views of the President of the United States on the Subject of Internal Improvements This is an article that was written by James Monroe's giving his opinion on the tenth amendment of the constitution.

From the site:

Having presented above a full view of all the powers granted to the United States, it will be proper to look to those remaining to the States. It is by fixing the great powers which are admitted to belong to each government that we may hope to come to a right conclusion respecting those in controversy between them. In regard to the National Government, this task was easy because its powers were to be found in specific grants in the Constitution; but it is more difficult to give a detail of the powers of the State governments, as their constitutions, containing all powers granted by the people not specifically taken from them by grants to the United States, can not well be enumerated. Fortunately, a precise detail of all the powers remaining to the State governments is not necessary in the present instance. A knowledge of their great powers only will answer every purpose contemplated, and respecting these there can be no diversity in opinion. They are sufficiently recognized and established by the Constitution of the United States itself. In designating the important powers of the State governments it is proper to observe, first, that the territory contemplated by the Constitution belongs to each State in its separate character and not to the United States in their aggregate character. Each State holds territory according to its original charter, except in cases where cessions have been made to the United States by individual States. The United States had none when the Constitution was adopted which had not been thus ceded to them and which they held on the conditions on which such cession had been made. Within the individual States it is believed that they held not a single acre; but if they did it was as citizens held it, merely as private property. The territory acquired by cession lying without the individual States rests on a different principle, and is provided for by a separate and distinct part of the Constitution. It is the territory within the individual States to which the Constitution in its great principles applies, and it applies to such territory as the territory of a State and not as that of the United States. The next circumstance to be attended to is that the people composing this Union are the people of the several States, and not of the United States in the full sense of a consolidated government. The militia are the militia of the several States; lands are held under the laws of the States; descents, contracts, and all the concerns of private property, the administration of justice, and the whole criminal code, except in the cases of breaches of the laws of the United States made under and in conformity with the powers vested in Congress and of the laws of nations, are regulated by State laws. This enumeration shows the great extent of the powers of the State governments. The territory and the people form the basis on which all governments are founded. The militia constitutes their effective force. The regulation and protection of property and of personal liberty are also among the highest attributes of sovereignty. This, without other evidence, is sufficient to show that the great office of the Constitution of the United States is to unite the States together under a Government endowed with powers adequate to the purposes of its institution, relating, directly or indirectly, to foreign concerns, to the discharge of which a National Government thus formed alone could be competent.

James Monroe

James Monroe This is a biography of President James Monroe. It is from USA Presidents.

From the site:

James Monroe ( April 28 , 1758 - July 4 , 1831 ) was the fifth ( 1817 - 1825 ) President of the United States . He is credited with the development of the Monroe Doctrine .

His parents Spence Monroe (c. 1727 - 1774 ) and Elizabeth Jones (born c. 1729 ) were well-to-do farmers.

In 1802 , then-president Thomas Jefferson sent Monroe to Paris to assist in the negotiations of the Louisiana Purchase .

Monroe's presidency was later labeled "The Era of Good Feeling", in part because partisan politics were almost nonexistent. The Federalist Party had died out, the Whig Party had not yet risen, and practically every politician belonged to what is now known as the Democratic Party . Monroe, the last American Revolutionary War veteran to serve as president, was almost uncontested in his two elections.