The Correspondence of Thomas Jefferson
By Subject
UNITY / POLITICAL PARTIES / DISSENSION IN THE CABINET
I am sorry to learn that your rural occupations impede so much the
progress of your much to be desired work. You owe to republicanism,
and indeed to the future hopes of man, a faithful record of the march
of this government, which may encourage the oppressed to go and do so
likewise. Your talents, your principles, and your means of access to
public and private sources of information, with the leisure which is
at your command, point you out as the person who is to do this act of
justice to those who believe in the improvability of the condition of
man, and who have acted on that behalf, in opposition to those who
consider man as a beast of burden made to be rode by him who has
genius enough to get a bridle into his mouth.
The dissensions between two members of the Cabinet are to be
lamented. But why should these force Mr. Gallatin to withdraw? They
cannot be greater than between Hamilton and myself, and yet we served
together four years in that way. We had indeed no personal
dissensions. Each of us, perhaps, thought well of the other as a man,
but as politicians it was impossible for two men to be of more
opposite principles.
to Joel Barlow, 24 January 1810
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