Alexander Hamilton: Philadelphia, December 1792
title:
Alexander Hamilton: Philadelphia, December 1792
creator:
Alexander Hamilton
date:
1792
description:
Letter from Alexander Hamilton to W. Mercer recounting their conversation.
description:
Philadelphia December 1792 Sir I called upon you this morning, at your lodgings, to resume and finish the subject of our late conversation but not having seen you, I have concluded to put what I had to say upon paper. Since our last interview I have perused the papers to which you referred me. They exhibit the affair in a form essentially different from that under which it had come to me ; yet they do not entirely free what passed between us from all ambiguity ; and consequently do not supersede the necessity of some futher explantion - conscius as you must be, from all the circumstances, which attended the transaction, that what I said to you could bear no other construction than that of a mere pleasantry. I presume you will not hesitate to remove every shadow of doubt which may remain upon it. The circumstances alluded to, as they rest in my recollection, are as follow... You met me at the door of my office in the public street going from it to dinner, at about three o'clock. Where there happened to be standing four or five Gentlemen conversing together. You immediately began telling me that you had a claim upon the public for some horses killed under you, or lost by you in service, during the late war, which you had not originally thought of worth while to bring forward, but you had concluded to avail yourself of the act lately passed, removing the bar to claims founded on personal service in the army and navy, to obtain an indemnification and had presented your Account to the Auditor or comptroller, I forget which, for settlement, which had been refused...adding that you were sure, if it had been the case of any other person, the justice of the claim was so evident, no difficulty would have benn made. I well remember, that I felt a momentary embarrassment from the address, which appeared to me to impeach the partiality of the office of the Treasury, on the ground of some personal to you - which considering the events of the [?], I could not well avoid referring to my self. A question arose in my mind whether to treat it gravely or with pleasantry.. I resolved upon the latter, as well from a [?] to avoid any disagreeable altercation as from a belief that what you had said was the sudden and inconsiderate effect of disappointment in a matter which you had persuaded yourself was clearly in your favour. I assumed therefore an unequivocal tone of pleasantry - and observed to you that the precedent you were endeavoring to establish would suit me very well for I, also, had lost three or four horses during the war, some of them in consequence of having been wounded under me; but that it appeared to me you would find some difficulty, not with standing all your ingenuity, in making it out a claim for personal service, unless you could establish that yourself and your horse were one person. You answered with some observations aimed at proving to me that the case might be fairly considered as whether the relief intended by the Act - of which not feeling the force, and being [?] to put an end to the dificulties at such a time and place. I replied in the same spirit, and with the same air and maner, with which I had begun - that we would take some other opportunity of finishing the argument - but added I - there is one [?] which will shortent the dificulties very much - if you would vote for the affirmation tomorrow, or if you will change the vote you gave upon the affirmation to day,* (*one or the other was the case) we'll make the thing very easy, we'll contrive to get your account settled. I remember that upon this a laugh went around the persons present, that you joined in it and that we parted in perfect good humour. I will not assert that every circumstance here stated is precisly accurate, but I am more than usually misled by my memory, if this narrative is not in every material particular a correct represenation of what took place. I must now ask you to state to me how far it agrees with or differs, from your recollection of facts, and particularly whether the circumstances not rest clearly as to forbid what I said being understood in an improper sense. You will readily conceive that I must be solicitious to leave no uncertainty upon my meaning. I will barely add that I at the time understood the sum in question to be about three hundred dollars. The reflections, which [?] from the [?] of so triffling a sum are obvious. I am Sir Your obedient Servant Alex Hamilton The Honorable W. Mercer No. 13
subject:
Alexander Hamilton
subject:
John Mercer
subject:
correspondence
subject:
1792
subject:
local
description:
Founding Fathers and Presidents
relation:
Autograph Collection
publisher:
Loyola University Chicago Archives and Special Collections https://www.luc.edu/archives
type:
text
description:
jpg
description:
Scanned from original document.
rights:
Contact the Loyola University Chicago Archives & Special Collections for permission to copy or publish.
identifier:
001-hamilton-dec1792.pdf
language:
English
coverage:
USA
coverage:
Philadelphia
coverage:
18th
publisher:
Loyola University Chicago Archives and Special Collections https://www.luc.edu/archives
relation:
http://www.luc.edu/archives
