ADAMS 



31 



ADAMS 



come to terms and to deal with three new 

 commissioners appointed by Adams. Before 

 these three reached Paris the Directory had 

 been overthrown, but they adjusted all diffi- 

 culties with Napoleon, who had become First 

 Consul. The appointment of this commission, 

 which Adams had chosen without informing 

 his Cabinet, completed the breach in the Fed- 

 eralist party and endangered the reelection of 

 Adams. 



Now that war had been averted, another 

 affair contributed to the end of the Federalist 

 party. In 1798, while the war excitement was 

 at its height, Congress had passed the Alien 

 and Sedition Laws (which see). These acts, 

 promoted by the Federalists, were really in 

 violation of the constitutional rights of free- 

 dom of speech and freedom of the press. They 

 called forth the famous Kentucky and Virginia 

 Resolutions (which see), in which the doctrine 

 of nullification was first stated. Here was the 

 *irst sign of the struggle over states' rights which 

 later nearly split the Union into two sections. 

 In the election of 1800 the Federalists voted 

 for Adams and C. C. Pinckney; the former 

 received sixty-five votes, the latter sixty-four. 

 Burr and Jefferson, the Republican candidates, 

 each received seventy-three votes. Since there 

 was a tie between these two in accordance with 

 Constitution the election fell into the 

 House of Representatives, which chose Jeffer- 

 son as President and Burr as Vice-President. 

 Adams refrained from any participation in the 

 bargaining which led to this result. One of 

 his last official acts as President was the 

 appointment of John Marshall as Chief Jus- 



>f the Supreme Court. 



Old Age. Adams was nearly sixty-six at the 



end of his term. He retired to private life 



ng that his failure to secure reelection was 



a disgrace. He was so bitter and enraged 



that he refused to remain in Washington for 



inauguration of his successor, but hm 

 off in his coach on the morning of March 4, 

 1801. For twenty-five years he lived quietly 

 .is old home in Quincy, emerging from his 

 ment in 1820, when he was chosen a dele- 

 gate to the convention for revising the Massa- 

 chusetts constitution. For many years the bit- 

 ss of his defeat in 1800 remained, but its 

 - was partly removed win n he saw his son 

 John Quincy Adams elected as the sixth Presi- 

 John Adams died on July 4, 1826. 



rsary of the signing of the Decla- 

 ration of Independence. On the same day, 

 and only a few hours earlier, Thomas Jefferson 



DC 



ADMINISTRATION OF 

 1797- JOHN AMMS-1801 



> - . 



Congress Hall, Philadelphia 

 Capitol, 1790-1800 



AUEN \_A\N 

 The pres\dent 

 \cou\d expe\ from 

 the country any 

 1 forevOjner whom 

 he deemed uv 

 jurious to the 

 United States. 



Millions for defense 

 but not one cent 

 for tribute." 



*>ED\T\ON \-A\N 

 Anyone \\beV\nq 

 Congress, the 

 President or the' 

 1 Government couVd 

 be fined or im- 

 pnsoned. 



KENTUCKY 

 AND V\RGW\A 

 RESOLUTIONS 

 Declared the Alien 1 

 and Sedition Laws 

 unconstitutional. 

 Asserted the 

 doctrine of 

 States Riqhts. 



John Marshall 

 Appointed Chief Justice 



WOSTMnulOn UiCQ 



UC 



