Page 201 - American Stories, A History of the United States

formidable list of grievances. Jay’s main objectives were removal of the British forts on
7.1 U.S. territory, payment for ships taken in the West Indies, improved commercial rela-
tions, and acceptance of the American definition of neutral rights.
Jefferson’s supporters—by now called the Republican interest—anticipated a
7.2 treaty favorable to the United States. After all, they explained, the war with France had
not gone well for Britain, and the British people were surely desperate for American
foodstuffs. Even before Jay departed, however, his mission stood little chance of suc-

7.3 cess. Hamilton, anxious as ever to placate the British, had secretly informed British
officials that the United States would compromise on most issues.
When Jay reached London, he encountered polite but firm resistance. His efforts
7.4 Jay's Treaty Treaty with britain resulted in a political humiliation known as Jay’s Treaty. The chief justice did persuade
negotiated by chief Justice John the British to abandon their frontier posts and allow small American ships to trade in
Jay in 1794. Though the british the British West Indies, but the British rejected outright the U.S. position on neutral
agreed to surrender forts on U.S. rights. The Royal Navy would continue to search American vessels for contraband and
7.5 territory, the treaty provoked a
storm of protest in America. impress sailors suspected of being British citizens. There would be no compensation
for the ships seized in 1793 until the Americans paid British merchants for debts con-
tracted before the Revolution. And to the annoyance of southerners, not a word was
said about the slaves the British had carried off at the conclusion of the war. While Jay
salvaged peace, he appeared to have betrayed the national interest.
News of Jay’s Treaty produced an outcry. Even Washington was apprehensive. He
submitted the document to the Senate without recommending ratification, a sign that
the president was not happy with the results of Jay’s mission. After a bitter debate, the
Senate, controlled by Federalists, accepted a revised version of the treaty. The vote was
20 to 10, the bare two-thirds majority the Constitution required.
The details of the Jay agreement soon leaked to the press. The popular journals
sparked a firestorm of objection. Throughout the country, people who had formerly
been apathetic about national politics were swept up in a wave of protest. Urban mobs
condemned Jay’s alleged sellout; rural settlers burned him in effigy. Jay jokingly told
friends he could find his way across the country simply by following the light of those
fires. Southerners announced they would not pay prerevolutionary debts to British
merchants. The Virginia legislature proposed a constitutional amendment reducing
the Senate’s role in treaty-making.
In the House, Republican congressmen, led by Madison, thought they could stop Jay’s
Treaty by refusing to appropriate funds to implement it. They demanded that Washington
show the House state papers relating to Jay’s mission. The challenge raised complex con-
stitutional issues. The House was claiming a voice in treaty ratification, a power explicitly
reserved to the Senate. There was also the question of executive secrecy in the interest
of national security. Washington told the rebellious representatives that “the nature of
foreign negotiations requires caution; and their success must often depend on secrecy.”
The president played a trump card. He raised the possibility that the House was
contemplating his impeachment. This, of course, was unthinkable. Even criticizing
Washington in public was politically dangerous. As soon as he redefined the issue before
Congress, petitions supporting the president flooded into the nation’s capital. The Mary-
land legislature, for example, declared its “unabated reliance on the integrity, judgment,
and patriotism of the President of the United States,” a statement that called into ques-
tion the patriotism of certain Republican congressmen. The Federalists won a stunning
tactical victory over the opposition. Had a less popular man than Washington occupied
the presidency, however, they would not have fared so well. The division between the
two parties was now beyond repair. The Republicans labeled the Federalists “the British
party”; Federalists believed that the Republicans were in league with the French.
By the time Jay’s Treaty became law (June 14, 1795), the two giants of Washington’s
first cabinet had retired. Late in 1793, Jefferson returned to his Virginia plantation, Monti-
Quick Check cello. Despite his separation from day-to-day political affairs, he remained the chief spokes-
Why did Jay’s Treaty spark man for the Republican Party. His rival, Hamilton, left the Treasury in January 1795 to
such hostility throughout practice law in New York City. He maintained close ties with important Federalists. Even
the nation?
more than Jefferson, Hamilton concerned himself with the details of party organization.
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