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James Monroe Speech - First Inaugural Address
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.
Under this Constitution our commerce has been wisely regulated with
foreign nations and between the States; new States have been admitted into
our Union; our territory has been enlarged by fair and honorable treaty,
and with great advantage to the original States; the States, respectively
protected by the National Government under a mild, parental system against
foreign dangers, and enjoying within their separate spheres, by a wise
partition of power, a just proportion of the sovereignty, have improved
their police, extended their settlements, and attained a strength and
maturity which are the best proofs of wholesome laws well administered.
And if we look to the condition of individuals what a proud spectacle does
it exhibit! On whom has oppression fallen in any quarter of our Union? Who
has been deprived of any right of person or property? Who restrained from
offering his vows in the mode which he prefers to the Divine Author of his
being? It is well known that all these blessings have been enjoyed in
their fullest extent; and I add with peculiar satisfaction that there has
been no example of a capital punishment being inflicted on anyone for the
crime of high treason.
Some who might admit the competency of our Government to these beneficent
duties might doubt it in trials which put to the test its strength and
efficiency as a member of the great community of nations. Here too
experience has afforded us the most satisfactory proof in its favor. Just
as this Constitution was put into action several of the principal States
of Europe had become much agitated and some of them seriously convulsed.
Destructive wars ensued, which have of late only been terminated. In the
course of these conflicts the United States received great injury from
several of the parties. It was their interest to stand aloof from the
contest, to demand justice from the party committing the injury, and to
cultivate by a fair and honorable conduct the friendship of all. War
became at length inevitable, and the result has shown that our Government
is equal to that, the greatest of trials, under the most unfavorable
circumstances. Of the virtue of the people and of the heroic exploits of
the Army, the Navy, and the militia I need not speak.
Such, then, is the happy Government under which we live--a Government
adequate to every purpose for which the social compact is formed; a
Government elective in all its branches, under which every citizen may by
his merit obtain the highest trust recognized by the Constitution; which
contains within it no cause of discord, none to put at variance one
portion of the community with another; a Government which protects every
citizen in the full enjoyment of his rights, and is able to protect the
nation against injustice from foreign powers.
Other considerations of the highest importance admonish us to cherish our
Union and to cling to the Government which supports it. Fortunate as we
are in our political institutions, we have not been less so in other
circumstances on which our prosperity and happiness essentially depend.
Situated within the temperate zone, and extending through many degrees of
latitude along the Atlantic, the United States enjoy all the varieties of
climate, and every production incident to that portion of the globe.
Penetrating internally to the Great Lakes and beyond the sources of the
great rivers which communicate through our whole interior, no country was
ever happier with respect to its domain. Blessed, too, with a fertile
soil, our produce has always been very abundant, leaving, even in years
the least favorable, a surplus for the wants of our fellow-men in other
countries. Such is our peculiar felicity that there is not a part of our
Union that is not particularly interested in preserving it. The great
agricultural interest of the nation prospers under its protection. Local
interests are not less fostered by it. Our fellow-citizens of the North
engaged in navigation find great encouragement in being made the favored
carriers of the vast productions of the other portions of the United
States, while the inhabitants of these are amply recompensed, in their
turn, by the nursery for seamen and naval force thus formed and reared up
for the support of our common rights. Our manufactures find a generous
encouragement by the policy which patronizes domestic industry, and the
surplus of our produce a steady and profitable market by local wants in
less-favored parts at home.
Such, then, being the highly favored condition of our country, it is the
interest of every citizen to maintain it. What are the dangers which
menace us? If any exist they ought to be ascertained and guarded against.
In explaining my sentiments on this subject it may be asked, What raised
us to the present happy state? How did we accomplish the Revolution? How
remedy the defects of the first instrument of our Union, by infusing into
the National Government sufficient power for national purposes, without
impairing the just rights of the States or affecting those of individuals?
How sustain and pass with glory through the late war? The Government has
been in the hands of the people. To the people, therefore, and to the
faithful and able depositaries of their trust is the credit due. Had the
eople of the United States been educated in different principles had they
been less intelligent, less independent, or less virtuous can it be
believed that we should have maintained the same steady and consistent
career or been blessed with the same success? While, then, the constituent
body retains its present sound and healthful state everything will be
safe. They will choose competent and faithful representatives for every
department. It is only when the people become ignorant and corrupt, when
they degenerate into a populace, that they are incapable of exercising the
sovereignty. Usurpation is then an easy attainment, and an usurper soon
found. The people themselves become the willing instruments of their own
debasement and ruin. Let us, then, look to the great cause, and endeavor
to preserve it in full force. Let us by all wise and constitutional
measures promote intelligence among the people as the best means of
preserving our liberties.
Dangers from abroad are not less deserving of attention. Experiencing the
fortune of other nations, the United States may be again involved in war,
and it may in that event be the object of the adverse party to overset our
Government, to break our Union, and demolish us as a nation. Our distance
from Europe and the just, moderate, and pacific policy of our Government
may form some security against these dangers, but they ought to be
anticipated and guarded against. Many of our citizens are engaged in
commerce and navigation, and all of them are in a certain degree dependent
on their prosperous state. Many are engaged in the fisheries. These
interests are exposed to invasion in the wars between other powers, and we
should disregard the faithful admonition of experience if we did not
expect it. We must support our rights or lose our character, and with it,
perhaps, our liberties. A people who fail to do it can scarcely be said to
hold a place among independent nations. National honor is national
property of the highest value. The sentiment in the mind of every citizen
is national strength. It ought therefore to be cherished.
To secure us against these dangers our coast and inland frontiers should
be fortified, our Army and Navy, regulated upon just principles as to the
force of each, be kept in perfect order, and our militia be placed on the
best practicable footing. To put our extensive coast in such a state of
defense as to secure our cities and interior from invasion will be
attended with expense, but the work when finished will be permanent, and
it is fair to presume that a single campaign of invasion by a naval force
superior to our own, aided by a few thousand land troops, would expose us
to greater expense, without taking into the estimate the loss of property
and distress of our citizens, than would be sufficient for this great
work. Our land and naval forces should be moderate, but adequate to the
necessary purposes--the former to garrison and preserve our fortifications
and to meet the first invasions of a foreign foe, and, while constituting
the elements of a greater force, to preserve the science as well as all
the necessary implements of war in a state to be brought into activity in
the event of war; the latter, retained within the limits proper in a state
of peace, might aid in maintaining the neutrality of the United States
with dignity in the wars of other powers and in saving the property of
their citizens from spoliation. In time of war, with the enlargement of
which the great naval resources of the country render it susceptible, and
which should be duly fostered in time. of peace, it would contribute
essentially, both as an auxiliary of defense and as a powerful engine of
annoyance, to diminish the calamities of war and to bring the war to a
speedy and honorable
But it ought always to be held prominently in view that the safety of
these States and of everything dear to a free people must depend in an
eminent degree on the militia. Invasions may be made too formidable to be
resisted by any land and naval force which it would comport either with
the principles of our Government or the circumstances of the United States
to maintain. In such cases recourse must be had to the great body of the
people, and in a manner to produce the best effect. It is of the highest
importance, therefore, that they be so organized and trained as to be
prepared for any emergency. The arrangement should be such as to put at
the command of the Government the ardent patriotism and youthful vigor of
the country. If formed on equal and just principles, it can not be
oppressive. It is the crisis which makes the pressure, and not the laws
which provide a remedy for it. This arrangement should be formed, too, in
time of peace, to be the better prepared for war. With such an
organization of such a people the United States have nothing to dread from
foreign invasion. At its approach an overwhelming force of gallant men
might always be put in motion.
Other interests of high importance will claim attention, among which the
improvement of our country by roads and canals, proceeding always with a
constitutional sanction, holds a distinguished place. By thus facilitating
the intercourse between the States we shall add much to the convenience
and comfort of our fellow-citizens, much to the ornament of the country,
and, what is of greater importance, we shall shorten distances, and, by
making each part more accessible to and dependent on the other, we shall
bind the Union more closely together. Nature has done so much for us by
intersecting the country with so many great rivers, bays, and lakes,
approaching from distant points so near to each other, that the inducement
to complete the work seems to be peculiarly strong. A more interesting
spectacle was perhaps never seen than is exhibited within the limits of
the United States--a territory so vast and advantageously situated,
containing objects so grand, so useful, so happily connected in all their
parts!
Our manufacturers will likewise require the systematic and fostering care
of the Government. Possessing as we do all the raw materials, the fruit of
our own soil and industry, we ought not to depend in the degree we have
done on supplies from other countries. While we are thus dependent the
sudden event of war, unsought and unexpected, can not fail to plunge us
into the most serious difficulties It is important, too, that the capital
which nourishes our manufacturers should be domestic, as its influence in
that case instead of exhausting, as it may do in foreign hands, would be
felt advantageously on agriculture and every other branch of industry
Equally important is it to provide at home a market for our raw materials,
as by extending the competition it will enhance the price and protect the
cultivator against the casualties incident to foreign markets.
With the Indian tribes it is our duty to cultivate friendly relations and
to act with kindness and liberality in all our transactions. Equally
proper is it to persevere in our efforts to extend to them the advantages
of civilization.
The great amount of our revenue and the flourishing state of the Treasury
are a full proof of the competency of the national resources for any
emergency, as they are of the willingness of our fellow-citizens to bear
the burdens which the public necessities require. The vast amount of
vacant lands, the value of which daily augments, forms an additional
resource of great extent and duration. These resources, besides
accomplishing every other necessary purpose, put it completely in the
power of the United States to discharge the national debt at an early
period. Peace is the best time for improvement and preparation of every
kind; it is in peace that our commerce flourishes most, that taxes are
most easily paid, and that the revenue is most productive.
The Executive is charged officially in the Departments under it with the
disbursement of the public money, and is responsible for the faithful
application of it to the purposes for which it is raised. The Legislature
is the watchful guardian over the public purse. It is its duty to see that
the disbursement has been honestly made. To meet the requisite
responsibility every facility should be afforded to the Executive to
enable it to bring the public agents intrusted with the public money
strictly and promptly to account. Nothing should be presumed against them;
but if, with the requisite facilities, the public money is suffered to lie
long and uselessly in their hands, they will not be the only defaulters,
nor will the demoralizing effect be confined to them. It will evince a
relaxation and want of tone in the Administration which will be felt by
the whole community. I shall do all I can to secure economy and fidelity
in this important branch of the Administration, and I doubt not that the
Legislature will perform its duty with equal zeal. A thorough examination
should be regularly made, and I will promote it.
It is particularly gratifying to me to enter on the discharge of these
duties at a time when the United States are blessed with peace. It is a
state most consistent with their prosperity and happiness. It will be my
sincere desire to preserve it, so far as depends on the Executive, on just
principles with all nations, claiming nothing unreasonable of any and
rendering to each what is due.
Equally gratifying is it to witness the increased harmony of opinion which
pervades our Union. Discord does not belong to our system. Union is
recommended as well by the free and benign principles of our Government,
extending its blessings to every individual, as by the other eminent
advantages attending it. The American people have encountered together
great dangers and sustained severe trials with success. They constitute
one great family with a common interest. Experience has enlightened us on
some questions of essential importance to the country. The progress has
been slow, dictated by a just reflection and a faithful regard to every
interest connected with it. To promote this harmony in accord with the
principles of our republican Government and in a manner to give them the
most complete effect, and to advance in all other respects the best
interests of our Union, will be the object of my constant and zealous
exertions.
Never did a government commence under auspices so favorable, nor ever was
success so complete. If we look to the history of other nations, ancient
or modern, we find no example of a growth so rapid, so gigantic, of a
people so prosperous and happy. In contemplating what we have still to
perform, the heart of every citizen must expand with joy when he reflects
how near our Government has approached to perfection; that in respect to
it we have no essential improvement to make; that the great object is to
preserve it in the essential principles and features which characterize
it, and that is to be done by preserving the virtue and enlightening the
minds of the people; and as a security against foreign dangers to adopt
such arrangements as are indispensable to the support of our independence,
our rights and liberties. If we persevere in the career in which we have
advanced so far and in the path already traced, we can not fail, under the
favor of a gracious Providence, to attain the high destiny which seems to
await us.
In the Administrations of the illustrious men who have preceded me in this
high station, with some of whom I have been connected by the closest ties
from early life, examples are presented which will always be found highly
instructive and useful to their successors. From these I shall endeavor to
derive all the advantages which they may afford. Of my immediate
predecessor, under whom so important a portion of this great and
successful experiment has been made, I shall be pardoned for earnest
wishes that he may long enjoy in his retirement the affections of a
grateful country, the best reward of exalted talents and the most faithful
and meritorious service. Relying on the aid to be derived from the other
departments of the Government, I enter on the trust to which I have been
called by the suffrages of my fellow-citizens with my fervent prayers to
the Almighty that He will be graciously pleased to continue to us that
protection which He has already so conspicuously displayed in our favor.
James Monroe
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