JOHN RANDOLPH OF ROANOKE MADE MINISTER TO RUSSIA—FAILURE OF MR. RANDOLPH’S HEALTH—THE MISSION OFFERED TO MR. BUCHANAN—HIS MOTHER’S OPPOSITION TO HIS ACCEPTANCE—EMBARKS AT NEW YORK AND ARRIVES AT LIVERPOOL—LETTERS FROM ENGLAND—JOURNEY TO ST. PETERSBURG—CORRESPONDENCE WITH FRIENDS AT HOME.

After General Jackson became President in March, 1829, he determined to offer the Mission to Russia to “John Randolph of Roanoke.” This offer was made in September of that year, and was then accepted; but the nomination was not submitted to the Senate until the following May. It was confirmed without opposition from any quarter.^[26] Before he sailed, Mr. Randolph had leave granted him by the President to spend the following winter in the south of Europe, if the state of his health should require it. He remained at St. Petersburg only long enough to be accredited. His constitution was too far impaired to admit of his encountering the rigors of a Russian winter. He left the affairs of the legation in the hands of Mr. Clay, the Secretary, and went to England.

In his annual message in December (1830), the President communicated to Congress the fact of Mr. Randolph’s necessary absence from his post, on leave, and said that the public interests in that quarter would still be attended to by the Minister, through the Secretary. When the annual appropriation bill came before the House of Representatives in January (1831), a long and acrimonious discussion took place upon a motion to strike out the salary of the Minister to Russia. It was contended that the Mission was actually, if not technically, vacant; and it was charged that the appointment of Mr. Randolph, with the understanding that he might leave his post at his own discretion, was a “job.” To this it was answered by the friends of the Administration that the responsibility for his appointment lay with the President and the Senate; that in the Senate the opposition entirely approved of the appointment; and that for the House to refuse to pay the salary of a Minister because he was absent from his post on leave given by the President, would be highly improper. In the course of this debate, Mr. Buchanan made a temperate and judicious speech, in which he defended the appointment. The result was that the appropriation was retained in the bill and the bill was passed.^[27]

It became necessary, however, in the spring of this year, for the President to recall Mr. Randolph and to select his successor. In those days, the public men of the country did not propose themselves for such appointments. The first intimation that reached Mr. Buchanan of the President’s wish to make him Minister to Russia, came to him in a letter from a confidential friend of the President.

Dear Sir:—

Where are you, and what doing? I cannot tell, having heard nothing from you since the adjournment of Congress. That you are doing well, though, I have no doubt and earnestly hope.

I introduce myself to you now at the request and by the direction of the President. The Mission to St. Petersburg is expected shortly to become vacant. It will afford the President pleasure to confide this trust to you, if it shall suit your convenience to accept it. He desires me to make known his wishes to you and to solicit an answer. It is at the present an important and a highly interesting part of the world. For reasons not material now to be explained, the President desires that you will consider this communication entirely of a confidential character.

Dear Sir:—

I received your letter last evening, offering me, “by the direction of the President,” the Mission to St. Petersburg. I feel with the deepest sensibility this pledge of the kindness of the President, and the recollection of it shall ever be engraven on my grateful memory. My attachment for him, both personal and political, has been of the warmest character, and he has now engrafted upon that feeling a strong sense of individual gratitude.

There is but a single circumstance which induces me to doubt whether I ought to accept the Mission. I wish to be placed in no public station in which I cannot discharge my duty with usefulness to the country and honor to the administration of General Jackson. Ignorant as I now am of the French language, I doubt whether I could acquire a sufficient knowledge of it in proper time to enable me to hold that free communion with the political circles in St. Petersburg which I consider essential to the able discharge of the duties of a foreign minister. I have much business now on hand which I could not immediately leave without doing serious injury to individuals who have confided in me. Will you be so kind as to inform me at what time the President would think the public interest required me to leave the country in case I should accept the Mission?

Please to remember me to the President in the strongest terms. Accept my thanks for your uniform kindness, and present my respects to Mrs. Eaton. I remain

Dear Sir:—

I have just received your letter, and will show it to the President, whom I shall see during the day. The difficulty you suggest can no doubt be remedied. Mr. R. is not expected to return before July or August; it would then be too late in the season to reach St. Petersburg by water transportation. To depart in September would create the necessity of travelling over land from Hamburg or Havre. This, I am confident, the President would not ask of you. I feel satisfied that he will grant the indulgence asked and defer your departure until next spring. But I will see him, and if I be wrong in this, I will again write you to-morrow;—if no letter come, you may understand by the silence that my suggestions are approved by the President.

P. S. I will write to you to-morrow or the next day, at any rate.

3 o’clock. I sent your letter to the President. In answer he thus writes: “Say to Mr. Buchanan that he will not be required to go out before next winter or spring, that he may reach St. Petersburg on the breaking up of the ice—unless something more than is now expected arises, when the President will rely upon Mr. Buchanan’s patriotism to proceed. He will have sufficient time to arrange his affairs.”

Dear Sir:—

After the receipt of your last kind letter of the 7th inst., with the extract from the President’s note to you annexed, granting me all the indulgence I could have desired, I can no longer hesitate to accept the Russian Mission. I fear that the necessary arrangements, both of a professional and private character, which I must soon begin to make preparatory to leaving the country—together with the study of the French language, which I intend to commence—may disclose the fact that this Mission has been offered to me and accepted. Indeed, from the publications in the newspapers it was believed by many before I had any intimation that such an intention existed on the part of the President. Is there any reason why I should for the present defer these preparations?

Please to present my grateful compliments to the President, and believe me to be

Hon. John H. Eaton.

Dear Sir:—

On receiving your letter this morning I referred it to the President, and he has returned me a hasty note, which I enclose to you. It is quite like himself, candid and frank.

Dear Sir:—

I send you a letter to-day received from Mr. Buchanan. What shall I say to him?

Dear Sir:—

Say to him in reply, to go on and make his preparations and let the newspapers make any comments that they may think proper, and mind them not. It is only necessary that he should not give them any information on this subject—the journals will say what they please, and be it so.

My Dear Sir:—

Mr. Taney having given me your letter of the 26th July, with a request that I would communicate it to the President, I did so; and he has directed me to say that it was not deemed proper to make the offer of the Russian Mission public until Mr. Randolph’s return should make the place vacant, and that when that event happened he would direct me to write to you.

The former communications were made to you while I was confined to my bed, and did not pass through my Department, or they would have been put in a shape that would have spared you any embarrassment on the subject.

I am, my dear Sir, with the greatest regard and esteem,

My Dear Sir:—

I received your letter and immediately waited on Mr. Livingston, and placed it in his hands, requesting him to ascertain whether your appointment and acceptance might not at once be made public. Mr. Livingston informed me to-day that he had seen the President, and that the only reason for desiring that nothing should be said about it was that Mr. Randolph had not yet returned, and that he did not wish that your appointment should be formally made and publicly announced until Mr. Randolph arrived in this country. The Secretary of State will, however, write to you himself to-day. I omitted to ask him when Mr. Randolph was expected, but he will probably mention the time in his letter to you. I can readily imagine that the present state of things may be rather embarrassing to you, and hope it will not be long before an appointment which I am quite sure will give great satisfaction to our friends, can be officially made known.

Mr. Livingston intends to go to New York in the course of this week in order to have a conference with Mr. McLane and Mr. Van Buren before the latter sails for England. He will leave Washington on Thursday, unless he should learn in the mean time that Mr. McLane is on his way to this place. And as an interview with him on your affairs would, I presume, be agreeable to you, perhaps you may make it convenient to meet him in New York. Governor Cass has accepted the appointment of Secretary of War, and was to leave home on the first of this month, and expected to be here before the 15th.

Wishing you, my dear Sir, a pleasant excursion, and regretting that my engagements here will prevent me from joining you at Saratoga, I am

There was one member of Mr. Buchanan’s family who was decidedly opposed to his acceptance of this mission. This was his mother, then at the age of 65. It would be interesting to know what was the special reason which led this excellent and intelligent lady to feel as she did about this appointment. Whether it was anything more than a presentiment that she should never see him again after he had crossed the ocean, or whether she thought that it would not be wise for him to venture in a new path of public life, can only be inferred from the following letter, which she wrote to him after his decision had been made:

Mr Dear Son:—

With Harriet’s permission, I write you a few lines in her letter. I feel deep solicitude respecting your mission to Russia, and perhaps I am too late in laying [before you] my objections, which, in my estimation, are formidable. Would it not be practicable, even now, to decline its acceptance? Your political career has been of that description which ought to gratify your ambition; and as to pecuniary matters, they are no object to you. If you can, consistently with the character of a gentleman and a man of honor, decline, how great a gratification it would be to me. May God of His infinite goodness, dispose of us in whatever way may promote His glory and secure our everlasting felicity, is the prayer of your affectionate

P. S.—At what time do you intend paying us that visit, previous to your departure from the country which gave you birth, and I expect, to me, the last visit? Do not disappoint me, but certainly come.

There is no record of this visit, which was indeed the last, but which was undoubtedly made. One of the strongest reasons that weighed with Mr. Buchanan against his acceptance of this mission was his mother’s advanced age, and the probability that he might never see her again. In the latter part of August and the early part of September, he was absent from Lancaster on a journey to the East, on account of his health. On his return, he wrote a private letter to General Jackson; part of which, however, is wanting in the copy before me:

Dear General:—

Having had the bilious fever severely for the last three autumns, I was advised by my physicians to go to the North this summer, as the best means of preventing its recurrence. Accordingly, I have been wandering about among the New Yorkers and the Yankees for several weeks past. I reached home but last night. Whilst I was at Boston, the anti-masonic letter of Mr. Adams made its appearance. This folly, although it caps the climax, is in perfect character with the history of his conduct. It is a melancholy spectacle to see a man who has held the first office acting as he has done. It is now believed seriously, even by his former friends, that he is courting the anti-masonic nomination. He and Rush are a par nobile fratrum. I was happy to find everywhere that the little specks which appeared on the political horizon—about the time you changed your Cabinet—have been entirely dissipated. It could not have been otherwise. In the opinion of your friends, the present Cabinet is just such a one as it ought to be. In this State, your strength has alarmed those who evidently wished to abandon you, and they are now the loudest in your support. It not being in their power to affect you, they are pushing another purpose with all their might. They are strenuously opposed to a national convention to nominate a Vice-President; and through the inadvertence of our friends who are without suspicion, it appears to be settled that a State convention, which will meet to nominate a Governor on the 4th of March next, will also select a candidate for the Vice-Presidency. This nomination ought to be made by a Jackson convention on the 8th of January. The consequence will be that the State administration—on account of its extensive patronage and the interest felt by all the State office-holders in sending their particular friends to the convention—will probably be able to control the nomination. George M. Dallas is unquestionably the candidate of the State administration, and of all those who are the friends of Mr. Ingham and Calhoun. Now I have no wish to be a candidate for the Vice-Presidency; on the contrary, my nomination was put up without my consent, and it is my intention to decline, but I desire to do it——

[The residue of the original letter is lost.]

Although Mr. Buchanan had accepted the offer of the Russian Mission, his nomination could not be submitted to the Senate until after that body had assembled in December, 1831. It was acted upon in the Senate in the early part of January, 1832, and from the following letter from Mr. Livingston, the Secretary of State, it appears that the nomination was confirmed by an unanimous or nearly unanimous vote:

My Dear Sir:—

I pray you to receive my congratulations on your appointment and the unanimity with which your nomination is understood to have been confirmed by the Senate—a favor which it is believed will not be conferred upon all of us. Allow me also to ask at what time you can arrange your affairs for a departure. Have you designated any one to serve as your Secretary of Legation? You know that your wishes will be consulted on the occasion. Should you not desire that Mr. Clay should be retained in that situation, I could mention a gentleman who would be highly useful to you. He speaks most of the modern languages, has travelled in Europe and made good use of his travels; he is now employed in my Department and I should part with him with very great regret, but being sincerely attached to him I consider his advancement, not my interest or convenience, in this application; for he, Dr. Greenhow, enjoys my fullest confidence and you will, if you take him, find him every way worthy of yours, and well calculated by his manners, deportment and knowledge of the world to aid you in the lighter but very necessary duties of your station, as well as to perform those of a more important kind with which you may entrust him.

Two or three apples of discord have, as you will perceive by the papers, been thrown in both houses—each of them sufficient to create a warfare that will last during a session.

I am, my dear Sir, with high regard,

With what feelings Mr. Buchanan left his home in Lancaster and proceeded to Washington, and thence to New York to take passage for Liverpool, may be gathered from the following portions of his diary:

I left Lancaster in the stage early in the morning for Washington and arrived in Baltimore the same evening. Although my feelings are not very easily excited, yet my impressions on this day were solemn and sad. I was leaving a city where I had spent the best years of my life, where I had been uniformly a popular favorite, and, above all, where I had many good and true friends who had never abandoned me, under the most trying circumstances. Among these people I had acquired a competence for a man of moderate wishes, and I think I may say without vanity my professional and personal character stood very high. I was about to embark in a new pursuit, and one in which my heart never was; to leave the most free and happy country on earth for a despotism more severe than any [other] which exists in Europe. These gloomy reflections often came athwart my mind. They were succeeded, however, by a sense of reliance on that good Providence which hitherto had blessed and sustained me, and by a conviction that I was about to go upon an important mission in which I might be made the instrument in His hands of rendering important services to my country.

I set sail from New York for Liverpool on board the “Silas Richards,” Captain Henry Holdridge, accompanied by Lieutenant John W. Barry, of the U. S. army, as private secretary, and Edward Landrick, a mulatto servant. I suffered from sea-sickness during nearly the whole voyage. Our fellow-passengers were kind and agreeable. Dr. Hosack of New York gave Charles Archibald, Esq., the son of the Attorney-General of Nova Scotia, a letter of introduction to me, which he delivered on ship-board. I found him to be an amiable and intelligent young gentleman, and enjoyed much pleasure in his society. There was a Mr. Walter—an Englishman—from London, on board, a man of general information, who was always ready and always willing to defend all the institutions of his own country, whether good or bad. He would have been a very agreeable companion, had he been willing to converse instead of making speeches. Notwithstanding, he was warm-hearted and kind, and the impression he made upon me was quite favorable. In addition to these passengers, we had a Mr. Clapham from Leeds, Mr. Stuart from Pittsburg, Mr. and Mrs. McGee and Mr. Moller of New York, Mr. McBride of Dublin, Mr. Morris of Brockville, U. C., and his sister-in-law, Mrs. Morris, from —— in the same province, Mr. Osmond, a preacher of the Society of Friends, from Indiana, going to London to attend the yearly meeting, Mrs. and Miss Taylor of New York.

The captain was an excellent seaman, a gentleman in his manners, and possessed much more information than could have been expected from one in his profession who had crossed the Atlantic eighty-eight times. We saw Cape Clear, the southwestern point of Ireland on Sunday, the 22d; but were detained by head winds for several days on that coast. Several of us had determined to go on board a fishing boat and land at Cork, and proceed from thence to Dublin, but were prevented by adverse winds from approaching the shore. We arrived in Liverpool on Thursday, the 3d May, about 12 o’clock (noon), after a passage of 25 days. When the pilot came on board, he informed us that Liverpool was clear of cholera, but that it was raging both in Cork and Dublin. We took lodgings at the Adelphi Hotel. The passengers on this day gave Captain Holdridge a dinner at “The Star and Garter,” at which I presided. Mr. Brown and Mr. Ogden, our consul, were present as guests.

Mr. Brown of Liverpool took me about in his carriage and showed me the town of Liverpool. The appearance of the people, their manners and their language are so similar to those of New York that I could scarcely realize I was in England. The brick of which the houses are built when new have a dirty yellow appearance and the coal dust soon gives them a darker hue. This imparts a gloomy appearance to the town and deprives it of that light and cheerful hue which we experience in Philadelphia and New York. It is a place of great wealth and vast commerce, although the approach to it is tedious and difficult and altogether impracticable at low tide. The Mersey is but a small river compared with those in America. Its docks are admirable and very extensive, covering a space actually under water of between eighty and ninety English acres. The cemetery is well worthy of observation. Mr. Barry and myself dined with Mr. Brown at his country house about three miles from Liverpool. It is beautifully situated, the grounds around it highly improved, and both its external and internal appearance prove the wealth and the taste of its opulent and hospitable owner.^[29] Francis B. Ogden, Esq., the American consul, and several other gentlemen were of the party. We spent a very pleasant afternoon and evening.

Mr. Ogden has wandered much over the world. He is an agreeable and warm-hearted fellow and something, I should suppose, of what we call “a gimcrack” in America. He has given me a cipher of his own invention which he says is the best in the world—and that it may be continually changed, so that my secretary may decipher one letter and yet know nothing about any other. During our stay at Liverpool we received many attentions. We were particularly indebted to Mr. Crary and Mr. Carnes, for whom I had letters of introduction from my friend John S. Crary of New York. I could not help observing at this place what a strong impression the successful operations of our Government had produced on the minds of Englishmen. Our national character now stands high, notwithstanding the efforts which have been made to traduce it.

Left Liverpool on the railroad, and arrived at Manchester—a distance of thirty miles—in one hour and twenty-five minutes. There are two tunnels, one of about 2200 yards, under the city, to communicate with the vessels at the docks, the other about 200 yards, passing under a hill in the suburbs.

The following letter to his youngest brother, lately the Rector of Oxford Church, Philadelphia, gives his first impressions of England:

My Dear Brother:—

We left Liverpool on Saturday morning last and arrived in this city on Tuesday. On our way, after passing over the railroad to Manchester, we visited Birmingham, Kenilworth Castle, Warwick Castle, Stratford-upon-Avon, Blenheim and Oxford. Every portion of the country that we have seen is in the highest state of cultivation, and its appearance at this season of the year is delightful. One thing, however, which must strike every American traveller, is the mercenary spirit of all that class of people with whom he comes in contact on the road. No person performs any office for you, no matter how slight, without expecting to be paid. Indeed travelling and living here are very extravagant, and not the slightest part of the trouble and expense are the perquisites which it is expected you will give to servants of all kinds, post-boys, coachmen, etc.

I have visited the cathedrals of Oxford and Westminster Abbey—two of the finest specimens of Gothic architecture in England. I have not time to give you a description of either. They are gloomy, venerable piles, and give birth to many solemn associations. They recall past ages to your view, and raise the mighty dead of former generations to be your companions. As places of worship, however, they must be very damp and uncomfortable. In Ireland the people have ceased to pay tithes. They submit to have their articles seized, but the proctors can find no purchasers for such articles at any price. The consequence has been that nearly all payments have ceased. This country is at present in a very distracted state. Never since the days of Charles I. has there been such an excitement among the mass of the people. What will be the event, God only knows. The king [William IV.], who this day week was one of the most popular monarchs who ever sat upon any throne, is now detested or rather despised by the people. His refusal to create the number of peers necessary to carry the Reform Bill, and his alleged hypocrisy throughout the whole proceeding, have occasioned this change in public sentiment. I should not be astonished at a revolution; but yet I hope and trust that the people may obtain their just rights without resorting to such a dreadful alternative. The Church is not popular. Its rich livings are conferred upon the younger branches of noble houses more with a view of making a provision for their temporal wants than of providing for the spiritual welfare of the people committed to their charge. The best course is pursued in our own country, where men choose the ministry from conscientious motives, and the people provide for them voluntarily. The present system of tithes cannot continue much longer in this country without some modification, unless there should be a much stronger government than exists at present. Indeed, from everything I have seen, although this is a country of vast wealth and resources, and of very advanced civilization, I thank my God that I was born an American rather than an Englishman.

I expect, God willing, to leave this place for St. Petersburg on Friday next, the day of the sailing of the steam packet, and I hope to reach the end of my journey on or about the first of June. I am anxious once more to feel settled. From all the information I can receive the diplomatic circle of St. Petersburg is a very agreeable one, and the Emperor and Court entertain the most friendly feelings towards our country. Prince Lieven, the Russian ambassador to this country, has been very polite to me. Although I do not anticipate much happiness during my continuance abroad, yet I have no doubt, with the blessing of Providence, I shall be content. You need not expect to hear from me again until I shall reach St. Petersburg. Please to send this letter to mother, and drop a few lines to Maria. Write to me often. I feel very anxious to hear from George. I trust in Heaven that he may be restored to health. You will perceive by the papers that the cholera has almost entirely disappeared from this city; indeed, it never was very formidable here. I was at Covent Garden Theatre on Thursday evening, and saw Young’s Tragedy of Revenge performed. Mr. Young, the most celebrated tragedian of England, performed the part of Zanga. It was a most masterly performance, and excited the deepest interest. Although I have always admired that play, I never felt all its force and beauty until that night. Give my love to mother, Jane, Harriet, George, Mr. Lane and all the family, and believe me ever to be

The Duke of Wellington is Premier; the members of his Cabinet not yet known.

Mr. Buchanan went from London to Hamburg by a packet, and thence made the overland journey to St. Petersburg. I find only the following traces of his travel:

The appearance of Hamburg is calculated to make a favorable impression. It is situated on the northern bank of the Elbe, the river here running a little to the north of west. The old part of the town along and near to the river has a very antiquated appearance. Most of the houses are built with their ends fronting on the street, and they are composed of wooden frame-work, the interstices being filled up with brick. In this respect they resemble the ancient houses of Lancaster. Many of these houses are three stories, and some of them more in height up to the square—the gable end, and above it, contains one and two and three stories with windows on the street until it comes to a point ornamented with various figures.

The new part of the city is beautiful. In the northern part of it there is a small lake, called the “Binnen Alster,” nearly square, and about a quarter of a mile on each side. Around this lake, except on the northern side, there are ranges of very fine houses built in the modern style, at a considerable distance from it, so as to leave room not only for the street, but for spacious walks shaded by trees, with benches placed at convenient distances. Still further to the north there is a larger lake communicating with the former called the “Grosse Alster.” All around this lake and along the small stream which feeds it there are shaded walks, public gardens and grass plots laid out with much taste, and kept in perfect repair. The graveyard in the midst of them shows that man’s long home may be made a subject of attraction for the living; and my own feelings taught me that those who are led to the place appointed for all living, from curiosity, may leave it under solemn and useful impressions.

I called this morning upon John Cuthbert, Esq., our consul, and left at the house of Mr. Gossler, a senator of Hamburg, a letter of introduction, with my card, which I had received from his brother at New York. Mr. Cuthbert called with me on Monsieur Bacheracht, the consul-general from Russia, who was sick in bed, and I left at his house the letter from Prince Lieven. We also called on Mr. Parish, but did not see him.

This is one of the ancient free cities of Germany. It is governed by a Senate, consisting of twenty-four members, composed of lawyers and merchants, each one-half. The Senate fills up its own vacancies as they occur. It also elects four of its own members burgesses, in whom the executive authority is vested. The deliberations of the Senate are in secret. The duties on goods imported are but one-half per cent. ad valorem, and the other taxes upon the people are very light. They appear to be contented and happy, and I have yet seen but one beggar on the streets. Indeed their language and appearance strongly reminded me of Lancaster. The Senate also elects four Syndicks, but not of their own body.

According to their laws no foreigner can be a resident merchant here, unless he goes through the forms and submits to the expense and inconvenience of becoming a burgher. Mr. Cuthbert claimed for an American naturalized citizen this privilege under our treaty with Hamburg, without becoming a burgher, and after some correspondence on the subject it was granted. This is a privilege which the English have never yet obtained. I advised Mr. Cuthbert to send the correspondence to the Secretary of State.

The outlet of the lakes into the river furnishes a water-power sufficient to turn several mills, and water for a canal which is very useful in connecting the river with the upper part of the city. It is strange that not a single dock has been erected on the river by this ancient city.

The constitution of Hamburg, although far from being free in the just acceptation of the term, has secured to the citizens enviable advantages, compared with many of the other states of Germany.

We dine with Mr. Gossler to-morrow.

(Here follows a minute account of the coins in common use in Hamburg.)

We dined with Mr. Gossler, the son, in the country; his father, to whom we had the letter, being now in England. Our host had resided in Boston, and about three years ago married Miss Bray of that city. She is related to the Elliott family, and is a sprightly, pleasant woman, who talks very well. Besides our host and hostess, the company consisted of Mr. William Gossler, their uncle, an old bachelor; Mr. Charles H. Carnegy, a young Scotchman who came in the packet with us from London; Mr. Wainwright, from Boston, also our fellow-passenger; Mr. Barry, and myself. We spent a very agreeable afternoon and evening. We received an invitation from Mr. Richard Parish to dine with him on Sunday at his country place, which we were obliged to decline, intending to leave for Lubeck on Saturday.

In the morning, we visited Altona, a Danish town in Holstein adjoining Hamburg, and below it on the river. Its appearance is similar to that of the old part of Hamburg, though it contains some fine modern houses. The public walks are also pleasant here. The population is said to be 25,000. In the afternoon, we ascended the steeple of St. Michael’s, and had a fine view of the city. It is 480 feet in height. The church is a fine building. I observed in it an altar, at some distance from the pulpit, with an image above it of our Saviour on the cross. This in a Lutheran Church was new to me.

Before I enter upon the business of the mission, some of the private letters which Mr. Buchanan wrote to his friends at home, during the summer of 1832, will be found to contain matters of interest. Whatever other accomplishments he possessed or wanted, he certainly wrote very agreeable letters. One of the first persons to whom he wrote, after his arrival at St. Petersburg, was General Jackson.

Dear General:—

You will, ere this reaches you, have heard of my arrival in this capital, through the Department of State. Certainly it is not the place I should select for my residence, though it may be justly termed a city of palaces. The climate is healthy, but very cold. Indeed it can scarcely be said that summer has yet commenced. Their winter continues about seven months. At this season there is literally no night. I feel confident I could read common print at 12 P. M. I use no candles. The Americans and English here say they suffer more from the heat than from the cold during winter. All the houses have double casements, double windows, and very thick walls, and they are heated by stoves to a high degree of temperature. The Russians still wear their cloaks in the streets. The great objection which an American must feel to a residence in this country does not arise from the climate, though that is bad enough; it is because here there is no freedom of the Press, no public opinion, and but little political conversation, and that very much guarded. In short, we live in the calm of despotism. And what makes this situation much more unpleasant to me is, that from some cause or other, I know not yet what, this mission seldom receives any letters or newspapers from the United States. I beg that you would take up this subject yourself, and then it will be attended to. But this by the way.

It must be admitted, however, if we can believe the concurrent opinion of all the foreigners resident here with whom I have conversed, that the Emperor Nicholas is one of the best of despots. As a man of excellent private character, as a husband, a father, a brother, and a friend, his life presents a fit example for all his subjects. But still he is a despot. But little occurred on my presentation to his Majesty worthy of repetition, except what is contained in the despatch. He told me he had one American in his service as his aide—that was Mr. Munroe; that he was not then in St. Petersburg, having gone on board one of the ships in the fleet for the purpose of making a campaign (for exercise and instruction, I presume), and that he intended to be transferred from the military to the naval service.

The empress talked very freely. She spoke on several subjects, and with great rapidity. Amongst other things she observed we were wise in America not to involve ourselves in the foolish troubles of Europe; but she added that we had troubles enough among ourselves at home, and alluded to our difficulties with some of the Southern States. I endeavored in a few words to explain this subject to her; but she still persisted in expressing the same opinion, and, of course, I would not argue the point. The truth is, that the people of Europe, and more especially those of this country, cannot be made to understand the operations of our Government. Upon hearing of any severe conflicts of opinion in the United States, they believe what they wish, that a revolution may be the consequence. God forbid that the Union should be in any danger! If unfortunate events should occur tending to destroy the influence of our example, constitutional liberty throughout the rest of the world would receive a blow from which it might never recover. In making these remarks, I do not mean to state that the Russian government are unfriendly to the people of the United States; on the contrary, I believe they prefer us decidedly either to the English or French; but yet they must attribute to our example the existence of those liberal principles in Europe which give them so much trouble. Upon the whole, my interview with the empress was quite agreeable.

There are three ambassadors at this court: Lord Heytesbury, the English; the Marshal Duke of Treviso (Mortier), the French; and Count Figlemont, the Austrian; and a number of ministers plenipotentiary of my own grade. In point of rank I am at the tail of the list, and I should be very sorry to suppose I would ever reach the head. The rule upon this subject, however, is wholly unexceptionable: the minister who has been longest here ranks the highest in his own grade. The Diplomatic Corps have received me very kindly. This I may attribute to the high character my country is everywhere acquiring. Your foreign policy has had no small influence on public opinion throughout Europe. It is supposed Marshal Mortier is not very agreeable to this government: he is the officer who blew up the Kremlin.

I have taken a comfortable and well-furnished house in a beautiful situation fronting on the Neva, to which I expect to remove next week. My family will consist of Mr. J. Randolph Clay [Secretary of the Legation], whom I have invited to live with me, Lieutenant Barry [private secretary], and myself. My expenses will be great, but I shall endeavor to keep them within my outfit and salary.

From an examination of the correspondence between Mr. Clay and the Department I fear I shall have difficulties in the settlement of my accounts. It was not possible for him with the most rigid economy to exist as chargé d’affaires upon his salary, had he received all to which he was entitled, and yet he has received but about $1880 per annum. So far as I can understand the subject, the difficulty has arisen solely from the circumstance that we are authorized to draw on Amsterdam, and not on London. Surely this circumstance cannot change the amount of salary to which a minister is entitled by law, nor ought Mr. Clay to receive less at a more expensive court than Mr. Vail receives in England. Mr. Livingston told me it would make no difference to me whether I drew on Amsterdam or London, and this may eventually be the case; but I am very anxious to avoid the difficulty of having a troublesome account to settle with the Department. I should esteem it, therefore, a particular favor, if it be just, that you would authorize me to draw on London. Every difficulty on this subject would be removed, if we were allowed five rubles here for a dollar, which is the manner in which our consul settles his accounts; and I should suppose, from a communication received by Mr. Clay from my friend Mr. Pleasonton, that he now believes this to be correct. Pardon me for thus troubling you with my own affairs......