January
2, 1812
Thomas
Jefferson, former president, currently
residing in Monticello, Virginia, wrote a letter to Dr. John Crawford:
“The
fate of England, I think with you, is nearly decided, and the present form of
her existence is drawing to a close. The
ground, the houses, the men will remain;
but in what new form they will revive and stand among nations, is beyond
the reach of human foresight. We hope it may be one of which the predatory
principle may not be the essential characteristic. If her transformation shall
replace her under the laws of moral order, it is for the general interest that
she should still be a sensible and independent weight in the scale of nations,
and be able to contribute, when a favorable moment presents itself, to reduce
under the same order, her great rival in flagitiousness. We especially ought to
pray that the powers of Europe may be so poised and counterpoised among
themselves, that their own safety may require the presence of all their force
at home, leaving the other quarters of the globe in undisturbed
tranquillity. When our strength will
permit us to give the law of our hemisphere, it should be that the meridian of
the mid-Atlantic should be the line of demarkation between war and peace, on
this side of which no act of hostility should be committed, and the lion and
the lamb lie down in peace together.”
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