Statesman; born in
Williamsburg, Va., Aug. 10, 1753; son of
John Randolph,
attorney-general of
Virginia.
Educated for a lawyer, he had entered upon its practice while the storm of the Revolution was brewing.
He was a warm patriot— opposed to his father—and in August, 1775, became an aide to
Washington.
He was a delegate to the Virginia convention held at
Williamsburg in May, 1776, and in July became the
attorney-general of the
State.
From 1779 to 1782 he occupied a seat in Congress, and from 1786 to 1788 was governor of
Virginia.
He took a leading part in the convention that framed the national Constitution, in which he
introduced the “
Virginia plan.”
He voted against and refused to sign the
Constitution, but urged its acceptance by the
Virginia ratification convention.
Washington appointed him
Attorney-General of the
United States in 1789, and in January, 1794, he succeeded
Thomas Jefferson as
Secretary of State.
Soon afterwards
M. Fouchet, the
French minister, in a private despatch to his government concerning the
[
377]
Whiskey insurrection (q. v.), written some time in August, 1794, said that as soon as the disturbance in
western Pennsylvania was known
Randolph came to his lodgings and requested a private conversation.
He stated that civil war was imminent; that four influential men might save it; but these being debtors of English merchants, would be deprived of their liberty if they should take the smallest step.
He asked
Fouchet if he could lend them funds immediately to shelter them from English persecution.
In his despatch in October following,
Fouchet returned to the subject.
He gave a sketch of the rise of opposing parties in the
United States, in which he represented that the disturbances had grown out of political hostility to
Hamilton, and
Hamilton himself as taking the advantage which they afforded to make the
President regard as a blow to the
Constitution what, in fact, was only a protest against the
Secretary of the Treasury.
He says
Randolph informed him that the persistence in enforcing the excise was a scheme of
Hamilton's to mislead the
President into unpopular courses and to introduce absolute power—in other words, a monarchy—under pretext of giving energy to the government.
Such, according to
Fouchet, was the origin of the expedition into the western counties of
Pennsylvania.
He then freely commented upon the characters of several leading men in the government, and made it appear that venality was a strong motive of action among the politicians of the
United States, especially of those of the Federal party.
This opinion appears to have been formed from information given him by
Randolph, who, two or three days before
Washington's proclamation to the insurgents was issued, came to him to borrow money.
This despatch, which revealed the inimical relations of the
Secretary of State to the government he was serving, was intercepted on its way to
France by a British cruiser, and, through Lord Grenville, was transmitted to
Mr. Hammond, the
British minister at
Philadelphia.
That functionary, ascribing the delay in ratifying
Jay's treaty to
Randolph, communicated
Fouchet's despatch to
Wolcott, as going to show what intrigues the
Secretary of State had carried on with the late French minister.
Wolcott consulted with other friends of the government, and a message was sent to the
President, at
Mount Vernon, requesting his immediate return to
Philadelphia.
On his arrival the despatch was presented to him (Aug. 12, 1795). A cabinet council was held the next day, when the question was propounded.
“What shall be done with the treaty?”
Randolph opposed the ratification vehemently.
The other members were in favor of it, and on Aug. 18 the
President signed it. When copies of the treaty had been signed by
Randolph as
Secretary of State,
Washington presented to him the intercepted despatch of
Fouchet in the presence of the other members, with a request to read it and to make such explanations as he might think fit. After reading it, he commenced commenting upon it. He could not tell, he said, what
Fouchet referred to when he spoke of
Randolph as asking for money for himself and some brother patriots.
Perceiving that his explanations were unsatisfactory, he proposed to put the remainder of his observations in writing, and immediately tendered his resignation.
He requested that the despatch might be kept secret till he should be able to prepare his explanations, for which purpose he proposed to visit
Fouchet, who was at
Newport, R. I., and about to sail for
France.
Fouchet gave to
Randolph an explanatory letter that was very unsatisfactory.
Randolph published a “vindication,” but it, too, was very unsatisfactory, and he retired from office under the shadow of a cloud.
He died in
Clarke county, Va., Sept. 13, 1813.
