premacy, he had contributed greatly to the rejection of the
resolutions for investing congress with the power of collecting an
impost on imported goods, and had been conspicuous for his determined
hostility to the constitution of the United States. His sentiments
respecting the measures of the government were known to concur with
those of the minority in congress.

[Sidenote: George Washington again unanimously elected president.]

Both parties seemed confident in their strength; and both made the
utmost exertions to insure success. On opening the ballots in the
senate chamber, it appeared that the unanimous suffrage of his country
had been once more conferred on General Washington, and that Mr. Adams
had received a plurality of the votes.

The unceasing endeavours of the executive to terminate the Indian war
by a treaty, had at length succeeded with the savages of the Wabash;
and, through the intervention of the Six Nations, those of the Miamis
had also been induced to consent to a conference to be held in the
course of the ensuing spring. Though probability was against the
success of this attempt to restore peace, all offensive operations, on
the part of the United States, were still farther suspended. The
Indians did not entirely abstain from hostilities; and the discontents
of the western people were in no small degree increased by this
temporary prohibition of all incursions into the country of their
enemy. In Georgia, where a desire to commence hostilities against the
southern Indians had been unequivocally manifested, this restraint
increased the irritation against the administration.

The Indian war was becoming an object of secondary magnitude. The
critical and irritable state of things in France began so materially
to affect the United States, as to require an exertion of all the
prudence, and all the firmness, of the government. The 10th[1] of
August, 1792, was succeeded in that nation by such a state of anarchy,
and by scenes of so much blood and horror; the nation was understood
to be so divided with respect to its future course; and the republican
party was threatened by such a formidable external force; that there
was much reason to doubt whether the fallen monarch would be finally
deposed, or reinstated with a greater degree of splendour and power
than the constitution just laid in ruins, had assigned to him. That,
in the latter event, any partialities which might be manifested
towards the intermedia