What I disapproved from the first moment, also, was the want
of a bill of rights, to guard liberty against the legislative as well as
executive branches of the government; that is to say, to secure freedom
in religion, freedom of the press, freedom from monopolies, freedom from
unlawful imprisonment, freedom from a permanent military, and a trial by
jury, in all cases determinable by the laws of the land. I disapproved,
also, the perpetual re-eligibility of the President. To these points
of disapprobation I adhere. My first wish was, that the nine first
conventions might accept the constitution, as the means of securing to
us the great mass of good it contained, and that the four last might
reject it, as the means of obtaining amendments. But I was corrected in
this wish, the moment I saw the much better plan of Massachusetts,
and which had never occurred to me. With respect to the declaration of
rights, I suppose the majority of the United States are of my opinion:
for I apprehend all the anti-federalists, and a very respectable
proportion of the federalists, think that such a declaration should now
be annexed. The enlightened part of Europe have given us the greatest
credit for inventing this instrument of security for the rights of the
people, and have been not a little surprised to see us so soon give it
up. With respect to the re-eligibility of the President, I find myself
differing from the majority of my countrymen; for I think there are but
three States of the eleven which have desired an alteration of this.
And, indeed, since the thing is established, I would wish it not to be
altered during the life of our great leader, whose executive talents are
superior to those, I believe, of any man in the world, and who, alone,
by the authority of his name, and the confidence reposed in his perfect
integrity, is fully qualified to put the new government so under way, as
to secure it against the efforts of opposition. But having derived from
our error all the good there was in it, I hope we shall correct it, the
moment we can no longer have the same name at the helm.

These, my dear friend, are my sentiments, by which you will see I was
right in saying, I am neither federalist nor anti-federalist; that I am
of neither party, nor yet a trimmer between parties. These, my opinions,
I wrote, within a few hours after I had read the constitution, to one or
two friends in America. I had not then read one single word printed on
th