fits of the execrated treaty made by Jay and
Grenville.

With France, however, American relations became suddenly strained, as a
result of the same treaty. The French Republic, in the year 1795, was
finally reorganized under a definite constitution as a Directorate--a
republic with a plural executive of five. This government, ceasing to
be merely a revolutionary body, undertook to play the game of grand
politics and compelled all the neighbouring smaller States to submit to
democratic revolutions, accept a constitution on the French model, and
become {172} dependent allies of the French Republic. The local
democratic faction, large or small, was in each case utilized to carry
through this programme, which was always accompanied with corruption
and plunder to swell the revenues of France and fill the pockets of the
directors and their agents. Such a policy the Directorate now
endeavoured, as a matter of course, to carry out with the United
States, expecting to ally themselves with the Jeffersonian party and to
bribe or bully the American Republic into a lucrative alliance. The
way was prepared by the infatuation with which Randolph, Jefferson,
Madison, and other Republican leaders had unbosomed themselves to
Fauchet, and also by an unfortunate blunder which had led Washington to
send James Monroe as Minister to France in 1794. This man was known to
be an active sympathizer with France, and it was hoped that his
influence would assist in keeping friendly relations; but his conduct
was calculated to do nothing but harm. When the news of the Jay treaty
came to France, the Directorate chose to regard it as an unfriendly
act, and Monroe, sharing their feelings, exerted himself rather to
mollify their resentment than to justify his country.

In 1796 a new Minister, Adet, was sent to the United States to remain
only in case {173} the government should adopt a just policy toward
France. This precipitated a party contest squarely on the issue of
French relations. In the first place Congress, after a bitter struggle
and by a bare majority, voted to appropriate the money to carry the Jay
treaty into effect. This was a defeat for the French party. In the
second place, in spite of a manifesto issued by Adet, threatening
French displeasure, the presidential electors gave a majority of three
votes for Adams over Jefferson to succeed Washington. The election had
been a sharp party struggle, the whole theory of a deliberate