tolerate religious views differing from his own must have
been impressed with the devout and sincere desire of the President to
preserve peace. Peace! peace! It was a sentiment which ran through the
message like the watermark in the very paper on which he wrote; it was
the condition, the absolutely indispensable condition, of every chaste
reformation which he advocated. Every reduction of public expenditure
was predicated on the supposition that the danger of war was remote
because other nations would desire to treat the United States justly.
"Salutary reductions in habitual expenditures" were urged in every
branch of the public service from the diplomatic and revenue services
to the judiciary and the naval yards. War might come, indeed, but
"sound principles would not justify our taxing the industry of our
fellow-citizens to accumulate treasure for wars to happen we know not
when, and which might not, perhaps, happen but from the temptations
offered by that treasure."

On all concrete matters the President's message cut close to the
line which Gallatin had marked out. The internal taxes should now be
dispensed with and corresponding reductions be made in "our habitual
expenditures." There had been unwise multiplication of federal offices,
many of which added nothing to the efficiency of the Government but only
to the cost. These useless offices should be lopped off, for "when we
consider that this Government is charged with the external and mutual
relations only of these States,... we may well doubt whether our
organization is not too complicated, too expensive." In this connection
Congress might well consider the Federal Judiciary, particularly the
courts newly erected, and "judge of the proportion which the institution
bears to the business it has to perform." * And finally, Congress should
consider whether the law relating to naturalization should not be
revised. "A denial of citizenship under a residence of fourteen years
is a denial to a great proportion of those who ask it"; and "shall we
refuse to the unhappy fugitives from distress that hospitality which
savages of the wilderness extended to our fathers arriving in this
land?"

* The studied moderation of the message gave no hint of
Jefferson's resolute purpose to procure the repeal of the
Judiciary Act of 1801. The history of this act and its
repeal, as well as of the attack upon the judiciary, is
recounted by Edward S. Corwin in "J