foothold in the unexplored territories of the Northwest, as well as to
gain all they could in commercial transactions. England especially
sought to hamper our trade with the West India Islands, and treated our
envoys with insolence and coldness. The French sought to entangle the
United States in their own revolution, with which most Americans
sympathized until its atrocities filled them with horror and disgust.
The English impressed American seamen into their naval service without a
shadow of justice or good faith.

In 1795 Jay succeeded in making a treaty with the English government,
which was ratified because it was the best he could get, not because it
was all that he wished. It bore hard on the cities of the Atlantic coast
that had commercial dealings with the West India Islands, and led to
popular discontent, and bitter animosity towards England, finally
culminating in the war of 1812. The French were equally irritating, and
unreasonable in their expectations. The Directory in 1793 sent an
arrogant and insulting envoy to the seat of government "Citizen Genet,"
as he was called, tried to engage the United States in the French war
against England. Although Washington promptly proclaimed neutrality as
the American policy, Genet gave no end of trouble and vexation. This
upstart paid no attention to the laws, no respect to the constituted
authorities, insulted governors and cabinet-ministers alike, insisted on
dealing with Congress directly instead of through the Secretary of
State, issued letters of marque for privateers against English commerce,
and defied the government. He did all that he could to embroil the
country in war with Great Britain; and there was a marked division of
sentiment among the people,--the new Democratic-Republican societies,
in imitation of the French Jacobin clubs, being potent disseminators of
democratic doctrine and sympathy with the French uprising against
despotism. The forbearance of Washington, in suffering the irascible and
boastful Genet to ride rough-shod over his own cabinet, was
extraordinary. In ordinary times the man would have been summarily
expelled from the country. At last his insults could no longer be
endured and his recall was demanded; but he did not return to France,
and, strange to say, settled down as a peaceful citizen in New York. The
lenient treatment of this insulting foreigner arose from the reluctance
of Washington to loosen the ties which bound the country to Fra