From these extreme views, Mr. Madison afterward
conscientiously departed; but in the convention he supported them with
zeal and vigor."
It was feared at first that Madison would perpetuate the policy of
Jefferson; but the tone and temper of his inaugural address, delivered
March 4th, 1809, fell like oil on troubled waters. His most implacable
enemies could not refrain from uttering words of approbation; and the
whole nation entertained hopes that his measures might change the gloomy
aspect of public affairs.
Madison's administration was now sustained by a larger majority of the
American people than that of Jefferson had ever been, and the
Federalists, or the opposition, were in a hopeless minority. The
continued aggressions of the British were increasing the Democratic
strength every day; and in 1811, circumstances seemed to make war with
Great Britain an imperative necessity for the vindication of the honor,
rights and independence of the United States.
The Indian tribes on the northwestern frontiers of the United States
became very uneasy, and the machinations of British traders and
government emissaries had stimulated the growth of that discontent into
a decidedly hostile feeling toward the nation of Republicans, then
pressing upon the domain of the savages. The suspension of the world's
commerce had diminished the amount of their traffic in furs, and the
rapid extension of American settlements northward of Ohio was narrowing
their hunting grounds and producing a rapid diminution of game.
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