XJH:8-2

THE CONGRESSIONAL JOURNALS OF THE UNITED STATES
PARTI OF THE

NATIONAL STATE PAPERS OF THE UNITED STATES SERIES,
1789-1817

The Journal of
the House of
Representatives

THOMAS JEFFERSON ADMINISTRATION 1801-1809

Volume 4

EIGHTH CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION

NOVEMBER, 1804 MARCH, 1805

MICHAEL GLAZIER, INC.

1210 A King Street
Wilmington, Delaware 19801

Every effort has been made to locate the best preserved and most
legible copy of the original documents, some of which have suffered
from the ravages of time. The facsimiles faithfully reflect the
condition of the originals. New and precise technology has been
employed in the reproduction process to enhance readability yet
preserve the flavor of the original to the best of our ability.

Printed in the United States of America.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

VOLUME 4

NOTE ON THE PRINTER, Samuel Harrison

Smith

JOURNAL OF THE U.S. HOUSE OF

REPRESENTATIVES Eighth Congress,

Second Session

INDEX

NOTE: For the complete list of and biographical
notes on the members of the House of
Representatives, together with the Executive and
Judicial officers, for the Seventh through the
Tenth Congresses, please refer to Volume 1 of this
series.

1

433

SAMUEL HARRISON SMITH

Printer of the original edition
of this volume

Samuel Harrison Smith was born of prosperous parents in 1772 in Philadelphia. In 1787 he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania. Smith was a man with deep cultural interests and he became secretary of the American Philosophical Society when Thomas Jefferson was its president. They became close friends.

In 1796 Smith launched a pro-Jefferson newspaper, the New World which lasted less than a year. In 1797 he published his Remarks on Education, which cogently advocated free public schools. In September of the same year he purchased the Independent Gazetteer from the elder. Joseph Gales, and within a few months founded the Universal Gazette.

At the urging of Thomas Jefferson, he and his brilliant young wife, Margaret Bayard Smith, moved to Washington in 1800, and he launched the Georgetown Centinal of Liberty on August 27. As there was no newspaper in Washington, Smith, encouraged by Jefferson, inaugurated the tri-weekly National Intelligencer and Washington Advertiser. He claimed it was the first newspaper printed in Washington. He evidently overlooked the Imperial Observer of 1795. Nevertheless, it was the first important newspaper issued in the city. To supplement the National Intelligencer, he added a weekly edition of his Universal Gazette, which he had founded in Philadelphia three years before. These became the loud trumpets for the policies of his friend Jefferson, whose Manual of Parliamentary Practice he published in 1801.

The great influence of the Smith papers was enhanced by the cool and judicious editorial policies. His publications never degenerated into vitriolic partisan organs. The National Intelligencer, which also reported the debates and affairs of Congress,was anathema to Federalists, but despite their dislike of its editorial policies, they had a personal respect for the publisher. His work on behalf of the government was amply rewarded by lucrative printing and stationery contracts.