A Letter to General Hamilton, Occasioned by his Letter to President Adams. By a Federalist [caption title].

Not in Ford: “A more puerile, catch penny production never blotted paper…”

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Webster’s Federalist Riposte to Hamilton’s Political Betrayal

Pseudonymously authored by Noah Webster as “Aristides,” this pamphlet delivers a searing rebuke of Alexander Hamilton for his public denouncement of President John Adams and his behind-the-scenes intrigues within the Federalist Party. Issued in response to Hamilton’s Letter ... Concerning the Public Conduct and Character of John Adams, Webster defends Adams—particularly his support for naval defenses—and accuses Hamilton of undermining constitutional authority for personal ambition.

A key moment in the bitter internal collapse of the Federalists, the pamphlet reflects Webster’s political alignment with Adams, but also his alarm at Hamilton’s ambitions. “Think not, sir,” writes Webster, “that all the monstrous schemes of daring ambitious men, to overawe and controul [sic] the constitutional powers of our government, are either hidden or approved by federal men.” Hamilton’s letter, issued late in the 1800 campaign, proved a catastrophic miscalculation, accelerating the Federalist defeat and Adams’s loss to Jefferson.

Though unsigned, Webster’s authorship was swiftly exposed. In November of 1800, the New York Gazette mocked the pamphlet: “A more puerile, catch penny production never blotted paper” declaring the author “appears from his work about as well qualified for the task, as a Billingsgate oyster is to contemplate the principles of Newtonian philosophy.”

Price: $2,500.00