intention to waive an explicit answer, and the third time repeated his question. But it fortunately happened that at the moment a stranger entered the room, and the President went (as was his custom) to speak to him, and took care when he had done so to take a seat on the opposite side of the room.

There was more of the indefinable quality called presence in President Washington, than any other person I have ever known. In his general manners he was eminently courteous and kind; and yet to the last, I could never speak to him without feeling a degree of embarrassment such as I have never felt in the presence of any other individual, man or woman, with whom I was well acquainted.

exact.

In his observance of appointments he was punctiliously After I was chaplain, I believe I was present at all his speeches on the opening of a session of congress; for the custom of sending a message to congress, which was introduced by Mr. Jefferson, was then unknown. Twelve o'clock at noon, was the usual hour agreed on for his opening speech, and in no instance did he fail in a punctual attendance at that hour; indeed, he commonly crossed the threshold of the door where the congress sat, exactly when the clock was striking the hour of twelve. The two houses always assembled to receive him in the senate chamber. When he entered, all the members of both houses rose from their seats, and stood up until he had taken his seat, which he did immediately after bowing to his audience. When he was seated, he looked around on the audience for a minute or two, and then took out his spectacles from a common red morocco case, and laid them on his knee, and then took from his side-pocket his written speech. After putting on his spectacles, he rose and began his address, which he read closely. He read distinctly and audibly, but in no other respect was his reading excellent.

In private, as well as in public, his punctuality was ob servable. He had a well regulated clock in his entry, by which the movements of his whole family, as well as his own were regulated. At his dinner parties he allowed five minutes for the variation of time pieces, and after they were expired he would wait for no one. Some lagging members of congress came in when not only dinner was begun, but considerably advanced. His only apology was, "Sir, or Gentlemen, we are too punctual for you;" or in pleasantry, "Gentlemen, I have a cook who never asks whether the company has come, but whether the hour has come." Washington sat as a guest at his dinner table, about half way from its head to its foot. The place of the chaplain was directly opposite to the President. The company stood while the blessing was asked, and on a certain occasion, the President's mind was probably occupied with some interesting concern, and on going to the table he began to ask a blessing himself. He uttered but a word or two, when bowing to me, he requested me to proceed, which I accordingly did. I mention this because it shows that President Washington always asked a blessing himself, when a chaplain was not present.

On the 4th of March, 1797, the presidentship of Washington terminated, and on this occasion the clergy of the city and vicinity presented to him a written address, drawn up by myself, to which he returned a very courteous answer. In my review of Jefferson's papers, in the 8th volume of the Christian Advocate, the whole circumstances of this transaction are explained; and the address, with the names of those who signed it, and the President's an、 swer, may there be seen.

THE LATE COMMODORE BARRON.

[We have compiled the following account of the late Commodore Barron, from a brief notice of him which appeared in the Norfolk Herald, and another more full and particular one which came out in the New York Herald, shortly after his death, and which we take to be substantially correct. We have, however, changed our writer's words in some small points, and added a few of our own, which we do not think it worth while to indicate.]

James Barron was the second son of Commodore James Barron of the Virginia Navy during the revolutionary war, and was born, we suppose, in Hampton, some time in the year 1768. He was of course too young to take any positive part in that contest; but, towards the end of it, he was initiated by his father into the service of the State, and continued in it until the small remnant of her little navy was disbanded in 1788. Subsequent to this period he followed a maratime life in the merchant line, until the organization of the navy of the United States, soon after which he entered the public service as lieutenant, his commission bearing date the 9th of March, 1798. In this grade he served with credit under Commodore Barry, during the brief hostilities between our country and the French republic, on board the frigate United States, in which Stewart also was a lieutenant, and Decatur and Somers, (afterwards so famous,) were midshipmen. The frigate subsequently sailed on several cruises, and captured several French privateers, but did not fall in with any national vessel of the enemy. In the course of one of her cruises, she was in great peril, being overtaken, while in the Gulf Stream, by a gale of wind which lasted nine days, when she sprung her bowsprit, and the rigging became useless for the sup

port of the masts, the loss of which appeared inevitable, and even that of the ship and crew was strongly apprehended. In this critical situation, Lieutenant Barron suggested to Commodore Barry the possibility of setting up the rigging, and thereby saving the masts; offering himself to undertake the performance of this duty, the difficulty of which was increased by the ship's being before the wind, and rolling unceasingly. Commodore Barry consented to have the hazardous experiment tried, when Lieutenant Barron got the purchases on the shrouds, and succeeded in getting the rigging taut, and the lanyards secured without accident. The masts were thus saved, and perhaps the ship also, through his judgment and skill. This service having been represented by the Commodore to the government, with a recommendation that he should be promoted, he was at once raised to the rank of post captain, in which grade he remained in command of the frigate. She was then refitted and sailed on a second cruise-shaping her course for the West Indies, for the protection of our commerce against the depredations of the French cruisers in those seas; and capturing several privateers, but falling in with no French national vessel during the cruise. Soon afterwards, Commodore Barry, being in bad health, transferred the command of his squadron to Commodore Truxton, (who had recently distinguished himself, by capturing the French frigate Insurgent, off Nevis,) leaving Barron still in command of the United States, and Decatur, who had been promoted, her fourth lieutenant under him. The frigate afterwards conveyed to Europe the envoys to the French republic, Messrs. Ellsworth and Davie, and, returning to the Delaware, was dismantled for extensive repairs.

The treaty with France being ratified in February, 1801, the navy was placed on a peace establishment, and by an act of Congress, under Jefferson's administration, many

officers were discharged-only nine of the twenty-eight captains being retained. Of these nine Barron was one, and when the war with Tripoli occurred, he was placed in command of the frigate President, bearing the broad pennant of Commodore Richard Dale, as commander of the squadron ordered to the Mediterranean, in May, 1801, and continued there till some time towards the close of the year, when Commodore Dale returned to the United States, with the President and Enterprise, leaving the Philadelphia and Essex behind. In September, 1802, Captain Barron, being in command of the frigate New York, with Decatur for his first lieutenant, again sailed for the Mediterranean, and formed part of a squadron under the command of Commodore Richard V. Morris. Nothing important occurred during several months' service against Tripoli, and in March, 1803, Barron was ordered to take command of the frigate Chesapeake, and return home, as he did, bringing Decatur as a passenger with him.

In September, 1804, we find Captain Barron again in the Mediterranean, in command of the frigate Essex, one of the squadron of ten vessels under the orders of his elder brother, Commodore Samuel Barron. This was the strongest force which we had then assembled in that sea, and maintained the blockade of Tripoli during the season of 1804-5-preparing to renew the war in the spring. April, 1805, a portion of the squadron assisted Mr. Eaton, the U. S. Consul at Tunis, in his celebrated attempt to restore Hamet Caramalli to the government of Tripoli, the reigning bashaw at that time, a younger brother, being an usurper. A treaty of peace between the United States and Tripoli followed in June, 1805. Previous to this, on the 22nd of May, Commodore Barron, falling into ill health, transferred the command of the squadron to Commodore Rodgers; and our Captain was shortly afterwards transfer