John Adams to William Thompson, July 15, 1789

[ 15 July 1789 ] 1

Sir

I have received the letter you did me the honor to write me on the
fifth of this month, and am the more earnest to give it an early answer, as from various
circumstances, I have been prevented from answering that delivered by Colo; Tudor

It is so rare of late, to find a candidate for office, acknowlege
the ease and independance of his circumstances, that your frankness in this particular:
was the more welcome and agreable. Distress in a man’s affairs, in the ordinary course
of things, is so far from being a recomendation to public trust, that it ought to be an
objection tho’ not a decisive obstruction to him. But in the present times, when there
are so many ruined men and families, whose misfortunes have been clearly occasioned not
by their own fault, but by the injustice and impolicy, of their country, and whose
merits and public services have been considerable; the ordinary rule seems to be
inverted. Nominations an appointments to office are however wholly out of my sphere. The
Vice President has a constant and laborious service assigned him by the constitution, at
the head of the Legislature, which consumes all
his time, strength, and spirits; and leaves him no opportunity or capacity to collect
the information, or to weigh the pretensions of candidates necessary to form these
arrangements, or even to give advice concerning them, except perhaps in a few instances,
more particularly and personally known to him. These duties are by the constitution
wisely and virtuously assigned to the first executive Magistrate, and to him therefore
must your application as well as all others be made.

I am &

John Adams