ALS signed "Jas. Monroe," one page both sides, 7 x 9, Richmond, July 28, 1802. Handwritten letter to an unidentified gentleman, in full: "I did not answer yr very friendly letter relative to the accommodation you w'd give me in May sooner, because it was previously necessary to confer with the person for whom I intended it, to ascertain whether he co'd wait that term. I have had the conference and find that he will cheerfully wait the time desired. I shall therefore accept with pleasure this testimony of your friendship. The subject of amendments was a delicate one, with a view to the ultimate success of any proposition from this State. Propositions of amendment were carried in the H. of Delegates, and finally postponed for present in the Senate, on the idea that the delay might contribute more to the advancement of the object that their adoption immediately. I will forward you a copy of the amendments as soon as I can get them copied." In fine condition. Encapsulated in a PSA/DNA authentication holder.
The enactment of Article V, or the 'convention clause,' allowed states to take an active role in proposing amendments to the US Constitution. Monroe's mentioning of "amendments" and "proposition" likely refers to the eight proposed amendments by John Wayles Eppes and the Virginia General Assembly in early February of 1802. Although the Senate postponed the hearing until sufficient time was allotted-and was ultimately never revisited-Eppes's fascinating revisions included bills that would 'prohibit the president from serving two consecutive four-year terms' and 'to consider the common law of England as separate from the law of the United States.'
