The hostility of his enemies therefore was, for a time, considerably lessened, without a corresponding diminution of the attachment of his friends.

It would have been impracticable, in office, long to preserve these dispositions.

And it would have been difficult to maintain that ascendency which he held over the minds of those who had supported, and probably would continue to support, every pretension of the French republic, without departing from principles and measures which he had openly and ably defended.
[Sidenote: Is succeeded by Mr.Randolph.] He was immediately succeeded by Mr.Edmund Randolph; and the office of attorney general was filled by Mr.William Bradford, a gentleman of considerable eminence in Pennsylvania.
{1794} On the fourth of January, the house resolved itself into a committee of the whole, on the report of the secretary of state, relative to the privileges and restrictions of the commerce of the United States; when Mr.Madison, after some prefatory observations, laid on the table a series of resolutions[13] for the consideration of the members.
[Footnote 13: See note No.VII.at the end of the volume.] [Sidenote: Mr.Madison's resolutions founded on the above report.] These memorable resolutions embraced almost completely the idea of the report.

They imposed an additional duty on the manufactures, and on the tonnage of vessels, of nations having no commercial treaty with the United States; while they reduced the duties already imposed by law, on the tonnage of vessels belonging to nations having such commercial treaty: and they reciprocated the restrictions which were imposed on American navigation.
[Sidenote: Debate thereon.] On the 13th of January they were taken into consideration, when the debate was opened by Mr.Smith of South Carolina.
After noticing the importance of the subject to the best interests of the United States, he observed that, being purely commercial in its nature, he would exclude from the view he should take of it, those political considerations which some might think connected with it.

He imagined it would be right to dismiss, for the present, all questions respecting the Indians, Algerines, and western posts.