Conclusion

The Legacy of Hamilton and Jefferson

In one of his final letters, Alexander Hamilton declared:

“I am affectionately attached to the Republican theory of government.
This is the language of my heart which I open to you in the sincerity of friendship.
The only enemy that Republicanism has to fear is the spirit of faction and anarchy.
If I were disposed to promote monarchy and overthrow the State governments,
I would mount the hobby horse of popularity and cry out ‘danger to liberty, usurpation,’
and then ride in the whirlwind and direct the storm.”
(Letter to Col. Carrington, May 26, 1792.)

Simpkins reminds readers that during the bitter election crisis of 1801,
Hamilton’s patriotism led him to cast his influence for Thomas Jefferson over Aaron Burr,
thereby preserving the constitutional order and delaying national disunion for sixty years.
In the words of Forman, “To his eternal honor, Hamilton refused to participate in a scheme
to defeat the will of the people, but rather assisted them out of the difficulty.”

The author closes with this reflection:

“When we recall the patriotism of Hamilton in refusing to become a party
to defeat the will of the people, and Mr. Jefferson’s venom as shown by those ‘Anas,’
we can readily see why a partial biographer assails them as ‘questionable material,’
and that the madness of his malice is inexcusable upon every possible ground.”

Final Reflection

“To know Hamilton was to trust him;
to misunderstand him was to misjudge the Republic he helped to create.”
— Jere T. Simpkins