# James Madison to Thomas Jefferson, 30 October 1809 CITATION: “James Madison to Thomas Jefferson, 30 October 1809,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/03-01-02-0497. [Original source: The Papers of Thomas Jefferson , Retirement Series, vol. 1, 4 March 1809 to 15 November 1809 , ed. J. Jefferson Looney. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2004, pp. 632–633.] URL (original): https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/03-01-02-0497 URL (fetched, Wayback Machine capture): https://web.archive.org/web/2024/https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/03-01-02-0497 DATE FETCHED: 2026-09-14 TRANSCRIPTION: scholarly edition text (Princeton, Papers of Thomas Jefferson / Madison Papers, as published on Founders Online); text below is verbatim from the fetched page, including the editors' source note and footnotes. Superscripts are flattened by the HTML-to-text conversion (e.g. 'Oct r' = Oct^r, '11 th' = 11^th). NOTE: Only the third paragraph concerns Lewis; whole document kept. ---- VERBATIM TEXT (Founders Online page) ---- James Madison to Thomas Jefferson, 30 October 1809 From James Madison Washington Oc r 30. 1809 Dear Sir In the operation of removing from my former quarters, the Digest of the City Code & business , which you had been so good as to furnish me, has, by some unaccountable accident, been either lost, or possibly so thrown out of place, as not to be found. I have written to Capt: Coles, to take Monticello in his way, and ask the favor of you to permit him to take another copy, from your Original. As that letter however may not reach him, I must beg you to signify my wishes to him, in case he should call on you as he probably will. The Works of Turgot, remain on hand for want of some person to take charge of them to Fred g . They fill a Box ab t 15 inch s by 12. & 8 inch s deep; too large therefore for the Mail. I shall avail myself of the 1 st opp y for sending it on by the Stage. I was in hope, that the Race-field would have furnished some known person, returning by way of Fred g : but I was disappointed; there being very few Virginians there, & none from the Southern districts. We just learn the melancholy fate of Gov r Lewis which possibly may not have travelled so quickly into your neighbourhood. He had, it seems betrayed latterly repeated symtoms of a disordered mind; and had set out under the care of a friend on a visit to Washington. His first intention was, to make the trip by water; but changing it, at the Chickasaw Bluffs, he struck across towards Nashville. As soon as he had passed the Tennissee, he took advantage of the neglect of his Companion, who had not secured his arms, to put an end to himself. He first fired a pistol, at his head, the ball of which glancing, was ineffectual. With the 2 d he passed a Ball thro’ his body, w ch being also without immediate effect, he had recourse to his Dirk with w ch he mangled himself considerably. After all he lived till the next morning, with the utmost impatience for death. I inclose the latest acc ts from Europe. Onis has returned to Philad a . The reality or degree of his disapp t is not easily ascertained. His last conversation with M r Smith, did not manifest ill humour. How could he expect a different result, in the actual State of things? And what motive Can Spain or the Colonies have, in any State of things, to make enemies of the U.S.? I see nothing to change the view of Jackson, which I formerly hinted to you. RC ( DLC : Madison Papers, Rives Collection); closing and signature clipped; endorsed by TJ as received 5 Nov. 1809 and so recorded in SJL . Enclosures not found. The digest of the city code & business was probably TJ to the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, 12 Oct. 1803 ( DLC ), in which TJ listed legislation pertaining to the capital while also defining the president’s role and power in implementing the city plan after Congress had established a corporation for the city’s government. Index Entries Coles, Isaac A.; visits Monticello search Fredericksburg, Va.; racecourse at search Jackson, Francis James; British minister to U.S. search Lewis, Meriwether; death of search Madison, James; letters from search Monticello (TJ’s estate); Visitors to; Coles, Isaac A. search Oeuvres (A. R. J. Turgot) search Onís y González Vara López y Gómez, Luis de; minister plenipotentiary of Spain search Smith, Robert; secretary of state search Spain; and U.S. search suicide; and M. Lewis search Turgot, Anne Robert Jacques; Oeuvres search United States; and Spain search Washington (D.C.); digest of city code search Permanent Link What’s this? https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/03-01-02-0497 Note: The annotations to this document, and any other modern editorial content, are copyright © Princeton University Press. All rights reserved. Back to top You Are Looking At Source Project Jefferson Papers Title James Madison to Thomas Jefferson, 30 October 1809 Author Madison, James Recipient Jefferson, Thomas Date 30 October 1809 Reference Cite as “James Madison to Thomas Jefferson, 30 October 1809,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/03-01-02-0497. [Original source: The Papers of Thomas Jefferson , Retirement Series, vol. 1, 4 March 1809 to 15 November 1809 , ed. J. Jefferson Looney. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2004, pp. 632–633.] More between these correspondents Preceding From Jefferson to Madison [25 October 1809] Next From Jefferson to Madison [6 November 1809] All All correspondence between Jefferson and Madison