91桃色

For the first two months covered by this volume, Thomas Jefferson is residing at Monticello, avoiding the 鈥渞ather sickly鈥� season in the nation’s capital. His mountaintop house finally has a roof and both daughters and their families come to stay with him. Using cowpox vaccine received from Benjamin Waterhouse, he undertakes what he calls 鈥渕y experiment,鈥� the systematic inoculation of family members and slaves against the smallpox.

In Washington, the construction of buildings for the nation’s capital moves forward. The walls of the chamber of the House of Representatives now extend 鈥渦p to the window heads,鈥� with only three feet more to go. Jefferson considers the erection of this chamber as well as completion of a 鈥済ood gravel road鈥� along Rock Creek as crucial for 鈥渆nsuring the destinies of the city.鈥� The interior decoration of the President’s House also progresses, with draperies, girandoles, and a chandelier furnishing the circular room. His carriage is ready to be shipped from Philadelphia.

As the city takes shape, so too do the operating principles of Jefferson’s administration. He dispatches a letter to his heads of department outlining 鈥渢he mode & degrees of communication鈥� for conducting their business. In mid-November, he enters a period of intense activity in the preparation of his first annual message to Congress, soliciting suggestions but personally drafting the document that he will submit in writing in early December.