To James Madison from DeWitt Clinton and Others, January 1816
From DeWitt Clinton and Others
NewYork Jany. 1816.
We the Subscribers recommend Monsieur Francis I. Berier of the City of New-York to the Professorship of the French language in One of the additional Military Academies contemplated to be established.1 Mr. Berier is a native of France. He has been at the Head of the Economical School in the City of NewYork, for some Years past. From his acquaintance with the language of the United States, we believe him to be well qualified for the Professorship to which We recommend him.
Dewitt Clinton
President of the Trustees
of the Economical School
[and four others]
RC (DNA: RG 94, Letters Received, filed under “Berard, Claudius”). The other signers were Samuel Latham Mitchill, Brockholst Livingston, John Ferguson, and Henry Meigs. A separate cover sheet bears a 25 Jan. 1816 note in an unidentified hand: “Jn Forsyth has been requested to present the enclosed recommendation to the President of the United States.”
1. JM had recommended the establishment of additional military academies in his annual message to Congress of 5 Dec. 1815, and legislation to that effect was introduced in the House of Representatives by Richard M. Johnson on 26 Dec. 1815. After extensive debate, in which the number of proposed schools was reduced from three to one, the bill languished and died in committee because of insurmountable disagreements over the location of the new academy ( 14th Cong., 1st sess., 401–2, 418–19, 421–50, 514–15; Daily National Intelligencer, 13 May 1816).