Description:

James Monroe
Washington, D.C., January 3, 1818
James Monroe Pardons a Tavern Keeper Jailed Over an Unlicensed Pool Table, Countersigned by J.Q. Adams
DS
A pardon signed by James Monroe as President, countersigned by John Quincy Adams. 1p, measuring 10" x 16", Washington, D.C., dated January 3, 1818. Monroe pardons William Wallis, who had been fined for keeping a billiard table without possessing a license. Signed "James Monroe" and countersigned "J. Q. Adams" as Secretary of State. The pardon releases William Wallis from prison, with Monroe stating that Wallis also "generally heretofore borne a good character." Official paper seal at lower left. With toned edges. Flattened folds and creasing to the seal. Repairs have been professionally made to the folds on verso. Ink transference and ghosting to some text. Boldly signed by both. From the collection of a Dallas gentleman.

Reading in part:
"At a Circuit Court in the District of Columbia...a certain William Wallis was sentenced to pay a fine for keeping a Billiard table without License, and is now held in confinement therefor: And whereas it has been represented to me that the said William Wallis has generally heretofore borne a good character, that he was, at the time of committing the said offense, merely a hired keeper of the Billiard Table in question, that the Table itself had been previously licensed by the owner thereof, and that he, the said Wallis, was under an impression that a License for the City, would also be effectual for the County, of Washington, whereby he was led into error; and that, at present, he is wholly unable to pay the said fine Now, therefore, I, James Monroe, President of the United States, in consideration of the Premises, and being also thereunto moved by divers other good causes, have pardoned, and do hereby pardon, the said William Wallis the offence aforesaid, and have moreover remitted, and do hereby remit, unto him the full amount of the Fine."

James Monroe (1758-1831) was the fifth president of the United States (1817-25). Born in Westmoreland County, Virginia, he served in the Revolution, entered politics after the war, becoming a Senator (1790-94) and then Governor of Virginia (1799-1802). In 1803, he helped negotiate the Louisiana Purchase for President Jefferson. Monroe served as Secretary of State (1811-17) and Secretary of War (1814-15) under Madison. He was elected President in 1816 and again (almost unanimously) in 1820, receiving 231 out of 232 electoral votes. His popularity was so widespread that he and his party's ascendancy was heralded as the "Era of Good Feelings." His two terms are remembered for the recognition of the new Latin American republics and, of course, the Monroe Doctrine.

John Quincy Adams (1767-1848), sixth president of the United States, was the son of Revolutionary War leader and third president John Adams. Quincy Adams was partially educated partly in Europe while his father held various diplomatic posts in the 1780s. He studied at Harvard and was admitted to the bar in 1790. Quincy Adams served successively as minister to the Netherlands, Portugal, Prussia, Russia, and Britain. He began his career a moderate Federalist but switched to the Jeffersonian Republican Party around the year 1807. He helped negotiate the Treaty of Ghent, ending the War of 1812, and was a brilliant Secretary of State (1817-1825), taking the lead role in formulating the Monroe Doctrine.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: 10" x 16"
  • Medium: DS

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