Mattern dispels the chill of Madison
Dr. David Mattern, associate editor of The Papers of James Madison at the University of Virginia, presents an engaging lecture, "Beyond the Marble Man: Who was James Madison?" as part of Inauguration Week at JMU.
The cold, hard image of James
Madison as interpreted in a statue located within the James Madison Memorial
Building at the Library of Congress provoked Dr. David B. Mattern to ponder "Beyond
the Marble Man: Who was James Madison?"
Speaking Thursday at Court
Square Theater in downtown Harrisonburg as part of JMU's Inauguration Week
festivities to celebrate the presidency of Jonathan R. Alger, Mattern shared
some of his findings from his role as associate editor of The Papers of James
Madison at the University of Virginia. "My intent today is to reveal a
little about the private James Madison that I've discovered after 25 years of
editing his papers," Mattern said.
"The public Madison, the
'marble man,'" as Mattern described him, was the public servant of 40
years who labored for his nation and state as president, Father of the U.S.
Constitution, one of the authors of The Federalist, a member of the Virginia
General Assembly, the Constitutional Convention, Continental Congress, among
other roles. "This is why we celebrate Madison," Mattern said.
Madison guarded his privacy
in later life, ruthlessly editing papers and letters that did not pertain to
public transactions. But despite such efforts, the study of Madison's papers
has yielded glimpses of Madison the man.
Madison was first a
Virginian, Mattern said. He benefited from the plantation culture of central
Virginia that allowed him the flexibility to engage in local political service
that eventually led to higher office. He was a farmer at his Montpelier estate,
which made him a slaveholder, despite his acknowledgment of the inequity of the
system.
While he was silent about his
religious views, Madison was fiercely convinced of the right of religious liberty rather than viewing, as some of his
contemporaries did, it as a privilege.
Madison was dignified to the
point of severe in his attire and desired to be inconspicuous, Mattern said.
But once the day's work at hand was completed and he was among family and
friends, Madison enjoyed puns and somewhat bawdy stories. Written recollections
of visitors to Montpelier portray Madison as a teller who had the gift of
"well-timed and well-told" jokes and stories.
Madison was an affectionate
husband to Dolley and an indulgent father to his stepson, Payne Todd.
Correspondence between James and Dolley reveals an intimacy that may surprise
people who think of them as President and Mrs. Madison, Mattern said. Madison's
love for Dolley led him to shield her from some of her son's gambling and
drinking consequences. It is estimated that Madison paid $40,000 – without
Dolley's knowledge – to cover his stepson's gambling debts.
"Contrary to his own
comments and how he wanted to be portrayed, Madison was more than the sum of
his public acts," Mattern said, "He was more flesh and blood than
marble man."
Following his formal lecture,
Mattern weighed in on the enduring question of James Madison's height. The best
information comes from the writings of Edward Coles, Madison's private secretary
during his presidency, Mattern said. Coles reported that President Madison was
5 feet 6 inches tall but with a small bone structure that made him appear
smaller in comparison to others, including his wife, Dolley Madison, who Coles
described as equal in height.
Mattern's lecture was
supported by the Rocco Forums on the Future.
Mattern
highly recommends Ralph Ketcham's biography of James Madison for students of
the man JMU honors in name and memory.
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By Janet Smith
March 14, 2013
