The Federalists had long denigrated Vermont congressman Matthew Lyon as being a lower-class Irishman and former indentured servant. Then, in February 1798, Roger Griswold, a representative from Connecticut, implied that Lyon’s service during the Revolution had been less than exemplary. On the floor of the House, Lyon, in a breach of etiquette, spat tobacco juice on Griswold. Griswold responded by grabbing a pair of fireplace tongs and assaulting Lyon.
Despite Griswold’s protests, the House failed to expel Lyon. Federalists mounted an attack on the “Spitting Lyon” and his fellow Irishmen smearing them with accusations of treason.[1] When Lyon campaigned for re-election in 1798, he insisted these attacks were because President John Adams and the Federalists were planning a war with France. He also made some derogatory comments about Adams in a Vermont newspaper. The government tried Lyon under the Sedition Act. He spent four months in prison and paid a fine.
Sensing that he might also come under attack, Mathew Carey swore allegiance to the United States. He became a citizen on February 20, 1798. It was a prudent move. As a citizen, he was exempt from the Naturalization Act and Alien Act.
Next: How Mathew Carey’s Brother Came under Attack
Edward C. Carter II, “The Political Activities of Mathew Carey, Nationalist, 1760-1814,” PhD Dissertation, Bryn Mawr College, 1962.
