CHAPTER IV

ENVOYS AND GENERALS

I

COLONEL BURR had found everything that he needed in the Southwest, except money. That must still come from the East. Kentucky, and Tennessee, and Louisiana would march and fight, but they could not pay for it all. Upon his return to Washington, in November, 1805, the Colonel went at once to Mr. Merry-and still there was no answer. Colonel Burr was extremely disappointed, and Mr. Merry wrote at great length to Lord Mulgrave. Everything was in readiness; the Creoles were prepared to rise in March or April; General Wilkinson, General Adair, General Jackson were all committed -Colonel Burr was not afraid to tell Mr. Merry anything all that was needed was a British squadron to cruise off the mouth of the Mississippi on April IO, and "to continue there until the commanding officer should receive information from him or from Mr. Daniel Clark of the country having declared itself independent." Just two or three ships of the line and some frigates, and one hundred and ten thousand pounds.

The negotiations with Mr. Merry dragged along until June, 1806, when that credulous envoy suddenly learned from his government that a request for recall which he had never made had been graciously granted by the King-in other words, the British Foreign Office was tired of Mr. Merry's melodrama. But long before that, probably in November, 1805, already, the Colonel had made up his mind that no funds would be forthcoming from England. He looked around him again, therefore, and allowed his gaze to rest upon the last individual one would have thought he would presume to approach.

Don Carlos Martinez de Yrujo had been created Marquis de Casa Yrujo in 1802. He was an obstinate, impetuous and rather vain little person with reddish hair; enormously wealthy, endlessly touchy, extremely intelligent and vastly attractive. The husband of Sally McKean, of Philadelphia, he was almost as much an American as a Spaniard; he liked America, he understood it and enjoyed it; he was tremendously popular at Philadelphia, and at Washington when he condescended to appear there; he was on intimate terms at the President's House. If he lost his temper from time to time, and thought nothing of haranguing the country through the newspapers, he served his King with energetic loyalty; he went about his business with dignity and shrewdness; he never forgot the respect due to his official person, however much he might indulge his democratic tendencies in private intercourse; he was the only Minister of the first rank in America, and consequently the leading figure in the diplomatic corps; he contributed to American society

the brilliant qualities of his elegant and felicitous personality; he was a very great gentleman. It was to him, to the Minister Plenipotentiary from Spain, that Colonel Burr now turned.

2

First, it was Mr. Dayton who came, in December, to the Marquis Yrujo, with a request for money in return for certain secrets which he was prepared to betray. Colonel Burr was conniving with Mr. Merry for the purpose of launching an expedition against Mexico and the Floridas. The secret was known to only three persons, and the Marquis was now one of them. But the Marquis did not give Mr. Dayton any money, nor did he believe the Mexican part of the story, since he had seen clear through Mr. Dayton and found Colonel Burr behind the ex-Senator; and the Colonel would naturally not be sending Mr. Dayton to him with information involving an attack on Spanish territory. So it seemed to the Marquis Yrujo, and not long after, Mr. Dayton admitted that Colonel Burr had failed to interest England in a project of western separation, and that he was now ready to sell his services to Spain.

But still the Marquis was not carried away with enthusiasm, and late in the month Mr. Dayton had a much more exciting story to tell him. Colonel Burr had a new plan, and "for one who does not know the country," the Marquis wrote to Madrid, "this plan would appear almost insane . . but I confess . . . it seems to me easy to execute, although it will irritate the Atlantic States. is beyond question that there exists in this coun

It

try an infinite number of adventurers, without property, full of ambition and ready to unite at once. under the standard of a revolution which promises to better their lot. Equally certain is it that Burr and his friends, without discovering their true object, have succeeded in getting the good will of these men, and inspiring the greatest confidence among them in favor of Burr.'

And the plan was to fill Washington with men in disguise, and when the Colonel gave the signal, to seize the President, the Vice President and the substitute President of the Senate, the public moneys and the arsenal. If Washington could not be held, Colonel Burr would take the ships in commission at the Navy Yard, burn the rest, and sail to New Orleans to establish the independence of Louisiana and the West. None of the Spanish possessions were to be molested. It was as idiotic a goblin tale as was ever told a naughty child-and the fantastic purpose of it was presumably to distract the Marquis Yrujo's attention from Mexico-but the Marquis believed it. He was very angry at Mr. Jefferson for his recent public "war message" against Spain, he was having a spirited quarrel with Mr. Madison, and he evidently thought that in America anything was now possible.

At all events, the Marquis was quite impressed, and in May, 1806, he was advising his government that "the communications I have had with [Burr] confirm me in the idea, not only of the probability, but even of the facility of his success, under certain circumstances. To insure it, some pecuniary aid on our part and on that of France is wanted," but the

French Minister at Washington must not be told, because the conspirators "lack confidence in him.” Some "very respectable persons" from Louisiana, Kentucky and Tennessee were soon to visit Spain, but the Marquis had not "compromised myself in any manner." The Marquis did, however, think that the King of Spain might do well to support the enterprise. But the Spanish Foreign Minister thought differently, and instructed his envoy at Washington to contribute no money whatever.

Colonel Burr's efforts to raise funds had again failed, although in June he was still trying to scare the Marquis into it by a pretended renewal of the English scheme for an attack on the Spanish dominions.

3

But in the meantime a certain General William Eaton-the conspiracy was peopled with Generalshad overheard the canard about the seizure of Washington prepared for the Marquis Yrujo's consumption, and was regaling certain Congressmen with a recital of its more dreadful aspects. He had, so he said, heard it direct from Colonel Burr, in his lodgings at the home of Sergeant at Arms Wheaton, and on the facile tongue of General Eaton it became a matter of turning Congress "neck and heels" out of doors, "assassinating" the President, seizing the Treasury and the Navy, and establishing the Colonel as "protector of an energetic government." And there were to be a division of the Union and a Mexican empire. To which the Congressmen replied that "they believed Colonel Burr capable of any