proceeded down the Cumberland to assume the leadership of the expedition gathering there.52

But in the meanwhile other affairs of great importance to Burr were transpiring. On November 27th, two days after receiving Wilkinson's message, Jefferson issued a proclamation "warning and enjoining all faithful citizens who have been led without the due knowledge or consideration to participate in the said unlawful enterprises to withdraw from the same without delay, and commanding all persons whatsoever engaged or concerned in the same to cease all further proceedings therein, as they will answer the contrary at their peril and incur prosecution with all the rigors of the law." 53 Burr was yet to win his famous victory in the Frankfort trial (December 5th), when this proclamation was started westward. A proclamation which, however, did not mention Burr's name. Jefferson's agent, after securing the co-operation of the Ohio governor and legislature, hastened to Kentucky on like business. The Kentucky Legislature had met in early November, and had thus been in session throughout the period of the Burr inquiries in Frankfort. In compliance with the agent's request, the Legislature passed a bill similar to the Ohio law; and detachments of militia were immediately sent to different points on the Ohio to intercept the passing boats. It was however now too late, as the few boats that escaped detention on the Ohio had already passed; and David Floyd, with a boat or two from Louisville, had already departed.54

As far as Kentucky was directly involved, the Burr episode had now passed out of state concern to soon become the center of national interest in the memorable trial in Richmond. It is sufficient here to say that Burr soon found himself deserted, and his prospects for further accomplishments shattered. On reaching Natchez with his little fleet of thirteen flatboats and sixty men, he was stopped by adverse circumstances, and to make matters worse the civil authorities presented him for indictment before the grand jury. Again through his great complacency, self-possession and skill he won the sympathy and admiration of that body, and it not only refused to indict him, but intimated that an apology was due him for the inconvenience. Due to certain legal irregularities used by the authorities in their attempt to hold Burr, as claimed by him, since he was now freed by the action of the grand jury, he believed he was being persecuted and so he resolved to escape to the province of West Florida and there find passage abroad. He slipped out of Natchez in disguise, and had almost reached his destination when he was recognized and arrested near Fort Stoddert. was taken to Richmond for trial. Just as the evidence against him had been elusive and inconclusive in the various legal proceedings against him heretofore, so it was in Richmond where he was tried for both treason and misdemeanor, where the greatest judge of his day presided, and where the best legal talent of the nation prosecuted and defended.55 Burr was acquitted; but his political career was forever ended. He died in poverty and obscurity more than a quarter of a century later.56

He

Blennerhassett, his deluded dupe, spent what ready money he had on the enterprise, believing it to be a land speculation, and lost his beautiful Ohio River island estate. He also ran into legal difficulties

52 "Burr's Conspiracy Exposed and General Wilkinson Vindicated," Vol. II, in Memoirs of General Wilkinson, passim.

53 Richardson, Messages and Papers of the Presidents, I, 404, 405.

54 Memoirs of Wilkinson, Vol. II, passim.

55 John Marshall presided, William Wirt was the chief counsel for the prosecution, and Luther Martin was for the defense. John Randolph of Roanoke was foreman of the grand jury.

56 He died in New York City in 1836.

Blenner

in Kentucky as well as in Richmond. A civil proceeding was commenced against him in Lexington concerning his "endorsement of some of Burr's bills." Henry Clay was retained as counsel. He made a ringing speech in the Lexington court in which he strongly protested against "the mode which had been pursued by the court.' hassett also addressed the court and according to the hostile Western World "He made an affecting appeal to the citizens of Lexington, which would have been very favorably received, had not the high crimes with which he was charged forcibly rebutted it." 57 He was taken to Richmond for further investigation. A bill was rendered to the Federal Government for $500 for guarding and conducting him from Lexington to the Virginia capital and for other expenses. The Lexington jailor entered a bill of $2.04 for his keep in the jail for six days.58 Pursued by ill fortune to the very end, Blennerhassett lived for over two decades after his ambitions for greatness had been shattered by the bursting of the Burr bubble. He ever afterwards felt bitter toward the man who had seduced him from his happy Ohio island estate.

"59

Joseph Hamilton Daviess was vindicated in the subsequent course of events, to the extent that the National Government attempted to do exactly what he had sought to accomplish a month or two earlier. He also saw the Federal Court in Richmond fail, just as had the District Court failed at Frankfort, although the former had the evidence which he saw could be developed only by time, and for the obtaining which he had sought to delay the court proceedings in the Kentucky capital. To this extent, then, the Daviess' attempt was premature. Of this, Jefferson said in his message to Congress, January 22, 1807, “In Kentucky a premature attempt to bring Burr to justice without sufficient evidence for his conviction had produced a popular impression in his favor and a general disbelief of his guilt. This gave him an unfortunate opportunity of hastening his equipments.' Daviess soon was removed from the position of district attorney, and the report inevitably spread among his friends that this was his reward for being a fearless public servant. But this need not necessarily have been the cause of his removal, for Jefferson had established the policy of bringing about a parity in the government civil service between the two parties, and to effect this made certain removals of Federalists, especially marshals and attorneys, Daviess continued the practice of law until the rising Indian troubles in 1811 drew him to volunteer under Gen. William Henry Harrison from whom he received the commission of major. In the celebrated battle of Tippecanoe which soon followed, he was killed in a gallant charge against the Indians. His death occasioned a shock throughout the state. Four years later his state perpetuated his name in one of its counties.Go

The practice in certain quarters of accusing Kentucky of disloyalty on every occasion possible had not yet fallen into disuse; and it was only to be expected that Kentucky's part in the Burr episode would be worked over-time by her revilers. A mass meeting in Lexington in January, 1807, after listening to patriotic addresses, adopted the following resolution, "That all charges & insinuations against the people of this State, of dissaffection to the Union or Government of the United States, are gross misapprehensions and without foundation." 61 There cannot be the slightest question that the sympathy for Burr and his popularity in Kentucky during the legal procedure against him in Frankfort was based

57 Safford, Blennerhassett Papers, 268-270.

58 Innes MSS., Vol. 18, No. 14.

59 Richardson, Messages and Papers of the Presidents, I, 415.

60 For a sketch of the life of Daveiss see Collins, History of Kentucky, II, 154, 156.

61 Palladium, January 8, 1807. Quoted in McElroy, Kentucky in the Nation's History, 314.

on any other considerations than a feeling that he was being unjustly persecuted and harassed by a political enemy. In further proof of this, it need only be recalled that Burr was not popularly received in the state until he was set upon by the District Attorney. And as for the aid actually given to the Burr scheme in Kentucky, there also can be but little question that it was offered in the belief that an expedition was preparing against the Spaniards of unsavory memory, and in nowise connected with a disruption of the Union of the States. Twenty years later, Clay wrote of this: "When the grand jury returned the bill of indictment not true, a scene was presented in the Court-room which I had never before witnessed in Kentucky. There were shouts of applause from an audience, not one of whom * * * Iwould have hesitated to level a rifle against Colonel Burr, if he believed that he aimed to dismember the Union, or sought to violate its peace, or overturn its Constitution." 62

Clay as well as Allen in their defense of Burr were honestly deceived as to his intentions. As before noted, the former demanded an explicit statement from Burr as to his intentions, and the answer he received he had no reason to doubt. Clay wrote Thomas Todd on January 24, 1807, from Washington, "I do not believe that any censure has fallen upon the Judge, or the Counsel appearing in the defense of Burr, for the result of the prosecution. I mean censure from the government. The institution [of the] prosecution, at the particular moment is supposed to have been ill-timed and injudicious." G3 Clay was now thoroughly convinced of Burr's guilt. He wrote on February 15th from Washington, "No doubt is now entertained here of his having engaged in schemes of the most daring and illegal kind. Having left Kentucky under a belief that he was innocent, it was with no little surprise upon my arrival here that I found that I had been deceived." 64 Clay never forgave Burr for this deception. It is said that years later the two met face to face in the city hall in New York City and that Burr extended his hand to greet Clay, but that the latter ignored his friendly approach.65

Burr's scheme, whatever it was, forms little more than an episode in state and national history. For a time it loomed large; a year passed and it was all but forgotten except for its mystery and its romance. It had the direct result, however, of showing that the West was loyal and satisfied with the Union.

62 Private Correspondence of Henry Clay. Edited by Calvin Colton (New York, 1855), 207. Clay to Pindell, October 15, 1828.

63 Innes MSS., Vol. 18, No. 21.

64 Works of Henry Clay, IV, 14, 15. Clay to Thomas M. Prentiss.

65 National Cyclopoedia of American Biography, III, 6, 7.

CHAPTER XXXVIII

THE SEQUEL TO THE BURR CONSPIRACY: KENTUCKY LOYALTY TO THE UNION

Between the first and second trips Burr made to the West, an event took place, insignificant in itself, but of vast consequences in the state for the following few years. This was the founding of the Western World in Frankfort by John Wood and Joseph M. Street. The former had been a resident of New York where he had been engaged in the newspaper work and other literary activities, and where he had had certain connections with Burr. In 1805 due to certain hostilities he had stirred up in the East he left for Richmond. Here he met a young

newspaper man, and interested him in setting up a newspaper in Kentucky or New Orleans. Street, for he was the man, readily consented to enter the venture, and so they soon departed for the West. In the summer of 1806 they arrived in Frankfort, and represented themselves as anxious to set up a newspaper with democratic principles. As the cost of a printing press was more than they could bear at this time, they were able to make arrangements with William Hunter, editor of the Palladium to use his press.

For certain reasons of policy, Wood desired to remain in the background, and so the Western World was published under the firm of J. M. Street & Company. The first issue appeared in the early days of July, and attracted at once widespread attention and comment. Wood had, while in New York, been privy to certain plots directed against Spain's possessions in the New World, among which were certain wild schemes of the mysterious Francisco de Miranda, a Venezuelan revolutionist and patriot. To this knowledge, he added certain established facts which he learned in Kentucky concerning Wilkinson's trail of intrigues, and certain rumors about the alleged questionable dealings of Sebastian, Brown, Innes, and others. With this conglomerate mass of facts and fancies, the editors of the Western World concocted an amazing tale of Spanish intrigues and conspiracies beginning before Kentucky became a state and not yet ended. From the first, without fear or favoritism, they flung out sweeping statements involving the most prominent men of the state in the "Spanish Conspiracy" and leaving a feeling among others that their turn was soon to come. The edition for July 7, 1806, stated that "It is merely our intention to develop a conspiracy, the seeds of which were planted with the first settlers in Kentucky, which are still growing and if ever brought to maturity, will affect the interest, not only of the western continent, but of the known world." 2

The articles on the "Spanish Conspiracy" that appeared in the succeeding numbers of the Western World were published in the Kentucky Gazette almost to the exclusion of other material at times. As there seemed to be no end to these articles the Gazette editor soon announced that he would publish no more of the wild imaginations of 1 G. H. Payne, History of Journalism in the United States. (New York, 1920), 2 Copy in University of Chicago Library.

207.

Street and Company. The Western World editors were soon the object of attack both by word and weapon. "Cincinnatus" addressed to them the following communication: "You have attempted by the vilest arts, and without the least shadow of proof, to stigmatize with eternal opprobrium the brightest characters that adorn our country. By publishing poisonous and inflammatory libels, you have endeavored to brand with indelible infamy, men who have endangered their lives in order to maintain the liberties, and advocate the honor and happiness of their country." a

Challenges for duels at once began to pour in on Street, who soon overshadowed Wood in the accusations, to such an extent that he announced that he would file them in the order received and would "from time to time give a list of them in the Western World, for the information of the public at large."4 George Adams, a man of considerable prominence and political opponent of Humphrey Marshall and who defeated him three years later by 76 majority for state representative from Franklin County, boldly assaulted Street, with two pistols. Street repelled his attack with a dirk after having received a wound from one of the pistols. Both were placed under arrest, but Adams found no difficulty in getting bondsmen. Street was on the point of being lodged in jail, when Humphrey Marshall and Joseph Hamilton Daviess came to his rescue by affording him the necessary bond. In the trial that followed, Street was acquitted, while Adams was declared guilty; but through a technicality in the indictment he was freed.5

A

Such happenings served only to increase the popular interest in the Western World, with the result that within four months after it had been founded, the subscriptions had grown to 1,200.6 When Street turned the force and influence of the paper against Burr as he soon did, Wood attempted to cause him to desist, but without success. short time thereafter, he divested himself of his interests in the Western World and left the state. Street after a few years, was beset with so many libel suits that he found himself impoverished. He left the state for work among the Indians of Wisconsin."

The immediate concern of the Western World was to bring about some tangible results from its wholesale exposure. Benjamin Sebastian, a justice of the Court of Appeals, appeared to be the easiest target. Charles Wilkins, a Lexington merchant who had commercial connections in Natchez, was in that town in 1804, and in examining some papers of a Mr. Seitz found a draft drawn by Sebastian on the Spanish government. This rumor had been whispered about until in 1806 it was seized upon by the Western World and was made the basis of a definite charge against Sebastian. An address to the Legislature was secretly printed charging Sebastian with being a pensioner of Spain, and calling for an inquiry. Some of these copies were taken to Versailles where signers were obtained. William Blackburn, a representative of Woodford County in the Legislature, then took the addresses in charge and showed them to other members. The evidence then in hand seemed so compelling and conclusive that Samuel McKee, a representative from Garrard County, on November 2, (1806), agreed to offer a resolution to this effect: "Resolved, That a committee be appointed to inquire into the conduct

8 Kentucky Gazette, October 2, 1806.

4 Payne, History of Journalism in the United States, 207, 208.

5 Marshall, History of Kentucky, II, 378.

• Payne, History of Journalism in the United States, 207, 208.

7 Payne, History of Journalism in the United States, 207, 208. See Innes MSS.,

Vol. 18, No. 36, passim, for trials in which Innes and Street featured.

8 American State Papers, Miscellaneous, Vol. XX, Part I, 925; Brown, Centennial of Frankfort, 31-33.