" ANDREW ELLICOTT.
" His Excellency, Manuel Gayoso de Lemos."t To this communication, a not very polite note was returned, and neither day nor place was named to receive the credentials of the United States' commissioner; who, on the 27th, addressed him self directly to the governor general of Louisiana, the Baron de Carondelet, at the city of New Or leans, and hoisted the colours of the United States at his cantonment in sight of the governor's house.
Mr. Ellicott makes the following statement, in page 44 of his Journal, and in a subjoined note observes, " The original letter has been in my hands." " Before we encamped (at Natchez) the follow ing intelligence was communicated to me through confidential channels. First, that in September previous to my arrival in that country, the Baron de Carondelet, in a private conversation, declared that the treaty would not be carried into effect; that he, as principal commissioner, should evade or delay, from one pretence or other, the com mencement of the operations.
" Secondly, that a letter had been written, bear ing date June 16th, 1796, by governor Gayoso, to a confidential friend, stating, that the treaty was not intended to be carried into effect, and that de lay on their part would reduce it to a dead letter.
" And thirdly, that the country either was, or would be ceded to the republic of France !" From the subsequent advance of the negotia tions between the agents of the United States and those of Spain, the correctness of Mr. Ellicott's previous information was confirmed. Every ob stacle, short of armed resistance, was opposed to the execution of the treaty. If we revert to the former intrigues at Paris, when the preliminary treaty of peace was signed between the United States and Great Britain, we were at little loss to account for the impediments intentionally placed in the way of fulfilling the conditions of the treaty of San Lorenzo el Real.
The southern boundary, along N. Lat. 5 l°, and thence by the rivers Chattahooche and St. Mary's, and the intermediate space, was but partially traced between 1797 and 1800; and in the latter rear, Mr. Ellicott returned to Philadelphia. The United States had, however, in the mean time, gained full possession of its territory to the 31st degree of north latitude, and the right of deposit, if under the recent treaty it could be called a right, remained undisturbed until on the 2d day of October 1802, the then intendant of Louisiana sus pended the privilege by proclamation. The com
merce of the inhabitants on its shores, flows as naturally towards its mouth, as do the waters of the Mississippi; therefore, the suspension of the right of deposit at New Orleans, was a declara tion of war with the people along the numerous streams above that city; and to place a deposit at that time at any other place on the Mississippi, would have been mockery, therefore the proclama tion of Morales was an embargo on all the vast valley of the Mississippi, as far as the United States were interested. A state of irritation preceded the closing of the port of New Orleans, arising from petty vexations met with by the citizens of the United States, from the Spanish officers. Rage and menace followed. Thomas Jefferson was then president of the United States, who, fortunately for the people, saw the root of the mischief, and as far as on him depended the results, prepared to apply the remedy. That remedy was, to wrest Louisiana from European domination, and annex it to the United States.
Louisiana was an original colony of France, founded by that nation at the end of the 17th cen tury, but ceded to Spain in 1762. The cession was made at a time when the Bourbon family had sunk in France to a depth far below its due weight in European policy, and the nation felt and re gretted the losses to which it was exposed by an imbecile government. Amongst these losses none was more bitterly remembered than Louisiana. To France, in the decline or her marine, her Ame rican colonies were precarious in their tenure; but rations never reason, and the moment when a chance of regaining Louisiana offered, it was seiz ed on with avidity. Indeed, we have already shown in this sketch, that France was secretly at the bottom of most of the diplomatic difficulties between Spain and the United States.