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PROOFS of the CORRUPTION OF GEN. JAMES WILKINSON. AND OF HIS CONNEXION WITH AARON BURR - by Daniel Clark. [“Notes” Pages 101-120] Daniel Clark  1766-1813 |
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PROOFS of the CORRUPTION OF GEN. JAMES WILKINSON. AND OF HIS CONNEXION WITH AARON BURR - by Daniel Clark. [“Notes” Pages 101-120] Daniel Clark 1766-1813 |
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Each section below reflects a true page of this historical publication. Note links refer to the letters and documents that Daniel Clark used as evidence of his former friend's treachery. People and place name links are to biographical and geographical pages in Encyclopedia Louisiana. Time links are to the Encyclopedia Louisiana Timeline. |
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***101*** Note **44** ~˜ |
{Complete French/Spanish Text not yet included} |
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***102*** Note **44** |
{Complete French/Spanish Text not yet included} Monsieur, Votre tres humble st tres obeissant serviteur, LE BARON DE CARONDELET. New Orleans, the 23d April, 1797. SIR, I HAVE received the letter you honoured me with, which I have not been enabled to answer sooner, on account of a multiplicity of occupations. In consequence of the news which I have received from our Envoy near the United States, that the English are going to attack the Illinois, I am compelled to change anew the arrangements I had taken, to begin the delineation of the limits; because, if the expedition is of sufficient consequence to take possession of St. Louis, which, as you |
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***103*** Note **44** |
know very well, has but a very bad fort, only calculated to silence the Savages, we have nothing remaining, as far as Nogales that could stop the enemy, and protect Lower Louisiana; in consequence of which I have ordered Mr. Gayoso to make known to Mr. Ellicot, and to the commander of the American detachment, that I find myself compelled to put Nogales in a state of defence, and to forward there all the troops and artillery existing at Natchez, where I shall leave but fifty men, commanded by Don Manuel Lanzos, Mr. Gayoso being compelled to go with Messrs. Guillemard and Perchet to Nogales, to hasten the preparations. Finally, I am going moreover to send up to Nogales a company of grenadiers. As it is requisite, that at Natchez there should be an intelligent person, who should watch, and be informed of, the steps taken by the Commissary and Commanding Officer, I have ordered that you should serve Mr. Lanzos as Secretary and Interpreter, who is not deficient in finesse; and that Vidal shall accompany Mr. Gayoso to Nogales, or to the Illinois, with money and dispatches which I send there. You must send me an exact information of all that passes, worthy of mentioning, and endeavour to insinuate yourself into the confidence of the American commander, whom you must endeavour to put at variance with Ellicot; even if it should cost the King some hundreds of dollars in presents, let that be no obstacle, and I assure you that they will be satisfied; by these means we will render Ellicot unable to act by himself, and we would be safe on that quarter. The Envoy of his Majesty has intimated to the Minister of Foreign Affairs that the English expedition could not arrive at St. Louis de Illinois, without violating the American territory, and that he expected the United States would be opposed to their passage, and observe exactly the last treaty concluded with Spain. If the contrary happens, I doubt not that it will be annulled. At the Havanna are expected that the United States would be opposed to their passage, and observe exactly that last treaty concluded with Spain. If the contrary happens, I doubt not but it will be annulled. At the Havanna are expected 12,000 Spanish troops. The reception you met from Mr. Gayoso does not astonish me, but I am exactly of your opinion relative to the consequences which will follow. It is impossible that the wise inhabitants of Natchez can agree to a step, which, by insulting a nation jealous of its power, would expose them to certain ruin, and to be disavowed by the United States, who assuredly will not undertake a war against Spain and France, to maintain a step taken against the law of equity, and the rights of nations. I believe it so very improbable, that I cause to retire, as I told you, the troops, and only leave a detachment, to maintain good order, and to repel the insults of Savages. As to Mr. Ellicot whose conduct towards me has been very unbecoming, he might be recalled, or at least restricted to the commission alone of |
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***104*** Note **44** |
the limits, because I have written strongly to the Envoy of his Majesty and to the Prince of Peace. It appears that the beginning of this misunderstanding between Mr. Gayoso and Ellicot, as Mr. Nolan told me, proceeds from the following cause: that some Chactaw savages, having drunk to excess, got in dispute with some of the servants of the latter gentleman, who thought that the Governor had made them inebriated, to cause them to put him and his people to the sword; so much so, that Nolan has been compelled to remain two nights in his camp, to tranquilize him: what littleness in a man, who boasts of the title of the representative of a nation. It was I who ordered, that the American detachment might remain near Mr. Ellicot, and I disapproved, from the first moment, the opposition that was made. If Mr. Ellicot had officially informed me of his entering my province, as it is customary, and had addressed himself to me on account of motives of complaint which he thought just, I should have acted with frankness towards him, and nothing of that kind would have happened, except the suspension of the evacuation of those posts which depend on me, not thinking myself authorised to deliver them up, with their fortifications and edifices, as Gen Wayne and Mr. Andrew Ellicot exacted. I have thought it very strange that the American flag should be permitted to be hoisted before the door of Ellicot. I could not help observing it, although I do not wish to sour them, by commanding them to be taken away. I have just written to W. and delivered my letter to Mr. Nolan, a fine young man, and of whom I think highly. He told me he had a secure conveyance to forward it to him. It had been a long time since I wrote him, for want of an opportunity, and for fear of committing him. Farewell; let me hear from you, and command him who has the honour to be, with greatest consideration, THE BARON DE CARONDELET P. S. The Envoy of his Majesty near the United States has sent to the Illinois the French engineer, Mr. Finials, to fortify it, if there is time; but he will have found there Vandenbenden, occupied at the same thing. Do you know the former? |
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***105*** Note **45** |
MR CLARK’S STATEMENT TO CONGRESS. I ARRIVED from Europe, at New Orleans, in December, 1786., having been invited to the country by an uncle, of considerable wealth and influence, who had been long resident in that city. Shortly after my arrival I was employed in the office of the Secretary of the Government. This office was the depository of all state papers. In 1787 General Wilkinson mad his first visit to New Orleans, and was introduced by my uncle to the Governor and other officers of the Spanish government. In the succeeding year, 1788., much sensation was excited by the report of his having entered into some arrangements with the government of Louisiana, to separate the western country from the United States; and this report acquired great credit upon his second visit to New Orleans in 1789.. About this time I saw a letter from the General to a person in New-Orleans, giving an account of Col. Connolly’s mission to the British government in Canada, and of proposals made to him on the part of that government, and mentioning his determination of adhering to his connexion with the Spaniards. My intimacy with the officers of the Spanish government, and my access to official information, disclosed to me shortly afterwards some of the plans the General had proposed to the government for effecting the contemplated separation, The general project was the severance of the western country from the United States, and the establishment of a separate government, in the alliance and under the protection of Spain. In effecting this, Spain was to furnish money and arms; and the minds of the western people were to be seduced and brought over to the project, by liberal advantages resulting from it, to be held out by Spain. The trade of the Missisippi was to be rendered free, the port of New Orleans to be open to them, and a free commerce allowed in the productions of the new government with Spain and her West-Indies Islands. I remember about the same time to have seen a list of names of citizens of the western country, which was in the hand writing of the General, who were recommended for pensions, and the sums proper to be paid to each were stated; and I then distinctly understood that he and others were actually pensioners of the Spanish government. I had no personal knowledge of money being paid to General Wilkinson, or to any agent for him, on account of his pension, previous to the year |
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***106*** Note **45** |
1793. or 1794. In one of these years, and in which I cannot be certain until I commit my books, a Mr. Le Cassagne, who I understood was postmaster at the Falls of Ohio, came to New Orleans, and, as one of the association with General Wilkinson in the project of dismemberment, received a sum of money, four thousand dollars of which, or thereabouts, were embarked by a special permission, free of duty, on board a vessel which had been consigned to me, and which sailed for Philadelphia; in which vessel Mr. La Cassagne went passenger. At and prior to this period, I had various opportunities of seeing the projects submitted to the Spanish government, and of learning many of the details from agents, employed to carry them into execution. In 1794., two gentlemen, of the names Owens and Collins, friends and agents of General Wilkinson, came to New Orleans. - To the first of these was entrusted, as I was particularly informed by the officers of the Spanish government, 6,000 dollars, to be delivered to General Wilkinson, on account of his own pension and that of others. On his way, in returning to Kentucky, Owens was murdered by his boat’s crew, and the money, it was understood, was made away with by them. This occurrence occasioned a considerable noise in Kentucky, and contributed, with Mr. Power’s visits, at a subsequent period, to awaken the suspicions of General Wayne, who took measures to intercept the correspondence of General Wilkinson with the Spanish government, which failed through the address of Power. Collins, the co-agent with Owens, first attempted to fit out a small vessel in the port of New Orleans, in order to proceed to some port in the Atlantic states, but she was destroyed by the hurricane of the month of August, in 1794. He then fitted out a small vessel in the Bayou St. John, and shipped in her at least 11,000 dollars, which he took round to Charleston. this shipment was made under such peculiar circumstances, that it became known to many, and the destination of it was afterwards fully disclosed to me by the officers of the Spanish government, by Collins, and by General Wilkinson himself, who complained that Collins, instead of sending him the money on his arrival, had employed it in some wild speculation to the West-Indies, by which he had lost a considerable sum, and that in consequence of the mismanagement of his agents, he had derived but little advantage from the money paid on his account by the Spanish government. Mr. Power was a Spanish subject, resident in Louisiana, and the object of his visits to the western country became known to me in 1796., when he embarked on board the brig Gayoso, at New Orleans, for Philadelphia, in company with Judge Sebastian, in which vessel, as she had been consigned to myself, I saw |
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***107*** Note **45** |
embarked, under a special permission, four thousand dollars, or thereabouts, which I was informed were for Sebastian’s own account, as one of those concerned in the scheme of dismemberment of the western country. Mr. Power, as he afterwards informed me, on his tour through the western country, saw General Wilkinson at Greenville, and was the bearer of a letter to him from the Secretary of the government of Louisiana, dated the 7th of 8th of March 1796., advising that a sum of money had been sent to Don Thomas Portel, commandant of New Madrid, to be delivered to his order. This money Mr. Power delivered to Mr. Nolan, by Wilkinson’s direction. What concerned Mr. Nolan’s agency in this business I learned from himself, when he afterwards visited New Orleans. In 1797. Power was entrusted with another mission to Kentucky, and had directions to propose certain plans were proposed, and there rejected, as he often solemnly assured me, through the means of a Mr. George Nicholas, to whom among others they were communicated, but who spurned the idea of receiving foreign money. Power then proceeded to Detroit, to see General Wilkinson, and was sent back by him, under guard, to New Madrid, whence he returned to New Orleans. Power’s secret instructions were known to me afterwards, and I am enabled to state, that the plan then contemplated entirely failed. At the period spoken of, and for a long time afterwards, I was resident in Spanish territory, subject to the Spanish laws, and without any expectation of becoming a citizen of the United States. My obligations were then to conceal, not to communicate, to the government of the United States, the projects and enterprises, which I have mentioned, of the Spanish government. In the month of October 1798., I visited General Wilkinson, by his particular request, at the Camp at Loftus’s Heights, where he had shortly before arrived. The General had heard of remarks made by me on the subject of his pension, which had rendered him uneasy, and he was desirous of making some arrangement with me on the subject, I passed three days and nights in the General’s tent. The chief subjects of our conversation were the views and enterprizes of the Spanish government, for which he would gladly take in exchange Governor Gayoso’s plantation near Natchez, who might reimburse himself from |
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***108*** Note **45** |
The treasury of New Orleans, - I asked the General if this sum was due on the old business of the pension. He replied that it was; and initiated a wish that I should propose to General Gayoso a transfer of his plantation for the money due him from the Spanish treasury. The whole affair had always been odious to me, and I declined any agency in it. I acknowledged to him that I had often spoken freely and publicly of his Spanish pension, but told him I had communicated nothing to his government on the subject. I advised him to drop his Spanish connexion. He justified it heretofore from the peculiar situation of Kentucky, the disadvantages that country laboured under at the period when he formed his connexions with the Spaniards, the doubtful and distracted state of the Union at that time, which he represented as bound together better than a rope of sand; and he assured me solemnly that he had terminated his connexion with the Spanish government, and that they should never be renewed. I gave the General to understand, as the affair stood, I should not in future say any thing about it. From that period until the present I have beard one report only of the former connexion being renewed, and that was in 1804., shortly after the General’s departure from New Orleans. I had been absent for two or three months, and returned to the city not long after General Wilkinson sailed from it. I was informed by the late mayor of New Orleans, that reports had reached the ears of the Governor, of a sum of the thousand dollars having been received by the General of the Spanish government, while he was one of the commissioners for taking possession of Louisiana. He wished me to enquire into the truth of it, which I agreed to do, on condition that I be permitted to communicate the suspicion to the General, if the fact alleged against him could not be verified. This was assented to. I made the enquiry, and satisfied myself, by an inspection of the treasury books for 1804, the ten thousand dollars had not been paid. I then communicated the circumstance to a friend of the General, Mr. Evan Jones, with a request that he would inform him of it. The report was revived at the last session of Congress, by a letter from Colonel Ferdinand Claiborne, of Natchez, to the delegate of the Missisippi Territory. A member of the House informed me, that the money in question was acknowledged by General Smith to have been received at the time mentioned, but that it was in payment for tobacco. I knew that no tobacco had been delivered, and waited on General Smith for information as to the receipt of the money, who disavowed all knowledge of it; and I took the opportunity of assuring him, and as many others as mentioned the subject, that I believed it to be false, and gave them my reasons of the opinion. |
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***109*** Note **45-47** |
This summary necessarily omits many details, tending to corroborate and illustrate the facts and opinions I have stated. No allusion has been made to the public explanations of the transactions referred to, as made by General Wilkinson and his friends. So far as they are resolved into commercial enterprizes and speculations, I had the best opportunity of being acquainted with them, as I was, during the period referred to, the agent of the house who were the consignees of the General, at New Orleans, and who had an interest in his shipments, and whose books are in my possession. DANIEL CLARK. Washington City, Jan. 11, 1808.. [To the above statement is annexed the oath of Mr. Clark, taken before Judge Cranch, to which he swears, that the foregoing, so far as it regards the matter of his own knowledge, is true; and so far as it regards matters whereof he was informed by others, he believes to be true.] NOTE No. 46. DR CARMICHAEL’S TESTIMONY. DOCTOR Carmichael has also been examined. The doctor lived in General Wilkinson’s family at the period when Mr. Clark declares he made his visit at Fort Adams, and partook of the General’s hospitality in his tent for three days and nights. The Doctor’s testimony is expressly contrary to that which Mr. Clark offers on the occasion. - The General “was not encamped at the time, but slept on board his boat.” NOTE No. 47. TERRITORY OF ORLEANS. Parish of Rapide. sct. ON this 30th of October, in the year 1808., before me, Richard Claiborne, of said parish, personally appeared William Miller, Esquire, of the settlement of Bayou Boeuf, in the parish and territory aforesaid, who, being duly sworn, made oath, that in the fall of the year, 1797., he, this deponent, was at Loftus’s Heights, in the Missisippi territory, |
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***110*** Note **47-48** |
at which time General James Wilkinson was also there, and lived in a tent or marquee; This deponent perfectly recollects, that on his arrival at Loftus’s Heights he found Daniel Clark, Esquire (who at present represents this territory in the Congress of the United States) at the General’s marquee, and in company with the said General, and while he staid there to have parted with him late in the evening, and on his return on the ensuing morning to have again met with him, the said Daniel Clark, Esquire, at the same place, viz. the tent or marquee of the General, and in his, the General’s company; This deponent further recollects, that Mr. Clark told him that he had been, for several days and nights preceding, living with the General, and engaged with him in the transaction of business. WM. MILLER Subscribed and sworn to before me; in testimony of which I place my own signature, and affix the seal of the parish hereto, the day and date first above written. R CLAIBORNE, Judge of the parish of Rapide. NOTE No. 48. MISSISIPPI TERRITORY, Adams County, sct. PERSONALLY appeared before me, a Justice of the Peace in and for the county aforesaid, Isaac Guion, late an officer in the United States army, and being army, and being worn on the Holy Evangelists of Almighty God, he deposeth and saith, that on the twenty-second day of October, in the year one thousand seven hundred and ninety-eight, he joined the army at head-quarters, then at Loftus’s Heights, on the Missisippi River, encamped, commanded by General James Wilkinson; that the General then lived in his marquee, in the swamp, or bottom, on the right of the infantry; that o the day of his arrival at head-quarters, to the best of his recollection and full belief, he was introduced to Mr. Daniel Clark, jun. who was there on a visit, from New Orleans, as he was informed; Mr. Clark remained in the camp two or three days after the arrival of this deponent, and then left it, and went on an excursion of twelve or fifteen days towards the Natchez; on his return visited the camp again, and was there on the twentieth day of November in that year. But how long he remained this deponent cannot now be certain, but, |
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***111*** Note **48-49** |
to the best of his recollection, his visit was short, perhaps only one or two days. That from the time this deponent joined the army on the twenty-second of October, until after Mr. Clark’s visit in November, in the year 1798., General Wilkinson lived in his marquee; having only changed its position from the right of the infantry in the bottom, to the hill near the house (or boat) then fitting up for him; and afterwards occupied by him; that he is very certain the General did live in his marquee at the time when Mr. Clark made both those visits, for he well recollects having been in company with them in the General’s tent, and his memory, as to dates, is assisted by papers and writings now in his possession, which were written and dated by Mr. Clark, in the General’s tent, in the presence of this deponent, I. GUION. Sworn to and subscribed this 22d day of July, in the year 1808., before me, SAMUEL BROOKS, Justice of the Peace. NOTE No. 49. ADAMS COUNTY, SCT. PERSONALLY appeared before me. a Justice of the Peace in ad for the said county, David Michie, of the city of Natchez, and, being first sworn, deposeth and saith, that in the autumn of the year .one thousand seven hundred and ninety-eight, he was at the encampment of the army of the United States, commanded by General James Wilkinson, at Loftus’s Heights, on the Missisippi river, and while there he did see Mr. Daniel Clark, jun. of the city of New Orleans, there, in the tent of marquee of the General, then pitched in the swamp near the encampment of the troops; that he well remembers that the General then lived in his marquee, and that Mr. Clark was there in it in company with the General; and to the best of his recollection it was in the month of October or November in that year. D. MICHIE. Sworn to and subscribed before me, this 22d day of July, 1808.. SAMUEL BROOKS, Justice of the Peace. |
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***112*** Note **50-51** |
New Orleans,6th July, 1808. MR. DANIEL CLARK, DEAR SIR, I RECEIVED your letter of the 4th inst. and would have answered it sooner, but have been much engaged and somewhat indisposed. I have no hesitation in saying, that the first time I had the pleasure of forming an acquaintance with you was in Gen. Wilkinson’s tent of marquee, at Loftus’s Heights, some time in the latter part of October, 1798.. I was on my way from the Ilinois to this city, and stopped at the Heights to visit General Wilkinson, and to endeavour to procure some bills of exchange. I was advised by the General to wait your arrival at camp for that purpose, which he stated would be in a day or two. You appeared the next day. I was introduced to you by the General, and we dined with him in his tent or marquee, in company with several officers. I do not recollect whether Dr. Carmichael dined with us on that day, but I well recollect that the Doctor had then just returned from Pittsburgh, or some of the upper forts; that he was in camp while you and myself were there, and I well recollect your sleeping in the General’s tent, where a bed had been prepared for myself the night before. I also recollect Captain Shaumburg and Captain Guion having dined with us in the General’s tent, and having no doubt, on application to them, that their relation of circumstances you wish to substantiate will prove more satisfactory, that the particulars with which my memory serves me. After spending several days at the Heights, I set off to this city, and about two weeks after my arrival you came down. (Signed) JOHN CLAY. NOTE No. 51. PERSONALLY appeared before the subscriber, one of the Justices of the Quorum for Wilkinson County, in the Missisippi Territory, Captain Ephraim H. Marsalis, who, being duly sworn, on oath, says, that being a non-commissioned officer in the service of the United States, he was standing Orderly to General Wilkinson several days (to the best of his recollection) in the months of October or November, in the |
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***113*** Note **51-52** |
year 1798,and that during the time he acted as Orderly to the General, which was in the months of the year aforesaid, a gentleman, by the name of Daniel Clark, visited General Wilkinson, who then lived in a marquee, near where Fort Adams now stands; and this deponent declares that thee said Clark remained with the General three or four days, and that thee appeared a degree of intimacy (unusual with the General between him and Mr. Clark; that the General was accustomed to call him Dan; that during the time Mr. Clark remained in the marquee, the General once gave this deponent leave of absence, by saying he would not want him until such an hour; and he further states, that when Mr. Clark was going away, the General came out to the front of the marquee, and insisted on his staying until the next day, and that he would send Marsalis and the dragoons with him; that a brother of this deponent was the Serjeant commanding some dragoons, called in camp the General’s life guard. E. H. MARSALIS. Sworn and subscribed to at Wilkinsburgh, Wilkinson county, Missisippi Territory, on the 4th day of August, 1808. NAT. EVANS. NOTE No. 52. GOVERNOR DALCEDO’S EVIDENCE. QUERIES. Whether the Governor’s situation with the government, and the Secretary of the government, Don Andres Armesto, in the years 1795, 96, and 97, did not give him an intimate acquaintance with the public and private affairs of that government? Whether knows anything of the payment of any pension, particularly 9640 dollars, by the agency of Thomas Power, or any other person, to General Wilkinson; and if not of a pension, of any money in mercantile of other transactions. Whether, had such transactions taken place, he considers it probable or possible he should not have been informed of them. Whether he knows of Daniel Clark, or Thomas Power, separately, or together, having had access to the archives of the Secretary of the go- |
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***114*** Note **52-53** |
vernment, any circumstance attending it, and at what time, and, generally, of the character and conduct of the above named, under the notice of knowledge of Governor Salcedo? Any other information which the Governor may conceive will elucidate the transactions of that period, or the conduct of Gen. Wilkinson? The estimation in which General Wilkinson was held by the officers of his Most Catholic Majesty? Translated from the Spanish. Governor Salcedo cannot, nor ought not, to answer the foregoing queries, excepting that part which refers to the character and conduct of Mr. Daniel Clark, and hereby declares that this gentleman was universally known at all times in Louisiana as a zealous patriot of the United States, an upright man, and of the highest integrity, both in his public and private affairs, always preferring the good of his country to his own interest. N. B. The original of the foregoing queries and answer are in General Wilkinson’s possession. NOTE No. 53. Washington, January 2d, 1808. I WAS this day called upon to be present at an explanation between Mr. Daniel Clark, of New Orleans, and General Smith, of Maryland, relative to a conversation had between them during the last session of Congress, in relation to a report then in circulation of General Wilkinson’s having received in 1804 ten thousand dollars from the Spanish government. Mr. Clark began, by observing that he had been informed that General Smith had reported this conversation different from what was the fact; that he now reminded him again, as he had done during the last autumn in the Coffee-house at Baltimore, when General Smith had brought to his (Mr. Clark’s) recollection this conversation, which the General must certainly remember, that it related only to one specific fact, viz. as to General Wilkinson’s having received the particular ten thousand dollars in 1804, which had been stated in a letter from Col. F. Claiborne to the delegate from the Missisippi Territory, and shewn in the House of Representatives; that about the time of the receipt of |
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***115*** Note **53** |
this letter Mr. Willis Alston mentioned to him, that General Smith had acknowledged that General Wilkinson had received from the Spanish government this sum of money, but that it was for tobacco; that he (Mr. Clark) knowing it could not be for tobacco, was induced to call on General Smith, to enquire into the truth of the fact; that upon General Smith’s declaring he neither knew or had said any such thing, he (Mr. Clark) thought it due to General Wilkinson to state that this subject had been mentioned to him by the late Mayor of New Orleans, as having come to Governor Claiborne’s ears, and an enquiry made whether the fact could be ascertained; upon which he (Mr. Clark) undertook to investigate it, and accordingly went to the Spanish treasury in New Orleans, where he examined the book for that year, and no trace of any such charge appeared upon it. This he had stated to General Smith, but the conversation went exclusively to the particular ten thousand dollars mentioned in Mr. Claiborne’s letter, and said to have been received by General Wilkinson in 1804; for that it would have to have been the height of absurdity in h General Smith observed, that Mr. Clark had volunteered the conversation alluded to, by making enquiries as to what he, General Smith, had said on the subject of Colonel Claiborne’s letter, and authorized him to use his (Mr. Clark’s) name; that he had noted down the conversation some days afterwards; that he would not say how many, perhaps a considerable number; that Mr. Clark had held the same conversation with Governor Wright; that he (General Smith) had intended to send Mr. Clark a copy of his note of it; that the conversation referred to had been impressed upon his mind of a more general nature; that he understood Mr. Clark as saying that he had examined the books of secret service money in the Spanish treasury, from one end to the other, and found no charge of any money advanced to General Wilkinson, or General Wilkinson’s name upon them, upon which he considered Mr. Clark as saying he did not believe General Wilkinson had received the money, or any money, from the Spanish government. T which Mr. Clark replied, the latte was not the fact; that it was true he had satisfied himself at the time, that General Wilkinson did not receive the ten thousand dollars in 1804, but that the books at the Spanish Treasury are mad up from year to year, one for each year; that he had only examined the book for 1804, in which, if in any, this ten thousand dollars must have been entered, and with a view only to this specific charge, at the insistence of the Mayor of New Orleans. |
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***116*** Note **53-54** |
General Smith observed, that this explained the ground of misunderstanding between them; that he must have misapprehended Mr. Clark as to the extent of the enquiry made at the treasury; that he had not before supposed that Mr. Clark had examined only one of the books of the treasury, but had been impressed with an idea that he had gone through the whole of the books. To which Mr. Clark replied, that his impression had been very erroneous then. General Smith observed, he wished to have no personal difference on this subject that Mr. Clark and General Wilkinson had fallen out, but that it was nothing to him. Mr. Clark answered, neither did he wish any personal difference; that he respected General Smith, but would support this statement at the risk of his life, as he knew it to be true, and could not avoid noticing any contrary statement that might be published, sanctioned by General Smith’s name. To which the General replied, he had no intention of publishing any thing about it, and upon the explanation , it appeared that Mr. Clark had examined only the treasury book for 1804,there was little or no difference between them. I hereby certify that the above was committed to writing immediately after the conversation, to which it alludes, between Daniel Clark, Esquire, and General Smith, as which I was present, in the Senate Chamber; and that it is in substance, and as nearly as I was able to recollect, in language, the particulars of that conversation. SAMUEL WHITE. NOTE No. 54. PERSONALLY before me, one of the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, at Baltimore, in the District of Maryland, on the 12th day of May, 1808 appeared Robert Goodloe Harper, of the said city, Counsellor at Law, who being duly sworn by me, on his oath did say, that on this day he did deliver to Brigadier General James Wilkinson; at Baltimore aforesaid, an original letter from Walter Jones, junior, of which the following is a true copy, viz. - |
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May 6, 1808 SIR, I have the honour to notify you, that on the 12th instant, at the house of Samuel Chase, a Judge of the Supreme Court, in the city of Baltimore, between the hours of seven and eight o’clock, P. M. Robert G. Harper, Esquire, counsellor at Law, will be examined, on behalf of the United States, and his deposition reduced to writing, before the aforesaid Samuel Chase, one o the associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, to be ruled in evidence before the military court of enquiry, in the case of which you are a party. Mr. Harper will be examined on the following interrogatory, viz. Have you had any conversation with Daniel Clark, Esq. in relation to any report or allegation of Brigadier General James Wilkinson having ever been a pensioner to the Spanish government, or having any illicit connexion with that government or its officers? If so, please state. circumstantially, the time, place and occasion of holding such conversation. and the language used by Mr. Clark; in particular, whether, in explaining or giving any opinion upon such reports or allegations, there was discrimination between a specific charge (mentioned in a letter from Colonel Claiborne, or otherwise promulgated) of General Wilkinson having received the sum of 10,000 dollars, while acting as a commissioner under the Louisiana convention, and the general charge of having been, for several years before, in the receipt of an annual pension form the Spanish government? W. JONES, jun. Officiating Judge Advocate. Addressed - Brigadier General James WILKINSON, Washington. Sworn before me the day aforesaid, (Signed) SAMUEL CHASE. STATE OF MARYLAND. BALTIMORE, SST. Be it remembered, That on this 12th day of May, 1808, before me, the subscriber, one of the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, appeared R. G. Harper, Esquire, of Baltimore aforesaid, Counsellor at Law, at my house in the city of Baltimore aforesaid, at the hour of seven o’clock, P. M. and that Brigadier Gen. James Wilkinson then and there attending, pursuant to the notice contained in the foregoing letter, the said Robert G. Harper was by me then and there |
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examined, on oath, upon the interrogatory in the said letter contained, and on his said examination did answer and say as follows, viz. Some time in the latter part of February, or beginning of March, 1807 being at Washington, attending the Supreme court of the United States, I heard it reported that Brigadier General James Wilkinson had received 10,000 dollars from the Spanish Government, at New Orleans in the year 1804, as a bribe. In what manner this report arose, or came to my ears, I do not recollect. I had also heard it reported that General Wilkinson had formerly received a pension from the Spanish government; but I do not recollect whether any particular sum of payment was mentioned. Having at the time above mentioned become intimately acquainted with Daniel Clark, Esquire, of New-Orleans, and supposing, that, from his situation at New-Orleans, he probably had some knowledge of those transactions, I one day at his lodgings, took the liberty of asking him whether there was any truth in these reports. particularly in that respecting the 10,000 dollars in 1804; and he replied to this effect, and, as nearly as I can recollect, in these words - “Whatever may have happened at other times, I have reason to believe, and do believe, that no money was received by General Wilkinson from the Spaniards in 1804.” - Perhaps Mr. Clark said that he knew that no money had been so received in 1804. On this point I cannot speak so positively, but I perfectly recollect that the answer of Mr. Clark satisfied me as to the allegation of General Wilkinson’s having received from the Spanish government in 1804; and that I made no further enquiry from Mr. Clark on the subject of General Wilkinson’s supposed connexions with the Spanish government. I afterwards heard Mr. Clark speak to the same effect to other persons, respecting the 10,000 dollars in 1804; but I never heard him until after his first communication to Congress on the subject, say anything more particular than I have stated above respecting any former pecuniary or other transaction between General Wilkinson and the Spanish government; on the contrary, he seemed to me studiously to avoid saying any thing on the subject, which I several times heard mentioned in his presence. I recollect nothing further on this subject. (Signed) ROBT. G. HARPER. 1st. Did you voluntarily mention to the Judge Advocate, Walter Jones, Esq. the information you have now deposed to, and request to be permitted to depose to it? |
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2d. In making this proposition, did you not indulge an emotion of friendship to Mr. Clark? [3d Query omitted by mistake in the copy; for its import see answer.] 4th. When Mr. Clark mentioned to you that General Wilkinson had received no pension or money from the Spaniards in 1804, had the previous conversation turned on General Wilkinson’s general conduct, or only certain parts of it? 5th. When Mr. Clark intimate to you during that communication, or at any other time previous to the late session of Congress, that General Wilkinson had received a pension from the Spanish government? 6th. Did you hear Mr. Clark then, or at any other time previous to his last arrival from New Orleans, speak injuriously of General Wilkinson, or imply, by his language, that a friendly understanding did not subsist between them? 7th. Did you see Mr. Clark on his journey from Richmond to Philadelphia last autumn, as he passed through this city, and had you any conversation with him respecting Colonel Burr’s trial, then pending at Richmond, and which he had been subpoenaed on the part of said Burr to attend as a witness; and if so be pleased to state it? 8th. Have you any knowledge of a letter written by John Randolph, Esq. to the honourable Joseph Nicholson, in which mention is made of General Wilkinson; and if so, will you please to state the particulars? 9th. Had you any knowledge of the documents delivered by John Randolph, Esq. To the House of Delegates of the Congress, calculated to criminate General Wilkinson for an illicit connection with the Spanish government, previous to their exhibition by Mr. Randolph, and do know from whom Mr. Randolph received those documents. 10th. Did you at any time hear Mr. Clark speak of the practicability of subverting the government of the Mexican provinces, and erecting a separate empire there? 11th, Did you ever hear said Clark speak of the dismemberment of the union, of the erection of a western empire, and having Colonel Burr for President there? (Signed) JAMES WILKINSON. And the said Robert Goodloe Harper, being further examined by me, on the annexed cross interrogatories, exhibited by the said General James Wilkinson. answered thereunto as follows, viz. 1st. To the first he answers - “ I did not - Mr. Jones first mentioned the subject to me, and asked me what I knew about it, adding, that he |
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intended to call on me as a witness, and that he thought it due to Mr. Clark to do so. 2nd. “ I did not make the proposition - but I certainly at the time, and ever since I knew him, felt warm and strong emotions of friendship towards him. If it be meant to insinuate by this question, that my friendship for Mr. Clark would discolor the truth, I have only to answer, that such an insinuation merits no reply. 3d. To the third he answers - “I became acquainted with Mr. Clark first at Washington, during the session of Congress which he attended. I had never sen him before; I was introduced to him by the gentlemen of the mess to which I had been invited to dine, on the day of the introduction.” 4th. To the fourth he answers - “The conversation which I have related in my answer to the direct interrogatory, respecting the money in 1804, was introduced by myself, and before by a question from me to Mr. Clark, whether this report was true? Mr. Clark’s answer put an end to the conversation respecting General Wilkinson’s conduct, as far as I can now recollect, and as I believe. This conversation took place at Mr. Clark’s lodgings, during the same session of Congress, and some time, but I do not recollect how long, after I first became acquainted with him. 5th. to the 5th he answers - “ Mr. Clark did not during that conversation intimate to me, further than what I have stated in my answer to the direct interrogatory, that General Wilkinson had received a pension from the Spanish Government. Mr. Clark then, and at other times, whensoever the subject was mentioned or alluded to in his presence and mine, previous to his first communication to Congress seemed anxious to avoid any conversation o the subject. But I did conjecture from his manner of answering my question, on the occasion alluded to, and especially in his discriminating between the money in 1804 - and ”what might have happened at other times” - that he knew more on the subject of money transactions then he wished to explain. My belief that he wished to avoid further explanation. as to other transactions, prevented me from pressing the matter any further. I had no conversation with Mr. Clark afterwards on these subjects, previous to his first communication to Congress; but have heard the subject afterwards mentioned in his presence, and he always appeared desirous of avoiding any explanation concerning it, further than I say, that no money had been received by General Wilkinson from the Spaniards in 1804 - which I think I frequently heard him say.” |
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