Alexandria daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1803-1808, 1807-04-06
insufficient for The purpose for which j, is

Unon this point, too, The testimony OF
80. s.,on & a,s,to be considered. That
Bar, Of his deposition wnlen bears upon
ri. ,h,rse ,.',he plan disclosed by the
prisoner iur selzing upon New oFieaas aau
the western states.
That this plans it consamnated oy osess
acts would Amount to treason, no man VIII
controsert. But is eqAaiiy clear thai a. al
intention TO commit ,ssasoa Is an oitenee
entirely distinct trom the aesual eomnils'
sion Of thar crime. War can onty be ls'
We'd by the smploYmen. OF actual iofse.
Troops mus, be embodied /; men must ps
p.,.abled in order to levy war. = Goa
,5-a. c 80 been apprehended on maklos
i, have bsen alledfg!eeaas 10 gen. :. slss s.
.ther than sosmedita,e tie crime /! could it
have been said tia! he had actually col
lected forces and bad actually levied war
Most certainly il could NOT. The crime
really completed was conspiracy to com.
nit treason, not an actual commission OF
treason. 6
1t these communications wore rat trea.
sen as the instant they were made, so lapse
of :,me can make them So. They are no,
10 themselves acts. They may serve TO
explain the.insention with which acts were
committed, but, they cannot supply those
acts 1t they be NOT proved.
ne neat testimony is the deposition Of
general Wl.kiosoo, which consists in the
letter already notlccd, and of the commu.
nications made BY ,she bearer of the let.
ter. <tt
= This letter has already been considered
by the supreme court of the u. S. and has
been declared TO import, taxed by itself or
In eoRneesion with Estou's deposition, I'd
tter al exPeditlon against the territories
of Spain than OF the Z S. BY thar decI.
slon{ ann bound, whe.h=r Iconcurred 10 it
or not. But | did concur 10 II. Ga .his
point ths .cohrt wss pnaeimouss
ts is, however, urged that the delara-
tons CT SwaFswoas may be connected with
the letter and used sgalnss col. Burr
Although shs confession ct one man Can.
not .cEiminate another, YET | am nclined
20 tnlEs that, On nsse enquiry into pro.
paele cause, tbs q declarations of Swarswout
made On this particular occasion, May be
used against col, ber. My reason for
thinking SO is, that COD. BurI's letter au-
thorises MIR. Swariwous 10 speak in his
name. He empowers Mr.. 5war1wuu1 10:
make to gen. Wslkisoa verbal cor runica ,
rions explanatory of the plans ADD designa
OF Burr. which Burr adop.s as his own
explsnaiioos. However inad misslbls there
fore, this testimony may BE- on trial 10
chief, an lnclined 10 admit i. on this en-.
qairy.
IT il be adasised, what is its amouu.
Upon .hls poinstoo, i appears taat he su
pseme court ~as d vIded, l.ikerefore hold
myself al lFberiyeo pursue my owa opinion,
@htca was, .tnas the wosas s'th,s territory /.
asust be revc'u Ionizrd did not So clear
II apply TO . foreign territory as to roy
thar sense wHich would mike them appilca
BIKE 10 territory of the u S. a. least so !
lar as,o admit OF ursher enquiry ln,orhei,
meaning. Aud If a.sertilory of tbs u. S .
was 20 De revole1loniged, ,:ho' only as q
mean tor an expedition agalnat ,atoreiep.
power, the act would be treason.
1 his reasoning leads 10 he.conclusier 4
tha, there is probable cslse for the anees !
ton that reasonable design. were eorss 4
tanned by the prisoner so "a. e as July last
when this letter was written.
1t remains to 'nquite whether thsre is I
also prob BILE causs;to ,believs. that thesr
designs have been ripenrC ia,o the crimg
itse!fby actually levying war against theU i.
States.
IL has been already observed. that TO ]
constitute this crime, troops must be emb3. !.
died, msn must actually be asse mbled.
and these are facts which cannos remain
invisible. Treason may be mschina.rd IN
secret, but it can be perpesrated only 10