The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1807-10-30


4 you that trouble, FIR.
, Mr.. Eur. The quefion is were the avail
applied to his private profit A. 1t was faic
mr.. McRae. No, fir. Do y9u kno1y any thin
otit A. do not. Mr.. AeRae. How lon
was gen. Eaton !ufpended A. For or
months. Mr.. Hay. You ftated that the cor
was fold by gen. Eaton's order; was it publicl
ioid A. do not recollett. Gen. Eato,
was not the corn fold by the acting commillar
or the garriion, Thompfon was it not fol
through the Quarter-maiters department a
cannot tell. Mr.. MeRae. Was it fold ieore
~! q. | will Rate what heard /; that a par
of the corn was fold and applied to the sfe @
part OF gen. Eaton's family. So ThompfoI
| faid.
GEN. EATON rofe TO fpeak.
MIR. Burr. Before General Eaton, goes on,
with to know how he ftands before The cour,
whether as giving teffimony or as party. L
he ''to be confdered as giving ieftimouy we
may ak him fome quenions IF the cour,
thinks proper TO Indulge him in any obferva:i
ons have no objection. Ctutral Eaton.
undtrltood by the opinion of the court exprefs
ed few days ago, that explanations, in the Il.
tuatlon IN which am placed are admiiiible.
C8'o JgFiee. But you will coniine yourfelf
to explanations only.
Cen. Eaton proceeded. In the fall of the
1
tary at war to take command on the St. Marys,
| oe'ig then Captain on the military peace eff
tabhhment. Col. Gather at that time COM
Inandec the regulars on that ta'ion and James
oeagroves was Indian agent for the Southern
natlons. Reports from thefe gentlemen repre-
tented In the government of the United States,
the people of Georgia as difsGeeted infurre6ti
ons and ditorganizing THAT they were, in the
BACK country under the command of Gen.
Clarke preparing An EXPEDITION againft Eaft
flou1a. They reprefentcd gen. James Jackfon
as the mead or patron of this difcrption Of cit-
zenS. They difcrbed the Indians as hohilely
d!ipoied and the Spaniards as balancing between
dupoh,ions of war and peace. Did | Rate
that my orders from the fecretary at war were
dlitinet, aud fPecisl.-I accepted the command
with dlitIntt and fpecia! infruGtoRs from the
iecretary at war. Thefe fame reports recon-
mended the eftabli!hmcnt of trading factory
on the waters of the St. Maryes, and alto recon-
mended that military poft be ltationed there,
with view of over awning ne Indians or arrsh-
ing them if neceGary, Of keeping the Spaniards
In check, and Al eye of vigiencc towards any
di!oTdery citizens of Georgia WAC might At.
tempt to make aggreffions on the territory of
friendly neighbour. Early in the mouth of
January 1861 arrived at Coleraine poa on
the waters of the St. Mary's with dirsaions
and ipecial intruStions from the fecretarv ut
war pointing directly towards theGe objects :;
and ihortY after tool, my poit at the head of
three companies of Infantry. I ought TO msn-
ton that IN paiiing through Savannah, wait
ed on Gen Jackfon, and communicated to HIN
the two .irtt objects of my command. lie ap-
pretended no danger but faid that in cafe OF
need, he would order TO my afIiftance any num-
Der OF militia, which circumstances fhouId re.
quire. This, confefs, flrprifed me not little,
and gave me reaton to iuipe9 the accuracy Of
the information of Seagroves and Gather. But
It'll concealed from gen. Jackfon one Of the
onjetis of my command, which was To keep
watchini eye on the citizens of Georgia. ]
much diliked the petition Aligned To us by
Seagroves, on the waters of the ST. Mays, az
military pot. The trading homie, in frefi,es,
was below high water mark. There were no
military fites near II, and the crcumjacent
country was a low, pitch. pine barren. The
water was bad, being that of the river St. Ma
ry's.
Though there had been fome CONNEXIONS
on that frontier, yet found the Indians friend
ly, the SPaniardG peacea6le, and the citizens of
Georgia tranquil, except fome internal difcon-
tents concerning the YaZoo grants.
The pot at Coleraine was defgnated bv Sea-
groves as the bef military petition on the wa
tiers Of the 81. Mary's. ! recoDIoitred the coun
d.
bove that Pof, 10y land, found an elevated
lite, good encamping ground, and fair fprings
OF ruaning water. The reports which rny tiutv
required me to make coutrailed thefe relative
portions, and relative facts, and were 20 ds
metriraliy oppoiite o what had before been re-
prelsnted, that foon found myfslf ia colllGiou
with S:agroyes. had difcovcred that the DO
htion recommended by Seagroves was his own
private property, and that he owned thirty
thouiand acres of land adjoining and was
told (but this do not alfert as fdt1) that col
Gather was in pariuerlhip With him. Col.
Gather Viiited me at my poG in the ulonth Of
Feb. ! think and, among other friendly things
Offered me partnerfhip, in purchafe which
he had made 10 the Yszoo grants, on advanta-
geous terms. THIS / declined as diniked
that builnefS in all its Grapes. II occurs to me
alto that Seagrovcs, about the fame time, pro-
poied to NE, as an inducement to remove nv
family and isttle in Clmbden county, to accept
as compliment four or five thoufand acres OF
land III the nslghbourhood Of CoIeraine. told
him, jocoie'y, but iuppofed he underaood me,
that he did not bid high enough
In the fummer following, whether in Iuly. or
Auguft, ] cannot fay, commifioners arrived
who were appointed by the government of the
United States to treat vita the Indians, TO fet-
tic certain boundaries, and dHputes about
boundaries which had not before been adiuOed.
About that time the Misunderstanding between
{ OIL Gather ard Mr.. Seagroves aid myief be
came very dutina and virble: there was not
much intercourse between us and was not
very delirous TO become partizan among the