The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1861-02-14
TO ToIts cteou, sfne Aoan auo General gueiaent
sTRoUDsBURG, MONROE COUNTY, PA. FEBRUARY H. 1851.

OF her children" The Court sustained
the motion to stop the trial. Judge
Marshall charged that "no testimony re,
latlve to the conduct or declarations o
the prisoner elsewhere. and subsequent
to the transaction on Blabnerhassets Is.
land, can be admitted; because such tes.
tlmony being in its nature merely corrob.
orative, and incompetent to prove the o.
vert act in itself, is Irrelevant, until there
be proof of the overt act by two witness
es."
Mr.. Hay, for the prosecution, after
having taken time to read the charge,
for which purpose the Court had been ad
jourDed, announced that be had neither
argument nor evidence further to offer to
the Jury. He had examined the opinion
Of the Court, and must leave the case with
the Jury. The Jury thereupon retired
and in short tiue returned with the fol-
lowing verdict:
1--WE, Of the Jury, say that Aaron Burr
is not proven to be guilty under this in
dictment by any evidence submitted to u.s.
We therefore find him Not Guilty"
Burr Immediately objected to the
pbraseology Of this written verdict, and
the Court directed the usual one of mot
guilty to be recorded. He was then
discharged, and bis bail on the indict-
ment for misdemeaDor reduced to SIS 600
On examining closely the evidence ad-
duced, it is clear that Burr's &C main object
was to invade Mexico. revolutionize it,
and establish Government of his own
1t is true that he and Blannerhasset had
purchased the Bastrop grant of 100000
acres of land on the Washita, and that
they used that fact as blind to their
real object. He professed to rely on the
connivance of Gen. Wilkinson, then in
command at New-Orleans, to aid him in
mastering that city, as well as even to GO
further. His letters to Wilkinson. writ
in cipher, are extraordinary missives, if
the former really had no share n the
plot. 1t was also part of Burr's plan to
disme Der the Union, just as other trail
tors are seeking to divide it now. His
m ysterious movements in the West Great
Gu "iUc-o okicdu dIdlH, anu uUitcu tuo
masses to defeat bis plans. But had his
party not been SO quickly broken up, its
force was utterly disproportioned to the
hazards of any Of bis projects. Those
who were to do the fighting were kept in
the dark as to where or on what errand
they were bound. Hence men were not
readily seduced into joining him, and at
no time had he more than $50 followers.
Had they reached the Spanish provinces,
they would have perished as miserably
as Miranda's meD, or the wretehed VIC
tins whom Walker seduced into Nicara-
qua. The great lesson taught by his
treason lies in the fact that it reused the
Government to prompt and vigorous ex
ercise of its powers, No sooner was the
President apprised of it than measures
were taken to crush it. There was no
parley held with the traitors. The lead
er, once Vice President, two United States
Senators, and various prominent men.
were promptly arrested and brought into
Court. Relatively, the Government was
no stronger then than now. Yet the con-
trast between JefersoD's courageous pa
triotism and Bucbanan's cowardly imbe-
cility, is as remarkable as it is humiliat-
ing - Tribune.