The Republican journal., 1874-08-06
from the New York Evening POSI-
A Keminiscence of Seventy Years a go


A...-.-,......-.s..a-
from he New York Evening POSI-
A Keminiscence of Seventy Years a go.
On Saturday the Ilth of July 1901.
this city Witnessed the most solemn and
impressive funeral pageant which had, up
10 thai time, appeared in IT, streets. -Four
Years previously the mock funeral OF
Washington had been celebrated with all
the ponp OF which the ACE was capable.
but that was merely a civic demonstra-
tion of respect and sorrow. When llamil-
ton was buried the populacc beheld the
corpse of the dead. and saw in his funeral
the result OF II terrible crime 1t was not
only the death of an exalted and almost
idolizcd leader, bet his death hy murder.
that gave such 4 deep and mntterablc
thrill TO the heart of the public. The
history Of th, tragedy is SO familiar TO
our readers that 4 mere reference is Sufli-
cicnt 10 revive lis power. 1T will be re-
memh"I1d that the cause of the ducl rs
alleged hv Colonel Burr, was the reflection
ma,ie upon him by Hamilton in conveI>a-
ton with General Cooper and others
several Years previously. This, however.
was but a preteNt for settling a long ac-
count. There was 4 constitutional antag-
onism between these two gifted men, but
though their mutual antipathv had been of
long standing. its bloody termination was
little expected. Only four years previous
ly they had served as united counsel
having been associated in one of the most
important murder cases which had ever
occurred in this city This was the trial
Of Levi Weeks for the murder of Gulielma
Sands, alid was commonly called ''the
Manhattan Well MURDER
Miss Sands was the daughter of 4
British officer and lived with her uncle
She was engaged to be married to the
prisoner One night she accompanied him
in Sleigh-drive, 50 it was alleged, and
never returned. When Weeks was inter
rogatcd concerning her he denied that she
accompanied him, and although it was
proved that she left her room to 90 with
HIM no one saw them depart together. A
week afterwards. as some boys were play
ing on In, commons Che locality being
near Spring street) they discovered a
corpse in one of the wells belonging to
the Manhattan Company. The alarm was
given. and the body was found to be that
OF the missing girl. An intense excitement
followed. and Weeks was indicted and
triad E'r tho rrmn IIo had influential
friends, who We're determined to employ
the best legal talent. Burr was then
torty-tive Years Old, and had won n repu-
tatlOn rs an adroit and tenacious attorney
and an expert in the use OF all kinds ot
legal strategy. He was also recognized
as the leader OF the northern republicans
Il fact which soon afterwards placed him
in nomination for the Presidency. llamil-
ton was yea1 Younger, and enjoyed dis
tlnctlon as Il statesman. 4 man OF unsur-
passed cloquence and the leading federal
ist Of New York. Two such noted
lawyers, and especially such political
opponents, had never previously been
associated in criminal practice and indeed
this was the first murder Of importance
which had occurred since the Revolution.
The case lasted three days. and the
prisoner was acquitted but many con-
>idered him guilty, and no one had been
found on whom circumstances fastened
the deed so powerfully. The trial took
place March 81, 1900, in Federal Hall.
which occupied the site on which the
Treasury now stands, and the Judge was
Chancellor Lansing, who subsequently
persisted in 50 mysterious a manner
Indeed, the whole affair was 4 series OF
tragedies. In addition to the hard fate Of
Miss Sands. was that of the counsel for
the defence. One Of these killed the other
and then became n fugitive, While the
judge either committed suicide or died by
violence or accident. lie disappeared in
a manner which has never been explained
Some assert that he hanged himself in the
garnet of the City Hotel, and that his
friends buried the body secretly; while
others say that he left the hotel for the
Albany steamboat, which then lay at the
foot OF Cedar street, and that he fell into
the slip and was drowned. 1t is to be re-
membered that AT the very time when
Hamilton was thus associated with Burr
he was, in his private correspondence.
writing bitter things against HIM He
was deeply convinced that Burr was 4
dangerous man 10 society and to the
country.
TO the return of the dnol After the
murder trial Burr and Hamilton never
We're found IN harmony, and indeed
they ceased to be even on speaking terms.
They were antagonistc leaders OF political
opinion, and the division of parties was
then often accompanied by the most bitter
personal hostility BUR- had four years
previously been defeated in the Presidential
canvass. and though this defeat grew ont
Of division in the republican party. vet
fh" icdcralists, among whom Hamilton
was 50 influential, bore part in it. Burr
no doubt ascribcd his ill-succcss to IIamil-
tons mconcealed opposition, and was de-
termined TO intiict the highest punishment
in his poWer-dcath by the pistol--even if
he perished in the attempt. AT the time
the duel took place Burr was :, Widower,
and his only child, Theodosia. had been
for some years married to Joseph Aston,
Governor of South Carolina Hence he
stood almost alone in the world On the
| other hand, Hamilton was the head Of 4
| large family, which depended solely upon
| his earnings. Both men were in embar-
rassed circumstances, and though hsldino
large amounts of real estate. they were
deeply in debt. Hamilton had a country
seat called 'The Grange" but his family
| lived in the city in the winter. He was in
the fulncss of his powers, and had recently
delivered at Hudson his great effort in
defense of the liberty OF the press, being
counsel for Harry Crosswell, who was
prosecuted for libel on Thomas Jefferson
Burr previously had an office at the corner
| OF Ceuaf ana Nassau StreetS, Dut on MS
election to the Vice-Presidency he aban-
doned the profession of the law. The
directory records him thus: ''Aaron Burr,
NicePresidcnt of the United States Rich
mond Hill" His place was in the suburbs
of the city, and had been occupied by very
distinguished men. General Washington
used it as his headquarters in the summer
of 1776, and after the establishment of the
federal government Vice-President Adam:
lived there until the removal to Philadel
phia. Burr was the third historical
character who occupied the noted dwelling
and his name has clung to it longer thar
that of his predecessors. The building
remained as lfte as 1910 and was at tha