The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1889-12-12
r BURR'S PLOT.

AAHON bONN fLOl.
Hts A"ds-s"". Attempt q" Pound sn A"-
tnrrstic Empire in the Southwest.
From the Louisville Cuurier .,ournal.
A natural sequence of the recent article
in the CoNrier-.JoUrn0f, ON Joseph Hamil-
ton Davicss, would he one of the conspir-
acy of Aaron Burr ana his treacherOtis
schemes, AS unfoldeh i'm his arrest and
trial at Frankfort. i'm 1905, for reason.
For n brief time his political intriRucs agi-
tated kentucky as no individual incident
ever did before ar ever has since. His
worse than ungratcful treatment of those
who trusted him; his treachery toward
them, and the point-blank falschOots i'm
which he indulged to accomplish his own
reasonable ends, have scarcely n parallel
in modern history. Mann Butler, the his
torian. slys: 'Colonel Burr, the late
vice-presidcnt, who. by his intriRucs of
-over-reaching ambition, had lost the con-
fidence of the country, visited Kentucky,
and after making some stay at
Frankfort, i'm a retired manne proceeded
ON his way through all tho principal points
Of the western country from st. Louis to
New orleans. In the ensuing August
Colonel Burr returned Ia lexington, ON
his way eastward of the mountains. The
desperate consequences OF these visits
will appssar in the succeeding year. They
pared to Milton's immortal fancy of the
visits of Lucifcr tn the newly-created
Eden, before he planned his m~achinations
brilliant McCIung. following in the foot
steps Of Butler, after abiding tn the visit
gives his probable Intentions IA follows:
''The groundwork of his plan undoubtedly
was tn rganize u military force upon the
and wrs>st from Spain am indefinite por.
ton Of her territory adjoining the gulf of
MssisS' s, Tss .o smSrss;Sg S gsw %. Fl the
and the adjacent territory. was. either by
force or persuasion, IN become - part of
wa. 10 be the capital and Burr the chief.
under some one of the many names which
i'm modern times disguise despotic power
essential aud Indispensable features of
the plan. Hut IL circumstances were ia
further and the whole country west OF the
Alleghenies was tn he wrested from
the American union and To become
pirs." '''" Oh ~" "'" """ '''k''"'e "-
Locking hack through the long vista Of
hrst.-1uartcrs q q century AZ this ponder.
of political Influences. and taking into
consideration the geographical lines and
enterprise of Burr does not appear so
wild and chimcrical as some of the early
writers seemed to regard il. Kentucky
had long been excited, and. withal. dis
ssontentssi over the restricted navigation
OF the mississippi river. and WAS i'm n
piotter. IL was by thc Mississippi that
the most available markets-in fact.
almost the only markets accessible to
chance of securing this water highway for
her commerce by u change OF allegiance,
was a project at least worth earnestly con-
siderinG. She had never been so thor
otIghly welded To the mother states as to
feel amy serious panH at Withdrawing from
them, b,it, on the contrary, had mors, than
once thought OF separation and independ-
ence.
INCEPTION or u PROJECT.
of "a century before Burr's intrig,ics. when
George Rogers Clark and John Gabriel
Jones were sent tn the virginia legislature
To represent to that body the wants OF
Kentucky, and secure some means of de-
Tense, the ''council of safety" refused to
let them have $40 pounds of gunpowder
for the defense of the Kentucky settle
mcnts unless Clark would become pcrsor-
ally responsible Tor il. This he indig-
nantly refused. rcmarkinR 'that n country
which was not worth defending was not
worth claiming" and strobe out of the
room. determined TO return to kentucky
the formation OF an independent state
Then, when u project was inauguratcd for
the west tina would secure them the navi-
CATION of the Mississippi river, u IL not
strange that MANY. and among the most
blame?
Of Kentucky i'm the establishment of this
western empire that this article Ii To treat.
hut tile treason OF Aaron Burr ana his
treachery toward those who trusted him.
With cold-blooicd Indifference, rarely
evincesl 10y the most degraded criminals,
he deceived them by the grossest misrep-
RESERVATIONS, denying with n cold eifront-
cry his connection with any enterprise in
imical TO the welfare Of the United States
government. OF such N character WAS
his written declaration tO Henry Clay. who
refused to defend him without such guar
antee. Under date Of December I, 1sO6,
he wrote to Mr.. Clay as follows: ~ have
no design. nor have ] taken any measure
to romo u dissolution of the union. or "A
separation of any one or more of the
states from the residue. 1 have neither
published a. line on this subject, nor has
any one through my agency or with my
knowledge. i have mo desire tn intermcd'
die with the government or To disturb the
tranquility of the United States. nor OF
it's territories nor any part OF them. l have
neither issued, nor signed. promised a
commission TO anybody for any purpose.
/ do not own u musket, nor bayonet, nor
any single article of military stores, no
does any person for me by my authority
- my kno1ledQe. Nv yiewa have been ex.