The Beaumont enterprise. [volume] (Beaumont, Tex.) 1904-current, 1904-10-09

There are few people, perhaps, who
lnlW that the great Southwestern
scheme ami dream Of Aaron Burr act
mlly came Ia naught On the Sabine
river through tho alleged IroaeheTy
81 Gen, James Wilkinson, at one time
lieutenant general Of the army Ol the
United States.
II histo y is true, the idea OF Burr
was IA establish somewhere in the
southwest republic ar empire, in
which hg was Ia have been the chief
ruling spirit, and around which Mexico
MD Probably all the central American
states were Ia have been American
lied ana added m the proper time,
iurr's ambition in this direction
seems Ia have been the two-f0ld re-
suit Of political disappointment and a
desire flr revenge, II could not he
li0von at his trial that he Intended To
disrupt the American union by any
specific act that could be called overt,
Int on the contrary 10 establish an
Independent government In the south
west ont OF foreign Territory, To
which. under the conditions then oN'
iHling in the Mississippi valley, the
people Of the southern part OF the
United States would come. ultimately.
The treaty of Paris, In 1883, paced
tho western boundary Of the United
States M the Mississippi liver, but
SEaln owned the territory of lnulslana
~ this time and this territory crossed
the Mississippi and took In large
slice of country on It's eastern bank,
In the trcaly, therefore, Great Britain
had no authority 10 guarantee rights
Of American navigation On the Missis'
sippi river below her pre.revOlutionary
Inc. During the unconstitutional
pcriud-that Is TO say, from 1888 toI
1889, American pioneers had been
pouring through the passes and water
gaps of the Allcghenies and settling
In the fertile valleys of what Is now
Tennessee and Kentucky. These peo'
pie were not ADVENTUROUS squatters,
lat were actual settlers. who came
with their AK and hoe to build homes,
clear farms. subduc the wilderness ana
j., due lime add new stars to the Amer
lean constellation. which they had
helped To make beyond the mountains.
hose valleys became quite populous
and an immense amount of produce OF
various kinds was made ready each
year by the cOlonists. There was but
one market for all this region, and
that was New Orleans. the Spanish
town al The mouth OF the Mississippi
river New Orleans, though small,
was still n great cntrcpot for vessels
from The eastern shores of the United
States. as well as various other parts
of The world, ana through it all the
t;aflic OF the Mississippi valley must
pass or pcrforcc take the long. tedious
and dangerous route over the Ale
ghcny mountains to the cities on theI
Atlantic scaboard. Realizing the con
dtion of things and acting possibly
through spirit of revenge the Spanish
Governor of New Orleans laid n con
Gscatory embargo upon all American
commerce or traffic that came from
tie territory up the river. The effect
Of this embargo was to para!yze trade
and rctard development of all kinds
IN the Mississippi valley, because it |
was from New Orleans that these pco-
ple got their supplies and to New Or
leans that they sold their produce.
A protest was placed before Con
ercss with the request that Spain be |
made to raise the embargo at New
Orleans.
For some reason not definitely I'M
derstood, Congress paid little atten-
ton to the matter. and. to make mat
tors worse, John Jay. who was at that
period American minister at Madrid, |
actually entered inlo a treaty with
Spain, by the terms of which the
United States agreed to abondon ALL
Gains to the right Of free navigation
at the mouth of the Mississippi for a
period of twenty-five years.
The report of this proposed treaty |
fell like a thunder bolt upon the set
tiers of the Tennessee and Kentucky !
country. who saw in its fulfillment
utter ruin to their hopes and homes !
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