The sun., 1919-11-02
Old Documents Link Five Families
in U. S. With One of Lafayette's
Companions and May Serve Many
Others Having Similar Traditions
BY STERLING HEILIG.

luIlDuS are erecting LdlaSettt Sldtue
to recall his resignation from the gar
rison of that city to offer his sword
to America.
Dave was born in Strasbourg, but of
Spanish origin, the family having the
status of "old Christians" though of
Jewish race. Dave lived in New Or
leans, where he founded a family, pos
sessed a mansion, and told his grand
children all about landing at Charles
ton (Georgetown), S. c., with Lafay-
cite and the young officers from Pasa-
jes."
And his present day descendants,
now become five American families
naturally proud of the whole business,
asked me to look for proofs in France.
To please the families 1 hunted for
Dawes sailing. Il mean Lafayette'sO
Probably l should have found moth
ing had I not been on summer vaca-
ton with a man who has since become
famous-Paul Mantoux, French-E Eng
lish oral translator of the Big Four's
private meetings Of the Peace Con-
ference: which has won for him
Frances Secretariat of the League of
Nations, a 100000 job. when it be-
gins. Paul MantouX, at that time
professor of history in the Ecole Cen
trale and lecturer on the same in the
London University courses, introduced
me to Prof. Halphen photography
and history of the University Of
Bordeaux He turned me over to q
favorite of his, an extraordinary young
photographic sleuth-M. Rene Borden,
licencie and diplome and all.
Where Search Was Made.
Thus we went chasing through a
mass of stuff. much of 1t not previ-
ously examined, In an adequate way.
perhaps, for near 100 years or more.
Complete searches were made in (a)
the CRETE (registry) of the Tribunal
Of Commerce, Bordeaux (nothing). (b)
The fonds dump of papers of the
Admiralty of Guyenne in the depart
mental archives of the Gironde. (c)
The fonds at the Depot des Archives
de la Marine at Bacalan (nothing).
And a fond (sub-dump) of spices not
yet classified" coming only the year
previously from the CRETE of the
Tribunal of Commerce above men
llOHeu III lub uepdI IIllSIildl dLSilNCo Al
the Rue d'Avian, Bordeaux.
And there at last we found the lads
who had been lost so long--nothing
less than the passenger registry OF the
Victoire, Capt. Leboursier, voyage
of Lafayette and his companions to
America from Bordeaux (Pauillac),
March 21-4, 1777!
The thing exists in five entries of a
port passenger register running from
January 10, 1777, to May 10, 1878, a
MS. volume in quarto, numbered mo.
81" in some forgotten "provisory
classification" and bound in discolored
parchment.
One queer detail strikes any one i'm
mediately. In this old port book
where passengers on various ships
Raynal." &C., follow pell-mell, each
entry for the Victoire has been
licked off by some ancient arrow in
lead pencil-of the time when they
were lead. and not plumbago. Doubt
less they were made In that first Of all
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. the Kings en-
missaries were looking up" Lafayette
and bis crowd!
Here we found old Dave, his name
, licked off, all complete In the fifth
entry he follows the Chevalier de Buis-
son, and his name in the body of the
certificate looks as much like Dave
Lepas" as Louis, Levas or Lopes!
Such little inaccuracies were moth
ing to the sea dogs of Bordeaux. La
fayette is registered as "Sr. Gilbert
du Moitie, Chevalier de Chavaillac." "
and he signs (as you will perceive)
!"Gilbert du Motier" without the II"